He rose at first light, washed up quickly, and went to report to the study in the front courtyard.
The steward had already sorted the previous day's purchasing ledgers and correspondence, stacking them on the low desk where he usually sat.
Shen Fei sat down, sorted the letters by category, then checked the accounts page by page.
One glance was enough for him to remember every entry marked as a loss. The amounts, dates, and shops receiving payment-all that information formed a web in his mind, corresponding to the Dark Guild's three supply routes within the city.
This month's losses had dropped another twenty percent compared with last month.
Shen Fei ran a fingertip across the ledger page, a clear picture forming in his mind.
Nie Li evidently had not stopped. Either he had cut off the Dark Guild's supply channels or disrupted the timing of their handoffs.
The more restrained their movements became, the easier it was for those movements to leave traces.
He memorized several unfamiliar new expenses, planning to investigate those new shops on his next visit to the Black Market.
Most of his daylight hours went into these documents and accounts. Occasionally, Shen Hong summoned him to ask a few questions about the ledgers. His answers were watertight; he never said a word more than necessary or asked an extra question.
Shen Yue occasionally wandered into the study and made a few snide remarks. Shen Fei acted as though he had heard nothing, keeping his head down over the ledger in his hands. After enough visits, Shen Yue found it boring and gradually came less often.
His real cultivation took place at night.
Once everyone in the residence was sound asleep, Shen Fei shut his doors and windows, sat cross-legged on his bed, and circulated the Dark Prison Reincarnation Art. Dark Attribute spiritual energy flowed slowly through his meridians, washing through his dantian and meridian network again and again.
This cultivation art differed from the mainstream methods of Glory City. The deeper and quieter the night became, the faster it absorbed spiritual energy.
At first, he struggled to adjust to the circulation route through his yin meridians. His meridians tingled painfully after every session. As the days passed, that faint pain slowly vanished, replaced by a steady increase in his soul force.
Besides refining his own cultivation, he set aside time every day to summon the Shadow Mantis and improve their coordination.
At first, summoning it at full power lasted only as long as an incense stick burned. Once that time was up, his soul force would be drained dry, leaving him so exhausted he could not even raise a hand.
He was in no hurry. He practiced twice a day, stopping only when he reached his limit, then beginning the second session once he had recovered.
Day after day, he kept at it. The summoning duration crept upward, from an incense stick's burn time plus a quarter of an hour, to one and a half incense sticks, then finally to a steady two.
The Shadow Mantis's initially awkward movements grew increasingly attuned to his intentions. The transition between Shadow Stealth and Blade Slash became so fluid that it scarcely required a deliberate command.
The desperate battles in the ruins had already laid a solid foundation. Combined with the efficiency of a high-tier cultivation art, his progress was faster than expected.
That night, Shen Fei circulated his cultivation art as usual. A warm current traveled through his yin meridians and around his body, then suddenly struck an invisible barrier as it poured into his dantian.
Rather than rush to batter it down, he maintained a steady flow, washing against it over and over. Like dripping water wearing through stone, he remained patient and unhurried, always pressing in the same direction.
After an unknown stretch of time, he felt an exceedingly faint fracture in his dantian.
The barrier broke silently. Soul force surged through the opening and expanded within his dantian, becoming more than twice as substantial as before.
Shen Fei ended his cultivation and slowly exhaled. Gold rank 1-star.
He looked down at his hands. A faint, shadowy glow accompanied the spiritual power circulating through his fingertips. It was far more subdued than at silver rank, yet carried greater weight.
He tried summoning the Shadow Mantis. Its black phantom emerged from the shadows, its bladed forelimbs gleaming coldly and its presence more solid than before. This time, he barely felt any drain at all.
After his breakthrough, the burden of summoning his demon spirit had eased considerably.
Shen Fei raised a hand and dismissed the demon spirit, his face showing little emotion.
This pace was within his expectations. In fact, it was a few days later than he had anticipated.
He told no one. The next day, he went to the study to sort the accounts as usual, suppressing his aura to resemble silver peak. Even the steward noticed nothing unusual.
Concealing his abilities was a habit etched into his bones since his rebirth. The fewer people who knew his trump cards, the better.
Another dozen or so days passed this way. He focused on consolidating his gold rank 1-star foundation rather than rushing ahead. With his realm only just stabilized, reckless advances could leave hidden dangers.
That afternoon, the steward came in carrying a stack of new ledgers. After setting them down, he lingered beside the desk and offered a casual remark with a smile. "Have you heard the news lately, young master? Something unusual has happened over at the Alchemist Association.
"A pill called the Soul-Gathering Pill suddenly appeared. They say it had been lost for nearly a hundred years and can greatly increase the rate at which soul force is absorbed. It works best for people below gold rank.
