Chapter 424 423: Elder Deng

Mu Lin shot upward using the Vertical Cloud Ladder, kicking three times in succession. WHOOSH, WHOOSH, WHOOSH! He rocketed into the sky, ascending at an incredible speed.

His Yin Spirit swept out and immediately spotted Master Xiang hiding in the distance.

He instantly unleashed the Divine Finger, and a ferocious, violent force shot straight toward Master Xiang.

Master Xiang was caught completely off guard and struck a heavy blow. With him injured, the trap array that used him as its core could no longer be sustained.

The suppressive sensation weighing on Mu Lin vanished instantly, and in the blink of an eye, he felt normal again.

His strength, of course, returned to normal as well.

"Well, this is..." Mu Lin shook his head. 'A brief reminder of harder times to make me appreciate the present?'

'I didn't really feel it before, but looking back now, my progress lately has been immense.'

'I have so many more skills at my disposal now.'

Master Xiang was utterly stunned. He had clearly put his all into this, and his preparations should have been foolproof. So why was Mu Lin completely unharmed?

Instead, he was the one who had been attacked, and his work was brutally undone.

Master Xiang opened his mouth and spat out resentfully, "You're a monster!"

'All his efforts couldn't even slow Mu Lin down by a single step.'

Mu Lin paid him no mind and walked straight into the courtyard.

In the courtyard, an elderly man sat on a chair, his face a mask of terror.

Mu Lin knew at once. 'This must be Elder Deng.'

'If his conscience were clear, why would he be so terrified?'

Elder Deng's heart filled with despair. The moment he saw Mu Lin, he knew it was all over for him.

'Even Master Xiang's array failed to stop Mu Lin. What hope was there left?'

The loyal butler, staunch to the end, stepped in front of Elder Deng, likely intending to sacrifice his own life to buy his master a chance to escape.

But with a simple flick of his hand, an explosive blast of Qi Force from Mu Lin sent the butler flying.

Mu Lin asked coldly, "Where is Xu Jishan?"

Elder Deng had considered countless scenarios. He and Mu Lin had a long and complicated history of grievances, but he'd never imagined Mu Lin's first question would be about Xu Jishan.

This was a possibility Elder Deng had never entertained. He didn't even know what connection Mu Lin had to Xu Jishan.

"What's your relationship with Xu Jishan? What do you want with him?"

Mu Lin replied, "Elder Xu was kind to me, so naturally, I have to rescue him from this perilous situation. Besides, Group Leader Jiang Long is very concerned about this matter. I have to help him out... by finishing you off."

Elder Deng opened his mouth and said, "You can have him, no problem. But you can't kill me. Otherwise, my men will not let you off!"

Mu Lin's eyes narrowed with a smile. "Once you're dead, who will obey your orders? Expecting your subordinates to avenge you? Isn't that a bit much to ask? After all the evil you've done, all the lives you've harmed, you can't accept it when it's your own turn?"

Elder Deng retorted, "Perhaps they won't risk avenging me, but they can still carry out my final order to kill Xu Jishan. You'd best consider that."

Mu Lin's eyes crinkled into a smile. "Consider what? As long as I'm here, Xu Jishan will not die."

Elder Deng scoffed, "You're still too young. Do you even know who's backing me? What makes you think you can protect Xu Jishan's life on your own? Even the Military Suppression Bureau wouldn't dare interfere in this!"

'Didn't Jiang Long get involved?' Mu Lin thought. But after a moment's reflection, he realized that wasn't the case. 'Jiang Long didn't dare get involved himself, which is why he passed this job on to me.'

'Partly because I have a decent relationship with Xu Jishan, and partly because he wanted to get rid of this hot potato. He was probably delighted to pass it off.'

Mu Lin raised a hand and pushed. A powerful surge of Qi Force flew from his palm and struck Elder Deng squarely.

Elder Deng's chair was sent flying, and he tumbled weakly to the ground.

Elder Deng was seething. It had been years since anyone had dared to treat him this way.

Overcome with rage, he pointed at Mu Lin, ready to unleash a stream of curses.

But Mu Lin's icy gaze made him freeze, not daring to move or speak.

"Don't you think that the more you threaten me, the faster you'll die? You only had a few minutes left to live, and you're using them to threaten me. Have you lost your mind?"

Elder Deng sighed heavily. It was all over. He turned to look at the limping Master Xiang, but Master Xiang simply turned and walked away.

