Lin Tian Stops Pretending

The Lin family mansion.

Ten thirty at night.

When Lin Tian walked out of the basement, there were still a few people in the living room.

Old Madam Lin was watching TV.

Lin Hao was slumped on the sofa, scrolling on his phone.

The uncle from the second branch was drinking tea.

No one noticed that Lin Tian had changed his clothes.

Because no one would notice Lin Tian.

He was air.

He had been for three years.

Lin Tian walked down the corridor wearing a black combat uniform, his military boots making dull thuds on the marble floor.

Lin Hao didn't even look up.

"Brother-in-law, what are you wearing? A security guard uniform? Why did you even change the color? Ha—"

The laugh caught in his throat.

Because Lin Tian stopped.

He stood right in the center of the living room, facing everyone.

The light from above shone down on him.

Black combat uniform.

Military boots.

A pitch-black dagger at his waist.

But the most heart-stopping thing wasn't his attire.

It was his aura.

The back that had been bent for three years was straight.

The shoulders that had been hunched for three years were spread wide.

The gaze that had been lowered for three years was raised.

The look in those eyes made the temperature in the living room plummet to freezing.

It wasn't lowly.

It wasn't fawning.

It was an imperial aura that looked down upon all creation.

An icy, irresistible, soul-trembling sense of oppression.

Lin Hao's smile froze on his face.

He looked at Lin Tian, his mouth open, unable to utter a single word.

Because the person standing in front of him was no longer the useless wimp who served tea and poured water.

But a stranger exuding murderous intent from head to toe.

Old Madam Lin put down her teacup and frowned.

"Little Tian, what are you—"

Before she could finish.

The front door was pushed open from the outside.

Not one person.

Twenty people.

Twenty men in black filed in, all in identical combat gear, their footsteps in perfect unison, their movements as if carved from the same mold.

They split into two lines and stood on either side of the living room.

Looking straight ahead, motionless.

Like twenty statues.

Then four people stepped out from the back of the formation.

Azure Dragon.

White Tiger.

Vermilion Bird.

Black Tortoise.

The Four Heavenly Kings.

Each one radiating the terrifying aura of a Grandmaster.

With the four auras combined, the air in the entire living room seemed to solidify.

Old Madam Lin's face instantly turned ghastly pale!

Lin Hao slid straight off the sofa onto the floor, his legs so weak he couldn't stand!

The teacup in the second branch uncle's hand dropped to the floor with a crash, tea splashing everywhere, but he didn't even notice!

The Four Heavenly Kings walked up to Lin Tian.

And knelt on one knee in unison!

The twenty elite guards knelt at the same time!

The whole villa trembled!

"Dragon King!"

Twenty-four voices merged into one, deafening like thunder!

Dragon King!

These two words exploded in the Lin family's living room like a bomb!

Old Madam Lin's body jerked backward, almost flipping over the sofa!

Her mouth was open wide enough to fit an egg!

Dragon King?

Dragon King?!

Her useless son-in-law, who served tea, washed clothes, cooked, and hadn't earned a single cent, was being called Dragon King by these men reeking of death?!

Lin Hao was completely terrified.

He sat paralyzed on the floor, a dark patch spreading on his crotch.

He peed.

The second young master of the Lin family in Jinling had wet his pants on the spot out of fear.

Lin Tian looked down at the Four Heavenly Kings and the twenty elites kneeling before him.

The right corner of his mouth twitched up slightly.

Revealing that signature sneer.

Three years.

One thousand and ninety-five days.

Enduring every single day.

Enduring the humiliation.

Enduring the scolding.

Enduring the sarcasm.

Enduring the eye rolls.

Enduring every meal of plain rice and pickled vegetables.

Enduring every night sitting on a plastic stool watching others eat delicacies.

Now.

No more enduring.

"Rise."

Lin Tian's voice wasn't loud, but there was no other sound in the living room.

The Four Heavenly Kings stood up.

The twenty elites stood up.

Their movements were eerily uniform.

Lin Tian turned around and looked at the three faces in the living room, twisted in horror.

His gaze fell first on Lin Hao.

Lin Hao sat on the floor, his pants soaked, shaking like a leaf.

His lips were trembling, wanting to speak but making no sound.

Lin Tian walked toward him.

With every step, Lin Hao shrank back.

Until his back hit the sofa, with nowhere left to retreat.

Lin Tian stood in front of him.

Looking down from above.

Like a god looking at an ant.

"Young Master Hao."

Lin Tian's voice carried a cruel gentleness.

"You said before that I was the best househusband in all of Jinling."

"You said I lived off a woman."

"You said I was trash."

"You also said my sister would divorce me sooner or later and tell me to get lost back to my hometown."

With every sentence repeated, Lin Hao's face grew paler.

Until all color was drained from it.

"Do you want to know now who your trash brother-in-law really is?"

Lin Tian crouched down, meeting Lin Hao's eyes at eye level.

"My name is Lin Tian. Joined the army at fifteen, entered the special forces at eighteen, became the youngest special ops captain at twenty."

"After retiring, I established the Dragon King Palace in Southeast Asia, with a hundred thousand soldiers under my command, spanning six countries."

"The trash live-in son-in-law you've been insulting for three years is the Asura Dragon King who commands a hundred thousand men."

Lin Hao's pupils dilated to the max.

His mouth hung open, making a sound like gasping for air.

He wasn't speaking.

He was panting.

Fear had completely shut down his brain.

"Kneel."

Lin Tian spat out two words.

Lightly.

But those two words fell on Lin Hao's ears heavier than heavenly thunder.

Lin Hao's body reacted faster than his brain.

Thud!

He knelt.

Both knees smashed onto the floor, his whole body prostrating at Lin Tian's feet, his forehead pressed hard against the marble floor.

