With the strong "assistance" of the Akaten Tengu mutineers—serving as live sparring partners—Li Pan's practice of Nine Yin Divine Skill grew increasingly refined. His comprehension rose to a new level. Truly worth celebrating.
Compared to the monkey techniques the Green-Robed Freak had once taught him, the differences were clear. The monkey style focused on channeling green qi through the fingertips to imbue weapons with sharp qi blades, slicing barriers, harming monsters, and even firing projectile sword energy. Purely offensive.
Nine Yin Divine Skill was more complete. No flashy effects, but far broader: heightened reflexes, accelerated time perception, qi shielding, shock resistance, brute-force augmentation. In short: attack, defense, agility—all stats boosted.
He lacked a chip to quantify his strength, but by feel alone, his parameters now matched a top-tier level-5 augmentation. Not a "specialized" type like ninja-grade speed enhancers, but full-spectrum. Tearing through a battalion was child's play.
By modern implant standards, reaching this combat power would cost at least a billion credits. Li Pan had achieved it through a few nights of sleep, dual cultivation, and being forced down by a monstrous Bride. A minor milestone indeed.
And this was just the entry level. Still ahead were the volumes Method, Classic, and Book.
Which raised the question: who the hell had written the Nine Yin True Scripture?
As he cultivated, gray qi misting from his fingertips, a sudden vision flickered across his senses. He "saw" the trails he'd left across the battlefield—faint gray fog, lingering like a map overlay in his mind. The qi had become like an extra organ, expanding his perception of the environment.
He discovered more: he could reabsorb the mist, and even harvest a strange "white fog" that drifted from corpses. Similar energy, convertible into his own qi.
A new path of cultivation. Not as pleasant as dual cultivation, but certainly more effective than sitting in an office.
So he sat cross-legged amid corpses, inhaling and exhaling, drawing the mists back, refining them. His stamina and qi surged, leaving him better than before.
Rising, he strode into the burning keep.
At its gate lay the corpse of an old man in a kimono, his mustached face resembling a lion dog. The crest on his robe was unmistakable—Shibata Heavy Industries. This was none other than Chairman Shibata Rokubee… or rather, his clone.
Li Pan kicked the body aside, lifted a floor panel, and exposed the real Shibata, trembling in his underwear inside an emergency pod.
The old man nearly had a heart attack at the sight of Li Pan's flayed, skinless visage.
"Admiral Shibata?"
Li Pan's eyes were cold. No wonder the Akaten Tengu soldiers had saluted before killing him. Shibata was a former fleet admiral, once chancellor of the military academy. A man whose portrait hung on its walls.
But shocking indeed—Akaten Tengu killing him. Li Pan had always assumed Shibata Heavy Industries bankrolled them.
"Y-Yes! I am Shibata Rokubee! Protect me out of the city and I will reward you richly—ah! What are you—"
"In your next life, don't wear such thick soles."
Li Pan dragged him out, snapped his spine over a knee, and tossed the body into the flames. A long-held grudge from academy days, fulfilled.
Leaving the scene, he continued toward Rama and Kotaro.
Tonight Akaten Tengu had unleashed a grand purge. Even the Moth-Butterfly Society's student cadre were mobilized. Thousands dead. Shibata had been given the dignity of seppuku and salute. Others weren't so lucky—entire families dragged out, executed, their neural cores smashed and burned.
Yet killing the flesh was only the first step. These zaibatsu leaders had backups. Through QVN insurance, their minds were uploaded to private servers. Death here meant only paying taxes and waking in a new shell.
The insurance premiums were astronomical—but for the rich, immortality was a subscription plan.
Thus, without monstrous anomalies like "Hairband" who erased consciousness at the root, or "Venom" that destroyed genetic backups, the Akaten Tengu purge would never be final. At best, a temporary setback in boardroom politics.
Indeed, at this very moment, the inheritance of the Oda clan was under dispute. If Hashiba, allied with Akaten Tengu, killed the four senior directors—even briefly—the power balance tipped. Hashiba would emerge the biggest winner.
