Where was my sword?

"Lin Tian, what are you doing?"

Aunt Wang cried out in alarm.

Lin Tian's gaze was indifferent. He looked at no one.

"Do you know why I didn't attack Elder Lin Yu?"

Lin Tian asked.

"N-no... I don't."

The maid whose face he held answered in terror.

Crack, crack, crack!

Lin Tian tightened his grip with one hand, instantly cracking the bones in the maid's cheeks.

"Because I can't beat him."

Lin Tian spoke impassively.

Ghk!

"H-help..."

The round-faced maid struggled to speak.

Her heart jolted violently, her terror reaching its limit.

However inadequate Lin Tian was, he was still a cultivator at the Qi Refining Fifth Layer.

If he kept tightening his grip, her face would burst.

"Let go!"

Aunt Wang cried out in alarm, but Lin Tian remained unmoved.

Everyone watched in panic, understanding that Lin Tian intended to kill her.

Smack!

Someone seized Lin Tian's wrist.

Lin Yu appeared beside Lin Tian.

"Let go!"

Lin Yu looked coldly at Lin Tian.

Then his right hand began to tighten around Lin Tian's wrist.

Crack!

An enormous force struck, and Lin Tian released his grip.

Thud.

Lin Tian released his grip, and the maid whose head had nearly been crushed collapsed to the ground.

"What a pity."

Lin Tian offered that explanation to the round-faced maid lying on the ground, gasping violently.

His gaze was calm, as though nothing had happened.

Sweat beaded on the round-faced maid's forehead as she stared blankly at Lin Tian.

She gasped violently, the terror in her eyes reaching its peak.

Lin Tian turned to look at the space before him.

[Countdown: 5:05:03]

"Soon."

Lin Tian said something none of them understood, then headed back on his own.

Along the way, the voices mocking Lin Tian grew much fewer.

Aunt Wang, however, gave a cold snort after standing stunned for a long while.

"In the end, he's just someone about to die."

As Aunt Wang spoke, she looked at Lin Tian ahead of her.

Seeing him turn a deaf ear, the contempt and disgust in her heart grew even stronger.

Dawn was breaking.

When Lin Tian returned to the Lin residence,

he could already hear people setting off fireworks outside the residence in celebration.

[Countdown: 4:08:43]

Lin Tian sat cross-legged on his bed, resting with his eyes closed.

Lin Yu, Aunt Wang, and the others returned to their respective rooms.

"An hour and a half's rest will do."

Lin Yu instructed the servants.

Then he looked at Aunt Wang and said:

"Prepare some new clothes for Lin Tian. Dressing like that really disgraces our Lin family."

"Yes."

Aunt Wang chuckled, then looked at Lin Yu and said:

"Elder, with this happy occasion upon us, why don't I brew you a cup of tea before going back?"

Lin Yu frowned slightly. Looking at Aunt Wang's ample bosom, a trace of amusement appeared in his eyes.

"Excellent."

Aunt Wang smiled seductively and waved her hand, signaling that the servants behind her could leave.

Swaying her hips, she walked into Lin Yu's room.

"Xiaocui, are you all right?"

A male servant walked over to the round-faced maid with the handprint on her face and asked with concern.

The round-faced maid glared at him.

"How could I be all right? That damned Lin Tian. I really regret not poisoning him to death before."

The male servant smiled sheepishly and said:

"Wouldn't poisoning him just be a waste of money? He's going to die sooner or later. Don't let it bother you."

The two kept talking as they passed through the secluded courtyards.

At the Lin residence, the servants had their own courtyard.

They had to pass the main residence on the way.

A waterside corridor came into view.

A young man and woman were reclining on the corridor's seats, playing a board game.

"Young Master Lin Ming, Miss Qingqian."

Upon seeing the pair, the round-faced maid and the male servant hurriedly bowed.

"Lin Tian ran away last night?"

The young man glanced indifferently at the round-faced maid and asked.

"Yes, but he's already back."

The round-faced maid explained.

"Hmph, he's still so stupid. Did he really think we'd let him leave?"

Lin Qingqian spoke with a face full of disdain.

Lin Ming smiled faintly and waved his hand, and the round-faced maid and male servant hurried away.

"Being chosen by the Joyous Immortal Sect means he's done the Lin family a good turn, at least."

Lin Ming placed a piece and smiled faintly.

Lin Qingqian's willow-leaf brows relaxed, a hint of anticipation flowing through her eyes.

"I heard the Joyous Immortal Sect's holy maiden promised our Lin family a hundred Body Opening Pills and over a dozen profound-grade spirit herbs. You and I will definitely both be rewarded with pills then."

Lin Ming smiled too, a gleam flashing in his eyes.

"That's Lin Tian's value. A single Body Opening Pill can increase an ordinary person's chances of advancing to the Body Opening Realm by twenty percent. A hundred of them-that's simply unimaginable. Within ten years, our Lin family will be Heavenly Sword City's fifth great lineage."

Her long hair tied behind her head, Lin Qingqian also nodded in satisfaction.

"I'm already at the Qi Refining Seventh Layer, and you're at the Qi Training Ninth Layer, Brother Lin Ming. Once we take the Body Opening Pills and return to the academy, we'll definitely shock our instructors. Then the academy will direct more resources toward us."

When Lin Qingqian finished, Lin Ming froze.

Then his mood grew even more jubilant.

Time flowed like water.

Soon, the sun shone high overhead.

A figure arrived from the sky.

He stood in midair.

With an indifferent attitude, he looked down at the courtyard below.

The man was handsome, but the bridge of his nose was overly flat, making his features somewhat unbalanced.

At the same time,

the hundreds of people throughout the Lin family looked up at the figure in the sky in unison, their faces filled with respect.

"Lin Luo, head of the Lin family, welcomes the envoy!"

