The young man returned, having traveled south for over a month.
...
Deep into the night, at the villa on the mountain peak.
Little Jiu Er seemed to have become an accessory to Lin Zhao, clinging to his hand and refusing to let go. She followed him everywhere, constantly wanting to recite poems for him. Lin Zhao was extremely patient, lifting the little girl onto the carved railing. She held a bowl of egg fried rice prepared by the kitchen, eating while listening to Little Jiu Er recite poetry.
Not long after, Little Jiu Er's repertoire was exhausted, and the few poems she knew by heart had all been recited. She jumped down from the railing with open arms, gave Lin Zhao a big hug, and then went to Lin Zhao's room to burn the midnight oil copying her homework.
"Xiao Shi Tou."
Lin Zhao turned and looked at the boy, who had grown considerably taller, and smiled, "How is your fist technique training going?"
Xiao Shi Tou pursed his lips, thinking it was finally time for his studies to be tested. He then threw a punch and said, "Want to try?!"
"Alright!"
The two martial artists walked down the long corridor and into the center of the courtyard. Xiao Shi Tou instantly dropped his stance and assumed the posture of the Farmer's Three Punches. Lin Zhao, with one hand behind his back, extended only his left fist and smiled, "I'll let you have one punch. If you can hit me, you pass."
"It's a deal!"
Xiao Shi Tou charged forward, his punches whistling through the air, which surprised Lin Zhao. How old was this brat already, and he was already in the second realm of martial artists? Could it be that Xiao Shi Tou was also a martial prodigy?
Lin Zhao's current martial artist stance was already quite elegant. Blocking Xiao Shi Tou's attacks with one hand was a piece of cake. A seventh-realm martial artist, he managed to keep Xiao Shi Tou from landing a hit for twenty to thirty rapid punches!
"Enough, enough..."
Lin Zhao placed his hand on Xiao Shi Tou's forehead and gently pushed him away with a surge of true qi, laughing, "You still need to practice more. It seems your second-realm martial artist cultivation isn't that strong."
Xiao Shi Tou pouted, huffing with indignation, and went back to practice his punches.
Lin Zhao, however, frowned. The brat was still too sore about losing. But this spirit of not accepting defeat, not yielding, and not wanting to lose was indeed very suitable for martial arts training. With this kind of drive, his martial artist realm wouldn't be too bad in the future, no matter how lacking.
...
At this moment, the courtyard gate opened, and a group of people stepped into the mountain-top villa. It was the young ten from the Great Chen Dynasty, carrying long swords. The maiden with fluttering white clothes, Xu Zhi, walked at the forefront, followed by Luo Yang, also in white clothes and armor, and then Mu Suan, clad in soft armor. They were all now captains of the Heavenly Pool Army's Death-Seeking Battalion.
"Greetings, Lord!"
The group stood in a neat row before Lin Zhao and cupped their fists in salute.
"Mmm!"
Lin Zhao returned the salute and smiled, "You've all changed quite a bit. Are you used to a month of army life?"
"We are accustomed to it."
Xu Zhi smiled slightly, her beautiful eyes scanning Lin Zhao. "You've broken through? Seventh-realm martial artist, third-realm sword cultivator?"
"Mmm."
Lin Zhao nodded. "I broke through at the Fusang Great Wall."
"It seems the legends are true..."
Mu Suan chuckled and said, "When the geese fly, they leave their feathers; Lin the Three Punches, once he passes the Great Wall, it's like passing the New Year. I heard you, Lord, on the Fusang Great Wall, you knocked down the innate sword seeds, innate general seeds, and innate love seeds! And you even did some business on the side, raking in a year's revenue from the Fusang Great Wall. Amazing... a role model for us martial artists..."
Lin Zhao felt a pang of embarrassment. "This... let's not talk about the gossip from the Fusang Great Wall, it's quite embarrassing."
Xu Zhi, Hua Ping, Gu Luan, and the other women covered their mouths and giggled.
Lin Zhao looked at the group, sensing the aura intensity of each person. "Xu Zhi, Luo Yang, Mu Suan, you three have all broken through?"
"Mmm!"
Xu Zhi nodded. "Luo Yang and I are now both seventh-realm sword cultivators. Mu Suan is like you, a seventh-realm martial artist. We all followed Marshal Chu's plan, progressing steadily and breaking through within this month."
"Mmm."
Lin Zhao looked at Hua Ping, Zhu Zhi, and the other seven. "You all need to continue cultivating diligently and break through soon, don't fall too far behind these three."
"Mmm, mmm!"
The group nodded in unison.
Xu Zhi smiled, appearing very happy.
Lin Zhao glanced at Xu Zhi.
"Ah!?"
Xu Zhi's heart fluttered. "Lord... do I have... a problem?"
"Yes."
Lin Zhao said, "Xu Zhi, don't become arrogant. A seventh-realm sword cultivator at your age of 19 is rare in our Snow Region Heavenly Pool, but what about the entire world? I met a woman at the Fusang Great Wall named Lin Wanhua. She's 18 years old, an eighth-realm Golden Core sword cultivator, with supreme swordsmanship and peerless sword intent..."
"..."
Xu Zhi showed a hint of sadness. "Is she really that strong?"
"Mmm."
Lin Zhao extended his fist and pointed to the fine sword marks on it, which were still healing. "I used my fist against her sword qi and suffered greatly. These wounds are proof."
Mu Suan frowned. "But Lord, we heard... when you were at the Fusang Great Wall, you knocked Lin Wanhua down onto the city wall with a single punch? And you even broke half of her natal flying sword. If you hadn't shown mercy, Lin Wanhua would likely have fallen in her cultivation realm. You were the one who won..."
