Decaying World

Chapter 13 013 Farewell Part 1 (Thank you, Alliance Leader, in my eyes you can all eat me)
Family troubles and the conflict between Chen Zhishen and Chen Chong intensified Lin Hui's desire for self-improvement.

Mingde's protection can only be temporary. Although Chen Zhishen is the one causing trouble now, he may encounter similar situations in the future. If preparations are not made as soon as possible...
After Chen Chong's incident, Lin Hui became even more low-key, practicing his swordsmanship diligently every day in silence. His physical fitness gradually improved, and finally, he completed the evolution of the fifth move.

He had been practicing for two months, plus the initial month of just starting out, so he had been at Qingfeng Taoist Temple for more than half a year now.

For the past six months, he hasn't dared to relax for a single moment. And now, the results are almost here.
Inside the training ground, Lin Hui, holding a wooden sword, stood out inconspicuously among the other students practicing swordsmanship. However, if someone were to observe his seemingly casual sword movements closely, they would notice a significant difference between them and those around him.

The moves were the same, and everyone had clearly practiced the Seven-Section Fast Sword, but Lin Hui's first five moves gave people a feeling of strict discipline, as if every stroke was the most standard and perfect answer.

It wasn't until the sixth or seventh move that this sense of perfection suddenly plummeted, turning into mere proficiency.

While proficiency is good, and months of hard work have given Lin Hui a deep understanding of the last two moves, the difference compared to the previous five moves is like heaven and earth.

The slender wooden sword moved effortlessly in Lin Hui's hand, and although it was just a practice technique, it inexplicably gave off a powerful aura.

Unfortunately, no one around him paid any attention to the changes in him. Geniuses like Lin Hui could master the Seven-Section Quick Sword technique in a few weeks, but he hadn't fully mastered it even after practicing for almost a year. Based on this alone, no one would care how perfect or beautiful his swordsmanship was.

Just as Lin Hui was still practicing the sixth move, genius Huang Shan and Qiu Yiren, among others, had already mastered half of the Nine-Section Fast Sword and were already able to unleash its power in actual combat.

Amidst the swishing sound.

Not long after, Lin Hui finished practicing again and pulled the towel around his neck to wipe away the sweat.

A faint sound of crying drifted from a corner of the training ground in the distance.

It was an old student from the Taoist temple who was leaving.

Lin Hui looked into the distance and saw a group of five people, all of them strong and robust, carrying bundles in their hands, with tears in their eyes. Some of them were even trembling as they knelt down and kowtowed towards the direction of the main hall.

"These are all old men who have practiced for three years but still haven't fully mastered the power generation points of the seven-section fast sword," Chen Zhishen whispered as he approached. "Perhaps many people will end up like them."

"What move have you practiced to?" Lin Hui asked.

"Fifth, I've discovered that the earlier moves have an auxiliary effect on the later moves, and I've mastered the points of force application," Chen Zhishen replied.

"That's enough, I'm only sixth." Lin Hui replied calmly.

"..." Chen Zhishen smiled bitterly, "I've thought a lot during this time. First it was Ahua, then Xie Li. To be honest, I've only just realized that they are actually more mature than I imagined. They all just want to climb the social ladder. Ahua is with Chen Chong now. A few days ago, someone from the Taoist temple saw her bringing food to Chen Chong. She's no longer practicing martial arts here."

"It's good that you understand." Lin Hui nodded. "In this world, if you want to live well, you have to work hard to climb up the social ladder."

If he didn't have the bloodstain, he might have also resorted to any means to climb the ranks. That's why he didn't dislike Xie Li back then, because it was only human nature.

"Ah Hui," Chen Zhishen said again, "I plan to leave once I've mastered the Seven-Section Fast Sword."

Lin Hui was taken aback. He watched as the old man who had been kowtowing in the distance stood up, turned around, changed into a guard's uniform, and followed the person who came to fetch him away.

He didn't speak for a moment.

“No matter how well I practice, I’ll only ever be someone’s bodyguard or thug. My family can no longer afford to support my continued training,” Chen Zhishen said. “Only after I’ve mastered all seven sections of the fast sword can I become a formal disciple of Qingfeng Temple. With that status, I can take up a position in the town government or with some wealthy families. After all, a martial artist who can temper their body is much stronger than an ordinary person even if they only learn a few simple moves. The income should be quite good.”

"This is also why many disciples come here. The temple has partnerships with many wealthy families. We have connections with the Mu family and the Zhong family," he continued.

"Are you willing to accept this?" Lin Hui asked.

"Heh. I trained like crazy. But so what?" Chen Zhishen chuckled bitterly. "Do you know what it feels like to train until you vomit blood? If it weren't for the healing medicine you provided back then, I probably wouldn't have survived several times. I might have died in some training corner long ago."

Lin Hui fell silent.

As he listened to Chen Zhishen recount the hardships he had endured while practicing martial arts, rambling on and on, he felt a mix of emotions.

He only needs another six or seven moves to fully master the perfect version of the Seven-Section Quick Sword. Calculating the time, that's about four months. To others, this pace is utterly mediocre. At best, he'll end up as a high-ranking bodyguard.

But only Lin Hui himself knew that he was different.

By the time he came to his senses, Chen Zhishen had already left.

Some people left the training ground one after another. It was almost noon, time to go to the canteen for lunch.

Suddenly, a commotion came from afar.

