"Yes, exchange—mutual exchange. My Intent Blade Sect has five disciples in total, and every one of them is an elite. If you are willing to absorb us, Sect Master Lin, and promise the same benefits and resources as the others, the Intent Blade Sect will merge immediately!"
Xue Meng clearly didn't care about his sect's legacy; his primary concern was finding a good home for his disciples.
He was getting old. His physical stamina had begun to decline, and his strength was fading. If he didn't secure a position early, he might not have the confidence to stand on equal footing with a genius like Lin Hui later on.
"What is the state of their Body Tempering?" Lin Hui asked with a nod.
"They are all at the Body Tempering limit! I have no other members; I poured all my resources into them, cultivating just these five!" Xue Meng said in a deep voice.
"That works! In that case, let's go back to headquarters to discuss the details of the merger, resources, and monthly stipends," Lin Hui said.
To have a Rank 6 Internal Force expert merge into his faction, with Lin Hui remaining the dominant leader—this was undeniably a massive stroke of good luck.
Of course, if his own fists weren't hard enough, he likely would have been taken down on the spot, his sect's assets swallowed whole.
This was reality. If your strength is insufficient, you are merely meat near someone else’s mouth, waiting to be bitten when they get hungry.
Dragging Xue Meng, the Sect Master of the Intent Blade Sect, back with him, Lin Hui immediately began exchanging knowledge regarding the application of Internal Force and the details of breaking through.
After Xue Meng hand-wrote letters for his disciples, he meticulously explained the insights gained from his past experiences to Lin Hui.
He also began to understand somewhat why Lin Hui could create such an exaggerated speed secret art; a person this obsessed with the Martial Dao indeed could not be measured by common logic.
And this was precisely the image Lin Hui wanted to project to the outside world. It was laying the groundwork for his future breakthrough into the Internal Force Realm ahead of schedule.
Only a few days had passed since the Black Dragon Gate changed hands, and now, immediately following that, came the merger with the Intent Blade Sect. Furthermore, the Clear Wind Sword Sect remained the main branch, unifying everything.
This commotion triggered far more heated discussion than before.
It had to be known that the Intent Blade Sect was no small, insignificant household. Among the many martial artists who had come over from Xingdao, Xue Meng’s strength could be considered upper-middle tier. If he were to risk his life and erupt with secret arts, even top-tier figures like the Sect Master of the Hundred Flowers Sect wouldn't dare to underestimate him.
And yet, such a grand master of the Internal Force Realm had actually merged into the Clear Wind Sword Sect.
No, the current Clear Wind Sword Sect had decisively switched its signboard back to "Clear Wind Temple."
….
One month later.
"Sect Master, is this character for 'Temple' still a bit too small?"
At the entrance of the Black Dragon Gate headquarters, Lin Hui listened to Xue Meng muttering as he stared at the plaque, and smiled.
This Xue Meng was excellent in all other aspects—rich in martial experience, cautious in conduct, and knowing when to advance or retreat—but he had one flaw.
He had loose lips.
The old man couldn't help but talk constantly. Even if no one paid attention to him, he would talk to himself, asking and answering his own questions. He was practically a distant relative of the Lion-men, a paragon of a chatty species.
"Let's stabilize our current scale first. The unification of our three factions has already made some forces uneasy. We need to halt our expansion for now. Everyone should rest and build up strength; don't stir up trouble without cause." ṞÂ𝐍Ȱ𐌱ЁS
"True. This merger actually stepped on the New Martial Alliance's red line a bit. The New Martial Alliance has explicit regulations forbidding large sects from casually annexing small ones. This time was a special case; using the excuse that the Black Dragon Gate broke the rules first, the Sect Master managed to merge successfully while skirting the edge."
Xue Meng nodded, paused, and then continued, "But the merger of our two sects is different. It still has quite an impact. Fortunately, my Intent Blade Sect has few people, so the noise is minimal. But continuing is definitely a no-go. I estimate that within a few days, the New Martial Alliance will send someone to investigate the situation."
"What kind of organization is the New Martial Alliance? Has Elder Xue ever had contact with them?" Lin Hui asked casually as he watched the new plaque being hung and strode back toward the martial drill grounds.
