37: Chapter 37 Tempering and Sharpening

The faint glimmer of the fluorite in the quiet room reflected on Lin Yuan's face, flickering between light and shadow, much like his current state of mind.

The final message from Boss Qian was like the last piece of a puzzle, piecing together the fragmented clues into a chilling picture:

Mr. Mo is currently advancing at least three lines simultaneously—

1. Utilizing the "Crimson Feast" to conduct blood sacrifices at specific nodes in the city, laying the foundation for a large-scale evil ritual.

2. Secretly transporting unknown "materials" from the "Summer Palace," suspected to be related to the core refining of the "ten thousand infant banner" or an even more terrifying ritual.

3. Stealing the "ning-shen jade" used to stabilize souls; the purpose is unclear, but it is highly likely related to strengthening soul seal control, performing high-risk soul operations, or stabilizing a certain "vessel."

These three lines are interconnected, catalyzing each other, forming a net that is accelerating its closure.

And he himself is not only one of the targets caught in the net but also carries a "beacon" (soul seal) planted by the other party.

"I cannot wait." Lin Yuan muttered to himself, his voice clearly audible in the silent stone room. "Passive defense and limited interference cannot hold back his accelerating gears. I must find a more effective 'lever' to pry into his layout and disrupt his rhythm."

His gaze turned to the system interface.

[faith reserve: 2.525]

[Void God Spark (embryonic form): stable burning (faint)]

[Godhood appendage: Composite Spirit Body Containment Field (miniature/unstable, contains 4 Order Nodes)]

[Negative status: Curse Soul Seal (activity suppressed by approx. 50%, slowly weakening)]

Faith points are still pitifully low.

The spark is growing slowly.

The containment field is a "non-performing asset" that requires long-term digestion and is full of risks.

The soul seal is a sword hanging over his head.

Though it seems restricted everywhere, Lin Yuan's "Optimization" mindset is accustomed to finding optimal solutions under constrained conditions.

Lack of resources? Then maximize the use of existing resources and find "outlets" for rapid appreciation.

Time is tight? Then increase "output efficiency per unit time" and even attempt "risk-controlled acceleration."

His train of thought gradually became clear:

First, accelerate his own "quenching."

The "symbiotic quenching" of the Luoxia Mountain Earth Spirit is effective, but too slow.

Can new "variables" be introduced to improve "quenching" efficiency?

For example... utilizing those resentment energy clusters within the containment field that have been initially "ordered"?

Resentment is essentially the condensation of extreme negative emotional energy; if it can be "hedged" or "catalyzed" with the Earth Spirit vitality under controlled conditions, it might produce a stronger "quenching" effect, accelerating injury recovery and soul seal suppression, and even promoting the growth of the spark.

The risk is extremely high, but it is worth conducting small-scale experiments under strict control.

Second, actively investigate the "Crimson Feast" nodes.

He cannot just observe from the periphery.

He needs to get as close as possible to their activity area without exposing himself, to obtain more direct samples of ritual residue or energy frequency data.

This will help analyze their formation patterns and might even reveal weaknesses or allow for stealthy "contamination" and "misdirection."

Third, advance business cases to acquire key resources.

The "Cross-border Selection" case must achieve significant results; this is not only related to subsequent income and faith but is also key to verifying the application of the "Optimization" concept in high-complexity scenarios.

The deep service for Zhang Qiming must also be implemented as soon as possible.

The money earned needs to be converted into practical supplies as soon as possible—especially the materials for reinforcing the array on Dr. Li's list, as well as auxiliary items that might be used to deal with the soul seal or for investigation.

Fourth, deepen the Luoxia Mountain stronghold.

The "miniature Land Nourishing Array" is the foundation and needs to be reinforced and have its functions expanded as soon as possible.

Uncle Zhou, the night watchman, could perhaps be developed to a limited extent as an external assistant, responsible for daily care and early warning.

With his plan set, Lin Yuan acted immediately.

He first sent a new encrypted instruction to Boss Qian: "1. Collect as much as possible the underground pipeline network maps, recent municipal construction records, and property transfer or leasing anomalies in the suspected activity areas of the 'Crimson Feast.' 2. Help me keep an eye out for any portable, high-precision 'energy residue analyzers' or 'spirit-state fluctuation recorders' on the market; price is not the primary issue, concealment and reliability are priority. 3. For the list of array materials mentioned before, purchase two sets; send one to the old place (near the ruins) and keep one as a backup."

Next, he logged into the virtual collaboration space of "Cross-border Selection." He did not call a general meeting but instead connected individually with General Manager Zhao and the person in charge who was encountering thorny problems at the European branch—a German-descended operations director named Martin.

