39: Chapter 39 Cross-border Breakthrough

Murderous intent descended upon him!

The black smoke incarnated by the leader of the Black Fiends moved at lightning speed, carrying a thick scent of blood and venomous resentment, instantly crossing dozens of meters to lunge directly behind the artificial rockery!

Lin Yuan's heart constricted. In this moment between life and death, the extreme calmness he had honed over years in the financial markets took effect. He did not panic and turn to run—that would have left his back completely exposed to the enemy.

The first thing he did was activate a "Leyline Disruption Talisman" he had prepared long ago (crafted using the weak resonance between the Luoxia Mountain leylines and the locked leylines here)!

The talisman burned silently, and a chaotic, disorderly leyline fluctuation erupted, spreading rapidly with Lin Yuan at its center! This fluctuation was harmless to living beings, but it instantly disrupted the surrounding geomantic environment, which was already unstable due to the vein-locking nails!

The incoming black smoke visibly faltered, as if it had crashed into an invisible, viscous quagmire. Its speed plummeted, and the energy circulating within it experienced a momentary disorder.

It was in this moment of hesitation!

Lin Yuan's second action was to channel the meager amount of spiritual energy he had just recovered, along with a trace of the "Order" attribute from his Void God Spark, into the "huiying cloak" he was wearing!

The cloak flashed with a ghostly light, and its effect of distorting light and weak energy was briefly enhanced. At the same time, Lin Yuan employed the "Earthly Origin Fetal Breath Camouflage Technique" taught by Dr. Li, lowering his vitality and spiritual energy fluctuations to the absolute minimum, making himself like an inanimate stone on the side of the road!

He did not run away from the cave entrance; instead, he made a daring move—using the shadows of the artificial rockery and the distortion effect of the cloak, he rolled into a dense thicket of wild grass and bushes to the side that led toward Kunming Lake! At the same time, he pulled two items from his pocket and threw them in opposite directions with a deft flick.

One was a "False Trace Talisman," which, once activated, simulated the weak spiritual energy fluctuations of a panicked flight and flew toward the front of Wan Shou Mountain.

The other was a "Resentment Trap Talisman," which he did not activate directly but instead threw onto the ground near the entrance of the cave where the vein-locking nails were located.

The leader of the Black Fiends broke through the interference of the leyline disruption and lunged behind the rockery, only to see a blurred, distorted shadow and the rapidly dissipating light of the camouflage. His blood-red eyes flashed, and he instantly sensed the fluctuations of the "False Trace Talisman" flying toward the front mountain, as well as the "foreign object" carrying an aura of resentment near the cave entrance!

"A diversion? Mere parlor tricks!" the Black Fiend snorted coldly. His form flickered, and he actually split off a slightly fainter wisp of black smoke to pursue the fluctuations toward the front mountain, while his main body lunged toward the "Resentment Trap Talisman" near the cave entrance, shouting sternly: "Guard the entrance! Don't let them lure the tiger away from the mountain!"

Mr. Mo, standing under the pavilion, had already risen, his gaunt face covered in frost. He did not pursue in person; instead, he closed his eyes, and a cold, vast divine sense poured out like flowing mercury, instantly covering the entire ruins area, meticulously scanning every inch of land and every trace of energy anomaly.

Meanwhile, Lin Yuan, now like a slippery loach, used the wild grass and bushes along with the lingering effects of the "huiying cloak" to sneak silently to the shores of Kunming Lake. The cold lake water was within reach.

Mr. Mo's divine sense swept across the lakeshore, pausing slightly at Lin Yuan's position. Lin Yuan pushed his "Earthly Origin Fetal Breath" to the limit; his heartbeat nearly stopped, his soul fluctuations were completely internalized, and even his Void God Spark curled up in the deepest part of his godhood, retaining only the most basic vital signs. He was gambling that, under the multiple interferences of the vein-locking nail backlash, the instability of the ten thousand infant banner, and the leyline disruption, Mr. Mo would be unable to perform precise scrutiny, especially on a target disguised as an "inanimate object."

The divine sense paused for three seconds, then moved away.

But the crisis was not yet resolved! The leader of the Black Fiends had already snatched the "Resentment Trap Talisman" from the air and was frowning as he examined it. The wisp of black smoke he had split off had also quickly caught up to the "False Trace Talisman," discovered it was a fake, and was now rapidly returning.

He had to leave immediately! Once the two wisps of black smoke merged and conducted a dragnet search, he would be exposed sooner or later!

Lin Yuan did not hesitate any longer. He spotted an area on the lakeshore with dense weeping willows and the deepest shadows, and like a swimming fish, he slid silently into the cold waters of Kunming Lake.

The moment he entered the water, the bone-chilling cold made him shiver. He immediately channeled his spiritual energy to protect his body while using the cover of the water flow and the slight distortion of the water waves caused by the "huiying cloak" to swim underwater toward his predetermined evacuation route on the opposite bank.

On the surface of the lake, the two figures of the Black Fiend merged back into one, and together with Mr. Mo's divine sense, they scanned the ruins and the lakeshore again, but found nothing.

