Chapter 211: Chapter 201: Rumors (3)
Outer City, Black Mountain Town.
Three members of the Profound Eagle Sect, all wearing black hawk masks, waited in silence.
Before long, a figure flickered into existence beside them at extreme speed. The silhouette belonged to none other than Tao Xuehai, who had just arrived from Xinyu Town.
"Sixth Brother, you’re late," a woman in a black hawk mask said coolly. She was the tallest of the three, and though tall, her figure was exceptionally alluring—a magnificent, full-figured beauty. Even her black robes could not conceal her exquisite curves. She was Xie Xinlan, the leader of the Profound Eagle Sect’s Six Elites.
"I... I’ll be more careful next time." Tao Xuehai was still in low spirits. Ever since he had first heard of the Typhoon Swordsmanship, he had yearned for it. He had placed great hope in this swordsmanship on his trip back.
His master had indeed been generous, holding nothing back and directly teaching him the introductory method.
’A pity...’
He had clearly watched his master personally demonstrate it more than ten times, but when it was his turn, he couldn’t do it at all.
’No... it’s not just that I can’t do it. I can’t even complete a tenth of it.’
The introduction required constructing over a thousand Inner Strength circuits in an instant. But he became dizzy and light-headed, unable to continue, after creating just over a dozen in one go.
The gap was so vast, it drove him to despair.
"Sixth Brother, you went back to Xinyu Town again? Is a mere Martial Artist teacher you once studied under really worth so much of your respect? That place is too close to the Inner City, it’s far too dangerous. You’d best be more careful in the future." Although the man’s voice was rough and boisterous, his words were laced with detailed concern.
The speaker was the second of the Profound Eagle Sect’s Six Elites, Chen Ji. "Thank you for the reminder, but the debt I owe my teacher for his instruction is one I’ll never forget. Besides, Second Brother, you don’t understand. My teacher... he’s no ordinary Martial Artist. He’s very strong," Tao Xuehai said with a nod.
"Very strong? How strong can he be? His cultivation is capped. So what if he can fight above his level in actual combat?" Chen Ji said dismissively. "Lin Hui, the Observatory Master of Qingfeng Temple, the ’Invisible Sword’—I’ve heard the name. But at the absolute most, he’s at the Circulation realm. With our current strength, if we fought him, letting him use a second move would be an insult to the power bestowed upon us by the previous Sect Leader."
"Watch your words, Second Brother." Beneath her mask, Eldest Sister Xie Xinlan’s brow furrowed.
"Fine, fine, I won’t say any more. It’s just that last time, Little Six was nearly surrounded and killed, and that was also after coming back from Xinyu Town. To dare go alone again this time, does he have a death wish? If he dies, so be it, but if it jeopardizes our important mission..."
"Second Brother!" Xie Xinlan cut him off again, her tone now filled with displeasure. "He’s talking nonsense again. Don’t mind him, Sixth Brother," she said, turning to comfort Tao Xuehai.
"I know Second Brother’s temper. It’s fine. He just hasn’t seen my teacher in person. One cannot imagine people or things beyond their own experience, so I understand," Tao Xuehai said calmly, his hand gripping the hilt of his sword.
"Hey, are you calling me stupid?!" Second Brother Chen Ji retorted, annoyed.
"I had no such intention. But if Second Brother insists on thinking so, then I won’t stop you," Tao Xuehai replied flatly.
"Alright, that’s enough, you two." Xie Xinlan was exasperated. "Now that everyone’s here, let’s begin the next step of our plan. While we must avenge our Sect Leader, we also need to consider how to maximize our gains and strengthen the Profound Eagle Sect’s foundation as much as possible. If our sect is to truly enter the top tier, our Cultivation must first advance to a certain level. The Eagle God Statue within our target family will be of immense help to us. Secondly, we need sufficiently powerful replication technology. Our current tech is too weak, its level too low. The replicated effects, once fused, only reach the Circulation realm. If we can raise it to the Priest Level, we can provide our sect’s key members with powerful life-saving methods in the future," she said in a low, serious voice.
