The main source of the bizarre atmosphere was Kuanggu Sheng. First, he stared at me in disbelief. Next, he took several deep breaths and complimented, “Brother Wu, your movement is amazing, I have never heard of such movement. You have my respect.”
I smiled. “You were looking for me, Brother Kuanggu?”
“Yes…”
I could smell fear. It was a product of me demonstrating I could show up at will and read minds.
He forced my hand. He claimed to know one of my secrets. I wasn’t afforded time to think and plan. He wasn’t weak and had a decent head on his shoulders. If I passed up the opportunity to get to the bottom of what he wanted, I might’ve missed it for good. Therefore, I chose to try catching him unprepared. Judging from his high heart rate, sweaty forehead, red eyes and heavy breathing, however, I might’ve overdid it. If we actually fought then and there, without a broadsword, he’d smash me in the majority of the exchanges. Luckily, he was afraid of me. Even a tiger was harmless once it was afraid.
My jerkfu (jerk of a shifu) once said. “If you can make the enemy’s human side constipate or runny at will, aren’t you in control?”
“Brother Kuanggu…”
As soon as I showed intent to stride forward, Kuanggu Sheng clenched his jaws, chambered his hands and launched himself at me.
Hey, follow the script!
I had no other option but to defend against the attack whilst inwardly cursing. The instant Kuanggu Sheng espied me raise my arm, he lunged back eight steps and assumed a defensive stance. Concerned it wasn’t sufficient, he leapt onto the ceiling.
“… Brother Kuanggu, what are you doing?”
“What are you doing, Brother Wu?”
“I,” I lowered my hand onto the table and smiled, “wanted to offer you a seat.”
“…” Kuanggu Sheng hopped off from the ceiling and politely showed me a crushed spider in his hand. “I was killing a spider.”
The two of us let out a prolonged laugh each.
“You’re so silly, Brother Kuanggu.”
“You’re an amusing man, Brother Wu.” Kuanggu Sheng tapped the table. “Now, let us not beat around the bush. Seeing as you are here, you must have heard me mumbling. I have but one question for you.” It might’ve been just one question, but it took all the courage he could muster to inquire, “You… are not Wu Ping, are you?”
Well, now I knew he wasn’t just bluffing to blackmail me. I suspected Kuanggu Sheng was testing me at one point, Howbeit, it didn’t sound as though he was unsure. His gaze indicated that he was ready to die to obtain an answer, a desire to take back the reins. That left me with a big question: why did he not expose me when he knew I was an imposter? If he was hypothetically at odds with “Zero”, I still couldn’t see the justification for siding with me. Given the circumstances I was brought back to the base, it should’ve been self-evident that I was an enemy of Fiends’ Genesis.
Since Kuanggu Sheng was unaware he had the upper hands of upper hands, I had to play along. I simpered as I held my gaze against his, showing that I could kill him whenever I chose, but I softened it enough to convey I wasn’t going to inflict needless harm. “I am who you believe I am.”
“Refusing to be honest about even this shows that you do not trust me.”
I wagged a hand. “Brother Kuanggu, up until now, you have been constantly withholding your thoughts. What have you done to prove you are trustworthy?”
I made sure to use my own tone and speech style to see how Kuanggu Sheng would react.
Joy flitted across Kuanggu Sheng’s face as he placed more faith in his conjecture. That only confused me further. How did me not being Wu Ping benefit him? Was it really something to be so delighted about?
“You are testing me, Brother Wu. Worry not. I know everything already,” assured Kuanggu Sheng, speaking at a faster pace. “I know. I know.”
“What do you know?”
“Hahaha, years ago, there was a kid who loved blades in Nanjiang, but he didn’t show much promise. After he joined an organisation and returned to the pugilistic world, he became a household name. Shanxi’s Venerable Wuliang was but an ordinary monk who was unable to graduate from b-grade despite being over thirty. Only years after joining the organisation, the ‘Venerable’ part of his name finally meant something.
“Jiang Chen is able to rise time and time again thanks to the organisation’s support. He left us to reap the gains from them alone. Despite questioning him numerous times, he refused to share, so I have no choice but to wait. Now, after so many years of waiting, I’ve finally found an opportunity.
“You, are from there, the most secretive organisation in the Central Plain. You are the one the call the Executioner!”
What the hell are you on?
I was lost at the beginning. I had no clue what the organisation was and who the monk was. And who the hell was the Executioner?
Just what organisation does he think I’m part of?
“Correct? Correct?”
Kuanggu Sheng looked so bright that I had to answer, “Uh… Yeah…”
“I knew it! Brother Wu, may I have the honour of knowing your real name?”
I suffered a mental blank. How do I put it? I followed my heart and replied, “This one… is Zhong Ning.”
Kuanggu Sheng slapped his leg. “Fantastic! I heard that ‘Mystery’ joined the organisation. It is a pleasure to meet you, Brother Zhong.”
Huh? Zhong Ning is a member of the organisation? What unbecoming organisation is this?
“… This is the secret of mine you said you knew?”
“… What secret did you think I was referring to, then?”
“Uh…” Seeing the confusion and inquisition in Kuanggu Sheng’s squinted eyes, I turned my head, licked my lips and clapped. “I thought you knew I’m having an affair with Ning Zhuoru.”
“Ooooh, that is not a problem… Hmm?”
“Hmm?”
“Hmm… Nothing, nothing.”
