Morning light slanted into the rear courtyard of the Marquis of Yao's residence.
At a small wooden table, Ge Zhiyao sat with her head lowered, fine-tuning the internal structure of a sound-transmission device. Her fingers moved swiftly and precisely as yao-stones, air conduits, and memory beads were aligned in exact order. Needle-thin conduits slid silently into an almost invisible groove.
"One memory bead left," she murmured.
"Recording time won't exceed half a ke."
Beside her, Mozi watched in silence, his gaze heavy with gravity.
"That bead can only be triggered once. There's no room for error."
"I know."
Ge Zhiyao pressed her lips together, her voice low.
"What we're recording this time… will be the turning point of the entire game."
Lin Yaochen approached.
He had changed into a plain dark-gray cloth outfit, deliberately resembling a household servant. There was no sword at his waist, his posture lowered, his presence deliberately subdued—indistinguishable from any menial attendant.
Yet beneath that calm exterior burned an unfamiliar resolve.
"The trap is set," he said, nodding to the others.
"Gu Ying plans to 'secretly transfer Ge Ruifeng' in two days. I'll pretend to escort him out of the residence. In truth, a decoy body will be swapped in and sealed inside a spirit-beast pouch. Mozi will deliver it to the safe location arranged by Tie Ye."
Luo Yan added,
"As for Uncle Ge himself, he'll be relocated in advance to the Inner Garden Sanctuary. Only the few of us know the location."
Tie Ye folded his arms, his voice cold as steel.
"The transaction will take place at the west courtyard shrine—Gu Ying's designated meeting point. Based on our intelligence, Lin Zhaochi may appear under the guise of a 'merchant consortium envoy.' His condition will be an exchange: Ge Ruifeng for the Yao Compass."
Mozi's gaze hardened.
"All we need is to capture that conversation—Lin Zhaochi admitting his ties to the Third Continent. With Tie Ye's sealed correspondence and Gu Ying's letters, we'll have three corroborating proofs."
With a soft click, Ge Zhiyao snapped the device shut and looked up.
"The recorder is ready. I'll link the sound bead through a wind-guiding array. Once they come close, recording will begin."
"This performance has to be convincing," Lin Yaochen said firmly.
"We need Gu Ying to believe she's already won."
The west courtyard shrine was unnervingly silent.
Only a handful of guards remained on watch. Gu Ying entered with her entourage, while Lin Yaochen followed close behind, dressed in dull gray robes, head lowered—an unremarkable attendant supporting a tightly sealed spirit-beast pouch in his arms.
The pouch was heavy, its sigils densely layered. No outsider could discern what lay within.
In truth—
It did not contain the real Ge Ruifeng.
Moments earlier, Mozi had activated a concealment array and transferred the real Ge Ruifeng to a hidden location beyond the residence. Inside the pouch was merely a yao-stone puppet, its aura carefully disguised—personally designed by Ge Zhiyao to deceive Gu Ying, at least for now.
Lin Yaochen stood silently to the side. Without speaking, he activated the recording mechanism concealed at his waist, capturing every word spoken in the shrine.
The lanterns burned dimly.
From a side entrance, Lin Zhaochi stepped in.
He wore a dark ash robe, his posture straight, his presence chilling.
At the sight of him, Gu Ying hurried forward, her face bright with triumph.
"Everything is as you wished. Ge Ruifeng has been captured. Tie Ye remains completely in the dark. The Yao Compass is within reach. Give the order, and I'll arrange the exchange."
Lin Zhaochi halted, his tone glacial.
"Tie Ye grows suspicious. We can't delay. Are your people clean?"
Gu Ying answered confidently,
"They're all long-embedded loyalists, positioned at key points. If Tie Ye senses anything amiss, they'll strike simultaneously and trap him in chaos."
Lin Yaochen's heart tightened.
Gu Ying's gaze sharpened.
"As for Lin Yaochen—whether or not he hands over the Yao Compass, once he appears, he won't be leaving alive. If he dares bring reinforcements, we'll wipe them all out on the spot."
She leaned closer, her voice turning suggestive.
"When the time comes, the Yao Compass returns to its rightful owner, and the Ge family's secrets become yours. I trust you'll remember who made this possible."
Her hand slid onto Lin Zhaochi's shoulder, fingertips trailing down his chest.