"Therefore, this raid on the Lin Family will be our first full-scale assault on a major, well-established clan. The danger is extremely high. Some of us here may be fated to be left there forever. This is no joke, nor is it comparable to the mid-sized families we’ve raided before. So... I’ll ask one more time: are you still going?"
"We go!"
"I’ve long since put aside thoughts of life and death."
"Don’t ask if we’re going. Just tell us where."
The three answers reflected their different personalities, but all meant the same thing.
"Good... If I fall this time, the first in line will take my place. Move out!" Xie Xinlan commanded sharply.
*
*
*
Qingfeng Temple.
The rear residence.
Lin Hui watched Lin Xiaoliu, who was meticulously practicing Basic Sword Techniques in the courtyard, and nodded slightly.
Huang Shan was in charge of Lin Xiaoliu’s training.
Half a year ago, Lin Xiaoliu had started speaking more clearly. To build a foundation for her future entry into the Inner City to complete her Summoner training, the Lin Mansion had unanimously decided to have Lin Hui take charge of her Martial Arts education.
After all, even though Lin Hui’s potential was capped, his comprehension was so high that even the Nine Dreams Sect acknowledged it and sent people to learn from him. The Inspectorate also had personnel come for exchange training year-round.
All of this indicated that the level of Martial Arts at Qingfeng Temple was by no means low.
Furthermore, even Liu Wu Jun had acknowledged that a fast Body Technique was the greatest trump card for survival when facing danger.
Therefore, the entire family had decided that for the two years before she entered the city, Lin Xiaoliu would first come to Qingfeng Temple to train for two years, build a solid foundation in her Body Technique, and only then proceed to the city.
By now, Lin Xiaoliu had grown to be just over a meter tall, not much different from the elementary school students of his previous life.
Under Huang Shan’s guidance, she held a Wooden Sword, looking slightly clumsy as she practiced the most Basic Sword Techniques.
That’s right, she wasn’t yet qualified to learn the Seven-Section Quick Sword. She was only just learning how to properly draw her sword and execute the various Basic Sword Techniques without injuring her wrist.
While watching her train, Lin Hui sat cross-legged on a cattail cushion in a corner of the courtyard, listening to Wang Hongshi report on the current state of their enterprises.
"The location you mentioned is too far away. We’ve only managed one safe supply run, and we were attacked by monsters more than ten times along the way. If not for Senior Sister Xia escorting them, the team would likely lose more than half its members on a single one-way trip," Wang Hongshi said helplessly.
"It’s fine. Xia Si has nothing better to do anyway. It’s good to let her get out and about more. She’s the type who can’t sit still," Lin Hui said calmly.
"But when Senior Sister Xia takes action, she doesn’t hold back at all. She kills without a second thought... What if she runs into serious trouble..." Wang Hongshi was, by nature, honest and cautious. A characteristic of his personality was to always worry about one thing or another.
"Don’t worry about it. I’ll talk to her," Lin Hui said casually. Xia Si was already nearing the completion of her Body Tempering with the Qingfeng Swordsmanship. In just one year, she had not only reached Perfection in the Seven-Section Quick Sword but had almost finished the Qingfeng Swordsmanship as well. She had even condensed her Inner Strength long ago.
Even Lin Hui had to call her a monster when he saw her speed.
The perfect version of the Qingfeng Swordsmanship, combined with Inner Strength, her own innate monstrous strength, powerful physique, and a unique method of movement...
...had created a formidable combatant within Qingfeng Temple who moved like a ghost, whose sword strikes were as fast as lightning, and whose strength was terrifyingly immense.
Now, no one in the sect could defeat her anymore.
That’s right. Just one year after joining, Xia Si had easily crushed all competition in Qingfeng Temple, becoming its undefeated champion.
That’s why whenever Xia Si was mentioned, Wang Hongshi, Chen Sui, and the others all felt a mixture of respect and fear.
They respected her because this nine-year-old child was already helping Qingfeng Temple by escorting caravans, taking on all the most dangerous missions in the settled Fog Areas that no one else wanted.
She wasn’t afraid of death at all. No, it was more like she didn’t even know what death was!
She was always the first to charge whenever she saw a monster.
Often, the battle would be over before the rest of the team even had a chance to react.
