Chapter 25: Incident I

Green Ink Tower was located at the boundary between the Inner and Outer Cities, right next to the tall, pristine white city wall. The entire structure resembled a massive golden sculpture, with layers of golden light continuously shining out from within.

That light was the reflection cast by the lamps on the gold-dusted walls and windows.

The entire building was shaped like a teapot. The entrance was at the teapot’s handle, and the spout in front was a unique, translucent private room.

Lin Hui arrived there early at nine o’clock the next day. He stood at the entrance, gazing up at the Green Ink Tower one hundred meters inside the compound.

‘I have no idea where the “green” or “ink” is in this place…’ With a silent sigh, he took out his invitation, slowly walked in, and presented it to the guard.

“The Heaven and Earth private room already has guests who arrived early. Please follow me,” the guard said after verification. He personally led the way, following the circular staircase on the exterior of the first floor up to the third floor, where they reached a spacious golden private room.

Dong dong dong.

The guard gently knocked on the door, asking if the people inside were ready. After receiving a response, he quietly opened the door and ushered Lin Hui inside.

The moment he entered, Lin Hui‘s eyes first landed on Lin Hongzhen, who was sitting cross-legged at one end of the room.

Lin Hongzhen looked completely different compared to their last meeting.

If she still retained some feminine appearance last time, now she had thoroughly transformed into a tall, muscular giant.

If not for the noticeable protrusion on her chest, it would be difficult to recognize her as female.

Fortunately, her facial features were the same, showing no major change. Apart from the added muscle, her appearance remained recognizable, allowing Lin Hui to immediately identify her.

“Cousin,” he greeted her the moment he stepped in.

“Come, sit here,” Lin Hongzhen patted the spot next to her. “I invited a few friends today. They are all from the Cult. Get to know them; you can seek their help if you encounter any trouble later.”

Lin Hui walked over and sat down, looking at the three people as Lin Hongzhen introduced them one by one.

“Xiao Qin, you met her last time. Her family has significant influence in the shrine nearby within the Cult,” she introduced the girl Xiao Qin first.

She was still dressed revealingly in a white tube top and a purple ultra-short leather skirt. Her fair thighs were crossed and exposed. She was playing with a curved dagger inlaid with red and blue jewels.

“Hello, Sister Xiao Qin,” Lin Hui said politely.

“Mh-hm, if you need anything in the future, you can go to Xiao’s Shop on Tongyou Street. It’s my family’s business,” Xiao Qin nodded casually in response.

“Thank you, Sister Xiao Qin,” Lin Hui quickly said.

“Alright, this is Fei Wenyi. He’s a colleague and close friend in the Cult. He’s from the Fei Family in the Inner City. If you ever go to the Inner City, you can get an eighty percent discount at their chain stores by mentioning my name,” Lin Hongzhen said.

“Brother Yi!” Lin Hui greeted him.

Fei Wenyi was a relatively gentle-looking man, appearing older than Lin Hongzhen and the others. After the introduction, he gave Lin Hui a mild smile.

“Feel free to visit the Fei Family in the Inner City sometime. Just mention my name at the entrance,” he said softly.

“And finally, this is Meng Xiao. She’s also my friend.” Lin Hongzhen finally pointed to a young woman with slightly yellow, wavy long hair.

The woman wore a long, bright red dress, her fair feet slightly exposed beneath the hem of the skirt. She was sitting with crossed legs, holding a scroll similar to a map. Hearing the introduction, she smiled at Lin Hui and nodded, acknowledging the greeting.

“You’ve all met my younger brother now. Help me look out for him when he’s in the Outer City,” Lin Hongzhen patted Lin Hui‘s back and said half-jokingly to the three people.

“Your younger brother, Miss Lin, must be taken care of. Don’t worry,” Fei Wenyi smiled gently.

Xiao Qin also nodded, accepting the request.

Only Meng Xiao smiled without speaking.

Lin Hongzhen noted her attitude, patted Lin Hui‘s shoulder, and turned to Meng Xiao.

