The Female Lead Brought Her Lover to the Wedding Banquet and Broke Off the Marriage; I Slaughtered Her Entire Family - Chapter 20:

Chapter 20: The Chessboard in the Dark:

He opened the box, revealing a greenish pill inside, its fragrance filling the air.

“Condensed Emerald Pill, a good thing, even I can’t bear to use it myself.” Lin Chen pushed the box over. “Your injury looks fine on the surface, but the root hasn’t fully stabilized. This thing can help you, so you can quickly go for that so-called inheritance.”

Lin Fan stared at the pill but did not reach for it.

The faint trace of Azure aura in his body seemed to be stirring, as if warning him, yet he couldn’t figure out why.

“Lin… Brother, this…” Lin Fan hesitated.

Lin Chen had an expression of complete certainty. “You’re worth it. The Azure bloodline is so rare. If you really obtain the inheritance, your future will be limitless. Our Lin family befriending you is a sure profit.”

Lin Fan pondered over these words.

It sounded reasonable. It’s normal for the strong to invest in each other.

But that unease in his heart still pricked like a thorn.

“Besides,” Lin Chen continued, “if I hadn’t stepped in, you’d already be dead in the Blood Hole Valley. If I had ill intentions, I would have acted then. Would I need to bother now?”

Lin Fan had no rebuttal for this.

After a moment’s hesitation, he reached out and took the pill.

“Thank you, Brother Lin.”

Lin Chen waved his hand casually. “No need for such politeness. When you get that inheritance from the Azure Nether Cave Mansion, you must share some of the benefits with me.”

Lin Fan nodded. “Absolutely.”

Lin Chen stood up and made a gesture of invitation. “Eat it while it’s still potent. This pill’s medicinal energy dissipates quickly.”

Lin Fan placed the pill in his palm, feeling Lin Chen’s gaze fixed on him.

His instincts screamed at him, but reason reminded him that this person had indeed saved him more than once.

“Damn it, I’ll gamble!” Lin Fan hardened his heart and threw the pill into his mouth.

The pill melted instantly, and a refreshing coolness surged through his entire body, making him almost moan in comfort. The pain from his wounds quickly faded, and his blood and energy flowed much more smoothly.

It truly was a good medicine.

However, after that wave of comfort, an extremely subtle, almost imperceptible chill silently crept into the depths of his soul, like an invisible worm slowly weaving a web.

“How is it?” Lin Chen asked.

Lin Fan closed his eyes and felt for a moment. “Much better, the wounds are healing fast.” He opened his eyes, his expression much more sincere. “Brother Lin, I owe you big time.”

Lin Chen nodded in satisfaction. “Good, rest well. I’ll check on you tomorrow.”

Once outside the tent, the smile on Lin Chen’s face vanished instantly.

He looked up at the stars in the sky, silently calculating in his heart. Seven days, enough time for the Soul Devouring Powder to take effect.

This fish, Lin Fan, was hooked securely.

Just as he was about to return to his own tent, a guard rushed over. “Young master, those people are getting closer!”

Lin Chen’s eyes turned cold. “Let’s go take a look.”

He brought two guards and slid like shadows toward the northwest corner of the camp.

Using the cover of night, they quickly spotted their targets—five men in black, agile and experienced, clearly veterans.

“Martial Arts Association? Or spies from some other faction?” Lin Chen calculated rapidly in his mind.

At that moment, one of the men in black seemed to sense something, suddenly raising his head and looking toward Lin Chen.

Although only half of his face was exposed, Lin Chen’s heart suddenly jumped.

“Why is it him…”

The man in black quickly made a hand gesture, and the five of them immediately dispersed, disappearing into the dense darkness in the blink of an eye.

Lin Chen stood in place, frowning deeply.

The identities of these people were probably not simple.

“Raise the alert to the highest level. Report to me immediately if there’s any movement!” He ordered in a deep voice.

Returning to his tent, Lin Chen sat there, pondering over this sudden variable.

He had already drugged Lin Fan, and the Black Soul Lock had been planted. Seven days later, when the inheritance opened, everything should proceed as planned.

But now, it seemed some unexpected elements had appeared.

“Interesting, really interesting.” Lin Chen muttered to himself, the corners of his mouth curling up again. “Looks like a few more troublemakers have joined this chessboard.”

Lin Fan lay on the bed, the pill’s medicinal power still working.

Just as the thought surfaced, his chest suddenly throbbed in pain.

A misty azure light uncontrollably burst out from his body, forming a thin film over his skin.

Azure bloodline?

It moved on its own?

Lin Fan was shocked. This azure light was resisting something, as a cold force rampaged inside his body.

The two forces clashed fiercely inside him, tearing and grinding, causing him such pain that his vision darkened.

“Ugh…” He gritted his teeth and forced himself to calm down, trying to see the chaos inside his body.

In a trance, he “saw” a black net woven of fine threads silently enveloping his soul.

And the protective azure light turned into sharp blades, cutting down the approaching black threads again and again.

Someone… is trying to control me?

As soon as the thought arose, a searing pain exploded, dragging him out of that state.

Lin Fan collapsed on the bed, drenched in sweat, gasping for breath.

Who?

That “ancestor’s” phantom?

Or…

Lin Chen’s half-smiling face flashed before him.

No!

This thought stabbed him like a needle, and a wave of warmth mixed with guilt surged up.

Lin Chen had saved him and even gave him such a good pill… how could he be trying to harm him?

Lin Fan shook his head, forcing down the thought that shouldn’t have existed.

He calmed his mind and resumed circulating his cultivation technique, guiding the medicinal power to heal his wounds.

But he didn’t notice that whenever suspicion toward Lin Chen surfaced, an inexplicable force would quietly smooth over the doubt, replacing it with a near-dependent trust.

A silent struggle unfolded deep within his soul.

At the same time.

At the high point of the camp, Lin Chen stood with his hands behind his back, the night wind rustling his clothes.

He suddenly raised his hand and gently rubbed his fingers.

From the direction of the Black Soul Lock came a faint disturbance, like a fish unwilling to accept the hook struggling violently.

“Heh, still got some spine.”

Lin Chen pulled a cold arc from the corner of his mouth.

“Too bad, the more you struggle, the tighter it’ll bind.”

He was about to turn around but paused mid-action.

His gaze locked on the dense forest in the northwest, where those shadows had disappeared.

People from the Lin family…

What were they doing in this desolate Black Stone Mountains?

Lin Chen frowned slightly.

Were they here for the “treasure” that was Lin Fan?

Or… for him?

Things seemed to be getting livelier than expected.

Lin Chen’s slender fingers tapped the wooden table inside the tent, thump, thump, thump, rhythmically and heavily.

He picked up some black powder and flicked it gently at the candle flame.

The powder brushed past the flame, spreading silently, turning into an undetectable black mist.

There was still more than half a bottle of that medicine in his storage pouch, enough to turn a man’s mind into mush.

Lin Fan’s resistance from his Azure bloodline would be crushed sooner or later.

“Young master.” A voice outside the tent was suppressed very low. “More people have come, the third wave.”

Lin Chen got up and lifted the curtain.

The guard knelt on one knee, presenting a jade slip.

“These people are slippery, almost snuck into the camp.” The guard’s voice dropped even lower. “We caught one alive.”

Lin Chen took the jade slip and probed it with his spiritual energy.

Inside was the image of the captured man, along with a few interrogation records—members of the Azure Rainbow Mercenary Group.

They claimed to be here for the bounty, but refused to reveal who sent them, being extremely tight-lipped.

“Lead the way.”