A man stands before the heavens, his sword emerges from the Emei Mountains.

boom……

Visible ripples of air erupted from where Chen Yu and Miejue's palms clashed, transforming into a powerful gust of wind that swept outwards in all directions.

"Huh, Yu'er already has several years of internal energy cultivation?"

Miejue retreated a few steps lightly. Even though he knew Chen Yu was exceptionally talented, he was still surprised by the pure and warm internal energy in this test.

"With Master's meticulous guidance, my cultivation has become twice as effective with half the effort."

"Good, good, let's go again." Abbess Miejue took a step forward, and Chen Yu reacted quickly, retreating. However, despite his best efforts to dodge, he could not avoid Abbess Miejue's seemingly leisurely forward movement, which used the "Skillful Chain" move of the Nine Intercepting Hands to seize his wrist.

Chen Yu raised his arm and elbow, using the Emei Small Capturing Hand technique to block and reverse the move.

Suddenly, Miejue's five fingers flipped upwards and grabbed at his throat.

Chen Yu leaned back and somersaulted, landing several feet away. He was so startled that he broke out in a cold sweat. If he hadn't tempered his Yang Qiao Meridian and Yin Qiao Meridian, he would never have been able to avoid the throat-locking grab.

"Not bad." After Chen Yu landed, Miejue followed closely behind. Chen Yu snorted and punched Miejue in the abdomen.

Miejue tucked in her chest and abdomen, Chen Yu raised his arm and elbow, and Hong Quan struck again, delivering a powerful punch to her face. Light and shadow intertwined, and Miejue had already broken free from Chen Yu's fist stance by stepping into the Nine Palaces Step. Her body moved swiftly forward and backward, crisscrossing back and forth, like a flying crane soaring through the air.

Chen Yu focused all his energy on the task at hand, utilizing every muscle and tendon in his body to its fullest potential. He unleashed the Emei martial arts techniques he had learned, such as the "Snowflake Piercing Cloud Palm" and the "South Mountain Palm Technique," with movements that were sometimes swift and fast, sometimes graceful and elusive, occasionally interspersed with some Hung Kuen, Bajiquan, and Baguazhang moves.

Extinction was intended as a test; its movements were swift and agile, like a gust of wind. It moved with incredible speed, finding gaps and openings, and its palm strikes were a series of shadows, constantly forcing Chen Yu to unleash his full potential.

Once Chen Yu had mastered the martial arts skills he had learned, Miejue swayed and in an instant, figures appeared all around Chen Yu, palms flew, and the world seemed to become a large circle where the top and bottom met.

Chen Yu was completely at a loss.

The extinction burst forth like fireworks, a myriad of palm shadows within circles and squares within squares, which transformed into a single palm the instant it landed on Chen Yu, landing with effortless ease.

"Not bad. You have grasped the essence of all the martial arts techniques you have learned, including the 'Snowflake Piercing Cloud Palm.' Your adaptability is outstanding. Your fist techniques are clean, crisp, fierce, and very advanced." Miejue withdrew her palm and praised her highly.

"Master's palm technique is exquisite; this disciple has broadened his horizons greatly," Ding Minjun flattered.

"Hmm, this is the Four Symbols Palm." Miejue changed the subject and continued to Chen Yu: "If you were to encounter a master like Cheng Wenyuan, the leader of the Green Bamboo Gang, again, you would not be at a disadvantage in terms of moves, but if your internal strength is insufficient, you would still find it difficult to withstand many moves."

"The disciple then used his swordsmanship to fight, waiting for an opportunity to use a lime-tipped hidden weapon to escape."

"Wouldn't that be a poor choice?" Ding Minjun interjected.

"If you are less skilled than your opponent, you must do everything you can to protect yourself. Are you going to give your life to your opponent? As long as you're alive, you can always make a comeback."

Ding Minjun felt wronged, as her master always sided with Chen Yu.

Miejue continued, "Minjun, Xiaofu, Yu'er, I will now teach you the Four Symbols Palm Technique. Listen carefully."

"Master is testing the three of us to see if we can inherit his mantle." Ding Minjun's heart pounded.

"Thank you for passing on your skills, Master."

Chen Yu thanked her and busied himself moving chairs and pouring tea. Ding Minjun came to her senses and saw that Miejue was already sipping her tea, looking quite pleased with herself.

"Sycophant," Ding Minjun thought to herself.

Chen Yu observed the other party's indignant expression and chuckled inwardly.

The three sat upright on futons. Abbess Miejue said, "This 'Four Symbols Palm' is a martial art formed based on the principles of the I Ching. It is a circle within a square, yin and yang complementing each other. The circle on the outside is yang, the square in the middle is yin. The circle in motion is heaven, the square in stillness is earth. Heaven and earth, yin and yang, square and circle, motion and stillness. It is divided into four directions: east, south, west, and north, represented by the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise. The Eastern Dragon form focuses on stretching the spirit, rising like a crouching dragon ascending to heaven, and falling like a dragon entering the sea. The Western Tiger form has steady steps, with relaxed shoulders and elbows, turning and striking. The Northern Tortoise and Snake…"

The jade ruyi in front of Chen Yu recounted the details meticulously, emanating a chilling sensation that penetrated to the bone, instantly clearing his mind of all distractions, unifying his body and mind, and allowing him to remember every single word.

