Lin Zhong’s face glowed with pride. “Young Master, apart from you, no one else in the Lin Family is qualified to occupy Mind Cleansing Peak!”
Soon, Lin Xun learned that this was a special rule set by the imperial family.
Hundreds of years ago, Lin Daochen, a Life Death Stage King of the Lin Family fought for the empire and lost his life, but he helped the empire escape a monstrous disaster.
As a result, the imperial family issued an imperial decree to grant ownership of Mind Cleansing Peak to only the direct descendants of Lin Daochen!
Lin Xun’s grandfather Lin Feiting was Lin Daochen’s eldest son, and his father Lin Wenjing was Lin Daochen’s eldest grandson.
In other words, Lin Xun was the great-grandson of Lin Daochen!
All the direct descendants of Lin Daochen were killed in the bloody incident that occurred more than ten years ago. So, according to the imperial decree, Lin Xun was the only person qualified to take charge of Mind Cleansing Peak.
As for the members of other side branches of the Lin Clan, they didn’t have such a privilege and had to move out of Mind Cleansing Peak regardless of how unwilling they were.
Logically speaking, Mind Cleansing Peak should have been taken away as all the direct descendants of Lin Daochen were known to have died. Lin Xun was a baby at the time, and no one believed he had survived.
It was strange that the imperial family didn’t make that decision and that the Lin Family still owned Mind Cleansing Peak to this day.“Did they know that I didn't die?” Lin Xun asked in bafflement.
Lin Zhong had also been puzzling over this question during the years he took care of Mind Cleansing Peak. He pondered for a moment and said, “It’s possible. All those years, I often worried that someone would take away Mind Cleansing Peak but it never happened. It’s very possible that the imperial family believed that you would return one day.”
Lin Xun suddenly thought of the influential figure from the imperial family. Could it be that person?
Lin Xun shook his head.
That wasn’t the most important matter. The important thing was that Mind Cleansing Peak still belonged to the Lin Clan.
“Uncle Zhong, I want to ask you something.” Lin Xun’s expression turned solemn.
Lin Zhong sat up straight. “Young master, please go ahead. I will tell you everything I know!”
Lin Xun leaned forward and fixed his dark and deep eyes on Lin Zhong. “If I want to restore the Lin Clan, where do you think I should start?”
Lin Zhong’s heart shook, but he looked stirred up. He quickly composed himself and said bitterly, “Young Master, you and I are the only people on Mind Cleansing Peak. It’s almost impossible to do so…”
He knew the situation of the Lin Clan much better than Lin Xun. Even if Lin Xun was the only one eligible to inherit Mind Cleansing Peak, he was still too young. Additionally, how could he restore the Lin Clan alone?
Moreover, the other four branches of the Lin Family wouldn’t be willing to submit to Lin Xun!
On the contrary, Lin Zhong was certain that all the clansmen wouldn’t sit still and do nothing when they learned that Lin Xun had returned, took charge of Mind Cleansing Peak, and became the head of the family!
He knew the clansmen of the other branches too well. After the tragedy happened, they didn’t hesitate to collude with outsiders to seize power and cause the Lin Clan to fall into infighting. In the end, the Lin Clan’s power and wealth were split among them!
How would those clansmen let Lin Xun rule Mind Cleansing Peak alone?
Moreover, the many powerful and wealthy forces that divided up the Lin Family’s wealth back then also wouldn’t want to see Lin Xun grow stronger.
He had to deal with internal problems!
He had to face external aggression!
He was young, alone, and weak. It would be harder for him to lead the entire Lin Family than to ascend into the sky!
Instantly, Lin Xun knew that Lin Zhong wasn’t attacking him. However, the old servant did believe that he lacked the ability to take charge of the Lin Family.
Lin Xun scrunched his brows and fell silent.
He also knew that he lacked the people, money, and resources to take charge. It’s indeed difficult to restore the Lin Family.
However, since he had come back, how could he give up so easily?
He wasn’t afraid of difficulties, but he was afraid of giving in!
Regardless of how bad the state of the Lin Family was, how dangerous the situation was, and how unbearable the environment was, he was hopeful that he could turn everything around as long as he took everything step by step!
If I give up, I might as well immediately leave the Forbidden City!
Of course, given Lin Xun’s personality, he wouldn’t admit defeat.
“Uncle Zhong, whether you believe it or not, tell me what to do first. I might lose if I do it, but if I don’t, I will regret it for the rest of my life!”
His face bore a look of stubborn determination.
Lin Zhong’s expression changed indefinitely. Only after a long period, he gritted his teeth and said, “Never mind, I have lived for decades and living is the same as death. If I wasn’t worried that Mind Cleansing Peak left behind by the head of the clan would be occupied by other people, I would have killed myself already. Young Master, since you want to fight, I will fight with you even at the risk of my life!” His voice was resounding.
