Chapter 5 Scholar's Hall

Ye Chen pushed the doors of the Scholar's Hall open. The hinges groaned loudly in the quiet evening air. He stepped over the threshold and entered the grand archive of the Azure Cloud Sect. The circular room was nearly empty of students. Rows of towering bookshelves stretched upward toward a domed ceiling.

An old man sat behind a large oak desk near the entrance. Elder Qin adjusted his spectacles and looked up from a ledger. He was one of the few people in the sect who had ever shown Ye Chen an ounce of kindness. Elder Qin always left extra portions of rice out whenever Ye Chen was assigned to sweep the library floors.

"You are here very late to clean," Elder Qin said. His voice was raspy but held a gentle tone. "The overseers usually lock the lower servants in their quarters by sundown."

"I am not here to sweep the floors tonight," Ye Chen replied. He walked up to the desk and rested his hands on the polished wood. "I am here to study the martial manuals."

Elder Qin lowered his ledger. He looked at Ye Chen with a mixture of pity and concern. The old man knew the tragic history of the former genius who had his spiritual roots stolen.

"I know surviving as a servant is a brutal life," Elder Qin sighed softly. "But forcing your body to learn martial arts without a foundation is dangerous. You will tear your own muscles apart if you rush this. Please do not hurt yourself chasing ghosts."

"You do not need to worry about my safety anymore," Ye Chen said with a reassuring smile. "I know my current limits. I just need to find a suitable technique to protect myself."

Elder Qin studied the young man's face for a long moment. He saw a fierce determination burning in Ye Chen's eyes that had been missing for three years. The old man nodded slowly and closed his ledger.

"The sect rules require a jade membership card to browse the inner aisles," Elder Qin said. He waved his wrinkled hand toward the towering shelves. "But I am the only one keeping watch tonight. You may stay as long as you want and read whatever you need. Just do not take the books outside the building."

Ye Chen bowed his head in genuine gratitude. He thanked the old man and walked past the front desk into the labyrinth of knowledge.

The Scholar's Hall was enormous. Ye Chen wandered down the first wide aisle dedicated entirely to weapon manuals. Hundreds of thick leather bound books lined the shelves. He saw sections categorized by swords, sabers, spears, and bludgeons. Normal outer disciples would spend months reading a single book. They had to memorize every stance and practice every breathing rhythm just to initiate a basic skill.

Ye Chen moved past the weapons and entered the physical enhancement section. He pulled a manual from the shelf titled Stone Skin. He flipped through the parchment pages. The book contained complex diagrams showing how to route energy to harden the epidermis. A normal student would bleed from their pores trying to master this in their first year.

He placed the book back and walked deeper into the archive. He explored the aisles containing movement arts and basic breathing methods. The volume of knowledge was staggering. He realized he had a massive advantage over every other disciple in the sect. He did not need to meditate on these diagrams for months. He just needed his system to scan them.

Ye Chen grabbed three different books from the surrounding shelves. He held Stone Skin in his left hand. He grabbed a movement manual called Dual Step. Finally he picked up a combat manual titled Reinforced Shoulder Charge. The text on the back cover claimed it reinforced the body for powerful ramming attacks that could shatter guards and send enemies flying.

He held the three books together and waited.

A familiar chime echoed in his mind. The translucent blue screen materialized in front of his eyes.

[Scanning Available Texts.] [Compatibility Analysis Initiated.] [Reinforced Shoulder Charge: 12 percent compatibility.] [Stone Skin: 18 percent compatibility.] [Swift Step: 21 percent compatibility.]

Ye Chen frowned at the floating numbers. [Ding! Martial skills detected: Would you like to use 10 System Points to learn each of these skills instantly with the 100x Cultivation Speed buff?]

[Notice: Host possesses the Chaos Body Tempering Art. This foundation requires martial skills with specific elemental attributes to stimulate spiritual growth. Learning generic or neutral skills will result in slow cultivation.]

The realization hit Ye Chen. He looked around the library with new understanding. The Azure Cloud Sect built their public reputation on being righteous and pure. The thousands of books in this public archive reflected that facade. They were all neutral techniques devoid of any elemental properties. The sect intentionally kept the destructive arts hidden away.

Ye Chen needed skills with attributes like fire, water, or the thunder he possessed in his palm strike. Learning these neutral books would lock his progress at the third stage of body tempering. He would never reach the fourth stage and he would never be strong enough to face Su Rou.

He carried the books back to the front desk. Elder Qin looked up with a hopeful smile.

"Did you find something to help you defend yourself?" Elder Qin asked.

"These manuals are all neutral foundation arts," Ye Chen said. He placed the books on the oak desk. "Do you have any manuals that possess elemental attributes? I need something aligned with wind, fire, or lightning."

Elder Qin shook his head. "Those types of manuals do not exist in the public archive. They are considered lethal combat arts. If you want to read those books you must be formally accepted as a student under a Sect Elder. The elder would then grant you access to their private pavilion."

Ye Chen felt a cold knot form in his stomach. The path was blocked. No elder in the sect would ever accept a disciple who lacked spiritual roots. Su Rou had made sure he was blacklisted from every pavilion when she stole his innate talent. He was officially barred from the very knowledge he needed to survive.

"I understand," Ye Chen said. He forced a polite smile to hide his bitter disappointment. He reached for the Reinforced Shoulder Charge and the Dual Step manuals. "I will just study these two basic books for tonight."

Elder Qin watched Ye Chen pick up the books. The old librarian had lived a long life and recognized the look of a man hitting a brick wall. Elder Qin had no children of his own and he had always viewed the polite servant boy with a grandfatherly fondness. He made a sudden decision.

"Wait," Elder Qin said. He reached into his own robes and pulled out a thin, worn booklet stitched together with dark thread.

He placed the fragile booklet on the desk and pushed it toward Ye Chen.

"I cannot give you access to the elder pavilions," Elder Qin said softly. "But this is my own family heirloom. I have no heirs to pass it down to and my old bones cannot use it anymore. It is called the Wind Cutter Finger."

Ye Chen looked down at the frayed cover. He did not want to impose on the old man's generosity.

"It focuses QI force into two fingers," Elder Qin explained. "It allows for precise strikes against pressure points and weak spots. More importantly it carries a distinct wind attribute. It is not much but I hope it can help you find your footing."

Ye Chen reached out and touched the cover of the booklet.

The system chimed instantly in his mind. The blue screen flashed with a vibrant golden light.

[Skill Detected: Wind Cutter Finger.] [Attribute: Wind.] [Compatibility Analysis: 92 percent compatibility.] [Notice: Highly recommended for Chaos Body Tempering progression.]

Ye Chen felt a surge of pure ecstatic joy rush through his veins. This frail little booklet was the exact key he needed to break his bottleneck. The high compatibility meant the system would integrate the knowledge flawlessly and push his physical stage forward.

He dropped the other two generic books onto the desk. He picked up the Wind Cutter Finger with both hands and bowed deeply to the old librarian.

"Thank you Elder Qin," Ye Chen said. His voice was thick with genuine emotion. "I will never forget this gift. I swear I will repay this debt when I have the power to do so."

Elder Qin waved his hand dismissively but a warm smile touched his wrinkled face. "Just go practice your stance, boy. And try not to break your fingers."

Ye Chen nodded and turned away from the desk. He clutched the thin booklet tightly against his chest. He walked past the towering rows of useless neutral books and headed straight for a secluded corner of the archive. He sat down on the wooden floor and opened the first page.