Decaying World

Chapter 68, Part 068 (Thanks to the Alliance Leader for his help)

"The disciples of the front courtyard?" Lin Hui stood up, pondered for a moment, and said, "Let them in."

"Yes." The man left to report.

A short while later, a familiar figure, accompanied by two slender women dressed in the white attire of Qingfeng Temple and holding long swords, arrived at the mansion in front of the pavilion, led by a disciple.

The person who arrived was none other than Chen Sui, whom I hadn't seen for a long time.

His face looked haggard, but his eyes were inexplicably bright, and he had lost a lot of weight compared to his previous robust appearance.

The other two were Huang Shan and Qiu Yiren, who had also been out of the public eye for a long time.

"Chen Sui greets Sect Leader Lin." As Chen Sui approached, he formally clasped his hands in greeting, his attitude upright.

Huang Shan, who was behind him, originally intended to greet him familiarly, but seeing his senior brother's actions, he understood and followed suit by clasping his hands in a salute.

"Senior Brother, it's been a long time. How have you been?" Lin Hui hadn't seen Chen Sui since the last patrol mission. Chen Sui had been easily defeated by his former junior brother that day, and his face was extremely pale. After that, he disappeared without a trace.

I didn't expect it to only surface now.

"Not bad, Junior Brother Lin is still willing to acknowledge our past relationship?" Chen Sui twitched his lips and sighed.

“Naturally, since Senior Brother and Senior Sister have come before me again, they must have already made their choice.” Lin Hui guessed their meaning.

"Is Sect Leader Lin still willing to accept the three of us?" Chen Sui asked solemnly.

Compared to other disciples, their conduct was much better. At least they didn't defect to the Black Dragon Sect and then turn against the Qingfeng Sword Sect.

Now that they've seen a glimmer of hope, they immediately return to their master's school, clearly showing they are people who value loyalty and righteousness.

“Of course I’m willing.” Lin Hui smiled. “Right now, my Qingfeng Sword Sect is in dire need of manpower, especially since you three are former fellow disciples.”

"Then thank you for accepting me, Sect Leader!" Chen Sui bowed deeply, his face showing a hint of shame. Lin Hui deserved his bow.

He left the Taoist temple without a word back then, choosing to escape when the temple was in its most difficult time. Now that Lin Hui is willing to accept him, he is already deeply moved.

Unlike him, Huang Shan and Qiu Yiren never switched to another sect or left. They were assigned to one of the other two branches, but later the Quick Sword Sect and Wind Sword Sect split up again. Disheartened, they simply went home and practiced swordsmanship on their own.

More than a year later, we heard that Qingfeng Sword had actually annexed Black Dragon Gate!?

Overjoyed, the two inquired about the details and, upon learning them, immediately went to Lin Hui's home to offer their assistance.

"Junior Brother Lin, it's been a long time! You've become a sect leader! Impressive!"

After getting to know each other again, Huang Shan still maintained his carefree attitude.

"You have no manners! I was the senior brother in the sect before, and now I'm the leader of a sect. You still call me junior brother? Are you looking for a beating?" Lin Hui said with a laugh.

"Alright, alright, senior brother~~~ you're so impressive now, do you want someone to come over and give you a back massage?" Huang Shan said in a sweet voice.

"Have you reached the ninth level of Body Tempering? If you haven't reached the ninth level, you're not qualified to give me a back massage." Lin Hui sneered.

"You're being too realistic, aren't you?" Huang Shan couldn't help but laugh. "But you're right, if I weren't a ninth-rank official, I really wouldn't dare to come over and offer to help!"

Her pretty face immediately turned serious.

“Not just Ah Huang, I’ve reached the ninth rank too,” Qiu Yiren added earnestly from the side.

"Hey, what the heck is Ah Huang?!"

After the jokes, the atmosphere became much more relaxed, and the awkwardness of not seeing each other for a long time was quickly dispelled.

Lin Hui carefully examined the three people and indeed sensed a huge change in them compared to before.

