A suffocating silence descended over the area outside the mouth of the Mist Cave. The Discipline Elder stood frozen, the hourglass in his hand nearly slipping from his grip. Meanwhile, Gao Lu stumbled back several steps, his face as pale as a sheet and his knees trembling violently as though he had just seen a ghost crawling straight out of hell.

"Y-You... how can you possibly still be alive?!" Gao Lu shrieked in high-pitched panic, shattering the quiet. "Even the strongest outer disciple wouldn't survive five days in there without a protective talisman!"

Ye Tian ignored Gao Lu’s hysterical bluster. He stepped forward, each heavy footfall against the stony ground echoing with a dense thud—clear proof that his body's weight and muscular density had multiplied a hundredfold after consuming the Soul-Cleansing Fruit. His skin, now as pristine as white jade, radiated a subtle, luminescent sheen, as if divine energy were coursing directly beneath his flesh.

"The five-day limit has expired, and I have emerged completely unharmed," Ye Tian declared in a flat, unyielding tone. His sharp black eyes locked onto the Discipline Elder. "In accordance with our agreement before the entire sect, I am claiming my right. Make me an official disciple."

The Discipline Elder clenched his fists beneath his navy-blue robes, his jaw tightening. As a respected elder, he felt deeply humiliated at having to yield to a former woodchopping servant. He extended his spiritual sense to inspect Ye Tian’s cultivation level, hoping to uncover some trace of cheating or forbidden magic.

Yet, the results of his scan only deepened his scowl. Strange... deeply strange! the Discipline Elder thought in frustration. His Dantian is completely empty; not a single drop of Qi or spiritual energy resides within it. His spiritual root is still nonexistent. But... how can his physical aura feel so oppressive, as though he were a prehistoric beast in human skin?

Finding no evidence of foul play, and with a growing crowd of disciples gathering to witness the outcome, the Discipline Elder had no choice but to uphold the dignity of sect law.

"Hmph! Your life is remarkably stubborn, brat," the Discipline Elder snorted, violently snapping his sleeve. A silver medallion and a set of official gray outer disciple robes floated from his hands, landing directly at Ye Tian’s feet.

"As of today, you are officially an Outer Disciple of the Cloud Sword Sect. But remember, the Immortal Realm is not as forgiving as you think. In this sect, a disciple without a spiritual root or spellcasting ability is nothing more than a joke. You may have survived the cave, but in the upcoming disciple competitions, you are still trash destined for the very bottom!" the Discipline Elder threatened before vaulting onto his flying sword and shooting into the sky in a fit of rage.

Seeing his backer depart, Gao Lu gathered his bandages and fled in utter terror, not daring to meet Ye Tian’s eyes again.

Ye Tian offered a faint smile. He picked up the gray robes and the silver token engraved with his name: Ye Tian. At the waist of his new attire, he reattached the tattered hemp bag containing his sister’s half-ration of rice. To him, flashy clothes and titles meant nothing; all that mattered were the privileges tied to his new rank.

That afternoon, Ye Tian walked toward the outer disciple residential quarters. Unlike the cramped, squalid servant barracks, every outer disciple received a small private wooden cottage nestled on the hillside, enclosed by a bamboo fence. Here, his privacy was finally guaranteed.

However, the journey to his new home was hardly free of scornful gazes. News of the "Mortal Servant who survived the Mist Cave" had swept across the Outer Peak like a thunderstorm. All along the path, hundreds of outer disciples lined the road, pointing at Ye Tian with condescending, cynical, and suspicious eyes.

"Look, there he is—the bastard favored by luck."

"Tch, he just has a brute physical frame like a bridge laborer. Does he honestly think he can compete with us, who can command the natural elements?"

"Without spiritual energy, he won't even be able to unseal the formation gates of the Technique Library. He's nothing more than a trophy disciple for show!"

Ye Tian shut his ears to the mockery. The moment he reached his cottage, he locked the door securely behind him. Sitting cross-legged on the wooden bed, he took a deep breath and began to thoroughly inspect his new condition.

As he closed his eyes, Ye Tian felt the revolutionary transformation within himself. The Soul-Cleansing Fruit had fused every remaining trace of Lady Mei's Ascension energy into every cell, bone marrow, and blood vessel of his body. His blocked meridians were no longer an obstacle, for his entire physical form had transformed into one giant reservoir of power. Where other cultivators gathered energy inside their Dantian, Ye Tian locked his pure power directly within the framework of his flesh and bones.

"This power... the Ninth Layer of the Body Tempering Realm," Ye Tian whispered in awe. In just a matter of days, his physique had reached parity with a pure cultivator at the peak of the Qi Gathering Realm!

He squeezed his right hand into a fist, causing the surrounding air to creak under the compressed pressure of his fingers. His raw physical strength was now potent enough to shatter massive granite boulders with a mere flick of his wrist.

Yet, Ye Tian knew this was still not enough. Raw physical power without structured combat techniques would be easily read and exploited by enemies wielding long-range magic. He needed to master the high-level martial arts architecture of this world.

Ye Tian stood up, staring down at the silver medallion in his palm. Tomorrow, he would have full access to enter the first floor of the Cloud Sword Sect’s Technique Library.

Gently touching the bag of rice at his waist, a deep longing surged through his chest once more. The memory of little Xiao Mei’s tearful, hungry eyes seemed to call out to him from across invisible dimensions.

"One step closer, Xiao Mei," Ye Tian murmured, gazing sharply out the cottage window toward the lightning-shrouded peaks of the main mountain. "Your Gege is officially part of this world now. Anyone who dares stand in the way of my return... I will crush them with these bare fists!"