True Solution of the Sword Dao

"Feifei, there’s something I need to talk to you about..." Jiang Nan suddenly spoke up from the side, interrupting Lin Fei’s train of thought.

She lowered her head, looking somewhat ill at ease.

"What is it?" Lin Fei picked up the remote control and muted the television.

Jiang Nan was silent for a moment.

Then she added, "I think... it might be better if I moved out."

Lin Fei slowly shifted his thoughts from the Inner World and Lin You, looking over at Jiang Nan.

"What are you thinking? Can you tell me?"

Jiang Nan kept her head down and remained silent.

"Nannan." Lin Fei said softly, "I know you’ve started working on your own now. Is it at that clothing store on Capital City Road?"

"You know about that?" Jiang Nan raised her head slightly, surprised, and looked at Lin Fei. Since that last time she said to Lin Fei, "You support me, huh..." she had actually left the Swordsmanship Club and taken a job at a women’s clothing store. She worked hard, at least ten hours a day, earning much less than she did at the Swordsmanship Club, but she found it fulfilling.

"I just don’t want to always rely on you..." Jiang Nan said with a bitter smile.

Lin Fei was speechless. Indeed, he could support Jiang Nan for a lifetime.

But what good would that do? He was always clear about Jiang Nan’s feelings for him, but he only saw her as a younger sister, or rather, a substitute for Lin You. He had shifted nearly half of the affection he should have for Lin You onto Jiang Nan. Perhaps that was why she had fallen for him. But now, his relationship with Lin You had greatly improved, and without realizing it, he had also been neglecting Jiang Nan, even Shuang’er was somewhat ignored.

Yet, the thought of Jiang Nan or Shuang’er being as intimate with another man as they were with him suddenly aroused a hint of murderous intent in Lin Fei’s heart.

He was slightly taken aback.

"My possessiveness is so strong..." He knew well that, aside from Lin You, his feelings for the other two were not of love, but merely a sense of possession, something that belonged to him and that he absolutely wouldn’t allow others to infringe upon.

"Everything that’s mine, no one shall ever take away...." He stared quietly at Jiang Nan, a sudden thought rising in his heart. "Perhaps letting her stay by my side for a lifetime wouldn’t be so bad."

"Nannan, go for it, but there’s no need to move out. We are family, and such minor things should not bother us," he suddenly said.

Jiang Nan opened her mouth as if to speak but remained silent. After a long while, she gently nodded her head.

"I understand."

***************************

Bang!

The security door was forcefully pushed open as Lin You charged into the living room.

"I’m back!" she announced loudly.

"Oh..." Chris was sitting on the couch, quietly flipping through a book. He looked up as Lin You burst in but merely responded lightly before returning to his reading.

Merrill was still sitting by the computer, but she wasn’t using it. She was lost in thought, silent.

Cheng Guang lay exhausted on the coffee table, motionless. If not for her body still breathing, Lin You might have thought she was dead.

"What’s wrong with you all?" Lin You asked with confusion.

"Chris’s sister just called," Merrill said gravely.

"Chris’s sister?" Lin You’s gaze immediately shifted to Chris, who was quietly reading a book. The mixed-race girl with black, shoulder-length hair still looked stunningly beautiful and calm.

"Yes... it has been rumored that she has an inseparable connection with the downfall of the Flame Scepter Family," Merrill continued softly.

"And she has also been tracking Chris for some reason."

"There’s another piece of news, You," Noah’s voice came from beside Chris.

Lin You closed the door and sat down next to Chris on the couch.

"By the way, Xilan Saersi, your father, has died," Ban announced.

Lin You’s pupils constricted.

"Died... died?"

"That’s what Cheng Guang said," Ban sighed. "Merrill has verified it through special means. Xilan, indeed, has died."

The atmosphere in the room was oppressively somber.

Lin You recalled the times Uncle Xilan had trained her, the lecherous old man always sneaking around with a laugh. And now he was dead?

"How did he... die?" she could hardly believe her own voice was so hoarse.

"I don’t know. Cheng Guang refused to tell," Babanoya also fell silent, no longer speaking.

Lin You suddenly felt a tight, painful constriction in her heart. Perhaps her emotional ties with Uncle Xilan weren’t deep, but the knowledge that someone who had recently been teasing her in person was now dead, never to be seen or spoken to again, was jarring.

A sense of unfamiliar panic, following the loss of something familiar, spread through her heart.

Feil, who had been silent, lightly jumped onto the coffee table.

"Cheng Guang, tell me how Xilan died," she said calmly, but anyone could feel the anger in her heart. "He cannot have died in vain." 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Cheng Guang’s eyes lacked any focus. Ever since waking up from the sickbed, she had been like this.

"Stop asking, she’s been like this ever since she got out of bed," Merrill sighed. "But physically, she’s actually stronger than before. She’ll come around after some time."

