Chapter 9 — The Fifth Life

The black sedan crossed South Jiangzhou at a speed that made Qin Ruoxi’s earlier driving look responsible.

This time, she wasn’t behind the wheel.

One of the Qin family’s security drivers was.

Ruoxi sat in the front passenger seat, phone pressed to her ear.

“Repeat the location.”

A voice answered through the speaker.

“Old Huayang Chemical Works. Building Three. The property has been abandoned for eleven years.”

“How did you find the car?”

“Traffic cameras caught it entering the industrial district at 10:43 p.m. We lost it for seventeen minutes. A patrol team located it behind Building Two.”

“Blood?”

“Driver’s side. Rear passenger area. Some on the pavement.”

“Anyone nearby?”

“No.”

“Do not enter the building.”

There was a pause.

“Miss Qin—”

“That is an order.”

“Yes, Miss Qin.”

She ended the call.

Zhou Wei sat rigidly in the back seat.

His hands were clenched so tightly that the knuckles had turned white.

Lu Chen sat beside him with the Nine Medicines manuscript on his lap.

Bai Shuyue occupied the other side.

Nobody spoke for several seconds.

Then Zhou Wei asked:

“How much blood?”

Ruoxi turned slightly.

“They couldn’t determine.”

“That means a lot.”

“It means they couldn’t determine.”

“That means a lot.”

Lu Chen looked at him.

“Breathe.”

Zhou Wei’s jaw tightened.

“I am breathing.”

“Poorly.”

“My brother may be dying.”

“Yes.”

“And you want me calm?”

“I want oxygen reaching your brain.”

Zhou Wei stared at him.

Lu Chen’s expression didn’t change.

“Panic will not make the car faster.”

That was true.

Which made it more irritating.

Zhou Wei looked away.

Outside, the city had changed.

Jiangzhou’s bright commercial districts were behind them.

Warehouses replaced apartment towers.

Old factories stood between empty lots and narrow service roads.

Streetlights became fewer.

The river appeared occasionally between industrial buildings, black beneath the night sky.

Lu Chen placed one hand over the manuscript.

The fifth golden seed was still there.

Not fully formed.

A faint outline.

Four completed seeds surrounded it.

Qin Zhenguo.

His bodyguard.

Zhou Wei.

Bai Shuyue.

And now—

Zhou Kai.

Except Lu Chen had never treated Zhou Kai.

Had never met him.

Had not even seen him in person.

He closed his eyes.

The manuscript remained warm beneath his palm.

He focused inward.

The golden point inside his shattered dantian had recovered slightly.

Not enough for real combat.

Not enough for prolonged healing.

But the four acknowledged lives had left traces.

Fine threads of Life Essence moved around the core.

Small.

Steady.

A physician receiving interest on kindness.

The thought would have made his master laugh.

The fifth seed pulsed.

Once.

Lu Chen’s eyes opened.

Bai Shuyue noticed.

“What?”

“The seed changed.”

Her expression sharpened.

“How?”

“It reacted again.”

“To Zhou Kai?”

“I assume.”

“That should not happen.”

“So you’ve said.”

“The First Medicine records completed salvation.”

“Apparently not always.”

Bai Shuyue looked toward the manuscript.

“Perhaps it senses someone connected to you.”

Lu Chen frowned.

“I have never met him.”

“Connected does not require meeting.”

Zhou Wei turned.

“What does that mean?”

Neither answered immediately.

Bai Shuyue looked at him.

“Your brother’s life may already be entangled with Lu Chen’s.”

“That sounds unnecessarily mystical.”

Ruoxi glanced back.

“You are sitting beside a glowing cultivation book.”

Zhou Wei considered.

“Fair.”

Lu Chen touched the fifth seed.

Heat passed through his fingertip.

And for one instant—

he heard something.

Not a voice.

A heartbeat.

Weak.

Slow.

Then nothing.

Lu Chen sat straighter.

“What?”

Bai Shuyue noticed again.

“I felt him.”

“Zhou Kai?”

“Maybe.”

Zhou Wei’s face changed.

“Alive?”

Lu Chen hesitated.

That hesitation was enough.

“Doctor Lu.”

“I don’t know.”

“You just said—”

“I felt something.”

“Was it alive?”

“Yes.”

Hope appeared immediately.

Too quickly.

Lu Chen raised one hand.

“I said I don’t know.”

“But—”

“A heartbeat can stop between one second and the next.”

Zhou Wei’s expression tightened.

Lu Chen continued more quietly.

“But when I felt it…”

He looked at the half-formed seed.

“…it was still beating.”

That was enough.

Zhou Wei closed his eyes.

For the first time since they left the apartment, his breathing slowed.

Not calm.

But controlled.

Lu Chen nodded slightly.

Better.

The driver killed the headlights two streets from Huayang Chemical Works.

They continued in darkness.

The old factory complex emerged behind a broken concrete wall.

Three main buildings.

Rusting storage tanks.

Collapsed pipes.

A tall chimney split near the top.

Nature had begun reclaiming everything.

Grass grew through cracked asphalt.

Vines covered warning signs.

Broken windows reflected moonlight.

Qin vehicles waited half a kilometer away.

Ruoxi’s security team stood beside them.

Five men.

All armed.

One approached as the sedan stopped.

“Miss Qin.”

“Report.”

“Zhou Kai’s car is behind Building Two.”

“Anyone inside?”

“No.”

“Cameras?”

“Old system. Dead.”

“Movement?”

The guard hesitated.

“One light in Building Three.”

Lu Chen looked toward the factory.

A single upper window glowed faintly.

Not electric light.

Too warm.

Fire.

Or candles.

“Stay here,” he said.

Ruoxi looked at him.

“No.”

“You are not a cultivator.”

“Neither is Zhou Kai.”

“That argument works against you.”

“I’m coming.”

Lu Chen looked at Bai Shuyue.

“Tell her.”

Bai Shuyue shook her head.

