CHAPTER 110: CHAPTER 111: BETWEEN STORMS AND STRATEGIES – SHADOWS BEFORE THE ASHER FRONT

The summer heat had begun to rise in intensity, mirroring the pulse of tension within Lin Feng’s steadily evolving world. Inside the modern, glass-paneled conference room atop the Apex Council headquarters, the mood was anything but casual. Though the wide city skyline glittered in the late afternoon light beyond the windows, Lin Feng’s attention was locked on the shifting power dynamics—on paper, in media, in alliances, and most worryingly, in perception.

"Asher Keller is not just a name," Xu Jiahao said, arms crossed, eyes locked on a projected dossier on the smart-glass wall. "He’s the precision edge of Western venture aggression. They don’t send him unless they want something disrupted—fast."

The dossier highlighted Keller’s last five corporate incursions: South American decentralized energy networks, a Southeast Asian AI-research consortium, and two East European bio-informatics startups. All ended in one of three ways—absorption, implosion, or obsolescence.

"And what exactly is he after here?" Lin Feng asked, voice calm but probing.

Cassandra had retreated from her overt velvet strategies after the cultural-tech push she engineered through influencers, media platforms, and charity fronts met unexpected public backlash. The Apex Council’s quiet counter-programming—grounded stories, local alliances, and community-rooted innovation—had taken hold more than even Lin anticipated.

Now, it seemed, the foreign network backing Cassandra had called in a new piece: Asher Keller.

"He doesn’t need to ’want’ anything specific," replied Xu Jiahao. "His arrival creates pressure. On investors, partners, regulatory officials. People will shift, hoping to align with the coming wave. The danger is in the expectation of change, not just the actions themselves."

Zheng Rui, who’d remained silent until now, chimed in. "We should assume he’s here to do more than support Cassandra. He’s likely scouting our domestic response to foreign influence. In their eyes, we’re the anomaly."

Lin Feng didn’t respond right away. His thoughts were elsewhere—on Cassandra’s sudden quiet, the Apex Council’s most recent realignment of internal charters, and on the subtle shift in messaging from international platforms over the past seventy-two hours. The narrative was shifting again, just slightly: from tension to openness. From contest to collaboration.

That’s how Asher moved—through implication.

"I want three task groups formed," Lin Feng said finally. "One to simulate foreign capital impact across our innovation sectors. If Keller is trying to trigger market expectation—let’s preempt it and take control of the narrative."

"Two: begin a quiet review of all startups or media fronts that shifted position since Cassandra’s last campaign. Especially those funded through angel investors with shell roots. Trace the flow backward."

"And three..."

He paused.

"Three, I want personal outreach initiated—not by me, but by third parties—to every major regional economic adviser, particularly those who’ve remained neutral. Get ahead of the message that we’re isolating ourselves. Show them we’re building toward cooperative sovereignty, not exclusion."

Zheng Rui nodded and started drafting the segmentation of roles.

Lin Feng stood and walked toward the wide window, gazing out. Behind him, the glass projection had shifted to Asher Keller’s public itinerary. A cultural summit. A closed-door invite-only panel on "tech ethics in East Asia." A rumored visit to Cassandra’s old incubator project.

They were building a soft power blitz. Again.

But this time, Lin Feng wasn’t going to respond with defense.

He was going to reshape the stage entirely.

---

Later that evening – Jianye Villa District

The rooftop terrace of Lin Feng’s residence was unusually lively. Yue Qingling and Tang Wei had just arrived from a mid-level provincial outreach, while Ji Yuning had been waiting with a quiet but inquisitive air. Gu Yuwei, wearing her now trademark loose monochrome attire, sipped tea near the glass railing, surveying the city.

"What are you thinking about?" Ji Yuning asked softly, approaching Lin Feng.

"That the pieces being moved aren’t meant to strike directly. They’re meant to divide," Lin replied.

