This Is an Attack, This Is a Roll. All Right, Go Kill the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King! Please Keep Reading!

Jiang Lin, whose Soul Power had been severely depleted, gave up thinking and prepared to rest well on the way back before beginning the next stage of his research in Qingshan Town.

Just as Jiang Lin was inside the carriage, treating some of the sweet-tasting medicinal herbs Mr. Yao had bought as snacks, they ran into the Lionheart Mercenary Group they had traveled alongside before as soon as they left the city.

Jiang Lin went out to take a look. Captain Lin Shi's group had gained two young men who looked somewhat similar to Xiao Yan. After Lin Shi introduced them, he learned they were the brothers Xiao Ding and Xiao Li, who had come out to gain experience.

Mr. Yao exchanged a few pleasantries with them, and the two parties once again traveled together.

On the official road outside Qingshan Town, lush with green grass, Mr. Yao and Jiang Lin stood by the roadside, watching in the direction the Lionheart Mercenary Group had departed. Only after the shadow of their caravan had completely vanished beyond the distant horizon did Mr. Yao take Jiang Lin into the carriage and drive along a small path toward Qingshan Town.

"Did a rat fall into a rice barrel or something?" On the way back to Qingshan Town, Mr. Yao looked back at Jiang Lin in the carriage. Seeing Jiang Lin's ruddy complexion, he relaxed slightly, but when they arrived before Myriad Medicine Hall and Mr. Yao took out the various medicine cases, he immediately sensed that their weight was off.

Still, he did not blame Jiang Lin too much. He had eaten them, so what? Weren't medicinal herbs bought for people to eat?

"My mouth felt a little dry on the road, so I accidentally ate too much," Jiang Lin said weakly. Having lived in Myriad Medicine Hall for a year and possessing an excellent memory, Jiang Lin knew many medicinal herbs that could be eaten. In particular, certain plants high in sugar were also medicinal ingredients.

"Forget it, forget it. Sigh." Mr. Yao shook his head, then had the shop assistants of Myriad Medicine Hall carry the still-intact medicinal herbs from the carriage back into the shop while he took Jiang Lin back to the private loft.

"You seemed to have wanted to ask me something the whole way. You may ask now."

"When we were in Wutan City, that Miss Xun'er... the aura around her was not something an ordinary Dou Ling or Dou Wang family could cultivate. I was worried that a powerful expert might have been watching us in secret." Back in the loft, Mr. Yao changed into a clean coat, sat at the tea table, and poured himself a cup of tea.

From the second time he saw Xiao Xun'er, Mr. Yao had already begun suspecting that she possessed an unusual identity. He would not believe there could be such a coincidence in the world—encountering her twice in one day, with each encounter seeming accidental yet actually feeling somewhat deliberate.

That was why he had rarely discussed anything else with Jiang Lin afterward. Everything could wait until they returned to Qingshan Town.

"You are right, Mr. Yao. Neither of those two seemed ordinary." Jiang Lin poured himself a bowl of tea as well and gulped it straight down.

"Tea at home still tastes best!" After sighing with feeling, Jiang Lin continued, "After going to Wutan City, quite a few questions arose in my heart. I wanted to ask Mr. Yao about something."

But Mr. Yao shook his head. "Three things. She left you only three things: a letter telling you not to become an Alchemist, a piece of Warm Jade, and the book you cultivate with."

"You need not know anything else. You only need to know that the things she left you are all very important. Of course, you cannot have that letter yet. Only when you can defeat the ruler of the Monster Mountain Range can that letter be given to you."

The letter in Mr. Yao's hand came in two copies—one for him and one for Jiang Lin.

The contents of the one meant for him were simple. It explained a few matters requiring attention: do not let Jiang Lin walk the old path of an Alchemist, and it would be good enough if he could live out his life safely. If one day Jiang Lin could defeat the ruler of the Monster Mountain Range and prove his strength, only then would he qualify to open the final letter.

Mr. Yao had received great kindness from Jiang Lin's mother in his early years, which was why he had so faithfully honored her last wishes and cared for Jiang Lin.

Jiang Lin fell silent at this. The ruler of the Monster Mountain Range was a magical beast known as the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King. To defeat it required at least the strength of a Dou Emperor. Clearly, the letter his mother had left him contained an enormous secret—perhaps even the truth of Jiang Lin's origins, as well as the ultimate secret hidden behind them.

But the silence lasted only an instant before Jiang Lin grinned. "Starting off with a mission this difficult, I think defeating Mr. Yao would be more realistic than defeating the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King."

Mr. Yao rolled his eyes at Jiang Lin in displeasure. This brat was even setting his sights on him?

If he could not solve the problem, would he solve the person who raised it? Who taught him to play like that?

"Of course, if you have the strength to defeat me, I do not object to that solution," Mr. Yao said unhurriedly.

Good advice could not save someone determined to die. If Jiang Lin's temperament truly reached that point, Mr. Yao would have nothing more to say.

Jiang Lin immediately laughed awkwardly. "Hahaha, I was joking, just joking! Wait for me, Mr. Yao. In three to five years, I'll go deliver the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King a monkey's head."

With that, Jiang Lin quickly ran toward his courtyard, not even sparing the beautiful Xiao Yi Xian along the way a glance.

"..." Mr. Yao watched the lively brat's departing figure and felt rather speechless.

"Mr. Yao, what kind of madness is Little Linzi acting up now?" Xiao Yi Xian, whom Jiang Lin had casually brushed off, came to Mr. Yao to complain.

"He has found a goal to strive for, so he has motivation to cultivate, I suppose." Mr. Yao shook his head. Xiao Yi Xian did not say anything further and took her leave.

"Sigh, every one of them... such troublesome people." Inside the loft, Mr. Yao looked at the empty sitting room, rubbed his temples, and muttered something inexplicable.

Meanwhile, it was still early. After returning to his courtyard, Jiang Lin first practiced some Dou Techniques. He had already completely mastered Explosive Step and Flame Fist, and had also reached a profound level with the Yellow-grade high-level Dou Technique, Diamond Fall. He simply rarely had anyone to test his skills against.

After warming up, Jiang Lin took his rag-wrapped greatsword from his room and integrated Explosive Step into his every movement. Still as a boulder, swift as thunder, he charged forward in an instant while dragging his sword, suddenly changed direction, then rapidly retreated. Every movement he made carried a muted rumble of thunder through the wind. With every sweep of his greatsword came the savage force of thunder crashing down!

At last, after a series of frenzied movements, Jiang Lin was drenched in sweat, his muscles weak and aching, his strength fading as though he were about to collapse from exhaustion. Yet in the next instant, a flash of golden light suddenly appeared on his rag-wrapped greatsword!

Dou Skill Modification: Diamond Gravity Slash!

A Powerful and Heavy slash came crashing down. With a clang and a shower of sparks, the armored training dummy before Jiang Lin was cleaved diagonally in two!

At the same time, Jiang Lin suddenly sensed a new stream of Dou Qi emerging within his utterly empty Dantian.

Dou Qi, seventh stage!