Lin Tian staggered back to his feet, his face filled with disbelief.
“Uncle Changqiang, are you sure you’re not mistaken?”
“Mistaken? What nonsense! Would I lie to you?” Lin Changqiang kicked his clueless nephew again.
“And the rest of you—come over and greet your uncle properly!”
In the Lin family, seniority was of utmost importance.
Even though Lin Changqiang’s cultivation wasn’t outstanding, these younger members of the family still listened to him obediently.
One by one, they approached Lin Mo and bowed respectfully.
“Greetings, Uncle!”
Lin Tian, meanwhile, snuck over to Lin Qingqing and whispered, “Qingqing, is this guy really our uncle?”
Lin Qingqing rolled her eyes at her dim-witted cousin. “If my father hadn’t stopped you just now, you’d probably be the one with broken legs right now.”
Among their generation, Lin Tian was actually considered quite strong.
At only eighteen years old, he had already reached the Foundation Establishment realm two years ago.
Still, he remained skeptical. “Qingqing, I’m at least in the Foundation Establishment realm. He doesn’t even look that much older than me!”
“Believe whatever you want.”
Even though he was reluctant, Lin Tian eventually walked up to Lin Mo, bowing stiffly and greeting him with a sour expression:
“U-Uncle…”
“That’s enough, you can all get up.”
Lin Mo, of course, wouldn’t hold grudges against these younger family members and simply smiled faintly.
After some casual conversation, the younger members finally understood—
This young-looking uncle was actually their father’s youngest brother, the son of Gu Ningxin, a mortal with no spiritual roots.
They had heard that he had joined Qingling Sect many years ago.
With this information, many of them secretly dismissed him.
A child of a mere mortal… How strong could he really be?
He probably wasn’t favored by Great-Grandfather and had to seek refuge in an immortal sect instead.
By noon, the Lin family meeting had concluded.
As soon as Lin Zhan heard that his son had returned, he rushed over excitedly.
The moment he laid eyes on Lin Mo, he instantly sensed his cultivation.
“Mo’er, when did you reach the Golden Core stage?” Lin Zhan’s voice trembled with emotion.
“Just recently.”
Looking at his father, who barely looked older than himself, Lin Mo felt a strange pressure.
Because Lin Zhan had exceptional talent, he had reached the Golden Core stage early, meaning his appearance had barely aged over the past twenty-five years.
“As expected of my son! Grandfather will surely be thrilled when he hears the news tomorrow!” Lin Zhan was overjoyed and immediately retrieved several bottles of pills from his storage ring.
“Here, these Nine-Turn Pills will greatly aid your cultivation in the Golden Core stage. Take them.”
Nine-Turn Pills were third-grade medicinal pills specifically designed to assist Golden Core cultivators, making them quite valuable.
Lin Mo noticed that there were twenty pills in total and couldn’t help but ask,
“Father, I remember that in the Lin family, you’re only allotted a few Nine-Turn Pills every three months. How did you manage to save up so many?”
At this, Gu Ningxin sighed and explained,
“Your father saw that you had already reached the late Foundation Establishment stage a few years ago. So instead of using them himself, he saved them all for you.”
“Ningxin…” Lin Zhan frowned slightly, seeming displeased that she had revealed this.
“Mo’er is grown now. There are things he deserves to know.”
Lin Zhan let out a deep sigh and admitted,
“Mo’er, you already know about the hidden injuries I suffered. These pills don’t do much for me—barely ten percent of their original effectiveness. Using them is a complete waste.”
For the past twenty-some years, Lin Zhan’s cultivation had stagnated at the mid-Golden Core stage.
There were even signs that his cultivation might regress back to the early Golden Core stage.
Lin Mo pushed the pills back toward him and said reassuringly,
“Don’t worry, Father. From now on, these pills won’t go to waste anymore.”
Lin Zhan didn’t understand what he meant. Just as he was about to ask, he suddenly saw Lin Mo retrieve a pill from his storage ring.
His pupils instantly dilated in shock. “This… this is a sixth-grade pill?!”
Although Lin Zhan had fallen from genius to mediocrity, he had still seen his fair share of rare treasures during his youth.
His judgment in such matters was undeniable.
Lin Mo nodded. “Yes. This is a pill that can heal your internal injuries—it’s perfect for your condition.”
Hearing that it could heal his hidden injuries, Lin Zhan’s hands trembled slightly.
For over two decades, he had gone from a celebrated prodigy to a failure.
He had endured countless sneers and ridicule.
Every time he tried to cultivate, his ability to absorb spiritual energy was thousands of times worse than before.
The frustration and sense of loss were overwhelming.
Even so, he hesitated.
In the end, he did not take the pill, but instead said,
“This pill is far too precious. We don’t even know if it will truly cure my injuries. Using it on me would be too much of a waste. You should keep it for yourself.”
Lin Mo could clearly see his father’s hesitation.
Feeling a warmth in his heart, he patiently explained,
“Father, stop worrying. If we run out, I can always make more.”
Lin Zhan was about to refuse again, but then he suddenly froze in place.
A realization hit him like a lightning bolt.
