Chapter 306: Contrast

The warm morning light tore through the ink-black night, and golden sunlight spilled onto the front gate of the Xie family estate, where the mottled copper rings on the doors shimmered with a faint golden glow.

As one of the five great clans, the Xie family had a long and storied history, lying dormant like a sleeping beast, quietly crouching here; its antique architecture further highlighted the Xie family's ancient simplicity and splendor, inspiring awe and leaving one speechless.

Anyone capable of entering or exiting the Xie family gates was without exception a person of status and influence within the capital; ordinary people had no chance of appearing here.

But today, it was destined to be a little different.

A young man with green hair drove a pink, heavily modified "ghost fire" scooter with a dazzlingly bright headlight and a large tail wing, heading straight for the Xie family's main entrance.

That vibrant, spirited aura was completely out of place with the Xie family's architecture, yet not a single person dared to stop this pink ghost fire.

Because sitting on the back seat of the ghost fire was a man wearing a dragon-patterned mask!

The people of the Xie family all recognized this mask; it was Lord Chen Long, one of the Twelve Zodiac Guardians!

It was just that the Xie family members were all completely bewildered at this moment... they had never heard of Lord Chen Long having such a strange hobby, either?

Little did they know that at this moment, Chen Long on the back of the ghost fire was sitting on pins and needles, feeling as if he had a fishbone stuck in his throat and thorns pricking his back!

At first, when Ye Lin asked him to get on, Chen Long had refused.

But when Ye Lin shoved his head into the wheel and threatened to twist the throttle, Chen Long had no choice but to endure the humiliation and get on, which led to the current scene.

After driving the heavily modified ghost fire to the Xie family gate, Ye Lin pressed the horn several times.

"Open the gate! Can't you see Lord Chen Long is in the back seat? Do you dare to stop him?"

The Xie family gatekeepers looked at each other, then looked at Chen Long in the back seat. When they saw Chen Long slowly nod, they no longer hesitated and opened the gate directly.

Immediately after, a scene that left them dumbfounded occurred! They saw Ye Lin suddenly twist the throttle, and the modified ghost fire surged up the steps, drifting into a tail-spin before coming to a stop in the Xie family's main courtyard.

In the Xie family's main courtyard, ancient trees towered, their branches lush and thick, forming natural barriers against the heat; the sunlight was sliced by the leaves into mottled light and shadow, passing through the ancient courtyard... and spilling onto the pink, modified ghost fire.

Perhaps this second-hand ghost fire never imagined it would one day be parked in the Xie family's main courtyard.

The commotion in the courtyard also startled the Xie family members, and countless people poked their heads out in confusion.

Ye Lin held down the horn.

"Family Head Xie Hong, this young one, Ye Lin, has come to pay a visit!"

Xie Hong walked out from the depths of the courtyard, the expression on his face somewhat unpleasant.

"Ye Lin, it's already generous of me not to go looking for trouble with you, yet you dare to come to my Xie family to cause a scene?"

Having said that, Xie Hong cast a cold glance at Chen Long on the back of the ghost fire, seemingly blaming Chen Long for failing to keep things under control.

Chen Long: "......"

"Family Head Xie, that is where you are wrong! I have come to visit you; how can you call it causing a scene? I also wish to turn hostility into friendship with you!"

Ye Lin hopped off the bike with a grin and pulled down two large bottles of iced black tea and two large bottles of green tea.

"Look, I heard from Chen Long that you love tea, so I specifically brought you the best-selling and most famous tea in the Great Xia!"

Xie Hong glanced at the items in Ye Lin's hands, and his complexion turned green instantly.

As the head of the Xie family, when had he ever drunk such things? The lowest-grade tea he usually drank was the Da Hong Pao mother tree tea flown in by air.

"If you have something to say, say it. You can take this tea back and drink it yourself." Xie Hong suppressed his anger.

"Nothing much, I just wanted to chat with you, Family Head Xie. Why don't we sit down and chat while drinking tea?" Ye Lin blinked his eyes.

"Fine. Chen Long, take him to the reception room."

Xie Hong spoke in a deep voice; he wanted to see exactly what kind of medicine Ye Lin was hiding in his gourd!

