The Decaying World

"Alright... You can just come back with me later." It was rare for Lin Hui to see an individual so lightly affected, so he gave a nonchalant nod.

"Oh, and Daoist Master, if you happen to fancy young, beautiful women, my clan has plenty of turtle-backed maidens I could send to you as handmaidens. Rest assured, they’re completely obedient, and their lifespans are at least ten thousand years!" Seeing Lin Hui agree so readily, Cloud Cleansing quickly started pitching for his clan.

"Turtle-backed maidens..." Lin Hui’s eyelid twitched.

He remembered seeing them in the divine palace before. That image...

The so-called turtle-backed maidens were essentially small sea turtles with the heads of young girls... To make things even more bizarre, their four limbs were those of a sea turtle—thick and powerful. But they never crawled; they walked upright.

And Cloud Cleansing had said that for the females of his clan, beauty was defined by the white whiskers on their chins. The more numerous and dense the whiskers, the greater a beauty she was considered among their people!

"Never mind," Lin Hui refused. "Just bring your people and come back with me. Find a patch of sea nearby to settle in. I’ll arrange a safe zone for you."

"Alas. It seems the ladies are not so fortunate," Cloud Cleansing sighed.

The man and the turtle quickly gathered the remaining items from the divine palace. Lin Hui tossed anything that seemed valuable into the Heart Source Demon Palace.

This was a new function Lin Hui had discovered. As the Heart Source Demon Emperor, he could, with his permission, toss non-living objects inside for storage.

As for living things, he tried experimenting with a sea fish.

But the moment the sea fish entered, it was instantly reduced to a skeleton and fell motionless.

He tried several more times, and the result was always the same. Even when he took the fish back out, it didn’t revive. Clearly, something was amiss inside the Heart Source Demon Palace.

For now, he dared not entertain the thought of bringing his family into the Demon Palace.

After a final sweep of the surroundings, he found that aside from Cloud Cleansing and a few sea turtles from his clan, all the other descendants of the Fog Spirit had fled.

Clearly, the effects of the great change had terrified these descendants of the Fog Spirit.

And once they fled, the other monstrous Sea Beasts that followed them also dispersed.

He had amassed a huge pile of rare and precious treasures, all of which Lin Hui stacked outside the Heart Source Demon Palace, on the floor tiles flanking the entrance.

Then, taking Cloud Cleansing and a dozen or so of his kin, he returned to Black Cloud.

On the way back, he tried to contact Purgatory using the communication sigil their Duke had given him.

But there was no response.

The sigil flickered a few times, then felt as if it were blocked by some thick barrier. He could only vaguely hear a muffled sound coming from the other side, and they couldn’t hear his transmitted voice at all.

After multiple attempts from both sides, it was clear nothing could be done, so they gave up.

After returning to Black Cloud, Lin Hui quickly settled Cloud Cleansing’s clan. He then informed the entirety of Black Cloud City, confirming the clan’s official status.

He even designated a small area of the sea next to the city for them to live in.

And so, the storm gradually subsided.

At least, from Lin Hui’s perspective, it had subsided.

He hadn’t been affected in the slightest. Moreover, none of the disciples of the Clear Wind Dao had suffered any loss of martial strength.

More than a year passed in the blink of an eye.

Liu Xiao made a full recovery, her health completely restored. On Qingfei Mountain, with the exception of a few members of the Original Blood Nobility from Black Cloud’s three lineages who began to decay as their bloodlines regressed, the other disciples—all those of common birth—were perfectly fine.

This situation stood in stark contrast to the outside world, where vast numbers of people were suffering from the regression of their Original Blood and bloodlines.

Consequently, even more people flocked to Qingfei Mountain, hoping to stabilize their power and prolong their lives by practicing the foundational Seven-Section Quick Sword and taking advantage of the mountain’s unique natural environment.

But without exception, they all failed...

"COUGH, COUGH, COUGH..." Inside the Lin Mansion, Lin Shunhe coughed loudly. His body had grown slightly more frail.

