The Forbidden City, The Ruyi Merchant Company.


    Zuo Baolin was sitting leisurely in a chair made from cloud hardwood, smoking a pipe carved from ink crow jade.


    Behind him was a beautiful and polite young woman in skimpy clothes massaging his shoulders.


    On the other side, a musician was ying a melody on the zither. The simple and elegant tune created a tranquil atmosphere in the room.


    Zuo Baolin was the boss of the Ruyi Merchant Company and also a member of the Zuo n, one of the seven high ns.


    He had little talent in cultivation and was mediocre in other aspects, so he didn’t hold much status within the n. But regardless, he was still a member of the Zuo n.


    That status alone helped him be the boss of the Ruyi Merchant Company and made people of the same trade respect him.


    He made a lot of money every day by just relying on his business contacts, so he lived an extravagant life.


    Bang!


    The door of the room flung open, followed by a housekeeper-looking old man hobbling in like he had suffered a beating.


    Immediately, the disruption destroyed the tranquil atmosphere in the room and startled Zuo Baolin. The pipe visibly trembled in his hands, and the sparks from the pipe touched his lips. He grimaced and roared in fury, “Bastard! What’s the panic?! Do you want to die?!”


    “Master, something bad is happening!” the housekeeper cried anxiously.


    “Hmph! What’s wrong? Don’t tell me the sky has fallen?” Zuo Baolin drew a deep breath and dismissed the young woman and the old man ying the zither with a wave of his hand. “Old Ma, if your daughter wasn’t my concubine, then I would have kicked you out for your irritating temperament!”


    Old Ma broke out in cold sweat, looking grim. “Master, something really happened! I am just doing this for your sake.”


    “Fine, tell me briefly,” Zuo Baolin said calmly. He had always envied the big shots for being able to stay calm and collected, so he tried to adopt the same facade.


    As the saying went, a person who was able to maintain a straight face despite the thousands of things on their mind could aplish great things. That was the style that a big shot should have. It would be too disgraceful and embarrassing to panic at every little thing.


    “Yes...the people from the Lin n are here again, and they want to take away our Ruyi Merchant Company!” Housekeeper Ma cried sullenly.


    “Hmph! The Lin n has a death wish! Do they think they can do anything just because Lin Xun hase back?!” Zuo Baolin snorted disdainfully.


    He became calmer and calmer as he spoke, “The Lin n isn’t even considered a low aristocratic n in the Forbidden City. They are nothingpared to our Zuo n. They are dreaming if they think they can take the Ruyi Merchant Company from our hands!”


    “Master, you...why don’t you go out and take a look? I think they are serious this time.” Old Ma trembled uncontrobly.


    “Old Ma, can you calm down? Huh? Even if Lin Xun came in person, so what? No matter how powerful he is, how will he dare to be openly hostile to our Zuo n?” Zuo Baolin shot a contemptuous look at Old Ma, hating the fact that he couldn’t get rid of the useless old man. Can’t he control his panic for a minute? How embarrassing!


    “But…” Old Ma tried to exin when Zuo Baolin impatiently interrupted him, “Old Ma, you are an idiot. You are too short-sighted and don’t understand the power of the high ns. In the Forbidden City, even the imperial family won’t dare to offend us, let alone Lin Xun?”


    He continued in frustration. “Remember, your master is from the Zuo n! Not many dare to provoke me in the Forbidden City!”


    Boom!


    At that moment, a distant ear-splitting explosion shook the tables and chairs in the house and shattered the teacups.


    “Huh?” Zuo Baolin sprang up abruptly, face turning ashen. “Could...they really dare to do something? They must have a death wish!”


    PA!


    Heshed out with a p across Old Ma’s face. “Old bastard, something big is happening outside! Why didn’t you tell me earlier?!”


    Old Ma was almost in tears, clutching his cheek in aggrievement. He had already said that something bad was happening from the moment he stepped in, but no one believed him, so why was he being med?


    “I will deal with youter!” Zuo Baolin was no longer able to keep hisposure, no longer able to imitate the way that the big shots stayed calm and collected at all times.


    “Damn it, I want to see who dares toe to my territory and act wildly! Today...I...”


    His voice abruptly stopped like a duck being strangled.


    The great hall of the Ruyi Merchant Company was in utter disorder with tables, chairs and counters overturned and ornaments littered everywhere. Even the walls and pirs had suffered unimaginable damage.


    Pools of blood dotted the hall and corpses were strewn across.


