Chapter 23: Disappearance I

The resting tea stall.

The autumn wind was mournful, and the air was dry and chilly.

In the roughly constructed tea stall, made of gray cloth and thick wooden stakes, Lin Hui casually found a stool and sat down, asking the waiter for a pot of hot tea.

He waited for a while but didn’t see Chen Chong appear. Clearly, that fellow might genuinely have been scared off. After all, the wound on his waist was only bleeding heavily and just needed bandaging. But the injury to his pride was a different matter.

Lin Hui poured himself a cup of hot tea, idly scanning the passersby and carriages on the street.

“Ya’er yo yee~~ The chilly wind oh~ blows my heart cold yo~ Whose fields are blooming with bitter flowers~~” An old man driving an ox-cart passed slowly in front of the tea stall, singing a folk song whose tune was unfamiliar.

“Brother Wenxin! Fancy meeting you here. It really has been a long time~~” Not far away, in front of a silver shop, a tall man wearing a white headscarf hurried forward to catch up with a burly man ahead, greeting him with a smile.

“Mommy, I want to eat this! I want to buy it with my own pocket money!” Further to the side, a small boy with a bun hairstyle stood fixedly in front of a mobile candy vendor.

Lin Hui watched the people passing by, and the huge sense of detachment he had felt before resurfaced.

‘It’s so dangerous at night, with only a jade talisman warding off external threats. People in the Outer City are constantly under threat, so why are these people so calm, unafraid, unbothered, and still able to smile like this?’

‘What if the jade talisman fails?’ Lin Hui unconsciously tightened his grip on his sword hilt.

His mind was filled with thoughts, so he simply closed his eyes to rest and recover his spirit.

Before long, the tea gradually cooled down. Other tables were also occupied by traveling merchants. Taking advantage of the daytime mist-free conditions, they carried the jade talismans approved by the Inner City and traveled between the Inner and Outer Cities.

He could see them transporting goods in and out of the Inner and Outer Cities every day.

Lin Hui was about to get up after sitting for a while but faintly heard scattered fragments of their conversation drifting over.

“…Also missing?”

“It’s true. I dropped by the Wang family’s house before coming here; there was no one inside. It looks like no one has lived there for a while, and half of the jade talisman is missing.”

“Isn’t that exactly the same as the Zhou family?”

“Yes, we just had the door-crashing ghost incident a while ago, and now there are mysterious disappearances. This Outer City is never peaceful throughout the year.”

“Forget it. What’s not peaceful? Haven’t you noticed that those who disappear or have accidents are all the poor and marginalized? Have any of the wealthy, major clans had any trouble? Do you really think it’s an accident?”

“Keep your voice down!”

“Alas, it’s still best to move to the Inner City. There’s no mist at night, it’s safe, prosperous, and the girls on the street are beautiful and don’t like wearing much clothing…”

The men seemed to notice the eavesdropping of those around them. Their voices dropped, and the topic shifted to frivolous matters.

Lin Hui frowned slightly, secretly noting this incident. His parents were in town, and this type of event concerned his family’s safety, so he had to be vigilant at all times.

After sitting for a while longer, Huang Shan and Qiu Yiren returned together, sat down, ordered hot tea, and exhaled deeply.

“This weather is dry and cold, and the wind is strong. It’s giving me a headache,” Huang Shan complained, cupping the teacup with both hands to absorb the heat.

“That’s rough. Would you like some snacks?” Lin Hui gestured to the waiter who was wringing out a towel.

“So eager? Is something up?” Qiu Yiren looked up at Lin Hui. Having been partners for this period, she had a general idea of his intentions.

Don’t bother me when I’m busy, only seek me out when there’s an agenda.

Lin Hui smiled. When the waiter approached, he said: “Can’t I simply greet my benefactors without an ulterior motive? If Junior Sister Huang is willing, she can continue switching shifts with me for the next few days. Waiter, bring some melon seeds and salted peanuts.”

