Editor: Luo Lacc
Qi Kingdom, Sishui City.
At the Lin family manor, within the vast training ground, an aptitude test was underway.
In the center of the training ground, two stone platforms had been erected, each bearing a transparent crystal.
Surrounding them were members of the Lin family, as well as representatives from several families of equal standing in Sishui City, and even the Sishui City Lord himself, all observing the test on the stone platforms.
“Mortal Physique Level Three, Elementary Spiritual Power.”
“Mortal Physique Level Two, Elementary Spiritual Power.”
“Mortal Physique Level Four, Elementary Spiritual Power.”
…
One by one, the Lin family’s descendants approached the stone platforms, moving from one to the other, placing their hands on the crystals. The crystals emitted a burst of light. The ceremony was presided over by a Lin family elder.
The assessment was divided into two parts: one for physical constitution and the other for Spiritual Power. Physical constitution determined a person’s cultivation talent; the higher the level, the faster the cultivation speed. Spiritual Power, however, represented comprehension.
Compared to the latter, ordinary people were more concerned with physical constitution. As for Spiritual Power, an average level was sufficient; a higher level was merely an added bonus, not a significant difference. As long as one’s physical constitution was good, their cultivation talent would be considered excellent.
Within the Lin family, anyone with a Level Four physical constitution was considered a genius and would receive focused training from the family.
In the training ground, many eyes were fixed on a young man and woman at the front, their gazes filled with envy.
The handsome youth, clad in brocade robes and jade attire, wore a proud smile. Beside him, leaning intimately, was an exquisite-faced maiden with a joyful smile, beautiful and charming, dressed in red.
The youth was Lin Yu, the son of the Lin family head. It was said that he had already been tested, and his talent was exceptionally good.
The red-robed maiden, however, was not originally from the Lin family. Due to her beauty, she had caught the eye of the Lin family’s young master, becoming his companion. She had thus shed her former status and entered the Lin family’s core.
“Brother Yu, with today’s test, when they learn of your physique later, they will surely be shocked beyond belief. In the Lin family, only Brother Yu truly deserves the title of genius.”
The red-robed maiden said, looking at Lin Yu with a deeply affectionate expression. Lin Yu’s smile grew even brighter. He gently stroked the girl’s face, then glanced at a youth at the very back, a look of amusement on his face.
“Naturally, in the Lin family, whose talent could possibly surpass mine? A bastard, a piece of trash, how could he ever compare to me? Wan Yue, today I want to show you that your choice was not wrong.”
“With me, you will have a smooth and brilliant path. But with him, you are destined to never rise again.”
Lin Yu said, his gaze settling on the youth at the very back, his face filled with arrogance.
Many eyes also fell upon this youth, followed by a chorus of jeers and relentless mockery.
At the very back of the training ground, a youth in purple robes stood alone. Several meters around him, there was no one, as if people deliberately avoided him, looking at him with expressions of disgust.
“Ye Ling, you’re not a member of the Lin family. What right do you have to be here testing your physique? Get lost!”
“Bastard, if I were you, I’d obediently wait for death somewhere no one knows.”
“Scram! The Lin family doesn’t welcome you.”
…
Looking at him, not a single person had a pleasant expression; all were mocking and insulting. Even some observing elders of the Lin family had their faces darken for a moment, as if this young man shouldn't have appeared here.
The young man stood amidst the crowd, mocked and insulted by everyone. He looked at the young man and woman at the very front, clenched his fists, then released them, his face once again regaining its calm.
Although he was among this crowd, he seemed to stand apart, like an observer, watching their ugly expressions with a calm demeanor. For over a decade, he had grown accustomed to it; in the Lin family, bearing the surname Ye, he was destined to be unwelcome.
He bore his father's surname, not his mother's. His mother's surname was Lin, and she was the younger sister of the Lin family patriarch.
His father was unknown, only that his surname was Ye. Beyond that, there was no other information.
Fifteen years ago, his mother, Lin Ling, returned from outside, covered in blood, yet she was pregnant. This shocked the entire Lin family. Eventually, Ye Ling was born, and Lin Ling died shortly after.
Lin Ling, the only monstrous genius in the entire Lin family for hundreds of years, had already broken through to the Heavenly Martial Realm, yet she died just like that. Afterward, the Lin family's status plummeted, losing its dominant position in Sishui City, leading to the current three-way standoff between the families, with the City Lord at the top.
In the end, the culprit was Ye Ling. Because of him, Lin Ling died; because of him, the Lin family's strength sharply declined, suppressed by the two great families and the City Lord's Mansion, losing its standing in Sishui City.
This wasn't the most important thing; what truly caused such great hostility from everyone in the Lin family was what Lin Ling said before her death.
"His surname is Ye, and his name is Ye Ling."
Born in the Lin family, causing the downfall of the Lin family's strongest expert, yet not bearing the Lin surname, but Ye. To them, Ye Ling was not considered a member of the Lin family, but a bastard, a wild child.
They had once searched for a Ye family clan in the Qi Kingdom, but there was no major Ye clan. No one recognized Lin Ling, and it was unknown whether this person was even from the Qi Kingdom, or who he truly was.
Ye Ling's calmness made the crowd even more frustrated. Aside from verbal insults, they could do nothing else.
"Ye Ling, you can't even support your own woman. If I were you, I'd just die."
"Look at Brother Lin Yu, he's the best match for Miss Wan Yue. You're just a bastard, a piece of trash."
After a few more curses, or perhaps tired of cursing, no one paid attention to Ye Ling anymore. They shifted their attention back to the testing platform. From beginning to end, Ye Ling's expression showed not a single ripple.
His gaze swept around, paused briefly on the young woman, then moved away.
Ye Wan Yue was a girl Lin Ling had rescued on the road, similar in age to Ye Ling. She wasn't Ye Ling's confidante or anything, just a maid. Ye Ling had once treated her like family, like a younger sister, never expecting her to ultimately betray him and throw herself into the arms of the Lin family's young master.
However, he didn't care. In this world, he didn't need anyone's pity; he alone was enough.
"Next up, Lin Yu!"
On the stone platform, the presiding elder called out. Then everyone's gaze gathered on Lin Yu. Lin Yu smiled faintly, a confident look on his face, and stepped onto the first stone pedestal.
"A handsome young man, with steady steps, unconcerned with gains or losses. The Lin family has an heir!"
“A tiger father doesn't beget a dog son, and Lâm Vũ is naturally just as remarkable. Brother Lâm Tần, it seems the Lâm family is about to produce another monstrous genius.”
Watching Lâm Vũ, everyone praised him incessantly. On the viewing platform, a middle-aged man in green robes smiled, looking at Lâm Vũ on the stone platform with a joyful expression. He was extremely satisfied with Lâm Vũ.