"Oh, right. Yueyue also knows our older brother. She said she saw him at a Rain Palace ceremony before," Liu Xiao added.

As soon as she said that, Lin Hui knew he was in trouble.

Tuyue had obviously investigated him thoroughly. An old monster like her, who had lived for nearly ten thousand years, had countless tricks up her sleeve. She wouldn’t let him refuse.

When the hard approach failed, she tried the soft one.

"Yes, I have family living near the Rain Palace as well. I did indeed see High Priest Liu Wu Jun during a ceremony there before." Tuyue, now in a simple white dress that revealed nothing, looked just like the girl next door.

"Lady Tuyue, what are you playing at?" Lin Hui sent via voice transmission.

"Don’t be so hostile," Tuyue transmitted back. "We aren’t enemies. You’re a child who grew up in my Tuyue City. I’m eager to protect you, so why would I wish you harm?"

After a pause, she spoke softly.

"Look, I’m actually trying to help you. Your sister has a bit of a crush on you, but she’s too stubborn and proud to admit it. I can help ’train’ her a little for you, make her completely obedient so you can do whatever you want to her. What do you think?"

She smiled and gave Lin Hui a meaningful look.

"...My Lady, why must you do this? Geniuses in this world are a dime a dozen. Why must you fixate on me alone?" Lin Hui sighed.

"You’ve misunderstood me. I’m truly just concerned for you," Tuyue said softly. "Look, your older brother is still in Tuyue. I’ll be sure to give him an important position when I return. Actually, I was originally planning to have a few more of your brothers and sisters with your father, to see if we could produce another genius like you. But after some thought, I decided against it. If I have a child directly with you, the chances of producing a genius will surely be much higher, so..."

Tuyue’s hand gently caressed the knot of the sash at the small of Liu Xiao’s back. Her eyes were fixed on Lin Hui, as if a single light tug could unravel Liu Xiao’s dress.

But at this moment, Liu Xiao seemed completely unaware.

’This is such a pain...’ Lin Hui had previously considered possible scenarios, and this was the most troublesome one.

Either he kills Tuyue right now, then chases her to Tuyue City and wipes out all her subordinates, disciples, and their descendants to eliminate any future trouble.

Or he finds another way to deal with her threats.

But he wasn’t confident he could win.

If he lost, or didn’t win decisively enough and let her escape... the outcome would be the worst possible.

Moreover, officially, his actions would violate the Federation’s laws, and he would likely become a wanted criminal. He might not be able to stay in Black Cloud either.

"Think it over." Tuyue saw Lin Hui’s conflict, smiled, and led Liu Xiao by the arm into her own courtyard.

"Wait," Lin Hui called out to her.

"Don’t worry. With that old virgin watching me all the time, I wouldn’t dare do anything out of line," Tuyue chuckled. "I’m just going to have a chat with your sister."

At that moment, a cold snort once again echoed from mid-air.

Apparently, that Gongsun Xinlian really was watching them at all times.

Lin Hui felt a small sense of relief and made his decision.

’Tuyue cannot be allowed to live. I have to deal with her as soon as possible.’

’Otherwise, with her terrifying Mental Power, the people around me would have no way to resist her influence.’

He immediately confirmed his decision and initiated the emergency plan he had prepared.

Watching Tuyue and Liu Xiao enter the adjacent courtyard, he turned around, keeping his senses trained on the room next door, and walked into his own courtyard.

"Senior Gongsun, may we talk?"

"About what?" As expected, Gongsun Xinlian was watching them constantly.

"I still have family in Tuyue City, and they could be threatened by her at any moment. So I’d like to ask, does Tuyue have anyone important to her?" Lin Hui said softly.

"She does. Her eldest son, Ning Qianzhi. He’s her only child with Ning Yue." As she said this, there was a faint, teeth-gnashing hatred in Gongsun Xinlian’s tone.

"Then do you think it would work if I used Ning Qianzhi to threaten her?" Lin Hui asked again.

