36: Grandfather and grandson have a heart-to-heart talk

Moonlight poured down like water, illuminating Lin Xingnan's slightly pale face. He stood upright amidst the ruins, the aura of the Gang Qi Realm not yet fully contained. Pale golden True Essence flowed around him, making him look like a majestic lion waking from slumber.

Lin Yang helped his grandfather out of the cellar. The clansmen were already kneeling in a large group, none daring to look up. Lin Hongfeng lay limp on the ground, his face ashen, and was dragged toward the Hall of Punishment by two Law Enforcement Disciples. The Third Elder, Lin Wenshan, walked toward the Ancestral Tomb with a hunched back, his figure appearing particularly desolate under the moonlight.

"You may all disperse," Lin Xingnan waved his hand. His voice was soft but carried undeniable authority. "Tomorrow, at Chen Hour, there will be a meeting in the Ancestral Hall."

Everyone retreated quietly as if they had been granted a general pardon. The old servant, Uncle Zhou, stumbled over with a medicine box, but Lin Xingnan stopped him: "First, bandage Lin Yang's hand wound."

Only then did Lin Yang notice that the web of his hand had been split open, and dark red bloodstains had congealed on the handle of the Firewood Chopper. He casually applied some medicinal powder, but his eyes were fixed on the old wound on his grandfather's chest that had split open again: "Your injuries..."

"I won't die." Lin Xingnan pressed his grandson's hand, the warmth of his palm transferring through the cloth. "Accompany me to see Uncle Liu."

The cured meat hanging on the bamboo rack was long gone, only the old locust tree still stood in the courtyard. Lin Xingnan stroked the deep knife marks on the trunk, scars left by Lin Yang's father when he practiced his blade techniques in his youth.

"If your father were here, he would certainly be proud of you," the old man suddenly spoke, his voice mixing with the chill of the night wind. "Although Lin Hongfeng is foolish, he didn't say one thing wrong—the Lin family, this broken ship, can barely weather the storms anymore."

Lin Yang handed over the warmed wineskin: "Why is the Misty Immortal Palace targeting our ancestral Spiritual Vein?"

"It's not just the Spiritual Vein." Lin Xingnan tilted his head back, draining the spicy liquid. "Three hundred years ago, the Lin family ancestors built their residence here because half of a Meteorite Ore Vein was buried underground. The chaos star core in your chest should be the core of that ore vein."

The moonlight suddenly intensified, and the shadows of the locust tree branches swayed on the bluestone slabs like ghostly claws. Lin Yang recalled the star map he obtained in the Secret Realm, and his mind instantly cleared: "So what they want isn't the Spiritual Vein, but the Meteorite Ore after the chaos star core activates it?"

"Clever." Lin Xingnan coughed violently, dark red blood spots splattering onto his lapel. "Your father refused the Misty Immortal Palace's recruitment back then because he saw that they wanted to turn the Lin family into mining slaves. Now they've changed their method—fostering Puppets for overt seizure and covert plunder."

The cry of a night owl swept across the courtyard, and the sound of iron chains dragging came from the direction of the woodshed. Lin Yang suddenly tightened his grip on the knife handle: "How many people are still locked up in the dungeon?"

"Seventeen," Lin Xingnan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. "They are all hard bones who refused to submit to Lin Hongfeng. Tomorrow, take my Family Head Token and release them first."

He took out a Profound Iron Token from his robe, with the Big Dipper Star Pattern engraved on the back: "This is the Family Head Token passed down by your great-grandfather. Starting today, it will be entrusted to you."

Lin Yang did not take it: "Grandfather is the true Family Head."

"Silly boy." Lin Xingnan pressed the token into his palm. "I forcibly achieved a Breakthrough into the Gang Qi Realm, but my Foundation is damaged. I can only hold on for three more years at most. During these three years, you must grow up quickly."

The token felt cold to the touch, but the star pattern faintly resonated with the chaos star core. Lin Yang suddenly knelt on one knee: "Your grandson will certainly not fail this trust."

"Get up." Lin Xingnan helped him stand, his gaze turning toward the southern sky. "Su Qingyue of the Star Moon Sect sent a message today, inviting you to participate in next month's Outer Sect Grand Selection. This is an opportunity."