“I tried telling her things earlier.”

Ruoxi gave her a satisfied look.

Traitors everywhere.

Lu Chen turned toward the security team.

“No one enters unless Ruoxi calls.”

The team leader frowned.

“Sir, our job is to protect—”

“Against guns?”

“Yes.”

“Knives?”

“Yes.”

“Explosives?”

“Yes.”

“People who can break concrete with their hands?”

The guard paused.

Ruoxi crossed her arms.

“You could have been more diplomatic.”

“I tried diplomacy today.”

“With whom?”

“Han.”

“And?”

“He brought me a coffin.”

The guard wisely said nothing.

Lu Chen pointed toward the outer road.

“If anyone leaves the factory, record them. Do not follow unless they are ordinary.”

The team leader frowned.

“How do we know?”

“If they jump a three-meter wall without touching it…”

Lu Chen paused.

“…assume extraordinary.”

Ruoxi stared.

“That was almost funny.”

“Almost?”

“Very close.”

They moved toward Building Three.

Zhou Kai’s abandoned car sat behind Building Two.

Lu Chen stopped beside it.

The driver’s door remained open.

Blood stained the seat.

More marked the rear door.

Zhou Wei moved first.

“Wait.”

He opened the rear door.

Empty.

A cracked pair of glasses lay on the floor.

He picked them up.

His hands began to shake.

“His.”

Lu Chen examined the blood.

Partially dried.

Several hours old.

Too much for a superficial wound.

But not necessarily fatal.

He touched one drop near the door frame.

Closed his eyes.

Nothing.

No Life Meridian.

Blood separated from the body carried almost no useful imprint.

Still—

there was something else.

A faint spiritual residue.

Dark.

Familiar.

Same family of energy as the Three-Death Seal.

Different technique.

“Taken alive,” Lu Chen said.

Zhou Wei looked up.

“How do you know?”

“Most of the blood is inside the car.”

“So?”

“If they killed him here, they would have had no reason to move him.”

“Unless they wanted the body hidden.”

“Then why leave the car?”

Zhou Wei looked at the factory.

“To bring us.”

“Yes.”

Ruoxi’s expression hardened.

“Another trap.”

Lu Chen nodded.

Bai Shuyue crouched beside the tire marks.

“They expected someone to trace him here.”

“Me?”

“Possibly.”

Zhou Wei looked at her.

“Why use my brother?”

Bai Shuyue stood.

“Because the people behind this seem very fond of using family as bait.”

Silence.

Lu Chen’s eyes changed.

Qin Zhenguo used to expose him.

Zhou Kai used to manipulate Zhou Wei.

The clinic marked because of Xiaoxiao.

A pattern.

The people behind the Black Crescent did not merely attack bodies.

They attacked attachments.

Interesting.

Cowardly.

Effective.

Lu Chen looked toward Building Three.

“Let’s go.”

The first floor was empty.

At least visibly.

Old chemical barrels sat beneath torn plastic sheets.

Rusting pipes ran along the walls.

The air smelled of oil, dust, and something bitter.

Bai Shuyue lifted one hand.

“Formation.”

Ruoxi looked around.

“Where?”

“Everywhere.”

“Helpful.”

Bai Shuyue pointed toward the floor.

Thin black lines had been painted between cracks in the concrete.

Almost invisible.

They formed a wide circle.

This story originates from NovelPhoenix. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Zhou Wei stopped.

“What kind?”

“Detection.”

Lu Chen studied it.

“No.”

Bai Shuyue looked at him.

He crouched.

Touched one line.

Smelled his fingertip.

“Blood-binding powder.”

Her expression changed.

“You’re right.”

Ruoxi frowned.

“What does that do?”

“Records spiritual signatures that cross the boundary.”

“So if we step inside…”

“They know exactly who entered.”

Zhou Wei looked around.

“Can we avoid it?”

Lu Chen followed the lines.

The formation covered the entire interior.

“Not through here.”

Bai Shuyue looked upward.

Second-floor walkway.

Broken skylight.

She understood.

“Roof.”

Ruoxi looked at her expensive shoes.

Then at the rusted ladder.

“No.”

Lu Chen looked at her.

“You insisted on coming.”

“I insist on many things. Rust was not one of them.”

Five minutes later, she climbed the ladder.

Complaining quietly.

Zhou Wei went next.

Bai Shuyue followed.

Lu Chen last.

They crossed the upper maintenance walkway without touching the formation below.

At the far wall, a doorway led to Building Three’s central production hall.

The glow came from beyond.

Lu Chen stopped before entering.

Voices.

One.

Maybe two.

Then—

a metallic rattle.

Chains.

Zhou Wei heard it too.

His face changed.

“Brother.”

He moved.

Lu Chen caught his shoulder.

“Wait.”

“I heard—”

“So did I.”

“Let me go.”

“No.”

“That’s my brother.”

“Yes.”

Zhou Wei tried to pull free.

Failed.

Lu Chen leaned closer.

“If you rush through that door and die, I will have two brothers to treat instead of one.”

Zhou Wei’s breathing became sharp.

“That was a terrible joke.”

“It wasn’t a joke.”

That stopped him.

Bai Shuyue moved beside the door.

Peered through a gap.

Then looked back.

“One man visible.”

“Only one?” Lu Chen asked.

“Yes.”

“Cultivation?”

“Higher than Han.”

“How much higher?”

“Possibly Peak Meridian Opening.”

Zhou Wei went pale.

Ruoxi whispered:

“What comes after that?”

Bai Shuyue answered:

“Core Condensation.”

“And is he—”

“No.”

Ruoxi exhaled.

“That sounded like relief.”

“It is.”

Lu Chen looked through the gap.

The production hall was enormous.

Old reactors.

Catwalks.

Pipes.

A central open floor.

Zhou Kai hung from chains attached to a steel beam.

Alive.

Barely.

An older man stood in front of him.

Dark clothes.

