Decaying World-Chapter 42

Mist Barbarians were often believed to be former humans transformed by the erosion of the mist. However, after killing a few, Lin Hui realized this theory was nonsense. He had discovered unfamiliar characters carved onto the equipment worn by these creatures.
It was a completely unique script—ancient and seemingly incomplete.
Traces like these were enough to prove that these monsters belonged to some non-human race.
It was just that these once-intelligent beings now retained only their killing instincts, reduced to Harmless-level monsters.
However, the four-armed one before him might already be approaching the Intrusive level...
Roar!!
Just then, the four-armed Mist Barbarian accelerated abruptly. It stomped and charged, rushing toward Lin Hui with the savage momentum of a heavy rhinoceros.
….
In the distance, in another direction.
Amidst the hazy mist, two blurry figures gradually emerged in front of Mingde’s wooden hut.
As they approached and their forms clarified, they were revealed to be the old woman and the young woman Lin Hui had encountered before entering.
"Grandma, there's a temporary safe house ahead. It was likely built by nearby hunters. Should we go in and rest for a bit?"
The cold-faced young woman surveyed the wooden hut and asked softly for instructions.
The old woman carefully observed the footprints on the surrounding ground.
"We can. The only martial hall nearby is Clear Wind Temple; they must have built it. We’ll go in to rest and borrow the space for a moment, and resupply while we're at it."
Such temporary safe houses were generally open for hunters in the mist zone to borrow—a form of mutual aid among humans.
However, after borrowing, one had to replenish any consumable supplies used so the next group could utilize them. This was the tacit understanding among hunters.
"Okay." The young woman nodded.
The two had just killed over a dozen One-Horned Spiders along the way and were somewhat exhausted. It was a good time to go inside and rest.
Soon, the two women crossed the yard, arrived at the wooden hut, and pulled open the door.
The first thing they saw made them freeze.
It was a large leather bag, stuffed so full that the contents were nearly spilling out—black crystals. At a glance, there were at least thirty pieces inside!
"So many black crystals??! Who hunted these and temporarily stored them here!" The old woman’s face lit up with joy as she quickly looked left and right, tightening her grip on the Tranquil Incense in her hand.
The young woman, Wan'er, was also stunned.
Her goal for this hunt was to collect enough monster materials to serve as proof for her family, allowing her to stand out among her many siblings and gain a higher inheritance ranking.
Since the family had moved here from Xingdao, occupying more and larger fields and shops, branch members like them—who originally had no right to divide the property—now qualified to compete for some of the storefronts.
This grand competition used monster materials as proof, comparing quantities to verify the strength of one’s branch.
This competition wasn't limited to personal strength, but was a comprehensive test of financial power and manpower.
The only condition was that the monster materials couldn't be too old; they had to be hunted within the last two
shichen
(four hours) to count as valid proof.
Seeing so many black crystals now, Wan'er's eyes trembled.
She had practiced her family's martial arts for over ten years, but even combining forces with her grandmother, it was unlikely they could find this many materials within two
shichen
.
It wasn't just a matter of martial attainment; their killing efficiency simply wasn't fast enough.
"They must have been killed by an expert from Clear Wind Temple. They excel in speed. Judging by the luster of these crystals, almost all of them were dug out within the last
shichen
." The old woman stepped forward, using her cane to gently prod a crystal for inspection.
"Clear Wind Temple... the Tuyue martial hall that was crushed by Song Zhanlong of the Black Dragon Gate?" Wan'er asked, narrowing her eyes as a scheme faintly formed within them.
"Mn. Why? You have an idea?" The old woman looked at Wan'er.
"What is the value of these crystals?" Wan'er asked softly.
"About thirty-something pieces. There are two rare-quality ones inside. Calculating it, it’s around one hundred thousand coins. Just take them. That way, your progress will be much faster than the others." The old woman smiled, guessing the other's intent.
"One hundred thousand coins is a lot, but... is it worth it?" Wan'er shook her head.
"What’s not worth it? Clear Wind Temple barely has a few stray cats left. Even if they know we took it, what can they do? They should be grateful enough just to survive. They can’t even handle the Black Dragon Gate; would they dare create new problems?" The old woman sneered. "Besides, every coin you have right now needs to be spent where it counts most—used entirely to purchase fresh monster materials to boost your score. Or did you plan to save money to buy them later?"
"True." Wan'er sighed and nodded.
Immediately, the two quickly packed the crystals back into the bag and tied it shut. The old woman carried it as they left the wooden hut, re-entering the mist and vanishing.
Approximately twelve minutes after they left.
Lin Hui emerged from the mist, carrying a slap-sized piece of thick black keratin. He returned silently to the door of the wooden hut.
"Hm? Someone was here?"
He looked down at the fresh footprints of two people on the ground. Squatting, he analyzed them with simple identification methods taught by his master.
"They haven't been gone long. Two women, or children. Children can't enter this kind of mist zone, so it must be women..."
Standing up, Lin Hui carried the materials and pulled open the door.
With a soft creak, he saw the bare floorboards inside. The leather bag that had just been full of crystals was gone without a trace.
Lin Hui's expression changed.
He had actually worried about this for a long time. Before, his teacher had been watching, so he hadn't worried about materials being lost. Now that he was acting alone, a problem had indeed occurred.
Walking out of the wooden hut, he gazed at the gray, hazy mist outside, his face dark.
He hadn't learned tracking skills; even his teacher was only half-proficient. Simple footprint identification was okay, but for actually chasing people, it was useless.
Clearly, he had to swallow this loss in silence.
