Qingtan

The Lin Family's Back Mountain connected to a relatively vast forest. If one was lucky, they could occasionally find one or two spirit herbs within it. Thus, whenever they had free time, quite a few of the Lin Family's younger generation came here to try their luck. As a result, this forest was considered a fairly lively place within the Lin Family.

Within the dense forest, Lin Yan stood atop a large tree, looking down over the woods from above. There were faint traces of blood on his body, carrying a light scent of blood.

The blood naturally did not belong to Lin Yan, but to some of the wild beasts he had hunted. Ever since breaking through to the Body Tempering Third Level, Lin Yan had come to the Back Mountain.

First, he wanted to temper his martial path through actual combat. After all, in his previous life, he had never experienced a life-and-death battle. Since he could not find people for such real combat, he could only cause trouble for some wild beasts.

Second, he wanted to nourish the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire that he had just refined within his body. He was currently utterly penniless, with no resources whatsoever to support the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire's growth.

The Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire was currently at the Ember Body stage. If he waited for it to passively grow into a peak-tier strange fire, who knew how long that would take? Lin Yan clearly did not have that kind of patience, so he set his sights on the wild beasts of the Back Mountain.

That was also why Lin Yan had chosen to refine the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire first. Wasn't it simply because he was poor? Wild beasts could at least temporarily make up for his lack of resources.

Over the past few days, quite a few wild beasts had died at Lin Yan's hands. After the initial period of discomfort, Lin Yan was now able to face such fights calmly.

With a thought, a blazing flame appeared in Lin Yan's palm.

After devouring the blood of many wild beasts, the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire had not changed much in appearance. The flame had only grown slightly larger, but Lin Yan could sense that the might of ten thousand beasts contained within it had become somewhat more concentrated. Still, it was a long way from growing into the Blazing Body, let alone becoming a peak strange fire.

"Ah, what a pity. These are all just ordinary wild beasts. If it had devoured the blood of those top magical beasts from the Demon Domain, the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire would probably have evolved into the Blazing Body, perhaps even the Flowing Fire Body, by now."

Looking at the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire in his hand, which had grown a little larger, Lin Yan could not help but sigh softly. While devouring the blood of these wild beasts did help the Ten Thousand Beast Spirit Fire grow, the rate of growth was truly somewhat slow.

Of course, Lin Yan was not someone who aimed too high. He was merely complaining aloud. He understood that meals had to be eaten one bite at a time, and roads had to be walked one step at a time.

"There's movement!"

Just as Lin Yan was musing to himself, a cry suddenly came from nearby.

Lin Yan's sweeping gaze abruptly sharpened. He immediately leaped down from the tree trunk and shot forward like an arrow. Yet just as he charged into the nearby undergrowth, his body suddenly halted. His expression changed slightly as he stared at a savage wild beast in the woods.

"Scorpion Leopard."

It was a grayish-brown beast whose body resembled that of a leopard, but whose tail was like a scorpion's, its tip gleaming with a sharp light.

The Scorpion Leopard was an especially savage beast. Its fur was as hard as iron, making it extremely difficult to deal with. Upon discovering that it was this troublesome creature, Lin Yan could not help raising his guard.

However, as he noticed the Scorpion Leopard, Lin Yan also spotted a little girl in pale-colored clothes standing in front of it.

The girl's brows and eyes were picturesque, her skin as fair as snow. Though still very young, she already possessed a breathtaking charm. At this moment, her spirit-filled eyes stared fearfully at the beast blocking her path. In her small, mud-stained hand, she tightly clutched a pale green plant, from which a faint fragrance drifted.

Clearly, the Scorpion Leopard had set its sights on the item in the girl's hand.

Though wild beasts did not eat grass, they were still interested in certain natural spirit herbs.

"This is... Qingtan? What a beautiful little girl."

The original Lin Yan had evidently met Qingtan before and knew that she was Lin Xiao's adopted daughter.

