Emerging from the underground sacrificial chamber, Three Fire Cheng exchanged a few words with Four Fire Cheng before calling out to Ginger, who was about to leave, signaling her to join him in the car.

Once inside, Three Fire Cheng, after instructing the driver to start, closed his eyes and rested in silence. Ginger, unsure of Three Fire Cheng’s intentions in calling her over, initially wanted to ask but decided against it upon seeing his demeanor, realizing it was not the time for questions. She followed his lead, closing her eyes to rest as well.

What Ginger didn’t know was that, during the ride, Three Fire Cheng briefly opened his eyes to glance at her, nodded slightly, and then closed his eyes again.

Ginger was his Conjurer, the only one he had under his command.

The organization had a hierarchical system consisting of the Divine Envoy, Priests,Sorcerers and Conjurers .

While the number of Sorcerers and Conjurers was theoretically at the discretion of the Priests, in practice, Three Fire Cheng knew that Elaine Chen, the Divine Envoy, subtly controlled the numbers each Priest could have, ensuring no one faction became too powerful.

Initially, some Priests and Sorcerers expanded their ranks unchecked, but once Elaine Chen noticed any group growing too large, she would send them on dangerous missions, from which many did not return.

Additionally, Elaine Chen would discreetly encourage the smaller factions to unite against the larger ones, creating a delicate balance maintained by everyone’s understanding of her desire to control.

Currently, except for the Chen family, each Priest had five or six Shamans, with each Shaman having four or five Assistants. Three Fire Cheng was unique in having only one Conjurer,Ginger .

Usually, the Conjurers were responsible for recruiting new followers and reporting their progress to their Sorcerers, who would then relay the information to the Priest.

Eventually, all information was passed to Elaine Chen.

Three Fire Cheng had chosen only Ginger as his Conjurer partly because he hadn’t found anyone else up to his standards and partly because he believed Ginger alone was as capable as all the other Conjurers in the organization combined.

His confidence in her stemmed from their first encounter. Back then,Three Fire Cheng had not yet sought immortality, and Ginger was just a fresh-faced graduate.

He had started from scratch in Hu City with his younger brother, who later chose to pursue academia, leaving Three Fire Cheng to take over all the business.

Whether it was luck or insight, his business ventures grew significantly over time, earning him the title of Hu City’s wealthiest man.

He understood that, much like the snowball effect in economics, making money was easier once one had accumulated the initial capital.

Yet, despite his experience, he almost got swindled by this young woman. Ginger had fabricated a plausible-sounding technological concept and somehow convinced a few reputable professors from her university to endorse her with letters of recommendation.

She used these letters to deceive small companies, gradually working her way up to Three Fire Cheng.

Had he not been cautious, she would have succeeded. When he exposed her scam, she brazenly claimed it was a social experiment, and he had unwittingly helped her succeed by being her final test subject.

Three Fire Cheng remembered how, after retrieving her documents, Ginger had solemnly thanked him, stating that her experiment would greatly improve society, and that he had made an immeasurable contribution to social progress.

She then tried to leave, but Three Fire Cheng had his bodyguards stop her.

Upon further investigation, he discovered that the small companies she initially tricked didn’t realize they had been duped until later. By then, Ginger had proposed a new plan: these companies would target slightly larger businesses, with Ginger using her tactics to swindle them, and part of the proceeds would be used to compensate the earlier victims.

As she deceived increasingly larger companies, the earlier victims, eager to recoup their losses, not only kept quiet but also helped Ginger by vouching for her to the next targets, until eventually, she reached Three Fire Cheng.

Although Three Fire Cheng found the situation somewhat amusing, he couldn’t help but admire Ginger’s audacity and intelligence.

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The scheme seemed simple on the surface but was far from easy to execute. It required not just boldness but a keen sense of timing, and Ginger, despite her youth, had a deep understanding of human nature.

Three Fire Cheng, recognizing her talent despite her crooked path, decided to take her under his wing as a potential successor, steering her toward a more righteous path.

Years passed, and their relationship grew closer—more like father and daughter.

When Three Fire Cheng eventually succumbed to his fears and greed, joining forces with Elaine Chen, Ginger followed him without question.

Looking back, Three Fire Cheng found it ironic that he had become the one to stray from the path. But he dismissed such thoughts, knowing that what’s done is done.

If given another chance, he would still choose this path without hesitation. After all, the promise of immortality was something no one could resist.

After the car ride, they arrived home, and Three Fire Cheng led Ginger into the study after dismissing the driver.

Once inside, he busied himself with the ritual of making tea—boiling water, rinsing, and brewing—before taking a sip and nodding in satisfaction. He gestured for Ginger to try it.

