The surge hit me like a lightning strike. The pain from the Master’s assault, the exhaustion from the Pure Energy Barrier—it all vanished. My lungs weren’t just clear, they were electric. My internal energy core expanded, integrating centuries of knowledge from the Grand Pharmacopoeia. Poison Synthesis, Meridian Scan—they weren’t just abilities anymore; they were extensions of my body. I was no longer a janitor. I was the Master of the Shadow Apothecary.Then Luo Bing’s voice tore through my euphoria like a blade. “Mr. Jiang, we have a catastrophic development! The Li Family is not waiting for the 6:00 AM deed transfer! They’ve activated the Xu Family’s legal services—immediate, aggressive action. Judge Feng’s assistant filed an emergency order thirty minutes ago, citing an ancient debt and a lien on the manor. They’re moving to seize it within twenty-four hours!”I slammed the vault door shut. The echo shook the basement, shaking the dust from centuries of neglect. “Time for defense,

The phone felt like it was freezing my hand, Lin Yue’s terrified voice spilling out with no control. Her father—Lin Tian—was collapsing, and the phrase she screamed at me, “terminal intervention,” wasn’t medical terminology. It was an execution dressed in white. The Li Family wasn’t waiting anymore. They wanted him dead, and they wanted the entire Lin estate to fall into their hands tonight.“Luo Bing, cancel the cleanup on the Master,” I snapped, throwing the phone onto the SUV dashboard. “Change of mission: we go to Central City Hospital. The Serpent of the South is tying up loose ends. If Lin Tian dies, everything—assets, debts, ownership—automatically transfers to Lin Yue’s mother. And she’s already owned by the Li Family.”Luo Bing’s eyes widened as he floored the accelerator. “You’re saying the Li Family is committing murder in a public hospital?”“No knife,” I said, my jaw locked. “Just a doctor with paperwork. A clean kill. A sanctioned death.”“You think they’ll risk exposure

The anonymous message from the Wang Family—"The Li Family was weak and focused on gold. We, the Wang Family, value blood and bone. Your Apothecary techniques will break under our Iron Palm."—was the final, chilling confirmation that my war was far from over. It was merely shifting arenas, from the boardroom to the battlefield. The Serpent of the South had been exposed, but the true threat, the muscle behind the entire conspiracy, had stepped into the light.I didn't waste a second celebrating the downfall of Li Cong. The victory at the NMRB hearing was temporary; the Wang Family's threat was existential. They were the martial arm of the Heavenly Four, a faction known for its generations of pure internal energy cultivation, brutal methods, and an absolute contempt for anything deemed "soft," like medicine or finance. They didn't want the Grand Pharmacopoeia for knowledge; they wanted it eliminated because its power represented a superior, different path.My first priority was stability

Elder Guan’s probe hit me like a sudden, freezing gale, searching for the deepest roots of my power. It was a precise, surgical examination—far deadlier than the chaotic attacks from his disciples earlier. He wasn’t testing my martial skills; he was dissecting my lineage.The moment his internal energy touched my core, the Divine Healing System reacted instantly. Knowledge from the Grand Pharmacopoeia surged through me, forming a dense, opaque barrier. His probe didn’t just meet resistance—it was swallowed by a silent void, disappearing without explanation.Elder Guan’s eyes widened, the shock breaking through his disciplined composure. His energy retreated sharply.“Who are you truly?” he demanded, now edged with danger.“I am the man who neutralized the Li Family’s corruption,” I replied, letting a controlled trace of my true power seep into my voice—not an attack, just undeniable proof of what I am. “Your alliance with the Serpent of the South threatens national health. I came to t

Adrenaline still coursed through my veins from the mountain confrontation, but the cold logic of the situation had settled. Master Kui was neutralized, but the message from the Wang Academy was clear: they wouldn’t stop. They would respond to my infiltration and the capture of Zhao Hei with overwhelming martial force. I needed a distraction—a legal, social anchor to freeze their mobilization before their heavy hitters could move.I drove straight to Elder Qin’s city residence. No time for formalities.“Elder, they’re mobilizing,” I said, slamming Zhao Hei’s satellite phone onto his mahogany desk. “We cracked this. The Li, Zhao, and Wang alliance isn’t just transactional—it’s coordinated by one central figure: the Serpent. The Wang Family is the hammer, Zhao funds them, and their reputation shields them. We have to shatter that reputation now.”Elder Qin, sipping tea, looked up. His expression hardened. “Reputation is all they have left. Political leverage from the Li Group collapse is