The Chaebol's Olive Branch

His consciousness was like a sunken ship, slowly and arduously surfacing from the frigid, pitch-black seabed.

The first sense to return was smell. The strong, slightly bitter scent of disinfectant, mixed with a faint, sweet fragrance of some advanced synthetic medicine, replaced the bloody, scorched smell of death from his last memories, entering his nostrils.

Next came touch. Beneath him was a soft yet exceptionally supportive medical gel mattress, and he was covered by a light, breathable, and silky-smooth thin quilt. Compared to the hard bed of a cheap motel and the cold, damp ground of a back alley, this place was practically heaven. However, the severe pain in his body had not receded; it was merely suppressed by some potent medication, transforming into a dull, pervasive ache. This was especially true in his right leg, where the dark green "Viper's Kiss" core felt like a frozen tumor, still emanating an unsettling, cold dormancy.

Then came the boundless fatigue, and the lingering emptiness and dull pain in his mind, brought on by the still blindingly bright [-1.5], as if his soul had been hollowed out.

Lin Xiao struggled to open his heavy eyelids. The glaring white light made him squint instantly. After a while, his vision gradually cleared.

What greeted his eyes was an extremely simple room, yet one that exuded expense and technological sophistication everywhere. The walls were a soft off-white, seemingly made of some integrated, special polymer, emitting a warm luster. There were no windows, but the ceiling simulated soft natural light, making it impossible to distinguish day from night. Various intricate medical instruments he couldn't understand quietly surrounded his bed, their screens displaying complex vital sign data curves, and the sensors connected to him transmitted a faint tactile sensation.

The air was kept at a constant temperature and humidity. It was so quiet that he could hear his own faint heartbeat and the extremely subtle ticking of the infusion pump.

This was definitely not a hospital, nor was it his cheap hovel. This was a private medical facility belonging to some powerful force.

The Ye family.

Fragments of memory surged like a tide—the fatal blow in the alley, the sneering laughter of Scorpion, the sudden appearance of a black fortress SUV, the cold, efficient bodyguards, and... the fleeting glimpse through the car window of a delicate yet utterly indifferent profile.

Ye Qingyan.

He had been saved? No, more accurately, he had been "reclaimed."

Lin Xiao attempted to move a finger, and a tearing pain shot through his entire body, causing him to gasp involuntarily. His throat felt as dry as sandpaper.

"You'd best not move unnecessarily," a calm, almost rigid female voice sounded from beside him.

Lin Xiao turned his head with difficulty and saw a professional nurse, dressed in a white uniform but possessing the demeanor of a female soldier, standing by an instrument and recording data. Her movements were meticulous, her gaze placid and unrippled, looking at Lin Xiao as if he were a piece of precision equipment requiring maintenance, devoid of any extraneous emotion.

"Your injuries are severe: multiple fractures, internal organ contusions, significant blood loss, and residual traces of a peculiar neurotoxin. Bringing you back from the brink of death came at a considerable cost," the nurse stated in a toneless voice, as if reciting a report. "The toxin is troublesome; it's been suppressed, but its complete removal requires a specific antidote, or... a more advanced method."

Lin Xiao remained silent, understanding dawning in his mind. A more advanced method? Did she mean his Modifier? Too bad it was currently just a scorched negative number ([-1.5]).

Just then, the room's only door slid open silently.

A tall, slender figure entered.

She was still wearing the perfectly tailored skirt suit that accentuated her powerful aura, but this time in a more subdued deep blue. Her long, black hair was meticulously tied back, revealing a smooth forehead and a face that was both flawlessly exquisite and as cold as carved jade.

Ye Qingyan.

She held a super-thin transparent tablet, her fingertips occasionally gliding across it. She walked into the room without even glancing at Lin Xiao, heading directly toward the nurse and scanning the data on the instrument screens.

"Are his vital signs stable?" Her voice was crisp and clear, carrying a habitual tone of command.

"Yes, Miss. He is out of immediate danger, but his body is extremely weak, and the toxin remains a concern," the nurse replied respectfully.

Only then did Ye Qingyan slowly turn around. Her deep eyes, like a cold pool, finally settled on Lin Xiao in the hospital bed.

Her gaze was calm, scrutinizing, and sharp. It was like a high-powered microscope, as if she intended to dissect him completely from the outside in, missing no detail. There was no concern, no sympathy, not even curiosity; only a pure assessment based on value.

Lin Xiao forced himself to meet her gaze. Despite the agony and weakness coursing through him, he tried to maintain a sliver of his usual roguish, flippant demeanor, though it appeared pale and fragile at this moment.

"Miss Ye..." he managed to speak, his voice hoarse and rough. "It seems... my wretched life is still worth something for now?"

Ye Qingyan's lips seemed to curve upward ever so slightly, but it wasn't a smile; it was more like a cold mockery.

"Value?" she repeated the word, her voice steady and unperturbed. "Lin Xiao, male, 20 years old, dropout from Yuncheng University's Martial Dao preparatory class, parents deceased early, simple social connections, known in the streets for being 'ruthless' and 'lucky'."

She recited his background with the precision of someone reading a file.

