The wedding was livestreamed by the sister, revealing his identity as a Taoist priest.

Shen Family Villa, Restaurant.

Shen Xingzhou slammed the tablet on the table; the screen was still lit, and the green candlestick chart looked like a precipice.

"Qi Zhen has gone mad."

Shen Zhengting put down his chopsticks, his face darkening.

Lin Ruolan also stopped what she was doing.

Shen Xingzhou recounted the whole story from beginning to end.

Short selling, loan withdrawal, goods seizure, and supply chain disruption—all four tactics employed simultaneously.

"Because of Qilian City."

Shen Xingzhou glanced at Shen Nianqing.

"He was struck by lightning and died. Qi Zhen is convinced that it was someone from our family who did it."

The living room was quiet for two seconds.

Chen Xiaoyu slammed her chopsticks down on the bowl with a "bang," her face turning bright red.

"They sent people to sabotage us first! That wicked Taoist priest almost harmed someone at the tasting event! Now that their people are dead, they're turning around and accusing us?"

She stood up, her voice trembling.

"How can these powerful families be so shameless! They were clearly the ones who plotted against us first!"

Lin Ke nodded frantically beside him.

"Exactly! The guilty party is the one who falsely accuses others!"

Shen Xingzhou rubbed his temples.

"That makes sense, but Qi Zhen is being unreasonable. He's trying to overwhelm us with money and force my brother-in-law to show up."

He turned to look at Shen Nianqing.

"Sis, what do you think we should do? I have enough funds to last for ten days or two weeks, but if he keeps dragging this out..."

Shen Nianqing held the cup and slowly took a sip of water.

His expression was as if he were listening to someone else's story.

"Big brother."

"Um?"

"The Lu family, the He family, and the Zhou family came to apologize last time. They gave up 30% of the land in the south of the city, opened the logistics channel for free for three years, and gave up 10% in medical procurement."

Shen Xingzhou nodded.

"Yeah, what does this have to do with the Qi family...?"

He paused halfway through his sentence.

Shen Nianqing put down her cup.

"The three major families have business dealings with the Qi family in the capital. The Lu family's shipping routes use the Qi family's ports. The He family's logistics network overlaps with the Qi family's. 30% of the raw materials for the Zhou family's medical equipment come from the Qi family's channels."

Shen Xingzhou's eyes widened.

"you mean……"

"Didn't they come to apologize?"

Shen Nianqing spoke so softly, as if she were talking about the weather.

"It's time for them to show some sincerity."

Shen Xingzhou was stunned for three seconds.

"Is this...is this feasible? To make all three families sever ties with the Qi family at the same time? That would be tantamount to blocking all of Qi Zhen's escape routes."

"You'll know once you try."

Shen Nianqing stood up.

"Qi Zhen's four-pronged attack looks impressive, but he's also bleeding money out of him. If the three major families simultaneously withdraw their investments from his supply chain at this time..."

She paused.

"Hopefully they are intelligent people."

Shen Xingzhou stared at his younger sister for five seconds.

Then he slapped his thigh.

"My sister is my sister!"

He grabbed his phone and walked out.

"I'll call right now! That old bastard Lu Zhenting was the fastest runner last time, if he's slow this time, I'll change my surname to his!"

Shen Zhengting watched his son's hurried departure, then looked at his daughter.

"Nianqing, Qi Zhen is no ordinary person. If you push him too far..."

"dad."

Shen Nianqing spoke in a flat tone.

"His confidence to take action stemmed from those evil cultivators."

She looked out the window, her gaze falling on the men in black standing neatly in the courtyard.

"But we don't need to worry about the line of heretical practitioners."

Shen Zhengting paused for a moment, then nodded.

He understood what his daughter meant.

The Shen family will handle the business disputes themselves.

Regarding matters of Taoism, there is Chen Shidu.

……

highway.

A black minivan drove through the night.

back seat.

Su Qingluan leaned against the window, the light from her phone screen reflecting on her face.

Trending topics.

[#Chen Shidu's Third Dowry Gift: Love Letter Revealed#]

She clicked on it.

The accompanying image is a high-resolution photo of a piece of silk with six characters on it.

"On a snowy night, the lights never go out."

