"Young Master, where are you taking me?" Yan'Er asked weakly from within Lin Hao's arms.
Lin Hao didn't break his stride as he replied, "Yan'Er, hang on a little longer. I'm taking you into the city to find a doctor."
"Young Master, a doctor can't cure this, and besides, we don't have any money." Yan'Er looked up, her face flushed and her gaze feverish.
Lin Hao was stunned for a moment, then gritted his teeth. "There's always a way. If even I were to take advantage of you now, I'd be no different from a beast."
Lin Yan'Er's expression first fell, then lit up with joy.
In truth, Lin Hao had been in a stupor all these years, and she had been the one to care for his every need. Yan'Er likely knew his body even better than he did.
On the Celestial Yang Continent, a woman's honor was of the utmost importance. Subconsciously, Yan'Er already saw Lin Hao as her pillar of support for life.
Now, hearing Lin Hao's words, Lin Yan'Er knew he cared for her. How could her heart not be filled with joy?
"Young Master, you can put me down. I'm fine." After a moment of thought, Lin Yan'Er finally forced herself to say.
"Huh?" Lin Hao was puzzled, but on second thought, she really didn't seem to be in trouble. It had been a while now. Aside from the flush on her face, her body wasn't burning up at all. On the contrary, it was as cold as ice.
'So those pills were fake.' Lin Hao was secretly relieved, but he didn't put Lin Yan'Er down.
"Young Master, that's not it at all." As Yan'Er spoke, she opened her palm, revealing two dark green Spirit Pills resting in its center.
It turned out she hadn't taken them.
"Yan'Er, you're so smart," Lin Hao said, overjoyed.
"Hmph, those two idiots. I knew they were up to no good from the start. As soon as I realized something was wrong, I tricked them, and they actually fell for it..." Lin Yan'Er wrinkled her nose and spoke disdainfully.
As she spoke, she noticed her young master staring at her hand. Yan'Er's expression changed, and she tried to pull her hand back.
Lin Hao put her down, gently pulled her hands from behind her back, and stared at them. His heart clenched.
Her palms were crisscrossed with countless calluses, deep and shallow. Her fingers were so swollen there wasn't a single gap between them, and the backs of her hands were puffed up like steamed buns, split open with bloody fissures.
These weren't the hands of a young maiden. They were in worse shape than even those of the old servants in the Lin family.
"Yan'Er, I'm sorry. I've made you suffer." Lin Hao pulled her into a hug, his heart filled with guilt.
"For you, Young Master, it's no hardship," Yan'Er's voice was low and firm.
Lin Hao picked her up again. Yan'Er looked up, fluttering her large eyes.
"I'll carry you home." Lin Hao's eyes were full of doting affection.
Yan'Er felt her heart instantly fill with a wave of warmth. She gave a barely audible "mhm," then buried her head in Lin Hao's chest and closed her eyes.
...
CREAK.
In front of a small courtyard, the low front gate was pushed open, making a sound that set one's teeth on edge.
Hearing this sound, Yan'Er, in Lin Hao's arms, lifted her head to look, and the color drained from her face.
"Young Master, run!"
"What's wrong, Yan'Er? We're home," Lin Hao said, not understanding.
The next moment, he understood.
"Is Cheng'er back?" a woman's voice called out. Then the main door flew open, and a figure flashed out like the wind, coming to a stop in the courtyard.
"It's you!" Lin Hao stared at her, completely taken aback.
He recognized the woman before him. She used to be the personal servant of Matron Shen of the Lin family.
That Matron Shen was none other than his aunt, Lin Wu's mother—the venomous woman from beside the Blood-Changing Pool three years ago!
'This servant used to bow and scrape whenever she saw me, and her son had the same servile look. Now she has even taken over my own courtyard. She must have really climbed the social ladder.'
Remembering that night three years ago, boundless rage surged within Lin Hao.
"You... you... you're Lin Hao!" The woman saw Yan'Er in Lin Hao's arms, then looked at Lin Hao's face and finally recognized him. The color drained from her face.
"That's right! Where is that venomous woman Shen? And Lin Wu?" Lin Hao demanded.
"Well, well, the little bastard is awake. What, you still think you're a young master? Looking at you, don't tell me you're planning to get revenge on my mistress? Go on, then. She and Young Master Wu are at the Lin family estate in the Imperial City now." After her initial shock, the woman's face twisted into a sneer.
