Chapter 1

Sword Sect, Floating Mountain, Servant Peak.

As a famous major sect in the Southern Region, the Sword Sect is backed by the Ten Thousand Great Mountains and overlooks the Great Qin Empire to the south. Its buildings occupy over a thousand miles of the Floating Mountain. The Floating Mountain has seven main peaks and thirty-six smaller peaks, among which the Servant Peak is one of these numerous smaller peaks. As the name suggests, the Servant Peak is where the servant disciples live.

Although the Servant Peak is where the servant disciples live, its scale can rival a small city with a population of several hundred thousand in the Great Qin Empire.

As the sky began to lighten, Yang Ye woke up as usual. After a quick wash, he took the broom from behind the door and walked out of his room.

Looking at the first light of dawn, Yang Ye took a deep breath of the fresh morning air. A moment later, his slightly young face was filled with determination, and he whispered, "Keep trying, don't give up!" After saying this, he quickly walked toward the Clear Wind Valley.

"Look, isn't that the former outer sect disciple?"

"Yes, it's him. You know, that was in the past. Now, he's just a servant disciple, sweeping the ground like us."

"Pity, what a handsome young man! He can't be more than sixteen or seventeen years old. At this age, he should have a bright future, but now he's just doing odd jobs. What a pity!"

"I heard that he was taken in as an outer sect disciple by an outer sect elder in An Nan City, but he couldn't absorb any mystic qi for a whole year. The elder, in a fit of anger, demoted him to a servant disciple. It's said that he's the first in Sword Sect history to be demoted from an outer sect disciple to a servant disciple, and he's even been given the title of 'Sword Sect's First Waste'!"

"Sword Sect's First Waste, tsk tsk, that's quite a reputation!"

Hearing the words of the people around him, Yang Ye paused in his steps, his right hand tightening on the broom. After a moment, he took a deep breath, ignored the few people, and quickly walked toward the Clear Wind Valley.

The Clear Wind Valley is located at the back of the Servant Peak, surrounded by several small mountains. In the middle is a sunken valley floor, covered with lush grass and towering trees that block out the sky. This is where the servant disciples usually gather herbs and cut wood, and it's also where Yang Ye usually practices.

On a large rock, Yang Ye casually threw the broom aside, then sat cross-legged on the rock. He took out an envelope and a small clay figure from his pocket. This was the letter he received from home last night. Since he had been busy for nearly seven or eight hours yesterday, he hadn't had time to read it.

Looking at the small clay figure in his hand, Yang Ye's young face showed a gentle smile. The clay figure was small, not very intricate, but the features were clear. It was made by his sister, who had tried to make it look like him. Although it wasn't very accurate and was a bit rough, it was the most precious thing to him.

After gently caressing it for a while, Yang Ye put the clay figure back in his pocket and looked at the envelope. He blew off the dust on the envelope and carefully took out the letter inside, reading it.

"Brother, we received the gold coins you sent last month. Since you were taken in as an outer sect disciple by the Sword Sect, the neighbors who used to look down on our family often come to visit us. Hmph, Xiao Yao knows that they are only being nice to Mother and me because they know you have abilities, a bunch of opportunists."

Yang Ye took a deep breath, a bitter smile playing on his lips, "Outer sect disciple..."

After a long while, Yang Ye suppressed the feelings of frustration and helplessness in his heart and focused on the letter.

"Also, the people from the Liu family are so annoying. They actually proposed to Mother, wanting Xiao Yao to be a concubine for their three-hundred-pound fatty. The fatty can't even walk, and Xiao Yao can't even eat when she sees him. They even want Xiao Yao to be his concubine. Fortunately, Mother didn't agree! Even if I were to marry, I would only marry you... um, embarrassing, you're not allowed to laugh at me, and you're not allowed to laugh in your heart!"

"Liu family!" A cold light flashed in Yang Ye's eyes. This family had considerable influence in An Nan City. In the past, the head of the Liu family wanted to take his mother as a concubine, but she refused to the death. The Liu family didn't dare to cause a fatal incident, as the laws of the Great Qin Empire were strict, and causing a death would bring them trouble.

However, the Liu family didn't give up. They made life difficult for his family in An Nan City, trying to force his mother to join the Liu family voluntarily. Despite the hardships, his mother never gave in to the Liu family. This situation continued until he was taken in as an outer sect disciple by the Sword Sect. After becoming an outer sect disciple, the Liu family became more cautious and didn't dare to pressure them excessively.

But he never expected that the Liu family would now target his sister!

"Strength, strength! I must become an outer sect disciple." Yang Ye clenched his fists. He knew that if the news of his demotion to a servant disciple reached An Nan City, the Liu family would act without restraint, and his mother and sister would be in great danger.

Thinking of this, Yang Ye put the letter away, walked to the bottom of the rock, and moved aside the branches. Under the branches were four black iron blocks similar to bracelets.

He put the four black iron blocks on his arms and ankles. Wearing the iron blocks, Yang Ye immediately felt a heavy weight, but fortunately, after a year, he had already gotten used to the weight of the iron blocks.

After putting on the iron blocks, Yang Ye walked to a large tree, kicked off the ground with both feet, and grabbed the branches with both hands, then used the pulling force of his arms to move up and down. During the movement, his body took on a strange posture, which made all his muscles work together.

