In the Cold Pool, Ling Fei was persistently practicing Blood Refining.
Qin Hong was waiting outside.
Meanwhile, in Longtan Town.
A young man and a tall woman were walking toward Ling's Medical Clinic.
This young man was none other than Huang Liang.
The woman beside him wore leather boots and a tight-fitting outfit. The snug leather jacket perfectly accentuated her graceful figure.
The woman had a heroic air about her, but her oval face was exquisitely delicate, with a fine, straight nose and a hint of cherry-red lips.
She was clearly a rare, heroic beauty.
This woman was indeed Huang Liang's older sister, Huang Xiaoman.
Huang Xiaoman was eighteen years old and the darling of Longtan Town. She had entered the Divine Academy alongside Qin Ming and was now an expert at the Innate Realm.
This time, she had returned home not only for a family reunion but also to host the Divine Academy selection contest with Qin Ming.
The sister and brother walked one after the other.
"Sis, you have to teach Ling Fei a harsh lesson this time! He's despicable! He actually hit me in front of so many people," Huang Liang said, gritting his teeth.
"And you, how could you let this Ling Fei beat you to a pulp?" Huang Xiaoman raised an eyebrow, glancing back at her brother with an expression of disappointment. Her disdain was palpable.
In her memory, the Ling Fei from two years ago was still a sickly-looking boy!
"Sis, my teeth didn't get knocked out, my nose just got bashed in," Huang Liang felt wronged by his sister's scorn and quickly corrected her.
"Isn't that still getting beaten up?" Seeing her brother being so literal, Huang Xiaoman was speechless.
"Sis, you have to teach that Ling Fei a good lesson!" Huang Liang said, his face full of grievance.
"Don't worry, your big sister will definitely teach that guy a good lesson." Huang Xiaoman nodded, but an image of Ling Fei couldn't help but surface in her mind.
Whenever she thought of that young man, she couldn't help but grit her teeth in hatred. Her delicate hands unconsciously clenched into fists, the knuckles cracking.
With this appearance, she had practically turned into a violent maniac.
'Sis has never gotten along with Ling Fei. Now that she's in the Innate Realm, crushing him will be a piece of cake. But... what if she actually beats Ling the sickly to death?' Seeing his sister's clenched fists and fierce expression, Huang Liang's heart skipped a beat.
Although he disliked Ling Fei, he had never wanted him dead.
He just wanted his sister to vent his frustrations for him.
In fact, Huang Liang's dislike for Ling Fei was also due to an indescribable past incident between his sister and Ling Fei.
Huang Xiaoman, however, paid no mind to Huang Liang's thoughts. Walking down this familiar street, memories of the past couldn't help but flood her mind.
She vaguely remembered that she was fourteen that year.
That time, she had fallen gravely ill, even falling into a coma for several days. Her mother went to the Divine Temple to pray to the Divine Spirits, but she did not recover.
Afterward, she was sent to Ling's Medical Clinic.
But when she opened her eyes, she found a young man performing acupuncture on her.
That young man was Ling Fei.
Looking more closely, she realized her clothes had been removed.
This filled Huang Xiaoman with shame and indignation.
However, due to her illness, she didn't have a shred of strength and couldn't move at all.
"If you want to live, don't move." She still remembered the young man's cold words.
She would never forget those words for the rest of her life.
So after she recovered, her relationship with Ling Fei became strained.
A girl, seen by a boy...
How could she not be filled with shame and indignation?
Huang Xiaoman often went to Ling's Medical Clinic to cause trouble for Ling Fei.
But Ling Fei would just ignore her.
'I wonder what that little brat is like now. Is his sickness cured?' Recalling those past events, Huang Xiaoman's cheeks flushed crimson. She bit her red lip, looking both indignant and, when she thought of that young man, a little concerned.
She remembered that, at the time, the young man himself was a patient.
But on that day, he was so focused, so captivating, as he performed the acupuncture.
