Late April.

Lin Hui received the first delivery of aphrodisiacs from Black Cloud City.

Among them were ten stalks of Purple Cloud Ganoderma and fifty stalks of Yun Lingzhi.

It didn’t seem like much, but the key was that this was a fixed annual resource allocation. The ten stalks of Purple Cloud Ganoderma alone could shorten Lin Hui’s Blood Seal evolution time by twenty years. With the Yun Lingzhi added, the total reduction was thirty-six years.

In other words, by this calculation, he only needed to stay in Black Cloud City for four years to complete the evolution of his Great Yin Yang Time Reversal Sword Technique.

Four years...

This length of time was neither too long nor too short, which suited Lin Hui just fine. This didn’t even account for the time reduction from the Black Emperor Pills and other things he took daily. In reality, the time to complete his Blood Seal evolution would be even shorter—three years at most.

Although his drug resistance was increasing, the rate of increase could be completely overcome by sheer dosage.

All told, it wouldn’t take more than four years.

After obtaining sufficient intelligence from the Moon Tower on Eagleman Island and the Haitao divine host, Lin Hui returned and began to strategize for battle.

"What are your thoughts on this upcoming expedition, Daoist Master?"

In the Clear Wind Daoist Temple, Su Yaping and Xia Si sat in a subordinate position to Lin Hui, offering him counsel.

"This is the first expedition for our Clear Wind Daoist Temple. We should make a strong impression, shouldn’t we?" Lin Hui said hesitantly. "I am not a man skilled in warfare. When facing an enemy, I only know how to eliminate them completely. As for achieving specific objectives, I’ll have to ask for Elder Su’s guidance on these matters."

After Su Yaping joined the Clear Wind Dao, Lin Hui had granted her the position of Elder within the sect.

This position afforded her sufficient respect without involving her in the specific planning and management of the Clear Wind Dao, making it a relatively suitable arrangement.

As for the previous Elders, some had been dismissed for fleeing in the face of battle, and the rest hadn’t followed him here at all. Thus, Su Yaping was now, in effect, the only Elder.

An Elder only had advisory power; unless the Daoist Master granted them corresponding authority, they were a general without an army, unable to manage anything.

"Before you think about achieving your goals, Daoist Master, you must first be clear on what the three City Lords expect of you," Su Yaping said.

"The three City Lords..." Lin Hui knew she was guiding him on how to handle situations like this, and he immediately became receptive to her advice.

"They want me to not cause trouble, to keep to myself, and to be able to block a portion of the divine host’s offensive for Black Cloud at critical moments."

"Then it’s simple," Su Yaping said with a smile. "You only need to complete the mission according to this standard, Daoist Master. Don’t overdo it. You don’t need to kill many enemies; focus on obstruction as the goal. No more, no less."

"How do I gauge that balance?" Lin Hui asked.

"Since the mission is to halt the divine host’s unusual activity, it means this activity is affecting the normal operations of Black Cloud. Therefore, you simply need to resolve that disruption," Su Yaping explained.

"Understood." Lin Hui nodded.

"Daoist Master, do you have any intelligence on the Haitao divine host? How does one distinguish the strong from the weak within their ranks?" Su Yaping asked.

"The Haitao divine host, also known as Minglan, is Black Cloud’s primary adversary. Their structure is led by a Fog Spirit, beneath which are the God-scions, Chieftains, and other various ranks. A Fog Spirit is equivalent to a City Lord, a God-scion is on par with a Blood Ancestor, and Chieftains are generally engaged and obstructed by Palace Masters. The other ranks are of little consequence," Lin Hui said quickly. "As for telling them apart, the main distinguishing feature is their Divine Seal. The Fog Spirit’s seal is platinum and shines on its brow. A God-scion’s is gold, and a Chieftain’s is plain white. Ranks below that have no seal. This represents the concentration of divine blood in their bodies."

"That simplifies things. Daoist Master, this time, please allow this subordinate to accompany you in battle," Su Yaping said earnestly.

