「Young Master Sun… this… this is too valuable—」
Qi Wei stared at the jade ruyi floating in front of him, his pupils contracting sharply. His voice trembled, every word dripping with disbelief.
This was a Sixth-Tier Royal Artifact!
Even for him—Deputy Director of the Magic City Security Bureau, a Sixth Realm Transcendent powerhouse—such a treasure was beyond priceless.
In this empire, where power was monopolized by the Qianyuan Imperial Family and aristocratic clans, master smiths were hoarded like rare gems by every major faction, revered as honored guests.
Under this rigid hierarchy of power, artifacts were scarce commodities—hard to come by, even for those in high positions.
A commoner who'd clawed his way up from the bottom to his current rank, Qi Wei had spent decades scraping and saving just to acquire *one* Royal Artifact of his own.
And now, Sun Qian was tossing another one to him like it was a worthless trinket.
This single gift was worth more than half his lifetime of effort.
He wanted to take it—desperately—but a flicker of hesitation held him back. What if accepting this treasure meant severing his connection to this "noble patron" forever? What if this was the end of his chance to climb higher?
「Take it, Director Qi,」 Sun Qian said casually, his tone dismissive, as if he were handing over a piece of candy. 「It's just a small toy. I've got plenty more where that came from.」
「And in the future… you'll get even more.」
Sun Qian saw through his hesitation in an instant, his words cutting straight to the chase—an unmistakable olive branch, a promise of greater rewards to come.
Right now, the chance of Qi Wei being part of the mastermind's faction was negligible at best. A Deputy Director of the Security Bureau, a Transcendent Realm powerhouse—he had enough weight to be useful.
Enough to be taken under Sun Qian's wing.
Now that he'd all but torn the Li family to shreds, he needed a local lackey—someone who knew the ins and outs of Magic City's power structure—to handle the dirty work, to keep an eye on the other clans, to run errands that didn't warrant his own attention.
If Qi Wei proved himself competent, Sun Qian wouldn't mind boosting him even higher—maybe even helping him seize the top spot as Director of the Security Bureau.
Qi Wei's eyes lit up like a torch. He caught the meaning behind Sun Qian's words loud and clear—the lure of power, the promise of a brighter future. His hesitation vanished without a trace, replaced by fanatical gratitude.
「Thank you, Young Master Sun! Thank you for the gift!」 He bowed deeply, his hands trembling as he reached out to cradle the jade ruyi. The warm, life-giving energy of the artifact seeped into his palms, making his heart race with excitement.
Just then, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed from the hallway outside—scuffed, uneven, like someone was sprinting in tattered shoes.
A young man burst into the room, his clothes ragged and patched like a beggar's, a tattered cloth bag slung over his shoulder. He looked rough around the edges, with a wild, unruly aura about him—like a country bumpkin who'd stumbled into a fancy party by mistake.
It was none other than Ye Fan—the fated protagonist.
True to the unwritten rule of protagonists always showing up *at the last minute*, he'd arrived just as everything was settling down.
「Damn it! I messed around too long—almost blew the whole thing!」 Ye Fan cursed under his breath, his face flushed with urgency. 「Yue'er must be so worried…」
An hour ago, when he'd accompanied Liu Yue to the banquet, he'd spotted a girl who looked exactly like his "first love." Dazed by nostalgia, he'd gone over to chat, downed a few drinks, lost track of time.
By the time he'd snapped back to his senses, an hour had slipped by.
The realization that he'd left his beloved goddess alone at the banquet for *an hour*—unprotected, surrounded by lecherous rich kids—had made him want to slap himself silly.
What if those scumbags had tried to lay a hand on her? What if she'd been hurt?
Wracked with guilt, he'd sprinted into the Century Hotel—only to freeze at the sight that greeted him.
His perfect, ice-cold goddess Liu Yue was nestled in another man's arms, her cheeks flushed with wine, her eyes half-lidded, looking utterly defenseless.
Ye Fan's blood pressure skyrocketed instantly.
「SUN! QIAN!」
...
「Showing up now? Typical fated protagonist—always fashionably late.」
「If this were a TV show, the villain would've already wrapped up the plot and gone home to celebrate.」
Sun Qian rolled his eyes at Ye Fan's dramatic entrance, silently mocking him.
This guy—whoever ended up with him was in for a world of trouble. Always running off chasing trivialities, leaving his loved ones high and dry when they needed him most.
Right now, Ye Fan had the protection of fate and a mysterious old man's residual soul hiding in his body—making him a pain to kill.
But since he'd gone out of his way to show up… Sun Qian might as well teach him a lesson.
A lesson that would leave a *lasting* impression.
