[Erudition] Fate

At the same time, the white progress bar above his head instantly slid down by a small chunk.

"This ability..."

Tang San came back to his senses and looked toward Ye Yun in the distance, hurriedly retreating to dodge Xiao Wu's attacks.

No, I have to deal with Brother Yun first.

Tang San raised his palm and condensed Mystic Jade Hand, taking Xiao Wu's fierce kick head-on. Borrowing the force of the rebound, he stepped into Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, his figure drifting unpredictably as he shot straight toward Ye Yun.

Ye Yun smiled faintly and raised a hand, flinging the Harmony Hat above his head through the air. Over a dozen Gilded Chips shot out from the hollow of the hat like a sky full of throwing knives, cutting off Tang San's paths of movement.

Tang San kept his eyes fixed on the chips' trajectories. Those he could dodge with a sideways shift, he avoided; those he had no time to evade, he blocked with hard slaps of his Mystic Jade Hand. Crisp clangs of metal striking stone rang out one after another.

While Tang San was distracted and pinned down by the chips, Xiao Wu twisted her body, kicked off the ground, and leaped into the air again. Her supple waist flipped over, and a flurry of kicks wrapped in the glow of a yellow ring came rushing at him head-on.

"Blue Silver Binding!"

Tang San shouted in haste. Several blue-brown Blue Silver vines burst up from the ground, surging and weaving behind him into a thick vine shield that barely blocked Xiao Wu's chain of kicks.

But the white progress bar above his head was directly emptied. His spirit power suddenly stalled, and all the Blue Silver Grass outside his body withered and drooped.

Seizing the chance, Xiao Wu kicked out. Seeing this, Tang San instinctively condensed Mystic Jade Hand, crossing both palms in front of him, still confident that his defense was enough to withstand the blow.

But the instant hand and foot collided, a piercing agony shot along his arms and straight into his meridians.

"Bang—!"

Tang San's entire body staggered backward through the air and fell into the dirt. When he pushed himself up from the ground, both hands were numb, and the protective force condensed by Mystic Jade Hand had completely dissipated.

Mystic Jade Hand failed? How is that possible? The Mystic Heaven Skill is clearly circulating steadily inside me, so why did this happen?

"Brother, how did I do?"

Xiao Wu lifted her chin and moved up in front of Ye Yun, asking for praise.

"Mm, impressive."

Ye Yun gave her a thumbs-up. Xiao Wu was very pleased, her eyes curving into two crescent moons.

Tang San got up and rubbed his aching arms, then asked in confusion, "Brother Yun, just now my Blue Silver Grass and my self-created spirit skill suddenly stopped working. Was that the effect of your spirit skill?"

"Mm. The effect of my spirit skill is to give allies a breaking ability. As long as the enemy's toughness bar is broken, they'll lose all kinds of buffs and defensive effects for a certain period of time. Even their martial soul will be temporarily suppressed."

After hearing that, Tang San looked at Ye Yun's martial soul with envy.

In the days that followed, the three of them had several more sparring matches.

But the outcome had long since lost all suspense.

As long as Ye Yun stepped in to support one side, that side would inevitably take firm control of the battle and win with ease.

At the same time, inside the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

Sword Douluo Chen Xin, Bone Douluo Gu Rong, and Ning Fengzhi were discussing matters in the council hall with grave expressions.

"Uncle Sword, what you said is far too unbelievable. If all of it is true, then the current order of the entire Douluo Continent may be completely overturned."

Ning Fengzhi gently rubbed the jade thumb ring on his finger, his brow filled with worry. The continent now seemed stable and peaceful, but in truth undercurrents surged beneath the surface. The major powers checked one another and wrestled in secret, like a wooden barrel packed full of gunpowder; all it needed was a single spark to instantly ignite an age of chaos.

Now, this unknown overseas power that had appeared out of nowhere made it even harder for him to see its depth. He had no way to judge whether it was an opportunity for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, or a calamity that could wipe them out.

