Breakfast began at seven.
No one wanted to be there.
Ji Xueyan sat at the far end of the table with her silver spear resting against the wall behind her.
The cracked system window beside her appeared every few minutes, failed to load, then disappeared.
Bai Qingyu sat opposite her.
Doctor Ren had bandaged both of Bai’s eyes after examining the damage caused by the Seven Aperture Eye.
Bai had removed the bandages before entering the dining room.
Xue Lihua sat between two Houshan guards.
Feng Baoshu poured tea.
Leng Yao entered last.
Bai turned towards him.
“You are late.”
“It is my house.”
“That does not change the time.”
Leng Yao sat at the head of the table.
Feng Baoshu placed breakfast in front of him.
“No one leaves the estate without approval,” Leng Yao said.
Ji picked up her cup.
“I am not your prisoner.”
“The western gate is open.”
Her eyes moved towards him.
“You know I cannot leave.”
“Your system would follow.”
“And Heaven may attack whoever shelters me.”
“That is why you are here.”
Ji lowered the cup.
“You are using the estate as a shield.”
“I am using the estate as an estate.”
Bai reached for a steamed bun.
“Can I leave?”
“No.”
“You said the gate was open.”
“You cannot see it.”
“I can find it.”
“You are still recovering.”
“That is different from being imprisoned.”
“Then recover quickly.”
Bai bit into the bun.
Xue had not touched her food.
Leng Yao looked at her.
“Eat.”
“I’m not hungry.”
“That was not a question.”
She picked up her chopsticks.
Ji watched the exchange.
“You treat everyone like subordinates.”
“Most people in this room are.”
“I am not.”
“No.”
Bai swallowed.
“Neither am I.”
“You requested protection.”
“I did not request employment.”
Leng Yao ignored her.
Feng Baoshu placed a tablet beside his plate.
“Doctor Ren’s report.”
Leng Yao opened it.
Bai Qingyu’s ocular meridians had changed after absorbing the Seven Aperture Eye.
The blocked channels were no longer dead.
Thin spiritual pathways had formed around them, but the new pathways were unstable.
Using the inheritance caused inflammation, bleeding and temporary loss of sensation.
“How long before she can use it safely?” Leng Yao asked.
Doctor Ren stood near the door.
“Months.”
Bai lowered her chopsticks.
“No.”
The physician looked at her.
“No?”
“I need it sooner.”
“You can use it now,” Doctor Ren said.
“You may also blind yourself permanently.”
“I am already blind.”
“You may damage your brain.”
Bai considered that.
“How many uses?”
“One short activation every three days.”
“I used it twice yesterday.”
“Yes.
That is why you cannot feel two fingers on your left hand.”
Bai moved the fingers beneath the table.
Her face changed.
She had not noticed.
Doctor Ren continued.
“The inheritance is repairing your eyes while forcing them to perform beyond their current capacity.
You must let the pathways settle.”
“How long?”
“Three months before regular use.”
Bai faced Leng Yao.
“I need access to the spring.”
“It is being secured.”
“It belongs to me.”
“Yes.”
“Then send me back.”
“No.”
Her jaw tightened.
“The spring may speed up the repair.”
“It may also react to the inheritance and kill you.”
“You say that often.”
“People around me make poor decisions.”
Ji looked at him.
“That includes you.”
“Yes.”
The answer silenced the table briefly.
Leng Yao turned to Xue.
“Your mother is stable.”
She stopped eating.
“Can I speak to her?”
“When she wakes.”
“When will that be?”
“Doctor Ren?”
The physician checked the tablet in her hand.
“Later today.
We sedated her during the transfer.”
Xue looked towards the door.
“Where is she?”
“No,” Leng Yao said.
“I need to know.”
“Song Zhen needs to know.”
“I am not asking for him.”
“He will ask you.”
Xue’s fingers tightened around the chopsticks.
“And what should I tell him?”
“That we moved her.”
“He will know I’ve been exposed.”
“He already suspects.”
“Then he may abandon me.”
“That would save time.”
“And if he does not?”
“Then he will give you another task.”
Ji leaned back.
“You intend to keep using her as a spy.”
“Yes.”
“She betrayed your organisation.”
“Yes.”
“She helped cause deaths.”
“Yes.”
Xue’s face remained still.
Ji looked at her.
“Do you regret it?”
Xue did not answer immediately.
“I regret some of it.”
“Only some?”
“I gave the Shen family financial reports.
Shipping times.
Names.”
“And security routes.”
“Yes.”
“Men died.”
“I know.”
Ji’s voice hardened.
“That was not an answer.”
Xue met her gaze.
“I regret that.”
“Would you have stopped if Leng Yao had not found you?”
