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Location: Echo Bunker – Outer Territory, Dragon Empire
The metal walls of the newly claimed Echo Bunker trembled faintly as rusted generators sputtered back to life, bathing the underground base in dull golden light. The scent of burning oil mixed with dry earth. It wasn't glamorous — not yet — but to Ling Feng, this was home.
> Base Status: Active
Security: Shadow Veil – 67% Coverage
Members: 3
Bo Kai (Pawn)
Qin Mei (Engineer)
Ling Feng (Sovereign)
Faction Grade: Ashen [Pending Upgrade]
Next Milestone: Survive First Assault Trial
"Three hours," Ling muttered, watching the interface. "We have three hours before the system tests us."
Qin Mei pulled herself from a web of cables, covered in grease but smiling. "I've activated a defensive field using salvaged tech from the slave camp. It won't stop elite cultivators... but it'll roast Faint Grade thugs."
Bo Kai gulped from the corner. "What if it's not thugs?"
Ling didn't answer immediately. He sat cross-legged on a steel crate, his left hand glowing faintly — the lion-tiger emblem of his system pulsing with golden energy.
> Function Unlocked: Veil Protocol
"Your identity as Faction Leader will remain hidden from all spiritual surveillance unless willingly revealed."
> Upgrade Available: Shadow Role Assignment
Assign Members Special Roles
Unlock First Command Tier: "Shadow Blades"
> Suggestion: Assign Qin Mei → Role: "Shadow Weaver" (Enhances Tech & Array Manipulation by 25%)
> Assign? [YES]
Ling: "Yes."
Qin Mei stiffened as a flash of golden mist surged through her body. Glyphs danced across her skin — unseen by the eye, but burning across the system's interface.
> Role Assigned: Shadow Weaver
Buff Applied: Spatial Array Sync + Cloak Chip Access
She blinked. "I feel... faster. My mind's clearer."
"You're more than a hacker now," Ling said. "You're the backbone."
Suddenly—
> ALERT:
Hostile Movement Detected — 4 Spirit Signatures Approaching
Affiliation: Blood Iron Sect | Rank: Iron Grade
Time to Contact: 16 Minutes
Special Note: Target 1 Carries 'Yin Lotus Collar' (Belongs to: L.F. — Sister Identified)
Ling's pupils shrank.
Yin Lotus. His sister's spirit signature.
"She's alive..." he whispered.
Qin Mei turned sharply. "What did you say?"
Ling stood, eyes blazing. "They have my sister's collar. Blood Iron's young master must've taken her."
Bo Kai paled. "If they're Iron Grade, we can't win."
Ling's voice was calm — too calm.
"Then we outthink them."
---
[15 Minutes Later – Echo Bunker Perimeter]
Rain slicked the cracked stone. The four Blood Iron scouts approached in silence — uniformed in black armor with jagged red trims, each wearing a spirit-badge pulsing with third-grade Iron aura.
Leading them was Yun Shuo, a cruel-eyed youth with a jade band on his wrist and a smug grin that seemed glued to his face.
"Report said a faint spiritual flare came from here," Yun Shuo muttered. "Probably some rogue cultivator. Maybe we'll catch a rebel."
Another scout — thinner, crueler — sniffed. "Hope it's a woman. I still want a new pet after that hacker girl got stolen."
Yun Shuo chuckled. "That tech whore was useless anyway."
From behind the rocks, Ling Feng heard everything.
His knuckles cracked silently.
> System Option: Ambush Preparation Protocols Enabled
Select Trap Style: Tech-Weave | Illusion Array | Shock-Tethered Dust Bombs
> Custom Loadout Selected: "Silent Field"
He whispered, "System, deploy 'Silent Field' now."
> Activating Trap Network: Radius 25m
Fog Veil Engaged. Sound Dampening Active.
Enemy Qi Perception Reduced by 40%
---
Ambush Begins
The first two scouts stepped across a broken archway — right into the trap.
Golden glyphs exploded underfoot. A blinding flash seared their vision, and their legs twisted unnaturally as vines of pure data constricted their movement.
Before they could scream, Qin Mei, cloaked by spatial shadows, hurled two electrified talismans that short-circuited their spirit cores.
BOOM.
CRACK.
Down. Unconscious. Two left.
The third reacted — blade drawn, aura rising.
Too slow.
Ling Feng dropped from the upper ledge like a ghost. A golden glow surged across his hand — he activated Sovereign's Gaze mid-fall.
Qi nodes.
Blocked. Exposed. Severed.
He jabbed the man's side with a palm strike, then swiped his throat with a spirit-imbued thread that cut deeper than steel.
The scout collapsed, coughing blood.
Only Yun Shuo remained.
The smirk vanished.
"You... You're Ling Feng! The orphan from the slums?!"
Ling's eyes gleamed. "Not anymore."
> System Alert: Boss Encounter Initiated
Target: Yun Shuo – Iron Grade | Special Skill: Spirit Armor Burst
Yun Shuo roared, activating a defensive barrier.
"You think you can touch me?! I'm the son of Blood Iron Elder Yun!"
"Your sister is—"
CRACK.
A bullet of compressed wind slammed into his shoulder.
Qin Mei stood across the ruin's edge, holding a modified soundwave talisman gun. "Oops. You were saying?"
Yun Shuo staggered, but before he could recover, Ling was there.
He jabbed pressure points across Yun's chest with glowing fingers — rupturing the Spirit Armor from within.
> Sovereign's Gaze: Full Penetration Strike Successful
Yun collapsed — screaming in disbelief.
Ling crouched beside him. "You wore my sister's collar like a trophy."
He took it back — gently folding the silver lotus piece into his palm.
"This is mine now."
Yun spat blood. "You're dead... when the main sect hears..."
Ling stood, wiping his hands.
"Let them come."
---
SYSTEM UPDATE:
> Mini-Boss Defeated: +2 System Points
Loot Acquired: Yin Lotus Collar (DNA-Linked – Confirmed: Ling Xue)
Faction Members: 3 / Needed for Prime Grade Unlock: 5
Next Quest: Locate Ling Xue
> Rumored Held in Iron Veil Fortress – 170 km South
Faction Upgrade Conditions:
Secure Base
Defend Territory
Minimum Power Balance Reached
Grade Ascension Initiated: Faction Upgraded to PRIME GRADE
> New Feature Unlocked: Shadow Board Recruitment – 1 Elite Recruit Slot
---
Later – Inside Echo Bunker
Qin Mei sat against the wall, cleaning her weapon. "That collar... it's your sister's?"
Ling nodded, placing it in a sealed container. "They used her as bait. I'm done hiding."
Bo Kai looked up nervously. "What now, boss?"
Ling walked to the system console, the golden lion emblem pulsing under his hand — now subtly overlaid with a tiger's growl from his new evolution.
"We recruit more. We prepare."
"Because we just painted a target on our backs... and this time, I'll welcome the hunters."
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