Decaying World

Chapter 109

The team blocking the road was an exploration squad from the Inner City's Three Sects and Six Associations—specifically, the Red Rice Association.

On the way, they had discovered the Purple Crystal ruins alongside the Clear Wind Temple team, but the two groups had made different choices.

Chen Sui of Clear Wind Temple decided to venture in. The leader of the Red Rice Association, a slippery veteran, chose to avoid the risk;

he led his team elsewhere instead of entering.

This veteran, Chen Hushan, had initially dismissed the Clear Wind Temple team, assuming they were certain to die inside.

Unexpectedly, on his return journey near the main exit road, Chen Hushan spotted them again.

Moreover, he sensed significantly stronger auras coming from them. That unassuming Chen Sui had actually broken through to the Internal Force Realm, which came as a slight surprise.

Then there were the large bags they carried. Although covered with ragged cloth, the contents were obvious to the Red Rice Association members.

One didn't need to guess to know they held good stuff.

Meeting again now, Chen Hushan made an immediate decision. His own team had come up empty-handed, but he could simply seize the other team's harvest.

He had returned empty-handed several times now. Although there were no casualties, the frequency of failed runs had led to increasing gossip, and the Association's support for his exploration team was dwindling.So, if he could bring back something good this time...

As for Clear Wind Temple's reaction? He had heard this faction had some reputation across a few Outer City towns—a minor player. But to the Three Sects and Six Associations of the Inner City, the Outer City was just trash. Not worth caring about.

"Team Leader Chen Sui, I trust you have been well," Chen Hushan said with an insincere smile, blocking the path once his objective was set. "Looks like your harvest is quite good, doesn't it?"

His gaze fell naturally upon the bags of Purple Crystals carried by the Clear Wind Temple team.

Within the Clear Wind Temple team, Huang Shan guarded the harvest. Apart from Wang Hongshi, almost all the top ten-ranked disciples had joined this expedition.

Huang Shan, Qiu Yiren, and Chen Sui were all present. Additionally, there was Chen Xiangzhi, the Eldest Disciple of the Intent Blade branch. Practically the entire elite force of the current Clear Wind Temple was here.

The situation had indeed been brutal. Of the top ten, three had died in the underground ruins. The survivors only made it because the monsters they encountered were full... and temporarily too lazy to give chase.

Having narrowly escaped death to secure these three bags of Purple Crystals, everyone's anger flared the moment they saw Chen Hushan eyeing their hard-earned prize.

These crystals were the core of their future development;

they absolutely could not be lost. If anyone dared target them, they shouldn't blame the team for going mad.

"This harvest was exchanged for lives," Chen Sui said bluntly, knowing it couldn't be hidden. He stared at them vigilantly, assessing the threat.

"That's a bit harsh. We risk our lives too, don't we? Meeting is fate, and we share the surname Chen. Since we've crossed paths, everyone should have a share. How about selling some of your goods to us?" Chen Hushan said with a beaming smile.

"What price are you offering?" Chen Sui asked, voice deep, glancing at his wounded team while suppressing his anger.

He thought to himself that if a fight could be avoided, it should be. As long as the demands weren't too harsh, he would try to make do.

During Clear Wind Temple's decline, the fickleness of human nature had long since stripped him of his former imposing aura as First Senior Brother. He had become more inclined to avoid conflict—checking if he could hide when encountering trouble was a helpless habit he had developed during those hard times.

"Just sell us two of your three bags. As for the price... we'll base it on the standard rate for unknown mist zone products: one thousand qian per jin. Your two bags weigh about twenty-something jin, right? Getting over twenty thousand qian

—consider it a profit." Chen Hushan actually had the nerve to say this.Only trash mist zone products confirmed to have no use sold for one thousand qian per jin.

And Purple Crystal—no matter how you looked at it—could not be trash.

His attitude was clear: he intended to rob them.

The atmosphere tightened instantly.

Everyone knew that conflict was now inevitable.

Although Chen Sui had broken through to Internal Force, only he and Huang Shan had reached that level. The opposing team had at least four Internal Force experts! The odds were hopeless.

…

Clear Wind Temple.

Lin Hui was slowly reading a secret manual on martial arts left behind by Song Zhanlong.

He had just completed a round of Body Tempering and Internal Force training. Since his body couldn't sustain continuous cultivation, he needed to rest. Using this time to read texts and attempt to gain insights to accelerate the Blood Seal evolution was the optimal use of his time.

He glanced at the timepiece on the desk—a clock-like gadget his father had bought from the Inner City.

"It's past ten. Ding Ning, is there any news from the exploration team?" he asked.

Ding Ning was dozing in the corner, back against the wall, mouth slightly open, saliva dripping onto her chest. Hearing his voice, she woke with a start.

"Coming... coming. They said they'd arrive around noon. That's what the messenger said." She hurriedly wiped away her saliva, blushing at the wet patch on her clothes.

The exploration team carried carrier pigeons. Before returning, they would release a pigeon that had memorized the route to report their status. However, this only worked from the nearby edges of the mist zone. In deeper regions, pigeons were usually preyed upon by monsters.

That headquarters received the pigeon meant the team was already very close.

"Is that so? Then I should prepare as well." Lin Hui was somewhat curious about the harvest from their first outing.

He had notified the temple early on to be ready. Since many expedition members were children of prominent local clans, the place bustled with activity upon receiving the news.

Lin Hui stood up, changed into his outer robe, fastened his belt, and attached his medicine pouch, waist bag, keys, and jade pendant.