The Celestial Yang Continent was currently ruled by the Li Long Dynasty, which had six great vassal kingdoms under its dominion.
War Dragon City belonged to one of those six kingdoms, the Cangnan Kingdom, and the Imperial City the woman spoke of was none other than the capital of the Cangnan Kingdom!
In the Imperial City of the Cangnan Kingdom, the Lin family was one of the four great families, with countless branches. There were at least eight hundred, if not a thousand, minor branches like the one in War Dragon City.
And now, Lin Wu had actually traveled all the way to the Imperial City and joined the main Lin family in the capital.
Lin Hao could almost imagine it: Lin Wu was now enjoying all sorts of high-level Cultivation Techniques and martial skills, Spirit Pills and rare treasures. He had probably become so radiant that ordinary people could no longer even hope to reach his level.
And all of that should have been his.
A pang of pain shot through Lin Hao's heart.
"Oh, I forgot. Even if you're awake now, you're still just a piece of trash. The Imperial City is tens of thousands of miles from here; you'll probably never make it there in your lifetime. But don't worry, I'll help you fulfill your wish." A vicious glint flashed in the woman's narrow eyes.
Lin Hao set Yan'Er down and had remained silent. But when he heard her last sentence, his gaze hardened.
"I was supposed to go to the Imperial City with my son and the mistress, but because of you, you good-for-nothing, I'm stuck in this tiny place! Now that you're awake, I'll capture you and present you to the mistress in the Imperial City! I was originally planning on getting Cheng'er into the Heaven-Stepping Sect, but it looks like that won't be necessary anymore."
The woman walked toward Lin Hao as she spoke, her expression excited, as if Lin Hao was nothing more than a lamb to the slaughter.
Even though her young master had just easily dealt with two weaklings, this woman was at the Third Layer of Blood Coagulation Realm. Worried for her master, Yan'Er stepped slightly forward to shield him with her body.
"You little slut! If my son hadn't taken a liking to your pretty face, I'd slap you to death! He wanted to marry you before, and you refused. Now that my son has awakened his bloodline and become a Spirit Body, you're only fit to be his lowly slave girl!"
'This little slut was obsessed with that idiot even when he was unconscious, and now that he's awake, she's actually sticking up for him. Is my son really worse than an idiot, a piece of trash?!'
Seeing Yan'Er's actions, the woman grew even more enraged. She raised her huge, fan-like hand to strike.
"Even a princess from the imperial capital isn't as precious as Yan'Er in my eyes. As for you, I'll make sure you lose the right to even be a servant!"
Lin Hao stepped forward, shielding Yan'Er behind him.
'He believed in settling scores with the ones truly responsible.' Lin Hao originally hadn't planned to do anything to this woman. 'But she has been relentlessly insolent, and now she's even raising her hand. Am I just supposed to stand here and take it?!'
"Sticking up for her? You little bastard, you don't even know your own limits. Still think you're that genius young master from three years ago?" the woman sneered, her raised palm swinging toward him.
She didn't use a martial skill, but the power of the Third Layer of the Blood Coagulation Realm was astonishing. If that slap landed, Lin Hao would be severely injured.
With a quick shift of his feet, Lin Hao dodged the slap. At the same time, his right hand formed a claw and shot toward her wrist. Yellow Level Low Grade Martial Skill—Thunder Leopard Claw!
"Huh?" The woman finally realized Lin Hao had cultivation. She flipped her palm, her five fingers coming together like an eagle's beak to peck at Lin Hao's wrist.
Lin Hao pulled his wrist back, but instead of dodging or evading, he met her attack directly.
Lin Hao's palm firmly caught the woman's five fingers, and a pained scream immediately followed.
"You little bastard, I'm going to kill you!" The woman retreated in a panic, her five fingers trembling uncontrollably. Her humiliation turned to rage.
She had only lost because she'd underestimated him. Clutching her injured hand, she lashed out with a leg kick. It twisted like a coiled snake, a blur of countless afterimages that made it impossible to discern the real from the fake.
The Lin family's Yellow-level Middle Grade Martial Skill—Snake King Whip!
The angle of the attack was cunning and unpredictable.
Lin Hao's gaze narrowed. He stood firm as a mountain, ignoring the afterimages as if he didn't see them, seemingly frozen in fear.
A cold sneer appeared on the woman's face. 'Against this leg technique, there's no way this little bastard will survive.'
