86: Chapter 86 The First Cracks and the Silent Blade

This throwing dart, and the person behind it, did not come for the star meteor iron essence.

Or rather, the star meteor iron essence was merely a perfect excuse.

The "Hand over the star meteor iron essence" shouted by that leader of the rogue Cultivators was too deliberate, as if he were performing for some invisible audience.

And their retreat was so decisive, even abandoning Lin Chen who was within arm's reach, that it felt more like a precise probe.

A probe into his strength, a probe into how those around him would respond, and a probe into whether he... was truly as the rumors claimed, merely a Foundation Establishment Cultivator with an unstable Foundation, propped up by his wife's Family and Medicinal Pill.

"Let's go, we're returning." Lin Chen carefully placed the throwing dart into a jade box, his voice returning to its calm tone.

He did not offer further explanation, but both Qin Ruowei and Liu Yuan could feel that suppressed beneath that calmness was a murderous intent far colder than the chill of Black Wind Ravine.

By the time they returned to the Lin Family mansion in Qingxuan City, it was already dusk.

The rays of the setting sun gilded the mansion in a warm golden hue, and the distant laughter of children chasing and playing in the courtyard washed away the tension and fatigue of the journey back.

Lin Chen did not go to bathe or change clothes first; instead, he walked straight into the council hall located in the back courtyard of the mansion.

He placed the jade box containing the throwing dart in the center of the table and said to Liu Yuan, "Uncle Liu, leave this matter to you. Utilize all our intelligence channels to uncover the origin of this throwing dart. Focus on comparing it with the weapon diagrams of all forces in the Southern Region and surrounding areas in our Family's collection, especially those standardized weapons circulating in the black market."

"Yes, Clan Head Lin." Liu Yuan solemnly took the jade box, didn't ask another word, turned, and walked away quickly.

He knew the weight of this matter.

Only Lin Chen and Qin Ruowei remained in the council hall.

Qin Ruowei poured him a cup of warm Spirit Tea; the curling tea fragrance dispelled some of the chill.

She did not press Lin Chen about his judgment on the road, but sat quietly to the side, beginning to organize the accounts and intelligence from this trip to Tianji City.

Lin Chen picked up the teacup but did not drink, merely feeling the warmth radiating from the cup's wall.

His gaze passed through the window lattice and fell upon the leafy parasol tree in the courtyard.

Shadow Moon Pavilion, dark shadows, an Incomplete Manual, and that bizarre ambush... these clues were like a tangled mess, seemingly unrelated, yet in the dark, they all pointed toward the same vague shadow.

The enemy was in the dark, while he was in the light. This feeling made him very uncomfortable.

"Husband, Deacon Li of the Iron Sword Sect sent someone to pass on a message, saying that he has caught a cold and is not convenient to come and settle the accounts today, wishing to postpone the date to tomorrow." Qin Ruowei's voice broke the silence.

Lin Chen's brows raised slightly.

Deacon Li was an old hand of the Iron Sword Sect's External Affairs Hall, with Foundation Establishment cultivation, and his body was as sturdy as an ox; how could he easily "catch a cold"?

"Understood." He put down the teacup, replying with only three words.

A day passed quickly.

On the second day, there was still no movement from the Iron Sword Sect, and the servant sent to inquire only brought back the excuse that "Deacon Li's illness has worsened, and he is recuperating behind closed doors."

By the third day, Liu Yuan walked into the study with a hint of fatigue.

He pushed a yellowed Incomplete Manual toward Lin Chen, pointing to a weapon pattern depicted on one of the pages that was almost identical to that throwing dart.

"Clan Head Lin, I found it." Liu Yuan's voice was somewhat hoarse. "This Incomplete Manual, 'Examination of Strange Weapons in the Southern Region,' records that this diamond-shaped dart with a teardrop-shaped tail mark is a custom-made product from an Artifact Refining workshop on the border called 'Heishui Workshop'."

