The Outer Ring smelled like desperation and opportunity in equal measure.
I navigated narrow alleys where legitimate Azure Peak City ended and something darker began. Here, the cobblestones gave way to packed dirt. Clan compound lanterns were replaced by smoky torches that cast more shadow than light. And the people—guards in neat uniforms became scarred men with weapons, wealthy merchants became street vendors selling questionable goods.
This was where the city hid its failures and outcasts.
Perfect.
[ENTERING: OUTER RING DISTRICT]
[DANGER LEVEL: HIGH]
[AVERAGE CULTIVATION: QI CONDENSATION 1-5]
[MURDER RATE: SIGNIFICANT]
[AUTHORITY PRESENCE: MINIMAL]
[RECOMMENDATION: AVOID ATTENTION]
I kept my hood up and walked with purpose—not fast enough to seem like prey running, not slow enough to seem lost. The Fortune Defying Manual had taught me to sense probability threads, and right now, those threads screamed danger from every shadow.
A group of men watched me from a doorway, calculating odds. A woman with dead eyes tracked my movement, assessing value. Even the beggars seemed predatory, measuring whether I was mark or threat.
My hand rested on the short sword under my robes. Fortune Foundation 1st Layer wasn't impressive, but it was enough to make me dangerous to normal people.
The question was whether they'd realize that before trying something stupid.
[PROBABILITY ASSESSMENT: 73% CHANCE OF CONFRONTATION]
[YOUR APPEARANCE SUGGESTS: YOUNG, ALONE, POSSIBLY WEALTHY]
[OUTER RING PREDATORS TARGET EXACTLY THIS PROFILE]
"System, how much LP to avoid trouble tonight?"
[DEPENDS ON THE TROUBLE]
[MINOR THUGS: 10-20 LP]
[SERIOUS GANGS: 50+ LP]
[RECOMMENDATION: SAVE LP FOR EMERGENCIES]
[BETTER TO FIGHT WHEN YOU CAN]
I turned down a street that led deeper into the Outer Ring, following mental directions Xiao Lan had provided. Her cousin Xiao Chen operated from somewhere called the "Wanderer's Rest"—an inn that supposedly catered to people who asked no questions.
Three blocks in, my luck ran out.
Or perhaps ran exactly as it should, given my cultivation method.
"That's far enough, friend."
Four men materialized from the shadows—not literally, just skilled at urban ambush. Their leader was a scarred man in his thirties with Qi Condensation 4th Layer cultivation radiating from him like cheap cologne. The others were weaker, but numbers mattered.
[THREAT ASSESSMENT]
[LEADER: QI CONDENSATION 4TH LAYER]
[SUBORDINATE 1: QI CONDENSATION 2ND LAYER]
[SUBORDINATE 2: QI CONDENSATION 1ST LAYER]
[SUBORDINATE 3: MORTAL WITH KNIFE]
[YOUR ODDS IN DIRECT COMBAT: 34%]
[THEIR LEADER OUTCLASSES YOU]
"I'm just passing through," I said, keeping my voice neutral. "No trouble intended."
"No trouble," the leader agreed, smiling without warmth. "Just a toll. This street belongs to the Red Viper Gang. You want passage, you pay. Twenty silver taels should cover it."
Twenty silver. Everything Xiao Lan had gathered for me.
"That's steep for one street."
"It's steeper if you refuse." The leader's hand moved to his sword. "But I'm reasonable. Maybe we negotiate. That's a nice jade token around your neck. I saw it when your hood shifted. Hand it over, along with the silver, and we call it even."
The identity token. Without it, I had no way to contact Xiao Chen, no way to establish a new identity.
[PROBABILITY OF PEACEFUL RESOLUTION: 12%]
[THEY INTEND TO ROB YOU REGARDLESS]
[POSSIBLY KILL YOU AFTER]
[RECOMMENDATION: STRIKE FIRST]
I adjusted my stance slightly, preparing. "What if I don't have twenty silver?"
