My bizarre resurgence: My price is the ability to trade everything.

The iron gate of the abandoned factory was pushed open silently.

The four of us filed in, our footsteps so light they barely made a sound.

This is an old industrial area in the western part of Jiangcheng, which was abandoned ten years ago due to industrial transformation. Now, all that remains are rusty machines, broken windows, and overgrown weeds.

But tonight, this desolate place is not peaceful.

"The energy reaction is very strong." Su Mingyue squatted on the ground, holding a detector in her hand. "It's in that main building up ahead."

"How many people are there?" Chen Xuan asked.

"Seventeen life responses were detected," Su Mingyue said, "but three of them were particularly strong, suggesting they are not from ordinary people."

"The core members of Night Raven." Zhao Tiezhu clenched his fist. "Three strange awakened individuals of C-rank or higher; they won't be easy to deal with."

"Let's infiltrate and scout the area first," Chen Xuan gestured. "Tiezhu will lead the way, Mingyue will be in charge of surveillance and communications, and Xiaofan will follow behind me."

"clear."

We split into two teams and moved quickly along the shadows of the factory.

The exterior walls of the main building were covered in cracks, and the windows were all broken. We climbed through a broken window and landed on the dusty floor.

It's quieter inside than outside.

It was eerily quiet.

I subconsciously clenched my fist, mobilizing the energy within my body to form a thin layer of sensory network.

"There's something," I whispered. "Underground."

"Underground?" Chen Xuan frowned.

"I sensed... fluctuations from the formation. It's deep, probably in the basement," I said. "But the people up there—"

"It's bait." Su Mingyue's expression changed. "They knew we were coming, so they deliberately deployed so many people up there to attract attention."

"The real formation is underground," Chen Xuan said. "Let's go to the basement."

We walked down the stairs, taking each step carefully.

The stairs were long; it took about three minutes to reach the entrance to the basement.

There was a heavy iron gate at the entrance, with strange symbols engraved on it.

"A seven-pointed star." Su Mingyue pointed to the symbols, "just like the ones recorded in the files."

Can you open it?

"Give me three minutes." Su Mingyue squatted down, took out a set of tools from her backpack, and began to crack the door lock.

I stood guard to the side while continuing to use the sensor network to probe what was behind the door.

There are seven people behind the door.

No, that's not right.

There were seven vital signs, but one of them was very strange.

Unlike humans.

It doesn't seem like a typical eerie occurrence either.

It's more like... a rule itself.

"It's untied." Su Mingyue's voice interrupted my thoughts.

The iron gate slowly opened, revealing the space behind it.

It was a huge circular hall, the floor of which was engraved with intricate array patterns. In the center of the hall was an altar, upon which floated a crystal that emitted a ghostly blue light.

The seventh node of the heptagon.

"Found it!" Zhao Tiezhu shouted excitedly.

"Wait," I stopped him. "There's an ambush."

As soon as he finished speaking, a blinding light suddenly shone from all around the hall.

A dozen or so men in black rushed out of the shadows and surrounded us.

"They've arrived, just as I expected." A hoarse voice came from behind the altar. "Chen Xuan, you still love meddling in other people's business."

Chen Xuan's expression turned serious: "You lowly raven minions dare to speak to me? Show me your true master."

"The real master?" the hoarse voice chuckled. "Are you talking about me?"

From the shadows behind the altar, a figure slowly emerged.

He was a young man, who looked to be only twenty-five or twenty-six years old. He was wearing a white long robe, had a handsome face, and an otherworldly air about him.

But his eyes.

His eyes were silver, like two cold stars, devoid of any human emotion.

"The Seventh Apostle." Chen Xuan's voice turned icy. "I didn't expect you to come in person."

The Seventh Apostle.

The core members of Guixu.

A legendary, forbidden existence.

"Chen Xuan, long time no see." The Seventh Apostle's lips curled into a slight smile. "When was the last time we met? Twenty years ago? Twenty-five years ago?"

"Twenty-three years ago," Chen Xuan said, "you hadn't yet betrayed humanity."

"Betrayal?" The Seventh Apostle chuckled. "I haven't betrayed anyone. I've simply chosen the right path."

"Countless murders, plotting schemes, and attempting to destroy the world—is this what you call the 'right path'?"

"Destruction?" The Seventh Apostle shook his head. "You misunderstand. I don't want to destroy the world; I want to save it."

"save?"

"This world is corrupt." The Seventh Apostle spread his arms, his silver eyes gleaming with fanaticism. "The rules are chaotic, the energy is unbalanced, and all life is struggling in agony. Only by clearing away all this and establishing a new order can the world be reborn."

"A madman," Chen Xuan said coldly.

"A madman?" The Seventh Apostle's smile vanished, replaced by a look of pity. "Chen Xuan, you don't understand. You're just an ordinary person; you'll never comprehend what we see."

His gaze passed over Chen Xuan and landed on me.

"But you're different," he said. "Lin Xiaofan, you saw that, right?"

I was stunned.

"You have seen the truth of this world." The Seventh Apostle walked towards me step by step. "The Balance of Costs has allowed you to see things that ordinary people cannot see. The flow of rules, the fluctuations of energy, and... the true mission of the Balancers."

"Who exactly are you?" I asked.

"Me?" The Seventh Apostle stopped, standing only five meters away from me. "I am the Seventh Apostle of Guixu, wielding authority over the 'Rules of Numbers.'"