"You think Keller will go after the girls?" she asked, not unkindly—just curious.

"He’ll go after perception first. That means alliances. Then leverage. Then me." He looked at her. "But the system still rewards what can’t be bought."

Ji Yuning tilted her head, intrigued. "You mean loyalty?"

"Loyalty... trust... sometimes even irritation," he smirked.

She rolled her eyes but smiled faintly. "How romantic."

They turned toward the others as Tang Wei approached, still slightly dusted from fieldwork but eyes gleaming with sharp readiness.

"We’ve been hearing about Keller in the provinces too. Quietly. Some officials think he’s here to ’rescue’ cultural-tech investment. They’re being told Apex Council is becoming ’too rigid.’"

"Meaning we’re no longer letting them launder influence through fake art collectives and wellness startups," Yue Qingling said bluntly. "Which means Cassandra’s model is bleeding."

Gu Yuwei set her cup down and spoke for the first time. "Then they’ll try to offer a new story. That Keller is a peacemaker. That he brings ’understanding.’"

"And that," Lin Feng said, "is why we take the initiative."

---

Following Day – Apex Shadow Subdivision

In an offsite meeting room with biometric-only access, Lin Feng met with a small, specially designated team known internally as "Q Division"—a group chartered under the Apex Council for civic perception testing and hybrid influence tracking.

"You’ll begin operations today," Lin Feng told the team leader, a former media analyst turned network behavior specialist. "Create a baseline report on all Keller-related mentions. I want a perceptual contour of how this arrival is being framed—both domestically and through re-imported media narratives."

"Understood," she replied crisply. "Also, we’ve picked up low-frequency outreach to local ’bridge’ personalities. Cultural influencers, pseudo-philosophers, micro-intellectuals. They’re being offered speaking slots at Keller’s panels."

Lin’s gaze sharpened. "Don’t disrupt yet. Just tag them. We’ll flip a few at the right moment."

---

Three Days Later – The Pivot Begins

By Friday, Asher Keller’s charm offensive was in full swing. He spoke softly at an "Emerging Ethical Tech" panel, praising China’s grassroots innovation while subtly referencing the "need for global standards." His social media presence exploded with viral clips of him discussing Eastern values in fluent Mandarin, carefully balancing awe and critique.

But Lin Feng had already moved.

At the same time Keller’s quotes were making rounds, a seemingly unrelated trend surged across regional platforms: young innovators, artists, and creators from second-tier cities were being profiled under a campaign titled "Roots and Reach." It spotlighted local ingenuity fused with integrity, backed quietly by the Apex Council’s outreach arm. The timing was no accident.

And then came Lin’s next ripple: the public return of Jiang Xue, a once-reclusive cultural investor and one of the few personalities respected equally by both artistic and tech circles. Backed quietly by Lin Feng and introduced as a guest keynote at a rival summit in Suzhou, her message was simple:

"True culture doesn’t require mediation to be respected. It simply needs space to breathe."

The message was not aimed at Keller. It was aimed at the fence-sitters.

And it hit.

---

Back at Headquarters – Late Night

As Lin Feng reviewed feedback reports, his system interface flashed. Another reward had triggered.

[Favourability System Update]

Ji Yuning’s favourability reached 80%.

Cashback: ¥142 million.

Reward Pool Unlocked: Choose 1 of 3 Real-Life Skills.

Strategic Linguistics (Advanced)

Psychological Pattern Mapping (Real-Time)

Situational Diplomacy (Elite)

He stared for a moment, then chose Psychological Pattern Mapping.

Within seconds, a new interface loaded in his peripheral vision—subtle overlays of conversational cues, micro-expression notations, emotional trendlines. It was overwhelming, but powerful.

Exactly what he needed to dissect Keller’s charm front before it took deeper root.

He exhaled slowly.

War was not always fought with fire.

Sometimes, the battlefield was smiles and handshakes.

But Lin Feng? He was ready either way.