"Then you don't leave this alley." The leader drew his sword—cheap steel, but functional. His subordinates spread out, surrounding me. "Last chance, boy. Pay or bleed."
I drew my own sword in response, and the leader's eyes widened slightly. Not at the weapon—it was as unremarkable as his. But at how I held it, the subtle confidence of someone trained by a major clan.
"Qi Condensation?" he asked, reassessing. "You're cultivator? Should've said so. We don't touch clan disciples—too much trouble."
"I'm not a clan disciple anymore," I said truthfully. "Just a wanderer looking for a place to sleep."
"Then you're fair game." The leader's initial caution evaporated. Qi Condensation 4th Layer versus 1st Layer? He liked those odds.
He lunged.
His sword came at my throat in a straightforward strike—competent but predictable. In a fair fight, his superior cultivation would let him overpower my defense easily.
But I didn't fight fair anymore.
I activated Fortune Strike, spending 10 LP to find the weakness in his attack. His lunge had a gap—a moment when his weight shifted wrong, when his sword angle exposed his wrist.
I didn't try to block his superior strength. I simply tapped his extended wrist with my blade at exactly the right angle.
His sword flew from nerveless fingers, clattering on stones.
[FORTUNE STRIKE: SUCCESSFUL]
[ENEMY DISARMED]
[CURRENT LP: 44]
"What—" the leader started, staring at his empty hand.
I didn't give him time to finish. Probability Step carried me inside his reach, my sword pressing against his throat before his subordinates could react.
"New negotiation," I said quietly. "You leave. I leave. Nobody bleeds. We all forget this happened."
The leader's eyes were wide with confusion and fear. He was stronger than me—his cultivation base proved it. But somehow, impossibly, he'd lost in one exchange.
Welcome to fighting a Fortune Foundation cultivator.
"Boss?" one of his subordinates asked uncertainly.
The leader swallowed carefully against my blade. "Stand down. We... miscalculated. This one's above our weight."
I stepped back, keeping my sword ready. "Smart choice."
They retreated slowly, the leader cradling his numb wrist. Once they reached the alley's far end, they ran.
[COMBAT: SUCCESSFUL]
[REPUTATION GAINED: RED VIPER GANG KNOWS YOU'RE DANGEROUS]
[+25 LP FOR DEFYING SUPERIOR OPPONENT]
[CURRENT LP: 69]
I sheathed my sword and continued walking, heart pounding. That had been close—too close. If he'd been 5th Layer instead of 4th, if his subordinates had attacked simultaneously, if my Fortune Strike had missed its narrow window...
[WELCOME TO FORTUNE DEFYING CULTIVATION]
[EVERY FIGHT IS CALCULATED RISK]
[EVERY VICTORY MAKES YOU STRONGER]
[EVERY LOSS MEANS DEATH]
"Encouraging," I muttered.
The Wanderer's Rest appeared ten minutes later—a sagging two-story building that looked like it survived through spite alone. Dim light leaked from shuttered windows. Voices carried from inside, rough and wary.
A wooden sign hung crooked above the door: "Rooms Available - No Names Required."
Perfect.
I pushed through the door into a common room that smelled of cheap alcohol and cheaper food. Conversation died as eyes assessed me—the universal greeting of any place where strangers were threats first, customers second.
Behind the bar stood a man in his mid-twenties with Xiao Lan's features softened by a few years and harder life. Xiao Chen, presumably. He met my gaze briefly, then returned to cleaning a glass with studied disinterest.
[XIAO CHEN DETECTED]
[CULTIVATION: QI CONDENSATION 6TH LAYER]
[OCCUPATION: INFORMATION BROKER / INN KEEPER]
[THREAT LEVEL: MODERATE]
[TRUSTWORTHINESS: HIGH (FAMILY LOYALTY)]
I approached the bar, keeping my movements non-threatening. Around me, patrons returned to their drinks and conversations, deciding I wasn't immediately interesting.
"Room for the night," I said quietly.
"Five silver." Xiao Chen didn't look up. "Extra two silver if you want it to actually have a lock that works."
