Heavenly Demon Marten

Pfft!

Lin Xiao's body shook more and more violently. When he opened his mouth, he spat out a large mouthful of dark, clotted blood. The unnatural flush on his face slowly faded, replaced by the healthy rosiness of a normal complexion.

"Brother Xiao, what's wrong? Brother Xiao, don't scare me!"

Liu Yan, stunned pale by the sudden change before her eyes, instinctively rushed forward and tightly gripped her husband's wrist.

"A Yan, I'm fine."

Lin Xiao first patted his wife's hand, then closed his eyes slightly to sense the state of his injuries. He could clearly feel that the permanent damage Lin Langtian had inflicted on him several days ago had recovered seventy to eighty percent in an instant.

"My injuries..."

Lin Xiao first glanced at the celadon bowl on the table. Quick-witted as he was, he immediately turned to his wife. "A Yan, what medicine did you give me just now?"

"It was medicine brewed from an ordinary First-Grade Spiritual Herb. What's wrong, Brother Xiao?" Liu Yan stared blankly at her husband, a trace of shock still lingering on her delicate face.

"Nothing, nothing. It's just that my injuries are healed. Haha, my injuries are healed! Hahaha..."

Lin Xiao pulled his wife into a tight embrace and laughed madly.

He had thought he would spend the rest of his life in such dejection, yet on only the second day after returning, all his injuries had already recovered. Heaven had blessed Lin Xiao! Heaven had blessed his family!

"Brother Xiao's injuries are healed? Th-this is real?"

Tightly held in Lin Xiao's arms, Liu Yan instantly wept with joy. Heaven knew how she had endured these past few days, how much pressure she had borne.

Watching the scene before him, Lin Dong smiled faintly and instinctively tightened his grip on Qing Tan's little hand. My father, Lin Dong's father, can only be dejected for one day. Keep striving, Father!

"Dong'er, starting tomorrow, I will teach you how to cultivate. At eight years old, it is time for you to embark on the path of cultivation."

Lin Xiao, his face glowing with health, suddenly looked at his only son. The confidence that had vanished without a trace after his crushing defeat had finally returned to him.

"Yes, Father."

Lin Dong suppressed the joy in his heart and answered respectfully.

In the original work, he had only begun cultivating at thirteen and a half. After cultivating for around half a year, he had reached Body Tempering Stage Two at fourteen. Now, he could finally begin cultivating ahead of time.

As they said, "One step ahead, every step ahead."

Night fell.

In Lin Xiao and Liu Yan's room, the couple was preparing to rest.

"Brother Xiao, that bowl of medicine today was actually not so simple. When Dong'er delivered it, he seemed to have added something to the bowl. Perhaps that was the key to your recovery."

Liu Yan hesitated for a moment before finally deciding to tell him what she had seen during the day.

Lin Xiao's motion of removing his clothes suddenly paused. Then he said softly, "Let's pretend this never happened. Dong'er has grown up. It's only normal for him to have some secrets of his own."

After a brief silence, a gentle female voice came from the darkness. "All right, Brother Xiao."

In a room not far from Lin Xiao and Liu Yan's, a somewhat immature-looking boy lay wrapped in a quilt, deeply asleep. Suddenly, a drop of light began to bloom from his chest. It was the Ancestral Stone Lin Dong had retrieved during the day.

The light emitted by the Ancestral Stone grew increasingly dazzling, drawing Lin Dong's consciousness into a mysterious place.

Buzz~

The void wriggled slightly, and a phantom figure slowly emerged in the dim space.

"Wasn't I asleep? Hmm, no, this is the Stone Talisman Space?"

Lin Dong lowered his head to look at his somewhat illusory body and quickly understood.

"But I haven't even started cultivating yet. I'm not even at Body Tempering Stage One, let alone capable of using martial arts. I can't deduce and refine martial arts either, so why did I come in here? Right, I've got it..."

After idly observing the mysterious space for a while, Lin Dong's eyes suddenly lit up. He immediately began carefully searching the surroundings, seemingly determined not to overlook a single corner.

Once, twice, three times...

Finally, on his seventh inspection of the mysterious space, Lin Dong discovered something unusual.

"What is that? Come out!"

Lin Dong suddenly reached into a patch of darkness, and a black mouse about the size of a palm appeared in his hand.

"Kid, is something wrong with you? You're so young, couldn't you find something better to do? You stared at a completely bare patch of space seven times in a row. Are you an idiot? Are you messing with Lord Marten?"

The moment the pitch-black mouse appeared, it burst into curses at Lin Dong.

Although Lin Dong had been prepared, he still put on an extremely surprised expression. "A mouse?"

"Bullshit! You're the mouse! Your whole family is made up of mice!"

The black mouse's eyes instantly widened as it glared furiously at Lin Dong.

"Oh? A talking mouse?"

Lin Dong's eyes were full of amusement as he continued teasing his future "second brother."

"I'll say it again: Lord Marten isn't a mouse! Lord Marten is a Heavenly Demon Marten! A Heavenly Demon Marten, understand?!!!"

The black mouse shrieked sharply and kept trying to struggle free. However, it seemed extremely weak. No matter how hard it tried, it could not escape Lin Dong's palm.

"Oh, a talking mouse with a name."

Lin Dong suddenly looked enlightened and smacked his forehead.

"..."

The black mouse, which had been struggling just a moment ago, froze. Having completely lost the will to live, it went limp in Lin Dong's palm and muttered blankly, "Kid, you win. Lord Marten admits defeat, all right..."

"All right, all right, I was just teasing you. Get up. A Heavenly Demon Marten, right? I know. One of the Four Overlord Clans of the Demon Region. Are you really from the Heavenly Demon Marten Tribe?"

Lin Dong could not help but laugh as he watched the Heavenly Demon Marten completely give up resisting.

"Huh? A country bumpkin like you knows about the Four Overlord Clans of the Demon Region?"

The Heavenly Demon Marten, limp in Lin Dong's palm, immediately stood up. It looked at Lin Dong with delight, suddenly feeling acknowledged. It was truly too exciting.

"Mm, I saw it in an ancient book within the clan."

Lin Dong nodded slightly, then narrowed his eyes. "But what did you mean by country bumpkin?"

"Ahem, you must have misheard, little brother. Right, let me introduce myself. This Lord Marten is called A Diao. Of course, I wouldn't mind if you called me Lord Marten."

The Heavenly Demon Marten's bright black eyes rolled around as it smoothly changed the subject and began familiarly trying to close the distance between them.

"Hmm, then your full name will be Lin Diao from now on. I'll call you Little Marten. From today onward, you'll be my second brother. I, Lin Dong, will look after you." Lin Dong nodded slowly.

"Why should I be the second brother? Pah, no, who wants to become sworn brothers with you? You're not allowed to call me second brother!"

The Heavenly Demon Marten shook its head frantically in refusal.

He was a mighty expert at the Peak Death Profound Stage, the Young Patriarch of the Heavenly Demon Marten Tribe, one of the Four Hegemons of the Demon Region. If he became brothers with a country boy with no cultivation whatsoever, would Lord Marten have any dignity left?

"Fine, second brother."

A thoroughly perfunctory voice drifted lightly into the Heavenly Demon Marten's ears.

Little Marten: "..."