For one, he couldn't figure out the necessary connection between that group of blood kin and Taoists messing around with a common iron whip, and the matter of the God-Smashing Whip.

At the most mundane level, it could simply be that the Taoists and the vampires had some business dealings, and the iron whip was a gift—perhaps it was an antique, highly valuable for collection!

Although Ye Wen entertained other theories, the crucial problem was that there were no photographs of the God-Smashing Whip; he couldn't even ask Chris to compare the ordinary iron whip to see if it was the same.

Indeed, Ye Wen suspected that the group of blood kin had deliberately produced a fake God-Smashing Whip. He didn't know its purpose, but the timing of the event was too coincidental to dismiss the possibility.

Practicing his martial arts in the courtyard, Ye Wen moved from the Tai Zu Long Fist to the Soft Palm, and then executed a few moves from the Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms. He didn't use any actual internal force, so externally, it looked like a set of very ordinary palm techniques, indistinguishable from those displayed by martial arts masters back home.

However, Jiang Ning, standing nearby, knew that this seemingly young man was actually an ancient monster who had lived for an unknown number of years (though he was barely over thirty). Furthermore, the moves that appeared unremarkable in others could unleash terrifying power in his hands.

She had clearly seen the roaring dragon head manifest when Ye Wen struck out yesterday; she absolutely did not believe she had misjudged or hallucinated.

Once Ye Wen finished his routine, Jiang Ning suddenly asked with curiosity, "May I ask what martial arts Senior was just practicing?"

Wiping his brow, Ye Wen replied casually, "Just some of our sect's common palm arts. The first set I practiced was the Shu Mountain Long Fist, followed by the Soft Palm. As for the last set..." Ye Wen chuckled, "That set of palm arts is called the Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms!"

Jiang Ning, who was pouring water into her mouth at that moment, immediately spat out the mineral water upon hearing this, coughing violently before she could catch her breath.

"Eigh-Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms?"

Ye Wen feigned ignorance, "What? Is something wrong?"

Jiang Ning scrutinized Ye Wen up and down with a look of suspicion for quite a while before finally saying, "Senior's sect should be the Shu Mountain Sect, not the Beggar's Gang, right?"

"Hahaha!"

Ye Wen laughed heartily, finding the girl's reaction exactly as he had anticipated—she had indeed thought of the origin of the Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms from Jin Yong's Wuxia novels.

But since he dared to state the true name of the palm technique, he had naturally prepared a suitable excuse: "Little girl, you are ignorant!"

"How am I ignorant?" Jiang Ning glared, puffing out her cheeks, only missing the scissor-hand pose and pigeon-toed stance to complete the picture.

Ye Wen smiled and casually explained, "Although our sect primarily focuses on martial arts, we are fundamentally a Taoist sect, inheriting the Quanzhen orthodoxy! You probably don't know that the Quanzhen Sect itself possesses a set of techniques called the Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Revolving Palms, right? This skill has always belonged to the Quanzhen Sect. After our sect inherited the Quanzhen orthodoxy, this technique was passed down along with it. Later, after some deletions and alterations, it evolved into the current Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms!"

Jiang Ning blinked, genuinely surprised by this connection she hadn't known existed, and she truly hadn't known the Quanzhen Sect possessed such a technique.

Ye Wen inwardly smirked, as his speech wasn't entirely fabricated; it was all based on truth. However, his Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms had very little actual connection to the historical Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Revolving Palms of the Quanzhen Sect—fortunately, the Quanzhen Sect was long gone, having vanished from both the secular world and the cultivation world, so no one could verify his claims leveraging the Quanzhen name.

More importantly, the foundational martial arts of the Shu Mountain Sect were indeed based on Quanzhen techniques (albeit the fictional Quanzhen Sect). If one traced the lineage, they were indeed connected. Even if the sect masters of the Wudang and Huashan Sects were questioned, they would likely only nod in agreement to the Shu Mountain Sect being a 'brother' sect.

Having said all that, Ye Wen felt the performance needed to be complete. He shook his head and sighed repeatedly, "It's a pity that although this palm art is exquisite, several moves have been lost. When it reached me, only twelve palms remained; truly a pity..."

