The Jade Pavilion's boardroom smelled of sandalwood and restrained tension.Adrian—still wearing a patch on his cheek and his arm in a sling—held a brush in his left hand, struggling to jot down figures in a ledger.
At his side, Su Meilan presided over the table with glacial elegance. She had resumed wearing her veil, but her eyes were twin daggers, cutting down any attempt at levity.
"Next applicant," Adrian said flatly.
The door opened, and Madame Rose entered. She didn't walk—she glided. Draped in crimson silk so translucent it felt more like a suggestion than clothing. But what truly dominated the room—and everyone's field of vision—was her generous cleavage, openly defying not only decency, but the laws of mystical gravity.
"Honored directors," Rose purred, leaning deeply over the table, directly in front of Adrian. "I come bearing the opportunity of a lifetime. Crimson Cloud Paradise. A high-end center for… spiritual recreation."
Adrian blinked.Pure biological survival instinct pulled his eyes downward by a single millimeter. Just one.
BAM.
A sharp kick slammed into his right shin—exactly where the bruise from his fight with Ye Chen still lingered.
"Gah!" Adrian dropped the brush. It rolled across the table, streaking a quarterly balance sheet with ink.
"Is there a problem, partner?" Su Meilan asked sweetly, never lifting her gaze from her documents. Her leg remained poised beneath the table, ready to strike again.
"A—a cramp," Adrian managed, straightening and fixing his eyes on the ceiling. "Residual energy imbalance from the tournament. Please continue, Madame. Without leaning so far forward, if possible—the airflow in this room is limited."
Madame Rose smiled, fully aware of her power. She straightened slightly—only to rest her elbows on the table, somehow making her sales pitch even more prominent.
"You see, cultivators suffer from tremendous stress," Rose explained. "My proposal is a brothel—pardon me—a Recreational Dual-Cultivation Sanctuary. I require an initial investment of five hundred thousand stones for silk furnishings and jasmine-based fragrances."
Adrian tried to professionalize the situation. This was his safe zone.
"Let's discuss margins, Madame. What's the projected Return on Investment? Staff turnover rates? Any contingency plans for Qi-transmitted illnesses?"
"Oh, Mr. Valmont," she leaned in again, whispering. "The returns are… immediate. If you like, we can discuss turnover privately."
The air dropped ten degrees.
CRACK.
The leg of Adrian's chair groaned as Su Meilan's boot came down on his foot with the weight of a mountain.
"Adrian," Meilan whispered into his ear, voice soft and lethal, "if you look at this woman's business plan like that again, I swear by the Dao your next investment will be a luxury coffin. One hundred percent discounted."
Adrian swallowed, staring intensely at a damp stain on the far wall.
"Madame Rose," he said in a voice an octave too high, "we appreciate your… structure. However, we're seeking more… tangible investments. Less… pneumatic. The committee"—he glanced meaningfully downward—"declines."
Rose pouted, adjusted her neckline with a motion that nearly blinded Adrian with reflected light, and sashayed out. That negotiation would clearly happen elsewhere—another time.
When the door closed, the silence was funerary.
Adrian sighed, rubbing his shin. "Was physical violence really necessary, Meilan? I was evaluating service-sector viability."
She tore off her veil, sparks flying from her eyes.
"Evaluating the market? You nearly climbed into her cleavage to audit the accounts, Adrian! You didn't even blink!"
"It's hard to blink when a silk mountain is ten centimeters from your face!" he protested. "Besides—you said we needed to diversify the portfolio!"
"Diversifying doesn't mean funding sin, idiot!" She hurled a scroll at his head. "Next candidate: a spiritual pig breeder. And you'd better not stare at the pigs' chests, or I swear—"
The investment meeting was deteriorating rapidly.
Adrian discreetly massaged his shin while the pig breeder enthusiastically described—at criminal length—the precise texture of his animals' manure and its applications as premium fertilizer.
"It's a circular economy, Mr. Valmont," the farmer said, blissfully unaware of the cold war across the table. "The pig consumes spiritual waste, produces Qi-rich excrement, which—"
Adrian nodded mechanically, avoiding Meilan's gaze. She was sharpening an invisible dagger with her eyes, each word adding to her evident fury.
Then reality froze.
[DING!][PLOT EVENT ALERT: MAIN CHARACTER ENTRY!]
The System—silent and sulking since the tournament disaster—returned with its most authoritative and unbearable voice.
System:"Attention, bargain-bin administrator!Stop smelling pigs and prepare yourself.Secondary Heroine Li Xiao has just crossed the threshold of the Commerce Chamber."
A second message flashed red.
"Wounded pride.Debt ledger burning.Mandatory reminder:— Save her financially.— Do not touch.— Do not stare excessively.— That woman belongs to the Hero."*
Then, as always, the threat.
"Penalty for failure: one thousand poisoned needles, volcanic disposal, and one hundred Heavenly Dao lightning strikes upon your soul. Behave."
