After a long silence, Lin Hui finally spoke again.

"Big Brother, what’s the point of telling me all this?"

"True, telling you won’t change anything. But I feel that after all you’ve been through with Captain Han Xiaoyue, you have the right to know the truth. Besides..." Liu Wu Jun paused. "Your twenty-year promise might be destined to come to nothing."

"She told you?" Lin Hui asked.

"Yes. Captain Han and I have talked a lot," Liu Wu Jun nodded. "Our Blood Tide Association is different from other organizations. We stay out of all conflicts and maelstroms of strife, dedicating ourselves solely to slowing and stopping the corruption. That’s why we deeply admire the sacrifices made by Captain Han and the others..."

"Big Brother, just say what you want to say," Lin Hui interrupted him.

"I’ve already said what I wanted to say." Liu Wu Jun shook his head. "The future is set by fate. Don’t overthink it. Drink."

He raised his teacup, clinked it against Lin Hui’s as if they were drinking liquor, and downed it in one go.

Ten minutes later, Liu Wu Jun left.

Lin Hui sat alone in the courtyard. Above him, white pear blossoms bloomed in clusters. A gentle breeze rustled the branches, making them sway.

As his Big Brother was leaving, Lin Hui had promised that if his help was needed in the great matter of slowing the corruption, he would lend a hand, under certain conditions.

This was clearly what his Big Brother had wanted.

’Then again, for a phenomenon as dangerous and mysterious as the corruption, how could the Federation not have a dedicated organization to handle it?’ Lin Hui picked up his empty teacup, his mind a whirl of complex thoughts.

He called up his Blood Seal to check the current status of the Great Yin Yang Time Reversal Sword Technique.

After consuming all the remaining Treasure Medicine, the previous 150 years of evolution time had been reduced to 114 years and 4 months.

’I should just focus on my own cultivation. It’s been less than ten years since I started. Perhaps in another ten years, these problems will be easy to solve.’

Lin Hui decided to leave the future’s problems for his future self to handle.

After composing himself, he gathered his thoughts.

’Regarding the Treasure Medicine, I’ve already contacted City Lord Gongsun and can use Black Cloud’s official procurement channels. As for compensation, Black Cloud has promised me the same treatment as a Blood Progenitor of the Fog People, as long as I cooperate and take action during wartime.’

Lin Hui had refused all sorts of superficial pleasures, exchanging them all for a supply of Treasure Medicine.

Well, what counted as a supply of Treasure Medicine for him.

In other words, a supply of aphrodisiacs.

When Gongsun Xinlian learned of this condition for the exchange, her expression was complicated. But she still granted his request.

’But acquiring Treasure Medicine can, at best, only accelerate the Blood Seal’s evolution. It doesn’t help my cultivation of the Star Breath Sword Manual martial art. Everything still has to proceed step-by-step, by collecting the Pulse of Life...’

How was he to redeem ninety-nine types of living beings?

Lin Hui had tallied the amount of Pulse of Life he’d obtained from his redemptions so far. During this time, by redeeming various animals, insects, and plants, he had basically completed the redemption of eighty-seven species.

In doing so, he had redeemed nearly every species in the surrounding area. To find more types, he would either have to focus on smaller, more minuscule plants and insects, or explore farther regions.

The smaller and more minuscule the target, the weaker the Pulse of Life he would receive upon redemption.

Lin Hui had a faint feeling that this choice would be detrimental to the future cultivation of his sword manual.

He remembered from the cultivation memories infused by the Blood Seal that the Pulse of Life was an accumulative process.

If he didn’t accumulate enough, the difficulty of achieving enlightenment would increase drastically...

And so, he thought of a way.

*

*

*

「Late April.」

Black Cloud hosted envoys from the distant Zhu Yan Empire, holding a banquet at the Moon Tower. Lin Hui was invited, but he refused.

He didn’t just refuse this invitation; he turned down every social engagement that might disturb his peaceful life.

After this happened a few times, the upper echelons of Black Cloud understood his intentions and stopped sending people to bother him.

Lin Hui continued to live quietly at the martial academy, working as an ordinary teacher.

