The Decaying World-Chapter 112 - 106: Intrusion 2

Inside the Lin Mansion.

Lin Shunhe was just as before: heavyset, with a smile on his face, his wealthy bearing carrying a faint trace of authority.

But if one looked closely, they would notice a faint, purple, floral pattern that occasionally flashed in his eyes.

The sound of footsteps—TAP, TAP—came from outside, and the purple pattern in Lin Shunhe’s eyes quickly faded and vanished.

He looked up toward the entrance and saw a familiar figure slowly step into the main hall. It was Lin Hui, dressed in white with his Dual Swords on his back.

"What brings you here? I thought you’d be at your temple. Don’t you usually spend this time in bitter cultivation?" Lin Shunhe asked his son, a bit surprised.

"It’s been a while. I heard you were back, Dad, so I came to check on you. You weren’t injured, were you?" Lin Hui asked, a flicker of doubt in his eyes as he looked at his father.

’For some reason, he had a nagging feeling that his dad had undergone a significant change after returning from this trip.’

But he couldn’t put his finger on what exactly had changed. It was just a different feeling.

"Of course I wasn’t injured. With so many bodyguards, what could possibly happen to me?" Lin Shunhe chuckled. "You, on the other hand, need to be careful. A lot of Wanhua Sect cultists have been coming to my stores recently. You know, even cultists have to live and buy things, so the United Supermarket’s intelligence network is arguably the best informed. The Wanhua Sect is an extremely sinister group. They’re highly skilled at mimicry and disguise, and they’ve even managed to successfully infiltrate the Inner City’s Three Great powers. You must be cautious."

"Mimicry and disguise abilities?" Lin Hui was surprised. His dad’s intelligence was unexpectedly more potent than his own.

’Just as expected of a supermarket boss working on the front lines.’

"Your Qingfeng Temple has a lot of side businesses now, which makes it an easy target to be treated as a money bag. So you absolutely have to be careful," Lin Shunhe reminded him again. "Avoid provoking them if you can. If you find any of them inside Qingfeng Temple, just drive them out quietly. Don’t use drastic measures. The Wanhua Sect is immensely powerful, the number one evil sect in all of Taixu. They are not to be trifled with."

"I understand. Thank you for the warning, Dad," Lin Hui said earnestly.

’Unfortunately, he had already provoked them. And the source of the trouble wasn’t even him, but the crippling of his cousin, Lin Hongzhen.’

’Or perhaps, the original cause was Lin Hongyu.’

Speaking of Lin Hongyu, he asked about her casually.

"By the way, that Lin Hongyu came to my temple not long ago, trying to get some benefits out of me. I threw her out. I wonder how she’s doing now."

"Lin Hongyu? She left the city for the Fog Area a long time ago. She joined one of the Chen Family’s expedition teams and only just got back," Lin Shunhe replied.

"How is she?"

"She was injured, but there hasn’t been much news since. I don’t really pay attention to that side of the family anymore."

"What about my cousin? Has her condition improved?" Lin Hui asked about Lin Hongzhen.

"I’ve searched for all sorts of Treasure Medicines, but none of them worked. The injury hit a vital spot." Lin Shunhe sighed at the mention of Lin Hongzhen.

"Did you ask Second Mother for help?"

"Of course I asked her long ago, but it was no use. She said the injury was deep inside the brain."

Lin Hui racked his brain, searching through his own connections, but he couldn’t think of any doctor or prescription that could treat a brain injury. It seemed to be an absolute medical challenge, both in his past life and in this one.

He chatted a bit more with his father, who fussed over his well-being, then went to see his mother and Second Mother. It was nearly evening when he finally left the Lin Mansion.

Just as he stepped out, he saw the restaurant across the street—the same place where that opportunistic "big sister," Liu Xiao, had arranged his blind date.

At the entrance, a woman in a black veil stood in the shadows. When she saw him emerge, she grew excited and quickly hurried toward him.

"Brother Hui! Brother Hui, I have a huge secret to tell you! Someone is targeting you! A very dangerous, major power!" As the woman got closer, she rapidly and fluently sent the message via voice transmission.

He could tell she must have memorized these words beforehand. She spoke extremely fast, yet with perfect clarity, enunciating every word. She was clearly afraid Lin Hui would leave too quickly and had come prepared.

"Lin Hongyu?" Lin Hui recognized her.

’So it’s her again. I heard she just got back from the Fog Area. I can’t believe she came looking for me right away.’

"What secret? Let’s hear it," he said nonchalantly.

"I can’t say it here. We need to find a more secluded spot. And... I want a good price for it!" Lin Hongyu had learned her lesson this time. She knew that playing the family card wouldn’t work on Lin Hui. So, she decided to trade information for her own benefit.

"Interesting." Lin Hui noted her change in approach. This method was much more agreeable to him. A normal transaction, without all the messy relational drama. Even if it was Lin Hongyu, he wouldn’t treat her unfairly.

That was one of his fundamental principles; it had nothing to do with who the other person was.

’What puzzled him, however, was how Lin Hongyu knew who was targeting him.’

Without another word, he grabbed the back of Lin Hongyu’s collar, and his figure flashed.

WHOOSH!

The scenery around them instantly blurred. A few minutes later...

In a cluster of ruined houses on the outskirts of the city.

Lin Hui set her down.

"You can talk now. What secret do you have to trade for benefits? But let me be clear: if this so-called secret doesn’t satisfy me, you know the consequences."

Lin Hongyu looked around. The area was overgrown with wild grass, and the ruined houses, with their broken walls and rubble, looked as if they had been smashed by some monster. The scene was utterly desolate.

A flicker of panic hit her, but as expected of a survivor tough enough to have joined an expedition to the Fog Area and made it back alive, she quickly composed herself and faced Lin Hui.

"Brother Hui... no, Observatory Master Lin! In some ruins in the Fog Area, I was briefly trapped in a hidden chamber for two days and two nights. While I was there, I accidentally overheard a conversation between some people inside the ruins. They were from an organization called the Wanhua Sect. They said one of their Incense Masters had been killed in Xinyu Town in the Outer City, and they suspect you were the one who did it. They’ve already sent experts to investigate you."