The Decaying World

Chapter 267: Chapter 254: Going Out to Sea (2)

"That is indeed the case." Zhang Yao nodded. "The new Deputy City Lord only recently resolved the disturbance in the sea region, crushing a bloody ritual on a scale of hundreds of thousands orchestrated by the Fog Spirit organization. He is more than strong enough for this role. Do you have any thoughts on the matter, Lord Tang?"

"I wouldn’t dare offer instruction. This is an internal affair of Black Cloud; I wouldn’t presume to make careless suggestions. Brother Xie would be quite vexed with me upon his return. However..." Tang Hanxi paused, a meaningful smile gracing his lips. "However, in the entire Federation, within the Inner Court and Outer Mansion, there has never been a precedent for a mortal serving as a Deputy City Lord. Even if your Black Cloud is powerful, once this news gets out, it will attract no small amount of covetous attention. Did you anticipate this?"

"Since we made this decision, Black Cloud will naturally bear the consequences." Zhang Yao’s expression remained unchanged as he nodded lightly.

"I am just curious how Lord Tang came to learn of this. We had intended to keep it under wraps for a while, to enjoy a few more days of peace."

"Naturally, someone has been deliberately spreading the news. Besides, a mortal serving as a Deputy City Lord is a rare thing indeed. He’s not even a Blood Progenitor, yet he holds such a high position. There must be immense value in devouring him. If one could consume this person, the benefits would surely far exceed those from consuming an ordinary Blood Progenitor..." Tang Hanxi said with a smile.

"What do you mean by that?" Zhang Yao asked after a moment of silence.

"Brother Zhang, why ask when you already know? Everyone is very curious. What kind of fortuitous encounter could allow a mere mortal to leap to such heights of power, to the point where he can contend with the God-Descended, or even weaker Fog People? If we could devour and assimilate such a terrifying opportunity, what heights could we reach? Tsk tsk... It’s frightening just to think about," Tang Hanxi said softly.

Zhang Yao fell silent. This was the very trouble he had brought up with his Big Brother and Third Sister. Now, Tang Hanxi was pointing it out directly.

He had harbored the same worries, but unfortunately, his Big Brother and Third Sister were straightforward characters. They believed in treating people with sincerity, insisting that devouring was a tool to be used only against enemies, never against their own.

Thus, he could only suppress these concerns.

And now, what he had feared had finally come to pass.

The news of Lin Hui’s existence, once spread, was like a beacon in the night to those Fog People who craved greater power—dazzling and bright.

Fog People like Tang Hanxi, drawn by the news, would not be the last. In the shadows, there were definitely others, seeking a chance to come and devour Lin Hui.

After all, the Federation only had jurisdiction over the Fog People who operated in the open. In the shadows, there were surely solitary Wild Fog People who would quietly catch wind of the news and come investigating.

"Regardless, Big Brother and Third Sister are currently away, partly to deal with these individuals who’ve come after hearing the news," Zhang Yao said seriously. "Still, I must thank you, Lord Tang, for coming to inform us at the earliest opportunity."

He cupped his fists towards the other man.

"If you want to thank me, make it something practical. I want to take back the thirteen members of my clan that Black Cloud previously imprisoned," Tang Hanxi said with a smile.

"Done." Zhang Yao nodded.

"Straightforward. In that case, I’ll throw in another piece of information for free."

Tang Hanxi slapped his thigh and chuckled. "This matter has already caught the attention of Princess Song Feishi. You should know what her temperament is like. Although it’s a Federation now, the power and influence of the first Fog People emperor was far beyond what any ordinary city could compare to. This princess’s strength is likewise terrifying. If she takes an interest in this... well, the trouble will be immense."

Hearing this, Zhang Yao’s brows furrowed tightly.

If the other Wild Fog People could be considered a minor nuisance, then this Princess Song Feishi was a truly massive problem.

Her temper was extremely difficult to handle, and she placed immense importance on bloodline purity. She had always been a staunch supporter of the theory of maintaining the purity of the Fog People bloodline.

"A small matter like this is unlikely to attract the Fourth Princess’s attention, right?" Zhang Yao said in a low voice.

"Tch. Think about it! A mortal who can rival a regular Fog Person! How many years has it been since one of those appeared? In the entire Federation’s several hundred thousand years of history, only a handful have ever emerged. And the Fog People who devoured them back then—which one of them isn’t terrifyingly powerful now?"

"Deputy City Lord Lin Hui is still far from reaching the level of those few, isn’t he?" Zhang Yao said helplessly.

"He’s getting close. In any case, I’ve delivered my message. How you deal with it is up to you," Tang Hanxi said with a laugh. "You don’t need to worry about those Wild Fog People. They’ll decay soon enough anyway. But this Fourth Princess... Tsk tsk."

For a moment, Zhang Yao felt a headache coming on.

He had already guessed who leaked the information. It had to be Tuyue. But the Federation forbade Fogman City Lords from killing each other, so he couldn’t possibly kill Tuyue over a matter like this.

Would he even be able to continue as a City Lord then?

He had thought that by keeping the news quiet, Black Cloud would gain a powerful general for free, one who would make their city as stable as Mount Tai. He never expected events to deviate so quickly from his calculations.

Now that the news was out, Lin Hui’s existence was gradually shifting from being more of a boon than a bane to being more of a bane than a boon.

It was only because Black Cloud was strong enough that the outside world was merely roiling with undercurrents. If it had been a more ordinary City Lord, countless Fog People would have already come knocking on their door.

*

*

*

At this moment, however, Lin Hui was completely unaware of the mounting trouble he had caused.

