The Decaying World

The incense smoke slowly drifted upward, its straight line gradually unfurling to fill the room and cover the stench of blood.

Lin Hui stood in the center of the room with his hands behind his back, staring at the Celestial Dragon Daoist, who was being kept in a metal barrel.

The old Daoist was just a torso, tossed casually into the barrel. His face was rigid as he stared intently at Lin Hui, his thoughts unreadable.

The sky was gradually lightening; dawn was about to break.

In the span of a single night, the perpetrator of the "blood character" case, who had run rampant for years, had been captured and brought here without a sound.

"You can’t kill me," the Celestial Dragon Daoist said hoarsely.

"And how would you know that?" Lin Hui asked.

"Because your weapon has no Mana. Without Mana, you cannot kill an Immortal like me." Though his limbs had been severed, Tian Long showed no sign of panic, as if merely stating a fact.

"So, what you’re saying is, all Immortals can only be killed with Mana? Then what exactly is Mana? And what are Immortals?" Lin Hui asked, curious.

"You..." Tian Long frowned, studying Lin Hui carefully. "You have no Mana. How in the world did you sever my limbs?" He seemed genuinely puzzled.

"I finally managed to become a Human Immortal right before the end of my mortal life. An Immortal’s body is undying and indestructible, far stronger than any ordinary person’s. No matter how you look at it, I shouldn’t have lost to a mortal like you." His speech was much more fluent now; it seemed he hadn’t spoken to anyone in a long time, causing his language skills to atrophy, but he was recovering them quickly.

"Forget it. Let’s start from the basics," Lin Hui said bluntly. "You’re going to tell me: what powers exist in this world that surpass the mortal?"

"Everyone in this world pursues immortality as their life’s goal—to be undying, indestructible, and never face the peril of decay," Tian Long said flatly. "Your martial arts are formidable, and I don’t know how you achieved such skill, but... you cannot kill me."

"But I can humiliate you," Lin Hui said with a smile. "For example, I could chop off your head and throw it in a cesspit. Or I could toss your torso into the sea. If you’re so capable, you can try slowly reassembling your body from the bellies of fish."

"..." Tian Long fell silent. He could tell Lin Hui wasn’t joking; he really intended to do it.

"Moving on. What about the Underworld and the Celestial Court?" Lin Hui continued.

"The Underworld governs all matters of soul reincarnation in the mortal realm. The Celestial Court... that is the domain of Heavenly Immortals, Grand Immortals, and Golden Immortals. They use the Heavenly Net to govern all affairs on Earth," Tian Long explained. "If I could break through to the Heavenly Immortal Realm, I would be qualified to ascend and become a part of the Celestial Court..."

As he spoke of this, a hint of yearning even appeared in his voice.

"You’re a Human Immortal? Then why do you still seem so weak?" Lin Hui asked, surprised.

"..." Tian Long didn’t want to answer.

Lin Hui then questioned him in detail about the Cultivation Realms. Although Tian Long’s answers were sporadic and fragmented, Lin Hui eventually spent some time piecing it all together.

This world was jointly ruled by Three Realms—Heaven, Earth, and the Mortal Realm. Among them, the Mortal Realm was filled with numerous Cultivators, all aiming to achieve immortality through Cultivation.

Human Immortal, Earth Immortal, Heavenly Immortal, Golden Immortal, and Sovereign Emperor—these Realms were the stages of progression for Mana.

However, Tian Long added that as far as he knew, the strength of Human Immortals, Earth Immortals, and Heavenly Immortals was almost entirely dependent on their Magic Artifacts and Magical Treasures. The Cultivation Realm only determined the essence of one’s life and the quality of their Mana. In a real fight, if one’s Magic Artifacts and Magical Treasures were subpar, even a Human Immortal could turn the tables and kill a Heavenly Immortal.

"Then what are these Magic Artifacts and Magical Treasures?" Lin Hui wondered.

This place was very similar to the ancient worlds he knew from mythology, but upon closer inspection, it seemed there were also major differences.

"A Magic Artifact is an object made in imitation of a Magical Treasure. A Magical Treasure is... well, a Magical Treasure. They are items of great fortune, naturally formed by the Three Realms of Heaven, Earth, and Man," Tian Long replied.

