Chapter Ninety-Seven: The False Core Realm

According to Le Dong, Yin Wind Ridge was at least ten to fifteen days away from Heavenly Martial Gate.

"So I really did overestimate Heavenly Martial Gate. Just how remote is it, to be so far that it takes ten to fifteen days to reach?" From what he had learned, Lin Yanghao knew that Yin Wind Ridge lay in the north-central part of the Northern Domain. A journey of more than ten days was already enough to bring one to the borderlands of the Northern Domain, so its remoteness could be imagined.

There was one thing that still puzzled Lin Yanghao.

Lu Chen was the young master of Blood Demon Sect, while Le Dong was merely the young master of a minor sect. Though both held the title of young master, how could they possibly be compared? The difference between them was like heaven and earth.

And the two of them had no connection whatsoever. Lin Yanghao truly could not understand how Le Dong had come to bear a grudge against Lu Chen.

But since this touched on Le Dong's private affairs, Lin Yanghao was not in a position to ask.

Night was already fading, and the first light of dawn was beginning to rise. Lin Yanghao sat quietly on the edge of a cliff, his inner circulation turning ceaselessly as he greedily drew in the spiritual qi of heaven and earth around him.

He had already spent the entire night in cultivation.

One circuit... two circuits... then countless more...

Nearly half a year had passed since his last breakthrough, and Lin Yanghao was now striving to advance to the great perfection of Foundation Establishment.

Yet breaking through to the great perfection of Foundation Establishment was never easy. It was as though an invisible heavenly barrier stood before him, no matter how he pressed forward, he could not cross it.

Each assault came up just short.

The great perfection of Foundation Establishment was also known as the false-core stage, while the great perfection of Core Formation was called the false-infant stage.

Although late Foundation Establishment and the false-core stage differed by only a single minor realm, the strength of a false-core cultivator far surpassed that of a late Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Naturally, the same held true for late Core Formation and the false-infant stage.

Seeing that this would likely remain difficult if he continued as he was, Lin Yanghao gritted his teeth and simply took out several medium-grade spirit stones, beginning to absorb the spiritual qi within them at a furious pace.

Having learned from last time when he had absorbed medium-grade spirit stones, the strength of Lin Yanghao's meridians had already far surpassed that of cultivators of the same level.

Although cultivating with medium-grade spirit stones this time would still bring pain, compared with the gain of a higher realm, such suffering was nothing.

Lin Yanghao continuously drew out and refined the spiritual qi within those medium-grade spirit stones.

What Lin Yanghao did not know was that Le Dong was watching every movement he made from a patch of grass not far away.

It had already been astonishing enough to discover that Lin Yanghao was only at late Foundation Establishment, but now he could actually use medium-grade spirit stones for cultivation, and not just one.

At first Le Dong had thought Lin Yanghao must at least be a Core Formation cultivator, or else there would have been no way for him to defeat Lu Chen.

Yet the truth was the exact opposite of what he had imagined: Lin Yanghao was only at late Foundation Establishment, and he could already cultivate with medium-grade spirit stones.

At that thought, Le Dong was not shocked but delighted instead. What did this mean?

It could only mean that Lin Yanghao's techniques and spells were extraordinary. At the same time, a greedy desire rose violently within Le Dong's heart.

He resolved that he must find a way to get Lin Yanghao's cultivation method into his hands.

Even if it were not for the sake of the sect, he had to obtain it for himself.

Le Dong possessed three spiritual roots, so reaching Foundation Establishment in twenty years had already been no easy feat. Further progress would be difficult, so if he could obtain Lin Yanghao's cultivation method, would it not greatly aid his own cultivation?

As for Lin Yanghao.

Cultivating by absorbing the spiritual qi within medium-grade spirit stones truly was highly effective.

Very soon, the spiritual qi within Lin Yanghao's body seemed to have reached a critical point.

Just as success was within reach, Lin Yanghao seized the moment and once again intensified the speed at which he absorbed spiritual qi.

A moment later, a muffled shock rang out within his dantian, and a look of delight appeared on Lin Yanghao's face.

He knew he had succeeded in breaking through to the false-core stage. So long as the breakthrough succeeded, no matter how much hardship he had endured, it would all have been worth it.

With his cultivation advancing into the false-core stage, Lin Yanghao felt the true essence within him grow several times more abundant, and even his divine sense had expanded by several hundred meters.

Both his cultivation and divine sense now surpassed those of cultivators in the same realm by several times.

Seeing that Lin Yanghao had successfully broken through, Le Dong quietly departed long before he could be noticed.

Now that he had reached the false-core stage, Lin Yanghao was in an excellent mood. One more step in cultivation meant one more layer of protection for his life.

Soon after, he and Le Dong continued on their journey toward Heavenly Martial Gate.

"Congratulations, Brother Lin, on your great progress in cultivation."

Le Dong feigned surprise, as though only now realizing it, and offered his congratulations to Lin Yanghao.

During the time they had spent together, Le Dong had naturally changed his way of addressing him from "Fellow Daoist Lin" to "Brother Lin."

"It was merely a stroke of luck. To be honest, I had already reached the peak of late Foundation Establishment and had been trapped there for quite some time. Only last night did I happen to break through." If Le Dong knew that Lin Yanghao had actually broken through to late Foundation Establishment half a year ago, who knew whether he would not try to kill him on the spot.

Half a year and he dares call that long? Then wouldn't my twenty years of cultivation have all been for nothing?

"Oh, then I wish Brother Lin an early breakthrough into Core Formation and beyond." Hearing Lin Yanghao say that, Le Dong believed him. It must truly have been as Lin Yanghao said; otherwise, how could he have broken through overnight?

Thus several more days passed in this way. By day they traveled, and by night Lin Yanghao used the time to consolidate the power of his false-core realm.

The two continued on their way, and nearly ten days had now passed. They were already not far from Heavenly Martial Gate.

"Le Dong, at last this old man has waited for you!"

At that moment, a cold voice suddenly drifted over from afar.

Very quickly, a man appeared before them.

He wore a gray robe, his face dark and sullen. One look was enough to tell he was no benevolent sort.

From Lin Yanghao's observation, this man too possessed false-core cultivation.

Hearing this, Lin Yanghao understood immediately. This was clearly someone with a grudge against Le Dong, and it seemed he would not be able to leave unscathed. He would certainly be dragged into this matter as well.

"Brother Lin, this thief is named Zeng Quan. He wants to snatch something from me," Le Dong said, now that he had Lin Yanghao at his side, showing no fear of Zeng Quan at all.

Even Lu Chen had not been Lin Yanghao's match, let alone Zeng Quan.

Lin Yanghao shot Le Dong a contemptuous glance. For some reason, ever since the very first time he had met him, he had found Le Dong deeply unpleasant.

Now that he saw such shameless conduct, that disgust only grew stronger.

Unlike when he had first met Tan Zhuo, and they had hit it off as though they had long been destined to know one another, his impression of Le Dong could only be described as utter loathing.

Moreover, Lin Yanghao had always felt that Le Dong seemed to harbor some scheme, as though he were plotting against him.

At first, Lin Yanghao had thought Le Dong merely wanted to recruit him into the sect, but now it seemed it was not that simple. As for what Le Dong truly intended, Lin Yanghao could not yet determine.