"Grandpa, looking at the background alone, our family has Called Ones too. What's so amazing about him?" The young man in blue frowned, unconvinced.
"Called Ones differ from Called Ones. Low-tier, mid-tier, high-tier—the gap between each level is immense. And even among high-tier Called Ones, You Ying is in a league of extreme strength. Her father is an Elder of the Shayue Sect, her mother comes from a great Inner City clan, and she herself is tyrannical by nature, having taken the Vice Sect Master of the Fushan Sect—one of the Three Sects and Six Gangs—as her master. Her strength and background are even more exaggerated..."
Huang Shangying sighed. "As for that Lin Hui... young as he is, only nineteen, he has already reached the limit of Body Tempering. Although he persists in not abandoning the Clear Wind Sword, which might make him slightly lacking in actual combat, his movement speed is fast enough, and his ability to preserve his life is strong enough. For someone with his background, that is sufficient. The gap between such a figure and you two..."
He didn't finish the sentence, but the meaning was clear to everyone.
The two young people looked unsightly, though still unconvinced. However, the impression of Lin Hui was now deeply etched in their hearts.
On the other side.
Mingde led Lin Hui slowly out of the restaurant, walking along the footpath by the street.
"Speak. What did you want to see me about?"
"Master, this disciple wishes to ask: how does one generate Internal Force during second Body Tempering?" Lin Hui asked in a low voice.
"Yes."
"...Did you use medicine?"
"Used some," Lin Hui answered honestly.
"That doesn't affect much." Mingde exhaled. "For second Body Tempering, have you really decided to use the Clear Wind Sword? With your current background, your father should be able to force you into the Three Sects and Six Gangs of the Inner City. Once inside, you could learn stronger Internal Force techniques. It’s not impossible to even enter the Three Major Powers. You need to think this through carefully before speaking."
"...Disciple is certain." Lin Hui recalled the imminent evolution of the Wild Wind Sword Technique, his expression calm.
"That works too. Indeed, if you suddenly switch to cultivating another martial art for second Body Tempering, the conversion time would be very long. Since your family has risen anyway—Old Lin is riding high on success now; he can hire Internal Force Realm experts just by spending money—you only need to ensure you run fast enough to escape with your life. That is enough. In terms of running away, the Clear Wind Sword indeed holds a massive advantage." Mingde nodded.
He stopped in his tracks, turning back to look at his disciple.
"Actually, seeing you and Weiwei managing the Sword Sect so well during this period, I feel quite ashamed in my heart. Clearly, I am the Sect Master, yet the greatest pressure has fallen onto the shoulders of you young people. But I... I truly cannot muster the strength to start from scratch and redevelop the Sword Sect step by step."
He sighed.
"The Clear Wind Sword has already fallen too far behind other martial arts. Only by excavating advantages from pure running speed might we barely sustain the legacy. But such a struggle... is too hard."
"Master..." Lin Hui opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but was interrupted by Mingde raising his hand.
"Don't be in a hurry; wait for me to finish." Mingde's gaze drifted, as if looking at something farther and higher, his pupils losing focus.
"Actually, turning the Sword Sect into an elderly wellness class... this idea is quite good. Although it can't develop, it can at least survive. Therefore, I plan to hand the Sword Sect over to you completely."
"Master, what do you mean by this?!" Lin Hui shivered, sensing something was wrong.
"To be direct: From now on, I retreat behind the scenes. From now on, you are the Sect Master of the Sword Sect, and Weiwei will serve as Sect Elder. I can see that you've been teaching the disciples admirably—so the future of the Clear Wind Sword Sect is in your hands!" Mingde smiled, visibly at ease, as he reached out to pat Lin Hui's shoulder.
"...Master, you aren't... planning to run away, are you?" An ominous premonition rose in Lin Hui's heart.
"How could I? Do you think I'm that kind of irresponsible person?" Mingde frowned. "I still want to watch you and Weiwei bring the Clear Wind Sword Sect to glory through another path!"
"...I understand." Lin Hui breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn't expected that after the teacher confirmed he didn't plan to defect elsewhere, he would decisively pass the position of Sect Master to him.
"Continuing with your question just now—how does the generation of Internal Force appear?" Mingde resumed his serious demeanor. "Do you still remember the sect's fundamental diagram, the Bright Moon Mountain Range Diagram?"
"I remember."
"Do you assume that the essence of Body Tempering is to master Force Nodes, thereby allowing the body to absorb more food faster, achieving the effect of increasing intensity?" Mingde asked.
"Is it not?"
"Of course not." Mingde smiled. "In actual Body Tempering, mastering the Force Nodes is merely to allow the body to naturally stimulate its own invisible power, forming a special External Web on the body's surface."
"External Web?" It was the first time Lin Hui had heard such a term, and evident curiosity appeared on his face.
"Precisely. This layer of webbing is woven from the invisible power emitted by our own bodies. It is closely linked to our bodies. The effect of Body Tempering is merely a byproduct produced during the process of weaving this web," Mingde explained.
"Then why weave this web?" Lin Hui asked.
"Naturally, for Internal Force." Mingde laughed. "You didn't think Internal Force came from digesting and transforming the food we eat, did you? Actually, it isn't... It is filtered and captured from the external space by us through the web."
"You know spiders? The woven web is like a spiderweb. As we practice the sword, it constantly attracts massive amounts of various forms of Unknown Breath to enter the body. Among these forms of Unknown Breath, some are useful, some are useless, and some are even toxic and harmful. Thus, we need the web we weave extra to filter and screen them." Mingde explained simply.
"So, Internal Force actually originates from Unknown Breath outside the body?" Lin Hui understood.