Huang Shanqiu is indeed a genius. In such a short time, she has reached the ninth level of Body Tempering. It is evident that the two Ming generation Daoists must have invested a lot of resources in them before they left. Otherwise, with their ordinary family background, they would not have been able to afford such consumption.

"Was this done by two real people?" Lin Hui asked solemnly.

"Yes." Huang Shan nodded solemnly. "Also, there is something else important I need to tell you."

She looked around to make sure the courtyard was completely empty before taking a step forward and lowering her voice.

"My master, Uncle Mingchen, and your master, True Man Mingde, left not because of the Black Dragon Gate, but because someone was secretly capturing experts in the Inner Strength Realm for testing. The previous massacre of the Red Melody Temple was because of this."

"A test?" Lin Hui's eyes narrowed. A chill ran down his spine. "Is this true? What's your basis for this?"

Huang Shan moved closer again, her breasts, much fuller than before, almost touching Lin Hui's arm, but she seemed oblivious, preoccupied with talking.

“When I went to Master Mingxiu’s hometown, I found a message he left for his family. The message vaguely mentioned that they were just going out to avoid trouble and would return in about a year. If they didn’t return in a year, something bad would have happened.” Huang Shan paused and continued. “I found out that Master Mingxiu would also go out briefly every now and then, saying that he was going into seclusion to cultivate or to hunt monsters in the fog zone, but in reality, it was probably all to avoid trouble.”

Lin Hui unconsciously avoided touching the other person's arm.

"A year has long passed now, which means..."

"Yes, I suspect something might have happened to Master and the others," Huang Shan said in a deep voice. "Afterwards, I spent time visiting various towns to investigate the situation. I found that many other martial arts schools were in similar situations. There were many martial arts schools in the Martial Alliance before, and they recruited disciples every year, including quite a few geniuses. But have you ever thought about why, after so many years, there are still so few experts at the Inner Strength Realm? Is breaking through to the Inner Strength Realm really that difficult?"

Lin Hui remained silent; he had indeed overlooked this point. "Although those at the Inner Strength Realm are powerful, they shouldn't be of much concern to the three great masters of the inner city."

"So I've ruled out the three major ones. I suspect it might be the work of the three sects and six gangs in the inner city. The external martial arts schools and internal strength realm might affect their rule. The Martial Alliance may have shown some signs of resistance before, so..." Huang Shan said in a low voice.

Upon hearing this, Lin Hui felt a surge of clues and information coming together in his mind, and he tried to piece together the possible facts.

But the news came too suddenly; he really had no information about it.

"I will investigate this matter secretly. Don't worry about it for now. Focus on practicing your swordsmanship and break through to the Inner Strength Realm first. In any case, strength is the most crucial element," he instructed. "Yes," Huang Shan nodded emphatically. "I hope Master and the others are alright. I felt their departure was too suspicious and rushed before, but I didn't expect..."

"I had that feeling too, as if something was urging them to leave." Lin Hui nodded, feeling somewhat heavy-hearted.

If Huang Shan's words are true, then just how strong is this force behind the scenes that forces so many internal energy realm cultivators to try to escape every year? Will they even notice him, someone who has quietly broken through? Everything is unknown.

And what about Master Mingde? I wonder how he is doing now. If he's really being targeted...
A new sense of urgency suddenly arose in Lin Hui's heart.

The initial sense of pride that came from annexing the Black Dragon Gate and crippling Song Zhanlong was once again shattered.

After quickly arranging for the three to be settled, Lin Hui returned to the Lin residence alone.

They found Weiwei and her two companions, who knew nothing about the situation, and informed them of it.

"So, what are your plans now? Do you intend to continue with the health regimen class, or go back to your previous pace and focus on martial arts breakthroughs?" Lin Hui gave the three of them a choice.

In the courtyard, the three looked at each other, their expressions blank after the initial shock.

But soon, Little Tiger, who knew nothing, was the first to make a decision.

"I do whatever my master tells me to do."