But the current Lin Yan knew much more. Though the girl before him appeared delicate and gentle, her origins were extremely mysterious, and she was very likely from the Great Thousand World.

Moreover, she possessed the top-tier yin-fiend physique known as the Fiend Devil Body, with extraordinary cultivation talent. In the future, she would become the disciple of Bo Xuan, the Darkness Hall Master of the Northern Xuan Region; become the sixth Hall Master of the Darkness Hall, the head of the Darkness Tribunal, and concurrently the Alliance Master of the Tianxuan Continent's Four Xuan Regions Alliance!

Watching the little girl panic in the face of a mere wild beast, Lin Yan could not help wondering whether she would feel embarrassed if the future Darkness Hall Master recalled this scene.

While Lin Yan's thoughts wandered, the little girl on the other side noticed him as well.

When Qingtan saw Lin Yan's face clearly, the anticipation on her delicate little face immediately turned to disappointment.

Though she had only seen Lin Yan a few times, she knew roughly what he was like.

She did not know why the frail, sickly weakling of the family had come to the Back Mountain, but it was probably impossible for him to defeat the Scorpion Leopard.

The girl then looked at the savage Scorpion Leopard, and determination once again appeared on her pretty face. Her frail figure nevertheless carried a hint of resilience.

Sharp-eyed Lin Yan quickly noticed the change in Qingtan's expression and immediately guessed what she was thinking. A wry smile appeared at the corner of his lips.

However, having been reborn, he naturally would not fuss with a little girl over such a thing—especially not such a pretty little girl.

Looking at Qingtan, an idea came to Lin Yan. He chuckled and teased, "So it's Cousin Qingtan. If I remember correctly, didn't Uncle Lin Xiao tell you that you weren't allowed to sneak into the Back Mountain again?

Why did Cousin Qingtan secretly come to the Back Mountain again today? I wonder whether Uncle Lin Xiao and Aunt Liu Yan will spank you when they find out."

Hearing Lin Yan teasing her at a time like this, Qingtan's snow-white little face immediately flushed red with anger. Yet she could not refute him. It was truly infuriating!

She had witnessed Lin Dong Ge's desperate cultivation efforts over this period. She also understood that in a few months, it would be the Lin Family's Clan Competition. If Lin Dong performed poorly in the competition, not only would he suffer a blow, but her father and mother would certainly feel terrible as well.

Furthermore, after Lin Hong and his brother had been warned by Lin Xia Jie not long ago, they had become much more obedient.

Therefore, she had kept coming here during this time, hoping to find some spirit herbs that could speed up Lin Dong's cultivation. Now, after finally finding two stalks of Azure Origin Grass, she had carelessly been targeted by the Scorpion Leopard.

At that moment, the Scorpion Leopard noticed Lin Yan as well. Its pair of scarlet eyes immediately fixed on him. Though Lin Yan's entire body gave off an aura that displeased and even frightened it somewhat, it still opened its bloody maw and released a deep growl, as though warning Lin Yan not to meddle in its affairs.

Qingtan noticed the Scorpion Leopard's movements as well, and her pretty face tightened. Kind-hearted as she was, she could not bear to drag Lin Yan into this. Thus, she shouted at him in a crisp, sweet voice, "Cousin Lin Yan, it's a Scorpion Leopard. Hurry and run! Don't worry about me!

After you go back, please find my father, mother, and Lin Dong Ge. Tell them... tell them Qingtan can no longer stay with them."

Hearing Qingtan's farewell-like words, Lin Yan's heart stirred. He had not expected the future decisive and ruthless Darkness Hall Master to have such a kind and tender side. The contrast was rather adorable.

Lin Yan looked at the savage Scorpion Leopard without moving in the slightest, then turned his gaze toward Qingtan and smiled faintly.

"Don't worry, Cousin Qingtan. With me here, no one can hurt you..."

P.S. Brothers, should Qingtan be added to the harem? Waiting online, it's urgent!!