"He ran away?" the Black Fiend's voice was gloomy.

Mr. Mo opened his eyes, black light flickering in his pupils: "Not an ordinary thief. To be able to infiltrate this place, interfere with the leylines, and possess such camouflage and anti-tracking methods... it is very likely the 'Order Optimizer' we are looking for."

"He was nearby just now? The soul seal didn't react?"

"The opponent came prepared; they likely used drugs or methods to suppress the soul seal." Mr. Mo walked to the artificial rockery where Lin Yuan had previously hidden, squatted down, picked up a few crushed dead leaves, and sniffed them. He then pinched a bit of almost invisible soil with his fingers, a strange look flashing in his eyes, "A very faint... scent of vitality and order, and a trace of... purified resentment residue? Interesting."

He stood up and looked at the pitch-black, calm surface of Kunming Lake: "He may have escaped via the water. But it doesn't matter; since he was here, he left traces. The suppression of the soul seal is temporary and will soon rebound. Increase the search intensity, and lock the scope to areas where one could quickly evacuate from here tonight! Also..."

Mr. Mo looked at the doctor: "Speed up the screening and preparation of the 'spare vessel.' The soul characteristics of this 'Optimizer' are very special, perhaps more suitable than the ones we found before. Catch him alive."

"Yes!"

In the cold lake water, Lin Yuan swam with all his might. He could feel the soul seal deep in his soul beginning to rebound violently after the effects of the medicinal pill faded. The sensation of coldness surged like a tide, even more turbulent than before. He knew that the traces and aura he had left behind had likely already been captured and analyzed by Mr. Mo.

But he couldn't worry about that anymore. He had to return to a safe area as soon as possible.

Relying on his memory of the direction and the weak perception of underwater currents from his "Leyline Affinity," Lin Yuan struggled to swim to a secluded corner on the opposite bank and climbed ashore, soaking wet. He dared not linger, immediately channeling his remaining spiritual energy to dry his clothes, changing into spare attire, putting away the ineffective "huiying cloak," and speeding off along a roundabout route that was the opposite of Luoxia Mountain but had been planned in advance.

The journey was fraught with peril but ultimately safe. Relying on his familiarity with the blind spots of city surveillance and the several diversion points he had set up in advance, Lin Yuan finally returned to the quiet room in the ruins before dawn, dragging his almost collapsed body.

"Pfft!" As soon as he entered the quiet room, he couldn't help but spit out a mouthful of stagnant blood, his face pale as paper. Forcibly activating the "Earthly Origin Fetal Breath," resisting the cold of the lake water, suppressing the rebounding soul seal, combined with the extreme mental tension, had pushed his injuries and exhaustion to a critical point.

He immediately sat cross-legged, took the healing pill left by Dr. Li, and simultaneously channeled the "Counter-current Tempering" technique with all his might, guiding the Earth Spirit vitality transmitted from the Luoxia Mountain stronghold through the weak leyline connection to repair his body and suppress the restless soul seal and Void God Spark.

He spent a full two hours regulating his breathing. Until the sun was high in the sky, Lin Yuan slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air, and a trace of color returned to his face. The soul seal's activity had rebounded to 45%, but it had finally stabilized. His injuries were also slowly recovering.

Recalling the thrills of last night, Lin Yuan still felt lingering fear, but his eyes were sharper.

It was worth it!

He had obtained first-hand intelligence regarding Mr. Mo's core layout:

1. The seven vein-locking nails and the ten thousand infant banner (prototype) are extremely unstable, with severe backlash.

2. Mr. Mo is looking for a "Soul-Calming Spirit Object" or a "Living Vessel" to perform the "Banner Transfer."

3. He himself has been clearly listed as a target for assassination and a "spare vessel/fuel."

4. The search for him by Mr. Mo's side will reach its peak within two to three days.

Time, really, is running out.

Just then, the ordinary mobile phone in his pocket vibrated. It was Mr. Zhao from "Cross-border Selection."

"Mr. Lin! Good news! The preliminary data is out!" Mr. Zhao's voice was full of excitement, "In the first week of the 'Cross-cultural Protocol' trial, the number of emails exchanged between the Berlin team and the headquarters has decreased by 28%, the average decision time for online meetings has been shortened by 35%, and there have been zero conflict escalation incidents! Most importantly, the 'Emotion-Intent Feedback System' has a usage rate of 89% and a 92% satisfaction rate! Director Martin just sent a message personally, hoping to advance to the second stage as soon as possible!"

Success!

Lin Yuan felt invigorated. This not only meant another lucrative consulting fee and potential long-term cooperation, but it also meant that his "Optimization" of high-complexity, cross-cultural, and high-emotional-value fields had been preliminarily validated!

Almost at the same time, he felt his godhood tremble slightly!

A stream of aspiration power, far purer, more refined, and more "international" than the previous corporate Optimization cases, spanned space and gathered from the domestic and foreign teams of "Cross-border Selection"! These aspiration powers were mixed with joy over "efficiency improvement," relief over "conflict reduction," gratitude for "deepened understanding," and trust and admiration for "Consultant Lin," the provider of the solution!