"Me too!" Little Fatty followed closely behind.

Lin Hui nodded with satisfaction and looked at Weiwei.

"Where is Senior Sister Weiwei?"

The dim light of the day fell on Weiwei's face, making her expression somewhat unpredictable.

After hesitating for a while, she slowly answered.

"So, the Qingfeng Sword Sect doesn't need my help to maintain itself anymore? Senior Brother and the others are back, and there are so many more people than before."

She looked up at Lin Hui and, for some reason, found a hint of charm in his face, which she had always thought was ordinary and unremarkable.

If things really turn out as my father has arranged, and I end up with Junior Brother Lin Hui, perhaps it wouldn't be so bad?

The thought flashed through her mind, but was quickly overshadowed by another beautiful and glamorous face.

Her gaze gradually hardened. Suddenly, Junior Brother Lin Hui unleashed his power, becoming so formidable that he single-handedly suppressed numerous disciples of the Black Dragon Sect.

While luck played a part, as the Black Dragon Sect Master happened to be in trouble, the fact that one person could suppress over a hundred people with a single sword is still unimaginable.

Looking at Lin Hui, Weiwei vaguely felt that he seemed somewhat unfamiliar and mysterious.

When did that simpleton, who only knew how to practice swordsmanship every day, actually undergo such a qualitative change in his growth?
“That’s true.” She heard Lin Hui’s reply.

“Then I can rest assured,” Weiwei sighed. “Father’s decision to pass the position of sect leader to you was indeed the right one.”

"Aren't you going to go out and verify it?" Lin Hui asked in surprise.

“You wouldn’t joke about something like this. Besides, you can find out the truth just by asking anyone.” Weiwei said calmly. “In that case, I should go and pursue the happiness I want.”

"Are you going?"

"Yes, I made an appointment with someone to go to his place. It's just that things have been delayed because of Qingfeng Temple, so I haven't been able to go. Now, I finally have the time." Weiwei smiled.

"From now on, the Qingfeng Sword Sect will be entirely in your hands."

Lin Hui could tell that the other party was serious.

After a moment of silence, he nodded.

"Be careful and don't go to the edge of the foggy area."

"Don't worry." Weiwei smiled, turned around and went back to her room to start packing her luggage.

Without further ado, she decided to set off immediately. The anticipation she had suppressed for so long was now erupting like uncontrollable magma, continuously spewing forth from the volcano deep within her heart.

Before long, the three left the Lin residence. Weiwei headed in one direction, while Xiaohu and Xiaopang headed back to Qingfeng Temple.

Lin Hui stood in front of the door, watching the three figures from behind, especially Weiwei. He had a strange feeling that perhaps this parting would be the last time they saw each other, a very long time from now.
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Baishan Town.

The headquarters of Baihuamen is a cluster of gray and white buildings built against the mountain.

Because they are located right next to the mountain, more than half of the houses are half caves and half stone buildings.

The massive white-lettered stone tablet of Baihua Gate stands beside the only way in and out. The characters are strong and elegant, with smooth strokes, as if they were drawn by a finger.

At this moment, inside the largest and tallest six-story stone building in this complex.

A white, extremely obese woman, over two meters tall, sat on a large, heavy stone throne, her gaze dark as she looked down at the female disciple who had brought the news.

"You mean, Song Zhanlong is dead?!" The fat woman exclaimed in surprise. "Who could kill him? Even I would need two consecutive palm strikes to break through his Black Dragon Body!" The speaker was none other than Ou Tianrong, the current sect leader of the Hundred Flowers Sect.

“Indeed, this is absolutely true. Song Zhanlong’s body has already been collected and buried. We saw it with our own eyes.” The female disciple’s voice was clear and her words were articulate.

"And then you said that a junior member of the Qingfeng Sword Sect, a young man, just happened to pick up the scraps and swallow the remaining Black Dragon Sect in one gulp?" Ou Tianrong, the leader of the Hundred Flowers Sect, continued.

"Indeed."

(End of this chapter)