Thoughts (I)

After sorting through the materials and packing them into a concealed cloth sack, Lin Hui dragged the bag with him early the next morning, took a day off, and headed into town.

Xinyu Town was not large. Only a few crisscrossing streets formed its center. The streets seemed bustling with people coming and going, but most were farmers and peddlers from the surrounding areas. Every so often, a passing merchant caravan would come through, drawing a flock of children chasing after it to watch.

That was probably the freshest thing this place had to offer.

Qingfeng Temple's recent upheaval and decline was also one of Xinyu Town's greatest events of the past decade.

As for the various accidents and dangers from before, people here were long accustomed to them. Such things cropped up every now and then as a matter of course.

Lin Hui carried his materials around the town's few streets several times, but failed to find a suitable place to sell them.

The only shops on the street that barely fit the bill were the town's two pawnshops. Yet if he went to either of them, it would be far too easy to leave a trail.

After all, these materials included a mutated Four-Armed Barbarian. Monster materials of that level could easily expose his true strength.

Left with no choice, he decided to sell off some of the lower-grade materials first.

One-Horned Spiders and Thousand-Foot Eyeballs—selling a few of these weaker, harmless-level monsters would not amount to much.

Low-grade materials were much easier to handle. He found a channel his master had previously given him—the Illusion Restaurant.

It was a high-end restaurant located in the center of town. Its owner was said to come from the Inner City and not belong to any of the town's major clans. His background was mysterious, and any kind of material could be sold here, though the prices were comparatively low.

However, Mingde was friends with the manager here and had once helped him greatly in his darkest days. Therefore, disciples under Mingde could sell materials here at market price.

In the appraisal room of the dim yellow restaurant, the manager, Huang Shangying, smiled as he stroked his beard and examined the pile of materials on the table.

"Not bad. They're fresh, and the crystalline bodies are good quality—none have spoiled. There are even three pieces of superior quality in here. How about a total of one hundred seventy thousand?"

"Thank you, Manager Huang!" Lin Hui said with cupped fists.

"No need for thanks. A fair trade, with both sides willing." Manager Huang smiled approvingly. "The fact that you still refuse to leave your master's school even now speaks to your character. Your master and I have been close friends for many years. Though I know nothing of martial arts, come find me whenever there is something I can help with!"

"On behalf of my master, Lin Hui thanks you, Manager!" Lin Hui cupped his fists again, his expression sincere.

"Enough with the speaking on each other's behalf. Just tell your master to come drink with me when he has time. When a man gets old, there isn't much he enjoys anymore. Only a little drink now and then still makes for decent amusement," Huang Shangying said with a laugh.

Having said that, he suddenly seemed to remember something. He glanced around, then lowered his voice. "Right. Another team from the Inner City recently entered Swallow Mountain to explore, but they came back with terrible casualties. Seven out of ten were lost. The black fog may be approaching, and the season suitable for exploration is nearly over. Exploration teams have been heading out especially often lately. Qingfeng Temple happens to sit beside one of the routes used to enter and leave the exploration grounds—North Wind Forest Path, was it? Be careful. If you run into powerful members of an exploration team, keep well away."

"Black fog?" Lin Hui searched through his memories and recalled that his father had mentioned black fog when he was little, though he had never explained it in detail.

"Manager, may I ask what exactly this black fog is? Everyone says it's dangerous, but dangerous in what way?" he asked softly.

"The black fog is a kind of natural disaster. It appears at irregular intervals. You're young, and you didn't often come into contact with the Mist Zone outside before, so naturally you wouldn't know. Let me explain it properly." Huang Shangying paused to gather his thoughts before continuing.

"The black fog is when the fog concentration in the Mist Zone rises sharply within a short period, turning black. Its toxicity and corrosiveness both increase tremendously. Even Ning Xiang cannot hold out for long at such times. And once this black fog touches someone, they will contract insect sickness. The incubation period is long. Over time, those infected gradually become neurotic, irritable, and prone to madness. In the end, they start killing people and attacking civilians everywhere. Their bodies also become diseased and fester."

