Andrew Carter secretly shook his head. A family of close relatives, yet they had reached this point in their struggle for power, with not a trace of warmth left. What was there to be nostalgic about in this home?

Harold Carter gradually extinguished his martial aura as well, patted his son's shoulder, and said, "Let's go, let's head inside too."

The conflict between the brothers had reached such a state that he was in no good mood either, but the fault was not his. Even if he wanted to repair the brotherly relationship, was the whole family supposed to line up and await execution?

Only Ethan Carter was overjoyed, grabbing onto Andrew Carter's arm. "Big brother, you were amazing! That was so satisfying today!"

Andrew Carter smiled and ruffled his younger brother's hair. "You should also train hard in martial arts from now on. Then, no one will dare to bully you again."

"Okay!" Ethan Carter replied with full confidence. On the side, Harold Carter looked at his youngest son, and thinking of his congenital frailty, couldn't help but look a bit downcast.

The battle at the main gate shocked the entire clan.

Those who had always thought Andrew Carter was useless, who paid him lip service or even openly defied his orders, were now all silent as mice, serving him with utmost caution.

And many of the siblings no longer dared to bully Ethan Carter.

Andrew Carter stayed at home for a few days, practicing martial techniques during the day and cultivating martial arts at night.

However, the county town was too crowded and chaotic, and Andrew Carter found that his cultivation was not as effective as it was in the manor.

After these few days, the diameter of his yuan force vortex had reached four zhang, but because the natural energy in the county was much thinner, his cultivation speed was actually slower than in the manor.

Andrew Carter thought it over and went to see his father to share his thoughts.

"You want to return to the ancestral land?" Harold Carter frowned as soon as he heard this. "Don't forget, you injured Victor Carter and Jack Carter, and have already made enemies with your first and second uncle's families. Jason Carter will definitely be waiting in the ancestral land to take revenge on you. He has the power of six meridians!"

Andrew Carter replied calmly, "If he won't let me go, I have no intention of letting him off either. The grudges and hatred from before—this is the perfect chance to settle them.

Let this be a test for me. If I can't even defeat a mere Jason Carter, how could I ever hope to roam the Seven Realms?

Besides, there's less than a month left until the annual exam in the ancestral land. Of course I don't want to be kicked out, so I must pass this exam."

When Harold Carter heard Andrew Carter say "roam the Seven Realms," a trace of comfort appeared in his eyes, and he nodded. "Good, since you have such ambition, your father will support you with all his strength!"

Andrew Carter felt warmth in his heart. In this world, no matter who it is, if they hear a borderland youth with only the power of five meridians say he wants to "roam the Seven Realms," they would probably scoff. Only your parents will support you unconditionally, firmly believing that you will one day soar like a dragon in the dark sea!

...

The next day, Andrew Carter set out on a fine steed, carrying the bundle his father had prepared for him.

The bundle on his back was light, containing little, yet Andrew Carter felt it was incredibly heavy.

Inside were twenty jade coins and three bottles of Qi-nourishing pills.

Jade coins were the currency of the martial world, infused with abundant natural energy, and could be used directly for cultivation. All transactions between martial artists were settled with jade coins.

To put it in perspective, one jade coin could be exchanged for ten thousand taels of silver.

Over the years, to treat Ethan Carter's illness, Harold Carter had nearly exhausted the family fortune. Among all the Sun clan of Anhuai, Harold Carter was the poorest.

These twenty jade coins were almost all his father's savings!

As for the three bottles of Qi-nourishing pills, though Harold Carter hadn't said anything, Uncle Grant had told him privately that his father had gone to the Baoding Pavilion in town overnight and, swallowing his pride, bought them on credit.

All of this was so his son could break through to the power of six meridians as soon as possible, and after returning to the ancestral land, would not be bullied by Jason Carter.

The steed galloped, the wind blew, and Andrew Carter rubbed his eyes. Hmph, I'm not crying—it's just the wind making my eyes water.

He did not return directly to the ancestral land. Jason Carter was at the level of six meridians, and he was a renowned genius of the Sun clan of Anhuai, not someone like Victor Carter or Jack Carter, those good-for-nothings.

He had spent half a year in the ancestral land, receiving much attention, and had probably secretly been taught some high-level martial techniques.

If it were just Victor Carter or Jack Carter, even if they had the cultivation of six meridians, Andrew Carter was confident that with his understanding of martial techniques and grasp of combat opportunities, he could defeat them.

But when facing Jason Carter, he had to be extra cautious.

At a crossroads, he turned in another direction.

Dozens of miles later, he entered Zhenhun Mountain.

This endless mountain range now felt very familiar to Andrew Carter. As soon as he entered the mountains, he felt like a dragon returning to the sea.

He found a cave, sealed the entrance with a boulder, and prepared to go into seclusion.

The natural energy in Zhenhun Mountain was extremely abundant, making cultivation twice as effective with half the effort. His yuan force vortex was especially effective here, capturing energy bubbles at an incredible speed.

Unfortunately, this time he did not encounter those auspicious cloud-shaped energy bubbles again, and could only cultivate step by step, steadily and slowly.

After seven whole days, through his relentless effort, he finally broke through in one go to the realm of six meridians.