’The technique Lin Hao just used to dodge me was clearly a very sophisticated martial art.’

’And his Cultivation Technique must be remarkable as well. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to stand so straight under the pressure of an Elemental Realm expert.’

"I have to keep him here today, no matter what!" Lin Tianhao’s eyes burned with intensity.

However, at that very moment, a booming laugh suddenly echoed. "Hahaha, Patriarch Lin, your family is certainly bustling with activity today!"

Before the resonant voice had even faded, a tall figure appeared before them.

The man was burly, his eyes flashing like lightning. He walked with the powerful strides of a tiger, his expert aura on full display.

Lin Tianhao’s expression changed, but he still cupped his fist in salute. "The Pavilion Master of the Treasure Hunting Pavilion honors my humble abode with his presence. Housekeeper Yi, please escort the Pavilion Master to the main hall and serve him our finest tea. I will join you shortly."

Lin Tianhao had noticed Yi Mingcheng trailing behind the Pavilion Master of the Treasure Hunting Pavilion.

"I never come visiting without a reason, but I’m not here for tea!" Ninety-Five replied with a smile, though his eyes were fixed on Lin Hao.

At that moment, though Ninety-Five appeared calm, he was inwardly shaken.

’A kid at the Third Layer of the Blood Coagulation Realm dared to storm the Lin family’s ancestral shrine.’ Ninety-Five had expected to find Lin Hao captured. Instead, the young man had taken the Lin family’s Young Master hostage and was in a standoff with Lin Tianhao.

Looking at the blood-soaked ground and the guards staring at Lin Hao with undisguised awe, Ninety-Five had only one question. ’How did he manage this?!’

’Could it be...’

Ninety-Five suddenly recalled the masked man at Heaven’s Break Mountain from a few days ago.

His eyes flickered. The more Ninety-Five stared at Lin Hao, the stronger the resemblance seemed.

The next moment, he shot a questioning look at Yi Mingcheng.

Yi Mingcheng, of course, understood his meaning. After a brief hesitation, he nodded.

’The Young Master has stirred up too much trouble this time,’ Yi Mingcheng thought. ’If I don’t give him a compelling reason, I’m afraid Ninety-Five might compromise.’

A look of utter shock flashed in Ninety-Five’s eyes.

Meanwhile, Lin Tianhao was taken aback. "Pavilion Master, what do you mean?"

"I’m taking him with me!" Ninety-Five declared, his eyes locked on Lin Hao, his tone leaving no room for argument.

Lin Tianhao’s face stiffened. Even the City Lord of War Dragon City had to show deference to the Pavilion Master of the Treasure Hunting Pavilion, let alone a mere family patriarch like him.

But the thought of Lin Hao’s value compelled him to press on. "Pavilion Master, he is a member of my Lin family, yet he has committed a heinous act of rebellion by storming our ancestral shrine. By interfering in my family’s affairs, are you not afraid of giving people something to talk about?"

"I have no business with the Lin family’s affairs, but there’s nothing wrong with me looking after my own... nephew, is there?" Ninety-Five refused to back down.

"My respect for you is not born of fear! I am giving face to the Wenren family! Don’t you forget, my nephew is a rising star in the capital’s main Lin family! And you? What are you to the Wenren family?!"

If he let Lin Hao walk away after causing such a scene, what would become of his, Lin Tianhao’s, reputation?

Besides, Lin Hao possessed secrets that were too tempting to let go. Even at the risk of offending the Pavilion Master of the Treasure Hunting Pavilion, Lin Tianhao had to keep him here.

His words were a clear insinuation: ’You may be a Pavilion Master, but you’re just a dog on the Wenren family’s leash.’

Ninety-Five took a step forward, his expression turning ice-cold.

A terrifying, boundless aura erupted from Ninety-Five. His eyes crackled like lightning as a crimson sword of light materialized in his hand.

Lin Tianhao’s face twisted in horror.

’Elemental Manifestation!’

