In the lake, Wu Yin's eyes blazed with fury. As someone of her status, she rarely faced losses, and she was furious that Wang Xuan had the audacity to take action against her—no, to kick her! It was simply unbearable, nearly making her explode with rage. Moreover, her backside ached from the force of the kick, making her almost cry out at that moment. With her temper already fierce, her chest heaved as she longed to rush to the shore and confront him.

However, she hesitated, as her long dress was completely soaked and clung to her stunning curves, making it impossible for her to get out without becoming the center of attention. She hid her face behind her long hair, fearing being photographed, but the water was cold, especially in late autumn, and she bit her teeth in frustration.

Meanwhile, the female star was far less composed. After falling into the lake, she began to scream—this experience was a nightmare for her, and she choked on a couple of mouthfuls of water. Fortunately, the black-clad bodyguards acted diligently; among the hulking men, a few female bodyguards swam over to support her, preventing her from sinking, though her makeup was ruined.

Wu Yin's assistant saw this scene and refrained from rushing in, fearing she'd be kicked in as well. Instead, she hurried to the shore to call for help. Some black-clad bodyguards tried to get to the shore, but the crowd jeered, causing them to be kicked back into the water.

"Everyone, step aside! Saving people is urgent; it's easy to catch a chill if you fall in!" Wang Xuan shouted, wanting to diffuse the situation before it escalated.

One by one, the black-clad men returned to shore, noticeably more subdued, no longer pushing people around as they helped their companions out of the water.

"Big Wu, I'll pull you up!" Wang Xuan called to Wu Yin, embodying the spirit of kindness. He reached out, wanting to help her up, thoughtfully avoiding using her real name, as she was from a sensitive family background.

Wu Yin didn't move. Upon hearing "Big Wu," her beautiful eyes flared even more. She felt no warmth from his supposed concern; rather, she believed he was intentionally retaliating against her previous aggressive behavior.

Seeing her unresponsive and hiding her face, resembling an ostrich, Wang Xuan lost interest. After all, they had only met a few times. Wu Yin thought he was intentionally trying to pull her out, exposing her drenched dress and embarrassing state.

"Leilei!" A woman in her thirties, tear-streaked and voice trembling, rushed towards the little girl beside Wang Xuan.

"Mommy!" the little girl exclaimed joyfully.

The crowd had been too chaotic earlier, and the two had been separated in the crowd. Wang Xuan immediately handed the girl over, and the woman, crying with gratitude, quickly embraced her child.

At that moment, a man in his fifties approached, accompanied by several others, making Wang Xuan wary. The old man's companions were no ordinary people.

"Xiao Yin, what happened to you?"

"Uncle, I was pushed into the water!" Wu Yin replied, glancing at Wang Xuan.

Wang Xuan sighed, wondering why Old Chen was taking so long to arrive. Since he hadn't left earlier, he wouldn't depart now; he needed to step in calmly.

As a concerned bystander, he approached the middle-aged man and explained that the female star's grand entrance had caused a blockade, almost pushing bystanders into the lake.

"This is outrageous!" Wang Xuan shook his head. "Clearly, it was her fault! Just now, the female star even quietly said she knew the victim in the lake—it's simply…"

The middle-aged man, named Wu Chenglin and indeed Wu Yin's uncle, was quite astute. Upon hearing this, he immediately sensed the underlying sarcasm in Wang Xuan's tone.

"Could it be they really know each other?" Wang Xuan pointed to Wu Yin in the water and then toward the female star nearby.

"No, we don't know each other!" Wu Chenglin quickly shook his head and promptly removed his coat, handing it to Wu Yin as he personally helped her up.

Naturally, he had to deny it. Their style was to keep a low profile, operating from behind the scenes without wanting to be in the spotlight. Moreover, today's incident, if it made headlines, would undoubtedly be negative.

Not far away, the female star and her assistant were unwilling to accept this, wanting to say something, but Wu Chenglin merely glanced at them and told the crowd, "There's nothing to see. Everyone disperse!"

The first to leave were the female star and her entourage, who quietly slipped away, choosing not to escalate the situation or confront Wang Xuan.

Wang Xuan turned to leave, but just as he hadn't walked a hundred meters, a car sped over and stopped by the road—it was Old Chen arriving at the scene.

