"I am extremely grateful for the warning, Elder Qin," Li Yun said, cupping his fists and bowing.
He was truly thankful to Elder Qin. Not only had he helped him find two suitable techniques—a movement technique and a body-strengthening technique—but he had also warned him about the greed others would have toward the treasure he had obtained from the Combat Pagoda.
"Also, be cautious of the Azure Sky Alliance," Elder Qin said grumpily.
Li Yun narrowed his eyes. "Any particular reason?" he asked.
"You should know better," Elder Qin smiled knowingly. "Anyway, if you need anything, I will be here most of the time."
Li Yun nodded, cupped his fists again, and left the small abode. Elder Qin watched him leave with a smile on his face.
***
"What took you so long?" Hua Fu asked as he saw Li Yun walking down from the entrance of the Martial Library.
"I met Elder Qin, and things got a bit busier," Li Yun sighed lightly.
"Well then, let's go," Hua Fu said as they began walking toward the outer sect.
After reaching the outer sect, Li Yun and Hua Fu parted ways. Li Yun went toward his courtyard, and so did Hua Fu.
However, when Li Yun neared his courtyard, he noticed a guest waiting for him at the entrance. Judging by the look on her face, it seemed he had made the person wait for quite a while.
The person was a lady, one Li Yun had met before.
"Fairy Lie, what brings you here?" Li Yun asked with a smile as he approached.
Lie Hua turned her head toward the source of the voice, her eyes widening when she saw Li Yun. "Where have you been? I've been waiting for an hour!" she shouted as soon as she saw him.
"You've been waiting?" Li Yun raised his brows. "Fairy Lie, have you really fallen for me?" he asked with a serious expression.
"Why is your mouth always so dirty?!" Lie Hua stomped her feet in anger and threw something at him. "I've done what I was asked to do, and now I'm leaving. If I stay any longer, I might die from anger."
Li Yun caught the object she tossed at him and saw that it was a hexagonal-shaped golden badge with "Heaven Sword Peak" gleaming in blood-red letters on it.
"Fairy Lie, this is...?" he shouted as she turned to leave.
Lie Hua turned back, annoyed. "Have you gone dumb? You've been given the badge of the Heaven Sword Peak, meaning you're now a member of it."
"Well, you could've told me that before leaving," Li Yun said, spreading his hands innocently. "How was I supposed to know if you just threw something at me and walked off?"
"Isn't that your fault?!" Lie Hua shouted again.
Li Yun frowned. "Fairy Lie, I thought you were a calm and aloof person, but it turns out you're just a kid." He teased her with a laugh.
"Shut up!" Lie Hua shouted, her face flushing as she tried to maintain a serious expression.
Li Yun shook his head, his expression turning serious. "What's the meaning of this?" he asked, holding up the badge. "Is the sect taking pity on me by throwing me into the worst peak so I can rot there for ages and be satisfied with it?"
"Think whatever you like," Lie Hua said in a disappointed tone, turning to leave again. But she suddenly stopped, giving him a complex look. "I don't know why, but a very strong person is supporting you in the sect. I hope you don't disappoint that person."
With those words, she left Li Yun alone at his door.
Li Yun watched her disappear into the distance, shaking his head lightly. He wondered why she tried so hard to hide her real personality, acting so serious and aloof when her true self was the complete opposite.
'It's none of my business,' Li Yun sighed and entered his house, the Heaven Sword Peak badge still in his hand.
'A very strong person is supporting me? Elder Qin mentioned that one of the hidden supreme elders spoke in my favor... Could they be the same person?'
Li Yun pondered this as he entered his courtyard and sat down cross-legged.
'It's time to cultivate.'
Slap!
He slapped his cheeks with both hands, calming himself. Taking out the core sect badge given to him by Elder Qin, he focused. The aura emanating from the badge steadied his heart as he entered a meditative state.
He then took out both the top-grade cultivation technique and martial technique he had received from Elder Qin—Blazing Inferno Mantra and Blazing Dragon Fist.
He planned to master both techniques before the next day, as he had other important matters lined up. There was also the movement technique Phantom Mirage Step he needed to practice.
At this moment, Li Yun felt fortunate to have almost half the day and the entire night to himself. He believed that with his tenfold comprehension speed combined with his Purple Divine Eye, he should be able to master all three techniques before the sun rose the next day.
He first opened the book on the Blazing Inferno Mantra and began reading. After ten minutes of flipping through the pages, he had grasped everything written in the book.
The Blazing Inferno Mantra had three stages in total, and its main focus was on cultivating the inner fire within a martial artist's body. This technique allowed the practitioner to harness this inner flame to unleash devastating attacks and boost their physical power by channeling fiery energy.
Though it sounded simple, it was more complicated than the Thunderclap Dragon Sword.
The inner fire was both the weakest and the most unstable, reactive flame in the cultivation world. It existed within every cultivator, but only a few could ever condense and control their inner fire for practical use.
'Let's start cultivating.'
Li Yun took a deep breath and started practicing the technique. There were many complex essence diagram patterns in this technique, so he was careful and slow at the start, but as he got the hang of it, he increased his speed.
Since it was a cultivation technique, it had more essence diagrams than movements, making it somewhat more difficult to practice.