Chapter 6

Zhang Ruochen, Lin Fei, and the maid Yun'er sat in an ancient chariot pulled by a linma, slowly making their way out of the Yunwu Palace.

The linma is not a real horse but a savage beast with a single horn on its head, standing over three meters tall, resembling a small elephant. Its running speed is more than five times that of an ordinary warhorse. Some of the stronger linmas can even travel three thousand miles in a day.

The ancient chariot had traveled for quite some distance before gradually coming to a stop.

Zhang Ruochen got out of the chariot and looked at the two golden and splendid gates not far away, then at the gilded plaque hanging at the top of the gates, which bore two powerful and vigorous characters: "Lin Family!"

His heart stirred; didn't his mother's surname also happen to be "Lin"?

Judging by the grandeur of this mansion, the Lin family was not a small household but a large and influential clan.

If his mother's natal family was indeed a large clan, why did she not receive support from them and instead suffer bullying from other concubines in the county prince's palace?

There must be some hidden reason.

Lin Fei also got out of the chariot, looked up at the familiar yet strange gates, and said, "Dust, you must have wanted to see Ningshan for a long time! Now that you have opened the Divine Martial Mark, I believe you and Ningshan have a lot to talk about. You must work hard!"

Up until now, Zhang Ruochen still did not know who Ningshan was. Hearing Yun'er and Lin Fei's words, he felt a strange sensation.

Under Lin Fei's lead, Zhang Ruochen and Yun'er entered the Lin Family's mansion.

Theoretically, a concubine returning to her natal family should be warmly welcomed, but only an elderly steward greeted Lin Fei and Zhang Ruochen at the gate.

Lin Fei was taken to the inner mansion by the old steward, while Zhang Ruochen and Yun'er stayed in the outer mansion, with only two maids left to attend to them.

Zhang Ruochen felt that the atmosphere was very off, but he did not know how to ask and could only remain silent.

"Prince Nine, aren't you going to see Ningshan? She should be at the training ground now, where the young disciples of the Lin Family are practicing." Yun'er asked.

Mentioned several times by Yun'er and Lin Fei, Zhang Ruochen became even more curious about the girl named "Ningshan." It shouldn't be a problem to go and see her.

"Sure! Let's go to the Lin Family's training ground." Zhang Ruochen nodded and said.

...

In the inner mansion of the Lin Family.

In an ancient and elegant hall, the head of the Lin Family, Lin Fengxian, sat steadily in a grand chair.

He looked to be in his thirties, with a neatly trimmed mustache above his lips. He glanced at Lin Fei, who was sitting opposite him, and said, "Prince Nine is a descendant of the county prince's palace. Even if he has opened the Divine Martial Mark, he should go to the county prince's palace library to choose a cultivation technique. Why has Empress Lin come to the Lin Family to request a cultivation technique?"

Lin Fei bit her lips lightly and said, "It's not a request. I am asking my elder brother to consider that Dust is your nephew and give him a cultivation technique."

"Bang!"

Lin Fengxian snorted coldly and slapped the table, saying, "Now you come to me for help? Now you talk about family ties? Three years ago, when I went to the county prince's palace to ask for your help to save Chenyu, why didn't you consider that Chenyu is your nephew? You knew that Chenyu is my legitimate son and a once-in-a-century genius of the Lin Family. If you had gone to the county prince, you could have saved him, but you didn't..."

"Three years ago..." Lin Fei felt extremely wronged, tears streaming down her face, wanting to explain the truth of three years ago.

However, Lin Fengxian interrupted her, saying, "Leave! The Lin Family and you have long severed ties. Do not come back. Empress Lin."

"Thud!"

Lin Fei knelt on the ground, tears streaming down her face, and said in a choked voice, "Brother, are you so heartless? I want to see Father."

"Father has gone to the Heavenly Demon Ridge and will return in three months. You won't be able to see him now." Lin Fengxian said coldly. "There's one more thing. Ningshan and Prince Seven are about to be engaged. Tell Prince Nine to stay away from Ningshan in the future."

Lin Fei felt even more despair and said, "You know that Dust has always liked Ningshan. He will be heartbroken if he finds out that Ningshan is engaged to Prince Seven. Besides, why Prince Seven?"

Lin Fengxian said, "Prince Seven opened the Seventh Rank Divine Martial Mark at the age of three, with astonishing talent. With his current martial cultivation, no one in the young generation of the Yunwu Kingdom can match him. Ningshan's marriage to Prince Seven will bring great benefits to our Lin Family."

"Although Prince Nine and Ningshan are cousins and were good playmates in their childhood, he is mediocre in talent. He only opened the Divine Martial Mark at the age of sixteen and will not achieve much in his life. Reaching the late Yellow Extreme Realm should be his limit, far inferior to Prince Seven."

Lin Fei said, "Is Ningshan willing to be engaged to Prince Seven? Will a marriage for the family's benefit truly bring happiness?"