"Recently, 'luck' seems to have favored you exceptionally." She took two steps forward, her heels clicking crisply and oppressively on the polished floor. "First, you publicly crippled Zhao Hu—a nobody, but a martial artist backed by a minor Blood Wolf Gang leader."

"Then, you connected with the Ice Mountain Beauty of the Su family, Su Qingxue, even 'helping' her break through a long-standing bottleneck and making a stunning debut in the family's minor competition."

"After that, you single-handedly raided the den of Scorpion, a minor Blood Wolf Gang leader, and killed Scorpion himself."

"Finally, in a meticulously laid ambush by Scorpion's remnants, you managed to hold on until my people passed by—or rather, until my people were destined to pass by."

Her gaze was sharp as a blade, as if it could pierce through Lin Xiao's feigned composure. "These incidents, one by one, cannot simply be explained away by 'good luck,' can they?"

Lin Xiao's heart tightened slightly, but the roguish smile on his face remained unchanged. "Perhaps... the gods I've been praying to recently are particularly effective?"

Ye Qingyan ignored his attempts at humor. She stopped by the bed, looking down at him. A very faint glint, like that of a merchant spotting a rare raw material, finally flickered in her cold eyes.

"I don't care if you pray to gods or ghosts, nor do I care what secrets you hide," her voice carried an undeniable coolness. "I only look at results, at value."

"The 'value' you've displayed is very interesting. The ability to stir up trouble, the resilience to survive in desperate situations, and... that inexplicable 'luck'." She leaned in slightly, and a faint, crisp perfume mingled with her powerful aura, creating pressure. "And now, you owe me a life, and... potentially expensive detoxification fees."

Lin Xiao looked at her, remaining silent. The roguishness in his eyes slowly receded, replaced by an equally cold wariness and calculation.

"Let's get straight to it, Miss Ye. What do you want me to do?" He knew there was no such thing as a free lunch, especially from a behemoth like the Ye family.

"It's very simple," Ye Qingyan straightened up, regaining her commanding posture. "Work for me. Or rather, work for me temporarily."

"The Ye family, or rather, I, occasionally encounter 'troubles' that are inconvenient for the group's overt forces to handle. Perhaps martial artists hired by unscrupulous competitors, perhaps information that requires 'special' methods to acquire, or perhaps obstacles that need 'accidents' to resolve." Her tone was as casual as if discussing the weather, but the content was chilling.

"And you, Lin Xiao, you seem adept at creating 'accidents' and at solving problems outside the rules." She looked at Lin Xiao. "This is a 'probationary' cooperation proposal. I will provide a certain level of intelligence support, limited resources, and... 'after-sales service' like this."

"In return, you need to demonstrate your 'value' and resolve my 'troubles' when I require it. If you perform well, detoxification serum, Energy Stones, even more... will not be a problem." Her gaze swept over Lin Xiao's severely injured body again, implying something. "If you perform poorly, or if I feel you've lost your 'value'..."

She didn't finish, but her cold eyes conveyed everything. Cooperation? No, this was more like an unequal transaction, a dangerous employment. She was the capitalist at the helm, and he was a potentially useful, dangerous tool she had just acquired.

Lin Xiao lay on the soft hospital bed, still in agony, his Source Energy depleted, poisoned, and targeted by multiple factions. The "olive branch" extended by Ye Qingyan, while seemingly a lifeline, could very well lead him into a deeper abyss.

But did he have a choice?

Refuse? He would immediately lose his value and, in the best-case scenario, be dumped back on the streets to fend for himself, facing the endless pursuit of the Blood Wolf Gang and even Su Zhenshan.

Accept? To become Ye Qingyan's blade, licking blood in the cracks between chaebols and dark forces, but at least... to gain a temporary reprieve, obtain much-needed resources, and even... use the Ye family's intelligence network to track down clues about the Shadow Alliance and the World-Erosion Seed!

In just a few seconds, the pros and cons rapidly weighed in his mind.

Finally, on Lin Xiao's pale face, his signature, slightly weak yet still unruly, roguish smile reappeared:

"Sounds like... I don't have a choice?" He paused, looking into Ye Qingyan's cold eyes, and slowly said, "Pleasure doing business with you, boss. But... how about a little 'advance salary'? Like, a few Energy Stones to tide me over?"

He licked his dry lips, but his eyes held a chilling clarity.

A new powerful backer? Perhaps. But also a steel noose that could drag him into a deeper vortex.

Ye Qingyan didn't seem surprised by his direct request for "salary." Her expression remained unchanged as she calmly instructed the nearby nursing staff, "Give him double the dose of nutrient solution and painkillers. As for the Energy Stones... we'll talk about that once he can walk on his own."

After speaking, she didn't spare Lin Xiao another glance, turned, and left the room with crisp footsteps.

The door closed silently.

Lin Xiao lay there, gazing at the soft simulated daylight on the ceiling, feeling the injected medication that brought temporary relief yet hinted at dependence, and slowly closed his eyes.

In his mind, the faint glow of [-1.5] was still blinding.

Deep within his right leg, the dark green Viper's Kiss core seemed to tremble ever so slightly upon hearing the words "Energy Stones."