"Then where are your Magic Artifact and Magical Treasure?" Lin Hui asked curiously.

"I don’t have a Magical Treasure, but I did have a Magic Artifact I refined myself called the Blood Character Tongue," Tian Long replied. "Unfortunately, you just broke it. It needs to be repaired."

"..." Lin Hui was speechless, suddenly recalling the tongue-weapon the man had shot from his mouth just moments ago.

"One more question, then. How does one cultivate to become an Immortal?"

"It depends on your aptitude, comprehension of Cultivation, and the Cultivation Technique you practice. These three things determine your upper limit, whether you can become an Immortal, and what kind of Immortal you become." Tian Long was very frank, answering whatever was asked.

"You have excellent aptitude and outstanding Talent. Although I don’t know about your comprehension, if you take me as your master and cultivate my Tian Long Temple’s spell, it won’t be long before you can become a Human Immortal. In the future, even reaching the Earth Immortal Realm wouldn’t be impossible."

’Unbelievable. This guy was actually trying to turn the tables and get me to become his disciple?’

Lin Hui couldn’t help but laugh.

"Alright, last question. What about demons and devils? And what was the deal with that thing that was trying to recruit you earlier?"

"A thousand years ago, an anomaly occurred in Heaven and Earth. The Celestial Court collapsed, and the Underworld fractured into warring factions. Many Great Divine Powers—whose Realms weren’t particularly high but who possessed extremely powerful Magical Treasures—could no longer bear the pressure. They united and formed an organization called the Benevolent Justice Court. As a result, they were jointly hunted by the Celestial Court and the Underworld, who branded them as demons and devils. Over time, this group of Great Divine Powers simply began to call themselves that. In reality, most of them are Cultivators, just like us," Tian Long said calmly.

"A thousand years ago? Not three hundred?" Lin Hui keenly picked up on the key point in his words, his expression growing serious.

"To be precise, the changes began a thousand years ago. Three hundred years ago was just when they could no longer be suppressed and began to affect the mortal realm. In truth, the root of the change appeared long before that," Tian Long replied.

Lin Hui fell silent.

’It seems the root of this corruption lies with the Celestial Court and the Underworld.’

’Only by delving into those two places can I hope to find the fundamental cause of this decay and corruption.’

’But how can I get there?’

He quickly threw the question back to Tian Long.

"Become an Immortal. Once you’re an Immortal, you can go. You need to at least become a Heavenly Immortal to enter the Celestial Court. As for the Underworld, you can go there after you die. If you want to go there while still living, you’d have to become a Ghost Immortal," Tian Long answered.

Next, Lin Hui asked how to become a Heavenly Immortal or a Ghost Immortal, but Tian Long didn’t know.

The Cultivation Technique of the Tian Long Temple could only lead one to the Earth Immortal Realm at its highest. The paths to the Heavenly Immortal Realm and beyond were all top-tier legacy Dharma Gates, controlled exclusively by the major Buddhist and Daoist Sects.

But now, the mortal realm was in chaos. The lineages of the great Buddhist and Daoist powers had long since vanished into seclusion, leaving only a few minor and middling lineages like the Tian Long Temple still active in the world.

Lin Hui guessed that the Celestial Court and the Underworld were probably two smaller worlds adjacent to the mortal realm, similar to how Purgatory and the Extreme Cold Heaven were adjacent to the Fog People World.

The most pressing task was to find a way to enter these two places. As for learning a new cultivation spell, he couldn’t possibly start practicing a power system that might have hidden dangers while everything was still unknown.

The Wind Calamity was already a big enough headache.

After some thought, Lin Hui came up with two plans.

First, he could gather a large amount of virility-boosting Treasure Medicines to accelerate the evolution of his Blood Seal, freeing up a slot in the Blood Seal to evolve a cultivation spell.

Second, he could find someone with excellent aptitude, get them a suitable Cultivation Technique, and support them in cultivating to become a Heavenly Immortal or a Ghost Immortal. Then, when they traveled to the Celestial Court or the Underworld, he could follow them.

He considered the fact that the Destruction Eye, which was currently evolving in his Blood Seal, still needed over one thousand four hundred years. Although he had already drastically reduced the time from the original one thousand six hundred-plus years when he had just been reincarnated, thanks to the resources he had plundered, completion was still a distant prospect.

