Decaying World

Chapter 174, Mission 174

Inside the recess, the four walls were insulated with a special black wood. It felt hard underfoot.

Lin Hui judged that this type of wood must be very hard.

"Is this your first time riding in a moth-drawn carriage?" the fox asked, leaning against the wooden wall.

"Yes, it's definitely my first time." Lin Hui nodded.

"Then you should gradually get used to it. With your potential, you'll have many more opportunities to ride in the moth carriage in the future. The sect also has its own moth carriages, and quite a few of them. These kinds of moth carriages are actually special varieties that have been specially bred," the fox laughed. "Smell it, can you smell anything?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Hui took a sniff and immediately smelled an extremely delicate fragrance.

"It smells nice? Like pear blossoms?"

"Not this one, smell it again!" The fox paused slightly; she had just washed her body with a pear blossom scented bath product before leaving the house.

"Hmm, it smells a bit like honey?" Lin Hui smelled another aroma.

"That's right, this is one of the functions of this moth carriage. The moth powder on its body has a natural calming and sleep-inducing effect on the human body. During the journey, it can let you get a good night's sleep, and when you wake up, you'll have arrived at your destination," the fox explained.

"What about at night? What if it takes a long time and we need to fly into the night?" Lin Hui asked.

“The moth-drawn carriage is a nocturnal creature found in foggy areas. At night, its wings seal off the seating area, and we also use wooden planks inside to block the outside. There is also spare water and food here, which can be used temporarily if needed.” The fox patted a wooden plank under its right foot, which produced a hollow echo.

"What if I happen to have diarrhea?" the ox next to him laughed.

"Then you can jump down first, finish your business, and then catch up," the fox said irritably.

"Isn't this a question for the Four-Sided Brothers?" Huang Niu raised his hand and said.

"Then we can only land temporarily and leave after we've finished pulling. Just bear with it for a bit. Surely people who ride in moth carts have enough self-control to handle this?" the fox said speechlessly.

Lin Hui nodded in agreement.

Given his current physical condition, very little of what he eats is actually excreted.

This means that the body's digestive function is becoming stronger, and most of the energy in food is being digested and absorbed.

He used to have a bowel movement once a day, but now he only goes to the toilet once a week at most.

"Alright, let's go, come back soon!" The fox slapped the inner wall of the wooden wall in front of it.

Snapped.

Suddenly, the moth spread its wings and gently flapped them.

Suddenly, Lin Hui felt everything outside begin to sink rapidly.

The field of vision rapidly increased.

Countless wisps of mist rushed towards us, but were immediately separated by an invisible force, forming a hemispherical, invisible isolation cavity.

"The Moth Chariot has a built-in isolation effect against the fog, so we don't need to consume Ningxiang, which is one of the reasons we chose to modify it," the fox explained.

"I see." Lin Hui nodded.

"We'll be going this way, passing through the Sea of ​​Life and Death. Be careful and don't make too much noise while cultivating, lest you attract the troublesome monsters over there," the fox continued, his tone noticeably more serious at this point.

"The Sea of ​​Life and Death? That's indeed dangerous." Huang Niu also became serious upon hearing this. Seeing that Lin Hui didn't react, he quickly took the initiative to explain. "The so-called Sea of ​​Life and Death is a special ocean located on the side of Xingdao City. No one knows its exact size. It's called the Sea of ​​Life and Death because for half the year, this ocean is evaporated into highly toxic acidic gas by high temperatures, and for the other half of the year, it is condensed back into water by low temperatures, becoming the ocean again. During each transformation period, a large number of sea monsters appear, hunting everywhere."

"There's such a place??" Lin Hui was stunned. He felt like he had never seen the world before. He had heard of the Jade Sea, but this was the first time he had ever heard of the Sea of ​​Life and Death.

"Beyond the fog zone, anything is possible. There was once a fog person who left behind a record of how he flew for decades on a moth chariot but still couldn't reach the border of the Sea of ​​Life and Death," the fox replied. "Moreover, the monsters on the Sea of ​​Life and Death are almost all classified as starting at the Destruction level, which is outside the classification system of our Tai Su Federation. Relatively speaking, most of the monsters in the areas surrounding the Federation are relatively safe."

