Lin Feng's description of the tomb thief matched no one in my memory of the novel.
Small build. Unmarked robes. Movement that suggested training in stealth rather than combat. And most disturbingly, knowledge of the secondary entrance that should not have existed in any version of the story I recalled.
"The entrance was hidden behind a waterfall," Lin Feng said, his voice tight with the frustration of retelling. "Not the main falls. A smaller cascade, fifty paces north. The stone behind it was carved with symbols I did not recognize. Not the Fallen Prince's seal. Something older."
He produced a rubbing, pressed on cheap paper during his escape. The symbols were indeed unfamiliar. Not the flowing script of this world's ancient languages, but angular, precise, almost mathematical.
I knew that script.
It was Mandarin. Simplified characters, slightly degraded by transmission through whatever mechanism had brought us here, but readable enough.
Welcome fellow traveler. The inheritance was never meant for one.
"What does it say?" Lin Feng demanded.
"It says you were not the only candidate," I lied smoothly. "The Fallen Prince established multiple tests. Multiple potential heirs. You found the primary path. Someone else found the secondary."
"And took what was mine."
"Took what they could carry," I corrected. "The main inheritance remains. The techniques, the cultivation manual, the command token. You have those?"
He nodded, touching the jade pendant at his throat. "But the vault key was in the secondary chamber. The true wealth of the Prince. Weapons, pills, spirit stones enough to fund an army."
"And you want it back."
"I want to know who took it." His eyes hardened. "I want to know how they knew. The tomb location was secret. Prophecy protected. No one should have found it without the jade guide."
Unless they read the same novel you did, I thought. Unless they remembered the same chapters, the same descriptions, the same plot points that I used to build my business.
Unless there is another reincarnator. Another person from my world. My competition.
"Investigation is a service I provide," I said. "But it requires resources. Information networks, bribes, specialized consultants. The fee is substantial."
"I have nothing."
"You have the jade pendant. You have the command token. You have the inheritance itself, which may be leveraged for loans against future value." I leaned forward. "More importantly, you have narrative weight. Your story attracts attention. That attention can be monetized, directed, sold to parties who wish to be associated with your rise."
"You want me to be your advertisement?"
"I want you to be my reference client. The proof that the Merchant of Fates delivers value. In exchange, I fund your investigation, your training, your revenge against the thief. We share the recovery proportionally."
Lin Feng considered. The calculation was visible on his face, the weighing of pride against practicality. He had been betrayed too recently to trust easily. But he had also learned that isolation was vulnerability.
"Seventy thirty," he said. "My favor. I am the one taking risks. I am the one they will try to kill."
"Sixty forty," I countered. "My favor. I am the one providing capital, intelligence, and the infrastructure of search. Without me, you are one man with a grudge. With me, you are a network."
"Sixty five thirty five. And I want the thief alive. For questioning."
"Seventy five twenty five, and the thief's fate is negotiable depending on what they know." I held up a hand to forestall his objection. "Consider, Lin Feng. If they found the secondary entrance, they have information sources you lack. Killing them destroys that value. Preserving them, controlling them, turning them into an asset... that is the merchant's way."
He stared at me for a long moment. Then, slowly, he nodded.
"Partners. For this operation only. The rest remains... to be determined."
"All my relationships are to be determined," I said. "That is what makes them honest."
We shook hands. His grip was firm, calloused, stronger than his slender build suggested. The handshake of someone who had worked for every advantage, who resented the ease of those born to power.
I understood that resentment. I had felt it in my former life, watching inherited wealth compound while my salary stagnated. But understanding did not mean indulgence.
"First step," I said, "we establish your public identity. Not the fallen noble, not the chosen heir. Something simpler. A wandering cultivator seeking sect sponsorship. Common enough to be invisible, promising enough to attract investment."
"And the truth?"
"The truth is inventory. Valuable, but dangerous to display." I moved to the map table, spreading the regional charts Xiao Hong had prepared. "You will register at the Azure Cloud Sect as a probationary disciple. Outer ring, no privileges, no attention. While there, you will gather information about recent arrivals. Anyone matching the thief's description. Anyone asking questions about the Fallen Prince. Anyone with knowledge that seems... premature."
"And you?"
