Everyone was stunned when the young man who entered the door addressed Lin Chen as "Grandfather."

This young man, named Miao Hu, was Miao Shan's grandson and his only disciple. Among the younger generation, Miao Hu was not the strongest, but he was the most troublesome to provoke.

Even the top three experts would avoid Miao Hu simply because the Miao family's gu techniques were too formidable.

Yet, here was a figure who dominated the ancient martial arts scene of his generation, paying respects and calling Lin Chen "Grandfather"—it was utterly inconceivable.

A member of the Miao family was even more puzzled, "Young master, why do you call this lad grandfather? He is a Han Chinese."

Hearing the Miao man's words, Miao Hu's expression turned cold, "He is my grandfather's sworn brother. Who else should I call 'Grandfather' if not him?"

Upon hearing Miao Hu's words, the Miao family member turned pale and immediately knelt before Lin Chen, "Grandfather Lin, I was wrong. I was blind to recognize Mount Tai. Please remove the gu from my body."

Lin Chen smiled faintly, "You are thinking too much. When did I ever cast a gu on you?"

The Miao family member held out his hand, "What about the blackness on my palm then?"

Lin Chen smiled faintly, "Did you just feel a pain in your wrist?"

The Miao family member nodded, and Lin Chen continued, "That's right. Just now, I hit your Baihui acupoint with a melon seed, so there is a black line on your palm. It will vanish on its own in half an hour."

"Really!" Upon hearing Lin Chen's explanation, the Miao family member finally took a deep breath in relief.

At this moment, Miao Hu chuckled and said, "Humph, daring to provoke Grandfather Lin is simply asking for trouble. Now apologize to Grandfather Lin."

Hearing Miao Hu's words, Lin Chen felt a bit awkward, "Brother Miao, let's just address each other normally. You are probably still a few years older than me. Just call me by my name; calling me 'grandfather' is too awkward."

After hearing Lin Chen's words, Miao Hu also burst into laughter, "You are right, it does feel awkward. How about this—you call me Ah Hu, and I'll call you Ah Chen?"

"Okay, that settles it!" Lin Chen nodded and responded.

Seeing Lin Chen and Miao Hu chatting and laughing freely, Qiu Ming was dumbfounded. His family was somewhat wealthy and had some background, but compared to the Eight Great Families, they were worlds apart.

Just then, two more people walked in from outside.

Seeing them, Qiu Ming's complexion changed again. These two were also from the Eight Great Families—it was the Zhang family's Zhang Yu and Wudang's Xu Ye.

"My God, these two are in the top three of the newcomer's list."

The two men greeted Lin Chen with a smile, "Brother Lin, you're too elusive. You returned to Capital City and didn't even drop us a line."

"Why should he drop you a line? Didn't you see him with his lady?" joked Xu Ye.

Suddenly, both men paused, "This lady doesn't seem to be the same one as last time."

Seeing Zhang Yu, Qiu Ming's face turned pale.

The Qiu family could be considered a subordinate family to the Zhang family, and this Zhang Yu was his young master. He quickly walked over and bowed deeply, "Qiu Ming pays respects to the young master."

Zhang Yu glanced at Qiu Ming, "What are you doing here?"

Qiu Ming's cheeks reddened, worried that Zhang Yu might find out he had been posturing as equals with his elder brother. He promptly nodded slightly and said, "I also received an invitation to dine here."

"Oh, is that so? Well, go sit over there and eat, and don't disturb me and Brother Lin as we catch up," Zhang Yu said impatiently, waving his hand.

At that moment, the way Qiu Ming and those around him looked at Lin Chen completely changed.

"Who exactly is this kid, to be able to address people from the eight major forces as brothers?"

It was known that Zhang Yu and his companions were among the top of the younger generation in those major forces. Thinking back to their taunting and mocking Lin Chen, they couldn't help but break out in cold sweat and were filled with regret, even wishing to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

At the dinner table, Lin Chen curiously asked, "Xu Ye, weren't you supposed to return to the Taoist temple? Why have you come to Capital City again?"

Xu Ye smiled, "Aren't we planning to travel to Kunlun together?"

"Yes, Brother Lin, this three-year pact of yours has really turned into a big event at Kunlun. I heard that it's not only about your grudge with Bai Ling, but also about determining the new Sect Leader of Kunlun after this grand event," Zhang Yu smiled.

On the side, Miao Hu continued, "That's not all. The Real Man has even brought out his ancient secret technique 'Yi Jin Jing' as a prize. I heard it has stirred up the entire Chinese martial arts community."

Upon hearing the trio's conversation, Lin Chen was taken aback. The three-year pact was soon approaching and he hadn't expected his personal grievance with another to escalate to such proportions.

However, compared to before, things were indeed more challenging for Lin Chen because previously he could have directly challenged Bai Ling to a duel. But now things were different; he had to defeat all the exceptional participants from across China before he could face Bai Ling in the final. Otherwise, if he were eliminated midway, he would likely lose the opportunity to even confront Bai Ling.

Throughout the meal, their conversation was mostly centered around this martial arts competition, and through these talks, Lin Chen roughly understood the ins and outs of the event.

Based on a rotational principle, this year's Sect Leader of Kunlun would also be the Martial Arts Alliance Hierarch, the person who will control the martial arts world of China for the next decade. Hence, the stakes for becoming Kunlun's Sect Leader were heavier than before.

It was for this reason that the scope of selection for the Sect Leader at this martial arts competition was expanded to the whole of China.

After the meal, Lin Chen took Zhao Xiaowen to the airport.

Her mission had ended, so Zhao Xiaowen was also returning to Kunlun.

"Xiaowen, wait for me in Kunlun. I will surely take you away from Kunlun," Lin Chen said seriously while holding Zhao Xiaowen's hand.

"Mmm, Lin Chen, I'll be waiting for you," Zhao Xiaowen said affectionately.

Watching Zhao Xiaowen's plane take off, Lin Chen clenched his fist and looked up at the plane shrinking to a dot in the sky, "Xiaowen wait for me, this time I won't let you leave my side again."

Lin Chen left the airport, and just as he was about to hail a taxi, a BMW 740 stopped in front of him.

The door opened and a young man, dressed in an Armani suit, stepped out.

"Hello, Mr. Lin. I am Miao Tian from the Miao family. Do you remember me?" the young man said with a smile.

This young man had also been at the dinner table. Since the other Miao family members were in traditional Miao costumes and he in an international designer brand, he made a memorable impression.

"Oh, hello. Is there something you need?" Lin Chen asked.

Since the Miao family people were considered his friends, he felt quite positive about them.

"Mr. Lin, I have a friend who wishes to meet you. I wonder if you could do us the honor," Miao Tian said ingratiatingly.

With Zhao Xiaowen just departed and no particular plans on his own, Lin Chen nodded and said, "Okay, I'll go with you."

Lin Chen got in the car and the BMW drove for an hour before stopping in front of a manor.

Lin Chen followed Miao Tian to the backyard, where a young man in a Miao costume turned around and fixed Lin Chen with a piercing gaze: "Mr. Lin, I have long admired your reputation. It is an honor to meet you."

The young man extended his hand with a beaming smile.

Just as Lin Chen's hand met that of the young man, his expression suddenly sharpened: "Damn, it's an ambush!"