Despair Deep Within the Mansion! A New Path of Heart Refining!

The corner of Lin Xuan's mouth twitched as he slowed down.

Interesting.

Another new debt had come knocking.

The evening glow cast a golden rim over the mansion.

Lin Xuan's figure appeared soundlessly outside the estate.

With 666 points of soul combat power, his perception of this area had reached a terrifying level.

His soul power spread out, instantly sweeping across the entire estate.

From the outside, it looked full of life, with lush flowers and plants.

But in his perception, it was steeped in deathly stillness.

No servants walked about.

No children played.

Even the chirping of birds and insects was pitifully scarce.

The entire estate was like a carefully decorated grave.

It exuded an air of death completely at odds with its luxurious exterior.

Lin Xuan did not climb over the wall.

His figure flickered in the air, and he passed straight into the estate.

He triggered no alarms.

Following that twisted aura, he strolled leisurely through the estate.

At last, he stopped before a three-story main villa.

That obsession and despair were coming from here.

They were so dense they were nearly tangible.

Lin Xuan's soul power passed through the walls without obstruction.

The scene inside the villa clearly entered his mind.

Second floor.

A huge room that had been converted into a shrine.

A middle-aged man in silk pajamas, so thin he looked emaciated, was frantically kowtowing before a bizarre idol.

His forehead had long since split open, and blood had soaked into the expensive carpet beneath him.

Yet he seemed incapable of feeling pain, muttering over and over again.

"Please, Divine Lord, show mercy... save my son..."

"Please, Divine Lord, show mercy..."

His voice was hoarse, filled with boundless despair.

Lin Xuan's gaze fell on the idol.

That thing could hardly be called an idol.

It looked more like a monster haphazardly pieced together.

Forged from gold and black crystal, it had three heads and six arms.

Each face wore a strange grin that made one's skin crawl.

Several black-robed "priests" stood around the idol.

They chanted syllables no one could understand, putting on an air of unfathomable mystery.

Lin Xuan's soul sense swept over them.

He saw through their true nature at a glance.

There was not the slightest energy fluctuation within any of them. They were ordinary people, plain and simple.

There was not a shred of devotion in their eyes.

When they looked at the wealthy merchant, all they showed was undisguised greed and contempt.

It was a complete scam.

Lin Xuan frowned.

Going by last night's style, he should have charged in right now.

Poked one charlatan to death with a finger.

Then smashed that ugly idol with a slap.

Simple, direct, and trouble-free.

But he quickly dismissed the thought.

His divine sense lightly swept over the wealthy merchant who was still kowtowing.

There was no black aura of sin around this man.

Nor was there any karmic burden.

On the contrary, Lin Xuan could sense a powerful residue of sorrow and love within him.

He was not a bad man.

He was merely a pitiful soul driven into a corner, stripped of all hope, desperately clutching at his final straw.

Tempering one's heart amid the mortal world did not mean tempering strength. It meant tempering the human heart.

Lin Xuan understood.

Against pure evil like the Red Ribbon Army, ruthless methods were simply justice carried out on Heaven's behalf.

But in this situation, what he needed to save was not merely this wealthy merchant's wallet.

It was also the heart that had been soaked rotten by despair.

This was what it meant to "save others."

This was the true meaning behind the line in the general outline: "Affliction itself is the Dao."

At that thought, the killing intent in Lin Xuan's eyes slowly faded.

In its place was an amused look, as though he were watching a show.

"Fine, then let's play this a different way."

He chuckled inwardly.

Marching straight to their door would be too crude, and it would not achieve the best result.

To break this deadlock, he had to expose the absurdity of this scam from its roots, laying it bloody and bare before the wealthy merchant.

Let him see it himself.

Let him wake up himself.

Lin Xuan's figure quietly vanished from before the villa as he withdrew from the estate.

He had made up his mind.

Tomorrow, he would take on another identity.

He would walk in through the front gate openly and properly.

As a "wandering Daoist," he would meet these frauds pretending to be gods and ghosts.

And while he was at it, he would explain to this despairing wealthy merchant what the true "Dao" really was.