148: Causes and consequences, damp ahead of time

Within the market, it was even more desolate. There were few pedestrians on the streets, and most were in a hurry, with worried expressions. Many shops were tightly shut, with Talismans and Restrictions pasted on their doors. Only a few large shops and Medicinal Pill and Talisman stores remained open, but even they had few customers. The air was filled with the smell of medicinal herbs and a suppressive atmosphere.

Lin Feng had no time to look around. Following his memory, he quickly arrived in front of a two-story shop in the eastern district of the market, which had a plaque that read “Lin Family Medicinal Herb Pavilion.” The shop's door was tightly shut, with all Restrictions fully activated. He could even see some new repair marks and un-dried bloodstains on the door.

Lin Feng’s heart sank. He quickly stepped forward and, using a special spiritual power fluctuation for internal Lin Family message transmission, gently knocked on a specific spot on the door.

The waiting time felt exceptionally long. After about fifteen minutes, the Restriction on the door slightly fluctuated, revealing a crack. A pale, haggard, but wary female face appeared.

It was the Clan Aunt, Lin Qingyao, who was stationed here. She looked much older than she had ten years ago, her aura was weak, and there was still a trace of un-wiped blood on the corner of her mouth, indicating she had suffered very severe internal injuries.

When she clearly saw that it was Lin Feng standing outside the door, her originally wary eyes were instantly replaced by immense surprise and joy: “Xiao… Xiao Feng?! Is that you?! You’re still alive?!”

She yanked the door open, but the sudden movement aggravated her injuries, causing her to cough violently, her face becoming even paler.

“Clan Aunt Qingyao! Are you alright?” Lin Feng quickly stepped forward to support her, and a pure spiritual power slowly flowed into her body, helping her stabilize her injuries.

“I’m fine, I’m fine… I won’t die…” Lin Qingyao waved her hand, pulled Lin Feng inside quickly, then swiftly shut the door tightly and activated all Restrictions. She looked at Lin Feng, her eyes full of excitement and lingering fear: “You child! You left for ten years without any news, the Clan all thought… all thought something had happened to you! Your parents were even more worried sick! Where have you been all these years?”

Lin Feng felt guilty and quickly said: “I’ve made Clan Aunt and my parents worry. Your nephew has been cultivating in the Eastern Sea Region all these years. It’s far away, and communication is inconvenient, so I couldn’t send a message home.” He spoke the excuse he had prepared, naturally omitting any mention of Xuanlei Island.

“The Eastern Sea Region? So far…” Lin Qingyao suddenly realized, then coughed violently a few times, spitting out some blood foam. Lin Feng quickly transferred another burst of spiritual power and took out a small jade bottle, pouring out a Medicinal Pill for healing that he had refined and handing it to her.

Lin Qingyao took the Medicinal Pill, and her complexion slightly improved. Then she urgently asked: “Clan Aunt, what exactly happened? Why has Huangsha Island become like this? How is the Family doing? Are my parents alright?” Lin Feng asked a series of questions he was most concerned about.

Hearing Lin Feng’s questions, the faint color that had just appeared on Lin Qingyao’s face quickly faded again, and a flash of grief and fear crossed her eyes. She said in a trembling voice: “The Beast Tide… it’s the Beast Tide! The scale is too immense, far exceeding any records! Our West Flow Sea Region is close to the outer sea, so we bore the brunt… This is already the third wave of attacks…”

“The third wave?!” Lin Feng was stunned, “But I calculated that the large-scale outbreak of the Beast Tide should have only just begun…”

“No… that’s not it…” Lin Qingyao shook her head, her voice bitter, “This Beast Tide is very strange… it didn’t erupt all at once. Instead, many places experienced attacks of varying intensity in advance, catching us off guard… The Huangsha Islands here encountered the first wave over a month ago… It was fine then, we held it off with the market’s grand formation and support from the Yellow Sand Sect… But ten days ago, the second wave came, with stronger and more Yao Beasts… A Foundation Establishment Elder from the Yellow Sand Sect was severely injured… Our Lin Family… two Qi training (Late Stage) disciples stationed here… to cover the retreat of the Mortals… both… both perished…” By the end, her voice choked, and her eyes reddened.

Lin Feng’s heart clenched upon hearing this. Although he might not have been familiar with those two Clan brothers, the sorrow from the depths of his Bloodline was still hard to suppress upon hearing of the Clan members’ demise.

“What about the Clan’s ancestral land?” Lin Feng’s voice was a bit dry.

“The ancestral land, Azure Wave Island, is safe for now.” Lin Qingyao took a deep breath, suppressing her sadness, “Clan Chief, he made a decisive decision, abandoning all outer island strongholds in advance and gathering all Cultivators and resettled Mortals back to Azure Wave Island, relying on the Clan-protecting grand formation for defense. A few days ago, it also encountered several small-scale Beast Tide attacks, all of which were repelled, but…” A look of worry appeared on her face, “But Clan Chief… to repel a Nascent Soul (Middle Stage) Iron-Armored Crocodile, he forcibly activated a secret technique and suffered a significant backlash injury. Clan Brother Qingyue (another Foundation Establishment Cultivator of the Lin Family), who was originally stationed with me on Huangsha Island, had no choice but to abandon this place and urgently return to the ancestral land to manage the overall situation.”

Hearing that the ancestral land where his parents were located was temporarily safe, Lin Feng breathed a slight sigh of relief, but upon hearing that his great-grandfather was injured, his heart tightened again. Clan Chief Lin Bozheng was the only Foundation Establishment Cultivator in the Lin Family, the pillar of the Family. If he fell, the consequences would be unimaginable.

“Then my parents?” Lin Feng hurriedly asked.

“Your parents are fine, they were just worried about you and had a bit of a scare. They are now both in the ancestral land, safe and sound.” Lin Qingyao’s words finally made the heavy stone in Lin Feng’s heart drop.

But Lin Qingyao’s next words made his heart sink again: “But Xiao Feng, the situation is very bad. According to scattered news from fleeing Cultivators and the Yellow Sand Sect, the next wave of the Beast Tide will be unprecedentedly massive! It is said… it is said that even in a relatively remote place like our Azure Wave Island, Foundation Establishment Late Stage, or even… Foundation Establishment (Perfection) Yao Beasts might appear! And it’s likely not just one!”

Her face was filled with despair and helplessness: “Clan Chief is severely injured, and Clan Brother Qingyue is only Foundation Establishment… How can our Lin Family… how can we possibly withstand it…”

Foundation Establishment Late Stage or even Perfection Yao Beasts? And more than one?

When Lin Feng heard this news, his heart first tightened, but then, a strange feeling replaced the worry. He was now Foundation Establishment Late Stage, and the “Ming Wang Purgatory Skill” was even more powerful. He wielded the “startling thunder” sword and possessed various Divine Abilities and secret techniques… If it had been before, he might have also felt despair, but now… he actually felt a slight sense of relief.

Not because the Beast Tide wasn’t strong, but because… such a threat seemed to be just within the range of what he could handle, or even… crush?

He looked at Lin Qingyao’s pale face, filled with despair, and slowly spoke, his voice calm yet carrying an undeniable power: “Clan Aunt need not worry too much. Now that your nephew has returned, I know what I’m doing. You should focus on healing for now. We… will return to the ancestral land as soon as possible.”

Lin Qingyao looked at Lin Feng’s calm face, feeling the inexplicable confidence in his words, and was momentarily dazed. After ten years apart, this nephew seemed to have become… unfathomable. His steady demeanor unexpectedly brought some calm to her distraught emotions.

The stormy waves and countless questions from before were left far behind.