"Old Chen, I'm heading back now. Here's the gist…" Wang Xuan spoke to him on the phone without approaching, simply informing him of the situation and preparing to leave.

"Unexpectedly, it's Old Wu! He's our collaboration target this time. Little Wang, do you want to come over? It's good to get acquainted since we'll be working together," Old Chen said while glancing at the lakeshore, a bit surprised.

Wang Xuan felt something was off. Didn't the expedition organization intercept the Ling, Zhou, and Wu families at Qingcheng Mountain last time? Why were they collaborating now?

But he understood that when interests aligned, enemies could become allies, especially since both sides probably had ongoing cooperation. The previous interception was likely instigated by Old Chen subtly directing Qingmu's actions, and the opposing party may not have been aware.

"Old Chen, I won't go. By the way, I forgot to tell you, I just kicked Old Wu's niece into the lake. You can sort that out. But don't sell me out; if you do, don't expect to learn about the grand opportunity of transcending. I'll take it to my grave!"

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Upon hearing this, Old Chen couldn't help but smirk. As a renowned expert in the field of ancient arts, it was a bit embarrassing for him to personally handle such a trivial matter.

In the end, he walked over and took Wu Chenglin away for tea, leaving others to handle the lakeshore incident.

The next day, which was Monday, Wang Xuan went to work as usual. He felt this lifestyle was coming to an end soon and came by to bid farewell to his colleagues with whom he had spent so little time.

Soon, Old Chen arrived, looking radiant compared to his previous haggard state.

"Old Chen, it's been a while. You look great! By the way, how's the research on the I Ching going?" a colleague greeted.

"That lousy book? I've quit it!" Old Chen replied bluntly, then immediately called Wang Xuan aside for a serious chat.

"I'm working!" Wang Xuan replied as he stepped out.

"I'll give you an extended vacation. Recently, you should take a good rest. It's just a small matter," Old Chen said warmly, exercising his authority to grant Wang Xuan some time off.

"In that case, why not just change my environment? I want to go to the New Star," Wang Xuan said, decisively seizing the opportunity. He had made up his mind.

Old Chen looked back at Wang Xuan, surprised he had taken the initiative to go to New Star.

He rubbed his hands together and said, "No problem, but the competition over at the wealthy family's young ladies and the widow's family is fierce."

Wang Xuan shot him a sideways glance. "Old Chen, have you been reading too many old novels? You should arrange it like this: once I get to New Star, you should have the wealthy heiress serve as my bodyguard and the beautiful widow as my driver. That would be better."

Old Chen sighed, "You young people are too impatient and don't understand the value of hard work, just wanting to jump to the top. Your request is a bit too high."

Wang Xuan pretended to be serious, thinking Old Chen might actually arrange it. "A person like me can reveal the truth of transcendence. Aren't you embarrassed if you don't arrange a few top-notch experts for me? My request isn't high."

"Fair point," Old Chen surprisingly nodded. "After you go to New Star, I'll arrange that."

Wang Xuan couldn't be bothered to respond. He believed Old Chen was so desperate for the transcendence method that he was ready to say anything.

Old Chen pondered and then asked, "What do you think about the girl you kicked into the lake? Let her be your driver."

Wang Xuan ignored him, not wanting to entertain his nonsense.

"Little Wang, do you look down on me and our organization?" Old Chen asked. "In the past, it would have been difficult. But this time, it was Old Wu's family that asked for our help. What's wrong with having that girl you kicked be your driver? It could help conceal your identity. If we cooperate, you are a key part; why wouldn't they be willing? They'll definitely cooperate."

Wang Xuan suddenly turned to Old Chen, realizing the old man had been pushing him toward New Star. It seemed he had already planned some cooperation and had sold him out beforehand!

"Old Chen, are you planning to dig for Earth Immortal herbs? I'm not participating in this operation!" Wang Xuan refused outright. With so many organizations and powerful factions in New Star, none had managed to harvest Earth Immortal herbs so far, making the difficulty clear. He had no intention of being cannon fodder.

Old Chen chuckled, "Where are you going with that? The Earth Immortal herb plan is behind us; it's not time for that yet. This operation isn't dangerous; you can trust my integrity."

Wang Xuan looked at him, thinking it was insane to trust this old colleague!

Old Chen continued, "Think about it: even the young lady from the Wu family is involved, serving as your driver. She has no problem piloting a small spacecraft. If she's committed, what danger could there be?"

