After crippling Lin Feng, Lin Chen tidied up his clothes slightly and walked toward the inner courtyard of the Lin Family without stopping. The news of him defeating Lin Hao with one move and crippling Lin Feng, a peak 4th level Qi Refining genius, had already spread like wildfire throughout the entire outer courtyard.
Along the way, all the disciples who saw him stepped aside respectfully, their eyes filled with awe and fear. No one dared to whisper insults behind his back anymore. The title of trash that had been tied to Lin Chen for more than ten years had completely been erased in just one morning.
Before long, Lin Chen arrived at the gate of the inner courtyard.
Compared with the simple and shabby outer courtyard, the inner courtyard was spacious and magnificent, with pavilions, terraces and gardens everywhere. The spiritual energy here was several times richer than that of the outer courtyard, and every plant and tree revealed a sense of nobility exclusive to geniuses.
Only the truly favored and talented disciples of the Lin Family were qualified to live here.
At the gate, two disciples dressed in uniform stood guard. They were both at the 3rd level of Qi Refining, and their eyes were arrogant, as if they looked down on all outer courtyard disciples. When they saw Lin Chen walking towards them, they immediately frowned and stopped him with a cold face.
"Stop! This is the inner courtyard, where ordinary outer courtyard disciples are not allowed to enter! Get out of here immediately!" One of the tall disciples shouted sharply, his eyes full of disdain.
The other disciple also sneered: "Don't you know the rules of the Lin Family? Only inner courtyard disciples can enter here. A trash from the outer courtyard like you dares to wander here. Are you looking for a beating?"
In their eyes, Lin Chen was still the useless waste who could not cultivate. They had no idea what had happened in the outer courtyard training ground and Lin Chen's small courtyard before.
Lin Chen's expression remained calm, and he said lightly: "I was promoted to the inner courtyard by the assessment elder. I'm here to go through the entry formalities."
"Promoted to the inner courtyard? You?" The two disciples at the gate laughed loudly as if they had heard the funniest joke in the world.
"Hahaha! Are you dreaming? A trash who has been stuck at the first level of Qi Refining for ten years was promoted to the inner courtyard? Do you think we are fools?"
"Stop talking nonsense! Get out of here right now, or we'll throw you out ourselves!"
They raised their hands, ready to drive Lin Chen away roughly.
A cold light flashed in Lin Chen's eyes.
These people were just like everyone else in his previous life—they judged people by their appearance, bullied the weak and feared the strong, and looked down on others without knowing the truth. He didn't want to waste time with them, so his body moved slightly, and the Wind Steps movement technique was activated instantly.
Whoosh!
In an instant, he turned into an afterimage, bypassing the two disciples directly and stepping into the inner courtyard gate.
The two gatekeepers were stunned. They didn't even see how Lin Chen moved, and he had already entered the inner courtyard.
"How is this possible?!"
"Stop! You dare to break into the inner courtyard without permission!"
They roared and chased after Lin Chen, but Lin Chen's speed was too fast. In the blink of an eye, he had already walked far away, leaving them far behind.
Soon, Lin Chen found the inner courtyard affairs hall.
Inside the hall, an elder with white hair was sitting at the table handling documents. He was the elder in charge of the inner courtyard's daily affairs, Elder Mu. When he saw Lin Chen walking in, he raised his head with a puzzled look on his face.
"Who are you? Why did you break into the inner courtyard affairs hall?" Elder Mu asked in a deep voice.
Lin Chen stopped and cupped his hands politely: "Greetings, Elder Mu. I'm Lin Chen from the outer courtyard. The assessment elder promoted me to the inner courtyard, and I'm here to complete the entry formalities."
"Lin Chen?" Elder Mu was stunned for a moment, then his face turned gloomy, "Are you the famous trash of the Lin Family? Nonsense! The inner courtyard has always been promoted through strict assessments. How could the assessment elder promote you casually? You're simply making trouble here!"
Obviously, Elder Mu had also heard of Lin Chen's reputation as a trash, and he didn't believe what Lin Chen said at all.
Just as Elder Mu was about to order someone to drive Lin Chen out, a hurried voice came from outside the door.
