Gathering Everyone

Lin Qingtong's lightness skill was mediocre to begin with, and with Liu Qingqing in tow, he knew he couldn't dodge. So he chuckled, swayed, turned around, and thrust out with both palms, arriving first despite being the one who struck later.

With a clash of their palms, a burst of energy erupted, and the two exchanged moves in a flash. Lin Qingtong stood firmly on the ground, as stable as a rock, while Lin Qingxiang was suspended in mid-air, with nothing to hold onto. He somersaulted and landed on his back, stumbling back three steps and crushing three blue bricks. His face changed from red to white in an instant, his Qi and Blood seemingly boiling.

"Big brother, you actually dare to challenge me to a strength contest? Have you gone mad with anger?"

Lin Qingxiang suppressed his Qi and Blood and said coldly, "Stealing from your own family, how dare you say such a thing!"

"How can you call it stealing something that belongs to family? I just took a look and will return it to you after I'm done. In the end, this manual is Father's heirloom. He didn't say who he was going to leave it to. You, me, and my little sister all have the right to read it. It's clearly your own selfishness that's causing this. You just want to keep it all to yourself. With such a narrow mind, how can you call yourself an elder brother?" Lin Qingtong said sarcastically.

"Have you ever treated me like an older brother since we were little?"

"Have you ever fulfilled your responsibilities as an older brother since you were a child?"

"Today, I will fulfill my responsibility as an elder brother and teach you the principle of not doing evil, no matter how small."

"Haha, you call yourself the elder brother when you have the upper hand, but kick away your responsibilities when you're no longer useful. You wish! Do you think that just because you're a few years older, you're guaranteed to beat me?"

With a clang, the divine sword was drawn. Lin Qingxiang took the sword and used a seemingly ordinary move, "Meteor Piercing the Sun," but at the moment of the thrust, it transformed into nine sharp beams of light, blocking all of Lin Qingtong's evasive angles.

Lin Qingtong snorted and drew her sword to meet the attack, but she was using a heavy sword, which made her draw the sword a beat slower. In addition, Lin Qingxiang's attack was fueled by anger and was extremely powerful. Even though she had the upper hand in strength, she was forced to retreat repeatedly. She barely managed to regain her footing before she could launch a counterattack.

Lin Qingxiang's swordplay was fierce, and his Movement Method were incredibly fast. Combined with the "Illusory Moth Killing Art," he conjured three figures that surrounded his sister. His wide sleeves trailed on the ground as he wielded his sword, creating silver sword flowers that grew faster and more numerous, their light dazzling and impossible to look at directly.

Lin Qingtong, on the other hand, guarded her small area with utmost care. With her heavy sword and the "Wenlin Formless Art" technique, she stood tall and dignified, like a mountain, defending the area as solid as a rock.

Wenlin is a mythical beast from the Classic of Mountains and Seas. It lives on Mount Ji and looks like a pig with a yellow body, white head, and white tail. Whenever it appears, it foretells a great wind.

The term "wuxiang" (无相) is neither the Daoist School "wuxiang" nor the Buddhist School" wuxiang," but rather refers to the formlessness and lack of physical form of wind.

Therefore, when Lin Qingtong activated her Internal Cultivation, a gust of wind would entwine around the heavy sword. Once swung, her attack range extended to within three zhang, effectively turning a close-range weapon into a mid-range weapon.

If it were anyone else, without external martial arts training, even with high Internal Cultivation, they would be forced back three meters. But the divine sword in Lin Qingxiang's hand is called "Xiaolian," one of the Three Traceless Divine Swords, known as "in daylight, it is seen as a shadow but not as light, and at night, it is seen as light but not as form. When it touches something, it passes by swiftly and immediately, striking without bloodshed."

This means that during the day, one can only see the shadow of the sword, but not its light; at night, one can see the light of the sword, but not its shape. The blade is extremely sharp, and anything it cuts heals instantly without splitting apart. One can only feel how fast the sword is, and not a drop of blood gets on the blade, achieving the so-called "bloodless victory".

Relying on his Xiaolian, Lin Qingxiang easily sliced through Lin Qingtong's formless gust of wind, thus allowing him to engage in close combat unaffected. However, he was unwilling to use his sword to directly clash with his sister's greatsword.

The heavy sword used by Lin Qingtong was no ordinary weapon either. It was called the Collapse Sword. While it could not compare to the Xiaolian Sword in terms of quality, it was superior in size, material, and weight. If they were to clash head-on, the Collapse Sword might be chipped, but the Xiaolian Sword might be cracked or even broken.

The two were evenly matched in cultivation, and neither was fighting to the death. Even in their rage, they held back some strength, advancing and retreating intermittently, their battle proving difficult to determine.

"Brother, you think you can show off your elder brother's power with just this much ability? Don't you find it laughable?"

"What gives you the audacity to say something like that when you can only defend?"

"Is failing to break through after a long siege something to boast about? I didn't expect you to become so shameless, brother."

