Time flowed like water, days turning into months in the blink of an eye.
Ever since You Ying's team passed through the Clear Wind Sword Sect and nearly caused a tragedy, Mingde had reduced his drinking outings. He often spent his time sitting on the roof of the Daoist temple, gazing at the hazy sun beyond the mist.
Weiwei, on the other hand, simply took Little Hu and Little Fatty to expand the "elderly training class," turning it into a genuine career and starting to make money. Because the Perfected Seven-Section Swift Sword had been refined by Lin Hui, she gave him twenty percent of the profits directly. Lin Hui tried to decline a few times to no avail, so he eventually accepted it.
He was busy taking medicine every day, constantly pushing the evolution progress of the Clear Wind Sword Technique. With the steady supply of All-Essence Powder from his father, combined with the materials he gathered and mixed himself, dose after dose of the powder rapidly shortened the time required for his Blood Seal evolution.
In a flash, another three months passed. Finally, the Clear Wind Sword Technique completed its evolution.
Lin Manor, Martial Arts Field
Standing in the square martial arts field, Lin Hui listened to the voice of the Lin Clan Patriarch, Lin Chaoyi, coming from the central courtyard outside. That humble, pleading tone made him frown slightly.
This was already the sixth time Lin Chaoyi had come to the Lin Manor.
"Ding Ning, pack up. I'm going out," Lin Hui ordered in a deep voice.
"Yes," Ding Ning responded quickly from not far away. "Does the Young Master need a carriage?"
"No need."
Lin Hui gripped his sword, gave it a gentle shake, and casually executed a move of the Clear Wind Sword Technique.
In that instant, the eighty-one moves of the Perfected Version of the Clear Wind Sword Technique flooded into his mind like a torrent.
Every move of the Clear Wind Sword Technique he had practiced before was corrected and perfected in this moment. Move after move was fine-tuned, transforming into the degree most suitable for his own physique and form.
Is this Perfected Version actually the most perfect version based on my individual self? No wonder Master couldn't achieve the optimal effect when he learned my Perfected Seven-Section Swift Sword before; it turns out this is fine-tuned according to my own constitution and mental state.
Lin Hui instantly understood.
At this moment, the script of the Blood Seal emerged before his eyes, displaying information about the Clear Wind Sword Technique.
[Clear Wind Sword Technique (Perfected Version) — The fundamental sword art of the Clear Wind Sword Sect. Possesses relatively strong Body Tempering effects and a certain probability of generating Internal Force. This method was perfected by multiple generations of Clear Wind Temple Masters and subsequently fully evolved by you.]
[Evolvable Branches: 1]
Lin Hui realized he had no choice. He'd always assumed he would be overwhelmed with excitement when the Clear Wind Sword Technique finally evolved. Yet, when the Blood Seal displayed the completion message before his eyes, he found himself unexpectedly composed.
Rather than euphoria, he felt a quiet sense of anticipation—and an even greater satisfaction that everything was falling neatly into place. It was the feeling of a long-awaited harvest after countless days of tireless cultivation. Now, after all that persistence, his efforts had finally borne fruit. The sense of accomplishment was so fitting and natural, it almost seemed inevitable.
Chi.
With a thought, he clicked open the evolution branch.
[1 — Wild Wind Sword Technique (A powerful sword technique deduced from the Clear Wind Sword Technique. Uses a special flowing Internal Force as the primary method of attack. Drawing the sword can roll up wild winds.)]
"..." Lin Hui looked at the blood-colored text, speechless.
Changing 'Clear Wind Sword Technique' to 'Wild Wind Sword Technique'... isn't this name a bit too hasty?
But the Blood Seal had already given the path, so he could only choose to trust it. After all, the martial arts he had evolved previously had never disappointed him.
He clicked on the Wild Wind Sword Technique, and the required resources and time popped up immediately.
[Wild Wind Sword Technique —]
[Required Resources: 3 years of Reserve Energy.]
[Time Required: 3 years.]
So long... Lin Hui frowned.
If not for the medicine helping to shorten the time, he worried he might give up before waiting that long and switch to evolving other things.
Standing in the center of the martial arts field, he stared at the evolution option for the Wild Wind Sword Technique. After a pause, he slowly raised his sword and began to personally attempt Body Tempering with the Clear Wind Sword.
Amidst the swish swish of the blade cutting through the air, he clearly felt that he knew every force node of the sword technique like the back of his hand, grasping them perfectly. It was as if the sword technique was cooperating with him; he only needed to raise his hand casually, swing the sword casually, and it would be in the perfect state.
It was as if this set of Perfected Clear Wind Sword Technique had already become his instinct.
This incredibly harmonious state made him involuntarily immersed in it for a while.
Unknowingly, one move followed another. After executing the sword technique ten times in succession, a stream of heat suddenly surged from his heart, flowing through his entire body.
Lin Hui felt as if he were soaking in a hot spring, incomparably comfortable.
Is this the second Body Tempering?
He could clearly feel his body becoming lighter, his thoughts and vision seemingly scrubbed clean by clear water, incomparably distinct.
It wasn't until Ding Ning returned again that Lin Hui snapped back to reality.
"Young Master, everything is ready. You can change your clothes now," Ding Ning said softly.
"Understood." Lin Hui nodded, sheathed his sword, walked out along the edge of the martial arts field, and headed toward his bedroom.
Halfway there, he saw a wooden cage placed in the corridor in front of his bedroom. Inside the cage were five orange-yellow chicks. The chicks were scrambling messily for rice bran, chirping noisily.
"Young Master, these are the chicks you ordered me to buy," Ding Ning said softly from behind.
"Mn." Lin Hui nodded. He planned to conduct a test.