[Ding! High-quality, cross-regional faith aspiration power detected!]

[Faith connection + 47 (including 3 high-net-worth individual connections)]

[faith reserve + 1.2!]

[Current faith reserve: 5.712!]

[Void God Spark (prototype) has been tempered, brightness increased!]

[Divine Office 'God of Involution Termination and Blessing Optimization' domain expanded: Cross-border collaboration efficiency Optimization!]

The system prompts came one after another.

His faith reserve had broken through the 5-point mark in one go! Moreover, the quality of this growth was extremely high, directly driving the expansion of his divine office domain and the tempering of his spark!

More importantly, Lin Yuan felt that with this influx of high-quality aspiration power, and his tempering on the edge of life and death and practice of his divine office over the past few days, something in the depths of his godhood seemed to be loosening and gestating.

He concentrated and looked inward, seeing that the core of the steadily burning Void God Spark, in addition to its order and compatibility attributes, seemed to have gained a hint of an indescribable, "efficiency" and "balance" implication, like the meshing of precision gears.

Is this... the evolution of divine traits brought about by the deepening of the divine office?

There was no time to delve into it; Lin Yuan immediately seized this opportunity. He pulled up the system interface and looked at the option that had always been grayed out, representing the activation of basic godhood abilities.

Previously, his faith reserve was insufficient, and his godhood was decayed; he only had the most basic perception and weak aspiration power absorption ability. But now, his faith had broken through 5 points, his spark had been tempered, and his godhood stability had increased...

He tried to focus his mind on the grayed-out option, simultaneously channeling the newly acquired high-quality aspiration power and the power of the Void God Spark into it.

[faith reserve detected as meeting the standard, godhood stability increased, Void God Spark has reached the activation threshold...]

[Beginning to unseal basic godhood abilities...]

[Unsealing... 10%... 30%... 70%... 100%!]

[Unsealing complete!]

[Obtained basic godhood abilities:]

1. Aspiration Resonance: Can more clearly perceive, distinguish, and guide aspiration power of specific ranges and natures. Slightly increases the attraction and conversion efficiency of aspiration power that aligns with one's own divine office.

2. Domain of Order (Prototype): Can consume faith points to unfold a tiny, temporary order force field around the body. Within the force field, weak chaotic energy will be pacified, and weak malice directed at oneself will be deflected. Range and intensity are related to the investment of faith points and one's own state. (Current maximum expansion range: 1-meter radius, duration: depends on consumption, base consumption 1 faith point/minute)

3. Divine Simulation (Primary): Can consume faith points to simulate the weak aura or specific effects of other deities (requires knowledge of their divine office and some characteristics). The effect is rough and easily seen through, mainly used for disguise or information deception in specific situations.

Three basic abilities! Especially the "Domain of Order" and "Divine Simulation," which are like charcoal in snowy weather in the current crisis!

The "Domain of Order" can provide an extra, active layer of protection. Although the range and intensity are limited, it might be able to block a sneak attack or interfere with detection at a critical moment.

"Divine Simulation" provides more room for operation and means of deception.

Lin Yuan felt slightly more at ease. Every bit of improvement in strength meant a bit more chance of survival in the upcoming life-and-death game.

He immediately began to test and familiarize himself with the new abilities. At the same time, he replied to Mr. Zhao and Martin, arranging the next steps for the deepening plan, and hinted that he might need to focus briefly on other urgent matters in the near future, but would follow up remotely.

After handling the business line, Lin Yuan's eyes turned back to the countdown and the soul seal.

[Debt: 30 faith points of divine breath, countdown: 17 days 3 hours 11 minutes]

[Negative status: Curse Soul Seal (activity approx. 45%, slowly fluctuating)]

17 days. The threat of the soul seal is imminent.

"I can no longer passively wait for them to search," Lin Yuan's eyes were cold, "I must create a 'battlefield' that they are forced to come to, and where I have the advantage, before they find me."

A bold, high-risk plan gradually took shape in his mind.

This plan requires utilizing the Luoxia Mountain stronghold, needs to be set up in advance, needs bait, and requires precise calculation and a bit of luck.

And the first step is to actively release a "signal," a signal that makes Mr. Mo believe he has found him, and that he is in a "weak" or "critical" moment.

This signal can be created through "Divine Simulation."

At the same time, he needs to gather at least 10 points of faith reserve as soon as possible to set up the battlefield and deal with emergencies. The follow-up aspiration power from the cross-border project will continue to flow in, but it won't be fast enough. Perhaps... he can actively "undertake" some small, urgent Optimization commissions?

Lin Yuan opened his computer, logged into several secret industry forums and help sections, and under the name of "Urgent Problem Optimization Expert," posted an announcement for limited commissions, attaching some non-confidential effect data from a few "Cross-border Selection" cases (with Mr. Zhao's consent).

He wants to use the remaining time to frantically accumulate faith and resources.

The storm is coming, and he wants to ignite his own Ruins Fire in the eye of the storm.