"Lu Lin, why do you think some people suddenly have a breakthrough?"
Early the next morning, the whole family washed up and took a taxi to Qingyun Garden.
Standing in their own spacious, fully furnished, 210-square-meter apartment with high-end finishes, Lu Ping let out a heartfelt sigh.
Lu Lin thought, How would I know?
He'd been worried that Li Jiangtao or Liu Weiran would question him about his Punch Force suddenly jumping by five hundred kilograms. He hadn't expected Liu Weiran to come up with a reason for him.
Talent Awakening.
From now on, Lu Lin planned to blame every unreasonable improvement related to the system on Talent Awakening.
After all, people who'd never experienced Talent Awakening would never understand how incredible it was.
And if someone who had experienced Talent Awakening couldn't reach Lu Lin's level, then their talent simply wasn't quite good enough.
Talent was invisible and intangible, after all. Who could say for sure?
"Old Lu, now that you mention it, something just came to mind."
Chen Xiaoyan opened a drawer in the kitchen. Seeing the clean bowls and chopsticks inside, she chimed in.
"Do you remember a girl named Li Dongdong from our high school days?"
"Yeah, I remember. What about her?"
"What? You actually remember Li Dongdong? Confess, were you secretly in love with her all along?"
Mom stormed out of the kitchen and grabbed Lu Ping by the ear.
"Ow, ow! Honey, wasn't Li Dongdong a boy? That hurts, that hurts!"
Lu Ping hurriedly begged for mercy.
"Hmph!"
Chen Xiaoyan glanced at Lu Lin and Lu Qi, who were staring at the two of them, and reluctantly let go.
"Li Dongdong failed the Martial Arts Examination. Later, she became a chef's apprentice at a restaurant, working while studying. Then I heard that, just like our son, she suddenly had a breakthrough, and her Punch Force exceeded the limit. She became a Martial Artist not long after."
"But I don't think her talent was as good as our son's. We haven't been in touch for years, and none of our old classmates know what happened to Li Dongdong."
"Of course. Just look at whose son Lu Lin is," Lu Ping said smugly.
"Whose?"
"W-well, he's the son of my gentle, virtuous, beautiful, kind, beloved-by-all, flowers-bloom-at-her-sight Chen Xiaoyan!"
"Hmph. At least you know what to say."
Chen Xiaoyan gave a little huff, but the way the two of them bantered made Lu Lin and Lu Qi groan in protest.
"Ugh, I'm stuffed! I've had my fill of all this lovey-dovey nonsense!"
Lu Qi deliberately put on a show from the side.
"Stuffed? Then you don't need lunch."
"Mom, I'm sorry!"
With their new home to look forward to, all their worries had vanished. Their parents, usually so stern and reserved, were showing this side of themselves. Lu Lin couldn't help feeling happy.
"Dad, Mom, if the house looks good, let's move in as soon as we can. I have a client to meet later, so I can't help you pack."
"Sure, sure, go take care of your business. Your mother and I can handle things at home. If we really need help, we still have Lu Qi."
Lu Ping waved Lu Lin off. The Martial Arts School had just started taking him seriously and investing in him; that wasn't an excuse to get arrogant. Now more than ever, he needed to train hard and show the school how dedicated he was.
With things at home settled for the time being, Lu Lin jogged all the way to West City Martial Arts School. Ren Tian happened to arrive at the same time.
Seeing Lu Lin panting, he couldn't resist teasing him. "Hey, kid, you're only eighteen. How are you already this weak? You should eat some Shenbao and build yourself back up."
Lu Lin didn't pay attention to Ren Tian's teasing. He clasped his hands respectfully toward him. "Brother Ren, thanks for everything."
Ren Tian was taken aback. Then he remembered the ten thousand yuan he'd given Lu Lin to spend the day before and figured that must be what Lu Lin was thanking him for.
He slapped Lu Lin on the shoulder. "Why bring that up? It was pocket change. Just keep training with your big brother. I'm not stingy."
"Mm."
Lu Lin replied, went into the changing room, took off his weighted gear, and quickly changed.
He wouldn't wear weights when fighting a Martial Artist. They would interfere with his movements too much.
"Brother Ren, come on. I'm even tougher today."
"Then let's see it."
Ren Tian roared and threw a punch.
[Dragon Roar Golden Bell Shield: 336/1000] [Dragon Roar Golden Bell Shield: 337/1000]
His proficiency kept rising bit by bit, but Ren Tian couldn't tell what Lu Lin meant by being tougher.
After a while, Ren Tian stopped to rest and chugged a bottle of water. "Lu Lin, this isn't working. Where are you tougher?"
"Hehe, don't rush, Brother Ren. That was just a warm-up. I'll show you my real strength in a bit."
"Fine, I'll be waiting."
After resting for more than ten minutes, Lu Lin leaped onto the Arena Platform without waiting for Ren Tian to call him.
"Brother Ren, come on."
"Sure."
Ren Tian replied and easily jumped up. Without another word, he charged at Lu Lin.
Thud!
A muffled impact rang out.
The force seemed about normal—no, wait.
Ren Tian suddenly felt a force travel up his arm.
"Vitality Power?!"
He couldn't help crying out in surprise.
When he'd sparred with Lu Lin the day before, the force rebounding from his Golden Bell Shield had caught Ren Tian's interest.
But how had Lu Lin managed to cultivate Vitality Power in just one day?
"That's right. It's Vitality Power."
"So, Brother Ren, I'm pretty tough, right?"
"Tough my ass!"
Ren Tian roared. He'd fought plenty of Martial Artists with Vitality Power. Lu Lin had only just cultivated a little and was already acting cocky—he wasn't about to indulge that bad habit.
Ten minutes later.
Lu Lin lay on the Arena Platform with a look of utter despair.
This time, he wasn't faking it.
When Ren Tian used his true strength, Lu Lin felt the gap between himself and a true High-level Martial Artist.
A High-level Martial Artist only had nine points of Vitality Power, but that was still nine times Lu Lin's own.
The Vitality Power he'd just condensed was only around one point. He'd have to find a chance to get it tested to know the exact figure, but it clearly wouldn't exceed two.
"Haha! That'll teach you to get cocky. Now you know how powerful your big brother is, right?"
"Tell me, am I tough?"
"Tough. Absolutely tough. Brother Ren, you're the toughest man in the world."
Just as Lu Lin weakly admitted how powerful Ren Tian was, someone suddenly pushed open the training room door from outside. A girl in a white martial arts uniform stepped in, with a slender figure and a ponytail.
But...
A look of disbelief and astonishment appeared on the girl's face.
She looked at Ren Tian, standing below the Arena Platform and drenched in sweat, then at Lu Lin lying on it. She instinctively turned around and started to close the door so she could leave.
Oh my god.
What kind of lewd talk was this? Was this really something an underage girl who hadn't even turned eighteen should be hearing?
"Miss?" Lu Lin spotted Liu Weiran's retreating back and cried out in surprise.
He knew his good name was ruined.
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