Approaching the chicken coop, he crouched down, reached out to open the cage door, and grabbed the fattest chick. Ignoring the chick's desperate struggles and chaotic chirping, he silently invoked the Blood Seal in his mind.
Evolve Native Chick?
The dark red script of the Blood Seal quickly surfaced at the bottom of his vision.
[Native Chick: A small chicken bought from the agricultural market by Ding Ning of the Lin Manor. Healthy body, delicious meat, currently somewhat panicked.] [Evolvable Branches: 3.]
Just as I thought! Lin Hui's heart skipped a beat. Because of habitual thinking, he had never tried using the Blood Seal on living things before. This sudden whim to have Ding Ning buy live animals for testing actually worked.
Three evolution branches.
He quickly clicked to view them.
[1 — Purgatory Bird Chick.]
[2 — Extreme Cold Seal Bird Chick.]
[3 — Phoenix Chick.]
Looking at these three branches, Lin Hui's eyes widened, somewhat shocked. Judging by the names alone, the potential of these three branches was very strong.
He didn't hesitate to click on the third branch first.
[3 — Phoenix Chick: A rooster chick carrying a trace of Phoenix bloodline. Upon adulthood, it gains special abilities and immunity to some low-intensity flames. Strength significantly increased, recovery significantly increased.]
[Required Resources: 2 years of Reserve Energy, ten jin of Parasol Tree Soil.]
[Time Required: 3 years.]
[Note: Living evolution requires ensuring the target does not generate intense resistance consciousness. After evolution is complete, the living entity will automatically become subordinate to the Blood Seal fuser and cannot betray.]
Lin Hui exhaled and released his hand; the script before his eyes vanished along with it.
Now it was clear. He knew what kind of changes would occur when the Blood Seal faced living things.
Gathering his thoughts, he still didn't choose to evolve the Clear Wind Sword Technique into the Wild Wind Sword Technique immediately. Instead, after changing his clothes, he left the Lin Manor alone with his sword, walking toward the town's carriage road leading to the Inner City.
Now that the Perfected Version of the Clear Wind Sword was complete, he needed time to use it for Body Tempering and generating Internal Force. This required time, so there was no rush. He planned to clarify all the risks ahead before bitterly cultivating Internal Force, to determine if he should get something else done before evolving the sword technique.
Regarding Internal Force, the natural first step was to find his master, Mingde. At this moment, Mingde was drinking with friends in a restaurant near the Inner City.
Lin Hui walked straight along the town's main road. Unconsciously, he employed the footwork of the Clear Wind Temple sword techniques, his speed considerably faster than the average person.
Before long, passing through the central district, he arrived at a five-story restaurant nestled tightly against the colossal white wall of the Inner City.
The outer wall of the restaurant was pure white, seeming to merge with the city wall. A flagpole more than ten meters high stood at the very front, flying a cloth banner advertisement: Good Luck Restaurant - Xinyu Branch.
There was also a small courtyard outside the restaurant, enclosed by white walls. Several waiters stood at the entrance of the courtyard, distributing flyers.
Lin Hui walked over, entering the courtyard alongside a few chatting young men, and proceeded through the main gate.
Inside was a cacophony of noise—drinking, boasting, and the faint sound of musical instruments drifting from private rooms.
Lin Hui swept his gaze over the surging crowd in the first-floor lobby. Square tables were packed with Outer City people drinking and eating. His gaze scanned around and soon found Master Mingde at a table near the corner.
The old man was sitting and drinking with Huang Shangying, the manager of the Illusion Restaurant. This Huang Shangying was an old friend of Mingde who had bought materials from Lin Hui before.
Sharing the table with the two was a well-behaved woman with bangs, whispering to another man in blue. Clearly, these two young people were also with Huang Shangying.
Lin Hui walked over slowly, standing at an angle where his teacher could see him.
"Master," he greeted in a deep voice.
"Ah Hui, what are you doing here?" Mingde looked up, a smile instantly appearing on his face.
"Have you eaten? Your Uncle Huang is treating today; sit down and have a meal!" He waved his hand, trying to find a seat, but there were no empty spots nearby for the moment.
"No need, Master. I came to ask for advice on a matter." Lin Hui glanced at Huang Shangying. "Lin Hui greets Uncle Huang."
"It's you, Lin Hui, right? A promising young man." Huang Shangying still had some impression of Lin Hui. "Is your father the Boss Lin of the United Supermarket?"
"Exactly," Lin Hui nodded.
"That's impressive. The business of the United Supermarket is quite large; it's not much worse than our Illusion Restaurant." Huang Shangying's remark vaguely attracted the attention of the other two young people talking.
Over the past year, the commotion caused by the United Supermarket was much larger than Lin Hui imagined. As young people accepting new things, they were naturally well-informed.
Learning that it was actually opened by Lin Hui's father, their gazes toward him instantly became somewhat different.
A hint of desire to make his acquaintance appeared in their eyes, but since there was no introduction from this side, they couldn't interrupt their elders' conversation and could only wait for an opportunity.
The girl with bangs also intentionally or unintentionally thrust her chest out a bit, trying her best to highlight her physical advantages.
After Mingde and Huang Shangying exchanged a few more words, Mingde asked Lin Hui to wait for a moment and then rose to take his leave, showing absolutely no intention of introducing the young people to each other.
Only after Mingde and Lin Hui had risen and left did Huang Shangying look at the two young people. Seeing their puzzled expressions, he smiled.
"Don't blame me for not introducing you. Lin Hui's background is incredibly profound—his father is a major figure who recently established a connection with Lord You Ying of the Rain Palace. Anyone who can interact directly with a High-Tier Called One and remain unscathed is far beyond your current reach."