Beastmaster of the Ages

“Eh?” Lin Xiaoyun and Lin Wuyi were surprised to hear a figure like Lin Jie placing so much importance on a few children. Even Lin Wuyi had been on the verge of washing her hands of the matter, as it was kind of pointless in the end.

“Brother Jie, you mean we can use certain methods, or even force on those girls? Dongshen Yue’s protecting them well, but it’s not impossible to find an opportunity,” Lin Wuyi said.

“Decide for yourself. You know how far you should go. You just have to make Lin Xiao and Dongshen Yue’s reputation stop rising and even drop it back to the level of the past. Use your head and think of a few plans. There must be some way to deal with kids that won’t implicate you,” Lin Jie said.

“Alright. I didn’t try very hard before, as I thought it’d be easy, but I’ll do my best now that Brother Jie’s reminded me.” Lin Wuyi nodded.

Lin Xiaoyun frowned. “Brother Jie, please enlighten me. Why do we need to focus so much on some kids? They’ll need over a thousand years to grow even if they’re geniuses. We’ll have completed the reformation by then.”

“The kids aren’t the crux, but Lin Xiao and Dongshen Yue are,” Lin Jie said.

“What do you mean?”

“When Ku’s gone, the Second Patriarch will be the eldest and most senior of the Lin Clan. He also has one big difference from Ku. I suspect he’s still got a large portion of his strength. The Lin Xiao of the past was an expert second only to Ku. Half of my accomplishments were guided by him, so I know how strong he is.” Lin Jie grit his teeth.

“But so what? What can he change? He isn’t even a member of the council hall. Not even the traditionalists accept him. Those old fogies are just clowns on Brokensword Peak that no one pays attention to,” Lin Xiaoyun disdainfully said.

Lin Jie laughed and shook his head. “You’re still young, Xiaoyun, which is why you never knew how glorious Lin Xiao was in his younger years. He has a very strong relationship with the people in the traditionalist faction, even Ku. He highly values relationships and is even willing to die for his brothers. His only conflict with Ku was marrying Dongshen Yue. The Second Patriarch was a victim in the matter of Lin Mu in the end. Although he was kicked out of the council hall and left the decision-maker level of the clan, his relationships, connections, and reputation still exist. Get it? Lin Xiao is the perfect loyal hound of the Lin Clan. There’s nobody that doesn’t recognize his efforts. If it weren’t for the black marks of his wife and son, he’d have a status in the council that isn’t any lower than Ku’s and would become the clan master once Ku dies.” Lin Jie’s expression turned darker.

“I understand. Before, Lin Xiao was destined never to raise his head because of his son. It’d have nothing to do with him if we began reformations and we got into conflict with the traditionalists after Ku dies. But now, thanks to his grandson and granddaughters-in-law, he’s returned to the Lin Clan’s attention in a very high-profile way! They’re integral to rebuilding his reputation. Once Ku dies and the traditionalists lose their head, our pressure on them may cause them to push Lin Xiao into conflict with us!” Lin Wuyi’s eyes shone. She hadn’t cared much about the matter before. No matter how dazzling the girls were, it didn’t matter; however, many people had now changed their opinions of Tianming. It was very possible that the effect may apply to Lin Xiao and Dongshen Yue as well.

“The important thing is that Lin Xiao has a very strong bond with those from the traditionalist faction. He’s been too ashamed to talk to them all these years, but if they need help, he’ll definitely be willing to stop us on their behalf,” Lin Jie said.

“I see. No wonder you wanted to get rid of the Second Patriarch when you became the Hall of Discipline’s new head. Your foresight’s amazing.” Lin Xiaoyun was full of admiration. He had never considered that angle.

“Anyway, let this matter be the last time. Don’t let their prestige rise any further,” Lin Jie said.

“Yes. I’ll handle the matter well, Brother Jie,” Lin Wuyi said.

“Speaking of which, wouldn’t it have been good if Jianxing had just killed the four of them when he first saw them?” Lin Xiaoyun asked.

“Yes, but that chance won’t come again.” Lin Jie shook his head with a bitter smile.

“Alright. I know Jianxing’s been full of regret, but now I regret it even more than him.”

“They’re just lucky. But they shouldn’t hope to live well after this.”

“Their reputation was already bad, so even if they want to make a comeback, there’s many ways to drop them back into the abyss.” Lin Wuyi coldly smiled. Lin Jie had already given her a lot of leeway and she now dared to do many things she hadn’t before.

“The most important thing is to leave no trace. Ku’s still around, so don’t give the traditionalists any weakness to grab hold of,” Lin Jie said.

“Understood.” Lin Wuyi seriously nodded.

Lin Jie leaned back in his chair. “Actually, Dongshen Yue’s also a roadblock.”

“Is it because of the Grandnorth Dongshen Clan behind her?” Lin Xiaoyun asked.

“Right. The ebons are eying Mount Taia. We’ve chosen to side with the ebons, so we can offer them Dongshen Yue’s head as a sign of loyalty! For every day she remains in the Infinitum Swordsea, there’s a thorn in the relationship between our Swordgod Lin Clan and them. Dongshen Yue also has a very high status in the Grandnorth Dongshen Clan, so this thorn must be removed!” Lin Jie didn’t hide his killing intent.

“Those two old fogies already wrecked the clan, and now they’re even getting in the way of us revitalizing it. How revolting. They’re the clan’s sinners no matter how much they contributed before!” Lin Wuyi spat.

“They’re old like Ku, stuck in their ways and only remember historical grudges and unable to accept the new times. The only eternal thing in this world is benefit! We can forget all the past conflicts and grudges with the ebons for it!” Lin Jie said in a low voice.

“The ebons.…”

Ebonia, the ebons. Using that as their clan name made it clear they had a relationship with the sixth-level nova source world.

“The ebons have already returned to their peak state. If it weren’t for Yi Daiyan fifty years ago, the first, fifth, seventh, ninth, and tenth places on the reges mundi ranking would all be theirs! The Infinitum Bodhimanda may have thirteen Royal Clans, but the ebons would be number one and rule over half of all the land! If the Infinitum Bodhimanda didn’t have a special rule, how could Yi Daiyan be in power? Just based on luxdaemons that aren’t even a third as strong as our Lin Clan and rank at the bottom of the Royal Clans? Our Infinitum Bodhimanda has had quite a few reges mundi without followers, but Yi Daiyan is the only one that can match the mighty ebons alone. We’ve killed luxdaemons and, while she hasn’t done anything yet, she won’t let us off.” Lin Xiaoyun’s eyes were filled with hatred when he mentioned Yi Daiyan.

“In the fifty years since she ascended, she hasn’t done anything, but many still no longer dare to interact or do business with our Lin Clan. We’ve lost thirty percent of our income and it’s still rapidly dropping. We can’t sell our stock and it’s only accumulating. Our cash flow is ruined, but the resources our disciples are exchanging for are increasing. It’s all snowballing, and if we don’t fix this, we won’t have enough resources to raise so many clan disciples! A few emporiums have gone bankrupt and more and more clan members no longer dare to have children because of the lack of resources. At this rate, our population will even decrease, too.…”