"Eh? How did I suddenly end up here?"
Outside the stone door, Ye Tian rose to his feet, his face a mask of confusion as he surveyed his surroundings.
Not far away, the white-haired elder continued sweeping the ground, while the stone door remained firmly shut.
"I was just in the process of condensing the eighth Blood Dan... Ah, I remember now!" Ye Tian's pupils constricted suddenly, his expression reflecting a lingering fear.
"My physical body simply couldn't withstand the strain of condensing the eighth Blood Dan. Fortunately, I have no idea what went wrong; I was expelled. Otherwise, I would have truly fallen into madness this time."
Taking a deep breath, Ye Tian felt a chill run down his spine; he had narrowly escaped death. Although he hadn't achieved a breakthrough to the Martial Spirit realm, he had identified his shortcomings, which would greatly aid his future advancement.
"What I currently lack is a body-refining technique. With the number of contribution points I have, I should be able to exchange for such a technique," Ye Tian thought calmly.
He respectfully bowed slightly towards the sweeping elder before turning to leave.
Unbeknownst to Ye Tian, as he turned to depart, the white-haired elder, who had been focused on his sweeping, lifted his head and gazed at Ye Tian's retreating figure, a profound expression revealing a hint of mystery.
"How did this young man manage to take the Martial Soul Crystal?"
"The old man has suffered a significant loss this time!"
"I just wonder if this young man can inherit his legacy!"
The elder murmured softly, watching Ye Tian disappear from view.
At this moment, there were few people in the residential area. After inquiring, Ye Tian learned that most had gone to the Three Great Halls.
The Three Great Halls of the Divine Star Sect are well-known: the "Battle Hall," the "Heart Hall," and the "Treasure Hall."
The Battle Hall contains all the martial arts manuals and combat techniques of the Divine Star Sect.
The Heart Hall primarily houses internal cultivation techniques and methods for focusing the mind.
The Treasure Hall is filled with weapons of various grades, rare herbs, elixirs, and other precious treasures.
These three halls are highly esteemed within the Divine Star Sect, and many martial artists aspire to join the sect primarily for access to them.
With the arena competition just three days away, although many dared not hope to place in the top ten, they still wished to strive for their best. Thus, they intended to use all the contribution points earned from the assessments to exchange for items that would enhance their strength.
As a result, Ye Tian found himself surrounded by an eerie silence.
"The Battle Hall should have body-refining techniques; I hope to find something satisfactory!" Rather than returning to the courtyard, Ye Tian made his way directly to the Battle Hall, where he indeed encountered many like-minded outer disciples along the way.
"Look! That's Blood Blade!"
"His gaze is so sharp!"
"He's a dark horse; who would have known such a remarkable talent would emerge from Nanlin County before the assessments?"
Many recognized Ye Tian, casting him curious glances—some filled with awe, others with envy, and a few with jealousy.
Ye Tian cast a cold glance at them, dismissing their attention as he strode toward the imposing Battle Hall.
The golden Battle Hall appeared as though it were forged entirely of gold, radiating a faint golden glow, exuding an extraordinary grandeur and magnificence.
Inside the Battle Hall, many martial artists had already gathered, all outer disciples of Ye Tian's cohort, eagerly selecting the martial skills they could exchange for.
Ye Tian surveyed the scene, rows of shelves brimming with martial techniques.
However, as his cultivation level rose, so did his standards; he found himself disinterested in any techniques below the Xuan rank.
The martial skills on the first floor were all below the Xuan rank, while the second floor was reserved for inner disciples of the Divine Star Sect.
The third floor was accessible only to the sect's true disciples.
"Flying Fish Sword Technique, Dragon King's Three Blades, Nine Veins Spear, Void Fist, Great Dragon Palm, Hundred Shadows Step, Shadowless Kick, Flying Bear Kick..." A myriad of martial techniques dazzled Ye Tian, yet all were beneath the Xuan rank.
After wandering for a while, disappointment washed over him.
It wasn't that there were no body-refining techniques; rather, they were all too rudimentary to meet Ye Tian's expectations.
In truth, body-refining techniques were inherently scarce; even within the Divine Star Sect, they were few and far between, with truly powerful ones being even rarer.
"Ah? Brother Ye, you're here too!"
Just as Ye Tian was about to continue his search, a familiar voice filled with surprise reached his ears.
"Brother Wu!" Ye Tian turned around, his face lighting up with astonishment as he beheld a familiar figure—Wu Dao, a person who never failed to impress him.
"Brother Ye, it's been a while!" Wu Dao approached with a smile, his casual demeanor only deepening Ye Tian's curiosity.
"Brother Wu, how come I didn't see you during the assessments?" Ye Tian inquired, feeling a sense of mystery and admiration for the young man before him.
A Martial Master of the seventh rank!
That was Wu Dao's cultivation level, which had remained unchanged until now.
Yet, despite being at the bottom in the assessments, Wu Dao had somehow managed to pass, leaving others in awe.
