The Decaying World-Chapter 47 - 42: Strength 2

Mist Barbarians were often thought to be former humans, corrupted by the fog. But after killing a few, Lin Hui had found that theory to be baseless. He had discovered strange, carved script on their equipment.

It was a completely new and unique script, though it seemed ancient and fragmented.

But this evidence was enough to prove that these monsters were some kind of Non-human Race.

It was just that these once-intelligent beings now had only a killing instinct left, having devolved into Harmless Level monsters.

’This one in front of me, though, with its four arms... it might be close to the Invasion Level.’

ROAR!!

Just then, the Four-armed Barbarian suddenly accelerated, striding forward and charging. Like a heavy rhinoceros, it savagely rammed toward Lin Hui.

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「Far off in another direction.」

In front of the wooden cabin belonging to Mingde, two blurry figures gradually emerged from the hazy fog.

The figures slowly drew closer and came into focus. They were none other than the old and young pair Lin Hui had met just before entering.

"Grandmother, there’s a temporary safe house up ahead. It was probably built by a local Hunter. Should we go in and rest?"

The stoic young woman asked softly for instructions as she sized up the wooden cabin.

The old woman carefully observed the footprints on the ground.

"We can. The only sect or martial arts hall nearby is Qingfeng Temple, so they must have built it. We’ll just go in to rest and borrow the place for a bit. We can restock our supplies while we’re at it."

For Hunters in the Fog Area, these temporary safe houses could generally be borrowed for a short time—a form of mutual aid among humans.

The only rule was that after using it, one had to replenish any consumables used so the next person could use them. This was an unspoken agreement among Hunters.

"Alright," the young woman nodded.

The pair had just killed over a dozen Unihorn Spiders on their way here and were feeling somewhat exhausted, so it was a good time to go inside and rest.

Soon, the two women crossed the yard, reached the front of the cabin, and pulled open the wooden door.

The very first thing they saw left them stunned.

It was a large bag nearly overflowing with black crystals. At a glance, there were at least thirty pieces in the leather bag!

"So many black crystals?! Who hunted all these and stored them here?" The old woman’s face lit up with delight, and she quickly glanced left and right, tightening her grip on the Ning Xiang in her hand.

The young woman beside her, Wan’Er, was also stunned.

The goal of her hunt on this trip was to collect enough monster materials to serve as proof for her family, allowing her to stand out from her many siblings and obtain a higher rank in the line of succession.

Her family had recently relocated from Xingdiao, occupying more and larger fields and shops. Originally, side branches like hers had no right to a share of the assets, but now they were qualified to compete for some of the storefronts.

This grand competition used monster materials as proof, competing on quantity to prove the strength of one’s own branch of the family.

This contest wasn’t limited to one’s own strength but was a test of the sum total of one’s financial power and manpower.

The only condition was that the monster materials couldn’t be too old; only those hunted within the last four hours could be used as proof.

Seeing so many black crystals now, Wan’Er’s gaze wavered.

She had practiced her family’s Martial Arts for over ten years, but even if she and her grandmother worked together, it would be highly unlikely for them to gather so many materials within four hours.

It wasn’t just a matter of martial arts proficiency; their hunting efficiency simply wasn’t high enough. "It must have been an expert from Qingfeng Temple. They’re known for their speed. Judging by the luster of these crystals, almost all of them were dug out within the last two hours." The grandmother stepped forward, using her cane to gently poke a crystal and examine it.

"Qingfeng Temple? You mean the old Tuyue Martial Arts Hall that was crushed by Song Zhanlong of the Black Dragon Sect?" Wan’Er asked, narrowing her eyes as a calculating look appeared within them.

"Yes. What? Do you have an idea?" the grandmother asked, looking at Wan’Er.

"How much are these crystals worth?" Wan’Er asked softly.

"There are thirty-some pieces, two of them are rare quality. All told, they’re worth around a hundred thousand coins. Let’s just take them. This way, you’ll be much further ahead than the others." The grandmother smiled, having guessed her granddaughter’s thoughts.

"A hundred thousand coins is a lot, but it’s not worth doing this..." Wan’Er shook her head.

"What’s not worth it? Qingfeng Temple is just a handful of stragglers. Even if they knew we took them, what could they do? They can’t even handle the Black Dragon Sect, so are they really going to stir up more trouble?" The grandmother sneered. "Besides, you need to spend every coin where it counts right now—all of it on buying fresh monster materials to boost your score. Are you telling me you’d rather save your money to *buy* these?"

"You’re right." Wan’Er sighed and nodded.

Immediately, the two of them secured the crystals in the bag, tied it shut, and left the cabin with the grandmother carrying it. They entered the fog once more and disappeared.

「About twelve minutes after the two had left.」

Lin Hui emerged from the fog, carrying a thick, palm-sized piece of black keratin. He silently returned to the cabin door.

’Hmm? Someone was here?’

He looked down and saw fresh footprints belonging to two people. Squatting down, he analyzed them using the simple identification method his teacher had taught him.

’They left not long ago. The tracks belong to two women or children. It’s impossible for children to enter the Fog Area, so it must be two women...’

Standing up, Lin Hui carried the material and pulled open the cabin door.

With a soft CREAK, he opened the door. On the floor inside, the leather bag that had just been full of crystals was gone without a trace.

Lin Hui’s expression changed.

He had actually been worried about this. Previously, his teacher had been there to stand guard, so he hadn’t worried about losing his materials. Now that he was acting alone, a problem had indeed occurred.

Stepping out of the cabin, he gazed into the gray, hazy fog, his expression grim.

He had never learned tracking skills, and his teacher was only an amateur himself. The method was fine for simple footprint identification, but it was completely useless for actually tracking someone.