"Just tell me about the recent trouble," Lin Hui said, narrowing his eyes as he circulated the Inner Strength within his body. At any time, in any spare moment, he would never give up on his cultivation practice.
"Yes... Junior Sister Qiu Yiren clashed with another party in Huangjia Town. It was due to some lingering resentment from a previous incident. At the time, she was leading a group and dining at the local Yuqing Restaurant when she overheard people at another table discussing Qingfeng Temple and your reputation in a disdainful manner. She flew into a rage on the spot and started a fight with them." Wang Hongshi paused, waiting for Lin Hui to ask a question.
Seeing no questions, he continued.
"After beating them all down, our junior sister left with her people, but they were ambushed on the road by reinforcements the other party had called. A second skirmish began. This time, our opponents were ruthless. Two of our disciples died, three were seriously injured, and fifteen suffered minor injuries. Junior Sister Qiu Yiren was also critically wounded."
"...Why didn’t you tell me sooner?" Lin Hui sighed.
He had been busy pioneering a path through the maze in the Outer Fog Area. He had now found a small path that led some distance into it. Although it only went a few hundred meters deep, it was the result of a whole year’s exhaustive effort.
If not for his Wind Disaster Affinity being so effective, this would have been impossible. Whenever his five senses were clouded, he just had to brush himself with the Wind Disaster Affinity, and his mind would instantly clear, all disturbances dissolving away.
Without it, he might not have been able to find such a safe path even after another ten years of searching.
"You were always leaving early and coming back late. We could never find you... so..." Wang Hongshi said helplessly.
"Let’s go. We’ll go see Yiren together." Lin Hui stood up.
Qiu Yiren had always been his most ardent admirer in Qingfeng Temple, one of his most loyal, die-hard followers.
Now that she was injured, he had to go see her personally, no matter what.
"Yes... It’s just that the location of Junior Sister Yiren’s injury is a bit... indelicate. Actually, part of the reason for the delay is that she specifically asked me not to tell you..." Wang Hongshi whispered.
Lin Hui was speechless. He exchanged a glance with Huang Shan, and from her expression, it was clear she knew about this too. So it seemed he was the only one who had been kept in the dark.
He couldn’t be bothered with pleasantries. He had Wang Hongshi lead the way, and the two went straight to Qiu Yiren’s private courtyard within the temple grounds.
As Qingfeng Temple had grown in size, it had acquired large plots of land from its neighbors and built many more courtyard residences for its disciples.
As one of the top ten disciples, Qiu Yiren was naturally qualified to have one of her own.
Upon entering the courtyard, they saw Qiu Yiren lying face down on a rattan chair. Her robes were lifted, her rear end pointing to the sky, her buttocks wrapped in layers of white bandages.
Evidently, that was where she was injured...
The moment she saw Lin Hui arrive, Qiu Yiren immediately sprang up, pulled down her robes, and stared at them with a flushed face.
"Observatory Master, why are you here!? Why didn’t you say you were coming??"
"I came to see how you were doing. How is it? Are your injuries any better?" Lin Hui asked.
"I’m fine, I’m fine, it’s just a flesh wound! It’s just... Observatory Master, those people from the Hongfei Sect and Ten Thousand Medicine Mountain Villa are disgusting! They were spreading vicious rumors, saying you spend your days randomly humiliating the female disciples of the sect, that all the female members are just your playthings... I couldn’t stand to hear such disgusting words, so I drew my sword and fought them on the spot. If they were just talking about me, I could have endured it, but they expanded it to include the entire Qingfeng Temple! That was just too much! The more I thought about it, the angrier I got..."
"Wait, what do you mean, you ’could have endured it’?" Wang Hongshi coughed twice, quickly trying to prompt his junior sister.
Qiu Yiren instantly realized what she’d said. Her pretty face turned beet red, and she immediately lowered her head, not daring to make a sound.
"..." Lin Hui was at a loss for words. He had known about Qiu Yiren’s feelings for him for a long time. He had just assumed they would fade with time, but now it seemed... ’They haven’t faded at all. In fact, they’ve gotten even more intense...’
"Alright, tell me. Who is behind this? Who dares to make a move against us?" Lin Hui said directly.