“Right away,” the waiter answered and turned to leave.

“Are you sure?” Huang Shan‘s eyes lit up. “You have no problem dealing with Senior Brother Chen?”

“Of course not. Senior Brother Chen is actually quite nice. As long as you get along well with him, patrolling together is quite effortless,” Lin Hui smiled.

“…” Huang Shan looked at his strange smile and immediately understood that Chen Chong had certainly suffered a loss at Lin Hui‘s hands. Her mood instantly brightened.

She pointed a finger at Lin Hui, smiling back. Everything was understood without words.

“Still the old price!”

“Junior Sister Huang is generous!” Lin Hui raised his teacup, not drinking, but changing the subject. “Speaking of which, I just heard someone mention that there’s a new situation in the Outer City. Have the two of you heard anything?”

“The disappearance cases? We’ve heard about them,” Huang Shan nodded. “This matter does have some suspicious points. I feel like the people who disappeared were specifically selected…”

“Aren’t the Zhong Family brothers pursuing you? Do they have any inside information?” Qiu Yiren asked softly from the side.

“Information…” Huang Shan thought for a moment. “They did mention something vaguely about the Inner City‘s attitude toward Outer City residents.”

She paused, then continued: “They said that over ninety percent of Tuyue‘s population is concentrated in the Inner City. Most of the production there is self-sufficient. The Outer City is actually considered a disposable buffer zone. The Inner City doesn’t really care about the safety of Outer City residents. The resources, vegetables, meat, and other supplies transported daily are not very useful to the Inner City either.”

“Does the Inner City have its own farmland?” Lin Hui frowned and asked.

“Of course, and the yield is very high. Since there is no mist there, work can be done at night. Plus, with the Myriad Fortune Meat, no one goes hungry, and the service and entertainment industries are extremely developed. It’s completely a different world from outside the city,” Huang Shan said softly.

“That’s amazing. Just the fact that there is no mist at night is enough to drive countless Outer City residents crazy with the desire to enter,” Qiu Yiren sighed.

“Yes. And I also heard a rumor,” Huang Shan looked around again and lowered her voice.

“It is said that the Inner City has a hidden assessment system for all Outer City residents.”

“Assessment system? What is that?” Lin Hui narrowed his eyes.

“It is said to be a system used to screen whether residents are useful. If they are assessed as useless, they will be mysteriously eliminated through various kinds of accidents,” Huang Shan lowered her voice further. “The rumor is that Outer City residents are consumable test subjects for many Inner City organizations and powers. Every year, a significant number of people mysteriously disappear from the Outer City, but because people have many children and many people are eliminated and driven out of the Inner City, replenishing the population, no one notices.”

As he listened, Lin Hui inexplicably recalled the hanging jade talisman, and a sudden chill ran through his heart.

He suddenly realized that if the power that created the jade talismans truly wanted to screen the population, they only needed to tamper with the talismans to make the Outer City residents mysteriously disappear in an instant.

Each of those jade talismans was actually a noose hanging around the neck of every Outer City resident, ready to be tightened at any moment.

“Alright, let’s stop talking about these tense and dangerous things. Shanshan, you must be moving into the Inner City soon, right?” Qiu Yiren changed the subject.

“Yes. I borrowed a sum of money from the Zhong Family and bought a very small house in the Inner City first. It’s just enough for us to squeeze in and live,” Huang Shan nodded.

“Then why are you still spending money so extravagantly?”

“I have my own channels for earning money, naturally,” Huang Shan smiled mysteriously.

While the three chatted, it was soon time for the afternoon patrol. Since Chen Chong still hadn’t returned, the two girls were somewhat confused but didn’t ask further. They got up and continued their patrol.

Lin Hui continued his work alone along the previous route.

Days passed one after another.

Chen Chong eventually returned to the patrol, but he always appeared absentminded and looked sickly.

Senior Brother Chen Sui also returned, with a fresh cut on the back of his hand. No one knew how he was injured. Since he didn’t say anything, no one asked.