Gray hair.

No obvious weapon.

A black crescent embroidered inside his sleeve.

Lu Chen’s eyes narrowed.

The man’s internal force was dense.

Much denser than Han’s.

Twelve meridians open.

All of them.

Peak Meridian Opening indeed.

But—

there was something else.

A knot of dark spiritual energy around the man’s lower spine.

Foreign.

Not illness.

Contract.

Seal.

Lu Chen understood.

He was not the final master.

He was someone else’s servant too.

Zhou Kai lifted his head.

His one open eye moved weakly.

Then stopped.

He seemed to be staring directly at the door.

Impossible.

Unless—

the golden seed in Lu Chen’s manuscript pulsed.

Zhou Kai’s chest answered.

A faint golden spark.

Lu Chen’s expression changed.

The older man noticed it too.

He turned.

“Enough hiding.”

His voice carried across the hall.

“Ghost Physician.”

Zhou Wei tensed.

The man smiled.

“I know you’re there.”

Lu Chen stepped through the doorway.

Bai Shuyue cursed under her breath.

Ruoxi followed.

Zhou Wei came last.

The older man’s smile widened.

“Excellent.”

His gaze moved toward Zhou Wei.

“And the younger brother.”

Zhou Wei stared at the chained man.

“Zhou Kai.”

His brother’s eye widened.

“Wei…”

The word was almost soundless.

Zhou Wei moved one step.

The older man raised a hand.

Dark energy gathered.

“Another step…”

He looked toward Zhou Kai.

“…and his heart stops.”

Zhou Wei froze.

Lu Chen watched.

No bluff.

The dark seal around Zhou Kai’s chest tightened when the man lifted his hand.

Connected.

Kill switch.

Another leash.

These people loved leashes.

The older man looked toward Lu Chen.

“You disappoint me.”

“That happens.”

“I expected more.”

“I hear that often from people who break into my life.”

“Five years ago, you were feared.”

“Five years ago, my rent was lower.”

The man frowned.

Ruoxi almost laughed.

Wrong setting.

She stopped herself.

The older man continued.

“Your dantian is ruined.”

“Yes.”

“Your meridians broken.”

“Yes.”

“You are nearly mortal.”

“Nearly.”

“And still they call you Ghost Physician.”

Lu Chen looked toward Zhou Kai.

“People enjoy nostalgia.”

The older man’s eyes narrowed.

“You don’t seem worried.”

“I am.”

That answer surprised him.

“For him?”

Lu Chen nodded toward Zhou Kai.

“Yes.”

Not himself.

The man laughed.

“Doctors.”

He shook his head.

“Always so sentimental.”

Lu Chen’s gaze hardened.

“Who are you?”

“Mo Changfeng.”

Bai Shuyue’s face changed.

Lu Chen noticed.

“You know him.”

She answered quietly.

“Upper Court outer enforcer.”

Mo Changfeng smiled.

“Former outer enforcer.”

Bai Shuyue’s hand moved toward her blade.

He noticed.

“Still pretending you’re better than us?”

Her expression went cold.

“No.”

“Good.”

“Only less willing to lie about it.”

His smile disappeared.

Lu Chen looked at Mo Changfeng.

“You work for Han’s master.”

Mo laughed.

“Han calls me Master.”

There it was.

Zhou Wei’s face hardened.

“So you sealed him.”

“Yes.”

“You ordered Rat killed.”

“Yes.”

“You used my brother.”

Mo looked toward Zhou Kai.

“Used?”

He smiled.

“Your brother volunteered.”

Silence.

Zhou Wei stared.

“No.”

Zhou Kai closed his eye.

Mo continued.

“He gave us Qin Zhenguo’s schedules.”

Ruoxi’s face changed.

“He gave you access to the hospital?”

“Yes.”

“Medication?”

“Yes.”

“Water?”

“Yes.”

Zhou Wei looked at his brother.

“Why?”

Zhou Kai said nothing.

Mo laughed softly.

“Ask him.”

“Brother.”

Zhou Kai’s lips moved.

“I…”

Blood ran from his mouth.

“…did.”

Zhou Wei took one step back.

The betrayal struck harder than a fist.

Ruoxi’s expression turned cold.

“You tried to kill my grandfather.”

Zhou Kai slowly raised his head.

“Yes.”

The word barely existed.

Zhou Wei stared at him.

Twenty years.

Searching.

Regret.

Guilt.

And now this.

“Why?”

No answer.

Mo Changfeng looked delighted.

“You should hear the entire story.”

Lu Chen looked at him.

“That is why we are here.”

Mo spread his arms.

“Then perhaps we can trade.”

“Trade what?”

“Your manuscript.”

Ruoxi tightened her grip on the case.

Mo’s eyes moved toward it.

“The Nine Medicines inheritance.”

“For Zhou Kai?”

“Yes.”

Lu Chen looked at the chained man.

Then back at Mo.

“No.”

Zhou Wei’s face changed.

“Doctor Lu.”

“Quiet.”

Mo smiled.

“Cold.”

“No.”

Lu Chen shook his head.

“Bad trade.”

“You value a book over a life?”

“Not what I said.”

“Then explain.”

Lu Chen looked toward Zhou Kai.

“He dies if you release the seal badly.”

Mo’s smile faded slightly.

Interesting.

Lu Chen continued.

“You planted three anchors.”

Mo’s eyes narrowed.

“One in the heart meridian.”

Silence.

“One near the lower dantian.”

Mo’s expression tightened.

“And one…”

Lu Chen looked toward Zhou Kai’s neck.

“…inside the cervical channel.”

Zhou Wei stared.

Bai Shuyue did too.

Mo Changfeng’s amusement vanished.

“How can you see that?”

Lu Chen ignored the question.

“If we trade and you deactivate the seal remotely, the upper anchor ruptures.”

He looked at Zhou Kai.

“Stroke.”

Then the chest.

“Heart failure.”

Then lower abdomen.

