Yun Guan, a modest courtyard. Shen Jun hurried along the garden path towards the three-story pavilion. A beautiful maidservant emerged from within, and upon seeing him, she smiled charmingly, "Young Master Shen, the Prince is waiting for you in the study. Please go in quickly."

Shen Jun barely spared her a glance, merely nodding before ascending the pavilion in haste.

Shortly after, Ye Qin arrived at the small courtyard. Within a radius of one li, not a single mortal could escape the probing reach of his divine sense.

He wondered whom Shen Jun had come to see in this secluded courtyard.

Ye Qin looked up at the pavilion.

Only one room on the third floor was lit by lamps and candles, clearly indicating activity within.

Quite intrigued, Ye Qin paused to consider, then dissolved into a white shadow, slipping silently into the building. With a light touch of his feet, he executed several nimble leaps, arriving at the third-floor room bathed in lamplight, where he immediately suppressed his aura.

"Master!"

Shen Jun entered the study and bowed respectfully to a middle-aged Daoist seated before the writing desk, observing all the rites due to a disciple. He, the esteemed top scholar of the Southern Liang Kingdom, once praised by the Emperor as possessing the talent of a prime minister, held a reputation in Qingzhou for his proud reserve based on merit.

To see him show such deep reverence to a Daoist of the Qingyun Temple was astonishing. If this were spread abroad, it would surely shock many.

The middle-aged Daoist had an unremarkable but dignified appearance, clad in Daoist robes, carrying an air of solemn authority as he sat behind his desk, slowly grinding ink. Once the ink was perfectly prepared, he opened a volume lying on the desk titled Liao Clan's Immortal Cultivation Records. Holding a brush, he spoke in a placid tone, "Jun'er, recount the proceedings from today's dueling arena."

"Yes, Master."

Shen Jun patiently waited for the Daoist to finish grinding the ink. After completing his prostrations, he stood up and, before his master's face, meticulously re-enacted the entire debate among the four participants at the arena.

Ye Qin, meanwhile, was leaning against the outside of the door. Though separated by a wooden panel, the events unfolding inside were as vivid as if they were before his eyes.

What astonished him was that Shen Jun recited the exact words spoken by Daoist Wu, Master Changzhi, Nun Wuchen, and himself, perfectly. The entire day's heated debate, spanning tens of thousands of words, was reproduced without a single misplaced word or error in sequence, even capturing the subtle nuances of tone with uncanny precision. To achieve such a feat could only be described as breathtaking genius.

The middle-aged Daoist, too, moved his brush with lightning speed, transcribing the vast majority of Shen Jun's account verbatim onto the thick, yellowish paper of the manuscript. However, when Shen Jun uttered the phrase "deep meditation, forgetting self, unstained," the Daoist's hand faltered slightly, and his expression shifted subtly.

Shen Jun’s heart immediately panicked. He dropped to the floor, hastily pleading, "Disciple was wrong, please punish me, Master! I should not have spoken aloud the Immortal Cultivation technique you taught me."

The middle-aged Daoist remained silent for a long moment, then shook his head. "Forget it; it is not a major transgression. This Sitong Jing cultivation method is one of the orthodox techniques passed down from the ancient cultivators. Letting a phrase or two escape will cause no great harm. However, you must be more cautious in the future to avoid attracting the attention of true Immortals.

What we are currently undertaking is the cornerstone for establishing the Immortal Path of the State of Mind. My Liao lineage has devoted generations of effort to this. Once successful, it will create an eternal, boundless merit for the Immortal Path. Naturally, you will share in this contribution. Therefore, try to avoid any mistakes."

"This disciple understands and dares not be the least bit negligent! Master, when will this disciple be able to truly cultivate immortality?" Shen Jun was filled with elation. To have a place on the Immortal Path was the very object of his lifelong desire.

The middle-aged Daoist did not look up, speaking indifferently, "That depends on your spiritual root of comprehension. If you can fully grasp the Sitong Jing method I taught you, you will naturally attain the day of enlightenment and immortality. Continue on; record the remainder of what was said."

Outside, Ye Qin nearly burst into laughter.

What 'spiritual root of comprehension'? This was clearly leading the disciple astray! Shen Jun possessed no spiritual root whatsoever. Even with prodigious talent, he could never form a Nascent Soul within his body to cultivate immortality. The middle-aged Daoist was clearly using immortality as bait, obtaining Shen Jun's service for nothing.

