The woman's eyes suddenly widened as she turned and saw Lin Fan who had just arrived on the second floor.
Lin Fan frowned the moment he noticed several bookshelves toppled over on the ground, while others were severely damaged.
His brows immediately twisted into a deep knot, as though his heart was being scorched by blazing fire!
His gaze swept across everyone in the room—from the first person, to the second, then the third, and so on—until it finally landed on Zhi Xuan.
Lin Fan asked coldly, "Was it you? Did you do this?"
Zhi Xuan quickly waved his hands and said in slight panic, "Of course not, why would you suspect me right away?"
"Hmm..." Lin Fan's gaze lingered deeply on Zhi Xuan's face.
The next moment, a female disciple suddenly raised her hand and spoke up, "Clan Head Lin..."
Lin Fan instinctively turned toward her. "What is it?"
His voice carried a chilling pressure, though he had no intention of frightening her.
She swallowed nervously and replied with difficulty, "Actually... Lin Xianyun... Young Miss Lin... she was the one who did it..."
Lin Fan frowned and turned to Lin Xianyun. "Is what she said true?"
Lin Xianyun did not answer. She merely turned her face away.
But from her reaction alone, Lin Fan could already tell the truth.
He could only let out a long sigh.
Lin Fan's gaze shifted toward Zhi Xuan. "Gu Qingzhou."
The moment his name was called, Zhi Xuan showed a confused expression. "What is it?"
"You—"
"Senior Lin!"
Before Lin Fan could finish speaking, a loud voice suddenly rang out. Lin Fan's expression changed slightly as he muttered, "This voice..."
It felt somewhat familiar.
Without hesitation, Lin Fan immediately walked out of the Lin Clan Pavilion and arrived outside.
Lin Xianyun and Zhi Xuan also followed behind him.
Once they arrived, Lin Fan's eyes widened when he saw a familiar figure standing there, waving with a bright smile.
"Senior Lin!"
Lin Fan stepped forward and said, "Junior Zhou!"
He patted the young man's shoulder and laughed lightly, "Haha, it's been a long time!"
With just a glance, Lin Fan could already see through the other party's cultivation.
"Haha! So you've already reached the Mid Stage of the Yuan Ying Realm!"
Meanwhile, Zhi Xuan standing behind them could only be stunned.
Where did that cold attitude from before go?
"Hmph!"
Lin Xianyun snorted coldly upon seeing the young man standing beside Lin Fan.
The young man smiled and waved back at Lin Xianyun.
Zhi Xuan noticed this and immediately guessed that Lin Xianyun clearly held a bad impression of him.
Rubbing his chin, Zhi Xuan thought for a moment.
"Hmm?"
After a short while, he suddenly smiled.
It seemed he had come up with a good idea.
Zhi Xuan raised his chin slightly toward the young man, the corners of his mouth curving into a faint smile.
Then he calmly leaned closer to Lin Xianyun's left ear.
"W-what?" Lin Xianyun's face instantly turned red as Zhi Xuan approached, her expression becoming slightly flustered.
The young man's expression darkened instantly. His originally calm gaze turned filled with hostility.
But Zhi Xuan did not notice it at all. He whispered something into Lin Xianyun's ear, a series of soft words reaching her hearing.
Lin Xianyun's eyes suddenly widened.
"You!"
Zhi Xuan asked, "How is it? Do you agree?"
Only after hearing him did Lin Xianyun glance at Zhi Xuan, then she turned her eyes away and snorted.
"I don't like him, but I don't like you either. How could I possibly cooperate with you and pretend to be your Dao Companion?"
"Then let me ask you—how will you solve this problem in the future?"
Hearing Zhi Xuan's question, Lin Xianyun's expression turned sour.
That young man was someone she deeply disliked. He always looked at her with strange eyes, making her extremely uncomfortable.
Moreover, he was the son of her father's friend. It would not be easy for her to get rid of him.
And he was also a peerless genius of Xian City.
Lin Fan himself had even considered him the most suitable candidate to become Lin Xianyun's husband.
There was nothing she could do.
Except…
Lin Xianyun glanced at Zhi Xuan again.
She sighed.
"Fine. But I must make it clear—this is only temporary. We are only pretending to be Dao Companions. Nothing more."
Zhi Xuan smiled and nodded. "Of course."
In truth, his reason for helping Lin Xianyun was part of a perfectly planned scheme he had already devised.
If he became Lin Xianyun's Dao Companion, wouldn't he be able to avoid punishment and escape the accusation of peeping while she was bathing in the lake?
However, even with such a perfect plan, Zhi Xuan still needed to gain Lin Fan's trust and remove the negative impression he had of him first.
After all, in Lin Fan's eyes, Zhi Xuan was nothing more than a talentless waste with no redeeming qualities.
It was impossible for him to accept him as a son-in-law so easily.
So the only way… was to show his ability in public!
Zhi Xuan smirked and pointed at Zhou Yu.
"Kid! How about we fight for one or two rounds?"
Lin Fan suddenly turned and muttered inwardly, "What is this brat planning? Challenging Zhou Yu to a duel? Does he want to die faster?"
Zhou Yu's voice trembled slightly as he asked coldly, "Oh? What makes you so confident to challenge me to a duel?"
He had already been suppressing his anger for a while. Seeing Zhi Xuan's closeness to Lin Xianyun only made him even more furious.
But he did not dare act recklessly here in the Lin Clan residence, as he still had to respect Lin Fan standing before him.
Yet he did not expect this situation to unfold—Zhi Xuan directly challenged him to a duel?
Of course he would accept!
"Hahaha! So when do we start?" Zhou Yu asked.
Zhi Xuan grinned. "I don't mind when we start. I can even humiliate you right now if you're that eager."