Chapter 132: Brother, I See the Light of Day Again
Late at night.
Liu Hongmei was already asleep.
She rolled over and casually flung an arm out.
To her surprise, the space beside her was empty.
She instinctively opened her eyes. Lin Dazhi wasn’t there.
She didn’t think much of it.
’Maybe Lin Dazhi just went to the bathroom?’
She rolled over, preparing to go back to sleep.
But then, she heard faint, intermittent sounds coming from outside.
For the past two days, the news had been filled with reports of entire families being massacred.
This made her scalp prickle with sudden terror.
Lying in bed, she listened intently to the activity outside.
It sounded like someone was alternating between crying and soft laughter.
This bizarre behavior made Liu Hongmei increasingly terrified.
Any trace of sleepiness vanished in an instant...
She lay there, remaining still for a moment longer.
Only then did she faintly make out that the person outside, crying and laughing, was none other than Lin Dazhi.
So, she suppressed her rising panic.
She climbed out of bed and quietly opened the bedroom door.
The living room light was on.
And Lin Dazhi’s voice was coming from inside.
She crept out of the bedroom.
Glancing into the living room, she saw Lin Dazhi sitting on the sofa, holding his phone.
Tears streamed uncontrollably down his face.
Then he would tilt his head back and let out a soft laugh...
"Old Lin? Old Lin, what’s wrong?"
Liu Hongmei drew closer. Seeing Lin Dazhi acting so strangely, she asked with a deep frown.
As soon as the words left her mouth, Lin Dazhi turned his head.
His face was already streaked with tears.
Laughing and crying, he said, "Hongmei, Xiaoyi, he... he forgave me, he forgave me..."
"What?"
Liu Hongmei froze, not quite understanding what Lin Dazhi meant.
Lin Dazhi then handed his phone to her.
She took it and saw it was a message from Lin Yi.
Lin Yi: It’s been unsafe outside lately. Take care of yourself.
Just a single, short message.
But for Old Lin, it was enough to make him break down completely.
Liu Hongmei sat next to Lin Dazhi and said comfortingly, "Old Lin, Xiaoyi still cares about you. This is a good thing, so why are you crying?"
But who would have thought that as soon as Liu Hongmei finished speaking,
Lin Dazhi’s crying only grew louder.
At that moment, it was as if he was pouring out all his pent-up emotions in a torrent of tears.
He couldn’t stop them at all.
...
[Name: Lin Yi]
[Occupation: Student]
[Martial Arts Realm: Tier One, Star Two]
[Qi and Blood: 02%]
[Martial Skills: Basic Fist Technique (Perfection), Basic Leg Technique (Perfection), Golden Light Fist (Perfection), Candle Dragon Ancient Saber Technique (Major Success), Brahma Heaven Luo Jin Spear Technique (Minor Success)]
[Talent Traits: Absolute Focus (Purple), Heaven-defying Comprehension (Purple), Destiny (Gold), Fist Technique Mastery (Blue), Divine Movement (Blue), Divine Concealment (Gold), Vajra Fist (2/3 Purple), Body Tempering (Purple), Steel Body (Purple), Snake-shaped Stepping Technique (Blue), True Blood Moon (Red), Earth Evasion (Purple), Vigilance (Blue), Spirit Blade (Purple), Agility (Blue), Strengthened Soul (Purple), Minor Culinary Arts (Green), Fortune (Blue), Epiphany x2 (Green), Carpentry x2 (White), Esoteric Arts (Blue), Earthen Bind (Purple), Uplifting Incense (Gold), Enhanced Digestion (Blue), Cold Resistance (Purple), Fire Resistance (Purple)...]
[Cultivation Technique: Star River Qi Transformation Technique]
「Early morning.」
Lin Yi emerged from his cultivation of the Star River Qi Transformation Technique.
He habitually checked his personal interface.
Although his Qi and Blood progression had slowed considerably since he reached Star Two,
Lin Yi had noticed something else.
As he continuously cultivated the Star River Qi Transformation Technique, the cat (or tiger cub) outlined by the stars had grown increasingly distinct.
Before, it was just an outline.
It had been impossible to tell if the outline was a cat or a tiger.
But last night, Lin Yi saw it clearly.
It was a tiger cub, a pattern drawn from the countless stars in the sky.
The Star River, the Daoist, and the tiger cub.
These were the visions that had appeared to Lin Yi so far within the Star River Qi Transformation Technique.
