Chapter 23: Sudden Incident

"Do you even know who Liu Kuigong is working for? Do you have any idea how much trouble you've brought upon the Lin family by doing this?"

"Lin Binbin, when are you going to stop causing trouble for the family? Isn't our life miserable enough already?"

Lin Binbin blinked.

The cold gleam in his eyes made Lin Binhong uneasy inside.

But Binhong still straightened his back, refusing to back down. Since their father was too soft to say anything, he—being the older brother—had to clearly explain the consequences to him today.

However, before he could say another word, Lin Binbin stood up quickly, scooped a small portion of food into his bowl, then turned and walked into his room, shutting the door behind him.

It was like punching a pillow—no force returned. Lin Binhong's anger was left hanging awkwardly, neither able to rise nor fall.

Then came their father's slightly reproachful voice: "Hong'er, you went too far."

"Bin'er was standing up for you. Why stir up trouble over it? Go apologize to him later and let's just put this matter behind us."

Lin Binhong's already dark face flared with anger like a powder keg being lit. "No! I'm not in the wrong—he is! Father, he's the one who's put us all in danger. What if the Fujin clan retaliates…"

"Enough! Whatever the Fujin family does is not something you children can influence. This matter is not up for debate."

With that, the atmosphere at the dining table grew even colder.

Lin Xiao seized the moment to try and smooth things over. "That's right, Second Brother. Listen to Father and apologize to Third Brother. He hurt those guys for your sake. His intentions were good."

"As for Fujiyan—if he was going to act, he would've done so already. He wouldn't wait this long."

"No! I'll never bow to him," Lin Binhong still refused to yield. "Even now, you're all still siding with him."

"You've never truly accepted me. Even when I try to help the family with genuine effort, it's not as appreciated as one careless word from Lin Binbin."

A bitter, self-deprecating smile surfaced on Binhong's young face. "Fine. If something really does happen later, don't say I didn't warn you."

As Father Lin started asking, "Where are you going this late?" Lin Binhong walked out without even turning his head. The door slammed shut behind him with a loud bang.

"That brat… never learns."

After a long silence, Lin Qin finally let out a long sigh. "I don't even know who he gets that temper from…"

Lin Xiao's mood had completely soured. Another family meal ended on a bad note. "Dad… do you think Second Brother will come back?"

Lin Qin didn't respond. He only sighed again, lower this time.

In the exile zone, men and women were held separately. The women of the Lin family had all been sent to work at the government post in Qinglin County, at the foot of Deathshade Mountain. Binhong had always listened to his mother. Now that his wife was no longer by his side, Lin Qin didn't even know how to discipline him.

He rubbed his temples. The cloudiness in his eyes thickened. "We need to move faster. There's no benefit in staying any longer. We must leave this place as soon as possible."

He remembered clearly—before leaving, Lin Zhao, Binbin's grandfather, had warned that a massive beast tide would likely strike from due east, numbering at least 100,000. But when the Surveillance Division reported it, the direction had shifted to the southeast, and the number had dropped to only 5,000.

The discrepancy was astonishing.

Lin Qin suspected someone was deliberately tampering with the information.

But before he could file a proper report, the beast tide had arrived ahead of schedule.

If it weren't for a chance inspection by a traveling military officer, it wouldn't have just been the soldiers who died—the whole city might've been lost.

A chill glinted in Lin Qin's eyes as he glanced toward Lin Binbin's room. He had focused most of his spies on the royal capital, thus overlooking the lands of the major noble families.

Progress on the investigation had been slow, but thanks to Binbin's actions that day, he finally noticed Fujiyan.

Following that lead, he actually uncovered something suspicious.

A year ago, the Fujin family—long believed to be at odds with the royal court—had secretly met with a high-ranking minister.

After that meeting, the Fujin clan joined with 18 other noble families to jointly accuse the Lin clan of numerous crimes, even digging up an old, long-forgotten incident from decades ago and exaggerating it to paint the Lin family as tyrants.

If not for a few remaining elders in court who still supported the Lin clan, many members of their family would've already lost their heads.

