ose barbarians outside only care about fighting and training, destined to get themselves killed,” Sister Song said, laughing as she picked up Tao Ci and placed him on her lap. “Oh, you’re heavier! Have you been snatching Zhu'er’s food, being naughty?”

“Senior Sister, our Xiao Ci is still growing. It’s normal for his weight to change,” Song Mingxuan chuckled wryly.

Tao Ci felt a warm fuzzy feeling as he looked at the three of them. Whether it was the mutual understanding among fellow book lovers or the affection from the Song siblings, it all gave him a sense of belonging. As an only child in his past life, he never had the company of siblings, which made this life feel like poetic justice.

“Good morning, Third Martial Uncle, Sister Song, Brother Mingxuan, and Brother Yu over there.”

Often seated in the corner was a taciturn senior brother named Yu Chunlai. His name evoked thoughts of hope within the cold winter, yet he himself was aloof and frosty. He rarely spoke but politely nodded and smiled each time Tao Ci greeted him, then buried himself back in his books. Tao Ci nearly always encountered him in the library.

“Hey hey,” Brother Yu nodded and smiled at Tao Ci as usual before returning to his reading.

The other three shared a helpless smile regarding Yu Chunlai. Despite studying together for years in the library, the Song siblings and Third Martial Uncle had grown close, whereas Yu remained as bashful and quiet as the day they first met, rarely speaking.

Yu arrived at the library earlier than anyone else every day, engrossed in reading from dawn to dusk. It was hard to fathom what he was absorbing. Since the decline of Chaoyang Sect, the great martial arts had been lost, and the secret code, locked away a millennium ago, remained inaccessible. No subsequent sect leaders managed to open it, much less comprehend it.

Currently, all that remained were a few basic entry-level techniques. Most senior brothers and sisters, having completed these basics, either left the sect or, like the four here, hid away in the library, diverging on different paths.

“Today’s another read on herb anecdotes?”

“Yep, thanks, Uncle.” In the ever-volatile Jiuyang Continent, medical skills advanced continuously, yet most cultivators could self-heal. Hence, herbal knowledge was crucial.

The continent abounded with rare treasures, thoroughly documented over the millennia. Chaoyang Sect’s library alone housed hundreds of herbal texts. Realizing he couldn’t read them all, Tao Ci chose three masterpieces recommended by senior members. By now, he had memorized most common herbs.

"The Jiuyang herbarium ranks the wonder herbs that are second to none," Tao Ci murmured as he immersed himself in reading, external noises fading into silence. This was a “special skill” honed i

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