"Huh?"
Su Xiaoqing’s entire body felt flushed with heat. Could he have heard everything just now?
"How dare you be so disrespectful to me?"
Xu Zhan slowly stood up and let out a furious roar. Lin Fan shielded Su Xiaoqing behind him, his expression calm and composed.
"Being a human is difficult, yet you seem to have a real talent for being a dog."
His gaze shot out like cold stars.
"You sickly wretch... I understand now! You must have consumed the hundred-year-old Tai Sui!"
Xu Zhan gathered his Qi, his entire body swelling like a skin bag about to burst.
"Correct."
Lin Fan acknowledged it; the hundred-year-old Tai Sui had indeed played a role.
The two clashed again, quick as lightning.
"How is this possible!"
The lackey was shocked once more. Xu Zhan and Lin Fan had only traded a single blow, and the impact sent shockwaves shattering through the air. Xu Zhan was simply no match.
As for Lin Fan, his eyes shone like torches, and a mysterious aura flowed throughout his entire being.
"My hand is broken!"
Xu Zhan cradled his right hand, shrieking in agony.
*The mysterious power from the Jade Tripod is tempering my body, allowing me to easily defeat a 2nd Layer of Qi Refining practitioner with nothing but raw physical strength.*
Lin Fan thirsted for power deep within his heart. In this world, the strong were supreme. Immortality cultivation was divided into the Qi Refining, Spirit Boat, Void Refinement, Core Formation, Dao Platform, Divine Infant, Dharma Manifestation, Return to One, and Heavenly Dao realms. Each major realm was further divided into nine minor layers. In a border city like Lingyin City, a Qi Refining practitioner was considered a person above others.
*To what level my physical body has awakened, I must go to the Testing Hall to see specifically.*
Lin Fan pondered.
"You are no longer the son-in-law of the Su Family. Just you wait."
Xu Zhan clamored before scurrying away in defeat.
"You fool... I will go beg Father for mercy."
Su Xiaoqing’s expression was tense.
"Your father likely knows nothing of tonight's events. Behind Xu Zhan stands the First Madam—the biological mother of Su Xi, who doesn't even view you as a sister."
Lin Fan smiled and shook his head.
"The First Madam is making things difficult for me? She wants to drive me away, to seize this Emperor’s Blood, and all of this is just to force me out of the Su Family? Even the hundred-year-old Tai Sui my eldest sister gave me... was that a scheme too?"
Su Xiaoqing’s heart sank to the bottom.
*This girl actually understood it all.*
Lin Fan was stunned. It seemed she knew everything. She simply realized that knowing couldn't change anything, so she pretended to be ignorant to preserve the family bond.
"I won't give this Emperor’s Blood to anyone."
Su Xiaoqing gripped the medicine bottle tightly.
"I won't let you marry into the Yang Family, and I won't let you suffer any more grievances."
The kind girl before him had suffered since childhood; Lin Fan truly wanted to cherish and protect her with all his heart.
"Men and women are different. We are no longer husband and wife; I will stay next door. Regardless, until you leave the Su Family, I will take care of you."
Su Xiaoqing’s face turned beet red in an instant, her whole body heating up, and she struggled out of Lin Fan’s grip to flee the room.
Lin Fan smiled. In his past, he had encountered countless beauties from the Imperial clans, yet in this life, he was the only man Su Xiaoqing had ever touched.
*I still cannot leave Brother Fan behind, but I must return the hundred-year-old Tai Sui to my sister. I have to find a way.*
Retreating to a corner, Su Xiaoqing sobbed in secret.
***
Xuanji Pavilion.
It was the largest chamber of commerce in Lingyin City and held considerable fame even within the Central Saint Dao Domain.
Lin Fan, draped in a black cloak and wearing a mask, carefully disguised himself before entering the hall.
"Genius Ranking, first place: the City Lord’s son, Chen Tiange."
Lin Fan approached a wall where names were posted in order. He found the name of the Su Family’s genius, Su Xi, before paying his fee and heading to the testing platform.
On the third floor, in a private room:
"Little Qing, I told you long ago to leave the Su Family, but you wouldn't listen. In the end, you still fell for Su Xi’s scheme."
A woman of peerless beauty sighed softly at the letter from the Su Family in her hands. Although she and Su Xiaoqing were close friends, they had rarely met over the past two years as they grew older. She hadn't even attended Su Xiaoqing’s wedding a year ago.
