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

The next morning, I continued practicing the breath-gathering technique in the training room.

The communicator rang.

News about Su Mingyue.

"Come to the analysis lab, we've made a new discovery."

I finished my practice and left the training room.

In the analysis room, Su Mingyue sat in front of the computer with a solemn expression.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"That email from yesterday... I traced the sending IP." She pulled up a screen. "Although most of the nodes were encrypted, I found something in the middle of the relay."

"What is that?"

"This." She pointed to a symbol on the screen.

It was a strange pattern, like a closed eye.

"What is this?"

"I'm not sure," Su Mingyue shook her head, "but I've seen similar symbols in some encrypted materials from Guixu."

"Information on Guixu?" I frowned. "Aren't they tracking me? Why are they sending me an email warning me?"

"That's the strange thing," Su Mingyue said. "If this email was sent by Guixu, why would they warn me?"

"If I didn't post it, then who did?"

"And..." she hesitated for a moment, "the time this email was sent was almost exactly the same time you received the 'black market letter.'"

"A letter from the black market?"

"Yes." She opened another interface. "This morning, your black market account received a message."

I took a closer look.

This is my black market account interface.

A new message.

Sender: Shadow

Contents:

"Hello, Balancer."

I've heard about your predicament. Gui Xu is tracking you, and you haven't yet mastered the Breath Concealment Technique.

I have something here that can help you.

Concealing Breath Talisman. When attached to the body, it completely conceals CP consumption for 24 hours.

Price: 5000 CP, or equivalent information exchange.

If you're interested, come to the abandoned warehouse in the suburbs tonight at 10 PM.

He came alone.

--shadow"

I stared at the screen, my mind churning with complex emotions.

"Is this a trap?" I asked.

"I'm not sure," Su Mingyue said. "5000 CP is not a small amount."

"But if it's an exchange of equivalent intelligence... perhaps there's room for negotiation."

The question is, who is this 'shadow'?

Why are you helping me?

"And..." she pointed to the email's sending time, "the timing is too coincidental."

"I just received a warning email last night, and this morning I received a trading invitation."

"It's like...they're in cahoots."

I remained silent for a while.

"That makes sense," I said, "but it might not be."

"What do you mean?"

"It's certain that Guixu is trying to track me."

"But 'Shadow'... if he really is from the Void, why would he sell me something?"

"Why don't you just arrest me directly?"

Su Mingyue thought for a moment.

"That's true... If they've already located you, there's no need to go through all that trouble."

"Unless...they want something from you."

"What is that?"

"I don't know," she shook her head, "but one thing is certain—"

"Regardless of who this 'shadow' is, he possesses far more information than the average person."

"He knows that Guixu is tracking you."

"He knows you haven't mastered the Breath Concealment Technique yet."

"He even knows how to make a concealment talisman."

"This level of intelligence...is not something an ordinary person could obtain."

I fell into deep thought.

Concealing Breath Talisman.

If it really works...

What I lack most right now is the ability to hide.

I wonder who will come in three days.

If we could obtain the Concealing Breath Talisman before then...

"I want to go," I said.

Su Mingyue was stunned for a moment.

Are you sure?

"I'm not sure," I said honestly, "but I'll regret it if I don't go."

"And..." I looked at her, "your analysis makes a lot of sense. If 'Shadow' really is from Guixu, there's no need for all this trouble."

"Why don't you just arrest me directly?"

"Maybe... he really just wanted to do business."

Su Mingyue remained silent for a while.

"I'll go with you."

"No," I shook my head. "The message said I'd be going alone."

"If they're after me, having another person will only cause trouble."

"And... if something really happens, you can help me get help from outside."

Su Mingyue frowned and remained silent.

"Trust me," I said, "I'll be careful."

10 PM.

I went to an abandoned warehouse in the suburbs by myself.

This used to be a warehouse for a logistics company, but it was abandoned more than a decade ago.

The surrounding area was overgrown with weeds, and only a few dim streetlights were still working.

I stood at the warehouse door and took a deep breath.

It was very quiet all around.

It was eerily quiet.

"You've arrived."

The sound came from the darkness.

I turned my head and saw a figure walking out of the warehouse.

