The Lower North District didn't smell the same.
Lin Ye noticed the moment they turned the third corner. It wasn't a specific scent—not blood, not smoke—but the absence of something living. As if the air had been scrubbed too thoroughly, leaving only old dampness and tired stone.
—Here —he murmured.
Su Yanlin didn't answer. Her steps were silent, calculated. She wasn't using techniques, but her attention was razor-sharp. That kind of focus didn't come from strength—it came from habit.
The alley Lin Ye had "seen" through the Threshold was narrow, crooked, with walls so close the sky barely existed between them. There were no signs of combat. No obvious seals. Nothing was out of place.
And that was what made it alarming.
—Professionals did this —Su Yanlin whispered—. Clean. Fast.
Lin Ye placed a hand against the wall.
The Eye of the Threshold activated cautiously, not seeking movement but what was missing between one instant and the next. The world resisted immediately. A dry pain speared through his temple and blurred his vision.
—Don't push —Su Yanlin warned.
—Just… a little more —he ground out.
He saw fragments.
A step interrupted.A breath cut off before it could finish.An object falling… and never reaching the ground.
—There —he said, pointing to a side door almost invisible in shadow.
The lock wasn't broken. It had simply… been opened and closed with absolute precision.
Su Yanlin eased it inward.
Inside, the room was small. Empty. Too empty. No furniture. No signs of struggle. Only a faint circle on the floor, barely visible, where the dust refused to settle correctly.
Lin Ye felt something tighten in his chest.
—That's an extraction point —Su Yanlin said—. They took him.
Lin Ye took a step forward… and stopped hard.
In a corner, almost out of sight, there was something that didn't belong.
A scrap of torn cloth.
Cheap.Worn.Stained with dried blood.
Lin Ye recognized it instantly.
—…Tao Wen —he whispered.
The name didn't resonate in the world. There was no response. Only an uncomfortable echo inside his own head.
He crouched with difficulty and picked up the cloth carefully. The contact was enough to make the Threshold react—this time not with gentle warnings.
Pain hit like a wave.
Fragmented images crashed in without order:
Tao Wen stumbling backward, tripping.A voice ordering, "Don't kill him yet."Fear. Confusion.A promise broken before it could even form.
Lin Ye dropped to his knees, gasping.
—Lin Ye! —Su Yanlin moved instantly, catching him—. Stop! That isn't a controlled vision!
—He's… alive —Lin Ye said with effort—. Or he was when they took him.
—That isn't comfort —she snapped—. It's a delayed sentence.
Lin Ye clenched the cloth between his fingers.
—It was because of me.
—No —Su Yanlin replied—. It was because of what you represent. He was just close.
That didn't ease anything.
Footsteps echoed deeper in the alley.
Su Yanlin tensed at once.
—We're not alone.
Three figures emerged slowly from shadow. No visible emblems. Their auras were contained, professional. None stood out—and that made them dangerous.
—Well —one said in a bored voice—. I thought you'd take longer to show up.
Lin Ye lifted his gaze.
—Where is he? —he asked. No rage. No shouting.
The man tilted his head.
—The boy? —he replied—. Not your business.
Su Yanlin stepped forward.
—Back off —she ordered—. This isn't convenient for you.
The three chuckled softly.
—We're not here for you —another said—. Just making sure you don't sniff around too much.
Lin Ye tried to stand. His body protested violently.
The margin wasn't enough.
—I'm not going to fight —he said—. Not here.
—What a relief —the first replied—. Then it'll be quick.
The third took a step… then stopped.
—Wait.
He was staring at Lin Ye carefully.
—This is… —he murmured— the one who made space hesitate.
The silence turned heavy.
—Withdraw —he ordered suddenly—. Not here.
—What? —the first protested—. We've—
—Now —he repeated, voice hard.
The others hesitated, but obeyed. In seconds, all three retreated, melting into the night as if they'd never been there.
Su Yanlin exhaled slowly.
—That was… strange.
Lin Ye closed his eyes.
—They don't fear me —he said—. Not yet.
He leaned against the wall, exhausted, the cloth still in his hand.
—But they know I won't look away.
Su Yanlin watched him with a mix of worry and respect.
—This won't end well —she said.
—It never does —Lin Ye replied—. But now it's personal.
