I've never felt happy to become an immortal.

Chapter 141 Battle of the Earth Rankings
The next day, dark clouds loomed over the city, threatening to crush it.

Cold rain clouds floated over Wuzhou, making the air feel stuffy and hot.

Everyone knows it will rain, but no one knows exactly when it will start.

Every household brought in their laundry early, muttering under their breath about the weather. In this kind of weather, even people can become irritable.

A middle-aged man with a stern face appeared outside Langya Mansion. He was a man as tall as an iron tower, with long arms but a short stature. Standing in the middle of the road, he looked like a gibbon. He was dressed in ordinary clothes.

A cowherd passing by, leading his ox, glanced at the scene and hurried home, afraid of getting wet in the rain. But when he turned back, the short man in the middle of the road suddenly grew taller, instantly becoming over 1.9 meters tall.

He took a deep breath, a breath that seemed to thin the surrounding air and create a gust of wind.

Then the burly man exhaled a breath from a distance, which extended ten meters away, and it appeared that nothing had happened.

Just as the cowherd was about to look away, he suddenly saw a white light illuminate the world; the bright light was none other than thunder and lightning.

After a long period of oppressive darkness, the first clap of thunder finally broke the silence, followed by a huge raindrop that pelted down on the dull and restless earth.

The sky was overcast, and torrential rain poured down, accompanied by lightning and thunder.

Countless clouds and rain gathered towards Langya Prefecture amidst fierce winds.

The burly man stood still, opened his eyes, and gazed at Langya Prefecture from dozens of miles away, his gaze seemingly piercing through countless buildings and the obstruction of clouds and rain.

"Lin Chongxiao".

"Are you ready for battle?!"

……

Langya Mansion, the Lin family residence.

Lin Chongxiao, the head of the Lin family, did not sit in a chair, but instead sat on the threshold in front of the study.

He held a strange black piece of wood in his hand. The wood looked like a hexagonal wrench and was very smooth to the touch.

He only slightly raised his head when he heard that roar, accompanied by thunder and wind, sweep into Langya Mansion.

"What's meant to happen will happen." Lin Buren stood under the eaves next to him, watching the torrential rain, and squinted his eyes slightly: "A Grandmaster on the Earth Ranking, indeed, has a formidable presence, turning the world upside down with his very first move."

The Nine Provinces are divided into North and South, but the martial arts world is not divided into North and South.

Whether one is a half-master or a grandmaster, it is difficult for them to easily cross national borders. Generally speaking, grandmasters from the Northern Zhou would not come to the Southern Chu.

The number of Grandmasters was equivalent to the strength of the war potential of the Northern and Southern Dynasties. As an important fighting force that could determine the outcome of small-scale battles, its consumption had to be strictly controlled.

Moreover, if ordinary grandmasters go to opposing countries, they are easily targeted and ambushed.

But the Grandmasters on the Earth Ranking are different.

At this level, the limitations of ordinary grandmasters no longer exist. Although they cannot reach the exaggerated level of the Heavenly Realm, grandmasters themselves belong to the category of strategic weapons, and their very existence has a deterrent effect.

Others simply walk around them; they have no reason to go around them.

Only the Grandmasters on the Earth Ranking can stop the battle for the Earth Ranking.

However, everyone on the Earthly Ranking is a prominent figure, and almost none of them would stoop to a situation where they outnumber the enemy.

Moreover, the other party specifically named Lin Chongxiao to challenge him.

As the sixth-ranked person on the Earthly Ranking, how could Lin Chongxiao avoid a battle at his own doorstep?

"Nurhaci is really desperate to get into the top ten."

Lin Chongxiao gave a brief comment.

Nurhaci, ranked fifteenth on the list of local officials, was the head of the Eight Banners of the Northern Zhou Dynasty and was known as the First Baturu.

Being able to enter the Earth Rankings is already proof of a person's strength and past achievements.

Ten years ago, Lin Chongxiao and Nurhaci clashed at Yumen Pass more than once, but the latter won more often than he lost.

Lin Chongxiao was not surprised that it was Nurhaci, this fame-hungry brute, who had arrived. He slowly took out a spearhead from his storage ring, attached it to the front of the black hexagonal staff, and tied it tightly.

"I'll go out and meet him," Lin Chongxiao said. "I'm leaving the family affairs to you. Be sure to be careful and don't let the clansmen shed too much blood."

Lin Buren nodded: "Be careful."

“I have faced him many times and know all his tricks up my sleeve.”

Lin Chongxiao shouldered his spear, leaped into the air, and transformed into a streak of powerful lightning, disappearing into the rain.

At the same time, a response echoed throughout Langya Mansion.

"Nurhaci, are you looking for a beating again?"

"Beyond the city walls, beyond the mountains, it's impossible to see this clearly."

"With your level of mental cultivation, you'll never even get close to the threshold of the Heavenly Realm in this lifetime."

……

“Father.” Inside the Lin residence, Lin Jiaolu gripped his long sword tightly, a look of worry on his face.

"No need to be nervous," Lu Shu said calmly.

"Mother, aren't you worried?"

Lu Shu did not answer yes or no, but simply said, "I'm used to it."

In all the years that she had been married to Lin Chongxiao, Lu Shu had never seen him lose.

He always wins every fight, and every time he wins, he brings back a string of freshly made candied hawthorns.

She touched her daughter's forehead and said softly, "You have to learn to get used to it. If you can't stand on the same level as them, you can only stay at home and guard them for ten years, twenty years, or even be buried in the ground."

