Scripture Pavilion

Chen Fan and Qin Ziyan then arrived at the first floor of the Scripture Pavilion. Qin Ziyan leaned close to Chen Fan and whispered into his ear, "The first floor holds historical records, biographies, essays, anecdotes, and such. The second floor contains cultivation manuals, with many low-grade arts and some fairly ordinary mid-grade ones. Better techniques are on the third floor, along with some precious treasures and magical artifacts. But the third floor is sealed by powerful restrictions placed by the sect elders, and no one may enter without the sect's permission. Later, you can go in by yourself and browse freely on the first and second floors. Remember to be as careful as possible. There usually aren't many disciples in the Scripture Pavilion. Most people borrow their books and leave rather than lingering inside. Even if someone sees you, they'll only assume you're a disciple from one of the other two palaces. As long as you keep a low profile, there won't be any trouble. If disciples from all three palaces happen to be present, I'll cover for you, and you can slip around from the side. In short, watch my signals."

This Little Witch had truly come prepared. Still, Chen Fan thought the plan was quite ingenious. He nodded and walked toward the rows upon rows of bookshelves, while Qin Ziyan stood some distance away and kept watch for him.

Chen Fan patiently browsed the books lining the shelves. He casually flipped through some before returning them to their places, while reading others with great care. Qin Ziyan waited quietly at the side. Throughout it all, she did not disturb Chen Fan's reading even once, behaving remarkably well.

After nearly half a day, Chen Fan had finished looking through the most commonly used books on the first floor of the Scripture Pavilion. He had focused on the historical materials and tales of strange happenings, hoping to uncover secrets concerning his own physique, yet there was not a single mention of it. Still, he had learned much useful information. The continent he lived on was vast and rich in resources; he and even all of Swordcry Mountain merely occupied one corner of it. Since people believed the region where they lived to be the center of the world, and much of the continent was covered by sprawling forests, it had been named the Central Forest Continent. Throughout the Central Forest Continent, martial cultivation was revered, and one's status was determined by the height of one's cultivation. Ordinary people and cultivators above the middle realm were divided into the mortal world and the cultivation world. Most mortals could not cultivate to great heights, so they lived and multiplied in cities and fields. The stronger among them formed noble houses and royal clans. These mortals lived amid endless disputes, with war raging throughout the year as they constantly besieged cities and seized land from one another. Cultivators, on the other hand, were different. They all yearned for the Great Dao and had little attachment to such worldly trifles. To attain the Great Dao and transcend heaven and earth was their ultimate goal. Such people lived amid wondrous mountains and strange waters rich in Origin Qi. Some established sects and schools, allowing them to gain more cultivation resources over the long term and remain far removed from mortals and their endless disturbances.

Swordcry Mountain was no exception. The territory belonging to the Swordcry Mountains was merely a corner in the northwest of the Central Forest Continent. Farther northwest across the continent lay a mountain range even broader than the Swordcry Mountains, known in history as the West Ridge Mountains. Seen from the sky, this range resembled a giant dragon, long and winding, separating the entire northwestern region of the Central Forest Continent from its central lands. Its ridges towered into the clouds, making it impossible for mortals to cross with ease. Thus, the lands within Xiling were relatively isolated, and even cultivators rarely ventured beyond them. Besides Swordcry Mountain, three other great sects stood shoulder to shoulder in the West Ridge Mountains region: Myriad Blossom Valley, Black Dragon Pool, and Heaven and Earth Gate. Together with Swordcry Mountain, they were known as the Four West Ridge Sects, the four greatest sects in the northwest of the Central Forest Continent.

So I had merely been a frog at the bottom of a well. Chen Fan sighed inwardly. One day, he would surely travel throughout the Central Forest Continent and truly witness the hundred faces of this world.

After browsing the first-floor books, Chen Fan hurried up to the second floor. Since cultivation manuals could not be borrowed, he intended to memorize and comprehend as many as possible there, then attempt to practice them after returning and see whether they could further aid his cultivation. He also wanted to look for specific mid-grade internal cultivation arts that could be practiced beginning from the third level, then compare their effects with the Golden Wheel Scripture. That way, he could roughly determine whether the Golden Wheel Scripture would continue to display miraculous effects as his realm improved. It would also give him a clear idea of his future cultivation direction.