And that minister… he knew him well. It was Luochuan, a close colleague. Their families had even once joked about becoming in-laws.

Thinking back on it now, it was utterly laughable.

"Brother Luo… why did it have to be you?"

The next morning…

Cheng Mo waited at the door with a bundle on his back.

Seeing Lin Qin come out, he asked, "Uncle, is Sanzi up yet?"

"He's up. Wait here. I'll go get him."

Lin Qin responded with a dark expression and turned around.

Moments later, a loud, tragic scream echoed from inside, followed by Lin Binbin rushing out while pulling up his pants.

He was grumbling indignantly as he ran, "What the heck?! That old man's throwing a tantrum first thing in the morning—I didn't even do anything!"

"Sanzi! Hurry up! We're supposed to head out—you promised to take me to the restaurant, remember?"

Only then did Lin Binbin remember that he'd agreed to take Cheng Mo into the mountains today. He quickly shook off his thoughts and nodded. "Right! Let's go now!"

As he spoke, he stealthily glanced toward the house. Confirming that no one was around, he waved his hand, and a refurbished white mech-ape rolled out of the room. Its eyes blinked with light as it scooped Lin Binbin up and tossed him onto its shoulder.

"Damn, Sanzi, that's awesome! What about me?" Cheng Mo asked, eyes sparkling with excitement and a sheepish grin.

Of course he wouldn't be left out.

With a command, the white ape grabbed Cheng Mo too and hoisted him onto its other shoulder.

It was Cheng Mo's first time riding a mech, and he was thrilled—flailing his arms and chatting nonstop. Meanwhile, Lin Binbin yawned and half-dozed beside him.

Inside the house, Lin Qin pulled back the curtain and looked out. His gaze darkened with meaning.

"This brat… sure knows how to enjoy himself."

Apparently due to its upgrades, the white ape carried them far more smoothly than before. After about an hour, they reached the midpoint of Deathshade Mountain.

The mountain was divided into two zones, with the midline as the boundary. Below it, most beasts were unranked or F- and E-rank. Above that were beasts of E-rank and higher. Rumor even spoke of A-rank beasts—but no one had ever seen one firsthand.

Their task today wasn't just to help Cheng Mo complete his Beastmaster certification. They were also hunting a C-rank spirit beast—the Hunyuan Pig.

Hunyuan Pig meat was exceptionally tender and one of the most sought-after ingredients in local cuisine. But because it was so hard to find, the price remained sky-high.

Lin Binbin had long wanted to try it—especially with Cheng Mo hyping it up daily, making his mouth water. The two had finally decided to head out and test their luck.

"Bumblebee, go!"

At his command, the mechanical bee perched on Cheng Mo's shoulder buzzed its wings. With a faint hum, the panel in front of Lin Binbin lit up with a stunning visual feed.

Cheng Mo couldn't see the panel and assumed Lin Binbin was meditating to calm his nerves.

"Sanzi… maybe we should just forget it. This place gives me the creeps. Let's kill a magic wolf, complete the task, and go home," he said, his eyes nervously darting around. He was afraid a ferocious spirit beast might suddenly jump out from the shadows.

He swore he'd piss himself if that happened.

"Don't be nervous—we've got White Ape with us." It was the first time Lin Binbin had seen real fear on Cheng Mo's face.

Technically speaking, this was Cheng Mo's first time outside the Exile Zone, so Lin Binbin didn't want to scare him too much.

"Don't worry. Below D-rank, spirit beasts rarely attack humans. They're not stupid—if they run into a Beastmaster, they're doomed."

"Really?"

"Phew, that's good to know…" Cheng Mo exhaled in relief as Lin Binbin nodded.

But before he could truly relax, the ground beneath them began to shake violently.

BOOM RUMBLE—

Rocks tumbled through the forest like a quake had struck.

Lin Binbin quickly commanded White Ape to find level ground, then sent Bumblebee ahead to scout. What he saw shocked him—it wasn't just them out here.

Another team had arrived.

Most alarming was the pack behind them—more than forty fully grown Demonic Wolves.