I placed seven silver on the bar. As I did, I let the jade token slip from under my shirt, visible for just a moment.
Xiao Chen's eyes flicked to it, then to my face. His expression didn't change, but his next words carried different weight. "Room three, second floor. Key's under the mat. If anyone asks, you've been here three days already."
"Understood."
"And friend?" He leaned in slightly. "My sister has excellent taste in who she trusts. Don't make her regret it. We'll talk after the common room clears. Midnight."
He slid a key across the bar along with my change, then returned to his studied disinterest.
I climbed stairs that creaked alarmingly, found room three, and discovered the lock did indeed work—barely. The room itself was small, sparse, but crucially, private. A bed that had seen better decades. A window overlooking the alley. A basin of questionable water.
After the storage building, it was luxury.
I collapsed onto the bed, every muscle finally admitting how exhausted I was. The fortune absorption, the treasury heist, the escape, the fight with the Red Vipers—all of it crashed over me like a wave.
[PHYSICAL CONDITION: EXHAUSTED]
[MENTAL STATE: STRESSED]
[RECOMMENDATION: FOUR HOURS SLEEP MINIMUM]
[CURRENT TIME: 1:47 AM]
[MEETING WITH XIAO CHEN: 10 HOURS, 13 MINUTES]
"System, wake me at 11:30 AM. And alert me if anyone approaches my door."
[ACKNOWLEDGED]
[SLEEP MONITORING: ACTIVE]
[PERIMETER ALERT: ACTIVE]
I closed my eyes and fell into darkness.
I dreamed of my birthday celebration. Liu Yue smiling at me. Zhao Ming's friendly hand on my shoulder. The jade bottle extended, my naive acceptance, the poison burning through my meridians.
But in the dream, when I collapsed, I didn't stay down. I stood up, golden light bleeding from my eyes, and I watched their faces twist from satisfaction to horror.
"You can't kill what refuses to die," I told them. "You can only make it angry."
I woke to sunlight and the System's alert.
[TIME: 11:32 AM]
[YOU SLEPT: 9 HOURS, 45 MINUTES]
[PHYSICAL CONDITION: IMPROVED]
[CURRENT LP: 69 + 10 (DAILY GENERATION) = 79]
My body felt marginally better—Fortune Foundation cultivation apparently included accelerated healing. The shoulder injury that should have kept me bedridden was now merely sore. The exhaustion had faded to manageable levels.
I washed with the questionable water, changed into slightly cleaner clothes, and prepared to meet Xiao Chen.
The common room was empty except for one drunk sleeping in the corner and Xiao Chen himself, sitting at a corner table with tea and what looked like account books.
He gestured me over.
"So," he said without preamble as I sat. "My little sister sends me a supposedly dead young master from the Chen Clan who's somehow cultivating again after being crippled and cremated. This should be interesting."
Direct. I appreciated that.
"How much did Xiao Lan tell you?"
"Enough to know you were murdered, somehow survived, and need to disappear before your enemies realize their mistake." He poured tea with steady hands. "Also that you saved my brother's life two years ago. So I'm inclined to help, even though harboring a supposedly dead clan heir is spectacularly dangerous."
"I won't bring trouble to your door," I said. "I just need a new identity. Something that lets me move through the city without raising questions."
"New identity." Xiao Chen smiled slightly. "You understand what you're asking? The clans track everything—births, deaths, cultivation registrations, movement permits. Forging a complete identity that stands up to scrutiny costs serious money and serious connections."
"How much money?"
"For something basic? Fifty gold taels. For something that includes cultivation registration and back history? Two hundred gold."
I had twenty silver taels minus the seven I'd spent on the room. Thirteen silver remaining.
One gold tael equaled one hundred silver taels.
I was approximately 19,987 silver taels short.
[FINANCIAL SITUATION: CATASTROPHIC]
[RECOMMENDATION: FIND ALTERNATIVE PAYMENT METHOD]
"I don't have that kind of money," I admitted. "But I have skills. Information. Future value."