"I excel at concealing my aura, so you naturally wouldn't notice me. With that skill, I was able to take advantage of others' mutual injuries and reap the benefits! Hehe!" Wu Dao winked, chuckling.
Ye Tian shook his head; although Wu Dao spoke lightly, he could guess just how arduous that had been.
Indeed, many participants had similar strengths, leading to mutual injuries, but to truly take advantage of the situation required genuine skill.
Wu Dao must have some secret!
However, since it was his secret, Ye Tian had no intention of prying.
"Are you looking for a body-refining technique, Brother Ye?" Wu Dao glanced at the "Raging Bull Strength" in Ye Tian's hand and shook his head. "This technique is far too rudimentary; it's common fare. Practicing it would be of no benefit to you and would only waste your time."
"Alas, finding a good body-refining technique on this floor is quite challenging!" Ye Tian sighed, having searched in vain.
"Who says there are no good body-refining techniques on the first floor?" Wu Dao raised an eyebrow.
Ye Tian's heart stirred with anticipation as he looked at him. "Brother Wu, do you mean...?"
"Follow me!" Wu Dao discreetly scanned the surroundings, gesturing for silence, then beckoned Ye Tian to follow him toward a nearby bookshelf.
"Hmm? I've already checked that; there's nothing good there!" Ye Tian replied, puzzled, but he followed Wu Dao toward the bookshelf ahead.
It was an ordinary shelf, identical to those around it, the only difference being the layer of dust that suggested it had been untouched for a long time.
Ye Tian watched as Wu Dao, resembling a thief, cautiously surveyed the area. Once he confirmed no one was watching, he knelt down and retrieved a dusty, ancient book from beneath the shelf.
"What is this?" Ye Tian exclaimed in surprise; he hadn't expected to find a manual hidden beneath the shelf, curious about who had concealed it.
However, on second thought, it was impressive that Wu Dao had discovered it despite its careful hiding.
"Just take a look for yourself!" Wu Dao grinned proudly, tossing the dusty book to Ye Tian, crossing his arms with a mysterious smile.
"Don't play tricks on me!"
Ye Tian shot him a glare before blowing off the dust from the book. Four bold characters then appeared before his eyes:
"Nine Turns Battle Body!"
Ye Tian read each character slowly, a flicker of inexplicable brilliance igniting in his gaze.
"The name is quite impressive; I wonder about the content?" Ye Tian thought eagerly as he opened it, revealing dense text that filled him with both excitement and disappointment.
The excitement stemmed from the fact that this was indeed a formidable body-refining technique.
The disappointment arose from the realization that this technique was incomplete, containing only the first layer.
Seeing Ye Tian's expression, Wu Dao immediately guessed his thoughts and chuckled, "Brother Ye, although this technique only has the first layer, if you can cultivate it to perfection, your physical body will be able to rival that of a Martial Spirit stronghold."
"Indeed, once I master this technique, I could contend with a Martial Spirit stronghold using only my physical prowess," Ye Tian nodded, then sighed, "It's just a pity that this technique is incomplete!"
"If it weren't incomplete, do you think you would find it here?" Wu Dao teased.
Ye Tian paused, realizing the truth. If this technique were complete, it would undoubtedly be above the Xuan rank, perhaps even at the Earth rank.
Such a precious technique would be impossible for an outer disciple like him to obtain.
With this realization, Ye Tian's regrets dissipated, and he smiled, nodding, "Brother Wu is right; if this technique were complete, I still wouldn't be able to acquire it."
"Exactly! One must have such a mindset; not everything can be forced. Perhaps in the future, you may even obtain the second layer of 'Nine Turns Battle Body.' Opportunities are unpredictable; this body-refining technique may just be destined for you," Wu Dao laughed heartily.
"Indeed!" Ye Tian nodded, then straightened his expression and clasped his fists, saying, "Thank you very much, Brother Wu. Without you, I would likely have missed out on this technique."
"Hehe, once you've mastered it, just treat me to a drink," Wu Dao replied with a smile.
"There's no time like the present; let's go celebrate with a drink now!" Ye Tian laughed heartily.
"Alright!" Wu Dao nodded, grinning.
With the "Nine Turns Battle Body" in hand, Ye Tian approached the elder guarding the Battle Hall to register.
"Eh? Nine Turns Battle Body?" The elder furrowed his brow in surprise, saying, "Young one, where did you find this? This body-refining technique has been lost for over a hundred years. We've searched numerous times without success, yet you managed to uncover it."
"Really? I must be quite fortunate!" Ye Tian replied with a smile, secretly thinking that given its hiding place, it would be surprising if they found it.
"Don't celebrate too soon, kid. This body-refining technique is indeed powerful, even regarded as the foremost body-refining technique on the Divine Continent. However, its cultivation requirements are exceedingly high; without sufficient talent, you won't be able to succeed. In the history of our Divine Star Sect, only a handful have managed to cultivate it to the first layer."
The elder guarding the Battle Hall stated with a slight huff.