"Lin Hao, you can eat anything you want, but you can't speak recklessly. I advise you to mind your big mouth. How could a grand steward look up to a disciple like you? Even if he really colluded with Lin Zhan, it wouldn't be your turn," a fat man in black glanced at Lin Hao and said coldly with a smile.
"Hehe, Brother Lin Kuan is absolutely right. You are just an ordinary outer sect disciple. In the outer sect rankings, you are only in the nineties. How dare you defame the grand steward?" another young man added.
"Enough." Elder Lin Chen waved his hand, and no one dared to say more.
"Lin Hao, step back for now. I will investigate this matter. If what you say is true, the headquarters of Fenglin Town will handle it," Elder Jiang Chen said.
Hearing this, Lin Hao nodded and stepped back.
...
Unexpectedly, the headquarters acted very efficiently and sent people to investigate in Fenglin Town on the same day.
After the investigation, it turned out that Lin Hao had not lied, and everything he said was true.
The next day, news came that the senior officials of the Fenglin Town branch were expelled from the clan, and even the grand steward of the headquarters was reprimanded by Elder Lin Chen.
However, since the grand steward held a high position and was a senior official of the headquarters, he was only reprimanded and not punished in any substantial way.
Lin Hao did not find anything wrong with this handling by the headquarters. After all, the grand steward had a distinguished status, and an ordinary outer sect disciple could not have a substantial impact on him.
Today, Lin Hao found Elder Lin Chen, hoping to let Yurao stay in the Lin family, but the elder refused outright.
Yurao was not a member of the Lin family, and it was against the rules for her to live there permanently. However, considering that Lin Hao had suffered a lot in Fenglin Town due to the headquarters, Elder Lin Chen arranged a residence for Yurao outside the Lin family.
The next day.
Lin Hao walked to the training ground, intending to find some medicinal herbs to concoct the 'Spirit Root Rebuilding Pill.' Suddenly, a fat man blocked his way. "Lin Hao, you little brat, your mouth is so foul. Being able to return to the headquarters is already a great fortune for you, and you still dare to spread rumors and file complaints. I think you want to be skinned alive!"
At that moment, many outer sect disciples were practicing around the training ground. Seeing the commotion, they all gathered around.
This fat man was Lin Kuan. When Lin Hao complained to the elder yesterday, he had intended to teach Lin Hao a lesson.
"If I were spreading rumors, I would be the one punished. This matter has nothing to do with you. Move aside," Lin Hao looked up and glanced at Lin Kuan.
Lin Kuan and his brother Lin Tao had a very good relationship with the son of the grand steward. Since Lin Hao had complained about the grand steward, Lin Kuan naturally wanted to give Lin Hao a taste of his power.
"Hehe... Has nothing to do with me? Today, I will break your dog teeth and show you whether it has anything to do with me or not." Lin Kuan was proud, having opened the second Earth Gate and reached the peak of the second level of the Spirit Body.
If Lin Hao's spirit roots had not been shattered, Lin Kuan would still be slightly weaker than him. But now, he could crush Lin Hao like an ant with just one finger.
The outer sect disciples of the Lin family did not have high hopes for Lin Hao.
If the two really fought, Lin Hao would be beaten down in just two or three moves.
"I don't want to argue with you. Move aside." Lin Hao raised an eyebrow, unwilling to cause unnecessary trouble.
He was no longer the Nine Heavens Emperor. In this new life, he was just Lin Hao.
Even with the memories of the Nine Heavens Emperor, Lin Hao could not act as he did in his previous life.
Before he became strong enough to ignore everything, he had to remain low-key. Otherwise, if he showed off, he might offend many people and risk his life.
Therefore, as long as he could avoid a fight, Lin Hao would try to avoid it.
The outer sect disciples saw Lin Hao back down and thought he was afraid of Lin Kuan, so they couldn't help but laugh.
...
"Little brat, save your words! Today, I will show you the power of overwhelming force!" Lin Kuan roared, looking like a fierce tiger, full of overwhelming pressure.
"Eight Trigram Tiger Power?!"
"Lin Kuan is already a fierce tiger spirit body. With the help of the Eight Trigram Tiger Power, it won't be long before he reaches the third level of the spirit body!"
Some disciples were surprised.
At that moment, Lin Hao did not move, just calmly observing Lin Kuan.
With just one glance, he found at least three weaknesses.
Lin Hao was the Nine Heavens Emperor in his previous life. Even without his strength, his insight and martial arts expertise remained.
As long as the difference in strength was not too great, finding a few weaknesses was easy.
"Ah... Lin Hao is in trouble now. How can he fight Lin Kuan with such a huge gap in strength?"
"There's nothing to be done. Lin Hao should have kept quiet after returning to the headquarters. He couldn't control his mouth, so he deserves to suffer."
Some sighed, feeling sorry for Lin Hao, while others thought he brought it upon himself.
...
"Haha, Lin Hao, you little scoundrel, today I will make you tremble under my tiger's might and beg for mercy on your knees!" Lin Kuan laughed wildly. His fat body was surprisingly agile. He leaped with both feet and charged straight at Lin Hao like a tiger descending from a mountain, unstoppable and ready to destroy everything!
Lin Hao's gaze remained fixed on Lin Kuan.
