Chapter 11: The Old Immortal’s Dream Visit

"That was one hundred spirit stones, not ten! Sometimes I seriously doubt whether Big Brother and I are even your biological sons."

With a loud smack, Lin Qin threw the vegetables he had just bought onto the ground, glaring at Lin Binhong. "You little brat! Getting bold now, huh? Talking back to your father—looks like someone's asking for a beating!"

Chaos broke out immediately.

Back when Lin Binhong was born, Lin Qin had gone off to war. He was gone for three years.

During those three years, Lin Binhong never even saw a portrait of his father. He only had his mother's tales of how brave and heroic his father was. He admired him deeply, secretly vowing that when he grew up, he too would become a man of honor, a fearless warrior who would defend his country and protect his people.

But all of that changed once school started. The other kids mocked him, saying he was a fatherless orphan, that his dad had abandoned him.

Those cruel words pierced Lin Binhong's young heart. He threw punches to defend his father, to defend a bond he'd never even experienced. But when his father finally returned, all he got were scoldings—and a new baby brother.

Seeing his parents laughing joyfully as they held Lin Binbin, Lin Binhong suddenly felt like an outsider in his own family.

That bottled-up resentment twisted his personality. He began breaking desks, shoving kids into ponds, doing every rotten thing he could think of—all in hopes that his father would finally look at him, finally care.

But all he ever got in return were pitch-black punishment rooms and the sting of a rattan cane.

A cold smirk crept onto Lin Binhong's face. He'd had enough of this family. "Give it a rest. You act like you care so much—be careful or you might start believing it yourself."

The room froze.

Lin Xiao, who had been trying to mediate, immediately shouted, "Xiao Hong! Watch your mouth!"

But Lin Binhong wasn't backing down. "It's true. Dad told us before—if we worked hard, he'd buy us new clothes. And now? He spent it all on a useless spirit beast egg for Third Brother! He knows full well that all of us Lin family members had our spirit roots extracted—we three have no beast-taming aptitude at all, yet he—"

Smack!

Overcome with rage, Lin Qin slapped him across the face.

Lin Binhong's face twisted with fury. He stared at his father, eyes colder than ever.

"Xiao Hong, calm down," Lin Xiao tried to interject. "Dad only meant—"

Bang!

The sound of the door slamming cut him off.

The living room fell into a dead silence. It felt like winter had crept in.

Lin Binbin couldn't hold back anymore. He pushed open the door and walked out, only to see his big brother Lin Xiao turning to look at him, his face filled with worry and gloom.

Poverty had magnified every disaster in this family—one problem tugged at the whole.

Lin Binbin's eyes flicked around the room. He placed a pouch of spirit stones on the table.

"Dad, take this money and buy clothes for Big Brother and Second Brother."

Lin Qin was stunned. When he opened the pouch and saw what was inside, suspicion instantly clouded his face.

"Where did these spirit stones come from?"

"You little rascal—don't tell me you've been up to something shady!"

Lin Binbin cried out in indignation. "Come on, Dad! Do you really think I'm that low?"

Without another word, Lin Qin sealed the pouch and threw it back at him. "Return it. If I find that money still here tomorrow, I'll break your damn legs."

Even Lin Xiao looked stunned. "Sanzi… you didn't…"

"Oh, come on! What are you two imagining?" Lin Binbin quickly cut them off, poured a cup of hot tea for his father, and placed it beside him.

"Dad, I passed the Beast Tamer certification."

Lin Qin looked at his youngest son in disbelief.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah." Lin Binbin nodded. "I sold a beast corpse to get that money. It's clean."

Then, under their astonished gazes, he dramatically and elaborately described the events he experienced in the Death Nether Mountain range.

When he finished, Lin Xiao's eyes were glowing with excitement. "That mech of yours is really that powerful?"

"Of course!" Lin Binbin grinned. "The blueprint came to me in a dream from an immortal."

"And the best part? You don't need any innate talent. As long as there's energy, it can operate."

Then he called into the house:

"White Ape, come out."

Soon, the mechanical ape lumbered into view, its heavy arms dangling at its sides. Though its body still had a few dents and scrapes, it was more than presentable for showing off.

"Metal-type spirit beast?"

Seeing the doubt on Lin Qin's face, Lin Binbin had White Ape show off a little.

"White Ape, smash the ground."

In an instant, the mech's eyes lit up. It raised its arm and slammed it into the ground.

Lin Qin, once a Beast Tamer himself, was familiar with metal-type beasts. Though they looked tough, they were usually brittle and weak in combat. He figured the punch wouldn't do much damage and let it go.

But in the next second, White Ape's fist shattered the earth, creating a pit over three meters deep. Cracks spiderwebbed out from the impact like a broken mirror.

Boom!

Dust flew everywhere.

When the dust settled, White Ape stood obediently by Lin Binbin's side, unmoving.

Silence fell over the room. Lin Qin's mind went blank. It took several seconds for him to finally react—then he jumped to his feet, trembling with excitement.

"Good. Good! Our Lin clan finally has hope!"

Night.

The Lin household was still brightly lit.

Lin Qin sat on a bench, listening to his youngest son explain the mechanics of the mech, growing more amazed by the minute.

These were concepts even seasoned blacksmiths with decades of experience didn't know, yet they came from the mouth of a seven-year-old child.

"All of this… was told to you in a dream by the immortal?"

"Yes." Lin Binbin didn't even blink. "He said our Lin family once helped him in the mortal world, and he came in this dream to repay our kindness."

This explanation was the most convincing one.

He couldn't exactly say, "Actually, I transmigrated, and your original youngest son died under a beast's foot."

Glancing at his deep-in-thought father, then at his clearly excited big brother, Lin Binbin paused and said, "Dad… actually, I was thinking—what if every Lin clan member here on labor duty could have a mech of their own? Maybe then… we'd all have a chance to leave this place."

But Lin Qin didn't look the least bit pleased. He just sighed heavily.

"That won't be easy…"

"When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter. The Lin family's heart has long since scattered too."