The Decaying World-Chapter 129 - 121: Acquaintance, Part 1

The 15th.

The gardens of the Qingfeng Temple manor.

Lin Hui held an unfurled sheet of pale yellow letter paper in one hand, reading it carefully.

’I’ve run into a situation. Someone tried to arrange a marriage for me again, but I refused them. I used your token, which might attract some troublemakers, so please be careful. Other than that, I’m fine. If you need anything, just send a letter. I’ll come over for a short visit to help you deal with the pressure from your family.’ —Han Xiaoyue.

It was a letter from the Inner City, delivered just this morning. Lin Hui had only just started reading it after finishing his sword practice. He wasn’t concerned about the potential situation Han Xiaoyue had mentioned.

The letter served as a reminder, though: it was time to deal with things back home.

Otherwise, he might not have the peace of mind to focus on his cultivation in the future.

Putting the letter away, Lin Hui walked slowly out of the garden, through a corridor, and into the training grounds in front of Qingfeng Temple.

A few scattered disciples were still practicing their swordsmanship on the grounds.

As he approached, many of them instinctively slowed down, their attention drifting toward him.

Lin Hui waved a hand, signaling for them to focus. His gaze swept across the grounds. After confirming there were no major issues and exchanging a few words with Wang Hongshi, who was in charge of supervision, he turned to leave.

He wasn’t bothered by the troublemakers Han Xiaoyue’s letter had mentioned might be coming.

At this point, Lin Hui himself wasn’t even sure of the extent of his own power.

He had almost never been in a true, all-out fight to the death.

The Body Tempering from the Gale Swordsmanship wasn’t just a simple boost to speed; it was an all-around enhancement. He was now on the verge of breaking through to the Eighth Grade, and both his strength and speed were countless times greater than when he had first started the Gale Swordsmanship Body Tempering.

In terms of strength alone, it had increased severalfold. In speed alone, by seventy or eighty percent.

But when the two were combined, Lin Hui’s meager knowledge of math and physics was insufficient for an accurate calculation.

He only knew that defeating an Upper-Rank Attraction Inner Power Perfection cultivator like Wang Yueheng would now be child’s play.

He could already reliably defeat Wang Yueheng even before starting his Gale Swordsmanship Body Tempering. Now, it was a different story entirely; he could resolve the fight effortlessly just by coating his longsword with Inner Strength.

’I still need a concrete benchmark... Not knowing where I stand could be a disadvantage when facing an opponent.’

Lin Hui sighed internally.

But that was the reality of it. Power levels and realms were just for show. In a real fight, everyone had a hidden trump card, an ace up their sleeve. Only in a life-or-death struggle could you truly see who would emerge the victor.

’Only when the gap in realms is immense can you clearly determine the winner and loser.’

Lin Hui walked to the main gate of Qingfeng Temple and stopped, gazing at the small recruitment booth set up at the entrance. He watched his busy students enthusiastically explaining the benefits of Qingfeng Martial Arts to passersby.

A strange and wonderful feeling suddenly washed over him.

A sense of peace and serenity, a Mental Realm so profound that he didn’t want to move a single muscle. He just wanted to stand here quietly, feeling, watching.

’Isn’t this the life I’ve always been searching for?’

Lin Hui seemed to have an epiphany.

’Isn’t this feeling of tranquility and peace exactly what I’ve been pursuing?’

’So, when did I unknowingly achieve this? What did I rely on to create the very outcome I originally desired?’

Lin Hui subconsciously clenched his fist.

’It’s strength.’

’Strength gives me the confidence to control everything. If I want something, it will be delivered to me. If I want peace, peace will appear. If I want to fight, nothing can stop me from drawing my sword...’

Never before had Lin Hui so profoundly understood the decisive impact that power had on one’s life.

If he had no power, he would have been taken away by the Inner City’s Inspectorate days ago.

If he had no power, he might have suffered a crushing defeat against Wang Yueheng, his fate unknown.

If he had no power, Qingfeng Temple could never have risen again. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

’Perhaps only with perfect power, perfectly mastered, can one create a life that perfectly matches their desires...’

The enlightenment flowed through Lin Hui’s mind like water, affecting the circulation of Inner Strength within his body.

CRACK.

Suddenly, a crisp crack that only he could hear echoed for a brief instant.

An imperceptible breeze stirred around him, beginning to swirl.

The breeze circled him as if it were alive, spinning, drifting, and blowing invisibly.

Lin Hui closed his eyes, then opened them again.

In the next second, all the Inner Strength in his body began to boil and churn like fire, rapidly being consumed as it spread to every corner of his being.

A portion of his Inner Strength extended from the web-like network outside his skin, drawing in a massive amount of mysterious energy of an unknown type.

This energy seeped into his body, causing his cells to change rapidly. His metabolism accelerated drastically, with old cells being eliminated and replaced by new ones that were stronger and more resilient.

「A few minutes later.」

The subtle airflow around Lin Hui dissipated completely.

He relaxed his clenched fist. With a flicker, his figure shot past the gate and back into the Qingfeng Temple’s assembly hall, where he settled back into the grandmaster’s chair.

In that moment, he clearly sensed that he had quietly reached the Eighth Grade of the Gale Swordsmanship Body Tempering.

All that remained was the final Ninth Grade to complete the Gale Sword Body Tempering.

Just as he was reveling in the comprehensive enhancement that the Eighth Grade had brought to his body,

a slender, well-proportioned figure with broad shoulders walked slowly through the entrance of the assembly hall. The person stopped in the middle of the carpet and looked at Lin Hui.

"Tao Xuehai?" Lin Hui’s eyes flashed as he recognized the newcomer. "Is there something you need?"

