Chapter 12: Matters of the Past

Hearing the words "Senior Brother Lin," Lin Xuan subconsciously gave a bitter smile.

What a distant form of address.

Looking at Gong Ling, whose appearance seemed to have been frozen in her twenties, Lin Xuan sighed once again in his heart.

This little girl who used to follow behind him calling him "Ninth Senior Brother" had not only grown into a stunning beauty but was now a Three-Pass Divine Realm expert capable of looking down upon the entire Huaqing Prefecture!

She was also a member of the Great Wilderness Empire’s most powerful organization, the Tongtian Chamber of Commerce.

"Leaving without saying goodbye was something I had no choice but to do. You know, Ling'er, by the time I was in my twenties, I had already become the disgrace of the Jixia Academy, a 'useless person' in everyone's eyes. Leaving was perhaps a good thing for me, and a good thing for all of you as well."

Faced with Gong Ling’s sarcasm, Lin Xuan knew he was in the wrong and began to explain.

Besides, if they were to actually fight, Gong Ling could probably take him down in a few moves.

Gong Ling seemed to recall the issue of Lin Xuan’s talent, and her face, which had just calmed down, suddenly turned resentful again.

"For some people, that was not a good thing at all!?"

"Have you ever thought about why our Chamber of Commerce established a branch in a tiny place like Cloud Mist City eleven years ago!?"

"Why has our Tongtian Chamber of Commerce always been polite to your Lin family? Has our presence played no part in your family’s ability to develop in peace? Ask yourself that!"

Gong Ling’s loud questioning left Lin Xuan stunned. Why was that!?

Logically speaking, a small city like theirs didn't qualify; the Tongtian Chamber of Commerce usually only established branches in cities that possessed a Three-Pass Divine Realm expert.

Even if they did establish one, why were they so good to his Lin family specifically!?

Lin Xuan was no fool; he realized the truth.

"Wu... is Wu Yue doing well?"

The Wu Yue Lin Xuan spoke of was none other than the General President of the Tongtian Chamber of Commerce, the legendary Fairy Shenwu, Gong Wuyue, who possessed one of the top combat strengths in the Great Wilderness!

And Gong Wuyue could even be considered Lin Xuan’s—childhood sweetheart!

"Hmph! So you still remember to ask about Sister Wuyue. I truly feel it wasn't worth it for her!"

The moment Gong Ling mentioned Gong Wuyue, her expression turned even uglier.

She sat down on a chair, her beautiful eyes filled with hostility as she looked at Lin Xuan.

Lin Xuan let out a long breath. A tangled fate, indeed.

"I don't want to explain too much to you. You only need to know that when you walked away without a word, you brought sadness to many people!"

"During the days you were missing, Sister Wuyue was like a soul lost, wandering in a daze. Every seven days, she went to the Jixia Academy to ask about your whereabouts, begging the Wine Venerable, but the Wine Venerable had gone into seclusion!"

"After half a year of this, Master Wine finally told us that you had already left the mountain, and that he didn't even know where you had gone. From that day on, Wuyue’s temperament changed completely. She is no longer the person she once was..."

"Stop!" Lin Xuan reached out, stopping Gong Ling.

Gong Ling looked at the pained expression on Lin Xuan’s face, her eyes filled with undisguised mockery.

"Huff, what? Don't tell me you came here today just to mock me for being someone without responsibility!?"

Lin Xuan didn't stand on ceremony; he sat down opposite Gong Ling before she could say another word.

"Heh, I wouldn't dare. I just hate you, you heartless man. Back then, there was such a wonderful woman at the Jixia Academy who cared for you, yet you left without a word to come to this Cloud Mist City to marry and have children. I truly feel that Zhantai Mingyue and my sister were a joke."

Gong Ling gritted her teeth in hatred as she said this.

Lin Xuan was speechless. It was true that he had lost his ambition back then.

However, in Cloud Mist City, he had been very content to marry Lin Fan’s mother.

Unfortunately, Lin Fan’s mother, Lin Xuan’s wife, had passed away fifteen years ago.

"The world is unpredictable. I can only blame myself; I failed them."

Lin Xuan gave a bitter smile.

Who could truly understand him?

Did he want to betray the kindness of those beauties?

But back then, he could only watch as the figures on the Dragon-Phoenix Ranking fought for supremacy; he could only watch other geniuses soar with their swords; he could only watch as others insulted him as a useless person!

