The Prodigies War

Mind Cleansing Peak. 

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While a storm was blowing in the outside world, Lin Xun was welcoming an important guest. 

It was Zhao Tailai, the owner of the Sky Martial Arena!

“We meet again after half a year. Little friend, your presence is even more remarkable than before. I can’t help but look at you differently now,” Zhao Tailai exclaimed. 

“Elder, you are over-praising me.” Lin Xun smiled very modestly. 

He knew that the person sitting opposite him was a cunning old fox, so there had to be a reason for him to come.  

Coincidentally, he also happened to have something to ask him about. 

“Over-praising? Hahaha, little friend, you are too modest. Others might not know about your feats in the Spirit Burial Sea, but I do know a little.” Zhao Tailai smiled. “I heard you single-handedly slaughtered the heroes of various clans there and no one could stop you. How many people in the world could achieve such a feat? You also seemed to have obtained a lot of opportunities and treasures in the Deva Secret Realm. I can’t help but envy you.” 

Lin Xun narrowed his eyes imperceptibly. “Elder, it seems like you know a lot. I wonder what brings you here today.”

Zhao Tailai chuckled, “Someone entrusted me to visit you. Also, little friend, I believe you have a lot of questions that you want answers to, and I am willing to answer them for you.”

“Who entrusted you?” Lin Xun asked bluntly. 

Smiling cryptically, Zhao Tailai raised three fingers. “There are three distinguished people. Guess who they are?”

“Miss Jingxuan must be one of them,” Lin Xun answered without any hesitation.

“Smart!” Zhao Tailai complimented. “Before Princess Jingxuan left a few months ago, she repeatedly told me to take action and provide you with as much help as possible when I heard about you.”

“She…what else did she say?” A warmth surged in his heart as he thought of the bright, confident and beautiful woman. She thought about me even when she left.

“Little friend, what else do you want to know?”

Zhao Tailai smiled like a weasel as he swept a strange gaze over Lin Xun. 

“Elder, can you stop smiling like that...” He couldn’t help feeling uncomfortable. 

“Is it too creepy?”

“It seems like you are self-aware.”

“Hey, don’t look at me like that. Don’t you think you should tell me more about what is the relationship between you and Jingxuan now?” Zhao Tailai’’s eyes blazed, and his smile became more and more ambiguous, making Lin Xun feel even more uncomfortable. 

That old man clearly has some misunderstanding. 

Lin Xun said warily, “Elder, don’t think too much. There is no special relationship between Miss Jingxuan and I.”

Zhao Tailai sneered. “Since there is nothing, why do you have to explain? Did I ask you about it? Besides, since you explained it, why bother to cover it up? We are on the same side and we are just chatting, so why are you so nervous?”

Lin Xun felt dizzy from the barrage of rhetorical questions. After a long moment of being speechless, he sighed melancholically, “Elder, I am already very troubled by the matters of Mind Cleansing Peak. How would I be in the mood to discuss other things with you?”

Zhao Tailai rolled his eyes. “Fine, change the topic. Kid, I’ll tell you now, don’t expect to get some answers from me later.” He took a sip of tea and closed his eyes, resting his mind. 

The old fox is so unreasonable. Lin Xun complained to himself. 

Then, he got up and said, “In that case, please have some tea first and rest for a while, Elder. After I finish dealing with the affairs, I will come to ask for your advice.” He turned around and left. 

Zhao Tailai was relatively calm at first, but when he saw Lin Xun’s figure about to disappear at the door and he didn’t turn his head back at all, he couldn’t sit still anymore.

“Little brat, are you planning to leave me here? It doesn’t matter if you delay my affairs, but if you delay me going back, even Jingxuan can’t protect you!” Zhao Tailai grumbled, but he immediately beckoned with a smile. “Come here, quickly come back, let’s have a good chat this time.”

“Fine, but Elder, you have to promise to speak truthfully and get to the point,” Lin Xun said fearlessly. 

Zhao Tailai gnashed his teeth while muttering in his mind. The kid must have guessed something which is why he sounds so confident, right?

He couldn’t help asking, “Did you...guess something?”

Lin Xun grinned, turned around, and leisurely sat back down in the chair again. “Elder, I just came back yesterday, but you came to see me so urgently. You must have something to discuss with me. I would be stupid if I couldn’t guess what’s going on.”

“You sly little fox!” Zhao Tailai scolded, but he couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. It’s only been half a year since I saw him but he’s getting harder and harder to fool.

His expression quickly turned solemn as he stated his true purpose of coming.

It turned out that the emperor and empress entrusted Zhao Tailai to pass on a message to Lin Xun.

“Kid, you have caused a huge disturbance and turned the world upside down, but no matter what, I have promised you that I will keep you safe!” Zhao Tailai repeated the great emperor’s words without any modifications.  

“It turns out that the influential figure in the imperial palace is the emperor?!” Lin Xun cried out, shuddering inwardly. 

How would he not be shocked? When he first came to the Forbidden City, he received a secret letter urging him to turn the world upside down once he entered the Forbidden City. 