"Elder Mu, wait a minute!"
The assessment elder who had promoted Lin Chen walked in quickly. When he saw Elder Mu's angry look, he immediately knew what was going on, and quickly explained: "Elder Mu, Lin Chen is indeed personally promoted by me to the inner courtyard. His strength is completely qualified!"
Elder Mu was shocked and stood up directly from his chair.
He knew the assessment elder's character well—he was strict and fair, and would never joke about the promotion of inner courtyard disciples. The fact that he could say such words meant that Lin Chen really had extraordinary strength!
"What? Is this true?" Elder Mu looked at Lin Chen in shock, his eyes full of disbelief.
How could the famous trash of the Lin Family have the strength to be directly promoted to the inner courtyard?
"Naturally true," the assessment elder nodded with a smile, and looked at Lin Chen with appreciation, "Lin Chen defeated Lin Hao, a 3rd level Qi Refining genius, with one move in the assessment today. His combat power is far beyond that of ordinary outer courtyard disciples."
As soon as these words came out, Elder Mu's eyes widened even more, and he looked Lin Chen up and down again, as if he was seeing him for the first time.
Defeated Lin Hao with one move? That was impossible!
But he knew that the assessment elder would not lie.
At this moment, Lin Chen's eyes moved slightly, and the system's voice sounded in his mind again.
[Ding! Daily sign-in refresh completed! Do you want to sign in now?]
Lin Chen's heart moved, and he whispered silently in his heart: "Sign in!"
[Ding! Sign-in successful! Congratulations to the host for obtaining:
1. Cultivation Base Upgrade: 3rd Level of Qi Refining!
2. High-Grade Defensive Skill: Azure Dragon Armor!
3. 12,000 Spirit Stones!]
Boom!
A powerful spiritual energy burst out from Lin Chen's body in an instant. His cultivation, which had been at the 2nd level of Qi Refining, broke through directly and stepped into the 3rd level of Qi Refining smoothly, without any obstacles!
The rich spiritual energy fluctuated and spread throughout the entire affairs hall.
Feeling this sudden surge of powerful aura, both the assessment elder and Elder Mu were shocked and their faces changed drastically.
"This is… the fluctuation of breaking through to the 3rd level of Qi Refining?!"
"He broke through just now? How is this possible?!"
They stared at Lin Chen in horror, as if they had seen a monster.
Breaking through on the spot, and breaking through so smoothly, without any warning—this kind of cultivation speed was simply unheard of in the entire Lin Family!
Lin Chen restrained his aura slightly, and the corners of his mouth raised a faint smile.
In just one day, he had gone from the 1st level to the 3rd level of Qi Refining, and had mastered multiple powerful skills. This was the horror of the Supreme Sign-In System.
Elder Mu took a deep breath, and the contempt in his eyes was completely replaced by awe and respect. He no longer dared to treat Lin Chen as a useless trash. This was a peerless genius with unlimited potential!
"Disciple Lin Chen, I was blind before and offended you. Please don't take it to heart," Elder Mu bowed slightly and apologized respectfully.
He immediately took out the inner courtyard disciple token, a set of exclusive robes, and a storage bag filled with spirit stones and cultivation resources, and handed them to Lin Chen with both hands.
"From today on, you are an official inner courtyard disciple of the Lin Family. You have the right to use all the public facilities in the inner courtyard, and you can receive 5,000 spirit stones and corresponding resources every month!"
Lin Chen took the items and nodded slightly: "Thank you, Elder Mu."
At this moment, the news that Lin Chen had broken through to the 3rd level of Qi Refining on the spot in the affairs hall had spread. All the inner courtyard disciples who heard it were shocked beyond measure, and they all talked about it.
No one in the entire Lin Family would dare to call Lin Chen trash again.
Lin Chen held the inner courtyard disciple token in his hand, and a sharp light flashed in his eyes.
Entering the inner courtyard was just a new starting point.
In the days to come, he would continue to sign in, become stronger, trample all enemies under his feet, and finally step on the road to becoming the Immortal Emperor!
The future of his invincible journey had officially opened.