Zhao Lin and Liang Song didn’t take the closer south gate. Instead, they took a detour and entered the city through the west gate.

Beard thought the two of them had escaped and was busy searching everywhere. He never would have imagined they would return, so they encountered no resistance.

"I’m heading to the training hall. You be careful."

After entering the city, Liang Song parted ways with Zhao Lin and headed for the training hall.

Zhao Lin gave the city guards fifty wen and received permission to climb the gate tower.

He wanted to see his family off from here.

As the red sun began to rise, an escort convoy flying the banner of the Xinglong Escort Agency emerged from the city gate and wound its way east.

Zhao Lin knew his parents and older brother were in one of those carriages.

He hid behind a parapet, his eyes fixed on the convoy, watching as it traveled into the distance until it finally disappeared from view.

’Everything was finally starting to look up. I can’t believe it all went to hell overnight.’

Anger, indignation, helplessness... A storm of emotions swirled in his heart, finally coalescing into a single sigh.

...

’Eight hundred twelve, eight hundred thirteen... Keep going!’

In the front courtyard of the Liuhe Sect, Zhao Lin was bare-chested, two heavy iron sandbags slung over his back. He was continuously doing weighted squats.

Having been unable to train properly for several days, Zhao Lin had immediately requested an increased training regimen upon his return.

After reaching the First Layer of the Power Realm, one entered the stage of tempering sinews and bones.

The weighted stretches not only trained his sinews but also stimulated his deep muscle tissues and increased his bone density.

Zhao Lin completed a thousand weighted squats in one go. He then began swinging the iron sandbags, pummeling his body from head to toe, training with a reckless disregard for his own stamina.

Yuan Cheng didn’t know the specifics, but he could guess that Zhao Lin’s family had suffered some misfortune. "You should take it easy," he advised. "Even a body forged from iron couldn’t withstand this kind of training."

Although Zhao Lin had formally become Zhu Huaishan’s disciple, he was still in the Power Realm. As such, Yuan Cheng was still in charge of his training, with Zhu Huaishan only offering occasional pointers.

"Senior Yuan, I know my limits."

Zhao Lin replied in a low voice, his movements never ceasing.

He wanted to train conventionally, step by step, but his enemies wouldn’t give him the time to grow. He had to increase his strength as quickly as possible.

The Spirit Beast Scroll was still providing a steady stream of Primordial Qi, transforming and strengthening his body. But he couldn’t rely solely on his unique advantage; he had to put in the effort himself.

During the midday break, Zhu Huaishan came to the front courtyard and called Zhao Lin over.

"Where are you staying now?"

Zhao Lin replied, "I’ve found a house on Shuncheng Street, Master."

"Mm, that area is relatively safe."

Zhu Huaishan nodded and glanced at Zhao Lin. "I didn’t offer you sanctuary within the Liuhe Sect. What are your thoughts on that?"

Zhao Lin quickly replied, "Master, your help in getting my family out of the city was already an immense kindness. I could ask for nothing more."

"I have to consider the safety of the other disciples."

Zhu Huaishan paused for a moment before continuing, "What happened is certainly a terrible thing for you. But from another perspective, it might not be a bad thing at all."

A bitter taste filled Zhao Lin’s mouth. ’How could this possibly be a good thing?’

Zhu Huaishan smiled faintly and explained, "I have seen many gifted individuals whose only motivation for practicing martial arts is to be stronger than others."

"It’s difficult to achieve greatness with that kind of mindset. You, on the other hand, now have a clear goal!"

’He has a point,’ Zhao Lin thought. His initial motivation for training was to improve his family’s circumstances and fulfill a youthful dream of martial heroism. Now, his mindset had completely changed.

"Thank you for your guidance, Master."

Zhu Huaishan waved his hand. "Go on. This is a test for you, a form of tempering. If you can overcome this obstacle, there will be little that can stop you in the future."

At sunset, Zhao Lin left the Liuhe Sect and returned to the house on Shuncheng Street to meet up with Liang Song.

The craftsmen were just packing up for the day. Zhao Lin checked on the house’s renovation progress. The outer wall of the main building was already three bricks high, and the door had been taken down.

"Good work. If you can finish within a month, I’ll add a bonus of five hundred wen for every day you finish early. But of course, the quality must be guaranteed."

The foreman’s eyes lit up. "Don’t you worry, boss," he said quickly. "We’ve never messed up a job."