Ding Minjun had just memorized the Western tiger shape when she suddenly realized that her memory of the Eastern dragon shape was not deep enough. Fearing that she would forget it, she hurriedly reviewed it. Miejue had already begun to talk about the Northern tortoise and snake. She saw that Ji Xiaofu and Chen Yu were both trying hard to memorize it, and she secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Extinction has begun to talk about the Qi circulation method of the Four Symbols Palm, and the meridians it circulates.

……

As the sun disappeared behind the southern mountain line, Miejue finished explaining and repeated it, then said, "Minjun and Xiaofu, go back and begin your cultivation. Yu'er, stay here; I have something to say."

"Yes, ma'am." Ji Xiaofu rose and bowed.

Ding Minjun was a little confused. Why was it said twice? It wasn't like this before. She didn't remember it all. How could she cultivate?

"Minjun".

"Oh, disciple is recalling the palm technique." Ding Minjun reacted quickly, regaining her senses, she stood up, bowed, and left with Ji Xiaofu.

"Do you know why your teacher wants you to stay?"

"Your disciple is foolish," Chen Yu said truthfully.

"Hmm." Miejue got straight to the point and said, "Some of the fist techniques you used were fierce, but they may have some flaws due to the nature of your training. I think there are shortcomings in them."

Chen Yu immediately said sincerely, "Please enlighten me, Master."

"It seems swift, but it lacks power. It's not that it lacks strength, but rather that it lacks a cohesive force."

Chen Yu listened attentively as Miejue continued, "The fist strikes through three sections. If you don't master this, your fist won't penetrate."

Extinction raised his arm and elbow, making a gesture.

"This is the welcoming hammer," Chen Yu said.

"Hmm, with this move, your speed isn't bad, but you lack punching power. Ultimately, you're using your arm to generate power. It looks fierce, but it's not lethal. You can fight against evenly matched opponents, but when you spar with a master, you're bound to make mistakes."

"Master, please give me your guidance."

"Let me talk about the three sections, which are the hands, elbows, and shoulders, connected one by one. The power originates from the ground, goes to the waist, and then to the shoulders, elbows, and hands."

"When Senior Brother Yang taught the Four Symbols Stance, he said that the power should be concentrated in the feet, and the earth will give power to the feet. The highest level of stance training is the unity of heaven, earth and man."

"Yu'er's stance training is solid, what you lack is a subtle sense of various forces." Miejue got back to the point, "The force goes to the shoulder, elbow, and hand, and is sent out segment by segment. If you supplement it with the external application of internal strength, the force becomes alive and can generate whole-body power. All boxing techniques cannot deviate from this principle. Remember, when you punch, sink your shoulders, move your hands quickly, and let the force go through the entire line. When the force is integrated, it can penetrate anything."

"Thank you for your teachings, Master. I will remember them forever."

"Okay, let's go back. Keep up the current training pace and practice the Four Symbols Palm diligently."

"This disciple takes his leave."

"When you see Yang An in the future, address him as Junior Brother, and give precedence to the most accomplished."

"Actually, we already addressed each other that way when we met," Chen Yu said with a smile.

A slight smile unconsciously appeared at the corner of Miejue's mouth. "Alright, go back."

"This disciple takes his leave."

Chen Yu got up and went down the mountain. His view improved, and a thousand miles away, a single moon shone over Chang'an, where the sound of ten thousand households pounding clothes could be heard.

After delivering the goods, Chief Escort Meng of Changwei Escort Agency rested for two days. He took several capable escorts to tour Chang'an City, purchase some supplies, and also visited the famous restaurant "Feifeng Yanyulou" in the city for a meal.

This "Yanyu Tower" has a unique shape, with soaring eaves, horizontal beams and vertical pillars, resembling a phoenix when viewed from afar.

Inside the building, diners were laughing and chatting. Just as Chief Escort Meng and his entourage began to eat, they overheard conversation among diners at the next table, who were also members of the escort team.

"Bai Guishou of the Sky Eagle Sect has appeared at Fenglingdu, and experts from all sects and factions in the martial arts world are rushing to the scene. This escort route will be difficult to traverse in the near future."

What was said in jest was taken seriously by the listener. Chief镖头 Meng introduced himself and exchanged pleasantries with the other party.

Originally, a group of镖人 (bodyguards) came from Xiangyang and were on their way to Chang'an. When they passed through Fenglingdu, they heard many people in the martial arts world talking about searching for Bai Guishou.

The镖人 (bodyguards) shared information with each other, discussing which镖路 (escort routes) were easy to travel and which were teeming with bandits. After a meal, they bid each other farewell with heartfelt wishes.

Chief镖头 Meng immediately wrote two letters, which were sent as a courier service, and dispatched his bodyguards on horseback to deliver them to Guanzhou and Emei Mountain with utmost speed.