The Lin's Patriarch is weird.

Time was the greatest opponent of all living beings.

Lin Xuan had long since lost track of when the sun had set and the moon had risen as he immersed himself in the endless affairs of the Lin Family.

Only after finishing the last scroll before him did he finally set his brush aside.

He leaned back slightly before pushing the neatly stacked scrolls to one side of the desk.

"...That should be enough for today."

Rising from his seat, he walked toward the open window and quietly gazed out at the moonlit estate.

The night was peaceful.

A cool breeze drifted into the study, carrying the faint fragrance of flowers from the courtyard below.

Just then, something flashed across the corner of his vision.

A tiny black figure shot past the window at astonishing speed.

Lin Xuan narrowed his eyes.

"...A fly?"

The next instant, his figure disappeared from the study.

Whoosh!

Within a single breath, he had already caught up to the fleeing figure.

His hand shot forward without the slightest hesitation and grabbed the person’s collar from behind.

The figure froze instantly.

Lin Xuan raised an eyebrow as he looked at the familiar little girl suspended in midair.

"So..."

His expression became half amused and half helpless.

"Have you already finished writing the clan rules ten thousand times?"

Lin Zhaoyue looked up at him and then with a bright smile, she said,"No, but I found a clue about a whole group of traitors hiding within our family!"

Lin Xuan’s expression immediately turned serious.

"...Traitors?"

He released his grip on her collar and his brows gradually knitted together.

The first people who came to mind were the former supporters of Lin Zhenghai.

Although Lin Zhenghai himself was gone, many elders and branch leaders had once stood behind him.

Could they be dissatisfied with the current situation?

Lin Xuan looked directly into his daughter’s eyes.

"What happened?"

Lin Zhaoyue met his gaze.

She knew better than anyone how much her father trusted her.

Even when her words sounded utterly unbelievable, he had never dismissed them outright.

Taking a small breath, she spoke calmly.

"I was poisoned during one of my meals."

The instant those words left her mouth, Lin Xuan’s expression changed dramatically.

"What?"

His voice dropped several degrees and without another word, his spiritual sense immediately enveloped Lin Zhaoyue from head to toe.

"Don’t move and let me check."

His spiritual sense swept through every meridian, every organ, and every inch of her body with meticulous precision, searching for even the slightest trace of poison.

After a long thorough check, he came to the conclusion that there was no sign of poison inside of her.

Just as Lin Xuan was about to withdraw his spiritual sense, he suddenly paused and narrowed his eyes.

His spiritual sense focused on a nearly imperceptible fluctuation hidden deep within her sea of consciousness.

It was incredibly well concealed.

Had he not examined her personally with the perception of a Nascent Soul expert, even he might have overlooked it.

"There it is."

Lin Xuan’s expression darkened.

"Someone planted a soul mark on you."

Lin Zhaoyue’s pupils contracted.

"A soul mark?"

Lin Xuan gave a slight nod.

"You know what a soul mark is, don’t you?"

"I do."

Lin Zhaoyue nodded before letting out a helpless smile.

"Unfortunately, there’s nothing we can do about it for the time being."

She shrugged lightly.

"Our family doesn’t possess any soul techniques, and the few soul arts I know aren’t compatible with you. Forcing them would only do more harm than good."

She had immediately accepted that fact.

Soul techniques were among the rarest inheritances in the cultivation world.

Even in her previous life, only a handful of major powers possessed complete soul cultivation methods.

Lin Xuan suddenly chuckled.

"Who told you that?"

Fortunately, he had spent the past several months cultivating the soul technique rewarded by the system.

The Divine Soul Manifestation Art.

Although he had yet to reach profound mastery, removing a mere soul mark should pose no difficulty.

Lin Xuan slowly raised a finger and a strand of pure soul power gathered at its tip.

The instant that strand entered Lin Zhaoyue’s sea of consciousness, it transformed into a tiny blade of soul energy.

With absolute precision, it severed the hidden soul mark.

The mark didn’t even have time to react.

It silently dispersed into countless motes of light before disappearing without leaving behind the slightest trace.

Lin Xuan withdrew his finger.

"...It’s gone."

A hint of admiration flashed through his eyes.

As expected of a technique rewarded by the system.

The Divine Soul Manifestation Art was flawless.

From beginning to end, it had erased the soul mark without causing even the slightest disturbance to Lin Zhaoyue’s soul.

It was as though the mark had never existed in the first place.

Lin Zhaoyue stood rooted to the spot.

Her bright eyes stared unblinkingly at Lin Xuan.

"...Father."

Her voice carried an excitement she could barely suppress.

"When... will you teach me that soul cultivation technique?"

She had witnessed countless soul techniques over the course of her previous life.

Some specialized in attacks, others in defense, while many focused solely on tempering one’s divine soul.

Yet she had never seen one as refined as the technique her father had just used.

There had been no violent collision of soul power or forceful suppression.

There had been no damage to her sea of consciousness whatsoever!

The foreign soul mark had simply... disappeared.

The experience was smooth and gentle, almost soothing.

Lin Zhaoyue looked at Lin Xuan as though she had just discovered a walking treasure vault.

First came the Cloud Chasing Movement Technique.

Then the unbelievably profound Flowing Cloud Fan Art.

Now...

A mysterious soul cultivation technique that surpassed every soul art she had ever encountered.

Cultivating the soul had always been the very foundation of the Nascent Soul Realm.

Without a sufficiently powerful soul, breaking through that realm was nothing more than wishful thinking.

Yet the technique her father possessed seemed capable of nurturing the soul with astonishing efficiency while effortlessly dismantling foreign soul techniques.

The more she thought about it, the brighter her eyes became.

Lin Xuan looked at her eager expression and could already guess what was going through her mind.

He couldn’t help shaking his head.

"...We’ll talk about it after you’ve finished copying the clan rules."

Before Lin Zhaoyue could protest, he reached over, grabbed her by the collar once again, and lifted her effortlessly into the air.

"Eh?"

The next moment, Lin Xuan stepped forward.

Whoosh!

The surrounding scenery blurred as he headed straight toward his study.

Unlike before, however, his expression had become completely serious.

His anger over Lin Zhaoyue sneaking out had long since disappeared and in its place was caution.

Someone capable of planting a soul mark meant that the enemy hiding within the Lin Family was certainly at the Nascent Soul expert and knew a soul technique.

That was no longer a trivial matter.

Nestled securely in Lin Xuan’s arms, Lin Zhaoyue tilted her head before suddenly speaking.

"Papa."

Lin Xuan glanced down at her. "What is it?"

She smiled.

"Now that you’ve forcibly erased the soul mark, the person who planted it should’ve suffered a considerable backlash."

Her eyes sparkled with expectation.

"If we search for someone whose soul is injured and is at the Nascent soul realm, we’ll have found the culprit."