The ascent was brutal. The mountain path twisted sharply, steeped in cold, swirling mist, and the atmosphere felt suffocated by the concentrated internal energy radiating from the Academy above. Every breath was thick with challenge, every step heavy with anticipation. I had severed the digital world; now I was entering the domain of pure martial power.I reached the main gate precisely at the appointed time. The colossal stone structure loomed in silence, radiating intimidation. Standing sentinel was Elder Guan, the same man I had humiliated publicly hours earlier. He wasn’t flanked by two disciples this time, but ten elite disciples, all radiating controlled External Energy, their eyes burning with the collective shame of the Wang Family.Elder Guan wore traditional, simple martial robes today—a deliberate shift from the suit I had mocked at the planning commission. Politics stripped away. This was purely a fight for honor.“You came, Shadow,” Elder Guan sneered, voice low, restrain

The air was heavy, charged with raw, terrifying power. The man standing before me—the Wang Family Head, the Iron Palm—radiated kinetic destruction. Every breath, every step seemed to shake the courtyard. His voice alone was proof of cultivation far beyond Elder Guan.“I am here, Shadow. You may have defeated my boys, but I will crush the life out of you with one touch.”I stepped through the broken remnants of Elder Guan’s pride, my feet crunching on the two halves of the ancient short sword. My shoulder still burned from the superficial cut, a constant reminder that this fight was unlike any before.“You chose the wrong leverage, Dragon Head,” I said, voice steady but raised to be heard over the buzzing kinetic energy around him. “Elder Qin is a man of honor. You are a common criminal hiding corruption behind a martial fortress.”He didn’t smile. Didn’t blink. Cold dismissal radiated from his presence. “Honor is earned through power. You speak of contracts and audits. I speak of brok

The dust and shockwave from the Dragon Head’s internal collapse still clung to the stone courtyard. His massive frame convulsed on the ground, the Heart of Iron shattered from the precise intervention of my Golden Finger Qi Arrest. I leaned heavily against the bronze gate, tasting blood, ribs screaming every step, every shallow breath a reminder that I was alive by inches.“The tunnel… secure transport vault… moving the remaining assets out of A-City tonight,” the Dragon Head rasped, his eyes wild with disbelief and agony. Even in his pain, the words were heavy, laced with fear. He understood he had failed. The true mastermind was still at large.I ignored the fire in my chest, the way my left rib cage protested with every movement. Survival mattered less than stopping this operation.“Luo Bing,” I muttered inwardly, connecting my Qi to the hidden comm array we had implanted beneath the Academy. “Gamma Protocol. Now. Secure all verified evidence of Wang and Zhao operations. Offshore r

The revelation hit me like a steel blade to the spine—Judge Lu, the Chief Justice himself, wasn’t just shielding the Zhao Family. He was part of the architecture holding their criminal empire together. The martial arm was broken. Their financial channels were crippled. But this… this meant the judiciary—the very system meant to uphold truth—was infected at the highest point.I tasted bitterness on my tongue as I muttered, “Chief Justice Lu. No wonder every warrant against the Wangs evaporated. No wonder every investigation stalled or collapsed. He wasn’t just protecting them—he was managing the entire legal battlefield.”Beside me, Luo Bing hovered over the terminal, fingers twitching with tension. “Mr. Jiang, this is the wall no one breaks through. We can take down martial clans and crush syndicates, but he’s the head of the judiciary. If we push him directly, the court system will shield him and crush all evidence under legal technicalities. We have to take him down politically—not

“Sir, the Xu Family is the political arm. They aren’t going to fight you—they’re going to make the Zhao Dragon Head vanish and destroy all the evidence. They’re preparing to eliminate the entire Zhao leadership!”Luo Bing’s horrified words hit the air like a hammer.The meaning was clear: the Zhao Family hadn’t bought protection. They’d bought erasure. Total, silent, political erasure. The Xu Family—the masters of disappearances—would wipe the Zhao leadership to protect their own political structure.And the Zhao Dragon Head, the mastermind of everything, still carried the last unwritten piece of the Shadow Apothecary betrayal—the name of the internal traitor.If he disappeared, that truth died with him.“Focus, Luo Bing. We cannot allow the Xu Family to execute their ‘Cleanse,’” I ordered, fighting the burning pain in my ribs. I was running on the last fumes of medicinal Qi and sheer will, but I wasn’t backing down.“Scan the transaction details. A payment this large for an Emergency