Mo Residence, Tranquil Chamber.
Shen Mo stood by the window with his hands behind his back, gazing at the gradually lighting household lamps of Qinglan City. Three years ago, he was but an ant struggling to survive under the glow of these very lights; now, he had become the chess master.
"Palace Lord," a figure emerged silently behind him, blending with the night—it was "Shadow," a key member of the Netherworld Palace. "Lin Fan has leveraged his connections with the Flowing Cloud Sect to begin investigating your background. Also… regarding Miss Su Xiao, several collateral branch disciples of the Lin family, hinted by Lin Fan, have been frequently harassing her as she refuses the marriage arrangement imposed by the Lin family."
Shen Mo's gaze turned instantly cold, as if the room's temperature had dropped several degrees. He could employ any commercial tactic against the Lin family or crush Lin Fan head-on, but Su Xiao was the sole soft spot in his heart—no one was allowed to touch or desecrate her.
"Teach those who harass Su Xiao a lesson they'll never forget. Let them remember that some people aren't even worthy of approaching," Shen Mo's voice was calm, yet it carried an undeniable intent to kill. "As for Lin Fan's investigation, steer him toward the several 'fake identities' we've prepared and let him guess as he will."
"Understood," Shadow acknowledged, his figure once again dissolving into the shadows and vanishing.
Shen Mo's gaze returned to the window, falling on the Lin family's massive architectural complex enclosed by high walls within the city. A cold smile curled at the corner of his lips.
"The game has just begun."
...
The small courtyard assigned to Su Xiao by the Lin family was located in a relatively remote corner of the Lin residence. Though not luxurious, it was peaceful. However, this tranquility had recently been shattered.
Led by a collateral branch disciple named Lin Bao, several individuals, leveraging Lin Fan's influence, often found excuses to visit. Lin Bao, with a Body Tempering cultivation at the seventh or eighth stage, was insignificant within the Lin family. Yet, before Su Xiao, who had lost her backing and was effectively under house arrest, he felt superior.
On this particular evening, Lin Bao, accompanied by two lackeys and carrying a wine pot, staggered into the courtyard in a drunken state.
"Miss Su, living alone must be so dull! Big brother's here to keep you company!" Lin Bao spoke frivolously, his greedy eyes scanning Su Xiao's delicate yet haggard face.
Su Xiao was seated at a stone table in the courtyard, staring blankly at the half-jade pendant engraved with the character "An." At the sound of his voice, her face paled. She abruptly stood up and sharply declared, "Get out! You're not welcome here!"
"Heh, quite the temper!" Lin Bao chuckled, taking a few steps forward. "Don't be ungrateful! Big brother Fan is about to become engaged to you. We'll be family soon. What's wrong with getting close early?" With that, he reached out to touch Su Xiao's face.
Overwhelmed with shock and anger, Su Xiao recoiled violently, colliding with the stone table behind her. Cornered, a flash of despair crossed her eyes as she tightly clutched the jade pendant in her hand, as if it were the only source of strength she had left.
The moment Lin Bao's dirty hand was about to touch Su Xiao—
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Three subtle破空之声rang out almost simultaneously!
"Ahhh——!"
A shrill scream pierced the silence of the courtyard. Lin Bao and his two lackeys clutched their wrists. Each of their wrists had been struck by an ice needle as fine as a cow's hair, gleaming with an eerie blue cold light! The excruciating pain was unbearable, but worse still, a malevolent and icy energy surged through their meridians, directly overwhelming their dantian and qi seas!
The three collapsed to the ground like boneless rags, their faces ashen and their cultivation utterly ruined!
A blurred black figure flickered across the courtyard wall and vanished, leaving behind a voice colder than ice, devoid of any human emotion, like a chill wind passing by:
"Any who dare approach within a hundred paces of this courtyard shall die!"
Lin Bao and his men were terrified out of their wits, fleeing the courtyard in a chaotic scramble without uttering a single threat.
Su Xiao, still shaken, watched the direction in which the black figure had disappeared, her chest heaving violently. She didn't feel much fear but instead experienced a strange sensation. That black figure… seemed to mean no harm and appeared to be protecting her? Could it be… him? The thought barely surfaced before she forcefully suppressed it. No, A-Mo was dead—she had witnessed it with her own eyes…
She caressed the cold jade pendant, her heart filled with confusion and a faint, barely believable hope that she dare not acknowledge.
