The Immortal King Reborn

CHAPTER 3

Lin Hao did not go straight home. He took a winding route through side streets, checking over his shoulder at every turn, making sure no one followed from the market. The man in the shadow had been watching him for a reason. He did not know if it was the lenders or someone else entirely, but he would not lead anyone straight to his family.

He circled back twice, ducked into a convenience store, and watched the entrance through the glass for five minutes before stepping back out. No one matched the description. No one seemed to be tracking his movements. But the feeling did not fully fade.

He headed instead for a small public park a few blocks away. It was late afternoon, the sun dipping low enough to cast long shadows across the grass. A few people sat on benches or walked dogs, but the far end was quiet, tucked between two rows of trees.

He found an empty bench near the edge of a small pond and sat down, keeping his back to the tree line, watching the path that led back toward the main road.

He pulled the pendant from his pocket. It looked even more unremarkable in the fading light. Dull green, chipped along the edge, no shine or carving to suggest value. But when he closed his fingers around it, he felt that faint hum again, a subtle vibration that seemed to travel up his wrist and settle somewhere in his chest. It was not strong. It was like feeling a distant drumbeat through a thick stone wall. But it was definitely there.

He closed his eyes and slowed his breathing, drawing inward to that tiny spark of qi in his Dantian. It felt weaker than it had that morning, as if the stress and movement of the day had drained what little he had managed to gather.

He sat still for several minutes, steadying himself, letting the energy build until it felt like a small warm knot behind his navel. Then he guided it upward, through his chest and down his arm, concentrating it in the center of his palm where it rested against the stone.

At first nothing happened. He kept the flow steady, careful not to force it, knowing that in this world pushing too hard would only waste what little he had.

Then he felt the pendant drink the energy in. The hum grew stronger, rising in pitch until it felt like it was resonating in his bones. He opened his eyes. The dull green stone had begun to glow, soft at first, then brighter, a gentle pulsing light that seemed to warm his whole hand.

He pulled his focus back, and the glow faded slowly, returning to its original dull appearance as if nothing had happened.

He turned it over in his fingers. It was a spirit stone, no doubt about it. A low grade one, drained almost completely dry, but capable of holding and releasing energy. In his old world such stones were common currency. Miners pulled them from deep veins in the mountains, cultivators used them to fuel their techniques or speed their recovery.

Here they were just pieces of dull green rock that no one recognized. That was the advantage he held. What looked like trash to everyone else was still a source of power and value to him.

The challenge was finding someone who would buy it. He could not walk into a regular jewelry store and tell them it held spiritual energy. They would call him crazy or call the police. He needed a buyer who would look past the surface, someone who dealt in rare stones or unusual artifacts, someone wealthy enough to pay what it was worth without asking too many questions.

He stood up and tucked the pendant back into his pocket. The sun was almost down now. He would have to wait until morning to find a dealer.

But he did not want to wait that long. Every hour that passed was another hour for the lenders to get impatient, another hour for his mother to worry, another hour for the man in the shadows to find him again.

He pulled out his phone and searched for antique dealers in the city. There were dozens, but most dealt in furniture or paintings or silver. He filtered for gemstones and rare artifacts, reading through reviews and descriptions until he found one that stood out.

The shop was called Jade and Stone. It was located in the downtown financial district, far from the old quarter, and the website said it specialized in rare minerals and heritage pieces from private collections. The photos showed a clean, modern space with glass display cases and security cameras visible in every corner. It looked professional.

It also looked expensive. That meant the owner would have money. It also meant he would be careful.

Lin Hao memorized the address and closed the browser. He would go first thing in the morning. But he needed to be smart about it. He could not walk in looking like he had just come from a fight or a homeless shelter.

He needed to look presentable enough to be taken seriously without drawing too much attention. He would have to wash the few decent clothes he had and make sure he had his story straight before he walked through the door.

On his way back toward the apartment, he stopped at a payphone outside a gas station. He did not want to use his cell if someone was tracking his calls. He dialed the number for the hospital information desk and asked about visiting hours for Xiao Man’s ward.

The woman on the phone gave him the times and then asked if he was a family member. He said he was her brother. She hesitated for a moment before saying that visiting hours would be ending soon and he should hurry if he wanted to see her.

There was something in her tone that made his chest tighten. He thanked her and hung up, walking faster toward the bus stop.

He took the bus to the hospital, sitting near the back where he could watch the other passengers without being seen. No one seemed to be following him. But the feeling of being watched had not fully gone away. It sat in the back of his mind like a warning, telling him to be careful who he spoke to and what he said.

When he reached Xiao Man’s room, his mother was sitting beside the bed, holding her daughter’s hand. Xiao Man was asleep, her breathing shallow and quick, the monitor beside her beeping slowly in time with her heartbeat. His mother stood up quietly and stepped out into the hallway with him, pulling the door to behind her.

"Did you go somewhere?" she asked, her voice low. "You look like you have been walking all day."

"I had to check on something," he said. "I think I found a way to get the money."

She studied his face for a long moment. "What kind of way, Hao? You aren’t getting mixed up in anything bad are you?"

"Nothing bad," he said. "Just something I found. It might be worth more than people think."

Her expression did not relax. "Be careful. I don’t care how much money we need. I don’t want you getting hurt or in trouble."

"I know," he said. "I’m being careful. I promise."

She reached out and touched his arm, her hand rough and warm. "You sound so different lately. It’s like you have grown up overnight. I don’t know if I should be relieved or worried."

Lin Hao covered her hand with his own. "Just trust me a little longer. I’m doing this for all of us."

She nodded slowly, her eyes glistening under the harsh fluorescent lights. "I trust you. But please be careful. That’s all I ask."

She went back inside to sit with Xiao Man. Lin Hao stayed in the hallway for a moment longer, watching through the small window in the door. His sister shifted in her sleep and coughed softly, and his mother leaned forward to adjust her blanket.

The sight of them, so vulnerable and so tired, hardened his resolve. He would get the money. He would keep them safe. He would do whatever it took.

He left the hospital and walked home, his hand resting on the pendant through the fabric of his pocket. Tomorrow he would go to Jade and Stone. Tomorrow he would find out if this small dull rock was enough to buy them some breathing room.

But as he turned onto his street, he noticed a car parked across from the entrance to his building. It was dark colored, no lights on, and the driver’s side window rolled down just enough to show a glimpse of a face in the shadows.

He could not make out any features clearly, but the car started moving the moment he stopped walking, turning at the end of the block and disappearing from sight.

He stood there for a moment, heart beating a little faster, before walking up the steps to his apartment. He did not go inside right away. He checked the door lock twice and made sure the windows were secure. Then he sat by the window, watching the street below, the pendant resting on the table beside him, glowing faintly in the dark as if it was waiting for something too.

He did not know if the car belonged to the lenders or to someone else entirely. But he knew one thing for certain. He was no longer the only one looking for something of value in this city. And the people watching him would not be as easy to distract as the stall owner had been.