Adrian stiffened.
Su Meilan noticed instantly.
"What now?" she asked, narrowing her eyes. "Another Madame Rose with bigger assets?"
"Worse," Adrian murmured, adjusting his robe. "Competition… and an unpaid bill."
The boardroom door didn't open.
It was announced.
No knock. Only the clean, profound scent of refined medicinal herbs—and a presence that demanded space.
Li Xiao entered.
Despite the crisis devouring her clan, she wore immaculate emerald silks. Her hair was arranged in an intricate updo secured with silver pins—ornamental yet functional. She ignored the farmer. Ignored the luxury of the room.
Her eyes—sharp, intelligent, and heavy with restrained desperation—locked onto Adrian.
"I've read your… invitation, Director Valmont," she said, tossing the cream paper and black wax letter onto the table.
It landed squarely atop brothel schematics… and spiritual pig diagrams.
"It's the most arrogant, technical, and insulting proposal I've received in twenty years of cultivation."
Su Meilan rose slowly.
Her aura shifted.
The Fairy of Commerce had awakened.
"Master Li," she said, smiling perfectly—without warmth. "Welcome to the Tianxu Commerce Chamber. I wasn't aware the Southern Clan was so… in need of our charity."
Li Xiao's jaw tightened as she studied Su Meilan like an unknown specimen under an alchemical lens.
"This isn't charity, Director Su. It's asset negotiation."A pause."Though I am surprised to see you here. I was under the impression Adrian Valmont ran this office alone."
[DING: System Warning — Power Output 5%]
A prickling sensation crawled down Adrian's spine.
"Ladies," he interjected, standing. "Let's save protocol and barbs for later."To Li Xiao: "Please, take a seat."To Su Meilan: "Meilan, bring the Southern Clan audit."
He exhaled.
"We have much to discuss—and very little capital to waste."
Li Xiao sat opposite him, crossing her legs with deliberate elegance.
"Tell me, Valmont," she said coolly. "Do you truly believe you can acquire my clan in exchange for forty percent of my patents?"
Her gaze sharpened.
Adrian didn't answer immediately. He studied her the way a merchant studies a чуж oven—not for the fire, but for the cracks.
"Master Li," he said at last, calm and even, "if I intended to acquire your clan, this room would be full of Commercial Dao lawyers—not…," he glanced sideways, "…spiritual pigs."
Su Meilan arched a brow.Li Xiao didn't smile.
"Then be clear," Li Xiao said. "My time is worth more than my pills."
Adrian nodded.
"Good. Then let's talk survival—not pride."
He slid a single document across the table. No contracts. No blood seals.Only numbers.
"Your clan's problem isn't quality," he continued. "It's flow. You produce little, slowly, and expensively. The Commerce Chamber produces in volume—cheaply and consistently. Competing head-on is…," he paused deliberately, "…unsustainable."
Li Xiao's fingers tightened.
"Are you mocking me?"
"On the contrary. I'm offering you an exit without humiliation."
Su Meilan spoke softly:
"The Chamber proposes an alchemical cooperation agreement."
Li Xiao looked up, alert.
"Explain."
Adrian continued.
"Step one:The Chamber guarantees raw material supply to your clan for six months. Fixed price. No speculation. No hidden auctions."
That caught her attention—despite herself.
"And in return?"
"Nothing… yet."
The silence thickened.
"Step two," Adrian said. "Your pills continue to sell under the Li Clan seal. Your reputation remains untouched. Distribution moves through our channels."
Li Xiao frowned.
"That's just intermediation."
"Exactly," Adrian smiled. "Harmless. Transparent. Comfortable."
Su Meilan added:
"The Chamber takes a minimal percentage for logistics and commercial protection. Far less than what you're losing operating alone."
Li Xiao calculated rapidly.
The numbers… worked. Too well.
"And step three?" she asked warily.
Adrian didn't dodge.
"Only if the market keeps falling," he said."And if it does, you may license select minor formulas to the Chamber for mass production."
"License?" she repeated. "Not sell?"
"Never sell," Adrian said firmly. "Li Clan knowledge is sacred. We merely… circulate it."
Something uncomfortable stirred in her chest.
Not anger.
Relief.
"And if I refuse step three?"
Adrian shrugged.
"Then the agreement ends at step two. You live. Your clan lives. No debt. No trade war."
A beat.
"But the market won't wait," he added gently. "Neither will the Chamber."
Li Xiao looked down at the document.
No obvious traps.No coercion.
Only a cruel truth: alone, she was losing.
"This isn't charity," she murmured.
"It never is," Adrian replied."It's a long-term investment."
Su Meilan smiled—genuinely, for the first time.
"Welcome to the modern market, Master Li."
Li Xiao closed her eyes for a single second… then nodded.
Somewhere unseen, the System began issuing alerts—though even it didn't seem to understand why.