Lin Hui sheathed his sword and followed, seeing a large group of students parting to make way for a tall young man who was slowly walking into the cafeteria behind the abbot with curious eyes.

The boy had an unfamiliar face, handsome features, and skin that was deathly pale.

What's most surprising is his eyes.

Those weren't normal human round pupils, but rather amber-colored, striped, vertical pupils resembling those of a reptile.

From a distance, it appeared rather cold and heartless. "Why do that person's eyes have that kind of pattern? I've never seen anyone's eyes look like that before."

The crowd murmured.

"Keep your voice down, that's a powerful python clan member who's come to visit the abbot!"

"Pythons? Aren't they human?"

"They are said to be a non-human race that can transform into giant pythons, and one of the few alien races that have traded with us."

Lin Hui also watched the boy with curiosity. Judging from the way the boy and the abbot were interacting, the two were obviously old acquaintances. The boy seemed to be young in appearance, but his age was definitely not just a teenager.

"The Python Clan...are they here to investigate a clansman who went missing earlier?" Not far away, Senior Brother Chen Sui and Daoist Mingchen stood together and asked in a low voice.

"It should be. The previous case of the ghost breaking into the gate injured many innocent people. It won't be easy for the inner city to suppress it like this. It's not just the Python Clan that came; there are also many people from other districts." Mingchen nodded in affirmation. "But this has nothing to do with us. Just focus on practicing your sword. If you can master the Qingfeng Sword to the third level soon, then my Qingfeng Temple will have a worthy successor."

"I will do my best," Chen Sui said, looking troubled and bowing his head slightly.

After the abbot and the python tribesman took their seats and began to eat, the others also took their seats. After the initial excitement, everyone realized that the python tribesman ate the same food and spoke the same language as them. Apart from their slightly different eyes, they were completely the same. The novelty quickly wore off, and the canteen returned to its usual lively atmosphere of scrambling for food.

Lin Hui looked away, found a corner to sit down, and waited for the food to be served.

The python-clan boy came and went quickly, and soon the Taoist temple returned to its former tranquility.

Time flies, and the sixth move is about to be fully evolved.

Lin Hui's anticipation gradually faded into tranquility during the long wait.

Early in the morning, he would get up on time, fetch water, wash up, and check if the jade talisman was intact. If it was not intact, he would have to go to the Taoist priest in charge of logistics at the temple to get a new one to replace it.

After washing up and having breakfast, he was about to begin his daily practice when he suddenly received a message from his disciple saying that someone had come to his house.

Lin Hui was puzzled. His parents had never visited the Taoist temple since the incident, and now they had come without any prior notice. He was afraid that something had happened.

But seeing that the young Taoist boy's expression and tone were not unusual, he felt a little relieved.

He followed the young Taoist priest toward the main gate. Before long, he saw his father, Lin Shunhe, waiting outside.

Aside from him, there was a hunchbacked old man with gray hair standing to the side, holding the hand of a girl in a white dress with a cold demeanor.

The three of them stood together, and upon hearing footsteps, they all looked in this direction.

"This is your son. Regardless of his appearance, he has a very steady demeanor. He's currently working as the assistant accountant at Qingfeng Temple, which is quite stable." The hunchbacked old man looked Lin Hui up and down, with a satisfied expression.

“That’s right. If our two families agree, we will prepare 100,000 coins to help them get married separately,” Lin Shunhe said with a smile.

"That's impressive. I didn't expect you to have so much wealth after all this trouble. Amazing!" The hunchbacked old man looked at Lin Shunhe in surprise.

"Alas, this matter is too complicated to explain in a few words." Lin Shunhe shook his head and sighed, about to elaborate.

Suddenly, the aloof girl who had been standing quietly looked Lin Hui over and then turned and left without saying a word.

"Huan'er?" the hunchbacked old man exclaimed, "What happened!?"

"It's nothing, I just don't feel well. I don't want to visit Qingfeng Temple anymore, Father. Let's go back." The girl in the white dress stopped and said calmly.

She knew that her father and Lin Shunhe were good friends and had a close relationship. Now that Uncle Lin's family had suffered a great disaster, those who had previously tried to set them up were now avoiding them like the plague.

Only her own father kept his promise and went to Lin Shunhe's house to arrange the engagement.

The father demonstrated the beauty of keeping his word, but what about himself?
Does one have to sacrifice their entire marriage to fulfill their father's promise?
The more the girl thought about it, the more distressed she became.

"Huan'er!" The hunchbacked old man realized that his daughter hadn't taken a liking to Lin Hui, so he immediately stepped forward and pulled her aside to talk things over.

No matter how he tried to persuade her, the girl just shook her head, which angered the old man so much that he raised his hand to hit her. This action was quickly stopped by Lin Shunhe, who was watching from the side.

“It doesn’t have to be this bad, Brother Guan!” Lin Shunhe sighed. He looked at his son who had walked up to him, and then at the beautiful and aloof daughter of the Guan family. If it were before the incident, with his much stronger connections and wealth, this marriage would have been more than enough.

But now, looking at his son's qualifications alone, he really doesn't seem to be a good match for her.

"Sigh, since Huan'er doesn't like my Ah Hui, then let's call it quits for today. Today, Ah Hui will take you around Qingfeng Temple. Without insiders, you really can't get in for a visit."

"Let's skip the visit. Sigh, what a mess this has become." The hunchbacked old man sighed. "It's a pity. It's just that our Huan'er isn't lucky enough to be with your Ahui."

(End of this chapter)