Chapter 397: Pressuring Again and Again

Ignoring the turmoil coming from the front yard, Feng Yue sat cross-legged after his rapidly rising chest finally calmed down a bit. His empty dantian contained not even a trace of spiritual energy, though there was still a small amount left in his meridians. He tried hard to control that remaining spiritual energy and guide it into the storage spirit ring he had snatched from a disciple of a small sect two months ago, on his middle finger.

A wooden box silently appeared beside him. It was the same box that Lin Dong had given to Feng Yue in his room earlier. Opening the box, Feng Yue smelled the pungent scent and saw the Tianfeng peppers, still glowing red in the darkness. He shook his head. “If not for your stubbornness, just knowing that the Great Han Country has such extremely spicy peppers as Tianfeng peppers would have been no less beneficial than staying at the inn.”

Feng Yue exhaled. He had already developed a good impression of Lin Dong after seeing him dare to challenge Qin Mengtai back then. With the discovery of the Tianfeng peppers, Feng Yue was even willing to befriend Lin Dong. Unfortunately, in Feng Yue’s eyes, not even a casual friend, let alone a lifelong friend, deserved the right to threaten him.

Reaching out with his bony right hand, he picked up one of the Tianfeng peppers and brought it to his open mouth. Fifty centimeters, forty centimeters, thirty centimeters… The pepper stopped just beside his mouth. It wasn’t Feng Yue’s choice—his right hand seemed to be held by something, preventing it from moving even slightly.

What was going on? Feng Yue was shocked. Looking around, he saw a figure standing with hands behind its back at the edge of the giant pit. A gentle breeze blew, carrying a faint burnt smell. Lin Dong stared at Feng Yue silently, without saying a word.

When Feng Yue recognized the figure’s identity, he was stunned and stood up abruptly. His gaze at Lin Dong was filled with deep horror. “How… how is it you’re still alive?”

“I possess an immortal body!” Lin Dong said expressionlessly, though he was overjoyed inside.

Feng Yue had even expended all his spiritual energy in a furious attack—this was both advantageous and disadvantageous for Lin Dong. The advantage was that he could originally plan to kick Feng Yue out of the inn after failing, then evacuate the staff and guests as quickly as possible, and temporarily flee to Qiufeng City through a teleportation gate. Lin Dong believed that without knowing the origin of the Tianfeng peppers and with insufficient quantities left, Feng Yue surely wouldn’t leave just like that. Once Old Ding returned, he could figure out a way to capture him and slowly pressure him.

With his spiritual energy exhausted, Wind Peak’s plan to use a teleportation gate to flee to Autumn Wind City was no longer feasible; he could simply capture Wind Peak himself. That’s why he changed his mind at the last moment and used the inn system’s “kick out” function to get himself expelled.

A peak-level warrior without spiritual energy was nothing more than a tiger with its teeth pulled out—only a hundred or a thousand times stronger than ordinary people—but still utterly helpless in the face of a warrior wielding a spiritual sword. Wind Peak, though a near-peak-level warrior, had restrictions placed on him by Yun Cangqiong. As long as he wasn’t given chili peppers, a simple rope could keep him trapped forever.

Similarly, Wind Peak’s decision to unleash an enraged attack also had its drawbacks—the biggest one being that it showed he wasn’t so easy to subdue. He could ignore the chains on his body, disregard the need to quickly break free from the restrictions, and overlook the temptation to reach peak strength within a year… Even knowing there were other warriors at Lin’s Inn, he still ignored everything and exhausted all his spiritual energy. In Wind Peak’s eyes, avoiding threats from others was worth sacrificing his life for.

Lin Dong wasn’t without ways to force him to submit, but the time it would take for Wind Peak to yield would increase several times over, perhaps even until Lin Dong arrived at the Heavenly Sword Sect without him ever giving in.

Moreover, the chances of failure and unpredictable risks soared. It was very likely he’d end up working hard for nothing.

“An immortal body? How could such a spiritual technique exist?” Wind Peak clenched his fists, staring at Lin Dong in disbelief, his hair standing on end as a chill seeped into his body.

With his experience, Wind Peak knew well that unless one reached an unknown realm even peak-level warriors could hardly attain, an immortal body was absolutely impossible. Yet the facts before him forced him to believe it.

Was it because of speed that allowed him to dodge his attacks in an instant, or because his physical strength had reached a level to withstand such attacks? Of these two possibilities, Wind Peak believed even more that Lin Dong possessed an immortal body. A warrior at the first stage of Heart Reversal could never achieve such speed or defense.

“I’m in a good mood, just teasing you!” Lin Dong said leisurely.

Wind Peak gritted his teeth. The pride of a near-peak-level warrior sparked fierce anger in him once again. But this time, he had no power to defend his pride through action. Not to mention killing Lin Dong with a punch, even climbing a pit over ten meters deep would be difficult for him now.

His right hand trembled slightly. Wind Peak felt relieved and quickly raised his right arm, bringing the Heavenly Phoenix Chili to his mouth.

