248: Chapter 249 Better to be destroyed than let him die: The Li family's final, frenzied sacrifice.

The blood pursuit order from the Black Market has been retracted.

It wasn't the Li Family who retracted it; it was the Black Market management, the group of "Directors" hidden in the deepest depths, who personally ordered the reward's status to be adjusted from "High Risk" directly to "Forbidden."

"Forbidden" meant the platform would no longer provide guarantees, mediation, or information services for any actions related to this mission.

In other words, the Black Market officials were out.

The reason was simple; an anonymous "Director" said only one sentence in an internal announcement.

"If we let those fools go to their deaths again, it won't be them who die, but the Black Market's reputation. We are a bounty platform, not a slaughterhouse."

The temptation of six hundred billion still hung there like a poisonous fruit. But now, those who wanted to pick it had to consider for themselves if they were qualified to bypass the platform and face that young god-demon alone.

Most people weren't.

When the news reached the Kyoto Li Family, Li Qingcang had just smashed his favorite tea set from the previous dynasty.

Chen Shu stood amidst the mess, calmly reporting the Black Market's latest developments.

"They're afraid." Li Qingcang's voice was hoarse, like a beast trapped in a cage. "A pack of money-grubbing hyenas is actually afraid?"

"Hyenas don't fear lions, but they fear gods." Chen Shu pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses. "What Lin Qi displayed at the harbor has already exceeded the category of 'biological.' The essence of the Black Market is business; no one does a losing deal."

Li Qingcang slumped back into his armchair, his eyes hollow.

He had lost.

On the conventional battlefield, he had no cards left to play.

"That person you contacted..." He looked at Chen Shu as if grasping at the last straw. "What did he say?"

"The other party has replied." Chen Shu's tone remained steady, as if discussing an ordinary business deal. "He agreed to provide a more detailed plan, but we need to pay a 'good faith deposit' first."

"Money? How much does he want?"

"He doesn't want money." For the first time, a subtle change appeared in Chen Shu's expression. "He wants three things."

"Speak."

"First, the core compass of the abandoned Earth Fiend Cave beneath the Mass Grave in the west of the city."

"Second, the meteorite known as the 'skull of the old god' in the Tianhai City Museum."

"Third, the main control core of the decommissioned and sealed 'Abyss Rift Simulator' deep within the Longya Academy's forbidden zone."

Li Qingcang's pupils shrank suddenly.

These three things had nothing to do with money and were all strategic-grade items under strict federal control. Each one pointed to the deepest secrets of the world—concerning essence, the Void Realm, and the 'old era' before the System was born.

This mysterious person, what exactly did he want to do?

"He seems... very interested in the 'underlying rules' of this world." Chen Shu gave his judgment.

Li Qingcang was silent for a long time, his crazed eyes gradually replaced by a deeper chill.

"Give it to him."

He practically squeezed those words through his teeth.

"Patriarch, these three things..."

"I don't care what he wants to do!" Li Qingcang slammed the table, looking like a madman. "Even if he wants to overturn the heavens, as long as he can make Lin Qi die, I'll give it all to him! Go do it! At any cost!"

Chen Shu took a deep look at him and bowed slightly.

"Yes, Patriarch."

He turned to leave, but a second before the door closed, he seemed to remember something and turned back to add a sentence.

"By the way, Patriarch. The other party also included a very interesting piece of intelligence."

"About Lin Qi."

"He said that in the battle at the harbor, Lin Qi seemed to be strolling leisurely and handling things with ease. But from beginning to end, he was deliberately avoiding one thing."

Li Qingcang raised his bloodshot eyes.

"He is avoiding direct interaction with this 'world'."

"For example, he will crush the ground, but he will never use power to 'manipulate' soil and stone. He will evaporate ice, but that is the physical effect of the Protective Aura's high temperature, not using the Law to 'change' the form of water."

"He is like a highly skilled swimmer who can perform any movement in the water, but he will never try to change the rule of 'buoyancy' itself."

A cold arc curled at the corner of Chen Shu's mouth.

"Don't you find it strange?"

"A god-demon who can crush Law creations with his bare hands, what exactly is he afraid of?"

...

Meanwhile, in the underground secret room of the Huichun Hall's main store in Tianhai City.

Zhang Wei was looking at his private account statement with a pained expression.

