Chapter 563: The Last Ingredient for the Realm-Piercing Pill

In the warm spring of March, with flowers blooming everywhere, the prosperity in and around the capital city grew even more.
Inside Lin’s Inn, Lin Dong was focused on advancing to the first level of the Heart-Riding Phase. Spiritual energy slowly flowed out from his dantian, circled once before returning, causing the already swollen dantian to expand slightly. Then, the spiritual energy flowed out again, circulating through his meridians. Unfortunately, before the energy could return, the dantian slowly shrank back to its original size.
This cycle repeated—ten large cycles, a hundred large cycles—yet the dantian remained unchanged, staying in its original state. Lin Dong didn’t lose heart and continued to persistently control the spiritual energy to flow out of and back into his dantian.
There was no one around to protect him, nor was there any sign of Old Man Ding or Feng Yue in the courtyard. The reason wasn’t that they didn’t care if Lin Dong faced danger while trying to break through to the Heart-Riding Phase, but rather that it was impossible for him to succeed.
Until the materials for the Realm-Piercing Pill were gathered, the only thing Lin Dong could do at the peak of the Ninth Level of the Heart-Reversal Phase was to slowly control the spiritual energy to circulate through his meridians, helping the dantian develop an inertia to withstand impacts, thus laying the foundation for a smooth breakthrough once he took the pill.
Since there was no forced breakthrough, there was no danger, and Yun Lan and the others naturally wouldn’t guard him.
As he struggled to control the spiritual energy in his meridians, suddenly, Lin Dong sensed something. He could feel a nimble figure in black climbing over the courtyard wall outside.
Lin Dong frowned slightly. Lin’s Inn hadn’t had any thieves in a long time. And judging by the figure’s skills, he didn’t seem like a thief either.
Bang!
The man in black stopped ten meters away from his door and casually threw something dark toward it. After a sharp noise, the man leaped up and lay motionless on the courtyard wall, clearly trying to lure someone out.
Lin Dong lit a candle, opened the door, and looked down at the ground.
The dark object was a stone wrapped around a note.
With a calm smile, Lin Dong picked up the stone, tossed it aside, and glanced at the note in the candlelight.
The message was simple: Manager Ma had connections with other top-tier restaurants, including those at Lin’s Inn.
Putting the note in his sleeve, Lin Dong was about to turn back inside when the door next to him creaked open, and Yun Lan stepped out.
“What happened?” Yun Lan asked.

Lin Dong was puzzled. Although the man in black was agile, he was still just a martial artist at the Mental State stage. He could sense that Yun Lan, a peak-level warrior, must have noticed even more. Moreover, even if Yun Lan had been distracted and failed to observe what happened earlier, with her strength, it was impossible for her not to see the man in black still perched on the courtyard wall. If ordinary people couldn’t see him, Yun Lan certainly could.

His behavior undoubtedly indicated something was wrong.

“It’s nothing. Someone has reported Ma Chun. This Ma Chun is getting more and more outrageous. Embezzling money is one thing, but I’ve already scolded him. Who would have thought he’d go even further and start dealing with other large restaurants?” Lin Dong grunted. “Isn’t this trying to rebel?”

“Could it be a false accusation?” Yun Lan asked.

“Let’s investigate first!” Lin Dong said. “Shall we go inside and talk?”

Yun Lan nodded slowly. After Lin Dong turned and entered the room, she followed in. Unnoticed by anyone, her Qinghong Sword flew out, diving and spinning swiftly to send the stone Lin Dong had discarded into the room.

Lin Dong closed the door and looked at the stone in Yun Lan’s hand, puzzled.

The stone wasn’t large, about the size of a baby’s fist, grayish-white in color with distinct edges. To Lin Dong, it seemed unremarkable—any random stone picked up would probably be more interesting than this one.

“This is a Innocence Stone,” Yun Lan said excitedly, sensing that the man in black had left.

“Innocence Stone? What’s that?” Lin Dong was still confused, but he was now sure this discarded stone had something special about it. Otherwise, Yun Lan wouldn’t have sounded so excited. There weren withered grass were few things that could excite her.

With a surge of spiritual energy, the stone shattered into pieces with a hum. At its center appeared a stone grain the size of a fingernail. Compared to the grayish-white outer layer, this grain was much clearer, almost crystal clear.

“Is this really an Innocence Stone? What’s its use?” Lin Dong asked.

“Innocence Stones belong to the sixth-tier spiritual minerals and are good auxiliary materials for crafting sixth-tier spiritual weapons,” Yun Lan explained.

Lin Dong was speechless. “Sixth-tier spiritual weapons… We certainly don’t lack such materials.”

Yun Lan shook her head and smiled. “Moreover, if there’s a large amount of Innocence Stones, there’s also a high possibility of creating withered grass.”

“Withered Grass?” Lin Dong couldn’t help but exclaim in surprise. He had never heard of Pure Stone before, but he had heard of Withered Grass more than once. This was the only material among the components of the Breakthrough Pill that he hadn’t obtained through trade with other sects.