"I want to go too! Master, it’s so boring staying here all day. Even when we go out to sea, we rarely get into any fights," Xia Si chimed in from the side, quickly raising her hand.

"Don’t cause trouble. With your current level of strength, you dare ask to come along?" Lin Hui frowned.

"Master, don’t you underestimate me!" Xia Si’s willow-like brows shot up. "This disciple’s Gale Swordsmanship has already reached the Ninth Grade of Body Tempering!"

"Hmm??" Lin Hui was startled. ’How long has it been? How is this kid already at the Ninth Grade?? I remember she was just at a low grade last time??’

"For some reason, this disciple has recently discovered that my True Body Seal contains a strange trace of divinity. It seems I can sense a power within it that enhances my body, a power that comes from an extremely mysterious and dangerous place. That place... I tried to sense it just a little, and I actually received a massive response. My comprehension of the wind has also improved tremendously, and my Body Tempering has suddenly become much faster," Xia Si said seriously.

"..." Lin Hui’s heart skipped a beat. ’Could this child have sensed the existence of the Wind Calamity??’

His own hair had become a conduit to the Wind Calamity, so he knew very well how terrifying it was.

Even with his Blood Seal to suppress and restrain it, he didn’t dare use that power casually. Yet Xia Si had actually... managed to touch the very edge of it on her own.

"I’m heading out tomorrow to investigate the divine host’s unusual activity. Wait for me to come back so I can observe you carefully. Don’t try to connect to that place on your own. It’s dangerous, very dangerous. Remember that," Lin Hui urged in a deep voice.

Seeing his solemn and grave expression, Xia Si understood the seriousness of the matter. Her own expression immediately turned serious, and she nodded.

"Yes, I understand!"

"Remember, don’t try to sense that place again..." Lin Hui repeated, still feeling uneasy.

"Don’t worry, Master! I, Xia Si, am the most obedient!" Xia Si said, thumping her chest with a THUD THUD.

Lin Hui was exasperated. He couldn’t shake the feeling that this kid was a bit unreliable.

Beside them, Su Yaping seemed to have gleaned something from his warnings and attitude, but she said nothing.

After seeing the two of them off, Lin Hui had just sat down to begin his Alchemy when he was stirred by a Heart and Spirit signature.

This wisp of Heart and Spirit signature wavered outside the Clear Wind Daoist Temple three times, like a knock on the door. It was clearly a greeting.

A thought stirred in Lin Hui’s mind. He waved his hand, sending out a gust of wind that gently pushed open the temple’s main gate.

"Yuanyuan, prepare some tea."

"Yes."

Li Yuanyuan quickly answered from outside the small hall.

The courtyard gates opened one by one, and a man in a white robe and a black mask slowly walked in from outside.

The man had stark white hair but a brisk stride. His white robe fluttered in the wind, giving him an elegant and refined air.

Upon entering the small hall where Lin Hui was, the man stopped and clasped his hands in a salute to Lin Hui from a distance.

"Black Face of the Good Heart Sect, paying my respects to Vice City Lord Lin."

"...Black Face? The Good Heart Sect hasn’t contacted me in a long time. I was starting to think you’d forgotten about me," Lin Hui said flatly.

"You jest, Vice City Lord Lin. We have come this time specifically to offer the Lin Family our necessary assistance," Black Face said in a low voice.

Lin Hui’s expression remained unchanged.

’The Good Heart Sect... I had completed many missions for them in the past and later bought a good number of Treasure Medicines through their channels. We should be even. I don’t owe them anything, and they don’t owe me.’

’If the Good Heart Sect had stepped forward to help when I first arrived in Black Cloud—a stranger, isolated and helpless—then perhaps we could have continued our good relationship from before.’

’But now that I’ve already established a firm foothold in Black Cloud City, the Good Heart Sect is only showing up because they’re eyeing my current position, influence, and power, hoping to rekindle our old connection.’