Therefore, he decided to pursue both plans simultaneously.

To carry out these plans, he couldn’t possibly do it alone. After all, gathering intelligence and plundering Treasure Medicines by himself in this bizarre land would take a very long time, even if he were to unleash his main body’s full power.

So, the best method was to cultivate his own people and leverage the power of an existing major faction.

’Based on what the Celestial Dragon Daoist said, it’s clear that the Underworld is easier to get to than the Celestial Court. After all, you just have to die... I’ll start my investigation with the Underworld, then.’

Lin Hui finalized his upcoming arrangements in his mind.

Now that his body’s enhancement was complete, it was time to officially get moving and truly restore the might of the Clear Wind Dao.

With the special effects of the Clear Wind Dao, he could appraise loyalty and grant his disciples various special effects and abilities. This would allow him to quickly assemble a group of formidable disciples in a very short time.

In fact, thanks to the connection from the Celestial Father Seal, even now, back in the Heart Source Demon Palace, he could still sense his connection to everyone in the original Fog People World.

If he could find a way to bring Xia Si, Su Yaping, and Master Yunxia over directly, things would certainly be much more convenient.

But that would require long-term planning.

After organizing his future plans, Lin Hui’s gaze shifted back to the Celestial Dragon Daoist.

"Now, what to do with you."

"You can just kill me. In three days, I will simply reform and return to my original state anyway. The immortality of an Immortal is no lie," the Celestial Dragon Daoist said flatly. "But you should think it over. If you miss this opportunity I’m offering, in a hundred years, you will still turn to a pile of yellow dust, meaningless. If you join my sect and practice our Immortal Law, you might even break through to the Earth Immortal Realm, become an immortal ancestor, roam the mortal world unrivaled, and live a life of blissful freedom. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?"

Even as a limbless torso, the man hadn’t forgotten to try and trick Lin Hui into becoming his disciple.

"You think I can’t make things difficult for you?" Lin Hui raised an eyebrow.

"It is a fact," Tian Long answered calmly.

"Interesting." Lin Hui raised his hand, and a faint, thin layer of white light began to glow in his palm.

It was the sign of the Celestial Father Seal activating.

"What is the meaning of this?" Tian Long frowned as he watched the other man reach out and point a finger toward the spot between his eyebrows.

The next moment, a sheet of white crystal spread out rapidly from the spot between his brows.

In just a second, his entire body was completely frozen and encased.

The seal was complete.

"Just a small test," Lin Hui replied. He then lowered his hand and walked out of the room.

He wanted to see if the so-called undying, indestructible body of an Immortal could truly be restrained by a seal.

Leaving the swordsmanship school’s courtyard, he headed directly for the training grounds. Before he even entered, he could hear a clamor of shouts and calls coming from inside.

Pushing open the courtyard gate, he took one look inside.

Brother Hao, Zhu Xiang, and Dai Yunhua were there. Two of the three were wrapped in bandages with their arms in slings, constantly pestering Wu Anning with questions.

Judging by Wu Anning’s impatient expression, this had clearly been going on for some time.

"What’s going on?" he asked aloud.

Another disciple quickly came forward and whispered.

"Reporting to the School Master, those three witnessed the Eldest Martial Sister’s strength earlier. They came here first thing in the morning to ask her how she cultivates. They also want to sign up to join our swordsmanship school and cultivate with us."

"Those three..." Lin Hui’s interest was suddenly piqued. Zhu Xiang, one of the three, seemed to know some secrets about the Three Realms and was also skilled in Talismanic Magic.

Furthermore, when he had been getting information from Tie Niu earlier, he learned that these three were some of the very few officials in the city with a strong sense of justice.

He had always supported people of the righteous path—the truly righteous, that is, not those who were "righteous" only from a selfish standpoint. Because he himself was a man of principle, he had a particular loathing for those who were not.

Ignoring the trio, he rounded the corner into an inner room to continue his daily Swordsmanship practice. The Cultivation of the Great Yin Yang Time Reversal Sword Technique was not restricted by the external environment; comprehending the Time String and using Star Power to compress and strengthen his own body were the core of this sword technique.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!