Chapter 5 The Hidden Strength.

The antique iron gates of Jin Yaotian's grandfather's secluded manor swung shut behind her, sealing her within a fortress of quiet, classical elegance. This remote residence, ignored by Director Xu for years due to its distance from the corporate city centers, was Yaotian's sanctuary and her new training ground. After the public execution of her engagement, she knew the enemy-Li Zhenyu, the Step-Mother, and the seething Jin Meifen-would be momentarily stunned, but their malice would soon coalesce into a unified, devastating attack. She needed to be ready.

​Yaotian stripped away the expensive facade of her clothes, changing into simple, dark training gear. She stood in the manor's unused, expansive conservatory, bathed in the cool light filtering through the stained glass ceiling. It was time to understand the weapon her betrayed soul had forged: the Enigma.

​Her training began not with physical exertion, but with a cold, absolute concentration. She focused on the center of her being, where the chilling, silent power resided. It felt like an infinitely dense core of energy, an absence that demanded control. She started with simple movements: a basic martial arts stance, a defensive block. In her past life, these actions would have left her breathless and awkward, betraying her pampered Omega fragility. Now, her muscles responded with a terrifying, instantaneous perfection.

​The Omniscient POV noted the phenomenon with detached awe: Her body moved with a fluidity and power that defied her history. Every tendon, every nerve ending, seemed primed and accelerated, making her reflexes inhumanly fast. She executed a series of complex, lightning-quick strikes against the air, the movements silent, precise, and utterly lethal. She had no memory of learning these skills, yet her body moved as if guided by the collective knowledge of generations of elite warriors. This was the terrifying efficiency of the Enigma-not mere strength, but accelerated potential.

​Physical capacity: Accelerated by a factor of three. Reaction time: Immeasurable. Fatigue: Non-existent. Yaotian's mind cataloged the data with scientific precision.

​The training session lasted four hours, leaving Yaotian energized, not exhausted. She finished with a full sprint across the manor's length, her speed blurring the world around her. She paused, catching her breath-a deep, calm inhalation that revealed the absence once more. The Scent of Nothing was her permanent, potent mask.

​With her physical training complete, Yaotian turned to the second, more dangerous quest: information. The Enigma was a myth, a bedtime story told to dominant Alphas about the one thing they could never control. Finding real, empirical data was almost impossible.

​She sat at her grandfather's vast, dark mahogany desk, activating the suite of specialized security tools she had acquired. She bypassed layers of corporate firewalls, tunneling into the most obscure, private academic databases-repositories of lost history and genetic anomalies that only the oldest, wealthiest families could access.

​After three hours of relentless searching, she found a single, heavily encrypted, and partially corrupted text, labeled "The Null Cycle."

​The Omniscient POV revealed the core truth extracted by Yaotian's enhanced, Enigma-level mind:

​...The Enigma is not a gender, but a corrective mechanism. It manifests when a biological classification reaches a point of absolute weakness and betrayal. It is the Nullifier. Its pheromone is not a scent, but a psychic shield. It does not attract or submit; it suppresses and controls. The Enigma can never be scent-marked. Its true power is tied to the absolute mastery of its emotions. Extreme grief or rage can lead to an uncontrolled release, potentially disrupting the entire scent hierarchy in a catastrophic surge...

​Yaotian reread the final line, her eyes cold. A catastrophic surge. Her betrayal had unlocked a weapon of mass destruction. Her revenge could not be driven by blind rage; it required the cold, detached control of a surgical killer. The ice around her heart was not a defense mechanism, but a mandatory restraint.

​Just as Yaotian absorbed this chilling reality, the predictable storm of slander broke. Li Zhenyu, recovering from his humiliation, and Director Xu, desperate to control the narrative, struck through their favorite mouthpiece: a prominent, society-focused Omega gossip channel.

​The headlines screamed: "Fragile Jin Heiress Snaps Post-Breakup: Emotional Instability Threatens Jin Corp." Director Xu, disguised as a 'close family friend,' provided juicy quotes about "poor Yao-Yao's frail mental state" and "unpredictable, wild outbursts."

​Jin Meifen, using her favorite social platform, posted a delicate, tearful message: "I am heartbroken that my Yao jie-jie is suffering so. We must pray for her stability. Please be kind to her during this difficult time." This was a masterpiece of passive-aggressive malice, ensuring the audience interpreted Yaotian's actions as the breakdown of a spoiled Omega.

​Yaotian didn't waste time on defensive denials. She deployed her legal team to issue a single, devastating counter-statement that cut through the noise and exposed the raw, ugly truth of the antagonists' greed.

​The statement, delivered not through the gossip channel but through the stoic, trustworthy financial wire, was brief and absolute:

​Regarding the recent, defamatory claims, the Jin Family Heiress, Jin Yaotian, is in robust health and sound mind. Her decision to sever the engagement was based solely on irrefutable evidence of financial impropriety and contractual fraud perpetuated by Mr. Li Zhenyu concerning her ancestral assets. Ms. Jin demands that the public refocus its attention on the alarming greed displayed by Mr. Li, whose corporate subsidiary is already facing severe liquidity issues, which were likely the motivation for his attempted theft. Ms. Jin requires no sympathy, only justice.

​The response was a nuclear bomb in the elite society. It wasn't defensive; it was offensive. It shifted the narrative from "crazy Omega heiress" to "greedy Alpha thief exposed by sharp heiress." It didn't just counter the slander; it wounded Zhenyu's pride and reputation catastrophically, linking his name directly to financial desperation.

​Yaotian watched the news feeds with a cold, satisfied smile. Director Xu's attempt to portray her as a "fragile Omega" had been crushed by the superior financial ruthlessness of the Enigma.

​You want to play the social game, Mother Xu? I will play the corporate game. Your gossip is useless when your bank accounts are bleeding.

​

​Yaotian returned to her desk, with a notebook open before her. The immediate defense was successful, but the core issue remained: Director Xu's corruption within the Jin Corporation.

​She studied the notebook, identifying a code phrase and a cryptic location that pointed to the Jin Corp's deepest archives-the 'Ledger of Lies' detailing Xu's embezzlement over the past three years. This ledger was the key to not only destroying Xu but also reclaiming full, uncontested control of the corporation.

​The next move requires stealth, strategy, and the physical mastery of the Enigma.

​Yaotian stood, her gaze fixed on the cityscape that housed her family's corporate tower-the tower that was currently occupied by the venomous duo of Xu and Meifen. She closed her eyes, feeling the cold, silent hum of her power. The Enigma was awake, trained, and ready to breach the enemy's walls. She had severed the ties of love; now it was time to sever the ties of finance and blood.

​The retrieval of the hidden ledger would be the decisive move, the one that would force the Step-Mother to deploy her ultimate, desperate scheme, setting the stage for the next great clash.