Heavens Judgment

The abandoned wing's central chamber had transformed into something between a library and a war room. Maps of the Liu estate covered one wall, marked with colored pins indicating servant positions. Another wall held genealogical charts going back twenty generations. The third displayed Azure Cloud City's district divisions, trade routes, and power structures.

Zǔ Zhòu stood at the center, receiving reports from his expanded network.

"Hong, begin with the estate interior."

The head servant stepped forward, her daughter beside her with written notes. Months of subtle pressure had transformed her from reluctant accomplice to efficient information broker.

"Forty-three servants now report directly or indirectly to our network," Hong began. "Kitchen staff overhear family meals. Chamber maids access private correspondence. Stable hands track visitor patterns."

"Specific intelligence?"

"Liu Feng meets privately with eight Foundation Establishment cousins weekly. They discuss 'family future' and 'necessary changes.' Your name comes up frequently—debate about whether you're threat or asset."

"Let them debate," Zǔ Zhòu said. "Uncertainty serves better than conclusion. Continue."

"Liu Tiansheng has increased security around the ancestral hall. New formations, restricted access. Even Elder Feng must request permission to enter."

Interesting. The ancestral hall held portraits and records but shouldn't require such protection.

"Your father also commissioned twelve jade slips from the Historian's Guild," Hong's daughter added. "Sealed records about early Liu family history. The guild member who delivered them seemed... nervous."

Zǔ Zhòu filed that for investigation. "City intelligence?"

Wu Chen stepped forward, his rebellious shadow making obscene gestures while he maintained professional composure. "The specialized servants have integrated well. Yang Mei works in three merchant houses—her emotional-reading skin makes her invaluable for negotiations. They speak freely around her."

"Notable discoveries?"

"The Zhang family investigates your temporal cultivation. They've sent inquiries to the capital about similar techniques. Also, Chen Mei's family—Liu Hao's fiancée—spreads stories of your healing abilities. Three noble families have made discrete inquiries about treatment."

The network was reaching critical mass. Each servant, each connection, each carefully placed spy created exponential information growth. What started with Hong's fear had become a self-sustaining intelligence organism.

"The twin sisters?" Zǔ Zhòu asked.

"Positioned optimally," Wu Chen's shadow signed in response while he spoke. "One works in the city lord's mansion, the other in our estate. Instant communication across distance. Yesterday they transmitted Guard Captain Zhao's report about temporal anomalies in the eastern districts."

More evidence of his reality scars drawing attention. He'd need to monitor that carefully.

"Now," Zǔ Zhòu said, "special projects. Who investigated the ancestral hall?"

A thin man stepped from shadows—Jin Wei, former thief whose cultivation had been crippled by a trap. Zǔ Zhòu had purchased him specifically for infiltration work.

"Difficult entry," Jin Wei reported. "The formations are ancient, predating the current Liu compound. But maintenance requires deactivation every tenth day. I entered during the last cycle."

"And?"

"The public hall holds standard portraits and records. But there's a hidden chamber beneath—found it by following qi flow patterns. The formations are designed to contain something, not keep people out."

Zǔ Zhòu's interest sharpened. "Contained what?"

"Records. Jade slips, beast-hide scrolls, some carved in stone. All regarding the Liu family's founding. Your honored ancestor Liu Zongshi wasn't just a righteous cultivator who established the clan through virtue."

Jin Wei produced rubbings he'd taken—quick charcoal impressions of key passages. Zǔ Zhòu read with growing fascination.

"'Contract sworn in blood and soul,'" he read aloud. "'The Demon Lord Xue Shi grants power to establish dominion. In exchange, every thirteenth generation shall produce one who carries the awakened blood. Should the bloodline manifest, they shall serve the Scarlet Palace or face clan annihilation.'"

Silence filled the chamber. A demonic pact at the Liu family's foundation—delicious irony.

"There's more," Jin Wei continued. "Detailed descriptions of the bloodline characteristics. Red eyes during cultivation, unusual healing speed, instinctive understanding of blood techniques, and... excessive cruelty emerging during adolescence."

"When was the last manifestation?"

"Three hundred years ago. Liu Meng, thirteenth generation. Records say he was 'sent for training' at age sixteen. Never returned. The family claimed he died from cultivation deviation."

