The Lin's Patriarch is weird.

Chapter 19: 19. Zhenghai, are you even redeemable?

"Pride?"

Lin Xuan looked directly into Lin Zhenghai’s eyes as he repeat his accusation, "My pride?"

There wasn’t the slightest trace of anger on his face.

Instead, he slowly turned toward the gathered elders.

"Elders."

His voice carried calmly across the arena.

"Between Elder Bong and myself, who appears younger?"

The question caught everyone off guard.

Confused looks immediately spread through the crowd.

What kind of question was that?

Even Lin Zhenghai frowned.

However, nobody answered immediately.

Because once the question was asked, they instinctively began comparing the two.

Having a daughter at the age of twenty-one, he would be turning thirty-two this year.

Despite already being a Golden Core cultivator, he still possessed the appearance of a man in his early thirties.

Bong Haoran, meanwhile, looked considerably older.

The man appeared to have cultivated for several decades at least.

Seeing the thoughtful expressions around him, Lin Xuan decided to clarify.

"The man who arrived today was only at the Fourth Layer of Golden Core."

The arena became even quieter.

Several elders blinked while others exchanged puzzled looks.

They didn’t understand what point he was trying to make.

Only Lin Zhenghai immediately spoke.

"Utter nonsense."

His voice rang loudly throughout the arena.

"He’s an elder of the Mystic Sky Sect."

The old man pointed toward the sky where Bong Haoran had departed.

"At minimum, every elder of such a sect should be at the Nascent Soul Realm."

Many elders nodded instinctively.

That was the common understanding.

A sect capable of dominating entire regions would naturally have powerful elders.

Lin Xuan looked at him.

"If he truly was a Nascent Soul cultivator, would he have wasted time threatening our clan?"

The words immediately caused several elders to freeze.

Lin Xuan continued calmly.

"If he were truly at the Nascent Soul Realm, he could have killed me on the spot."

Nobody spoke as they knew that was true.

"If he were truly backed by the authority he claimed to possess, he would not have left while making threats."

His gaze swept across the crowd.

"He would have acted."

This time, even more elders fell silent.

Because everyone knew the reputation of the Mystic Sky Sect.

They were arrogant and domineering.

If a genuine elder of such a sect was offended by a small clan patriarch, would he really leave with nothing but a threat?

The answer was obvious.

Several elders exchanged uneasy glances.

The more they thought about it, the stranger the entire situation became.

Lin Xuan nodded slowly.

"Mark today down as a shameful day for the Lin Clan."

His voice remained calm.

"We allowed ourselves to be fooled by a mere Golden Core cultivator."

A number of elders lowered their heads.

The statement stung.

Because if Lin Xuan was correct, they had practically rolled out a red carpet for someone whose cultivation wasn’t even much higher than their Patriarch’s.

Lin Zhenghai’s expression became increasingly ugly.

"No."

He immediately shook his head.

"No, that’s impossible."

The old man refused to accept it.

"What if he was merely an envoy? What if a true elder sent him here?"

Several elders immediately looked toward him.

Lin Zhenghai pressed forward.

"What if he was only acting on behalf of a genuine Mystic Sky Sect elder? What if Zhaowen truly caught the attention of someone important?"

His voice had lost some of its earlier anger, in its place, there was desperation.

Lin Xuan noticed it immediately, so did several of the older elders.

The old man clenched his fists.

"Do you understand how rare an opportunity like this is?"

His voice became hoarse.

"I have watched generations of children grow up in this clan.

I have watched talented youths spend their entire lives trapped within Azure Willow City."

His gaze swept across the younger generation.

"A few reached Qi Refinement and then they stopped."

Lin Zhenghai’s expression softened slightly.

"I know what this clan looks like, I know its limits."

Lin Zhenghai slowly turned toward Lin Xuan.

For the first time since the argument began, there was no anger in his eyes, only exhaustion.

"When you awakened your Grade Six Mortal Rank Martial Spirit, I was happy."

The sudden confession caught everyone off guard.

Even Lin Xuan looked slightly surprised.

Lin Zhenghai continued.

"Do you think I enjoyed fighting with you all these years?" frёeweɓηovel.coɱ

A bitter smile appeared on his face.

"When your father died and you inherited the position of Patriarch, the Lin Clan was nothing. We weren’t even recognized as a ranked clan."

The older elders unconsciously lowered their heads because they remembered those days.

Back then, the Lin Clan barely possessed any influence within Azure Willow City.

Their resources were scarce and their strength was weak.

Lin Zhenghai looked toward the younger generation.

"Yet in little more than a decade, you brought the clan from a nameless family to a Ninth-Rank Clan."

His voice carried genuine admiration.

"You expanded our businesses, you strengthened our treasury and you increased our territory.

You raised the overall strength of the clan." freēwebnovel.com

A complicated expression appeared on the old man’s face.

"I won’t deny your achievements, I never have."

Several elders exchanged surprised glances.

Those words carried more sincerity than anything Lin Zhenghai had said in years.

The old man slowly exhaled.

"When I saw your talent, I thought you would become the person who carried the Lin Clan even further."

His gaze drifted upward.

"I thought perhaps our clan would finally rise beyond Azure Willow City. I thought perhaps our descendants would one day walk among the great sects."

A trace of disappointment appeared in his eyes.

"But it didn’t happen, the clan improved, the clan grew stronger but we still remain a Ninth-Rank Clan."

His eyes eventually settled on Lin Zhaowen.

"And then Zhaowen appeared. For the first time in decades, I saw another possibility."

His voice became noticeably softer.

"Maybe Bong Haoran was a fraud, maybe he wasn’t but what if he wasn’t?

What if this really was the opportunity we had been waiting for?

What if this was the chance for someone from our clan to finally step beyond Azure Willow City?"

The old man’s fists slowly clenched.

"I am not fighting for myself, Lin Xuan. I am fighting because I don’t want the door that never opened for you to close on him as well."