However, Ye Qin observed that the middle-aged Daoist possessed magical power—he was a genuine cultivator, already at the mid-stage of the Qi Refining Realm. Moreover, it seemed this Daoist practiced the Sitong Jing himself.

As a cultivator in the Foundation Establishment Stage, Ye Qin could control his spiritual energy with ease. Once he suppressed his aura, he seemed to vanish from the world entirely. The middle-aged Daoist’s cultivation was too low—only the fifth level of Qi Refining—and he couldn't even control his own aura. Thus, even at close range, the Daoist failed to detect Ye Qin's presence, yet Ye Qin could easily gauge the Daoist's cultivation level.

Though Shen Jun was a genius, he was utterly unaware that he lacked a spiritual root, pursuing the Immortal Path with blind devotion, wholeheartedly serving the middle-aged Daoist without suspicion. He quickly recounted the rest of the conversation, which the Daoist diligently recorded.

After recording everything said at the dueling arena, the middle-aged Daoist began to analyze it sentence by sentence, occasionally seeking Shen Jun's opinion. Shen Jun was exceptionally learned. The Daoist ruthlessly struck out all the useless platitudes in the record with one sweep of his brush, retaining only those sentences that seemed pertinent.

The master and disciple labored through the night, researching tens of thousands of words.

Ye Qin listened outside the study for a long time until his curiosity became unbearable. Finally, he pushed open the door and chuckled, "..."

Hearing the door open, the middle-aged Daoist, still deep in concentration, started in alarm. Seeing who stood there, his shock intensified.

Shen Jun turned around, filled with anger and shock. This was the man who had stopped and questioned him on the road! How had he followed him to this pavilion? He roared, "Who are you? Get out!"

"Silence!"

The middle-aged Daoist quickly restrained Shen Jun, rose from his desk, bowed respectfully, and said, "This junior, Liao Yifan, did not anticipate a senior's arrival and failed to welcome you properly. I beg your pardon!" Facing this Foundation Establishment cultivator, he would not dare offend even if he had ten times the courage.

Ye Qin stood still, giving a slight nod, calmly accepting the bow. "My surname is Ye."

Shen Jun was dumbfounded, rooted to the spot, unsure what to do. Someone who earned such deference from his master must be an Immortal, and certainly a far more advanced one. He snapped back to awareness and immediately prepared to kowtow.

Ye Qin raised a hand, and a gentle force arrested Shen Jun's descent, preventing the full prostration. He smiled faintly, "Your master is a cultivator, and according to Immortal etiquette, the senior is respected. However, you are merely a mortal from the secular realm; you do not need to observe Immortal etiquette when greeting a senior. If you bow to me without reason, I won't have any welcoming gift for you. Step back to the side for a moment; I have a few things to ask your master."

In Ye Qin's view, Liao Yifan, the four members of the Zhang family, and Shen Jun represented three distinctly different categories of people. Liao Yifan was a cultivator who considered himself part of the cultivation world. The four Zhangs, though they had once practiced the Immortal Way, had withdrawn to focus on factional conflict, effectively demoting themselves to martial artists—they were now fundamentally martial artists. Shen Jun was a mortal obsessed only with achieving immortality.

Ye Qin's approach to these three groups was entirely different. Since Liao Yifan was a cultivator, Ye Qin treated him according to cultivation protocols. For the four Zhangs, who were martial artists, Ye Qin adhered to the principles of martial brotherhood. As for Shen Jun, the mortal, he dealt with him as a man of the secular world.

Shen Jun's face flushed as he stepped back several paces.

Liao Yifan felt uneasy. "May I ask what the senior wishes to inquire about?"

Ye Qin fixed his gaze on him and then spoke plainly, "You are surnamed Liao; are you from the Prince of Liao’s manor?"

Liao Yifan’s heart skipped a beat. Why was this person asking about his family background? He replied with extreme caution, "I dare not presume. This junior is a peerage granted by the Emperor of the Southern Liang Kingdom—the Master of the Prince of Liao’s Manor in Qingzhou. However, this junior has long ceased involvement with the manor's affairs, focusing only on secluded cultivation here in the Qingyun Temple for many years. My father has always managed the manor. Has the senior come regarding the Prince of Liao’s manor?"

Ye Qin smiled, "Not exactly. A friend of mine from the martial world had a minor conflict on a faction’s territory with the Prince of Liao's people. It’s a trivial matter. Matters of the martial world should be settled by martial rules; there's no need to instigate conflict between cultivators.