A moment later, he returned, hauling Xu Jishan with him.

At this moment, Xu Jishan was practically lifeless. His clothes were tattered, and he was a truly pitiful sight to behold.

Mu Lin sighed.

"Elder Xu, you're safe now. With me here, they can't harm you."

Upon seeing Mu Lin, Elder Xu let out a great sob and burst into tears.

These past few days had been pure agony. As an ordinary old man, he had barely managed to hang on.

Now, seeing Mu Lin here to rescue him, he felt a brief flicker of security return.

"Elder, I'm so sorry. I couldn't find any leads, and I let you suffer for so long!"

Xu Jishan weakly waved his hand. "They're the ones who imprisoned me. It's not your fault!"

Then, Xu Jishan looked at Elder Deng with fury. "You! Why did you target me? What did my son and I ever do to you to deserve being locked up like this?"

Elder Deng's mouth twisted into a scowl, and he refused to answer.

Mu Lin snorted coldly and flicked a hand toward Elder Deng, who immediately felt his body give out.

His entire body was wracked with a pain and itchiness so intense it felt like he was about to fall apart.

"Talk. Or I'll drag the words out of your mouth myself. You'll say everything you need to say, but you'll just suffer more in the process."

The pain was too much for Elder Deng to bear. His face contorted, and this time, his despair was absolute.

"The Ning Family! The mastermind is the Ning Family! Go after them, not me!"

Mu Lin waved his hand. A sensation like a gentle spring breeze washed over Elder Deng's body, and his pain eased considerably.

He stared at Mu Lin with lingering fear, never imagining this young man could be so terrifying.

'Did he just put me through a life-and-death ordeal in the blink of an eye?'

'It's a joke.'

'But that's how ridiculous this situation was.'

'This Mu Lin fellow was just incomprehensibly powerful.'

Xu Jishan cursed, "I have no past grudges or recent conflicts with the Ning Family! Why would they do this to me?"

Elder Deng said, catching his breath, "The Ning Family wants to absorb the Xu Family's businesses, so they had to get you out of the way."

Xu Jishan was aghast. "On what grounds? Do they think our Xu Family has no connections? Even a sinking ship still has some iron left in it! How dare they so brazenly encroach on the Xu Family's assets? What will the other major families think?"

Elder Deng said, "They've already done it, and you're still asking if they dared? Is there a point? The Ning Family can walk all over the Xu Family. Once you have no one calling the shots, absorbing your businesses is a simple and pleasant affair, isn't it?"

Mu Lin said, "I think the Ning Family is a bit foolish. Couldn't they just use a Mind Control Talisman to manipulate someone from the Xu Family?"

Elder Deng shook his head. "With the Military Suppression Bureau around, such a blatant method would force them to step in."

'This is getting a little complicated,' Mu Lin thought. 'After all, the Military Suppression Bureau has to answer to its superiors.'

'Their methods can't be too flagrant, or the Bureau's very existence would be called into question.'

'And for the people in the Military Suppression Bureau who make a fortune just by holding their posts, protecting those posts is paramount.'

"It's been a long time," Mu Lin said slowly. "Half a month. Has the Ning Family already taken over the Xu Family? Is it possible there's no chance left at all?"

Elder Deng shook his head. "I don't know! I'm not involved in that part. My only job was to keep the Xu father and son under control."

"The Xu Family has probably been hollowed out by now, leaving only an empty shell to show the Military Suppression Bureau, right?"

Xu Jishan was flabbergasted. "Why is the Ning Family so dead set against our family? We're not that big! They won't gain much by swallowing us up!"

Elder Deng fell silent.

Mu Lin sighed. "I'm afraid the Ning Family's goal is to conquer all of Di Yang, starting with the weakest link, the Xu Family."

'Going after the other major families would be much more difficult. It wouldn't be so simple.'

'Once they've absorbed the Xu Family and bolstered their strength, they can make their next move.'

'A family's schemes can span a hundred years or more; there's no need to hurry.'

Mu Lin, however, was thinking about something else. He wanted to find the cultivation method for the Yang Spirit, and to do that, he first had to find the owner of the manual.

After a quick scan, he came up empty.

He walked up to Elder Deng. "Where is the person you had try to kill me with their mind? Where are they? Bring them here, now!"

Elder Deng was stunned. 'Why is Mu Lin looking for him?' But he knew he had no choice but to answer.

"He's dead. Died suddenly... I don't know why."