And a souvenir to boot—something he could use to track Ye Fan down in his next simulation, to seize the Nine Steps of Treading the Heavens before the protagonist could master it.
「SUN! QIAN!」
Blinded by rage, Ye Fan turned into a blur of motion, charging at Sun Qian like a mad bull, his fists raised to strike.
「LET GO OF YUE'ER!!!」
Fury had clouded his judgment completely. He didn't even notice Qi Wei—the Transcendent Realm powerhouse standing right beside Sun Qian. He didn't sense the oppressive aura of Sun Zhong—the Seventh Layer Saint lurking behind him.
He saw only the man holding his goddess.
「Hmph. A bodyguard who vanishes when his master needs him most,」 Sun Qian scoffed, his gaze dripping with contempt. He didn't even bother to lift a finger, his voice cold and sharp as a blade. 「Pathetic.」
If Ye Fan had already mastered the Nine Steps of Treading the Heavens, Sun Qian might have taken him seriously.
But now? He was nothing more than an annoying gnat.
Sun Qian suppressed the urge to blast Ye Fan's skull apart with a single Vast Primordial Dragon Fist, his lips curling into a cruel smirk.
「Break his arm.」
The words were barely out of his mouth when Sun Zhong moved.
A pale, slender hand shot out from behind Sun Qian, moving faster than the naked eye could follow. A surge of terrifying spiritual energy erupted, condensing into a glowing cyan blade that sliced through the air with a shrill *whine*.
AGH!!!
A bloodcurdling scream tore from Ye Fan's throat.
A searing pain exploded from his right arm. He stared in horror as his forearm was sliced clean off, the severed limb flying through the air before crashing to the floor with a sickening *thud*.
The rage cleared from his mind in an instant, replaced by bone-chilling terror.
Before he could even react, Qi Wei appeared in front of him like a ghost, his palm outstretched, aiming straight for Ye Fan's skull—ready to crush it into paste for daring to attack Sun Qian.
「How dare you attack Young Master Sun, you reckless madman?!」
BOOM!
At the critical moment, a wave of eerie, ghostly flame erupted from Ye Fan's body, wrapping around him like a cocoon of fire. In the blink of an eye, he dissolved into a shower of sparks, vanishing into thin air right before everyone's eyes.
「SUN QIAN! I'LL GET MY REVENGE!!!」
His furious roar echoed through the room long after he'd disappeared.
SLAP!
Qi Wei knelt down, picking up Ye Fan's severed arm with a look of disgust, then held it out to Sun Qian with both hands, his head bowed in deep shame and panic.
「Young Master Sun, this subordinate is incompetent! I let that assassin escape!」 He kowtowed repeatedly, his voice trembling with fear. 「Please rest assured—I'll issue a city-wide manhunt immediately! I'll make sure that bastard has nowhere to hide in Magic City!」
He'd just cemented his position as Sun Qian's loyal dog—and now this happened. It was a slap in the face, a stain on his reputation.
That lowly bodyguard had the audacity to ruin his chance to impress his new master? Qi Wei wanted nothing more than to skin Ye Fan alive.
Sun Qian glanced at the bloodied arm in Qi Wei's hands, his expression indifferent. He reached out and took it, tucking it casually into his storage pouch—like he was putting away a grocery bag, not a piece of a fated protagonist's body.
This limb would be invaluable for his next simulation. With the Soul-Nailing Spell, he could track Ye Fan's every move, steal his opportunities, seize the Nine Steps of Treading the Heavens before the protagonist even knew what hit him.
Ding. Host has used his authority to crush the fated protagonist Ye Fan, severing his arm and forcing him to flee in humiliation, inflicting severe psychological damage. Reward: Partial Fate Blessing of Ye Fan (7 days).
A faint smile tugged at the corner of Sun Qian's lips.
Partial Fate Blessing? Interesting.
For the next seven days, he'd share a sliver of Ye Fan's protagonist luck—warding off minor disasters, improving his odds of finding hidden treasures, even enhancing his cultivation speed.
A nice little bonus.
「Young Master Sun, if you plan to rest here for the night, I'll deploy a squad of Security Bureau officers to patrol the area immediately,」 Qi Wei said quickly, scrambling to make amends. 「I'll clear out all irrelevant personnel—guaranteeing no one disturbs your peace.」
「Go arrange it.」
Sun Qian waved a hand dismissively, slinging the still "drunken" Liu Yue over his shoulder like a sack of rice. He strode toward the elevator, his boots clicking against the marble floor, ignoring the lingering stares of the few remaining guests.
The suite they were heading to had been prepared by Zhao Kun—lavish, opulent, and reeking of the rich kid's greasy, lecherous intentions.
Now, it belonged to him.