She paused, then smiled and added, "But don't worry, we're just passing by the edge of the Sea of ​​Life and Death, we won't go in. As long as we don't make a big commotion, the monsters over there won't notice us."

Lin Hui nodded, a strange curiosity also arising in his heart about the bizarre and wonderful things outside the fog zone.

The moth-shaped vehicle whooshed into the air, accelerating rapidly as it flew forward.

A large amount of fog swept past on both sides, and nothing could be seen in front except for the white fog. It was unclear how the moths could orient themselves.

After waiting for a while, the fox suggested that everyone cultivate or rest, and that she would remind the two of them when they were almost there.

So the three of them each took a small spot and began their own cultivation.

Time passed slowly.

Because there were no reference points, Lin Hui was not sure of the speed of the moth car. He only felt that it was a little slower than when he was traveling at full speed, but not by much. In addition, it was flying at high altitude and did not take detours.

He asked the fox how long it would take, and the answer was more than four hours, or eight or nine hours.

Therefore, it can be concluded that Xingdaocheng District is probably quite far from Yunbian Town.

Looking at it this way, even Xingdao City, which is said to be the closest city to Tuyue, has to fly this far. So how did Song Zhanlong and the others get to Tuyue in the first place?
“You wouldn’t know this, but there are large caravans traveling between Tu Yue and Xing Dao all year round. You can walk across the Great Whirlpool. That would shorten the distance considerably. However, the Great Whirlpool seems to be connected to the Sea of ​​Life and Death, and also influenced by the Black Mist, so it’s only passable for a very short period of time each year,” the fox explained. “We are currently in a period when the Great Whirlpool is closed to travel.”

Lin Hui nodded knowingly.

"What is that giant whirlpool?"

"Look." The fox suddenly stood up and looked to the right front of the three people.

She raised her hand and pointed into the distance. "That's a huge whirlpool."

Lin Hui stood up and looked over.

The fog seemed to be drawn away by some immense gravitational force, clearing the surroundings and revealing a view that stretched quite far.

In the distance, a vast, greyish-white sea stretched out, seemingly composed of countless white silts. A massive whirlpool slowly swirled within it.

From here, they were situated above a black mountain range by the sea, at least several thousand meters above the ground. Yet, they didn't experience any difficulty breathing or the thin air.

The whirlpool was right next to the mountains, near the sea.

A strong wind was blowing. Lin Hui stood on the moth cart and looked through the invisible isolation cavity at the huge vortex that was as big as a mountain. He saw black dots constantly going in and out of the surrounding area, flying around, as if they were all going through the vortex to some unknown place.

"That is the Sea of ​​Life and Death."

"That's what the fox explained."

"We are actually at least seven or eight hundred kilometers away from there, even though it looks close."

"Do people live over there too?" Lin Hui asked.

“Yes, it’s Hongyin, the closest country to us. But the situation there is different. Compared to our Taisu, they have more and stronger monsters, so their population is always low. Also, because of constant warfare, their military management is very strict, and they have a custom of plundering people from outside. So my advice is that it’s best not to get close,” the fox explained.

Lin Hui nodded.

Gazing at the gray-white sea and the enormous whirlpool, until the surrounding mist gradually gathered and obscured the view, everything returned to a state where nothing could be seen.

He sat down and continued circulating his internal energy, spending several hours in this quiet state.

The moth cart shuddered slightly and began to slow down.

Lin Hui opened his eyes and saw the fox and the ox standing together, their lips moving slightly as they were communicating telepathically.

"You're awake? We're almost there," the ox said.

"Xingdao? This is my first time in a city outside of Tuyue. I wonder what it's like." Lin Hui said with a smile.

"We're about to enter the fog-free zone. You can get up and see. We'll land at the edge of the fog-free zone in a place called Qishan Town. There are fellow believers there to meet us," Huang Niu said.