"Skills?" Xiao Chen raised an eyebrow. "You're Fortune Foundation 1st Layer. Competent for your age, but not exactly impressive in the Outer Ring. What can you offer that's worth two hundred gold?"
Good question.
What could a dead young master with barely-functional cultivation and a divine system offer an information broker in the lawless district?
Then it hit me.
"Information on Elder Feng of the Chen Clan," I said quietly. "Complete documentation of his treason. Proof that he's been working for the Celestial Court, accepting bribes, facilitating murders. Including payment records going back five years."
Xiao Chen's expression didn't change, but his hands stilled on the teacup. "That's... significant information. If true."
"It's true. My ally in the compound copied his ledgers. Names, dates, amounts, everything." I leaned forward. "That kind of information has value, doesn't it? To the right buyer?"
"To several buyers," Xiao Chen admitted. "The Chen Clan would pay for proof one of their elders is a traitor. The Celestial Court would pay more to suppress it. Other clans would pay to use it as leverage. Yes, that information has value."
"Then that's my payment. Help me establish an identity, and I'll give you everything I have on Elder Feng. You can sell it, use it, whatever profits you most."
[NEGOTIATION: RISKY]
[YOU'RE OFFERING YOUR ONLY LEVERAGE]
[BUT YOU NEED THE IDENTITY MORE]
Xiao Chen studied me for a long moment. "There's more going on here than a simple murder, isn't there? The Celestial Court doesn't involve itself in petty clan politics. They're hunting something bigger."
"They sealed my spiritual root at birth," I said. "Suppressed my talent for eighteen years. Then killed me when I was about to awaken naturally. Whatever my family's bloodline contains, they fear it enough to commit murder."
"Interesting." Xiao Chen's eyes sharpened with professional interest. "Very interesting. Alright, supposedly dead young master. I'll take the deal. Elder Feng's information in exchange for a complete identity package. But I want something else too."
"What?"
"When you're strong enough, when you go back to settle your accounts with the people who killed you—I want to be informed. The chaos when a supposedly dead heir returns and exposes clan corruption? That's the kind of event an information broker dreams about. The leverage opportunities alone..."
Despite everything, I smiled. "You want front-row seats to my revenge."
"I want to profit from your revenge," he corrected. "But yes. Do we have a deal?"
I extended my hand. "Deal."
We shook, and I felt probability threads shift slightly—a contract made, a future locked in.
[ALLIANCE FORMED: XIAO CHEN]
[RELATIONSHIP: MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL]
[TRUST LEVEL: MODERATE]
[+50 LP FOR SECURING RESOURCES]
[CURRENT LP: 129]
"Good." Xiao Chen pulled out a blank jade slip. "I'll need you to record everything you have on Elder Feng—conversations, documents, names. Be thorough. While you do that, I'll start building your new identity. Tell me about yourself. Skills, cultivation method, anything that might affect your cover story."
I recorded everything I knew about Elder Feng's conspiracy onto the jade slip while describing my situation. The Fortune Defying Manual, my Heaven Grade root, the Celestial Court's involvement.
Xiao Chen listened with the focused attention of someone whose business was knowing things others didn't.
"Fortune Defying Manual," he repeated when I finished. "Never heard of it. But probability manipulation cultivation? That's rare. Extremely rare. Most cultivators follow traditional paths because they're proven. Unconventional methods either create legends or corpses."
"Which do you think I'll be?"
"Ask me in a year." He studied the jade slip I'd given him. "This is good. Really good. Elder Feng's been more active than I realized. I can sell this information in pieces to multiple buyers, maximize profit. Your identity is covered."
He pulled out another jade slip, already prepared. "Your new name is Wei Chen. Note the reversal—keeps your old initials if you need to use them. You're a wandering cultivator from a small clan in the Western Provinces that was destroyed by spirit beast tide three years ago. You're one of the few survivors, which explains why you have no clan backing and why you're poor. Your cultivation method is listed as 'Mixed Path'—vague enough that nobody will question specifics."
"Wei Chen," I repeated, testing it. It felt wrong and right simultaneously. "What about documentation?"
