Ye Wen slowly withdrew his palm, standing tall on the spot. It wasn't that he was deliberately posing, but because that single strike had nearly exhausted all his internal energy; his Dantian felt almost empty, with only a wisp of Neiqi remaining as he quietly focused on regulating his breath.

Moreover, this was the first time he had channeled so much inner power into one blow, and the pressure it exerted on his body was far greater than he had anticipated. Had his right arm meridians not become accustomed to the flow of inner energy, that strike might have not only injured his opponent but also severely damaged his own channels.

“I never expected that constantly tempering the meridians in my right arm to facilitate quicker and smoother summoning would actually yield such a benefit. If this is the case, perhaps I should practice more like this in the future; there might be other unexpected surprises.”

Ye Wen did not realize that very few martial artists in the Jianghu would concentrate all their inner power into a single strike like that; even the handful who did so relied on specialized cultivation manuals and incantations.

To describe what Ye Wen had just done in terms familiar to him, it was akin to the Emei Sect’s technique, ‘Buddha’s Light Universal Illumination,’ but that move was based on the Emei Nine Yang Art, a first-rate cultivation method derived from the Nine Yang Divine Skill, and it also required specific methods for practice and energy manipulation—it wasn't simply about unleashing all one’s inner power haphazardly.

For Ye Wen, who had only practiced internal arts for half a year, and moreover using the neutral and harmonious Quanzhen cultivation method, to use his inner energy in such a violent manner… one could only say he was incredibly lucky not to have crippled his arm meridians.

This was the flaw of lacking a true master’s guidance. Even though Ye Wen had no shortage of martial arts manuals, he completely lacked the experience of cultivating advanced martial arts, and with no one to instruct him, he remained ignorant of many common-sense principles, forced to discover them through slow, personal exploration.

Suffering physical repercussions from misusing his inner energy this time was only fortunate because it happened during a match; if this realization had come during a life-and-death struggle, even multiple lives wouldn't have been enough to compensate.

However, this reckless action of his brought about an unexpected outcome. Besides the killing power being as formidable as he had hoped, by ‘instantly defeating’ the somewhat ‘notable’ Yu Dahai in one move, Ye Wen was instantly perceived by everyone present as a truly unfathomable master.

He believed that as these observers spread the word, his reputation would quickly be established in Shushan County and the surrounding regions. After that, it was unlikely anyone would dare look down on him again. Only then, revealing his Shushan Sect, could he truly raise its banner.

Furthermore, having learned his lesson from recklessly using his inner energy, he understood that although inner power was formidable, it was best not to use it carelessly, lest some major problem arise with nowhere to turn for help.

Standing quietly for a moment, Ye Wen finally felt considerably better, and his nearly depleted Dantian was already regenerating some internal energy, which slowly began circulating along the path defined by the Quanzhen method, gently nurturing the slightly injured meridians.

Only then did he have the capacity to notice his surroundings.

At this moment, the men who had formed a circle to watch the fight no longer looked at Ye Wen with the initial scorn, but with complex gazes laced with awe, jealousy, and envy. Of course, those facing him directly—Yu Dahai and a few others—still held fear in their eyes.

Ye Wen could somewhat guess why they viewed him this way, but he wasn't inclined to pay them any mind. He had matters of greater concern at hand.

Turning towards Chief Escort Yue Hang, who was seated not far away, Ye Wen clasped his hands in a salute and asked, “Though this bout arose from private grievance, it has served to display my martial skill. I wonder if it meets the approval of Chief Escort Yue?”

Having taught the insolent Yu Dahai a sufficient lesson, Ye Wen had already dismissed the man’s affair. Of course, if that man or the gang behind him acted foolishly and sought revenge, Ye Wen wouldn't mind seeing their sect completely vanish.

The current Ye Wen possessed that confidence. In fact, based on his estimation, even without resorting to such a reckless fighting style, Yu Dahai wouldn't have been able to defeat him. Since this man was a top figure within his own gang, Ye Wen surmised that the gang leader, even if stronger, couldn't be significantly better. Therefore, Ye Wen felt entirely justified in believing that the entire gang posed no real threat to him.

Dealing with such weaklings—eradicating them if he wished—felt perfectly natural to Ye Wen, especially since they had provoked him first.

However, what preoccupied him most remained whether his martial arts had impressed Yue Hang. He was confident that if Yue Hang wasn't blind, he wouldn't miss the opportunity to recruit him, as practitioners skilled in internal martial arts were exceedingly rare in all of Shushan County.

Even Yue Shan Escort Agency’s Chief Escort was merely a martial artist who practiced external arts for many years, his best skill being a family-inherited set of broadsword techniques.