"The market has gone mad over it. A single pill is going for over a thousand Low-Tier Demon Crystals, and you still can't get your hands on one."
Shen Fei's hand paused over the ledger. Soul-Gathering Pills. Nie Li's name immediately flashed through his mind. A formula lost for nearly a century could not simply appear out of thin air.
In all of Glory City, no one but Nie Li, with his elder inheritance, could produce something like that.
"Is that so?" Shen Fei replied casually, his tone flat. "Who's selling them?"
"No idea. The association's people handle all the sales, and no one says where they came from." The steward shook his head.
"I hear production is limited. They only release a few dozen at a time, and the great families snatch them all up the moment they appear. Plenty of branch-family disciples are scrambling so hard they'd split their heads open for one. They say taking one can save several months of cultivation."
With that, the steward withdrew, leaving the study quiet again. Shen Fei leaned back in his chair, tapping the desk lightly with his fingers. Soul-Gathering Pills would indeed be useful to him.
The Dark Prison Reincarnation Art already offered a fast cultivation speed. With Soul-Gathering Pills, he could cut the time needed to reach gold rank 2-star by at least half.
Time was what he lacked most. The Demon Beast Tide drew closer every day. Every additional measure of strength would give him a greater chance when defending the city.
Before he could decide what to do, hurried footsteps sounded outside the courtyard gate.
A servant jogged over and reported through the door. "Young master, Miss Xiao Ning'er of the Winged Dragon Family is here. She says she has something to discuss with you."
Shen Fei was a little surprised. Although he and Xiao Ning'er had faced danger together in the ruins, they had not contacted each other since returning.
He had thought she would wait until there was some progress with repairing the scrolls before seeking him out. He had not expected her so soon. "Please show her to the side hall. I'll be there shortly."
He rose, straightened his clothes, and walked briskly toward the side hall.
As soon as he entered, he saw Xiao Ning'er standing inside in a plain-colored dress. Her complexion was much better than when they had parted at the ruins. At least she no longer looked so pale and weak.
Hearing his footsteps, she turned and gave him a slight nod.
"Please sit, Miss Xiao." Shen Fei gestured with a hand. "What brings you here today?" "I came to bring you some news."
Xiao Ning'er sat down and got straight to the point. "I've already given Nie Li the two damaged legendary inscription scrolls you entrusted to me.
"He examined them and said that although they're badly damaged, just under half of the core city defense patterns remain. There's a chance they can be repaired."
Shen Fei raised his eyes slightly. "They can be repaired?" "That's what he said."
There was a hint of barely perceptible admiration in Xiao Ning'er's voice. "Even the city's veteran inscription masters can't identify all those ancient inscriptions. Nie Li spent two days looking at them and marked every section he could recognize.
"He said he would repair the basic outer patterns first. Within six months, he should be able to restore thirty percent of their effect, which would be enough to use on the city walls. He can slowly fill in the remaining sections afterward."
"That's good." Shen Fei nodded, his tone calm. "As long as they can be used, the effort won't have been wasted."
In truth, he was somewhat surprised.
Thirty percent did not sound like much, but these were Legend Rank city defense inscriptions. Even at thirty percent, they would far surpass the gold rank inscriptions currently on the walls.
If they were installed, the defenses of the North Gate's walls would improve considerably, and the garrison would suffer far fewer casualties during the next nighttime demon beast attack. Nie Li was even more capable than he had expected.
"Besides the scrolls, there's something else." As she spoke, Xiao Ning'er took two palm-sized porcelain bottles from inside her clothes, set them on the table, and pushed them toward Shen Fei. "Nie Li asked me to give you these.
"There are two hundred Soul-Gathering Pills in total. He said you're at a critical stage of cultivation right now, and these pills might help."
Shen Fei stared at the two porcelain bottles on the table, stunned. Two hundred Soul-Gathering Pills.
A single pill was currently selling for over a thousand demon crystals. Two hundred amounted to a fortune. And Nie Li had simply sent them over through someone else? His first reaction was that this had been Xiao Ning'er's idea.
She felt she owed him a favor. He had saved her in the ruins and given her the Legendary Fragment, so she had specially obtained these pills from Nie Li to repay that debt.
After all, as far as he was concerned, he and Nie Li had no close ties. They were even wary of each other. Nie Li had no reason to give him something so valuable for nothing.
"These are too valuable." Shen Fei pushed the porcelain bottles back. "I don't need this many. Take them back. Those Legendary Fragments were meant for Glory City in the first place. They don't count as a personal favor to me."
"This wasn't my idea." Xiao Ning'er pushed the bottles back toward him, her tone earnest. "Nie Li really did give me specific instructions.