He paused and added, "And according to the intelligence we previously exchanged from the Wantong Trading Firm, 'Heishui Workshop' is one of the many peripheral industries controlled by the Shadow Moon Pavilion."

Although it was not direct evidence, this thread was already clear enough.

Lin Chen looked at the pattern, his eyes growing deeper. Shadow Moon Pavilion... it was indeed them.

Just then, Qin Ruowei also walked in from outside, her expression even more solemn than Liu Yuan's.

"Husband, I just received news. Today, Liu Yuan personally went to the Iron Sword Sect's station to visit Deacon Li under the pretext of 'delivering healing Medicinal Pill,' but was stopped by the guarding Disciple."

"Their tone was very polite, only saying that the sect had important matters recently and declined all visitors. But Liu Yuan noticed that the guarding Disciple on the perimeter of the Iron Sword Sect's station were twice as many as usual, and each one looked nervous, as if facing a formidable enemy."

Lin Chen leaned back slowly in his chair, his knuckles tapping rhythmically on the table.

The abnormality of the Iron Sword Sect and the clues about the Shadow Moon Pavilion appeared almost at the same time.

This was no coincidence.

The night deepened, and the clapper sound of the third watch had just struck.

At the back door of the Lin mansion, an inconspicuous blue-cloth carriage stopped quietly.

Two people got off the carriage; one was Manager Han of the Wantong Trading Firm, who was slightly plump and had a kind face, and the other was the servant Ah Fu, who followed behind him, constantly vigilant of the surroundings.

Guided by the steward of the Lin mansion, Manager Han passed through the quiet corridor and arrived at the brightly lit study.

As soon as he entered, he cupped his hands toward Lin Chen and Qin Ruowei and got straight to the point: "Clan Head Lin, Qin Ruowei, the matter is urgent, and I apologize for disturbing you late at night."

"Manager Han is too polite, please sit." Lin Chen gestured.

Manager Han did not sit down; he had Ah Fu guard outside the door, then stepped forward, lowering his voice. The signature kind smile on his face was gone, replaced by a grave expression.

"Clan Head Lin, there is a problem within my firm."

He spoke very quickly: "In the last few days, several medicinal material procurement orders related to the Lin Family have been inexplicably delayed, and even the prices of several key Medicinal Pill have been secretly raised by thirty percent. I checked, and the person in charge is the newly promoted Deputy Manager, Deputy Manager Jia Ren."

Lin Chen and Qin Ruowei exchanged a look, neither interrupting, listening quietly.

"This Deputy Manager Jia Ren was promoted by one of my rivals; his background is not clean." Manager Han's voice grew deeper.

He paused deliberately, his voice lowering further, almost like a whisper: "My men didn't dare to get too close, only catching a glimpse from afar that one of the leaders of that group of merchants wore a teardrop-shaped black jade at his waist!"

Teardrop-shaped!

Lin Chen's fingers tapping on the table stopped abruptly.

Manager Han finished, then looked at Lin Chen nervously, waiting for his reaction.

He had gambled his future to visit late at night, convinced that the Lin Family was no ordinary entity. Now that both their interests were being eroded by the same force, he had to seek out this most powerful ally.

"Many thanks to Manager Han for coming to inform me late at night; I, Lin, will remember this favor." Lin Chen spoke slowly, breaking the silence in the study.

After seeing Manager Han off, Qin Ruowei immediately brought pen and ink and a simple map of the Southern Region's forces.

She recorded the throwing dart clues found by Liu Yuan, the abnormality of the Iron Sword Sect, and the news brought by Manager Han side by side on the paper. The three seemingly independent pieces of intelligence now clearly pointed in the same direction.

Qin Ruowei's fingertips traced lightly over the paper, her cool voice carrying a hint of chill: "All abnormalities have occurred within a week of you and your party returning from Tianji City. They did not choose a frontal attack but instead targeted our allies and commercial channels."

