Chapter 9

Looking at the figure behind Lin Shan, Qing Tan and Lin Changqiang's expressions also changed, worry appearing in their eyes.

Lin Dong's face was tense, his gaze also directed towards behind Lin Shan. There, a youth dressed in white held Lin Shan's shoulder with his palm, preventing him from falling to the ground.

The youth looked to be around fifteen or sixteen years old, with a rather handsome face. A smile hung on his face, but in Lin Dong's eyes, this smile seemed somewhat cold.

Lin Hong, Lin Shan's elder brother, was an exceptionally outstanding existence in the Lin family. At just fifteen, he had already reached the fifth level of the Body Tempering stage. At this level, as long as he took one more step, he could cultivate a Primordial Energy Seed. At that time, among the younger generation of the Lin family, he would undoubtedly be one of the top three.

"Brother!" Although Lin Shan was usually domineering towards others, he was as gentle as a lamb in front of the seemingly mild-mannered Lin Hong.

"Is this the level of skill you have? Not practicing diligently and coming out to make a fool of yourself?" Lin Hong released his palm and said with a faint smile.

"I just lost my guard. If we fight again, I won't be afraid of him!" Lin Shan's face immediately turned red, but his confidence was somewhat lacking. Lin Dong's punch just now was indeed very strong.

"The Four-Resounding Back Fist is not something you can block." Lin Hong's gaze fell on Lin Dong, looking at him for a while before saying, "Cousin Lin Dong, it seems you've been hiding your true abilities for a long time..."

Lin Hong understood the difficulty of cultivating the Back Fist. To cultivate it to the point of producing four resounding sounds would take several months, but before this, he had never heard that Lin Dong possessed such skills.

"Tricks like these, how can they catch the eye of Cousin Lin Dong?"

Lin Dong's lips twitched, and he said, perhaps because of the rift between their fathers, the relationship between Lin Hong and his brother and Lin Dong was extremely poor, and similarly, Lin Dong had no good feelings towards them.

Lin Hong appeared amiable on the surface, but Lin Dong knew that this guy was actually more despicable than the seemingly fierce Lin Shan. The reason Lin Shan could bully others in the Lin family was not only due to his father but also because of Lin Hong's support.

Of course, the most important thing was that half a year ago, Lin Dong had heard from Lin Xiao that Lin Hong actually wanted to arrange a childhood betrothal with Qing Tan. However, this matter was directly rejected by Lin Xiao.

This incident further deteriorated the already poor relationship between the two sides.

"Cousin Lin Dong, let's go first."

Qing Tan secretly tugged at Lin Dong's sleeve and whispered. Although Lin Dong's victory over Lin Shan had surprised her greatly, the current Lin Hong, in terms of both cunning and martial prowess, was several times more difficult to deal with than Lin Shan.

"Hehe, Qing Tan, it's been quite a while since we last met." Lin Hong smiled, his gaze on Qing Tan, and a hint of strange light flickered in his eyes. Although Qing Tan was still young, she was already a beauty in the making. In Qingyang Town, many of the younger generation harbored secret admiration for her, and he was no exception.

"Lin Shan is always rash in his actions, but if you need medicinal herbs, just come to me. The Red Sun Grass is a first-grade medicinal herb, but it's a bit too low-grade."

Hearing Lin Hong's seemingly familiar words, Qing Tan's delicate eyebrows couldn't help but frown, but due to his strength, although she was somewhat displeased, she didn't refute him.

"Damn, this guy is really despicable. I'll beat him to death in the future." Lin Changqiang was also full of displeasure, muttering behind Lin Dong.

"Thank you for your concern, Cousin Lin Dong, but we prefer to do things ourselves. It's not easy for the family to earn money, so it's always better to save a bit." Lin Dong ignored Lin Changqiang's muttering and said with a smile. If it were before, seeing Lin Hong, he might have had to retreat in humiliation, but now it was different. With the secret of the Stone Talisman, surpassing Lin Hong was just a matter of time.

"Oh? Cousin Lin Dong's spirit is the same as your father's. Truly, it's a family trait." Lin Hong smiled, but his words carried a hint of mockery.

Hearing this, a flash of anger passed through Lin Dong's eyes.

"Hehe, since the Red Sun Grass belongs to Qing Tan, it must be returned. Qing Tan, don't worry, I'll teach this rash guy a lesson when we get back." Lin Hong took the Red Sun Grass from Lin Shan and smiled at Qing Tan, waving it slightly.

Seeing his actions, Qing Tan pursed her lips and didn't dare to step forward for a moment. She was worried that he would use this as an excuse to find trouble with Lin Dong, in which case, it would be better not to have the Red Sun Grass at all.

Seeing this, the corners of Lin Hong's mouth couldn't help but curl up.