Lin Yuan did not engage in small talk and cut straight to the core: "Mr. Martin, I have reviewed your problem brief. The 'trust deficit' and 'lengthy decision-making loops' between the Berlin team and headquarters stem from the cognitive differences in the two cultures regarding 'risk,' 'authority,' and 'communication transparency,' which have formed an implicit 'field of rule conflict.' Simple process Optimization has limited effects."

He pulled up a dynamic model he had generated based on cross-cultural management research and energy field simulations: "My proposal is to introduce a set of 'Cross-cultural Rule Translation and Buffering Protocols.' Specifically, this includes: setting up a virtual 'cultural sandbox' to let both teams conduct simulated games in preset conflict scenarios, intuitively experiencing the other party's decision-making logic; building a 'decision influence chain visualization tool' to make the delay and compromise costs of every cross-regional decision clearly visible; and most importantly, designing a non-verbal 'emotion-intent real-time feedback system' based on simple symbols and color codes, attached to the sidebar of communication tools, to reduce misunderstandings caused by language and context."

Lin Yuan's speaking pace was steady, but the solution he provided was extremely bold and novel, pointing directly to the most subtle and stubborn pain point in cross-cultural collaboration.

Martin was initially somewhat skeptical, but as Lin Yuan elaborated on the details of the model, his eyes gradually brightened.

"Mr. Lin, this... this sounds like combining psychology, game theory, and... some kind of 'field theory'?" Martin evaluated cautiously. "Very bold. But how can we ensure this 'system' won't add extra burden and will instead be accepted by the team?"

"That is why we need a 'guidance period.'" Lin Yuan had a plan ready. "I will provide short 'rule decoding training' for the core members of both teams and design the initial 'protocol seeds.' For the first month, the system will be in 'suggestion mode,' not requiring execution but only recording data and providing references. We will let the data speak. If the 'trust friction coefficient' and 'decision cycle duration' show significant improvement, we will then gradually transition to 'assisted execution mode.' Fees will be paid in stages, linked to the improvement of key indicators."

Professional, pragmatic, results-oriented, and with controllable risks.

Martin exchanged a few words with General Manager Zhao and quickly made a decision: "Okay! Mr. Lin, we are willing to try. The first phase of fees will be arranged today. Looking forward to your 'protocol seeds.'"

Exiting the connection, Lin Yuan knew that if this case succeeded, its influence and aspiration power feedback would far exceed that of the domestic "Cross-border Selection" team.

It touched upon more complex and higher-value business pain points.

After handling the urgent matters, Lin Yuan once again quietly left the ruins and headed to Luoxia Mountain.

This time, he did not go directly to the center of the "Heartbroken Land" but first found the night watchman, Uncle Zhou.

The old man was still mechanically digging in front of that patch of hard soil, but there was a faint glimmer of expectation in his eyes that hadn't been there before.

"Uncle Zhou." Lin Yuan called out softly.

The old man looked up abruptly, saw Lin Yuan, and hurriedly put down his hoe, rubbing his hands nervously: "God... Mr. Lin, you are here! The, the land seems... to have gotten a little better? I always feel that the wind blowing over isn't as 'cutting' anymore."

"Yes, it is slowly recovering." Lin Yuan nodded, taking a few packets of medicinal herbs wrapped in oil paper and a small bag of rice and flour from his backpack. "Keep these. Take care of your health. Also," he handed the old man a small wooden piece strung with a red cord, carved with a simple peace rune (made from scraps given by Dr. Li), "carry this with you. If you feel anxious at night or hear any particularly strange sounds, hold it tightly and silently repeat to yourself, 'The land is at peace, the people are at peace.'"

The old man took it with trembling hands and gripped it tightly, as if he had grabbed a life-saving straw: "Thank you! Thank you, Mr. Lin! I... I will definitely watch over this place! I will never let outsiders come and cause trouble!"

"Recently, if you see strangers wandering around here, especially those who are particularly interested in the underground or the old tree pits, do not approach them and do not make a scene. Remember their appearance and the direction they leave in, and tell me next time I come," Lin Yuan instructed.

"I understand! I understand!" The old man nodded repeatedly.

After calming the old man, Lin Yuan finally arrived at the center of the Land Nourishing Array.

He sensed it; the array was operating normally, the bit of Earth Spirit vitality had grown a little more, and the mist of forged information was also continuously spreading.

He took out the reinforcing materials he had purchased and began to carefully expand and strengthen the scope of the array, adding several more concealed warning trigger points.

After finishing all this, the sky was approaching dusk.

Lin Yuan sat cross-legged, preparing to conduct the "risk-controlled accelerated quenching experiment" he had conceived for a long time.