"But really sent to serve this Demon Lord," Zǔ Zhòu concluded. "And now we're approaching the next thirteenth generation. Liu Mei and her peers."

Understanding dawned. His father's increased security, the historical research, the nervous tension among elders. They knew the bloodline would manifest soon and were desperately trying to prevent or control it.

"Comprehensive surveillance on all thirteen-generation disciples," he ordered. "Especially those showing unusual traits. And Jin Wei—I need everything from that hidden chamber. Every record, every hint about this bloodline's nature."

"Understood, Young Master."

As the servants dispersed to their tasks, Zǔ Zhòu contemplated this revelation. A demonic bloodline hidden in the righteous Liu family, awakening every thirteen generations. The elders desperately trying to suppress or redirect it.

"Your thoughts?" he asked his anchor servant.

"Liu Mei is thirteenth generation. Her increasing acceptance of 'strength through any means' philosophy could be bloodline influence rather than just your corruption."

"Or both. My influence awakening what was already there." He smiled coldly. "How perfect. I've been nurturing a demon without knowing it."

Over the following days, the network provided detailed intelligence on thirteenth-generation disciples. Seven showed potential signs—unusual aggression, fascination with blood techniques, rapid healing. But Liu Mei's indicators were strongest.

Zǔ Zhòu watched her during training, noting subtle changes. Her strikes had gained vicious precision. When she drew blood during sparring, her eyes flickered with satisfaction she didn't quite understand. The corruption he'd planted was germinating in unusually fertile soil.

"The family will try to suppress it," he mused. "Send her away, seal her cultivation, perhaps even cripple her to prevent manifestation."

"Will you intervene?"

"Indirectly. A demonic bloodline served properly could be invaluable. But one twisted to serve my purposes instead of some ancient Demon Lord?" His smile widened. "That requires delicate cultivation."

He drafted new instructions for the network. Monitor family communications about bloodline signs. Track any visitors with demonic cultivation signatures—the Scarlet Palace might send scouts. Most importantly, ensure Liu Mei remained accessible for continued influence.

"Hong," he called when she delivered evening reports. "I'm concerned about my sister's cultivation progress. Arrange for her to use my special training chamber twice weekly. Tell her it's a gift for her dedication."

Hong bowed. "She'll be grateful for your attention."

Grateful to feed the suffering array while her demonic bloodline awakened. The array would track her emotional patterns, documenting the transformation while accelerating it through frustrated cultivation.

That night, Zǔ Zhòu stood before his intelligence walls, seeing patterns within patterns. Forty-three servants in the estate, another twenty in the city. Specialized servants creating unique intelligence channels. Liu Hao unknowingly scouting suffering. Jin Wei accessing sealed secrets.

"Critical mass achieved," he announced to empty air. "The network no longer requires direct management. It seeks information autonomously, reports efficiently, expands naturally."

Each servant recruited others—friends, family, those in debt. The network grew like fungus in darkness, spreading through the Liu family's foundation. Soon, no secret would remain hidden, no whisper unheard.

"The ancestral demon pact changes projections," he told his servant. "A bloodline manifestation will create chaos the family desperately wants to avoid. Chaos I can exploit."

"Accelerate Liu Mei's awakening?"

"Guide it. Let them see her becoming what they fear while believing she's just training enthusiastically. By the time they realize the bloodline has manifested, she'll be too powerful—and too loyal to me—to simply disappear."

He pulled out jade slips, beginning comprehensive documentation. The information network had evolved from simple spying to complex intelligence analysis. Each data point connected to others, revealing the Liu family's hidden skeleton—a demonic foundation beneath righteous facades.

"Thirteen generations of suppression," he mused. "Thirteen cycles of sending their demons away to serve ancient pacts. But this time, the demon will serve a different master."

The network hummed with activity. Servants moved through their routines while gathering secrets. Specialized assets created unique channels. Information flowed like blood through veins, all leading to the abandoned wing's heart.

Tomorrow would bring new intelligence, new opportunities. But tonight, Zǔ Zhòu savored the revelation of demonic bloodlines in righteous families.

The Liu clan would soon face their ancestral nightmare. And he would ensure it wore the face of the little sister who trusted him completely.