Xue looked down at the table.
“No.”
The room became quiet.
Bai reached for another bun.
Ji glanced at her.
“You are eating.”
“I cannot help with this conversation.”
Feng Baoshu almost smiled.
Leng Yao opened his right hand beneath the table.
The black scale mark appeared in his palm.
He focused on Xue.
Dark lines formed around her.
One connected her to her mother.
One connected her to the Leng intelligence division.
A thin line extended towards Song Zhen.
Golden words hung over her head.
TRAITOR
DISPOSABLE ASSET
FAILED SUCCESSOR
The words did not come from Xue.
They had been placed upon her.
The Judgement fragment reacted.
Dark text formed beneath them.
Imposed verdicts detected.
Sources: Leng organisation.
Shen network.
Heavenly Mandate.
Three different authorities had judged Xue.
None of the labels explained the whole person.
Leng Yao shifted his attention to Ji.
Golden words appeared.
NONCOMPLIANT
COMPROMISED AUTHORITY
REGIONAL FAILURE
Bai carried her own.
UNAPPROVED HEIR
STOLEN RECIPIENT
Leng Yao looked at himself.
The words covered his body.
VILLAIN
IRREGULAR ENTITY
UNLAWFUL CLAIMANT
ERASURE PENDING
He released the fragment.
The dining room returned to normal.
Feng Baoshu noticed the movement of his hand.
“What did you see?”
“Labels.”
“Useful ones?”
“No.”
Ji’s damaged system window appeared.
This time, it remained.
A single line formed inside it.
CENTRAL REVIEW PREPARING FORMAL NOTICE.
Ji stood.
“When?”
The window vanished.
Leng Yao looked at her.
“What does a formal notice do?”
“It establishes jurisdiction.”
“Over what?”
Bai placed the bun down.
“Does that include me?”
“Yes.”
“My clinic?”
“Yes.”
“The spring?”
“Yes.”
Bai’s expression hardened.
“I dislike this person already.”
“You have not met him,” Ji said.
“Do you like him?”
“No.”
“That is enough.”
Leng Yao looked at Ji.
“Name.”
“Qin Zhaoming.”
“Authority?”
“Edict.”
Feng Baoshu stopped pouring tea.
“What can it do?”
Ji remained standing.
“Judgement decides whether a law has been broken.
Edict decides what the law is.”
“That sounds convenient,” Bai said.
“It is.”
“Can he take my inheritance?”
“If the Central Review recognises Heaven’s claim, yes.”
Bai rose.
“No.”
Leng Yao looked at her.
“Sit.”
“I am going back to the spring.”
“You would not reach the gate.”
“You cannot keep deciding where I go.”
“I can while someone is trying to remove your eyes.”
Bai faced him.
The room’s windows turned gold.
Every formation in the estate activated at once.
No alarm sounded.
There was no attack.
Golden light passed through the walls without resistance.
A document appeared above the breakfast table.
It was three metres tall.
Characters wrote themselves across its surface.
CENTRAL MANDATE COURT
FORMAL NOTICE OF REVIEW
Ji lowered her head.
Not in respect.
To read faster.
Leng Yao remained seated.
The first section named the parties.
Primary respondent: Leng Yao.
Associated irregularities: Ji Xueyan, Bai Qingyu, Xue Lihua.
Protected asset: Shen Mingzhi.
The charges followed.
Unlawful possession of Mandate energy.
Obstruction of designated causality.
Corruption of regional authority.
Seizure of allocated inheritance.
Interference with administrative transfer.
Incitement of chosen disobedience.
Bai pointed at the final charge.
“I chose for myself.”
“The court disagrees,” Ji said.
“It has not asked me.”
“It does not need to.”
“That is a poor court.”
The document continued.
Hearing date: seven days.
Location: Central Mandate Hall.
Failure to appear will result in:
Revocation of all protected ownership.
Seizure of irregular authorities.
Designation of associated persons as hostile assets.
Regional correction without limitation.
Feng Baoshu read the final line twice.
“Without limitation.”
Ji nodded.
“It means collateral damage is authorised.”
“The estate?”
“Yes.”
“The clinic?”
“Yes.”
“Xue’s mother?”
Xue’s face changed.
Ji looked towards her.
“Anyone connected closely enough.”
The golden document lowered towards the table.
A space appeared at the bottom.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT REQUIRED
Accept jurisdiction.
Reject jurisdiction.
Feng Baoshu looked at Leng Yao.
“What happens if you reject it?”
Ji answered.
“The penalties begin immediately.”
“And if he accepts?”
“The hearing proceeds.”
“Fairly?”
“No.”
Bai turned towards Ji.
“You said that quickly.”
“I know Qin Zhaoming.”
