After finishing breakfast under the occasional sparking glances of his junior sister, Ye Wen endured the ache in his foot and returned to his room. He had originally intended to wander around his sect's grounds today, but after that thump from Ning Ruxue, he decided staying put was the better option.

Sitting cross-legged, Ye Wen began to contemplate what he could occupy himself with.

He practiced the Quanzhen fundamental technique daily, especially since he had no idea how many people might show up to challenge him during the upcoming ceremony; thus, he dared not neglect his cultivation.

He had already cultivated during the Zishi hour last night and practiced again upon waking this morning. To cultivate again now would not only be unhelpful but could easily damage his meridians.

So, what about practicing hand-to-hand combat skills? The only techniques he had meticulously studied were the Taizu Changquan (Grand Ancestor Long Fist) and the lethal "Three Immortals Sword" move. These two sets were already ingrained in him. While practicing them intermittently could maintain proficiency and perhaps lead to new insights, there was no immediate rush for that.

More importantly, if someone came to cause trouble in a few days, relying solely on these two sets left Ye Wen feeling uncertain. Although the Shushan area truly lacked masters skilled in profound techniques, the martial arts he currently knew were hardly superior. He had previously relied on his internal cultivation method, which was rare in the Pingzhou region, but he couldn't be sure that the challenger wouldn't be a martial arts expert knowledgeable in advanced internal arts.

"Putting others aside, the man who defeated this original body half a year ago understood internal arts. I still haven't forgotten the sensation of that palm strike."

Although Zhang Gui’s strike was not a purely internal family palm technique—the internal force merely followed the momentum of the blow into Ye Wen’s body—it confirmed to him that Zhang Gui knew internal arts. Even if the internal force wasn't overwhelming, there was no guarantee Zhang Gui hadn't held back.

"Furthermore, that man didn't seem to be the highest-ranking member of the Zhengquan Sect. If we consider that, the strength of the Zhengquan Sect isn't as weak as I previously estimated."

A while ago, Ye Wen achieved minor success in his internal arts and descended the mountain feeling exhilarated. Subsequently, everything went smoothly, which made him slightly complacent, causing him to forget that he inhabited a perilous world. Now, calming down and reflecting carefully, he realized he had become somewhat arrogant.

"Having only achieved minor success with a rudimentary Quanzhen fundamental technique, I almost forgot what sort of character I truly am?" Calming himself, Ye Wen immediately reflected internally, constantly warning himself: "You are nothing, not a great hero, nor a top-tier master. Even though people respectfully call you Sect Leader Ye, you must remember you are merely a small shrimp, who likely wouldn't even cause a ripple in the great Jianghu."

"Moreover, besides a thoroughly basic Taizu Changquan and a Shushan Sword Style that doesn't even rank among the fifth tier, you possess no truly presentable skill. Must I resort to bullying illiterate peasants who know neither profound martial arts nor internal energy?"

After some self-reflection, Ye Wen reset his mindset, believing the most urgent task was to improve his strength; only then could he continue to survive.

"As for enjoying a comfortable life, the wonderful existence of a Sect Leader—that can wait until I have mastered peerless divine skills." More importantly, the Shu Mountain Sect was now showing positive signs of development. Ye Wen was no longer a lone wanderer only concerned with his own life (perhaps occasionally considering his inexpensive junior sister). The sect was established, disciples had been recruited, and now there was another junior brother. Increased influence also meant increased responsibility; the burden on Ye Wen’s shoulders was slowly growing, adding pressure.

"If I wish to remain securely in this position, I still need strength."

Not to mention his junior sister, who still harbored ambitions for his seat, he dared not forget the disharmony among the various sects on Shushan. All of them harbored thoughts of swallowing others to strengthen themselves, perhaps even unifying Shushan and becoming a renowned force throughout Pingzhou and the entire Jianghu. Even he held such aspirations, so how could he afford not to guard against others?

Among them, the Zhengquan Sect, currently the largest power on Shushan, already had past grievances with his sect. A clash between the two families was inevitable, merely a matter of time, with no possibility of avoidance.

After all, a feud that could lead to the destruction of a sect could not be dissolved with a few pleasant words. Perhaps while he was lost in enjoying his life here, they were plotting in secret how to eliminate him and swallow the enterprise he had painstakingly built.

Taking a deep breath, Ye Wen felt the gradually growing inner energy in his Dantian. He wished this energy could expand enough to fill all his meridians; then, relying solely on his internal arts, he could sweep across all of Shushan and even Pingzhou, and he wouldn't have to fear these wretches.

However, internal cultivation progress could not be rushed. The Quanzhen Fundamental Technique was not some heaven-defying art that dramatically boosted power upon completion. Steady, incremental progress was the advantage of Quanzhen internal arts, while slow advancement was their drawback. But, like everything else in the world, no martial arts manual was perfect.

