014 Farewell Two (Thank You, In My Eyes, You Can All Eat Alliance Leader)

"Not at all. Even if they can't become in-laws, the two youngsters can still get along well. Staying in touch as friends would be nice too." Lin Shunhe forced out a reluctant smile.

Lin Hui, who had walked over by then, immediately understood what had just happened.

He could tell that the girl in the white dress had not taken a liking to him, and that was normal. His body had grown sturdier lately, but his face and features were still as they had always been—utterly unremarkable. Back when he had the backing of his family, it had been all right. Now that backing was gone, and his job was merely that of an ordinary bookkeeping assistant.

It was only natural that she would not think much of him. On the surface, he looked like nothing special.

What left him rather speechless was that Old Man had already started arranging a marriage for him so soon. Apparently, he was pinning his hopes on the idea that if the son did not amount to much, perhaps the grandson would—perhaps the grandson might have talent and achieve great things.

Since the meeting had not worked out, the hunchbacked old man was too embarrassed to stay any longer. He bade them farewell, took his daughter Huan'er, and left by carriage, lest things grow awkward if they lingered.

"That girl is Guan Qihuan, the third daughter of my old brother Guan Jing. Both our families had been willing, but unfortunately... the girl herself wasn't." Lin Shunhe said helplessly.

"You should just drop it. Live an ordinary life honestly. As for marriage, I have my own plans," Lin Hui said, at a loss for words.

"Plans? Could it be that you've taken a liking to someone at Qingfeng Temple?" Old Man's spirits immediately rose at that.

"Not exactly. But I have my own arrangements." With the Blood Seal, Lin Hui simply had no time or energy to waste on romance.

What he needed to do now was first ensure his own sense of security. Then, once his strength reached a certain height, he would take a proper look at just what was going on in this world.

"Son, how about... we try making a living somewhere else?" Lin Shunhe hesitated before asking.

"What place would be any different? Going somewhere new means spending time getting familiar with everything all over again. Starting from scratch—Old Man, don't overthink it," Lin Hui advised.

At the temple gates, he chatted with Old Man for a while longer and learned that the Outer City had returned to peace. Quite a few people who had fled into the Inner City were gradually coming back.

Only, in recent days, quite a lot of people had arrived from other city districts.

Beyond Tuyue City District lay another expanse of Mist, and beyond that, more vast city districts much like this one.

There were nineteen such city districts in all, together forming the Tai Su Federation. Tai Su was jointly ruled by the Inner Court and the Outer Court. The Inner Court was a small No Fog Zone at the center.

Because the Mist shrouded everything and travel was difficult, the Inner Court had no practical way to govern the nineteen city districts of the Outer Court.

This meant that the Tai Su Federation was, in truth, a loose alliance of territories, with every city district governing itself.

The government offices in each city district were thus the actual ruling bodies. In Tuyue City District, that was the Tuyue Prefectural Office.

The other city district Lin Shunhe referred to was Xingdao City, the nearest major city district in the vicinity.

Xingdao City District was said to be in a state of chaos year-round. The strong preyed on the weak there, slavery was widespread, and the Xingdao people who occasionally came out were mostly irritable and neurotic, ready to cry slaughter at the drop of a hat—exceptionally vicious.

"I've heard quite a few of them are already stirring up trouble all over the Inner City. The sects and clans in Tuyue that are worth mentioning are none other than the Three Sects and Six Clans, but the Xingdao people have gone to challenge them one by one and injured quite a few people." Lin Shunhe was well informed. He had been traveling outside on business lately, so he knew far more than Lin Hui did.

"What about the martial arts schools?" Lin Hui asked with a frown.

"Martial arts schools don't even rank. The Three Sects and Six Clans are major powers, outside the Three Greats, that inherit internal martial arts. Though they are far inferior to the Three Greats, compared to the likes of martial arts schools, the gap is that between adults and children—there's no comparing them." Lin Shunhe looked around, pulled his son into a corner, and lowered his voice.

