Chapter 168: Raw - - A Peacock Husband of Five Princesses by day, a Noble Assassin by Night

CHAPTER 168: RAW CHAPTER

The old man stood still at the cliff’s edge, the wind tugging at his long white hair. His scarlet eyes followed the faint silhouette far below — the broken, motionless body of Lin Fang.

For a long moment, he said nothing. The only sound was the wind howling through the mountain peaks.

Then he sighed. A soft, almost regretful sound.

With a small flick of his fingers, the air shimmered — the dark chains that had once bound Lin Fang disintegrated into nothing.

"Foolish kid," he murmured. "You had promise... and you wasted it."

He turned away, his cane tapping lightly on the ground as he began to walk back toward his small hut. But before he entered, he paused again, glancing over his shoulder, his expression unreadable.

"No," he corrected himself quietly, his voice nearly lost in the breeze.\

"Not foolish kid... foolish **Spirit King**."

A faint smirk crossed his lips. "It would rather destroy its host than let me read its memories. Loyal to the end."

The old man shook his head and vanished into the hut, shutting the door behind him.

***

Four minutes passed.

And then — light.

Lin Fang’s corpse began to **glow**, a soft gold radiance bleeding through the torn flesh. The air shimmered around him. His body rose slowly from the ground, floating for a second before settling back down gently.

The holographic screens blinked to life before his open eyes.

\[Fatal Damage: Confirmed.]\

\[Skill Activated — Alpha’s Passive: **Eternal Life**.]\

\[Please choose a monster companion to sacrifice.]\

\[Selection: Mirror.]\

\[Mirror has been sacrificed.]\

\[Resurrection in progress...]\

\[Alpha’s Will overrides System’s Will.]\

\[Resurrection paused.]\

\[Resurrection resumed.]\

\[Congratulations, Host. You have been revived.]\

\[Mimic (Mirror) removed from Summoner’s Shop.]

Lin Fang gasped, air filling his lungs in a violent rush. He rolled onto his side, coughing hard. His body trembled — every muscle aching, every bone protesting.

"What the hell—" he rasped, clutching his chest. "Alpha...?"

_I’m here,_ came the familiar voice in his head, calm as ever.

Lin Fang gritted his teeth and shouted aloud, "**Alpha, you bastard! You killed me!?**"

_Correction,_ Alpha replied smoothly. _I saved you._

"Saved—? You literally sacrificed **Mirror**!" Lin Fang yelled, his voice cracking.

_It was the only viable option,_ Alpha said simply. _Facing a demigod-class being with your current strength meant certain death. Eternal Life gave us one chance — a trade. Your life for another’s. Mirror’s soul was the most compatible vessel for resurrection. You’re lucky I acted fast._

Lin Fang sat there, panting. His fists clenched, trembling slightly — from anger or exhaustion, even he couldn’t tell.

After a long silence, he muttered, "...Yeah. I guess I owe you that one."

_You can thank me later,_ Alpha replied. _Right now, you need to move. That old man’s power hasn’t vanished completely. If he senses your resurrection, we’re both done for._

"Where?"

_South. Into the forests. Use your invisibility skill — the short one, low mana drain. Stay mobile._

Lin Fang forced himself to his feet, his vision still blurry. He whispered the command, and his body shimmered, turning translucent.

The forest below stretched endlessly — dark, dense, and silent.

He took off running.

Each step hurt, but the pain grounded him. Every few seconds, he flickered forward, using _Spectral Dash_ the instant its cooldown ended.

The night dragged on. The stars spun overhead.

After nearly an hour of nonstop running, Lin Fang finally stumbled into a dense jungle. He leaned against a tree, gasping for breath. His entire body was slick with sweat and blood.

The invisibility faded, and he slumped down, back to the trunk.

"Alpha," he muttered weakly, "next time you say you’ve got a plan... make sure it doesn’t include me dying first."

Alpha chuckled faintly in his head.\

_I’ll try my best._

Lin Fang smiled faintly, eyes fluttering shut. The forest around him was quiet — no drones, no monsters, no scarlet-eyed old man.

For now, at least... he was safe.

### Chapter 103 — A Quiet Bite and a Plan

Lin Fang sat slumped against the rough bark of a tree, his breathing finally steadying. The forest was quiet — no rustling beasts, no howling winds. Just the soft hum of mana in the air and his own heartbeat slowing back to normal.

He exhaled a shaky breath. "Finally... some peace."

With a flick of his wrist, he pulled out a **water bottle** and a **burger** from his inventory. The bottle was cool to the touch, the burger still fresh — the perks of dimensional storage. He took a long gulp of water, then bit into the burger like a starving man.

"Gods," he muttered between mouthfuls, "I almost died... again. I deserve this."

One burger disappeared fast. So he pulled out another one and started devouring that too.

As he chewed, Lin Fang tapped his smartwatch interface, summoning his **system screen**. The familiar blue holographic panel blinked into existence.

\[Debt: 0 Credits]\

\[Available Coins: 1,782]

He stared for a moment, then smiled. "Ha... look at that. Day one, and I already cleared my debt."

He leaned his head back against the trunk, smiling faintly to himself. "Not bad, Lin Fang. Not bad at all."

For a while, he just sat there, listening to the soft rustle of leaves and the distant chirp of night birds. Then he sighed, his expression dimming slightly.

"Too bad I couldn’t grab those spirit cores," he muttered. "Each of those elephants was **Epic grade**... I could’ve made millions just from the cores alone."

He rubbed his temples, frustration clear in his voice. "Damn that creepy old man. Of all the places to end up, I land in the backyard of a **demigod-class monster**."

The memory of the old man’s glowing red eyes flickered through his mind — and he shivered. "That guy’s power wasn’t normal. Just standing near him felt like my soul was being peeled open."

He stared off into the darkness, the thought weighing on him. "But why would the military hold a **hunter trial** here of all places? Do they seriously not know someone like that’s living here? Or do they know and just... don’t care?"

Alpha’s voice stirred faintly in his head.\

_Both are possible. But right now, speculation won’t help you. You survived him — that’s already a miracle._

Lin Fang grunted. "Yeah, yeah... I know."

He pushed himself up, brushing the dirt off his jacket. His body still ached, but the food and water gave him a small boost of energy.

"Whatever," he sighed, tightening the straps on his boots. "Going back there is suicide. So... time for plan B."

He looked south, where the faint outline of a distant plain shimmered beyond the trees. The savanna.

A grin crept across his face. "Let’s go there instead. Wide open space, fewer creepy grandpas, and plenty of monsters to farm."

He patted his dagger hilts and cracked his neck. "Alright, back to business. Money doesn’t make itself."

With that, Lin Fang summoned his **Spectral Dash**, his body turning into a faint blur before vanishing between the trees — heading straight for the savanna.