“Young Hero Ye is too modest. With your skill, if you were willing to aid me, Yue Hang, I would be overjoyed,” Yue Hang was neither blind nor foolish. If he could secure the help of a master like Ye Wen, this escort mission would undoubtedly be much safer. Thus, he immediately stood up and advanced to meet him, showing an enthusiasm that bordered on reverence, as if Ye Wen were a senior master. As for addressing Ye Wen as ‘Young Hero,’ he was being considerate of the information he’d received that Ye Wen’s sect had been destroyed, thus avoiding the title ‘Sect Master Ye.’

Yet, no one found Yue Hang’s enthusiasm excessive. After all, the Jianghu is a place where the strong rule supreme. Ye Wen had just displayed his power, earning him the right to such treatment.

Yue Hang even immediately ordered an extra seat to be placed beside his own, inviting Ye Wen to sit beside him and observe the remaining matches. Even when Ye Wen pointed out flaws in the other fighters, nobody thought it inappropriate.

As for Ye Wen, he found nothing wrong with it either. Yue Hang’s warmth not only made him feel quite satisfied but also confirmed something for him: “It seems my current skill level can be considered master-tier; otherwise, the experienced Yue Hang wouldn't be treating me with such fervor. I wonder which tier exactly? Could I possibly qualify as fifth-rate…”

Although he drew many pleasing conclusions, he maintained the necessary composure. After listening to the gossip among so many martial artists yesterday at the inn and now on the sidelines, he had finally gained some understanding of the current world and the distribution of power.

Take Pingzhou, where he currently stood: it was actually the region with the weakest martial presence in the entire nation, or rather, the current dynasty.

Because this territory was a state newly carved out by the founding Emperor of this dynasty; prior to this dynasty, it had simply been desolate land, sparsely populated, until this dynasty officially occupied and designated it as a separate province. In the early days of the dynasty, large numbers of people were even relocated from the interior to truly develop the region. Only in the last two decades had this province truly matured, achieving the scale of counties and prefectures that had endured through several dynasties.

However, the Jianghu forces in Pingzhou were only just beginning to take root. This explained why, despite having numerous sects, the overall environment was chaotic, yet the majority of these sects were extremely weak.

Compared to the major sects with inheritances spanning decades or even centuries, sects in Pingzhou with ten or twenty years of history were considered venerable establishments (the Shushan Sect was one such case, albeit in a rather sorry state). Upon learning this, Ye Wen felt fortunate that he had transmigrated to an area where power structures were complex yet generally weak, providing him with the most suitable environment for development.

If he had arrived elsewhere, near the heartland of established, deeply rooted, super-sized sects, even possessing the ‘golden finger’ of the summoning manual, he probably couldn't have built a truly strong sect. He might spend his entire life living under the shadow of his ‘neighbors.’ Worse still, he might even invite the unified suppression of those traditional forces—in such places, the cake was already mostly divided, leaving little room for newcomers to compete.

In Pingzhou, none of these issues existed. Here, possessing a certain degree of strength was enough to suppress most existing sects. And once he sufficiently boosted his fame, establishing a truly formidable rising power capable of challenging those traditional heavyweights might even be possible.

During his conversation with Yue Hang, Ye Wen gained even more detailed insight into the current situation, learning that the entire realm was divided into Nine Provinces, and based on some of Yue Hang’s descriptions, the topography seemed strikingly similar to the country he inhabited in his previous life, a fact that greatly surprised Ye Wen.

“Could there be some connection?” However, he currently had no way to probe the nature of that connection.

Besides this, he also learned that the current ruling dynasty was the Shang Dynasty, which caused his expression to become peculiar for a while, before he heard that the current emperor’s surname was Wei.

Beyond this, he also learned that the strongest sect in all of Pingzhou was the Tiger Mountain Sect (Hushan Pai), a local sect that seemed to adhere to Daoism. It was established when Pingzhou was first founded and had since grown strong.

The other major force was the Heavenly Joy Gang (Tianle Bang); however, the Gang’s main headquarters was not in Pingzhou, but in Yuezhou; what they had in Pingzhou was merely a branch office. Even so, this branch was one of the two strongest factions in Pingzhou.

This not only demonstrated the sheer strength of a true major gang like the Heavenly Joy Gang but also underscored how fragile the martial power in Pingzhou truly was. In such a large province with many sects, only the Tiger Mountain Sect could barely match the strength of the branch office of an external power.

Furthermore, Ye Wen discovered another piece of information during their talk, one directly related to his current ‘job’: Chief Escort Yue Hang, besides recruiting capable fighters for assistance here, had also sent a letter inviting the True Man Liu of the Tiger Mountain Sect to come.

It was rumored that this True Man Liu was a senior figure of considerable standing within the Tiger Mountain Sect. If he indeed arrived, Ye Wen could use the opportunity to gauge the true strength of the Tiger Mountain Sect and, by extension, deduce the power level of the Heavenly Joy Gang.