Within the dark spiritual space, two figures of light danced almost simultaneously. The momentum of their fist and palm techniques was equally formidable, both generated by their execution.
Lin Dong's gaze was locked onto the newly appeared figure of light. At this moment, it was executing the Eight Desolations Palm, which he had just learned from Lin Xiao today.
"This mysterious Stone Talisman is truly miraculous. It must have extracted these techniques from my mind, brought me in here, and demonstrated them in some special way. Furthermore, during the demonstration, it even perfected them..."
Lin Dong fell into deep thought. Although this bizarre ability was somewhat unbelievable, since the reality was right before his eyes, he naturally chose to accept it.
He didn't understand the underlying principles, so he could only focus on training with peace of mind. After all, this brought him no harm; worrying needlessly would only be looking for trouble.
With this thought, Lin Dong fully immersed his mind in the Eight Desolations Palm being executed by the figure of light. The Eight Desolations Palm was renowned for its fierce and sweeping movements. Though it appeared simple and unadorned, every strike felt saturated with immense power.
Lin Dong watched the figure of light execute the Eight Desolations Palm several times with rapt attention, his expression gradually turning serious. He discovered that when this figure executed the palm technique, a trace of softness was revealed amidst the raw power, blending hardness and softness together. Although this subtle change might seem insignificant at a glance, if he were to fight someone, it would undoubtedly catch them off guard and cause them to suffer a major setback!
"Just a minor adjustment like that can infuse a trace of softness into such a fierce palm technique. This Stone Talisman is truly miraculous."
Lin Dong clicked his tongue in admiration. Although this level of modification was only a minor achievement in the grand scheme of martial arts—and a true expert could certainly replicate it if they put their mind to it—the Stone Talisman, after all, was not a human being...
"The combination of hardness and softness makes the lethality of the Eight Desolations Palm even stronger. If I can master it, its power probably won't be inferior to the tenth echo of the Tongbei Fist. But reaching that level won't be easy!"
Naturally, Lin Dong had already prepared himself for this, so he was not discouraged. On the contrary, his excitement grew as he stared intently at the figure of light, and he began to mirror the movements of the Eight Desolations Palm...
***
During his training, time flowed by like sand in an hourglass, and half a month quietly slipped away.
Over the past few months, the training atmosphere within the Lin Family had become exceptionally intense. Even the children who used to run wild and cause trouble had been forcefully dragged back home by their parents. With less than two months remaining until the Lin Family Competition, this was an incredibly important event for everyone in the clan.
A strong performance at the competition would not only secure focused nurturing and resources for the child, but even their parents' status within the Lin Family would rise accordingly. Consequently, many parents harbored high hopes that their children would perform well at the upcoming event.
Over the past two weeks, an increasingly intense burning sensation began to emanate from deep within Lin Dong's bones. However, for some unknown reason, the so-called Yuan Power seed had yet to form, which left him somewhat at a loss.
The only consolation was his training of the Eight Desolating Palms. Thanks to the perfect guidance of the Stone Talisman's light figure, he had managed to grasp some of its essence. Although he was still unable to execute it with a blend of hardness and softness, each strike now produced a sharp, whistling sound of tearing wind, and its power was certainly nothing to scoff at.
Furthermore, during these two weeks, Lin Xiao's internal injuries had completely healed. After recuperating for a few days, he had absorbed the Yin Pearl that Lin Dong had given him. Although Lin Dong could not see any change from the outside, he could vaguely sense that Lin Xiao's strength was rapidly advancing.
At this rate, recovering to the Heavenly Yuan Stage was only a matter of time.
***
In a dense forest, Lin Dong stood atop a massive tree, looking down into the woods from his high vantage point. Faint traces of blood stained his body, and a subtle, metallic scent of blood wafted from him.
The blood, of course, did not belong to Lin Dong, but was obtained from hunting wild beasts. After nearly half a month of training, Lin Dong could feel that something was about to emerge from deep within his marrow, but no matter how he trained, he could not seem to take that final step and break through.
Left with no choice, Lin Dong turned his attention to actual combat. He wanted to use real battle to force the Yuan Power seed to form within his body. Moreover, actual combat was the only true measure of a person's real strength.
Since he couldn't find other people to spar with, he could only go looking for trouble with the wild beasts.
Over the past few days, quite a few wild beasts had perished at Lin Dong's hands. After overcoming his initial clumsiness, Lin Dong was now able to remain completely calm in the face of such bloody slaughter.
"There's movement!"
Lin Dong's gaze swept across the area and suddenly locked on. He flipped down from the tree and shot forward like an arrow leaving a bow. However, just as he rushed a short distance into the woods, his body suddenly came to a halt. His expression changed slightly as he stared at a ferocious beast in the forest.
"A Scorpion Tiger."
It was a beast with a grayish-brown body. Its physique resembled a tiger, but its tail was like that of a scorpion, the sharp tip gleaming with a cold, menacing luster.
The Scorpion Tiger was a naturally vicious beast with fur as tough as iron, making it extremely difficult to deal with. Thus, upon realizing that he had run into such a troublesome creature, Lin Dong couldn't help but think of retreating.
However, just as Lin Dong spotted the Scorpion Tiger, it noticed him as well. Instantly, a pair of crimson eyes locked onto him. Its bloody maw let out a low growl as it rose to its feet.
As it stood up, Lin Dong's eyes caught sight of a translucent, dark red fruit behind a nearby tree, with a faint fragrance vaguely wafting through the air.
"That is... wait! A Grade Three Elixir, the Crystal Vermilion Fruit?"
As his eyes fell upon the fruit, Lin Dong immediately sucked in a sharp breath of cold air. He had never expected to encounter a Grade 3 elixir here. Wasn't his luck just a bit too good?
Lin Dong had seen this Crystal Vermilion Fruit once before in Qingyang Town, but its price back then had been outrageously high.
With this unexpected discovery, Lin Dong's footsteps came to a sudden halt. Seeing him stop, a savage glint flashed in the Python Tiger's eyes. With a low growl, it lunged rapidly toward Lin Dong.
Seeing this, Lin Dong hastily retreated behind a thick branch. The branch he had just occupied was instantly snapped in half by the Python Tiger's pounce.
"Bang!"
Shifting his feet, Lin Dong slipped behind the Python Tiger. He unleashed a rapid succession of fierce palm strikes, slamming into its body with powerful force and knocking it over. However, judging by its reaction, the beast had clearly suffered no real damage.
"Its hide is way too tough...!"
Witnessing this, Lin Dong felt his scalp go numb, realizing he had underestimated this Python Tiger.
"Roar!"
Having been knocked aside, the Python Tiger instantly sprang back up, its massive, rough paw clawing savagely toward Lin Dong's chest.
"Pop! Pop! Pop!..."
Feeling the gust of foul wind brushing against his face, Lin Dong dared not delay. He instantly unleashed his Tongbei Fist, triggering ten distinct popping sounds in rapid succession before slamming his fist directly against the Python Tiger's claw.
"Thud!"
Fist met claw, and the two figures—one large, one small—flew backward simultaneously. Lin Dong crashed through a tree before landing heavily on the ground. As he wiped his mouth, he noticed a trace of fresh blood. Just as anger was about to flare up within him, an intense, burning sensation suddenly erupted inside his body. Amidst this searing heat, Lin Dong felt a strange energy being born deep within his bone marrow!
"A Yuan Power Seed?!"
Lin Dong's body instantly went rigid. His mouth hung open, and his frame began to tremble uncontrollably with excitement. The Yuan Power Seed, which had eluded him for so long, had actually been stimulated into existence during his head-on clash with the Python Tiger!