"You should pay more attention to your right chest, given your age, it’s better to remove whatever is inside sooner rather than later," Lin Feng said flatly, then stood up and addressed Ding Yi, "Elder Ding, I’ll be leaving now."

From the very beginning, Lin Feng noticed something unique about these three men, including Elder Ding.

But Lin Feng, having seen all sorts of things on the island with the old man, didn’t find their uniqueness noteworthy. All that mattered was whether there was affinity; as for everything else, he couldn’t be bothered to delve into it. As long as everyone didn’t disrupt his life, he wouldn’t care and let things take their own course.

As for misunderstandings or anything else, he was too lazy to explain or say anything. Since the two elders seemed to take issue with him, leaving was simply the thing to do.

Qian Rong was inherently hot-tempered, and back in the day, with his status, who would dare to speak to him like this? Moreover, Old Soldier had the highest status and was the eldest among the three. Although they usually called Old Soldier casually and joked around, if anyone disrespected Old Soldier, Qian Rong would be the first to strike out.

Now, this brash young kid dared to confront Old Soldier. How could this be acceptable? Qian Rong’s temper flared up, and he grabbed Lin Feng’s wrist, thinking to himself, you, a young whippersnapper, think you can just leave like that?

"You old thug..." Ding Yi’s face changed at Qian Rong’s move, and so did his tone.

Ding Yi knew too well the strength of the old thug, who never knew his own strength. If something happened to Lin Feng because of this...

Old Soldier Leng Hui was also taken aback, just about to stop Qian Rong’s impulsive act.

But at that moment, a surprising scene occurred. Qian Rong’s hand couldn’t capture Lin Feng, who easily broke free.

It looked as if a child tried to grasp an adult’s hand but was casually flicked away, effortless and natural, just like a child’s hand being shaken off without any strength.

Lin Feng smiled and nodded to Ding Yi, then turned and left without looking back...

Meanwhile, Qian Rong stared at his hand in shock, cursing to himself, how in the world could this young man break free from his grip? It was unfathomable. Not to be offensive, but he could even leave five finger prints on a steel pipe; let alone a human. Who on earth was this young man!

Others might not notice the change that happened in that instant, but as the person directly involved, Qian Rong was more than aware. Staring dumbfounded at his hand, he was torn, his decades of cultivation power couldn’t have been wasted, how could he let a kid break free, what exactly was going on?

"Phew..." Ding Yi exhaled, looking at Qian Rong, "You old thug, it seems you haven’t lived in vain, not to attack a junior like that."

Leng Hui, on the other hand, sensed that something was amiss and looked at Qian Rong with bewilderment.

Upon hearing Ding Yi’s words, Qian Rong’s face turned beet red with embarrment, doubting himself. Then, with a sudden turn, he grabbed a tree in front of him.

"Crack..." His fingers pierced into the tree, and with a burst of strength, he ripped a large chunk out of it.

This action shocked both Ding Yi and Leng Hui. As old friends for many years, they immediately understood the significance of Qian Rong’s act, which meant he hadn’t held back just now, but...

"Scholar, did you tell Lin Feng about the injury on my right chest?" Leng Hui asked sternly, considering it was a hidden ailment from decades ago, known to very few. Even his family wasn’t fully aware of it, so how could Ding Yi talk about it to an outsider?

"Old Soldier, do you think I would do that? Frankly, I’ve only met Lin Feng for the second time, just once more than you," Ding Yi replied somewhat exasperatedly, thinking, how would I know that the kid knows about your injury, Old Soldier? I never mentioned it at all.

Leng Hui certainly trusted Ding Yi, but he was puzzled, if Ding Yi hadn’t mentioned it, could Lin Feng have just blindly guessed and hit the nail on the head? But how could a guess be so precise about the right chest, even mentioning that something inside needed to be removed early? How did he know?

Suddenly, a thought flashed in Leng Hui’s mind: the person who used the Nine Palace Maze Formation back then, he seemed to have said the same thing to Lin Feng. Could there be a connection...?

"Scholar, tell me, what level of a master is your son-in-law really?" Qian Rong asked while staring at his hand, still perplexed.

"Didn’t I tell you, I’ve also only seen him twice?" Now, Ding Yi was genuinely confused. Today, his two old friends’ reactions were too out of character, considering Qian Rong’s sudden tree-grasping behavior, and now this question. Could it be that Lin Feng was some kind of master?

"You all know that I’ve practiced Iron Palm for decades. It might not be the best external skill, but after decades, it has achieved some level of success. Even ordinary stones can be easily crushed in my hands," Qian Rong said seriously to the two men.

Both nodded, indicating they understood. Among the three brothers, only Qian Rong had martial skills, and they were extremely formidable. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have become a godfather-like figure in the underworld.

"I can reach this level now," Qian Rong then pointed to the tree he had just shattered.

Ding Yi and Leng Hui looked at him in utter surprise, they had known Qian Rong was very powerful, but they had never imagined he was capable of this. After all, they would absolutely never come to blows among themselves.