The next day, a wandering physician appeared outside the dilapidated hut where Su Xiao's mother lived. The physician appeared young, with an ordinary face, a composed demeanor, and gentle eyes.
"Madam, I hear you've suffered from eye problems for many years. I possess some medical knowledge and may be able to help," the physician said to Su's mother, who lay in bed with dull, diseased eyes.
Long afflicted by illness and having lost hope, Su's mother initially ignored him. But Su Xiao, recognizing the physician's extraordinary demeanor—unlike that of a common charlatan—and considering her mother's suffering, invited him in with a glimmer of hope.
The physician (Shen Mo in disguise) carefully examined Su's mother's eyes, diagnosing her condition as a result of years of overexertion, blocked气血, and excessive worry. He took out silver needles and, with fluid precision, inserted them into the relevant acupoints. Secretly, he used a strand of pure and gentle Annihilation True Qi (deliberately suppressing its devouring nature) to unblock the congested meridians. Subsequently, he prescribed several doses of herbal medicine, which appeared ordinary but actually contained powdered rare spiritual herbs.
After just one acupuncture session, Su's mother noticed the blurry shadows before her eyes becoming clearer and marveled at the improvement. Su Xiao was overwhelmingly grateful and insisted on offering the physician the little money they had at home.
The physician accepted no payment, merely saying with a smile, "A physician's duty is to help. It's but a trivial effort, not worth mentioning." His gentle gaze lingered on Su Xiao's face for a moment, hiding a complex emotion that she couldn't quite discern.
For several consecutive days, the physician treated Su's mother. Her eye condition improved visibly, allowing her to see vague shapes. Su Xiao's gratitude knew no bounds. Observing the quiet and few words of the physician, she felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity and security, yet she couldn't connect him to the sunny and warm youth in her memories.
Shen Mo, having orchestrated all this in secret, felt a measure of relief. It was the only compensation he could offer for the past. He couldn't reveal himself to Su Xiao, at least not now. The blade of vengeance was too cold and bloodstained; he didn't want her to be tainted by it in the slightest.
Meanwhile, Shen Mo launched a comprehensive commercial offensive against the Lin family.
Step one:切断 supply of raw materials. The Lin family's primary business in herbs and minerals formed the foundation of their wealth. Through the Netherworld Palace's extensive network across the northern region, Shen Mo secretly signed exclusive supply agreements with all of the Lin family's upstream suppliers for the next three years, offering a premium thirty percent above market price with immediate cash settlement. When the Lin family's procurement manager went as usual to place orders, he was met with cold replies that no goods were available. The Lin family's herb acquisition and mineral extraction came to a near standstill overnight.
Step two: public opinion campaign and financial squeeze. Mr. Mo "casually" leaked during several gatherings with wealthy city merchants that the Lin family had expanded too aggressively in recent years, leaving their financial chain extremely strained and having secretly mortgaged a significant portion of their assets. Meanwhile, the Netherworld Palace discreetly leaked some "questionable" financial records from the Lin family's early expansion days to their competitors and several major moneylenders. Soon, panic ensued. Families with business ties to the Lin clan demanded shorter payment terms, and moneylenders rushed to collect on loans. The Lin family's reputation suffered a severe blow, and their liquid funds rapidly dried up.
Step three: product dominance. The Mo Residence introduced several types of pills and low-tier talismans with effects far superior to those of the Lin family's products (such as "Recovery Powder" with stronger effects and milder side effects, and "Fireball Talismans" with more concentrated power and faster activation), yet priced twenty percent lower than the Lin family's offerings! Upon the news spreading, all of the Lin family's pill shops and talisman stores became deserted overnight, their market share devoured at an alarming rate.
Lin Fan was forced to halt his cultivation and scrambled to address the family crisis. He attempted to leverage his status as an inner disciple of the Flowing Cloud Sect to pressure suppliers and partners. However, whenever he confronted them, they invariably replied with bitter expressions that they had already signed "铁契" with a "major client," a breach of which they could not afford. There were even rumors circulating that Lin Fan was misusing Flowing Cloud Sect resources to fill the Lin family's financial holes, arousing the sect's disapproval.