The only thing that had changed was that he had become a full-fledged teacher and a Class Leader, no longer just a teaching assistant.

Aside from the occasional private time spent with Liu Xiao, Lin Hui devoted ninety-nine percent of his time to studying the Star Breath Sword Manual.

And so, through this painstaking research, coupled with the cultivation memories already infused into him...

...by early July, Lin Hui finally found the best cultivation target for the first level of the sword manual.

*

*

*

The sky cleared after the rain. Golden sunlight pierced through the mist, illuminating all of Black Cloud and bathing it in a faint, golden light.

Inside Qingfeng Dao Academy.

Lin Hui looked at Liu Xiao’s exhausted face, gently covered her with the blanket, and got up himself.

After a period of adjustment, they had gradually found a rhythm and intensity that suited them both. Liu Xiao wasn’t an ordinary person, after all. Though her speed was far from matching Lin Hui’s, she was still much faster than a normal person.

Her limits were naturally much higher than an ordinary person’s as well. Boosted by the aphrodisiacs actively provided by the Great City Lord, Liu Xiao could now barely manage to keep herself together. At least she no longer broke down and cried uncontrollably like the first time.

"Ah Hui," Liu Xiao said, stroking her abdomen wearily, "when do you think we’ll be able to have a child? I’m a little worried."

It had already been several months. Aside from the first month of adjustment, they had been at it almost every day, all night long. But for some reason, she just couldn’t get pregnant.

"It’s alright, don’t worry," Lin Hui said softly. "Look at all those powerful couples. Don’t they all have children late in life? There are no exceptions. We’ve only just gotten married. There’s no rush."

But in his heart, he had his suspicions.

’Can my body, transformed and strengthened by the Wind Disaster Power, even produce offspring?’

’It’s hard to say.’

The Wind Disaster Power decomposed everything. To date, he had never seen any substance or power that could completely block the Wind Disaster Power.

His bodily fluids should also possess a certain amount of Wind Disaster Power. Every time they entered Liu Xiao’s body, he could feel them causing minute injuries inside her.

It was just that he would quickly suppress the damage as soon as he detected it.

Because the difference in their power was too great, the injuries were minuscule, and a Summoner’s constitution was strong enough, Liu Xiao never noticed anything in the heat of the moment.

But Lin Hui knew.

If the situation didn’t change and things continued like this, pregnancy would be almost impossible.

This was clearly a harmful phenomenon caused by the mother’s body being unable to withstand Lin Hui.

He even suspected that if he didn’t control it, his bodily fluids could decompose and erode Liu Xiao within a few short hours, reducing her to a pool of pus and blood.

No, even the blood would likely decompose into pure Wind Disaster Power... without a single drop left.

"Go to sleep...." Lin Hui gently touched Liu Xiao’s forehead. After confirming she didn’t have a fever, he got up, dressed, and left.

A little over ten minutes later, he arrived at the Ninth Moon Tower in Black Cloud’s Inner City.

Above the vast, white sea of mist, the top of the Ninth Moon Tower was a colossal, conch-shaped palace, white with blue trim.

In the air surrounding the palace, translucent, platinum-gold light screens made of runes would occasionally appear and disappear, rotating in a circle.

With a flicker, Lin Hui appeared directly outside the platinum-gold runic screens. Sensing his arrival, the screens automatically split open to let him pass.

He flickered again and appeared near the conch palace.

Instead of using the main entrance, he flew halfway around it, found an oval window on the conch’s outer wall, and leaped inside.

Inside the window was a small, square room with white walls.

It was filled with stone bookshelves of varying heights, all crammed with thick, gray-covered, handwritten volumes.

A white-haired old man wearing black-rimmed glasses was hunched over, carefully comparing the contents of two handwritten volumes.

Sensing someone at the window, the old man frowned and looked up.

"How many times have I told you not to come in through the window? Why don’t you—" He hadn’t finished speaking when he recognized Lin Hui. His expression changed instantly, and he shot to his feet.

"So it is Vice City Lord Lin! This subordinate has been rude!"

He hurriedly bowed to Lin Hui.

