The Shen family compound occupied three acres in Haishi City's western hills modest by cultivation family standards, but impressive to mortals. Traditional architecture mixed with modern security systems. Guards at the gates who were actually Body Refinement cultivators.
Wei'er's college roommate, Shen Yun, met them at a teahouse two blocks away instead.
"I can't bring you to the compound," Shen Yun said apologetically. She was elegant in a silk qipao, her Foundation Establishment aura carefully contained. "My husband's family is... cautious about outsiders right now."
"Cautious?" Wei'er asked.
Shen Yun leaned closer, voice dropping. "There have been disappearances. Three smaller cultivation families in the past month. Not killed disappeared. Their compounds were found empty, no signs of struggle, just... gone. The Cultivation Affairs Ministry is investigating, but everyone's on edge."
Kai's divine sense flickered outward instinctively. The teahouse was clean with no hostile intent within his hundred-meter range. But the information was troubling.
Disappearing cultivation families wasn't normal mortal crime.
"We won't take much of your time," Wei'er said, sliding the vial of pills across the table. "We just need an honest assessment. If these work as advertised, we want to supply them to reputable families like yours."
Shen Yun picked up the vial, holding it to the light. Her eyes widened. "These are... Wei'er, where did you get genuine Qi-gathering pills? The spiritual energy density is higher than anything on the market."
"We made them."
"You—" Shen Yun's gaze snapped to Kai. I really looked at him for the first time. Her cultivator's senses probed gently, then recoiled in confusion. "You're... Foundation Establishment? But you have no spiritual pressure, no aura. It's like you don't exist."
Kai smiled blandly. "I'm just her assistant."
Shen Yun didn't look convinced, but she pocketed the vial. "I'll have our family's alchemist test one tonight. If it's genuine, the Shen family would be very interested in—"
The teahouse window exploded inward.
Kai moved on pure instinct, his hand snapping out to catch the projectile, a steel bolt the length of his forearm, humming with spiritual energy. It stopped an inch from Shen Yun's throat.
Time seemed to freeze.
Wei'er gasped. Shen Yun stared at the bolt, then at Kai's hand, which showed no strain from catching something that should have punched through concrete.
Outside, three figures in black combat gear landed on the street. Their faces were masked, but Kai's divine sense read their cultivation levels instantly: two at peak Body Refinement, one at Foundation Establishment.
Not random attackers.
Assassins.
"Inside!" The lead assassin's voice was distorted by a voice modulator. "The Shen family woman! Now!"
The other two burst through the teahouse door, moving with enhanced speed. Mortal patrons screamed and scattered.
Shen Yun's hands flashed through seals, spiritual energy gathering. "Wei'er, run!"
But Kai was already moving.
He crossed the distance to the first assassin in a blur, too fast for mortal eyes to track properly. His palm strike looked gentle, almost casual.
The assassin flew backward through the door he'd just entered, his chest caved in, dead before he hit the street.
The second assassin spun toward Kai, blade extending from his forearm a qi-enhanced weapon that could slice through steel. He slashed at Kai's throat in a move that had probably killed dozens.
Kai caught the blade between two fingers.
Squeezed.
The weapon shattered. The assassin's eyes widened behind his mask. "You're not—"
Kai's other hand shot forward, striking the man's dantian, the spiritual energy center. The assassin convulsed as his cultivation scattered, then collapsed, unconscious and crippled.
Total elapsed time: three seconds.
The lead assassin, the Foundation Establishment cultivator, had been preparing a spiritual technique. Now he froze, reassessing. "You... you're hiding your cultivation. What stage—"
Kai appeared in front of him.
The assassin tried to react, but compared to someone who'd once fought Demon Lords, he moved like he was underwater.
Kai's hand locked around the man's throat, cutting off his air and his ability to circulate qi. He slammed the assassin against the wall hard enough to crack the concrete.
"Who sent you?" Kai's voice was conversational, but his eyes were cold. "Answer quickly. I'm not patient."
The assassin clawed at Kai's hand uselessly. "Can't... orders... kill..."
Behind the mask, the man's eyes bulged. Then they glazed over.
Kai frowned and released him. The body slumped to the ground, dead. A thin line of blood leaked from the assassin's ear.
