The Decaying World

The three pillars were smooth, rising from the ground as if they had grown out of it. Their crystalline material was translucent, and inside, fine threads of crystal were slowly growing toward the three sealed members of the Three Islands Alliance.

These threads gradually bound the three, causing their struggles to become slower and more panicked.

After half a minute, the three were completely immobilized, as silent and still as statues.

But everyone present was an expert and could instantly sense that the Heart and Spirit of the three within were still fluctuating.

This meant they were still alive.

Lin Hui walked over and lightly tapped the surface of the crystal.

KNOCK KNOCK.

It was very hard, with a slight chill.

"They won’t be able to break out, will they?" Gongsun Xinlian asked.

"I’m not sure. This is a Seal Technique I just recently created through my own insights. If you’re worried, you can give it a try. See if you can break the crystal," Lin Hui replied. In truth, he was also curious about just how strong the crystal was.

Seeing that it was only a seal and not a fatal blow, the shock everyone felt diminished significantly. After all, some powerful Evil Energies could indeed seal an opponent for a period of time.

Even Zhang Yao’s own Evil Energy could permanently seal a portion of an enemy’s power. In essence, it was similar to the ability Lin Hui was now displaying.

So, seeing the three crystal pillars manifest with the three from the Three Islands Alliance still alive inside, everyone felt inexplicably calmer.

Even Zhang Yao and Gongsun Xinlian, who were on Lin Hui’s side, felt a sense of relief.

"There’s no need to test it. We trust the Daoist Master’s word. Since the three Alliance Leaders of the Three Islands Alliance have no further objections, our previous dispute is settled. As for all of you..." Zhang Yao looked toward the six Fog People from the Three Islands Alliance.

Those who had rushed to join the Three Islands Alliance upon arriving at the Black Cloud were either overly ambitious or simply restless by nature. As a group, the Fog People were, in essence, inferior to the Palace Masters who had climbed the ranks step by step as Martial Arts prodigies.

This was because a large portion of the Fog People owed their success to luck.

The selection process for the Evil Soldier Insect Scripture wasn’t something you could pass just by fighting your way out of an encirclement.

Nor could you pass simply by having a noble bloodline or immense talent.

Breaking out of the encirclement was merely a prerequisite. The true test was the Evil Soldier Insect Scripture’s own internal trial, which had an extremely high mortality rate.

The six of them glanced at the crystal pillars and finally dropped their objections.

Seeing Lin Hui’s relaxed and detached demeanor, they knew that if he could seal their three Alliance Leaders, he could certainly seal them as well.

The six immediately cupped their fists, one after another, expressing their willingness to follow the two leaders’ arrangements.

And just like that, a conflict that had nearly erupted into internal strife was resolved.

After Zhang Yao placated the remaining Fog People and sent them back to their residences, he and Gongsun Xinlian returned to the Moon Tower to examine the three crystal pillars still standing in the great hall.

"May I give it a try?" Gongsun Xinlian asked, curiously stroking the crystal pillar that held Shen Zhaoming, the Alliance Leader of the Three Islands Alliance.

"Be my guest." Lin Hui nodded.

CLANG!

The next moment, Gongsun Xinlian viciously struck the pillar with her bare hands, striking its center with her hands clasped together.

This was to keep the pillar from being sent flying across the floor.

The immense, concussive impact echoed, but the sound was quickly carried away by the draft blowing through the hall.

Gongsun Xinlian let go of the pillar. She had already suspected this would be the outcome after seeing Shen Zhaoming’s own frantic, useless attacks from within.

Still, she was thoroughly shocked to see that the crystal’s surface remained completely unscathed.

"This Seal Technique... what is its upper limit?" she asked, turning to Lin Hui.

"I don’t know," Lin Hui answered honestly. Although he had obtained the Seal Technique, he had never actually tested its specific strength, its upper limits, or its lower limits.

He had the infused memories, but that data was from tests conducted in other worlds with different power systems.

How it would actually perform in this world would only become clear with more use in real combat.

Speechless, Gongsun Xinlian turned back to the pillar and unleashed a frantic barrage of strikes.

Ten minutes later, she let out a faint sigh and stopped, finding herself face-to-face with Shen Zhaoming inside the pillar.

While she had been attacking, Shen Zhaoming had been frantically coordinating from the inside, striking the crystal’s inner wall in unison.

But even under attack from both sides, the pillar hadn’t budged an inch. There wasn’t so much as a hairline crack.

This drove Shen Zhaoming to complete despair.

Even Lin Hui was beginning to truly appreciate the sheer dominance of the Eternal Life Sect Leader.

"Daoist Master... where did you draw this sealing substance from? I’ve never even heard of such a material..." Zhang Yao was now marveling at it as well.

"I don’t know either. I was just training, and I suddenly sensed I could do this, so I gave it a try, and it worked," Lin Hui said with a helpless shrug.

Of course, he couldn’t reveal that it was all an evolution of the Blood Seal.

He then stepped forward, placed a hand gently on the pillar, and quietly activated his Blood Seal.

’Celestial Crystal: A crystal formed by the power of the Eternal Life Sect Leader. The Eternal Source Power is a supreme force, and its strength will naturally adjust to the absolute upper limit of its current Realm. It is immune to corrosion, toxins, and all damage except for a direct frontal assault.’

’Method of breaking: Requires a frontal assault with an attack that surpasses the level of Eternal Source Power. Before attacking, one must loudly shout the name of the ability being used and give advance warning, to display one’s honorable and righteous intentions.’