“Internal spiritual collapse.”

Mo’s gaze hardened.

“You are guessing.”

“No.”

“You haven’t examined him.”

Lu Chen’s eyes became faintly golden.

For less than a second.

Mo saw it.

His face changed.

Lu Chen smiled.

“You brought a physician to a hostage exchange.”

He took one step forward.

“That was your mistake.”

Mo’s hand tightened.

The dark energy around Zhou Kai’s heart compressed.

Zhou Kai gasped.

Zhou Wei moved.

Lu Chen raised one hand.

“Stop.”

Zhou Wei froze.

Mo smiled again.

“I still hold the leash.”

“Yes.”

Lu Chen’s gaze moved to Mo’s lower spine.

“And someone holds yours.”

Mo went still.

Bai Shuyue looked sharply at Lu Chen.

“What?”

He pointed toward Mo.

“Third lumbar channel.”

Mo’s face changed.

Tiny.

Enough.

“Foreign seal.”

No one spoke.

Lu Chen continued.

“Older than five years.”

Mo’s eyes became dangerous.

“You see too much.”

“Occupational problem.”

“You know nothing.”

“Then correct me.”

Lu Chen’s voice remained calm.

“Someone placed a command seal inside your spine.”

Mo’s hand trembled.

Just once.

“Probably Upper Court.”

Silence.

“If you disobey certain orders, it activates.”

Mo stared.

“Pain first.”

Nothing.

“Then paralysis.”

His jaw tightened.

“Then death.”

Still nothing.

Lu Chen looked at Bai Shuyue.

“I assume that’s how the Upper Court keeps outer enforcers loyal.”

Her expression had become pale.

“Yes.”

Mo snapped:

“Enough.”

Lu Chen looked back.

“No.”

The single word echoed.

“You call Han weak because you sealed him.”

Mo’s aura intensified.

“You chain Zhou Kai because you can.”

Another step.

“You kill subordinates when they become inconvenient.”

Another.

“But you…”

Lu Chen’s eyes settled on the hidden seal.

“…are chained too.”

Mo Changfeng’s face became ugly.

Dark energy erupted from his body.

Pipes rattled.

Dust fell from the ceiling.

Ruoxi took an involuntary step back.

Bai Shuyue drew her blade.

Zhou Wei raised his fists.

Lu Chen did neither.

He simply watched.

Mo’s internal force surged through all twelve open meridians.

Powerful.

Fast.

Dangerous.

Then—

the seal in his spine tightened.

Mo’s aura faltered.

Exactly as Lu Chen expected.

Interesting.

Someone was monitoring him too.

Mo felt it.

Fear crossed his face.

Only for an instant.

Then rage covered it.

“Give me the manuscript.”

“No.”

“I will kill him.”

“No.”

Mo’s fingers curled.

Zhou Kai screamed.

The black anchors tightened.

Zhou Wei shouted:

“Stop!”

Lu Chen moved.

Not toward Mo.

Toward a rusted pipe.

He struck it with his palm.

Weak strike.

Almost pathetic by cultivator standards.

But precise.

The pipe broke.

A burst of old chemical vapor erupted.

Mo instinctively turned.

One heartbeat.

That was all Lu Chen needed.

“Bai Shuyue.”

She moved before he finished her name.

Her blade flashed.

Not at Mo.

At the chain above Zhou Kai.

Steel snapped.

Zhou Kai fell.

Zhou Wei caught him.

Mo roared.

“You think distance breaks the seal?”

“No,” Lu Chen said.

Then threw three needles.

One.

Two.

Three.

They struck Zhou Kai.

Heart.

Dantian.

Neck.

Exactly above the anchors.

Mo’s eyes widened.

“What—”

Lu Chen closed his hand.

Life Essence moved.

Very little.

Too little.

But the manuscript opened inside the case.

By itself.

Golden light escaped through the seam.

The fifth seed blazed.

Before Zhou Kai had been saved.

Not after.

Now.

The Life Essence inside Lu Chen surged.

Not from his core.

From the manuscript.

His eyes widened.

Impossible.

The inheritance was lending him strength.

No—

not lending.

Responding.

The fifth seed had formed because Zhou Kai had already made a choice.

A choice Lu Chen did not yet understand.

But the book did.

Golden energy raced through the three needles.

The black anchors froze.

Mo Changfeng felt it.

His face changed.

“No.”

Lu Chen stepped toward Zhou Kai.

“Now you can stop.”

Mo raised his hand.

Nothing happened.

His control had been severed.

Not destroyed.

Blocked.

Temporarily.

Mo’s expression twisted.

“You crippled the seal.”

“Temporarily.”

Lu Chen crouched beside Zhou Kai.

His condition was catastrophic.

Blood loss.

Broken ribs.

Internal trauma.

Meridian damage.

Poison.

And something else.

A black spiritual mark near the heart.

Not one of Mo’s anchors.

Older.

Deeper.

Lu Chen frowned.

Zhou Kai looked at him.

“Ghost…”

“Don’t talk.”

“I…”

“Don’t.”

“You need…”

His breath failed.

Lu Chen checked his pulse.

Weak.

Slipping.

Zhou Wei knelt beside them.

“Save him.”

“I am trying.”

“Save him!”

Lu Chen looked up.

“I said I am trying.”

The tone silenced him.

Mo Changfeng took a step forward.

Bai Shuyue blocked him.

“You move, I cut.”

“You cannot beat me.”

“No.”

She smiled faintly.

“But you’re injured.”

Mo’s eyes narrowed.

The seal in his spine pulsed again.

Pain crossed his face.

Someone above him was displeased.

Lu Chen noticed.

Good.

Time.

He needed time.

“Ruoxi.”

“Yes?”

“Pressure here.”

He placed her hand against Zhou Kai’s side.

She immediately obeyed.

“Harder.”

“He’ll hurt.”

“He’ll bleed less.”

She pressed.

