Early the next morning at Clear Wind Temple, Lin Hui sat with a reply letter from the Hundred Flowers Sect, his brow furrowed as he studied the text.

‘Recently, great changes have occurred in the Xingdao District. A large number of Called Ones and martial artists have fled one after another, with some arriving in Tuyue. It is not just Clear Wind Temple; even my Hundred Flowers Sect has seen quite a few old acquaintances from Xingdao seeking refuge.

‘Among these people, there is no lack of those unwilling to live under others. They establish their own forces and absorb experts. The trouble in Fu'an Town is likely caused by this type of force deliberately provoking conflict.’

Ou Tianrong had written in great detail. Her Hundred Flowers Sect had gained two more Internal Force Realm Elders in the past few days—both old acquaintances from Xingdao—which could be considered a significant boost in strength.

While this influx was an opportunity for some, for the local forces of Tuyue, it was troublesome.

The aggression encountered by Clear Wind Temple was reportedly the work of a faction called the Flying Stone Sect. However, details regarding this sect were scarce; the distance was significant, and the opposing party hadn't revealed enough in battle to properly gauge their strength.

Ou Tianrong had shared everything she knew, and her sincerity was palpable in the letter.

Crackle.

Lin Hui crumpled the paper and stood up after a moment of silence. He tossed the paper ball into the brazier, watching it burn into black ash. To make a decision, he still needed to see what Xue Meng’s report said.

He had successfully shortened the Blood Seal’s required time by a tiny margin.

Though the reduction was minimal, it was encouraging. At least it proved he had other channels to assist the Blood Seal and accelerate his strength improvement.

It’s a pity that the difficulty of cultivating the Wild Wind Sword Technique is too high; I’m still stuck at the First Rank. The third stage of Body Tempering was more difficult than Lin Hui had imagined. Progress was so slow that he couldn't feel any changes after tempering his body.

Just as he was pondering this, Wang Hongshi's reporting voice came from outside the door.

"Temple Master, Young Master Wang from the Inner City is here."

"Wang Yueheng? What is he here for?" Lin Hui was stunned, but he quickly opened the door and walked out.

He saw a person standing silently behind Wang Hongshi. With exquisite features, magnificent attire, and the exotic fragrance of a sachet—who else could it be but Wang Yueheng?

"Brother Wang." Lin Hui cupped his fists. "What brings you here this time?"

"There are some matters I need to remind Brother Lin about." Wang Yueheng's face was grim, lacking his usual calm and ease.

"Please, to the study." Lin Hui gestured.

The two entered the study. After a servant served fragrant tea and closed the door, Wang Yueheng finally exhaled and spoke.

"I came to warn Brother Lin about the trouble in Fu'an Town. The force causing trouble over there is called the Flying Stone Sect. Its origin is not simple; it was established by a Circulation Realm martial artist from Xingdao named Li Chi. He has gathered quite a few Internal Force Realm martial artists from Xingdao and is provoking surrounding forces everywhere. Furthermore, they have countless ties with the New Martial Alliance in the Inner City. To be precise, we suspect that members of the New Martial Alliance from the Xingdao side actively invited them here."

He paused, his brows furrowed tightly, and continued.

"You also know that after the previous struggles within the New Martial Alliance, many seats were compromised and given to martial artists from the Xingdao side. Now that they are pulling this stunt, I fear a storm is coming."

"Flying Stone Sect... a Circulation Realm martial artist!?" Lin Hui's heart sank. Recalling Xue Meng, who had gone to handle this incident, he thought, This is bad.

"Is this news reliable?" he asked to confirm.

"Absolutely reliable! The New Martial Alliance is already actively absorbing Li Chi into the Inner City. The movements are fast; it doesn't look like a sudden situation at all. On the contrary, they seem well-prepared," Wang Yueheng said in a deep voice.

"Then the current situation..." Lin Hui said gravely.

"The changes are unsettled. Clear Wind Temple should watch quietly and not act rashly," Wang Yueheng suggested.

"It's already too late. The Flying Stone Sect seriously injured two of my disciples; the trouble has already come to my door," Lin Hui replied.

"Find an excuse to delay for a moment. It's just two disciples; giving some compensation for their injuries will suffice." Wang Yueheng didn't think disciples being injured was a big deal; his attitude was casual.

This seemed to be the habit of many Inner City experts—they didn't treat the lower class as human.

Lin Hui rubbed his teacup, closed his eyes, and thought quietly. He considered many things, the most important of which was how to stand firm under this impact from the Xingdao martial artists.

"Brother Wang, do you think I should focus on endurance and tolerance first?"

"Correct." Wang Yueheng nodded. "We don't know how many experts have come over from Xingdao this time, nor do you know how many eyes are staring from the shadows. If you act rashly and misjudge the opponent's strength, you might be pounced on and torn apart by a pack of wild dogs. The loss would outweigh the gain."

"Makes sense..." Lin Hui understood.

It wasn't about not taking revenge, but rather waiting until the situation became clear and the opponent's foundation was determined. It would be better to retaliate after sorting out the situation within the sect. As for the other seriously injured disciples... as long as they were settled properly, it should—

"Report!!"

Suddenly, a loud shout interrupted his train of thought.

A disciple rushed to the study door, stumbling and crawling. Stopped by the gatekeeper, and he simply knelt on the ground.

"Temple Master! Save my master! Save him!!"

The person wailed, his voice shrill and miserable.

Lin Hui and Wang Yueheng exchanged a glance, then quickly opened the door and walked out.

Kneeling at the entrance, covered in blood, was Xue Meng's fourth disciple, a man named Ding Shu.

"Temple Master! Hurry! Hurry... my master, he..." Ding Shu looked wretched, his clothes soaked in blood. Clearly, he had fought his way back just to escape.