Lin Fengxian stared at Lin Fei and said coldly, "You are wrong. This is Ningshan's own decision!"

...

The training ground of the Lin Family was vast, about half the size of a football field.

Young disciples of the Lin Family, dressed in green martial robes, were practicing martial techniques on the training ground. Some were practicing fist techniques, some were practicing sword techniques, and some were practicing knife techniques.

They were the elite of the Lin Family, each having opened the Divine Martial Mark, and were dedicated to their practice. There were also elders of the Lin Family providing guidance on the training ground, creating a thriving atmosphere.

Zhang Ruochen nodded, thinking to himself, "The Lin Family is indeed a large clan in the Yunwu Kingdom."

Suddenly, Zhang Ruochen's gaze fell on a slender girl, and he couldn't help but be amazed.

The girl looked to be only fourteen or fifteen years old, with a petite and delicate figure, eyebrows like willow leaves, bright eyes like stars, and skin as white as jade. She was a true beauty.

She held a sword that emitted a faint starlight, with a pale green sword aura surrounding her. Countless sword energies circled around her body, moving with her steps, graceful and agile, her sword technique reaching a level of supreme refinement.

"True Qi released, sword follows the heart. Her martial cultivation has at least reached the middle Yellow Extreme Realm, far surpassing Prince Eight." Zhang Ruochen thought to himself.

"Hey! Isn't that Prince Nine? He actually came to the Lin Family?" A young disciple of the Lin Family saw Zhang Ruochen standing outside the training ground and smiled coldly.

"He must be here to see Ningshan, but unfortunately, Ningshan doesn't even bother to see him now."

"I heard he also opened the Divine Martial Mark."

"Hehe! Opening the Divine Martial Mark at sixteen, what can he achieve? If he weren't Ningshan's cousin, he might not even be able to enter the Lin Family's gate."

"I heard Ningshan is about to be engaged to Prince Seven. What a perfect match!"

"Hehe! It's said that Prince Nine has always had a crush on Ningshan. What do you think his reaction will be when he hears that Ningshan is about to be engaged to Prince Seven?"

All the young martial practitioners of the Lin Family stopped their practice, staring at Zhang Ruochen standing outside the training ground, pointing and discussing, occasionally bursting into mocking laughter.

Lin Ningshan also stopped practicing, looked at Zhang Ruochen standing outside the training ground, and with a delicate wave of her arm, precisely inserted her starlight sword into the scabbard five meters away.

Lin Ningshan walked up to Zhang Ruochen, looked at his thin body, and said, "Cousin, it's been a long time. I heard you also opened the Divine Martial Mark?"

When they were very young, Lin Ningshan and Zhang Ruochen were good playmates, almost like childhood sweethearts. However, after Lin Ningshan opened the Divine Martial Mark, she spent most of her time practicing, becoming increasingly distant from Zhang Ruochen.

After the incident three years ago, she never went back to the Yunwu Palace. Although Zhang Ruochen was often ill, he still frequently visited the Lin Family to see her, feeling quite happy even if he could only see her for a moment.

However, the number of times he could see her became fewer and fewer, and in the past half year, he had not seen her at all. She would send a maid to dismiss him.

"So she is my cousin."

This was the first time Zhang Ruochen had seen Lin Ningshan, and he did not have any particular feelings for her, so he remained calm and said modestly, "Indeed, I opened the Divine Martial Mark, but the Empress said it is a non-ranked Divine Martial Mark, which naturally cannot be compared to Cousin's Divine Martial Mark."

Lin Ningshan nodded, tilting her snow-white chin, looking as proud as a swan, and said, "You are already sixteen, and being able to open the Divine Martial Mark is a blessing from heaven. You must work hard in the future. Although you may not become a martial powerhouse, at least you can strengthen your body and avoid being bedridden all year. For you... at least you can be a normal person."

Zhang Ruochen frowned slightly and nodded, saying, "I will definitely work hard in the future and strive to catch up with your cultivation, Cousin."

Lin Ningshan naturally knew that Zhang Ruochen liked her. Hearing his words, she thought he still had not given up and wanted to continue pursuing her.

"Ah! Cousin, my cultivation has already reached the middle Yellow Extreme Realm, and I am only one step away from the Great Extreme Realm. With your talent, you probably won't reach the middle Yellow Extreme Realm in your lifetime. What you should do now is to practice diligently and not blindly pursue things you shouldn't. One should not aim too high, or it will backfire." Lin Ningshan said with a double meaning.

Zhang Ruochen's frown deepened.

Lin Ningshan looked at Zhang Ruochen with a hint of sympathy and said, "Cousin, there is one more thing I need to tell you. I hope you won't be too sad. In three months, when the county prince comes out of seclusion, I will be engaged to Prince Seven."

"There will be a good show! Hehe!"

All the young martial practitioners of the Lin Family were delighted and stared at Zhang Ruochen, eager to see his reaction.