The moment he saw daylight again, Zhang Chen drew in a deep breath.
He had only been in seclusion for a little over a month.
Yet seeing this familiar world again gave him an entirely different feeling.
Every blade of grass, every tree, every brick and tile—all were crystal clear to his Spiritual Sense.
He could even hear leaves falling in the distance.
He could sense the direction the moisture in the air was flowing.
Without disturbing anyone, he headed straight back to the Side Courtyard.
As he pushed open the door, a faint milky fragrance mingled with the soothing scent of incense and greeted him.
Lin Qingxue was reclining on a soft couch, holding a little tiger-patterned bellyband she had yet to finish sewing.
Several months had passed, and her belly had already begun to show.
She seemed less aloof and more gentle.
Hearing the door open, she raised her head.
Their eyes met. No words were needed.
"You're out of seclusion?"
Lin Qingxue set down her needle and thread and started to get up.
"Don't move."
Zhang Chen hurried over, helped her settle back down, and placed his palm against her belly. "How have you been feeling lately? Has the little one been behaving?"
Lin Qingxue gave him a helpless smile. "Behaving? This little one is even more rambunctious than Daoxuan and Daoling were. Especially at night—my belly feels like it's holding a little stove. I'm so hot I can't sleep all night."
"Oh?"
Zhang Chen raised an eyebrow.
Lin Qingxue had an Extreme Yin Ice Spirit Body; she was naturally drawn to the cold and feared the heat.
If even she felt hot, then the second baby in her belly—
Its attributes were probably extraordinary.
A thought stirred in his heart, and a wisp of life-infused Spiritual Power gently flowed from his palm.
It slowly entered his wife's body.
Having been refined by Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment, this Spiritual Power had long since undergone a transformation.
It was no longer merely Spiritual Energy, but something more like a vital force brimming with life.
As the Spiritual Power entered her body, Lin Qingxue couldn't help letting out a soft, contented moan.
She could feel the burning sensation that had lingered in her belly instantly grow docile under the cool, soothing Spiritual Power.
The little life inside seemed to have gotten a taste of something delicious, happily sucking at the "food" its father had sent.
"Such pure Spiritual Power..."
Lin Qingxue looked at Zhang Chen in surprise. "Husband, during your seclusion..."
"I made a bit of a breakthrough."
Zhang Chen didn't hide much from his wife, but merely said offhandedly, "Now I can protect all of you with room to spare."
Lin Qingxue smiled tenderly and rested her head on his shoulder. "I believe you."
In the days that followed, Zhang Chen's life became exceedingly regimented.
By day, he handled Lineage affairs and oversaw preparations for the coming battle. At night, he used his Spiritual Power to regulate Lin Qingxue's meridians and nourish the fetus.
Nourished by this "human-shaped spirit medicine" of his, Lin Qingxue looked better with each passing day.
The fetus in her belly was growing rapidly, too.
Every now and then, a flash of red light could even be seen through her belly.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the Zhang Family Courtyard, the atmosphere was so grim it chilled the blood.
The training ground rang with shouts and battle cries. The ten chosen "Foundation Establishment candidates" were undergoing training like something straight out of purgatory.
Their cultivation had surged forward under a steady stream of medicinal pills, but Zhang Chen knew all too well that cultivation without real combat experience would get them served up on a platter at the Life and Death Arena.
So he called in several old stewards who had retired from the family years ago—the sort people commonly called "old warhorses."
These old men might no longer have their former cultivation.
But the art of killing was carved into their bones.
"Idiot! Are you a pig? Who told you to charge straight in?"
"Why are you dodging? It's an illusion! Break it for me!"
"Remember! Once you're on the Arena, there's no talk of honor! Kick them in the crotch, throw lime in their faces, gouge out their eyes—if it kills them, it's a good move!"
Under this almost inhuman training, the combat skills of the cultivators who would take part in the battle improved at a frenzied pace.
Meanwhile, the Wang Family wasn't idle either.
To disrupt the Zhang Family's preparations and test their strength, the Wang Family kept sending small groups of cultivators to stir up trouble along the border between their territories.
They robbed caravans, sabotaged mines, and ambushed patrols. Their methods were utterly despicable.
The Zhang Family was furious, and plenty of young people clamored to hit back.
But every time, Zhang Chen forcibly held them back.
He had only one command: endure!
And not just endure—endure with flair.
"When you run into people from the Wang Family, run if you can beat them. If you can't, throw something and then run."
That was the principle Zhang Chen laid down at a clan meeting. "Don't hoard the Talismans on you. Throw them when you should. Let them pick them up!"
So in the clashes that followed,
a series of exceedingly bizarre scenes unfolded.
The two sides would meet, and the Zhang Family disciples would say nothing, simply hurl a handful of Explosive Talismans and turn to flee under cover of the smoke.
At first, the Wang Family remained wary, thinking it was a trap.
After it happened again and again, the Wang Family grew completely cocky.
"Hahaha! Those Zhang Family cowards!"
"Looks like the rumors are true. The Zhang Family really is finished."
"Brothers, keep your eyes peeled whenever you see someone from the Zhang Family from now on. They're not enemies—they're walking treasure vaults!"
When those remarks reached Wang Lie, they swept away the last trace of doubt he had.
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