Trading Chip, Wuchen Origin Shocks Yan's Heart

The crow flapped its wings and flew away, its shadow flickering on the broken wall.

I leaned against the stone wall, my breathing steady. Three strands of Heaven-Slaying Origin lay dormant within me, like three slumbering rivers, flowing silently. Ye Qingwan sat in the corner, the Medicine Pestle resting across her knees, her fingers occasionally brushing over the faint golden light on her sleeve cuff, as if confirming something.

She didn't ask me anything else.

Wind blew in from outside the cave dwelling, making the broken tiles creak. In the distance, in the direction of the city, smoke rose from cooking fires, likely signaling the opening of the morning market. The sounds of guards changing shifts had also ceased, and this area had fallen quiet again.

But I could feel her gaze never leaving me.

Half an hour ago, she had asked in a low voice, "Will he really come?"

I replied, "He will."

Now, footsteps approached.

Very light, yet steady. One person, no hidden aura, and no one extra.

Ye Qingwan looked up towards the cave entrance, her hand slowly reaching for the Medicine Pestle.

Yan Jiuxiao's figure appeared at the cave dwelling's entrance. He wore the official robe from last night, though the cuffs were smudged with dust and the collar slightly wrinkled. He stood there, not entering immediately, but glancing at both of us, his gaze lingering on my face for a moment.

"I've brought the map," he said, his voice a little hoarser than yesterday, but still calm.

I didn't move.

He stepped inside and took out a dark green Jade Slip from his bosom, placing it on a flat stone on the ground. The surface of the Jade Slip was etched with fine patterns, emitting a faint, eerie glow.

"All known strongholds, hidden sentries, and contact code names within the Northern Wasteland are inside," he stared at me. "What about what you promised?"

I slowly stood up, my movements unhurried. With a flip of my palm, that wisp of pale golden Origin reappeared, hovering before my fingertips, like mist or smoke, yet it didn't dissipate.

Yan Jiuxiao's eyes tightened slightly.

"The power of a Pseudo-Primordial Body is not something anyone can bear," I said, my tone as flat as if I were discussing the weather. "If you are greedy for more, you will only be backlashed."

He frowned, "You said you would give the other half to me."

"I also said it recognizes its master," I looked at him. "If you want to live, you have to do it my way."

He didn't speak, but his fists clenched slightly.

I chuckled softly and flicked my fingertip.

The golden light instantly transformed into countless tiny specks, drifting towards his face like morning mist, silently seeping into his nostrils.

He suddenly took half a step back, his body stiffening.

Immediately after, his expression changed.

Veins throbbed on his forehead, his eyes snapped open wide, his pupils contracting violently. He raised his hands to clutch his head, his knuckles turning white, his entire being as if forcefully slammed into the depths of his Sea of Consciousness by something.

"No... this isn't real!" he roared, his voice trembling. "I didn't... I didn't see them!"

He stumbled and hit the stone wall, his back pressing against the cold rock, cold sweat trickling down his temples.

I watched him quietly.

He knew I was watching, but he couldn't conceal it.

Because he was "seeing" himself.

Three days ago, in the secret chamber, candlelight flickered. He sat behind the desk, opposite a black-robed figure wearing a bamboo hat. Spread on the table was this very Jade Slip. He pointed to a certain marked spot and said in a low voice, "This is a good place to set a trap, to lure them out."

Those were people from the Blood Demon Sect.

It was intelligence he had personally handed over.

"I didn't agree to cooperate!" he hissed, his teeth grinding. "I just... wanted to find out who was manipulating things from behind the scenes!"

"But you made a copy of the Jade Slip," I said. "And you tacitly allowed them to tamper with the seal formula of the City Defense Department."

He suddenly looked up at me, his eyes filled with horror. "How do you know these things? This is impossible! I already... sealed that memory!"

"Sealed?" I took a step closer. "Then who put the illusion you're seeing now into your mind?"

His lips trembled, and he couldn't speak.

I hadn't tampered with his memory.