"Seven, are you serious? A meal cost me thirty-six thousand; you call this a working meal?" The fat man had a tearful face. "Also, that Zheng Wujiang you asked me to check, a military Class C secret from over thirty years ago. I pulled dozens of strings and spent nearly a million in information fees, and all I found was a one-sentence file."

"Read it."

Lin Qi was sitting cross-legged in the center of the secret room, eyes closed, adjusting his inner breath of the Organ Refining Realm.

That meal had indeed consumed a massive amount of energy. His internal organs, like a furnace, finally stopped sending signals of hunger. At this moment, they were slowly operating with a mysterious rhythm, converting the essence of food into the purest blood-qi.

"Zheng Wujiang, male, former captain of the 17th Task Force of the Northern Frontier Legion. Thirty-two years ago, while performing a mission in the 'Black Forbidden Land' of the North, he encountered an S-class void beast codenamed 'Leviathan.' To cover the research team's retreat, he fought alone for three minutes before dying in battle. His remains were never found, and it was judged as a sacrifice of the highest honor."

After Zhang Wei finished reading, he spread his hands. "That's it, just this. The military records are only this much. Other things like notes or relics aren't even mentioned."

Lin Qi did not open his eyes.

S-class void beast 'Leviathan'...

That was a terrifying creature over a hundred meters long with spatial folding abilities. Its outer shell's physical defense was enough to withstand repeated bombardments from tactical weapons.

Zheng Wujiang was able to fight such a monster for three minutes with just a rudimentary grasp of 'Jin'.

Though he died, it was with honor.

"Black Forbidden Land..." Lin Qi slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air. "Can one still enter that place now?"

"Can't get in!" Zhang Wei shook his head like a rattle. "That place is now the highest forbidden zone of the Northern Frontier military. The S-class military fortress 'Evernight Great Wall' is built on the edge of the forbidden zone. Let alone a person, not even a fly can get in. It's said that it connects to some extremely unstable Abyss Plane."

Lin Qi's eyebrows twitched slightly.

Interesting.

The more forbidden a place is, the more valuable the things hidden inside are.

Zheng Wujiang's notes are likely in some archive room of that 'Evernight Great Wall.'

"Seven, this lead is as good as dead. We can't exactly barge into a federal S-class military fortress, can we?" Zhang Wei leaned in and asked in a low voice.

Lin Qi finally opened his eyes.

His left eye was like the sun, a golden light flashing and disappearing.

His right eye was like the moon, a silver glow quietly restrained.

He glanced at the fat man, his gaze calm and waveless, yet it made the latter shiver inexplicably.

"Why not?"

Zhang Wei: "..."

He suddenly felt that compared to that madman who had been dead for thirty years, the living one in front of him was the truly crazy one.

"Alright, put this matter aside for now." Lin Qi stood up and stretched his muscles, his whole body making a series of crackling sounds. "Any movement from Li Qingcang's side?"

"No." Zhang Wei immediately switched back to his role as CFO and Intelligence Chief. "Since the news of the harbor incident spread, the Li Family has completely retreated. Their stocks hit the limit down, and their industries are being pushed for liquidation by banks. I reckon Li Qingcang is holding his head and crying right now."

"He won't cry." Lin Qi said indifferently. "A gambler who has lost everything won't cry. He'll only think about how to flip the table."

He walked to a wall of the secret room, reached out, and lightly pressed on the wall made of special alloy.

"I'm waiting for him to flip the table."

Looking at Lin Qi's back, Zhang Wei always felt that today's Seven was a bit different.

It wasn't a change in strength, but an indescribable... sense of incongruity.

It was as if he was standing there, yet not there.

As if there was an invisible membrane between him and the entire surrounding space.

"Seven..." Zhang Wei couldn't help but ask, "Are you okay?"

Lin Qi did not look back.

His palm was still pressed against the wall, and his brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

Since a moment ago, he had a strange feeling.

This world... seemed to be rejecting him.

Not mentally, nor energetically.

It was a more fundamental... alienation from the level of 'rules.'

Like a drop of oil trying to merge into water.

No matter how hard it tried, it couldn't be done.

"I'm fine."

Lin Qi withdrew his hand, his voice devoid of any emotion.

"Get ready; we're going to the Xiao Family tomorrow to collect the debt."