She quietly observed the woman — steady demeanor, calm eyes, faint traces of age around the corners. Her spiritual energy told the story: early Foundation Establishment stage.

  A lifespan of about two hundred years. Respectable, but not remarkable.

  “How long have you been with the Treasure Pavilion, Miss Talia?” Lauren asked.

  Talia blinked, clearly unsure why the question was relevant. But she answered anyway. “One hundred and twenty years.”

  Lauren raised a brow. A hundred and twenty years just to reach Foundation Establishment?

  That kind of progress usually meant four spiritual roots — the slowest cultivation potential possible. Maybe she’d relied on pills just to get this far.

  Noticing Lauren’s assessing look, Talia smiled faintly, instantly understanding what was going through her mind. Years in business had made her perceptive.

  “Miss Lauren,” she said gently, “I reached Foundation Establishment because Mr. Tarot gave me a pill. I have four roots, yes — cultivation doesn’t come easy to me. I wouldn’t have reached this stage at all if he hadn’t rewarded me for good work.”

  Lauren nodded slowly. So that’s it.

  Even if she gave Talia something stronger now, she’d never reach Core Formation. At most, she could give her a Kotobuki Genka — a rare life-prolonging pill — to buy her another hundred years.

  Still, loyalty like hers was rare.

  Lauren smiled softly. “Don’t overthink it, Miss Talia. For over a century, the Treasure Pavilion has thrived under your management. My senior brother’s praised you more times than I can count.”

  Talia returned her smile. “I was once just a discarded woman. After my parents passed, my husband took my family’s fortune, threw me out, and moved his concubine into our home.”

  “I was planning to end my life,” she continued. “Then Mr. Tarot found me. He brought me here, arranged for me to study treasure appraisal under the old Pavilion master. When he passed, I took his place. More than a hundred years have flown by. I have about fifty years left in me. Please, tell Mr. Tarot to arrange for a successor soon. I’d like to help train them before I go.”

  Lauren studied her quietly. Talia wasn’t just loyal — she was grateful.

  If given another Kotobuki Genka, she could live another century, plenty of time to become a cornerstone of the entire Drake Group

  Of course, that wasn’t her decision to make alone. She’d have to discuss it with her senior brother later.

  After finishing up at the Pavilion, Lauren moved on to her next stop.

  The Sunspire Pill and Talisman Shop — the largest and oldest in the region — also belonged to her master. It had a thousand-year history and still dominated the market.

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  She inspected their ledgers and checked the current Talisman prices, ensuring everything matched the official Thunder Sect rates.

  When she finally stepped out into the sunlight, a sudden burst of spiritual energy flared from the Ten Thousand Miles of Incense she carried.

  Her expression froze.

  That incense was a protection charm she’d bought at a steep price for her grandfather. She’d told him to light it only if he was in mortal danger.

  Her stomach twisted.

  What danger could the Evercrest family possibly be in?

  Her eyes narrowed, her aura flaring faintly.

  Could it be… Indiana?

  A roar of voices spilled into the alley—angry, sharp, and impossibly loud against the still morning air. Lauren pressed herself against the cool stone and listened.

  From Ten Thousand Miles of Incense she could hear the Evercrest house arguing, every line like a knife.

  “We, the Evercrest family, have no daughter like you. We never will. Leave.”

  “You old fool—do you want to die?”

  Timothy’s voice cut through everything. They’d really come. They’d actually come.

  Lauren’s chest squeezed. Memories from the last life flickered—different faces, fewer friends, the same old thread of violence. Because she’d beaten Indiana so many times before, she’d missed opportunities, made fewer alliances. That past life’s list of enemies felt shorter now; still, the danger was the same.

  She didn’t stop to plan. She sprinted for the teleportation array and pinged anyone who might help. This was family business—dangerous, private—and she didn’t have the luxury of raising the entire sect.

  Tarot was cultivating. Drake was in seclusion; If he left Thunder Sect, it would alert numerous powerful individuals.

  Dante answered immediately. His calm voice made things calmer at once. “I’ll come,” he said, but he added a frown: “This is excessive. Why would they want to wipe out the whole Evercrest family over a dispute? Something’s off.”

  He didn’t come alone. Dante’s network was vast; in a moment a dozen people were following him down the mountain—friends, sworn brothers, people who owed him favors. Where Lauren had only a few ties, Dante could gather a small army.

  Lauren, still inside the teleportation array, had no idea what was happening.

  Mistvale was remote—too damn remote. It didn’t even have its own teleportation array, forcing her to use the one in the neighboring city instead.

  The moment she stepped out, she rushed toward the Evercrest Clan.

  Her cultivation had advanced far beyond that of the Qi Training girl she once was. Back then, it had taken her an entire night to steer a flying boat here. Now, at the Nascent Soul stage, she could cross the same distance in mere minutes.

  From afar, she spotted the Evercrest Clan’s protective formation flickering under siege. That bastard Timothy was hammering away at it with a sledgehammer. Each blow sent violent ripples across the barrier; cracks splintered through the light shield, and nearby houses collapsed from the shockwaves.

  If it kept up like this, the formation wouldn’t last long.

  Someone inside the barrier hurled a fourth-grade Explosive Spirit Talisman. It detonated with a thunderous blast—but Timothy barely flinched. His body, now tempered by Nascent Soul cultivation, was far tougher than before. With that strange leather armor shielding him, the talisman’s explosion did little more than wreck a few Evercrest buildings.

  The townsfolk had long since fled, watching from a distance with pale faces.

  A Nascent Soul expert had descended on their tiny city—and he was trying to wipe out the Evercrest Clan? Since when had the Evercrests become strong enough to resist someone of his level?

  Lauren narrowed her eyes. Something felt off. Aside from Timothy, there was only one other person—Indiana.

  Indiana, lacking Timothy’s monstrous defense, didn’t dare get close under the threat of more Explosive Spirit Talismans. He stood back, watching nervously.

  “Brother, just let it go,” he said. “They’ll never take me in.”

  “How could they not?” Timothy growled. “If they won’t accept you, then fuck it—let the whole clan burn. I’ll destroy them all before I let you carry this damn inner demon any longer. You’ll never reach the Nascent Soul stage otherwise.”