He first sank his consciousness into the containment field within his Godhood.

The gray-white cyclone rotated slowly, and the four tiny "Order Nodes" flickered like stars, keeping the violence and chaos within the cyclone constrained within a certain orbit.

He chose a small cluster of work-injury resentment energy that was closest to an "Order Node" and relatively the most "gentle" as his target.

Next, he fully activated "Leyline Affinity," guiding the Earth Spirit vitality gathered by the Land Nourishing Array, as well as the primordial leyline energy that was imprisoned deeper down by the "vein-locking nail" but still leaked in wisps, to construct a temporary, stable energy circulation channel within his body.

Then, the most critical and dangerous step—he carefully peeled off a stream of gray-black energy, thinner than a hair and extremely tiny, from the edge of the selected resentment energy cluster. He tightly wrapped and constrained it with the "Authority of Order" and the "compatible" characteristic of the Void God Spark, guiding it out of his Godhood and into the energy circulation channel within his body!

"Hiss—"

Two energies with diametrically opposed properties—the Earth Spirit and leyline power full of vitality, nourishment, and order, and the resentment fragments full of pain, hatred, and chaos—made direct contact and friction for the first time within the circulation channel Lin Yuan had meticulously constructed!

A violent sense of conflict came instantly!

It was not physical pain, but a fierce clash at the energy level and rule level!

The Earth Spirit power attempted to "purify" and "soothe" the resentment, while the resentment instinctively "polluted" and "resisted" the Earth Spirit.

Lin Yuan's meridians and soul seemed to have become a small, high-risk "reactor."

He was well prepared, pushing the "Authority of Order" and the "Optimization" intent to the extreme. He did not forcefully suppress either side but, like the most precise catalyst and reaction guidance agent, guided the energy in this clash toward the direction of "quenching" and "transformation"!

In the process of "opposing" the resentment, the "purification" and "nourishment" characteristics of the Earth Spirit vitality were stimulated even more intensely; in the process of "resisting" purification, the internal structure of the resentment energy was forced to change, and the outermost layer of chaos and violence was "ground" away bit by bit, exposing a deeper, relatively "inert" energy essence.

And Lin Yuan's body and soul, in this intense, controlled "clashing quenching," were like an iron blank being repeatedly forged!

The Earth Spirit vitality carried away the accumulated injuries and soul fatigue, and the relatively neutral, refined energy remaining after the impurities were "ground" off the resentment (though it still carried negative attributes, it no longer had active corrosiveness) replenished his depleted energy reserves and, due to its "heavy" characteristic, further suppressed the activity of the soul seal!

The entire process lasted less than thirty breaths. Lin Yuan voluntarily cut off the supply of that wisp of resentment energy and slowly guided the remaining hedging energy in the circulation channel to the ground beneath his feet, letting the Land Nourishing Array absorb and digest it.

"Huu—haa—"

Lin Yuan panted heavily, his forehead covered in cold sweat, his face pale, but his eyes flashed with a bright and sharp light!

Success! Although the process was dangerous, demanded extremely high control, and took a very short time, the results were significant!

He felt his soul had solidified a little, some of the most stubborn hidden injuries in his meridians had been loosened significantly, and the cold sensation of the soul seal had also been clearly suppressed by a notch! More importantly, he had verified a path of rapid recovery and growth through "fighting poison with poison" and "hedging refinement"! Although the amount of resentment energy he could process each time was minimal and required extreme caution, this efficiency was far higher than simple Earth Spirit nourishment!

He glanced at the Composite Spirit Body Containment Field. The mass of resentment, from which a tiny portion had been stripped away, had almost no change in volume, but the "restlessness" inside seemed to have calmed down a little, and its connection to the "Authority of Order node" seemed tighter. This seemed to be a kind of two-way "Optimization"?

"This path is viable." Lin Yuan calmed his breathing, feeling confident. As long as he controlled the "dosage" and "reaction intensity," this containment field could not only gradually transform from a "liability" into an "asset," but also become a "catalyst" for him to accelerate his own refinement!

Over the next few days, Lin Yuan entered an even more intense and efficient rhythm.

During the day, he handled commercial affairs remotely in the tomb meditation room, refined the "cross-cultural agreement" plan, and received and analyzed the data continuously sent by Boss Qian regarding the "Crimson Feast" and urban energy anomalies. He discovered that while the blood sacrifice locations seemed chaotic, if combined with the city's ancient maps, groundwater flow directions, and records of recent geodetic surveys, he could vaguely discern the prototype of a twisted "heptagram" covering the entire city, with each point located at a "convergence" or "weak" point of the leylines.

