Chapter 183: Exposed

Lin Qi woke up groggily. He was wearing his clothes neatly, and the golden mask was fastened on his face. He was lying on a long sofa, while Yulian sat opposite him snoring heavily. Both Yulian and himself reeked of pungent alcohol. Lin Qi shook his head, feeling strangely free of the usual discomfort after a heavy night of drinking.

What’s more, Lin Qi felt his condition was excellent, very excellent. He gently moved his body, feeling energy bursting throughout, and a vigorous force flowed continuously inside him like quicksilver. When Lin Qi slightly activated the Mysterious Tiger Force, a faint bluish ripple spread out from him like water.

“Damn it!” Lin Qi stared in shock at the bluish glow on his hands—this was a sign of a High-Rank Earth Rider. But Lin Qi clearly remembered that during this period, he had been taking the elixirs Blackbeard had given him to boost his Combat Qi. However, his strength had always been at the Lower Earth Rank level. Why had it suddenly risen to the High Earth Rank?

Could it be that taking too much medicine recently, combined with last night’s wild drinking bout with Yulian, had caused the alcohol to accelerate the effects of the drugs and granted him a rapid improvement?

Shaking his head in confusion, Lin Qi clenched his fist tightly.

If he remembered correctly, last night he and Yulian had been busy forcing drinks on each other. That odious fatty Fat Bird Kirk had delivered the Silver Crescent Merchant Guild’s information and then taken his leave. After that, Tixiang had gone back to the lounge to flirt with those two icy women. Yet, even when Lin Qi and Yulian had passed out drunk, Tixiang still hadn’t emerged.

That was the ‘correct memory’ in Lin Qi’s mind—he remembered everything just like that.

However, Lin Qi vaguely recalled doing something else last night. Why were fragmented memories still lingering deep in his Soul? The fair flesh, the intoxicating pleasure—what were those? Had he done those things?

“Impossible, it must have been a dream!” Lin Qi examined his own body. It must have been a chaotic dream caused by heavy drinking. Yesterday he and Yulian had been drinking nonstop until they collapsed; after all, it was necessary to celebrate winning such a large sum of money.

Yet his Combat Qi genuinely had improved—from Lower Earth Rank to High Earth Rank—and the Combat Qi inside him was pure, condensed, and incredibly solid, with no signs of an unstable foundation. Moreover, it seemed his physical body had also improved—could it be those bottles of elixirs that boosted physical strength had been effective?

Lin Qi casually grabbed a gilded bracket on the sofa, a pure steel bracket as thick as a wrist, and with a slight pull, accompanied by an ear-piercing creak, the thick pure steel bracket bent easily. Lin Qi stared blankly for a moment, then straightened the bracket back to its original shape.

“It must be the effects of those elixirs!” Lin Qi thought happily. “Father’s elixirs truly deserve to be called treasures plundered from the royal families across the Continent! In just a few days, they’ve given me such great benefits! No wonder father’s training speed is so fast—he’s already nearly a Celestial Knight!”

Chuckling smugly, Lin Qi walked to Yulian’s side, grabbed him, and shook him vigorously.

“Wake up, Yulian! Wake up! What time is it now?”

Before Yulian woke, a maid sprawled on the nearby rug staggered to her feet. She gave Lin Qi a charming smile and curtsied, “Sir, would you like a strong tea to sober up?”

A few other maids also wobbled as they rose from the floor. Lin Qi vaguely ‘remembered’ that last night, while he and Yulian were binge drinking, Yulian had invited several maids to join their drinking spree. As it turned out, these maids couldn’t handle their liquor and were quickly knocked out by Yulian.

Vigorously shaking his head, Lin Qi felt something was off, but he couldn’t pinpoint what exactly was wrong.

Since he couldn’t figure it out, given Lin Qi’s lazy nature, he simply decided not to dwell on it. After all, he was unharmed and had inexplicably gained a significant boost in Combat Qi and physical strength—it looked like nothing but good fortune. He nodded to the maids and told them to prepare some tea and snacks, then slapped Yulian’s face a couple of times.

Yulian spewed out a breath reeking of alcohol and woke up mumbling.

“Boss, come on, another drink! Heh heh, girl, your chest is so smooth!”

Lin Qi casually tossed Yulian back onto the sofa, at which point Yulian finally came to his senses. He looked around in astonishment and suddenly pointed at Lin Qi, exclaiming, “Boss! You actually forced me to drink with violence! How could you do that? My elegance, my elegance is totally ruined!”

Lin Qi hardly bothered to respond to Yulian. What elegance? It was just a matter of making a fool of himself in front of the maids. He pointed at the closed lounge door and gestured to Yulian, “How long have we been asleep? Is there still no movement from in there? Wait, didn’t we hear some noise before we passed out?”