Zhou Kai groaned.

“Zhou Wei.”

“Yes?”

“Hold his shoulders.”

“Why?”

“Because he’s about to hate me.”

Lu Chen removed one needle.

Then drove it into a point beneath the sternum.

Zhou Kai screamed.

His body arched.

Zhou Wei nearly released him.

“Hold him!”

“I am!”

Golden energy entered.

The fifth seed brightened.

Lu Chen saw the black spiritual mark around Zhou Kai’s heart.

Different from Mo’s anchors.

More refined.

A memory lock.

No.

A compulsion seal.

He understood.

Zhou Kai had helped attack Qin Zhenguo.

But perhaps not willingly.

Or not entirely willingly.

“Who placed this?” Lu Chen whispered.

Zhou Kai’s eye opened.

He heard.

His lips moved.

“Can’t…”

“Can’t what?”

“Say.”

The compulsion seal tightened.

Lu Chen immediately stopped questioning him.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Mo Changfeng’s expression changed.

He realized Lu Chen had found it.

“Stop.”

Lu Chen looked up.

Mo’s voice sharpened.

“Do not touch that seal.”

Why?

Lu Chen smiled faintly.

Now he definitely would.

He inserted a fourth needle.

Mo surged forward.

Bai Shuyue attacked.

Steel met palm.

The force threw her backward.

But she slowed him.

Zhou Wei moved to intercept.

“Stay!”

Lu Chen shouted.

Too late.

Mo struck Zhou Wei once.

Chest.

Zhou Wei flew across the floor.

Ruoxi gasped.

“Zhou Wei!”

He landed hard.

Did not get up.

Lu Chen’s eyes went cold.

Mo walked toward him.

“I warned you.”

Lu Chen looked at Zhou Kai.

Then Zhou Wei.

Two patients.

One conscious.

One maybe not.

His shattered core pulsed.

Death Essence stirred.

Mo was close.

Powerful.

Injured.

Angry.

And Lu Chen suddenly understood how easy the other path would be.

Kill him.

Absorb him.

The dark energy inside Mo’s meridians called to his core.

Decades of cultivation.

Enough to restore more than one damaged pathway.

Perhaps enough to reopen several.

Enough to stop being weak.

Enough to protect Xiaoxiao.

The thought was seductive because it was logical.

Mo attacked.

Lu Chen raised one hand.

Not enough strength to block.

Bai Shuyue was too far.

Ruoxi was protecting Zhou Kai.

The manuscript pulsed.

Life.

Death.

Choose.

Lu Chen reached into his coat.

Not a weapon.

A glass vial.

He threw it.

Mo shattered it with his palm.

Mist exploded.

The smell hit him.

His eyes widened.

“What—”

His internal force stuttered.

Moon-Sleep Mold.

Concentrated.

The same mixture from Golden Pavilion.

Modified.

Lu Chen had prepared extra before leaving the apartment.

Physicians planned too.

Mo staggered.

“What did you—”

“Medicine.”

Mo’s knees weakened.

He forced internal force through his meridians.

Bad decision.

The command seal in his spine reacted violently.

He cried out.

Collapsed to one knee.

Lu Chen moved.

One needle.

Directly into the lower back.

Mo froze.

His eyes widened.

Lu Chen crouched behind him.

“I can remove this.”

Mo stopped breathing.

“The seal?”

“Yes.”

“You lie.”

“Frequently, according to my daughter.”

Lu Chen pressed the needle slightly deeper.

“But not about diagnoses.”

Mo’s face changed.

Hope.

Tiny.

Humiliating.

Real.

Lu Chen saw it.

“You serve them because they can kill you.”

Mo’s jaw tightened.

“Everyone serves someone.”

“No.”

Lu Chen looked toward Zhou Kai.

“Some people eventually stop.”

Mo’s eyes moved toward him.

“What do you want?”

“Release every active control seal you placed tonight.”

“I can’t.”

“You can.”

“They’ll know.”

“They already know.”

Mo’s breathing became heavier.

The foreign seal in his spine pulsed.

Whoever controlled it was listening.

Or sensing disobedience.

Lu Chen continued:

“Release Zhou Kai.”

“I did.”

“No.”

He pointed toward the deeper mark.

“The other one.”

Mo went still.

Bai Shuyue stared.

“You placed that?”

Mo said nothing.

Lu Chen’s expression hardened.

“One answer.”

“You aren’t treating me.”

“I will.”

Everyone looked at him.

Even Mo.

Lu Chen continued.

“You release the compulsion seal.”

His voice was calm.

“And I remove the command seal from your spine.”

Bai Shuyue stepped forward.

“Lu Chen.”

“I know.”

“Do you?”

“Yes.”

“If you free him, he becomes stronger.”

“I know.”

“He has killed people.”

“I know.”

“He nearly killed Zhou Wei.”

“I know.”

Mo stared at him.

“You would still treat me?”

Lu Chen looked into his eyes.

“If you become my patient.”

Silence.

Then Mo laughed.

Weakly.

Disbelieving.

“You really are insane.”

“Probably.”

“And if I refuse?”

“You die chained to the people you claim to serve.”

Mo’s laughter disappeared.

That struck.

Hard.

Lu Chen continued:

“I am not asking you to become good.”

The command seal pulsed again.

Mo groaned.

“I am offering you the chance to become responsible for your own choices.”

The words settled.

Responsibility.

Not forgiveness.

Not absolution.

Choice.

Mo looked toward Zhou Kai.

Then toward the black crescent inside his sleeve.

Years of obedience.

Fear.

Orders.

Excuses.

His hand trembled.

Finally—

he lifted two fingers.

A black thread appeared between them.

It connected to Zhou Kai’s chest.

Mo twisted.

The thread snapped.

Zhou Kai screamed once.

Then his entire body relaxed.

The deeper seal dissolved.

Lu Chen’s eyes sharpened.

The fifth golden seed erupted into full light.

Completed.