"By the way, old man, is it okay if I park my ghost fire in the courtyard? It won't get stolen, right?" Ye Lin asked.

Upon hearing this, Xie Hong was so angry his nose almost went crooked. People in their Xie family dealt with millions every minute; would they steal his piece-of-junk ghost fire?

"Rest assured... with this vehicle of yours, a normal person would have to crawl five kilometers away before they'd even dare to die," Xie Hong said irritably.

"Then I can rest easy." Ye Lin followed along with a grin.

In the reception room, just as Xie Hong and Ye Lin sat down, a maid with a graceful figure brought in tea, but Xie Hong glared at her.

"Who told you to come in? Get out!"

"Yes..."

The maids were startled and quickly retreated.

It was clear that Xie Hong didn't want to give Ye Lin even a single cup of water.

"Speak. What exactly do you want by coming to my Xie family?" Xie Hong's presence was imposing without anger; his long-term position of power gave him an extremely strong aura. Ordinary people, when facing Xie Hong, would subconsciously feel they were a head shorter than him.

"Well, it's like this, I'm here to propose marriage." Ye Lin rubbed his hands together.

"???"

The look Xie Hong gave Ye Lin was as if he were looking at a lunatic.

"To tell you the truth, in the Dragon Pool Secret Realm, I fell in love with your daughter, Xie Xiaoxiao, at first sight. I hope you will grant us your blessing, Family Head Xie! As long as I marry your daughter, we won't be enemies, but friends! Family Head Xie!" The eyes beneath Ye Lin's green bangs were filled with sincerity.

"Someone, see the guest out. Send young friend Ye Lin out—oh, and his broken motorcycle too!" Xie Hong couldn't be bothered to waste words with Ye Lin and prepared to have him thrown out directly.

Although he was extremely strict with Xie Xiaoxiao, he was still a father. What father would want to see his daughter marry a green-haired boy on a pink ghost fire?

"Family Head Xie, don't be in such a hurry. Why don't you call Xiaoxiao out and ask her if she's willing? We are in love with each other!" Ye Lin said with tears in his eyes.

"No need. Born into the Xie family, enjoying the privileges and resources brought by the Xie family bloodline, she has an obligation to contribute to the Xie family. Who she likes is not important; what is important is who she marries that is more beneficial to the Xie family," Xie Hong said coldly.

"Young friend Ye Lin, please!"

Several Xie family guards gathered around, their hands already pressed onto Ye Lin's shoulders, intending to forcibly remove him.

But at this moment, Ye Lin suddenly erupted, knocking down all the Xie family guards in a few quick moves. One guard was even kicked flying by Ye Lin, landing right in front of Xie Hong, wailing incessantly.

Xie Hong's expression was somewhat ugly as he stared coldly at Ye Lin.

"Don't think I really don't dare to touch you!"

"Touch me then! If you have the guts, touch me! The moment you touch me, I'll lie right here. Not only will you have to give an explanation to the Human Emperor, but the Great Xia Academy will definitely come looking for trouble with you too. Go ahead, touch me!" Ye Lin was completely unafraid.

Xie Hong clenched his fists, his eyes filled with cold light.

He still remembered the first time he saw Ye Lin; this guy was only a level 28 minor Forbidden Spellcaster. At that time, if he had just blown a breath, the boy would have died hundreds of times over.

Yet, unknowingly, this guy had already grown to such a terrifying level. Not even 20 years old and already level 68—this condition, even in the Xie family, would be considered a dragon among men. Not only did he have the backing of the Great Xia Academy, but now he had even caught the eye of the Human Emperor, daring to challenge him directly to his face!

This growth speed made Xie Hong think deeply and feel terrified. He realized that when he was in Qingcheng, he had clearly misjudged him completely!

He should have strangled Ye Lin before he had a chance to grow up!

But unfortunately, there were no second chances in this world, just as the Soul Heavenly Emperor would never believe that a broken engagement in some remote corner of the mountains could affect his grand plan to become an Emperor.

Now, what he had to consider was how to deal with Ye Lin! Regarding the matter of the Heavenly Revelation Gate in Qingcheng, this guy definitely knew something.

Xie Hong was deep in thought when suddenly a crisp slap landed on his face, knocking his head to the side.

"Old man, speak! Are you mute?"