Chapter 90 - 59: Probing
"Dad, did you really give Lin Yan a thousand taels?"
Qian Shuhang's expression was full of dissatisfaction. 'Was that really necessary?'
"Giving him money is to make Lin Yan lower his guard. As for the thousand taels, Lin Yan won't be able to spend it all in a short time. In the end, it will just come back to us. Besides, this will help clear the Qian Family of suspicion. If something unexpected happens later on in Guangping County Town, our Qian Family can get out of it."
Qian Zhengchu stroked his beard, his face filled with a calculating expression.
Those thousand taels were just being temporarily held by Lin Yan.
"And as for Chen Hai, you're telling him to hold off for now?"
"Yes. The new year is approaching, so Lin Yan won't stay in Sanshan County for long. Just keep a close eye on him. When he leaves the county, I will follow him myself."
...
...
Leaving the Qian Mansion, Lin Yan cursed inwardly, 'Old bastard.'
'Qian Zhengchu is definitely up to no good. I'm afraid he's already started plotting against me.'
"Young Master Lin, should we continue to look around the county town?"
"No. Let's go back."
Lin Yan shook his head. He had many things to do today and no time to wander around the county town.
...
「Nightfall」
The Chen Family estate.
The entire estate was shrouded in a suffocating, dead silence.
The servants walked with their heads down, their steps exceptionally light, terrified of making the slightest sound.
In the direction of the main hall, the scent of blood still seemed to linger in the air. An hour ago, two maids had been spotted by the Patriarch chatting with smiles on their faces. He had struck them down with a single palm strike each, killing them on the spot.
In the main hall, Chen Hai's anger had yet to subside.
'My own younger brother is dead. I could accept Qian Shuhang not letting me kill Lin Yan, but then he came again and forbade me from making a move at all, even using his father to pressure me.'
'This is too humiliating!'
'I must avenge my brother. As for what the Qian Family is planning, that's not my concern. The worst that can happen is I leave Sanshan County.'
Chen Hai flipped through the account book in his hands. It listed all the Chen Family's shops and lands. He planned to take inventory; after selling everything, it would be time to avenge his younger brother.
As for his clansmen, he would secretly arrange for them to leave the county in the coming days.
Suddenly, a breeze blew in from the doorway.
Chen Hai subconsciously glanced up at the doorway, then looked back down and continued flipping through the account book.
Just as his hand turned a page, Chen Hai's fingers froze.
'Something's wrong.'
'That breeze wasn't right.'
'It wasn't the breeze itself. It was too quiet.'
A chill ran down Chen Hai's spine, and he snapped his head up.
A flash of sword light had already appeared before him, silent and without a trace.
There was no sound of it cutting through the air, no sharp gust of wind from the blade, not even a reflection on the sword's body.
The blade was like a long-dormant snake, poking its head out from the darkness without a sound.
Chen Hai didn't even have time to see the sword's shape.
The sword light flashed.
His right arm fell to the ground.
"If you dare make a sound, the next place this sword will fall won't be your arm, but your throat."
Chen Hai froze. Even as blood gushed from his right arm, he could only force himself to endure the pain and stare at the intruder. "Who are you? I don't believe my Chen Family has ever offended you."
The man's face was unfamiliar. Chen Hai was certain he had never seen him before. This person was definitely not a Martial Artist from Sanshan County.
'A powerhouse of this age who could sever my arm with a single strike... I couldn't possibly have offended someone like that.'
"Lin Yan."
Lin Yan spoke softly, his longsword in hand. The reason he hadn't gone straight for the throat wasn't that he was incapable, but because he wanted to confirm if Qian Shuhang was the one behind all this.
Lin Yan?
Chen Hai's pupils contracted. The person who had severed his arm with a single blow was actually Lin Yan, the one who had killed his younger brother!
'That business about my brother having the upper hand only to have the tables turned...'
Chen Hai wasn't a fool. He understood in an instant. His brother had never been a match for Lin Yan from the start. This Lin Yan had been deliberately hiding his strength.
But more shocking than the fact that Lin Yan had hidden his strength was the level of power he was now displaying.