"But a long, long time ago, I had another name."

His silver eyes looked directly at me: "I'm Lin Zhengyang's friend."

My mind went blank.

Lin Zhengyang's friend?

"What did you say?" My voice trembled.

"I said, your father, Lin Zhengyang, is my friend," the Seventh Apostle's voice was calm. "Together, we discovered many things: the truth of the rules, the location of the origin, and... the method to break the cost."

"Your father was a genius," the Seventh Apostle continued. "He was closer to the truth than anyone else. Unfortunately, he was too stubborn to accept the real answer."

"So you killed him?"

"I didn't kill him," the Seventh Apostle shook his head. "He chose this path himself. He discovered a fatal flaw in the scales of justice, tried to fix it, but failed."

"The backlash from the scales of justice took his life."

"That wasn't my fault, nor was it Guixu's fault. It was his own choice."

I clenched my fists, feeling something burning in my chest.

"You're talking nonsense!" I roared. "My father wouldn't—"

"Enough." Chen Xuan blocked my way. "Don't listen to him. He's trying to sway your mind."

"I was just telling him the truth." The Seventh Apostle spread his hands. "Chen Xuan, you're always like this. Unwilling to face reality, only wanting to maintain a facade of peace."

"But Lin Xiaofan is different." He looked at me, a strange light in his silver eyes. "He has the right to know the truth. Everything about his father, everything about the scales of justice, everything about himself."

"What do you want?" I asked.

"I want to talk to you," said the Seventh Apostle, "not as an enemy, but as... a friend."

"My father's friend?"

"That's right." The Seventh Apostle nodded. "You inherited his bloodline, his talent, and his mission. But you don't yet know the true meaning of this mission."

"I can tell you."

"The true secret of the balance of costs, the meaning of the balancer's existence, and... the true rules of this world."

"These are things your father couldn't tell you."

My heart is pounding.

Is what the Seventh Apostle said true?

Are my father and him really friends?

What are the flaws of the cost-benefit balance?

Countless questions churned in my mind, making it almost impossible for me to think.

"Don't listen to him!" Su Mingyue's voice came from the side. "He's manipulating you with words!"

"Words of argument?" The Seventh Apostle chuckled. "I was just telling the truth."

He took a step back and looked at Chen Xuan: "Let's call it a day for tonight."

"What do you mean?"

"Literal meaning." The Seventh Apostle waved his hand, and the surrounding men in black began to retreat. "Tell your people that the Seven-Pointed Star Ritual has completed six nodes. The final node will activate in seven days."

"At that time, the seven stars will return to their positions, and the original source will be revealed."

"The seventh generation Balancer, you will witness a true miracle."

He turned and walked toward the altar, his white robe fluttering in the wind.

"Wait!" I shouted.

The seventh apostle stopped and looked back at me.

"You still haven't answered me," I said. "What did my father discover? What is the flaw in the balance of power?"

The Seventh Apostle remained silent for a moment.

Then he said something that sent chills down my spine:

"The scales of cost can never truly 'balance.' They can only shift, not eliminate. Each use only makes the world's rules more chaotic."

"Your father discovered this truth, so he wants to find a true way to balance things out."

"But he didn't find it."

"And you..."

His silver eyes gleamed with an eerie light:

You'll be closer to the answer than he is.

"But the cost will be even greater."

After he finished speaking, his figure began to fade, like a painting being erased.

A few seconds later, the Seventh Apostle vanished completely into thin air.

Only his last words remained, echoing in the hall:

"I will come to see you again in seven days."

"I hope you can give me a different answer then."

"Retreat." Chen Xuan's voice was deep. "Retreat immediately."

"But the formation—" Zhao Tiezhu pointed to the crystal on the altar.

"It's too late," Chen Xuan said. "The Seventh Apostle has already set everything up; we can't break this formation."

"So we're just going to let him get away like that?"

"He didn't run away." Chen Xuan looked at the crystal on the altar. "He just doesn't need to do it himself anymore."

"Seven days later, it will all be over."

We retreated along the way we came, and no one spoke along the way.

The words of the Seventh Apostle echoed repeatedly in my mind.

The flaws of the cost-benefit balance.

The truth that the father discovered.

The seven stars have returned to their positions.

The Balancer, 7th Generation.

These fragments, pieced together, formed an outline that terrified me.

If what the Seventh Apostle said is true...

The power I've been using...

Is it destroying the world?

It was almost dawn when we left the abandoned factory.

A pale dawn broke in the eastern sky, dispelling the darkness of the night.

"I will report to my superiors what happened tonight," Chen Xuan said. "You all go back and rest."

"Instructor," I suddenly said.

"Um?"

"Is what the Seventh Apostle said... true?"

Chen Xuan remained silent for a long time.

“I don’t know,” he finally said, “but your father did discover something. The truth about the balance of costs may be more complex than we thought.”

"That's why he's so obsessed with finding a way to 'break the cost barrier'."

"Cost-breaking..." I murmured, "Is that a way to eliminate the cost?"

"Perhaps," Chen Xuan sighed, "but your father didn't succeed."

Will he succeed?

Chen Xuan looked at me with a complicated expression.

"I don't know," he said, "but if you want to find the answer, you have to work harder than anyone else."

"Seven days." He patted me on the shoulder. "We only have seven days left."