I had merely used the Heaven-Slaying Origin as a guide to gently lift a corner of the segment hidden deepest within his Divine Soul, the one he himself dared not face.

This strand of Origin was not pure power, but fragments carrying chaotic rules. It wouldn't harm a person's meridians, but it could touch the boundaries of their consciousness. For ordinary people, it was a source of healing; for those with wicked intentions, it was a mirror reflecting demons.

What he had done, whom he had deceived, how long he had concealed it—it remembered all of it.

Ye Qingwan had been watching silently the entire time.

At this moment, she gently rubbed the edge of the Medicine Pestle with her fingertips, her eyes flickering.

She could understand medical arts, and she could understand people's hearts.

But she couldn't understand this kind of power—it couldn't be analyzed like a spiritual medicine, nor could it be deduced like a talisman or formation, and it was unlike anything in any cultivation system. It existed, yet it was formless; it acted upon people, yet left no trace. Yet, it could unearth buried memories.

"What exactly do you want?" Yan Jiuxiao panted, standing up while leaning against the wall, his voice hoarse. "Are you blackmailing me? Or... destroying me?"

"I want cooperation," I said. "Not a puppet that obeys. If you want to live and keep your authority, then stop playing your two-faced games. The Blood Demon Sect isn't targeting you as a person, but your position. If you continue to straddle two boats, you might not be yourself the next time you wake up."

He stared at me intently, beads of sweat rolling down his forehead.

I know he's struggling.

On one side, a network of power built over years; on the other, a path to survival he'd just tasted. He didn't want to fully commit to me, yet he feared the "medicine" in my hand could disappear at any moment.

"You can go," I said. "Turn around and leave now, pretend nothing happened. But this wisp of origin has already taken root in your Sea of Consciousness; it won't disappear. As long as you harbor killing intent, it will make you 'see' the moment you want to kill me—in advance."

His pupils constricted.

"You've... planted a surveillance device?" he asked, his voice tightening.

"It's a contract," I corrected him. "You provide information, I guarantee your life. If you betray me, the price will be something you least wish to face. Fair."

He was silent for a long time.

Only his heavy breathing filled the cave.

Finally, he lowered his head, looking at his own palm. A faint golden light still lingered there, like the trace of sunlight on skin, impossible to wipe away.

"The map is real," he finally said. "Not a single word was changed."

"I believe you," I said.

He let out a cold laugh and turned to walk outside.

He paused at the cave entrance, not looking back.

"Ji Wuchen," he said, his voice very low. "You are far more... terrifying than I imagined."

I didn't answer.

He walked out, his figure quickly disappearing into the twilight of the wilderness.

Silence returned to the cave.

Ye Qingwan remained seated, the Medicine Pestle resting on her lap. She looked at me and suddenly asked, "That wisp of origin, can it really only let him see memories?"

I looked at her.

Her eyes were clear, without fear, only inquiry.

"What do you think?" I countered.

She didn't speak again, merely slowly tightened her Hundred Treasures Pouch, her fingers inadvertently brushing the edge of the opening—there, a bit of the golden light from last night still clung to it.

I walked back to the stone wall and sat down, closing my eyes to regulate my breathing.

The Heaven-Slaying Origin within me flowed steadily. Three wisps were complete, and only seven more were needed for the Heaven-Slaying Dao Foundation. As long as I could hold back from acting, the accumulation speed would only increase.

The sky outside darkened, and the wind rolled sand, which pattered against the broken tiles on the cave roof, making a fine, crisp sound.

Ye Qingwan suddenly stood up, walked in front of me, and crouched down, very close.

She reached out, her fingertip gently touching the faint red scar on my left cheek.

I opened my eyes.

She looked at me, her voice very soft. "This wound... how did you get it?"

I didn't answer.

She didn't withdraw her hand either, just stared at the scar, as if waiting for an answer.

In the distance, a wild cat leaped over a broken wall, its tail sweeping a piece of rubble, which fell to the ground with a light clatter.