    They were the guards of the Ruyi Merchant Company, but now they were all dead!


    “They...they actually dare to target the Zuo n’s property! Does the Lin n not want to live anymore?!”


    Zuo Baolin’s face became livid and smoke seemed to be spiraling from his seven orifices. He had long lost hisposure and calmness.


    He spotted the culprit right away.


    His appearance was very conspicuous. He had a burly and tall body like a majestic mountain towering into the sky. Even if he was simply standing there indifferently, a stifling oppressive aura filled the room.


    He wielded a blood-red saber in his hand. Drops of blood trickled down the saber body, breaking into many smaller droplets and creating striking red sshes.


    ”You…how dare you! Do you know the consequences of your actions? Do you know what price you will have to pay for angering the Zuo n?” Zuo Baolin screeched in anger, but his heart was filled with indescribable panic.


    It was terrifying to face a ruthless character that dared to break into the Ruyi Merchant Company and start a massacre.


    Only a streak of de light responded to him.


    It was swift and direct like it was ughtering a chicken. Zuo Baolin copsed to the ground with a thud. Even as he died, he couldn’t understand how someone could be so fearless to kill without a single word.


    Was it out of disdain or was he a man of few words?


    Zuo Baolin didn’t know before he died.


    Meanwhile, Old Ma immediately went limp and fainted on the spot.


    “What a good de!”


    It wasn’t until Third Old Zhu left the area that he wiped the blood stains off the saber, eyes gleaming with joy.


    The de was from Lin Xun and was called Prairie Fire. It was said to be an ancient treasure from the Demon Elephant n in the Spirit Burial Sea.


    ……


    Simr incidents happened one after another in different areas of the Forbidden City.


    Xingyuan Treasure Corporation.


    Ruijin Workshop.


    Yuyuan Restaurant.


    The Lin n properties that were upied by the Zuo and Qin ns all suffered simr bloodbaths.


    The major forces that had been paying close attention to the movements of the Zuo and Qin ns had never thought that the Mind Cleansing Peak Lin n would be the first to attack!


    The incidents caused a greatmotion.


    The previous night, Lin Xun had stormed the three coteral branches of the Lin n andunched a killing spree.


    Who would have imagined that the next night, the Mind Cleansing Peak Lin n wouldunch another strong operation and attack the properties owned by the Zuo and Qin ns?


    Not only that, but they alsounched into action right away and allowed no chance of negotiation!


    “What is wrong with the Lin n? Are they crazy? Those are two high ns! How dare they attack them without thinking?”


    Many people couldn’t believe what they heard.


    It stirred up mors of discussions. Some didn’t think that Lin Xun would be so crazy, and they believed that he had the backing of someone.


    “That guy has disappeared for half a year, but he is as fierce and ruthless as before. He might even be more tyrannical. He directly pped the faces of two high ns! When had something so unbelievable happened before?!”


    Many cultivators gasped, astonished by Lin Xun’s power.


    Back then, Lin Xun dared to force the Marquis of Rising Sky to kneel and p Princess Linghuang in public.


    Now, he was even more amazing. The day he returned to the Forbidden City, he challenged the top ns in the city.


    “That kid is likely going to tumble and fall. Even if he is a rune founder and even if he possesses astonishing strength, he is alone. How can he challenge the high ns by himself?”


    “Even a Life Death Stage King wouldn’t dare to rashly challenge a high n!”


    “It seems that he is still too young and naive. He thinks he can do whatever he wants in the Forbidden City after earning some achievements. He must not know that the reason the high ns can stand for thousands of years in the empire is not only because of their strength. A behemoth such as the high ns can easily kill someone like Lin Xun.”


    Some powerful forces weren’t optimistic about Lin Xun’s situation, thinking that he had been blinded by his previous victories. Did he think he could challenge the high ns just because he solved his n’s internal strife?


    How ridiculous!


    What was a high n?


    Even in the entire empire, they were considered behemoths. Their powers spanned across the world!


    It was no exaggeration to say that, apart from the imperial family, the Qinglu Academy and the Rune Master Association, the seven high ns were the most respected in the empire!


    Based on that, to outsiders, Lin Xun was biting off more than he could chew if he thought he could challenge two high ns.


    Amidst the uproar, many people ridiculed Lin Xun’s decision and had nothing but negative opinions about it.


    Lin Xun, you are indeed a rare young genius who overshadows your peers, possesses many dazzling titles, and captures the attention of everyone. But if you think you can challenge the high ns based on that, that’s too ridiculous.