’Things are different now. I don’t need their paltry help, nor do I care about their channels anymore. If they want to reconnect, it will depend on their sincerity.’

’In truth, I’ve always suspected that a thousand-year-old sect like the Good Heart Sect must have numerous Fog People spies within its ranks. It’s a complicated organization; the benefits of joining them seem few, while the risks of leaked secrets and the constraints they’d impose seem far greater.’

"It seems Vice City Lord Lin has some misunderstandings about us..." ’This is so frustrating,’ Black Face thought, feeling conflicted.

He’d never imagined that the son of a subordinate’s subordinate would suddenly transform into a powerhouse on the level of a Deputy City Lord, someone even stronger than himself.

The affairs of this world were truly more dramatic than any storybook tale.

Hearing Lin Hui’s words now, he instantly understood the other’s meaning. After all, they were both old men who had lived for hundreds of years, and he was in a position that specialized in liaison and communication. He had more than enough experience with this type of exchange.

"Our sect can provide Vice City Lord Lin with sufficient intelligence support. I’m sure the Vice City Lord isn’t truly at ease entrusting his entire family and friends to Black Cloud’s three rulers. Wouldn’t it be better to have another major, third-party sect keeping an eye on things?"

He paused for a moment before continuing.

"Furthermore, regarding the divine hosts, our sect can provide extremely precise intelligence."

"Are you saying the Good Heart Sect has people inside the divine hosts!?" Lin Hui was shocked.

"..." Black Face smiled without a word.

After a moment’s thought, Lin Hui immediately decided to agree to the Good Heart Sect’s cooperation.

After he agreed, however, Black Face didn’t mention the divine hosts. Instead, he changed the subject to Tuyue.

"Speaking of which, Tuyue City has welcomed a second Fog Person. His name is Xie Jun, and he was once one of the City Lord of Tuyue’s lovers. The two of them had over a hundred children together, but most died prematurely. Those that didn’t die all turned into monsters and were driven out of the city," Black Face said via voice transmission.

"Xie Jun?" ’He brings up this person and mentions his extremely close relationship with Tuyue... the implication is obvious,’ Lin Hui thought, understanding in a flash.

"Thank you for the warning," he said, clasping his hands in gratitude. This information was indeed crucial. If Tuyue were to come after him again in secret, and he was ambushed without knowing there was a second Fog Person... the consequences would be unimaginable.

"No need to be so polite, Deputy City Lord. With your influence and power, our sect will have many occasions to ask for your assistance in the future. It’s about mutual support," Black Face said with a smile.

Lin Hui nodded.

「Early the next morning.」

He packed the necessary medicines and equipment, said goodbye to his family under the pretext of a business trip, and flew to the Inner City Moon Tower.

As a Deputy City Lord, the personal guard detachment assigned to him by the Moon Tower was a Black Army unit of about a hundred soldiers.

The Peacekeeping Army and the Black Army had different responsibilities. The former was the Federation’s internal security force, while the latter was stronger and primarily responsible for external defense and garrison duties.

The leader of this Black Army unit was a beautiful woman named Ouyang Yining.

This woman’s notable features were her extremely voluptuous upper body, to the point of appearing comically heavy, and the small, white-jade-like ram’s horns on her head. Her legs were toned, full, and long. She was clearly not of the pure Human Race.

"Ouyang Yining greets the Deputy City Lord." Inside the Moon Tower’s battle preparation hall, on the polished white floor tiles, a squad of the Black Armor Army knelt in unison on one knee before Lin Hui.

Leading them was none other than Captain Ouyang Yining, clad in a simple, three-point-style suit of black armor.

Lin Hui looked at her brilliant golden hair and fell silent for a moment.

"Did the Third City Lord send you?"

"Yes. The Third City Lord’s think tank, after a detailed analysis of your preferences and reputation, concluded that dispatching this subordinate to coordinate with you in battle would be more harmonious and advantageous," Ouyang Yining replied in a low voice.

"Hmm... Fine," Lin Hui was speechless. "Is my reputation that bad?"