"The result was indeed that I won."
Lin Zhao nodded. "But in truth, I used a military talisman to catch Lin Wanhua off guard. Otherwise, if Lin Wanhua had used her strongest power from the start, I would probably have been chased and hacked by her."
This was the truth. If Lin Wanhua had immediately unleashed her natal flying sword from the Sword Concealment Lake, not giving Lin Zhao too many opportunities to punch, the outcome would indeed have been different. The relentless sword qi alone would have been enough to make Lin Zhao suffer greatly.
"Understood."
Xu Zhi held her sword and cupped her fists. "We will continue to work hard. Please rest assured, Lord!"
"Mmm!"
Lin Zhao looked at everyone and smiled. "Since you've all come from the military camp, how about... we ask the kitchen to prepare a meal and have a reunion dinner?"
"Great!"
Mu Suan laughed heartily. "That's exactly what I was thinking!"
Xu Zhi, Luo Yang, Hua Ping, and the others also nodded with smiles.
Thus, Lin Zhao took some venison from a bamboo box and sent it to the kitchen. Then, while everyone was chatting in the main hall, Lin Zhao took out a string of Silver Phoenix meat, smoked venison, and several dried fish, specialty products from Jizhou, from the bamboo box. He carried the pile of items, which he had painstakingly brought back from Baidi City, and rode out on his horse.
...
Tianchi Town, front street.
In the bookstore, Qin Suihan was gazing at a chess game, deep in thought. The sound of hooves then woke him from his contemplation. He made a move and said with a smile, "Just right!"
At the entrance, Lin Zhao entered with his goods.
"Boss Qin!"
The young man called out with a smile, as he always did.
"Oh, it's Young Master Lin!"
Qin Suihan laughed heartily. "You've returned from your southern travels?"
"Yes, yes!"
Lin Zhao ran all the way and quickly placed the Silver Phoenix meat, smoked venison, and dried fish on the scholar's windowsill. "Brought them back from Baidi City, for Boss Qin to go with his wine!"
"Hey, hey~~~"
Qin Suihan got up and was about to stop Lin Zhao, but the young man was already out of the bookstore like the wind, mounted his horse, and galloped away.
No matter how much time passed, the young man would always remember the kindness of the bookstore owner. During the years when he had no food, his stomach growling with hunger, this bookstore owner had helped him many times, sometimes giving him a few steamed buns, or weighing out a few pounds of rice or flour. It was almost always when the young man was on the verge of starvation.
No one in the back street was wealthy. There was little farmland in the Snow Region Heavenly Pool, and the crops produced were few. Everyone lived frugly. Therefore, when Lin Zhao was starving to death, very few people could truly help him. Qin Suihan was one of them. This poor scholar, always dressed in washed-out clothes, seemed to spend money without hesitation only when it came to Lin Zhao.
Watching Lin Zhao's retreating back, the scholar stood at the courtyard entrance with a gentle smile, stroked his beard lightly, and said, "Should I go and get some wine?"
"Wine?"
A voice came from the alley. It was the old physician with a wine gourd slung across his shoulder, leaning on his walking stick, looking as if he would fall dead at any moment. He ambled to the bookstore entrance, patted his wine gourd, and said with a smile, "I have wine. Why don't you quickly go and cook some dishes? I haven't tasted the Golden Whisker Fish from Baidi City for a long time."
The scholar rolled his eyes. "I can cook, but will you manage the fire?"
"What are we waiting for?"
The old physician darted into the bookstore like lightning, afraid that the other party might change his mind and ask him to leave at any moment.
...
Night.
The main hall of the mountain-top villa was brightly lit, with a table full of dishes. Even Xiao Shi Tou and Little Jiu Er, after finishing their dinner, couldn't resist coming back to dip their chopsticks in. Lin Zhao, along with Xu Zhi, Luo Yang, Mu Suan, and the others, drank and conversed merrily. After a month apart, everyone had undergone significant changes, especially Lin Zhao, Xu Zhi, Luo Yang, and Mu Suan, all of whom had broken through, their strength advancing rapidly.
After several rounds of wine, everyone was slightly tipsy.
At this moment, someone walked in from outside. Three people: Chu Huaixi, Chen Yu, and Huang Tingyu.
"Greetings, Commander Chu!"
Everyone rose from the wine table and bowed to the commander of the Heavenly Pool Army.
"You're back?"
Chu Huaixi smiled at Lin Zhao and waved his hand, letting everyone rise. He said with a smile, "How was your tempering trip to the south?"
"I gained a lot!"
Lin Zhao cupped his fists lightly. "I was supposed to report to you, Commander Chu, tonight. But it was already dark when I returned, so I thought I'd come first thing tomorrow morning. I hope Chu Huaixi will forgive me!"
"There's no need to worry about these formalities."
Chu Huaixi asked, "Did you meet Marquis Wen?"
"Mmm, I did."
"How was he?"
"Immeasurable."
"That's right." Chu Huaixi smiled. "Before you returned, Marquis Wen's flying fish dispatch had already arrived, praising you profusely and saying I have good judgment!"
"Really?"
"Mmm."
Chu Huaixi said, "Lin Zhao, go to the military camp first thing tomorrow morning. You should take command of the Death-Seeking Battalion."
Chen Yu stepped forward, holding a golden token. "Here, this is the token of the commander of the Death-Seeking Battalion!"
"Yes!"
Lin Zhao's heart fluttered with excitement. He took the token and said in a deep voice, "I will never let Commander Chu down!"
"Mmm!"
Chu Huaixi nodded and smiled. "Continue eating and drinking. Old Huang, shall we go and get some wine ourselves?"
"How about we get a couple of roasted chickens too?"
"As you wish."