'I still need this little bastard to get my chance to enter the Lin family in the Imperial City. I'll spare his life for now.'
Remembering her goal, the woman's gaze turned cold and sinister as she fixed her eyes on Lin Hao's legs.
CRACK!
A crisp sound rang out. The woman was overjoyed for a split second, but then her face twisted in agony, and she was about to scream.
It was her leg that had broken!
If Lin Hao only had the cultivation of the Blood Coagulation Realm's First Layer, he would have been no match for her.
But three years ago, Lin Hao had been just one step away from the Blood Coagulation Realm Fourth Layer, and he had studied all of the Lin family's Yellow-level Martial Skills.
This woman was in her late thirties and only at the Third Layer of the Blood Coagulation Realm. Her comprehension and aptitude were worlds apart from Lin Hao's.
Moreover, a Yellow Level Middle Grade Martial Skill could only display its true power at the Blood Coagulation Realm Fourth Layer.
Now, though Lin Hao no longer had his former cultivation level, his insight was far beyond what this wicked woman could ever hope to match. As a result, the Snake King Whip she used was riddled with flaws in his eyes.
Just as the woman thought she was about to succeed, Lin Hao simply lifted his hand slightly and then chopped down hard. That was all it took.
Just as the woman's scream was about to erupt, Lin Hao's figure flashed, and he slapped her across the face.
SLAP!
The sharp crack of the slap stifled the woman's scream in her throat.
"A servant should act like a servant!"
SLAP!
Lin Hao spoke, delivering another slap.
"A slave girl?! I'll make it so you can't even be a slave girl!"
SLAP!
Another slap.
"That's for helping a tyrant do evil!"
"That's for bullying Yan'Er!"
"That's for cursing at me!"
...
Every phrase was punctuated by the sound of another slap.
Finally, in Lin Hao's eyes, the woman on the ground seemed to transform into that venomous woman, Matron Shen.
"I called you Aunt, yet you cruelly stole my bloodline! You deserve a beating!"
"I called you Aunt, yet your family not only stole my bloodline but also planted a seal in my mind! You deserve a beating!"
"I called you Aunt, yet you left me in a daze for three years and made Yan'Er suffer endlessly! You deserve a beating!"
The more Lin Hao spoke, the more enraged he became. The slaps echoed, one after another, as he descended into a frenzy.
It wasn't until cold drops of rain fell on his face, his forehead.
Lin Hao, his face already streaked with tears, lifted his teary eyes. There was no rain in the sky, but above him was a tear-stained face as beautiful as a pear blossom in the rain.
"Young Master, they are so cruel. You've been through so much suffering." Yan'Er was a mess of tears as she hugged Lin Hao's head tightly to her chest.
"I haven't suffered. It's you who's suffered, Yan'Er."
The softness of her chest and the faint fragrance sent Lin Hao's heart into turmoil. Then, he asked a question he shouldn't have: "By the way, how did Aunt Yun die?!"
"Not long after your incident, my mother said some strange things to me one day, and she died shortly after. She must have found out the truth about what happened to you, Young Master, and they silenced her. And it wasn't just my mother. Later, in the Lin family, all the uncles who had spoken up for you met with 'accidents,' one after another."
Yan'Er's body trembled as she spoke through sobs.
From these few words, Lin Hao could almost picture what the last three years had been like.
Lin Hao pulled away from Yan'Er's embrace and saw that the servant's head had been beaten to a pulp. She was as dead as could be. Only then did he realize the gravity of the situation.
Previously, when he'd killed the two lackeys, Lin Hao could have still made excuses, continued to play the fool, and remained in the Lin family. But now that he had killed this wicked servant in a fit of rage, he probably couldn't stay in the Lin family any longer.
It wasn't for any other reason; the key problem was this wicked servant's son, who was a massive problem.
In the Lin family, disciples who awakened their bloodline were few and far between. This wicked servant had just said her son had awakened his bloodline, so his status was definitely not low.
And he also coveted Yan'Er. If they stayed here, Lin Hao definitely wouldn't be able to protect her.
'If I don't stay in the Lin family, where can I go?'
'Wander?'
'With my cultivation, I might be fine, but what about Yan'Er? Should I make her suffer by my side?'
'How laughable. I just swore I wouldn't let anyone bully her. Do I even have the right?'
'Strength! I need strength to protect Yan'Er, and I need strength to find Lin Wu!'
Lin Hao gritted his teeth, but a sense of powerlessness washed over him.