"It seems that even I, hiding away on Qingfei Mountain, can’t escape this regression," he said with a helpless sigh.

Perhaps because his replica Evil Soldier was of too low a grade, the power in his body had only just now begun to slowly fade, before disappearing completely.

He now had the constitution of an ordinary person.

Fortunately, Lin Hui had been prepared. He provided his father with various body-strengthening and Life-extending Medicines, which quickly stabilized his condition.

"You should be grateful just to be alive and well. You have a good son to thank for that," Yao Shan said, gently patting his back.

She had never cultivated, so ironically, she was now the one in the best health and spirits. Although the Bai Tong Cult had elevated her to a high position, it was partly out of respect for Lin Hui, but more importantly, because the charitable donations she made each year were simply staggering.

With the Bai Tong Cult’s influence waning amidst the great change, she had gradually withdrawn from its affairs to focus on her family.

"You’re right. After all this back and forth, we still have to rely on Ah Hui in the end," Lin Shunhe agreed with a nod.

"You should just rest, Dad. No matter what happens outside, it won’t really affect our family," Liu Wujun said. He had been idle at home recently as well; things at the Rain Palace were winding down. The believers had an initial burst of fervor, but when they realized the god they worshipped, Xiao Shen, was useless, they began to seek other solutions.

Now, the Rain Palace was deserted. Many of his fellow adherents had suffered great losses in strength due to the regression and could barely fend for themselves.

Yet Liu Wujun, thanks to his youth, was almost completely unaffected.

"Speaking of which, where’s Ah Hui? I’ve been seeing him run off to the Moon Tower a lot lately," Liu Wujun asked casually.

"He’s probably cultivating at his headquarters," Lin Shunhe replied. "Oh, right. I heard that over on the Floating Mountain, the three City Lords..."

"A number of Fog People have already met with... incidents. I suspect the three City Lords are also..." Liu Wujun sighed.

Before he could finish, a series of heavy bell tolls echoed from the direction of the Moon Tower.

DONG... DONG...

WHOOSH!

The next instant, a streak of green light shot up from above the Lin Mansion, rocketing toward the Floating Mountain.

Within the green light was none other than Lin Hui, who had been channeling the world’s terrestrial energies.

His expression was grim, his eyes heavy with concern.

He sped toward the formation platform atop the First Floating Mountain.

The moment he landed, he saw a Fog Person collapsed on the ground. A strange, halberd-like Evil Soldier was embedded in its back, shimmering with an odd, amethyst-like luster as it slowly extracted itself from the body.

Xie Chang’an and Zhang Yao were already there. Other Fog People were arriving one by one, landing with grim expressions to stare at their fallen comrade on the ground.

No one spoke, because everyone could see.

The Fog Person on the ground was dead. But the Evil Soldier, which should have instantly left the body to seek its next host, was instead slowly detaching from the corpse.

Moreover, red spots had appeared on the surface of the Evil Soldier itself, and fine red dust was constantly flaking off...

Clearly, the Evil Soldier itself was also undergoing some kind of tremendous transformation.

Watching this scene, even though Lin Hui’s own power had begun to slowly increase again from his attunement to the terrestrial energies, his heart couldn’t help but feel heavy.

He wasn’t worried for himself, but for Xie Chang’an, Zhang Yao, and Gongsun Xinlian.

After all these years together, he had long since come to consider the three of them friends—especially Gongsun Xinlian.

But now...

CRUMBLE.

Suddenly, before everyone’s shocked eyes,

the dead Fog Person’s halberd-like Evil Soldier completely shattered.

The purple fragments scattered in all directions, dissolving into even finer motes of light before vanishing completely.

Silence fell over the platform...

WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

The Fog People left one after another, their expressions grim.

Gongsun Xinlian glanced at Lin Hui but said nothing, turning to leave with the others.

But as she left, Lin Hui noticed that the wrinkles on her neck had grown deeper.