He continued shaking his head and sighing all the way back to the villa for breakfast, leaving the girl Jiang Ning behind to muse, "This Senior isn't so detestable after all; at least he's quite amicable toward me..."

The days passed slowly in this manner. Ye Wen spent his entire day practicing in the villa, occasionally visiting the club to make a public appearance on television.

Meanwhile, Chris and Zheng Ying, while cultivating, were busy gathering intelligence on the situation with the Holy See, trying to ascertain the progress of events.

Of course, in private, Chris also leveraged the connections he had built over the years to investigate the matter of the blood kin. After all, his years of moving about hadn't been wasted; he had accumulated some contacts. More importantly, Ye Wen felt that the business with the iron whip and the Taoists was intimately linked to the current God-Smashing Whip incident. If they could investigate thoroughly, perhaps they could find a breakthrough from another angle.

Since this was not a task that could be completed overnight, everyone settled down to wait patiently in Liverpool.

During this time, Ye Wen finally resolved to teach Zheng Ying the Pure Yang Limitless Art. He hoped this pure yang cultivation method could neutralize his Li Fire Physique. While the greater possibility was that Zheng Ying's Pure Yang Limitless Art might undergo peculiar changes, perhaps becoming quite different from the original technique, Ye Wen decided to let him proceed.

"I will guard your practice; you can rest assured! If any accident occurs, your master can still preserve your life!"

His words were not empty boasting; with his current cultivation level, protecting Zheng Ying's life was no difficult task. Moreover, he had prepared in advance, condensing a Primordial Violet Lotus and placing it above Zheng Ying's Baihui acupoint as a precaution. Should any abnormality arise within his body, the violet lotus would spontaneously activate to heal him.

Zheng Ying then began practicing the Pure Yang Limitless Art according to the incantations Ye Wen taught him. He had practiced the Quanzhen Inner Formula a few days prior; although he hadn't truly generated any formidable internal energy, he now possessed experience in cultivating internal arts. As for the sense of Qi, the abundant Li Fire energy within his body served as the best internal force.

Ye Wen taught him the Pure Yang Limitless Art precisely to use its properties to refine the volatile Li Fire energy within him into a more peaceful Pure Yang energy. Even if success was uncertain, if his Li Fire energy could be slightly calmed, it would stop harming him.

As he cultivated over time, his body would naturally grow stronger, meaning he wouldn't lose his life due to the formidable inner force, and might even gain powerful cultivation as a result.

Unfortunately, Ye Wen's intentions were sound, but he discovered that when Zheng Ying began practicing the Pure Yang Limitless Art to refine the Li Fire energy, that Li Fire energy immediately revolted, nearly charring Zheng Ying to a crisp. It was only due to Ye Wen guarding him closely that disaster was averted.

Suppressing the Li Fire energy back down, Ye Wen's brow furrowed. "This matter is trickier than I anticipated. It seems the few cultivation methods I previously considered are unsuitable for your current situation!"

He had originally thought the Pure Yang Limitless Art or the Supreme Pure Yang Art would perfectly counteract Zheng Ying's condition. Now it seemed he needed something truly potent, perhaps a cultivation method focused solely on the fire attribute to truly cure him.

"Or perhaps... a technique of extreme cold..."

Ye Wen had considered waiting until he reached the fourth level of the Primordial Chaos Bell Art and using its Azure Snow Icy Force to neutralize some of the Li Fire energy within him, but that felt somewhat wasteful.

"Perhaps I need to search for another skill for you. Don't worry; our Shu Mountain Sect may lack many things, but we certainly don't lack techniques!"

This statement wasn't entirely an exaggeration. With the protection of his ring, perhaps no sect in the world possessed more techniques than his Shu Mountain Sect. However, the random nature of what the ring offered gave him a headache.

"If all else fails, I'll have to let him practice the Absolute Domain or the Seven-Colored Battle Qi!"