Leng Yao focused on the formal notice.
The black scale appeared in his palm.
The golden document changed.
A second layer became visible beneath the written charges.
Words had been embedded inside it.
Liability predetermined.
Authority forfeiture approved.
Erasure permitted upon resistance.
The hearing had not been arranged to decide guilt.
It had been arranged to record surrender.
Dark text formed in his vision.
Imposed verdict detected.
Source: Central Mandate Court.
Verdict precedes hearing.
Leng Yao stood.
Ji moved between him and the document.
“Do not destroy it.”
“I was not planning to.”
“You usually look calmer before doing something reckless.”
Bai nodded.
“He does.”
Leng Yao ignored them.
He reached towards the acknowledgement section.
Golden pressure wrapped around his hand.
Select response.
He pressed one finger against the document.
A mark appeared.
Not beneath acceptance.
Not beneath rejection.
Between them.
The court responded.
Invalid selection.
Leng Yao activated the Claim fragment.
Dark lines spread from his hand across the document.
The court possessed a claim over the charges.
Heaven possessed a claim over the stolen authorities.
Qin Zhaoming possessed a claim over the hearing.
Leng Yao possessed something too.
The energy inside his core.
The Claim fragment.
The Judgement claim.
His estate.
His life.
“Register a counterclaim,” he said.
The golden document shook.
Respondent has no standing.
“I hold disputed authority.”
Authority was unlawfully acquired.
“That is the dispute.”
The document brightened.
Accept jurisdiction or reject jurisdiction.
“I accept the hearing.”
Ji looked at him.
Feng Baoshu’s expression remained still.
Leng Yao continued.
“As a claimant.”
The golden pressure increased.
Cracks opened across the dining table.
Xue pushed her chair back.
Bai remained standing beside Leng Yao.
The court spoke aloud.
Claim against whom?
“Heavenly Mandate.”
The estate became silent.
Even the formation arrays stopped humming.
The document flickered.
State damages.
Ji stared at him.
“It accepted.”
“Not yet.”
Leng Yao looked at the charges written against him.
“Attempted unlawful erasure.”
A dark line crossed the first golden charge.
“Fraudulent authority transfer.”
The second line appeared.
“Interference with natural inheritance ownership.”
A third.
“Improper seizure of privately held resources.”
A fourth.
“Use of manipulated vessels without informed consent.”
Inspector Lu Jinhai’s face appeared briefly inside the document.
Then Xue.
Then Ji.
The court resisted.
Heavenly Mandate possesses sovereign immunity.
“Claim disputed.”
No recognised court may hear this claim.
“This court is hearing it now.”
The document shook harder.
Golden light filled the dining room.
The table split down the centre.
Feng Baoshu moved the teapot before it fell.
Bai faced him.
“You saved the tea?”
“It was expensive.”
The golden document wrote a new line.
Slowly.
As though each character required force.
COUNTERCLAIM PROVISIONALLY REGISTERED
Ji released a breath.
Xue stared at the words.
The notice continued.
Claimant: Leng Yao.
Respondent: Heavenly Mandate.
Standing under review.
Hearing date unchanged.
The acknowledgement section changed.
APPEARANCE RECORDED
The document folded itself once.
Then again.
The seal dropped towards Leng Yao.
He caught it.
Cold entered his palm.
The black Claim mark reacted but did not consume it.
Not yet.
Ji looked at the seal.
“I have never seen that happen.”
“Has anyone tried?”
“No.”
“Then that explains it.”
Bai touched the broken table.
“Does this mean he cannot take my inheritance?”
“No,” Ji said.
“It means he must explain why he is taking it.”
“That is better.”
“Not much.”
“It is still better.”
Xue looked at Leng Yao.
“What happens at the hearing?”
“They attempt to convict us,” he said.
“And your counterclaim?”
“We make them answer it.”
Ji sat again.
“Qin Zhaoming will not allow the case to proceed normally.”
“What will he do?”
“He will remove your standing before the hearing.”
“How?”
“By proving you own nothing.”
Leng Yao looked at the golden seal in his hand.
That explained why the Central Court had targeted protected ownership.
Without recognised ownership, his Claim authority weakened.
If Qin Zhaoming stripped the estate, companies and allies from him, Leng Yao would arrive at the hearing with stolen fragments and no lawful connection to them.
A thief.
Not a claimant.
Feng Baoshu placed the teapot on the unbroken end of the table.
“We have seven days.”
“Less,” Ji said.
“He will act today.”
Xue’s confiscated phone rang in the security tray outside the dining room.
Everyone looked towards it.
A guard brought it inside.
The screen displayed an unknown number.
Xue recognised it.
“Song Zhen.”
