Watching the retreating caregiver, Lin Xing helplessly shook his head.
He continued to look at the disdainful skinny man and said the persuasive explanation Wei Zhi had prepared for him yesterday, "Fellow villager, actually we're from the same place, it's just that I arrived here earlier than you and am already quite familiar with this place."
The disdainful skinny man glanced at Lin Xing with contempt and coldly spat out four words: "Trash, unworthy."
Obviously, although Lin Xing had shattered his knee, in the skinny man's eyes it was merely because Lin Xing had launched a surprise attack first, had an ambush laid out, and was armed with a Divine Weapon.
As for the display of skill Lin Xing showed at that time, in the man's eyes, it was no different than that of the other secret realm locals: all were skill-less trash. How could he possibly be from the same place as him?
Hearing the skinny man's response, Lin Xing said, "Don't disbelieve, we really are fellow villagers. Look, I can perform skills too."
As he spoke, Lin Xing turned his palms into blades and slashed down repeatedly, demonstrating the first level of the sickle swordsmanship he had learned two days prior.
Because he didn't know how people from Mirror World recognized skills, and he was worried the other party might not see the skills he mastered, Lin Xing started off at full power.
One could only see his muscles and bones thundering together, as he cut and chopped at the air with his bare hands, making a snapping, crackling sound.
As he fully demonstrated the first level of the sickle swordsmanship, his emotions also stirred within him, as if he was returning to the scene of the fight with the old man that day.
His sudden burst of movement indeed frightened the two caregivers nearby.
"Lin Xing, don't get agitated! Don't hurt the other patients."
"Quickly, call someone over!"
Lin Xing hurriedly stopped, waved at the two caregivers, and said, "I'm fine. Isn't this the time for exercise? I was just doing some exercises to train my muscles and hone my skills."
The caregiver asked, "Are you really okay?"
Lin Xing smiled, "I'm really fine. I'm actually not sick at all and will be leaving soon."
The caregiver politely smiled and immediately called over security to stand guard.
Lin Xing then slightly suppressed the murderous intent and emotions welling up in his heart and looked towards the skinny man beside him, asking, "How about it?"
Feeling the murderous intent emanating from Lin Xing's body, the skinny man's gaze finally changed slightly.
Ordinary boxing and swordsmanship might be faked, but the murderous intent seeping out from Lin Xing felt unmistakably familiar to the skinny man.
"Murderous intent, rage, hatred... intense emotions like these, gradually outwardly expressed through skill exertion and practice, require bitter training in a place full of spiritual ingenuity."
"Secret realms lack such places of spiritual ingenuity; it's exceedingly difficult for the locals there to imitate this."
Thinking this, the skinny man spoke up, "You possess skills, why didn't you use them during our last encounter?"
Hearing the other party's question, Lin Xing prepared to answer once more.
Although he was not very good at lying, with the explanation that Wei Zhi had prepared for him and after memorizing it the night before, he could now answer smoothly.
"I wanted to hide my identity to act in secret here." Lin Xing replied, "Just so happened to run into you, and then I got noticed by the people here, which ultimately led them to expose my identity and catch me too. To be honest, it was you who spoiled my plans."
The skinny man nodded silently to himself and sighed, "These secret realm locals may not be much in terms of strength, but they have many tricks, and there are a lot of guns, indeed troublesome. If I had acted covertly from the beginning, I wouldn't have suffered such humiliation today."
Lin Xing took note of the term "secret realm locals" in his heart and went along with the other man's words, "If only we could find a way to escape back."
The gaunt man glanced at Lin Xing and said, "My name is Jiang Hong. What's your name, young brother?"
"Lin Xing," Lin Xing replied, mimicking the other's manner of speaking, "Does Brother Jiang have a way to return?"
Jiang Hong gestured for him to come closer, so that the two orderlies nearby wouldn't overhear their conversation.
The orderlies didn't pay much attention; after all, the two patients whispering and murmuring to each other seemed far more comforting than Lin Xing swinging his arms and hacking away as he had earlier.
Soon, visiting hours ended and Lin Xing was ushered back to his room by a middle-aged orderly with mutton chop whiskers.
After one glance, Lin Xing recognized him—he was Lao Zhong, the one responsible for picking him up.
On the way, Lao Zhong broke the silence, "Did you find anything out?"
Lin Xing nodded, "Yeah, he already treats me like a fellow villager. But he insists on me getting him out first before he will tell me how to open the door."
Lao Zhong nodded and said, "Understood. The other two are even more dangerous. We will find chances for you to make contact with them. When that time comes, try to extract more information from them."
After returning to his room, Lin Xing began to practice the scythe skills empty-handed again.
Since his fight with the old man, he hadn't fully executed these skills. The emotionally stirring feeling when he performed them at full strength in front of Jiang Hong today made him feel somewhat strange.
And while Lin Xing was practicing his scythe skills, the cat doll on the bed had been silently observing him.
From its time in the room, the cat doll realized that, in other people's eyes, this enchanting fellow seemed to have a mental disorder.
"With his talent, once back in Great Zhou, bathed in spiritual energy, his cultivation is bound to skyrocket."
"To these people, he's insane. So even if he tells someone that I, the old ancestor, spoke to him, chances are no one would believe him."
"Moreover, these people have already given me a thorough inspection and haven't found anything linking me, the ancestor, to him..."
After reflecting for a while, Lin Xing suddenly heard a voice in his mind, "Kid, there's not a trace of spiritual energy in this secret realm; you can practice all you want, but it's in vain."
Lin Xing was slightly startled, then looked at the doll on the bed with surprise, saying "You're finally speaking! Do you mean I need to enter inside again to master the skill?"
The doll replied, "Only by mastering more skills will you have the chance to comprehend the inheritance. Only by understanding the inheritance will you have the opportunity to further progress."
Seeing that Lin Xing was listening intently, the doll tempted him further, "I, the old ancestor, am proficient in over a hundred skills and understand the method of inheritance. With my guidance, you are bound to rise rapidly. But to master the skills, you must leave here and return to Great Zhou."
"Great Zhou? That's what the people from Mirror World call their own place, right?" Lin Xing mentally noted the information, then asked, "Do you come from the other side of the door? Want to go back?"
The doll sighed, "Yes, I've been away from home for far too long."
Lin Xing asked, "How do we get back?"
The doll said, "I don't know the pattern of how the door opens. But since you've learned the skill, it means you already carry spiritual energy within you. There's no spiritual energy in this secret realm, so, logically, with the pull of spiritual energy, the door will eventually open around you."
"It could be quick, in a few months, or slow, maybe a few years, but there will inevitably come a day when it opens."
"So from now on, you need to take me with you at all times, lest you return to Great Zhou without me and miss out on countless divine skills and lost arts."
"You helped me before, so I will help you, I will definitely see you home." Lin Xing then asked, "By the way, what is spiritual energy?"
As the doll rambled on with its explanations, Lin Xing couldn't comprehend a word, only understanding that this thing seemed to be found everywhere in Mirror World, and he had to be in an environment with spiritual energy to grasp the skills.
The orderly outside the door, overhearing Lin Xing's words and seeing him talking to a doll through the little window, shook his head in resignation and left.