Lin Hui's expression changed slightly.

"Is there medicine to treat it?"

"Of course there is, but only the Inner City has it, and it is extremely expensive. Ordinary people in the Outer City can only rely on Wanfu Meat to resist insect sickness, but you know the drawbacks of Wanfu Meat as well." Huang Shangying sighed and did not continue.

Wanfu Meat was, in truth, nothing more than drinking poison to quench thirst.

A chill ran through Lin Hui's heart. Just then, he heard a commotion outside. He turned his head slightly and looked out the window beside him.

Below the second-floor window of the restaurant, a sedan chair from the Inner City was slowly passing down the street, forcing carriages, horses, and pedestrians alike to move aside in fear and deference. Some civilians who were too slow to yield were even whipped by the Martial Artists clearing the way before the sedan chair.

The gap in status between the Inner City and the Outer City was laid bare in all its cruel fullness at that moment.

"The black fog season generally lasts two or three months. Before it ends, ordinary people cannot enter or leave. During that time, the city will also be short of a great deal of materials and monster meat. So I'm not losing out by taking this batch of materials from you. If I stockpile them, then once the black fog season arrives, I can raise the price and sell them to the Inner City." Huang Shangying pinched his beard. "If you have more materials in the future, bring them all to me. I'll raise your price by ten percent!"

"Alright!" Lin Hui nodded in agreement.

"Oh, and if there is anything you want from the Inner City, I can purchase it for you as well," Huang Shangying continued.

"What good goods does the Inner City have?" Lin Hui truly did not know much about that. His Old Man had only supplied oil to the Inner City in the past and had not had many chances to enter it.

In his childhood memories, the Inner City had been mysterious, towering, and imposing, inhabited by people with wealth and power. Occasionally, his father would bring him some novel little toy, such as a rattle drum that beat on its own or a blue little fish pendant that glowed automatically at midnight.

Beyond that, he knew nothing.

"The Inner City... it has plenty of good things." Huang Shangying sighed with feeling. "Clothing, food, housing, travel, entertainment—everything there is more than a level above what is outside. The resources and supplies sent in from outside can only be sold there after processing, as the most ordinary, or even inferior, goods."

He turned and took something from a drawer beneath the counter.

It was a feather from some unknown bird, entirely sky-blue. Within its shaft, a pale blue viscous liquid seemed to be flowing.

"This is Feather Blood from the Inner City. One feather is worth anywhere between five hundred thousand and eight hundred thousand cash. Even then, it is a sought-after item with demand exceeding supply. Do you know what it is used for?"

"I don't..." Lin Hui shook his head, his eyes fixed on the Feather Blood. He could sense an inexplicable radiation emanating from it.

It was like standing close to a blazing red stove in winter—every hair on his body faintly stood on end. The sensation was exceptionally clear.

"This is a bloodline extract possessed by the vast majority of Inner City residents. Or rather, it is the threshold for becoming a true Inner City resident. Outer City people can become Inner City residents by buying a house and proof of identity, but after entering, you must continue spending money to buy this, inject it into yourself, and raise the proportion of Feather Blood in your body. Otherwise..."

He let out a sigh.

"Otherwise, you will only be eliminated in the Inner City."

"Why? Could there be some troublesome danger in the Inner City?" Lin Hui narrowed his eyes, curiosity stirring within him.

"Have you ever considered this? Since the Inner City possesses a force capable of keeping out the fog, can ordinary people truly remain unharmed simply by being closer to that force? Can they avoid paying any price or suffering any effects at all?" Huang Shangying sighed.

"..." Lin Hui understood at once. This Feather Blood was perhaps something akin to medicine that counteracted the Inner City's radiation, requiring long-term injections to maintain.