"Movement permit, cultivation registration, basic identity token—all being prepared now. Takes three days to complete and insert into official records. Cost me a few favors with a corrupt clerk in the registration office, but worth it."
Three days. I needed to stay hidden and survive in the Outer Ring for three days.
"Where do I stay until then?"
"Here. Room three is yours. Seven silver per night, food included—lousy food, but included. Keep your head down, don't draw attention, and in three days you'll officially be Wei Chen, free to move through Azure Peak City legitimately."
[QUEST UPDATED: ESTABLISH NEW IDENTITY]
[PROGRESS: 30%]
[WAIT TIME: 3 DAYS]
[CURRENT LOCATION: SECURE]
A commotion from outside interrupted our conversation. Shouting voices, running feet, the sound of organized movement.
Xiao Chen moved to the window and looked out, his expression darkening. "Trouble. Chen Clan guards, sweeping the Outer Ring. They're searching for something. Or someone."
My blood ran cold. "They found out about the substitution."
"Probably. They're showing something to people. A portrait, maybe?" He squinted. "Can't see clearly from here."
[WARNING: MANHUNT INITIATED]
[ESTIMATED TIME SINCE DECEPTION DISCOVERY: 2-3 HOURS]
[CLAN RESPONSE: AGGRESSIVE]
"I need to see what they're showing," I said.
"Bad idea. If they see you—"
"I need to know what they know." I activated Fortune Sense, feeling probability threads outside. The guards were spreading through streets, questioning people, showing their portrait.
But they weren't very lucky right now. Their search pattern was inefficient, their questions not quite right.
Maybe I could make them even unluckier.
"Stay here," Xiao Chen ordered. "I'll go look. I'm just a curious innkeeper, no threat."
He left before I could argue.
Five minutes later, he returned, holding a paper that made my stomach drop.
The portrait was crude but recognizable—my face, my features, drawn from memory. Beneath it, text:
"WANTED: Information Regarding Chen Wei
Reward: 100 Gold Taels
Last Seen: Chen Clan Compound
Believed to be: Alive despite reports of death
Approach with caution - potentially dangerous
Contact: Elder Feng, Chen Clan"
"They're not admitting you faked your death," Xiao Chen observed. "That would be embarrassing. Instead, they're implying you might have survived somehow. Clever. Saves face while still finding you."
"Elder Feng is leading the search," I noted. "Of course he is. He needs me dead before anyone asks questions about his involvement."
"One hundred gold taels is serious money," Xiao Chen said quietly. "That kind of reward will motivate every bounty hunter, thug, and desperate person in Azure Peak City. Your face is now worth more than most people earn in five years."
[DANGER LEVEL: EXTREME]
[BOUNTY ISSUED: 100 GOLD TAELS]
[ESTIMATED HUNTERS: 200+]
[RECOMMENDATION: DO NOT LEAVE THE INN]
I looked at the portrait, at my own face rendered in ink and desperation. They knew. Maybe not everything—maybe they still thought I'd somehow survived the poison rather than actually died and resurrected. But they knew I was alive, and they were hunting.
"Can I stay here?" I asked Xiao Chen. "For three days? Until the identity is ready?"
"You can. Should you?" He gestured at the window. "The Wanderer's Rest is known for harboring people who don't want to be found. Eventually, someone will search here. I can probably hide you for three days, but it's a risk."
"What's the alternative?"
"Keep moving. Different inn every night. Never stay in one place long enough to be reported. Riskier in some ways, safer in others."
[OPTION 1: STAY AT WANDERER'S REST]
[SAFETY: HIGH SHORT-TERM, LOW LONG-TERM]
[PROBABILITY OF DISCOVERY: 23% OVER 3 DAYS]
[OPTION 2: KEEP MOVING]
[SAFETY: MODERATE THROUGHOUT]
[PROBABILITY OF DISCOVERY: 41% OVER 3 DAYS]
[REQUIRES: 15 LP DAILY FOR FORTUNE MANIPULATION]
Neither option was good. But staying in one place felt like waiting for the axe to fall.