Yun Lan didn’t want Lin Dong to be too disappointed and reminded him, “It’s just that the probability is high, but it’s not guaranteed. Pure Stone isn’t rare, but it’s uncommon to find large quantities in one place. Moreover, the chance of it giving rise to Withered Grass isn’t 100% either.”

Lin Dong looked at the piece of Pure Stone the size of a fingernail in Yun Lan’s hand and asked, “Is such a small amount meant to indicate that there’s very little?”

“Neither big nor small!” Yun Lan replied. A piece the size of a fingernail could already serve as an auxiliary material for twenty or thirty sixth-tier spiritual weapons.

“Regardless of size, shall we follow them?” Lin Dong asked.

Yun Lan nodded. “I’ve already focused my mind on that man in black.”

“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go!” Lin Dong immediately pushed open the door. He wanted to hurry, but after thinking for a moment, he stepped aside slightly to let Yun Lan out first.

With his strength at the peak of the Ninth Layer of Mental Reversal, he was confident he could keep the man in black in sight within ten miles. But that required his mind to remain constantly focused on him.

He didn’t know that the stone the man in black had casually thrown away might be related to Withered Grass, so he hadn’t paid much attention to him at the time. He had simply acted as if he were truly dissatisfied with Ma Chun.

Yun Lan smiled and leaped into the air.

Lin Dong didn’t hesitate and followed closely behind.

The two flew swiftly, catching up to the man in black in no time, who was also using spiritual energy to head toward the inner city.

“Should we capture him or do something else?” Yun Lan asked.

Lin Dong thought for a moment before shaking his head. “Let’s follow him and see where he lives. This stone might have been picked up casually at his place. Of course, it could also have been picked up by the mastermind behind this. By following him, we can still find the target.”

Yun Lan nodded, and the two slowed down, following the man in black, who seemed to be moving rather leisurely in their eyes.

The night was enchanting, and under the faint starlight, the man in black had no idea that two people strong enough to crush him with their fingers were following him. He continued to rush forward along the same route he had taken earlier.

When they reached the outskirts of the inner city, the man in black suddenly turned and began flying around the city. Clearly, he wasn’t confident he could pass through the city’s guards, so he had to take a detour.

After circling half a way to the east side of the city, the man in black continued to race down the empty streets. Lin Dong and Yun Lan followed at a steady pace, moving forward on the rooftops. Finally, the man in black stopped outside a large courtyard and leaped inside. “I’ll follow him. Check if there are any Pure Stones or withered grass nearby,” Lin Dong said softly, assigning tasks. “Okay!” Yun Lan replied, then separated from Lin Dong to find a secluded spot. She focused her mind and began scanning every plant and tree in the courtyard. When they reached the main house of the estate, the man in black stopped, and Lin Dong halted as well. Pushing open a door, he strode in, took off all his clothes, revealing a strong man in his early thirties. The man stepped onto a wooden bed in a few strides, without even removing his shoes, sat cross-legged, and began to meditate. Lin Dong frowned slightly, hesitating whether to intervene. After careful consideration, he decided to wait for Yun Lan’s results. After a while, Yun Lan quietly appeared beside Lin Dong and whispered, “There’s no sign of any Pure Stones, let alone withered grass.” “Take him down and question him!” Lin Dong focused his mind, checked the other rooms, then jumped off the roof and entered the man’s room. With a surge of spiritual energy, he moved the wooden bolt that locked the door from the inside. The door creaked open. “Who’s there?” The man suddenly opened his eyes and was stunned upon seeing Lin Dong and Yun Lan. “I didn’t expect us to follow you home,” Lin Dong said smiling as he walked over to the desk and sat down without hesitation. “We can follow you silently. I doubt you still want to test our strength.” “What are you talking about?” the man snapped. “I was practicing at home. You barged in without reason. Instead of leaving after seeing me, you’re blaming me!” Lin Dong remained motionless, his spiritual energy surging. The next moment, the man found himself unable to move, his body flying uncontrollably toward Lin Dong. He was only a martial artist at the second level of the Mental Focus stage; he had never seen such a miraculous spiritual technique before. His face turned as pale as paper, and his heartbeat accelerated. After controlling the man to float about a meter in front of him, Lin Dong spoke, “I’ve said our strength doesn’t need testing. You refused to listen. Now, if you don’t reveal who’s behind this, the consequences will be severe. Do you believe me?”

The strong man believed him and said urgently, “If you promise not to kill me, I can tell you who’s behind this.”
“I promise not to kill you, nor even hit you. This matter is settled today.” Lin Dong had no intention of harming the strong man. Although he had sneaked into Lin’s Inn, his motive was merely to throw a stone at the door, which was nothing serious. Scaring him a bit was enough.
Moreover, the stone thrown by the strong man might even lead to the withered grass, which would be a great achievement. If not for the strong man’s ulterior motives, Lin Dong might even have been willing to give him some benefits.