’This is a technique only an expert at the Seventh Layer of the Elemental Control Realm should possess! The Pavilion Master of the Treasure Hunting Pavilion is actually that powerful!’

"Lin Tianhao, he and my Young Miss are the closest of friends. In my eyes, his status is a thousand times more noble than Lin Wu’s! Even if I were to kill you today, the main Lin family in the capital wouldn’t lift a finger. Do you believe me or not!"

The longsword in Ninety-Five’s hand, condensed from True Essence, pointed directly at Lin Tianhao, his killing intent completely undisguised.

Though his words were an exaggeration, Ninety-Five was absolutely certain that if he reported Lin Hao’s true identity, the Wenren family would not hesitate to make an enemy of the Lin family for his sake.

An Alchemy Master capable of refining lost pills was an incomparably noble existence, even when considering the entire continent.

Hearing this, the color drained from Lin Tianhao’s face.

Ninety-Five snorted coldly. "In fact, even calling him ’nephew’ is me trying to flatter myself. So what the hell does that make you?"

Lin Tianhao’s eyes widened in disbelief.

An expert at the Seventh Layer of the Elemental Control Realm was defending Lin Hao so fiercely, even claiming that calling him "nephew" was a way to flatter himself.

Lin Tianhao could scarcely believe his ears.

’Could it be true? That little bastard Lin Hao is actually close friends with the young miss of the Wenren family?!’

’Damn it! When did that little bastard get mixed up with the Wenren family?!’

Lin Tianhao cursed inwardly, his face ashen.

"Young... Young Master Lin, let’s go." Having shown Lin Tianhao zero deference, Ninety-Five was now exceptionally respectful toward Lin Hao, his tone even holding a hint of eagerness to please.

He had taken it upon himself to call Lin Hao his nephew, and he was now feeling rather anxious about it.

Lin Hao nodded. Without a word, he tossed Lin Zheng aside and turned to leave.

’Whether it’s for his own benefit or for some other reason, for now, the Pavilion Master of the Treasure Hunting Pavilion is someone I can trust.’

"Come on, let’s go," Lin Hao said to the woman he had just rescued, not forgetting about her.

If he left her behind, he feared her fate would be even more tragic; Lin Tianhao and his son would surely take their frustrations out on her.

"Xiuniang, it’s really you!" Yi Mingcheng exclaimed, seeing the woman’s face. Overcome with emotion, he grabbed her hand.

"WAAAH..." The woman, Xiuniang, threw herself into Yi Mingcheng’s arms, sobbing her heart out.

Lin Hao couldn’t help but smile. So, the woman he’d just saved was an old flame of Yi Mingcheng’s.

"Xiuniang, we need to leave this place now!" Yi Mingcheng said urgently, knowing they couldn’t stay.

Xiuniang shuddered at the memory of her ordeal and nodded vigorously.

"Father, we’re just letting that little bastard Lin Hao walk away? We’re letting him off too easy!"

As Lin Tianhao unsealed Lin Zheng’s acupoints, Lin Zheng watched the backs of Lin Hao’s departing group. His eyes were filled with venom, his face a mask of pure indignation.

"Hmph! You have some nerve!" Lin Tianhao snarled. "If you hadn’t let that little bastard capture you, would I have been subjected to such humiliation?!"

A flicker of guilt crossed Lin Zheng’s face, but it was quickly replaced by hatred. "That little bastard has powerful backing. I was wary of them, so I suppressed my cultivation level. Who knew that on top of his bizarre Body Technique, his Cultivation Technique would be so strange too?"

A glint appeared in Lin Tianhao’s eyes. He lowered his voice and said, "Let’s go. We’ll discuss this when we get back."

Then, turning to the shrine’s guards with a murderous glare, he warned, "Not one of you is to breathe a single word of what happened here today! Otherwise, I’ll have your heads!"

While Lin Tianhao and his son headed back to their residence, Lin Hao and his group arrived before a pile of rubble.

"Ah, Young Master... this was your residence. I don’t know how this could have happened." Yi Mingcheng stared at the ruins, dumbfounded.