These rumors, of course, were the work of the Netherworld Palace. Lin Fan's efforts to exert pressure proved futile, and instead, his reputation within the Flowing Cloud Sect suffered. He felt as though he were ensnared in an invisible web; the more he struggled, the tighter the constraints became.
Shen Mo had not forgotten about the insignificant individual—Zhao Gan.
According to intelligence from the Netherworld Palace, Zhao Gan, the Lin family's minor steward who had once been cruel and harsh toward A-Mo, had, after the Lin family fell from power, spiraled into gambling debts, had his leg broken, and was now begging for survival in the most chaotic slum on the south side of the city.
Disguised as a sinister-looking wanderer, Shen Mo found Zhao Gan by a sewage ditch, filthy and with a dazed expression. He tossed him a bag of gold coins sufficient for a commoner to live comfortably for a lifetime, along with a new set of identity papers.
"Leave Qinglan City and never return," Shen Mo's voice was hoarse and cold. "Or else…"
A stone slab under his foot silently turned to dust.
Zhao Gan initially stood stunned, then, as if grasping a lifeline, he shook with excitement upon seeing the bag of gold. Looking up at Shen Mo, their eyes met, and the emotionless gaze sent a shiver down his spine. He kowtowed repeatedly, "Thank you, sir! Thank you! I'll leave right away! Right away! Never to return!"
That very night, Zhao Gan dragged his crippled leg into the vast darkness. For such a minor character, Shen Mo didn't even find it worthwhile to kill him personally. Allowing him to live in fear and humiliation was the severest punishment.
The atmosphere in the Lin family's conference hall was suffocating.
Several elders, their faces ashen, slammed a pile of account books and bad news onto Lin Fan's desk.
"Lin Fan! Look at this! No herb supplies, mines halted, shops deserted, creditors at the door! Centuries of the Lin family's legacy are about to be destroyed by you!"
"It's all because of you! You had to provoke that Mr. Mo! Now it's clear he's targeting the Lin family!"
"We should never have let you provoke that A-Mo! For a piece of jade, you've brought down this catastrophic disaster!"
Accusations rained down on Lin Fan. His face pale, his eye sockets sunken, he was a shadow of his once vibrant self. Slamming the table, he roared, "Enough! What good does this do now? That Mr. Mo is clearly after me! Do you think groveling will make him spare the Lin family? Foolish! The only way now is to pool all our resources and fight!"
"Fight? With what?" An elder sneered. "We don't even know the first thing about him! If we keep fighting, the Lin family will truly face annihilation!"
As the Lin family fell into chaotic争吵, a sealed letter was delivered from the Mo Residence.
The letter contained three demands:
1. The Lin family surrenders control of seventy percent of its assets to the Mo Residence.
2. The Lin family publicly declares the revocation of Lin Fan's status as the successor to the family head.
3. The unremarkable mine on the west side of the city, formerly the site of the orphanage, is to be unconditionally transferred to the Mo Residence. (Shen Mo had already secretly surveyed the area and discovered a rare "Void Stone" vein beneath it—a core material for storage artifacts, invaluable in worth.)
The letter caused an uproar within the Lin family, akin to an ice cube thrown into boiling oil!
Some elders began to waver. Sacrificing Lin Fan, giving up part of the family's assets, and transferring a seemingly worthless derelict mine might be the only way to save the Lin family from collapse...
Lin Fan watched the elders who once fawned over him now cast shifting glances, their eyes even betraying resentment. A bone-chilling cold surged from his feet to his skull. For the first time, he viscerally understood what it meant to be abandoned by all!
"Do you… do you think handing me over will make him spare the Lin family?" Lin Fan's voice trembled with rage and terror as he stared at the indifferent elders, as if seeing a reflection of himself three years ago, coldly turning away at the cliff's edge.
At that very moment, another brocade box was delivered from Mr. Mo.
He hesitantly opened it, only to find, contrary to his expectation of some intimidating object, a seemingly detailed and feasible draft of a commercial cooperation plan that could temporarily alleviate the Lin family's current crisis. The draft proposed leveraging the Flowing Cloud Sect's channels to explore new markets. It seemed… there might truly be a glimmer of hope?
Holding this sudden "lifeline," Lin Fan's expression fluctuated between shadows and light, his heart filled with immense conflict and suspicion.
Was this a helping hand extended from the brink of a cliff, or... bait for a deeper trap?