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Chapter 6 - Chapter 6: The Bitter Harvest

The silence in the Wang family's main hall was heavier than a mountain of lead. Wang Jian stood before his father, Patriarch Wang Jin, his head bowed, his body trembling with a mixture of residual fear from the mine's collapse and sheer, undiluted rage. The air crackled with suppressed spiritual pressure, making it hard to breathe.

"Explain it to me again," Wang Jin said, his voice deceptively quiet. He sat on a raised dais, carved from a single block of obsidian, his fingers steepled. He was a man built like a bull, with a thick neck and hands that could crush stone. His cultivation, at the peak of Foundation Establishment, was a palpable weight in the room. "The mine is inoperable because the beasts went mad. Because of… smoke."

"It was the Lin family!" Wang Jian burst out, unable to contain himself. He pointed a shaking finger in the general direction of the Lin estates. "It has to be! First, that cripple Xiao humiliates me with some trick, then they swindle us with that fake herb, and now this? This is not a coincidence!"

"I have investigated the mine personally, Father," said a calmer, colder voice from the side of the room. Wang Li, Wang Jian's older sister, stepped forward. Where Jian was all fire and bluster, Li was ice and calculation. Her cultivation was lower, but her mind was far more dangerous. "There are no signs of a spiritual attack. No residue of offensive Qi. The Fever Moss in the old shaft was ignited, seemingly by chance. The timber sealing it was rotten; a spark from a falling stone, pressure buildup… it is plausible."

"Plausible?" Wang Jian screeched, turning on his sister. "You believe that?!"

"I believe what the evidence shows," she replied, her gaze unwavering. "However, the sequence of events is… statistically improbable. The Lin family has been on the verge of collapse for months. Now, suddenly, they have a thousand spirit stones, and our primary source of income is crippled. The correlation is undeniable. The conclusion is that they are either far luckier than any being has a right to be, or they have an asset we are unaware of."

Patriarch Wang Jin's eyes narrowed. "What kind of asset could a broken clan like the Lins possess that could accomplish this? A hidden expert? A powerful artifact?"

"Unclear," Wang Li said. "But the focus should not be on the 'how,' but on the 'what next.' Their sudden liquidity and our sudden weakness have created an opportunity for them. We must anticipate their move."

"Their move?" Wang Jian laughed, a harsh, broken sound. "We should be the ones making moves! I say we gather our guards and flatten their compound tonight! Let's see how clever that cripple is when his head is separated from his shoulders!"

"And invite the wrath of the City Lord?" Wang Li countered, her voice dripping with scorn. "Attack a merchant clan without proof? We would lose all credibility, and the City Guard would be upon us before dawn. You think with the strength of a child, Jian."

"Enough!" Wang Jin's voice cracked through the hall like a whip. He stood up, his shadow looming over both his children. "Jian, your recklessness has already cost us. Be silent. Li, your analysis is correct. We must be strategic. The Lin family has drawn first blood in a shadow war. We will respond in kind."

He began to pace, the floorboards groaning under his weight. "They have money now. They will try to use it to rebuild, to poach our clients. We will let them."

Wang Jian stared, aghast. "Father! We cannot—"

"We will let them," Wang Jin repeated, a cruel smile twisting his lips. "Because we will be ready. Li, send word to Merchant Gao and Alchemist Feng. Offer them a fifteen percent discount on their next three shipments if they sign an exclusive contract with us today. Let the Lins waste their time making offers to clients who are already bound to us."

Wang Li nodded, a mirror of her father's cold smile on her face. "A prudent move. We bleed a little to ensure they cannot grow."

"As for the cripple…" Wang Jin's gaze turned toward the window, toward the Lin estate. "He is the variable. The source of this change. I do not believe in luck. He has something. Find out what it is. Use the 'Echo.' I want to know every breath he takes, every word he speaks."

Wang Li's expression grew solemn. "The Echo is expensive, Father. And it carries risk. If a cultivator with strong spiritual sense detects it…"

"Then do not let it be detected!" Wang Jin roared, his patience snapping. "I want that boy unraveled. If he has a secret, I will tear it from him. Now go!"

As Wang Li hurried out to execute her orders, Wang Jin turned his burning gaze back to his cowering son.

"And you. You will go into seclusion. You will not leave the compound until you break through to the next level of Qi Refining. You have been humiliated by a mortal. Let that shame fuel your cultivation. If you cannot regain our family's face, then you are no son of mine."

Wang Jian flinched as if struck. He bowed deeply, his fists clenched so tightly his nails drew blood from his palms. Rage and humiliation warred within him, but beneath it all was a cold, sharpening point of hatred, directed solely at Lin Xiao.

---

Meanwhile, in the Lin family study, the mood was cautiously optimistic. Lin Zhan had spent the morning drawing up new trade proposals, his hand steadier than it had been in years.