"Speaking of skills that make one a master upon completion, I actually know one, but..." Ye Wen shuddered, recalling the immense sacrifice required to cultivate that particular art, and immediately dismissed the thought. "I haven't been pushed that far yet. Moreover, there are other internal arts that are much better than that one without side effects."

He lowered his gaze to the ring on his right hand and began calculating when his last summoning occurred: "It's just that the things summoned by this thing are completely random; I have no idea what the next one will bring."

If it happened to summon something useful to him, that would be great, but he worried it might conjure up something bizarre again. When he was solely focused on cultivating on the mountain, he didn't mind; after all, with so many opportunities throughout the year, even with bad luck, he could summon a few usable items.

But now, he slightly resented this mechanism. "If only I could decide what I wanted."

Alas, life is filled with more dissatisfaction than satisfaction. If he could obtain whatever he desired, unifying the Pingzhou martial arts world wouldn't be impossible within three to five years. But things weren't that easy right now.

Calculating mentally, he realized that barely a month had passed since the last summoning before he descended the mountain until today. It was time for another summoning. Ye Wen felt a surge of joy; regardless of what was summoned, it was always another chance to become stronger.

However, he wasn't hasty. First, he stood up and surveyed the surroundings of his room, then he closed the door tightly and fastened the window. After ensuring no one was near his room, he returned to the bed, calmed his mind, and slowly circulated the now somewhat established Quanzhen internal energy.

Ye Wen didn't immediately send his internal force into the ring. Instead, he warmed up by circulating his internal energy to gently comb through that particular meridian. Then, he used the cultivation method to restore the internal energy he had just expended. Only then did he begin to mobilize the internal energy from his Dantian, guiding it along the just-combed meridian towards his right index finger.

In fact, this specific meridian held some significance. Ye Wen also knew about the Six Meridian Divine Sword from Tian Long Ba Bu, reputed to be the greatest sword technique under heaven. One of its paths focused on this very meridian, and upon mastery, it allowed one to shoot invisible sword energy from the right index finger to engage enemies with sword techniques.

He had idly considered whether mastering this meridian meant he had learned one path of the Six Meridian Divine Sword. But a moment’s thought made him realize it was sheer wishful thinking.

Putting aside the method of transforming internal force into sword energy for the Six Meridian Divine Sword, he didn't even know the specific movements for any of its paths. Furthermore, the internal energy requirement for this sword style was impossibly stringent. Even in the original narrative, Duan Yu only managed it by relying on the Northern Darkness Divine Art, known as a massive cheat. Subsequently, as the Northern Darkness Divine Art was lost, this technique became legendary, and later, because no one could practice it, even the legend faded, demonstrating how harsh its cultivation demands were.

With the meager internal energy Ye Wen currently possessed, even if he managed to figure out how to convert internal force into sword energy, he would probably collapse from internal energy depletion after shooting out just a tiny bit of sword energy, let alone defeating an enemy.

Therefore, several months ago, he abandoned this idea and honestly focused on gradual cultivation, hoping that as his strength increased, he could obtain better internal arts and achieve a complete upgrade.

However, in just over half a year, he truly didn't expect his internal cultivation to improve significantly. Even if he obtained another internal cultivation manual now, it probably wouldn't be much different from the Quanzhen Fundamental Technique. Therefore, he currently hoped more to obtain a superior manual for external combat moves.

He held the same hope this time, even aspiring most dearly for a sword manual, so his Three Immortals Sword could genuinely serve as a killing move.

Feeling his internal force being slowly devoured by the ring, and as his own internal energy was depleted, Ye Wen vaguely heard the now-familiar sound. Then, he felt a weight settle in his hand. He deliberately opened his left palm, and an object appeared upon it.

Ye Wen did not rush to open his eyes. Instead, he circulated the Quanzhen Fundamental Technique to recover some internal energy before slowly ceasing his practice. Only then did he focus his gaze on the not-too-thick, thread-bound booklet in his hand.

It resembled the ancient style thread-bound books he had seen online or in bookstores, with a blue cover and reading order from right to left. The only discordant element was the book's title, written in simplified characters on the antique booklet.

Upon clearly seeing the two characters written on it, Ye Wen was both surprised and delighted. He was happy because this time he had indeed summoned an external combat technique manual that he currently needed, one perfectly suited for him and immediately usable.

What slightly depressed him was that this time it still wasn't a sword technique. The Three Immortals Sword would likely continue gathering dust in a corner. However, he wasn't foolish. The strength of the Three Immortals Sword lay in its continuous moves, forcing the opponent to expose weaknesses before delivering the killing blow—it didn't necessarily have to be executed with a sword.

"If that's the case, paired with this technique, the Three Immortals Sword isn't entirely useless..." He gently stroked his left hand, and Ye Wen smiled as he looked at the palm technique manual clutched in his hand. Clearly written upon it were two large characters: Mian Zhang (Soft Palm).