Chapter Twenty-Six: Yantian Island

“Mr. Lin, aside from the shares in Lin Pharmaceuticals, your parents also owned sixty-nine properties worldwide, six safety deposit boxes, total cash deposits of three hundred and seventy million, and three islands…”

After signing numerous documents, the legal team once again confirmed with Lin Qingyun the assets he was inheriting.

Lin Qingyun was already well aware of all this; otherwise, he wouldn’t have stated that, aside from the shares in Lin Pharmaceuticals, there was still a fortune worth billions. His mother had a particular fondness for buying properties near beautiful landscapes around the world—her greatest hobby. Compared to their vast assets, actual cash holdings were relatively modest.

As Lin Qingyun looked through the property information, countless memories surfaced before his eyes. His mother had taken him to many of these places when he was a child.

“There is one more matter, Mr. Lin. Recently, the profit reports for Flame Field Island, near the Myanmar border, have shown some anomalies. It’s said that the geothermal fields beneath the island may soon be depleted. This is the most profitable of the three islands—even though profit isn’t their primary purpose, you may want to keep an eye on this.”

Lost in reminiscence, Lin Qingyun’s eyelids twitched at these words, and he instantly snapped back to reality.

A hundred years ago, when spiritual energy returned to the world, everything changed—especially at sea. Some islands shattered and sank, but many new ones emerged; Flame Field Island was one such newly born isle. Roughly a dozen kilometers in circumference, not large, but beneath it ran a vein of magma. After several decades, the island developed a unique fiery rock field. Originally barren, it was bought by Lin Qingyun’s mother over twenty years ago. Experiments revealed that several types of fire-element herbs thrived there; most were used by his parents for alchemy and medicine, with some supplied to Lin Pharmaceuticals.

Even the small portion sold to outsiders brought in tens of millions in annual profit. In his previous life, when Lin Qingyun regained control of Lin Pharmaceuticals and his parents’ estate, Flame Field Island had already collapsed and been destroyed. At the time, he was too busy to pay it any mind.

Now, hearing the lawyer mention it, Lin Qingyun picked up the profit report to take a look.

After a brief glance, he was surprised; this was not a mere downturn in profits. In the past year, Flame Field Island had reported zero external sales.

If that were all, perhaps his uncle and aunt had simply embezzled the profits. But what about the special supply for Lin Pharmaceuticals, and the portion for his parents’ alchemy and medicine?

The report stated that geological changes had rendered the island unsuitable for growing fire-element herbs.

“Thank you, Attorney Xiao. I’ll have to trouble you with all my legal affairs going forward.” Lin Qingyun shook hands with Xiao Ran, who, dressed in designer attire, was in his early forties and already a partner at one of Haicheng’s top three law firms.

“You’re too kind, Mr. Lin. I’m not a specialist, but if you have any legal questions, please feel free to reach out.” Xiao Ran smiled warmly at Lin Qingyun’s words.

By the time he left the law office, night had fallen. Lin Qingyun had his flying car take him directly to a mountain villa three hundred miles away—another property left to him by his parents.

After his parents’ disappearance, most of their assets had been frozen. Properties like Flame Field Island, which still generated income, were managed by his uncle and Lin Pharmaceuticals; the rest would only be unlocked after Lin Qingyun inherited them.

In his previous life, by the time these assets were unfrozen, most had already been disposed of by his uncle and aunt. But this time, Lin Qingyun had not vanished into Ruins No. 18; with a normal inheritance, everything was gradually being unlocked.

The mountainside was awash with purple blossoms, breathtakingly beautiful. The villa was cared for by automated cleaners, always ready for its owner’s arrival.

Once there, Lin Qingyun meticulously reviewed the inheritance left by his parents—not for its value, but searching for any clues regarding their mysterious disappearance.

Though he had combed through these things countless times in his previous life, he could not resist another careful inspection now.

Yet, as expected, he found nothing new. Even though his uncle and aunt had disposed of much by the time he first inherited, all the necessary documents had been preserved, and there was little difference from what he saw now.

“Wait…” Standing before a family portrait made of seeds in the living room, Lin Qingyun suddenly recalled Attorney Xiao’s earlier reminder.

Money was not his main concern. When he inherited it last time, Flame Field Island was already destroyed; now, it was still there…

However, although the island was within the territory influenced by the Huaxia Alliance, it wasn’t part of the core region. In Huaxia, rules and laws were inviolable—even the mighty did not dare fight openly. But globally, chaos was more common.

Anyone below the Soaring Cloud rank faced significant risks leaving Huaxia, unless accompanied by bodyguards. Most could not afford Soaring Cloud bodyguards, but Lin Pharmaceuticals had a few, or he could ask Uncle Banyue from Chifeng Temple to accompany him…

After deliberation, Lin Qingyun decided not to meddle in Lin Pharmaceuticals for now, but contacted Uncle Banyue, who readily agreed to accompany him.