Qin Ziyan continued to follow silently a short distance behind Chen Fan. Even she had not expected it. In the past, her master had repeatedly forced her to come here and study, yet she had never been able to remain for even half an hour. This time, simply watching the young man quietly from the side, she no longer felt restless and instead settled her heart. At first, she merely watched Chen Fan's every movement. Later, seeing him immersed in reading, she picked up the books he had just returned and began reading them silently as well. Perhaps this was what they called loving the house and its crow.

Before long, Chen Fan found several suitable cultivation methods, all Internal Qi arts. He carefully contemplated them, then sat cross-legged on the spot and tried cultivating them a little. Naturally, he only gave them a slight trial, mainly tracing the circulation methods through his mind once so that they would be easier to remember. Before he knew it, the sky had darkened. Chen Fan looked up and saw that it was already late. After thanking Qin Ziyan a few times, he prepared to leave.

"Why not come for a few more days?" Qin Ziyan suggested. Seeing how much Chen Fan loved learning, she did not want him to stop there. She was still holding a book explaining how footwork played an important role in the application of External Force, and she had clearly not had her fill after reading only halfway through it.

Chen Fan considered it and said, "All right. But we'll only come once more tomorrow, then we won't come again. Otherwise, it'll be too easy to get discovered."

"Mm!" Qin Ziyan nodded very seriously.

The next day, the two returned to the Scripture Pavilion. Perhaps because they knew the Little Witch might be lurking there, even fewer disciples were present. Chen Fan and Qin Ziyan each read in peace. Chen Fan continued comprehending those Internal Qi arts, while Qin Ziyan focused on several manuals discussing practical combat techniques and benefited greatly as well.

Thus another day quickly passed. Chen Fan reluctantly put down the cultivation manuals again and prepared to leave. At least he had gained some further insights today. If only he could keep coming here; with his perseverance, he would sooner or later thoroughly digest every book on this entire floor.

Just as they walked out of the Scripture Pavilion, Qin Ziyan suddenly said, "I've thought of a way."

"Mm? What do you mean?" Chen Fan asked in confusion.

"You can't borrow books, but I can. Just tell me which cultivation manuals you want to read, and I'll borrow them for you. Once I borrow them, you can read them, and I can read them too. Then we can still come to the Scripture Pavilion from time to time, and I won't have to stay cooped up in the training room every day being forced to cultivate. Wouldn't that kill two birds with one stone?" Qin Ziyan said solemnly.

"This..." He had to admit, this girl truly had a sharp mind. It really was a good idea. But paper could not wrap fire forever; one day, they would be discovered, and he had no idea what would happen then. Still, Chen Fan thought that he did not need to have her borrow books for him constantly. He could ask her to borrow something only when needed, greatly reducing the chance of exposure. Besides, in two years, he might be able to enter the inner court, at which point he could borrow books openly and legitimately.

"All right, then I'll have to thank Senior Sister Qin. But Senior Sister Qin, you don't need to keep borrowing books for me. For now, I only need two internal cultivation arts." Chen Fan told Qin Ziyan the names of the manuals and warned her that if anyone became suspicious, she should not bring them to him first, lest they invite trouble. Qin Ziyan agreed, and the two went their separate ways.

Over the next two days, a familiar beautiful figure could be seen lingering in the Scripture Pavilion. After studying cultivation manuals each day, Qin Ziyan borrowed two Internal Qi arts over the course of those two days.

Inside the elders' council hall of Swordcry Mountain's Sword-Imperial Pavilion, a brawny middle-aged man hurried in from outside. He bowed respectfully to the three elders in the hall and reported, "Reporting to the elders, Ziyan went to the Scripture Pavilion again today and did not leave until dusk. She also borrowed another mid-grade cultivation art, the Rejuvenation Formula."