At night, he would go to Luoxia Mountain to reinforce the stronghold while conducting cautious "hedging refinement." His injuries improved at a speed visible to the naked eye, the soul seal activity was suppressed to below 40%, and the Void God Spark seemed to have become more solidified and brighter due to continuous high-intensity "utilization" and "refinement." His faith reserve also slowly grew to 3.8 points as commercial payments arrived.

At the same time, using the high-precision portable spiritual energy detector (a black market modified product, quite expensive) that Boss Qian had obtained, he began deeper reconnaissance on the outskirts of the "Crimson Feast" activity area at night. He avoided all locations where he might directly encounter cultists, focusing on collecting samples of energy residues and abnormal fluctuation frequencies in the environment.

Late on the seventh night, when Lin Yuan was collecting data on the periphery of an abandoned logistics warehouse in the north of the city (another suspected node), the detector's needle suddenly jumped wildly, pointing deep into the warehouse! At the same time, the "soul-calming wooden plaque" in his arms, blessed by Dr. Li, emitted a rapid warmth—there were strong evil soul fluctuations nearby, and more than one!

Lin Yuan immediately restrained all his aura, slid into the shadows of the warehouse like a shadow, climbed up the rusted steel frame, and looked down from above.

He saw that in the open space in the center of the warehouse, five "Crimson Feast" cultists wearing dark red hooded robes and strange face paint were chanting around a simple magic circle drawn with blood and black powder. In the center of the magic circle lay a slaughtered goat, its blood flowing into the array patterns. But what made Lin Yuan's pupils shrink was that at each of the five corners of the magic circle, there was a small piece... emitting a faint milky white spiritual light, fragments! They were fragments of "ning-shen jade"! The ones that had been stolen!

The cultists' chanting grew increasingly high-pitched and frantic. The blood in the magic circle began to boil and evaporate, turning into a blood mist that mixed eerily with the spiritual light emitted by the ning-shen jade fragments, forming a pink, nauseating haze. In the haze, there were faint, twisted, non-human shadows struggling and wailing!

They were using the ning-shen jade and blood sacrifice to perform some kind of ritual to bind or pollute pure spirits, or to communicate with evil entities! Lin Yuan instantly understood part of Mr. Mo's purpose in stealing the ning-shen jade—it wasn't for stabilization, but for defilement and reverse usage! Using a precious jade that symbolized "peace" and "stability" as a medium to perform the filthiest summoning or binding would generate an even stronger evil contrast and energy!

He couldn't let them finish! Lin Yuan's brain worked at high speed. Rush down directly? The five opponents had unknown strength and might have backup plans. Although his condition had recovered quite a bit, rashly taking on five people was extremely risky. Call the police or notify "Lingxiao Capital"? It was too late, and it would expose him. He had to interfere with or even destroy the ritual with the minimum cost and maximum effect!

His gaze swept across the warehouse environment. It was old, with messy wires, and piled with abandoned cardboard boxes and oil drums... His gaze landed on several rusted iron drums in the distance that seemed to contain unidentified chemical residues. A plan formed instantly.

He slid down from the steel frame silently, circled to the other side of the warehouse like a civet cat, and found a main circuit breaker (long abandoned, but the lines might still have residual static electricity or weak currents). He took out his multi-tool, carefully adjusted it, and then took out a drawn "Micro-Energy Lightning-Inducing Talisman" (one of the lowest-level talismans for inducing natural energy contained in Dr. Li's jade slip, with power only sufficient to induce small-scale static electricity or weak arcs) that he had not yet had a chance to use.

He stuck the talisman onto an exposed copper wire near the main breaker that connected to the warehouse's central lighting circuit (which had long since lost power). Then, holding his breath and focusing, he injected a tiny, extremely weak trace of energy, mixed with his own spiritual consciousness and the Authority of Order intent of the Ruins Fire, into the talisman, setting a simple trigger condition—trigger when sensing a specific frequency of intense evil energy fluctuation (such as the energy peak just before the ritual was completed)!

After doing this, he quickly retreated to a safe distance, hid behind a pile of waste, took out a small piece of ore with weak magnetism he had picked up at Luoxia Mountain, slightly excited its magnetic field using "Leyline Affinity," and then, with all his might, threw it hard towards the direction of those rusted chemical iron drums in the distance!

"Clang!" The ore hit the iron drum, making a clear sound in the silent warehouse!

"Who?!" The five cultists beside the magic circle were alerted simultaneously, their chanting interrupted, and the blood mist became chaotic! Two of them stood up immediately, holding ritual daggers, and cautiously investigated the source of the sound. This was it!

