After bringing the young girl home, Duan Lingtian went to see his mother, Li Rou.
Seeing her son return with a young girl, Li Rou was somewhat surprised.
Although the girl's attire was simple and plain, it could not conceal her natural beauty. At just a single glance, she took a liking to the lovely girl.
"This is my mother."
Duan Lingtian looked at Li Rou and introduced her to the girl.
"Kecier greets Madam."
Upon meeting Li Rou, the girl appeared somewhat restrained, her pretty face blushing and looking extremely cute.
"Tian'er, what is the meaning of this?"
Li Rou glanced at Duan Lingtian with a half-smile.
She never expected that her son would go out for a trip and bring back such a beautiful girl.
"Mother, it's like this..."
Duan Lingtian recounted to Li Rou the entire process of how he met the girl Kecier, including the fact that he had taught the Fang family young master a lesson, holding nothing back.
"That Fang Jian is notorious in Qingfeng Town. You beat him, so you beat him; even if the Fang family comes knocking, we are still in the right."
Li Rou nodded, wearing an indifferent expression when mentioning Fang Jian.
At the same time, her gaze, filled with maternal gentleness, gradually fell upon the girl.
"Kecier, since you are now all alone in the world, you might as well stay. Coincidentally, the maid in my courtyard went back to the countryside yesterday to get married, so you can live in her old room."
Li Rou looked at the girl with pity and affection.
"Thank you, Madam."
Kecier quickly expressed her gratitude, her flushed face slightly stirred with excitement.
"Come, I'll take you to change your clothes."
Li Rou took the girl's hand and entered the bedchamber.
Leaving Duan Lingtian standing foolishly in place with a stunned expression.
When the girl came out with Li Rou again, she had changed into a bright and vibrant outfit, and Li Rou had also tidied her up a bit.
The girl's inky, waterfall-like long hair was now tied up, and her clear and pretty face was like a lotus emerging from the water, suffused with a charming, rosy blush that was lively and exquisite.
Her willow-leaf eyebrows, apricot-shaped eyes, delicate nose, and red lips were all matched to absolute perfection.
Her slightly swelling chest resembled a flower bud on the verge of blooming, as if it could burst open at any moment.
Her slender, willow-like waist that could be grasped in one hand, her full and uptight buttocks, and her pair of slender, beautiful legs made her appear even more poised and endearing.
"She truly lives up to her name; what a delightful and lovable girl."
Li Rou stood to the side, looking at the girl, sparing no words of praise.
"Kecier, this outfit is what I wore when I was young; I'll give it to you from now on. Look, I only tidied you up a little bit, and someone's eyes are already staring straight, as if he can't wait to gobble you up!"
Glancing at Duan Lingtian, who was captivated, Li Rou teased.
His mother's words made Duan Lingtian laugh awkwardly as he withdrew his gaze from the girl.
The girl's elegance after a little styling had indeed captivated him.
In his past life as the King of Mercenaries, he had never lacked women around him, but while those women were pretty, they lacked a certain pure and ethereal aura.
In this regard, they simply could not compare to Kecier!
"Madam, I am just a maid; wearing such clothes is not appropriate."
Li Rou's words caused the girl's pretty little face to flush to the point of bleeding, feeling flattered beyond measure.
"Who said you were a maid? Even if I wanted to make you a maid, I'd still worry that someone wouldn't be willing..."
Li Rou smiled.
Duan Lingtian was speechless.
From beginning to end, he hadn't said a single word, yet he was shot while lying down!
Hearing Li Rou's words, the girl's face blushed even more.
Although neither Li Rou nor Duan Lingtian treated Kecier as a maid, the sensible Kecier still took on all the household chores.
According to her, the young master and madam had kindly taken her in, and if she didn't do something in return, her heart would not rest easy.
Kind and sensible, Kecier quickly won the approval of Li Rou and Duan Lingtian, blending into this small family.
The Fang family estate.
In a moderately sized courtyard.
A middle-aged man paced back and forth restlessly, lifting his head from time to time to look at the bedchamber not far away.
Suddenly, the door of the bedchamber opened, and an old man walked out.
"Master Sun, how is my son?"
The middle-aged man hurriedly went up to greet him.
"Steward Fang, the attacker's methods were extremely ruthless, almost completely shattering your son's spine... Your son showed no signs of recovery after taking the Grade Nine Golden Wound Pill, and Sun is powerless as well. Please mourn, Steward Fang."
The old man shook his head with a sigh.
"What?!"
The middle-aged man's expression changed drastically.
If even this Grade Nine Alchemist whom their Fang family had invited back with a hefty sum was helpless, didn't that mean his son was completely crippled and would spend the rest of his life confined to a bed?
"Fang Qiang!"
Right at that moment, a majestic middle-aged man walked in from outside and handed an exquisite box to the Fang family steward, Fang Qiang.
"This is an Grade Eight Golden Wound Pill. Quickly take it and have your son consume it."
"Patriarch!"
Fang Qiang was stunned.
Although he had thought about asking the Patriarch for a Grade Eight Golden Wound Pill, the moment he remembered that it was the only Grade Eight Golden Wound Pill the Fang family possessed, he dismissed the thought, not believing that his status as a Fang family steward would allow him to obtain it.
Now, seeing the Patriarch personally deliver the Grade Eight Golden Wound Pill, he could not help but be stirred with excitement.
