Chapter 262: Pulling by the Nose

“Third Young Master, something bad has happened!”
Hearing Jiang Youcai’s panicked voice, Ling Zhengyang frowned slightly and sat up straighter.
“Has Lin’s Inn come up with some new trick again?”
Jiang Youcai gasped for breath, saying, “We just received news that while Lin’s Inn is spreading the guild’s messages, all the major restaurants have also released the same guild messages at the exact same time, and the content is identical.”
“What?” Ling Zhengyang stood up in shock. “Could it be that some powerful force is behind this? Otherwise, how would they have such audacity?”
“No, no…” Jiang Youcai quickly waved his hands to clarify, “The content in all the restaurants is the same as that from Lin’s Inn.”
“The same as Lin’s Inn? And released at the same time?” Ling Zhengyang pressed further.
Jiang Youcai nodded firmly.
Sigh…
Ling Zhengyang breathed a sigh of relief as his racing heart gradually settled. This meant that the messages from all the restaurants came from Lin’s Inn, and it must have been arranged with Lin Dong—otherwise, they wouldn’t have been released simultaneously. In that case, it wasn’t a powerful force behind this; the threat was limited to Autumn Wind City alone.
“Third Young Master, what should we do?” Jiang Youcai asked. “All the restaurants now have the guild’s messages, exactly the same as Lin’s Inn’s, which only increases the credibility of Lin’s Inn’s messages. Moreover, although our own major announcement can turn the situation around, it no longer has urgency. Over time, it won’t be as effective as Lin’s Inn’s messages. Our plan to use the guild messages to pressure the restaurants will fail.”
“Why would Lin Dong do this?” Ling Zhengyang frowned. “Is he short on cash, so he gives up the potential benefits of pressuring the restaurants and instead provides them with messages in exchange for cash?”
“That’s likely,” Jiang Youcai nodded.
Ling Zhengyang felt overwhelmed. With Lin’s Inn having a steady stream of large incomes, how could they force it to close down?
“Give them a 10% discount—give them all a 10% discount. We must quickly strain the cash flow of the other major restaurants. Only when some of them can’t hold on will we be able to break their alliance.”
“I’ll handle it right away!”
Jiang Youcai rushed off.
By noon the next day, news of Fenglin Restaurant’s drastic price cuts reached Lin Dong’s ears. He simply laughed it off.
Fenglin Restaurant had spread false messages and was already trapped. Drastic price cuts seemed in line with expectations.

Everything was as expected. The situation had completely changed, with Maple Forest Restaurant being led around by the nose. Maple Forest Restaurant offered massive discounts, and the appeal brought by the guild news was shared among other restaurants. Lin’s Inn gave no response, so its business plummeted. Fortunately, with discounts of 50% or even 40%, along with the guild news at a critical moment and free beef balls worth one or two silver coins along with dishes, it wasn’t too difficult to maintain a hundred tables or so. Other restaurants also made corresponding adjustments; by leveraging the guild news and offering 10% discounts, they could still keep their customer base at a minimum. The wealthy families in Autumn Wind City became active again. With the guild news and spirit beasts and materials cheaper than those available at home, dining out three times a day was undoubtedly more cost-effective. As more wealthy people frequented restaurants, the losses of Maple Forest Restaurant and other major restaurants increased significantly. Maple Forest Restaurant lost tens of thousands of silver coins per day, while the total daily losses of all major restaurants amounted to hundreds of thousands of silver coins. For four or five days, both sides continued this back-and-forth struggle, with silver coins flowing out like water. Not only were the owners of the major restaurants worried, but Ling Zhengyang was also anxious. Whether it was the guild news about Lin’s Inn or that of Maple Forest Restaurant, it was clear these conflicts wouldn’t end in the short term. Even if these restaurant owners were confident, at least one or two of them should have chosen to give up by now. What worried Ling Zhengyang even more was the extreme calm at Lin’s Inn—a calm that made him feel as if a storm was about to break. Like Ling Zhengyang, Lin Dong also sensed this pre-storm calm at that moment. Since the wealthy families had returned to Maple Forest Restaurant and other major restaurants, Lin Dong no longer needed to keep an eye on the customers on the second floor to adjust the comfort levels as needed. Thus, over these four or five days, he resumed his usual morning and evening practice routines, only stopping by the inn after each meal. What made Lin Dong feel that a storm was approaching was that he was currently inside a spirit array. The array wasn’t large, covering only half a room, and it was just a simple second-tier spirit array. But practicing while being inside an activated spirit array that showed no reaction whatsoever made Lin Dong feel increasingly uneasy over time. His spiritual energy flowed through his meridians far less smoothly than before, and unfortunately, Lin Dong’s attention wasn’t fully focused on controlling his spiritual energy. On the chair in the room, Yun Lan smiled calmly as she watched Lin Dong’s tense body. This spirit array was called the Four Illusions Array, a technique used by major sects to cultivate the concentration of exceptionally talented newcomers.

This first illusion is called the Heart Illusion. Once the spiritual array is activated, it creates a sense that a storm is approaching. If one cannot remain calm, it is likely to disrupt the cultivation process. Given that he managed to hold out for over an hour without knowing the array’s properties, Yun Lan considered Lin Dong to be quite competent.