The manuscript opened.

Golden energy flowed into Lu Chen.

Not much.

But enough.

He immediately turned back to Zhou Kai.

“Ruoxi.”

“Yes.”

“Keep pressure.”

“Still pressing.”

“Good.”

He inserted the final two needles.

Six total.

A pattern his master once called:

Six Returning Paths.

Used when life had begun leaving through multiple systems at once.

Lu Chen had not performed it in five years.

His fingers remembered.

First rotation.

Heart stabilized.

Second.

Bleeding slowed.

Third.

Damaged meridians stopped collapsing.

The golden fifth seed pulsed with each movement.

Life Essence entered Zhou Kai.

This time, the energy did not merely repair.

It seemed to ask.

Stay?

Go?

Lu Chen felt it.

The patient had reached that threshold.

Medicine could open the door.

It could not force someone through it.

Zhou Kai’s breathing stopped.

Zhou Wei, still dazed on the floor, saw it.

“No.”

He crawled toward them.

“No!”

Lu Chen focused.

“Brother!”

Zhou Kai’s heart failed.

Ruoxi looked at Lu Chen.

He did not panic.

One needle.

Tiny adjustment.

“Zhou Kai.”

No response.

Lu Chen leaned closer.

“Your brother spent twenty years thinking you abandoned him.”

Nothing.

Zhou Wei froze.

Lu Chen continued.

“If you die now…”

The fifth seed burned brighter.

“…he will blame himself for another twenty.”

Zhou Wei’s eyes filled.

“Doctor Lu…”

“Shut up.”

Lu Chen’s voice softened.

“Zhou Kai.”

A faint heartbeat.

Once.

Then silence.

Lu Chen pressed two fingers against the chest.

“Your little brother finally found you.”

Another beat.

Weak.

“Do not make him search again.”

Third beat.

Stronger.

Zhou Kai inhaled.

Air rushed violently into his lungs.

Zhou Wei collapsed beside him.

“Brother.”

Zhou Kai’s eye opened.

This time, recognition stayed.

“Wei…”

Zhou Wei laughed.

Then cried.

Then seemed embarrassed about both.

“You idiot.”

Zhou Kai’s lips moved.

“You got old.”

Zhou Wei stared.

“You are older!”

“Still…”

A weak smile.

“…uglier.”

Zhou Wei laughed again.

Lu Chen sat back.

Exhaustion hit him.

Hard.

The manuscript inside the case glowed.

Five completed golden seeds.

Then—

a sixth outline appeared.

Everyone missed it.

Except Lu Chen.

His eyes moved toward Mo Changfeng.

The sixth seed remained empty.

Waiting.

He understood.

The inheritance had acknowledged intent before.

Not certainty.

Possibility.

A life that could be saved.

Maybe the seed did not merely count patients.

Maybe it recognized moments where someone stood between life and death—

and Lu Chen chose which side he would stand on.

Mo Changfeng watched him.

“You promised.”

Lu Chen looked at him.

“Yes.”

Bai Shuyue’s expression tightened.

“You are actually going to treat him.”

“Yes.”

“Now?”

“No.”

Mo’s face changed.

Lu Chen pointed toward Zhou Wei.

“You hit my patient.”

Mo stared.

“And?”

“Consultation delayed.”

Even Ruoxi laughed.

Mo closed his eyes.

“Unbelievable.”

“You will survive an hour.”

“How do you know?”

“Because if your seal were going to kill you immediately, you’d already be dead.”

“That is your medical opinion?”

“Yes.”

“It sounds lazy.”

“Then find another physician.”

Mo became silent.

Fair.

Zhou Kai was conscious fifteen minutes later.

Barely.

But enough to speak.

They had moved him onto an old table.

Lu Chen checked his pulse again.

Stable enough for transport.

Zhou Wei sat beside him.

Never more than one meter away.

Ruoxi stood opposite.

Her expression had become colder.

Zhou Kai noticed.

“Miss Qin.”

“You know me.”

“Yes.”

“You worked for my grandfather for twelve years.”

“Yes.”

“You betrayed him.”

Zhou Wei looked at his brother.

Zhou Kai closed his eye.

“Yes.”

Ruoxi’s jaw tightened.

“Why?”

Lu Chen watched carefully.

The compulsion seal was gone.

Now they might finally hear the truth.

Zhou Kai breathed slowly.

“Because…”

Pain crossed his face.

Not magical this time.

Memory.

“Because twenty years ago, I sold my life.”

Zhou Wei frowned.

“What?”

Zhou Kai looked at him.

“Father’s debts.”

Silence.

“You left.”

“Yes.”

“I stayed.”

Zhou Wei’s expression changed.

“I thought you dealt with it.”

“I did.”

“How?”

Zhou Kai laughed bitterly.

“I signed something.”

“With whom?”

“The Upper Court.”

Bai Shuyue’s face hardened.

Zhou Kai continued.

“They paid every debt.”

“In return?”

“My service.”

“For twenty years?”

“No.”

He looked toward Mo Changfeng.

“Until death.”

Zhou Wei stared.

“You never told me.”

“That was the point.”

“Why?”

“Because you were eighteen.”

“You sent me away.”

“Yes.”

“I thought you hated me.”

Zhou Kai’s face broke.

For the first time.

“I wanted you far enough away that they couldn’t use you too.”

Zhou Wei said nothing.

Everything he had believed for twenty years shifted at once.

Zhou Kai turned toward Ruoxi.

“Your grandfather…”

He swallowed.

“…saved me.”

Her expression changed.

“How?”

“Twelve years ago, he discovered part of what I was.”

“And kept you?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“He said a man working under threat was not the same as a traitor.”

Ruoxi looked toward Lu Chen.

That sounded irritatingly familiar.

Zhou Kai continued.

“He helped me hide.”

“From Upper Court?”

“Yes.”

“Then why betray him now?”

Zhou Kai’s face tightened.

“Because they found Wei.”

