"There's no hiding it from father's keen eyes, I've already stepped into the Yuan Dan Realm."
Lin Xiao smiled and admitted it.
"Just as I expected, you're already a Lesser Yuan Dan Realm Expert. Our Lin Family will now become the strongest power in Qingyang Town."
An abnormal flush of crimson spread across Lin Zhentian's old face.
There were no Yuan Dan Realm experts in Qingyang Town. The Lei Family, the strongest power in Qingyang Town, had only five Heavenly Yuan Realm experts, and Family Head Lei Bao's cultivation was the same as Lin Zhentian's — merely Peak Heavenly Yuan Realm.
Any power with a Yuan Dan Realm Expert would immediately gain an overwhelming advantage over the others.
"No rush. Why not wait until father, you too, step into the Yuan Dan Realm? It won't be too late for our Lin Family to dominate Qingyang Town then."
Lin Xiao smiled with quiet confidence.
"Wait until I've stepped into the Yuan Dan Realm too? You know my Cultivation. Although I've been at Peak Heavenly Yuan Realm for many years, I still have a long way to go before reaching the Yuan Dan Realm."
Lin Zhentian glanced at Lin Xiao in puzzlement, then his heart stirred. "Could it be you have some way to help me achieve a quick breakthrough?"
He knew his third son's temperament well: Lin Xiao was steady and composed, never speaking without purpose. At the thought, emotion stirred in Lin Zhentian's heart.
"With this, father should be able to step into the Yuan Dan Realm within three months."
"With this, Father should be able to step into the Yuan Dan Realm within three months." Lin Xiao tossed over a Jade Bottle. Lin Zhentian caught it and opened it. Inside lay three pills radiating dense Yuan Power Fluctuations.
"This, this is... this is a Pure Yuan Pill?!"
Lin Zhentian, worldly and well-informed, felt his hands tremble as he looked at Lin Xiao, quivering.
A Pure Yuan Pill was a Medicinal Pill formed when a Yuan Dan Realm Expert compressed their purest Yuan Power into pill form. It had a tremendous effect on cultivators, making cultivation countless times more effective than with Yang Yuan Pills refined from Yang Yuan Stones.
One Pure Yuan Pill was equivalent to a hundred Yang Yuan Pills, or a thousand Yang Yuan Stones.
Although a Pure Yuan Pill was immensely valuable and powerful, it was also far rarer. A Lesser Yuan Dan Realm Expert had to spend a full month of arduous work to condense one, making no cultivation progress during that month.
Thus, the value of a Pure Yuan Pill was countless times more precious than that of a Yang Yuan Pill.
"Yes, three Pure Yuan Pills should be enough for father to push toward the Yuan Dan Realm."
Lin Xiao nodded in confirmation.
"Enough. More than enough."
Lin Zhentian's face flushed crimson. Overcome with excitement, he looked at Lin Xiao, his words tumbling out. "Third son, you've gone to great lengths. Condensing three Pure Yuan Pills for me means giving up more than three months of your cultivation time."
Lin Xiao smiled and said nothing. As a Peak Lesser Yuan Dan Realm Expert, he could condense a Pure Yuan Pill in less than a month; half a month was enough. He did not bother correcting Lin Zhentian's assumption.
"No need for three months. With your Pure Yuan Pills to aid me, I'll be able to push through to the Yuan Dan Realm successfully in two."
Lin Zhentian clenched the jade bottle in his hand, brimming with confidence.
"Then this son will offer his congratulations to father in advance."
Lin Xiao gave Lin Zhentian the encouragement he needed, drawing a booming laugh from him.
.....
"Here. This is your Clan Competition Champion reward from your grandfather: two stalks of Third-grade Spirit Medicine. You also have permission to enter the clan's Martial Art hall, though I doubt either reward will help you much."
Having returned, Lin Xiao handed a brocade box to Lin Dong.
Lin Xiao knew Lin Dong's current Cultivation. The Third-grade Spirit Medicine would probably do little for him, and Lin Xiao had already taught him nearly all the Lin Family's Martial Arts. Lin Dong had little reason to visit the Martial Art hall again.
"Well, better than nothing, I suppose."
Lin Dong took the brocade box, opened it, and found two blood-red ganoderma inside. They looked as if they were burning, and a faint, strange fragrance drifted from them.
Third-grade Spirit Medicine — Fireblood Ganoderma!
"Go on then. As for those words your grandfather told you about working hard, you needn't take them to heart."
Lin Xiao smiled indifferently. With his genius son's current Cultivation at Lesser Yuan Dan Realm, did he need to prepare for the Hunting Competition? Picking on a group of children who had not even reached the Earthly Yuan Realm would be child's play.
Back in his room, Lin Dong shut the door, took the two stalks of Fireblood Ganoderma from the brocade box, and held them near his left hand. At a thought, a cluster of profoundly mysterious Runes appeared on his palm.
That's right — this was the Ancestral Stone.
After Lin Dong reached the Sixth Stage of Body Tempering and a Yuan Power Seed formed within him, he could use Yuan Power to activate the Ancestral Stone and draw it into his body. He no longer had to worry about exposing it.
"Buzzz~"
The two stalks of Fireblood Ganoderma near his left palm withered and crumbled into powder, which fell to the ground. It was as if an unseen presence had drawn out the essence of their medicinal power.
At the same time, six fiery red medicinal pills, still carrying a trace of warmth, appeared in Lin Dong's palm.
"Time to begin cultivating."
Sitting cross-legged, Lin Dong swallowed the six fiery red pills in one gulp. The refined energy they released immediately began to dissolve, erupting through Lin Dong's limbs and bones.
"Qingyang Technique, circulate!"
Lin Dong swiftly activated the Lin Family's ancestral Cultivation Method, channeling each stream of refined energy into the Yuan Dan deep within his Dantian.
Half an hour later.
"Whew!"
As a breath of turbid air, faintly touched with white mist, was exhaled, Lin Dong's cultivation session, a full cycle complete, came to an end.
"The Yuan Dan Realm requires far more energy than the Earthly Yuan Realm or Heavenly Yuan Realm. I consumed the pills refined from two stalks of Third-grade Spirit Medicine, yet my Cultivation increased so little."
Lin Dong sensed the Yuan Power he had gained and frowned.
"That's because your Lin Family's ancestral Cultivation Method is garbage. You're already a Yuan Dan Realm Expert, yet you still cultivate with the third-rate Qingyang Technique."
"Even though you've used Stone Talismans to refine and perfect the Qingyang Technique, increasing the meridians it channels through from four to seven, that still doesn't change the fact that it's a third-rate Cultivation Method."
Seeing that Lin Dong had finished cultivating, Little Marten flew out, unable to bear the silence.
Cultivation Method manuals are specialized methods for guiding and tempering Yuan Power. On the Tianxuan Continent, they are generally divided into three grades: First-rate Manual, second-rate manual, and third-rate manual.
For example, the Azure Yuan Art Lin Dong cultivated could open four Hidden Meridians that reached the skin. During cultivation, he only needed to circulate the technique to absorb the energy of heaven and earth through those four Meridians and convert it into Yuan Power.
That was countless times faster than a Martial Artist absorbing energy through breathing.
Generally, a third-rate manual could open only a single-digit number of Meridians, a second-rate manual could open a dozen or so, and a First-rate Manual could open dozens at once.
Some even more remarkable manuals could use special methods to generate self-sustaining energy whirlwinds within the skin and flesh.
Once such a whirlwind formed, a Martial Artist's body would continue running it even without active cultivation, drawing Yuan Power from heaven and earth without end.