And each vision,
had its own unique meaning.
The Star River represented his realm.
The Daoist improved his cultivation.
Only the tiger cub’s purpose remained unclear.
After a long while, Lin Yi came out of the bathroom.
He picked up his phone and glanced at it.
He saw there were a few messages he hadn’t had a chance to check yet.
Sun Tao: All safe last night. See you at the Martial Arts Hall.
Qin Zhaoxue: Sister Qingru is safe. She’s busy refining a new medicine and told me to let you know not to worry.
Old Lin: Xiaoyi, Dad misses you...
When Lin Yi saw the messages,
his brow furrowed slightly, especially at Old Lin’s reply.
Lin Yi did not reply to Lin Dazhi.
Instead, he sent replies to Sun Tao and Qin Zhaoxue.
Leaving his bedroom, Lin Yi went to the kitchen and cooked two packets of instant noodles.
It was the only food left in the house.
Sitting at the dining table, Lin Yi scrolled through the news on his phone for a while.
To his surprise, all news about Xinghai City had vanished overnight.
There weren’t even any reports of the family massacres.
Nor was there any mention of the Blood Drop Believers.
He searched for a long time but couldn’t find a single article.
Lin Yi put down his phone, understanding the reason.
The authorities must have suppressed all the news.
The recent events in Xinghai City had already caused considerable panic among the citizens.
If the panic were allowed to continue spreading,
no one could predict the consequences.
There was another reason, one of Lin Yi’s own speculation.
Based on the strange behavior of Chu Zhengxiong and his people these past two days, as well as Shen Yuzhe leaving behind a ’will’...
it wasn’t hard to guess that the Demon Hunting Bureau had already taken action against Blood Drop.
Furthermore, Chu Zhengxiong’s words from last night,
also hinted that Lin Yi’s suspicions were correct.
So, the lack of news about Xinghai City, especially about Blood Drop,
was also a way to keep the situation completely under control.
Taking advantage of this, the Demon Hunting Bureau was launching a full-scale purge of the Blood Drop Believers...
After finishing breakfast, Lin Yi washed the bowl.
He sat on the sofa and checked the time.
The Martial Arts Hall’s hours had changed, now from nine in the morning to two in the afternoon.
Moreover, attendance was completely voluntary, and even the coaches were gone.
He figured many of the students would choose to stay home.
He figured fewer than ten people would actually go to the Martial Arts Hall.
It was still early, so Lin Yi turned on the TV and watched for a bit.
Just like on his phone, the TV news was mostly filled with stories about everyday life.
Just as Lin Yi was about to turn off the TV,
suddenly, his phone rang.
He picked it up and glanced at the caller ID.
His eyes lit up.
The call was from none other than his childhood friend, Wei Nan.
Before Lin Yi joined the Martial Arts Hall, Wei Nan was his only friend.
He was also the only brother he could truly confide in.
Since Wei Nan had inexplicably ’evaporated’, they hadn’t seen each other for about two months.
They would usually only contact each other occasionally, in the middle of the night.
Wei Nan had never called him during the day before.
But today, Lin Yi answered the call with a smile.
"Hey? You’re back?"
Wei Nan’s mischievous laugh came from the other end of the line.
"Hahaha... I’m back! I’m finally seeing the light of day again!"
"Where are you? Let’s meet up, quick!"
Wei Nan’s unrestrained excitement was palpable even through the phone.
"Where else would I be? At your cousin’s place. Why don’t you come over?" Lin Yi replied with a smile.
He was also genuinely happy.
But Wei Nan hesitated for a moment. "Actually, you should come out. I won’t go there!"
Lin Yi didn’t think much of it. "Alright, you pick a place, and I’ll come find you!"
After hanging up, Lin Yi sent a message to Zhou Qi and Sun Tao.
He told them he might be a little late today.
After all, when old friends reunite, you’re bound to spend some extra time together.
Besides, Wei Nan was his only friend he could truly confide in.
After Wei Nan sent an address,
Lin Yi hurried out of the house, ran to the edge of the residential complex, and hailed a taxi.
"Driver, to Huachen District!"
The driver nodded and drove straight toward the address.
About fifteen minutes later.
As the driver pulled up outside the district’s main gate,
before Lin Yi could even get out of the car, Wei Nan hurried over.
He yanked open the car door and jumped in.
"Hey, what are you doing getting in?" Lin Yi said, confused.
Wei Nan grinned. "Driver, to West Bridge Market, and hurry..."