Chapter 93: Trouble Returns

Beside him, Guo Zhao was staring at his own fists in disbelief, feeling as though a boundless force now surged through his entire body.

“Grandpa, have you really reached great mastery in inner force?” Gu Ya exclaimed in delighted surprise.

“Old Gu’s martial cultivation has now entered the middle stage of great mastery in inner force. He is only one step away from the peak,” Lin Le said lightly.

“One step away... the peak of great mastery in inner force...” A look of limitless longing appeared on Gu Huai Shan’s face.

When that day came, he would be very close to stepping into the transcendent realm!

For hundreds of years, their Gu family had pursued that goal with unremitting effort, and now it seemed poised to be fulfilled in his own hands!

One had to know that just over a month ago, Gu Huai Shan’s martial life had already reached its end. Who could have imagined that, in little more than a month, he would achieve such astonishing progress?

Gu Huai Shan believed that as long as Lin Le remained by his side, breaking through into the transcendent realm within his lifetime would only be a matter of time.

At the thought of this, he was so moved that he nearly cried.

After hearing Lin Le’s confirmation, Gu Ya was likewise overwhelmed with excitement, genuinely happy for her grandfather and for the Gu family as a whole.

At that moment, she recalled how much importance Grandpa Gu Huai Shan had attached to Lin Le before, and all the effort he had spent building a good relationship with him. It only made her feel that his judgment had been incredibly wise.

Guo Zhao, too, carefully sensed his own cultivation. His martial arts attainment had also reached the initial stage of great mastery in inner force, only one level below Gu Huai Shan. For Guo Zhao, however, this was already an immense surprise.

After all, he was still relatively young. His future in the martial path was simply without limit!

Nearby, Liang Qiu Yang had witnessed with his own eyes how, with only three palms, Lin Le had helped Gu Huai Shan and Guo Zhao break through to great mastery in inner force. His heart was filled with excitement and with envy.

The timing was not quite right at the moment, but Liang Qiu Yang had already made a silent decision: he would surely seek out a good opportunity and find a way to have Lin Le give him some guidance as well. Lin Le was already at the level of great completion in foundation establishment, like an immortal. If he could receive even a little instruction, then taking a single step into the path of cultivation would not be impossible at all.

The mere thought that one day he might also become a true inner sect Daoist, a genuine enlightened master of the path, made Liang Qiu Yang feel as though his whole chest were burning.

“Little Friend Lin, your great kindness to my Gu family, I, Gu Huai Shan, shall never forget it!” Gu Huai Shan said emotionally, cupping his hands and bowing to Lin Le.

“Thank you for your tremendous kindness, Mr. Lin!” Guo Zhao also cupped his hands and bowed.

“Old Gu, Uncle Guo, you are too polite. In truth, your real strength had already reached the level of great mastery in inner force. I merely gave you a push, lending you a hand,” Lin Le said modestly.

Only after a long while did Gu Huai Shan and the others finally recover from their boundless excitement.

“By the way, Old Gu, while I was in seclusion, nothing major happened outside, did it?” Lin Le asked.

A month was not really all that long, but for Lin Le it had been a month cut off from the world. Now that he had come out, he felt as though he had awakened from a dream, and everything outside seemed faintly unfamiliar.

“During this month, Gu Ya often went to your family’s noodle shop to visit your father. Rest assured, Little Friend Lin, everything at home has been peaceful,” Gu Huai Shan said with a smile.

“Your Lin family noodle shop has now finished all its renovations and has already entered the preliminary publicity stage. It shouldn’t be long before it officially opens,” Gu Ya said with a smile.

Over the past month, in the name of being Lin Le’s friend, Gu Ya had often visited the Lin family noodle shop. She had already become quite close with Lin Teng Hui and Chen Qiang, and had even taken the chance to enjoy plenty of Heavenly Beyond noodles.

“That’s good.” During this period of seclusion, what Lin Le had worried about most was his father and the others. Now he could finally relax.

“Are there any other matters related to me?” Lin Le asked again.

“Oh yes, Mr. Lin, a few days ago Miss Tang called and said she wanted to invite you to dinner,” Liang Qiu Yang suddenly remembered and said.

