Lilith followed Stirling into his house.

  Upon entering, Lilith turned and placed her hand on Stirling's shoulder.

  "Don't move without my permission." Lilith smiled sweetly and walked like a swan towards the inner room.

  Stirling stood there in a daze, letting her do as she pleased. As soon as Lilith's hand rested on his shoulder, Stirling sensed a chilling aura weighing on him. With just one thought, she could wipe him out, just like the guard at the city gate that day.

  This Yearning Palace enchantress was capricious in truth. Just moments ago, she seemed like the girl next door. Now, she appeared as a vengeful demon, unpredictable and elusive.

  Cold sweat covered Stirling's back. This was the first time he had come so close to death, and he felt as if he were standing on the edge of an abyss. His progress in martial arts had been quick since he had started. But why couldn't he control his destiny?

  At this moment, Stirling felt as if he had returned to Rock Village. His eyes were fixed on Lilith's retreating figure, his right fist clenched.

  Meanwhile, Lilith arrived at the wooden door of the inner room. She waved her hand, and the bolt behind the door sprang open. Then, the door swung inward inch by inch, as if pushed by an invisible hand.

  Stirling, seeing this in the courtyard, felt a jolt in his heart. He realized why he could not move earlier. Lilith's strength was likely equal to that of a samurai in the Refining Viscera Realm.

  Only those in the Viscera-Refining Realm who have the Vril-Force in their bodies can kill from a distance.

  At this age, Lilith's every move exuded profound power, unlike that of an 18-year-old girl. Stirling sighed to himself. She was a true worshipper, improving much faster than regular samurai.

  Seeing the wooden door open, Lilith strolled into the room. Without saying, the people of Yearning Palace did not trust Stirling. Lilith's visit this time would likely involve another search.

  Stirling felt relieved behind the scenes but also somewhat puzzled.

  As Stirling was pondering this, Lilith emerged from the inner room again.

  "I didn't realize your life was so simple." Lilith chuckled.

  "You honor me, my lady." Stirling didn't dare to be careless and bowed his head in reply.

  "Alright, I'll stay here for the next few days. You can sleep in the kitchen tonight." Lilith said.

  "Huh?" Stirling was taken aback.

  "Is there a problem, Mr. Luis?" Lilith looked at Stirling coldly, her smile fading.

  "Of course not; it's my honor that you've taken a liking to my house, my lady," Stirling replied on tenterhooks.

  "These next few days, ensure everything goes as usual when you go out," Lilith added.

  Stirling immediately understood Lilith's scheme.

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  Ambush!

  If the people of Yearning Palace might suspect Stirling living next door, wouldn't the others too?

  The sudden death of the Pathos man at home might have the Vajra Temple worried, who wrote the letter.

  But only Stirling knew about the Vajra Temple; the people of Yearning Palace didn't. So, Lilith was waiting here. She might catch one or two big fish that come to check things out. Thinking this, Stirling agreed without hesitation. But he hoped the Vajra and the Pathos would have someone come soon and drive this despicable woman away. Otherwise, how could he sleep at ease sharing a room with this capricious enchantress?

  If Lilith hadn't showed her strength, Stirling might have taken a risk to kill her. But knowing the vast gap in their strength now, he dared not act right now and could only wait and see.

  That night, Stirling leaned against the corner of the kitchen, feeling uneasy all over.

  An enchantress like those in the Viscera-Refining Realm was next door. He didn't have the courage to sleep like a log.

  Feeling down, Stirling took the elixir Master Kim gave him. He lit an oil lamp and wrote "Bone Breaking Barrier" on the bottle with a charcoal pencil. The oil lamp and charcoal pencil were both brought to the kitchen by Stirling beforehand. He had also placed several tilted bottles near the kitchen entrance. Thin strings attached to them were tied to the doorway.

  This way, if anyone came, they would kick over the bottles, alerting Stirling.

  [Current enhancement requires a lifespan of 29 years and 257 days. Enhance?]

  Stirling hesitated, looking at the exaggerated lifespan displayed before him.

  He was going to skip the Bone Barrier and enter the Viscera-Refining Realm through enhancement. Now it seemed the idea could work. However, the needed lifespan was too long, and there is no room for improvement if the foundation is not strong.

  In short, this onetime expenditure was too low in cost-effectiveness.

  Stirling saw the Viscera-Refining Realm as high-level before. But he felt dissatisfied now; even the silly little girl next door had that strength. He deleted the entry for "Bone Barrier Breakthrough." Then, he wrote "Viscera Barrier Breakthrough, No Side Effects" in small print.

  [Currently required lifespan for enhancement: 112 years, 131 days. Enhance?]

  Well, there's not even enough lifespan to afford; forget about it.

  Stirling rubbed his temples and sighed to himself.

  With the enhanced medicine and Bone Forging method, he could forge his bones 36 times daily. He finished one bone in just two days. Since the human body has 206 bones, this would need over 400 days. This doesn't even consider the longer time needed to hammer the skull later.

  Also, the order of forging is important. He must hammer one bone before starting the next. Disorder can cause problems. The weight and quality of hammered bones differ. This can lead to incoordination. In serious cases, it may damage muscles and other bones. As a result, progress may stop or even reverse.

  Ordinary people, with ordinary techniques, can only refine their bones 20 times a day. Without the aid of Blood-Nourishing Soup and other medicines, one bone might need hundreds of forgings to complete.

  So, regular folks take a long time to hit the bone barrier after breaking the skin barrier. They stay there for three to five years, unless they have exceptional talent.

  What forms exceptional talent?

  Ordinary people need to refine a bone hundreds of times to complete the process. While as talent, bone density, is extraordinary. They need just twenty or even ten times to refine a bone. This makes their bone-breaking speed ten times faster than normal people!

  This is also why Master Kim always examines a disciple's bones to assess their potential.

  Thinking of this, Stirling's mind became active.

  "Ordinary people work hard to refine their bones. It's not just talent; they also have limited times to practice per day."

  A single bone can't handle too frequent forging sessions in a day. If it does, it might damage its foundation, which defeats the purpose.

  "If I can raise the frequency of forgings each day—hundreds or even thousands. Or to improve bone quality, I would speed up the process."

  Aptitude affects how soon to grow, and the strength compared to others at the same level. This makes it much more cost-effective.

  "Samurai with insufficient aptitude broke through the lifelong hurdle only by worshipping gods. This suggests that malice might overcome aptitude limitations. Can I use malice without worshipping gods and still have the freedom of a samurai? That would be the best of both worlds!"

  Thinking this, Stirling's eyes lit up. He grabbed a sheet of white paper. Then, he wrote some basic knowledge about martial arts and worshippers, along with their levels. He wrote three phrases on the back: "Malice-Refining skill, perfect compatibility, ultimate potential." Then, he set it before him. The next moment, a line of text appeared in Stirling's vision:

  [Current enhancement requires a lifespan of 70 years and 15 days. Enhance?]