Morning.
Lin Zhao looked at the scorched date tree, his heart filled with helplessness. The date tree, struck by lightning since late at night, had begun to burn. He and Xiao Shitong had stayed by its side, fearing sparks would ignite the house. Fortunately, nothing happened overnight, but this date tree, which had been so instrumental in his life from seven to fourteen, was gone.
This date tree, planted by his parents, was now struck by lightning.
"Brother Lin Zhao..."
Xiao Shitong looked at the date tree and said, "It's okay... it's okay..."
"I know, it's okay."
Lin Zhao frowned. Of course, it was okay. At this moment, he wasn't as reliant on the date tree as before. After all, he could hunt in the mountains and catch fish in the river; he had many ways to survive. But... a sudden bolt of lightning from nowhere directly struck his family's date tree. Wasn't that too coincidental? There were many trees in this small town; by height, it shouldn't have been his family's date tree's turn.
...
"Xiao Shitong, I'm going fishing. Are you staying home or coming with me?"
"Coming!"
"Good!"
The two young boys, one big and one small, went out. Xiao Shitong voluntarily helped Lin Zhao carry the fishing rod and basket, freeing Lin Zhao's hands. He then packed a few cage traps from his backyard, planning to set them in Baoyu Stream to see if he could catch more fish, as there were now two mouths to feed at home, and food consumption was high.
They walked out and arrived outside the Lin family's ancestral home.
Xiao Shitong stopped and looked at the stone lion outside the ancestral home, saying, "Brother Lin Zhao, there's a stone lion guarding your door. I heard my father say before that families with stone lions in front of their doors are wealthy households. Was your family wealthy before?"
"I don't know..."
Lin Zhao scratched his head. "When I was sensible, father had already passed away. Then mother fell ill, and everything in the house was sold. So, I really don't know if our family was wealthy before. But... since we live on the back street, we probably weren't that rich."
"That's true..."
...
In the afternoon, Lin Zhao continued fishing, but the stone bridge was lively.
Su Qingjiu and Zhang Liucheng had arrived. They didn't find the dirty Xiao Shitong strange and soon became engrossed in their play. Zhang Liucheng, holding a book, looked up at the old goose in Baoyu Stream and said, "Ge ge ge, qu jing xiang tian ge, bai mao fu lu shui, hong zhang bo qing bo. I know the most poems, so I am Lin Zhao's top disciple!"
"No way!"
Su Qingjiu, holding a pinwheel, ran back and forth on both sides of the stone bridge, her face rosy. "I run the fastest, so I am Brother Lin Zhao's top disciple, hmph!"
Xiao Shitong frowned and said, "I want to follow Lin Zhao to practice martial arts in the future. Fist techniques are paramount. I should be the top disciple!"
"Hmph!"
Zhang Liucheng looked disdainful, walked on the bridge with his hands behind his back like a little adult, and said, "Practicing fists? Unambitious. I want to practice swordplay in the future and become a sword immortal in the sky, free to come and go. When that time comes, I'll make Lin Zhao my top disciple!"
Lin Zhao almost spat out a mouthful of blood, wishing he could send the little brat into the river to wash himself with a slap.
Su Qingjiu pouted, "Brother Lin Zhao, can I be your top disciple? If not, being your number one lackey is fine too!"
"Hmph!"
Zhang Liucheng said, "I am a sword immortal. If we're talking about Lin Zhao's number one lackey, it should be me. When will it be your turn, you two?"
Lin Zhao rolled his eyes. "When did I say I wanted a lackey? Zhang Liucheng, have you finished your studies? How dare you waste time here? And Xiao Jiuer, have you finished yours?"
"Ah!?"
Su Qingjiu was stunned and immediately turned to leave, holding her pinwheel high. "Going home to practice calligraphy~~~"
Zhang Liucheng walked slowly, lifting and lowering his legs gently as he stepped. After leaving the stone bridge, he darted home. "This young master is leaving! If I don't finish my studies, my backside will be in for it again~~~"
Lin Zhao chuckled inwardly.
Beside him, Xiao Shitong watched the river flow and said softly, "Brother Lin Zhao, I saw you practicing martial arts this morning. You were very powerful... What I said earlier was true. Can I follow you to practice martial arts?"
"Sure!"
Lin Zhao smiled. "But first, you have to tell me, why are you practicing martial arts?"
"To not be bullied."
Obsession flickered in Xiao Shitong's eyes. "I don't bully others, but I never want to be bullied again."
Lin Zhao looked at the bruises on his face and asked, "Have you been bullied many times along the way?"
"It's been okay..."
Xiao Shitong smiled. "When I learn Brother Lin Zhao's fist techniques in the future, those people won't be able to bully me anymore."
"Mm."
Lin Zhao nodded. "My fist technique is called the Farmer's Three Fists. The person who taught me said this is a third-rate fist technique used by a farmer to pass the time. Are you sure you want to learn it? Won't you regret it later?"
"No regrets!"
"Alright, starting tonight, you'll stand the horse stance with me and practice the basic punches. We'll learn it slowly."
"Mm!"
...
In the evening, he reeled in his fishing rod and went home.
Today's catch was only average, less than three catties in total. Fortunately, Lin Zhao had earned a lot from selling wild boar meat last time. If the household only made pancakes and rice, the expenses weren't too high.
