Chapter Thirty-Nine: See No Evil

Three breaths passed in a flash.

Lin Chang had someone bring brush and ink, and personally wrote out the contract severing his father-daughter relationship.

With a knife at his throat, did he dare refuse? As aggrieved, furious, and unwilling as he felt, he could only endure it.

As for Lin Yiyi, she had even less say in the matter. If she didn’t want her father to die, she had no choice but to obediently sign the contract.

Faced with the domineering might of the main Lin family of Swallow City, father and daughter had no room to resist.

Once Lin Han collected the contract, he left, taking Lin Yiyi, his men, and Lin Baili’s corpse with him, soaring away on an iron eagle.

Lin Wei and Lin De, on the other hand, were ordered to remain and oversee the Lin family in Iron Ox Town.

After all that had happened, Lin Chang’s heart harbored no more respect for the Lin family of Swallow City—only resentment remained.

He wanted revenge.

Yet deep down, he was filled with a sense of powerlessness.

Word of what had happened spread quickly through Iron Ox Town. But not a single soul sympathized with him; most looked on with schadenfreude.

Such was the fate of those who brought disaster upon themselves.

Within the ancient fortress.

For the past three days, Qin Feiyang had shut out the world, devoting himself entirely to copying.

After breaking through to Martial Master, he could sustain his vitality with true energy, making daily food unnecessary.

The five hundred Condensing Qi Pills had long since been used up, and his true energy was almost depleted.

But his efforts had not been in vain; he was on the verge of completing the first stroke.

“Just a little more!”

Gritting his teeth, he summoned all his remaining strength, pouring out every last drop of true energy.

Finally, he traced the first stroke of the character—an unbroken, horizontal line forged of pure true energy, shining with dazzling brilliance.

Qin Feiyang was overjoyed.

Perseverance, at last, was rewarded!

But before he could catch his breath—

Suddenly, a powerful force erupted from within him, energy surging wildly.

“What’s happening?”

He was stunned.

Fifteen thousand pounds of force!

Eighteen thousand!

Twenty thousand!

“That’s the strength of two wild elephants!”

Qin Feiyang stared in shock, disbelief written all over his face.

He had actually broken through to Martial Master, second rank?

He gazed blankly at the iron book, feeling as though he were dreaming.

In the past few days, he had indeed taken many Condensing Qi Pills, but he hadn’t used them for cultivation. So how had he broken through? And this speed—wasn’t it simply absurd?

He remembered clearly: it had taken him two full months to go from first to second rank Martial Master last time. Now, it had only been a few days. Even with a solid foundation, this was far too fast!

Gradually, an exhilarating thought crept into his mind.

Could it be that copying a single stroke allowed him to break through a minor realm?

It seemed this was the only reasonable explanation.

“I never imagined that practicing this character would bring me such benefits.”

Qin Feiyang was elated.

By practicing the “Return” character technique, he could both hone his skills and increase his cultivation—killing two birds with one stone and saving a great deal of time.

He took a deep breath, closed the iron book, and turned to the Wolf King with a smile. “Brother Wolf, have you made any progress?”

The Wolf King grinned, then suddenly leapt and rammed straight into Qin Feiyang’s chest.

Caught off guard, Qin Feiyang staggered back a step.

“Nine Bear Strength!”

“How did you get so powerful?”

“Have you broken through to Advanced Fierce Beast?”

Qin Feiyang asked in amazement.

The Wolf King nodded.

Qin Feiyang was filled with envy.

Three days earlier, the Wolf King had been a Mid-level Fierce Beast, possessing only the strength of six bears. But upon breaking through to Advanced, he immediately gained the strength of nine bears—his power skyrocketing at a staggering rate. It was enough to make anyone jealous!

This also proved that the Wolf King’s talent was extraordinary.

Most beasts, upon reaching Advanced rank, merely had the strength of seven or eight bears. Those with nine were exceedingly rare, and such beasts generally achieved great things in the future.

Of the three hundred Body Tempering Pills, two hundred remained; Qin Feiyang gathered them up, then set off with the Wolf King toward Iron Ox Town.

Absorbing the spirit of heaven and earth to replenish true energy was too slow; he needed a large supply of Condensing Qi Pills.

Besides, the Wolf King now needed them too.

“Brother Wolf, have you ever heard of the Gate of Potential?”

Qin Feiyang asked.

The Wolf King looked puzzled.

On the way, Qin Feiyang explained the details to him.

After listening, the Wolf King seemed tempted but lacked confidence, saying they’d discuss it later.

After about half an hour, man and wolf emerged from the forest, standing behind a thicket, gazing at Iron Ox Town in the distance.

“I wonder if the Lin family has left,” Qin Feiyang muttered.

To him, a small town like this was as dangerous as a dragon’s den or a tiger’s lair.

He pondered for a moment, then decided to wait until nightfall to go in.

“Come on, Brother Wolf, let’s go to the lake first and see if Uncle Yuan has returned.”

Man and wolf turned and ran toward the lake.

