Xie Ting

"You won't regret it."

Hearing Li Quan's response, Lin Ge smiled faintly. "I don't think I will either."

Li Quan shrugged. Compared to his earlier hesitation, he felt much more relaxed now that he had made his decision.

"Now that I've finished what I came to do, I should get going too."

With Lin Ge's business taken care of, there was no need for him to stay here any longer.

Li Quan didn't try to stop him. He saw Lin Ge all the way to the door.

"Hm?"

Just outside, Lin Ge spotted Lin Dong and Lin Shan, who was battered and bruised, in the distance.

Lin Shan said something to Lin Dong. After a few seconds of quiet consideration, Lin Dong followed him away.

Lin Ge narrowed his eyes, carefully searching his memory of the plot. Unfortunately, he didn't know this part very well. He only vaguely remembered that it had something to do with the Lei Clan.

"Interesting."

Intrigued, Lin Ge put away his black robe and mask, revealing his true appearance. Then he followed Lin Dong and the others from a distance.

"We were just wandering around, but then we ran into those bastards from the Xie Family. Sister Lin Xia wanted to buy something, but those scumbags deliberately started trouble. Sister Lin Xia got so angry she couldn't help fighting back..."

"But the one leading the Xie Family was that vile woman, Xie Ting. She's Xie Yingying's younger sister, and she's already at the seventh layer of Body Tempering. On top of that, they had more people. In the chaos, that woman even slapped Sister Lin Xia."

On the way, Lin Shan recounted everything that had happened in detail. As he spoke, he clenched his fists, clearly furious.

Lin Dong furrowed his brows. The Xie Family's juniors really were too arrogant. As the saying went, you could hit someone, but not in the face—especially when Sister Lin Xia was a woman. They'd gone too far.

"The Xie Family are so annoying."

The one who spoke was Lin Dong's younger sister, Qing Tan. She was furious.

"Let's hurry." Lin Dong nodded and picked up the pace.

Seeing the three of them speed up again, Lin Ge's brow twitched. He quickened his pace too, keeping close behind them.

Deep inside the market was a Gravel Square, ringed by bustling shops that sold all kinds of spirit medicines, weapons, armor, and even martial arts manuals. Demon Crystals could be found there as well.

This was one of the market's more upscale areas. Everyone who came here had some standing in Green Sun Town.

At that moment, two groups stood at the edge of the square. Neither group was very old, but the hostility between them was unmistakable.

The Xie and Lei families often suppressed outside forces, especially the Mad Blade Martial Hall and the Lin Clan. So whenever the younger members of those two sides met, things tended to turn unpleasant, and fights were common.

"Lin Xia, hand it over. Otherwise, none of you are leaving today."

Among the Xie Family's group, a tall young woman stared haughtily at Lin Xia. A hint of mockery showed on her fair, oval face, and her thin lips lent her an especially sharp look.

"Hand it over to you?"

Facing her, Lin Xia sneered. A bloody handprint marked her tender cheek—the tall young woman standing before her had struck her.

Still sneering, Lin Xia tore the ornament in her hand in two and threw it to the ground. She stamped on it several times before stopping.

She knew her opponent didn't care about the cheap ornament at all. She was just looking for trouble.

Just as Lin Xia had expected, Xie Ting didn't even frown when she saw the ornament destroyed. She only gave Lin Xia a half-smile. "You certainly have a stubborn streak. But today, you won't be walking out of here unscathed."

"Xie Ting, don't push it!"

Beside Lin Xia, Lin Hong glared at Xie Ting, his face full of anger. He looked somewhat battered, clearly having already been in a fight.

"So what if I push it? What can you do?"

Xie Ting looked at Lin Hong with scorn, her face full of disdain.

She had brought more people than Lin Xia, and they were stronger too. She didn't think Lin Xia and the others could stir up any trouble at all.

"Heh... I say we stop wasting our breath and just beat them up," a man in yellow beside Xie Ting said with a grin.

"Exactly. There's no need to waste words on them. Just give them a beating to teach them a lesson. Next time they see us, they'll know to stay well clear!" The man beside him gave a mocking laugh and nodded in agreement.

Lin Hong glared at the three of them, but there was nothing he could do.

Only Lin Xia and he were at the seventh layer of Body Tempering. The other side had three people at that level. If they fought, Lin Xia's group would be the ones to suffer.

"Then let's teach them a lesson."

Xie Ting sneered. The people behind her slowly advanced on Lin Xia and the others, their faces full of ill intent.

"Whoosh!"

Just then, a figure shot between the two groups. It was Lin Dong!

"Sister Lin Xia, are you all right?" Lin Dong asked with concern. When he saw the handprint on her cheek, his brows drew tight.

"Who are you?"

Xie Ting frowned. The sudden appearance of the young man had startled everyone, and she felt it made her look bad. Her expression darkened.

"I'm fine." Lin Xia shook her head slightly and spoke softly.

Lin Dong's brows remained furrowed. A smoldering anger was rising within him.

"I'm talking to you, miss. Can't you hear me?"

Seeing that Lin Dong was ignoring her, Xie Ting's expression darkened further. She shouted at him.

Lin Dong turned around and stared coldly at Xie Ting without a word.

For some reason, the coldness in Lin Dong's gaze made Xie Ting uneasy. She instinctively looked away!

"You did this?" Lin Dong asked coldly, without a trace of emotion.

"I did. So what?"

Xie Ting had a vague feeling that something was wrong, but her pride wouldn't let her back down. She answered in her usual mocking tone.

Hearing Xie Ting's reply, Lin Dong didn't waste another word. He struck at once, appearing in front of her in a single step and swinging his palm at her!

"Smack!"

A crisp sound rang out. For a moment, the Xie Family's people didn't react at all, standing there in a daze.

"You..."

Xie Ting's face darkened to the extreme. Once she came to her senses, she realized that the boy in front of her had slapped her. A towering fury erupted within her!

"Beat them to a pulp!"

She practically roared the words.

A genius of the Xie Family since childhood, she had always been the object of everyone's flattery. No one had ever dared to hit her. And now Lin Dong had slapped her hard across the face—how could she not be furious?

At her words, the Xie Family's people all turned grim-faced and slowly surrounded the Lin Clan's group. A great battle was now inevitable.