Seeing that the ruins were only a few meters across, Ninety-Five said angrily, "Lin Tianhao is truly despicable for making you live in a place like this! Young Master Lin, you must come and stay at the Treasure Hunting Pavilion."

"I must thank you for your righteous intervention, Pavilion Master. How could I dare impose any further?" Lin Hao said, shaking his head in refusal.

This was a carefully considered decision.

He believed that after today, while Lin Tianhao and his son would hate him, they wouldn’t dare to make a move against him. After all, he now had a connection to the Pavilion Master of the Treasure Hunting Pavilion—or more accurately, to the Wenren family.

Besides, Yan’Er hadn’t returned, and he had to wait for her at the Lin family estate.

Another important reason was that many of his uncles within the Lin family were suffering because of him, and he needed to find them.

Lin Hao had considered asking the Pavilion Master to pressure Lin Tianhao, but the information he had was only a guess Yi Mingcheng had made based on a few of Lin Zheng’s words.

If he brought it up rashly, Lin Hao feared that he would not only fail to rescue them but would also put Lin Tianhao on guard, possibly even provoking him into killing them to silence them.

"Very well! If you need me, you can find me at any time..." Ninety-Five nodded and then turned to leave.

’Since Lin Hao is staying in the Lin family, I’ll have to go have another ’chat’ with Lin Tianhao to ensure his safety.’

As soon as Ninety-Five was gone, Xiuniang fell to her knees. "Young Master, thank you for saving my life." She began to kowtow, her forehead hitting the ground. THUMP. THUMP. THUMP.

If not for Lin Hao, she would be dead by now. Xiuniang didn’t know how to repay such a debt, so she could only kowtow.

Yi Mingcheng, standing beside her, also knelt, too overcome with emotion to speak.

He and Xiuniang had long held mutual feelings, but he had been suffering from an ailment and had suppressed his emotions so as not to be a burden to her.

After he recovered, he had planned to find the right moment to confess his feelings, but then she had suddenly vanished.

He had been preoccupied with Lin Hao’s affairs, with no time to spare, never imagining the delay would lead to such a crisis.

The fact that Lin Hao had still saved Xiuniang, even after knowing she wasn’t Yan’Er, made him a savior in Yi Mingcheng’s eyes—no different from his own parents.

"Get up," Lin Hao said, his voice low. "As long as you are one of the Lin family’s people, I will not stand by and do nothing."

Perhaps it was the influence of the Carefree Divine Monarch, but having his own people kneel before him made Lin Hao feel extremely awkward.

As Yi Mingcheng helped her to her feet, Xiuniang asked timidly, "Young Master, are you looking for Miss Yan’Er?"

Lin Hao jolted. "You know Yan’Er’s whereabouts?!" he asked urgently.

"Last night, I was passing by here when I saw two women dressed in white. One of them looked very much like Yan’Er, but they vanished in the blink of an eye. The story of the female ghost of Heaven’s Break Mountain came to mind, and I couldn’t sleep all night. First thing this morning, I went to report it to the Patriarch, but he just said I was crazy and ordered me to be used as a living sacrifice."

Xiuniang recounted, her face pale with terror.

"Looked a lot like her? Xiuniang, did you know Yan’Er well?" Lin Hao asked.

At the mention of Yan’Er, a grateful expression softened Xiuniang’s features. "I’m not from War Dragon City originally," she said gently. "I fell on hard times here two years ago. If not for Miss Yan’Er, I’m afraid I would have starved to death on the street. It was Yan’Er who found me a job here in the Lin family..."

Seeing the way Xiuniang was constantly wringing the hem of her clothes, Lin Hao guessed her job was doing laundry.

Her hands were even more chapped and worn than Yan’Er’s, which made him suspect she had taken on much of Yan’Er’s workload. For that, Lin Hao was silently grateful.

"You said you saw two women in white? Did you get a clear look at the other one?"

The answer to this question could be a crucial clue in finding Yan’Er. Lin Hao looked at her hopefully.