It was a person wearing a black cloak, with the hood pulled low, obscuring their face.

"Are you 'Shadow'?" I asked.

"It's me." The voice was hoarse, and it was impossible to tell if it was male or female.

"Does the Concealing Breath Talisman really work?"

"You doubt me?" Shadow chuckled softly. "I can give you one to test first."

He took a talisman from under his cloak and handed it to me.

"Place it on your wrist; it will take effect once activated."

"Your CP consumption will be completely hidden for 24 hours."

"No detection method can detect it."

I took the talisman and examined it carefully.

The talisman paper was very thin, with strange patterns drawn on it.

It does look... like that at all.

"How much?" I asked.

"5000 CP, or equivalent intelligence."

"What intelligence?"

The shadow remained silent for a moment.

"I heard... you know the assistant of the previous Balancer."

My heart suddenly started racing.

How did you know?

"You don't need to worry about that," said the shadow. "What I want to know is—"

Where is he now?

I stared at the shadow, my mind racing with alarm bells.

How did he know about the old blind man?

Zhao Tiezhu mentioned this name to me, but never told any outsiders.

Could it be... that the shadow is related to the Ruins of Return?

"I don't know what you're talking about." I decided to play dumb.

"Stop pretending," Shadow said. "I know you and that Zhao kid went to see him."

"On the desolate mountains outside the city."

My blood almost froze.

Did they follow us?

"Who exactly are you?" I asked, my voice a little strained.

The shadow chuckled softly.

"I'm just... a businessman."

"I helped you, didn't I?"

"If my email hadn't reminded you, you might still be in the dark."

"So... I don't need your trust, I only need your information."

"Tell me where the old blind man is, and I'll give you a concealment talisman."

"that's all."

Just as I was about to answer, suddenly—

"Bang!"

The warehouse door was kicked open.

Several dark figures rushed in.

I instinctively took a step back, mobilizing my CP to prepare for battle.

"Don't move," the shadow whispered. "They are night ravens."

Night crow?

I looked at the people who rushed in, and sure enough, they were all wearing black uniforms with a raven with outstretched wings embroidered on their chests.

"Wow, it's quite lively here." The leader was a tall, thin man with a playful smile on his face.

"Balancer, I didn't expect you to come here in person."

"And..." he looked at the shadow, "Mr. Shadow, it's been a long time."

The shadow didn't speak, but simply took a small step back.

"Mr. Shadow, you always like to go against us," the tall, thin man said slowly. "Last time you sold us false information, and this time you're trying to sell the Concealing Talisman to the Balancer."

"Do you think we Night Ravens are easy to bully?"

The shadow remained silent.

"Never mind." The tall, thin man waved his hand. "We're mainly here today to find the Balancer."

"Mr. Shadow, I won't make things difficult for you. You can leave now."

"But the balancer..."

He looked at me, his eyes flashing with a dangerous light.

"You have to stay."

I clenched my fist, and my CP flowed through my body.

What if I don't?

"Then we'll have to use force." The tall, thin man laughed. "Don't worry, we won't kill you."

"We just want you... to meet our master."

The atmosphere instantly became tense.

I glanced around.

There were five Night Raven members, plus the tall, thin man, making a total of six.

The shadow stepped aside, showing no intention of leaving, but also no intention of helping me.

What should I do?

If it's a head-on fight, I'm no match for you.

But if we just go with them...

"Balancer, give up," the tall, thin man said. "No one's coming to save you."

"This area has been cordoned off tonight."

Even if you call now, it will take at least half an hour for them to arrive.

"And half an hour..."

He took a few steps closer.

"That's enough for us to take you away."

I took a deep breath.

Can't sit still.

Even if we can't win, we should still give it a shot.

Just as I was about to take action—

"Who said no one is coming?"

A voice came from outside the warehouse.

I turned my head and saw a figure standing at the warehouse entrance.

It was Zhao Tiezhu.

"How could you...?"

"Mingyue told me to follow you." He walked into the warehouse and stood beside me. "She said if anything happens, I should pretend I was just passing by."

"But now that we've been discovered..."

He cracked his fists.

"Then I won't pretend."

The tall, thin man's expression changed.

"Zhao Tiezhu...the boundary guardian of the Zhao family?"