"You? Threaten Ning Qianzhi?" Gongsun Xinlian said, surprised.

"I mean, would it be effective if I bargained with Tuyue by threatening to kill Ning Qianzhi?" Lin Hui said, word by word.

"It would work... Ning Qianzhi is the only bloodline she has left from Ning Yue. But you... you probably don’t know how many resources and how much effort she’s invested in him. His strength far surpasses that of an ordinary Blood Ancestor. He’s nothing like that paper-pusher you defeated," Gongsun Xinlian said in a low voice.

"My hand is being forced..." Lin Hui sighed. "There’s no time to lose. I’m going back to Tuyue City right now. Can I ask you, Senior, to look after my family for a bit? Here is a special gift."

Lin Hui gently extended his hand, and a small, grayish-white booklet appeared in it.

This contained some of his insights on the Gale Swordsmanship. From the different paths of Swordsmanship he’d observed in Xia Si and Tao Xuehai, he had summarized and distilled a certain seed-like quality of the Gale Swordsmanship.

"To be honest, I unexpectedly obtained a mysterious inheritance. As long as one practices its Cultivation Technique and considers oneself a member of this lineage, they can gain an extremely powerful boost in strength."

Lin Hui’s tone was extremely sincere.

"I have confirmed that regardless of one’s Realm, anyone who obtains this inheritance can increase their physical constitution by fifty percent... Perhaps this is the real reason Tuyue chased me from so far away."

"An inheritance like that...? You’re not lying?!" Gongsun Xinlian was slightly shaken. Although Fog People were immune to countless poisons and Secret Techniques, it also meant they couldn’t benefit from the enhancement effects of countless Secret Techniques.

There were almost no Dharma Gates that were effective on them.

Right now, although she didn’t quite believe that any Dharma Gate could work on a Fog Person, she couldn’t ignore the fact that Tuyue had come all this way to personally confirm it...

"Senior, would you like to try it? If it’s effective, this inheritance has three more advanced stages, all of which are incredibly powerful," Lin Hui continued sincerely.

"Interesting... If what you say is true..." Before Gongsun Xinlian could finish, they both heard a faint moan from Liu Xiao in the next courtyard.

The sound was like a kitten’s, full of pleasure and enjoyment.

"Bastard!" Gongsun Xinlian roared, and her voice instantly vanished.

The next moment.

WHOOSH. Liu Xiao’s body appeared in front of Lin Hui, falling downwards.

She was wearing nothing, her cheeks flushed pink. Lin Hui caught her steadily, holding her in his arms.

SWISH.

Lin Hui’s expression was grim. He quickly took off his outer robe and draped it over her. He gave her a quick checkup; thankfully, nothing was seriously wrong. She was just overly stimulated, which had left her in a dazed state.

"Hui..." Lying in Lin Hui’s arms, Liu Xiao’s body squirmed continuously as she murmured in a low voice.

"It’s okay, I’m here." Lin Hui sighed internally, called for Li Yuanyuan, and handed Liu Xiao over to her care.

But he knew that unless he stood guard twenty-four hours a day, there was no way to defend against Tuyue’s mental contamination. Things like this would probably happen again.

Although Tuyue was deterred by Black Cloud and wouldn’t truly harm her, there was no way to avoid this disgusting mental influence.

And if he were to leave Black Cloud, to get away from here for a while, who knew what would happen. By the time he returned, his entire family might have been twisted into Tuyue’s puppets.

Relying on the protection of Gongsun Xinlian from Black Cloud was clearly not enough, as had just been proven.

So, in the end, Lin Hui gently gripped the Ruyi Sword Handle at his waist.

’Senior Tuyue, let’s find a place and have a fight.’

In an instant, the air around them froze.

The sound of the wind vanished, the chirping of insects ceased, and the flock of birds circling overhead suddenly disappeared, as if they had turned invisible.

Everything in the vicinity fell silent in that single moment.

"You said... you want to fight me???"

Tuyue’s voice, filled with surprise, rang out from behind him.