The Decaying World

The sea wind howled. In the distance, the storm resembled a giant, slowly turning drum, with arcs of lightning flashing across its surface.

Zhang Yao floated in mid-air, struggling to steady the cracks forming in his Heart and Spirit.

’Father.’ The word hadn’t surfaced in his mind for a very, very long time.

His escape from the Royal City, his freedom from the stigma of being an illegitimate son, had been largely thanks to his elder brother’s help.

From childhood, the fear of his father had become a shadow etched deep into his very bones.

Even after he became one of the Fog People.

In fact, it was *because* he had become one of the Fog People that he understood just how terrifying his father’s power truly was.

In theory, the power of the Fog People was an enhanced version of the Blood Ancestors’. They too could devour external things to strengthen themselves.

But most external things held little value for consumption. Martial Arts had little effect on them, so few bothered to devour them.

Even the more radical Fog People would only raise Blood Ancestors to devour other powerful beings en masse, then wait for the fruit to ripen before plucking it for themselves with a single, effortless bite.

The reason for this was simply that the returns from devouring things themselves were too small and too low.

But that... did not include his father.

He had been dispatched to suppress the largest abyssal fissure in the Federation’s history. He went from a miserable, near-death state to a frenzy of consumption, growing ever stronger.

Now, nearly ten thousand years later, no one knew what heights his power had reached.

"You shouldn’t address me that way." The man on the warship looked up, revealing a weathered face covered in gray scars.

He looked like any ordinary, middle-aged Martial Artist one might see on the street—unremarkable, with a plain disposition. His salt-and-pepper hair was tied back with a silver ribbon, and he wore a simple, faded gray robe, carrying no weapon.

But Zhang Yao knew this was because his father’s fists were the most terrifying weapons in the Federation.

After all, his father was one of The Three Greats who had forced the Fog Person Emperor to abdicate power.

"You’re right. I was cast out of the family long ago. Now... I should call you..." Zhang Yao didn’t get to finish before the other man cut him off.

"Just call me Association Leader," the man with salt-and-pepper hair said coolly. "I now command the Bright Heart Association and rarely involve myself in public affairs. My former royal status is meaningless to me."

"...In that case, may I ask, Association Leader, what business brings you to my Black Cloud City?" Zhang Yao had recovered from the initial shock, and a heavy sense of vigilance rose in his heart.

"Black Cloud is a decent city. Its military strength is average, but its transient population is sufficient," the Association Leader said directly. "I want you to cooperate with me, to secretly lay out a formation in Black Cloud City, embedding this array beneath it."

He held out his hand, palm up. A white fluorescence appeared, morphing into a three-dimensional array constructed from countless overlapping hexagons.

The array resembled a spiky urchin, slowly rotating in his palm.

"I’m sorry, but I can’t do that!" Zhang Yao refused without the slightest hesitation. "As you said, you and I no longer have any relationship. I am now Zhang Yao of the Baoxin Tower, the Second City Lord of Black Cloud! Black Cloud was built on the blood and sweat of my elder brother and third sister. No matter what, I will never do anything to betray this place!"

"You’ve got spine," the Association Leader clapped lightly. "But that spine will only bring you pain."

"Compared to that," Zhang Yao gritted his teeth, "submitting to you again would be the greatest pain of all!"

HSSS...

With a grasp of his hand, a palm-sized, colorful, miniature pagoda materialized in mid-air.

The pagoda’s surface was carved with countless golden patterns and symbols, while multicolored flames poured from its doors and windows.

"I am not the man I once was!"

He lifted the small pagoda with both hands, raising it high above his head.

"Shine forth! Light of my Heart and Spirit!"

In an instant, the small pagoda exploded, shattering into countless motes of colored light.

The next moment, a colossal, identical phantom pagoda thousands of meters tall materialized in the air behind Zhang Yao.

Under the eaves of each of the pagoda’s levels hung dense rows of golden talismans.

"Taste the power I’ve cultivated for a thousand years!" A vertical, rainbow-hued pupil opened on Zhang Yao’s brow, staring intently at the Association Leader.

"The Heavenly Heart is my heart, I define the divine as evil!"

CHIII!

At the top of the giant pagoda, a blinding point of green light flared like a sun, unleashing a terrifying, oppressive aura.

BOOM!

In a flash, the green light shot out, striking the motionless Association Leader at the pure speed of light.

The emerald-green pillar of light, dozens of meters in diameter, engulfed the Association Leader like a laser.

"Even if you’re incredibly strong, you can’t possibly escape the effects of my Evil Energy, which defines evil by my will!" Zhang Yao’s face was contorted in a snarl as he stared intently into the distance, at his father’s position.

His Evil Soldier’s Evil Energy was to ’dispel poison’. But this ’poison,’ or ’evil poison,’ was not poison in the conventional sense. Instead, it was defined entirely by his own will. In other words, even if a power or medicine was beneficial in the eyes of others, as long as Zhang Yao did not approve of it, he could define it as ’evil poison’ and dispel it with his Evil Energy.

This dispelling power was extremely targeted. While not enough to completely eliminate a Fog Person’s evil fog, it could cause them immense trouble. Once a part of their internal power was targeted and dispelled, their system would rapidly fall out of balance, causing their combat strength to plummet.

After all, even Fog People, like any other living beings, relied on a specific, balanced cycle of power within their bodies to exist.

"Even if you have emperor’s blood... even if you are far more powerful than me... my Evil Energy cannot be dispelled!" Zhang Yao stared fixedly at the Association Leader’s position.

He had once tested his Evil Energy on his elder brother, who had also been unable to avoid the predicament of having a part of his own power dispelled.