Chen Xin, standing to the side, appeared relatively calm. He slowly said, "Fengzhi, in my view, this matter may not necessarily be a disaster. Rongrong has already acknowledged young friend Ye Yun as her elder brother. Perhaps this is a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity for our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect."

"Old Sword Man, don't tell me you've gone senile."

Gu Rong immediately raised his brows and let out a scornful laugh, crossing his arms over his chest with a face full of disapproval.

"So what if their technology is advanced? This world depends on spirit power. Besides, even if they attack, isn't there still that person from Spirit Hall to block them?"

"Old Turtle, when I say you're short-sighted, you still refuse to admit it. This is an opportunity, do you understand? An opportunity."

"Bang!"

Gu Rong slapped the table, his brows standing on end.

"You cowardly man, are you looking for a fight?"

Chen Xin's fingertips moved slightly, and a thin wisp of fragmented sword intent quietly spread around him. He gave Gu Rong a faint sidelong glance. "If you want to fight, I'll keep you company anytime. Just watch me chop your turtle shell to pieces."

"You!"

Ning Fengzhi helplessly held his forehead. Seeing that the two of them were about to draw swords again, he hurriedly stepped forward and separated Chen Xin and Gu Rong from the middle.

"Enough, Uncle Sword, Uncle Bone. Right now we're discussing proper business. I lean toward Uncle Sword's view."

Ning Fengzhi's expression was solemn as he slowly spoke.

"Young friend Ye Yun merely mentioned a few ordinary creations in passing, yet from that alone we can glimpse the unfathomable foundation of that overseas power.

Take the flying ship he mentioned, for example. It can fly three thousand li in half an hour. If it were loaded with troops for a surprise attack, I dare say the major sects would all be extremely easy to catch off guard, and after striking, the other side could simply leave in triumph."

He paused, and his tone grew heavier. "Moreover, no one can be certain that the other side doesn't possess lethal creations. If there exists large-scale offensive technology, then as long as they can briefly hold back a Title Douluo, the remaining disciples will face utter catastrophe."

Gu Rong's originally tense expression slowly eased. He folded his arms and sank into silent thought. A moment ago, he had still been arguing out of irritation, but after Ning Fengzhi's analysis, he finally realized that the threat posed by the overseas power was far from as simple as he had imagined.

Chen Xin withdrew the sword intent drifting around him and looked calmly at Gu Rong. "Now do you still think I was exaggerating?"

"Hmph! Fengzhi, you're the sect master. Decide for yourself."

Gu Rong gave a cold snort and sat back down in his chair.

After pondering for a while, Ning Fengzhi made up his mind.

"We'll proceed in two steps. First, send people to secretly investigate Ye Yun's origins, where he grew up, and where he currently is. Find a way to contact his teacher and try to establish a connection."

His gaze was steady as he added with composure, "If that path doesn't work, I'll set out personally and pay a visit to meet young friend Ye Yun face-to-face."

Chen Xin nodded slightly. "That works. I'll go with you."

Gu Rong said calmly, "I'll stay at the sect and hold the fort, in case Spirit Hall makes any covert moves."

With the plan settled, the entire Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect gradually began to move into action...

In the blink of an eye, several months hurried by.

And during this time spent together day and night, Tang San and Xiao Wu's goodwill toward Ye Yun, as well as the bond between them, quietly reached a subtle bottleneck.

The emotional value provided by daily sparring, companionship, and training side by side had already reached saturation, and the [Harmony] energy Ye Yun could draw from them grew thinner and thinner.

Only when he occasionally stepped in to help Tang San clap back at Yu Xiaogang, triggering intense emotional fluctuations, could he reap a relatively considerable amount of Harmony energy.

For most of the remaining time, his energy gains were negligible.

In the dormitory, Ye Yun slowly opened his eyes and looked at the system panel.

Host: Ye Yun

Soul Power Level: 23

[Harmony] [Erudition] Energy: 143/500

He never would have expected the second Path to be [Erudition], but the energy required to level up had increased fivefold.

The concept of walking the Path of [Erudition] was very simple: constantly learn knowledge, make things, and create something from nothing.

That way, he would not have to worry about his early-stage attack and defense methods.