After the craftsmen left, Liang Song asked Zhao Lin, "What’s the plan for tonight? Are we staying in the city or heading out?"

Martial artists needed to get enough rest, or they wouldn’t be able to handle their intense training.

"Let’s go back to the cellar. It’s not safe in the city."

Zhao Lin thought for a moment. "We need to grab a few things first."

Liang Song knew Zhao Lin was always thorough, so he didn’t ask questions and simply followed him into a general store.

"Shopkeep, a bag of chili powder, please. The fine-ground kind."

Zhao Lin said as soon as he entered the shop.

He remembered reading a news story in his past life about a drug trafficker who used chili and Sichuan pepper powder to throw off police dogs. Though the criminal was eventually caught and punished, the idea itself was worth borrowing.

Liang Song immediately understood his plan and gave him a discreet thumbs-up.

They planned to leave the city through the north gate this time. They hadn’t gone far before they noticed two people tailing them.

Judging by their clothes and demeanor, they seemed to be wandering martial artists or members of a gang.

"Why are you following us?" Zhao Lin suddenly stopped and demanded.

The two men just sneered.

"Well, listen to you. It’s a public road, isn’t it? We can walk it just the same as you."

"Exactly! Mind your own damn business!"

Zhao Lin and Liang Song ignored them and continued north, soon arriving near the City God Temple.

The City God Temple, located in the northern part of Qinghe County, was a gathering place for the dregs of society—vagrants, beggars, thugs, and other riffraff.

The local constables and government officials rarely came here, and ordinary folk preferred to give the place a wide berth.

As Zhao Lin and Liang Song passed the City God Temple, they suddenly picked up their pace and vanished around the side of the main hall’s entrance.

"They’re running?"

"After them!"

Seeing that they were about to lose their targets, the two men immediately broke into a run.

As they rounded the corner, two fists flew out to meet them.

"OOF!"

The two men cried out in pain and collapsed. Before they could even struggle to their feet, Zhao Lin and Liang Song were on top of them, delivering a merciless beating.

They then relieved the two of all their money and valuables.

Having dealt with their tails, Zhao Lin and Liang Song sprinted for the north gate.

On the way, they counted the money. Between this and their previous haul, they had stolen enough to pay for the house.

Beard’s lookouts had clearly learned their lesson from the day before. After Zhao Lin and Liang Song left the city, they didn’t see anyone tailing them.

Before long, however, the sound of a bamboo whistle echoed from the farmland on either side of the road.

The thundering of hooves soon followed.

This time, Beard had sent even more men—a group of over thirty riders. Their leader was a portly man with a purple face, and perched on his shoulder was a silver-gray Fragrant Mink.

"Stop them!"

The purple-faced man barked an order. He sent a detachment of riders galloping toward the city gate to cut off their retreat, then led the main force in a charge toward Zhao Lin.

Zhao Lin grabbed Liang Song, and in a few quick leaps, they bounded off the road and onto a narrow path through the fields.

The purple-faced man seemed to have anticipated this. Unhurried, he turned to the Fragrant Mink on his shoulder and commanded, "Jiu Mao, go!"

The Fragrant Mink, Jiu Mao, was perfectly obedient. With a SWOOSH, it leaped to the ground and shot after Zhao Lin, its speed rivaling that of a galloping horse.

Zhao Lin had noticed the Fragrant Mink earlier. After running for a while, he abruptly came to a halt.

The Fragrant Mink was exceptionally clever. When it saw Zhao Lin stop, it stopped too, even backing away a few steps.

’Cunning little beast!’

Zhao Lin snorted and took off running again. The Fragrant Mink immediately gave chase.

After this happened a few more times, Zhao Lin crested a small hill. He quickly pulled the chili powder from his robes, scattering it along the path before hiding behind a large tree to watch.

The Fragrant Mink, unaware of the trap, periodically lowered its head to sniff the ground as it ran. It continued doing so until it inhaled a large dose of the chili powder.

"ACHOO!"

The more sensitive its sense of smell, the more violently it reacted to the irritant.

Tears streamed from the Fragrant Mink’s eyes as it was overcome by a fit of violent, uncontrollable sneezing. It tumbled head over heels, rolling all the way down the hill.

"Jiu Mao! Jiu Mao, wake up!"

The purple-faced man cried out in anguish as he ran over to his beast.

Zhao Lin let out a loud laugh, then led Liang Song in the direction of Baitou Mountain.