Deputy City Lord. This was the position Great City Lord Xie Chang’an had offered to win him over.

Lin Hui enjoyed the status and resources of a Deputy City Lord.

Although Black Cloud City had many Deputy City Lords, and the position was essentially a sinecure handed out as a favor, Lin Hui, who wanted to do nothing, was actually very satisfied with the title.

"Good. Have you compiled the list of powerful Non-human Races nearby that I asked for?" Lin Hui glanced at the handwritten documents on the table and asked bluntly.

"It’s compiled. It’s all here. There are a total of thirty-seven Non-human Races with distinct ethnic differences recorded in Black Cloud’s archives," the old man answered proficiently.

"Among them, twenty-four completely meet your requirements."

He picked up a handwritten volume and handed it to Lin Hui.

"Please, take a look."

Lin Hui took it and scanned it quickly.

’Oxen-kin, Eagle-kin, Sea Serpent People, Whale Clan, Jellyfish Clan, Infinity Clan, Ghost Clan, Siren Clan...’

A series of powerful races he had never even heard of appeared before his eyes.

Each of these clans was only qualified to be listed as a major power because they had a Fog People Ancestor presiding over them.

"Which one is the closest?" Lin Hui asked.

"That would be the Eagle-kin. They have a small island west of Black Cloud, outside the Boundary Wall. According to census data reported 350 years ago, their population is around fourteen million. Their clan leader is the Second City Lord who currently oversees Lingxiao City, Lord Tianhai Jianyin Sanqiong."

"How do I get there?" Lin Hui still planned to give it a try. He would go over there and see if he could find anyone in suffering who needed his help.

’On such a large island, if I look around enough, I should be able to find some unlucky soul who needs redemption.’

That was what he thought.

Of course, this target for redemption had to be strong and outstanding enough for him to conveniently collect a sufficient amount of Pulse of Life.

"By the way, Vice City Lord Lin, there has been a lot of unusual activity recently in the Minglan God Cluster sea region to the north. The Great City Lord went out again yesterday, and the Second City Lord has gone south to deal with the Wusa God Cluster. The Third City Lord is in seclusion, healing the two Blood Progenitors who returned injured. Before entering seclusion, he instructed us to come directly to you if anything happens... What are your thoughts...?" the old man asked cautiously.

"If there’s any more activity, you can notify me." Lin Hui knew that the three City Lords had deliberately left this opportunity for him to display his strength. Whether or not he could maintain his current peaceful life and preferential treatment in the future would depend on how he performed in this battle.

"Understood!" the old man said quickly.

"Did the Third City Lord say anything else?"

"Nothing else. For simple disturbances like this, a City Lord-level Fog Spirit wouldn’t normally be deployed, so it’s usually handled by the Blood Progenitor elders. But with two Blood Progenitors injured this time, we’re a bit short-staffed. We can only ask Vice City Lord Lin to take action this once." The old man was one of Great City Lord Xie Chang’an’s trusted Death Warriors and knew a lot of inside information. His explanation cleared up Lin Hui’s questions.

"I understand," Lin Hui nodded.

After this trip to the Eagle-kin island, he should be able to resolve the dilemma of the first level of the Pulse of Life.

By then, his strength would surely have increased significantly, and dealing with this so-called unusual activity wouldn’t be a problem.

And just then, while Lin Hui was painstakingly plotting for his own cultivation, far away in a Moon Tower in the Tuyue City District...

...Tuyue, her expression grim, was conspiring with a friend who had come from afar.

The subject of their plot was none other than her private property, who had been forcibly taken by Black Cloud—Lin Hui.

"I can’t swallow this insult!"

Tuyue gritted her teeth. The memory of her public humiliation washed over her, and hatred battered the defenses of her heart like a surging tide.

"Don’t be hasty. Black Cloud is Black Cloud. Xie Chang’an is willing to stand up for that Lin Hui because his value is great enough. But if one day, Lin Hui’s value is no longer sufficient... or if the losses he brings them outweigh his value..." The mysterious man sat across from Tuyue, floating in mid-air, speaking with casual confidence.

"I knew you’d have a way!" Tuyue’s eyes lit up.