Decaying World-Chapter 48

The loose cultivation inheritance model was essentially a master leading five or six apprentices. This model didn't scale for profit and had low resource demands, so it posed no threat to the martial hall system. Because of this, it was no longer targeted by the Xingdao martial halls.
Since it wasn't a martial hall anymore, Mingde no longer relied on tuition as his main income. When short on money, he would go to Wang Yun's Wang family to work part-time as hired muscle. After all, he was in the Internal Force Realm. Even if the Clear Wind Sword was a bit weak, he was a genuine Internal Force expert; earning some food money was effortless.
The students scattered further. Only Lin Hui, Little Hu, and Little Fatty remained to practice the sword seriously.
Seeing that Weiwei didn't come to teach much, the initial enthusiasm of the others quickly faded, and they withdrew one after another. In the end, only six or seven people remained, treating sword practice as an idle physical exercise, barely persisting.
By this point, the true Clear Wind Sword Sect effectively consisted of only Lin Hui, Weiwei, Little Hu, and Little Fatty—four people. Wang Yun also returned to her family and no longer came often.
As time passed, the Black Mist period passed quietly, and the season entered summer.
The evolution of Lin Hui's Clear Wind Sword was nearly half complete. His Body Tempering had reached the peak of the 9th Rank. This meant he had finally reached the limit of the Seven-Section Swift Sword. The next step—using the Clear Wind Sword for Body Tempering—could only happen after the Clear Wind Sword Technique evolved.
Due to the Black Mist period, Lin Hui hadn't hunted for materials in the mist zone for a long time. He had been living off his savings. But regardless, he persisted daily, practicing the sword continuously through wind, sun, and rain. This gradually made his parents view his sword practice as physical exercise, and they no longer tried to dissuade him as before.
Since the establishment of the Xingdao martial halls, the newly formed New Martial Alliance had thoroughly stabilized the entire martial arts market in Tuyue. The environment stabilized rapidly. Boundaries between martial halls were clearly defined; the open and secret infighting of the past ceased, and profits were portioned out distinctly.
Consequently, the entire market solidified completely. Seeing no hope, Mingde and Weiwei rarely practiced the sword anymore. Occasionally, passing by the drill grounds and seeing Lin Hui still persisting, they also felt he was practicing for exercise, rather than with his initial seriousness.
In the blink of an eye, it was August.
Clear Wind Sword Sect Drill Grounds
Lin Hui led Little Hu and Little Fatty, waving longswords gently together. Resembling a health exercise, their movements were graceful and eye-catching.
Since abandoning the martial hall business, the Clear Wind Sword Sect had unexpectedly made a splash in the elderly health exercise market not long ago. Because when Lin Hui taught Little Hu and Little Fatty using the Perfected Seven-Section Swift Sword, its graceful posture and unhurried movements attracted two old men who came to the former site of Clear Wind Temple to relax.
The old men became interested and tried to learn. The result spiraled out of control. Upon returning home, they found their health had improved, and some old ailments had been alleviated significantly.
Thus, the elderly spread the word amongst themselves. Five or six arrived in one go, unexpectedly building a reputation for the "Clear Wind Sword Sect Elderly Wellness Class." These elderly people were mostly from well-off families. Plus, with the Outer City becoming more peaceful and stable recently, they couldn't handle the fatigue of real martial arts training.
But the Perfected Seven-Section Swift Sword of the Clear Wind Sword Sect—this slow version modified for demonstrating to Little Hu—suited them perfectly.
At this moment on the drill grounds, after demonstrating three times and answering detailed posture questions for two old men, Lin Hui walked toward Weiwei on the side.
"Senior Sister, didn't you go out to stock goods with Senior Sister Wang Yun? How do you have time to come here?" Lin Hui asked softly, pulling a towel from the wooden rack to wipe his sweat.
Now, Weiwei and Master Mingde mainly followed the Wang family, living as semi-guest elders. Weiwei guarded Wang Yun, and Master Mingde would step in to fight when the Wang family needed it, acting as a stabilizing force for his disciple's business. After all, as an Internal Force expert, handling the Wang family's affairs was no problem. Besides, the Wang family didn't rely solely on one Internal Force expert; it was just that Wang Yun's branch lacked one.
"Just got back, on break. You're still practicing? Sister Yun wants to take me to Lushan Lake in two days to attend the Lushan Fair. Are you going? She bought entry quotas for all of us," Weiwei said softly.
As his Senior Sister, she had watched Lin Hui persist in practicing the Clear Wind Sword Technique silently without missing a day. Regardless of the rumors outside, such perseverance gradually gave her a better impression of Lin Hui. Although she didn't approve of this behavior, she still respected people with such perseverance.
Especially since the Clear Wind Sword Sect had turned into this so-called wellness class, finding a new path and unexpectedly carving out a sliver of hope. It was just that this hope wasn't what she and her father wanted.
"The fair at Lushan Lake? What is it for?" Lin Hui asked.
"To make connections and see if there's anyone you like," Weiwei laughed. "You're nineteen, too. Apart from practicing martial arts every day, don't you have a girl you like?"
"Practicing the sword already takes up a lot of my time; I have no spare energy to care for others," Lin Hui shook his head.
"Fine, I knew it," Weiwei sighed.
"However, in a few days, I might really have to go out," Lin Hui suddenly changed the subject.
"Go out? Where?" Weiwei paused.
"The Black Mist has dispersed. It's a good time to go find some materials," Lin Hui replied.
"You're going to the mist zone? Be careful. Is it necessary to take such risks now?" Weiwei frowned.
"It's alright. Actually, my dad needs manpower for protection while stocking goods," Lin Hui replied.
