The atmosphere inside Riches Club had become strangely awkward.
Nobody knew what they were supposed to do anymore.
A birthday gathering had somehow evolved into a business war.
Then a martial arts confrontation.
Then whatever the hell that sword was.
Many young masters and young ladies present silently lowered their heads.
Several were already texting their families.
Some were even deleting old chat records.
Others were mentally reviewing every interaction they had ever had with the Li Family.
Just in case.
No one wanted to become the next Luo Family.
The Luo siblings were the perfect example standing right in front of them.
One was crying.
One was pretending to be unconscious.
The third one had apparently transformed into some ancient monster before running away.
Nobody wanted that kind of experience.
Mr. Law felt that he had aged ten years tonight.
He silently ordered people to begin cleaning the hall.
The sooner this nightmare ended, the better.
Meanwhile...
Nangong Li was still staring at Li Tao.
The more she observed him, the more confused she became.
Everything about this man contradicted common sense.
She had investigated most notable young masters in several provinces.
Their strengths.
Their weaknesses.
Their habits.
Their backgrounds.
She remembered none named Li Tao.
Yet the person before her possessed enough confidence to offend both the Qin Family and the Luo Family at the same time.
More importantly...
he seemed completely unconcerned about the consequences.
That was what truly caught her attention.
Arrogance and confidence looked similar.
But they were fundamentally different things.
Arrogance came from ignorance.
Confidence came from certainty.
Nangong Li had met countless arrogant people.
Most of them ended up crying later.
Li Tao did not feel like one of them.
His behavior looked more like someone who already knew the ending.
That thought made her uncomfortable.
Very uncomfortable.
At the side—
Qin Chanchan was still fuming.
No matter how she thought about it, something felt wrong.
She had clearly come here to save someone.
So why did it feel like she was the one being humiliated?
Her dozen guards had been beaten.
Her warning had been ignored.
And now the culprit was casually drinking juice.
The more she thought about it—
the angrier she became.
Unfortunately...
she was not stupid.
The scene from earlier was still fresh in her memory.
Especially the sword.
That thing alone was enough to make her hesitate.
Even if she wanted revenge, she would first need to investigate what exactly happened here tonight.
Li Tao naturally noticed their expressions.
He simply smiled.
His smile immediately made Qin Chanchan even angrier.
Li Jing happily skipped over and sat beside him.
"Cousin."
"Hmm?"
"Can I hit them again?"
"..."
The entire hall became quiet.
Qin Chanchan nearly exploded.
Nangong Li's eyelids twitched.
Even Neo was speechless.
Li Tao calmly took a sip of juice.
"No."
Li Jing looked disappointed.
"Why?"
Li Tao pointed toward the Luo siblings.
"They're already broken."
Li Jing looked over.
Then nodded seriously.
"Good point."
Luo Meng almost coughed blood.
Meanwhile...
inside Li Tao's consciousness.
Neo finally regained some composure after his earlier panic attack.
[Ding! Host.]
Li Tao raised an eyebrow.
"What now?"
[Ding! Good news.]
"What good news?"
[Ding! You are still alive.]
"..."
"That's your good news?"
[Ding! Considering today's events, yes.]
Li Tao almost laughed.
The system spirit sounded more traumatized than he was.
"How serious is the situation?"
Neo became silent.
Several seconds later he answered.
[Ding! Worse than expected.]
[Ding! Much worse.]
[Ding! Ye Feng's rebirth was already changing the future.]
[Ding! Now a foreign cultivator has appeared.]
[Ding! The world evolution is accelerating.]
Li Tao's expression gradually became serious.
"And?"
[Ding! And I can no longer freely scan everything for you.]
[Ding! Every ability costs points now.]
[Ding! A lot of points.]
Li Tao immediately felt pain in his heart.
Points.
His precious points.
The system's favorite food.
"How much?"
Neo's answer sounded weak.
[Ding! Ten times the previous amount.]
Li Tao almost crushed his cup.
Even he felt slightly pained.
His original plan relied heavily on Neo's abilities.
Now he would need to be much more careful.
Fortunately...
he still possessed a huge advantage.
His memories.
His cultivation.
His accumulated resources.
And most importantly—
he knew the personalities of nearly every protagonist and heroine in this story.
That knowledge alone was priceless.
Neo suddenly spoke again.
[Ding! Also...]
"What?"
[Ding! I don't think Luo Chen will give up.]
Li Tao smiled.
"I know."
[Ding! He looked terrified of the sword.]
"That's why he won't give up."
Neo paused.
Then immediately understood.
For a cultivator—
fear often created obsession.
The more valuable something appeared...
the more likely someone would risk everything to obtain it.
The sword had practically announced its existence.
Luo Chen would definitely investigate.
Perhaps not now.
Perhaps not soon.
But eventually.
Li Tao was counting on it.
Across the hall—
Luo Meng's thoughts were becoming increasingly chaotic.
Her eyes repeatedly drifted toward the doorway Luo Chen had escaped through.
A strange feeling appeared inside her heart.
Fear.
Regret.
And uncertainty.
For years she had treated Luo Bingchen as less than a servant.
Someone who would never leave.
Someone who would always tolerate everything.
Yet tonight...
that certainty had completely shattered.
For the first time—
she realized she might have made a mistake.
A terrible mistake.
Unfortunately...
some mistakes became clear only after it was too late.
Far away from the city.
Deep within the Endless Mountains.
A figure rapidly moved through the darkness.
Luo Chen finally stopped atop a lonely cliff.
His breathing was slightly uneven.
His face was pale.
The spiritual energy inside his body had nearly been exhausted.
Yet he ignored all of that.
His eyes remained fixed on a distant direction.
Toward the endless mountain range.
Toward the place where his soul had first appeared in this world.
A faint feeling was calling to him.
Ancient.
Mysterious.
Familiar.
As though something hidden there was connected to his arrival.
Connected to his destiny.
And perhaps...
connected to that terrifying sword.
Luo Chen slowly clenched his fists.
His eyes burned with determination.
"Li Tao..."
"We will meet again."
"But next time..."
"I will be prepared."
The night wind swept across the mountains.
Far in the distance—
dark clouds quietly gathered above the ancient black gate hidden between the peaks.
As if responding to his words.
As if something deep within the mountains had begun to awaken.
And neither side realized that the true game had only just begun.