"Where is your master?!" Lin Hui's expression instantly turned cold.

"Fu'an Town, right over there. Experts from the Flying Stone Sect sent people to ambush and besiege us. My master stayed behind to bring up the rear so we could leave. He blocked two experts of the same level alone... he, the old man... sob..." Ding Shu couldn't continue speaking and broke down in tears.

"It seems the people coming from Xingdao hold no regard for my Clear Wind Temple whatsoever..." Lin Hui's face was grim.

"Brother Lin, calm down!" Wang Yueheng spoke in a deep voice from behind. In his view, sticking one's head out at this time was the worst strategy. The more critical the moment, the more one had to endure.

"Brother Wang, why can't they endure?" Lin Hui turned his head and glanced at Wang Yueheng. "I haven't killed anyone for a long time, and people always bully me for being young. Good, good. This time, I will make the trip personally. I must kill a few more so that people know the reputation of my Clear Wind Temple isn't blown up by hot air—it’s piled high with human lives!"

"Brother Lin!?"

Wang Yueheng saw the look in Lin Hui's eyes and knew it was bad—this was a symptom of the onset of illness! He had seen the signs of many Internal Force experts "acting up" in the Inner City, and Lin Hui now looked dangerously similar.

He immediately spoke up urgently, trying to salvage the situation, but—

Whoosh!

A gust of wild wind howled past, causing him and the surrounding people to squint. When they came back to their senses, Lin Hui had already disappeared from the spot.

"Since Brother Wang is here, I'll trouble you to help me guard the headquarters for one night. I'll take some people and return shortly." Only then did Lin Hui's voice drift over from far away.

These words made Wang Yueheng's eyelids jump wildly.

"Reckless!" He slapped his thigh helplessly.

Is being fast so amazing?

Wait... it seems it really is amazing. If he's fast enough to rush over, save the person, and come back, the opponent might not even expect Lin Hui to be that quick. The conflict wouldn't escalate further... and the situation would be much better than imagined.

At the very least, with Lin Hui's speed, even if he encountered a Circulation Realm expert and couldn't win, he could still escape. As long as Lin Hui didn't foolishly fight head-on.

But the problem was, this guy Lin Hui seemed to be having an episode of his illness!

One hour later. Fu'an Town, in front of the Black Dragon Apothecary.

A squad of fast horses trod quickly over the snow, slowly decelerating to stop in front of the apothecary.

The commotion attracted the attention of passersby. Among them, the fat owner across the street immediately energized, his small eyes staring dead at the opposite side, waiting to watch a good show to go with his wine.

"Here they come, here they come! I said Clear Wind Temple would absolutely not swallow this insult, right? Beating people like that—if it were me, I wouldn't be able to swallow this anger either. Let alone these martial arts practitioners." He muttered in a low voice.

The owner of the tea shop next door leaned in close. "All in white clothes, very imposing momentum. The leader looks like someone not to be messed with. Looks like there's a good show to watch."

"Shh, lower your voice. At this distance, they can hear you! Don't drag me down if you want to die." The fat owner pushed the other party away and hurriedly looked left and right.

"That young swordsman in the lead, surely that's the Clear Wind Temple Master? Formless Sword Lin Hui?" The tea shop owner didn't mind, leaning in again to ask.

"Should be... He looks very strong. I just don't know how it will be if they really start fighting. The fight between those three experts earlier was truly shattering everything they touched. The commotion was huge!"

"Daring to bring people and charge over, he definitely won't be weak." The tea shop owner nodded in agreement.

Clatter.

At this moment, a tall, strong figure in a pure white, fitted long robe flipped off his horse and stood before the shattered main gate, looking down at the fragments scattered on the ground. A long sword hung at his waist, and broken snow dusted his long black hair. His temperament was cold and sharp.

It was Lin Hui.

Behind him, Wang Hongshi, Chen Sui, Huang Shan, and Qiu Yiren—four elite disciples—had all been brought along.

"The opponent's strength is very high. Do you know why I brought you here?" Lin Hui asked in a low voice.

"To collect intelligence and determine the opponent's location and information. After all, if the Temple Master comes alone and searches everywhere, it is far inferior to us splitting up and acting separately," Wang Hongshi answered.

"Correct. No matter how fast I am alone, I cannot fly from one end to the other instantly. The distance in between is enough for them to scatter and retreat. I wouldn't be able to catch them all in one net. So..."

Chi!

Suddenly, Lin Hui's figure flashed and disappeared.

In the next second, he appeared out of thin air beside a residential house more than twenty meters away.

A sword light flashed.

By the wall of the house, three disciples with cross-scars in yellow clothes were hiding. Just as they tried to stand, they felt a sharp pain in their throats. Suffocating, they covered their necks in terror and collapsed, unable to rise.

"Three spies."

Lin Hui took a few steps forward and arrived in front of a young woman in yellow clothes at the very back. She was holding a cylindrical tool, preparing to signal.

"Continue," he said calmly.

"I... I..." The woman's voice trembled. She tried to pull a thin string at the bottom of the cylinder, but her hand slipped three times in a row.

Her companions' corpses lay right beside her, blood holes blown through their throats, staring blankly in death. She was the only one left.

"Don't... don't kill me!?" the woman begged, tears and snot flowing down her face. She hadn't expected Clear Wind Temple's retaliation to come so fast, so ruthlessly.

"Where is my sect's Elder, Xue Meng?" Lin Hui asked in a deep voice.

"I don't know... Don't!" She screamed, trying to beg for mercy.

But in the next instant, Lin Hui's sword blurred, then returned to its original state. A fine trace of blood dripped from the tip.

"If you don't know anything, what use are you?"

Lin Hui looked at the woman, who now had an extra opening in the center of her brow, then turned around to inspect the traces on the ground.