He subconsciously gripped the other Longsword at his waist, the Tai Chi.

"Don’t go after her," Xie Chang’an called out, stopping him. "We’re fine... for now. It’s just... our strength has regressed to the level of a Blood Progenitor..."

"...!?" Lin Hui’s eyes widened in shock.

He knew the regression would weaken them, but he’d never imagined the loss of power would be this drastic.

"Don’t let this get out," Xie Chang’an said via voice transmission. "The truth is, we’ve all regressed, so it’s not that big a deal. It’s just... the three of us have Evil Energy that complements each other, so we won’t end up like that poor soul..."

By now, almost everyone else had left, leaving only Lin Hui with Xie Chang’an and Zhang Yao.

"I just received a message," Xie Chang’an lamented. "From this day forward, there will be no more Fog People in the entire federation, or perhaps anywhere. There will be no more Evil Soldier Insect Scripture... From now on, the key to power, the thing everyone will fight for, will likely be the special blood-hearts that possess Evil Energy."

"Are you saying that the regressing Evil Soldier Insect Scriptures have devolved directly into blood-hearts—at the Blood Progenitor level—that possess Evil Energy?" Lin Hui asked via voice transmission.

"Yes... and there’s more. According to our statistical analysis," Zhang Yao added, "starting six months ago, all ordinary humans over the age of ninety—and this includes other humanoid races as well—that entire demographic, all of them, have been passing away from old age. No decay, just... a natural death."

He sighed.

"If you go looking down below now, you won’t find a single individual over the age of ninety."

"So, our preliminary conclusion is that this great limitation has completely prevented anyone from reaching the level of a Fog Person or Fog Spirit, while also cutting down the maximum possible lifespan," said Xie Chang’an.

"What about life-extending treasures?" Lin Hui asked quickly.

"Useless. Life-extending treasures can no longer push a life past the new maximum. If you want to live longer, the only way is through a Cultivation Method. Break through to a higher level, and everything else works the same as before," Zhang Yao replied.

"..." Lin Hui was speechless.

"Well, what’s done is done," Xie Chang’an said with a small smile. "Actually, this change has its upsides. For one, the sea is far, far less dangerous than it used to be. Many of the most dangerous monsters from the Fog Areas have regressed into little more than delicious meals. I’ve been eating quite well lately, I can tell you. The flavor is exquisite!"

"That’s true," Zhang Yao nodded. "In essence, we were just a bunch of very lucky guys. Now, everything is simply returning to how it started."

He glanced at Lin Hui.

"While I can still get around, I’m planning to make a trip back to the Royal Capital."

"You..." Lin Hui started to say, but Zhang Yao cut him off.

"Don’t try to stop me. I’m afraid that if I don’t go back to see my mother now, I might never get the chance again," Zhang Yao said with a faint smile.

Lin Hui knew the man’s mother had passed away many years ago. He was afraid this trip back was one Zhang Yao didn’t intend to return from alive.

"Speaking of which, the Ouyang family has produced a peerless genius. They entrusted me with asking you to test the child’s aptitude and see if they might be able to join the Clear Wind Dao," Zhang Yao added.

"Why didn’t Xinlian ask me herself?" Lin Hui said.

"She’s unwilling to see you. Or rather, she doesn’t dare to," Zhang Yao said with a wry smile.

"Our era... it’s coming to a close. What comes next... perhaps it will be an era for geniuses like you..."

"I plan on hitting the road, too," Xie Chang’an laughed. "Settle old scores, repay old debts. It’d be a damn shame if all my enemies died of old age before I could get to them."

"The Royal Capital? Together?" Zhang Yao asked.

"Done!" Xie Chang’an laughed heartily. He turned back to Lin Hui. "I’m leaving Black Cloud to you. Of course, if you don’t want the trouble, that’s fine too. Just do whatever you want."

Lin Hui was at a loss for words.

He turned and gazed at the dim sky in the distance. The ever-thinning fog seemed to herald the dawn of a brand-new era.

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