The most troublesome aspect of Zhang Yao’s Evil Energy was his ability to freely adjust which type of his opponent’s power he targeted.

This meant he could use his full strength to target the weakest link in his opponent’s power system.

’I certainly can’t beat my father, but by using all my power in the name of ’dispelling poison,’ I can definitely seal one of his eyes, or an inconspicuous yet indispensable organ in his body!’

This was his strategy.

Use his entire Evil Energy to completely seal one link in his opponent’s combat strength, then use that as a bargaining chip!

If his opponent agreed, all would be well. If not, they would face the frustration of having their power sealed for at least the next thousand years.

To date, Zhang Yao had never met anyone who could dispel the Evil Energy he released. This dispelling power essentially operated by transforming into a similar, benevolent force that ’helped’ the target dispel the ’evil poison’.

The only way to remove it was to wait for time to pass until it slowly faded and disappeared.

"A very interesting Evil Energy... I was rather surprised back when I heard you had changed your Evil Soldier. I didn’t expect you would go to such lengths just to cut ties with me." The Association Leader’s voice now came from within the green pillar of light.

Changing one’s Evil Soldier was a gamble with death.

That was a well-known fact.

"Now you’ve seen it," Zhang Yao’s expression was icy. "Not even you can dispel my Evil Energy!"

"Indeed."

The green light dissipated, revealing the Association Leader’s ordinary figure, still standing in the same spot.

"A very targeted Evil Energy. It seems you’ve been thinking about how to face me for a long time."

"Return my third sister to me, and I can promise to lift the Evil Energy for you," Zhang Yao said quickly.

"I did not act, nor did I capture her," the Association Leader said calmly. "My Heart Marshals were working together to seize her when she inadvertently escaped into the storm."

"That’s your problem! I just want her back!" Zhang Yao shouted.

"You’re still so impatient," the Association Leader exhaled. "Despite looking much calmer on the outside."

"I—!?" Just as Zhang Yao was about to speak, he felt the world around him flash.

Then, everything turned red.

The sky.

The mist.

The sea.

Even the distant storm.

Everything, absolutely everything, had turned blood-red.

SHIICK!

The next instant, a sharp pain shot through his chest. He subconsciously reached for his heart, only to touch an empty, bloody hole...

"The world loses its color, and I alone take the red."

The Association Leader’s figure appeared behind him like a phantom as he sighed softly.

"Your life ends here."

He turned and watched Zhang Yao stagger forward, then plummet into the sea.

The massive phantom of the Baoxin Tower also rapidly dispersed and vanished.

*

*

*

「Qingfeng Dao Academy.」

Beneath a pear tree, Lin Hui and Song Feishi stood facing each other. Gusts of wind swirled past them, kicking up fallen leaves from the ground.

"You... you’ve known about me for five years!? Did Xie Chang’an tell you!?" Song Feishi stared intently at Lin Hui, having now recovered from her initial shock.

As a veteran Fog Person who had lived for ten thousand years, there wasn’t much she hadn’t seen. It was just that her initial assessment had been wrong, and he had read her mind, which had caught her off guard. But now that she had revised her estimation, she wouldn’t be so easily shaken again.

"I don’t like to repeat myself," Lin Hui said. "You’ve been here, observing for so long. Is there anything you want to say? Or have you made a decision?"

"...A decision?" Song Feishi remained silent. She did have a plan, but it was to pack Lin Hui up and take him with her when she left.

’But now...’

Her thoughts were in a jumble.

Lin Hui’s unusual nature had exceeded her expectations.

A thought flashed through her mind, and she spoke slowly.

"You... staying here in Black Cloud City is a waste of your talents. Would you be willing to return to the Royal City with me? There, you will find a much grander stage and obtain more of what you desire."

"The Royal City?" Lin Hui shook his head slightly. "Perhaps I will go there someday, but right now... that is not what I seek."

He just wanted to live a peaceful life. Everything else was meaningless to him.

"What do you seek?" Song Feishi pressed.

"Everything I have right now is what I seek," Lin Hui replied.

"You can take all of this with you to the Royal City!"

"It’s too much trouble. Relocating requires too great a cost."

"But this place will not be peaceful for much longer." As soon as Song Feishi said this, both of them fell silent.

Lin Hui narrowed his eyes, studying her expression as she spoke.

’As the Fourth Princess of the Federation, Song Feishi’s power is far beyond that of an ordinary Fog Person. She has the absolute blood of an emperor. For such a powerful Fog Person to say that Black Cloud will no longer be peaceful...’

"Do you think I’m joking?" Song Feishi no longer bothered to hide anything. "Black Cloud will continue to operate as usual on the surface. The three City Lords will remain as they are, but... there will be enormous changes from within."

"Why?"

"Why? Because this is the great tide of change!" Song Feishi said gravely. "Even someone as outrageously powerful as Xie Chang’an cannot stop it. Otherwise, did you really think I’ve been hiding here for five years just for you?"

The amount of information in that single sentence made Lin Hui realize that Song Feishi definitely had another identity. Her presence in Black Cloud was by no means as simple as it appeared on the surface.

"Now that I’ve said this much, you should understand. My arrival will not only cause you no harm, but it will also grant you and Qingfeng Dao Academy a better future. Doesn’t that align perfectly with your desire for a peaceful life?" Song Feishi continued, "Only by standing on the winning side can you continue to maintain this so-called peaceful life of yours. Otherwise, you’ll be forced to flee everywhere like a stray dog!"

"Who... is behind you?" The smile on Lin Hui’s face slowly faded.

"A power far beyond your imagination," Song Feishi answered.