Chapter 20: An Invitation from the Landowner
News of Meng Hu's death spread faster than an epidemic.
That morning, the Eastern Sector of the Ash Vein Sect—usually noisy with the shouts of protection-racket collectors—fell into an eerie silence. Outer disciples walked with their heads lowered, not daring to look toward the shack at the edge of the cliff that once served as a coffin warehouse.
Inside the shack, Yan Kesh was enjoying his morning tea. The tea was cheap, tasting like boiled tree bark, yet it was served with great respect by Gou San, who was now wearing a silk robe stripped from Meng Hu's corpse.
"Master," Gou San reported, pouring tea with the nine fingers he had left. "We've gathered all of Meng Hu's assets. Three thousand copper coins, fifty low-grade spirit stones, and… a list of people who owed him money."
Yan Kesh took a sip of tea. "Burn the debt list."
Gou San was startled. "Burn it? But, Master, that's money—"
"That's dead money," Yan Kesh cut him off. "If you collect Meng Hu's old debts, people will see you as Meng Hu's successor. They'll obey out of fear, but hate you in secret."
Yan Kesh set his teacup down.
"Burn the list in public. Announce that 'Physician Yan' has freed them from the leech of usury. That way, they'll feel indebted to me. And a debt of gratitude is much harder to repay than a debt of money."
He Qiu, standing in the corner while wiping down his new sword (also looted), shook his head in admiration. His master truly manipulated human emotions like chess pieces.
Suddenly, heavy footsteps sounded outside. Not the careless steps of ordinary disciples, but the disciplined march of a military formation.
Three men in gray robes with plain iron masks stood before the door. Their auras were cold—Qi Refinement Stage 8.
The Inner Sect Law Enforcement Unit.
"Yan Kesh," the voice behind the mask rasped like scraping metal. "The Sect Master summons you."
Gou San and He Qiu tensed at once, hands drifting toward their weapons. Killing Meng Hu was one thing. Dealing with the Inner Sect was another level entirely.
Yan Kesh raised a hand to calm them. He had expected this.
Killing Meng Hu meant cutting off a stream of tribute flowing upward. The big bosses would naturally want to know who dared to mess with their books.
"An honor," Yan Kesh said as he stood and straightened his plain robe. "He Qiu, watch the 'clinic.' Don't let the patients wait."
"Master… are you sure about going alone?" He Qiu whispered anxiously.
"This isn't an arrest, He Qiu." Yan Kesh smiled faintly. "If they wanted me dead, they'd send archers, not messengers. This is a business negotiation."
Yan Kesh was escorted up the winding mountain path toward the peak of the Ash Vein Mountains.
The higher they climbed, the thicker the stench of sulfur and rotting flesh became. The vegetation withered, and the soil turned pitch-black.
At the summit stood no grand palace, but a stone fortress built atop a dead volcanic crater.
Ash Hall.
Yan Kesh was led into the main hall. The chamber was dimly lit by green flames burning within the skull of a gigantic human skeleton.
At the far end of the hall sat a man upon a throne made from the rib bones of ferocious beasts.
Qiu Moren, Sect Master of the Ash Vein Sect.
The man was gaunt, almost like a living skeleton. His skin was pale and translucent, revealing blackened blood vessels beneath. Sparse white hair clung to his scalp, and deep dark circles hollowed his sunken eyes.
He did not look like a majestic Core Formation cultivator.
He looked like a drug addict in withdrawal.
"So you're the one…" Qiu Moren's voice was hoarse and wet, as if mucus clogged his throat. "…who killed my watchdog?"
A crushing killing intent pressed down upon the hall.
Yan Kesh's knees trembled. Physically, he was nothing. This pressure alone could have shattered his bones if he resisted.
But Yan Kesh did not resist. Instead, he bowed politely, as though greeting a business partner.
"I did not kill a guard dog, Sect Master Qiu," Yan Kesh said calmly. "I merely cleared away the trash clogging the sect's flow of profit."
Qiu Moren laughed, the sound grotesque. "Profit? Meng Hu paid me five hundred spirit stones every month. Now he's dead. Who will compensate me? You?"
He pointed at Yan Kesh with a long-nailed, skeletal finger.
"You have no cultivation. You're just a cripple who's good at deceiving fools. Give me one reason why I shouldn't turn you into material for my undead experiments right now."