“What is it? Did you purposely crash the banquet today? Did you immediately turn your back on our old friendship because you saw my Summoning was low-grade?”

The joking tone in her voice suddenly faded, replaced by seriousness.

Meng Xiao closed the scroll, her face showing an expression that was halfway between a smile and a sneer.

“Since you know what’s in your heart, why speak it out and humiliate yourself? I only gave you face before because you had high-to-mid-grade Summoning aptitude. Now it’s only low-grade… Heh heh.”

“Sister Meng, that’s not what you said when Hongzhen ran errands for you before,” Xiao Qin said, showing dissatisfaction before Lin Hongzhen could speak.

“Weren’t the errands completed?” Meng Xiao laughed.

The atmosphere immediately stiffened with this comment.

The four people fell silent for a moment. Lin Hongzhen‘s face turned cold as she stared intently at Meng Xiao.

“Fine. I have no skill, only a low-grade Summoning, and I’m unworthy of being your friend, Meng Xiao.”

After a long pause, Lin Hongzhen said gravely.

“Since you think I’m unworthy, why did you still come today?”

“I just wanted to see how you were doing. Now that I’ve seen it, I am satisfied,” Meng Xiao stood up, her smile unchanged, and slowly walked toward the door.

“Farewell.”

“Don’t bother,” Lin Hongzhen said, her chest heaving with anger, not looking back.

The door was opened with a squeak, and the person slowly left. But the atmosphere in the private room remained quite suffocating.

Lin Hongzhen had originally intended to call her friends to pave the way for her younger brother Lin Hui, but unexpectedly, this quarrel broke out.

To outsiders, she had indeed received the Summoning, but only those within the Cult knew that her Summoning was actually the lowest grade. This had caused her body to become disproportionate, transforming her formerly delicate features and figure into an extremely strong and unsightly physique.

And being unsightly was a major taboo in the Rain Palace Cult. While it wouldn’t lead to expulsion, it would be very difficult to gain promotion.

Meng Xiao noticed this and instantly became ruthlessly realistic.

“A Hui, you should go back. If you need anything in the future, you can look for Sister Xiao Qin or Brother Fei,” Lin Hongzhen forced a smile and instructed Lin Hui.

“Mh-hm, take care, Sister. You can visit me at the Clear Wind Taoist Temple when you have time,” Lin Hui nodded.

From the attitude of Lin Hongzhen‘s acquaintances, he judged that while his cousin looked glorious on the outside, her situation within the city was actually quite difficult.

Otherwise, Meng Xiao wouldn’t have been so blatantly disrespectful.

He left without eating or drinking, bowed to Xiao Qin and Fei Wenyi, turned, and walked out of the private room.

He had originally intended to inquire about the disappearance cases today, but seeing his cousin’s current mood, it was clearly inappropriate.

Descending the stairs, he passed the first-floor lobby and unexpectedly saw Meng Xiao. The woman was holding a wine glass and talking to another woman in white.

Seemingly noticing Lin Hui‘s gaze, Meng Xiao slightly turned her head and glanced over.

Her level of alertness was clearly extremely high. She managed to react quickly despite being ten meters away.

Lin Hui‘s heart tightened. He gave her a polite smile, then withdrew his gaze, and quickly walked out of the Green Ink Tower.

Standing outside the building, he looked back at the splendid, golden restaurant. For some unknown reason, he felt a strange sense of unease.

Letting out a breath, he quickly walked toward the somewhat gloomy Xinyu Town in the Outer City, soon disappearing around the street corner.

---

Returning home, it was late afternoon. Lin Hui practiced the Nine-Section Quick Sword a few times before going to the shop to help look after it and spend some time with his parents.

In the evening, they closed the shop and went home. Lin Hui slept until the next morning. After waking up and washing, he saw his parents already packed and ready to leave for the shop.

The three of them busied themselves for a while. Upon arriving at the shop, just as his father, Lin Shunhe, unlocked and pulled open the door, they heard an officer hurrying toward them on the street.