At the time, he wondered who would dare to say something so bold. 

Now, he finally understood. It turned out that the influential figure in the imperial palace was the emperor, the supreme ruler of the Ziyao Empire! 

“But, why?” Lin Xun couldn’t understand the reason for the emperor to care so much about him. 

“It’s very simple, you are a direct descendant of Duke Daocheng, and you are an official student of Lu Boya. Because of your identity, even if you were trash, His Majesty would take care of you,” Zhao Tailai finally revealed the truth. 

Duke Daochen was Lin Daochen, Lin Xun’s great-grandfather, a true Life Death Stage King. He once fought for the empire and earned great military achievements. Even after his death, the empire would not forget what he had done.

Lu Boya was, of course, Mister Lu, a mysterious old man. Mister Lu had rescued Lin Xun when he was young, then raised him and taught him the art of runes. 

However, Lin Xun had long speculated that Mister Lu had an extremely mysterious and remarkable background based on the fact that the Queen of Dark Night and the empress had both been searching for him and looking for traces of him.  

Zhao Tailai’s words further proved that the emperor was acquainted with Mister Lu!

“I see…” Lin Xun muttered.

Anyone would be stoked if the emperor looked upon them with favor, but Lin Xun was neither happy nor unhappy after learning the truth.

Many memories and past events flooded his mind. He recalled rumors about his great-grandfather Duke Daochen and Mister Lu who raised him since he was a child. 

“If you have some free time, come to the palace for a chat. From now on, you will not be considered an outsider.”

Zhao Tailai relayed a sentence from the empress, startling Lin Xun again. The words were not only friendly but also exceptionally friendly. 

“About...” Lin Xun looked at Zhao Tailai.

“How would I know?” Zhao Tailai donned a strange expression. “But if I were to guess it has to be about the unclear relationship between you and Jingxuan. Otherwise, given the usual temperment of the empress, she wouldn’t pay any attention to you.”

“Is it related to Miss Jingxuan?” Lin Xun tried to digest everything. 

“Nonsense!” Zhao Tailai snapped. “Although the emperor has many descendants, Jingxuan is the only descendant born of the emperor and the empress. Before she left, she repeatedly reminded us to take care of you! Who would believe that you two only have an ordinary relationship?”

”But...it’s a misunderstanding. There is nothing special between Miss Jingxuan and I.” Lin Xun looked confused. 

“Misunderstanding? Haha, okay, go and explain it to the emperor and the empress yourself. See if they believe it or not.” Zhao Tailai narrowed his eyes at Lin Xun as though he was saying ‘stop pretending to be a victim!’

“I won’t go,” Lin Xun bluntly refused. 

Is he joking? If that’s the case, why would I want to explain myself to the couple who held the supreme authority of the empire?

Who knows what they will think of me?

Won’t they see me as a guy with bad intentions towards their daughter?

The more Lin Xun thought about it, the dizzier he felt. He hadn’t been separated from Zhao Jingxuan for long. Why did things suddenly turn to that?

He was most troubled by the fact that Zhao Jingxuan had gone to the Ancient Wasteland Domain, so no one would believe it was a misunderstanding no matter how he explained it. 

The contemptuous look on Zhao Tailai’s face made Lin Xun realize that the misunderstanding was only growing.  

“How troublesome...” Lin Xun sighed.

Zhao Tailai scolded, “Boy, what are you talking about? Troublesome? Do you know what will happen if the emperor and the empress find out what you said?”

“It’s a misunderstanding. I said it was all a misunderstanding...” Lin Xun muttered helplessly. 

There was nothing between him and Zhao Jingxuan, yet the matter seemed to be spiraling out of control. For Lin Xun, it was the first time he experienced something like that, so he felt a little unprepared and annoyed. 

Zhao Tailai snorted coldly, “Hmph, kid, you don’t know how lucky you are. Other people would be filled with gratitude and excitement to receive such a blessing. But you look so troubled. I don’t know if I should say you are dramatic or that you deserve a beating.”

Dramatic?

A beating? 

Lin Xun’s face darkened and just as he was about to say something, hurried footsteps from outside the hall caught his attention.

Soon, Lin Huaiyuan rushed in, reporting, “Patriarch, Lin Zhong and the others have encountered obstacles in their operation. The matter is a little serious and will require your decision!”

“What kind of obstruction?” Lin Xun scrunched his brows. 

Lin Huaiyuan quickly explained, “A member of the Qin Clan called Qin Ziming is refusing to give up on a property of our Lin Clan. It wouldn’t be a big deal to get rid of him alone, but his wife is a descendant of a prince from the imperial family. He and his wife are there right now. It’s...it’s going to be difficult to deal with them...”

A member of the imperial family?

No wonder Uncle Zhong and the others are finding it difficult. We would bring trouble upon ourselves if we offended the imperial family over matters of the Zuo and Qin Clans.  

But…

Lin Xun turned to Zhao Tailai, grinning. “Elder, do you still remember what His Majesty said to you?”