As he mulled it over, Zhou Qingmei began to feel like she was sitting on pins and needles.

She suddenly shot to her feet.

"I just remembered, I have soup simmering in the kitchen. I’ll go check on the fire..."

With that, she bolted.

Fang Shuwen didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. This was Yuqing Pavilion, not her Zhuji Pavilion.

’What kind of soup could she possibly be making here?’

’That silly girl can’t even come up with a good excuse...’

Just then, a head peeked in from the doorway. Fang Shuwen’s gaze met Zhou Qingmei’s, and he heard her ask:

"What you said just now... you meant it, right? You’re not going to trick me, are you?"

"...I won’t."

Fang Shuwen said earnestly.

"That’s good, then!"

Zhou Qingmei said:

"My soup’s about to burn... I’d better go check on it."

Her head vanished with a WHOOSH, and in the blink of an eye, she was gone.

Fang Shuwen touched the corners of his mouth. Feeling them curve up a little too much, he gently pressed them down.

But he found the smile seemed to have a mind of its own, curling back up again.

He sighed. He suddenly recalled Mo Beidou’s words, and a warmth spread through his chest. He stood up and paced around the room a couple of times, but it did little to calm him.

Not until Xu Shuxin came running over.

"Brother Fang."

Only then did Fang Shuwen’s mood settle. He smiled and said:

"How do you find it here?"

"Yuqing Pavilion is wonderful, of course."

Xu Shuxin didn’t know why Fang Shuwen was asking such a pointless question, but he answered honestly before taking an object from within his robes:

"Brother Fang, this is for you."

"What’s this?"

Fang Shuwen glanced at the object in his hand. It was square and wrapped in blue cloth.

Xu Shuxin unwrapped the blue cloth to reveal a book. On the cover were three large words: Unskilled Saber Technique!

Fang Shuwen looked up from the book to Xu Shuxin’s face.

"I haven’t delivered you to your aunt yet."

"This is more than enough."

Xu Shuxin said:

"If it weren’t for you, Brother Fang, I never would have made it to Yuqing Pavilion. Even though I haven’t seen my aunt yet, I doubt the Sang Mountain Seven Face would dare to look for me here. I’m already safe, for all intents and purposes."

"So, I thought I should give this to you as soon as possible."

"Thank you, Brother Fang, for keeping me safe all this way."

Seeing his sincerity, Fang Shuwen didn’t refuse.

He was, in fact, quite curious about this Saber Technique manual.

When Xu Shuxin saw him accept it, he finally smiled.

"Well, Brother Fang, I’ll leave you to study the Saber Technique. I’m going to go get some rest."

This was the sole reason for his visit.

Now that the manual was delivered, he wouldn’t disturb him any longer.

Fang Shuwen nodded. He wanted to say something but remembered that the young man didn’t know his aunt, Xu Wenwan, was missing. Bringing it up now would be inappropriate.

’I’d better wait until after we find her to say anything.’

’He guessed that Xu Wenwan was probably still alive. The System’s mission descriptions were usually very precise.’

’If Xu Wenwan were dead, the mission description would have likely changed. Otherwise, it would be impossible to complete.’

’It was just a guess, but he had a strong feeling he was right.’

After Xu Shuxin left, Fang Shuwen pushed thoughts of Zhou Qingmei from his mind and spread open the Unskilled Saber Technique manual.

On the first page were eight words: The Great Way is simple; great skill appears clumsy!

"What a bold claim."

Fang Shuwen could feel the overwhelming aura from the words; it was truly extraordinary.

It was unknown who had written these eight characters, but the calligraphy was forceful and powerful, like iron strokes and silver hooks. Between the turns of the brush, he could almost see Sword Qi cutting through the air.

The more he looked, the more profound he found it. After staring for a long while, he finally turned the page to read on.

Because the mission was still incomplete, he currently had a twofold bonus to his comprehension and Talent.

The Unskilled Saber Technique didn’t have many moves—only seven in total. He grasped the basics after reading through it just once.

Unfortunately, with no saber in hand, he found it difficult to practice.

But in the next moment, he suddenly thought of the Four Seas Dragon Fist.

The Four Seas Dragon Fist had originally been the Great Dragon Fist, which was itself derived from spear arts. Later, after being modified by Zheng Sihai, it became the Four Seas Dragon Fist.

’If my predecessors could turn spear arts into a Fist Technique, why can’t I adapt this Unskilled Saber Technique and transform its saber moves into a Palm Technique?’

’A hand-blade... is that not also a blade?’

With one breakthrough in understanding, all things become clear.

His innate comprehension was already higher than the average person’s, and now with the twofold bonus, it was on another level entirely.

The thought had barely formed before he was in the courtyard. Treating his palm as a blade, he raised it as if to draw a saber!

The first move of the Unskilled Saber Technique: Clumsy Blade Concealing Intent!

A gust of wind instantly stirred in the courtyard. The opening of this move was slow and clumsy, seemingly crude, but it concealed a cunning intent designed to lure the enemy in.

Then, the technique shifted. He leaped into the air, his hand chopping down like a falling blade!

The second move: Mountain-Splitting Technique!

From then on, Fang Shuwen used his hand as a saber, his body flowing with the blade as he practiced the techniques one by one.

His Inner Strength was immense. Even though he was only using his hand as a blade, the power was still extraordinary.

After running through the entire Saber Technique, he frowned slightly.

The difference between a palm and a blade’s edge was too great. Although he could adapt the saber moves for his palm, using flesh and bone to replace a cutting edge, there were still many deficiencies.

He stood in place, pondering for a long time, before starting to practice again.

This time, there was a change in his movements, though it wasn’t a major one compared to his first attempt.

But with each practice session, he gained a new insight.

The moves changed accordingly... Once, twice, five times, ten times...

He practiced from day until night.

By the time the bright moon rose in the sky, the seven forms of the Unskilled Saber Technique had been completely transformed in his hands.

Although the core principles remained the same, the techniques were now far better suited for use with his fists and palms.