Lin Yan's origins couldn't be faked, and his Martial Arts cultivation path could be traced. To be able to sever his arm in a single strike after less than two short years... what kind of talent was this?
"Young Master Lin, my brother and I had no grudge against you. We were ordered to move against you by Qian Shuhang of the Qian Family. If you spare my life, I can tell you a secret."
Without a moment's hesitation, Chen Hai gave up Qian Shuhang. His brother had been killed, yet Qian Shuhang had forbidden him from taking revenge. And now, it was clear he was no match for Lin Yan anyway.
But because of all this, he hated Qian Shuhang even more.
'If Qian Shuhang didn't know Lin Yan was hiding his strength and still forbade me from taking revenge, he's despicable!'
'If Qian Shuhang *did* know Lin Yan's true strength and still sent my brother after him, he sent him to his death. That's just as despicable!'
When it came to hatred, while he certainly hated Lin Yan, he hated Qian Shuhang just as much.
"Alright," Lin Yan nodded, agreeing readily.
Seeing Lin Yan agree so readily, Chen Hai became hesitant.
"I have no grudge against your Chen Family. Your brother is the one who died, and now your right hand is gone. Your Martial Arts strength has plummeted. It doesn't matter to me whether I kill you or not. Don't tell me you'd still dare to seek revenge against me?"
Hearing Lin Yan's explanation, Chen Hai thought about it and realized it was true. If he managed to survive this, he would absolutely not dare to seek revenge on Lin Yan.
Not unless Lin Yan was crippled by someone else one day.
"Thank you for your magnanimity, Young Master Lin." Chen Hai thanked him through the pain. "Qian Shuhang ordered me to deal with you, Young Master Lin, but he specifically instructed that I was only to drive you out of Sanshan County and was not allowed to kill you."
"Is that all?"
"That's all, but in my opinion..."
Chen Hai held something back, not mentioning that Qian Shuhang had come by today and forbidden him from acting at all.
It wasn't that he wanted to use this information to bargain for his life; he purely wanted Lin Yan and Qian Shuhang to confront each other, hopefully to their mutual destruction.
SWISH!
A sword light flashed. Chen Hai remained frozen in place, his mouth still open, like a statue that had been suddenly stopped in time.
A drop of blood seeped from his throat.
Then a second, and a third.
The wound was so fine it was almost invisible, yet it had precisely severed his windpipe and blood vessels.
Chen Hai's eyes were filled with disbelief. His lips moved, trying to say something, but only a garbled gurgle came out. He stared fixedly at Lin Yan before collapsing to the ground with a THUD.
He didn't understand why Lin Yan had struck before he had finished speaking.
He understood even less why Lin Yan had gone back on his word after agreeing to spare him.
Looking at Chen Hai's wide, unseeing eyes, Lin Yan's expression remained unchanged. 'Sparing Chen Hai was never an option.'
As for going back on his word, Lin Yan didn't see it that way. He had long since stripped Chen Hai of his humanity.
'There's no need to keep promises to something that isn't human.'
Besides, Chen Hai's analysis was useless to him. The information Chen Hai had was less than what he already knew.
'He can't kill me, only drive me out of Sanshan County...'
'Acting as a lobbyist for the Four Seas Gang...'
'Why would he be willing to part with five hundred taels...'
'Why did he think I could persuade my master...'
Lin Yan's eyes narrowed slightly. He was beginning to guess what Qian Shuhang was planning.
He felt as if he had experienced this scene before.
Someone from the Inspection Bureau had tried to kill him and frame the Four Seas Gang.
Now, he was afraid Qian Shuhang was planning the exact same thing.
A cold glint appeared in Lin Yan's eyes. 'Do they think that just because I have a humble background and no powerful backer, I can be molded and crushed like clay?'
Glancing at the two Martial Arts Fruits on his Martial Arts Tree, accumulated from the two Chen brothers, Lin Yan didn't hesitate. He whispered inwardly: 'Refine!'
Sixteen years of sword practice, comprehended in an instant.
In his mind, the purple leaf representing the Jinghong Sword Technique now had three new white veins on it.
Twelve in total!
Lin Yan drew his sword. With a single swing, twelve strands of Sword Silk spiraled out.