He had changed his clothes and was now flying at top speed toward Harpy Island.

He wasn’t riding a Moth Car, so as to avoid leaving a trail. Relying solely on his control over the wind, he reached a scorching speed comparable to that of a Moth Car.

On this trip, not only did he need to complete the extraction of the Pulse of Life, but he also planned to strengthen the Nine Eyes seal. The Grand Priest Level monsters he had stored in it before were no longer nearly enough to face the Fog People.

He needed something at least at the level of a top-tier Blood Progenitor for the Nine Eyes to be able to unite and pose a threat to the Fog People.

But such a monster wasn’t easy to find around the city. Even among the pantheon of gods, it would be considered an Upper Rank existence, second only to a Fog Spirit. Some weaker Fog Spirits were even on this level.

So, he had to plan for the long term.

The turquoise ocean receded rapidly below him.

From time to time, Lin Hui would raise his wrist to look at his watch, checking how much time had passed.

Black Cloud had many similar small gadgets. On the surface, it looked a lot like a watch from his previous life, but its internal timekeeping principles were completely different.

The clocks here used Inner Strength to sense the rhythm of the greater environment’s pulse, using that rhythm as the most basic unit of counting.

So, while they also used seconds, minutes, and hours, Lin Hui didn’t actually know how different the time here was from the time in his previous life.

As he flew, Lin Hui hoped that this trip would also provide an opportunity to test the specific lethality of his Qingyuan Body against the Fog People.

’Last time I didn’t dare to go all out, but in a different environment, with a different identity, things will be very different...’

’If I could just catch a lone Fog Person... out here on this vast sea, one of them dying or disappearing shouldn’t cause too many waves...’

Fortunately, Lin Hui remembered that completing his main objective was the priority. He immediately suppressed the impulse to turn back and find Tuyue, continuing on toward Harpy Island.

Soon, a massive, grayish-white Boundary Wall on the sea’s surface flashed past below him.

Beyond the Boundary Wall, the fog grew thicker, and the seawater began to bubble and churn.

Hidden, powerful gazes watched from beneath the water as Lin Hui sped past.

Outside the Boundary Wall was a high-danger zone.

Beyond the Boundary Wall, Grand Priest Level monsters were everywhere, and weaker monsters could only survive by clinging to them.

Instead of stopping, Lin Hui accelerated.

After about another two hours, a strange landmass composed of golden mountain peaks finally emerged from the sea ahead.

There was almost no flat ground on this land, only oddly shaped golden peaks.

Innumerable smaller peaks were stacked layer upon layer, ultimately forming massive, giant mountains.

’I’ve arrived. Harpy Island!’ Lin Hui relaxed, relieved he hadn’t gotten lost.

He quickly decelerated to a hover and began flying along the coast of the landmass, observing the situation.

He hadn’t flown far before he saw a fully enclosed, silver metal cargo ship slowly approaching the shore and lowering its sails.

Eagle-headed people with black wings on their backs escorted groups of numb-looking members of the Human Race out of the ship’s hold, lining them up on the ground.

Lin Hui’s expression changed slightly. He continued to observe other areas and discovered this was not an isolated incident.

He would see a cargo ship unloading its escorted Human Race cargo every short distance.

From the heavily accented Federation tongue spoken by the eagle-people, Lin Hui deduced that Harpy Island was essentially a notorious transit and trading hub for Human Race slaves, a discrete center outside the Boundary Wall.

Large numbers of human slaves were transported and gathered here. Some were sold as food to non-Federation organizations. Others were sold as slave labor to the major city districts.

It seemed some newly established Fog People city-states also purchased large populations from here to take back with them.

Here, population was, through and through, a resource.

After confirming Harpy Island’s representative role in human trafficking, Lin Hui completely lost any idea of saving this godforsaken place.

But he still had to get the Pulse of Life...

How should he acquire it?

Lin Hui floated in the sky, gazing at the hazy silhouette of Harpy Island in the distant fog, lost in thought.

Even without getting close, he could feel a massive, transparent wave of energy sweeping the area. The security was tight.

For such a large island to exist for so long in the vast Jade Sea, it must have something it relied on for protection.

Therefore, it was highly unrealistic to expect it to run into danger anytime soon...

’So, if I want to harvest the Pulse of Life, I must first disable Harpy Island’s defense system. Only then will they easily encounter danger and fall into despair. And only then, by intervening at the right time, can I truly harvest a large amount of the Pulse of Life.’

Gazing at the enormous Harpy Island in the distance, Lin Hui began to ponder.

’So, how do I destroy this defense system? What is its core?’

But, unnoticed by him, a gray-green humanoid figure was speeding across the Jade Sea from behind, heading straight for his location.

The figure was like a meteor, its flight speed incredibly fast. Faintly visible within it was a tall, gaunt man with two heads.

’After waiting for so many days, I finally ran into him... Lin Hui... Daoist Master Qingfeng... As long as I devour him, my strength will skyrocket! Then I can form my own city-state, share the burden of decay, and maybe I can become a City Lord too!!’

A green light shone in the man’s eyes. The colorful eye on his brow widened crazily, the corners almost seeping blood. It seemed to be desperately trying to lock onto and track Lin Hui’s movements.

They, the Wild Fog People, had been attracted by the news. Five of them in total had surrounded Black Cloud from all directions, just waiting for Lin Hui to leave the city alone.

Now, by a stroke of pure luck, Lin Hui had left the city in his direction.

He just hadn’t expected Lin Hui to be so fast. He didn’t dare enter super-divine speed, lest he trigger the Moon Tower’s monitoring alarms.

And so, he could only chase slowly from behind.