"Poison capsule," Shen Yun said shakily. She'd moved to Wei'er's side, placing herself between her friend and the violence. "Soul-bound. The moment he considered betraying his employer, it activated. These aren't ordinary mercenaries."
Kai knelt and checked the bodies quickly, his enhanced perception cataloging details. Military-grade equipment. Cultivation-enhancing drugs in their systems. Spiritual weapons that cost a fortune.
And on each wrist, a tattoo is a stylized eye within a triangle.
Kai's blood went cold.
He knew that symbol.
It was ancient. Pre-dated most mortal civilizations. A mark used by the Heaven's Eye Sect, an organization that had been destroyed five thousand years ago when they attempted to overthrow the Heavenly Realm.
He'd led the army that annihilated them.
So why were their assassins active in the mortal realm?
"We need to leave," Kai said, standing. "Now."
"The police—" Wei'er started.
"Won't help." Kai grabbed her arm, then looked at Shen Yun. "You're the target. These men were here for you specifically. You need to warn your family immediately."
Shen Yun's face was pale but controlled. "Why would anyone want to kidnap Shen family members? We're not wealthy. We're not powerful. We're—"
"Connected," Kai interrupted. "You have access to other cultivation families. Social networks. Information." His mind raced, pieces clicking together. "The disappearances you mentioned were any of the families related to the Cultivation Affairs Ministry?"
"Two of them had members who worked as investigators, but—" Shen Yun's eyes widened. "You think this is an organized campaign?"
"I think someone is systematically removing people with access to the cultivation world's infrastructure." Kai glanced at the bodies. "And they're willing to kill anyone who interferes."
Sirens wailed in the distance. Someone had called the authorities.
Wei'er pulled Kai toward the back exit. "We can't be here when the police arrive. You're already wanted."
Shen Yun hesitated, then made a decision. "Take this." She thrust the vial of pills into Wei'er's hands, then pulled out a jade token. "Shen family identification. Show it to any mid-tier or higher cultivation sect. They'll give you sanctuary if you need it. And Wei'er thank you. For the warning."
She turned and fled in the opposite direction, moving with cultivator speed.
Kai and Wei'er burst out the back exit into an alley. The motorcycle was parked three blocks away. They ran.
Behind them, more sirens. Shouts. The sounds of police cordoning off the scene.
They reached the motorcycle. Kai's hands were steady as he started the engine, but his mind was churning.
Heaven's Eye Sect.
Impossible. He'd seen their leadership executed personally. Their disciples scattered. Their techniques were forbidden and destroyed.
Yet their assassins were here, active, organized enough to conduct a systematic kidnapping campaign.
Which meant either the sect had survived in hiding for five millennia...
Or someone from the Heavenly Realm had reconstituted them.
"Kai." Wei'er's voice was tight as she climbed on behind him. "What just happened? You moved like... I've seen Foundation Establishment cultivators fight. You're faster. Stronger. That blade you caught should have cut through anything."
"Later."
"No. Now." Her arms wrapped around his waist, but he felt her trembling. "You killed three men in seconds. Professional assassins. You didn't even look winded. And that symbol on their wrists you recognized it. I saw your expression."
Kai pulled into traffic, weaving between cars with practiced ease. His divine sense swept their surroundings constantly, checking for pursuit.
Clean. For now.
"The symbol is old," he said finally. "Older than most cultivation sects. It belonged to an organization that was destroyed long ago. They shouldn't exist."
"But they do."
"Yes."
"And they're kidnapping cultivation families."
"Yes."
Wei'er was silent for a moment. Then: "This is bigger than Wang Zhou, isn't it? We stumbled into something much worse."
Kai didn't answer immediately. They turned onto a highway, the city's lights blurring past.
Finally, he said: "Yes. But it also might be our way out."
"How?"
"Because if the Cultivation Affairs Ministry is investigating disappearances, and we have information about who's responsible, we become valuable. Protected."
"We have three dead bodies and a symbol. That's not information, that's a mystery."
"Then we solve the mystery."
Wei'er's grip tightened. "You're insane. We should be running. Getting out of Haishi City entirely."
"Running won't help. These people are operating nationally, possibly internationally. Distance won't save us." Kai changed lanes, heading toward the East District. "But knowledge will. Power will. We find out what they want, why they're targeting cultivation families, and we use that information as leverage."
"Leverage with who?"
"Everyone."