However, Ling Fei's cold attitude toward her made Huang Xiaoman grind her teeth in frustration.
'He saw everything, yet he's still so cold. What a despicable guy!' Huang Xiaoman grumbled to herself, grinding her teeth.
But her pace quickened.
For some reason, after hearing what her brother said, she couldn't wait to see this guy.
She wanted to see for herself if, after two years, this young man had truly shed his illness and emerged from his chrysalis like a butterfly.
"Brother Ling Fei isn't home," Xue Xi said with a smile when Huang Xiaoman arrived at Ling's Medical Clinic.
"He's not?" Hearing this, a look of disappointment flashed in Huang Xiaoman's eyes.
"Sis, when Ling Fei isn't home, he's probably somewhere near Dragon Pool Mountain," said Huang Liang.
"Dragon Pool Mountain?" Huang Xiaoman frowned. "That's not a place ordinary people can enter!"
"I saw him heading in that direction with my own eyes once. I wanted to follow, but it was too cold, so I didn't go," Huang Liang said.
"Oh!" Huang Xiaoman's eyes lit up. "I'm curious to see what that little brat is up to."
Filled with curiosity, Huang Xiaoman took her leave and headed for Dragon Pool Mountain.
Huang Liang followed her.
...
In the Cold Pool.
'Twenty-eight wisps of True Qi have been absorbed, but the Power in my spine seems to have grown even stronger.' Ling Fei felt as if he could prop up the heavens. The Power his spine possessed filled him with confidence, so he was no longer discouraged about his True Qi being devoured.
Perhaps, when his spine had absorbed enough True Qi, he would receive a pleasant surprise.
'Even with just one wisp of True Qi, I'm still at the Ninth Layer of Body Tempering, which meets the threshold for entering the Divine Academy. Now, it all comes down to my combat strength.' Ling Fei was quite satisfied with his training today.
Ling Fei finished up and stopped his cultivation.
He leaped out of the Cold Pool.
He stood on the bank as his Blood Qi flowed, gradually dissipating the Cold Qi.
The Blood Qi Power was even drying the water on his clothes.
When a person's Blood Qi is vigorous enough, it can turn their body into a Furnace, drying wet clothes in an instant.
WHOOSH!
By the side of the Dragon Pool, Ling Fei couldn't help but throw a punch.
The punch whistled through the air, like the roar of a True Dragon.
Within Ling Fei's body, his Blood Qi surged, as if the power of dragons and tigers was about to erupt.
The feeling of strength sent a thrill of excitement through him.
'I wonder how many catties of force I have now?' He felt that his strength was more than a thousand catties.
'I'll go to the Training Ground tomorrow and test it out,' Ling Fei thought to himself.
Then, he strode out of the valley as if on wings.
In Longtan Town, a road led to the Dragon Pool.
At that moment, Qin Hong and his men were waiting at the intersection, lying in ambush.
"The sky's almost dark. Why is there still no sign of him?" a young man from the Qin Clan said with a frown.
They had already been waiting in the snow for a full two hours.
"Where the hell did that brat go?" Qin Hong was also bewildered.
"Huh, someone's coming!" Suddenly, a Qin Clan youth's eyes lit up as he spoke.
"It's Ling Fei!"
"Has the little brat finally shown himself?" A savage grin spread across Qin Hong's face.
At that moment, Ling Fei was heading toward Longtan Town.
"I wonder where that guy was just now?" The Qin Clan youths were full of suspicion.
Ling Fei was moving as if on wings, his feet leaving only shallow prints in the snow.
Such a Step Technique was clearly beyond what a Cultivator at the Eighth Layer of Body Tempering could achieve.
If one reached Ninth Layer Body Tempering Perfection, they could even achieve Stepping on Snow Without Traces.
Up ahead, the rows of houses in town were visible.
But at the intersection, several figures were particularly conspicuous.