"Brother-in-law! No! Dragon King! Lord Dragon King! I was wrong! I was blind! Please be magnanimous and spare me! Please spare me!"

His voice was sharp and distorted, mixed with crying and snot.

The arrogant playboy of three years.

Now kneeling at the feet of the person he looked down on the most, crying like a dog.

Lin Tian looked at Lin Hao at his feet without any fluctuation of emotion.

He lifted his foot.

And kicked Lin Hao in the chest!

Bang!

Lin Hao flew backward, crashing into the coffee table behind him, shattering the porcelain all over the floor!

He curled up on the ground, clutching his chest and coughing violently, coughing up a mouthful of blood!

"The debt of three years."

Lin Tian retracted his foot.

"This kick is the down payment."

"The rest, we'll settle slowly later."

Lin Hao lay among the broken porcelain and blood, not even daring to cry, just trembling convulsively.

Old Madam Lin finally recovered from her shock.

Holding the armrest of the sofa, she stood up shakily.

"Little Tian! What... what exactly are you going to do!"

Lin Tian turned his head and glanced at her.

Old Madam Lin met his eyes for less than a second before looking away.

She didn't dare to look.

Those eyes were too terrifying.

The submissive son-in-law of the past three years had vanished, replaced by an Asura who had just crawled out of hell.

"Old Madam."

Lin Tian's tone was lukewarm.

"I also remember how you arranged for me to sit on a plastic stool and eat pickled vegetables."

"But I don't have time to settle that score with you today."

"I have more important things to do."

He turned and walked toward the front door.

The Four Heavenly Kings and the twenty elites automatically followed.

Footsteps uniform as one.

When he reached the door, Lin Tian suddenly paused.

He tilted his head, looking toward the direction of the stairs.

The second floor was his and Lin Ruobing's bedroom.

But there was no one in the bedroom.

Lin Ruobing was not at home.

She was at Shen Fei's place.

Lin Tian's mouth twisted into an extreme sneer.

The angle of it was no longer just a cold smirk.

It was a contorted, almost maddening expression.

"Move."

Just one word.

Twenty-five people stepped forward in unison.

The sound of their military boots stomping against the ground was perfectly synchronized.

Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.

Like war drums.

Like a death knell.

Lin Tian walked out of the Lin family mansion and disappeared into the night.

The main doors behind him were left wide open.

The living room was a complete mess.

Old Madam Lin slumped on the sofa, trembling all over.

Lin Hao was curled up amidst the shattered porcelain, in too much pain to make a sound.

The uncle from the second branch of the family leaned against the corner of the wall, his legs no longer able to support him.

The three of them looked at each other in dismay.

Their eyes were filled with absolute terror.

The trash live-in son-in-law they had kept for three years.

Was the Asura Dragon King.

And now, the Dragon King had been unleashed.

...

Meanwhile.

At the Shen family villa.

The hotpot in the living room had been finished.

Su Qingxue was clearing the dishes.

Lin Ruobing sat on the sofa, looking down and fiddling with the new watch on her wrist, a faint smile playing on her lips.

Ling Xue was washing some fruit.

Everything seemed peaceful and quiet.

Shen Fei stood by the window in the second-floor hallway, looking out into the pitch-black night.

The system panel flashed a red warning in his field of vision.

[All members of the Dragon King Palace have assembled!]

[Total troops: 1963]

[The Four Great Heavenly Kings have left the Lin family mansion with Lin Tian!]

[Lin Tian has revealed his identity! The disguise of the live-in son-in-law has been abandoned!]

[Operation Dragon Slaying has officially begun!]

[Estimated time of arrival at the Shen family villa: Approximately one hour]

One hour.

Shen Fei glanced at his phone.

It was exactly eleven o'clock at night.

He dialed a number.

It connected in three seconds.

"Uncle, the guests have departed."

"Understood. Everything is in position on this end."

A very faint mechanical roar could be heard from the other end of the line.

It was the sound of helicopter rotors.

"Little Fei, just stay home and relax. Leave tonight's business to your uncle."

"I guarantee that not a single one of those uninvited guests will be able to leave."

The call ended.

Shen Fei put his phone back into his pocket.

He turned and walked down the stairs.

In the living room, Su Qingxue was pouring tea for Lin Ruobing.

The two women sat on the sofa, chatting about something in a very harmonious atmosphere.

Ling Xue walked over with a fruit platter.

Everything was perfectly normal.

Very cozy.

Very quiet.

Shen Fei stood at the bottom of the stairs for two seconds.

Then he walked over.

"Don't leave tonight, just stay here."

His tone was casual.

"It's getting late outside, it's not safe to drive."

Lin Ruobing hesitated for a moment and looked at Su Qingxue.

Su Qingxue smiled.

"The guest rooms are already prepared, don't be polite, President Lin."

Lin Ruobing nodded.

"Then I'll be intruding."

Shen Fei turned his head to look at Ling Xue.

Ling Xue read all the information from his eyes.

She put down the fruit platter and silently backed out of the living room.

Thirty seconds later, she appeared in the villa's security room.

Ling Shuang was already there.

Twelve screens displayed all the surveillance footage from inside and outside the villa.

"They're coming?" Ling Shuang asked.

"They're coming," Ling Xue replied.

"How many?"

"Nearly two thousand. Four Grandmasters. One peak Grandmaster."

Ling Shuang glanced at Ling Xue.

"Are you scared?"

Ling Xue scoffed.

"Scared my ass. The young master said that more professional people will handle it tonight."

"We are only responsible for protecting the two women."

Ling Shuang nodded.

And said no more.

Both of their hands simultaneously rested on the hilts of the blades at their waists.

The security room was dead silent.

Only the images on the screens flickered soundlessly.