Skyview Manor was silent.
It was a different kind of silence than the warehouse. That had been a dead, damp, industrial quiet. This was a high-altitude, hermetically sealed, expensive silence.
Lin Hao sat in the center of the main hall. It was a cavernous space with twenty-foot ceilings and a floor-to-ceiling glass wall that looked out over the sheer drop of the cliff. Far below, the lights of City U twinkled like a carpet of fallen stars.
He was the king of the mountain.
Down the hall, in the "East Wing," Fatty Zhang, now "Mr. Zhang", was asleep in a master suite that cost more than his parents' entire house. The "Front Man" had spent the day hyperventilating over the thread count of the sheets and the sheer size of the petty cash stack.
But here, in the unfurnished, echoing West Wing, Lin Hao was focused on the only currency that mattered.
He checked the time on his phone.
11:59:58 PM
The ritual. The heartbeat of his ascension.
00:00
He didn't hesitate. The numbers were getting larger, but the discipline remained absolute.
He opened the [$World Upgrade$] tab.
[Daily Boost: Increase Global Reiki Density (0.01%)]? (Cost: 90 UP)
Ninety points. A pittance.
"Confirm."
[Deducting 90 UP. 24,160 UP Remaining.] [Ascension Bonus: ACTIVE. Your next daily UP gain will be 51,200 UP.]
Fifty-one thousand.
The number sent a thrill through him. The exponential curve was finally starting to go vertical. He was moving from "linear growth" to "explosive wealth."
And then, the payout arrived.
[Daily UP Generation: Active.] [Ascension Bonus: Applied (x2).] [You have received 25,600 UP.]
The interface flashed. The new wealth poured into his account, merging with his 24,160 UP balance.
[Upgrade Points (UP): 49,760]
Lin Hao stood up. He walked to the massive glass window, looking down at the city.
He pulled up the one, burning goal that had driven him since the tiger attack.
[Target: Lin Meng | Talent: L3 -> L4 | Cost: 50,000 UP]
He looked at his balance: 49,760.
He did the mental math.
50,000 - 49,760 = 240 UP.
He was two hundred and forty points short.
It was a microscopic sliver. It was less than 0.5% of the total. If he had sold one more knife, or skimped on one formation flag, he would have it.
For a moment, the old frustration flared. He wanted to do it now. He wanted to wake up tomorrow knowing his sister was a [Common Root] cultivator, that she was safe, that her foundation was secure.
But the frustration quickly cooled into a calm, confident patience.
He wasn't scrambling anymore. He wasn't in a leaky warehouse, terrified of a BSA patrol. He was in a fortress. His sister had the "Clear Water Chant" and the pills. She was safe for another 24 hours.
And tomorrow...
Tomorrow, his income would be 51,200 UP.
He wouldn't just cross the finish line; he would smash through it. He would have enough to upgrade her, and still have 50,000 UP left over to finally upgrade himself to [Level 5: Superior Root].
He pressed his hand against the cold glass, looking at the distant, sleeping suburbs where his family lay.
"One more day, Meng-meng," he whispered to the night. "Just one more day."
He turned back to the empty room. His cultivation realm was unlocked. He had a High-Grade Gongfa. He had a mountain full of denser Reiki.
He didn't need to sleep. He needed to prepare for the dawn of his true power.