"..." Lin Hui was a bit speechless after reading the appraisal. ’What’s this about loudly shouting the ability’s name? And you have to give a warning beforehand?’

’That’s certainly honorable and righteous, all right.’

In other words, even if it encountered an attack on the level of Eternal Source Power, it couldn’t be broken unless the attack was targeted and righteous.

This perfectly circumvented the possibility of the pillar being broken by accident during a large-scale, area-of-effect attack.

Although Lin Hui had no idea how strong an attack of that level truly was, it didn’t diminish his reverence for the Eternal Life Sect Leader, the master he had never met.

After numerous attempts, the three of them exhausted every means at their disposal, but still couldn’t free the Alliance Leaders of the Three Islands Alliance.

They finally gave up.

After ordering some subordinates to stand guard, the three of them left the Moon Tower and returned to the Second Floating Mountain. There, they drank together and discussed the various major events that had recently occurred. They also needed to carefully deliberate on the future arrangements for the Three Islands Alliance.

After a brief discussion, a newly confident Zhang Yao and Gongsun Xinlian began to sort out the various chaotic elements within the Black Cloud with great fanfare.

Meanwhile, Lin Hui went to continue testing the uses and limits of the Celestial Father Seal.

He flew away from the Black Cloud, skimming at a low altitude over the nearby sea.

Vast expanses of blue-black seawater churned below, teeming with bizarrely shaped Sea Beasts. They were wreathed in the stench of rot and brine, and all of them showed subtle signs of the Sea Roaring Transformation.

These signs mostly manifested as rot on prominent parts of their bodies, the appearance of gill-like organs on their faces, or growths of white bone that even pierced through their skin, creating open wounds.

The Sea Roaring Transformation made the already irregular and bizarre sea monsters even more grotesque.

They looked like chaotic, foul-smelling masses of excrement and vomit bobbing in the blue-black seawater.

Lin Hui flew onward, his gaze sweeping over the monsters swarming below like ants.

’First, I’ll test its maximum activation speed.’

With a single thought, his Heart and Spirit rapidly wove the Seal Technique.

HSSS!

The next instant, a large swath of Sea Beasts below turned to crystal and sank into the sea.

In a single moment, hundreds of Sea Beasts afflicted by the Sea Roaring Transformation were sealed.

But Lin Hui frowned.

’A bit slow. Just as I thought. Activating it purely with my Heart and Spirit is slower than using a sword or some other physical medium.’

He then continued flying onward, sealing everything in his path without pause.

Wherever he passed, the Sea Beasts turned into dense clusters of white, translucent crystals and sank into the deep sea.

But soon, he felt a profound exhaustion welling up in his mind.

’The drain is also significant. I can only sustain it continuously for a little over ten minutes. During that time, however, the number of seals is unlimited. I can leverage this by casting as quickly as possible, indirectly increasing the number of uses.’

Finally, he tested the most crucial aspect: the symbol.

After three attempts, he was beginning to understand how to use the Celestial Father Seal.

The basic principle of this Seal Technique was to construct an activation symbol with one’s Heart and Spirit. Whoever the symbol touched would be sealed.

In theory, a successful activation could forcibly seal any enemy, no matter how powerful.

But in practice, there were a few subtle limitations.

First, the target had to be hostile toward him.

Second, there was the matter of speed. If the target dodged the activation symbol before contact, the seal would fail. And from his perspective, the activation wasn’t particularly fast; he would still need to personally intervene to pin down or delay his opponent.

He had figured this out by intentionally slowing down the seal symbol and cautiously approaching a creature.

The third key point was that the technique didn’t instantly lock down the target’s body and mind. This meant that an opponent could potentially threaten him with a final, explosive burst of power in their last moments of struggle.

Lastly, the drain on his Heart and Spirit wasn’t fixed. To be precise, the technique seemed to calibrate its cost based on the strength of the target being sealed.

After careful calculation, he determined the ratio of the target’s strength to his own Heart and Spirit consumption was roughly fifteen to twenty.

If a target’s Heart and Spirit was twenty times stronger than his own, he wouldn’t be able to seal them instantly. He would have to continuously output and recover his own Heart and Spirit just to initiate the seal.

’Overall, this technique is far superior to Nine Eyes. If I can find some relics that store Heart and Spirit, a successful activation could catch even an opponent far stronger than me off guard. Most importantly, once initiated, the seal is nearly irreversible. It’s the ultimate trump card for an ambush!’

Satisfied, Lin Hui checked the sky, then turned and headed back toward the Black Cloud.

*

*

*

「On Qingfei Mountain.」

「Inside the Gentle Breeze Daoist Monastery.」

In the spacious courtyard, Liu Xiao sat quietly on a stone bench beneath a pear tree, brewing tea for one.

"Has Ah Hui returned yet?" A figure suddenly flashed into view. It was Liu Wu Jun.

Ever since Lin Hui left, he often found himself with free time and would come over to talk with his sister.

"He is destined for great things. The world is in flux, and great powers are shifting. The best we can do is not become a burden to him." Liu Xiao took out another cup and poured one for her brother.

The scalding tea was a clear, vibrant green. It gave off a delicate fragrance as it swirled into the pure white cup, creating a tiny whirlpool.

Liu Wu Jun walked over and sat down opposite her.

"Does he know... about your situation?"

"What if he knows? And what if he doesn’t?" Liu Xiao said calmly.

"..." Liu Wu Jun was silent for a moment. "He’s climbed so high... so high that he might have forgotten how to look down."

After a pause, he added, "You have to tell him. Remind him."

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