"Heavenly Phenomenon—does it really matter that much?"
Lily Liang was confused. "Master Lin is already incredibly powerful!"
She was still planning to argue on Evan Lin's behalf.
The Rowe Patriarch looked at her face and fell silent for a long time.
His gaze went from strained, to silent, to thoughtful, then stirred with emotion, and finally settled into layer after layer of sighs and exhaustion.
"If you haven't entered Heavenly Phenomenon, what can you possibly use to fight a Heavenly Phenomenon?"
"He can dominate in front of me, or the whole Ancient-Martial Rowe clan, but in front of other experts who've reached Heavenly Phenomenon, he's nothing but an ant."
The Rowe Patriarch walked over and sat down by a nearby chair.
"Do you know what I thought of, right when I learned he hasn't entered Heavenly Phenomenon?"
"You... you wanted to ask other Heavenly Phenomenon experts to cause trouble for Master Lin?" Lily Liang wasn't stupid—she instantly caught the meaning behind the Rowe Patriarch's shifting gaze.
The glory of the Ancient Martial Clans was completely shattered by a single youth.
That’s something that’s hard to tolerate.
"That's right. Until now, I thought he was a true powerhouse, someone who could overlook everything—a transcendent, Heavenly Phenomenon-Realm expert!"
"As long as he's Heavenly Phenomenon, then he's a true expert—one who can ignore all rules, including the dignity of our Ancient Martial Clans!"
"But since he hasn't entered Heavenly Phenomenon, he's not a true expert of that realm."
The Rowe Patriarch took a deep breath. "Our Ancient-Martial Rowe clan can accept being suppressed by a true expert!"
"But it's hard to accept being suppressed by a pseudo-expert!"
"So I did consider, for the honor of all the Ancient Martial Clans, staking all our Rowe clan’s face to ask a Heavenly Phenomenon-Realm expert to make a move against Master Lin—to wash away the shame of the Rowes having our gates broken by an outsider!"
Lily Liang stood there, her face turning pale at his words.
She’d always known Heavenly Phenomenon was powerful, but she’d never imagined it could make the Rowe Patriarch flip his attitude in an instant!
The importance of the Heavenly Phenomenon Realm was way beyond what she’d ever imagined.
"Then you... then you..."
Lily Liang suddenly panicked.
She really thought Evan Lin wasn’t Heavenly Phenomenon, and couldn’t beat someone who was.
She was afraid the Rowe Patriarch would ask someone to make a move.
If that happened, Evan Lin would be in real danger.
"I didn’t call anyone. I gave up on that idea."
The Rowe Patriarch’s aura relaxed, and he sighed. "Thinking it over, this has nothing to do with Master Lin."
"If our Ancient-Martial Rowe clan had its gates broken, it’s because our strength wasn’t enough. Losing face was our own fault—it’s not his."
"Just now, I asked you to persuade him to leave—only because I wanted you both to get out safely."
"Our Ancient-Martial Rowe clan is in real danger this time. Our arch-enemy has already entered Heavenly Phenomenon, and past grudges won’t be left unresolved."
"That’s why I asked you to persuade him to leave."
"If he leaves now—given his talent, reaching peak first-grade Pointing-to-Mystery at such a young age—in just a few years, he might really break through Pointing-to-Mystery, enter Heavenly Phenomenon, and maybe even go beyond, exploring even more mysterious realms."
She walked out from the Rowe Patriarch’s room.
Lily Liang was lost in thought.
She returned to her room and saw Evan Lin sitting on the sofa, watching TV. After hesitating several times, she walked up. "Um... it's too stuffy in here. Could you come out for a walk with me?"
Lily Liang spoke carefully, afraid of upsetting Evan Lin.
Evan Lin glanced at her, nodded, and didn’t refuse.
"The sea view here should be nice. If we have time later, let’s head to the beach and try some seafood."
Evan Lin said this, thinking he’d like to take another look at the sea here.
Maybe you could spot some strange creatures in the sea.
The world was changing.
Changing subtly and imperceptibly.
Evan Lin didn’t know the reason for the change yet, but intuitively, something major might be coming soon.
Okay.
Lily Liang lowered her head and replied, her brows tightly furrowed, still thinking about how to persuade Evan Lin to leave.
Heavenly Phenomenon...
She remembered the fear in the Rowe Patriarch’s voice when he mentioned the Heavenly Phenomenon Realm—it left her dazed.
Even when the Rowe clan was broken into by Evan Lin, who suppressed the whole clan single-handedly.
The Rowe Patriarch mostly showed resentment.
But now, just uttering the words Heavenly Phenomenon Realm seemed to drain all the Rowe Patriarch’s courage.
Such a situation had never been seen before.
Lily Liang indirectly felt the terror of Heavenly Phenomenon.
She was already thinking about what to say to make Evan Lin agree to leave.
She was still thinking.
Ding.
The elevator doors opened.
Lily Liang, head lowered, didn’t notice and walked right in.
Are you blind? You walk with your eyes closed or what?
A cold snort sounded, startling Lily Liang.
She suddenly looked up and quickly said, "Sorry, sorry."
Inside the elevator were five men and three women.
The man who spoke was facing Lily Liang, and as he spoke, his gaze stayed fixed on her face.
Wow, didn’t expect you’d be pretty. Are you a server here, or a disciple from one of the clans?
The man laughed, his face casual and full of mockery. "How about you follow me from now on?"
He was still talking, and all eyes were on Lily Liang, not looking aside.
"Threejian, why bother asking her? Any girl you pick should thank her lucky stars for lifetimes!" The woman next to Liu Threejian clung to his arm, batting her lashes and snuggling closer.
"Exactly, Threejian! With your Liu clan status, you could have any woman you want. If you like her, just go for it! If anything goes wrong, the Ren clan's got your back!" The fat guy chimed in, laying it on thick.
Most of the people in the elevator were from the Ren clan.
Their goal was to build good relations with the Liu clan.
After all, the Liu clan had a Heavenly Phenomenon Realm expert sitting in.
But most Liu clan members were proud and aloof, unwilling to deal with minor vassal clans like Ren.
But Liu Threejian was different.
He used to be proud and talented, with strong abilities.
He was once a strong contender for the Liu clan’s young master position.
But since he was set up in Hong Kong last time, not only did he lose his strength, even his foundation was damaged.
As a result, his cultivation regressed, his strength dropped sharply, and he lost his vigor.
Now, Liu Threejian was almost marginalized by his clan.
So the Ren clan seized the chance and flattered him repeatedly, barely establishing a bit of connection.
Now that they had the chance, of course they had to flatter him and curry favor.
"What're you staring at, punk?"
"Threejian's got his eye on your girl—shouldn't you be grateful? Keep staring and I'll break you!"
Suddenly, someone noticed Evan Lin standing next to Lily Liang, shouted disdainfully.