She spread out the simple map of the Southern Region's forces and used a red brush to draw two circles, one at the location representing the Iron Sword Sect and the other on the nodes of the Wantong Trading Firm scattered everywhere.

"They are clipping our wings, wanting to turn us into an isolated island."

After listening to the report, Lin Chen did not issue an order immediately; he simply stood up in silence and walked to the window.

His gaze crossed the layered courtyard walls of the Lin mansion, casting toward the southeast of Qingxuan City.

There lay the ancestral grounds of the Zhu Family, a Family of Talisman masters.

Passive defense would only allow the opponent to stab you with blade after blade until all your helpers were cut off, and finally, they would calmly devour you, isolated and helpless.

Since the opponent liked to operate in the shadows, he would insist on stepping out into the sunlight.

He turned around, looking at Qin Ruowei, his eyes no longer holding a shred of hesitation, replaced by a sharp edge.

"The enemy is in the dark, and we are in the light; continuing like this will only lead to us being defeated one by one. Since they use methods from the shadows, we will use open strategies to break the deadlock."

His voice was steady and powerful, dispelling the oppressive atmosphere in the study.

"Liu Yuan." He called out loudly.

Liu Yuan, who was guarding outside the door, immediately pushed the door open: "Clan Head Lin."

"Continue to secretly investigate the connection between Deputy Manager Jia Ren and Heishui Workshop, but remember, be careful. It is better to lose the trail than to expose your tracks. I only want intelligence; I do not want you to take action."

"Yes." Liu Yuan nodded in acknowledgment.

Lin Chen's gaze turned to Qin Ruowei: "Qin Ruowei, prepare a generous gift. Three days from now, you and I will personally visit the Zhu Family."

"The Zhu Family?" Qin Ruowei was stunned at first, then a light lit up in her eyes.

She immediately understood Lin Chen's intention.

The enemy wanted to isolate the Lin Family, so the Lin Family would take the initiative to unite all forces that could be united, and even forge new alliances.

She quickly recalled intelligence that she already knew by heart: "The Zhu Family is famous for its Talisman heritage, but in recent years, their Family fortune has declined, and many of their industries have been encroached upon by other forces in the city. My intelligence from some time ago showed that they seem to be in a difficult situation because they refused to hand over their ancestral 'Qingxuan Talisman Canon' to a certain 'mysterious force' and have been repeatedly harassed."

She added a crucial detail: "The current Family Head of the Zhu Family, Family Head Zhu Mingyuan, has Foundation Establishment Perfection cultivation and is an upright person. His legitimate daughter, Zhu Waner, is similar in age to Le Yao and is quite talented in the Dao of Talismans. When Le Yao was studying ancient Talisman patterns some time ago, she even consulted a distant relative of the Zhu Family through others about the drawing techniques of several incomplete Talisman, and she spoke highly of the Zhu Family's Talisman Legacy."

The corners of Lin Chen's mouth finally curled into an arc.

This was the opportunity he wanted.

"Start from here." He decided decisively, "Have Le Yao prepare a few drafts of the 'Communication Talisman' he recently improved, and also prepare a few Medicinal Pill that can enhance a Talisman Master's Divine Sense. For this gift, do not talk about marriage or alliances; only discuss the Dao of Talismans."

"I understand." Qin Ruowei nodded immediately, already having a plan in mind.

Using the younger generation's exchange of the Dao of Talismans as a pretext would appear sincere, and it would not cause the struggling Zhu Family to feel pressured or vigilant.

This move was brilliant.

Lin Chen looked at the deep night outside the window, his right hand unconsciously rubbing the rough stone ring on his thumb.

The Shadow Moon Pavilion's blade had already been delivered silently, so he must tear open a gap before the opponent's encirclement completely closed.

And the Zhu Family was the most critical Breakthrough point for that gap.

The waters of Qingxuan City were about to be stirred up.