Distinguished Guests Arrive

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

This feeling of growing strength was something Shi Lan was beginning to find addictive.

Shi Lan opened her attribute panel, and sure enough, significant changes had appeared.

Host: Shi Lan

Cultivation: Body Tempering Realm Level 1

Root Bone: 7 (One in ten thousand)

Techniques: Vajra Divine Fist (Entry), Jade Forging Art (Level 1)

Divine Ability: Heavenly Eye Qi-Observing Technique (3-Star)

Strength Evaluation: Newly initiated into the martial path

A new category, Divine Ability, had appeared on the attribute panel, with the Heavenly Eye Qi-Observing Technique listed within it.

"What does Divine Ability mean?"

[Special skills that do not belong to techniques, divided into two categories: Acquired Divine Abilities and Innate Divine Abilities.]

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

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

As a system backend drifting outside the myriad worlds, his understanding of spatial power had long since reached the level of near-rules.

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

Shi Lan returned once again to that vast, white space.

"Environment simulation, Shi Clan martial arts arena."

"Mirror image generation, Vajra Divine Fist entry level."

Shi Lan issued two commands. Due to the lingering shadow of her previous clash with Shi Feng, she did not set the mirror image's strength too high.

The surrounding environment transformed into the Shi Clan martial arts arena, and a mirror image with an appearance identical to Shi Lan stood before her.

[Mirror image generated, environment simulation complete. Do you wish to begin the battle?]

"Start!"

Shi Lan tensed her entire body, staring cautiously at the mirror image before her.

Fortunately, the mirror image's strength did not exceed Shi Lan's imagination; she could still track its movements.

After she issued the start command, the mirror image suddenly stepped forward and charged at her.

The two were less than five zhang apart, and after two breaths, the mirror image reached Shi Lan, launching a straightforward, unadorned punch directly at her face!

Feeling the gust of wind rushing toward her, Shi Lan's expression shifted slightly as she raised her arms to protect her face.

"Bang!"

With a muffled thud, Shi Lan retreated four or five steps before barely stabilizing her stance. Her arms hung limply, numb and throbbing with swelling pain.

Shi Lan gasped softly. This was only the entry level of Vajra Divine Fist, not even counting the Jade Forging Art; how could it be this strong?

Without giving Shi Lan time to think, the mirror image followed up quickly, changing its fist into a claw—a move from the Vajra Divine Fist called Vajra Dragon-Capturing—and grabbed at Shi Lan's shoulders!

Shi Lan quickly pulled back, the swelling pain in her arms beginning to fade rapidly under the influence of the Jade Forging Art.

However, the mirror image's speed was much faster than Shi Lan's; it caught up in two steps and seized her shoulders.

Shi Lan felt as if her shoulders were being clamped by iron pliers, and her arms, which had just regained some strength, hung limply once again.

Shi Lan cursed inwardly, "This is bad."

The mirror image had no emotional fluctuations, only the instinct for combat. After pinning Shi Lan, it raised its knee without hesitation and slammed it violently into her abdomen.

Shi Lan hunched over, retching up sour fluid, her stomach spasming.

Before she could recover, the mirror image raised its arm and delivered an elbow strike, hammering the back of her head.

"Crack."

"System, the cultivation of that mirror image just now wasn't just Body Tempering Realm Level 1, was it?"

Shi Lan gently rubbed the back of her head, still feeling a lingering fear. That elbow strike hadn't killed her instantly, so the mirror image had followed up with three or four more blows.

It had given her a firsthand experience of what it felt like to have one's skull cracked open.

Dying twice in a single day, Shi Lan felt completely miserable.

[The mirror image's cultivation is Body Tempering Realm Level 3. To reach the minor mastery stage of Vajra Divine Fist, one requires at least Body Tempering Realm Level 3.]

Shi Lan calmed her emotions, a complex look appearing in her eyes. If she could, she truly never wanted to experience the feeling of death again.

But if a Body Tempering Realm Level 3 mirror image could kill her so easily, it was proof of just how weak her strength and combat experience truly were.

The Lingyang Realm was vast, and the Body Tempering Realm was merely the bottom of the barrel. The path she had to walk had only just begun.

Shi Lan's gaze gradually firmed. Dying in the system's virtual space was far better than losing her life out there.

"Generate mirror image, Vajra Divine Fist not yet mastered."

[Mirror image generation complete, please set the specific cultivation level for the mirror image.]

"Body Tempering Realm, first stage."

The night passed in the blink of an eye.

Just as the sky began to brighten, Shi Lan withdrew from the system's virtual space.

Throughout the night, Shi Lan had not 'died' again. With their strength being comparable, she held an advantage in recovery thanks to the Jade Forging Art.

A night of combat had allowed Shi Lan to grow from being passively beaten to barely holding her own against the mirror image, only occasionally falling into a disadvantage. Her combat experience had seen significant progress.

After a simple wash, Shi Lan went to the courtyard and finished a set of Vajra Divine Fist.

Just as she was preparing to return to her room to finish off the remaining small piece of Blood Ginseng, Shi Feng walked into the courtyard.

Seeing Shi Lan covered in sweat, Shi Feng was slightly stunned. Having not seen her for a night, Shi Lan's entire spirit and energy seemed different.

She exuded a strong sense of vitality.

"Is something the matter?" Shi Lan asked, puzzled.

Shi Feng snapped back to his senses and bowed, "Eldest Young Master, a distinguished guest has arrived at the mansion. The Patriarch requests your presence."

"A distinguished guest? What kind of guest? Do I know them?" Shi Lan was curious.

"You do not know them, but they have a deep connection to you." Shi Feng's expression became somewhat strange.

"A connection? What kind of connection?"

"You will know once 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 in front of a rather imposing hall.

Before Shi Feng could knock, the voice of Shi Tianlu came from within.

"Come in."

Shi Feng stepped aside and gestured with his hand.

Shi Lan stepped forward and pushed the door open. Shi Feng followed behind her, and they walked slowly into the hall.

Shi Tianlu sat in the high seat of honor, with Su Lanyue sitting beside him.

The seats on the left were occupied by many familiar faces: Shen Mingqiu, the two brothers Shi Yiming and Shi Qinghu were all present, along with several of Shi Tianlu's friends, who were essentially Shi Lan's uncles.

Everyone with any status in the Shi Mansion was here. Seeing this lineup, Shi Lan was somewhat surprised. What kind of distinguished guest had arrived to warrant such a grand reception?

Shifting her gaze to the right, it appeared somewhat empty compared to the left, with only three people: one old man and two youths. One of the young men was glaring at her, his eyes filled with hidden anger.