The man who crashed through the window did not get up.
He wore the grey uniform of the Black Tide Gang.
Blood covered his mouth, and one arm bent in the wrong direction.
Feng Baoshu stopped the car.
Another impact shook the textile mill.
Leng Yao stepped out.
“Stay behind me,” Feng Baoshu said.
“No.”
“You stopped breathing ten minutes ago.”
“And you are older than most buildings in this district.”
“That has never stopped you from sending me into danger.”
“It should not stop you now.”
They crossed the road.
The mill’s side entrance hung open.
A broken lock lay on the ground.
Inside, rows of abandoned machines divided the factory floor.
Dust filled the air.
Rusted chains hung from the ceiling tracks.
Seven men surrounded a young cultivator near the centre of the building.
Shen Mingzhi still wore his courier jacket.
He was twenty-two, lean and slightly taller than average.
Blood ran from a cut above his eyebrow.
His stance was poor, and his breathing had already become uneven.
He should have lost.
One of the gang members swung a metal bar at his head.
Shen ducked too late.
The bar clipped a hanging chain instead.
The chain wrapped around the attacker’s wrist, dragging his arm wide.
Shen punched him in the throat.
A second man attacked from behind.
His foot struck a patch of oil on the floor.
He slipped.
Shen turned and drove an elbow into his face.
The movements were rough.
There was no formal technique behind them.
The outcomes were too convenient.
“He is lucky,” Feng Baoshu said.
“No.”
Leng Yao watched a ceiling light fall just as another attacker raised a knife.
The glass shattered against the man’s head.
“The room is lucky for him.”
Hou Yuxin sat tied to a chair near the loading doors.
Tape covered her mouth.
Han Weiguo stood beside her.
The missing Zhao executive had removed his suit jacket and rolled up his sleeves.
A short blade rested against the girl’s neck.
Xue Lihua watched from the upper walkway.
She wore a dark combat suit beneath her jacket.
Her presence was suppressed, but not enough to escape Leng Yao’s senses.
She had not noticed him yet.
Shen struck another gang member.
Golden energy flashed around his fist.
The man flew backwards and hit a machine.
Shen stared at his own hand.
His surprise lasted less than a second.
A gang member charged him.
Shen raised the glowing fist again.
This time the attacker avoided it and drove a knee into Shen’s stomach.
Shen folded.
Three men surrounded him.
Feng Baoshu shifted forward.
“Wait,” Leng Yao said.
“They will kill him.”
“They will try.”
The first man kicked Shen in the ribs.
The second lifted a knife.
A golden barrier appeared around Shen’s body.
The blade broke on contact.
The attacker froze.
Shen did not.
He seized the man’s shirt and threw him into the others.
Feng Baoshu watched the barrier disappear.
“That was not his technique.”
“No.”
“The system?”
“Yes.”
Han Weiguo pulled Hou Yuxin from the chair.
He dragged her towards a rear exit.
The girl struggled.
The blade cut into her skin.
Shen saw them.
“Let her go!”
Han pressed the weapon harder against her throat.
“Stay back.”
Shen stopped.
The remaining gang members moved between them.
Han continued towards the door.
A shadow crossed the factory floor.
It struck his wrist.
The blade fell.
Han screamed and released Hou Yuxin.
Leng Yao stepped from between the machines.
The shadow returned to his hand, forming a thin black spike before dissolving.
Everyone stopped moving.
Shen recognised him first.
“Leng Yao.”
Leng Yao looked at Hou Yuxin.
“Are you hurt?”
She shook her head.
“Move away from Han.”
She backed away.
Shen placed himself between them.
“You arranged this.”
“No.”
“You expect me to believe that?”
“I do not care what you believe.”
Leng Yao looked past him.
“Xue Lihua.”
The woman on the walkway stiffened.
Her hesitation was brief.
She jumped down and landed beside the loading doors.
“Young Master.”
Shen looked between them.
Xue Lihua bowed slightly.
“The vehicle is ready.”
It was a careful line.
To Shen, it sounded as though Leng Yao had come to collect the kidnapped girl.
Xue was trying to restore the scene Heaven wanted.
Leng Yao pointed towards Hou Yuxin.
“Take her outside.”
Xue’s expression changed.
Only slightly.
“You want me to—”
“Now.”
She approached the girl.
Shen blocked her path.
“She stays with me.”
Leng Yao faced him.
“Her grandfather sent me.”
“Prove it.”
“Call him.”
“My phone is broken.”
“That is not my problem.”
Shen tightened his fists.
Golden energy moved beneath his skin.
The system displayed another message in front of Leng Yao.
Canonical conflict established.
Antagonist hostility required.
Attack the chosen host.
Leng Yao ignored it.
“Hou Yuxin,” he said.
The girl looked at him.
“Do you know this man?”
She glanced at Shen.
“No.”
“I saved her.”
“You arrived first.”
