The Might of a Sword

The project manager's voice was as cold and mechanical as a synthesized one. Through the phone's speaker, it struck Lin Fan's already-overburdened nerves like a heavy hammer.

"Lin Fan, come to the office right away and bring your personal belongings. You're fired."

The call ended abruptly, leaving only the busy tone echoing through the silent room, especially grating against the quiet.

Lin Fan stood frozen, phone in hand. The color drained from his face before his eyes, and his mind went completely blank.

Fired...

Those two words were like a curse, instantly draining all his strength. He had only just recovered from the shock of the officials showing up at his door, and now reality had dealt him an even more brutal blow.

Why? Was it because he hadn't finished yesterday's assignment on time? Or had the manager always disliked him and seized this chance to make trouble? Or... was it because Chen Jing and the others' investigation had affected the company?

Countless guesses churned through his mind, all eventually dissolving into a cold despair that began in his heart and quickly spread through his entire body.

He was unemployed.

In a city where prices kept soaring, he had lost his only source of income. Rent, utilities, living expenses... and the two mouths at home waiting for him to "support" them...

How was he supposed to provide for two Saints? Was he really going to have to take Master Tongtian and Goddess Nüwa out to beg for scraps?

A helplessness and panic unlike anything he had ever felt wrapped tightly around him. He slowly lowered his phone, his body trembling uncontrollably. He stared blankly at the peeling ceiling, feeling as if all the effort and perseverance of his first twenty-some years had become a ridiculous joke.

"...Young friend Lin Fan?" Nüwa's gentle, concerned voice sounded, pulling him back from the brink of despair.

Lin Fan stiffly turned his head and saw Nüwa watching him, worry filling her clear eyes. Even Tongtian, who had kept his eyes closed and paid no attention to the outside world, had opened them. His profound gaze rested on Lin Fan's pallid face.

"What happened?" Tongtian asked. His tone was still flat, but not quite as cold as before.

Lin Fan opened his mouth, wanting to force a smile, but found his facial muscles too stiff to obey. His voice came out hoarse, with a barely perceptible catch in it. "It's... nothing. I just... lost my job. I was fired."

He tried to make light of it, but the slight tremble at the end of his words still betrayed the turmoil inside him.

"Fired?" Tongtian furrowed his brow slightly, seemingly unsure of the word's precise meaning. But from Lin Fan's state and what he had said earlier, he had a general idea of what it meant. "That means you have lost the... source of your livelihood provided by that 'company'?"

"Mm." Lin Fan lowered his head, not wanting the two Saints to see him in such a miserable, vulnerable state.

Nüwa sighed softly, her sigh full of pity for the difficult circumstances faced by those who came after her. Though she was a Saint who held dominion over creation, she understood the hardships of the Human Race struggling to survive in the mortal world.

Tongtian fell silent for a moment. Looking at Lin Fan's dejected expression as he tried to hide his sorrow, he recalled Nüwa's earlier words: "Do not drag him into this." He also remembered the bowl of instant noodles Lin Fan had given him—though "laden with turbid energy," it had helped him recover a little of his strength.

Karma.

The word surfaced in his mind.

He, Master Tongtian, had intercepted a glimmer of hope and valued karma above all. When he had been down and weak, Lin Fan had given him the most basic shelter and food. That was the cause. Now Lin Fan had lost his livelihood and fallen into hardship because of them. That was the consequence.

Unless he repaid this karma, he would never feel at peace.

"Is this because of us?" Tongtian asked directly.

Lin Fan was taken aback, then shook his head with a bitter smile. "Not entirely... but it probably has something to do with it. They might think I've caused trouble..." He didn't spell it out, but his meaning was clear.

Tongtian's eyes turned cold. So Lin Fan really had been dragged into this because of them.

He rose and walked to the window, his gaze passing through the thin curtain as though he could see the "ants" still monitoring the place outside. If these people hadn't shown up and started investigating, Lin Fan might not have lost his job so soon.

"Such trivial mortal affairs are nothing to concern yourself with." Tongtian turned to Lin Fan. His tone was calm, but carried an unquestionable certainty. "You have lost it, so be it. Since I am staying here, I will not let you worry about making a living."

Lin Fan jerked his head up and looked at Tongtian, disbelief and a faint glimmer of hope in his eyes. He wouldn't let Lin Fan worry about making a living? Was this elder really going to get a job? Or...

Before he could make sense of it, Tongtian's gaze shifted to the old phone lying on the table.