"I will activate my own networks. Madame Luo's informants in the servant quarters. Fat Hong's collectors who hear everything in the gambling dens. Old Man Wei's trading contacts who monitor unusual shipments." I traced routes on the map, connections forming like veins. "The thief took physical goods. Spirit stones, weapons, pills. Those must be moved, stored, eventually sold. Every transaction leaves traces. Every trace is a commodity."
Lin Feng studied the map with the intensity of someone memorizing escape routes. "You have built all this in... how long?"
"Three weeks since my reincarnation. Two months of preparation in the timeline." I smiled at his surprise. "Time is relative when you know the script. I spent my first life reading stories like yours. Learning how protagonists succeed, how villains fail, how the world rewards certain behaviors and punishes others."
"And what behavior does it reward?"
"Adaptability. The willingness to see the world as it is, rather than as tradition claims it should be." I rolled the map, sealing our plans inside. "The cultivation world believes that power flows from spiritual advancement, from ancient techniques, from the favor of heaven. I believe it flows from information, from relationships, from the strategic deployment of resources. You will learn which model serves you better."
He took the map. "I will learn whether you are worth my trust."
"That is the only lesson that matters."
---
After Lin Feng departed, I summoned my inner circle.
Xiao Hong arrived first, her inventory ledgers replaced with intelligence reports. Wang Mei followed, her partnership still new enough that her presence was statement rather than assumption. Wang Chen came last, his sister's involvement in my operation clearly grating, but his business sense overriding his pride.
"We have competition," I said without preamble. "Another party with knowledge of future events. Possibly another reincarnator. Definitely hostile to our interests, since they have stolen assets we intended to control."
"Lin Feng's inheritance," Wang Chen said. "You confirmed it?"
"I confirmed enough. The thief knew the tomb's location, its structure, its secrets. They arrived prepared, extracted specific items, and left evidence suggesting... familiarity with my methods."
I displayed the rubbing again. The Mandarin characters. The message that was not meant for Lin Feng, but for anyone else who might follow.
"They knew someone would come after. They wanted to communicate."
"With you?" Wang Mei asked.
"With whoever could read the message." I sat, feeling the weight of revelation settle over me. "I am not unique. I was not specially chosen. The System, the knowledge, the opportunity... they are available to others. Which means I have advantages I must leverage quickly, before this competitor establishes their own position."
"What advantages?" Xiao Hong asked.
"Time. I have been here longer. I have built infrastructure, relationships, reputation. I understand the local power structures, the economic flows, the social protocols." I counted on my fingers. "They have initiative. They struck first, seized key assets, forced Lin Feng to accelerate his timeline. They are operating from concealment, while I am increasingly visible."
"So we find them," Wang Chen said. "Eliminate the threat."
"Too simple. Too wasteful." I shook my head. "If they are like me, they have knowledge worth more than any physical inheritance. They understand the future. They have read the novel. They know which characters matter, which events shape the world, which investments yield impossible returns."
"You want to recruit them," Wang Mei said. It was not quite a question.
"I want to evaluate them. Determine if they can be integrated into my network, or if they must be neutralized as competition." I looked at each of them in turn. "This is no longer just business. This is survival. The market for fate is not infinite. There is room for one Merchant of Fates. Not two."
"And if they feel the same?" Xiao Hong asked quietly.
"Then we are at war. A war fought not with swords, but with information. With manipulation of narrative. With the strategic revelation of secrets that destroy reputations, collapse alliances, turn protagonists against their supposed allies." I smiled, feeling the cold excitement of true competition. "I intend to win."
---
The search began immediately.
Madame Luo's informants reported unusual questions in the servant quarters. A new arrival, small stature, gender uncertain beneath heavy robes, asking about sect security, patrol schedules, the movements of important disciples. The description matched Lin Feng's thief.
Fat Hong's collectors heard rumors of a private auction. Not in my warehouse. A competitor venue, temporary, mobile. Goods matching the description of the stolen inheritance. Spirit stones of unusual purity. Weapons with the Fallen Prince's seal. Pills that should not exist outside the tomb.
Old Man Wei's trading contacts noted strange purchases. Information, mostly. Maps of the region. Histories of the great families. Detailed accounts of Lin Feng's village, his childhood, his relationships before the story began.
"They are researching the protagonist," I concluded, reviewing the reports. "Building a profile. Understanding his psychology, his motivations, his vulnerabilities."
"To kill him?" Wang Chen asked.
"To replace him." The realization struck with physical force. "That is the play. They do not just want the inheritance. They want the role. The chosen one status. The narrative protection that surrounds the protagonist."