"Merchant Gao is our best chance," Lin Zhan said, pointing to a name on a scroll. "He buys raw stone in bulk for his construction projects. He's pragmatic. If we can offer a better price than the Wangs, he will listen."

Lin Xiao, who had been silently observing the System's new defensive alerts flicker at the edge of his vision, nodded. "Good. He will be our first target. But we cannot just offer a better price. We must offer stability. The Wangs' mine is closed. We can position ourselves as the reliable alternative."

"And how do we do that?" Lin Zhan asked, genuinely curious. He was no longer questioning his son's judgment, only seeking to understand it.

"We show him a plan," Xiao said simply. "We show him that we have already secured a new, small source of spirit stone ore from the Red Cliff village, independent of the Wangs. It's not much, but it proves we are diversifying. We are not putting all our eggs in one basket. He will appreciate that."

Lin Zhan's eyes widened. "The Red Cliff village? But we haven't…"

"We will," Xiao interrupted. "I've already sent a messenger with an offer they are unlikely to refuse." He didn't mention that the offer was backed by a subtle use of 10 KP on a 'Minor Good Fortune' charm for the village chief, ensuring he would be in a favorable mood when the Lin family's proposal arrived.

It was a small, almost insignificant manipulation of karma. But small pushes, in the right places, could move mountains.

"Let's go," Xiao said, standing up. "We have a merchant to convince."

The meeting with Merchant Gao was held in a neutral teahouse. Gao was a round, balding man with shrewd eyes that missed nothing. He listened patiently as Lin Zhan laid out their proposal.

"Your offer is… interesting, Lin Zhan," Gao said, sipping his tea. "And your timing is impeccable. The Wangs' recent… difficulties… have caused concern. But you must understand, they have been my supplier for years. Loyalty has value."

"Loyalty should not come at the cost of stability, Merchant Gao," Lin Xiao spoke for the first time, his voice calm and measured.

Gao looked at him, intrigued. This was the crippled young master he'd heard so much about. The boy didn't look like much, but his eyes held a disconcerting intensity.

"And how do you propose to provide greater stability than the Wang Cartel?" Gao asked, directing the question at Xiao.

"By not being the Wang Cartel," Xiao replied. "Their entire operation hinges on a single mine. We are building a network. The Red Cliff source is the first. There will be others. When you buy from us, you are not buying from a single point of failure. You are buying from a system designed for resilience."

He leaned forward slightly. "The Wangs' strength was their monopoly. That monopoly is now their greatest weakness. We are offering you a way out before their ship drags you down with them."

Merchant Gao was silent for a long time, studying Xiao. The boy was right. The Wangs were vulnerable. And this Lin Xiao… he spoke with a confidence that belied his years and his infamous lack of cultivation. It was unnerving.

"I will give you a trial," Gao said finally. "A small order. Half of what I usually buy from the Wangs. If you can deliver on time and the quality is good, we will discuss a larger contract."

It was a victory. A small one, but a victory nonetheless.

As they left the teahouse, Lin Zhan let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. "You did it, Xiao. You actually did it."

"It's a start," Xiao said, but his mind was already elsewhere. The System had just flashed a subtle, yellow warning.

[Passive Alert: 'Eyes of the Guardian' has detected a persistent, low-level spiritual fluctuation attached to host's person. Nature: Scrying. Intent: Surveillance.]

So. The Wangs had finally stopped blustering and started thinking. They had sent a spy. Not a person, but a spell. A subtle, clinging thread of spiritual energy meant to listen and report.

A lesser man might have panicked. Lin Xiao simply smiled.

He didn't try to dispel it. That would alert the caster. Instead, he opened his System interface, a plan already forming.

"System," he thought. "I need a skill. Something that can feed false audio and spiritual feedback to this scrying spell. Make it hear and see what I want it to."

[Scanning…]

[Skill Available: 'Karmic Echo Trap' (Tier 2). Allows host to create a false sensory loop for any spiritual surveillance attached to them. Cost: 300 KP.]

It was expensive. But for the ability to control the narrative his enemies received, it was priceless.

"Purchase it."

He felt a strange shift around him, like a mirror settling into place. The scrying spell was now his puppet. He could let it hear the truth, or he could feed it lies.

For now, he decided on a mixture. He would let the Wangs hear his father's relieved laughter, his own confident plans for the future. Let them know their attacks had failed. Let them stew in their frustration.

But he would carefully edit out any mention of the System, of Karma Points, of his true capabilities. He would become a mirror, showing them only the reflection he wanted them to see.

The war in the shadows had truly begun. The Wangs had made their second move. And Lin Xiao was already countering, not with force, but with a deeper, more profound understanding of the battlefield. He wasn't just fighting for contracts or money anymore. He was fighting for control of the very information his enemies received.

He was turning their own eyes and ears into weapons against them. And they didn't have a clue.

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