Even with Uncle Banyue at his side, Lin Qingyun made thorough preparations.

His parents had six safety deposit boxes—three in the country. In his previous life, he already knew what each contained, but most had been taken by his uncle and aunt, or sold off, leaving only a few items.

Most of the contents were rare herbs, but there were also odds and ends.

The next morning, Lin Qingyun retrieved the contents of one box: a set of eighth-level Soaring Cloud beast inner armor. Other items in the box were of no current use to him—powerful spirit weapons, and elixirs usable only by those at the Soaring Cloud or Radiant Sun stage.

Even the herbs were only suitable for making high-level Soaring Cloud and Radiant Sun elixirs. Aside from the inner armor, Lin Qingyun found only a finely crafted top-grade enchanted dagger among the three boxes—a piece his mother had likely kept for its beauty, not its value.

Lin Qingyun easily refined the top-grade dagger for his use.

With preparations complete, he picked up Uncle Banyue and headed toward the border, stopping to recharge before advancing to Flame Field Island.

The sea was perilous; all shipping had ceased. Near-shore sea beasts had been cleared, but the ocean was vast and the deep-sea tribes endless.

Since the resurgence of spiritual energy a hundred years ago, mutated sea monsters repeatedly threatened the land. Even after land-based mutated beasts were mostly eradicated, the war continued for decades, finally ending fifty years ago.

Back then, the ten greatest experts plunged into the deep sea—not to slay the ocean’s kings, but to help the mightiest unify the undersea realms. In exchange, the sea tribes agreed never to attack humans on land or islands without provocation.

Of course, any human entering the sea did so at their own risk.

“Beep beep beep… You have entered a private island’s airspace. If you do not have a password or invitation, leave immediately or you will be targeted by the island’s automated defenses.”

As they entered Flame Field Island’s airspace, its defense systems activated, issuing alarms and warnings.

Now holding the highest authority, Lin Qingyun quickly entered his credentials.

“Defense systems disengaged. Welcome home.”

Though it was only an electronic voice, the words “welcome home” warmed Lin Qingyun’s heart. He owned many properties, but without his parents, nowhere was truly home.

“What the hell is going on…” Just as Lin Qingyun used his highest clearance to disable the island’s defenses, a young man shot skyward on a flying sword from the ancient-style mansion built of crimson stone.

His face was flushed, bearing a strong resemblance to Lin Kunshan; he looked twenty-six or twenty-seven and now stared in disbelief at the rapidly descending flying car.

“Lin Qingfeng—so he’s here.”

As Lin Qingfeng saw Lin Qingyun’s flying car, Lin Qingyun also spotted Lin Qingfeng soaring on his sword. His uncle had two sons: Lin Qingyu and Lin Qingfeng.

“Dad, why is Lin Qingyun here already? Why didn’t you warn me?” Lin Qingfeng, visibly anxious, immediately contacted Lin Kunshan.

“What? He’s there? How?” Lin Kunshan, at Lin Pharmaceuticals’ headquarters, was equally shocked. He hadn’t expected Lin Qingyun to come at this moment.

Just days ago, Lin Qingyun had stirred up trouble at Haicheng University, even challenging others to the freshman combat trials. Why would he suddenly head to Flame Field Island?

Shouldn’t he be at the university, or managing his parents’ estate right now?

“How should I know? I need at least another half month to finish up here. Now that he has the highest clearance, I couldn’t stop him even if I wanted to.”

Frustrated, a dangerous glint flashed in Lin Qingfeng’s eyes. “Dad, should I block his landing? If not, maybe I could cause some trouble—after all, this is open sea, and accidents happen…”

“No!” Lin Kunshan sprang to his feet, shouting, “Don’t be reckless. That may not be the core region, but it’s still under Huaxia’s control. No funny business.”

“But he’s about to land! If I don’t act, he’ll touch down, and if he discovers something he shouldn’t, our plans could be ruined. Who knows how long I’ll have to wait to reach Soaring Cloud rank…”

Seeing the flying car approach the landing pad, Lin Qingfeng grew more agitated.

Lin Kunshan snapped, “Enough! Don’t be like your mother, panicking at the first sign of trouble. In serious matters, keep your composure. You’re officially representing Lin Pharmaceuticals there—even if he has the highest authority, do you think he’ll uncover anything you haven’t hidden? Just play dumb. You’re overseeing the wrap-up; that’s all. Seal off whatever needs sealing. Update me on any developments, and do not take action on your own. Remember, you represent the company, not just yourself.”

Intimidated by his father, Lin Qingfeng nodded. As the flying car settled, he asked, “But the island is his private property, not a company asset. What if he tries to reclaim it or drive me out?”

Lin Kunshan pondered briefly. “If he insists, stall him—blame it on the company. I’ll send researchers over, claiming it’s part of a joint project and we need time to withdraw. Understood?”

“Yes, understood.” Lin Qingfeng ended the call as the flying car landed, then flew over on his sword to meet Lin Qingyun at the landing pad.