"He said you contributed a great deal in the ruins, and these pills are his thanks. He also said that since you cultivate quickly, the pills would do more good with you than in his hands. I tried to persuade him otherwise, but he wouldn't listen. He insisted that I deliver them to you."
Shen Fei looked at the porcelain bottles, his brows drawing together slightly. Nie Li sent them? That made it even stranger. Why would Nie Li give him so many pills for no reason?
Just because he and Xiao Ning'er had returned alive from the ruins? Or had Nie Li noticed something and wanted to probe him with these pills? Several possibilities turned through his mind, but none showed on his face.
"Since that's what he wants, I'll accept them." In the end, Shen Fei took the porcelain bottles. "Thank him for me." They had already delivered the gift to his door. Pushing it back and forth any longer would only be needlessly fussy.
Besides, he urgently needed these pills. With them, his cultivation could advance considerably. As for what Nie Li was planning, he could watch and see.
Once he accepted the pills, the hall fell silent for a few seconds.
As though she had suddenly remembered something, Xiao Ning'er asked, "By the way, did you know your Sacred Family is holding a Genius Tournament next month?" "I've heard a little about it." Shen Fei nodded.
The steward had mentioned it a few days earlier. It was Shen Hong's idea: join with several smaller families in the city to hold a sparring tournament for their younger members. They gave it the fine-sounding name of exchanging cultivation insights, but in reality, they wanted to elevate Shen Yue while displaying the Sacred Family's strength.
He had never been interested in that kind of showmanship.
"Will you participate, then?" Xiao Ning'er asked, looking at him.
"Me?" Shen Fei smiled, his tone mild. "I won't join the excitement. These competitions are meant to let each family's geniuses show their faces. There's no point in my going."
Right now, he wanted nothing more than to keep as low a profile as possible. He could not avoid a public spectacle like this quickly enough.
"That's true." Xiao Ning'er nodded, then paused before continuing, "I didn't want to go either, but Nie Li is entering. I'll be watching from the stands. If you're free, would you like to join me? The view is clear from up there, and we won't have to squeeze through the crowd."
Shen Fei raised an eyebrow at that. Nie Li was entering.
He could almost immediately picture the tournament. Those branch-family disciples of the Sacred Family, along with Shen Yue, would certainly not pass up an opportunity to put Nie Li down.
Shen Xiu had already lost once during the soul force test. With the home advantage this time, there was no telling what tricks they would pull.
He sighed inwardly. These people in the Sacred Family accomplished little of substance, yet each was more eager than the last to stir up trouble.
With Nie Li's temperament, he would never indulge them. There was no telling what sort of uproar the tournament might become.
Still, it would be worth watching. He also wanted to see firsthand just how strong Nie Li truly was.
Until now, he had only heard rumors and observed from a distance. He had never seen Nie Li fight in earnest. The Genius Tournament offered a perfect chance to sound out his abilities.
"Sure." Shen Fei agreed. "I'll come find you then. It'll be a chance to see what sort of antics this tournament produces, too." Seeing him agree, Xiao Ning'er gave a slight nod.
"Then it's settled. The tournament is on the fifteenth of next month, starting in the morning. I'll wait for you at the entrance to the stands."
With everything discussed, she did not linger. She rose and took her leave. Shen Fei escorted her to the courtyard gate and watched her disappear around the covered walkway before returning to the side hall.
The two porcelain bottles were still on the table. He picked one up, removed the stopper, and poured out a pill.
The pill was pale blue-green, with a clean, bitter medicinal fragrance. Its medicinal potency was rich and mellow. It was indeed a genuine Soul-Gathering Pill.
Two hundred was no small number. He put the pill back, sealed the bottles, and tucked them inside his clothes.
He still could not quite understand it. Why had Nie Li sent so many pills? Merely to thank him for giving Xiao Ning'er the Legendary Fragment? That didn't seem to make sense.
Nie Li did not seem like someone who would willingly take a loss on a deal. After thinking for a while without reaching a conclusion, he simply set the matter aside. Whatever Nie Li's intentions were, the pills were valuable. Using them to improve his strength first could hardly be wrong.
As for what Nie Li was planning, the Genius Tournament would tell.
Shen Fei took the porcelain bottles back to the inner room, put the pills away, then returned to the desk and picked up the ledger.
Sunlight streamed through the window lattice and fell across the pages.
His fingertip traced the figures in the accounts, but his mind was occupied with other matters. With the Soul-Gathering Pills' assistance, reaching gold rank 2-star would take less than two months.
How much strength would Nie Li reveal at the Genius Tournament? The Dark Guild's recent movements had become restrained. They were probably brewing some new plan.
One matter after another arranged itself neatly in his mind. He picked up his brush and very lightly drew a pierced ring in a blank space on the ledger page. Then he inked it over, leaving not a trace.
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