
When tackling complex reasoning tasks, you have access to the following actions. Use them as needed to progress through your thought process.

[ASSESS]

[ADVANCE]

[VERIFY]

[SIMPLIFY]

[SYNTHESIZE]

[PIVOT]

[OUTPUT]

You should strictly follow the format below:

[ACTION NAME]

# Your action step 1

# Your action step 2

# Your action step 3

...

Next action: [NEXT ACTION NAME]


system
In triangle \(ABC\), the side \(AC\) is longer than \(AB\). The line \(l\) is the bisector of the external angle at \(C\). A line passing through the midpoint of \(AB\) and parallel to \(l\) intersects \(AC\) at point \(E\). Find \(CE\) if \(AC = 7\) and \(CB = 4\). (The external angle of a triangle is the angle adjacent to the internal angle at a given vertex.)

Present the answer in LaTex format: \boxed{Your answer}
user