It seemed he was destined to suffer this loss in silence.

’The thieves must be long gone by now. What a shame... It seems next time I’ll have to find a hidden, safe place to store my materials, or find a partner to stand guard.’

Lin Hui suppressed his frustration. Carrying the materials from the Four-armed Barbarian, he began to search for the thieves, circling the cabin with his Body Technique, though without much hope.

Circle by circle, he steadily expanded his search area.

He hadn’t expected to find anything, but to his surprise, he discovered two sets of fresh footprints about two hundred meters northwest of the cabin.

He followed the footprints, and within a few minutes, Lin Hui slowed his pace, his eyes fixed ahead.

A large cavity appeared in the fog ahead—a safe zone created by burning a Ning Xiang to dispel the mist.

This also meant someone up ahead was burning a Ning Xiang.

He spotted the two of them, and at the same time, they spotted him.

Both parties stopped in their tracks and looked at each other.

Lin Hui immediately saw the leather bag the two women were carrying. It was identical to the one he had set aside for the black crystals.

"That bag in your hands," he said, standing his ground, his voice low. "I wonder where you got it?"

"Someone from Qingfeng Temple?" The grandmother spoke first, raising a hand to stop Wan’Er from speaking.

"I’d prefer if you two answered my question first," Lin Hui said cautiously. Although his strength had greatly increased, how many of those who dared to hunt in the Fog Area could possibly be weak?

It was never wrong to be careful. What if the bag they were holding just happened to look like the one he’d lost?

It was best to confirm it wasn’t a misunderstanding first.

"We ’borrowed’ this bag from a temporary wooden cabin just now. Why? Why do you ask, young friend?" the grandmother retorted.

"Then did you two happen to see the thirty-plus black crystals I had in that bag?" Lin Hui asked again.

"Crystals? We hunted for all of these crystals with great difficulty. The bag was empty when we borrowed it." The grandmother laughed.

There was no way they would admit to stealing it. This was the Fog Area. Forget simply taking things from people; even killing to silence witnesses was a common occurrence.

When she had asked if he was from Qingfeng Temple and he didn’t deny it, the grandmother had already decided to take the bag of crystals by force.

Qingfeng Temple’s Body Technique was fast, but their killing power was too weak. Other than running fast, they were pretty much useless.

They had been challenged by a single person from the Black Dragon Sect and had collapsed instantly. They couldn’t even beat the Black Dragon Sect, let alone their Wei Family, which was a cut above the Black Dragon Sect.

"Ladies, there’s no point in saying things like that." Lin Hui was now certain the crystals in the bag were the ones he had hunted. He immediately began to walk toward them, one step at a time.

"What a joke. Who can prove you hunted these crystals? It’s obvious we’re the ones who just hunted for them," the grandmother sneered. "Kid from Qingfeng Temple, you need evidence to back up your words. Your sect has already been split into three branches, have you still not learned your lesson?"

"But I feel that those are my things," Lin Hui said in a low voice. "Ladies..."

"Is your master Mingchen, Mingxiu, or Mingde?" the grandmother’s voice rose. "Kid, you’d better think about the consequences before you speak."

Lin Hui fell silent.

Looking at the bag in the two women’s hands, all sorts of possibilities flashed through his mind. In the end, he let out a soft sigh.

"Alright, perhaps I was mistaken. My apologies."

He slowly backed away, quietly disappearing into the fog, having completely retreated.

Once the grandmother and Wan’Er confirmed he was gone, they also turned and continued deeper into the fog.

"If we want to get a top-three ranking, we need to hunt materials from at least fifty more monsters. Then, adding in the ones we buy with money, we might barely secure a spot," the grandmother said in a low voice.

"Yes, Grandmother," Wan’Er nodded.

"The only dangerous place here is over by the Yanshan Mountain Range. As long as we don’t run into any mutated individuals in the other areas, you and I can handle them easily. We need to pick up the pace now," the grandmother urged.

The two continued straight ahead, but they hadn’t walked for long before the sound of heavy footsteps suddenly came from up front.

THUD, THUD.

A Four-armed Barbarian let out a low roar, approaching from the side up ahead, wildly swinging four huge wooden clubs.

This was a mutated one, a great deal stronger than a typical Harmless Level Barbarian.

"Be careful, this mutated one is almost at the Invasion Level. I’ll cover you, you give it a try first!" the grandmother said grimly.

"Alright." Wan’Er gripped her dual blades, took a few steps forward, and was about to strike.

HISS.

Suddenly, a faint hissing roar came from behind them.

As the sound emerged, so did another Four-armed Barbarian!

It seemed to be chasing something. It burst out of the fog and lunged straight for the two women.

"Watch out!" The grandmother’s expression changed slightly as she barked, "I’ll take the one behind us, you get the one in front!"

But before she could finish speaking, another Four-armed Barbarian roared and charged out from their right!

ROAR!!

At the same time, three Four-armed Barbarians lunged at the pair from three different directions.

This sudden, drastic change made both women’s faces fall, and their hearts sank.

And far from their position, on the branch of a tall, withered black tree...

Lin Hui was half-crouched, quietly listening to the roars of the Barbarians and the clash of blades coming from that direction.

This was a test, and also a trial.

If the two of them truly had the strength to pass this trial, then letting them have a few mere crystals wouldn’t matter.

But if they couldn’t...

Lin Hui lightly gripped his sword hilt, his fingers stroking the rough, anti-slip wrapping.

’Since you dared to threaten me to my face, to threaten all of Qingfeng Temple, your strength must be quite impressive...’

’As an apology for wrongly accusing you, I’ll send you three little gifts...’

He lifted his head, listening to the sounds of the battle that had just begun up ahead.

If they could handle his gifts, fine. But if they couldn’t...