Soon, the last two days of the patrol ended. After handing over their shift in town, the five returned to the Clear Wind Taoist Temple together.

Aside from Chen Chong, this period of interaction had suddenly given Lin Hui three more acquaintances in the temple.

Huang Shan, Qiu Yiren, and Senior Brother Chen Sui all held a favorable impression of Lin Hui, who was perceived as reliable, diligent, and hardworking. They would occasionally greet him and chat a little.

This greatly expanded Lin Hui‘s social circle at the Clear Wind Taoist Temple. Perhaps this was what Daoist Mingde had hoped for.

People needed to form groups to gain influence and be safer.

Returning to the Clear Wind Taoist Temple, Lin Hui first sent a letter home to reassure his parents, and then he began to confirm the result of the blood-red mark’s evolution.

After one month, the blood-red mark had finally completed the evolution of the insect egg’s natural pattern.

Outside the Clear Wind Taoist Temple, under a large old locust tree, the shade was dim, and the autumn wind was gentle.

Lin Hui, dressed in his gray-white uniform, sat cross-legged on the ground, a thin gray cloth padding his backside to prevent the dirt from staining his clothes.

Not far away, temple disciples were practicing their sword styles, making faint sounds of the air being sliced.

This was a commonly used outdoor training area for temple disciples. Because the terrain was flat and the light was sufficient, many students and disciples often came here to claim space and practice their swords.

Lin Hui was considered an “old-timer” here.

Sitting cross-legged now, his mind was entirely focused on the blood-red text in his field of vision.

‘Sealing Formation: Derived from the special three-dimensional structural pattern within the sealed insect egg. Can seal the basic consciousness of a creature. Sealing Time: one second. Cooldown Time: two seconds. Sealing Method: Toxin Contact. Evolvable Branches: 0.’

This was the evolved ability he had just acquired.

‘Sealing Formation…’ Lin Hui extended his hand, looking at the tip of his index finger.

The semi-transparent fingernail at the tip was slightly pointed and long, with pink nail flesh beneath it. There was no visible sign of any toxin.

‘The sealing time for this Sealing Formation Toxin is only one second. No wonder it only took one month to evolve. But even if it’s only one second, if used properly, it should still be effective. The current problem is, how do I use this ability?’

Lin Hui flexed his five fingers, his gaze sweeping the muddy ground around him. He quickly spotted a black ant struggling to climb a dark green wild grass.

He reached out his finger, pinched the black ant, and gently placed it in his palm.

‘Seal!’ he mentally commanded the ant.

The ant crawled around frantically, showing no reaction.

After a moment’s thought, Lin Hui recalled the sealed insect egg.

‘The sealing method of the sealed insect egg should be to fully enclose the target. This implies contact. Therefore, the sealing ability I’ve obtained should also have a similar activation requirement.’

Thinking this, he extended his other index finger and lightly touched the ant, simultaneously concentrating his mind on the sealing idea, imagining that he wanted to seal the small ant in front of him.

Buzz.

In an instant, a subtle, transparent airflow penetrated from Lin Hui‘s fingertip, precisely adhering to the black ant.

The airflow immediately vanished the moment it contacted the black ant.

At the same time, the black ant instantly froze and became rigid, completely motionless.

It lay motionless in his palm, like a stationary black printed model.

After one second, the ant quickly resumed movement, frantically scrambling around in shock.

‘It worked… The trigger condition is simultaneous activation of the mental command at the moment of contact.’ Lin Hui flicked the ant away, frowning slightly. ‘This ability is a bit useless, more suited for sneak attacks in unarmed combat. Its practicality is limited.’

He stood up, drew the sheathed sword from his waist—the one Daoist Mingde had gifted him, which he named Clear River (清河), meaning the blade was as pure and straight as a clear river.

Chii.

He suddenly drew his sword, thrusting the tip straight forward, precisely hitting the small black ant that had just been released.

(End of Chapter)