“You watched.”
Leng Yao did not deny it.
Shen’s face hardened.
Feng Baoshu stepped beside Leng Yao.
“We do not have time for this.”
Sirens sounded in the distance.
Xue Lihua had arranged them.
She wanted authorities to find Leng Yao standing inside a kidnapping site with his people, Hou Yuxin and a room full of injured men.
The evidence would write itself.
Leng Yao looked at her.
“How long?”
Xue understood what he meant.
“Three minutes.”
“Take the girl.”
Shen reached for her arm.
Leng Yao moved first.
He caught Shen’s wrist.
Golden energy surged between them.
Leng Yao’s inverted core opened.
The light entered his palm.
For one instant, another interface appeared behind the correction system.
Divine Mandate System
Host: Shen Mingzhi
Current mission: Rescue Hou Yuxin
Reward: Foundation Cleansing Pill
Failure penalty: None
None.
Heaven rewarded its chosen man for success and demanded nothing when he failed.
Leng Yao’s system reacted.
Foreign contact detected.
Release the chosen host.
His core pulled harder.
A thread of golden energy left Shen’s body.
Shen gasped.
His knees almost buckled.
Leng Yao felt the energy pass through his arm and enter the cracks of his core.
It was purer than the power used by the correction protocol.
It carried vitality, spiritual force and something that pressed against the world itself.
Authority.
Mandate theft detected.
Lethal response authorised.
A gunshot split the air.
Leng Yao sensed the spiritual round before he heard it.
It came from the upper office.
The bullet was aimed at his head.
He pulled Shen towards him and changed their positions.
Golden light erupted around the protagonist.
The bullet struck the barrier and turned aside.
It tore through a steel pillar.
The roof groaned.
Shen stared at Leng Yao.
“You used me.”
“I tested something.”
“You did not know that shield would appear.”
“I was reasonably sure.”
The pillar collapsed.
A section of the ceiling came down with it.
Feng Baoshu seized Hou Yuxin and pulled her clear.
Xue Lihua jumped towards the loading doors.
Leng Yao remained beside Shen.
The correction was aimed at him.
If he moved away from the protagonist, the falling steel would crush him.
So he did not move away.
He caught Shen by the shoulder.
The golden barrier appeared again.
Metal beams struck it.
The floor cracked beneath their feet, but the barrier held.
Shen tried to break free.
Leng Yao tightened his grip.
“Stop moving.”
“You dragged me under it.”
“And now neither of us is dead.”
“That does not make it better.”
“No.”
The roof settled.
Golden cracks spread across the barrier.
Leng Yao drew another thread of energy from it before letting Shen go.
The shield collapsed.
Shen attacked immediately.
His fist carried the golden force granted by the system.
Leng Yao raised his forearm.
The punch landed.
Pain travelled through the bones of his arm.
The impact pushed him back two steps.
Shen looked surprised that it had worked.
Leng Yao was not.
His damaged body had not recovered enough to ignore a system-enhanced strike.
He turned his wrist.
His inverted core absorbed part of the remaining energy.
The pain eased.
Shen attacked again.
Leng Yao stepped inside the punch and struck him below the ribs.
Shen’s breath left his body.
A second blow hit the side of his neck.
He dropped to one knee.
Leng Yao placed a hand against his chest and pushed.
Shen flew across the floor.
He struck a stack of cloth crates and fell between them.
The system flashed.
Chosen host endangered.
Emergency protection active.
Golden energy surrounded Shen’s body.
The damage began repairing itself.
Leng Yao watched the bruising fade from his neck.
The system had not merely increased Shen’s strength.
It was already protecting him from consequences.
Han Weiguo ran for the rear exit.
Feng Baoshu appeared in front of him.
Han stopped.
The old butler struck him once.
Han collapsed.
Xue Lihua stood beside Hou Yuxin.
“Should I remove Shen Mingzhi?” she asked.
The question was directed at Leng Yao.
It was meant for the approaching authorities.
If they entered in time to hear the order, the correction would gain what it wanted.
Leng Yao looked at her.
“No.”
Xue paused.
“Take Hou Yuxin to the car.”
“And him?”
“Leave him.”
Shen pushed himself upright.
“You are not taking her.”
Hou Yuxin pulled free of Xue and faced him.
“My grandfather sent them?”
Leng Yao answered.
“Yes.”
She looked at Feng Baoshu.
The old man held out his phone.
Hou Shengmin’s voice came through the speaker.
“Yuxin?”
“Grandfather?”
Her face broke.
“I’m fine.”
“Go with Feng Baoshu.
I’m on my way.”
She nodded, though Hou could not see her.
“All right.”
Shen lowered his fists.
His eyes remained on Leng Yao.
“You could have said that earlier.”
“I did.”
Sirens grew louder.
Feng Baoshu lifted Han Weiguo over one shoulder.