As they returned in silence, somewhere unknown Tao Wen woke up bound, his head throbbing, a single thought hammering in his mind:
I shouldn't have gone.
And somewhere in the shadows, someone studied a tablet where two names appeared together for the first time.
Lin Ye.Tao Wen.
—So it's true —a voice murmured—. He does form ties.
The tablet snapped shut.
—Then we'll have to cut them… carefully.
Lin Ye didn't sleep.
Not because the pain wouldn't let him—though it helped—but because the world wouldn't. Every time he closed his eyes, the scrap of cloth returned. Not as a clear vision, but as a constant interruption, a reminder that something had been left unfinished.
The Threshold felt it.
Not like an open wound, but like a tightened line that could no longer be loosened without breaking something else.
—If you act now —Su Yanlin said softly, seated across the room— you'll confirm every rumor.
Lin Ye stood braced against the wall, staring at an empty point.
—If I don't act —he replied— I confirm them anyway. Just with me trapped inside them.
Yan Mo watched from the table, fingers laced, brow furrowed as if weighing invisible probabilities.
—There's an important difference —he said—. If you move openly, you provoke a direct response. If you don't… others will decide that boy's fate without interference.
Lin Ye closed his eyes for a moment.
—Then they've already decided —he murmured—. And I'm only delaying acceptance.
Su Yanlin rose.
—Listen to me —she said firmly—. Tao Wen isn't a cultivator. He isn't a fighter. If we intervene clumsily, they'll kill him to close the matter.
—I know.
—Then you need information —she continued—. Precise. Not impulses.
Lin Ye opened his eyes.
—Do you have it?
Su Yanlin hesitated.
—No —she admitted—. But I know who might.
Yan Mo looked up at once.
—Are you sure? —he asked.
—No —she replied—. But it's better than nothing.
Silence settled heavy.
—Talk —Lin Ye said.
Su Yanlin drew a deep breath.
—There's an informal network in Huo'an —she explained—. Not a house. Not a guild. They're… intermediaries. People who clean up problems quietly and sell the result to whoever pays best.
—Mercenaries —Lin Ye summarized.
—No —she shook her head—. Mercenaries kill. These redistribute.
Yan Mo frowned.
—That means Tao Wen might still be alive.
—It means his value hasn't run out yet —Su Yanlin corrected—. Information. Bait. Or a message.
Lin Ye slowly clenched his fists.
—How do you contact them?
Su Yanlin met his gaze.
—You don't contact them —she said. —You give them something they can't ignore.
Yan Mo shook his head.
—That's dangerous.
—Everything is —she replied—. But this time there's no safe option.
Lin Ye breathed carefully, feeling the pain stack itself into familiar layers.
—What do they want? —he asked.
Su Yanlin held his stare.
—Conflict —she said—. Something they can sell to both sides.
Lin Ye let out a low laugh with no humor.
—I can offer that.
Yan Mo stood immediately.
—No —he said—. Not like that.
—I'm not going to fight —Lin Ye replied—. I'm going to position myself.
The Threshold vibrated softly, as if recognizing a clear intention.
—There's a minor auction tomorrow night —Su Yanlin continued—. Not of objects. Of favors. The right people will be watching.
—And what do I do there? —Lin Ye asked.
Su Yanlin smiled, but there was no amusement in it.
—You show up —she said—. Not as a victim. Not as a threat. As someone who shouldn't be there… but is.
Yan Mo studied him in silence for a few seconds.
—If you do this —he said finally— you cross a line. You won't be able to pretend neutrality afterward.
Lin Ye nodded slowly.
—I crossed it when I decided not to look away.
Su Yanlin stepped closer and set a hand on his shoulder.
—I won't promise this ends well —she said— only that it won't end in silence.
Lin Ye closed his eyes for a second, then opened them with tired but steady clarity.
—Then let's go —he said— before they decide I'm no longer worth the trouble.
Somewhere beneath Huo'an, Tao Wen was shoved into a cold room. They didn't hit him. They didn't question him yet. They simply made him… wait.
—Easy —an unfamiliar voice told him—. They haven't decided what to do with you yet.
And in another room, a tablet was placed on a dark table.
A new name was added beneath older ones:
Lin Ye — active variable.
The decision had been made.
There would be no easy return.