Both sets of techniques featured the characteristic of transforming all energy for personal use. Zheng Ying's Li Fire energy was, fundamentally, a form of energy. If he practiced those arts, it wouldn't be entirely out of the question, putting him in a situation similar to Chris, and it would rapidly push his strength to a high level.

"If only Li Xuan were here; his Ice Soul Chill Art would be perfectly suitable! Having Li Xuan take Zheng Ying as a disciple would also be quite fitting..."

Having spent this time together, Ye Wen's perspective had shifted slightly. He didn't want such a young man to perish, even if it meant losing a disciple.

Several more days passed. Zheng Ying's condition remained unchanged; whenever he attempted to cultivate martial arts, the Li Fire energy within him would immediately rebel. Finally, seeing this, Ye Wen summoned him to his study and began to question him.

Indeed, after much deliberation, Ye Wen decided Zheng Ying should make the choice himself. He planned to lay out all the options before him and see how the disciple would decide.

"There are several choices before you now!"

Zheng Ying watched Ye Wen intently, quietly awaiting the options his master would present.

Ye Wen held up one finger: "The first option is similar to the current situation: wait for your master to slowly find a suitable technique to pass on to you. This will take a considerable amount of time, but once the right technique is found, given your situation, you can quickly advance that skill to a considerable level! The advantage is that your future development depends entirely on your personal effort; the disadvantage is that it will be a long, drawn-out process, and we don't know what accidents might occur in the interim!"

Ye Wen then held up another finger: "The second option is that I immediately teach you a set of techniques. This technique is extremely domineering. If classified under our nation's martial arts system, it would be considered an External Hard Skill!"

Saying this, Ye Wen suddenly chuckled, "Have you read the King of Fighters and Street Fighter comics from Hong Kong and Taiwan?"

"Ah?" Zheng Ying, who had been listening to Ye Wen's explanation with concentration, couldn't help but freeze. He hadn't expected Ye Wen to ask such a question suddenly. After a moment, he nodded, "Yes, I have!"

Ye Wen smiled, "I assume you already know what kind of martial arts your two senior brothers practice, right?"

Hearing this, Zheng Ying's expression became peculiar: "I do!"

He recalled how, the first time he learned that Tommy and Chris were actually practicing the Seven-Colored Battle Qi from the comics, he had almost bitten off his tongue in shock. Later, he heard it was because his master was bored and had 'copied' elements from the comics based on his own understanding. Still, he was speechless at his master's perverse sense of humor.

Thinking of this, he suddenly asked, "Does Master intend for this disciple to practice the Seven-Colored Battle Qi as well?"

Over these past few days, he had gained some understanding of Tommy's and Chris's situations, knowing that Chris harbored a constantly raging dark energy that was completely neutralized by practicing the Seven-Colored Battle Qi.

In a way, he was quite similar to Chris, except the Li Fire energy within him was even stronger, and since it was congenital rather than acquired like Chris's, it was more difficult to handle. But since the Seven-Colored Battle Qi could neutralize all energy and convert it into Battle Qi, his Li Fire energy should also pose no problem.

"Partially yes, and partially no!"

Ye Wen's answer left Zheng Ying feeling quite puzzled. Before he could press for more, Ye Wen provided the answer directly: "Since you've read the Hong Kong comics like King of Fighters, you must know what that kind of power is called and generally what it looks like..."

Hearing this, Zheng Ying's expression became even stranger: "Master... you didn't actually manage to concoct the Absolute Domain and the Ultimate Power, did you?"

"Bingo!" Ye Wen looked at Zheng Ying with the gaze of a mentor pleased with a promising student, completely unconcerned by Zheng Ying's appearance of nearly spitting blood. "Back then, I was traveling around everywhere, and besides experiencing the secular world, I was primarily focused on pondering various martial arts. Out of sheer boredom, I created quite a few techniques, some from comics, some from novels. The Absolute Domain is naturally one of them!"

Waving his hand to stop Zheng Ying, who was about to speak, Ye Wen continued, "The second method I can conceive for your current situation is to cultivate the Absolute Domain. This Absolute Domain takes all the energy within you and refines your body, elevating your physical form to an extremely high level. If cultivated to a profound stage, you could traverse the cultivation world relying solely on your physical body!"

