At this moment, everyone's gaze was fixated on the tree, curious about the person on it. Among the young ladies, Li Wushuang at the forefront was also looking up in surprise. As far as she knew, there was no one of such talent among the younger generation of the Li family.

"Sorry, I couldn't help but interrupt the young lady's enjoyment. Please forgive me." Li Lin, up in the tree, couldn't help but give a wry smile. He hadn't expected this impulsive action to expose himself. Reluctantly, he clambered down the tree using a clumsy method. His awkward descent appeared quite embarrassing.

Li Lin wanted to jump down gracefully, but since he couldn't reveal his martial artist status yet, he had to feign clumsiness. As he knew, these young men and women from the Li family were all well-trained. Li Lin was aware that showing off his martial prowess would immediately make others suspect his newly acquired status as a martial artist, which wouldn't bode well for him.

"Li Lin, it's you. What are you doing here? This isn't a place for you," said Li Shaohu with a sinking face and a scornful look in his eyes when he saw Li Lin. He was annoyed since Li Lin had just stolen much of the limelight.

"Lin'er, what are you doing here?" Seeing that it was Li Lin, Li Wushuang was also greatly surprised. She approached Li Lin with a composed demeanor.

"Wushuang sister, I saw a bird in the tree and went to look. I didn't expect you all to be here," Li Lin said helplessly. Among all the people present, he only cared about Li Wushuang.

Li Lin then casually observed the people around him. His appearance seemed to have startled everyone. Li Mei's expression turned sour when she saw him. To Li Lin, all this didn't matter much. In his heart, he had no attachment to the Li family and planned to leave with his mother once he was capable enough.

"What a joke, there are no birds in the trees during winter," scoffed Zhou Haiming, who was quite displeased with Li Lin. He would have liked to beat Li Lin up if not for the presence of Miss Du Gu and her entourage.

"There was a bird, but you scared it away," Li Lin replied lightly.

Hearing Li Lin's words, everyone, except for the maid with the red birthmark, laughed quietly, including Li Wushuang. She looked at Li Lin with a bit of confusion, sensing that he seemed different from before.

"Sorry for disrupting the young lady's pleasure, I'll take my leave now." Li Lin didn't bother with Zhou Haiming anymore. After apologizing to the maid again, he walked away with a faint smirk that was either mocking or disdainful towards Zhou Haiming.

At that moment, the maid watched Li Lin with a faintly bewildered look in her eyes.

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"Who was that person just now?" the maid asked softly, watching Li Lin's retreating figure.

"He's just a servant, can't cultivate, just a waste," replied Li Shaohu immediately.

"Shaohu, how can you talk like that about your brother? Lin'er is your brother after all," Li Wushuang frowned slightly at Li Shaohu's words, then smiled at the maid. "He is the son of my third uncle, named Li Lin. Due to some special reasons, well... let's continue our tour."

"Hmph," Li Shaohu could do nothing but snort softly at Li Wushuang's gentle reprimand. Although Li Wushuang was not a blood relative of the Li family, she held a high status in the family, even doted on by the old master, so he dared not oppose her.

"Li Lin..." The maid looked once more in the direction where Li Lin had disappeared.

Li Lin returned to his courtyard, where he met Li Xiaobai, who came excitedly.

"Master, I saw Miss Du Gu, she's really pretty, almost as much as Miss Wushuang," Li Xiaobai excitedly told Li Lin.

"Um, she's just average," Li Lin replied with a slight smile. Although Miss Du Gu was quite attractive, she couldn't compare to Li Wushuang in terms of temperament and elegance. In that aspect, Miss Du Gu was no match for Li Wushuang.

"Did you see her? I think she's really nice," chuckled Li Xiaobai. "Sadly, a lady like her wouldn't notice me. If only I were like you or Young Master Shaohu, following you would surely make Xiao Cui pay attention to me."

"Look at your petty aspirations..." Li Lin glanced at Li Xiaobai, then with a flash of brilliance in his eyes, he said, "Stick with me and I'll make sure you live comfortably, even get you a lady from a wealthy family to marry. No, I'll get you seven, one for each day of the week, and no repeats."

"Master, what's a week?" asked Li Xiaobai, puzzled.

"It means seven days," Li Lin replied, realizing that the concept of a week didn't exist in this world.

"Easy to say, but if that day ever comes, I'll do whatever you ask," sighed Li Xiaobai. With the young master struggling to keep himself safe, and being a lowly servant sold to the Li family since childhood, he didn't see much hope for his future.

Li Lin gave a slight smile, observing Li Xiaobai. He knew he was alone and vulnerable, but Li Xiaobai was clever and could become a valuable ally if nurtured properly. Li Xiaobai's loyalty was unquestionable.

At this moment, Li Xiaobai couldn't imagine that his fate would soon change, and in the coming years, everyone on the Lingwu Continent would know him as one of Li Lin's most trusted people.

The events in the back garden were just an interlude. After nightfall, Li Lin quietly went to the secret room in the firewood shed, where the old servant Uncle Jiang had already arrived.

In the following nights, Li Lin learned to concoct pills, forge weapons, and cultivate spiritual plants under Uncle Jiang’s guidance. However, he only gained theoretical knowledge, without any practical experience.

Li Lin also gained a complete understanding of both martial artists and spiritual practitioners. Martial artists cultivated their internal strength, including muscles, bones, and organs, storing the cultivated Qi in their Dantian Qi Sea. As the Qi filled up, they would break through to higher levels.

Spiritual practitioners, on the other hand, didn't focus on physical training but on cultivating spiritual power, which is the power of the soul or mind. They relied on strong spiritual power to confront enemies.

Due to the stringent conditions required for cultivating as a spiritual practitioner, such as needing twice the normal mental strength, many were deterred from this path, making it unattainable for most.

Given the rarity of spiritual practitioners and their utility, their status was even higher than that of martial artists.