My coming to Qingyun Temple to hear about the Dueling Assembly was purely accidental. It was only when I unintentionally overheard the content of the Sitong Jing spoken by your 'disciple' that I became curious and decided to investigate."

Liao Yifan relaxed slightly. As long as it wasn't trouble for him, it was fine. The disputes between the Prince of Liao’s Manor and the martial factions were indeed minor, hardly worth offending a Foundation Establishment cultivator over.

Ye Qin paced to the desk, looking at the thick volume of Liao Clan's Immortal Cultivation Records, and turned to ask, "You are researching the State of Mind?"

Liao Yifan replied, "I dare not conceal anything, this junior is indeed researching the State of Mind."

"Tell me about it."

"The senior’s cultivation of the State of Mind has already reached a profound level. This junior has only just begun to learn; I dare not display my meager skills before an expert."

Ye Qin frowned in surprise. "I have never cultivated the State of Mind. Why do you say my State of Mind attainment is already high?"

Liao Yifan’s expression immediately became strange. "Does the senior not cultivate the Sitong Jing?"

"That is correct."

"This junior cultivates the Sitong Jing as well. Although this technique primarily focuses on cultivating the Nascent Soul, it simultaneously nurtures the State of Mind. Since the senior has reached the Foundation Establishment realm, you must already possess a high level of attainment in the State of Mind. Compared to you, this junior is far behind and dare not speak carelessly."

Ye Qin was genuinely stunned this time. Although he practiced the Sitong Jing technique, very few people cultivated it, and he had never heard that it had any other effects.

"You seem quite knowledgeable about the Sitong Jing?"

"I know a little. An ancestor of the Liao family once participated in revising the Sitong Jing." Liao Yifan hesitated slightly. "My ancestor's name was Liao Tianyu. Has the senior perhaps heard of him?"

Ye Qin shook his head; he had never heard the name.

"My ancestor had a title; perhaps the senior has heard of it: True Man Guangyu." Liao Yifan offered his ancestor's name hoping Ye Qin might be lenient on him out of respect for the Liao lineage's ancestor.

"What? True Man Guangyu, one of the Eight Rogue Cultivators of Xian Yuan City, is the ancestor of the Liao family?"

Ye Qin was astonished. The Eternal Flame he held was collected by True Man Guangyu. This renowned late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator from antiquity was an ancestor of the Liao family. The heritage of the Liao family was surprisingly ancient.

He felt a spark of respect for the Liao lineage. Regardless, a cultivation family with such a long history deserved reverence.

"Indeed."

Liao Yifan nodded, his demeanor suddenly deflated.

His ancestor's name once shook the world; merely mentioning it should cause many seniors to recognize it. Families in the Lingwu Cultivation Realm that had produced a Nascent Soul cultivator were exceedingly rare. It was a pity that the family's glory belonged to the distant past; now, the Liao family had fallen so low as not to have a single Foundation Establishment cultivator remaining. If he hadn't mentioned it, few cultivators would even know that True Man Guangyu had descendants still living.

"The Sitong Jing is divided into a Preliminary Chapter, Upper Chapter (Qi Refining), Middle Chapter (Foundation Establishment), and Lower Chapter (Core Formation). Numerous ancient cultivators from the Lingwu Cultivation Realm participated in its revision and practiced it personally.

The Liao ancestor, True Man Guangyu, participated in revising the Lower Chapter, the Core Formation stage section, Baoyuan Shouque (Embracing Primal Unity and Guarding Deficiency). Therefore, my Liao family understands the Sitong Jing better than ordinary cultivators."

"Then allow me to ask a few confusing questions."

"This junior will answer whatever is known."

"The Qi Refining Chapter of the Sitong Jing has a significant flaw. Do you know why?"

"This... it is rather a long story."

Liao Yifan looked troubled, but seeing the determined look in Ye Qin's eyes, he reluctantly continued, "In fact, ancient cultivators practiced both Nascent Soul and State of Mind simultaneously. Most cultivation manuals left from that era allowed for the dual cultivation of both. The Sitong Jing is the most orthodox example of this."