If he had been a genius, wouldn't he have wanted to be high-spirited and roam the world with the woman he loved?

"Hmph, 'I failed them'—what a convenient way to end it."

Gong Ling snorted coldly again.

Looking at the Gong Ling before him, she was completely different from the girl in his memories who used to sweetly call him "Ninth Senior Brother."

The old Gong Ling spoke with sweetness, her smiles always accompanied by small dimples, and she wore cute outfits.

The current Gong Ling was elegant and dignified, with an outstanding temperament, beautiful features, sharp eyes, and a powerful aura—she was every bit the high-ranking, strong woman.

"Sigh~"

Lin Xuan sighed once more.

Some things were truly impossible to explain.

"They must hate me very much."

"That's right, they hate you deeply. Sister Wuyue and your little junior sister probably hate you to the bone!"

Gong Ling’s words caused Lin Xuan to fall into silence once again.

After a long silence, Lin Xuan gave a bitter smile.

"So be it, so be it. The fate we once shared has likely vanished into smoke by now."

Lin Xuan’s bitter smile and the helplessness in his eyes deeply stung Gong Ling’s heart.

Gong Ling had a sharp tongue but a soft heart; how could she not feel heartache for the big brother she had once respected the most?

However, she was simply dissatisfied that he had left without a word, disappearing for over twenty years without a trace.

"Fine, I don't want to interrogate you anymore. Go. Hmph, let's just pretend our former Ninth Senior Brother never came."

The two remained silent for a long while, until Gong Ling finally waved her hand.

Hearing this, the corners of Lin Xuan’s mouth curled up. It seemed this girl still had a soft heart and held him in high regard.

"Is my master doing well?"

At the Jixia Academy, the two people who were best to Lin Xuan were his little junior sister and his master, Master Wine.

Master Wine had almost raised Lin Xuan as if he were his own son.

Mainly because both Lin Xuan and his little junior sister, Zhantai Mingyue, had been raised by Master Wine since childhood, so the other senior brothers and sisters were not as favored as they were.

"Rest assured, Master Wine is a teacher at the Jixia Academy. Looking across the Great Wilderness Empire, there are few who are his match."

Gong Ling explained, despite her annoyance at Lin Xuan’s "needless worrying."

Lin Xuan nodded slightly and stood up, preparing to leave the Tongtian Chamber of Commerce.

"Oh, right. Are you planning to deal with the Wu, Jia, and Fang families?"

Gong Ling suddenly called out to stop him.

Lin Xuan did not deny it; Gong Ling was someone he could trust.

Besides, with her current strength, if she wanted to stop him, it would be an effortless task.

"Yes, that's right. It is time for those three families to disappear."

In Lin Xuan’s calm tone lay the thunder that follows a gathering of dark clouds!

The three families had been targeting the Lin family for more than just a day or two.

Back then, when Lin Xuan killed the Great Elder of the Wu family in a rage, it was because they had conspired to murder his fifth brother, Lin Wuyue!

And now, it was time to strike back!

"I’ll give you a friendly warning. According to our Chamber of Commerce’s investigation, the Wu family is not as simple as they appear on the surface. They even have the strength to dominate Cloud Mist City."

Gong Ling said, looking at Lin Xuan calmly.

Lin Xuan wasn't particularly moved. He was a cautious man; he might not have been able to uncover everything about the Wu family, but he had a good grasp of their true strength.

"Heh, a tiny Cloud Mist City, a mere Wu Yifan... if I want to kill him, aside from you, no one else can stop me!"

Gong Ling was suddenly stunned. In her eyes, Lin Xuan had gained something—or rather, he had regained something he once possessed.

That was—high-spirited ambition!

"Do you need my help?"

Gong Ling thought for a moment before saying it. As soon as the words left her lips, she felt a bit of regret, given that she had just been blaming and resenting him.

Lin Xuan was also taken aback; he hadn't expected Gong Ling to offer her help.

He smiled slightly, a warm, heartfelt smile.

"Forget it, no need. A tiny Cloud Mist City and its three families aren't worth troubling a great Buddha like you."

"I have my own allies."

Lin Xuan smiled happily, because Gong Ling’s words proved that she still cared about him deeply.

"Hmph, fine then. I was just saying. Our Tongtian Chamber of Commerce always maintains neutrality, so I couldn't provide much help anyway."

Gong Ling scoffed at his refusal.

Lin Xuan smiled dumbly; she was still the same little girl.

"When I wipe out those three families, we shall meet again."