More importantly, all of Zheng Ying's problems stemmed from his body's inability to withstand the Li Fire energy. If he practiced the Absolute Domain, using his inherent Li Fire energy to temper his own body, as soon as the Absolute Domain achieved initial success, he would no longer be harmed by his own Li Fire energy and could freely use that fiery ability. If Ye Wen then mischievously created a few signature moves, a knock-off Kyo Kusanagi would be gloriously born!

"As for later stages like the Ultimate Power, Cosmic Power, and so on, although I haven't created those yet, once you have the foundation of the Absolute Domain, you will naturally break through to the subsequent levels..."

This was also a characteristic of this power system: the powers were inherited along a single line. As long as one could break through, they would naturally comprehend the subsequent powers, unlike ordinary cultivators' techniques which required knowledge of the full manual to practice. He wasn't worried about the ring tricking him here; based on past records, the ring either wouldn't offer an item, or if it did, that item would be flawless.

By this point, Zheng Ying was moved! He had also seen the Hong Kong comics, and he vaguely understood the power of the Absolute Domain. It was impossible not to be tempted. In the original works, even practicing the Absolute Domain to only about 70% allowed one to fill the sky with flames, with visual and sound effects more astonishing than when Ye Wen or Bei He attacked yesterday. If he could master it, he would surely make a name for himself in the cultivation world.

Just as he was about to agree, Ye Wen immediately poured a bucket of cold water on his excitement: "Don't get happy too soon. You know the advantages of the Absolute Domain, now I must tell you the disadvantages!"

The disadvantage of the Absolute Domain was naturally that subsequent powers were already fixed, meaning the ceiling for his potential development was limited. If Zheng Ying could cultivate this power to its absolute peak and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with future masters, that would be one thing, but if he couldn't...

Ye Wen expected this warning would make Zheng Ying deliberate carefully, but it turned out his disciple saw things more clearly than he did.

"Master, if this disciple cultivates the Absolute Domain to its peak, what level might I reach?"

Scratching his head, Ye Wen found it hard to confirm, "That's hard to say; perhaps we'd have to spar to know! But I have roughly estimated that if the Absolute Domain can be cultivated to its highest level, one might become a figure comparable to a Earth Immortal!"

Hearing this, Zheng Ying hesitated no longer and immediately stated, "If the Absolute Domain can lead to the level of an Earth Immortal, and there are still the Ultimate Power and Cosmic Power beyond that, perhaps I might even reach the Ascension Realm before reaching the peak. A technique that allows one to reach Ascension—what more could this disciple ask for?"

Zheng Ying had been an employee of a special department, so he was quite aware of these matters, and Wang Zhao often told him things about the cultivation world. He also knew that Ascension was already a dream that was hard to grasp. Now that his master offered him a technique that could lead to Ascension, what dissatisfaction could he have?

"And what about after Ascension?"

Ye Wen thought far ahead, but Zheng Ying didn't necessarily think that far. He smiled, "That is too distant, and this disciple doesn't even know what the world is like after Ascension. Why dwell on such things?"

Ye Wen paused, then realized, "That's right, why dwell on such distant matters? We haven't even handled the current situation! Not only this disciple, but I myself have not yet reached the Ascension Realm, yet I am prematurely focusing on matters of the Celestial Realm. Am I perhaps being too ambitious?"

After some thought, perhaps because he hadn't encountered a worthy opponent recently, he had unconsciously become a bit conceited, feeling that this world couldn't contain him for long, yet he had overlooked that he himself was just an 'Earth Immortal'?

"You are right, why think so far ahead! Since you have made your decision, your master will impart the secrets of the Absolute Domain to you today!" With that, he explained the method of cultivating the Absolute Domain to Zheng Ying. What surprised Ye Wen was that almost immediately, Zheng Ying succeeded in mastering the Absolute Domain that very day.

What left Ye Wen somewhat speechless was that Zheng Ying threw out a burst of flame right in front of him while shouting, "Hissatsu!"—the kid was still a fan of the 'Eight Gods.'