"I'll move," I decided. "Different location each night. Can you recommend places?"
"Several. But Wei Chen?" Xiao Chen's expression was serious. "Moving around the Outer Ring with a hundred gold bounty on your head is incredibly dangerous. Especially for someone who's only Fortune Foundation 1st Layer. You understand that, right?"
"I understand." I met his eyes. "But I didn't crawl back from death just to hide in a room waiting to be found. If they want me, they can hunt. Maybe I'll learn something useful while they do."
[DETERMINATION DETECTED]
[STRATEGY: HIGH RISK, HIGH REWARD]
[EXACTLY WHAT FORTUNE DEFYING MANUAL REQUIRES]
Xiao Chen smiled slightly. "You're either brave or insane. Probably both. Alright. I'll give you locations and contacts. But do me a favor?"
"What?"
"Don't die before I finish your identity. I've already invested favors in you. Would be embarrassing if my investment got killed before it paid off."
Despite everything, I laughed. "I'll do my best."
He produced a map of the Outer Ring, marking locations with quick strokes. "These are safe houses—relatively speaking. Nothing's truly safe here. Change locations after midnight, use different routes each time. And this—" he pressed a small communication talisman into my hand, "—if you're in serious trouble, break it. I'll know, and I'll send help if I can."
"Thank you."
"Don't thank me yet. You're about to spend three days as the most wanted person in Azure Peak City. Thank me if you survive."
[QUEST UPDATED: SURVIVE THE MANHUNT]
[DURATION: 3 DAYS]
[DIFFICULTY: EXTREME]
[REWARD: NEW IDENTITY, FREEDOM, SAFETY]
[FAILURE CONDITION: DEATH (NO SECOND RESURRECTIONS)]
I returned to room three, gathering my meager possessions. The short sword. The remaining silver. The jade identity token that would be obsolete in three days. The communication talisman from Xiao Chen.
Everything I owned fit in a small pack.
Everything I was fit in even less.
Through the window, I watched Chen Clan guards question a merchant across the street. Watched them show the portrait. Watched the merchant shake his head, and watched the guards move on.
They were thorough. Determined. Well-funded.
But I had something they didn't.
I had luck. And a cultivation system that literally ran on defying probability.
For the next three days, I would make them very, very unlucky.
And maybe, just maybe, I'd figure out how to start climbing from Fortune Foundation 1st Layer to something that could actually challenge the people who'd killed me.
"Alright, System," I said quietly. "Three days. A hundred gold bounty. The entire Chen Clan hunting me. What's the best way to turn this situation into cultivation advancement?"
[ANALYZING...]
[RECOMMENDATION: ACTIVE HUNTING]
[EXPLANATION: YOU NEED LP TO GROW STRONGER]
[LP COMES FROM DEFYING DEATH]
[BEING HUNTED = CONSTANT DEATH DEFIANCE OPPORTUNITIES]
[SUGGESTION: DON'T JUST HIDE]
[HUNT THE HUNTERS]
I stared at the System's suggestion, a slow smile spreading across my face.
Hunt the hunters. Don't run—attack. Turn their manhunt into my training ground.
It was insane.
It was suicidal.
It was exactly what the Fortune Defying Manual was designed for.
"You know what?" I said, checking my sword. "Let's do it. They want to find Chen Wei? Let them. But they won't find a victim."
"They'll find a ghost who's learned to bite back."
[STATUS UPDATE:]
Identity: Chen Wei (Wanted) / Wei Chen (In Progress)
Location: Wanderer's Rest, Outer Ring
Cultivation: Fortune Foundation 1st Layer
LP: 129/1000
Bounty: 100 Gold Taels
Time Until New Identity: 3 Days
Hunters: Estimated 200+
Strategy: Hunt the Hunters
[THE PREY BECOMES THE PREDATOR]
[THE HUNT BEGINS IN EARNEST]
[FORTUNE FAVORS THE BOLD]
[OR KILLS THEM TRYING]