Decaying World

Chapter 48 048 Thoughts Four (Thanks to Alliance Leader Scarlet Flowing Light)
The traditional, free-style martial arts training model typically involves a master training five or six apprentices. This model is not profitable on a large scale and requires fewer resources, so it does not pose a threat to the established martial arts school system. Consequently, it is no longer targeted by schools like Xingdao Martial Arts School.

Since he was no longer a martial arts school, Mingde no longer relied on tuition fees as his main source of income. When he ran out of money, he would work part-time at Wang Yun's house to help out. After all, he was at the Inner Strength Realm, and even if his Qingfeng Sword was a bit weak, he was still a genuine Inner Strength Realm expert. Earning some money for food was a piece of cake for him.

Many of the students dispersed, and only Lin Hui, Xiao Hu, and Xiao Pang remained to practice swordsmanship diligently. Seeing that Weiwei wasn't teaching much, the others' initial enthusiasm quickly faded, and they all left.

In the end, only six or seven people remained. They casually treated sword practice as a form of exercise and managed to persevere.

At this point, the true Qingfeng Sword Sect actually consisted of only four people: Lin Hui, Weiwei, Xiaohu, and Xiaopang.

Wang Yun also returned to her family and no longer visits often.

As the time goes.

The period of black fog has quietly passed, and summer has arrived.

Lin Hui's Qingfeng Sword evolution is nearly halfway complete. His body tempering has even reached the peak of the ninth rank.

This means he has finally reached the end of the Seven-Section Quick Sword technique. The next step is to wait for the Qingfeng Sword Technique to evolve before he can use the Qingfeng Sword to temper his body.

Because of the Black Fog period, Lin Hui hadn't hunted for materials in the foggy areas for a long time. He had been using his savings.

Regardless of the circumstances, he persisted in practicing swordsmanship every day, rain or shine. Gradually, his parents began to see swordsmanship as a form of physical exercise and stopped trying to dissuade him as before.

Since the establishment of Xingdao Martial Arts School, the newly formed Martial Alliance has completely stabilized the martial arts market in Tuyue.

The environment quickly became stable and peaceful, and the martial arts schools were clearly divided, no longer engaging in open and covert struggles as before, with their interests clearly defined.

As a result, the entire market became completely stagnant, and Mingde and Weiwei saw no hope left, so they rarely practiced swordsmanship anymore. Occasionally, when they passed by the training ground and saw Lin Hui still persisting, they felt that he was practicing as if it were just for physical exercise, rather than as seriously as he had initially been.

August arrived in the blink of an eye.

The training ground of Qingfeng Sword Sect.

Lin Hui, along with Xiao Hu and Xiao Pang, gently wielded their longswords, their movements graceful and captivating, much like a health exercise.

Since giving up the martial arts school business, Qingfeng Sword Sect has recently made a splash in the market for senior health exercises by accident.

Because Lin Hui used the perfect version of the seven-section fast sword when teaching Xiao Hu and Xiao Pang, his posture was graceful and his movements were neither hurried nor slow, which actually attracted two old men who came to the former site of Qingfeng Temple to relax.

The old man became interested and tried to learn, and he was completely engrossed. When he got home, he found that his health had improved, and some of his previous ailments had lessened considerably.

So the old men and women spread the word, and five or six people came in one go, which actually made the Qingfeng Sword Sect's senior health class famous.

These elderly people are mostly well-off, and with the outer city becoming increasingly peaceful and stable recently, they wouldn't be able to handle the fatigue of actually learning martial arts. However, the perfect version of the Qingfeng Sword Sect's Seven-Section Fast Sword, the slow version that was modified for Xiaohu's demonstration, is exactly what they want.

At this moment, on the training ground, after demonstrating three times, Lin Hui answered the two old men's questions about the detailed posture, and then walked towards Weiwei who was standing to the side.

"Senior Sister, weren't you out buying goods with Senior Sister Wang Yun? How come you have time to come here?" Lin Hui asked softly, while pulling a towel from the wooden shelf to wipe away his sweat.

Now, Weiwei and her master Mingde mainly live as part-time retainers of the Wang family. Weiwei protects Wang Yun, and her master Mingde lends a hand when the Wang family needs him, essentially helping his disciple maintain order.

After all, an expert at the Inner Strength Realm shouldn't have any problem handling the Wang family's affairs. Besides, the Wang family doesn't only have one Inner Strength Realm expert helping them; it's just that Wang Yun's lineage doesn't have one.

"Just got back, on vacation. Still practicing? Yunmei is taking me to Lushan Lake in a couple of days for the Lushan Tourism Festival. Are you going? She bought spots for all of us," Weiwei said softly.

As her senior sister, she had watched Lin Hui silently and persistently cultivate the Qingfeng Sword Technique without missing a single day. Regardless of the outside world's opinions, his perseverance gradually made her have a better impression of Lin Hui.

Although she doesn't approve of this behavior, she still respects people with such perseverance.

In particular, the Qingfeng Sword Sect has transformed into what is now known as a health and wellness center, taking a different approach and surprisingly finding a glimmer of hope.

However, this hope was not what she and her father wanted.

"What's the festival at Lushan Lake about?" Lin Hui asked.

"Make connections and see if there's anyone you like," Weiwei said with a smile. "You're nineteen already. Don't you have any girls you like besides practicing martial arts every day?"

"Practicing swordsmanship has already taken up a lot of my time, leaving me no energy to take care of others," Lin Hui shook his head.

"Okay, I knew it." Vivi sighed.

"But in a few days, I might really have to go out for a trip," Lin Hui suddenly said.

"Go out? Where to?" Weiwei was taken aback.

"The black fog has dissipated; it's a good time to go find some materials," Lin Hui replied.