"Since I have nothing to do, I'll take some people to practice swordsmanship at the return point. If I'm not back in a while, don't wait for me for dinner."

Leaving this sentence behind, he took his sword and walked out. With a flash, he vanished.

…

Behind the original site of Clear Wind Temple, at the foot of the mist wall.

"If you want to rob us, just say so." Chen Sui stared at the opposing team, taking a deep breath to calm his mind.

He didn't know their strength, but giving up the Purple Crystals without a fight wasn't avoiding trouble—it was absolute surrender.

"Think it through." Chen Hushan smiled, pointing at the bandaged wounded in the Clear Wind Temple team. Out of fourteen people, only three were outwardly unharmed.

"With all these cripples, if we really start fighting, who knows how many will survive." He smiled, but his words carried a cold threat.

Chen Sui gripped his hilt and exchanged a glance with Junior Sister Huang Shan, who had stepped up beside him.

"Prepare to scatter and run! If one makes it back, it's a win! They won't dare act recklessly in town!" he whispered.

"Are we really going to fight?" Huang Shan asked.

"If we don't fight, do we just watch them take the Purple Crystals? Do you really think they'll stop at two bags?" Chen Xiangzhi, the Eldest Disciple of the Intent Blade branch, stepped forward to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with them.

"Let's fight. There's nothing more to say. If we don't, we won't keep a single bag, and people might die anyway. They are testing us." He clearly had experience.

"Alright!" Chen Sui's gaze hardened.

He stared intently at Chen Hushan. "Red Rice Association, Chen Hushan, right? Clear Wind Temple will remember this!"

"Remember? You're just a fart, and you want to 'remember'!? What is Clear Wind Temple? A mere Outer City sect daring to announce its name before the Three Sects and Six Associations?"

A short woman from the opposing team stepped out, sneering. Compared to Chen Hushan, her words were far uglier, leaving Clear Wind Temple no face at all.

"Senior Brother Chen, why are you still dawdling? Cripple them and take the stuff!" She urged.

"Junior Sister Xie, don't be hasty. It's best if we can settle this amicably. I imagine the gentlemen of Clear Wind Temple wouldn't want an accident right after making it back to safety, would they?" Chen Hushan smiled at Chen Sui. "Items can be replaced, but you only have one life..."

Chen Sui glanced back at his team.

The vast majority showed unwavering determination. They had volunteered for this;

unlike the opposing team, they had joined prepared to risk their lives.

Men die for wealth as birds die for food. They had finally secured good loot—how could they let someone snatch it from their mouths!

"Risk it! First Senior Brother, what are we afraid of!!"

"At worst, I'll take one down with me! I almost died in the ruins anyway;

I don't believe this is more dangerous!"

"They're just one of the Three Sects and Six Associations. The Inner City is far away and its reach is short—can the Red Rice Association really touch us out here!?"

Chen Sui took a deep breath, nodded, and slowly drew his sword.

"In that case. Clear Wind Temple's Chen Sui... requests instruction."

He discarded the scabbard and adopted the Temple Master's stance, sword pointing obliquely at the ground, Internal Force circulating thread by thread in his abdomen.

As the former First Senior Brother of Clear Wind Temple, he knew the old version of the Clear Wind Sword Technique. He had also learned the perfected Seven-Section Swift Sword and Nine-Section Swift Sword, and had even exchanged points for the secret art, Lightness.

His strength today was far superior to the past.

So, since it couldn't be avoided... Fight!

"You have guts! A newcomer to Internal Force dares to challenge a senior. Who gave you the courage?" Chen Hushan gave a mocking laugh.

He pulled a short dagger from his lower back and twirled it with a flourish.

He dared to act because his team had more than one Internal Force martial artist. He, Junior Sister Xie, and three other junior brothers were all in the Internal Force Realm. Moreover, he and Xie had both reached the Internal Force Fourth Layer.

This was mid-to-low tier in the Inner City—otherwise, they wouldn't have been assigned to the exploration team as cannon fodder. But in the resource-scarce Outer City... this force was not weak.

Shua.

Words were useless. Chen Hushan acted first. Stomping his foot, he unleashed one of the Red Rice Association's four great unique skills: the Soaring Frost Art.

Internal Force flowed into his short dagger, coordinating with his rapid footwork. He resembled a white line as he struck, instantly crossing the seven or eight-meter gap to stab at Chen Sui.

The four Internal Force martial artists behind him attacked in succession as well.

Under the flow of Internal Force, their speed was far beyond what ordinary martial artists could track.

Chen Hushan took the lead, his short dagger glinting with white frost as it slashed lightning-fast toward Chen Sui's shoulder.

A mere newcomer to Internal Force—the gap between them was almost as large as that between an ordinary martial artist and an Internal Force expert.

So, this strike was light as wind and calm as clouds—casual and natural.

But...

Shua!

The short dagger missed!

Before he could recover, a brilliant patch of silver sword light, blooming like a peony, lit up before his eyes.

Ding ding ding ding!!

Blinding sparks exploded rapidly around Chen Hushan. His protective Internal Force plummeted instantly, scaring the color right out of his face.

What kind of speed is this?!

He dared not be negligent, exerting the Soaring Frost Art to its limit. The short dagger flew around his body, generating a haze of white frost energy. This freezing energy was sinisterly cold;

anyone it touched would have cold poison seep into their skin and bones, slowing their movements.

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