A tall, robust officer with a fat head and large ears, dressed in black, approached, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword.

“Who is Lin Hui?” he asked in a cold voice, scanning the three of them.

“I am,” Lin Hui‘s heart tightened. He didn’t know what had happened and quickly stepped forward to answer.

“An aggravated assault case occurred at the Green Ink Tower last night. Lin Hongzhen is your cousin, correct? You were also at the Green Ink Tower, correct?” he asked two questions in quick succession.

“Aggravated assault? Yes, Lin Hongzhen is my cousin,” Lin Hui replied immediately, his heart solemn.

“She was attacked and is now seriously injured and unconscious. You need to come with me to the town’s police station to make a statement,” the officer said quickly, his attitude quite impatient.

“What?! Cousin seriously injured and unconscious!?” Lin Hui‘s eyes widened instantly. He had just seen Lin Hongzhen last night. She was still a muscular, strong figure with a physique like a copper wall.

And now she was… She was an elite Summoned individual!

“Let’s go, stop wasting time,” the officer urged, his attitude quite impatient.

This news was shocking not only to Lin Hui but also to Lin Shunhe and Yao Shan, who were listening.

“Hongzhen is an elite Summoned disciple who succeeded in the Summoning… yet she was seriously injured and fell into a coma?? This is simply…” Lin Shunhe couldn’t imagine how such a thing could happen.

Lin Hui, stunned, followed the officer to the police station. By the time he finished giving his statement, it was almost noon.

He walked out of the police station in a daze, looking up at the bright, clear sky. Judging from the officer’s questions and revelations, the attack on Lin Hongzhen was subtly linked to Lin Hongyu.

According to the officer, their preliminary suspicion was that the attack was carried out by a woman who was once romantically involved with the Chen Family main clan descendant whom Lin Hongyu was about to marry, using her family’s power.

This implicated the disputes and conflicts between the Three Great Powers.

As soon as he emerged, he saw his parents waiting in the tea stall opposite the police station, anxiously looking toward him.

Seeing Lin Hui emerge, both were overjoyed and quickly approached him.

“A Hui! Are you alright?” Lin Shunhe asked.

“I’m fine, just gave a simple statement. I’m okay,” Lin Hui replied. “Let’s go home and talk.”

The three quickly returned to their small courtyard.

Only after entering the gate did Lin Shunhe dare to speak again.

“A Hui, news spread from the Lin family compound that Lin Hongyu was also attacked last night, only suffering minor injuries. An old friend of mine heard some internal gossip. It seems to be a love rival of Lin Hongyu who mobilized family power to hire an assassin.”

His father’s expression was indescribably complex.

On one hand, Lin Hongyu was the person who snatched his son’s quota, so she deserved what she got. On the other hand, her trouble implicated Lin Hongzhen, which complicated his feelings. After all, Lin Hongzhen had been good to his son, and the First Branch had a good relationship with him. He didn’t want Hongzhen to suffer, but now…

“If this is true, then Father, Mother, we should try our best to stay out of it. The opposing force could attack both of them at once; their power is definitely not weak. How is Cousin doing now? Did you visit her, Father?” Lin Hui asked gravely.

“I did. She’s still unconscious. Your elder uncle and the others were there. I brought some tonics and left. You can visit her when you have time, but remember to avoid other people,” Lin Shunhe whispered.

“Mh-hm, I know.” Lin Hui felt uneasy. His relationship with Lin Hongzhen was good, and he hated that she was implicated in Lin Hongyu‘s troubles to this extent.

After gathering his thoughts at home, he quickly went out and headed to the town’s government clinic, only to find it empty. Lin Hongzhen had already been transferred by the Sha Yue Cult to the Inner City for better treatment.

He inquired about the situation and learned from the clinic staff that the situation was not good. His cousin’s injuries were very severe, and she remained unconscious, likely to suffer severe long-term sequelae.

(End of Chapter)