Then, Liao Yifan spoke with slight disdain, "But later, many successive cultivators believed the Sitong Jing had flaws, and that the State of Mind held little importance. These later cultivators abandoned the cultivation of the State of Mind and focused solely on the Nascent Soul. This led to the later, more popular techniques like the Golden Spirit Scripture, Wood Spirit Scripture, Fire Spirit Scripture, Water Spirit Scripture, and Earth Spirit Scripture. Those later cultivators thought they had created superior methods, but they failed to realize these methods focused only on Nascent Soul cultivation, barely touching upon the State of Mind. They will pay the price for this."

Ye Qin asked, "My final question: what exactly is the function of the State of Mind?"

Liao Yifan bowed deeply, "Senior, it has only one primary function: the higher the State of Mind realm, the easier it is to maintain one's true heart, preventing confusion and delusion, and resisting bewitching formations! It is also crucial for passing the Inner Demon Tribulation."

Half an hour later, Ye Qin departed the Qingyun Temple, returning to the Qinghong Inn where he closed his doors to refine pills.

Once the ten-day period had passed, he bid farewell to the Zhang siblings, Xia, and Fan. After all, the Southern Liang Kingdom was merely a stopover; he had no intention of lingering. The Prince of Liao's Manor was no match for the Northern Twenty Factions; it was only a matter of time before the Northern Factions seized Qingzhou City.

Ye Qin then journeyed to the Qingyun Temple, met with Liao Yifan one last time, and left the borders of the Southern Liang Kingdom.

A dazzling streak of sword light flashed across the sky of the Southern Liang Kingdom as Ye Qin flew toward the distant Northern Qi Kingdom.

Ye Qin stood atop the flying sword, letting the fierce astral winds whip at his robes and hair. In his mind, however, he was dwelling on the bargain he struck with Liao Yifan before leaving.

He did not believe a word of what Liao Yifan had said earlier.

What was this talk of the higher the State of Mind, the easier it was to maintain one's true heart?

If it were that simple, why would this Prince of Liao abandon his prestigious title to hide away in the Qingyun Temple, meticulously researching the State of Mind?

For a mere Qi Refining cultivator—what use was even a high attainment in the State of Mind?

The Inner Demon Tribulation was a trial only faced by Nascent Soul cultivators; it was virtually irrelevant to Qi Refining practitioners. How many cultivators in the world dared to boast they could reach the Nascent Soul stage?

Of course, Ye Qin had not resorted to forcing Liao Yifan to tell the truth. If Liao Yifan was determined to conceal something, it would be difficult for Ye Qin to compel him.

But every person has a weakness, something they desire.

Liao Yifan certainly had a desire.

"A single Foundation Establishment Pill! You must possess something of great value in your manor. As long as what you give me is satisfactory, I will give you one Foundation Establishment Pill," Ye Qin stated in a level tone, watching Liao Yifan's reaction.

Liao Yifan's expression finally changed drastically. Foundation Establishment Pills were held by cultivation sects, and great cultivation families possessed small quantities. But for a declining family like the Liao's, it was utterly unattainable. Such a rare elixir was not something one could simply buy.

"Senior, this junior possesses an ancient manual in the manor, left by an ancient cultivator. It requires an extremely high State of Mind attainment to unleash its full power. However, due to poor preservation, this manual is partially damaged. This junior has been cultivating diligently in the Qingyun Temple for decades to compensate for the damage and to raise his State of Mind, hoping to use the wisdom of mortals to repair the damaged sections. This manual is worth an entire Foundation Establishment Pill. But the book is in the Prince of Liao’s Manor; I must return to retrieve it."

"Very well. I will return here in three days. We exchange the book for the pill then. I trust there is no falsehood in your words, or you know the consequences. The Liao family might be utterly annihilated, vanishing completely from Qingzhou."

Sweat beaded on Liao Yifan’s back. "I dare not deceive you."

Ye Qin flew away on his sword, clutching a thin manual—the Heavenly Heart Technique he had traded for a Foundation Establishment Pill from Liao Yifan. The one in his hand was a copied transcript; the original remained with Liao Yifan.

The Prince of Liao's Manor did not have many ancestral texts; years of calamities had caused most of the Liao family's library to be lost. This was the last ancient volume remaining.

The original Heavenly Heart Technique was damaged—reportedly, several centuries ago, an ant infestation in the manor gnawed away a portion of the manual. The Liao family had spent generations striving to repair this Heart Mirror Technique, but had never managed to complete the restoration.

The Liao family members, limited in their genius, devised a plan to harness the intelligence of mortals to repair the Heavenly Heart Technique. The highly famous Dueling Assembly in Qingzhou, masquerading under the banner of the Heavenly Heart Sword Style, was secretly instigated and pushed forward by the Liao family from behind the scenes.