On the wooden bed, the uneasy feeling persisted, distracting Lin Dong more and more, making it increasingly difficult for him to control the flow of his spiritual energy. Finally, his body trembled as the spiritual energy flowed back to his dantian. Lin Dong suddenly opened his eyes, glancing irritably at the dense patterns of spiritual stone powder around him, and snapped, “Yun Lan, is this damned array broken?”

“It’s not broken!” Yun Lan replied calmly.

“Then why isn’t there any reaction?” Lin Dong asked frustratedly.

“Once you can stay calm, forget you’re inside the array, and focus entirely on cultivation,” Yun Lan said leisurely, “the array will respond.”

Lin Dong felt frustrated—how could someone be scared to death by a sudden thunderclap while concentrating? “Just cultivate properly!” Yun Lan said slowly. “What you’re doing now is just a waste of time.”

Unable to resist, Lin Dong glared at the patterns of spiritual stone powder again. He closed his eyes slightly, gradually clearing his mind, and then his spiritual energy surged from his dantian. Fifteen minutes, twenty minutes, thirty minutes… He held out half an hour longer than before but still couldn’t resist stopping cultivation.

Gritting his teeth, Lin Dong decided to give it another try. He didn’t care if he’d be scared later—after all, he couldn’t afford to lose face after failing at a second-tier illusion array. Under Yun Lan’s watch, Lin Dong’s body gradually relaxed, and the flow of his spiritual energy became smoother.

Just as he was fully immersed in cultivation, suddenly, a sharp blade flashed before his closed eyes, aiming straight at his throat. The next moment, his spiritual energy surged to his dantian, and he pushed himself off the bed, shooting backward. With a bang, he hit the wall of the spiritual array.

A brand-new bench appeared in his hand. With determined eyes, Lin Dong stared straight ahead.

“Not bad reaction. But this is likely a skill developed from practicing the array, not something to focus on during cultivation,” Yun Lan said lightly.

Lin Dong was speechless—was it an illusion? “Can I see this illusion even with my eyes closed?”

Yun Lan smiled lightly. “You can see it even from behind.”

Lin Dong fell silent. This wasn’t cultivation—it was suffering! Disciples of major sects really had it tough.

There’s no choice but to grit one’s teeth and endure!
There was no need for Yun Lan to remind him. Since he had decided to use this spiritual array to strengthen his focus, Lin Dong wouldn’t give up halfway. He sat cross-legged again, eyes tightly closed.
As he lost himself in thought, the blade reappeared. With his previous experience, Lin Dong was only briefly startled before returning to normal. Sure enough, the blade passed through him, causing only some psychological distress without any physical discomfort.
Immediately afterward, two giant axes appeared on either side, aiming straight at Lin Dong’s neck.
Gritting his teeth, Lin Dong tightened his eyes. He had intended to close them and ignore it, only to realize they were already shut—no matter how tightly.
With no other choice, he tried to focus on controlling the flow of spiritual energy, but the attacks coming from all directions made it impossible for him to calm down.
He managed to hold on for about half an hour, watching as axes, swords, daggers, and other deadly weapons kept hitting vital points. Though he knew they were fake, the psychological shadow grew deeper until he could no longer bear it.
“Not bad!” Yun Lan said.
Lin Dong smiled bitterly. “How long did you last?”
Yun Lan replied with a smile, “The first time, the mental illusion only lasted half an hour. The visual illusion, like yours, caused instant fear. The second time, it lasted about fifteen minutes.”
“So I’m better than you?” Lin Dong asked, eyes wide.
Yun Lan nodded slowly.
“Continue!”
Full of determination, Lin Dong sat cross-legged and quickly entered a meditative state.
This time, he let the blade pierce through him. To break Yun Lan’s record, he ignored everything and focused all his effort on controlling the spiritual energy in his meridians.
Boom!
Suddenly, as a giant hammer crashed down from above, a thunderous roar echoed in his ears. The volume was as if Jiang Kui were shouting right beside him.
His heart pounded violently, and the spiritual energy in his body surged back to his dantian due to the lack of control.
Lin Dong opened his eyes and looked at Yun Lan with a pained expression. “What’s next?”
“Besides the auditory illusion, there’s also the nasal illusion,” Yun Lan replied.
Lin Dong smiled bitterly. Visual disturbances, noise pollution—probably even various pungent smells later. Living in such an environment all day long might even shorten one’s lifespan.
“How long before it can be removed?”
The question was a bit vague, but Yun Lan understood what Lin Dong meant. She stretched out her delicate fingers. “It can be removed whenever you can remain indifferent. Your progress is quite good. I estimate a year will be enough.”
Lin Dong twisted his neck. At least it wasn’t for life.

Just as he was about to continue practicing, a knocking sound came from outside. Ma Chun’s voice was heard: “Boss, all the invitations have been sent out. If nothing goes wrong, we should be able to surprise Maple Forest Restaurant tomorrow.”
Lin Dong showed a pleased expression. After pondering for a moment, he ordered, “Check the second and third floors and the kitchen to make sure nothing goes wrong tonight.”
“Understood!” Ma Chun replied loudly.
Lin Dong stretched out his index and middle fingers and tried to pull them side to side; it seemed as though the nose of Maple Forest Restaurant was hanging there.
Beside him, Yun Lan couldn’t help but find Lin Dong’s action somewhat strange.