Only after the group left did Ye Wushuang retract his gaze and walk toward Jian Bufan.

Jian Bufan also watched the approaching Ye Wushuang with a curious expression. He didn’t speak, waiting until Ye Wushuang was standing before him to smile and introduce himself. "Jian Bufan!"

"Ye Wushuang!" Ye Wushuang smiled back. He hadn’t expected Jian Bufan to be so straightforward and utterly devoid of arrogance, which made him like the man even more.

"Thank you for what you did just now!" Ye Wushuang said, cupping his fist. If Jian Bufan hadn’t stepped in, Ye Cheng would have certainly made a move on him.

"Don’t mention it!" Jian Bufan said with a faint smile. "I just can’t stand Ye Cheng’s behavior. Besides, I wanted to get to know a rival like you."

"Not a friend?" Ye Wushuang was taken aback, not understanding the meaning behind Jian Bufan’s words.

"No!" Jian Bufan gave a simple smile and said, "The feeling you give me is very different. It’s better—more meaningful—for you to be my rival than my friend."

"No other reason?" Ye Wushuang asked.

"None. It’s just a feeling!" Jian Bufan replied.

"Hearing you say that, it seems I have no reason to refuse." Ye Wushuang’s gaze sharpened. A competitive edge burst forth from his body, soaring to the heavens and piercing the clouds.

Seeing this, Jian Bufan didn’t feel the least bit uncomfortable. On the contrary, he smiled.

This casual action from Ye Wushuang further confirmed his judgment. After all, if an ordinary person were to speak with him like this, they would invariably be servile and fawning. But Ye Wushuang was different. He had the ambition to compete, the courage to contend with him. A person like that was a true rival, or at least, a future one.

"By the way, that Sword Technique of yours just now was very powerful. What’s it called?" Jian Bufan asked suddenly. Having witnessed the might of Ye Wushuang’s Life-Taking Sword, his curiosity was piqued.

"Life-Taking Sword!" Ye Wushuang knew what Jian Bufan was asking. He didn’t hide it, revealing the name with a faint smile.

"Life-Taking Sword!" Upon hearing this, Jian Bufan murmured the name, his eyes flashing. He then smiled. "One step stains the ground with blood. The sword is drawn, life is taken. A killing blow. A fine Sword Technique. But... it’s missing something."

"Missing something?" Ye Wushuang froze, sinking into thought. He pondered Jian Bufan’s words. It wasn’t just Jian Bufan who felt something was lacking; he himself had felt it on some subconscious level.

"Speed!" After a long moment, both of them looked up and spoke at almost the same time.

The Life-Taking Sword was a blade of certain death, a Speed Sword. When the sword is drawn to take a life, the shorter the time it takes, the better. And to shorten that time, one needed extreme speed to make it a perfect strike.

Although Ye Wushuang had increased his speed by practicing the Heaven-Devouring Dragon Technique, he was still far from fast enough to properly execute the Life-Taking Sword.

At that moment, Ye Wushuang finally understood his misconception in practicing the Life-Taking Sword. Without ultimate speed, the technique’s offensive power was severely limited.

’If only I had a Body Technique!’ Ye Wushuang suddenly muttered to himself. He had voiced the solution: a Body Technique could compensate for this flaw.

"You could try the Library Pavilion," Jian Bufan said with a smile. "Disciples who have just entered the Inner Sect all get a chance to go to the Library Pavilion and choose two Combat Skills."

"The Library Pavilion!"

Ye Wushuang’s heart stirred and his eyes lit up. The Library Pavilion was indeed an excellent place to go. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Seeing that Ye Wushuang understood, Jian Bufan nodded slightly. "You are still weak now. I hope you can grow stronger. Only then will you be qualified to be my rival!" With that said, he held his sword and left.

’I will. I definitely won’t disappoint you.’ Watching Jian Bufan’s retreating back, Ye Wushuang’s eyes were as sharp as a sword, radiating an invincible conviction and will.

’The Genius Ranking?’

’A genius with twelve Qi Vortexes?’

Silently reciting these honors, Ye Wushuang’s gaze turned resolute. Three years of dormancy had taught him a lesson: no matter how ordinary one might seem, one must possess the ambition to compete and an invincible Dao Heart.

Only with these could he have motivation, be fearless, and walk further on his path.

’With geniuses like Jian Bufan to face on the path ahead, I believe I won’t be lonely. It will be spectacular!’

Ye Wushuang thought to himself, then retracted his gaze. Ignoring the stares of the crowd, he walked into the main hall, collected his Cultivation Resources, and returned to his cavern residence.

Upon entering his cavern, he immediately began to circulate the Heaven-Devouring Dragon Technique and cultivate. Witnessing a true genius had stimulated him, filling him with fighting spirit.

Once he entered a meditative state, he took out and consumed some True Essence Pills. He didn’t emerge from his cavern until the fifth day, because he had hit a bottleneck.

However, he wasn’t desperate for quick success. Instead, he temporarily set aside his Cultivation and turned his attention to the Life-Taking Sword.

Currently, aside from the "Eight Kills of Battle," his only other Combat Skill was the "Mad Demon Three Swords." And of the three swords, he had only just begun to grasp the Life-Taking Sword. Therefore, he needed more Combat Skills to increase his strength.

’Ultimate speed, a powerful Body Technique... Looks like it’s time for a trip to the Library Pavilion. I can look for a suitable Combat Skill while I’m there.’

Gazing at the beautiful, misty clouds swirling below Broken Sword Peak, Ye Wushuang murmured to himself. His figure then vanished from the entrance of his cavern, and he followed the small bluestone path down toward the base of the peak.

The Library Pavilion was the foundation of a Sect’s rise and fall. It housed all sorts of the Sect’s Combat Skills, Body Techniques, and Cultivation Techniques. There were ordinary ones, Spirit Level ones, and even higher-grade Combat Skills whose power could move mountains, fill seas, and pluck the stars and moon from the sky.

The Ancient Spirit Sect, in addition to its core Library Pavilion, had three ordinary ones. One of them was built between Broken Sword Peak and Purple Bamboo Peak for the disciples of the two peaks to borrow for their Cultivation.

And the one at the foot of Broken Sword Peak was Ye Wushuang’s destination.

About ten minutes later, he stepped onto the stairs before the Library Pavilion and immediately felt an ancient, desolate aura wash over him. The aura was not only vast but also mysterious.

After ascending the tall flight of stairs, a large plaza appeared before Ye Wushuang’s eyes. The plaza was three hundred and thirty-three meters long and three hundred and thirty-three meters wide. It was quite crowded with handsome young men and beautifully dressed young women coming and going.

The Library Pavilion!

In the center of the great plaza stood an ancient and magnificent three-story tower. A mottled plaque hung high on the tower, engraved with the two large words "Library Pavilion." The calligraphy was like coiling dragons and snakes, powerful and vigorous.

The ancient tower was covered in countless lines, which were the legendary Inscriptions. They radiated a soul-stirring power. It was obvious that this ancient tower was a treasure of the Spirit Communication Treasure Level.

’Using a Treasure Tower of the Spirit Communication Treasure Level as the Library Pavilion... the Sect is truly extraordinary!’ Ye Wushuang was inwardly shocked. He cut through the crowd and headed for the main entrance.

On the first floor of the Library Pavilion, there was a counter.

A middle-aged man was sitting in front of the counter. He was the Elder in charge of disciples borrowing Combat Skills from the Library Pavilion!

"Elder, this disciple has come to borrow a technique!"

Walking forward, Ye Wushuang called out politely and handed the middle-aged man the Identity Token that Chen Yuan had given him when he entered the Inner Sect.