Zhou Wei froze.

“What?”

“They showed me photographs.”

Silence.

“Three months ago.”

Zhou Kai looked at his brother.

“You entering warehouses.”

“You meeting Steward Han.”

“You taking jobs.”

His voice cracked.

“They said if I did not cooperate…”

Zhou Wei closed his eyes.

“…they would kill you.”

Zhou Wei laughed once.

No humor.

“So you tried to kill the man protecting you…”

He looked at Zhou Kai.

“…to save me.”

“Yes.”

“That is incredibly stupid.”

“Yes.”

They stared at each other.

Then Zhou Wei lowered his head.

“Runs in the family.”

Zhou Kai almost smiled.

Ruoxi did not.

“My grandfather nearly died twice.”

Zhou Kai looked at her.

“I know.”

“His bodyguard nearly died.”

“I know.”

“You disappeared and let everyone believe you did it willingly.”

“Yes.”

“Why should I forgive you?”

Zhou Kai’s expression became quiet.

“You shouldn’t.”

Ruoxi stopped.

No excuse.

No demand.

No plea.

Just responsibility.

She looked toward Lu Chen.

He said nothing.

This was not his decision.

Good.

She looked back at Zhou Kai.

“We’ll discuss this when my grandfather can speak to you.”

His eye widened slightly.

“Chairman Qin is alive?”

“Yes.”

Something inside Zhou Kai collapsed.

Relief.

Pure relief.

He turned his face away.

A tear ran into his hair.

Ruoxi saw it.

Her expression did not soften completely.

But it changed.

Enough.

Lu Chen turned toward Mo Changfeng.

“Your turn.”

Mo sat against a support pillar.

The temporary needle remained in his spine.

“You intend to remove it here?”

“Yes.”

“That is impossible.”

“Frequently heard phrase.”

“The command seal is linked to an Upper Court master.”

“Which one?”

Mo smiled weakly.

“Is that your question?”

“No.”

“Then I decline.”

Lu Chen almost approved.

Even half-paralyzed, the man had learned from Han.

“Fine.”

He crouched.

“Payment.”

Mo stared.

“I have no money.”

“I don’t want money.”

“Information.”

“Yes.”

“One answer?”

“One truthful answer.”

Mo laughed.

“You collect secrets like consultation fees.”

“They occupy less space.”

“What is the question?”

Lu Chen glanced toward the black crescent.

“Who sits above the Upper Court?”

Mo’s face changed.

Immediately.

Interesting.

Bai Shuyue’s expression did too.

“Lu Chen.”

He looked at her.

“Not that question.”

“Why?”

“Because if he answers—”

Mo interrupted.

“I die.”

Silence.

Lu Chen frowned.

“Seal?”

“Not mine.”

He tapped his temple.

“Knowledge restriction.”

Lu Chen’s eyes narrowed.

Another seal.

Of course.

Upper Court layered control inside servants like physicians layered bandages.

“What can you answer?”

Mo thought.

“A name below that level.”

“Whose?”

“The person who ordered Qin Zhenguo used as bait.”

Ruoxi’s gaze sharpened.

Lu Chen nodded.

“Acceptable.”

Mo looked toward him.

“You treat first.”

“No.”

“Why?”

“I already made that mistake once with Han.”

“Han paid.”

“Yes.”

“So?”

“I am learning business.”

Ruoxi looked strangely proud.

Mo sighed.

Then spoke:

“Elder Yan.”

Bai Shuyue’s expression went pale.

Lu Chen noticed.

“Full name?”

“Yan Wusheng.”

Her hand tightened around the blade.

Zhou Kai closed his eye.

Ruoxi looked between them.

“Who is that?”

Bai Shuyue answered.

“The man who led the assault on the Valley of Nine Medicines.”

Silence.

Lu Chen did not move.

Did not blink.

Nothing visible changed.

But inside—

Death Essence stirred.

The name.

Finally.

A name.

Five years of fire suddenly had a face.

Yan Wusheng.

Lu Chen repeated it once in his mind.

Not aloud.

He refused to give the name that satisfaction.

Mo watched him.

“That is the truth.”

Lu Chen nodded.

“I know.”

“How?”

“Pulse.”

Mo stared.

“That cannot actually work.”

Lu Chen smiled faintly.

“Good.”

Then he reached for his needles.

“Let’s remove your leash.”

The procedure took thirty-seven minutes.

It was the most difficult thing Lu Chen had attempted since losing his cultivation.

Mo Changfeng’s command seal had wrapped itself around three spinal meridians.

Break it carelessly—

paralysis.

Remove it too slowly—

Upper Court could activate it.

Use too much Life Essence—

Lu Chen would collapse before finishing.

He worked with eleven needles.

More than he had used on anyone since his return.

Bai Shuyue watched every movement.

She understood enough medicine to know how impossible it was.

Ruoxi understood none of it.

But she understood Lu Chen’s face.

At minute twenty, blood ran from his nose.

At minute twenty-five, his right hand began shaking.

At minute thirty, he could no longer feel two fingers.

He continued.

Mo screamed once.

Only once.

At minute thirty-seven—

a black symbol emerged beneath the skin of his lower back.

Crescent.

Three lines.

Then shattered.

Dark vapor filled the air.

Lu Chen’s core pulled violently.

Death Essence.

So much.

The easiest thing would have been to absorb it.

The manuscript opened.

The sixth seed waited.

Life or death.

Again.

Lu Chen smiled bitterly.

“You really are repetitive.”

Mo, half-conscious, whispered:

“What?”

“Not you.”

Lu Chen guided the dark energy outward.

Away from his core.

Into the air.

The old factory lights flickered.

The Death Essence dispersed.

Gone.

His shattered core almost seemed angry.

Lu Chen ignored it.

Then—

the sixth seed filled.

Gold.

Complete.

Life Essence returned in a warm pulse.

Not as much power as he would have gained from the Death Essence.

