"Xiaotian, remember not to act rashly. I will pay close attention to Yun’er’s situation." The old man departed, but his voice slowly drifted back.

Watching the direction his master had gone, Lin Xiaotian sighed helplessly. ’It seems the Royal Family is dead set on capturing Lin Yun for the sake of the inheritance.’ He, as a father, was powerless to do anything. He even had to rely on his master just to keep himself and his wife alive.

"Xiaotian, what are we going to do? What about Yun’er? Are we just supposed to stand by and watch?" Zhang Jingxiang asked through her tears once the old man was gone.

"All we can do is wait and see. If something were to happen to us now, it would be the biggest blow to Yun’er," Lin Xiaotian replied calmly.

Hearing this, Zhang Jingxiang knew he was right, but tears still streamed down her face. Ever since the hunt for Lin Yun began, she had spent nearly every day in tears.

While Lin Xiaotian and his wife felt helpless, news reached the Crown Prince’s Mansion within the Imperial Palace: Lin Yun had killed a Wind Forest Sect disciple, a feat that involved defeating an opponent a Great Realm above him.

The Crown Prince had been the one orchestrating the hunt for Lin Yun all along. His Holiness, the Emperor, had entrusted him with this matter as a form of trial.

After hearing his subordinate’s report, the Crown Prince, dressed in a Golden Dragon Robe, looked grim. ’The inheritance... It must be the inheritance that’s given him Demon Level Combat Power.’ "Issue the order," he commanded. "Send General Red Blood to the Mysterious City with his troops. Anyone who dares to interfere is to be killed without mercy. We must capture Lin Yun, no matter the cost."

"Yes... However, Your Highness, what about General Lin...?" The subordinate acknowledged the order with a nod, but then voiced his concern about a potentially drastic reaction from Lin Xiaotian.

The Crown Prince snorted. "Hmph. My Imperial Father has already shown mercy by sparing the two of them. If Lin Xiaotian doesn’t know his place, I’ll simply report back to my father and have the entire Lin Family executed."

The mere mention of Lin Xiaotian and his wife made the Crown Prince’s mood sour. ’If that old codger hadn’t interfered, I would have captured them long ago. With them as leverage, would Lin Yun dare to stay hidden?’

The Yanhuang Royal Family was determined to capture Lin Yun. This time, it was doubtful even Ye Yunlong could protect him. Even if they had to kill Ye Yunlong, they could simply offer some compensation if the Death Row Shelter came asking questions. After all, a single Primordial Ocean Realm Martial Artist wasn’t that important to the Shelter, and Ye Yunlong was no genius on the level of a Demon Fiend.

The Crown Prince’s order was quickly relayed. That very day, General Red Blood, clad in full Battle Armor, led ten thousand soldiers toward the Mysterious City.

General Red Blood was one of Yanhuang Country’s three great generals, his fame equal to that of Lin Xiaotian. His cultivation was at the Sixth Layer of the Primordial Ocean Realm. Like Lin Xiaotian, he would have no trouble at all killing someone like Ye Yunlong.

The Royal Family was now playing for keeps, but Lin Yun, still in the Mysterious City, was completely unaware. He was cultivating in the Gathering Element Array, feeling that his breakthrough to the Fifth Layer of Opening was only days away. The Elemental Power in his body had reached a point of saturation.

As Lin Yun emerged from the Gathering Element Array, he saw Ye Yunlong waiting for him. Ye Yunlong smiled and asked, "How are things? When do you think you’ll break through to the Fifth Layer of Opening?"

"I expect it’ll be in the next few days," Lin Yun replied.

’Ye Yunlong is so invested in my breakthrough. Looks like he’s getting impatient waiting for the inheritance,’ Lin Yun thought.

"Good. But try to be as quick as you can. According to my sources, the Royal Family has dispatched General Red Blood to capture you. They’ll reach the Mysterious City in a week," Ye Yunlong said.

A sense of crisis washed over Lin Yun. He knew of General Red Blood. He was one of the three great generals, on par with his father, and the commander of the Royal Family’s Forbidden Army.

Although the Forbidden Army under General Red Blood’s command numbered only thirty thousand, it was the most powerful military force in all of Yanhuang Country. Even its weakest soldier was an Opening Realm Martial Artist, and it boasted ten thousand Qi Sea Realm Martial Artists.

"Once Red Blood arrives, I’m afraid I won’t be able to protect you. You need to hurry up and break through, then we’ll leave Yanhuang Country together." Ye Yunlong understood the situation clearly. By sending General Red Blood, the Royal Family was signaling that they no longer cared about showing him any deference.

"Yes, I understand, Lord Ye," Lin Yun replied quietly.

After parting with Ye Yunlong, Lin Yun returned to his room. ’One week. I have to break through to the Fifth Layer of Opening and leave the Mysterious City before General Red Blood arrives. Time is tight.’

"No matter what, I must break through to the Fifth Layer of Opening within five days," Lin Yun said with determination.

Having already reached the point of saturation, Lin Yun threw himself into a frenzied cultivation session for the next several days. Ye Yunlong, also keenly aware of how little time they had, continuously fed Primordial Stones into the Gathering Element Array, allowing Lin Yun to train inside it every day.

For three days straight, the Elemental Power in Lin Yun’s body reached its absolute Limit, and a breakthrough felt imminent. Still, Lin Yun didn’t let up. He couldn’t relax for even a moment until he finally broke through.

’I can feel it...’ Seated cross-legged in the Gathering Element Array, Lin Yun could clearly sense the barrier to the Fifth Layer of Opening. Now that he had touched it, all that was left was to shatter it.

’Break!’ he commanded internally. He mobilized all the Elemental Power in his body, relentlessly battering the barrier. CRACKLE... It was as if fissures were forming on the formless wall.

For two more days, Lin Yun hammered away at the barrier. By the fifth day, it was no longer stable. It felt like a single, final push would be enough to break through.

Just as he had for the past two days, Lin Yun mobilized his Elemental Power and continued to assault the barrier. Fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. Then, after one more impact, the barrier to the Fifth Layer of Opening shattered. The surrounding Heaven and Earth Primordial Power surged frantically into his body.

His Dantian more than doubled in capacity, and his meridians grew considerably thicker. The aura of the Fifth Layer of Opening radiated from his body. At that moment, Lin Yun felt completely refreshed and invigorated.

Every breakthrough strengthened the Dantian and meridians. The Fifth Layer of Opening was a major threshold within the Opening Realm. A Martial Artist who reached the Fifth Layer would have a Dantian capacity and meridian strength more than double that of someone at the Fourth Layer.

This was also why Yanhuang Academy required a minimum Cultivation of the Fifth Layer of Opening for all its prospective students.

WHOOSH... Exhaling a breath of turbid air, Lin Yun slowly opened his eyes. The turbulent Elemental Power from his breakthrough gradually stabilized within him.

"I finally broke through," he murmured softly. ’Now that I’m at the Fifth Layer of Opening, I can get into Yanhuang Academy. These past few months with Ye Yunlong have been decent, but I have no intention of staying. Everyone here has their own agenda. I’m worried about what will happen if Ye Yunlong finds out the inheritance is fake. That would be a huge problem.’

He stood up and stretched. He planned to leave the following night, but first, he needed to talk with Imprisoned Dragon. In his heart, he wanted to take Imprisoned Dragon with him.

So far, Imprisoned Dragon was the only person he truly trusted. It would be good to have him by his side.

However, it all depended on what Imprisoned Dragon wanted. Resolving to find him and discuss it that night, Lin Yun slowly walked out of the Gathering Element Array.