"Qin Hong!" Ling Fei's gaze hardened, and his steps faltered slightly.
At the same time, Qin Hong was already walking toward Ling Fei.
Behind him, the four youths at the Nine Layers of Body Tempering all wore arrogant expressions, mocking smiles playing on their lips.
"Ling Fei, you really made us wait!" Qin Hong stopped about ten feet from Ling Fei, raised an eyebrow, and spoke in a strange tone.
"Qin Hong, what do you want?" Ling Fei's brows knitted. He sensed something was off about the expressions on Qin Hong and his men.
'These people seem to have ill intentions!'
"What do I want?" Qin Hong arched a brow and stared at Ling Fei. "I, Qin Hong, am the genius of Longtan Town. My Qin Mansion is an Overlord Race in Longtan Town, and our clan has produced more Divine Guards than I can count on both hands. I humbled myself to go to your Ling Clan to propose marriage, saying all the right things, but you and your father don't know what's good for you. Today, that old ghost didn't even give my brother face. If the Qin Mansion doesn't vent this frustration, how can we show our faces in the future?"
Qin Hong spoke, his tone harsh and cold. He enunciated every word as if he were the one who had suffered a great injustice.
"Your brother?" Upon hearing this, Ling Fei understood. The guy had gone to propose again today.
Having been rejected, Qin Hong was lashing out in shame and anger, and he was planning to take it out on him.
After figuring this out, Ling Fei's gaze shifted, scanning Qin Hong and the four men beside him.
'It's said that Qin Hong reached the Ninth Layer of Body Tempering long ago. By now, he should be at the Late Stage of Blood Refining, with a strength of three thousand catties.' Ling Fei mused. 'As for the other four, while not as talented as Qin Hong, they're older and have also reached the Late Stage of Body Tempering Ninth Layer.'
So, Ling Fei was facing five experts at the Late Stage of Body Tempering Ninth Layer.
'Good thing I reached the Ninth Layer of Body Tempering today. Before, I wouldn't have stood a chance.'
Even when facing powerful enemies, Ling Fei remained calm.
At the Eighth Layer of Body Tempering, Ling Fei could barely hold his own against Wu Dapang, who was at the Early Stage of Body Tempering Ninth Layer.
Now that he had generated True Qi in his bloodline and entered the Nine Layers of Body Tempering, he naturally had no fear of a Cultivator at the Early Stage of Body Tempering Ninth Layer.
However, the five people before him were all at the Late Stage of Body Tempering Ninth Layer, possessing a strength of three thousand catties.
The difference in power made Ling Fei feel a little pressured.
'No matter what, I should still be able to put up a fight. This is perfect. Today, I can test just how strong my Cold Chi True Qi really is.'
Thoughts raced through Ling Fei's mind, and he quickly regained his composure.
He stared calmly at Qin Hong, his face wary.
"Ling Fei, I'll give you one last chance. Go back and convince your adoptive father to marry Xue Xi to me. Otherwise, don't blame me for what happens next," Qin Hong snorted coldly.
The four men beside him stared at Ling Fei like hungry wolves.
From the looks of it, they were ready to attack at the slightest disagreement.
"Heh," Ling Fei sneered. "I, Ling Fei, may have come from humble beginnings, but even a scholar has a backbone, let alone a Martial Artist like me. You, Qin Hong, are indeed talented, but you have a corrupt character, bullying men and preying on women. My little sister Xue Xi is so sweet and lovely, how could she possibly marry down to you? You want me to persuade my adoptive father? Impossible. No matter what happens today, I won't listen to you."
"You damn Ling the sickly! I never thought you'd be as stubborn as your adoptive father. Fine! Today, I'll show you what 'the strong reign supreme' means! Your so-called backbone is worthless in my eyes! Men, surround this brat! Don't let him run!" Qin Hong's voice was frigid. "Today, I will cripple him."
Now, he was truly enraged.