"Such words are not for a traitor like you to utter. The 'Illusory Moth Killing Art' is meaningless to ordinary people. What exactly do you want by persisting in this?"

"I just want to know the truth about my father's sacrifice."

"My father was ambushed by the enemy while on a mission and died fighting bravely; that's a settled fact."

"It's just an excuse the authorities use to fool people. With my father's strength, even if he's no match for them, who can stop him from escaping? Don't forget, he's an expert in assassination and stealth."

"My father volunteered to stay behind to cover the retreat in order to help his comrades escape, which is why he lost his chance to get away. Don't forget that I was also one of the mission takers at the time and witnessed the whole process."

Lin Qingtong suddenly burst into laughter. "Regarding this, I have a question I'd like to ask you, elder brother: why does Father have scars left by Xiaolian Sword on his body?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Qingxiang's mind wavered, his swordplay became slightly disordered, and a slight opening appeared. Lin Qingtong seized the opportunity, her heavy sword breaking through the door and slashing vertically like a giant elephant stomping the ground. Lin Qingxiang dared not meet the attack head-on, so he used the force to retreat backward, tapping the ground three times with his toes to dissipate all the force.

Lin Qingtong didn't press her advantage, but instead asked, "The Xiaolian Sword is made of a special material. Apart from Hanguang and Chengying, which are also among the Three Traceless Divine Swords, no other sword can leave the same sword marks as it. You're not suggesting that the enemy happens to possess the Hanguang Sword and the Chengying Sword, are you?"

Lin Qingxiang paused for a moment, then explained, "That's because my sword was stolen by the enemy. When I was ambushed, I was caught off guard and seriously injured, and even my weapon was taken away. Later, the enemy used the Xiaolian Sword against my father, and that's how he got his sword wounds... Because of this, I often feel guilty and Nowhere to Hide, which is why I concealed the truth from you."

Lin Qingtong suddenly realized. "Oh, so that's how it is. No wonder you always made excuses and refused to talk about what happened during the mission whenever I asked you, brother. It was all the enemy's conspiracy. You did nothing wrong, brother. There's no need to take all the blame. We can all understand you—did you think I would say that?"

Her expression suddenly changed. "Who are you trying to fool with this half-truth, half-lies? You say your father stayed behind to cover the retreat so his comrades could escape, but why did everyone else on the mission die while you survived?"

Lin Qingxiang was momentarily speechless. He was not good at lying, and it was beyond his ability to make up a lie on the spot.

Lin Qingtong continued, "After returning from that mission, you asked your master for the 'Divine Mantra of No Delusion.' As far as I know, it's an Internal Cultivation specifically designed to suppress inner demons. Not long after, you and your mother drove away your aunt and Qingluo. I was young then, and even though I felt something was amiss, I couldn't quite put my finger on it. Now that I think about it, it was clearly a setup you made to monopolize the 'Illusory Moth Killing Art,' wasn't it?"

Lin Qingxiang didn't argue, responding coldly, "If that's what you think, then so be it."

Lin Qingtong chuckled and turned to Liu Qingqing, saying, "Little sister, did you hear that? This guy is a selfish and self-serving fellow. There's probably more to Father's death than meets the eye, and he's definitely involved! But don't worry, I'm not like him. I'll definitely stand up for you and seek justice."

Liu Qingqing listened for a long time, then sighed and said, "I have no interest in the 'Illusory Moth Killing Art.' If you don't want me to learn it, I won't. There's really no need to do this."

After saying that, she took out a secret manual from her bosom and tossed it to Lin Qingxiang.

Lin Qingxiang paused for a moment, glanced at Liu Qingqing with a complicated look, then put the secretary into his arms, and without saying thank you, turned and left.

"Qingluo, what are you doing? Why are you giving it back to him? I'm here to back you up, there's no need to be afraid of him. If it really comes down to a fight, he definitely can't beat me!" Lin Qingtong said, dissatisfied.

"It's just a martial art; I really don't want to see you and my brother fall out over it."

"We've had no sibling relationship for a long time!"

Lin Qingtong glared at Lin Qingxiang's retreating figure and shouted, "This isn't over! I will investigate Father's death relentlessly. If it's truly related to you, I will absolutely uphold justice and even kill my own family!"

Chapter 230 Gathering the Personnel

Si Ming watched the entire fight, but he said nothing because it was the other party's family matter and wouldn't interfere with outsiders, so he had no right to speak.

Moreover, whether Lin Qingxiang was acting out of personal motives or had other difficulties, it's impossible to make an accurate judgment based on just a few words heard. Rushing to intervene would only complicate matters further.

Perhaps after kidnapping Huyan He, we could use our connections to get Yu Shuying to use her Mind-Reading Technique to uncover the truth. However, we would need to guide Lin Qingxiang first. If he doesn't actively recall what happened back then, Yu Shuying's Mind-Reading Technique will be useless.