The news of Aegis's formation hit the Fuzhou Hunter community like a thunderclap on a clear day. In the dimly lit bars near the Hunter's Association headquarters, where off-duty hunters gathered to trade stories and lick their wounds, it was the only topic of conversation.
"Did you see it? A new A-Rank guild. Registered this morning," a grizzled hunter with a cybernetic arm said, swirling the cheap liquor in his glass.
"Aegis? What a pretentious name," his companion scoffed. "And the funding... 200 million yuan! Who has that kind of money to throw around?"
"You haven't heard the best part," a young female hunter chimed in, leaning forward with a conspiratorial grin. "The Guild Master. They say he's a kid. Seventeen years old. Still in high school."
A wave of disbelief and derisive laughter swept through the bar.
"A high schooler? This has to be a joke," the first hunter grumbled. "Some rich heir playing make-believe with daddy's money. They won't last a month."
While the lower ranks dismissed it as a farce, the leaders of the city's established guilds were not laughing. In the headquarters of the 'Iron Fist Clan', a mid-tier guild known for its pragmatic and ruthless efficiency, the guild master, a stern man named Bao, stared at the Aegis registration file.
"A seventeen-year-old Guild Master is a smokescreen," Bao said to his lieutenants. "No one registers an A-Rank guild with that kind of capital as a joke. This is a move by a larger power. Someone is using this boy as a front. Find out who. I don't like unknown players in my territory."
The ripples reached all the way to the top. In her pristine office, Lin Xia stared at the same file, her expression a mixture of frustration and a dawning, fierce respect. The ghost she had been hunting had just stepped into the spotlight, but he had done so in a way that created more questions than answers. It was a brilliant, maddeningly arrogant move.
"He's not hiding," she said to the empty room. "He's taunting us."
She brought the information to her grandfather. Lin Jianyu listened patiently, his ancient eyes calm as he tended to his bonsai tree.
"He has given you a target, little Xia," the old man said, snipping a tiny branch with precision. "But the target he has given you is a paradox. A boy with the resources of a nation. A child with the audacity of an emperor. This is a classic misdirection. He wants you to focus on the absurdity of his identity, to waste your time and energy trying to solve the riddle of who he is. Do not fall into his trap."
"Then what do I do?" Lin Xia asked, her competitive spirit chafing at the idea of inaction.
"You do as he expects," her grandfather replied with a faint smile. "You watch the target he has so generously provided. But you do not watch the boy. You watch his actions. You watch his guild. A player's true strategy is revealed not by his identity, but by the movement of his pieces on the board."
While the city buzzed with speculation, Wei Heng faced his most difficult confrontation yet: his own family. He had moved them from their cramped, run-down apartment into a luxurious, high-security penthouse in the same building as his command center. The transition had been jarring for his parents.
His mother, Su Ling, walked through the spacious living room, her hands tracing the smooth, polished surfaces as if she were in a dream. His father, Wei Jianjun, stood stiffly by the window, his expression a mixture of awe and deep-seated suspicion.
"A-Heng," his mother said, her voice trembling slightly. "Where did all this come from? This... this is too much."
Wei Heng had prepared for this. He sat them down and delivered the carefully constructed lie he had formulated, a narrative woven from half-truths.
"I developed a program," he began, his voice calm and steady. "A piece of software that uses complex algorithms to predict fluctuations in the global stock and cryptocurrency markets. I sold it to an international investment firm. Anonymously."
He saw the confusion on their faces and simplified. "I made a lot of money, Mom, Dad. More than we could ever imagine."
"And this... this 'Aegis'?" his father asked, his voice sharp. "The news is everywhere. They say you're the Guild Master. You're a seventeen-year-old boy! Hunters fight monsters. This isn't a game!"
"The firm that bought my software, Veridian Bioscience, they see it as an investment in future talent," Wei Heng explained smoothly. "They believe people with special abilities are the future. They provided the funding for the guild and made me the Guild Master as a condition of the sale. They want a mind like mine in charge. I won't be on the front lines, Dad. I'll be the one making the plans, managing the resources. It's safer than you think."
It was a story that was both fantastical and just plausible enough to be believed. His parents were overwhelmed, caught between pride in their son's supposed genius and a deep, parental fear for his safety. Su Ling cried, begging him to be careful. Wei Jianjun was silent for a long time before placing a heavy hand on his son's shoulder. "Be smart, son. Money like this... it can be dangerous."
Wei Heng nodded, a pang of guilt piercing his ten-thousand-year-old heart. He was protecting them, giving them a life of safety and luxury they deserved, but he was doing it by building a wall of lies between them. He was their son, but he was also becoming a stranger.
Back in the command center, the mood was professional. His three pillars stood before him, their initial awkwardness replaced by a shared sense of purpose.
"The city is watching us," Wei Heng said, his gaze sweeping over them. "They see a joke, a mystery, or a threat. Let them. Their confusion is our shield. While they are focused on me, we will work."
He addressed each of them in turn, issuing the next phase of his directives.
"Titan," he said to Gao Qiang. "Your foundation is stable. Now, we add technique. I will teach you the 'Mountain-Shattering Fist Art.' It will focus your raw power into devastating strikes that can pulverize steel. You will also begin scouting. I have a list of names. Individuals with latent potential. Observe them. Do not make contact."
"Oracle," he turned to Mei Ling. "Continue monitoring the guilds, but expand your scope. I want you to start building detailed profiles on every registered A-Rank and S-Rank hunter in the country. Strengths, weaknesses, combat styles, psychological profiles. We need to know the capabilities of every major piece on the board."
"Lifeweaver," he said to Sun An. "Your analysis of the crawler core?"
Sun An pushed his glasses up, his eyes alight with scientific fervor. "Sir, the energy within is chaotic, but its potential is incredible. Once refined, its energy density is at least 500% more efficient than the best lithium-ion batteries we have. It's a revolutionary power source."
"Good," Wei Heng replied. "Your next task: using that refined energy, combined with the restorative properties of the water I provided, begin designing a 'Stamina Potion.' A marketable, low-grade version. Aegis needs its own unique products, a source of recurring income and influence that is separate from my personal funds."
His pillars nodded, their minds already racing to fulfill their new tasks. Wei Heng looked at the team he had assembled—the Shield, the Eye, and the Hand. The foundation was complete. The public declaration had been made. They were no longer a secret. They were a guild.
He turned to his main console, the faces of his team reflected in the dark screen. He brought up a new file, a profile of a young woman with a troubled history and a unique, dangerous ability. The next piece he intended to place on the board.
The game was no longer about preparation. It was about expansion.