Partners

When Zhou Zhong came to find Ye An just finished practicing the Star-Shattering Finger once.

Zhou Zhong's gaze lingered on Ye An for a moment, noticing that Ye An's aura was much stronger than before, and he exclaimed in surprise:

"You're in the Late Meridian Opening?"

Ye An did not deny it. "It happened a few days ago."

Seeing that Zhou Zhong had something he wanted to tell him, Ye An asked, "Is there something you want to tell me, Chief Disciple Brother?"

"That's right," Zhou Zhong began, "Today, the Sect Master said in the Main Hall that he would select the strongest disciple in the next few years to be the Chief Disciple of the Four Symbols Sect."

Zhou Zhong paused for a moment, then told him about Ye An: "The Chief Disciple of the Azure Dragon Hall is named Pei Lie. Besides him, the strongest is Song Qinglin, the most outstanding disciple of the Song Family in this generation."

Seeing Ye An in silence, Zhou Zhong waited a moment before speaking again, "Junior Brother Ye, I know that the Song Family has some connection with you, and I also know that the Song Family is no good these days. Moreover, you should be careful with Song Qinglin, who is a member of the Song Family."

"Thank you for informing me, Chief Disciple Brother Xie. I understand." Ye An kept the information Zhou Zhong gave him in mind.

The two chatted for a few minutes, exchanging their experiences in breaking through to the Qi Condensation stage, before Zhou Zhong took his leave.

Ye An understood that rather than worrying about when the other party would use a deadly move against him, it was more reassuring to focus on improving his own strength first.

In the time that followed, Ye An focused most of his energy on the Star-Shattering Finger.

He practiced diligently from dawn till dusk. At this stage of Star-Shattering Finger, what he lacked was no longer strength or angle, but that membrane separating "consciousness" and "unconsciousness".

Previously, he would "think" before making a finger strike, carefully considering the force, angle, and rotational rhythm. But now he no longer thinks about these things; he simply sends his True Essence along the path, guiding the Star-Shattering Finger to its intended location.

[Star-Shattering Finger (Micro): 189/200]

[Star-Shattering Finger (Micro): 195/200]

[Star-Shattering Finger (Micro): 199/200]

Ye An remained motionless inside the room.

He calmed himself down and went through the force, angle, and speed of the flow of True Essence in his mind with that finger strike, making sure he hadn't deliberately thought about any step of it.

Ye An aimed his finger at the inside of the door panel. When his fingertip touched the wooden board, the force was even, without piercing it. Instead, the force spread outwards from the point of contact, like a Stone thrown into water, with ripples spreading evenly outwards.

There were no dents or marks on the door panel, but Ye An could feel that the force had been fully delivered without dissipating halfway through.

With a crack, the inside of the door panel split open, while the surface remained intact.

[Star-Shattering Finger (Penetration): 1/500]

In the past, when he used his fingers, the force was like traversing a dirt road full of potholes. It would be almost completely exhausted halfway through, and only about 70-80% would remain when he reached the finish line.

That dirt road is now gone.

Ye An exhaled a breath of stale air. The Star-Shattering Finger technique had been successfully mastered, and now it was urgent to learn another Martial Arts.

A few more days passed, Ye An began to shift his focus to the Rosy Cloud Sword Technique.

Unlike finger techniques, Swordsmanship improvement is more about understanding and mastering the sword.

[Rosy Cloud Sword Technique (Micro): 191/200]

[Rosy Cloud Sword Technique (Micro): 197/200]

[Rosy Cloud Sword Technique (Micro): 199/200]

The wind was stronger than usual that day, and the shadows of the trees outside the courtyard wall swayed wildly in the wind.

As Ye An finished practicing the fifth move, a gust of wind suddenly blew in from the side, carrying a withered leaf to his face.

Without much thought, he raised his hand and caught the leaf with the sixth move, gently flicking it aside with the tip of his sword, and then smoothly followed up with the seventh move.

He paused for a moment before realizing that he had been acting entirely on impulse, without any pause between the sixth and seventh moves.

Ye An sheathed his sword, and the withered leaf fell to the ground, perfectly intact.

Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the clouds. He glanced down at his hands and the hilt of his sword; Penetration the Rosy Cloud Sword Technique.

[Rosy Cloud Sword Technique (Penetration): 1/500]

Moonlight shone into the courtyard. Thanks to that bottle of flawless Meridian Opening Pill, Ye An's cultivation progressed much faster than in the early to mid-stages.

Current progress:

[Meridian Opening Formula (Third Level): 80/500]

Not long after, the letter from the Demon Suppressing Guard arrived.

Ye An received Jiang Shuying's letter one afternoon in mid-April.

The envelope was stamped with the emblem of the Demon Suppressing Guard, and inside were only a few lines of text. "We've found out about the movements of the Heaven Overturning Cult Branch Altar. Come to the inn on the East Street of Cangwu Prefectural City to meet your partner." Written by Jiang Shuying.

The East Street in Cangwu Prefectural City was wider than the entire South Street in Anping County. Shops lined both sides, one after another, including weapon shops, medicine Apothecary, teahouses, and restaurants, their signs crowded together.

Ye An walked along the street for a while and found the inn. The storefront was small, and a faded wooden sign hung on the door that read "East Arrival Inn".

Ye An confirmed that everything was correct and pushed open the door to enter. There were a few tables of people sitting sparsely in the hall. A female disciple dressed in dark gray tight-fitting clothes was sitting by the window. A sword was hanging at her waist. The scabbard was dark brown and the guard was polished to a shine.

Lin Wanyue saw Ye An approaching, glanced at him, and murmured, "Late Meridian Opening, not bad."

Ye An didn't deliberately avoid the other party's probing, because Ye An was also sizing up the other party. The other party's cultivation level was slightly higher than his, approaching the peak of the Meridian Opening stage. The wear marks on the sword hilt indicated that the sword had been used for a long time, indicating that the other party was a sword cultivator.

Then Ye An noticed that her facial features were somewhat similar to Lin Qiushui's; both had light eyebrows and eyes, and similar face shapes.

Ye An withdrew his gaze and said, "Ye An."

"Lin Wanyue."

After learning that the other person's surname was indeed Lin, Ye An did nothing. He didn't ask if the other person knew Lin Qiushui, but silently remembered the other person's name.

Lin Wanyue put down her teacup. "Commandant Jiang said they've found out what's going on with the Heaven Overturning Cult Branch Altar. We'll team up and go to Falling Stone Village to check things out. Tell me if you have any questions, so you don't have to wait until something really happens to speak up."

Ye An nodded but did not reply.

Lin Wanyue didn't mind, stood up and hung her sword up again. "Let's go, Commandant Jiang is waiting for us upstairs."

Ye An followed her upstairs. Jiang Shuying sat in a seat on the second floor, which was now empty and had been cleared out.

Jiang Shuying had a piece of paper spread out in front of her. Seeing the two enter, she didn't exchange pleasantries and pushed the paper towards them. " In Falling Stone Village, Yongning County, scouts have reported traces of the Heaven Overturning Cult's activities, suggesting they're preparing something. Disguise yourselves and go investigate. Once you've confirmed the situation, report back first. Don't confront them directly."

"Remember, even if the Deputy Altar Master isn't here, Night Owl will be. Be careful."

"Yes, Commandant Jiang," the two replied simultaneously.