The fog bank was a masterpiece of misdirection. Lin Hao stood at the edge of his property, watching a delivery truck, carrying high-end Italian tiles for Fatty, navigate the winding road. The driver slowed down, looked confused for a moment as he passed the boundary, muttered something about "weird weather," and then kept driving, his GPS guiding him through the illusion because he had permission.
But Lin Hao knew it wasn't enough.
The Concealment Formation was a soft shell. It relied on the mind's desire to ignore the uninteresting. It worked on civilians, delivery drivers, and maybe low-level BSA patrols.
But what about the wolves?
What about a Level 4 Prodigy like Li Wei, whose ego demanded he investigate every anomaly? What about a Level 5 beast that hunted by scent? Or worse, a real expert from a Guardian Family who might recognize the formation for what it was?
If someone possessed the will to push through the fog, there was nothing stopping them from walking right up to his front door.
He needed a hard shell. An inner wall.
He looked at the existing perimeter fence. It was an ornate, rusted, wrought-iron affair that had probably cost a fortune in the 90s. Now, it was just scrap metal.
It was perfect. Iron was conductive. It was aggressive. It was the metal of war.
He walked along the fence line, ripping the heavy, spear-tipped iron posts from the ground with his [Level 7] strength as easily as pulling weeds. He gathered fifty of them, creating a heap of rusted spikes in the center of the driveway.
He placed his hand on the cold, biting metal.
"System," he commanded. "Open $Object Upgrade$."
[Object: Rusted Iron Fence Posts (Mortal Grade)] [Details: High-carbon steel. Conductive. Aggressive shape.]
He didn't want a lethal trap. Not yet. A "killing array" required blood to maintain, and dead bodies attracted the wrong kind of attention. He needed a deterrent. He needed something that would make even the bravest intruder turn around and run.
[Upgrade: Mid-Grade Spirit Rank 'Phantom Fear' Warning Formation]?
The cost appeared.
[Cost: 5,000 UP]
Lin Hao flinched. Five thousand.
He was bleeding points. Every investment pushed him further away from the 50,000 UP he needed for his sister. His balance would drop to 41,760.
But he thought of his sister visiting here. He thought of her sleeping in a guest room while a "Wolf" crept through the fog.
There was no choice. Security was the prerequisite for prosperity.
"Confirm."
[Deducting 5,000 UP. 41,760 UP Remaining.]
The pile of iron posts didn't glow with the warm, earthen light of the river stones. They turned dark.
A cold, violet shadow seemed to seep from the metal. The rust vanished, replaced by a gunmetal-black sheen that seemed to absorb the sunlight. Jagged, sharp runes etched themselves into the steel, looking like claw marks.
The air around the pile grew instantly colder, and a sudden, irrational sense of dread spiked in Lin Hao's chest before his own Qi suppressed it.
It worked.
He took the posts. He didn't bury them. He drove them into the ground, forming a tight, inner circle around the manor itself, fifty yards out.
He activated the array.
THRUM.
A silent, psychic shockwave rippled outward, stopping exactly at the line of the iron posts.
To the naked eye, nothing had changed.
But Lin Hao knew the rules he had just written into reality.
If a guest, like Fatty or a delivery driver, crossed the line with neutral or good intent, they would feel nothing.
But if someone crossed this line with ill intent... if they came to steal, to hurt, or to kill...
The formation would reach into their reptile brain. It would amplify their deepest, darkest fears a thousandfold. A thief would feel the crushing weight of prison walls. A killer would feel the cold breath of their own death on their neck. It would be a paralyzing, bowel-loosening terror that would force them to their knees, or send them screaming back into the fog.
It was the perfect, non-lethal filter.
Lin Hao wiped his hands. The Manor was no longer just a house. It was a fortress hidden in a cloud, guarded by a nightmare.
He checked his balance.
[Upgrade Points (UP): 41,760]
He was poorer than he wanted to be. But he was safe.
And the sun was setting. The Midnight Gain was coming.