"Right now, our biggest problem is Chris’s sister, Princess Leiya. This woman is absolutely ruthless. We must be on our guard. She and a woman codenamed ’Spider’ in Europe are among the most mysterious in the Inner World of Europe," Babanoya agreed. "Since she said she would come, she definitely will. It’s just that I don’t know what her attitude towards Chris will be...."

"She will kill me..." Chris suddenly spoke out. Her expression was calm, as if she were discussing something as mundane as what to eat for dinner today.

****************

Jiang Nan had something to eat at home, then went straight to work at the store.

Lin Fei, for the first time, did not engage in Qi Cultivation or self-practice; instead, she sat at home for a while before walking out the door.

Exiting the stairwell, she walked slowly among the buildings of the residential area. Occasionally, she would greet the familiar neighbors she met, or encounter children from nearby residences playing their somewhat childish games.

Lin Fei felt peaceful inside.

The later levels of the Star Shattering Sword Technique’s planet level, along with the slight gathering of True Qi, also seemed to show signs of loosening.

The Qi Cultivation section was progressing at a snail’s pace. The fourth layer, aimed at cultivating intelligence, although only featuring a single pattern, was much more in-depth and difficult than the three that preceded it.

"The formation of Sword Intent mainly occurs in the True Qi Realm and the True Gang Realm, but I am completely ignorant about the specifics of their processes. It seems I should ask the Star Lord of the Stellar Domain about it," he thought. Up to this point, only the Stellar Domain had treated him well, merely hoping he would advance his Realm soon and seemingly without any ulterior motives.

On the spacious concrete road, bright sunlight hit the ground, reflecting a white glare, while two teenagers slapped a basketball and called out to a friend’s name in front of a residential building.

A middle-aged man in a black jacket rode a motorcycle directly towards them on the road.

The wind rustled the leaves on the trees along the road, creating a whooshing sound.

Wafts of rich cooking aromas drifted continuously.

Lin Fei walked slowly along the edge of the road.

Since he became involved with the Inner World, such opportunities had become increasingly rare. He was often planning and scheming, cultivating, and designing. The content of life in the outer world paled in comparison to that in the Inner World.

The more it was so, the more precious the tranquility of the outer world became.

"Feifei?" a familiar voice came from ahead.

Lin Fei, who had been deep in thought with his head down, suddenly heard someone calling him and looked up.

To his surprise, it was Jiang Feng.

She was carrying several large bags in each hand, all filled with meat and vegetables, obviously having just returned from the market.

"Mom, why did you come back so early today?" Lin Fei approached to take the bags from Jiang Feng.

"Today your dad has a celebratory event, and I didn’t feel like going, so I came back. I’ll make you something delicious," Jiang Feng said with a smile. "Did I catch you wandering outside by yourself? Is something on your mind?"

"No, nothing," Lin Fei replied with a smile. "Just taking a break."

"By the way, your dad said it’s about time we bought a car. It would make getting around more convenient. What do you think?" Jiang Feng continued as they walked towards home.

"I have no objections. It depends on what dad wants to buy," Lin Fei responded with a smile.

"If we’re buying, it might as well be a nice one. He also said he’d buy one for you," Jiang Feng said with a laugh. "What do you think? Excited?"

Lin Fei nodded and smiled in reply, "Sure, I’d better go get my driving license soon." He naturally didn’t dare mention that he had long had people driving him around...

"This time, your dad is really splurging. We know how much Little Ling has helped him in Ping City; without her, the business couldn’t have grown this fast. That’s why he’s being generous this time, to give you a treat."

Lin Fei smiled slightly: "Mom, I actually don’t lack money. I’ve found some things to do on my own, and I really don’t need money." He also knew that it wouldn’t be possible to keep hiding the help he’d been receiving, so he simply shifted everything onto Little Ling’s shoulders. Now, the family business was growing bigger, becoming almost the exclusive major book supplier, and they were even preparing to buy their own printing factory. However, up to this point, he didn’t really want to continue hiding his own business matters, although it was difficult to explain the details about his strength. Although his business could be disclosed, he just hadn’t found the right moment.

"Let’s go together to a 4S store on Peach Blossom Road this afternoon," Jiang Feng suggested with a smile. "Your money is yours, but what your parents give you is something extra. If you don’t like the car we pick out, you can choose one yourself, and we’ll pay for it."

Lin Fei smiled again but said no more. Lately, Lin Jianguo’s business had been growing larger, and sums in the hundreds of thousands no longer seemed so significant in his eyes—quite a change from the past. Back when he wanted to open a second branch of his modest bookstore, even ten or twenty thousand dollars seemed a cause for concern, but now things were different. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it with a recommendation ticket or monthly ticket at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation.)