"That time, the darkness descended with unusual ferocity and terror."
"A being at the level of Dark Immortal King attempted to cross over, and for reasons unknown, breached the defenses of the Emperor Pass, leading an countless army that nearly crushed the entire northern border of the Emperor Pass."
"A gap has appeared in the line!"
"Three groups of people were sent over from the Emperor Pass in succession, but none of them were able to stabilize the situation."
"Countless powerful figures from various Lineage have died or been wounded, and the flames of war are approaching the city gates."
"Back then, your father was still young, having only recently broken through to the Great Emperor Realm."
But he did not choose to retreat.
Lin Chen picked up his wine glass, then put it down again, his gaze filled with a complex meaning. "He, alone, ventured into the Foreign Domain Abyss."
Lin Fan's pupils contracted slightly.
Foreign Domain Abyss.
He had heard of that name before.
According to the records of the Immortal Ancient Ruins, this was the stronghold of dark creatures. It was a rift sealed with supreme divine power after the Immortal Ancient War, and even Great Emperor rarely dared to venture deep into it.
A near-death experience!
Lin Chen's tone remained calm.
But Lin Fan noticed that his fingers tightened slightly around the wine glass. "He fought his way through the abyss ten times, slaying several dark giants and forcing the Foreign Domain creatures to stay away from the border, pushing the battle line back."
"In that battle, he single-handedly deterred Foreign Domain creatures from invading for hundreds of years."
Lin Chen poured himself a glass of wine and downed it in one gulp. "When the news reached Emperor Pass, everyone thought he would become a hero of Emperor Pass. But..."
Lin Fan remained silent, waiting for what was to come...
Lin Chen put down his wine glass, his gaze slightly darkening. "Some people don't want him to become a hero. Several powerful members of the immortal families of Emperor Pass have jointly submitted a memorial stating that your father has been tainted by Dark Matter in the abyss and is no longer a pure Immortal Domain cultivator, thus he can no longer serve as the defender of Emperor Pass's defenses."
Lin Fan paused for a moment, his hand holding the glass still.
Lin Chen put down his wine glass, his gaze returning to the table. His tone remained calm, but slightly heavier than before. "Many people thought he wouldn't come back, but he did... He should have been treated as a hero, the problem was that he brought back spoils of war..."
"A magical artifact whose nature remains unknown to this day."
"But it was that very thing that gave those people an excuse to make trouble."
"Some people in the Emperor Pass are coveting that trophy, saying that the patriarch has been tainted by darkness in the Foreign Domain and should no longer remain in the Emperor Pass."
"We want to force him to hand over his belongings, and then expel him from the Emperor Pass."
Several men blocked the patriarch outside the Emperor Pass!
"They say that what your father brought back from that Foreign Domain is itself part of the Dark Origin of that Foreign Domain. They demand that he hand over the treasure and accept a thorough investigation by the Emperor Pass Council."
Lin Fan tapped his fingers lightly on the table without saying a word.
Lin Chen glanced at him. "You should know your father's temper better than I do. The Emperor Pass Clan wants to expel him and force him to hand over the immortal artifact."
Lin Fan sneered, "And then?"
Lin Chen picked up his wine glass and took a sip, a barely perceptible smile in his voice, "Your father isn't the kind of person who would back down!"
"He didn't hand it over. He didn't even bother to explain."
"He fought his way back to the Emperor Pass alone with his sword, slaying a Great Emperor of the Emperor Pass and severely wounding the patriarchs of several Lineage within the Emperor Pass!"
"Then, in front of everyone, he announced..."
"Anyone who dares to touch him again will be next to die."
He breached all three gates of the Emperor Pass, left a single sentence, and departed.
Lin Fan asked, "What did you say?"
Lin Chen was silent for a moment, then spoke, "I have fought my way in and out of the Dark Abyss ten times, so I can come and go as I please at this Emperor Pass."
"From then on, whenever the people from Emperor Pass mentioned your father's name, their expressions turned grim."
The private room fell silent for a few moments, with only the lamplight flickering silently inside the Qingtong dome.
Lin Fan's fingers tightened slightly around the wine glass, his knuckles turning white. "He deserves to die!"