"I didn't expect you to get involved in this."

"This is none of your Zhao family's business."

"Is that so?" Zhao Tiezhu sneered. "Then I'll show you today."

The battle between Zhao Tiezhu and the leader of the Night Ravens broke out in an instant.

The fierce attacks of the Guardian Fist forced the tall, thin man to take them seriously.

"The Zhao family is indeed quite capable." The tall, thin man took a few steps back, his previous disdain gone.

"But are you sure you want to go against us?"

"Enough with the nonsense." Zhao Tiezhu charged forward again.

Taking advantage of a lull in their fighting, I quickly considered a strategy.

Five members of the Night Raven.

Zhao Tiezhu was engaged in a fight with the leader and couldn't attend to the others for the time being.

I must help him share the burden.

"Shadow!" I shouted.

The shadow was still standing in the corner, seemingly observing.

"I need a favor," I said. "Consider it an obligation I owe you."

The shadow remained silent for a moment.

Then, he moved.

A dark shadow flashed by, and a Night Raven member groaned and fell to the ground.

"Interesting." The tall, thin man's face darkened as he witnessed this. "Mr. Shadow, are you determined to oppose us?"

The shadow did not answer, but continued to attack.

Another member of the Night Raven has fallen.

The remaining three members started to panic.

"Retreat!" the tall, thin man shouted. "Let them go for now!"

Several dark figures quickly retreated and disappeared into the night.

The tall, thin man glanced at me before he left.

"Balancer, next time we meet... you won't be so lucky."

After saying that, he disappeared into the darkness.

The warehouse returned to silence.

I breathed a sigh of relief and turned to the shadow.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome," said Shadow. "I just didn't want the Night Raven to succeed."

"And..." he looked at me, "you can keep that concealment talisman in your hand."

"Didn't you want 5000 CP?"

"Consider it a small gift."

I froze for a moment.

You're giving me something worth 5000 CP for free?

"Why?" I asked.

The shadow remained silent for a moment.

"Because you are the balancer," he said.

"Furthermore... I don't want the Void to succeed."

That's all.

After saying that, he turned and left.

I watched his retreating figure, my mind filled with doubt.

Who exactly is this "shadow"?

Why should you help me?

Why go against the Night Raven?

How much does he actually know?

But now is not the time to think about these things.

Zhao Tiezhu's injuries haven't fully healed yet; he just fought Night Raven again...

"Are you alright?" I asked.

"It's nothing," Zhao Tiezhu shook his head. "It's a piece of cake."

"The Night Ravens and their ilk aren't really that capable."

"They're just taking advantage of their numbers to bully the few."

I nodded without saying anything more.

But he knew in his heart that today's events meant that the Night Raven had already begun its operation.

They knew I had come to the suburbs.

This means someone is following me.

There really is a mole within the General Administration.

After returning to headquarters, Su Mingyue waited for me.

"How is it?" she asked as soon as she saw me.

I told her what had happened.

The appearance of the night raven, the help of the shadow, the concealment talisman...

And there's that mystery that's never been solved—who exactly is the shadow?

After listening, Su Mingyue fell into deep thought.

"This shadow..." she said, "may not be from Guixu."

Why?

"If he were from Guixu, he wouldn't be helping us tonight."

"And..." she frowned, "the things he said..."

"'I don't want the Ruins to succeed'..."

"This suggests there might be some kind of conflict between him and Guixu."

"Or... he might be from another faction."

"Another force?" I was taken aback. "Besides Guixu and the General Bureau, there are other forces?"

"I'm not sure," Su Mingyue shook her head, "but according to the information I have, there are more than just Guixu and the General Bureau in this world."

"There are also some... independent entities."

"They belong to no one; they act solely for their own purposes."

"Perhaps the shadow is one of them."

I was lost in thought.

Anyway, I'm so grateful for his help tonight.

Otherwise, the consequences would be disastrous.

Current status update:

Remaining lifespan: 25 years and 11 months

CP balance: 495

Cost conversion efficiency: 32%

Breath Concealment Technique Progress: Beginner Level (Success rate of concealment approximately 30%)

New item: Concealing Breath Talisman x1 (Not activated)

Crisis countdown: 2 days