"A minority of the New Martial Alliance consists of members from the original Tuyue Martial Alliance, while the rest are all from our side in Xingdao. In the entire Alliance, the strongest are the Golden Goose Gate and the Carefree Pavilion. Of these two major powers, the Golden Goose Gate is a native Tuyue sect, while the Carefree Pavilion was founded by a Circulation Realm expert from Xingdao. I'm not clear on the specific details. After all, we aren't on the same level and don't mix in the same circles. The strength of Circulation Realm martial artists is far too great; even their lifespans are a cut above ours. Outside the mist zone, they are practically a different species," Xue Meng replied.
"...I once heard that training External skills from the outside in has a limit. Going higher, one cannot continue forward. Has Elder Xue heard of such a claim?" Lin Hui lowered his voice as he observed the many disciples training in formation.
"It is indeed so," Xue Meng sighed. "'From outside in' sounds good, but in reality, External martial arts training damages the body greatly. When one is young and full of Qi and blood, they don't feel it. But when it truly comes time to sort out the fine details, one discovers that the accumulated injuries have turned into a mountain blocking the breakthrough to the Circulation Realm.
"As for why one cannot break through, there are many reasons. For example, the External Web isn't precise enough and filters out too many impurities. The body's meridians and vessels also carry countless hidden injuries, leaking strength everywhere. But the most critical point is this: the Circulation Realm has extremely high requirements for Mind Intent cultivation. External Style practitioners basically never touch this aspect. By the time they realize they need to cultivate it, it is already too late."
"Mind Intent cultivation..." Lin Hui mulled over these words.
During their exchanges these past days, he had heard the other party mention this more than once. But even Xue Meng wasn't clear on how to proceed, stating that this aspect was the most important, closely guarded secret of Internal Style sects. It was generally passed down orally and never committed to writing, so one couldn't even find secret manuals for it.
Helpless, Lin Hui continued his Body Tempering and Internal Force cultivation.
The perfected version of the Clear Wind Sword remained potent. In just one short month, he easily broke through to the Second Layer of the Internal Force Realm and began sprinting toward the Third Layer.
And the Blood Seal, supplied with a steady stream of All-Essence Powder and Spirit-Enriching Reishi, saw its evolution time drastically reduced.
Now that the disciples of the three factions were merged, the prestige of Clear Wind Temple was magnitudes greater than before, faintly reminiscent of its peak era.
Although there were few Internal Force Realm experts, the quality was high.
Xue Meng’s strength was far superior to Daoist Baohe's.
The two gave some simple guidance to the cultivation of the top-ranking disciples, then entered the Song Manor. The entire Song Manor had been completely converted by Lin Hui for disciple and student training and accommodation.
He lived here himself, treating this place as his new base of operations.
After all, this place was much larger than Clear Wind Temple, and the location was much better.
Not long after entering the gate, just as the new kitchen staff brought tea and soup, Wang Hongshi walked in with hurried steps. Accompanying him was Chen Sui, the former First Senior Brother of Clear Wind Temple. It was unclear how the two had ended up together, but they seemed to have hit it off.
"Sect Master, Elder, someone from the New Martial Alliance is here!" Wang Hongshi said in a deep voice, clasping his fists. "They are waiting in the reception hall now, saying they want to have a good talk with you two regarding the merger."
"Who came? The New Martial Alliance has two Alliance Leaders, a primary and a deputy, and nine Elders, who are the masters of the participating major martial halls. Someone with Song Zhanlong's strength was only a regular member. Although the merger is a big matter, its influence is limited to the surrounding few towns. To the New Martial Alliance, it's a trivial matter. I'm guessing it's just an ordinary envoy, right?" Xue Meng asked gravely.
"That person calls himself Thousand Sun. He brought two disciples; he should be an Internal Force Realm master. He did indeed say he is an envoy," Wang Hongshi affirmed with a nod.
"Then it's simple. It seems the New Martial Alliance can't be bothered to pay much attention to this small matter. If the merger weren't quite sensitive, I'm afraid they wouldn't have even sent anyone. To see an envoy, usually, you'd have to wait until the end-of-year collection," Xue Meng smiled, speaking with ease.
"I'll go take a look." Lin Hui nodded.
Since it was an envoy from the New Martial Alliance, he dared not be negligent. Immediately, his movement technique flashed, leaving a trail of afterimages as he exited the tea pavilion and hurried to the reception hall.
Just as he stepped into the main hall, he heard an aged voice introducing the background of the Black Dragon Gate.