Yan Kesh straightened his back and met Qiu Moren's gaze.
---
[AUDIT TARGET: QIU MOREN]
[Cultivation: Core Formation (Cracked/Unstable)]
[Vital Status: Critical – Yin Energy Poisoning]
[Cause: Forbidden Technique 'Ashen Heart' consuming internal organs]
[Effective Time Remaining: 2 years before total paralysis]
---
"Because I know what's beneath your robe, Sect Master," Yan Kesh said boldly.
Qiu Moren's eyes narrowed. "Watch your tongue."
"Every night, when the moon rises, a cold pain pierces your spine. It spreads to your kidneys, then to your heart. You try to suppress it by drinking virgin blood or devouring infant hearts, but it only works temporarily."
Qiu Moren fell silent. His killing intent vanished, replaced by pure vigilance.
"The Ashen Heart Technique," Yan Kesh continued, taking a step forward. "It's powerful, but flawed. It burns the user's vitality as fuel. You're strong, Sect Master… but you're being eaten alive by your own power."
Whoosh!
In the blink of an eye, Qiu Moren appeared before Yan Kesh, lifting him by the throat.
"Who are you?!" Qiu Moren hissed. "A spy from the righteous sects? Or a rat from the Heavenly Book Pavilion?"
Yan Kesh choked, feet kicking in the air. Yet he did not panic. He pointed at his own chest.
"I… cough… am the solution."
Qiu Moren loosened his grip slightly, then threw Yan Kesh to the ground.
"Speak. If you lie, I will flay you alive."
Yan Kesh rubbed his bruised neck.
"I can't cure that technique. No one can. It's the price for instant power," Yan Kesh said honestly. Honesty was the best seasoning for deception.
"But… I can delay the payment."
"Delay?"
"I have a method to shift the 'side effects' onto other vessels. Your pain, your organ damage… we can transfer them to low-ranking disciples. You can wield your full power without suffering, as long as there is… a supply of substitutes."
Qiu Moren's eyes lit up—not with holy hope, but with demonic greed. He did not care about the lives of his disciples. He only cared about prolonging his own existence.
"Show me," Qiu Moren commanded, extending his trembling hand. Black veins pulsed beneath the skin.
Yan Kesh took that hand.
---
[TRANSACTION ACTIVE]
[Source: Neural Damage (Qiu Moren)]
[Target: Yan Kesh (Transit) → Potted Ornamental Plant]
---
Yan Kesh did not dare to contain it within himself. He acted only as a conduit.
He absorbed the pain—feeling a hellish electric shock for a single second—then immediately dumped it into the bonsai plant on Qiu Moren's table.
Crack!
The bonsai instantly withered, blackened, and crumbled into ash.
Meanwhile, Qiu Moren's hand stopped trembling. The black veins receded. The pain that had haunted him for ten years vanished in an instant.
Qiu Moren stared at his hand in disbelief, then burst into wild laughter that shook the hall.
"Hahaha! Incredible! Incredible!"
He looked at Yan Kesh with a hungry gaze. Yan Kesh was no longer trash in his eyes. He was the most valuable asset in the entire sect.
"You…" Qiu Moren grinned. "From today onward, you are a Guest Elder. You will take full control of the Eastern Sector. I don't care how many people you kill or how much money you take."
"But every three days, you will come here. Clean the 'trash' from my body."
Yan Kesh bowed respectfully. "As you command, Sect Master."
"What is your name?"
"Yan Kesh."
"A boring name." Qiu Moren waved his hand. "Here, we use titles. Since you like dealing with the nearly-dead…"
"…from now on, you shall be called The Undertaker."
Yan Kesh smiled coldly.
"A fitting name."
He turned and walked out of the hall.
His status had changed.
From a wanted man, to the ruler of a slum sector.
From a con artist, to the personal physician of a demon.
But Qiu Moren did not know one thing.
Every time Yan Kesh performed a "transfer" of damage from Qiu Moren's body, Yan Kesh secretly took a small commission.
The Audit System recorded every transaction.
And every time Qiu Moren felt healed, he was in fact signing a new debt contract with Yan Kesh.
One day, when the bill came due, Yan Kesh would not merely take the interest.
He would seize the entire asset—Qiu Moren's life.
"One more fat sheep has entered the pen," Yan Kesh thought as he watched the black mountain's sunset.
---