The lake was still there, but the surrounding mountains had been leveled.

Within a radius of several hundred meters, Qin Feiyang searched thoroughly but still found no sign of Uncle Yuan.

“Where could he have gone?”

All day, Qin Feiyang was restless and uneasy.

As the sun sank toward the horizon, he composed himself, plunged into the lake, and caught a few large fish.

Wild fish were delicious, but tonight, both man and wolf found them tasteless and unappetizing.

“Could Uncle Yuan have left on urgent business?”

“No, even if he did, he wouldn’t have gone without saying goodbye.”

In the stillness of the night, Qin Feiyang looked up at the waning moon, worry etched in his eyes.

…

Late at night, Iron Ox Town was deathly silent.

Two shadowy figures slipped quietly into town, heading straight for the Treasure Pavilion.

Luo Qianxue and her daughter were already asleep.

Creak—

Suddenly, the door opened.

“Who’s there!”

Luo Qianxue started up, alert, peering into the darkness and shouting coldly.

“Pavilion Master, it’s me.”

A low voice came from the shadows, accompanied by a pair of green, glowing eyes.

“Qin Feiyang?”

Luo Qianxue, surprised, reached for a fire striker by her pillow. Once she lit it, she peered at the doorway in the dim light.

There stood a man and a wolf—Qin Feiyang and the Wolf King.

“Pavilion Master, forgive my late-night visit,” Qin Feiyang said, closing the door and bowing with a smile.

Luo Qianxue shot him a strange look, got up in her nightdress, walked to the table, lit a candle, and sat down. “What brings you here at this hour?”

“I have something to discuss.”

Qin Feiyang nodded, took a seat opposite her, just about to speak—

Bang!

At that moment, the door was thrown open by a great force.

Luo Qingzhu burst in, face full of concern. She had been sleeping next door, awakened by her mother’s shout, and rushed over fearing someone meant her harm.

But upon entering and seeing Qin Feiyang and the Wolf King, she froze.

Why was it them?

Qin Feiyang looked at her, and nearly had a nosebleed—quickly averting his gaze.

Because Luo Qingzhu’s nightdress was semi-transparent. The undergarments beneath were indistinct, but the hazy allure made it all the more captivating.

Uncle Yuan had always taught him: hear no evil, see no evil.

So, he must not look!

The atmosphere grew awkward.

Luo Qianxue hadn’t expected her daughter to barge in at that moment either. She frowned and said, “Qingzhu, hurry and change your clothes.”

“Ah!”

Only now did Luo Qingzhu realize the situation, her face flushing bright red. She turned and fled in a panic.

Luo Qianxue knitted her brows, looking at Qin Feiyang. “And how do you plan to resolve this?”

“What do you mean?” Qin Feiyang asked.

“Playing dumb? Want me to gouge your eyes out right now?”

A cold glint appeared in Luo Qianxue’s eyes.

“Pavilion Master, I…”

Qin Feiyang was at a loss. Though it was Luo Qingzhu who’d barged in without a word, and he hadn’t seen much, he still felt responsible.

“If you insist, I’ll take full responsibility,” he said at last.

After all, he was still inexperienced in such matters, and didn’t know how to handle unexpected situations like this.

“Take responsibility?”

At such a childish reply, and seeing his aggrieved expression, Luo Qianxue couldn’t help but laugh.

“All right, all right, it wasn’t your fault, so I won’t pursue it. Now, what did you want to discuss?”

Qin Feiyang breathed a sigh of relief and said, “I’d like to buy a thousand Condensing Qi Pills, but I only have two thousand gold coins. Could I pay the rest with something else?”

At market price, two thousand gold coins would suffice, but the Treasure Pavilion’s prices were a bit higher—he was still a little short.

“What valuable items do you have?” Luo Qianxue asked, curious.

With a clang, Qin Feiyang emptied a pile of weapons from his storage pouch.

These were all spoils from the Black Demon Stronghold—not magical treasures, just ordinary weapons, useless to him, so he might as well sell them off.

“This scrap metal?” Luo Qianxue frowned.

“It’s all I have.”

“Ah, but I also have dozens of Bone-mending and Healing Pills. If you don’t mind, Pavilion Master, you can have them all.”

Qin Feiyang felt embarrassed.

How pitiful! A prince of the mighty Qin Empire, reduced to such straits—how laughable, and how tragic.

Luo Qianxue couldn’t help but laugh as she sized him up.

“Never mind, keep the healing and bone-mending pills for yourself. You’ll need them out there, since injuries are inevitable.”

“As for this pile of junk, I’ll take it off your hands.”

“Wait here—don’t go wandering around.”

With that, she gathered up the weapons and strode out.

“Thank you, Pavilion Master,” Qin Feiyang called after her, delighted.

“No need to thank me. I nearly wronged you, almost even harmed you. I’m already grateful you don’t hold it against me.”

She smiled and hurried away.

“There are still good people in the world, aren’t there, Brother Wolf?”

Qin Feiyang grinned.

The Wolf King bared his teeth in agreement.