"The Summoned don't need it. Many Inner City residents have Summoned ancestors themselves, so they don't need it either. But once the concentration of Summoned bloodline falls below thirty percent, they must purchase this item. Otherwise... they'll be eliminated and driven out to the Outer City," Huang Shangying said in a low voice.

Lin Hui's heart tightened. A new label had been added to his impression of the Inner City.

Cruelty.

"And if this item is injected in advance outside the city, it can slowly raise the concentration of Summoned bloodline within one's body. If enough is injected to reach over thirty percent, one can easily obtain Inner City residency," Huang Shangying said calmly. "There's no need to meet rigid requirements such as buying a house or proving one's identity."

"Then, may I ask, sir, how many injections would be needed...?"

"I don't know either. But without ten or twenty doses, don't even dream of it. And after entering the Inner City, the bloodline will slowly decline as well. You'll have to keep injecting fresh Feather Blood without interruption."

"Even Inner Strength Realm Martial Artists need it?"

"The same."

Lin Hui fell silent.

Next, Huang Shangying showed him several unique products of the Inner City.

Exquisitely shaped pastries, protective talismans said to grant blessings, black mushrooms covered in honeycomb holes and reeking of a pungent odor, tiny jade-white human skulls no larger than eggs...

They gave Lin Hui an even newer impression of the Inner City.

Half an hour later, he finally left the Illusion Restaurant. He went home to take a look, only to find that his parents were absent, and the shop was guarded by only a newly hired young girl. Apparently, they had gone to restock.

With no other choice, Lin returned to Qingfeng Temple.

Along the way, he once again saw those strange children's temples that cropped up from time to time.

In Xinyu Town alone, he encountered three of them along the road.

Before these temples gathered vagrants with listless expressions and vacant eyes.

A faint, diseased stench of decay clearly emanated from their bodies.

Lin Hui had seen plenty of that scent before, when he had cleared out the boundary zone.

After returning to his little courtyard in one breath, he set down the exchanged silver notes and hid the remaining Four-Armed Barbarian materials before going out to join the sword practice.

Yet as he practiced swordsmanship now, the image of that Feather Blood kept flashing through his mind, no matter how hard he tried to suppress it.

For several days in a row, he pondered whether entering the Inner City was truly the right choice for ensuring safety. If his foundation was not solid enough, perhaps even after entering the Inner City, he would ultimately still be eliminated and driven out.

Feather Blood was the key to that.

Just as he was immersed in his hesitation over whether to enter the Inner City, on the fourth day, the first move of the Clear Sword Technique finished evolving.

Spring rain fell in an unbroken drizzle, slanting down in even lines over the training ground in the rear courtyard of Qingfeng Temple.

Lin Hui stood beneath a tree with his sword in hand. He looked as though he were resting, but in truth, after finishing his Body Tempering, he was checking his own status information.

As he grew increasingly adept at using the Blood Seal, he could now easily arrange the information he possessed within it into a unified status display for viewing.

Lines of blood-red writing continuously emerged and reflected at the bottom of his field of vision.

Lin Hui--

Martial Arts Mastered: Perfect Seven Section Fast Sword, Perfect Nine Section Fast Sword. Clear Sword Technique (Incomplete)

Abilities Mastered: Sealing Array Toxin.

Items Possessed:...

This status panel only displayed things that had evolved through the Blood Seal; anything that had not undergone Blood Seal evolution was not shown.

Lin Hui focused his attention on the Clear Sword Technique entry and lightly simulated a tap.

Hiss.

The option expanded.

The first move of the Clear Sword Technique, Boundless Wind Direction, has finished evolving. (The Body Tempering effect will undergo an overall evolution after all eighty-one moves have completed their evolution.)

After reading the Blood Seal's explanation, Lin Hui was not disappointed. In any case, he had yet to temper the Seven Section Fast Sword to its limit, so there was no hurry for now.

Looking around, he saw that most people had already left. Those ordinary students who had enrolled only to practice casually had finished class and gone to eat.