After taking a sip, Ginger remarked, “It’s too bitter, and the water’s too hot. I’m not used to it,” sticking out her tongue playfully and fanning her mouth with her hand, clearly having burned herself.

Three Fire Cheng chuckled at her antics, pouring her a glass of cool water before finally speaking, “I wasn’t asking about the tea. I meant what you think about what happened earlier.”

Though his question was vague, Ginger immediately understood he was referring to Elaine Chen and the organization.

She replied, “It’s fine. Chen controls the supply of the divine water, so everyone has to obey. As long as she controls the source, she can maintain her position as the Divine Envoy. Why, old man, do you have other ideas?”

Her insight was spot on, and Three Fire Cheng was pleased with her quick grasp of the situation—a key reason he relied on her so heavily over the years.

But instead of answering her question directly, Three Fire Cheng took another sip of tea before slowly saying, “No matter how strong a control system is, cracks will appear over time. Our organization is no exception. Everyone here has their own thoughts, but some know that now is not the time to act. We’ll wait patiently. Someone else is already paving the way for us. We’ll just watch for now. That’s why I called you over today—to tell you not to make any moves for the time being.”

Ginger understood whom he was referring to and couldn’t help but feel a bit of pity for those people—poor fools, led to believe they were more important than they were. But such was the nature of the organization: the foolish were weeded out, leaving only the clever behind.

When the conversation turned to the organization’s followers, Ginger looked into Three Fire Cheng’s eyes and playfully quoted a famous saying: “Faith can make a man a slave to his own dreams.”

Both Ginger and Three Fire Cheng knew their task was to weave a beautiful dream for their followers. As long as they had that dream, the followers wouldn’t want to wake up. And if someone tried to shatter their dream, their first instinct would be to attack the one who did it.

It might seem unbelievable, but that was the reality. What these people sought to protect was their sense of collective security.

As Ginger drifted into silence, lost in her thoughts, Three Fire Cheng continued to brew tea, letting the steam fill the study.

Meanwhile, Gang Chen and Eason Chen, after Elaine Chen concluded the sacrificial ritual, didn’t linger as they usually did. Instead, they hurriedly left the underground chamber and made their way to their usual bar.

“Dad, remember to remind that loser. We couldn’t reach him before, but he finally answered this morning. We need to make sure he doesn’t show up late again,” Eason Chen reminded Gang as soon as they got in the car.

“Right, right. I’ll call him now. And we’re still meeting at the same bar, right?” Gang Chen confirmed before dialing the number, setting the time and place with the man before nodding to his son.

When the Chen family arrived at the bar, they were surprised to find the man, Luther, already waiting for them.

This was uncharacteristic of him, as they usually had to wait a long time. They assumed he must have good news, given his eagerness.

As they sat down, Luther tugged at his long sleeves, trying to hide the bruises on his body from the Chen family. Despite it being summer, he was bundled up, which they found odd but attributed to the bar’s cold air conditioning.

What they didn’t know was that Luther had been severely beaten by Elaine Chen. His body was covered in bruises, and he was enduring the pain just to smile at the Chen family.

Luther had considered running away, but the memory of Elaine Chen’s threats and the ever-present shadow of the watcher sent to follow him snuffed out that thought. Now, he could only hope Elaine Chen would keep her promise to let him go after the job was done.

“Well, Luther, you’re here early today! You must have some good news for us!” Gang said eagerly, pouring Luther a drink.

Luther nodded and then, with a beaming smile, said to the Chen father and son, "She agreed, and now the proposal is a success!"

After saying that, he pulled out a check and continued, "This is the five million dollars I got from her. You can cash it at the bank anytime. If you need more, just let me know, and I'll get it from her."

Gang Chen took the check, confirmed the amount was correct, and then handed it to Eason Chen to review.

Satisfied, he praised Luther, "Mr. Luther, you’re incredible! When it comes to this kind of thing, you’re the best!" As he spoke, he gave Luther a thumbs up and added, "Mr. Luther, give us an account later, and we’ll transfer ten thousand dollars to you. I hope you don’t mind the amount. Let’s continue working together in the future, and I’m sure you’ll keep up the good work."

Luther repeatedly expressed his gratitude, and while the Chen father and son were distracted, he carefully glanced at the person watching him from a distance before quickly turning back.

He then leaned in close to Gang Chen and whispered mysteriously, "I know of a place that isn’t open to ordinary people. I wonder if you two might be interested."

Upon hearing this, the Chen father and son immediately became intrigued. Gang Chen, raising the check in his hand, loudly urged Luther to lead the way, eager to go see this place.