’If someone from an Immortal Family said that, it would be one thing.’
’And you, an esteemed Core Formation True Master—did you not crawl your way up from being a Trial Disciple yourself?’
"..."
Fan Qingyang furrowed his brow deeply.
’He was starting to understand how Senior Brother Feng managed to reach Core Formation so quickly.’
’He spent all his energy trying to read his Master’s mind and curry favor. How could he not be highly regarded?’
Feng Yinglong suddenly remarked with a sigh, "Or maybe that disciple isn’t so important after all—not as important as your pride. If he’s truly surrounded by demons right now and were to witness this, he’d probably be quite heartbroken."
The moment he finished speaking, all the disciples shot to their feet, their gazes fixed on the doorway in a state of ecstatic joy. "Senior Brother Lin!"
Lin Shu leisurely stepped into the inn.
"Lin Shu!"
Yu Sheng excitedly pulled her hand from Yan Jin’s grasp. With a flurry of footsteps, she dashed to the door, her nimble form ready to pounce.
’Even though she’d gotten a reply from him, just hearing about those demons was terrifying. Out in the Border Region, life and death were decided in an instant. Only by holding him tight could she truly feel at ease.’
"..."
A single glance from Lin Shu was enough to stop the little chick in her tracks.
She stopped where she stood, a hint of grievance in her expression.
Fan Qingyang looked astonished. He never expected Lin Shu to actually return on his own.
’Although the Trial Disciples had only said that their Master had left Shihu City and that they carried Immortal Qi, Senior Brother Lin had come to their rescue but hadn’t returned. They believed he had most likely been targeted by demons. But as experienced disciples who handled the sect’s affairs, Fan Qingyang and the others knew the truth. Tonight’s events were, in all likelihood, a deadly trap deliberately set by the Chen Family’s Immortal Descendant, who was furious that her credit had been stolen. To make a move on Lin Shu, the Immortal Descendant had even risked her own life by venturing into the Border Region. After she’d gone to such lengths, how could Lin Shu return without so much as a scratch on him?’
"There’s blood on you, and you’re only just returning. Where have you been?"
Feng Yinglong had been contradicted the moment he’d finished speaking. His expression froze for a second before he managed to ask the question in a stern voice.
"Didn’t we already tell you? Senior Brother Lin came to rescue us." The disciples could no longer hold back and turned to corroborate the story.
"Did it have to take this long?" Feng Yinglong slowly rose to his feet.
"..."
Lin Shu glanced at him and flicked his finger slightly.
In an instant, eight blood-stained Tiger-shaped Jade Tokens landed neatly on the tabletop.
HISS!
Fan Qingyang’s eyelid twitched violently as he subconsciously reached for the token at his own waist.
’These were the Zhao Family’s Spirit Tiger Jade Tokens! The Yu Family and the Zhao Family had been dealing with each other in the Border Region for so many years; they knew each other inside and out. He might have even recognized some of the owners of these Jade Tokens. So it wasn’t just the Chen Family Immortal Descendant luring demons in a trap. The Zhao Family was involved tonight as well! A full eight Jade Disciples... This wasn’t the kind of force you’d send to pass through the region. This was a kill squad, sent with the clear intention of assassinating someone. But now... that "someone" had returned to the inn, his aura long and steady, his expression calm and composed, as if nothing had happened?!’
In contrast to the tumultuous storm raging in Fan Qingyang’s heart, Feng Yinglong’s face instantly darkened as he stared fixedly at the Jade Tokens.
’He could just imagine what would happen come morning, once this news got out. This young man, already riding a wave of fame, would gain an unimaginable level of prestige at Yongzhou Pass! And Master... how furious would he be...?’
"Stop right there."
He raised his head, his gaze cold and sinister as he stared at Lin Shu. "This wasn’t your doing, was it?"
The man was trying to frame the entire incident with his very first words.
The Chen Family disciples started to explain that they had witnessed it with their own eyes, but they were silenced by an immense Spiritual Pressure that pinned them in place.
"Let’s put that aside for a moment."
Feng Yinglong immediately changed the subject. "You were targeted by demons. You returned. So where are the demons?"
This was too much for even Fan Qingyang to listen to.
’Even if you’re trying to curry favor with Master, you have to abide by basic logic. The Chen Family’s Immortal Descendant lures demons to kill someone, and somehow it’s Lin Shu’s fault for not dying? Now he has to report the demons’ whereabouts to you?’
"Senior Brother..." he began in a low voice, but was cut off by a wave of Feng Yinglong’s sleeve.
"Speak!" Feng Yinglong snarled at the young man’s back.
Then, his pupils constricted, and fury ignited in his eyes.
He saw Lin Shu glance over his shoulder, giving him a look reserved for a complete idiot.
Then, he languidly sat down in a chair, his clear voice laced with mockery. "If you don’t mind my asking, who the hell do you think you are?"
In an instant, the entire inn fell deathly silent.
A mere Foundation Establishment Disciple daring to speak so insolently to a Core Formation True Master—it was something beyond anyone’s comprehension.
"..."
Feng Yinglong’s brow twitched. He had never imagined he would receive such an insolent reply.
For a brief moment, he was at a loss for what expression to even wear.
All that manifested was his vast, surging Spiritual Power, which howled through the inn as if to crush everything in sight.
Just then, he noticed something and looked down in a daze.
"I have been holding back for a very long time."
Yu Sheng bent down and dragged a long stool over from nearby.
Then, she deftly climbed on top of it.
From her perch on the stool, she looked down imperiously at Feng Yinglong and took a sudden, deep breath.
Her flat chest rose and fell dramatically.
"Are you deaf?"
"Lin Shu asked you a question."
"Who the hell do you think you are?"
Her Cyan Feather Robe billowed around her, the girl’s features exquisite and cold.
She raised her right arm high. An instant later, her palm swung down, landing crisply and forcefully against Feng Yinglong’s cheek.
SLAP!
The crisp sound echoed throughout the inn.
The Core Formation True Master dazedly raised his head. Humiliation and rage flooded his eyes, and his breathing grew as heavy as thunder.
The stunned, shocked gazes of everyone around him were like a thousand tiny needles, pricking at his face until it stung.
However, before he could even recover, Yu Sheng had already raised her left arm, swinging her palm hard against his other cheek!
"Speak!"
The two successive slaps made Feng Yinglong’s body tremble.
His gaze traveled past the girl.
Across the table, Lin Shu was leaning lazily against the back of his chair, fiddling with a Tiger-shaped Jade Token, his eyes fixed on Feng Yinglong with an expression of pure amusement.
Everyone seemed to have forgotten something.
Beneath those twenty-seven beams of Inheritance Spiritual Light, Yu Sheng was about to come of age.
And this Immortal Descendant, who was about to reach adulthood, had one disciple and one disciple only.
And that was Lin Shu.

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