Comment area.

[What kind of divine writing is this? I'm crying!]

[Chen Shidu: Sending a national treasure a thousand miles just to ask if you're sleeping well. Me: ...Being single is a sin.]

"The light never goes out on this snowy night"—he was telling her that no matter what the circumstances, he would always be there for her.

Su Qingluan turned off her phone.

Outside the car window, the streetlights receded one by one.

She didn't say anything.

In the passenger seat, Qingxu hunched his neck, barely daring to breathe.

He glanced at the back seat in the rearview mirror.

Su Qingluan remained expressionless, her fingers resting on her knees, motionless.

But Qingxu could feel that the temperature inside the car was dropping.

It's not an illusion.

The numbers on the car's air conditioning display changed from 23 degrees to 21 degrees, and then to 19 degrees.

Qingxu pulled the zipper of her down jacket up even further.

It's tough.

This journey was even more difficult than enduring a tribulation of lightning.

The car entered the territory of Anping City.

The night was darker.

There are fewer cars on the road, and the streetlights are sparse.

Qingxu was just about to take a nap when his body suddenly stiffened.

He sat up abruptly, his brows furrowed.

"wrong."

He turned his head to look out the car window.

The city's silhouette was lit in the distance, but above that light was an unnatural gray.

Invisible to the naked eye.

But the perceptions of those who cultivate the Tao cannot be deceived.

"Yin energy".

Qingxu's voice deepened.

"The extremely heavy yin energy has permeated the entire urban area."

He closed his eyes and made a hand gesture.

Three breaths later, he opened his eyes.

His expression changed.

"Half-step Ghost King".

The temperature inside the car plummeted to freezing, but this time it wasn't because of Su Qingluan.

It's outside.

"parking."

A sound came from the back seat.

Qingxu turned his head.

Su Qingluan had already opened her eyes.

The previous silence was gone from those eyes; instead, an extremely cold light shone through.

"Miss Su, I'll handle this matter. You're still recovering..."

"Qingxu".

Su Qingluan pushed open the car door, her dark red Taoist robe billowing in the night wind.

She stood by the roadside, looking up at the invisible gray fog hanging over the city.

"Haven't made a move in a long time."

Her voice was very soft and faint.

So faint that you couldn't detect any emotion.

But Qingxu understood.

That's not bland.

It's pressed down.

Su Qingluan raised her right hand and drew a line in the air with her slender fingers.

A burst of crimson-gold light erupted from his fingertips, streaking across the night sky like a shooting star.

Above the distant city, the cloud of gray fog churned violently.

It felt like I was being stung by something.

Su Qingluan's lips curled into a smile.

It's cold.

"Perfect."

She took a step, her dark red Taoist robe fluttering in the wind.

"I feel so suffocated, I need to vent my anger on something."

Deep in the city.

The outskirts of the old residential area.

Eight members of the Tian Shu Anping branch are currently conducting an emergency lockdown.

The yellow warning tape was stretched out three times, and the infrared thermal imager was pointed at the six-story building.

The captain roared into the communicator.

"Requesting backup! The level A strange fluctuations in Anping city are escalating! We can't suppress them!"

Chen Feng's hoarse voice came through the communicator.

"Hold on! Jiangcheng Branch is dealing with the local threat; reinforcements will arrive within two hours at the earliest!"

Two hours?!

The captain stared at the expanding red outline on the thermal imaging screen, the color draining from his face.

"In two hours, this place will be a ghost town!"

Right now.

A streak of crimson-gold light swept across the night sky from the west.

It moved so fast that everyone only saw a blur.

A stream of light fell on the main entrance of the residential area.

Light scattering.

He wore a dark red Taoist robe, his hair was tied up with a wooden hairpin, and his face was as cold as ice.

The Tian Shu team members were all stunned.

"Who goes there!"

Su Qingluan didn't look at them.

Her gaze pierced through the building and the walls, locking onto the dark, sinister aura that lingered on the sixth floor.

A three-meter-tall, semi-transparent figure is taking shape.

Bloodshot eyes, crescent-shaped claws, and thick black mist.

Half-step Ghost King.

Su Qingluan raised her hand.

The red gold flows at your fingertips.

"come over."