The Decaying World-Chapter 111 - 105: Intrusion 1

"Yes. As for suitable leverage, there’s his mother, Yao Shan. She’s just an ordinary person, easy to capture. Then there’s his father, a disciple in the sect... but his father is constantly protected by experts and has deep connections to the Liu Family in the Inner City. Making a move on him would be difficult. The easiest targets are the disciples of Qingfeng Temple, but we have no word on who he’s closest to."

"Then we’ll choose his mother," the Dharma Protector said casually. "We’ll capture her, use her to lure him here, and as long as he comes within five meters, he’s a dead man."

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「Gale Plain.」

Lin Hui stood with his longsword in hand, watching a distant merchant caravan that had just returned from the Fog Area. Once he confirmed they weren’t from Qingfeng Temple, he turned his attention away.

He swung his longsword casually, clearly feeling the boost he’d gotten from the Body Tempering aspect of his Gale Swordsmanship.

It was a comprehensive, all-around enhancement of his strength, speed, and reflexes. He could even feel a faint, invisible current of air clinging to his skin—the beginnings, it seemed, of the Wind of Surrounding Special Effect.

The invisible current was faint, but it constantly protected every inch of his skin. Because of it, Lin Hui’s robes now billowed gently even when he stood perfectly still, giving him a rather striking appearance. Even his long hair occasionally drifted behind him.

’I’m only at Third Grade Body Tempering, yet my base speed is already nearly as fast as it was when I used Special Effects before. This kind of speed boost is truly ridiculous...’ Lin Hui marveled.

By now, he had almost no rivals in the Outer City. His daily training was less about immediate need and more about maintaining a habit, a precaution against dangers that might one day come.

"It seems you’ve grown a bit complacent." Suddenly, a clear voice drifted over from his right.

The voice was carried by some sort of Secret Technique. The speaker was nowhere in sight, yet the words sounded as if they were being whispered right in his ear.

Lin Hui turned his head, looking in the direction the voice had come from.

A figure stood there, approaching slowly. They had a sturdy build, wore a black surcoat, and their face was hidden by a silver Dragon Mask.

"Who are you?" Lin Hui narrowed his eyes, studying the figure. He was certain he’d never met them before.

The mask hid their face, but for people like him, recognition wasn’t just about faces. More telling details were hidden in a person’s build, and this person’s physique felt completely unfamiliar to him.

"You can call me Dragon Maiden." The newcomer smiled. "This is my mother’s mask. I’ve inherited her position and her name."

"Your identity? Your purpose?" Lin Hui asked again.

"You’ll learn my identity in due time. As for my purpose..." Dragon Maiden chuckled. "Why, I’m here to tell you that a great disaster is about to befall you!"

"Me?" Lin Hui scoffed. "You sound just like one of those Jianghu Sorcerers trying to scam people out of their money. Can’t you come up with some new material?"

"You think I’m deceiving you?" Dragon Maiden shook her head. "You’ve had a breakthrough in your Inner Strength, your fame is spreading, and you have your older brother and sister at home looking out for you. Ordinarily, you’d be safe. But... what if the danger isn’t from something you’ve done, but from someone seeking you out?"

"What do you mean?" Lin Hui’s expression flickered as a thought occurred to him.

"Exactly what it sounds like." Dragon Maiden smiled. "Alright, I’ll stop being coy. I’m here to let you know that becoming the top dog in an area has its pros and cons. The pro is that you get the lion’s share of all resources and benefits, and no one dares compete with you. The con... is that whenever trouble brews, you’re the first one they come for."

This time, before Lin Hui could press her, she continued.

"The Three Sects and Six Gangs fought a battle with Xingdiao’s wandering masters in the Fog Area. Casualties were high, and they need substantial funds for reparations. Since the spoils in the Inner City are already carved up, someone suggested taking a cut from the New Martial Alliance to compensate the wounded. They’ve divided it into twelve portions, and your territory is one of them."