"Does our Good Heart Church have people everywhere?" Lin Hui asked.

"Yes, that's how it is in the Tai Su Federation. It's present in every city. After all, we're an ancient religion that's been developing for thousands of years," Huang Niu said with a smile.

Lin Hui felt a chill run down his spine.

Judging from the current situation, the scale of the Benevolent Heart Sect is simply not on the same level as any other sect he has ever heard of.

Composing himself, he looked out of the moth carriage.

Just then, we entered a fog-free zone, and the towering fog wall pierced through, instantly clearing the view ahead.

Immediately afterwards, a massive black wall appeared at the edge of Lin Hui's field of vision.

The black wall was so high that it pierced the fog above, and its end could not be seen at all.

The walls were riddled with damage, gaps, and holes, clearly indicating that a major battle had recently taken place.

“Something happened here not long ago. You’ve probably heard what it was about. The inner city’s high walls were smashed for a while, and now they’re arresting people to repair and mend them. That’s why so many people from the outer city ran away before. Who wants to do forced labor these days? It can kill you,” Huang Niu sighed.

Lin Hui looked closely and indeed saw small figures struggling to repair the wall through the hole in the towering black wall.

There were also things like ropes outside the wall, used to hoist baskets of repair materials up.

“Our mission this time is to take down a city official named Zhu Chengqiu. He is a highly capable man and an elder of the Yugong Palace of the Shayue Cult. In fact, he wasn’t an elder a year ago, but he was able to rise to his current position quickly by continuously making meritorious contributions in capturing our fellow believers,” Huang Niu said.

"Can you tell me specifically what level it is?" Lin Hui asked.

“I don’t know. Judging from his recent battle record, he’s at least at the level of a Grand Priest. Moreover, he’s extremely vigilant. He knows all the local experts in the Punishment Cult like the back of his hand. This makes it impossible for the local believers to do anything to him. He knows all the Grand Priest-level experts. If they make any slight move, he will immediately notice.” Huang Niu said.

"That's why they transferred newcomers like us from Tu Yue to target us specifically," Fox added from the side. "Don't worry, Si Mian. Brother Niu will lead the attack, I'll support, and you just need to keep watch for us. This time, the main purpose is to broaden your horizons. After you've done this many times, one day it will be your turn to lead a team on your own. That's how we started."

"Okay." Lin Hui looked down from the sky. Outside the tall black wall, the small towns looked like ruins after being burned by fire. They were desolate, dilapidated, and gray-black, like dirty piles of charcoal.

There were hardly any people inside, and it seemed lifeless. The only noise came from flocks of crows that occasionally flew low overhead.

"Alright, be careful, we're about to land. Our location might be compromised, so take care of any trouble around us as soon as we land. Execute all hostiles," Huang Niu warned.

"Okay!" Lin Hui and the fox nodded at the same time.

Lin Hui estimated the strength he had displayed. In the opponent's eyes, he should be at the peak of the Zhou Tian realm. Therefore, as long as he was careful, he should be able to handle most dangers.

Although he is now capable of taking down the High Priest, he still doesn't know much about the Cult of Benevolence and is still a newbie. If he doesn't keep some trump cards up his sleeve, he might get betrayed and be in big trouble.

"Watch out! They're coming!" the ox's voice rang out solemnly.

Lin Hui gripped the hilt of the Ruyi Sword on his back and looked down.

Below on the black ground, more than a dozen black figures were rushing towards their landing point at high speed.

The five figures in front of them were all engulfed in white flames of internal energy. Each of them was clearly at the Zhou Tian stage.

The remaining light was just ordinary white light from internal energy. Clearly, it came from ordinary internal energy martial artists.

"The Zhou Tian phenomenon is rarely seen on ordinary days. Why are there so many of them in this place? There must be an ambush!" the fox laughed.

"Wouldn't it be better to warm up first?" the scalper chuckled. "I'll handle the leader."

Before the moth cart had fully landed, he flipped over and leaped out.

(End of this chapter)