"Fang Qiang, if my rebellious son hadn't caused trouble this time, your son wouldn't have been injured. For this matter, I must apologize to you... As for that rebellious son, I will severely punish him to give you a satisfactory explanation."
The Fang family patriarch, Fang Yi, said with a look of guilt.
"Patriarch!"
Fang Qiang dropped to his knees in agitation, and the last shred of resentment in his heart vanished completely.
"Get up quickly and take the pill for your son."
Fang Yi said again.
Fang Qiang stood up and reached out to take the Grade Eight Golden Wound Pill from Fang Yi's hand.
"Steward Fang, please forgive my bluntness... Regarding your son's injuries, let alone an Grade Eight Golden Wound Pill, even a Grade Seven Golden Wound Pill would likely be powerless!"
The old man at the side suddenly spoke up. "Unless there is a 'Bone-Condensing Pill', but that Bone-Condensing Pill has long since gone extinct."
Fang Qiang's outstretched hand froze, and the hope that had just risen in his heart was ruthlessly shattered once again!
"Let him take it and try anyway."
Fang Yi said.
"Patriarch, there's no need. I trust Master Sun; there's no need to waste such a precious pill on my son."
Fang Qiang shook his head.
"What I want to do most right now is find out who crippled my son and avenge him!"
Taking a deep breath, Fang Qiang's eyes flashed with a chilling light of hatred.
"Steward Fang, you can rest assured about this. Everyone in the Fang family will do their utmost to find the culprit and give your son an explanation!"
Fang Yi said, his tone resolute.
"Thank you, Patriarch."
Fang Qiang said gratefully.
The Li family estate.
A thunderous piece of news spread throughout the entire Li family.
The Li family's talented martial artist, Li Jie, would battle the Ninth Elder's son, Duan Lingtian, one month from now!
It was said that for this battle, the Seventh Elder, Li Kun, had even specially invited the Patriarch and the Great Elder to act as witnesses.
The spread of this news caused quite a sensation within the Li family.
"The moment Li Xin had one of his arms crippled by Duan Lingtian, I knew the Seventh Elder and Li Jie wouldn't let the matter rest, but I didn't expect them to move so quickly!"
"Tsk tsk... Fourth Level of the Body Tempering Realm challenging the First Level of the Body Tempering Realm. Li Jie is really going all out for his younger brother this time, throwing away all his pride!"
"I wonder what Duan Lingtian was thinking to actually accept Li Jie's challenge. Did Li Xin beat his brains out last time or something?"
"In this battle, Li Jie will definitely not hold back. Even if he can't kill Duan Lingtian, he will undoubtedly cripple him!"
...
Regarding this battle, almost no one held out hope for Duan Lingtian.
One was a rising talented martial artist of the Li family who had stepped into the Fourth Level of the Body Tempering Realm at the tender age of sixteen, with boundless prospects.
The other was an obscure, out-of-family member of the Li family who had only recently completed body tempering and become a First Level of the Body Tempering Realm martial artist.
Although he had defeated Li Xin, who was at the Second Level of the Body Tempering Realm, by relying on the bizarre and powerful Crushing Fist, no one still believed he could defeat Li Jie.
Although Li Jie and Li Xin were biological brothers, their strengths were simply on completely different levels.
Just as the Li family was in an uproar over this matter, Duan Lingtian, the person involved, seemed to have completely vanished from sight.
"Done!"
Looking at the ring on the middle finger of his right hand, a smile appeared on Duan Lingtian's face.
With the Samsara Martial Emperor's thorough comprehension of inscription arts, his first attempt at performing an inscription on the ring had succeeded.
"Li Jie, I'll give you a surprise when the time comes."
A mischievous smile formed at the corner of Duan Lingtian's mouth at some unknown point.
"Young Master, the water is ready."
At that moment, behind the folding screen in the bedchamber, the young girl walked out with light steps, having finished changing the water in the wooden tub for Duan Lingtian.
"Kecier, you've worked hard. Go and rest."
Duan Lingtian walked forward and reached out with his sleeve to wipe the sweat beads from the girl's forehead.
The entire movement was exceptionally gentle.
"Kecier, let me handle such heavy work from now on."
Duan Lingtian said with a look of pity and affection.
"Young Master, it's fine. After bathing with the medicinal liquid you gave me, Kecier has a lot of strength now..."
The girl shook her small arm, a touched smile appearing on her flushed face.
"It seems that once our Kecier starts cultivating a cultivation method, she'll quickly complete body tempering and become a martial artist."
Duan Lingtian reached out to gently rub the girl's small arm and smiled.
"Young Master, Kecier knows you treat me well, but Kecier also knows that a family like the Li family has its own rules, and cultivation methods cannot be casually passed on... Kecier is already very happy just being able to stay by your and Madam's side, it doesn't matter whether I become a martial artist or not."
Kecier said very sensibly.
"Silly girl, since I'm going to pass a cultivation method to you, naturally I won't pass on the Li family's. Alright, go and rest first; I'll come find you in your room this afternoon... Oh? Kecier, why did your face suddenly turn so red? Are you alright?"
Duan Lingtian shook his head and smiled gently.
"Young Master, you're so bad, you only know how to bully Kecier..."
Teased by Duan Lingtian, the girl fled in a panic.
Leaving behind Duan Lingtian, who burst into hearty laughter.