"The reason I'm telling you this is that although Qingfeng Temple is only middle-tier among the martial arts schools that teach external arts, so it's unlikely anyone will set their sights on it, you still need to be careful. When trouble comes, stand as far back as you can. Always remember that your mother and I are behind you. If anything were to happen to you, the two of us would truly... sigh." Lin Shunhe's tone and demeanor had plainly lost their spirit compared with before the incident.

But Lin Hui still nodded seriously.

"I understand, Old Man."

"Good. I'll be heading back, then. Things have loosened up at home lately. I've found another avenue and made a small business deal, so don't worry. Don't send your wages home anymore, either. We have money ourselves." Before Lin Hui could protest, Lin Shunhe took several pieces of silver from his pouch, put them in a leather money bag, and stuffed it into Lin Hui's hands.

"Don't worry. No matter how hard things get, your father can absolutely support this family!"

Lin Hui did not take the money. After father and son pushed it back and forth for a while, Lin Hui walked Old Man partway down the road before returning alone to Qingfeng Temple.

In truth, the fact that Old Man had come alone on this visit without hiring an ox cart or horse carriage, instead walking all the way here, was enough to reveal the family's real circumstances.

But he did not expose Old Man's fragile pride. He merely returned the money that had been pressed into his hand.

Back at the temple, Lin Hui settled his mind and continued training hard with his sword. His sword grew ever lighter, swifter, and more precise.

Though there had been no evolution from the Blood Seal, the longer he practiced the sixth and seventh moves, the deeper his understanding of them became.

Comparing them with the perfected versions of the first five moves, Lin Hui gradually began to discover the hidden flaws in the last two.

He did not discover them all at once. Rather, he found one every few days. After attempting to alter and fine-tune them, Lin Hui keenly noticed that the revised sword moves suited him better than the originals and flowed more smoothly in practice.

Time slipped by, and in the blink of an eye, more than another month had passed.

Unexpectedly, the sixth move completed its evolution ahead of schedule. It seemed that Lin Hui's own insights had helped save a little time.

Today, the sky was dim and overcast, with sunlight only just beginning to show through the mist.

Holding a wooden sword, Lin Hui pushed open the door and stepped out. He looked at the Blood Seal text beneath his field of vision, lost in thought.

"Compared to the usual two-month evolution period, it finished five days early... It seems those five days are the result of my hard training during this period."

He could feel that his physique was now far stronger than when he had first arrived. As a result, he could absorb much more energy each day. It was only natural that this would reduce the energy needed for evolution.

Watching the trainees emerge one after another from the communal sleeping quarters to prepare for sword practice and line up for water, Lin Hui walked into a corner and focused his attention on the final form—the seventh move, Wind-Whisper Thrust.

"Do you wish to evolve the seventh move—Wind-Whisper Thrust?"

"Required resources: one wooden sword, fifty days of stored energy."

"Required time: fifty days."

The final move, at last...

Lin Hui let out a deep breath. He stared at the red words floating before him, paused for several seconds, then decisively confirmed the evolution.

"Yes."

Hiss.

The Blood Seal on his arm swiftly changed from a diamond shape into a circle.

No longer looking at the Blood Seal, Lin Hui held his wooden sword and carefully felt out the newly completed evolution of the sixth move.

Having trained the Seven Section Fast Sword to this point, he could bring it to completion at any time. As a result, he had gained an exceedingly deep understanding of the entire sword art.

He raised his hand, thrust forward, flicked upward, slashed down...

One sword move after another flowed from his hand like drifting clouds and running water, carrying a strange sort of beauty.

The gazes of the two trainees practicing swordsmanship nearby strayed over, and their movements involuntarily slowed a fraction as they focused entirely on watching Lin Hui practice.

After repeating the sequence several times, Lin Hui paused for a rest, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and picked up the waterskin and dried provisions beside him to prepare breakfast.

"A-Hui." Chen Zhishen slowly approached him. "How much do you know about Second Senior Brother Zhao Jiang'an?"