Lin Jiaolu silently lowered her head.

She suddenly understood her mother a little.

My mother didn't love my father that much, not because she loved him too little, but because she didn't dare to love him too deeply.

Lin Chongxiao was not only her husband, but also the head of the Lin family and a figure in the martial arts world.

It is common for people from the martial arts world to die in the martial arts world.

When his mother was newly pregnant with him, he still went to Yumen Pass without hesitation to break through to the Grandmaster realm, returning victorious after a hundred battles. His mother could only stay at home alone, silently waiting, hoping, trying not to think too much or too deeply.

No one knows whether what arrives next month will be a letter from home or an obituary.

After calming her daughter down, Lu Shu walked out of the room and gave an order.

"Seal off the Lin residence. No one is allowed to enter or leave except for those holding the patriarch's order."

"Those who disobey will be killed on the spot."

……

For Grandmasters of the Earth Ranking to clash, they definitely need to choose a good battlefield, and it's impossible to do so near Langya Prefecture.

Lin Chongxiao cannot fully utilize his skills here, and if Nurhaci insists on entering the city, the two sides will go directly from sparring to a full-blown battle.

For this reason, Lin Chongxiao must stay away from this place in order to protect the safety of Langya Prefecture.

This is exactly the result that the lurking agents need.

Heavy rain poured down inside Langya Mansion.

The number of pedestrians on the streets became visibly sparse.

In a long-forgotten mansion, many martial arts practitioners have quietly gathered.

The warehouse was full of flammable and fire-prone materials, and tunnels had already been dug, with explosives buried underground.

"This time, we must attract as much attention as possible from the Lin family."

“Once the fire is started and riots are caused, we will have no time to act, no more than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea.”

"Our operation is out there; once we succeed, we should not linger."

"With chaos spreading throughout Langya Prefecture, the Lin family will be too busy to care about the safety of the people and will inevitably have to go out and provide rescue. If they do nothing, the Lin family's reputation in the area will be ruined."

The group of people repeated their plan, saying they thought the success rate was very high. All they had to do was set fires everywhere to create chaos, and then escape.

The ultimate target is Grandmaster Su Wuwo, who is imprisoned in the Avici Dungeon.

If you release him, he will be able to sweep through the entire Langya Prefecture single-handedly.

The Lin family could not find another Grandmaster.

Grandmaster and Great Grandmaster may seem to differ by only one word, but in reality, their levels of attainment are vastly different.

However, some people had doubts and wondered, "Having been imprisoned for so many years, can Su Wuwo still maintain his peak combat strength? Besides, the Lin family must know that Su Wuwo is imprisoned. They couldn't possibly not have taken precautions against the Infernal Dungeon, could they?"

“Su Wu is the senior disciple of the Fu Guang Sect. With the passing of the old sect master, he is now the sect master of the Fu Guang Sect, bearing the thousand-year legacy of the Six Paths and Seven Sects. He is not as simple as you think. As for the Lin family’s guarding and protection of the Wujian Dungeon… you all don’t know that this place is precisely the easiest to be breached from within.”

"Don't worry, the plan has been meticulously prepared..."

"With Lin Chongxiao away, this will be our only chance!"

A wandering swordsman, his eyes gleaming with fervor, tossed his torch onto a haystack.

"Once you're on the pirate ship, there's no turning back!"

"Today, under the witness of God, the Lin family will surely suffer a bloodbath!"

……

Everyone heard the news of the battle for the Earthly Rankings.

This includes everyone currently in the Langya Hall of the Gathering Righteousness Pavilion.

Bai Jin had just taken the precious medicine and was digesting it when he heard there was gossip to be had, so he simply came out of his room.

As soon as I stepped outside, a disciple of the Gathering Righteousness Pavilion rushed over.

"Lord Ning, Young Master!"

"The landslide has occurred on the streets next door!"

"They turned over and then a huge fire broke out!"

"Many neighbors were injured, and everyone is looking for people to go and help rescue them."

Upon hearing the disciple's report, Ning Jianshuang's first reaction was to restrain the incense masters, secretly frowning, feeling that the timing was too coincidental. Lin Chongxiao had just left Langya Mansion when the dragon turned over.

Xi Qingqing said, "I feel like there's something wrong."

After a moment's thought, Ning Jianshuang said, "You don't need to take any action. Gather everyone and have them guard the entrance to Langya Hall. We'll go check on the Lin family."

Bai Xuan shook his head: "You stay at Juyi Pavilion, she and I will go and take a look."

Ning Jianshuang's cultivation level was only at the third level of Body Forging, and her strength was very limited. When she encountered a master, she would become a burden and her safety would need to be taken care of.

Although she was somewhat reluctant, she still agreed.

When Bai Xuan gestured for Xi Qingqing to go out, she crossed her arms and said, "Why should I go out? It's raining heavily outside, I'm not going..."

"Five hundred taels."

"You send beggars away?"

"One thousand five hundred taels."

"let me think again."

"Two thousand taels."

"Well……"

"Nineteen hundred taels, forget it if you don't want to come."

"Let's go, let's go immediately!" Xi Qingqing patted her chest and said, "Even if it's a half-sect sect that comes, it won't stop me from taking this money, I said it!"

The two ventured out in the rain, and after walking only half a street, they saw flames shooting into the sky in five or six places within the Langya Mansion.

Langya Prefecture is in chaos.

(End of this chapter)