"Is that possible?" Wang Mei asked. "Can someone simply... become the hero?"
"In a story, the hero is defined by actions, not birth. Lin Feng is the protagonist because he does protagonist things. He struggles, he overcomes, he inspires loyalty and hatred in equal measure." I stood, pacing the warehouse floor as my mind raced. "But if someone else performed those actions, if they intercepted the opportunities, if they recruited the allies, if they defeated the villains... the narrative would shift. The story would adapt. The readers, the world itself, would recognize a new hero."
"And Lin Feng?"
"Becomes supporting character. Or villain. Or corpse." I stopped, facing my partners. "We cannot allow this. Not because I care about Lin Feng's destiny, but because my entire business model depends on his protagonist status. I have invested in his rise. I have sold options on his success. If he is replaced, those contracts become worthless. My reputation is destroyed."
"Then we warn him," Xiao Hong said.
"We arm him," Wang Chen added.
"We use him," Wang Mei corrected, her sharp eyes meeting mine. "He is your customer now. Your reference client. His survival is your commercial interest. Protecting him is not charity. It is risk management."
I nodded slowly. She understood. She was learning.
"Lin Feng believes his enemy is a thief. He will learn they are a rival. A pretender to his identity. This will motivate him more than simple revenge." I moved to the communication equipment, the spirit linked crystals that allowed rapid message transmission. "I will tell him partial truth. Enough to focus his efforts, not enough to make him reckless."
"What about the competitor?" Wang Chen asked. "While we protect Lin Feng, what do we do about them?"
"We force their hand." I smiled, feeling the familiar sensation of market manipulation. "They want to remain hidden. To observe, to plan, to strike at optimal moment. We deny them that comfort. We publicize the theft. We offer rewards for information. We make every criminal, every informant, every greedy official in this city search for them."
"That exposes Lin Feng's weakness," Xiao Hong objected. "The world learns his inheritance was incomplete."
"The world learns he was tested," I countered. "That he faced adversity and survived. That he has powerful allies who will pursue his interests." I activated the communication crystal, preparing my message. "Narrative is perception. We control the story, we control the outcome."
The crystal flared to life. Lin Feng's face appeared, small and distorted by the transmission, but recognizable.
"Merchant," he said. "You have news?"
"I have identity," I replied. "The thief is not merely criminal. They are competitor. Someone seeking to replace you in your own story. To steal not just your inheritance, but your destiny."
His expression shifted. Fear, briefly. Then anger. Then cold determination.
"Who?"
"Unknown. But I know how to find them." I leaned closer to the crystal, lowering my voice. "They are planning something public. A demonstration that will prove they are the true chosen one. You must prevent it. Not for revenge. For survival."
"Where? When?"
"That is what I am purchasing now. The information will cost. Are you prepared to pay?"
Lin Feng touched the jade pendant at his throat. The symbol of his heritage. His claim to significance.
"Whatever it takes," he said.
"Good." I terminated the connection, then turned to my waiting partners. "Begin the hunt. Find me this pretender. And prepare Lin Feng for the performance of his life."
"He will be ready?"
"He will have to be." I looked at the Fate Token case, at the power to alter destiny that I had begun to distribute. "Because if he fails, if he is replaced, then everything I have built crumbles. And I do not intend to crumble."
The warehouse was silent. Outside, Azure Cloud City continued its endless churn of commerce and cultivation, unaware that two people from another world were maneuvering for control of its future.
I was the Merchant of Fates.
But I was no longer the only one.
The market had become contested.
And I intended to prove that experience, infrastructure, and ruthlessness would defeat novelty and stolen advantage.
The war for the narrative had begun.
---
[TRANSACTION COMPLETED: EMERGENCY INTELLIGENCE NETWORK]
[Expenditure: 12,000 spirit stones]
[New Assets: City wide surveillance, informant network, competitor detection protocols]
[Reputation +1500]
[Gold Rank Progress: 9900/10000]
[ALERT: Gold Rank achievement imminent. New System features unlocking.]
[WARNING: Competitor activity detected within 5 kilometer radius. Convergence likely within 72 hours.]
The notification confirmed what I suspected. The second reader was close. They were watching. They were preparing.
And they were about to learn why the Merchant of Fates dominated this market.
Not because I was chosen.
Because I was better.
---
If you like the novel give power stones and golden ticket.