Lin Yuan dashed out from his hiding spot like a ghost, not charging at the cultists, but running along the shadows at maximum speed toward a side window that had long been broken! His goal was not to fight, but to create chaos, trigger possible chemical reactions, and leave a triggered trap!

Just as he was about to reach the window, one of the investigating cultists spotted him! "An intruder!" the cultist shouted sharply, throwing a dagger smeared with black blood!

Lin Yuan dodged sideways, the dagger flying past his sleeve and nailing into a wooden box with a dull thud. He didn't stop, flipped out of the broken window, landed in the waist-high weeds outside, and ran wildly toward the planned evacuation route without looking back.

Behind him in the warehouse came the cultists' frantic shouts and the sound of chanting that had restarted, but was clearly more hurried and manic after being interrupted. They seemed to have judged that the intruder had escaped and were eager to complete the interrupted ritual.

Lin Yuan ran hundreds of meters through the weeds, hid behind a dirt slope, and only then stopped to catch his breath before looking back. In the direction of the warehouse, the blood light and pink mist lit up again, even brighter than before, and the evil fluctuations could be clearly felt even from this distance. The ritual was accelerating toward completion!

But just at the moment when the evil fluctuations reached a certain peak— "Crackling—hiss—!!!"

From the direction of the warehouse, there were first a few faint sounds like static electricity bursting (the "Lightning-Inducing Talisman" triggered, drawing on the weak current remaining in the abandoned lines and the abnormal energy field permeating the warehouse due to the ritual), followed immediately by several not-intense but clearly audible sounds of metal colliding and liquid splashing (the iron drums hit by the magnetic ore might have tipped over or leaked)!

Then, the sky-high blood light and pink mist suddenly paused, and then began to flicker and twist violently and unstably! It was like a television screen with a bad signal!

Inside the warehouse came the cultists' terrified screams and the sound of chaotic running! The energy structure of the ritual had clearly suffered unpredictable disorder and backlash due to that insignificant "static interference" and possible "chemical contamination"!

"Success." A cold arc curled at the corner of Lin Yuan's mouth. He didn't know exactly what chain reaction he had triggered, but clearly, even if this ritual hadn't failed completely, it definitely couldn't achieve its expected effect. Those precious, defiled ning-shen jade fragments were very likely destroyed in the energy backlash as well.

He did not linger, and after confirming there were no pursuers, he quickly disappeared into the night.

Returning to the tomb meditation room, the horizon was already showing the white of a fish belly.

Lin Yuan washed off the grass clippings and dust from his body and sat down cross-legged. Although tired, he was mentally excited. This operation not only successfully interfered with an evil ritual, but more importantly, it verified his tactical approach of using the environment to create chain reactions, leveraging small costs for larger effects. This was far more in line with the essence of his "Optimization" than brute force confrontation.

He called up the system. His faith reserve hadn't changed much, but the soul seal activity seemed to have been suppressed to around 35% due to tonight's action and continuous refinement. The light of the Void God Spark seemed to have brightened a little more.

Just as he was preparing to regulate his breath and recover, the emergency spiritual message talisman in his arms vibrated again. It was Boss Qian, his voice carrying unprecedented gravity and a hint of... disbelief:

"Brother Lin, something big has happened. Did you... make some noise in the old warehouse area in the north of the city last night?"

Lin Yuan's heart tightened: "What is the situation?"

"The ritual site is in a mess. Of the five 'Crimson Feast' cultists, three were blasted into serious injury and unconsciousness by the backlash energy on the spot, and two fled with minor injuries. Most importantly..." Boss Qian took a deep breath, "The people from 'Tianji Pavilion' arrived even earlier than the police and ambulance! They sealed off the site and took away all the residues, including the debris of those ning-shen jade fragments. Moreover, they seem to have... captured very clear energy residue traces belonging to you—not the soul seal, but the spiritual energy fluctuations with 'Order' and 'Optimization' characteristics that you inevitably emitted during your operation!"

Lin Yuan's heart sank abruptly.

"The more troublesome part is," Boss Qian's voice was dry, "I just received top-secret intelligence—Old Ghost Mo seems to have also known about this through some channel, almost at the same time. He is now, I'm afraid, not only locking onto you via the soul seal, but through this incident, has confirmed that you are the 'Optimizer' who has repeatedly ruined his good deeds!"

Double exposure! "Lingxiao Capital" had seized more concrete evidence of his actions and energy characteristics. Mr. Mo had completely confirmed his identity and hostile stance.

The storm had arrived faster and more violently than he had expected. Lin Yuan clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white, but his eyes were like tempered steel, cold and hard. He couldn't hide anymore. Then, he would face it head-on.