This was the "Body Tempering Technique" he received when he became an outer sect disciple. It wasn't a high-level technique; every outer sect disciple had a copy. The purpose of this technique was to strengthen the body. When the body's tendons and bones reached a certain level, a trace of mystic qi would be generated. With mystic qi, one would become a true mystic practitioner.

He had practiced this "Body Tempering Technique" for half a year without generating any mystic qi, which was why he was demoted from an outer sect disciple to the lowest-ranking servant disciple in the Sword Sect.

Being demoted from an outer sect disciple to a servant disciple was unprecedented in Sword Sect history, so he earned the nickname "First Waste"! Not only that, but he also became a negative example used by the outer sect elders to educate outer sect disciples.

Whenever an outer sect disciple was lazy or not serious, the elders would say, "Do you want to be the second Yang Ye?"

Under normal circumstances, most people would leave the Sword Sect and return to the secular world. But Yang Ye didn't. Not only did he not return to the secular world, but he also willingly became a servant disciple!

All of this was because he didn't want to disappoint his mother and sister! He was their hope. Because he became an outer sect disciple, his sister and mother were no longer bullied; because he became an outer sect disciple, they finally had a better life.

If he returned, everything would change!

"Breath... breath..."

A moment later, the quiet Clear Wind Valley was filled with heavy breathing. Sweat dripped into his eyes, causing a stinging pain that made Yang Ye close his eyes tightly. Sweat poured down his face like rain.

At this moment, Yang Ye felt his whole body was sore and tired, especially his arms, which felt as heavy as lead. Most people would choose to rest at this point, but he didn't. He gritted his teeth, held onto the branches tightly, and continued to move up and down.

After a long time, Yang Ye's face turned red, and sweat poured down his forehead. His light blue servant shirt was soaked through. The feeling of reaching his limit made him dizzy. Finally, he let go of the branches and fell heavily to the ground.

"Breath... breath..."

Lying on the ground, Yang Ye panted heavily, too exhausted to move a finger.

The sky was turning light, and the scenery in the distance gradually became clear. A gentle breeze blew, and Yang Ye greedily inhaled the fresh air. Suddenly, he sat up, eyes wide open, his face full of disbelief!

He actually felt mystic qi!

Yes, he felt mystic qi! A faint trace of mystic qi flowed through his meridians and into his dantian. Although the flow was intermittent and weak, he really felt it.

"Huh? What's happening?"

Yang Ye felt the trace of mystic qi enter his dantian, but it suddenly disappeared. Yes, it disappeared, as if it had never been there!

Yang Ye's brows furrowed as he tried to sense the trace of mystic qi. After a moment, his eyes widened, and his face was full of shock.

"I, I, I actually have two dantians..." Yang Ye's throat moved, his face full of disbelief. He found the trace of mystic qi, or rather, a stream of it. In the depths of his dantian, there was a small vortex filled with mystic qi!

Yang Ye now understood why he hadn't absorbed mystic qi before. It wasn't that he hadn't absorbed it, but that it had been immediately sucked into the small vortex. He hadn't discovered the small vortex because it was hidden very deep. If he hadn't followed the flow of mystic qi, he might never have found it!

The reason he could now feel the mystic qi was that the small vortex was full. Yes, the small vortex was full of mystic qi, and a trace of it had been pushed to the normal dantian position. However, for some reason, the small vortex forcibly sucked the trace of mystic qi back, leaving nothing for the normal dantian.

As far as he knew, normal people should have only one dantian. He didn't know if others had two dantians, but he knew one thing: he wasn't a waste, and he could cultivate!

Thinking of this, a faint smile appeared on Yang Ye's lips. After a moment, the smile grew wider, and a light laugh escaped his throat. After a while, the light laugh turned into a loud, wild laugh.

"I, Yang Ye, can become a mystic practitioner, I, Yang Ye, can become a mystic practitioner, hahaha..."

At this moment, Yang Ye laughed until he cried, crying like a child. For countless nights, although he had never given up, he had always felt the weight of an invisible mountain on his shoulders. He wasn't afraid of others mocking him as a waste or looking down on him.

But he was afraid of his sister and mother losing hope!

He was afraid of his sister and mother being bullied by their neighbors again!

He was afraid of his sister and mother living in poverty again!

He was really afraid, afraid of so many things...

But now, he had the ability to prevent these things from happening. As long as he practiced the "Body Tempering Technique" to the highest level and reached the Sixth Rank of Mortals, he could become an outer sect disciple. As an outer sect disciple, he would have cultivation resources, techniques, and sword skills, and then he would have a chance to become an inner sect disciple.

As an inner sect disciple, even the city lord of An Nan City would treat him with respect!

Gentle sunlight filtered through the trees, illuminating Yang Ye's tear-streaked face, making it glow red.

"Why didn't I notice how beautiful the scenery around me is?"

He laughed, suppressing his excitement, wiped the tears from his face, took off the iron blocks, and put them back in their place. He walked to the rock, picked up the broom, and ran quickly toward the valley entrance.

He remembered that his task today was to clean the Sword Sect's training ground!