The wind whipped up dry leaves that swirled past their feet. Lin Yang recalled Wanqing's warning in the Secret Realm: "Does the Misty Immortal Palace have spies in the Star Moon Sect too?"

"More than just spies." Lin Xingnan sneered. "The Three Great Sects have been infiltrating each other for a century; they are already intertwined. Going to the Star Moon Sect is ostensibly for cultivation, but secretly, you must investigate two things—"

The old man's finger traced the trajectory of the stars and moon on the stone table: "First, find out who is colluding with the Misty Immortal Palace to betray the Lin family, and second, find out the truth behind your mother's disappearance."

Lin Yang suddenly looked up: "Mother, she..."

"Your mother was not an ordinary person." Lin Xingnan took out a broken Jade Pendant from his robe. "This is the protective talisman she left behind; it was originally one body with your chaos star core. To protect the secret of the ore vein, she voluntarily left with the Misty Immortal Palace envoy back then, and her fate remains unknown to this day."

The Jade Pendant glowed faintly blue in the moonlight, with Stardust flowing within it. When Lin Yang took it, the chaos star core suddenly shook violently, and a blurry image appeared in his Sea of Consciousness—a white-robed woman trapped by chains on an ice pillar, with a chaos star core fragment identical to his own embedded in her chest.

"Mother is still alive." Lin Yang clenched the Jade Pendant, his fingernails digging into his palm. "In a Land of Extreme Cold."

Lin Xingnan's pupils contracted sharply: "What did you see?"

The image transmitted by the chaos star core suddenly cut off, leaving only residual pain lingering in his Sea of Consciousness. Lin Yang took a deep breath: "Enough clues to find her."

The grandfather and grandson stared silently at each other, the night dew unknowingly soaking their robes. When the watchman struck the Third Watch, Lin Xingnan suddenly stood up: "Let's go. It's time to meet the old comrades."

In the Hall of Punishment's dungeon, seventeen scarred Lin family disciples choked and rattled their chains when they saw the Family Head Token. Some had lost an arm, others had their martial arts completely crippled, yet they all struggled to perform the Lin Family Military Salute. It turned out that the Grand Elder had secretly dealt with the Lin family disciples who disobeyed him over the past three years, either killing or imprisoning them.

"Starting today, you shall be incorporated into the Shadow Guard Camp," Lin Xingnan cut the last chain. "Your lives were saved by Lin Yang, and from now on, you will only follow his command."

Everyone roared their assent, their eyes burning brightly like night stars. Lin Yang recognized the young man leading them; it was the instructor who taught him blade techniques as a child. The man's left leg was now crippled, but his gaze was still as sharp as an eagle's.

"Young Family Head," the youth knelt on one knee. "Lin Hu is willing to serve as the vanguard."

When Lin Yang helped him up, he noticed the empty sleeve: "Uncle Hu's blade needs replacing."

The darkness before dawn was the thickest. The grandfather and grandson stood on the high platform of the Training Grounds, watching the reorganized Shadow Guard team below. Lin Xingnan suddenly lowered his voice: "Remember, the secret of the chaos star core must never be told to a second person. Even in the Star Moon Sect, you must pretend to be an ordinary Five Elements Cultivator."

"Then Su Qingyue..."

"That woman can be trusted, but not completely," the old man's gaze was profound. "The Star Moon Sect's interior is more complicated than you think. When you depart tomorrow, take the Qingluan Sisters with you. Their Bloodline is special and might help you break Plant and Wood Restriction."

The eastern horizon turned the color of a fish belly (dawn). Lin Yang suddenly remembered something: "Grandfather, do you know about the 'Trial of the Heavens'?"

Lin Xingnan's expression suddenly changed: "Who told you?"

"Senior Bai Wanqing mentioned it, saying the anomaly in the Qingmeng Mountain Secret Realm was a prelude to the Trial."

"No wonder the Misty Immortal Palace is so urgent..." the old man murmured, then solemnly pressed his grandson's shoulder. "If the Trial of the Heavens begins, you must seize a spot. That relates to—whether your mother can escape the sea of suffering."

The morning light pierced the clouds, and the weapons on the Training Grounds reflected cold light. Lin Yang looked toward the Star Moon Sect in the south, the chaos star core slowly rotating in his Dantian.

A new journey has begun.