"But it was with this hand, this strength that somehow Lin Feng managed to break free so easily. Of course, at first, I only intended to catch him, and I wouldn’t have hurt him if he hadn’t struggled. The harder he struggled, the more strength I applied, and in the last instant, my strength even exceeded what it took to crush that tree. Yet he still broke away with ease. There’s only one explanation for that, his cultivation power must be far greater than mine, but how can that be, considering how young Lin Feng is? I’ve been training my Iron Palm for decades," Qian Rong said with immense frustration. Though he didn’t want to admit it, facts were facts.

"Ah? What? Are you serious??" Ding Yi’s eyes were as wide as they could possibly be. Having witnessed Qian Rong’s actions, he had some suspicions, but it was quite another thing hearing it directly from Qian Rong, with such an impactful statement.

He had indeed been unaware of Lin Feng’s martial arts skills, let alone imagining that he could reach such a level. They didn’t know how advanced Lin Feng’s martial arts were, but Qian Rong’s strength was clear from the crushed nearby tree. Ding Yi couldn’t calm his heart, sensing that this future son-in-law of his was really out of the ordinary. Could it be that what he just said was true? That seemed to be the only plausible explanation that people would accept.

Leng Hui’s thoughts were even more numerous. Just who was this young man, Lin Feng? A Go prodigy, possibly also a medical expert, since no one had ever diagnosed his hidden ailment, and now also a martial arts master? Whose disciple could be so heaven-defying? He sighed inwardly; Ding Yi had truly found a treasure. Another thought in his mind was, why couldn’t his granddaughter, Leng Mei, be so lucky?

Qian Rong was speechless, thoroughly stunned by the young martial arts expert who didn’t fit any norms. The first thing that came to his mind upon recovering was, why didn’t he have a grandson-in-law like that? If he did, he could rest easy. He wondered if something like that could be possible...

As they pondered, both men looked up at the scholarly Elder Ding Yi. As soon as Ding Yi saw their ill-intentioned glances, he immediately tried to see them out. But these men were never mere visitors in his home, so it wasn’t up to him to send them away as he pleased.

"Elder scholar, let’s discuss this; after all, Wan’er is still very young. Look at my granddaughter, Leng Mei—she’s not getting any younger."

"Your Leng Mei will be fine; take a look at our Duo’er, she’s the one who needs such a master."

"Actually, I’m thinking, why don’t we discuss this together..."

"Discuss your nonsense; are you trying to make me curse you out, huh? Go on, get out, all of you! Who ever heard of snatching someone else’s grandson-in-law!"

"What do you mean ’snatching’? Who still practices arranged marriages these days? Just look at this young man working in the school’s logistics department; you can tell your granddaughter isn’t fond of that idea, right?"

"Ha ha, indeed, I hadn’t thought about that, Old Soldier. If she doesn’t like that, mine does—my granddaughter just needs someone who can defeat her, and that’s good enough."

"My granddaughter has simple criteria too; she just needs someone smarter than her, and I think this Lin Feng fits the bill."

"You..."

......

Zhao Jian was sipping tea in his office. He had wanted to drink some to calm his nerves, but the more he drank, the angrier he became, as his mind was incessantly fixated on Lin Feng’s behavior that day. Lin Feng really had no respect for him, taking him too lightly.

Lin Feng was just a minor clerk under him, yet he had the audacity to embarrass him in front of his superiors and then had simply left without obeying his orders. Zhao Jian felt he must deal with him properly, to make clear who was the boss and who was the subordinate; otherwise, where would his authority stand?

What could he do to make Lin Feng learn his lesson? It seemed the man knew how to handle everything, and ordinary challenges wouldn’t faze him—a real conundrum. He had given Lin Feng more than his fair share of difficult tasks, but nothing had managed to stump him.

While Zhao Jian was pondering how to deal with Lin Feng, the latter, who had just finished playing chess with Leng Hui and others, walked in through the door.

Lin Feng entered and even politely greeted Zhao Jian, but Zhao Jian was in a particularly foul mood at the moment.

"Oh," Zhao Jian replied nonchalantly. He was seething inside; he was a department head, Lin Feng’s immediate boss, yet he felt as if he was invisible to Lin Feng. Returning with nothing more than a casual greeting and no word about the earlier incident.

As if pretending that nothing had happened and not seeing him as worth mentioning.

"Lin Feng, where did you go this afternoon? I ordered you to come back to the meeting, and you just left without permission, without even asking for leave. Just for that attitude alone, you can forget about this month’s bonus. Moreover, considering your disregard for leadership, I’ve decided to deduct a part of this month’s salary from you..." Zhao Jian, seeing Lin Feng enter without bringing up the afternoon’s events, thought that he must be trying to avoid discussing it. Well, then, let him remember it well.

He deliberately kept his tone even, clearly waiting for Lin Feng’s reaction.

What did one work for if not to earn money? He wanted to show that he held Lin Feng’s lifeline. Now that he had caught Lin Feng out, he was eager to see how the latter would beg for mercy this time.