Leaving the day after tomorrow?
Lin Yan hadn’t expected his master to be in such a hurry for him to leave, giving him only one day to prepare.
"Go. If you have any questions about the Sword Dao, you can ask Brother He on the road or wait until you return to ask me. As for the Zheng Family’s swordsmanship, with your current attainments in the Sword Dao, it shouldn’t be difficult to grasp the basics in a day."
Lin Shouyuan looked at Lin Yan with a smile, and his words made Lin Yan breathe a sigh of relief.
’From the sound of it, this doesn’t seem like a huge deal. It doesn’t involve the Lin Family, just me.’
"Master, did something happen?"
After a moment of deliberation, Lin Yan decided to just ask directly.
Lin Yan’s sudden question was met with silence from Lin Shouyuan. Instead, it was He Qiaosheng, standing to the side, who looked somewhat awkward.
"Forget it, I’ll be the one to explain. This matter is related to me, after all."
He Qiaosheng glanced at Lin Shouyuan, then his gaze fell on Lin Yan. "Your master wants you to go to Tai Mountain so you can hide from someone."
’Hide from someone?’
Hearing this, Lin Yan felt a slight sense of relief. ’Could it be that my killing of Cui Chenyu has been exposed?’ he had just been wondering.
’Logically, that should be impossible. My ability to dispose of a body might not be max level, but I’m still an old hand at it.’
’Taking a step back, even if the Cui Family found Cui Chenyu’s body, they wouldn’t believe I had the strength to kill him. At worst, they would just become suspicious of me.’
’My master wouldn’t make me leave based on mere suspicion alone.’
’So, if Senior He says I need to hide from someone, it can’t be related to the Cui Family.’
’Besides, Senior He also said this matter was related to "him," which means I wasn’t the one who started this trouble in the first place.’
"This all started three days ago..."
Seeing Lin Yan’s expectant gaze, He Qiaosheng’s old face flushed, a rare sight... After hearing Senior He’s explanation, Lin Yan was left speechless. He had been dragged into this completely out of the blue.
After Lin Yan defeated Jian Sheng last time, He Qiaosheng had taken Jian Sheng and left the Lin Family. That defeat had been quite a blow to Jian Sheng. Although He Qiaosheng believed his disciple could emerge from the shadow of failure, he didn’t want this single loss to hinder Jian Sheng’s progress in the Martial Arts. Even wasting a month or two was too much time squandered in his eyes.
In the early stages of Martial Arts, one must fight for every second.
Hesitate for a moment, and you fall a step behind others.
Fall a step behind, and you’ll be behind every step of the way.
To help Jian Sheng regain his confidence in the Sword Dao, He Qiaosheng took him to other State Mansions to challenge their famous young geniuses.
After successively defeating the Sword Dao geniuses of three states, Jian Sheng’s confidence in his Sword Dao had returned.
However, on his way back to the inn after challenging an opponent, Jian Sheng was himself challenged by a young man. This new challenger defeated Jian Sheng with a single strike.
Being defeated in a single strike was one thing. But when the opponent boasted that he was now unrivaled among the young swordsmen of Shandong Dao, Jian Sheng just had to add a rebuttal: "You can’t be considered unrivaled in Shandong Dao unless you can defeat Lin Yan."
He Qiaosheng saw Lin Yan’s slightly agape mouth and explained, "Lin Yan, Jian Sheng didn’t mention your name intentionally to start a fight between you and that man. In his heart, he genuinely acknowledges that your Sword Dao talent and strength are greater than his, which is why he refuted the claim."
The corner of Lin Yan’s mouth twitched. He had no choice but to believe the explanation.
’Still, based on my understanding of that guy Jian Sheng, it’s probably just as Senior He said. He genuinely believes I’m stronger than him.’
’But I really don’t want this kind of acknowledgment from Jian Sheng!’
"Senior He, is that man’s background unusual?"
A guess formed in Lin Yan’s mind. ’Even if this person’s Sword Dao talent is immense, if he really comes looking for me, the worst that could happen is that I lose. It shouldn’t be so serious that my master would arrange for me to go into hiding.’
’I’m not as fragile as Jian Sheng, losing my confidence after a single defeat.’
’Most importantly, I’m not some Sword Dao genius to begin with. The only reason I’ve gotten this far in the Sword Dao is entirely thanks to the Martial Arts Tree.’
’If I lose, it just means my accumulation of Martial Arts Fruits isn’t enough yet. It has nothing to do with me personally.’
"This person is the third young master of the Qin State’s Shen Family, Shen Guyun. He achieved a Lower Rank A aptitude at the Tai Mountain Sword Inquiry Stone."
Lower Rank A?
"Master, doesn’t a Lower Rank A qualification mean he’s eligible to go to the North Sea Lineage and join the Celestial Sword Sect or the Taiyi Sword Sect?"
"That’s correct. A Rank A qualification is enough to join the Celestial Sword Sect or the Taiyi Sword Sect. For most Sword Dao geniuses, those two sects are their ultimate goal. But Shen Guyun isn’t content to enter them with a Lower Rank A aptitude. He wants to aim for Middle Rank A."
This time, it was Lin Shouyuan who spoke. "The Sword Dao Shen Guyun cultivates is very unusual. Many of the young swordsmen he defeats are left completely shattered, and even those who manage to recover often waste several years of their lives."
"That long?"
Lin Yan frowned. This was no longer a simple matter of having one’s confidence shaken.
If it were just a loss of confidence, most could readjust within a few months. It’s impossible for someone who has achieved any success in the Sword Dao to be that psychologically fragile.
Several years... there had to be something more to it.
"Although there are no rumors about it, I suspect the Sword Dao that Shen Guyun cultivates is very likely the Devouring Sword Dao. Jian Sheng’s condition has verified this. When Jian Sheng lost to you last time, he was affected, but not like this. This time, he is completely dispirited."
"The Devouring Sword Dao?"

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