When Lin Kuan pounced like a tiger, Lin Hao's body suddenly bent, and his right arm shot up, turning into a claw. In a flash, he grabbed Lin Kuan's collar.
At that moment, Lin Kuan's overwhelming attack was awkwardly suspended in mid-air, held above Lin Hao's head.
"Didn't I tell you to move aside... Can't you understand human language!" Lin Hao roared, swinging his right arm forward with great force.
Swoosh!
The sound of breaking air echoed as Lin Kuan's large body flew through the air like a meteor and crashed to the ground, turning from a tiger descending from a mountain into a tiger eating dirt...
This scene left the outer sect disciples in shock, and some couldn't believe their eyes.
Lin Kuan, who had been shouting about crippling Lin Hao, was now lying on the ground in a miserable state.
This was a complete reversal!
Lin Hao had his principles. He didn't want to cause unnecessary trouble, but that didn't mean he was afraid of trouble.
In both his past and present life, Lin Hao was never one to back down, especially when he was still a young lord, he was incredibly arrogant.
"I... I made a mistake earlier... That doesn't count!"
After a moment, Lin Kuan recovered and got up, glaring at Lin Hao.
He thought he had been careless, jumping like a tiger and leaving himself vulnerable, which allowed Lin Hao to take advantage.
However, Lin Hao ignored Lin Kuan and walked straight ahead.
"Little scoundrel, you dare to be so arrogant, I will break all your teeth!" Lin Kuan, who had just fallen flat on his face, was now even more furious at Lin Hao's disregard.
A fierce tiger-like aura emanated from his body, giving the impression that Lin Kuan had truly transformed into a tiger, roaring to the sky.
"Get lost!" Lin Hao didn't even turn his head, kicking backward and hitting Lin Kuan's abdomen as he rushed forward.
A loud thud echoed as Lin Kuan was sent flying again, leaving a several-meter-long drag mark on the ground.
"Lin Hao... You... You wait... You wait, my big brother will make you pay!" Lin Kuan struggled to get up, not daring to make another move.
Hearing this, Lin Hao didn't look back and walked out of the Lin family estate.
"Lin Kuan's big brother is Lin Tao... He ranks in the top ten of the outer sect rankings. Lin Hao is in big trouble now!"
"It's said that Lin Tao's strength has improved recently, and he might have a chance to break into the top five!"
"Lin Hao's strength is also good, and it was unexpected that he could defeat Lin Kuan. But if he faces Lin Tao, he won't even have a chance to fight back!"
"The outer sect competition is about to start, and many elite disciples are training hard. I hope Lin Tao won't waste time on a small fry like Lin Hao, or Lin Hao will be in for a rough time!"
The outer sect disciples watching from the side commented.
Lin Hao didn't think too much about it. His top priority was to refine the 'Rebuilding Pill' first; otherwise, everything else was meaningless.
"However, I have no money at all. How can I get the ingredients for the Rebuilding Pill?" Halfway through, Lin Hao suddenly remembered that he had no silver on him.
The monthly salary from the headquarters was only a dozen or so silver taels, which was a drop in the bucket compared to the cost of the medicinal herbs he needed.
If he went back to the clan to borrow money, it would be inappropriate, and no one would likely lend him anything.
For now, Lin Hao had two options.
The first option was to go to the mountains and hunt powerful beasts. Their hides could be used to make sturdy armor, their fangs and claws to forge magical weapons, and some could even be used to refine medicinal pills.
After some thought, Lin Hao abandoned this option.
The powerful beasts in the mountains were not something he could handle at the moment, and a slight mistake could cost him his life.
So, Lin Hao was left with only the second option.
He could write down some special martial arts techniques from his memory and auction them off at the auction house. This would be safer.
High-level martial arts techniques were complex and mostly required the practitioner to understand them through personal experience, making it difficult to write them down as manuals.
Moreover, high-level martial arts techniques required a strong foundation.
The martial arts techniques in Lin Hao's memory were almost exclusively suitable for top-tier practitioners. Ordinary practitioners could not understand them, and attempting to practice them would damage their martial arts foundation.
"In my memory, only the 'Wind and Thunder Palm' is a special martial arts technique suitable for ordinary practitioners..." Lin Hao thought for a moment, then prepared a pen and paper and wrote down the 'Wind and Thunder Palm.'
Although the 'Wind and Thunder Palm' was not a high-level technique, its power was considerable, and it should fetch a good price.
...
In Liuyun City, the black market was the only place for transactions, and the auction house was a bit farther away.
After some consideration, Lin Hao decided to go to the auction house, as it was more formal and reliable.
The auction house was located in a small town outside Liuyun City, run by a First Heaven power, where no one dared to cause trouble.
A First Heaven power required a strong individual who had opened the First Heaven Gate, qualifying it as a First Heaven power.
The four major families in Liuyun City, at their strongest, had only opened the third or fourth Earth Gates, far from the level of a First Heaven power.
After walking for two hours, Lin Hao finally arrived at the auction house.
In front of him was a luxurious pavilion, with several fully armed guards at the entrance.
"Young man, stop!" Suddenly, several guards blocked Lin Hao. One of them asked, "Do you have an invitation?"
"No," Lin Hao shook his head, speaking the truth.
"If you don't have an invitation, you cannot enter the auction house. Please leave," the guards did not intend to let Lin Hao into the pavilion.