"Cousin Lin Hong is truly magnanimous."

However, before his smile could spread, Lin Dong laughed and stepped forward, walking to Lin Hong and reaching out to grab the Red Sun Grass without any courtesy.

Lin Hong's face stiffened at Lin Dong's sudden move, and he stared straight at him, a cold light flashing in his eyes. Lin Dong's action had damaged his dignity in front of everyone.

Ignoring his gaze, Lin Dong's hand holding the Red Sun Grass tightened slightly, only to find that Lin Hong's hand was gripping it like an iron clamp. He then said with a smile, "What? Cousin Lin Hong is interested in this Red Sun Grass?"

Hearing this, Lin Hong's eyes twitched, and he slowly released his hand, staring at Lin Dong with a cold light in his eyes but smiling, "Cousin Lin Dong, I have some interest in your Back Fist. How about a little sparring?"

As he finished speaking, he didn't wait for Lin Dong's response and suddenly stepped forward, striking Lin Dong's chest with a palm. The force of the wind was much stronger than Lin Shan's.

Seeing Lin Hong suddenly attack, Lin Dong's face darkened, and he quickly crossed his arms in front of his chest to protect his vital points.

"Bang!"

As their fists and palms met, Lin Dong immediately felt a powerful force and intense pain in his arms, causing him to retreat several steps. Fortunately, his solid foundation prevented him from falling to the ground.

"Primordial Energy? Sixth level of Body Tempering?!"

Steadying himself, Lin Dong stared at Lin Hong with a serious expression, his voice heavy. He had clearly seen a faint light on Lin Hong's palm, which was undoubtedly the power of Primordial Energy!

This meant that Lin Hong had actually reached the sixth level of Body Tempering and had cultivated a Primordial Energy Seed in his body!

Lin Hong glanced at Lin Dong, his brows furrowing. He was not very satisfied that his previous palm strike had not defeated Lin Dong, but he was confident that he could crush Lin Dong within five moves. This was the confidence of someone at the sixth level of Body Tempering.

"Cousin Lin Dong is truly skilled, let's go again!"

His eyes flashing, Lin Hong clearly had no intention of letting Lin Dong off. He smiled faintly and rushed at Lin Dong again. This time, many people could see a faint light emanating from his body, causing them to draw in a sharp breath.

Seeing the aggressive Lin Hong, Lin Dong's anger intensified. Just as he was about to bite his teeth and use the Back Fist to fight him, a voice filled with anger suddenly rang out.

"Stop it!"

Lin Hong's steps halted at the sound, and he looked to see a girl walking out from the crowd, her face filled with anger.

The girl was dressed in red, around seventeen or eighteen years old, slightly older than the others. She was quite beautiful, with a brown ponytail hanging down to her slender waist, and her slightly raised eyebrows exuded a masculine spirit.

"It's Sister Lin Xia!"

The crowd immediately erupted in exclamations at the sight of the girl.

"It's Sister Lin Xia." Lin Hong also smiled when he saw the red-clad girl.

"Lin Hong, as a member of the Lin family, do you need to use Primordial Energy in a sparring match?" The girl called Lin Xia looked at the scene and frowned.

"Just playing around. Since Sister Lin Xia says so, it's fine." Lin Hong said nonchalantly.

Lin Dong also retracted his fist and called out to Sister Lin Xia. This girl was his cousin, the daughter of his uncle. Although she was a girl, she was the most outstanding among the younger generation of the Lin family. It was said that she had reached the sixth level of Body Tempering half a year ago, and it was unknown if she had improved further.

Lin Xia's reputation was quite good among the younger generation in Qingyang Town, so her status in the Lin family was also quite high. Even Lin Hong dared not offend her.

"Playing with your own family members, what kind of skill is that? When the Qingyang Town hunt starts, if you have the ability, compete with the younger generation of the other families. If you win, then that's real skill." Lin Xia scolded, exuding the air of a leader.

"Sister Lin Xia is right."

Lin Hong responded lazily, then walked up to Lin Dong, threw the medicinal herb to him, and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "In the clan competition in six months, I will enter the top three and then request Grandfather to arrange a childhood betrothal with Qing Tan. So, take good care of Qing Tan; she will be my future wife."

After saying this, he patted Lin Dong's shoulder in a seemingly familiar manner and turned around with a smile, leading Lin Shan away.

Watching Lin Hong's back, Lin Dong's fists slowly clenched, a cold light flashing in his eyes. He would absolutely not let Qing Tan marry such a scoundrel!

"Wanting to be in the top three isn't that easy!"

Although Lin Hong had already surpassed him by a large margin, Lin Dong, who had obtained the Stone Talisman, had the confidence that with his efforts, he could catch up to Lin Hong before the clan competition!