Ling Qingyu's calm did not last. She thought no one could achieve such power in front of modern tools. Unless… existence before these structure arrive dictated.
The thought arrived uninvited, sliding into her mind with a quiet cruelty: what if she was not the first to see this path?
What if, in every era she had lived through, every collapsed empire and distorted system, there had always been others— hands in the dark, unseen and unnamed— shaping outcomes long before flags were raised or wars declared?
The idea made her breath hitch.
Conspiracies. Shadow cabals. Invisible rulers.
She had dismissed them once as the delusions of powerless people searching for someone to blame. Comforting lies for a chaotic world.
Now, standing at the threshold of becoming exactly such a force, she felt her skin go cold. The probability exploded exponentially.
If this path was obvious to her — then it had been obvious to others before her.
Ling Qingyu's fingers tightened unconsciously.
