[HOST INTEGRITY: 6%] (CRITICAL WARNING)
[LOCATION: THE YE CLAN ESTATE - MAIN HALL]
[TIME: 8:00 AM]
The morning fog in the Ye Estate was thick, but it couldn't hide the fear.
The euphoria of yesterday's "Ministry Union" announcement had evaporated. The cold reality of daylight had set in.
The Ye Clan Elders sat in the main hall, fidgeting.
They looked like men who had drunkenly bet their house at a casino... and just woke up to find the debt collector already inside.
And the collector was here.
Standing at the center of the hall was a Black Courier.
He was a tall, faceless entity wearing the charcoal-grey uniform of the Department of Spiritual Administration.
No eyes. No nose. Only a vertical slit where a mouth should be, faint mist leaking from it with every breath.
He held a black scroll. He didn't speak. He just emitted a low-frequency hum that made teeth ache.
"Patriarch," one Elder whispered, sweat beading on his forehead despite the cold. "He has been standing there for ten minutes. Why doesn't he speak?"
"He is waiting for the Accused," Ye Gucheng replied. The Patriarch sat in his wheelchair, his hands gripping the armrests so hard his knuckles were white. "Standard protocol."
"We should renounce the Union," another Elder hissed. "If we hand over Ren Wu now, maybe the Administration will show leniency. We can say we were coerced!"
Ye Lingshan stood by her grandfather's side. She rested her hand on her sword hilt.
"If you speak of betrayal again," Lingshan said softly, "I will challenge you for your Elder seat right now."
The Elder glared at her, but shut his mouth.
The hum from the Courier grew louder. The floorboards began to vibrate.
[PRESSURE DETECTED: GRADE 3 SPIRITUAL SUPPRESSION]
Then, the doors creaked open.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Ren Wu walked in.
He looked terrible. His skin was the color of old paper. He was leaning heavily on his umbrella. He hadn't slept in 48 hours.
But he was wearing a fresh suit (borrowed from the Ye wardrobe, slightly too big for him).
He didn't look at the Elders. He walked straight to the Courier.
"You are late," Ren rasped.
The Courier's mouth-slit opened. A voice like grinding stones emerged.
"Ren Wu. Entity #404-Unauthorized. You have failed to surrender within the 24-hour grace period."
The Courier raised the black scroll.
"I am authorized to execute the Asset Seizure Protocol. Since the Ye Clan is harboring you, their estate is now considered Contraband Storage."
The Elders gasped.
"Contraband?!" an Elder shrieked. "This is a Heritage Site! You can't seize a Heritage Site!"
"The Law supersedes Heritage when treason is involved," the Courier droned. Black smoke began to coil around his hands. "Prepare for extraction."
Ye Gucheng looked at Ren. "Mr. Ren... do something."
Ren didn't panic. He pulled a document from his pocket.
"You are citing Statute 99. Seizure of assets used in criminal activity."
Ren stepped closer to the faceless entity.
"But you filed the paperwork against 'Ren Wu, the Individual'."
The Courier paused. "Correct."
"I am no longer an individual," Ren said.
He slapped the document onto the Courier's chest.
[DOCUMENT: CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION]
[ENTITY: THE MINISTRY UNION]
[ROLE: EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR]
"I am a corporate officer of a registered Heritage entity," Ren stated. "Under the Corporate Shield Act of 1950, you cannot arrest an Executive Director on Clan grounds without a warrant signed by a High Judge."
Ren smiled. It was a thin, bloodless smile.
"Do you have a warrant signed by a High Judge? Or do you just have a seizure order signed by a Clerk?"
The Courier froze.
The black smoke around his hands dissipated.
The Administration was a machine. It could crush mountains, but it could not crush Precedence.
The Courier processed the data.
...Calculating Jurisdiction...
...Error: Executive Immunity Active...
...Updating Threat Assessment...
"Objection noted," the Courier ground out.
He lowered the scroll.
"However. A warrant can be procured."
"It takes three weeks to schedule a High Judge," Ren bluffed. (He knew it took three days. He only needed hesitation.)
The Courier didn't blink (he had no eyes).
"Not three weeks," the Courier said.
He reached into his uniform and pulled out a second scroll.
This one wasn't black.
It was Red.
The color of dried blood.
The moment it appeared, the temperature in the room dropped ten degrees. The Ye Elders fell to their knees, crushed by the sudden aura of death. Even Ren felt his knees buckle.
[SYSTEM ALERT]
[DETECTED: AUTHORITY SIGNATURE - TIER 1]
[SOURCE: THE TEN KINGS OF HELL]
"We anticipated your legal maneuvering," the Courier said.
He unrolled the Red Scroll.
It wasn't a warrant. It was a Summons.
"Judge Mortis has taken personal interest in your case," the Courier announced.
"He has bypassed the lower courts."
"He has scheduled an Expedited Tribunal."
Ren's eyes narrowed.
"When?"
"Five days," the Courier said.
He dropped the Red Scroll at Ren's feet.
"Prepare your defense, Auditor. Judge Mortis does not lose."
The Courier turned and vanished in a puff of cold ash.
The Silence
The hall was dead silent.
The Red Scroll lay on the floor like a bomb.
Ye Gucheng was trembling.
"Judge Mortis..." the Patriarch whispered. "The Executioner of Sector 9. He hasn't presided over a mortal trial in fifty years."
He looked at Ren with horror.
"What did you do in your past life to make a High Judge come for you personally?"
Ren stared at the scroll.
He felt a strange emotion.
Not fear.
Something older.
Something tired.
Nostalgia.
Mortis. One of the old guard. A subordinate from the Imperial Era who had survived the fall and climbed the corporate ladder.
"I didn't do anything," Ren lied softly.
He picked up the scroll. It burned his fingers, but he didn't drop it.
"He recognizes my style."
Ren turned to the terrified clan.
"We have five days."
"Five days to turn the 'Ministry Union' from a shell company... into something that can't be ignored."
"If we walk into that court with empty pockets, we die. If we walk in with the market in our grip, we negotiate."
He looked at Ye Lingshan.
"Get the car. We need to go back to the factory. The Grey Line launches tonight."
[SYSTEM ALERT]
[COUNTDOWN INITIATED: JUDGMENT DAY]
[TIME REMAINING: 120 HOURS]
[OBJECTIVE: DOMINATE THE MARKET BEFORE THE TRIAL]
[END OF CHAPTER 45]