Wang Xuan felt Old Chen's reasoning was too far-fetched and untrustworthy; he still seemed a bit unreliable.

"Old Chen, let's discuss serious matters. And just so you know, don't think about selling me out to the Wu family. If you do, even if I pass on the Immortal Ascension technique to you, you'll still run into trouble."

Old Chen was eager to hear about the Immortal Ascension technique but added, "Little Wang, don't think my words are unreliable. They genuinely came to seek us out. As someone with considerable influence in the old arts, I'm worth their serious invitation. They've realized that certain problems can only be solved by practitioners of the old arts."

"Old Chen, you seem quite confident. Just how advanced is your old arts?" Wang Xuan was genuinely curious.

Old Chen smiled smugly, "Let's put it this way: the last time I faced Sun Chengkun at Daqi Mountain, back when he was at his peak and hadn't been severely injured yet, despite being around my age, he still addressed me as 'Teacher Chen' every time we met."

Wang Xuan was shocked, seriously doubting the truth of this. Could Old Chen really be that incredible?

They had now reached the abandoned machinery factory behind the design institute, where Old Chen often came to fish in the pond.

"See that abandoned steel machinery and those large gears and mixers? When I was younger, I often practiced there bare-handed," Old Chen pointed to the rusty machinery ahead, a massive cluster weighing who knows how many tons.

As he spoke, he walked over and tapped a steel plate a few centimeters thick, saying, "I haven't done that in many years."

Then he urged Wang Xuan to share the secrets of the Immortal Ascension technique.

Wang Xuan had no intention of being evasive; he meant to offer Old Chen some benefits. He directly demonstrated the boxing technique taught by the old monk.

As he practiced and explained the first move, he struggled to express the true boxing intent because it required the internal organs to vibrate with power. The difficulty was too high for him at this stage, so he could only describe it verbally.

Old Chen, being knowledgeable, was astonished and exclaimed, "Impressive! It looks like the Great Diamond Fist, but it's definitely not. For me, it would be very challenging to practice, a worthy challenge indeed."

Wang Xuan only taught him one move and told him he could return, promising to complete the rest tomorrow.

"Alright, no rush. I'll find you tomorrow," Old Chen nodded and hurried away, eager to practice.

Wang Xuan was speechless, implying that tonight the old monk with bleeding eyes would visit Old Chen, and the two would have a delightful evening together, so Old Chen should be good to go by then.

After Old Chen left, Wang Xuan also tapped that steel plate, and his expression immediately changed. The area where Old Chen had tapped was now scattered with steel shavings, reduced to tiny fragments.

He was genuinely shocked, gasping in disbelief. Was Old Chen really that formidable?

Wang Xuan recalled that Old Chen had barely tapped it lightly; such strength was stunning and terrifying.

"Next time, I need to treat Old Chen better. Having such a dangerously powerful colleague is truly a headache!" Wang Xuan sighed.

Later that evening, Wang Xuan went home and started nagging, telling the old monk he could sit by Old Chen's bedside since Old Chen often visited New Star and could help him fulfill his wishes.

The next morning, Old Chen sought out Wang Xuan, his eyes looking like a rabbit's—bright red and glaring. He questioned Wang Xuan, "Little Wang, what are you doing to me? Just sent off one female sorcerer, and now you send me a ghost monk? What do you mean? I haven't even caught up on my sleep yet, and another round has begun!"

Wang Xuan was surprised, "Didn't he teach you that boxing technique?"

Old Chen was furious, "Teach what? He sat at the head of my bed, staring at me all night. Every time I tried to sleep, he'd lean closer, staring at me without end. He was far less considerate than the last celestial maiden; at least she kept her distance and was stunningly beautiful. This one is dark and gives off a rotten odor, just sitting there and staring at me!"

Given Old Chen's genuine strength, Wang Xuan decided to take this seriously, fearing Old Chen might become enraged without proper guidance. He recounted his experiences in detail.

The next day, Old Chen looked even more haggard and came to find Wang Xuan, indignantly exclaiming, "Little Wang, you've betrayed me!"

"How did I betray you? I told you everything in detail!" Wang Xuan genuinely felt wronged.

"I followed your advice and aimed for his head, but he ended up beating me for a whole night in my mental domain!" Old Chen was filled with despair.