As for whether the Liao family had other motives for manipulating the Dueling Assembly, Ye Qin could not know.

The most astonishing aspect of the Heavenly Heart Technique was that its power relied purely on the level of the State of Mind, not on Nascent Soul cultivation.

Reaching each subsequent State of Mind realm allowed one to unleash greater power.

In other words, a cultivator who had never practiced the State of Mind could not cultivate this technique at all.

Fortunately, the Sitong Jing simultaneously cultivated both Nascent Soul and the State of Mind, making it perfect for cultivating alongside the Heavenly Heart Technique. Ye Qin was spared the torment of needing to focus solely on cultivating the State of Mind.

This volume of the Heavenly Heart Technique was divided into three layers.

The first layer, "Accumulating Momentum," required reaching the State of Mind level of the Sitong Jing's Upper Chapter to begin cultivation. Upon completion, one could accumulate momentum, significantly enhancing the power of released magical energy, increasing it by at least thirty percent beyond the original base.

The second layer, "Shadow of Illusion," required reaching the State of Mind level of the Sitong Jing's Middle Chapter. Upon completion, one could project one's magical energy to form illusory mirrors, conjuring a demonic shadow that radiated an imposing aura one to nine times greater than one's own power.

However, while the demonic shadow was overwhelmingly imposing, capable of terrifying and frightening enemies, it could not inflict damage, as it was purely an illusion.

The third layer, "Immortal Body Manifestation," required reaching the State of Mind level of the Sitong Jing's Lower Chapter. Upon completion, the illusory shadow could be solidified, capable of harming the enemy. But this solidified shadow could not be maintained indefinitely and would naturally dissipate.

Ye Qin flew on his sword toward the Northern Qi Kingdom to rendezvous with his fellow disciples, including Yan Xuan, and complete his training.

Due to the immense distance, even traveling by sword would take nearly half a year to arrive. Along this journey, Ye Qin naturally devoted considerable effort to cultivating the Heavenly Heart Technique.

He had considered whether the damaged and repaired content of the Heavenly Heart Technique might carry side effects.

But after carefully reading through it, Ye Qin slowly realized that cultivating this technique carried no adverse effects. Unlike Nascent Soul cultivation, where a mistake could lead to a backlash against the soul or deviation into madness, errors in cultivating this technique would, at worst, only result in an inability to unleash sufficient power.

After considering these factors, Ye Qin began cultivating with peace of mind.

After running the Heavenly Heart Technique protocol, in just over half a month, he completed the cultivation of the first layer.

A cultivator at the first level of the Foundation Establishment Stage could normally transform a several-inch-long flying sword artifact into a ten-foot-long beam of light. The higher the cultivation, the larger the flying sword that could be manifested, and the greater the resulting power.

To Ye Qin's great delight, the flying sword he projected stretched to thirteen feet—clearly a full thirty percent larger than before.

It must be noted that upon reaching levels beyond the Foundation Establishment Stage, every slight advance required arduous years of diligent effort to accumulate power. Otherwise, one would have to rely on external aids: superior artifacts or higher-tier cultivation manuals, just to match the progress gained from years of steady cultivation.

This first layer of the Tianxin Jue, granting Ye Qin a thirty percent surge in his sword aura's power, was quite astonishing.

Of course, its application carried a drawback: it required a brief moment of charging before the enhanced sword aura could be unleashed. Without this preparatory build-up, the full thirty percent power increase could not be accessed. This meant there were inherent gaps in his attack cadence, and if the charging phase was interrupted by an opponent, the technique would fail to take effect.

As for the second layer of the Tianxin Jue, the "Demonic Shadow Art," it presented a significant hurdle.

Ye Qin practiced it repeatedly, hundreds of times, yet still couldn't grasp the key to conjuring an illusory shadow of himself using his spiritual energy. He even began to suspect that the cultivation manual itself might contain an error, preventing his success.

But Ye Qin refused to concede defeat.

He was all the more eager for this second layer of technique.

The ability to manifest a Demonic Shadow identical to himself—one whose sheer presence could be amplified by one to nine times beyond his own natural aura as he cultivated—was undeniably captivating.

The more attention this shadow drew, the more naturally it would distract from his actual presence.

Should he ever find himself in a perilous situation, he could release the Demonic Shadow, using it as a decisive means to break free from an enemy’s pursuit.