"Tell the accountant to prepare a reserve fund," the young woman told her servant.
"Miss, the Su Family’s momentum has been very strong lately. A few days ago, it was rumored that Su Xi’s Yellow-grade Spiritual Roots were about to be upgraded to Xuan-grade," a white-haired old man said as he approached.
"Buying an abandoned child of the Imperial clan from the Chu family at a high price to nourish her Spiritual Roots—this 'draining the pond to catch the fish' tactic has truly caught Lingyin City off guard."
Even the young woman couldn't help but think higher of the Su Family.
"There are over a dozen people here to test their aptitude today, including the City Lord’s son, Chen Tiange. He is currently ranked first; at seventeen, he is already at the 8th Layer of Qi Refining."
The old man handed over the roster. The young woman didn't even glance at it, clearly unimpressed by the City Lord’s son. However, the old man’s next words caught her attention.
"Rumor has it that Chen Tiange and Su Xi have been seeing each other quite often."
The young woman’s expression shifted slightly.
At the testing platform, there stood a massive wall of white jade with four markings. From one to four, they represented the four grades of Spiritual Roots: Heaven, Earth, Xuan, and Yellow.
"I, Chen Tiange, will become a disciple of the Immortal Sect as the number one genius."
Dressed in pristine white, Chen Tiange stood beneath the testing platform, his spirit high as he slowly gathered all his strength. Last night, the ancestor of the Chen Family had used his connections to obtain a rare treasure, refining it through the night. Chen Tiange was supremely confident in the upgrade of his Spiritual Roots.
Almost simultaneously, at the independent testing platform opposite him, Lin Fan calmly pressed his hand against the wall.
*BOOM!*
The entire testing platform shuddered. Lin Fan was not surprised; after all, he was no longer the man he once was.
In an instant, the scale shot up from the bottom-most Yellow-grade directly to the top of the Heaven-grade, surging forth like a brilliant white mist that erupted out of the Xuanji Pavilion.
It was all too fast, too astonishing.
*The Spiritual Roots exceed the Heaven-grade. It seems I must go to a higher-level testing platform to measure their true grade.*
Lin Fan felt disappointed. Still, at least he was certain they were far beyond Heaven-grade.
Meanwhile, Chen Tiange stared in shock as the power of his palm strike caused the scale on his platform to jump from Xuan-grade to Earth-grade, finally reaching Heaven-grade.
"I am a Heaven-grade Spiritual Root!"
Even as the son of the City Lord, he could not maintain his composure.
The Xuanji Pavilion scrambled to verify the results of each tester.
*Chen Tiange’s blood energy is ordinary; Earth-grade would have been decent.*
Lin Fan glanced from afar at Chen Tiange, who was surrounded by a crowd. He did not intend to expose the truth; he only wanted to keep a low profile now. He even refused when the staff from Xuanji Pavilion came to verify his own results.
"Can a Heaven-grade Spiritual Root actually appear in a place like Lingyin City?"
In the private room, the young woman set down her tea, staring at the glow.
"It is the City Lord’s son, Chen Tiange," the old man said, rushing in.
"Wasn't he Xuan-grade? Are you certain?" The young woman’s expression remained calm; this was not a matter to be trifled with.
"I asked the other testers; they all denied being the source."
"I heard the Chen Family ancestor obtained a ten-thousand-year rare medicine. If true, it is indeed possible to upgrade Xuan-grade to Heaven-grade."
"Some are even linking last night’s alignment of the nine stars to Chen Tiange, calling him the Heaven-chosen True Dragon Child," the old man affirmed.
"The Chen Family has produced a dragon. Go and give him the Xuanji Token on my behalf."
The young woman commanded. She then stepped out for some air, feeling regret for Su Xiaoqing, who had married a man on the verge of death. As for Su Xi, if she truly ended up with Chen Tiange, the mountain sparrow would become a phoenix overnight.
"I need some special alchemy materials."
Lin Fan walked over. Seeing the "Xuanji Pavilion" insignia on the young woman’s attire, he handed her a slip of paper directly.
The young woman was stunned. *I, a Deputy Pavilion Master, am being asked to fetch medicine for you?* Even the guards looked on in terror, fearing their mistress might be offended.
Though the young woman was annoyed, she habitually glanced at the list and was instantly shocked by the materials written upon it.
Lin Fan spoke slowly.
"How about we strike a deal?"