CHAPTER 7 — The First Body
The rain didn't fall that night.
The city was unnaturally still.
At 2:17 AM, one of Shen Jinhai's core financial advisors was found dead in his apartment.
No forced entry.
No sign of struggle.
Just a single black chess piece placed on his chest.
A knight.
Morning.
Inside Yonghe International Holdings.
Shen Jinhai stood by the window, listening to the report.
"Cause of death: cervical fracture," his assistant said carefully. "Clean. Precise."
Shen Jinhai's expression remained calm.
"Security footage?"
"Corrupted between 1:48 and 2:05 AM."
A pause.
Then Shen Jinhai smiled slightly.
"So he has begun."
Meanwhile.
Inside Zhen Group's executive bathroom, Li Zheng Yuan washed his hands slowly.
There was a faint bruise along his knuckles.
He did not remember how it got there.
But his pulse was steady.
Inside his head—
Silence.
Not whispers.
Not taunts.
Just satisfaction.
His reflection tilted its head slightly.
One piece removed.
He dried his hands.
Composed.
Perfect.
Golden Crown — Private Room.
Xu Kai's face was pale.
"The dead advisor? He was the one routing funds into the ghost shell company."
Zhao Ming exhaled slowly. "So someone is eliminating Shen Jinhai's structure."
Gu Wei Chen didn't sit.
He stood near the window.
"Or sending him a message."
Han Lu narrowed her eyes. "You think Li Zheng Yuan did it?"
Gu Wei Chen's jaw tightened.
"He didn't."
"Then who?"
His voice lowered.
"Something inside him."
CHAPTER 8 — The Game of Corners
Three days later.
Another Yonghe executive disappeared.
This time, he was found alive.
Locked inside an abandoned factory in District North.
Hands tied.
Phone placed in front of him.
Forced to record a message.
The video was sent directly to Shen Jinhai.
The man's voice trembled.
"He knows everything… the ghost server, the bribes, the warehouse fire… Chairman, he said you should stop while you still have hands to sign contracts—"
The video cut off with a sharp scream.
Shen Jinhai replayed the footage twice.
Then three times.
Zooming in.
Studying the background shadows.
There.
In the corner of the screen.
A faint reflection in broken glass.
A silhouette.
Tall.
Still.
Watching.
Shen Jinhai whispered, almost amused—
"Li Zheng Yuan."
That same night.
Chen Rui couldn't sleep.
He checked the CEO's schedule.
2:00 AM — No appointments.
Location tracker — penthouse residence.
But security logs showed something else.
Private elevator access activated at 1:32 AM.
No exit recorded.
His breathing became uneven.
Inside an abandoned parking structure.
Li Zheng Yuan stood in darkness.
The captured executive lay unconscious at his feet.
His suit jacket removed.
His composure gone.
Li Zheng Yuan crouched slowly.
His voice was soft.
"You thought hiding behind an old man would protect you?"
The man whimpered weakly.
Li Zheng Yuan tilted his head.
"I admire loyalty."
A pause.
"But I don't forgive arrogance."
His hand moved with terrifying precision.
A calculated strike.
The man screamed—
Then silence.
Li Zheng Yuan stood up.
Straightened his cuffs.
And left without looking back.
Morning.
He sat in a board meeting.
Calm.
Collected.
Strategic.
As if he had slept peacefully.
But deep inside—
The hunt was becoming easier.
More natural.
More addictive.
CHAPTER 9 — When Predators Recognize Each Other
Golden Crown was unusually quiet.
Gu Wei Chen stood alone when Li Zheng Yuan entered.
No entourage.
No guards.
Just the two of them.
"You're escalating," Gu Wei Chen said quietly.
Li Zheng Yuan poured himself a drink without asking.
"Am I?"
"Two Yonghe executives in one week."
Li Zheng Yuan's expression didn't change.
"You think I did it?"
Gu Wei Chen stepped closer.
"I think you enjoyed it."
Silence.
The air thickened.
For a brief second—
Li Zheng Yuan's lips curved.
Not polite.
Not corporate.
Dangerous.
"And if I did?"
Gu Wei Chen's heartbeat slowed.
Instead of anger—
He felt something else.
Recognition.
"You're hunting him."
"Yes."
"Without strategy."
"No."
Their eyes locked.
Predator to predator.
Gu Wei Chen leaned closer.
"You're going to draw him out."
Li Zheng Yuan's gaze darkened slightly.
"He already knows."
Across the city—
Shen Jinhai sat in his private study.
Looking at three chess pieces laid out on the table.
A knight.
A rook.
A bishop.
Two removed.
One remaining.
He whispered softly—
"Let's see how far your darkness goes, CEO Li."
Meanwhile—
Chen Rui finally confirmed it.
The timestamps.
The elevator.
The missing hours.
His hands trembled as he stared at the screen.
His CEO wasn't being manipulated.
He was retaliating.
But not through boardrooms.
Through fear.
Through silence.
Through pain.
And the worst part—
He was getting better at it.
Shanghai glittered outside.
Unaware that a private war was unfolding in its shadows.
Shen Jinhai thought he was controlling two kings.
But he had miscalculated.
One of them did not merely play chess.
He removed pieces from the board.
Personally.
And the hunt—
Had only just begun.