’This Tao Xuehai joined not long ago, yet he’s already learned and mastered all the free Martial Arts. He should be in the middle of Body Tempering right now. What’s he doing here?’

"Observatory Master, this disciple has come to exchange for a new martial art: the Perfect Clear Wind Swordsmanship," Tao Xuehai said in a deep voice.

"You’ve completed the Perfect Seven-Section Swift Sword Body Tempering?" Lin Hui was stunned.

"Yes. My family has some resources. Since my comprehension cannot compare to the Observatory Master’s, I could only mobilize some assets to aid my body’s strengthening. With their help, I completed the Body Tempering the night before last," Tao Xuehai said humbly.

"The night before last..." Lin Hui was silent for a moment. ’How long has this guy been here? Has it even been a month?’

’And he’s already completed Body Tempering??’

’Who’s the real genius here, him or me?’

’Oh, right. I was never a genius to begin with...’

Suddenly, Lin Hui came to a realization.

’I’m just hardworking enough.’ Thinking this, he looked at Tao Xuehai.

"How... did you complete your Body Tempering? Can you tell me? At such a fast pace, I’m worried you might have created some hidden problems."

"Yes." Tao Xuehai nodded respectfully. "It’s like this. Because of the special properties of my Inner Strength, combined with taking the Treasure Medicine Illusory Dragon Lotus from my family’s stores, I haven’t slept since the day I joined. I’ve spent every waking moment on my training..."

"Hold on, what kind of Treasure Medicine is Illusory Dragon Lotus?" Lin Hui asked himself how he could have never even heard of this Treasure Medicine before. He had a share in Baihua Mountain Villa, had been to the Inner City’s Bailin Residence, had deep ties with the Medicine King Family, and had even studied pharmaceutical texts on his own.

"Oh, that’s a Treasure Medicine from the distant Fog Area. Its main purpose is to comprehensively replenish all of a Cultivator’s consumed essence, energy, and spirit. It’s not generally available on the market," Tao Xuehai explained.

"How much does it cost?" Lin Hui asked.

"Well, you can’t buy it with gold notes. It can only be purchased with Feather Blood. In Feather Blood terms, it’s about thirty-five units per plant. You take one plant at a time," Tao Xuehai answered candidly.

"..." Lin Hui subconsciously recalled the twenty units of Feather Blood his father had sponsored him with... He had thought it was a lot, and in reality, it was. Twenty units of Feather Blood could be exchanged for a good amount of high-quality equipment in the Inner City.

But... the kid in front of him was consuming thirty-five units of Feather Blood *a day*...

"Why... don’t you sleep?" Lin Hui couldn’t help but ask.

"Because I want to train? I’m desperate to learn the swordsmanship the Observatory Master displayed that day... The deeper I study, the more I appreciate the Observatory Master’s dazzling comprehension and inspiration! To be able to perfect such a powerful and flawless swordsmanship... That day, I was utterly and completely convinced of my defeat!" Tao Xuehai said with sincerity. "Only now do I clearly realize that the Observatory Master probably didn’t even use one percent of his true strength back then..."

"Alright, alright, what else? Even if you trained tirelessly for Body Tempering without sleep, the timeframe is still too short, isn’t it?" Lin Hui cut him off, seeing that he was starting to turn into a sycophant.

"Well, this disciple also took my family’s heirloom Miaofu Pill. This pill greatly accelerates the circulation of essence, energy, and spirit throughout the body. It can increase one’s reaction speed significantly, making one hour of time feel like three or four. So..."

"..." Lin Hui didn’t want to hear the rest. He used to think he had a grasp of the resource gap between the Inner City and the Outer City. He figured it was just that rare Treasure Medicines were more common, and there were a few more Elixir Recipes for more potent effects. That was all.

But now, through Tao Xuehai, he was finally seeing a glimpse of the terrifying, true foundation of the Inner City Great Clans.

"So, you’re saying that by taking medicine and consuming resources, you can effectively turn one day into three or four?" Lin Hui summarized.

"Ah, yes, that’s right. And because I completed the Body Tempering all in one go while full of energy, the efficiency and speed were much greater than if I had done it intermittently. So, it’s only natural that it was fast," Tao Xuehai said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"..." At this moment, Lin Hui really wanted to curse someone out.

The gap between the Inner City and the Outer City was displayed with brutal, unflinching reality through Tao Xuehai.

No wonder the prodigies of the Inner City could reach the level of Priest or even High Priest at such a young age, while the people of the Outer City... their absolute limit was only Inner Power Perfection.

It wasn’t just a difference in aptitude, but also the aid of precious resources that widened the gap.

"Alright. If you want to learn the Perfect Clear Wind Sword, you must be initiated into the Core Sect. Have you thought this through?" Lin Hui suppressed his complex thoughts and looked at him.

The Perfect Clear Wind Sword and the Secret Technique were exclusive skills of Qingfeng Temple that could only be learned by true Core Disciples. Once learned, you would be considered part of Qingfeng Temple’s core foundation and could not easily leave.

That was why he had to ask clearly.

"Of course. To be honest, this disciple has a congenital defect in Summoning and cannot walk the Summoning path. I can only follow the Martial Dao to the very end. But despite training hard since childhood, I could never find the Martial Arts I truly yearned for and loved. Not until that day I crossed hands with the Observatory Master..." Tao Xuehai looked at Lin Hui with a solemn, devout expression, as if he had seen the light.

"From that day on, I knew this was the path I wanted to walk! This is the Dao I want to follow in the future!"

"You..." Lin Hui was speechless, just about to speak.

Suddenly, he saw Tao Xuehai drop to his knees and perform several lightning-fast kowtows.

THUD THUD THUD THUD!

He moved so fast that he instantly hammered a large hole in the carpet and even chipped the floor tiles beneath.