Lin Chen glanced at Lin Fan without pausing, "After your father left, the Imperial Pass suffered a severe blow. A hundred years later, the Foreign Domain attacked again. At that time, the top combat forces of the Emperor Pass were still in seclusion healing their wounds, and the defense line collapsed completely, resulting in heavy losses."
"The people of Emperor Pass have pinned this debt on your father!"
"They said that if he hadn't instigated the civil war back then, the Emperor Pass wouldn't have been so badly damaged, and the Foreign Domain wouldn't have succeeded."
"Your father was framed despite his merits, suspected despite his war achievements, and he saved this city, yet the city still holds a grudge against him to this day."
Lin Fan remained silent for a long time.
He picked up his glass, downed it in one gulp, and slammed it down on the table with a heavy thud.
Lin Chen looked at him, offering no words of advice, but simply poured him another cup. "Brother Fan, if you were your father and were treated like this, what would you do?"
Lin Fan picked up the freshly poured glass of wine and drank it all in one gulp.
He did not answer that question.
But Lin Chen didn't need his answer, because the answer was already in the wine. This wasn't the first time someone had wanted him dead, and it wouldn't be the last.
"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore."
Lin Chen waved his hand, as if trying to dispel the heavy atmosphere in the private room, "You've only been in Emperor Pass for a short time, don't rush to the battlefield."
"First, properly experience the laws of the Emperor Pass and replenish your own Dao foundation."
"Go to the Ancient Tower again; the Immortal King aura there should be useful to you."
"Then I'll take you back to the Lin Clan to meet some of the Lineage elders here at the Emperor Pass. Once you're ready, it won't be too late to go to the Northern Frontier Battlefield."
Lin Fan thought for a moment, then nodded. "Okay."
Night deepened.
The two talked for a long time, from the distribution of various forces in the Emperor Pass to the latest developments on the Northern Frontier Battlefield, from the history of the Ancient Tower to the Lin Clan's plans over the years.
Lin Fan learned a lot of information from Lin Chen!
The power dynamics within the Emperor Pass were far more complex than he had imagined; beneath the seemingly peaceful facade of these powerful families, undercurrents were swirling.
It wasn't until the morning of the third day that Lin Fan returned to the accommodation that Lin Chen had arranged for him.
A courtyard of moderate size, with blue bricks and gray tiles, and an old locust tree in the middle, its branches and leaves swaying gently in the morning breeze, dropping a few early yellow leaves.
Lin Fan stood in the courtyard for a moment, then took a deep breath.
The morning breeze, carrying the unique crispness of the Emperor Pass, rustled through the treetops and brushed against his robes.
He sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and began to sense the laws of the Emperor Pass.
The laws of the Three Thousand Provinces are like a container filled with water, but the laws of the Emperor Pass are more like a vast lake. Every strand of law is more complete and more solid, like refined iron that has been repeatedly forged countless times. When it touches his Chaos Gods and Devils Body, it causes a faint resonance.
The Immortal Seed pulsed slightly within the storage ring.
Three streams of Immortal Qi slowly rotated in his dantian, like three fish adapting to new waters, gradually merging into the complete laws of the Emperor Pass.
Night fades, and dawn breaks.
A faint golden light emanated from his body.
Meanwhile, the outside world was already in an uproar.
In the streets and alleys of Emperor Pass, in restaurants and teahouses, and in the council halls of major families, almost everyone was talking about the same thing.
" Lin Fan, the imperial son of the Lin Clan, has entered the pass."
"He killed a Demon Race prodigy at the Peak Quasi-Emperor as soon as he entered the pass."
"The three Great Emperor arrived together to demand an explanation, but Lin Chen blocked their attack with a single sword strike."
"This guy really does possess Immortal Seed."
"Not only does Immortal Seed, but he also has three strands of Immortal Qi."
"You're behind the times. I heard he also obtained the Ancient Tower Comprehension Token."
" Ancient Tower Comprehension Token?! How long has it been since those things were released?"
" The Emperor Pass is about to get quite lively."
The news flooded into every corner of the Emperor Pass like a tidal wave.
Some people sneered, some were wary, and some were plotting how to get something out of this Lin Clan prince.
In that small courtyard with blue bricks, Lin Fan sat quietly under the old locust tree, his body surrounded by flowing immortal light. Three streams of immortal Immortal Qi, like three tamed dragons, slowly swirled around him.
The retreat has only just begun.