The man standing in the sky chuckled.

"I am Li Musheng of the Joyous Immortal Sect. Bring Lin Tian here at once."

The man's voice resounded throughout the Lin residence.

Then he landed before Lin Luo, the head of the Lin family.

He casually tossed out a ring.

"This is the gift our Joyous Immortal Sect promised. Accept it."

The envoy spoke indifferently.

Lin Luo caught the ring and sensed its contents with his mind. Even with his broad experience, he could not help smiling.

Behind Lin Luo stood the elders of the Lin family.

All were delighted.

Lin Luo looked toward the side of the passage, where Aunt Wang stood with a faint flush on her face, along with a group of servants.

"Go quickly and fetch Lin Tian."

"Yes."

Aunt Wang answered, then hurried away.

"Envoy, please come into the main hall for a chat."

Lin Luo addressed the envoy respectfully.

This was actually deliberate.

If Lin Tian were here, they would have no time to cultivate ties with the envoy.

"Heh."

The envoy named Li Musheng glanced lightly at everyone, said nothing more, and walked toward the main hall.

In a side courtyard.

Inside a dilapidated house.

Lin Tian had already changed into brand-new white robes.

He sat on a chair, looking at the empty space before him.

[Countdown: 00:2:23]

It was almost time. A smile spread across Lin Tian's lips.

"Young Master Lin Tian, come out for a moment. The family head and elders wish to see you."

A shrill woman's voice came from outside.

It was Aunt Wang.

"Understood."

Lin Tian spoke in a low voice and abruptly stood.

He was tall and slender, his long hair like ink.

His eyes rippled with nothing but coldness.

[Countdown: 00:00:56]

Seeing that Lin Tian still had not made a move, the woman's voice sounded again outside.

"Young Master Lin Tian, I hope you can hurry. Don't keep the family head and elders waiting."

Bang, bang, bang!

Outside, Aunt Wang seemed to have grown a little impatient and was pounding hard on the door.

"Lin Tian, I've been waiting a long time. Hurry up and come out."

Lin Tian's gaze was dark and icy, yet the corners of his lips curved upward.

He walked to the door and opened it at once.

Seeing Lin Tian open the door, Aunt Wang sneered and said:

"Lin Tian, I thought your courage... ngh!"

Lin Tian viciously seized the woman's neck, pouring his strength into his grip.

Ghk!

The woman felt as though her neck was about to be crushed. Her mouth gaped, and even her tongue stuck out.

Alarm appeared on her face. She tried to struggle, only to be dragged straight into the room by Lin Tian.

There were still servants passing through the courtyard.

They watched the scene in horror, not quite able to react.

Bang!

The sound of the door closing startled them awake.

"Go get the steward!"

"What's wrong with Lin Tian? How could he treat Aunt Wang like that?"

"Being chosen by the Holy Maiden of the Joyous Immortal Sect must have gone to his head."

As they spoke, several of them had already left to find the steward.

They were no fools, after all, and did not dare provoke Lin Tian at a time like this.

Meanwhile, inside the room.

Lin Tian gripped Aunt Wang by the neck with one hand, lifting her high.

"An ant dares speak to me like that?"

An unparalleled chill gathered in Lin Tian's eyes.

"What... are you... going to do?"

Aunt Wang trembled all over, her face flushed red, her earlier arrogance long gone.

Something flickered in Lin Tian's eyes, and he released Aunt Wang's neck.

Aunt Wang crashed heavily to the floor, clutching her neck with both hands and coughing several times.

[00:00:05]

Only the last few seconds remained.

Lin Tian looked at the line of text before him.

[00:00:01]

Before his eyes, the lines of text instantly dissolved into specks of light.

"You little bastard, you dare treat me... like this... are you courting death?!"

"Cough, cough!"

Aunt Wang lay sprawled on the floor, undisguised malice in her eyes as she looked at Lin Tian.

But even as Aunt Wang spoke, her expression froze.

She saw light spilling from all around Lin Tian.

Wisps of a dangerous presence continually seeped from his body.

Throughout the room, Spiritual Qi grew thick as slurry, surging into Lin Tian in billowing waves.

And Lin Tian's presence instantly soared.

"Qi Refining Seventh Layer."

Lin Tian murmured softly, dazzling, brilliant light radiating from his entire body.

"You... what are you doing?"

At the sight, Aunt Wang's mouth fell open, and terror seized her again.

Lin Tian lowered his head to look at Aunt Wang, a trace of indifference appearing in his eyes.

"Don't kill me! I have close ties with the clan elder!"

As if sensing Lin Tian's killing intent, Aunt Wang hurriedly begged for mercy.

"Noisy."

Lin Tian's voice was utterly cold as he stamped directly onto Aunt Wang's mouth.

Immense force bore down, accompanied by a series of cracks.

There was no telling how many of Aunt Wang's teeth had been crushed beneath his foot. Scarlet blood flowed from the gaps where her mouth met the sole of Lin Tian's shoe.

"The time is up. Where is the sword?"

Lin Tian asked softly, yet a strange feeling arose in his heart.

His right hand grasped at empty air, and a solitary glow seemed to be condensing.

At last, the radiant flames contracted.

An azure longsword appeared in Lin Tian's hand.

The blade was light, its markings like a dragon, like a roaming dragon gliding across the heavens.

Its azure gleam was cold and piercing, its edge like autumn frost.

Then Lin Tian looked at Aunt Wang, who was already utterly terrified.

With a swish.

The sword tip was already pressed against her forehead.

Crack!

The blade pierced in.

Note: The cultivation realms in this world are: Qi Refining, Body Opening, Mystic Core, Void Insight, Soul Palace, Spirit Sea, Sea Opening, Eight Desolations, Mighty Expert, Void God.