Yulian stared blankly at Lin Qi; he didn’t even have those fragmented memories. He only ‘remembered’ that he and Lin Qi had been binge drinking, and under Lin Qi’s violent approach, he quickly got drunk. As for anything else, he had ‘forgotten’ everything completely. Shaking his head blankly, Yulian spread his hands to indicate he recalled nothing.

Frowning, Lin Qi was about to knock on the lounge door when the outer door suddenly swung open with force. A grim-faced Elham stormed in with Tolin, Yan, and An. Behind them was Lartus, who had a helpless expression. He gave Lin Qi an apologetic smile, then quickly moved to the lounge entrance to block the furious Elham.

“Mr. Elham, I believe you must have some misunderstanding about me. You see, we just got carried away chatting and had a few extra drinks, but I swear, Miss Ya and Miss Ling are perfectly safe here. Your words just now not only insulted Tixiang but also insulted our Empire’s Nobles.”

Elham glared furiously at Lartus and impatiently shoved him aside.

“Got carried away? A few extra drinks? Then why were we all so drunk? Damn it, my head!”

Elham punched his own forehead, then stared at Lartus angrily. “If Ya and Ling suffer even the slightest harm, you…”

Elham didn’t finish his sentence, but anyone could sense the threat in his words. If Ya and Ling were harmed in any way, undoubtedly Lartus and Tixiang would face Elham’s most brutal retaliation.

Lartus’s face darkened. How dare an outsider act so insolently in his presence?

Lin Qi and Yulian took up positions on either side of Lartus. Lin Qi tucked his hands into his sleeves, watching Elham coldly. “Mr. Elham, please watch your words—you are threatening a highly respected gentleman of our Empire. Getting drunk is entirely your own affair and has nothing to do with His Highness.”

Elham’s expression remained dark and he said nothing. Getting drunk? How could he possibly get drunk? Even though he didn’t mind occasionally sampling those evil, corruption-inducing liquids as per the original teachings, with his powerful mental cultivation, how could he get drunk?

Unless there was something strange in the wine!

Moreover, when Elham’s group woke from their drunken stupor, they were shocked to find the sky outside already brightening. Elham grew frantic.

Could it be that Ya and Ling had spent the entire night with Tixiang? And they had all gotten drunk! Either event alone might not be a problem, but both happening together was highly suspicious. Was this a conspiracy or a trap? Elham was burning with anxiety. A cold, ruthless white light flashed in his eyes; he wanted to eliminate Lartus straight away.

Ya and Ling—they were designated for him by the family. The innate Divinity they were born with was meant to enhance his power. His union with the two girls even concerned the cooperation between the Dawn Temple and the Flame Temple, and was tied to Elham’s future prospects.

If Ya and Ling were defiled by some filthy sinners, Elham didn’t dare imagine how terrible the consequences would be.

“Get out of my way!” Elham bellowed furiously, no longer caring about Lartus’s status.

Lin Qi stepped forward, clenched his fist, and threw a clean, swift punch. A faint bluish fist shadow wrapped in a trace of black light shot out. Yan and An had no time to react; they didn’t even see how Lin Qi threw the punch.

The solid punch landed squarely in Elham’s abdomen. Elham’s eyes widened, he spewed a mouthful of blood onto Lin Qi’s arm, his body bent at a ninety-degree angle, and he collapsed cleanly unconscious.

Lin Qi’s fist was like a battering ram. How could Elham’s fragile body withstand such monstrous strength?

Enraged, Yan and An drew their swords. The two blades shot toward Lin Qi’s heart and throat like two Poisonous Snakes. Lin Qi snorted coldly, then suddenly roared a fierce Tiger’s Roar. He leaned forward and his heavy fists struck the brothers in the face before their swords could reach him.

Their high-bridged noses instantly collapsed. Yan and An let out agonized screams, their faces bleeding as they were flung backward. Lin Qi’s punches stretched their necks by almost an inch. They howled in pain, dozens of shiny teeth spilling out with the blood.

Lin Qi stood protectively in front of Lartus and shouted sharply, “This is the land of the Gaul Empire! Before a member of the Imperial Royal Family, show the respect and fear you ought to have!”

Lartus smiled, a brilliant smile, and patted Lin Qi’s shoulder appreciatively. He grew even more fond of this young man who had some unclear connection with Blood Lion General Stane.

But just then, a terrifying cold air with white light rushed toward them. Lin Qi grabbed Lartus and leaped aside. The cold air and white light struck the lounge door behind them, shattering it along with a large portion of the wall.

Everything inside the lounge was now exposed to everyone’s view. Tolin, who had just cast the spell, let out a near-despairing roar.