“Her?” Lin Le was somewhat surprised. Then he immediately realized that since the contact had been made through Liang Qiu Yang, Tang Nian Chen’s real invitation was probably meant for that Master Mu, not for him, Lin Le.

When Gu Ya heard that Tang Nian Chen wanted to invite Lin Le to dinner, she did not think any further. She only assumed that Tang Nian Chen was coming for Lin Le himself. Her expression changed at once, looking a little displeased.

“Did she say what it was about?” Lin Le still asked in the end.

“It seems the Great Tang Group successfully won the development rights for Plot Eighty-One, so she probably wanted to express her thanks to Mr. Lin,” Liang Qiu Yang replied.

“I see.” The only person in a position to compete with the Great Tang Group for Plot Eighty-One had already been subdued by Lin Le, so the development rights ending up in the Tang family’s hands had been entirely within expectations.

“Would Mr. Lin be willing to accept the invitation? Should I contact Miss Tang?” Liang Qiu Yang asked cautiously.

“Forget it. I’m not interested in the Tang family’s affairs,” Lin Le said indifferently.

“Oh, right, Mr. Lin, that fellow Guan Tian Xiong has come by several times recently and asked about you. He said he wanted to treat you to a meal and such, but I turned him down each time,” Guo Zhao suddenly said.

“Guan Tian Xiong?” Lin Le began to find it odd.

A month ago, Guan Tian Xiong had already called to invite him to dinner. Now a month had passed, and he was still at it.

Such persistence made it clear that his purpose was definitely not as simple as sharing a meal.

It seemed the man had probably run into some trouble; otherwise he would not have been so stubborn.

If there was a chance, he might as well meet him once and be done with it, so he would not keep hounding him endlessly.

Originally, Gu Huai Shan had wanted to host a grand banquet for Lin Le, as a feast to welcome him out of seclusion. But Lin Le politely declined. He had not been out for a month and had not seen his father and the others, so he wanted to go out for a walk first.

Gu Huai Shan did not insist. Today, having broken through to great mastery in inner force, he was already overflowing with excitement and needed to go back and calm himself down properly.

Just as Gu Huai Shan and the others were about to leave, Guo Zhao’s phone suddenly rang.

While answering, Guo Zhao started walking toward the door, but halfway there he stopped again.

“What did you say?! Tell him to wait there. I’m going over right now!” Guo Zhao suddenly shouted.

“Guo Zhao, what’s going on?” Gu Huai Shan asked in confusion.

“This...” Guo Zhao hesitated, looking toward Lin Le, a trace of timidity appearing in his eyes.

“Uncle Guo, what happened?” Seeing his reaction, Lin Le guessed that this matter was probably related to him.

“It was a call from Chen Qiang.” During this time, Guo Zhao had also gone to the noodle shop to visit, and he had told Chen Qiang that if anything happened over there, Chen Qiang could call him.

“Qiang Zi? Did something happen with Dad’s side?” The first thing Lin Le thought of was his father.

“This... Chen Qiang called to say that the noodle shop at Mr. Lin’s home has just been... smashed...” Guo Zhao said weakly.

“What?!” Gu Huai Shan could not help but cry out. “How could something like this happen!”

“Shouldn’t that place be A Xiong’s turf? Could it be his men again? Does that bastard have no eyes!” Gu Huai Shan was so angry he was almost jumping in fury.

“This... it probably wouldn’t be A Xiong’s people. I already told him about the Lin family noodle shop before, so his underlings should all know about it...” Guo Zhao said, somewhat puzzled.

“What do you mean, probably? Call A Xiong right now! If it really was his men, then he can get the hell out of Hai Zhou from now on!” Gu Huai Shan roared.

“Yes, yes, I’ll call right away!” Guo Zhao nodded repeatedly in fear and hurried to make the call.

“No need.” Before Guo Zhao could dial, Lin Le said calmly, “I’ll handle it myself.”

“This, Mr. Lin...” Guo Zhao still wanted to say something.

But then he heard Lin Le continue: “I don’t care whether they’re Guan Tian Xiong’s people or anyone else’s. This time, I will absolutely not let him off lightly!”

Lin Le’s voice was calm, yet it cut like cold iron. Everyone shuddered. Even Guo Zhao felt a chill in his heart, and he had already begun to pity the person who had offended Lin Le...