Li Yao didn't stop running until he was deep within the labyrinthine streets of the artisan's quarter, the scent of sawdust and hot metal replacing the stench of the slums. He leaned against a cool stone wall in a quiet alley, his heart hammering against his ribs. Not from exhaustion—his Mid Sub-Realm body handled the sprint with ease—but from the adrenaline crash and the stark realization of his own audacity.
He had faced down Wang Jin. He had survived. More than that, he had thwarted him. The [Spiritual Static Pulse] had been a work of art, a perfectly calculated move that turned the Young Master's greatest asset—his abundant energy—into a temporary weakness.
But the cost was immense.
"Energy Reserves: 18%. Meridian Stress: 7%. Minor spiritual fatigue detected. The [Spiritual Static Pulse] is a high-risk, high-precision technique. Repeated use is not recommended at this cultivation level."
His workshop was gone. His stockpile of carefully refined herbs, his tools, his meager possessions—all destroyed in Wang Jin's petulant fury. He was back to square one, but with a far more dangerous and attentive enemy.
Worse than the material loss was the strategic one. The Vermin's Nest was no longer safe. Wang Jin knew he operated there. Gor and his crew would be watched. His supply line was severed.
He was adrift again.
"Analysis, System. Where do I go from here?"
"Primary Objective: Re-establish resource acquisition. The 'Mercantile' and 'Institutional' vectors are now the only viable options. The 'Exploratory' vector carries extreme risk without a secure base."
The mercantile path meant he needed to create something of real value, something he could sell without attracting the wrong kind of attention. The institutional path meant exposing his cultivation to a larger power, like a sect. Both were fraught with peril.
A memory, sharp and clear from his heightened senses, surfaced. During the fight, when his palm had connected with Wang Jin's chest for the [Spiritual Static Pulse], he had felt something. A slight irregularity in the flow of the Young Master's Qi around his sternum. A minute blockage or perhaps a latent flaw in his meridian structure, one that the Hong Family's primitive tests had missed and that Wang Jin's brute-force cultivation had exacerbated.
"Data Corroborated. Host's spiritual perception during physical contact detected a minor meridian dysfunction in the target's 'Celestial Sun' meridian cluster. It is a congenital weakness, aggravated by improper energy circulation, likely from forcibly absorbing pill energy."
A dangerous, cold idea began to form. He couldn't fight Wang Jin directly. Not yet. But what if he could turn the Young Master's greatest advantage—his wealth of resources—against him?
"System, if Wang Jin continues his current cultivation method, specifically using Spirit-Gathering Pills to force breakthroughs, what is the prognosis for that meridian dysfunction?"
"Projection: With continued aggressive pill use, the dysfunction will worsen. At his next major bottleneck—likely the attempt to form a true, stable Core in the Core Formation Realm—there is a 92% probability of a catastrophic energy backlash. Result: Core fracture, permanent cultivation crippling, or death."
Li Yao's breath caught. This was a thread. A tiny, almost invisible thread of fate that he could pull.
He couldn't stay in the open. He needed a new sanctuary, and he needed capital. The mercantile path it was.
Using the last of his energy, he found a secluded spot near a drainage culvert. He emptied his pockets. All he had left were a few copper coins and a single, small vial containing a sample of his most refined Ironwood Balm, which he had kept on his person.
It was his last seed. He had to make it grow.
---
Interlude: The Captain's Concern
Wang Zhong listened to his son's report in silence. Wang Jin was pacing, his aura flickering with unstable energy, his story a torrent of self-justification about the rat's "cowardly tricks" and "dishonorable" fighting style.
"...he didn't even face me properly! He slid in the mud like a worm! And then he used some... some static in my spirit! It was unnatural!"
"Enough," Wang Zhong's voice cut through the tirade, cold as steel. "You, a Late Essence Gathering cultivator, armed with techniques and resources, failed to subdue a servant who was, until a few weeks ago, a mortal. You then destroyed his property in a public display of frustration, confirming his importance and your own lack of control."
Wang Jin froze, his face pale. "Father, I—"
"What you described was not a 'cowardly trick.' It was applied intelligence. He analyzed you, found a weakness in your approach, and exploited it with a technique I have never heard of." Wang Zhong's eyes were hard. "This is no longer a matter of a stolen trinket. This boy is a variable. A dangerous one. He is thinking in ways we are not."
He stood up, walking to the window overlooking the city. "The Soaring Cloud Sect envoys arrive in six weeks. Your performance today was not that of a disciplined disciple. You will cease all direct action. You will enter seclusion. You will stabilize your foundation and purge this... static... from your system. I will handle the Li Yao situation personally."
"How?" Wang Jin asked, chastised but still burning with resentment.
"By remembering that the strongest net is woven from the finest, most invisible threads," Wang Zhong said. "We will not hunt him. We will make him come to us. Every apothecary, every herb shop, every ore merchant in this city answers to me, directly or indirectly. If he needs resources, he will have to step into my web. And when he does, we will not be waiting with a club. We will be waiting with an offer."
His motive had evolved once more. Annoyance had become caution, and now caution was becoming a strategic imperative. Li Yao was no longer a puzzle; he was a potential asset, or a threat that needed to be neutralized with surgical precision. The city itself was about to become a cage.
---