"Yes. Therefore, whether you can generate Internal Force during your second Body Tempering has a lot to do with the web you wove before. It is also related to the environment where you temper your body. Let me tell you a secret." Mingde smiled. "When I tempered my body and generated Internal Force, it was during a storm of wind and rain. Not just me; your Martial Uncle, Daoist Baohe, also completed his Internal Force generation in windy weather back then."
"Also," he continued, "different fundamental diagrams, mental methods, and moves, when coordinated, weave different webs, and the Unknown Breath filtered in is also different. This is the key that leads to the different properties and intensities of martial arts' Internal Force. Since you are now about to step into this stage, I will tell you a common point of attention in the Internal Force Realm."
"Point of attention?" Lin Hui keenly heard the serious tone in his teacher's voice when saying this word.
"Yes. Actually, your choice not to enter the Inner City and choose the Three Sects and Six Gangs is considered correct. At least with your dad's protection and inheriting the family business later, if things go smoothly, you will live longer than many Inner City martial artists. That place... the competition is cruel to the extreme. Some Inner City residents who can't survive will even actively draw their blood to condense Feather Blood for sale. Even Inner City residents whose ancestors were wealthy are like this; you can imagine how much pressure the martial artists inside face."
A look of reminiscence appeared on Mingde's face.
"You must remember, once martial arts reach Internal Force, it is another new beginning. Above this dividing line, all Internal Force martial arts are publicly divided into two major categories: Extreme Martial Arts and Ordinary Martial Arts."
"What does that mean?" Lin Hui asked in a deep voice.
"As the name implies, Extreme Martial Arts are those that pursue intensity, progress, and cultivation based on any means necessary, rushing forward madly, constantly breaking limits time and again. Almost all martial arts in the Inner City are Extreme Martial Arts. Their characteristic is that the practitioner's progress and intensity far exceed Ordinary Martial Arts, but the side effects are massive. Basically, all practitioners are accompanied by physical or mental problems, large or small." Mingde explained.
"...Do such martial arts really have value in cultivation?" Lin Hui felt a chill in his heart and asked.
"If not, if the intensity isn't enough, martial artists are useless to the Called Ones in the Inner City. So everyone is forced to push themselves. If you don't push, you will be eliminated and driven out to the Outer City. Once in the Outer City, wanting to go back is difficult beyond measure." Mingde answered.
"Do martial artists in the Inner City all serve the Called Ones?" Lin Hui asked again.
"Essentially, no. It's just that the Called Ones are closer to the true nobility. The ones ruling the major urban districts are still the extremely small number of Trueblood Nobles. They are the direct lineage of the Mistborn, the fundamental source maintaining the mist-free zones of the major districts. Called Ones are merely servants serving the Trueblood Nobles. Compared to martial artists, they are closer to the Trueblood." Mingde replied.
Lin Hui had never heard of Trueblood Nobles, nor had he heard the term 'Mistborn'.
[TN: I have retranslated "Mistborn (Yún Zú)" in Chapter 7 as "Cloudfolk." The character ‘Yún’ can mean cloud, mist, or vapor. In this chapter, "Mistborn (Wù Rén)," uses ‘Wù,’ which also means mist, but in this case, "Mistborn" carries a more aristocratic tone.]
"Then why have we never heard of or seen them?"
"Because the Inner City is very, very big. Your dad didn't want to tell you these things either. Guess how big our Tuyue Inner City is?" Mingde laughed.
"I heard Father mention that the Inner City population is over nineteen million..." Lin Hui answered with slight hesitation.
"Want to go in and take a look? I happen to have two temporary entry permits I applied for earlier on me." Mingde tempted.
"...Can I?" Lin Hui was full of curiosity about the Inner City. After all, having the experience of his previous life, he knew very well what concept a city with a population reaching tens of millions represented.
"I know of over eighty towns on the periphery of Tuyue alone, and the intervals between each are large. These towns surround the Inner City in the center. Guess how big the Inner City is?" Mingde laughed.
Immediately, without waiting for Lin Hui to answer, he led his apprentice straight toward that massive white wall whose end could not be seen.
The two crossed the streets. The pedestrians on both sides became fewer and fewer, and the vehicles became fewer and fewer.
In the end, only a few teams of ox carts transporting supplies remained, slowly driving toward the city wall.
Not long after, the two arrived at the base of the white city wall, in front of a massive white arched gate.
The gate was ten meters high and eight meters wide. Its surface was engraved with markings that seemed to be text yet also appeared to be patterns.
Its material seemed to be some kind of stone. At the very top of the gate, black crystals were inlaid to form three large characters: South Ninth Gate.
At the bottom of the gate, a small door five meters wide was opened for the flow of entering and exiting vehicles.
What surprised Lin Hui was that this door was completely unguarded. The door leaf was wide open, allowing anyone to enter or exit.
"No one is stupid enough to actively enter the Inner City, especially without a permit. You'll get into trouble before staying long." Mingde seemed to see his confusion.
"Feather Blood, permits—these are items distributed by the Inner City to protect residents. Even this incomparably tall city wall has the effect of blocking certain internal radiation forces."
Lin Hui seemed to understand. He followed his master without stopping, entering the city wall quickly along the one-meter-wide gray footpath on the left side of the small door.
Behind the door was a somewhat dim tunnel.
The tunnel was about thirty meters long. Before they completely reached the end, bright daylight projected in from ahead.
In that white daylight, there were the calls of flying birds, the clamor of crowds, the low roars of livestock, and the cries of vendors.
Mingde stuffed a piece of sky-blue jade into Lin Hui's hand.
"Follow closely."
He exhorted once, then took the lead forward, stepping into the white daylight.