Lin Zhaochi lowered his gaze, then laughed coldly. He seized her wrist, halting her movement.
"Hahaha… 'rightful owner,' you say?"
His eyes turned razor-sharp.
"With the Yao Compass in my grasp and the Ge family's weapons at my command, who in the Yao Realm would dare oppose me?"
At Lin Yaochen's side, a faint glimmer of yao-light flashed from his fingers.
The memory bead had activated.
His heartbeat surged.
Every word—
had been recorded.
Gu Ying and Lin Zhaochi's voices echoed like blades, each sentence cutting toward the future of the Yao Realm.
Lin Yaochen clenched his jaw, suppressing the storm in his chest. The spirit-beast pouch shifted slightly in his arms, its sigils pulsing faintly. Without careful attention, no one would notice the deception.
Suddenly, a confidant rushed in and whispered urgently into Gu Ying's ear.
Her brow furrowed. She cast a sharp glance at Lin Yaochen.
"You—watch that pouch. I want to be certain the old fox hasn't pulled any tricks."
Lin Yaochen bowed and obeyed, moving slowly toward the edge of the altar. He used his spiritual aura to stabilize the puppet's false presence. It wasn't time yet. Not a single flaw could surface.
Gu Ying turned back to Lin Zhaochi.
"We must finish this before Tie Ye returns with his army. Otherwise, the risk grows."
Lin Zhaochi sneered.
"If Tie Ye truly returns, I'll make sure he never leaves this place alive."
The words struck Lin Yaochen like a hammer.
His grip tightened around the recorder. His gaze remained lowered, but a fierce resolve ignited in his eyes.
A sharp chime rang out.
The yao-light on the memory bead flickered—then faded.
Recording complete.
Lin Yaochen slipped the bead into his robes. Outwardly calm, he silently counted the seconds.
Every word had been captured.
Now—
it was time to reveal the board.
Outside the shrine, night deepened.
Beyond the eastern wing, hidden among forested rocks, a faint glow shimmered.
Mozi crouched low, whiskers stirring in the wind, eyes blazing as he fixed his gaze on the shrine walls. Beside him, Ge Zhiyao assembled a sleeve-mounted launcher at breathtaking speed, embedding tiny sound beads and yao-silk fragments into place.
"Once activated, the recording will sync directly to the archive disc on my person," she said coolly.
"It will serve as evidence for the Yao Court. If they admit collusion with the Third Continent, the verdict is sealed."
Mozi nodded.
"But it must be done in front of Tie Ye and the court officials—so they can't deny it."
"That depends on Lin Yaochen's signal."
She paused, lifting her head slightly.
"You're certain my father reached the South Garden safely?"
"I set three layers of spirit arrays myself," Mozi replied coldly.
"Unless that woman can read a spirit beast's mind, they won't find him."
At that moment, a shadow flickered.
Han Yunkun emerged from concealment, speaking in a low voice.
"The Marquis has entered the rear courtyard. He's ready to act."
Mozi immediately looked to the night sky.
There—
a pinpoint of yao-light rose.
Lin Yaochen's signal.
Ge Zhiyao took a steady breath.
"Begin."
Inside the shrine, Gu Ying was mid-sentence when—
A sharp crack shattered the silence outside.
Moments later, several outer guards rushed in, panic-stricken.
"Report! There's a fire—outside!"
"What?" Gu Ying frowned, turning toward the exit.
Then—
a crushing presence descended like a mountain.
From the main doors, Tie Ye strode in, clad in armor, his face frost-cold. His sword remained sheathed, yet the sword intent alone pressed down like thunder, silencing everyone present.
Gu Ying's face drained of color.
"How could you—"
"Gu Ying," Tie Ye cut her off, his voice ringing like iron.
"You colluded with foreign enemies and sought to seize the Yao Compass. Your crime merits death."
She forced a laugh.
"Do you have proof?"
Lin Yaochen raised his head.
The Yao Compass at his waist glimmered softly as he stepped forward, retrieving the recording device.
Then, calmly and firmly, he said:
"Then let you hear—what you said yourself."
He activated the bead.
Gu Ying and Lin Zhaochi's voices echoed clearly throughout the shrine—
every word, every whisper, impossible to deny.
A hidden game—
was finally laid bare.