Leng Yao handed her the phone.
“Answer.”
She looked at him.
“What should I say?”
“The truth.”
“Which part?”
“That Ji Xueyan is alive.
The hearing is in seven days.
My core is still damaged.”
“All true.”
“Yes.”
“And the spring?”
“Tell him Bai Qingyu controls it.”
Bai turned towards him.
“That is also true.”
“Yes.”
Xue answered the call.
She activated the speaker.
Song Zhen’s voice was calm.
“You took too long.”
“I was searched.”
“Is Ji Xueyan dead?”
“No.”
A pause followed.
“Then Leng Yao turned her.”
“No.”
Ji looked at Xue.
Song continued.
“What happened?”
“The transfer failed.
Ji kept Judgement.”
“And Leng Yao?”
“He stole part of Heaven’s claim over it.”
Silence.
Leng Yao had told Xue to speak truthfully.
He had not told her to hide that.
Song’s breathing changed.
“Where are you?”
“The Leng estate.”
“Can you leave?”
“No.”
“Is your mother still at Fusheng?”
Xue looked at Leng Yao.
“No.”
Song’s voice lost its calm.
“Where is she?”
“I don’t know.”
“You failed.”
“Yes.”
“You exposed the network.”
“Yes.”
“You understand what happens now.”
Xue’s grip tightened around the phone.
“What happens?”
Another pause.
Then Song said, “You have one last task.”
Leng Yao watched her.
“What?”
“Ji Xueyan’s spear contains a Judgement core.
Bring me a fragment.”
Ji’s eyes narrowed.
“How?”
“The Central Court will attack the estate’s ownership before the hearing.
The formations will fail.
Use the confusion.”
“And my mother?”
“We restore her treatment.”
“Not enough.”
Song became quiet.
Xue continued.
“I want the physician transferred with her.
I want the full treatment paid in advance.”
Feng Baoshu looked at her.
Song laughed once.
“You are negotiating?”
“Yes.”
“You have nothing.”
“I have access to Ji Xueyan.”
Ji’s expression did not change.
Xue continued.
“And Leng Yao believes he controls me.”
Leng Yao almost smiled.
Almost.
Song considered the offer.
“Tonight.
Eleven.
Longhua freight station.”
“I cannot leave.”
“Find a way.”
The call ended.
Xue placed the phone on the table.
Ji looked at her.
“You offered him my spear.”
“Yes.”
“Do you intend to take it?”
“No.”
“You lied.”
“Yes.”
Ji glanced at the place where the golden court document had disappeared.
“The boundary is gone.”
Xue looked at Leng Yao.
“What do we do?”
“Attend the meeting.”
Feng Baoshu frowned.
“She said she cannot leave.”
“She will.”
“With guards?”
“No.”
Xue’s face tightened.
“Song will have people watching.”
“Yes.”
“He may kill me.”
“Yes.”
Bai turned towards Leng Yao.
“You keep saying yes to bad things.”
“They remain true.”
Ji reached for her spear.
“I will go with her.”
“No,” Leng Yao said.
“It is my spear he wants.”
“That is why you stay.”
“You expect Xue to walk into a trap alone.”
“No.”
Leng Yao looked at Feng Baoshu.
“Prepare the old freight tunnels.”
The butler understood.
“You want Song Zhen alive.”
“Yes.”
Xue looked between them.
“What happens when he discovers the meeting place is compromised?”
“He runs.”
“And then?”
Leng Yao closed his hand around the golden court seal.
The black mark beneath it pulsed.
“We find out what he believes he owns.”
In Beijing, Qin Zhaoming stood inside the Central Mandate Hall.
Thousands of golden tablets floated around him.
Each recorded a person, inheritance, sect or resource under Heavenly designation.
One tablet turned black.
He reached for it.
Leng Yao’s counterclaim appeared across its surface.
An elderly official beside him lowered his head.
“Should I remove it?”
“No.”
Qin Zhaoming read every charge.
His expression remained calm.
“He registered against Heaven itself.”
“Yes.”
“Has that happened before?”
“Not successfully.”
Qin turned the tablet over.
On the other side, one line had appeared.
Standing dependent on recognised ownership.
He returned it to the air.
“Begin revocation.”
“All holdings?”
“No.”
Qin looked towards Shanghai.
“Start with the people.”
The official bowed.
“Ji Xueyan?”
“Her authority.”
“Bai Qingyu?”
“Her inheritance.”
“Xue Lihua?”
“Her mother.”
“And Leng Yao?”
Qin Zhaoming picked up another golden tablet.
It contained the record of the Leng estate.
“Leave him the buildings.”
The tablet cracked beneath his fingers.
“Take everything that makes them his.”