"Oh? Another fourth-grade Internal Qi art? I recall that she borrowed the Blood-Coagulation Technique just yesterday. They're both very ordinary fourth-grade arts, and both are used for recovery after injury. What does she want them for?" the Second Elder asked doubtfully.

"That girl Ziyan cultivates the Starforce Formula, a secret art of our sect. As long as she concentrates on cultivating it, she can advance all the way to the sixth level and may even break through to the seventh. She must have borrowed them for that boy!" the Third Elder said fiercely.

"So that's it?! Then I'll go question her at once!"

The middle-aged man was Steward Hu, who handled Scripture Pavilion affairs for the Sword-Imperial Pavilion. Ever since Chen Fan entered the Scripture Pavilion on the first day, Steward Hu had known. But since Qin Ziyan was involved, the matter naturally had to be handled as a special case.

"Stop right there! Has your brain gone bad?" the First Elder hurriedly stopped him. "That girl has finally been willing to go to the Scripture Pavilion and study, and she's even taking it so seriously. We should be burning incense in gratitude to heaven. What are you trying to do?"

"This... But we already indulged that boy by letting him enter the Scripture Pavilion. Now Ziyan wants to borrow books for him as well. That violates sect rules," the middle-aged man said with some concern. It was indeed against the sect rules, though he also knew how difficult it was for Ziyan to finally develop an interest in studying.

"Are you stupid? If you don't say anything and we don't say anything, who will know?" the First Elder said disdainfully. What a joke. If it could make that Little Witch settle down and read, never mind borrowing two cultivation manuals—even if she borrowed one every day, they would turn a blind eye. Besides, in his eyes, the boy named Chen Fan would enter the Sword-Imperial Pavilion sooner or later. Letting him study the Scripture Pavilion's materials in advance so he could grow faster was no big deal. Still, that boy had somehow made Ziyan change so much, even causing her to break sect rules for him. Ah, a grown daughter could no longer be kept at home. No, they still had to watch them closely. Young people did not know better; they must not cause another disaster, or it would be difficult to explain when the Pavilion Master returned.

Meanwhile, in Swordcry Mountain's outer court, Chen Fan spent the past two days trying to cultivate the two Internal Qi arts he had selected in the Scripture Pavilion: the Blood-Coagulation Technique and the Rejuvenation Formula. The two methods shared one characteristic: both could be cultivated from the second level through the fourth, and both were recovery-type arts. At the same level, their effects in healing injuries and neutralizing poisons generally surpassed those of other cultivation arts.

Although his two days at the Scripture Pavilion had been rushed, Chen Fan had basically mastered the first few sections of both arts. At this moment, he sat cross-legged on his bed. If an outsider had suddenly entered, they would surely have been scared out of their wits by the sight before them. Chen Fan took a mouthful of poison, closed his eyes and waited a while, then circulated his cultivation to expel it. Once finished, he drank another mouthful of poison and expelled it again. One after another, he repeated the process until an entire bottle of poison had been used up.

Chen Fan exhaled and slowly withdrew his cultivation. Eating poison and then circulating his cultivation to remove it had now become routine for him. Over these past few days, while expelling poison, he had used three different Internal Qi arts. His purpose was simply to compare the Golden Wheel Scripture against the two fourth-grade methods. Once again, the result was exactly the same. Though all three were at the second level, they were not even comparable—the Golden Wheel Scripture was far stronger. At present, however, the Blood-Coagulation Technique and Rejuvenation Formula could not yet be cultivated to the third level, so he could not compare them further. He could only wait for news from Qin Ziyan. If she could borrow the manuals for him, then once he had the chance to comprehend the third and fourth levels, he could test them again.

With no other Internal Qi arts left to study, Chen Fan spent the past few days not only continuing to read that Treasure Record, but also devoting some effort to comprehending and practicing sword arts. He had now initially grasped every move of the Azure Mountain Sword Art and the Clear Wind Art, though he was still not very proficient in using them, much less merging the two sword arts together.

At that moment, a sudden crackling sound erupted without warning from somewhere inside Chen Fan's room. Startled, he turned toward the source. Ah! It was the snake egg—it had cracked...