Less than ten centimeters from his lips, Feng Yue’s right palm remained completely immobile once again.
“What kind of spiritual skill is this?” Feng Yue suddenly raised his head to look at Lin Dong, who was smiling brightly, filled with rage. It was then that he realized Lin Dong was the reason his right hand couldn’t move.
“A ninth-level spiritual skill!” Lin Dong said with a smile.
Feng Yue remained silent in anger—these words were undoubtedly meant to amuse him.
“Owner, sir!”
At the entrance of the courtyard, Cheng Bao and the others entered one after another. Seeing the scene in the back yard, especially the terrifying huge pit beneath Lin Dong’s feet, they were stunned speechless.
Lin Dong’s gaze immediately shifted to Yu Linglong, who was the largest in size but also the fastest. He said, “Yu Linglong, go inform Ma Chun right away. Have him find a way to comfort the frightened guests—free of charge, or even at the cost of a few taels of silver each. Just say it was caused by some accident during experiments with strange devices in the back yard.”
“Ma Chun has already gone to the dormitory building. I’ll go remind him again,” Yu Linglong replied. After seeing Lin Dong nod, she turned into a white shadow, like a rapidly floating cloud, and shot out of the courtyard.
Lin Dong sighed in relief. If Ma Chun rushed to the dormitory building right away, his abilities should be enough to calm things down before the chaos fully erupted.
Cheng Bao and the three others approached Lin Dong. Seeing Feng Yue under Xia Fan’s care, Hua Wuyue couldn’t help but exclaim, “Owner, Senior Feng…”
“Senior Feng is being too polite. He insists on not staying at Lin’s Inn permanently, so I had no choice but to keep him here by force,” Lin Dong said leisurely.
“Keep him by force?” Cheng Bao and the others were astonished. Such a method of retention was truly unimaginable.
“The owner is wise and mighty. Even when keeping guests, he does it on such a grand scale. In the entire Han Nation, only the owner has such ability and courage…”
Qiao Tianhao seized the opportunity to praise him. Unusually, Cheng Bao and the others didn’t scoff as usual but nodded slightly.
With such a grand display, plus Feng Yue’s strength, indeed, only the owner in the entire Han Nation could have such ability and courage.
Feng Yue snorted coldly, his eyes tightly closed. He was determined that no matter what Lin Dong did, he would never speak another word.
Back at the Sky Sword Sect, the people there had often forced him to hand over his crafting methods and spiritual skills. By staying silent and enduring beatings and insults, even facing death, he gradually gave up.
“Senior Feng, I’m very curious!” Lin Dong said with a smile. “What would you do if I said you’re not allowed to die, or else I’ll grind you to dust?”

Feng Yue’s eyelids trembled as he gritted his teeth, forcing himself not to open his eyes and glare at Lin Dong.
“I thought Senior Feng would bite his tongue and end his own life!” Lin Dong laughed.
Feng Yue’s face turned red as he endured, endured, yet still endured.
It was better to live than die—Feng Yue wasn’t afraid of death. Just as Lin Dong had threatened before, he was willing to act recklessly to kill. But Lin Dong’s current threat was utterly despicable. To actually bite his tongue out of anger would only make him a fool.
A single sentence forcing a near-peak warrior to end his own life would become an eternal joke if spread. And an unglamorous version of himself would be a laughingstock for generations, possibly even serving as a negative example for future masters teaching their disciples not to act impulsively.
“Senior Feng, still unwilling to stay at Lin’s Inn?” Lin Dong asked.
Feng Yue remained silent. If it weren’t for the bad impression it would create, he would have covered his ears too.
“Since you’re unwilling, we’ll have no choice but to force you to stay,” Lin Dong said lightly, waving his hand. “Qiao Tianhao, get a rope and tie Senior Feng up.”
“Sure!”
Without hesitation, Qiao Tianhao didn’t even need to look for a rope. He leaped into the giant pit and took out a coil of rope from his storage ring. Ignoring Feng Yue’s strength entirely, he tied him up roughly.
“Owner, treating Senior Feng like this might not be right,” Hua Wuyue hesitated. “Even if Senior Feng agrees to stay, it’s not out of sincerity. What if…”
Lin Dong knew Hua Wuyue was worried that he might force Feng Yue to stay at the inn forever. He smiled but didn’t clarify, casually saying, “If Senior Feng refuses, we can just let him go.”
“Let him go?” Hua Wuyue was surprised. “What if he comes to the inn to seek revenge?”
“Just give him enough incentives to reconcile before letting him go,” Lin Dong said nonchalantly.
Hua Wuyue was speechless. The problem he thought was so complicated had such a simple answer.
Soon, Qiao Tianhao’s voice came from below, “Owner, he’s tied up.”
“Bring Senior Feng up,” Lin Dong ordered, then turned to Cheng Bao. “I’ve been busy all night and am a bit hungry. Bring out your seven best dishes.”
Cheng Bao nodded and left.
A gust of wind blew as Qiao Tianhao pulled up Feng Yue, who was tied up like a zongzi.
“Senior Feng, try our Lin’s Inn’s cuisine. How about some wine too? We can eat and chat,” Lin Dong asked with a smile.
Feng Yue snorted coldly, sticking to keeping his mouth and eyes closed, ignoring them completely.

“If Senior Feng doesn’t want to eat, that just means I have another chance to pressure him,” Lin Dong said with a smile, waving his hand as he strode toward the stone table. Qiao Tianhao, along with Feng Yue, followed behind Jiang Kui and Hua Wuyue, chasing after Lin Dong.