"You're going to the fog zone? Be careful, there's no need to take such a risk right now, is there?" Vivi frowned.

"It's alright, actually it's because my dad needs someone to help him with his procurement," Lin Hui replied.

In recent days, two more branches of Old Man Lin Shunhe's store have opened, and the expansion speed is extremely fast.

He also brought in two powerful shareholders, and with connections in both official and underworld circles, his business was booming.

While Lin Hui occasionally offered his father modern business ideas, such as membership cards, points-based rewards, and lotteries, the key reason was that his father, Lin Shunhe, was highly profitable, capable, and had extremely accurate market judgment.

"Your home is really something." Weiwei had also heard about the changes in Lin Hui's home; it was changing every single day.

They've already opened branches in other towns and even come up with a new joint supermarket model, which is very popular.

Lin Hui watched as his family, which had fallen from grace just two years ago, was now about to become a wealthy second-generation heir.

Speaking of his father, Lin Hui was speechless. He had just casually offered a few suggestions, and as a result, the family's income had skyrocketed from around ten thousand yuan a month to over two hundred thousand yuan, or even more.

The old man's grocery store was quickly transformed into a supermarket model, with many stalls set up. With his flexible approach and strong market grasp, the new Linjiashanhe Supermarket has already established a good reputation in several surrounding towns.

Meanwhile, the connections, relationships, and background that Lin Shunhe, the father, had built up behind him were becoming increasingly abundant.

What seems like a misfortune may actually be a blessing in disguise. After his fall, he pondered deeply and summarized many lessons learned, which are now proving invaluable.

Not long ago, when Lin Hui returned home, his mother told him that his father had spent a great deal of money to buy expensive gifts and went to visit the family again, finally gaining the forgiveness of the benefactor from before.

They also managed to get that person back on the team.

Shanhe Supermarket will continue to expand.

Lin Hui himself was also a bit confused, especially since he hadn't even realized what was happening before he got home and suddenly became a rich second-generation heir. It was a rather speechless feeling.

"Speaking of which, have you really not considered switching to Yuanshan Sword cultivation?" Weiwei's question pulled Lin Hui back from his thoughts.

Yuanshan Sword was another special sword technique she found, primarily focused on defense. This sword technique also originated from a martial arts master named Xing Daolai.

"No need. My talent is limited, and my energy and time are limited. This kind of training is enough. Anyway, my family isn't what it used to be. Last time I went back, my father even hired two experts to protect the courtyard," Lin Hui said.

"I've heard about them. The Steel Fist Brothers are from Xingdao, and they're both top-tier external martial arts masters at the peak of their body tempering. They're skilled in combined attacks and are very strong. If they weren't getting old, they probably wouldn't have left Xingdao to come and work in the outer city." Weiwei nodded.

"My dad also advised me to go back and learn business with him. He said I've practiced martial arts to this level, and money is the key. He can easily hire experts at the peak of body tempering to protect me. There's really no need for me to suffer through every day," Lin Hui said helplessly. "But I think I've gotten used to it, and I don't want to give up like this."

"Your dad's rich, why are you still hunting for materials?" Weiwei asked, puzzled.

“His money is his, and mine is mine,” Lin Hui replied.

"You have an only son, right? Isn't his son still yours?"

“My dad is still young, how he uses it is his own business. I might inherit it in the future, but that money will only be mine after I inherit it. It has nothing to do with me now.” Lin Hui made it very clear.

"You're a really strange person," Weiwei shook her head.

"Perhaps," Lin Hui smiled.

"Never mind that, but there's something you should be careful about. A lot of people from the Hundred Flowers Sect have come recently, and they seem to be searching for something in the fog area behind us. If you run into them, remember to stay away," Weiwei advised.

"Yes, I know." Lin Hui nodded.

Hundred Flowers Sect?
He silently recalled the two people he had killed in the fog zone. They bore the custom markings of the Hundred Flowers Sect.

It seems that the Hundred Flowers Sect finally realized they couldn't find anyone and followed the clues to this place.

“There’s something else you need to be careful about. The inner city recently sent out a new expedition team, led by a woman named You Ying from Amamiya. If, and I mean if, she comes to the temple with her people to inquire about the situation, you must remain absolutely respectful and not show the slightest disrespect!” Weiwei’s face turned pale as she spoke of this person.

"This person is very strong?" Lin Hui frowned.

“The inner city’s summoners are extremely powerful, and they are also incredibly cruel. They will kill or cripple people at the slightest provocation. Of course, it would be best to avoid them in advance,” Vivi said.

"Thank you for reminding me." Lin Hui nodded.

"Alright, since you're not going, I'm leaving. I have a feeling I might actually find my Mr. Right this time!" Weiwei smiled charmingly, turned around and walked away quickly.

Once she was out of sight, Xiao Hu couldn't help but speak up.

"Senior brother, why don't you get together with Senior Sister Weiwei? I feel like you two are a perfect match."

"Don't think about these things, kid." Lin Hui patted the little tiger's head.

He had been mentioned by his master before, and when he saw his senior sister, he was initially somewhat moved, but after realizing that she didn't reciprocate his feelings, he lost interest.

Now, his daily pleasure is checking how far the Blood Seal has evolved.

I look forward to completing the perfect version of the Qingfeng Sword Technique, and then undergoing a second body tempering to see if I can step into the Inner Force Realm in one fell swoop.

Only when one truly reaches their own limit can internal strength be generated spontaneously from the outside in during body tempering.

However, this is not always the case; many people reach the limit of body tempering but still do not generate internal force.

In Lin Hui's mind, only by reaching the Inner Strength Realm could he truly have a shred of self-protection power in this outer city.

(End of this chapter)