Paradox: the more powerful the corporation, the less they dared trust foreign insurance. Uploading core secrets to other worlds' servers was suicidal. That was why Oda had developed its own "Divine Palanquin" backup system, aiming for Ethics Committee membership. They had failed. And so they were exterminated.
Such was the jungle of corporate law. If you weren't the rule-maker, you were prey.
Pondering this, Li Pan cut down every Akaten Tengu soldier he encountered, siphoning their white mist to fuel his cultivation, until he reached Kotaro and Rama's safe coordinates.
The district belonged to the Hashiba clan. No enemies, only guards and drones on patrol. Proof enough: Hashiba had orchestrated this coup.
Li Pan entered openly, iris-checked and escorted in. A supervisor even rushed over with a med-kit, bowing and scraping. Clearly, Rama and Kotaro were safe. His ambush had been a fluke. Still, the grudge was noted.
Bandaged like a mummy, he finally found his subordinates. The sight nearly made him faint.
He had been skinned alive by lasers and machine-guns—while Rama had been dragged into PR pillow business, and Kotaro lay collapsed from exhaustion. Rama, the bastard, was performing fire-breathing tricks for geisha.
Exasperated, Li Pan bundled both onto a hovercar and plugged into external comms.
"Eighteen! Eighteen!"
Rama's voice answered. "What is it, boss?"
Li Pan stared at him. "…Wait. That was you?"
Rama-Eighteen grinned. "Yeah. Looked fun. So I gave it a try."
"…."
Li Pan sighed. Fine. When you're just a brain in a jar, there's no shame left.
He handed over his chips. "This one holds compensation from Hashiba—check it, make sure it's clean, then submit to the company for credit. This one's mine, but it snapped. Can it be repaired?"
Eighteen examined it. "You'll need a specialist to mend the chip before I can restore data. I'll try. But boss… how did you even extract this? And sever the neural link? Did someone perform surgery on you?"
"Don't ask. Just contact Ah Qi, have him reset my archive. Damn, it hurts…"
Escorted by Hashiba drones, they returned safely to Night City by dawn. Straight from all-night slaughter to clocking in for work.
On the rooftop, Ah Qi awaited.
"Manager, the Night Clan representatives are here to see you."
"I see. Ignore them. Did you reset my archive yet?"
Ah Qi panicked. "I tried! Miss Eighteen notified me. But your wounds won't heal? I'll get the med-kit!"
Of course. After shedding his skin in the third transformation, the archive reset wouldn't overwrite it. The Nine Yin Scripture wouldn't be mocked so easily. He would have to regrow flesh naturally.
Li Pan glanced at his raw, bloody hands. Then scanned the company system.
The Night Clan were everywhere—outside headquarters, at warehouses, at power stations. Surveillance showed them massed in force.
And there was Emilia. No evening gown this time—rather, a full black latex day-suit, every inch of her vampiric body wrapped tight, save for crimson lips and fangs. Striking enough that Li Pan recognized her instantly at the gates.
Clearly, if the QVN link wasn't restored today, they'd storm the premises.
Li Pan checked Eighteen's intel. Kiyosu was secured, the board purged, Hashiba Tōkichi declared executive officer. The Night Clan had stayed out—proof they had colluded all along.
So Li Pan dialed Emilia's card. A line that wasn't even connected by wire, yet rang regardless.
Her voice came, lazy and magnetic: "Good day, Manager Li. I take it you have good news for me?"
"Is the Shura Association your dogs?"
"…Who?"
"One Shura Nemuri pissed me off. Must die. He's bedding a Night Clan elder. I'm just letting you know."
"Oh, just bedding. Dispose as you like. And the QVN…?"
"Work starts at eight. Wait for notice."
Li Pan hung up.
.
.
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⚠️ 30 CHAPTERS AHEAD — I'm Not a Cyberpsycho ⚠️
The system says: Kill.Mercs obey. Corporates obey. Monsters obey.One man didn't.
🧠💀 "I'm not a cyberpsycho. I just think... differently."
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