Ancestral Stone

"Brother, you're finally awake?"

As Lin Dong slowly came to, he found a delicate little girl leaning over him. He reached out and stroked her small head. Seeing her slightly red and swollen eyes, he sighed. "Qing Tan, you know about Father too?"

"Qing Tan knows. Father was badly hurt."

Qing Tan pursed her little lips, and glistening tears once again filled her eyes. It was clear that the young woman had already cried once.

"How long was I unconscious?"

Seeing that Qing Tan was about to start crying again, Lin Dong hurriedly changed the subject.

"Two hours. Oh, Father has already woken up. He wants to see you."

Qing Tan quickly wiped the tears from her eyes and helped Lin Dong up as he pushed himself into a sitting position.

"Father is awake? Come on, let's go see him."

Upon hearing that, Lin Dong immediately got out of bed, grabbed Qing Tan's hand, and hurried toward the master bedroom.

As the Lin Family's Third Brother and the second Heavenly Origin Stage Expert in the family after its head, Lin Zhentian, Lin Xiao had a fairly spacious courtyard in the Inner District. Following the familiar yet unfamiliar path from his memories, Lin Dong pushed open his parents' room.

"Father, you wanted to see me?"

Lin Dong looked at the heroic young man leaning against the bed, his emotions complicated.

"Dong'er, Qing Tan, come here. Your father has something to announce to you both." Ignoring his wife's attempts to stop him, the pale-faced Lin Xiao struggled to get out of bed. Looking at his son and daughter before him, he gave a bitter smile. "I am now half-crippled, and I have also let down Father and the family's expectations. I am no longer qualified to enjoy everything the family has given me. I intend to move out of the Inner District and live on the most remote little mountain deep within the Lin Family's territory."

"Father, are we moving now? But it's already night. How about tomorrow?" Qing Tan glanced at the darkness outside the window, clearly unable to understand her father's decision.

"Yes, we're moving now. We'll leave overnight."

Lin Xiao's somewhat thin body swayed, but he immediately gritted his teeth and spoke in a low voice.

"Qing Tan, don't say anything more. Come, let's help Father."

Lin Dong pulled back Qing Tan, who still wanted to say something. Having just suffered such a devastating blow, Lin Xiao was at the point of utter despair. Everything needed time to heal, and now was clearly not the time to talk further.

"Move, then. Move while there aren't many people around to see us at night. Heh..."

Lin Xiao gave a bleak laugh, then began working together with his wife and children.

Half an hour later, the family of four left the Lin Family's Inner District in silence under the cover of night, carrying only a small amount of luggage as they headed for the most remote little mountain deep within the Lin Family's territory.

One member of the Lin Family delivered the news to the family's main residence. After hearing it, Lin Zhentian fell silent for a moment before saying in a deep voice, "Forget it. Let him go. Third Brother still hasn't seen through it. I never blamed him. He can only walk out of this himself. As his father, I can't help him either."

"Yes, Family Head!"

After reporting the news, the Lin Family member answered and withdrew.

Lin Xiao's family of four finally settled down on that remote little mountain. Since they were living in an old house that had been abandoned for years, it still needed a thorough cleaning.

The next day, Liu Yan, Lin Dong, and Qing Tan rose early to clean the old house, while Lin Xiao sat blankly in a room they had tidied up the night before.

Seeing Lin Xiao's dejected appearance, Lin Dong's heart stirred. Perhaps it was time for him to act sooner. His father could not remain so dispirited forever.

"Mother, Qing Tan, I'm going out for a little while. I'll be right back."

Having made up his mind, Lin Dong tossed aside his broom and vanished in a flash, leaving only Qing Tan calling after him, "Brother, where are you going..."

Behind the rear mountain, beneath a cliff, in a hidden cave.

Following the path from his memories, Lin Dong easily slipped into the cave concealed beneath several massive boulders. It was the cave he and Qing Tan had stumbled upon by chance while playing as children.

That was right. Lin Dong had come to take the Mysterious Stone Talisman from the ceiling of the cave. No, more accurately, it was the divine artifact ranked second on the Ancient Divine Artifact Ranking—the supreme divine artifact created by the Symbol Ancestor, the Ancestral Stone.

Lin Dong leaped into the cave, and waves of coolness immediately washed over him. Within the spacious cave, there was only a stone pool roughly two or three zhang wide, its water crystal clear.

"The stone pool contains Ancestral Stone Spiritual Liquid accumulated over countless years. It can barely be considered a treasure, so I'll have to come here often once I begin cultivating. As for the Ancestral Stone, it should be directly above the pool."

Lin Dong paced around the stone pool for a while before raising his gaze overhead. Just then, a drop of crimson liquid slid down from the top of the cave and fell into the stone pool, sending ripples spreading across its surface.

"Heh, treasure, I found you..."

A satisfied smile appeared on Lin Dong's face as he walked toward a climbable section of the cliff wall.

Ten minutes later.

"So this is the Ancestral Stone, ranked second on the Ancient Divine Artifact Ranking?"

Lin Dong played with a grayish-white stone the size of a pigeon's egg. It was covered in dense, profound runes. It felt soft to the touch, its material neither stone nor jade, yet it possessed an ancient and majestic aura.

Moreover, a depression in the stone was filled with red liquid that gave off intense energy fluctuations. Clearly, the red droplets that had fallen into the stone pool earlier had come from here.

"Ancestral Stone Spiritual Liquid. You're what I came for. No, I can't call you the Ancestral Stone yet. I should call you the Stone Talisman."

Lin Dong rubbed the Ancestral Stone for a while before reluctantly and carefully tucking it into his clothes. Then he headed straight down the mountain.

When Lin Dong returned home, more than half of the old house had already been cleaned. His mother, Liu Yan, was brewing medicine—a First-Grade Spiritual Herb that she intended to use to treat her husband's injuries.

Although Lin Xiao himself had already given up on treatment and completely abandoned himself to despair, Liu Yan firmly believed that her Brother Xiao would recover.

"Mother, let me do it. I'll bring it to Father."

Lin Dong hurried over and took the celadon bowl filled with medicinal liquid.

"You, hurry along. Coax your father a little. He still refuses to take his medicine."

Liu Yan smiled as she wiped the sweat from Lin Dong's head, then patted her son on the shoulder to urge him inside.

"I know, Mother."

Having already turned away, Lin Dong discreetly added a little something to the bowl. A trace of red slowly spread through the pale-green medicinal liquid.

"Father, it's time to take your medicine."

Inside the simple yet tidy room, a heroic-looking man sat in a daze, seemingly lost in thought. Lin Dong silently handed him the celadon bowl.

"It's useless. I'm already half-crippled. Giving it to me is just a wast—"

Lin Xiao had intended to refuse after coming back to his senses, but when he looked up, he saw the earnest gaze in his son Lin Dong's eyes, as well as his wife and daughter embracing each other at the doorway as they stared blankly at him.

With a long, quiet sigh, Lin Xiao ultimately accepted the celadon bowl and drank the medicinal liquid in one gulp.

Under Lin Dong's deliberately calm gaze, Lin Xiao's somewhat thin body suddenly trembled. His face rapidly flushed red at a visible speed, and his body temperature began to soar!