Xue guided Hou Yuxin towards the loading doors.
Leng Yao followed.
Shen spoke behind him.
“Why were they using one of your vehicles?”
Leng Yao stopped.
“They were not.”
“I saw the plate outside.”
“It was copied.”
“By whom?”
Leng Yao looked at Han Weiguo.
“Ask him when he wakes up.”
Shen glanced at the unconscious man.
“He works for Zhao Tiankun.”
“Yes.”
“You knew he would be here.”
“I suspected it.”
Shen’s system had already repaired enough damage for him to stand properly.
Fast.
Too fast.
Leng Yao turned away.
“Stay out of this.”
“You do not give me orders.”
“No.
I give orders to people who matter to me.”
Shen’s face hardened.
That anger was useful.
More importantly, it was honest.
Heaven did not need to manufacture it.
Leng Yao left the mill.
The first police vehicles entered the district as Feng Baoshu drove away.
Hou Yuxin sat beside Xue Lihua in the second row.
Her hands shook despite her efforts to hide it.
Leng Yao sat opposite her.
She looked at the blood on his shirt.
“Did you come to save me?”
“I came because your grandfather owns something I need.”
Her expression changed.
“That is the only reason?”
“Yes.”
Xue Lihua looked towards the window.
Feng Baoshu spoke from the driver’s seat.
“You could have phrased that differently.”
“She asked a clear question.”
Hou Yuxin studied Leng Yao.
“At least you answered it.”
He said nothing.
His phone rang.
Zhao Tiankun.
Leng Yao answered.
“Han Weiguo is alive,” he said.
A pause followed.
“Where?”
“On his way to you.”
“You found him?”
“He participated in Hou Yuxin’s kidnapping.”
Zhao cursed quietly.
“The recording?”
“Manufactured.”
“By Han?”
“Ask him.”
“You expect me to believe he organised this alone?”
“No.”
“Who helped him?”
Leng Yao looked at Xue Lihua.
She continued watching the road.
“I am still investigating.”
Zhao released a slow breath.
“The other two men confessed.”
“To working with the Northern Sect?”
“Yes.”
“And the vote?”
Another pause.
“The Zhao Syndicate will abstain.”
The call ended.
One event restored.
Not the one Heaven wanted.
They reached Hou Shengmin’s house twenty minutes later.
The old cultivator waited outside.
He reached the car before it stopped moving.
Hou Yuxin stepped out.
He pulled her into his arms.
Neither spoke for several seconds.
Leng Yao remained beside the vehicle.
Hou eventually released his granddaughter and examined the cut on her neck.
Then he faced Leng Yao.
“You found her.”
“Yes.”
“What do you want?”
“The same agreement.”
“One month.”
“Yes.”
Hou looked at his granddaughter, then back at Leng Yao.
“You could ask for more.”
“I will negotiate when I know what the property is worth.”
The old cultivator nodded.
“One month.”
Leng Yao entered the car again.
As they drove towards the estate, golden text appeared.
Correction protocol concluded.
Primary result: partial success.
Chosen host awakened.
Hou alliance restoration: failed.
Zhao alliance restoration: failed.
Intelligence asset status: compromised.
Xue Lihua sat three metres away.
She could not see the message.
She had no idea that Heaven had just described her as compromised.
Another line appeared.
Antagonist classification revised.
Previous classification: predetermined villain.
New classification: irregular entity.
The golden interface disappeared.
Leng Yao’s inverted core turned once.
The energy stolen from Shen Mingzhi settled into its deepest fracture.
For the first time in six years, that fracture closed.
Not weakened.
Not stabilised.
Closed.
Feng Baoshu dropped Xue Lihua at the intelligence office before returning to the estate.
Neither man discussed her until they reached Leng Yao’s study.
“Do we arrest her now?” Feng Baoshu asked.
“No.”
“She helped stage the kidnapping.”
“She helped supervise it.”
“That distinction will not comfort Hou Shengmin.”
“He does not need to know.”
Feng Baoshu frowned.
“She knows you suspect her.”
“She knows I surprised her.”
“And when she reports tonight?”
“Restrict her access.
Give her the Jiangnan warehouse file.”
“That information is false?”
“Half of it.”
“The dangerous half?”
“The believable half.”
Feng Baoshu nodded.
The correction system returned.
Mandatory correction event assigned.
Event: Jade Pendant Acquisition.
Designated recipient: Shen Mingzhi.
Interference prohibited.
A timer appeared beneath the message.
71:59:58
Leng Yao opened his list of preliminary revisions.
Item three concerned a jade pendant gathering dust inside a pawnshop.
He looked at Feng Baoshu.
“Buy Golden Fortune Pawn.”
“The entire business?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“Before it opens tomorrow.”
Feng Baoshu looked at the timer Leng Yao could see and he could not.
“Another correction?”
Leng Yao closed the document.
“Another opportunity.”