During this time, his father, Lin Shunhe, had opened two more branch stores, expanding extremely fast. He had also brought in two powerful shareholders. With connections in both the official and gray circles, the business was booming.
Although this was partly due to the modern business ideas Lin Hui occasionally gave his dad—like membership cards, points redemption, lucky draws, and so on—the key was still Lin Shunhe's high profitability, strong capability, and extremely accurate judgment of the market.
"Your family really is..." Weiwei had also heard about the changes in Lin Hui's family. It was truly changing day by day.
They had now opened branches in several other towns and even launched a new business model called the "united supermarket," which quickly gained popularity. Lin Hui watched with complicated feelings as his family, who had fallen to ordinary status just two years prior, was now unexpectedly on the verge of regaining their position as wealthy second-generation heirs...
Speaking of his dad, Lin Hui was also speechless. He had just casually mentioned a few suggestions, and as a result, the family income rapidly swelled from ten thousand a month to over two hundred thousand, maybe even more.
His dad's general store quickly changed to a supermarket model, expanding the operation massively. Relying on flexible tactics and strong market-grasping ability, the new Lin Family Shanhe Supermarket had formed a good reputation in several surrounding towns.
And the connections, relationships, and background pulled in behind Lin Shunhe became increasingly substantial. A blessing in disguise—after his fall, he had reflected deeply and summarized many lessons, which he now applied one by one.
Not long ago, when Lin Hui returned home, his mother told him that his father had paid a hefty price, purchased lavish gifts, and personally visited again to seek forgiveness from that powerful Patron from the past. Through these efforts, he managed to regain the franchise rights from that person. With this regained support, Shanhe Supermarket was set to continue its rapid expansion.
Lin Hui himself was a bit dazed. Especially since he inexplicably hadn't reacted yet, only to go home and find himself a rich second-generation. The feeling was somewhat speechless.
"Speaking of which, do you really not consider switching to cultivate the Yuanshan Sword?" Weiwei's inquiry pulled Lin Hui back from his thoughts.
The Yuanshan Sword was a special defense-oriented sword technique she had found separately. This sword technique was also passed down by an External Style expert from Xingdao.
"That's not necessary. My abilities—and my time—are both limited. Practicing like this is good enough. Besides, our family's situation isn't what it used to be. Just last time I went home, my dad had actually hired two experts to guard our courtyard," Lin Hui remarked.
"I heard about them. The Steel Fist Brothers, right? They're also from Xingdao, and both are External Style experts at the limit of Body Tempering. They excel in combined attacks and are very strong. If not for their age, they probably wouldn't have come from Xingdao to mix in the Outer City," Weiwei nodded.
"My dad wants me to come home and learn the business with him. He says I've trained in martial arts enough for now—money is what really matters. With enough money, he can hire Body Tempering experts to handle security whenever he wants; there's no reason for me to put myself through relentless training anymore," Lin Hui said with a sigh. "But honestly, I'm just so used to practicing that I can't bring myself to quit."
"Your dad has money; why do you still run off to hunt materials?" Weiwei asked, puzzled.
"His money is his; mine is mine," Lin Hui answered.
"You're the only son, right? Isn't his yours?"
"My dad is still young. How he uses it is his own business. Maybe I'll inherit it in the future, but those funds will only be mine after I inherit them. It has nothing to do with me now," Lin Hui distinguished clearly.
"You... are really strange," Weiwei shook her head.
"Maybe..." Lin Hui smiled.
"Forget it, let's not talk about this. But there's something you should pay attention to. Recently, many people from the Hundred Flowers Sect have come. They seem to be searching for something in the mist zone behind us. If you encounter them, remember to stay far away," Weiwei instructed.
"Mn, understood." Lin Hui nodded.
Hundred Flowers Sect?
He silently recalled the two people he had killed in the mist zone before. They had the custom markings of the Hundred Flowers Sect on them. Now it seemed the Hundred Flowers Sect had finally realized they couldn't find the people and had traced the clues here.
"There's another thing. You also have to be careful. The Inner City recently sent out a new exploration team. The leader is a person named You Ying from the Rain Palace. If—I mean if—she brings people to the temple to ask about the situation, you must maintain absolute respect. Do not show even a shred of disrespect!"
Weiwei's face went somewhat pale when mentioning this person.
"Is this person very strong?" Lin Hui frowned.
"Inner City Called One. Very strong and extremely cruel. She kills or cripples people at the slightest displeasure. Of course, if you can avoid her in advance, that would be best," Weiwei said.
"Thanks for the reminder," Lin Hui nodded.
"Alright, since you're not going, I'm leaving. I have a premonition that this time I might really find my true love!" Weiwei smiled charmingly, turned, and walked away quickly.
After she walked far away, Little Hu beside him finally couldn't help but speak.
"Senior Brother, why don't you get together with Senior Sister Weiwei? I feel you two are really a good match."
"Kids shouldn't think about these things all the time." Lin Hui patted Little Hu's head.
His master had mentioned it to him before. Originally, when he saw his Senior Sister, there was still a trace of fluctuation, but after discovering she had no such intention, it faded.
Now his daily joy was seeing where the Blood Seal had evolved. Expecting that after the completion of the Perfected Clear Wind Sword Technique, he could break through to the Internal Force Realm in one fell swoop with his second Body Tempering.
Body Tempering could only possibly generate Internal Force from the outside in after truly reaching one's own limit. But this wasn't inevitable. Many people reached the limit of Body Tempering without generating Internal Force.
In Lin Hui's mind, only by breaking through to the Internal Force Realm would he truly possess even the slightest power to protect himself in the Outer City.