‘The thieves must have run far by now. Pity... Next time, I'll need to find a hidden, secure spot to stash my materials, or perhaps find a companion to keep watch.’
Lin Hui suppressed the unhappiness in his heart. Carrying the four-armed Mist Barbarian's material, he circled the wooden hut, rapidly unfolding his movement technique in a hopeless search for the thief.
Circle after circle, constantly expanding the range.
He hadn't expected much, but unexpectedly, about two hundred meters to the northwest of the hut, he discovered two lines of fresh footprints.
Following the footprints, mere minutes later, Lin Hui slowed down, looking ahead.
A massive cavity in the mist appeared before him—a safe zone formed by the dispersal of mist after igniting Tranquil Incense.
It meant someone ahead was burning Tranquil Incense.
He discovered the two people, and they discovered him at the same time.
Both sides stopped in unison, locking eyes.
Lin Hui saw at a glance the leather bag held by the two women—it was identical to the one he had emptied to hold the black crystals.
"I wonder where the bag in your hands came from?" He stood still, asking in a deep voice.
"Someone from Clear Wind Temple?" The old woman reached out to stop Wan'er, who wanted to speak, and spoke first.
"It would be better for you two to answer my question first," Lin Hui said cautiously. Although his strength had greatly increased, how many weaklings could enter the mist zone to hunt?
Being a little careful wasn't wrong. What if the opponents just happened to have a bag that looked exactly like his lost one?
Better to confirm it wasn't a misunderstanding first.
"We borrowed this bag from a temporary wooden hut just now. Why? Why does our young friend ask this?" The old woman asked in return.
"Then did you two see the thirty-plus black crystals I packed inside the bag?" Lin Hui asked again.
"Crystals? These crystals were all hunted painstakingly by the two of us. When we borrowed it earlier, this was an empty bag." The old woman smiled.
Getting them to admit to theft was impossible. This was the mist zone; never mind taking a few things, even killing to silence witnesses was a common occurrence.
When the opponent didn't deny being from Clear Wind Temple, the old woman solidified her plan to forcibly keep this bag of crystals.
Clear Wind Temple's movement speed was fast, but their lethality was too weak. Aside from running fast, they were truly useless.
Previously, their hall had been kicked down by a single person from the Black Dragon Gate and collapsed rapidly. If they couldn't even beat the Black Dragon Gate, how could they contend with the Wei family, who was a cut above the Black Dragon Gate?
"You two, saying such things is meaningless." Lin Hui was now certain that the crystals in the bag were the ones he had hunted earlier. He immediately stepped closer, one stride at a time.
"A joke. Who can prove you hunted these crystals? Clearly, we two hunted them ourselves," the old woman sneered. "Kid from Clear Wind Temple, speak with evidence. Your sect split into three branches and still hasn't learned its lesson?"
"But I feel that those are my things," Lin Hui said in a deep voice. "You two..."
"Is your master Mingchen, Mingxiu, or Mingde?" The old woman raised her voice. "Boy, before you speak, think carefully about the consequences."
Lin Hui fell silent.
Looking at the bag in the two women's hands, various speculations flashed through his mind. Finally, he let out a light sigh.
"Fine. Perhaps I was mistaken. Apologies."
He slowly backed away, quietly disappearing into the mist, retreating completely.
Seeing the person leave, the old woman and Wan'er turned and continued deeper into the mist.
"If we want to rank in the top three, we need to hunt at least fifty more monsters for materials. Adding the parts acquired with money later, we might barely make the minimum," the old woman said gravely.
"Yes, Grandma." Wan'er nodded.
"The only dangerous place here is the Yanshan area. As long as we don't encounter mutated variants in the rest of the range, you and I can basically solve them easily. We need to speed up next," the old woman urged.
The two walked along their current direction. But they hadn't gone far when heavy footsteps suddenly echoed from ahead.
Thump, thump.
A four-armed Mist Barbarian roared in a low voice, wielding four giant wooden clubs, waving them wantonly as it approached from the side.
This was a mutated variant, its strength a large cut above the ordinary Harmless-level barbarian.
"Be careful, this variant is almost close to Intrusive level. I'll hold the line for you; you try first!" The old woman said in a deep voice.
"Okay." Wan'er gripped her dual knives, stepping forward, ready to strike.
Hiss.
Suddenly, a faint hiss came from behind the two.
Accompanying the sound was yet another four-armed Mist Barbarian!
It seemed to be chasing something, rushing out of the mist and lunging straight at the two women.
"Careful!" The old woman's expression changed slightly, and she shouted lowly. "I'll handle the one behind, you take the front!"
But before her voice fell, another four-armed Mist Barbarian roared and charged out from the right!
Roar!!
At the same time, three four-armed Mist Barbarians lunged at the two from three directions.
This sudden, drastic change caused the expressions of both women to shift drastically, their hearts sinking.
Meanwhile, in the distance relative to their position, on the branch of a tall, withered black tree.
Lin Hui squatted quietly, listening silently to the roars of the barbarians and the clash of blades from that direction.
This was a test and also a trial.
If the two really had the strength to pass the trial, giving them a few mere crystals wouldn't matter.
But if they couldn't pass...
Lin Hui gently gripped his sword hilt, fingers rubbing against the rough anti-slip wrapping.
"Since you dared to threaten me openly, challenging the entire Clear Wind Temple, your strength must be truly impressive..."
"As an apology for accusing you, let me offer you three gifts as compensation..."
He raised his head, listening to the sounds of the engagement beginning ahead.
If the opponent can withstand this compensation, fine. But if they can't...