In the evening, there was still a supplementary meal. Xiao Shitong was too thin and needed to replenish his nutrition. There was a plate of stir-fried wild boar meat with green garlic, a bowl of crucian carp soup, and a few large pancakes, enough for both of them to eat their fill.
When the two finished their meal, there was another knock on the door.
Outside the door were three people: Zhao Jin, Zhao Yan, and the blacksmith Zhao Tai. All members of the Zhao family had come.
"This is?"
Lin Zhao was slightly surprised.
Zhao Yan smiled and said, "Zhao Jin's injuries have almost healed in the past two days, so we brought him here to apologize to you personally. Lin Zhao, please don't take it to heart."
Lin Zhao was already quite wary. "Mm, it's fine."
Zhao Tai said, "Lin Zhao, I'm sorry... Before, our Jin'er was too aggressive. Now he has paid a considerable price. Let's call it even between you two."
As he spoke, he placed a bag of flour on the wooden table. "This is thirty catties of flour. Consider it our apology and compensation."
"Ah?"
Lin Zhao was stunned. "It's nothing, it's nothing."
As he said it was nothing, his eyes scanned around, looking for any tricks, staring intently at Zhao Yan. It was this woman who had visited last time, and then their date tree was struck by lightning. This time, he had to keep a close eye on her. Big Wind Novels.
Zhao Yan secretly found it amusing. A mere second-realm martial artist, without the keen senses of a spiritual cultivator, and he thought he could detect the actions of a sixth-realm spiritual cultivator? He felt like a frog in a well.
As they spoke, Zhao Yan flipped her palm, and another talisman, wrapped in invisible spiritual energy, was stealthily affixed to the head of the bed. This time, it was the same. Lin Zhao, as a martial artist, didn't have strong perception to begin with, and with the vast difference in realms, it was even more impossible for him to discover this talisman.
...
At night, at the Zhao family mansion.
"It's done?" Zhao Tai asked.
"Mm."
Zhao Yan nodded and smiled. "Before I descended the mountain, my master bestowed this Sword-Illuminating Talisman upon me. It is said to be the masterpiece of a tenth-realm Star River Sword Cultivator revered by the sect. This Sword-Illuminating Talisman will self-combust at midnight and command a strike equivalent to a sixth-realm Sword Cultivator. How easy is it to kill a second-realm martial artist? Moreover, once the Sword-Illuminating Talisman burns, there will be no trace. Regardless of whether it succeeds or not, no one will suspect our Zhao family. After all, when that little bastard Lin Zhao was beheaded, all of us from the Zhao family were at home, completely unaware."
"Good!"
Zhao Tai clapped his hands and chuckled. "Sister, you are an immortal from the mountain, truly extraordinary!"
"Hmph!"
Zhao Yan glanced at Zhao Tai and said, "Brother, if it weren't for Jin'er's sake, I would absolutely not help you with this. I followed my master to cultivate on the mountain and have long since forgotten my worldly identity. This is the last time I will help the Zhao family. If you stir up any more trouble in the future, I will absolutely not interfere."
"Don't worry, sister. With that little bastard Lin Zhao dead, our Zhao family will have no more grudges on the back street."
...
Midnight.
Lin Zhao and Xiao Shitong, one big and one small, were fast asleep. And by Lin Zhao's bed, the Sword-Illuminating Talisman was slowly burning at an imperceptible speed.
Lin Zhao, in a dream.
He dreamt of his father and mother. The feeling of familial affection was so familiar to him. Although his head had been injured, and he had forgotten what his parents looked like in the real world, seeing the pair of men and women in ancient attire, he couldn't help but weep. When his parents softly called him "Xiao Zhao," he cried even harder.
In the dream, seven-year-old Lin Zhao was still young. When he was tired from crying, he sat on a tree stump in the courtyard, staring blankly at the vast expanse of stars.
"Daddy."
"Mom."
"I'm fine, you don't need to worry... Are you doing well... over there?"
The boy's eyes welled up with tears again.
The boy looked up and saw a streak of bright sword light descending from the sky, a straight line. Immediately after, a wild beast's roar came from the entrance of the ancestral home, followed by a golden lion charging into the sky, its paws flailing, battling the sword qi about to strike from the air.
...
The next morning, Lin Zhao got up.
As he carried a basin to the well to fetch water, he heard people outside discussing animatedly.
"What's going on? How did the lion at the entrance of the Lin family's house end up like this..."
"Huh? That's strange. What kind of knife was that, to be able to lop off the lion's head with one strike."
"Hush... That child Lin Zhao has been pitiful since he was young, having lost his parents. Perhaps he is cursed by heaven! This town-guarding lion must have blocked a disaster for him!"
"Most likely. Lin Zhao, that child... just has bad luck. He's actually such a well-behaved child. In the last two years before Sister Qin passed away, it was this child who was busy running errands. Alas... how pitiful. Fortunately, this child was smart from a young age, otherwise, he would have starved to death somewhere long ago."
...
Lin Zhao rushed out. The scene before him stunned him.
His father had left two stone lions back then. One had been moved away by soldiers long ago. The remaining one was also not spared. The lion's head had fallen to the ground, cleanly severed. The cut was incredibly smooth.