With stunned eyes, he turned to Lin Mo and stammered,
“Mo’er… d-did you refine this pill yourself?”
Lin Mo grinned teasingly. “What, did you think I stole it?”
A sixth-grade pill!
Lin Zhan was in absolute disbelief.
After all, he know people who had been obsessed with alchemy for years, and even at three hundred years old, they had only just managed to refine fourth-grade pills.
Lin Mo’s father, Lin Zhan, was in absolute disbelief.
This child was only in his twenties, yet not only had he reached the Golden Core stage, but he could also refine sixth-grade pills?
Even if he had studied alchemy from the womb, this shouldn’t be possible!
Seeing his father’s shock, Lin Mo didn’t bother explaining further.
Instead, he retrieved his Starfire Purple Copper Furnace.
At the moment, he didn’t have materials for another sixth-grade pill—
But he did have the ingredients for Nine-Turn Pills.
Following the formula stored in his memory, Lin Mo began refining.
Lin Zhan, curious yet skeptical, simply watched in silence.
The more he observed, the more shocked he became.
An hour later, ten perfectly refined Nine-Turn Pills were placed before him—
And their quality far surpassed the ones he received from the Lin family!
At that moment, Lin Zhan exhaled deeply, eyes filled with pride and emotion:
“To have a son like this… I have no regrets in this life.”
This time, Lin Zhan no longer hesitated.
Right in front of Lin Mo, he swallowed the sixth-grade pill, immediately sitting down to meditate and absorb its medicinal effects.
Soon, his skin flushed red, and faint wisps of dark green smoke emerged from his pores.
Seeing this, Gu Ningxin grew worried.
But Lin Mo gently reassured her, “Mother, this is just a normal reaction from absorbing the medicinal properties. There’s no need to worry.”
As he spoke, he retrieved another pill—a fifth-grade Longevity Pill, along with a Beauty-Preserving Pill.
“Mother, you should take these too.”
That night, Lin Mo did not leave.
Instead, he remained by his parents’ side, simply watching over them as they absorbed the effects of the pills.
During this time, an important thought crossed his mind.
The system had once told him that spending Remorse Points on spiritual roots would allow him to transfer them to others.
His mother, Gu Ningxin, was a mortal.
What if… he granted her a spiritual root?
If she could cultivate, not only would she gain the ability to protect herself, but she could also extend her lifespan—
And no longer be treated as an outsider within the Lin family.
With this in mind, Lin Mo consulted the system.
“System, how many Remorse Points would it take to give my mother the single-fire spiritual root?”
【Warning: That won’t work.】
Lin Mo frowned. “Why not?”
“Didn’t you say I could transfer spiritual roots?”
【That applies to ‘humans.’】
Lin Mo’s expression darkened. “What do you mean by that?”
【This information exceeds standard access. You must spend 200 Remorse Points per question for an answer.】
Lin Mo felt an annoyed twitch in his forehead.
This system was truly money-hungry.
“Fine. Explain it to me.”
The system chuckled before responding—
【Because, Host, your mother is not human. Or rather, she was once a demon who shed her demonic nature and transformed into a human.】
【Host, have you ever wondered why you can cultivate both the Immortal and Demonic paths?】
【It’s because you have half of an original ‘demonic’ bloodline. Until now, it simply remained dormant.】
Lin Mo was stunned.
His mother… was a demon?
And she had willingly given up her demonic nature to live as a human and marry his father?
Did his father even know about this?
Lin Mo sighed internally.
Well, that’s between them.
Immortal cultivation, demonic cultivation—
None of it mattered.
What mattered was that, in his parents, he had felt the truest form of love.
Everything else was irrelevant.
As the first light of dawn broke over the horizon, Lin Zhan awoke.
He felt completely rejuvenated, his body lighter than ever.
Most importantly, he could clearly sense that his long-standing internal injuries had been completely healed—
And, taking advantage of the pill’s medicinal power, he had broken through to the late-Golden Core stage in one go!
After a brief moment of composure, Lin Zhan hurriedly gathered Lin Mo and Gu Ningxin, heading straight for the Lin family’s main hall—
To formally offer birthday greetings to Lin Nantian.
The Lin estate was particularly lively today.
From early morning, family members had been bustling about to prepare for the grand event.
On the way to the main hall, Lin Zhan suddenly remembered something and turned to Lin Mo.
“Mo’er, the Jiang family’s young lady will be here today to celebrate your grandfather’s birthday.”
“Since you two barely get to meet, make sure to take the chance to strengthen your relationship.”
Lin Mo merely responded with a soft ‘mm.’
According to his predecessor’s memories, he and Jiang Yanran had once been childhood sweethearts.
Though they had rarely seen each other after he joined Qingling Sect, he had always sent her portions of his spiritual herbs whenever they matured.
Unlike his junior sister, Shen Ke’er, or even Master Yuehua, the original Lin Mo’s feelings for Jiang Yanran had been true romantic affection.
Lin Mo was curious—
Now that Jiang Yanran had become a rising star, would she still remember the kindness of her past fiancé?
Would she still honor the engagement?
But, given how she had treated the original Lin Mo over the past two years, he seriously doubted it…
