The Decaying World-Chapter 144 - 135: Gaze 3

After rushing to the Inner City, Lin Hui was unable to find his big brother and had to ask several people in his hall to pass on a message for him.

To prevent any sabotage, he found several different people from various Rain Palace branches, paid them a fee, and asked them to relay the message.

Unless his big brother’s relationships within the Rain Palace were truly terrible, someone would surely get the message to him.

On his way back to Xinyu Town in the Outer City, Lin Hui did indeed spot some unfamiliar faces from out of town.

The local people of Xinyu Town had distinct facial features and a gentle demeanor as they walked, which was unlike people from anywhere else.

For one, with Qingfeng Temple presiding over the area, no gangs that preyed on common folk were allowed to exist. As a result, public order had been excellent for the past two years.

For another, these outsiders dressed in a completely different style, mostly the more revealing fashion of the Inner City. Yet, despite their open attire, they carried a hint of vigilance in their movements, making them very easy to spot.

Back at Qingfeng Temple, Lin Hui summoned Wang Hongshi and ordered him to arrange for some men to investigate. Only then did he return to the rear courtyard, meet up with Han Xiaoyue, and head to the Gale Plain to train.

Perhaps they were truly compatible. After training for a while on the Gale Plain, the two would have a meal. Afterward, they would each read and study on their own, one learning Alchemy and the other Musical Drama, using it as a break before resuming their training in the afternoon.

Aside from their initial conversation, the two surprisingly didn’t say another word to each other for the entire day.

Han Xiaoyue didn’t get up to leave until just before nightfall.

Lin Hui saw her to the South Nine Gates and watched her pass through the gate before turning back.

Now that he had begun practicing Typhoon Swordsmanship, it was time to put the evolution of his next Cultivation Technique on the agenda.

For Mental Attacks, he had the Illusionary Performance Technique and the Spirit-Sealing Array. He was still slowly cultivating the former. As for the latter, he had made no progress in accumulating crystals. It was still stuck at the first one, and he needed nine before he could use it, which was likely still a long way off.

For his next evolution, Lin Hui planned to first create a sufficiently sturdy and sharp weapon before moving on to a new Cultivation Technique. While his current Dual Swords were still usable, the opponents he faced were growing stronger, and the nicks on his blades were multiplying. Hacking and slashing felt increasingly strenuous.

He would likely be in continuous conflict with the Qinghe Sect, so a powerful enough weapon was indispensable.

For this, Lin Hui sought help from his father.

His father didn’t let him down, finding him a dozen or so weapons. Unfortunately, they were all just so-called "top-tier" weapons available on the open market.

In the end, Lin Hui just took a dagger and a longsword as a token gesture.

「Inside Qingfeng Temple.」

Lin Hui stared at the weapons laid out before him, momentarily lost in indecision.

He had already touched every sword, and the evolution paths offered by the Blood Seal were all more or less the same. This was especially true for the swords; the ones his father had given him and the two on his back had nearly identical evolution branches.

’1—Enhanced Steel Sword.’

’2—Enhanced Flexible Sword.’

’3—Enhanced Rapier.’

’Nothing to get excited about. Just simple improvements to strength and durability, and it would take about a month.’

After a moment of thought, Lin Hui chose the enhanced steel sword path.

After confirming the evolution, he put the weapon away, placing it inside a large, locked cabinet in his bedroom.

When he stepped out of his bedroom, Han Xiaoyue was already in the courtyard, sitting on the ground with her eyes closed in meditation.

Sensing his presence, she opened her eyes and looked his way.

"Are you going to train again today?"

"Yes. Do you have other plans?" Lin Hui asked.

Lately, he and Han Xiaoyue had been training together almost every day. They would meet up, have breakfast, and then head straight to the Gale Plain or the bamboo forest to train and study, barely exchanging a word the entire time.

But despite the lack of conversation, Lin Hui felt much more relaxed and at ease in her company.

"Today is the anniversary of my family’s death. I’m planning to buy some offerings to pay my respects," Han Xiaoyue replied.

"Ah... do you want me to come with you?" Lin Hui asked.

"No, they aren’t here. It’s just a symbolic gesture." Han Xiaoyue shook her head. "Also, I might be leaving on a trip soon. I’ll be gone for some time, so if you don’t see me around, don’t wait for me."

"How long?"

"Six months at the shortest, maybe three or four years at the longest..." Han Xiaoyue answered.

"That’s a long time..." Lin Hui frowned.

Looking at Han Xiaoyue’s calm expression, he was reminded of his father’s constant nagging about having children.

It hadn’t been so bad before. But now that his father, Lin Shunhe, knew he had reached Inner Power Perfection—the theoretical limit for a Martial Artist—he had started pestering him every time they met. He’d ask when his wife would get pregnant, if there was something wrong with his body, and warn him not to take too many Elixirs lest he damage himself.

Thankfully, his mother, Yao Shan, was more considerate and helped deflect some of the pressure.

It had gotten to the point where the first thing Lin Hui did upon returning home was to seek out his mother, avoiding his father entirely.

"Speaking of which," Han Xiaoyue asked softly, "you’ve already reached the limit of your Inner Strength. There’s nowhere left to advance. Do you have some new plan that makes you keep training so hard?"

"Yes. I intend to walk my own path. Others may say this is the limit, but I refuse to believe it." Lin Hui already had his excuse prepared, and it came out naturally.

"To attempt the impossible, knowing it can’t be done?" Han Xiaoyue’s eyes flickered.

"What? You think it’s impossible?" Lin Hui said with a smile.