"This thing can connect to information from the outside world and can also be used to make 'takeout' purchases. Is that correct?" Tongtian asked.

"Y-yes." Lin Fan had no idea what he was getting at.

"Connect it to that 'computer.'" Tongtian pointed to the computer that had just gotten his game account banned for using a "cheat." "I need to examine the rules governing the circulation of 'wealth' in this world."

Although Lin Fan was full of questions, he did as he was told. He connected the phone to the computer with a cable and, following Tongtian's instructions, opened several major financial and commodity trading websites, along with a few news pages.

Tongtian leaned forward, his profound eyes fixed on the streams of data racing across the screen, the complicated candlestick charts, the dazzling array of product listings, and the various financial news stories. His concentration was terrifying. It was as if he wasn't browsing webpages but deciphering some supreme formation that held the laws of the universe.

Lin Fan and Nüwa watched quietly from the side. A trace of curiosity showed in Nüwa's eyes. She, too, was interested in how Tongtian intended to solve the problem of making a living.

Minute by minute, the only sounds in the room were clicks of the mouse and the occasional tap of a key. Tongtian browsed at astonishing speed. His powerful true spirit absorbed, understood, and analyzed the vast amounts of information wherever his gaze fell.

He saw the flow of global capital, the fluctuations in bulk commodity prices, countless companies rising and falling in the market, and the ways ordinary people used so-called "investments" and "trading" to acquire "wealth."

The economic rules of this mortal world gradually became clear to him—a virtual system of value based on credit, expectations, supply and demand, and complex maneuvering. Though utterly unlike the barter system or transactions based on spirit stones and spiritual materials that he knew, at its core it still depended on understanding "information" and "rules."

And understanding information and rules was one of the things he excelled at most. Even without his magical power, a Saint's ability to make deductions and perceive the essence of things far surpassed that of any mortal.

His gaze eventually settled on a page showing real-time international precious metal prices. Gold, silver... things considered hard currency in the mortal world. Their prices were fluctuating wildly in response to news of certain international events.

At the same time, he noticed an inconspicuous financial news brief nearby. It mentioned rumors that a small African country had discovered a high-grade gold mine. But because it was in a remote area plagued by instability, the market had not yet fully absorbed or confirmed the news.

Tongtian lightly tapped the mouse with his fingers, a cold, keen light glimmering in his eyes. He quickly built a model in his mind, linking the scattered information and making deductions...

A moment later, he straightened and looked at Lin Fan. Calmly, he instructed him, "Transfer all the 'money' you can use into this 'trading account.'"

He pointed to a stock-trading program on the screen, one that Lin Fan sometimes looked at but had never dared to use for real.

Lin Fan jumped in fright. "A-all of it? Senior Tongtian, this... this is stock trading! It's very risky, and the little money I have..."

His meager savings were his last lifeline!

"Enough. Do as I say." Tongtian cut him off, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Buy this." He clicked the mouse and selected the stock of a seemingly unremarkable, even struggling mining company with an indirect connection to the rumors about the African gold mine.

Lin Fan stared at the stock's sea of green candlesticks and its pitiful trading volume. His heart ached. It was clearly a penny stock! Wouldn't investing in it mean losing everything?

"Senior, this..."

"Hmm?" Tongtian glanced at him. There was no threat in his look, but the pressure of their differing levels of existence made Lin Fan swallow the rest of his words.

He gritted his teeth, remembering Tongtian's unfathomable abilities and the sword light that had once flashed in his eyes... Perhaps this Saint could work miracles in the financial market, too?

Might as well try it and hope for the best!

Lin Fan steeled himself. With trembling hands, he transferred the few thousand yuan in his bank account—the last of his savings—into his stock account. Then, following Tongtian's instructions, he put it all into the mining company's stock.

The moment the trade went through, Lin Fan felt utterly drained. He had staked his entire livelihood on the sudden "investment advice" of a Saint addicted to online games.

Tongtian looked at the trade confirmation without the slightest change in expression. He simply returned to his yoga mat and closed his eyes to rest, as though he had just done something utterly insignificant.

Nüwa watched it all, a thoughtful look in her eyes, but said nothing.

Time crawled by amid tension and unease.

Lin Fan couldn't sit still. Every few seconds, he refreshed the stock-trading app. The share price was nearly a straight line, without the slightest movement, and his heart sank.

So... it hadn't worked after all? Saints weren't omnipotent...

Just as he was about to give up in despair, an urgent news alert suddenly popped up on the computer screen!