In front of a mural on the left side of the hall, a tall old man dressed in dark green brocade robes was explaining the characteristics of the Black Dragon Gate's cultivation techniques and Song Zhanlong's past background to two young disciples.
"Speaking of which, Song Zhanlong didn't learn the Black Dragon Claw in Xingdao City either. He achieved success in martial arts in a purely distant district, then returned to his hometown to found a sect. Later, due to the great chaos of Xingdao, many martial artists fled the city, scattering in all directions. He eventually came to Tuyue, but who would have thought he would die here..."
The speaker turned around. His gaze, sharp and bright as a knife, immediately locked onto Lin Hui as he entered the door.
Before this, Lin Hui had never witnessed a human gaze that could act like a searchlight, stinging his eyes with a faint pain.
But at this moment, he witnessed it.
The piercing glare caused his feet to involuntarily pause, stopping him at the doorway.
In the next instant, he steeled himself against the gaze, stepped forward, and crossed the threshold.
"Your Excellency must be Senior Thousand Sun, the envoy of the New Martial Alliance?" A gentle smile surfaced on Lin Hui's face as he proactively approached to offer a greeting.
"Just as the rumors say, Sect Master Lin is very young..." Thousand Sun sized up Lin Hui, sighing with some emotion.
"Indeed, I am Thousand Sun. Entrusted by the Alliance, I have come to investigate the matter of the Clear Wind Temple merger."
He paused, looking at Lin Hui.
"Does Sect Master Lin have any intention of continuing to merge with the surrounding martial halls and sects?"
"Naturally not." Lin Hui waved his hand and laughed. "Actually, this junior hasn't even broken through to the Internal Force Realm yet. The current situation is all thanks to the righteous support of Elder Xue Meng of the Intent Blade Sect. Elder Brother Xue Meng and I hit it off. Although it looks like a merger, in reality, Elder Brother Xue Meng just planned to change locations for his retirement and didn't want to manage affairs anymore."
Speaking to this point, Lin Hui sighed, wearing an expression as if he had gotten a bargain.
"Then there's no issue," Thousand Sun said relaxedly. "By the way, since you've taken up the burden of the Black Dragon Gate and the Intent Blade Sect, you should pay this year's alliance fees. Those two families still owe theirs and haven't paid."
"Alliance fees... this... how much is required?" Lin Hui's heart skipped a beat.
"Not much. Thirty thousand for one family. Two families together make sixty thousand," Thousand Sun smiled. "By the way, do you have any conflicts with the Hundred Flowers Sect?"
"There shouldn't be. What does Senior mean by this?" Lin Hui asked in surprise.
"It's like this: on my way here, I heard a few Xingdao martial halls within the Alliance chatting. They mentioned matters regarding the Myriad Medicine Villa. You also know that for the ten or so towns in this vicinity, the required medicine is mostly traded from the Myriad Medicine Villa and its subordinate forces.
"But the Hundred Flowers Sect plans to completely corner the medicinal ingredients entering and leaving this area. If they succeed, they will have the final say on all medicinal ingredients in this region henceforth. If you want to buy medicine, you'll have to get it second-hand from their hands."
Thousand Sun clearly bore goodwill toward Lin Hui; otherwise, he wouldn't have mentioned this matter at all.
"Myriad Medicine Villa..." Lin Hui's expression sank, the smile on his face gradually disappearing.
This concerned his channel for consuming Spirit-Enriching Reishi.
"Many thanks to Senior for the reminder. This matter is of grave importance; this junior needs to verify it immediately. I cannot keep you company, so please forgive me."
Very tactfully, he took out a large-denomination gold note from his sleeve and passed it over.
The denomination was one hundred thousand.
This made Thousand Sun nod slightly, accepting the gold note and tucking it away without batting an eyelid.
"It's fine, important matters come first. Please, go ahead, Sect Master Lin."
Lin Hui left quickly, instructing two female disciples to step forward and host the guests well. He himself went into the manor, having people summon Wang Hongshi, Chen Sui, Huang Shan, and Qiu Yiren.
Others, such as the Body Tempering experts from the Intent Blade Sect, were naturally in the sect as well, but due to insufficient trust, Lin Hui did not plan to use them for now. Conversely, he knew the backgrounds of the people before him inside and out, so naturally, he should make full use of them.