"No rush, let's wait until the smoke clears to prevent an ambush," Lin Xin said after the recent scare, no longer eagerly attempting to use his newly acquired Inner Strength, but instead carefully rethinking the attack he had just experienced.
Whether it was An Ying or the man in the bamboo hat, their burst of Inner Strength and skill movements were as seamless as shadows, natural and smooth, far beyond what a newcomer like him could compare with.
This kind of skill usage clearly required repeated practice and coordination.
If it wasn't for his urgent use of consciousness to access the attribute tab's skill icon, allowing his body to automatically execute the skill, he would have truly been in danger just now.
Fortunately, the skills were equivalent to stored standard actions that could never go wrong, whether it was Inner Strength or control, speed and strength were in their most perfect state.
This series of blunders had given Lin Xin a clear understanding of his own level. He was merely a novice who had just entered the stage of Inner Family, still not proficient or familiar with the application of Inner Strength, and his real combat experience was very weak. Such a novice, needless to say against those ruthless experts, might not even win against an ordinary, experienced External Family expert.
"Absolutely no third mistakes," Lin Xin sternly set a standard for himself.
"Since my reactive speed doesn't match theirs, the only option is...." Lin Xin suppressed a fleeting thought that surfaced in his mind, his thoughts becoming vaguely more strategic.
Once the fog had completely dispersed.
"Senior brother," An Ying returned to his side, "Are you all right after just now?" Seeing the force of Lin Xin's burst of power, she knew he had unleashed all his Inner Strength. Although surprised by the power, her face still showed some concern.
"It's okay, but it's a pity he got away," Lin Xin shook his head but noticed that An Ying looked a bit off.
"Are you all right?"
"Just now, there was someone hidden nearby...very strong," An Ying whispered.
"Another person? … How strong?" Lin Xin frowned slightly and asked in a lowered voice.
"I may not be able to divert my attention," An Ying's face looked somewhat distressed, seemingly worried about Lin Xin. "Once the opponent holds me off and another person comes to face you, senior brother...."
"How much Inner Strength do you have left?" Lin Xin suddenly asked.
"Enough for three major moves...," An Ying replied softly.
"Three times...how long do you need to recover?"
"About half an hour."
Lin Xin's mind raced, recalling the momentum and power of his encounter with the man in the bamboo hat. He already had a vague comparison in his mind.
Compared to what An Ying had told him before about the power of the small Return to Origin First Layer, apart from the enhancement in speed and strength during the burst of Inner Strength, there was no change in the normal state.
Not just the First Layer, the Second Layer was the same; other than an increase in the total amount of Inner Strength and power, there was almost no significant change in physical attributes like strength and speed.
That meant, an Inner Family expert without using Inner Strength was just like an ordinary External Family expert.
But he was different. Lin Xin felt that after his small Return to Origin breakthrough, he even gained an additional attribute point, which could enhance various physical attributes.
Perhaps this is the special aspect of my Attribute Ability....
Lin Xin speculated a bit.
"Let's see the next level, see if after the next breakthrough there are still attribute points to use."
He noted this point silently in his mind.
"Now, let's find a place to hide, meditate to recover Inner Strength, and assess the situation further." He also needed to recover his Inner Strength; going out in this state was undoubtedly suicidal.
At this moment, with An Ying unleashing her power, there was naturally no problem, but Chen Rui was obediently following the arrangement.
There must still be an ambush ahead. If not careful, they might not be able to break through at all.
For some reason, Lin Xin always felt something was off about Chen Rui, but couldn't quite pinpoint what it was. Without any significant discoveries for the time being, he could only keep it in mind for now.
The three of them followed the original path down the mountain, sneaking into the forest and covertly moving toward the exit.
***************
Red Pine City
In the eastern district, around a large mansion, all the streets had been placed under martial law and were heavily guarded by many soldiers patrolling the area, all with a tense expression.
Under the scorching sun, the soldiers, drenched in sweat, still wore their armor neatly, their hands always on the hilt of the swords at their waists.
Most of the passersby in this street area kept their heads down and hurried past, not daring to cause trouble.
At the center of the martial law, Lin Family's large courtyard.
By the artificial hill and pond, Lin Zhiwen, in a dark silk robe, no longer bore the appearance of a wealthy landowner but looked as haggard and troubled as a common laboring farmer.
"Some members of the Shu Family left yesterday, and today the people from the Qingluo Blade took action," Lin Zhiwen sighed. "Have the pensions for the brothers and the City Guard Army who died or were injured been distributed?"
Lin Zhiwu, too, appeared weary behind him.
"They have been distributed. However... there isn't much silver left in the treasury, and all the recent liquid funds have been invested in this... Big brother, can we still not say what exactly the Qingluo Blade are here for?" He looked at his elder brother, completely at a loss as to what the struggle was really about.
Lin Zhiwen gave a wry smile.
"At this point, there's no need to hide it any longer." He paused for a moment, "Have you heard of the Black Lotus Seed?"
"Black Lotus Seed?" Lin Zhiwu was initially startled, then seemed to think of something, his eyes suddenly widening, "Could it be... could it be!?"