<Breaking news! Confirmed! A country has discovered an enormous, high-grade gold mine with astonishing reserves!>

International gold prices surge in response!

Related mining stocks rally across the board!

Lin Fan's heart gave a violent thump! He stared at the screen, fingers trembling as he refreshed the page for the mining company's stock.

Then he saw something he would never forget for the rest of his life—

The stock, which had been lifeless and ignored, seemed to have been injected with a stimulant. Its trading volume exploded, and its price rocketed straight up! The percentage numbers flashed wildly, climbing out of the red and then soaring higher and higher. Ten percent... twenty percent... fifty percent... In just a few minutes, it had smashed through the daily price limit!

Lin Fan's mouth fell open, his eyes as wide as saucers. He was completely frozen.

I-it hit the limit?! A few thousand yuan had turned into...?

He couldn't believe the floating profit displayed in his account. Even breathing had become difficult.

H-how was this possible?! He had only followed Tongtian's instructions and bought a random stock! Could that rumor... have been true? And had it really just been confirmed at that exact moment?

Was it a coincidence?

Lin Fan whipped around and looked at Tongtian, still sitting cross-legged in the corner with his eyes closed, as if nothing happening in the outside world had anything to do with him.

That was it! It wasn't a coincidence!

It was Tongtian! Amid that enormous, chaotic stream of information, impossible to distinguish as true or false, he had precisely caught the obscure rumor. Then, with his superhuman powers of deduction, he had predicted both that the news would be confirmed and the market's violent reaction!

This wasn't investing. It was... a dimensionality-defying strike! A perfect display of a Saint's insight and information-processing ability in the mortal financial market!

A single sword strike!

He hadn't even needed to draw his sword or form a thought. By understanding the rules and parsing the information alone, he had made thunder rumble in silence and decided the gains and losses without a trace!

Was this the might of a Saint?!

Lin Fan stared at the doubled balance in his account, trembling with excitement. All the despair and gloom he had felt before were scattered by this sudden windfall!

Yet compared to Lin Fan's elation, Tongtian remained calm. He didn't even open his eyes to look at the results. He simply spoke, delivering words that plunged Lin Fan into an icy abyss:

"This method of making money is ultimately a minor path. It interferes with the order of this world and must not be used often."

After a pause, he added, "This time, I used it only to repay the karma of your taking us in and to resolve your urgent predicament."

Lin Fan's elation cooled instantly. He understood what Tongtian meant. This kind of operation, almost like "foreknowledge," took advantage of information asymmetry and extraordinary abilities to undermine the fairness of the market. It might be acceptable once, in an emergency, but using it often would inevitably draw more attention and cause trouble, perhaps even disrupting the economy.

Even Saints had to know their limits.

"Th-thank you, Senior Tongtian!" Lin Fan suppressed his excitement and lingering fear, and thanked him solemnly. This money would support him for quite some time and gave him a glimmer of hope that he could keep living in peace with the two Saints.

Nüwa nodded slightly and said to Tongtian, "Elder Brother, that was well done."

Tongtian said no more, once again sinking into meditation.

Lin Fan looked at the computer screen, where the game was still suspended, then at the astonishing profits in his stock account. His feelings were too complicated to put into words.

He now had a Saint for a roommate who could "predict market movements at a glance," but he had also lost his ordinary life.

Just as he was rejoicing over the livelihood he had lost and regained, Chen Jing sat inside the surveillance van parked outside the rented apartment, disguised as an ordinary vehicle. She stared at the newly received data about the abnormal trades in Lin Fan's securities account, her brow furrowed into a deep crease.

"Team Leader, the target, Lin Fan, went all in on 'Mining Development' five minutes ago. The stock hit its daily limit immediately afterward due to positive news. The timing of the trade... was unbelievably precise," the technician reported, unable to hide his disbelief.

Chen Jing studied the nearly perfect entry point and the soaring chart. Her gaze was sharp as an eagle's.

Once might be coincidence. What about twice?

The inexplicable "gaze attack" at the unfinished building, and now this "god-tier investment," precise down to the millisecond...

What kind of ability did that man called Tongtian have?

She picked up the encrypted communicator and reported in a grave voice, more serious than ever:

"Report. New anomaly detected at the target 'safehouse.' Target Two, Tongtian, appears to possess... an extremely advanced ability to process information and make predictions. His influence has begun to reach the financial sector. Requesting an elevated risk assessment and coordination with the economic security department for further analysis..."