Not even close.

But clean.

His.

No price attached.

Mo Changfeng opened his eyes.

For the first time in perhaps decades—

there was no hidden pressure inside his spine.

He moved one hand.

Then the other.

Stood slowly.

Nobody stopped him.

He looked at Lu Chen.

“You actually did it.”

“Yes.”

“You freed me.”

“No.”

Mo frowned.

Lu Chen packed his needles.

“I removed the seal.”

He looked up.

“What you do with your freedom is your problem.”

Mo stared for a long time.

Then looked toward the Black Crescent inside his sleeve.

Slowly—

he tore the fabric away.

Dropped it onto the concrete.

Zhou Kai watched.

Bai Shuyue said nothing.

Mo stepped on the symbol.

Then looked at Lu Chen.

“What do I owe you?”

“You paid.”

“One name?”

“Yes.”

“That is all?”

“For tonight.”

Mo laughed.

“Dangerous physician.”

“So I’ve been told.”

He turned toward the exit.

Bai Shuyue immediately raised her blade.

“Where are you going?”

Mo stopped.

“Away.”

“To warn Yan Wusheng?”

“No.”

“Why should we believe you?”

“You shouldn’t.”

Good answer.

He looked over his shoulder at Lu Chen.

“But if I wanted to return to the Upper Court…”

He tapped his lower back.

“…I would have kept the leash.”

Then he left.

Nobody followed.

Ruoxi watched the doorway.

“You really let him go.”

“Yes.”

“He almost killed us.”

“Yes.”

“He may still betray us.”

“Yes.”

“You're comfortable with that?”

“No.”

She waited.

Lu Chen closed the needle case.

“But choice only matters if you allow people to make one.”

Bai Shuyue looked at him.

For a moment, she seemed to hear his master speaking again.

That bothered her.

And comforted her.

At the same time.

The Nine Medicines manuscript glowed inside its case.

Lu Chen opened it.

Six golden seeds.

Then—

beneath them—

a line appeared.

Six lives acknowledged.

Another line formed.

Four remain before the First Gift.

Lu Chen’s eyes narrowed.

So Bai Shuyue had been right.

Ten.

A reward.

Only four more.

Then another line appeared.

This one different.

The physician saved one life before meeting the patient.

Lu Chen froze.

Bai Shuyue stepped closer.

“You can see something.”

“Yes.”

“What?”

He read the next line.

Slowly.

Intent precedes action.

Then:

Heaven counts results.

A pause.

Medicine counts the choice to try.

Lu Chen stared.

The fifth seed.

Zhou Kai.

The manuscript had begun recognizing him before Lu Chen arrived because Lu Chen had already decided—

if the man was alive, he would save him.

Not because of payment.

Not because Zhou Kai deserved it.

Not because of what he knew.

Simply because someone was dying.

The inheritance responded to intent.

That made the First Medicine far more dangerous than a simple task.

It wasn't counting patients.

It was judging him.

The final line appeared.

When the Tenth Life is acknowledged, the First Medicine shall open.

The words faded.

Lu Chen closed the book.

Only four more.

He should have felt excited.

Instead—

he thought of Xiaoxiao.

Ten lives.

A reward.

More strength.

Then one hundred.

The first gate.

Nine medicines.

Nine gates.

His master somewhere beyond them.

A thousand questions.

But one thing remained simple.

Four people needed to live.

That was something Lu Chen understood.

He picked up the case.

“Let’s get Zhou Kai to a hospital.”

Ruoxi blinked.

“After all of this?”

“Yes.”

“You trust hospitals now?”

“I always trusted hospitals.”

She stared.

“You insult doctors constantly.”

“I insult bad doctors.”

“I am going to remember that.”

“You remember too much.”

Zhou Wei lifted his brother carefully.

Zhou Kai groaned.

“Easy.”

“You weigh more than I remember.”

“I was twelve the last time you carried me.”

“You were still annoying.”

“You cried when I left.”

“Shut up.”

For the first time that night, Zhou Kai smiled.

Small.

Painful.

Real.

Lu Chen watched them.

Then his phone vibrated.

His expression changed immediately.

Xiaoxiao.

Three missed messages.

One voice recording.

Lu Chen opened it.

Her sleepy voice played:

“Daddy, Grandma Zhou says breakfast is in five hours. You promised. Also, strawberry milk. Don’t forget. Good night.”

Silence.

Ruoxi looked at him.

“You forgot.”

Lu Chen stared toward the eastern sky.

A faint gray line had begun appearing beyond the factory windows.

Dawn.

He checked the time.

4:52 a.m.

He had just over an hour.

Ruoxi smiled.

“Ghost Physician.”

“Don’t.”

“Upper Court survivor.”

“Don’t.”

“Defeater of command seals.”

“Ruoxi.”

“Terrified of being late for breakfast.”

Lu Chen looked at her.

“Correct.”

He walked toward the exit.

Zhou Wei laughed behind him.

Bai Shuyue almost smiled.

And somewhere far away, in a chamber hidden behind nine black doors, an elderly man suddenly opened his eyes.

A jade tablet before him had cracked.

A name disappeared from its surface.

Mo Changfeng.

Another line appeared.

Control Severed.

The old man stared.

Then turned toward a figure standing in darkness.

“Someone removed an Upper Court death seal.”

The figure did not move.

“Who?”

The old man’s face darkened.

“Lu Chen.”

Silence.

Then a soft laugh came from the shadows.

“Six lives already.”

The elderly man froze.

“How do you know?”

The figure stepped forward just enough for one hand to enter the candlelight.

A red ring rested on one finger.

Not Bai Shuyue’s.

Another.

Older.

The person touched the cracked tablet.

“The Nine Medicines inheritance has begun counting.”

The old man’s face changed.

“What happens at ten?”

The figure smiled.

“The Ghost Physician receives his first gift.”

“And at one hundred?”

The smile disappeared.

“Then Heaven will notice him.”