"You guessed right...." Lin Zhiwen nodded, "The Black Lotus Seed, also known as the... Spirit Spring Seed..."
"Indeed..." Lin Zhiwu was wide-eyed and speechless, having never imagined that his family would be involved with such an item. He took a moment to catch his breath, feeling his heart racing.
"But...."
Bang!
All of a sudden, the main gate of the courtyard was smashed open by a tremendous force. Even though they were tens of meters away from the gate, they could still feel the violent shaking of the ground.
"Hahahaha!!" A crazed laughter came from the direction of the gate.
"Zhuang Tianci of the Qingluo Secret Sect, I've come to retrieve our sect's secret treasure!" Following the laughter, a man's rough and thunderous voice boomed.
"Is this... the Secret Sect!?" Lin Zhiwu hadn't reacted yet, but Lin Zhiwen's pupils had already constricted, his whole body felt as if it had fallen into an ice hole, nearly unable to breathe.
"How could it be so fast! I clearly...."
The two didn't have time to think any further and rushed towards the main gate of the courtyard, assuming that all the experts were gathering there.
After running a few steps, they saw from afar a burly man with hair like a lion, striding towards the main building. Around him on the ground lay more than a dozen soldiers and hired experts, each fatally struck.
"Audacious!" A tall man clad in a general's armor suddenly charged out from the main building's doorway, the chief defensive officer of the city.
"Fire!" The general waved his hand.
Hiss, hiss, hiss... A dense volley of crossbow arrows burst forth from behind him, swarming toward the burly man like a plague of locusts.
The powerful crossbow arrows even whipped up a strong wind, making Lin Zhiwen and his brother feel a chill on their faces.
"Hahaha!" The man claiming to be Zhuang Tianci laughed, a ghastly green curved blade appearing in his hand, which he swung forward.
Instantly, a green, thin, half-dome protective shield appeared in front of him.
Clang clang clang... Dozens of crossbow arrows struck the shield, producing a clear and melodious sound of fine iron clashing.
"Is this Immortal Law!?" someone exclaimed.
A few experts who were preparing to step forward suddenly halted, staring in horror at the scene before them.
"How is this possible?!"
The surrounding City Guard Army and Protectors who were initially ready to join the fight suddenly froze, watching the green protective shield, their hands trembling, bodies stiffening, too frightened to move.
"The legendary Immortal Law... He's an Immortal Master!"
Someone called out.
With those words, silence suddenly fell over the scene, everyone's breathing unconsciously quieted.
Clang.
Someone's sword loosened, dropping to the ground.
Then another wave of clang clang clang sounds followed, with most people's swords falling, some out of fright, and others deliberately dropping them as they dared not face the legendary Immortal Master with weapons.
"That's more like it." Zhuang Tianci smiled in satisfaction, "Hand over the Spirit Spring Seed, I'm not patient enough to play with you."
Lin Zhiwen's face turned pale, but he just silently watched the burly man.
Lin Zhiwu stood behind him, also unsure of what to do. How had his Lin Family, just a rural tycoon, suddenly provoked an Immortal Master?
"What, no one's replying?" After waiting a little while and seeing no one dared to speak, Zhuang Tianci looked at the somewhat pale-faced city defense officer.
"Hey!"
He chuckled lightly, and with a fierce slash of his blade, a burst of green fireball formed out of thin air at the tip, shooting straight towards the officer at the main building.
Bang!
The fireball moved fast, flying over a distance of more than ten meters and striking the steps in front of the officer, immediately splashing out a large swath of green fiery sparks, part of which landed on the officer unable to dodge in time, and the rest around the main building.
The green flames ignited quickly, and the officer screamed in agony, tumbling to the ground and begging for mercy loudly.
"Immortal Master, spare my life, Immortal Master, spare my life!!"
His clothing quickly charred, sticking to his flesh beneath, and in just a few moments, his voice ceased, his body turned into a charred statue, motionless.
Meanwhile, screams kept coming from the main building as the green fire quickly set the entire building ablaze, with crossbowmen screaming as they rushed out, their bodies ablaze with green fire, rolling on the ground.
People rolled back and forth on the grass hoping to extinguish the flames, but to no avail.
Some soldiers jumped into a nearby fish pond, but eerily, the green fire continued burning even in the water.
Within just a short moment, over twenty crossbowmen were burned to ashes, the air filled with the stench of charred flesh.
However, Zhuang Tianci merely watched with a cold laugh, retrieved his blade, and surveyed his surroundings. People around him were already quietly retreating, trying to leave the area.
Many others, soaked in cold sweat, dropped their weapons in awe, legs trembling, with some even hurriedly kneeling on the ground, begging for mercy.
"Immortal Master, spare our lives! Spare our lives!"
"It's not our fault! It was the Family Head Lin who caused the trouble, if you seek someone, go to Family Head Lin!"
"Please spare us a way to live, Immortal Master!!"
"We are just innocent commoners!"
Suddenly, the place was filled with a chorus of wails and pleas for mercy.