Honored Guest at the Door

Shi Lan finished an entire set of the Vajra Divine Fist, drenched in sweat as every inch of her sinews and bones was tempered once more.

The feeling of her strength increasing was becoming somewhat addictive to Shi Lan.

Shi Lan opened her attribute panel, and sure enough, it had changed considerably.

Host: Shi Lan

Cultivation: Body Tempering Realm, First Layer

Root Bone: 7 (One in Ten Thousand)

Techniques: Vajra Divine Fist (Beginner), Jade Forging Art (First Layer)

Mystical Ability: Heavenly Eye Qi-Observing Technique (Three Stars)

Strength Evaluation: Just Set Foot on the Martial Path

A new section had appeared on the attribute panel: Mystical Ability. The Heavenly Eye Qi-Observing Technique was listed there.

"What does mystical ability mean?"

[Special abilities that do not belong to cultivation techniques. They are divided into acquired mystical abilities and innate mystical abilities.]

Seeing that it was already late, Shi Lan took a bath, changed her clothes, and lay down on the bed. Her consciousness once again sank into the system's virtual space.

Sensing Shi Lan's soul fluctuations disappear from her body once more, the figure in Shi Lan's mind grew increasingly solemn.

As the system backend, drifting beyond the myriad heavens and worlds, his understanding of spatial power had long since reached a level approaching the laws themselves.

To silently send his host's soul into an unknown space right before his eyes, without allowing him to detect even the slightest spatial fluctuation, was simply too terrifying.

Shi Lan returned to that vast, snow-white space.

"Environmental simulation: Shi Clan martial arena."

"Generate mirror image: Vajra Divine Fist, beginner level."

Shi Lan issued two commands. Because of the trauma left by her earlier clash with 'Shi Feng,' she did not set the mirror image's strength too high.

The surroundings once again transformed into the Shi Clan martial arena. A mirror image whose appearance was identical to Shi Lan's was already standing before her.

[Mirror image generated. Environmental simulation complete. Begin battle?]

"Begin!"

Shi Lan's entire body tensed as she cautiously fixed her gaze on the mirror image before her.

Fortunately, the mirror image's strength had not exceeded Shi Lan's expectations. She could still see its movements clearly.

After she issued the command to begin, the mirror image suddenly strode forward and charged at her.

The two were less than five zhang apart. After two breaths, the mirror image reached Shi Lan and drove a plain, direct punch straight at her face!

Feeling the forceful wind rushing toward her, Shi Lan's expression changed slightly, and she raised both arms to guard in front of her.

"Bang!"

With a muffled thud, Shi Lan staggered back four or five steps before barely managing to steady herself. Her arms drooped limply, numbness and waves of swelling pain spreading through them.

Shi Lan sucked in a slight breath. This was only the Vajra Divine Fist at the minor mastery stage, without even factoring in the Jade Forging Art—how could it be so powerful?

Before Shi Lan could think further, the mirror image had already caught up. Its fist transformed into a claw as it used one of the Vajra Divine Fist's moves, Vajra Dragon-Capturing, to seize Shi Lan's shoulders!

Shi Lan quickly retreated, while the swelling pain in her arms began to fade rapidly under the effects of the Jade Forging Art.

However, the mirror image was much faster than Shi Lan. It caught up with her in two steps and seized her shoulders.

Shi Lan felt as though her shoulders had been clamped in iron pincers. Her arms, which had only just recovered a little strength, drooped helplessly once more.

Shi Lan inwardly cried, This is bad.

The mirror image had no emotional fluctuations whatsoever, only the instinct to fight. After restraining Shi Lan, it did not hesitate to drive its knee upward, slamming it viciously into her abdomen.

Shi Lan doubled over and vomited a mouthful of sour fluid, her stomach convulsing violently.

Before she could recover, the mirror image raised its arm and smashed an elbow into the back of her head.

"Crack."

"System, that mirror image's cultivation wasn't just at the first layer of the Body Tempering Realm, was it?"

Shi Lan gently rubbed the back of her head, her face still filled with lingering fear. That elbow strike had failed to kill her outright, so the mirror image had followed up with three or four more blows.

It had allowed her to personally experience exactly what it felt like to have her head split open.

After dying twice in a single day, Shi Lan felt absolutely awful.

[The mirror image's cultivation was at the third layer of the Body Tempering Realm. To reach minor mastery in the Vajra Divine Fist, one's minimum cultivation must be at the third layer of the Body Tempering Realm.]

Shi Lan calmed herself somewhat. A complicated look surfaced in her eyes. If she could, she truly did not want to experience the feeling of death again.

But even a mirror image at the third layer of the Body Tempering Realm could kill her so easily. This was enough to prove just how weak her strength and combat experience were.

The Lingyang Realm was vast. The Body Tempering Realm was merely the lowest of the low. The road Shi Lan had to walk had only just begun.

Shi Lan's gaze gradually hardened. Dying in the system's virtual space was still far better than losing her life outside.

"Generate a mirror image. Vajra Divine Fist, uninitiated."

[Mirror image generation complete. Please set the mirror image's specific cultivation.]

"First layer of the Body Tempering Realm."

The night passed in the blink of an eye.

The sky had only just begun to brighten when Shi Lan exited the system's virtual space.

Shi Lan had not 'died' again during the night. With their strength roughly equal, she already had the advantage in recovery thanks to the Jade Forging Art.

After a night of fierce combat, Shi Lan had grown from passively taking a beating to barely holding her own against the mirror image, only occasionally falling into a disadvantage. Her combat experience had improved by leaps and bounds.

After washing up briefly, Shi Lan went into the courtyard and completed a set of the Vajra Divine Fist.

Just as she was preparing to return to her room and finish off the remaining half of the Blood Ginseng—

Shi Feng walked into the courtyard.

Seeing Shi Lan drenched in sweat, Shi Feng was slightly taken aback. After not seeing her for just one night, Shi Lan's entire spirit seemed different.

She radiated a powerful vitality.

"Is something wrong?" Shi Lan asked in confusion.

Shi Feng came back to himself and cupped his fists. "Eldest Young Master, an honored guest has arrived at the mansion. The clan master requests your presence."

"An honored guest? What kind of honored guest? Do I know them?" Shi Lan asked curiously.

"You don't, but they have a very deep connection with you." Shi Feng's expression grew somewhat strange.

"A connection? What kind of connection?"

"You'll know when you go."

"I understand. Wait here for a moment."

Shi Lan turned and entered her room. After taking a bath and changing her clothes, she followed Shi Feng out of the courtyard.

Shi Feng led Shi Lan toward the front courtyard, eventually arriving before the doors of a rather grand hall.

Before Shi Feng could knock, Shi Tianlu's voice came from within.

"Come in."

Shi Feng stepped aside and raised a hand to gesture.

Shi Lan went forward and pushed the door open. Shi Feng followed behind her as they slowly entered the hall.

Shi Tianlu sat in the main seat on the raised platform, with Su Lanyue seated beside him.

Quite a few familiar faces sat on the seats to the left. Shen Mingqiu was there, as were the brothers Shi Yiming and Shi Qinghu. Several of Shi Tianlu's friends were there as well, counting as Shi Lan's uncles.

Everyone in the Shi Mansion with even a little status had gathered here. Seeing this grand display, Shi Lan was somewhat surprised. What kind of honored guest had arrived that they needed to make such a great commotion?

She shifted her gaze to the right. Compared with the left side, the right was rather empty. There were only three people: one old and two young. One of the young men was glaring at her, anger faintly concealed in his eyes.