Lin Xun smiled and patted Lin Zhong on the shoulder. “Don’t worry, Uncle Zhong, although I am alone, I have never run into any problems that I couldn’t solve ever since I embarked on the cultivation path!”
“Young Master, pacify the internal conflicts before resolving external trouble. The first thing you need to do now is to fully understand the current situation of our Lin Family.”
“We can only gather the power of the clan to fight against outsiders after we have solved the internal problems first!” Lin Zhong proposed.
Lin Xun pondered for a moment and nodded. That is indeed true.
It was true that he had encountered a lot of problems when he arrived at the Forbidden City, but the real problem was to solve the internal conflicts within the clan first!
Once solved, the foundation of the clan would be stabilized. If the foundation was unsteady, he shouldn’t even think about avenging his parents and family.
To further understand the current situation of the Lin family, Lin Zhong took Lin Xun out of Mind Cleansing Hall.
……
They came to the rear of Mind Cleansing Peak.
The Sacred Book Pavilion was an ancient building that was seven stories and was currently bathed in silvery starlight.
It was where the Lin Family kept the classical books and was one of the forbidden areas of the clan. The seven-story building housed the collection of cultivation arts that the Lin Family had passed down for thousands of years.
The Lin Family was one of the top aristocratic clans in the past, so it was easy to imagine how amazing the cultivation arts passed down through the family were.
The Sacred Book Pavilion showed the tremendous strength of a clan.
However, when Lin Xun entered the Sacred Book Pavilion under the leadership of Lin Zhong, he saw a dismal sight. Bookshelves were knocked down, cobwebs hung from every corner, and dust blanketed everything.
It was as though burglars had looted the entire Sacred Book Pavilion. Let alone cultivation arts, he couldn’t even find a piece of scrap paper!
“Young Master, there are seven floors in the Sacred Book Pavilion. It was built by the ancestors and sages of our Lin Family. The ancient books here were once as vast as the misty ocean.” Lin Zhong’s voice was low with complex motions as he glanced around the room of cobwebs and dust.
“There were over three thousand cultivation arts and more than 1,900 secret combat techniques on this first floor alone.
“But after that bloody incident that year, those invaluable books...were all taken away...” Lin Zhong’s voice was bitter and tinged with sadness.
Lin Xun surveyed the surroundings for a long moment but didn’t say anything. He did silently ball his hands into fists.
Lin Zhong took Lin Xun to the second story of the Sacred Book Pavilion.
“Young Master, the second floor contained 1,600 cultivation books and more than 700 secret combat techniques.”
The second story was similarly covered in a thick layer of dust. In some places there were still traces of battle and bloodstains.
Lin Xun stood silently for a long moment, took a deep breath, and retracted his gaze. “Let’s go to the third floor.”
Lin Zhong took Lin Xun up all the floors, and all were empty and dilapidated without exception.
When they reached the top, Lin Zhong’s expression became desolate. His emotions were tumbling in his heart, and he looked like he was about to collapse.
There were only a few bookshelves.
The top story was the core forbidden area in the Sacred Books Pavilion. Back then, only core members of the Lin Family were allowed to set foot on that floor!
“Young Master, the most precious secret art passed down through the family was stored here. There were seven volumes in total. In addition, there were fifty-four volumes of cultivation notes left by our ancestors and sages!” Lin Zhong’s face was pale, and he seemed to have lost all his strength.
Standing there, Lin Xun almost exploded with anger.
In a trance, he could almost see groups of enemies with glints of greed in their eyes as they looted the Sacred Book Pavilion.
Those were all sacred books the ancestors of the Lin Family had collected for generations! It is the foundation of the Lin Family! But they have all been looted!
Kacha!
Lin Xun clenched his hands tight and the veins on the back of his hand popped from the force.
However, he was unaware of this. A vortex seemed to be swirling in the depths of his dark eyes, producing terrifying raging flames.
After a long moment, Lin Xun withdrew his gaze and walked down.
He didn’t dare to look at the state of the Sacred Books Pavilion any longer as he was worried that he couldn’t control the anger bubbling in his heart. A treasury of cultivation built over generations by the ancestors of the Lin Family had been utterly destroyed in that tragedy!
Even an outsider would feel deep sadness upon seeing the state of the treasury, let alone Lin Xun, a direct descendant of the Lin Family.
“Uncle Zhong, do you know who stole the sacred books back then?“
“Yes.”
“Good! Write them all down for me. Don’t forget any!”
“Young Master, don’t worry, I will never forget their names even if I die.”
As Lin Xun left the Sacred Book Pavilion, he drew a deep breath and left some instructions for Lin Zhong.
He suddenly remembered something and asked, “Did any clansmen of the other four branches loot the Sacred Book Pavilion back then?”
Lin Zhong’s body stiffened and his expression changed.
Lin Xun already knew the answer as his eyes grew cold and a slight smile came to his lips “Good! Very good!”
The smile, devoid of emotions, was colder than his eyes.
Lin Zhong inexplicably felt a chill strike his heart, and he trembled all over.