"What do you mean? Isn’t the New Martial Alliance supposed to be separate from the Three Sects and Six Gangs? Besides, I only affiliated with the New Martial Alliance, I didn’t sign my life away. This territory has always been mine. What right do they have to carve it up?" Lin Hui frowned.

"Ah, many people think that. But the truth is, the Alliance Leader and Vice-Alliance Leader of the New Martial Alliance are both top masters from the Three Sects and Six Gangs. This ’New Martial Alliance’ is just a tool for the Inner City Martial Artists to control the Martial Artists and resources of the Outer City," Dragon Maiden said with a smile.

"So? Just because they say I have to give up a piece, I have to give it up?" Lin Hui said coldly.

"Of course not. In fact, a while back, just after you stabilized the situation at Qingfeng Temple, some people wanted to come cause trouble. But your family blocked them, and you also brought the Wang Family scions into the fold, so things were quiet for a time," Dragon Maiden said. "But it’s different now. Even others with powerful connections and backgrounds have to cough up a little something. If you refuse to give anything, then you’ll have to contribute men to fight Xingdiao. Are you willing to do that?"

"I’m not willing to send men, and my little patch of dirt here isn’t being attacked by any Xingdiao masters," Lin Hui said, his voice calm.

"But they’re using a righteous cause—resisting the Xingdiao masters—as a pretext to shake everyone down. If you don’t pay up, you have to send men," Dragon Maiden chuckled.

"They never gave any prior notice, and I’ve never even heard of this supposed ’great battle.’ If they have an issue, they can have someone from the New Martial Alliance come talk to me directly."

Lin Hui remained noncommittal. This sort of shakedown was common enough, but what was the purpose of this mysterious figure coming to warn him? He had no way of knowing. He was far more wary of the person standing before him than of the New Martial Alliance’s rumored demands.

"You really are a tough nut to crack..." Seeing that Lin Hui was completely unfazed, Dragon Maiden’s smile faltered.

"Fine, let’s change the subject. You’ve heard of the Qinghe Sect, I assume?" she asked, shifting gears. "They have their eyes on you. As a terrorist group that uses Inner Power Realm martial artists to test their modification techniques, that’s not good news. They’ve killed no fewer than a hundred Inner Power Realm experts over the years."

"Alright, enough. You’ve said plenty. What do you really want?" Lin Hui cut straight to the point, having seen her intention. "You can’t scare anyone with a bunch of rumors and maybes."

"The truth is, I’m here on behalf of the Good Heart Sect to invite you to join us as an Outer Sect Guardian," Dragon Maiden said solemnly. "If you join us, all these problems can be easily taken care of."

"...We’ll talk when something actually happens. Right now, it’s just your word. Who can tell what’s true and what’s false?" Lin Hui’s expression was flat.

"Fair enough. This is how you can contact me." Dragon Maiden raised her hand and tossed him a piece of Hei Yu. "When you’re in trouble you truly can’t handle, crush it. But remember, you only get one chance."

"’Bold words...’" Lin Hui narrowed his eyes. He tapped the piece of Hei Yu with the tip of his scabbard, flicked it into the air, and caught it on the flat pommel. When he looked up again, the figure in the Dragon Mask was gone.

There was no gust of wind, not a single sound. It was as if she had never been there at all.

’...That technique... it doesn’t seem like something a Martial Artist can do,’ he speculated.

The Outer City was getting more and more chaotic. The Qinghe Sect, the Wanhua Sect, the Good Heart Sect, all these factions plus the New Martial Alliance, the Three Sects and Six Gangs, and a whole flock of Summoners trying to get a slice of the Outer City’s pie. It was a chaotic free-for-all.

’It’s no wonder Song Zhanlong died. Given this situation, if I hadn’t killed him when I did, he would have died in some other incident later on...’

He had no interest in joining any of these factions. He just wanted to train in peace, improve his strength, and keep himself and his family safe.

Ignoring the threats from the figure in the Dragon Mask, he cleared his mind and resumed practicing his Gale Swordsmanship to continue his Body Tempering.

「Three days after the appearance of the figure in the Dragon Mask.」

His father, Lin Shunhe, returned.