"I've never had contact with him. He's the second-ranked among the formal disciples. I'm just an ordinary trainee still practicing the Seven Section Fast Sword—not even qualified to count as a formal disciple. What right would I have to build connections with Senior Brother Zhao, the second-ranked disciple? What's wrong?" Lin Hui asked casually.

More precisely, trainees who had not fully mastered the techniques were merely unqualified people paying for instruction.

Only after mastering the Seven Section Fast Sword and then the Nine Section Fast Sword could one soar into the ranks of Qingfeng Temple's true formal disciples, entering that circle of twenty.

By then, many gangs and wealthy households in Tuyue would extend olive branches to them.

Their future income and livelihood would not be poor.

Chen Zhishen's goal was to reach the level of a formal disciple. His aptitude was not among the worst, and with how diligently he practiced his swordsmanship, he was close to mastering it after a little over a year. That was already quite good, and gave him hope of improving his family's life.

"Second Senior Brother is amiable and highly skilled with the sword. When everyone dispersed yesterday, he spoke to me for a while, gave me some pointers on my swordsmanship, and even invited me to work for the Zhao family... He also said that regarding my conflict with Chen Chong, if I agreed to join the Zhao family, he would help step in and mediate." Chen Zhishen spoke softly, his words carrying a trace of reverence for Second Senior Brother.

Lin Hui listened in silence without saying a word.

"Second Senior Brother analyzed my options after leaving Qingfeng Temple. It would be nothing more than joining a gang, another wealthy household, or a trading company. But the Zhao family is a renowned great clan throughout the nearby towns. Since Second Senior Brother and I come from the same lineage, if I join them, I'll count as one of his direct subordinates. I can train alongside the senior brothers and sisters from Qingfeng Temple who joined before me, and we can look after one another. A-Hui, what do you think? Do you think I should go?" The more Chen Zhishen thought about it, the more suitable it seemed.

"Sounds pretty good." Lin Hui thought for a moment before replying. "Second Senior Brother is probably using his family's resources to cultivate his own power. You mastered the Seven Section Fast Sword in a little over a year. Your aptitude may not be outstanding, but combined with your diligence, once you become a formal disciple, you won't be among the worst. You're worth recruiting."

"The monthly wage is five thousand coins! My entire family can earn at most ten thousand in a year! We saved up for so long just for me to study martial arts here. The Zhao family's treatment is so good that I can't help feeling something's off." Chen Zhishen began to hesitate again.

"It's fine. That treatment is normal. After all, you've already begun Body Tempering. You're no longer an ordinary trainee." Lin Hui had noticed the subtle changes in Chen Zhishen. When he raised his hands and moved his feet, he was clearly lighter and quicker than usual.

These were typical signs brought by completing one's first Body Tempering.

Clearly, it was not only Lin Hui whose sword practice grew faster and faster. As others practiced further, their proficiency would rise and their insights would deepen, allowing them to master it at an accelerated pace. Chen Zhishen was one such case.

"Heh, you saw through me. Sigh, it wasn't easy..." Chen Zhishen sighed. "A-Hui, you'll be there soon too, right? When the time comes, why not join the Zhao family as well? We brothers can stick together!"

His eyes brimmed with hope as he looked at Lin Hui.

"I've already signed a bookkeeping contract with Qingfeng Temple. I'll have to stay here for at least five years, so I can't." Lin Hui smiled as he answered.

He was also glad to see Chen Zhishen potentially use this opportunity to escape Chen Chong's retaliation.

"That's such a pity..." Chen Zhishen sighed. "Still, Zhao Family Town, where the Zhao family is located, is only half an hour's walk from here. Senior Brother said that once I join, the work and training won't take up too much time. We get four fixed days off every month, so I can come back to see you often whenever I'm free."

"Oh, right." He suddenly remembered something and fumbled around in his waist pouch. Before long, he pulled out a blackened object.

"This is for you. Don't you like those fragments left behind by the monsters in the Mist Zone? I picked up some whenever I had the chance too. This is the most intact and largest fragment out of all the ones I found. It's for you."