"Move! Everybody get the hell out of the way!"
Beside the wrecked Hongqi sedan, several black-clad bodyguards formed a tight perimeter like soldiers on high alert. A white-haired man in his sixties wearing a lab coat was sweating profusely as he dragged an unconscious elder from the back seat.
Though the old man's eyes were shut, the commanding aura between his brows—honed from decades at the top—remained intimidating even at death's door. This man was none other than Shen Wanshan, the true kingmaker of River City and head of the Shen family.
"President Zhang—how is the old master?" the lead bodyguard, A'Long, asked hoarsely, his eyes red with panic.
The elderly doctor, Zhang Keqin—director of River City First Hospital and a national authority in cardiovascular medicine—ripped open a medical kit while speaking rapidly. "Mr. Shen's old illness has flared up from extreme emotional stress. His heart meridians are nearly severed! Prepare epinephrine—we need to stimulate the heart immediately!"
"If that needle goes in… the little life he has left won't last three seconds."
A calm, almost indifferent voice cut through the chaos.
Zhang's hand trembled midair. Irritated, he looked up—and saw a young man standing a few yards away, hands clasped behind his back. His faded shirt made him look poor and out of place, yet his gaze was steady, as if he were already looking at a corpse.
"Where the hell did this punk come from? Get lost!" A'Long roared. "If anything happens to Mr. Shen, your whole family couldn't pay for it!"
Expressionless, Jiang Che pointed at Shen Wanshan's chest. "His forehead is ashen, his philtrum withered—classic signs of severed meridians. Using a stimulant on a dried-out heart is like throwing gasoline on a fire. That injection is a death sentence."
"You ignorant child!" Zhang snapped, beard trembling. "I've practiced medicine for forty years! This is cardiogenic shock! Do you even understand medicine? Which medical school are you from? You look too young to have even held a scalpel!"
Inside Jiang Che's mind, Laozi reclined lazily on his blue ox, scoffing. "These mortals know nothing of yin and yang. The old man wasn't 'failing'—he was struck with a Yin-Sha Anchor. His heart's frozen, not broken. If you don't act now, his soul will be taken."
Jiang Che nodded slightly and stepped forward.
"Stop right there!" A'Long pulled out an electric baton, eyes blazing.
"Let him through."
A clear, cool female voice rang out from the car.
A woman stepped out—dressed in a sleek black business suit, her figure flawless, her presence elegant and icy. Gold-rimmed glasses framed her calm but anxious face.
Shen Qingqiu—the Shen family's eldest granddaughter, River City's legendary ice-queen CEO.
"Miss Shen, we don't know who this kid is—"
"Director Zhang is out of options, isn't he?" she said quietly, locking eyes with Jiang Che. The deep stillness in his gaze made her heart skip. "Can you really save my grandfather?"
"I can. Ten million dollars—and one future favor from the Shen family," Jiang Che said bluntly.
"If you save him, I'll give you twenty million!" she replied without hesitation.
"Nonsense! Miss Shen, don't trust this fraud!" Zhang shouted—but before he could finish, Jiang Che's figure blurred like a phantom, slipping past the guards and appearing beside Shen Wanshan in an instant.
Gasps erupted.
Jiang Che ignored them. His index and middle fingers came together, faint golden light glowing at the tips.
"Taiyi Divine Needles — First Form: Clearing the Clouds."
His fingers struck seven acupoints on Shen Wanshan's chest in rapid succession. Each touch made the old man's body twitch.
To outsiders it looked random—but to Zhang, the accuracy and speed were utterly impossible.
"Channel your qi—into the Spirit Pool!" Laozi commanded.
Jiang Che's eyes flashed. He slammed his palm onto the crown of Shen Wanshan's head.
Just as the guards rushed forward, Shen Wanshan's deathly pale face suddenly flushed red. His eyes snapped open—and he spat out a mouthful of thick, black, foul-smelling blood.
The blood hissed when it hit the ground, releasing faint black smoke.
"T-The blood is black?!" A'Long gasped.
Zhang staggered back in shock. "He expelled stagnant blood… heartbeat restored? That's impossible! This violates every medical principle!"
Shen Wanshan took a long, trembling breath, his unfocused eyes regaining clarity. "I… felt like I had fallen into an icy abyss. Young man… you saved me?"
"Grandpa!" Shen Qingqiu rushed forward, abandoning all composure.
Jiang Che withdrew his hand, slightly pale. He had burned nearly a third of his innate qi purging the Yin-Sha from Shen Wanshan's body.
"His life is safe—for now," Jiang Che said coolly. "But the root cause remains. This isn't an illness… it's a setup."
"A setup?" Shen Wanshan frowned.
"Someone tampered with your residence," Jiang Che said quietly. "They want your entire family wiped out. If you keep living there, today's incident will repeat within seven days—and next time, not even the gods could save you."
Silence fell.
Shen Qingqiu studied him deeply. Not only had he saved her grandfather—he'd seen through the strange misfortunes plaguing their family.
"Mr. Jiang, please accept my apology." She bowed deeply before him, shocking every bodyguard present. "The payment will be transferred immediately. And… would you come to the Shen estate and help us overcome this crisis?"
Inside his mind, Laozi chuckled mischievously. "That girl's a Pure Yin Physique. A perfect Dao partner—great for your cultivation…"
Jiang Che ignored the comment.
"Lead the way," he said simply.
Director Zhang stood there, red-faced and speechless. Everything he believed in had been shattered by a boy with two fingers.
Moments later, Shen Qingqiu's secretary approached Jiang Che. "Sir, your bank details please. Twenty million will arrive within three minutes."
Jiang Che gave his account number casually.
Two minutes later—his phone vibrated.
[Bank Notification] Deposit received: 20,000,000.00 RMB. Current balance: 20,000,350.50 RMB.
Seeing the string of zeros, Jiang Che felt something inside him shift.
Su Qing had betrayed him over a luxury bag worth a few thousand. Lin Zihao had humiliated him for scraps of inheritance. Yet now—one treatment, twenty million.
"Lin family… Su Qing… we'll settle things back at school."
Jiang Che settled into the plush leather back seat of Shen Qingqiu's Bentley. The cabin carried her faint, cool fragrance. She watched him through the rearview mirror—plainly dressed, yet carrying an almost transcendent calm.
"Mr. Jiang, may I ask your full name?" she said.
"Jiang Che."
"Who taught you? Was that ancient traditional medicine?"
He closed his eyes, picturing Laozi's immortal yet mischievous form.
"I have no master. My lineage… is the Celestial Masters."
Outside the window, the fog around Cloudmist Mountain thickened. Bene beneath River City's glittering surface, Jiang Che sensed cold, sinister forces awakening.
And he would be the only light in the coming darkness.
Ahead, the Shen estate—"Cloudpeak Manor," the most luxurious property in River City—came into view.
But through Jiang Che's Divine Dual-Pupil Sight, a horrifying image appeared: a golden dragon-shaped aura once soaring above the estate was now pinned to the mountain by nine massive black chains, silently wailing.
"Nine-Dragon Soul Lock…"
Jiang Che's eyes snapped open, killing intent blazing.
"Ruthless… very ruthless. Looks like it's not just the Lin family. There are plenty of rats in River City trying to defy fate itself."