Acquired and Dismantled

To Li Fang's dismay, Xie shook her head sharply from the darkness.

She whispered with a voice laced with urgency. "Negative. Any significant Qi output from me risks tripping signature alarms – old Bank protocols, hard-linked to my soul signature, almost impossible to erase. Using my cultivation, even minimally, is like sending a direct ping to the Void Sect's monitoring network. They'd know someone like me was here instantly. That's how they managed to keep track of me ever since I escaped. Even a sliver of it and they'll be able to sniff out my location instantaneously."

Li Fang cursed silently. Right. Fugitive banker, hunted by the most powerful Sect-Corp, tagged on a spiritual level.

Using her own power was a death sentence. That explained her reliance on stealth and intellect. He glanced at the data-case she clutched. "What about that?"

"Shielded," She replied curtly, her voice regaining its composure while tightly hugging the case. "Military-grade stealth casing. Shouldn't register unless actively scanned at point-blank range with specific decryption frequencies."

Outside, the Repo-Hound, a meter-long metallic beast resembling a segmented predator drone, bristled with articulated sensor stalks and heavy magnetic grappling claws. It hovered into view through a large, broken window high up on the warehouse wall.

Its single, large optical sensor, glowing an ominous red, swept the cavernous, dark interior.

It paused, hovering almost silently, its sensors likely picking up the faint residual energy from Li Fang's earlier activity, or perhaps the low hum of the signal jammer.

It tilted its 'head,' focusing its scan towards their general vicinity.

Li Fang pressed himself flat behind a thick, rusted support beam. He turned his attention back to the QFS. "System," Li Fang inwardly called. "Can we spoof its sensors? Create a false energy reading elsewhere to lure it away?"

[Negative. Active sensor spoofing requires significant processing power allocation and risks revealing QFS operational frequencies to the drone's limited heuristic analysis. Alternative Strategy Recommended: Direct Intervention.]

[Opportunity Analysis: Asset Acquisition - Repo-Hound Drone (RH Class).]

[Components possess moderate salvage value (~150 Qi-Credits).]

[Internal logic core utilizes adaptable architecture, potentially reprogrammable for establishing a secure network node for Project Gilded Lily.]

[Recommend disabling drone via targeted, high-intensity electromagnetic pulse directed at primary motivator and logic core unit.]

[Required Energy Expenditure: 10 Qi-Credits. Probability of Successful Disablement: 85%.]

[Probability of collateral damage to warehouse infrastructure: Low.]

Acquire the drone? Li Fang smiled wryly. As it turns out, the QFS wasn't limited to its financial system and cold analysis, it was also an opportunistic scavenger AI at heart.

Asset stripping a debt collection drone… there was a certain karmic justice to it. And using its brain to build their network? Ingenious, if morbid. The 150 Credits salvage value alone was nearly triple Li Fang's current liquid balance.

Li Fang's wry smile gradually turned predatory in the darkness. "Authorize direct intervention. Target: motivator and logic core. EMP burst, maximum efficiency."

He focused his intent, feeling the familiar interface connect with his will. He mentally confirmed the 10 Qi-Credit expenditure from his meager funds.

And then, a precise, invisible lance of focused electromagnetic energy, guided by the QFS and shaped by principles far beyond Li Fang's understanding, shot from his position towards the hovering Repo-Hound.

There was no visible beam, no sound, but the effect was instantaneous.

The Repo-Hound convulsed violently in mid-air. Its red optical sensor flickered erratically, displaying corrupted code for a split second.

Sparks flew from its joints as it staggered. Its anti-gravity repulsors sputtered and died with a pathetic whine.

Then, it simply dropped, crashing to the dusty concrete floor below with a heavy, final-sounding clang, inert and silent.

Xie Ruolan emerged cautiously from the shadows. She stared first at the downed drone, then back at Li Fang. Her eyes grew wide with a new level of calculation and perhaps, grudging respect.

"Your 'funding source' and 'associate'..." She stated, her voice carefully neutral, "... possesses remarkably practical applications beyond mere finance. It's impressive."

"Oh, come on. It's not that special. It encouraged aggressive asset acquisition. Just like how it told me to bail you out," Li Fang admitted, already moving swiftly towards the downed drone, pulling tools from his satchel.

"Waste not, want not, as the system likely believes." He began examining the drone's access panels, looking for the quickest way to extract the valuable core components.

"Give me a hand stripping this thing for the useful parts. We need the credits for seed money. And according to my associate," He gave a pointed look towards the silent AI interface only he could see, "we might be able to use its brain to build our new network."

"Right. That thing's logic core can be used for whatever your 'associate' was planning. We won't need to find a component seller to acquire one anymore and that's passable for what we're going to build." Xie Ruolan nodded and approached him after securing the data-case behind her.

As they worked together in the dim, dusty light, prying open reinforced casings, disconnecting power conduits, and carefully extracting the drone's logic core and sensor arrays, Li Fang felt a definitive shift within himself.

He's starting to steer away from just a desperate scavenger reacting to circumstances. He now had a partner, albeit a hunted, cynical and terrifyingly intelligent one, with her own dangerous limitations.

He also had a fledgling, dangerous, but potentially revolutionary business model.

And last, he had a powerful, demanding AI pushing him towards unimaginable goals.

He was actively building something, right here amidst the ruins of Neo-Tian's forgotten industries.

Project Gilded Lily, their shadow startup financial network, was close to going online.

Its first three nodes were a scavenger haunted by debt, a disgraced banker hunted by the ultimate power, and the repurposed, slightly damaged brain of a repo drone.

What an impressive start, right? A dangerous, improbable, but undeniable start.

But then, one glance at his interface and his foreclosure clock, relentless and uncaring, reminded him that he's still close to the chopping block. Twenty-seven hours left. The pressure hadn't lessened but he successfully transformed it.