"No... It’s just, I never expected that beneath your gentle exterior, you’re quite a proud person." Han Xiaoyue shook her head. "In truth, sometimes the path one chooses in cultivation isn’t necessarily the right one."

"But training gives me the power to protect myself, my friends, and my family," Lin Hui said. He felt there was a hidden meaning in her words, a subtle implication.

"Power..." Han Xiaoyue began, then trailed off. But seeing the confidence shining in Lin Hui’s eyes, she couldn’t help but add one more thing.

"If you have time, you should go to the Inner City’s Moon Tower District. Take a look."

"Alright." Lin Hui felt she was holding something back. The core of the Moon Tower District probably held the key to what she was trying to say.

After a moment’s thought, he decided he would make the trip to the Inner City in a few days, once his steel sword was done being enhanced.

Besides, he had long wanted to visit the Inner City’s Core Area anyway.

They didn’t speak further. Soon, Han Xiaoyue left alone, and Lin Hui headed to the Gale Plain to continue practicing his Typhoon Swordsmanship.

Each time he practiced the Typhoon Swordsmanship, he maintained a delicate balance, swiftly dispersing the massive cyclone just before it could fully form. He would then wait a moment before repeating the process.

To an outsider, it looked as though he were practicing some slow-motion Martial Art, like the Tai Chi Sword, which seemed rather odd. But only Lin Hui himself knew just how ridiculously powerful the hidden energy flows of his training method were.

Even Han Xiaoyue, who trained with him, couldn’t see the truth of it, which just went to show how well concealed the Typhoon Swordsmanship was, being a Martial Art from a completely different system.

「Three days later.」

Han Xiaoyue departed. Other than a few people from the Wang Family, only Lin Hui was there to see her off, watching from a distance.

He watched as she boarded a carriage, which then drove into the Fog Area and slowly disappeared in an unknown direction.

The woman was mysterious and solitary. She was said to be best friends with Wang Yueheng, the eldest daughter of the Wang Family, but from what Lin Hui had observed, they didn’t seem like friends at all. More often than not, the Wang family’s eldest daughter was simply taking care of Han Xiaoyue, relaying her various requests and then fulfilling them in the Wang Family’s name.

Han Xiaoyue’s departure was like a single grain of sand leaving a desert; it caused no ripples in Lin Hui’s life.

After waiting less than a week, he received his new weapon: a double-edged silver steel sword, 1.6 meters long.

It was the first weapon evolved by the Blood Seal. The blade was a bit long and slightly wide, but it was exceptionally hard.

Lin Hui took it and gave it a try, discovering that the steel sword could actually retract, shortening to just over a meter in length. He decided to name it Ruyi.

The name was a nod to the Ruyi Golden Cudgel.

With his weapon settled, Lin Hui finally began working on evolving the Martial Art that would follow his Typhoon Swordsmanship.

But just then, some bad news arrived from the city.

"What? Big Brother is injured!?" Lin Hui stared in astonishment at the maid from the Lin Mansion who had brought the news.

Ever since Ding Ning had left, he had given her family a large sum of money as condolence and had not kept a permanent attendant or maid.

Although it was inconvenient, he never wanted to see a tragedy like that happen again.

In his current situation, no ordinary person was suited to be his personal attendant.

"Yes. That was the message from the Rain Palace. The Master asks that you be extra careful. Master Liu was suppressing many of the previous conflicts, but now that he’s injured, they might all erupt at once," the maid replied. She spoke clearly and logically, reminding him a little of Ding Ning.

"Has Big Brother returned to the Lin Mansion?" Lin Hui asked.

"No, only the message came from the Rain Palace," the maid said.

"I understand. You can go report back," Lin Hui nodded.

"Yes. My name is Xiaoxin, and I will be responsible for communications between Qingfeng Temple and the Lin Mansion from now on. If the Observatory Master has any other errands, you may entrust them to me as well," the maid said with a curtsy.

"Mm."

Lin Hui nodded and watched her depart swiftly. He could tell she had some foundation in Martial Arts; her footwork had a hint of Qinggong to it.

Clearly, his father had also realized the previous arrangement was inadequate and had sent someone with martial arts skills this time.

After she left, he quickly gathered his things, informed Wang Hongshi and Xue Meng, and without further delay, headed straight for the South Nine Gates to enter the Inner City.

Regardless, he had to go to the Rain Palace and see for himself what had happened to his big brother.

An hour later, in a study within a side hall of the Rain Palace, Lin Hui was led in to see a pale-faced Liu Wu Jun.

"I knew you would come," Liu Wu Jun said, helplessly setting down his book to look at Lin Hui.

"Big Brother, what happened?" Seeing his complexion, Lin Hui could tell the injury was serious, and his expression grew grim.

Liu Wu Jun’s strength was likely in the upper echelons of the High Priests. For him to be injured meant that the trouble was something that would be a world-ending catastrophe for anyone else.

"I really have you to thank for your message this time. If I had been even a moment later, I might not have made it back at all," Liu Wu Jun said with a sigh.

"It was that serious!?" Lin Hui was stunned.

"Yes. Someone within the Liu Family colluded with an outside enemy, the Wanhua Sect, and set an ambush for me. More than half of my elite subordinates were killed in the surprise attack. I was besieged by three experts of my own level, while a troublesome replica Evil Soldier had me locked on from a distance... There were also hidden traps and formations underfoot. Fortunately, I received your warning and stopped in time before heading deeper into Naiyun Mountain. Otherwise..." Liu Wu Jun lowered his head and coughed a few times. With each cough, wisps of icy blue mist floated from his mouth and nose.

The mist dispersed as soon as it appeared, merging into the surrounding air and causing the temperature in the entire study to plummet.