The smoke from the front gates of the Han Estate hadn't even cleared before Elder Han turned to me, his newly restored aura flickering like a dying star. He looked at the devastation, then at the black card I’d forced into his hand."You’ve turned my life into a debt, Qin Ming," Han rumbled, his voice still vibrating with the power of the Divine Needle. "But a shield is only as strong as the man behind it. The Eternal Spring Sect isn't just a group of monks; they’re the shadow masters of the province. They’ll be back. And next time, they won’t send an envoy. They’ll send an army.""Let them come," I said, my golden eyes scanning the horizon. "I have 100 trillion reasons why they’ll fail. But I’m not interested in playing defense forever, Elder. I want the source. Who gave the Lin family the formula for the 'Longevity Pill'? Who taught Xinyi how to poison my specific bloodline?"Elder Han’s expression darkened. He reached into his robes and pulled out a heavy, obsidian token carved wit