Chapter 701: Like a Rat in a Hole
The curtain of the night had fallen and the lights were lit.
Nesting himself while quietly reading a financial magazine in Lulu's bedroom in the Paradise Club, Tang Xiu found that a huge business opportunity contained within the widespread popularity of the Internet nowadays. It had even brought impact to the business entities in real life, causing the Internet superstars to earn a lot from it.
As someone who reached a supremacy in the Immortal World and had experienced the hi-tech world of advanced civilizations, it made him realize other channels of making money and also become aware of the several businesses that were relying upon the Internet for marketing.
SmartBrain; it was a must-have item in the advanced civilization world, the likes of which was the mobile phone in today's society! The SmartBrain had complete functionality as an integrated communication and networking tool, was easy to carry anywhere, and connected to the virtual space's shopping malls. One could even use its virtual reality hologram feature to surf the network and immerse their consciousness to enter the commercial establishments and obtain the same experience of going out shopping in real life while staying indoors.
Games, in the other hand, were also a lucrative business, such as the "Elite Battleground", "Speed Arena", "The True Kingdom Through the Age Of Warring States", and "Great Interstellar Voyage"…
Tang Xiu once visited the star territory of the advanced civilization, during which he learned some elementary knowledge, and these were the games he was most familiar with. However, after he obtained himself a SmartBrain, other than trying out "Elite Battleground", he just ignored the other games after he felt that there were no other contents regarding abilities he could learn in them. After all, given his status, capacity, and strength at that time, it was just a sudden impulse on a whim to hunt for novelty in a spur moment.
However, he could conceive a lot of ideas just from the SmartBrain and games, and he could even casually write a plan to develop games. But the research and development of the SmartBrain was the very understructure for those products to be produced.
Tang Xiu put down the financial magazine, looking vexed. If he did not lose his interspatial ring in the Immortal World, he could have a treasure house in his hands now. At the very least, he had stored his SmartBrain gadget inside that interspatial ring.
"I may still have money in hand, but the rate at which I'm spending it is pretty much the same. It won't take long to use it all if I can't find another way to earn more. The earnings of the Everlasting Feast Hall are quite good, yet the internal purchase of New City in Star City requires a huge funding chain, so I can't rashly put the money to use there."
"The Everlasting Feast Hall itself is also thriving, but with grooming subordinate cultivators, massive purchase of cultivation resources, as well as cultivating spirit herbs and rearing fierce beasts, is kind of like burning money. Being barely able to maintain the balance is already very good."
"What should I do to earn more money in the shortest time?"
Tang Xiu was not a money grubber, but he still felt the pinch. There was actually a huge plan he kept in mind: to establish an army consisting of cultivators. In particular was the number of street children he had been looking for all over the country, which now numbered up to 1,200. The funds required to spend on their cultivation would be quite colossal as well.
Back in the past, he was the type of person who was ignorant of household management, its daily necessities and affairs, and yet, he now profoundly experienced how did it feel to not have enough money.
Knock, knock…
The door was knocked, and Mo Awu's voice came from the outside, "Boss, we found some suspicious leads, and our people are currently tracking them."
Tang Xiu's complexion moved, and he immediately cast away the "money" issues in his mind. After he came outside, he asked in a deep tone, "Is it about those divergent creatures?"
"Yeah." Mo Awu nodded. "Some divergent creatures were seen in the Hong District's Jinbai Hotel today. Our intelligence personnel has conducted an investigation, and according to the traces left by them, they have already conducted a thorough search and are currently in a certain point of the border of Shanghai and Changxi City. Judging from the trail, they should be heading toward Mt. Lao."
Changxi City, toward Mt. Lao?
Tang Xiu had been there before when he first came to Shanghai and went to the car race bout through the Laoshan highway with Chi Nan. After hesitating for a moment, he asked, "What has the police found from their investigation?"
"The police investigation officer we bought informed us that they are also baffled and at a loss now, and there is no investigation to be conducted on the murderer who killed those four nightclub girls. So much so that they cannot determine the nature and motives of the criminal case, and are unable to investigate as to what or who the murderer is," said Mo Awu. "I heard, however, that the police have contacted the people from the Special Department, so maybe there will be people from the state soon."
"Nevermind the police. We'll head over to Changxi City immediately." Tang Xiu nodded. "I want to see how powerful these divergent creatures are."
****
Changxi City, Laoshan.
In a valley between the peaks of a mountain range, a small lake gleamed a reflection of the sunlight on its waving surface. On a dark spot at the lakeside, Shanjenna curled up in her tattered black robe, shivering all over. Her wings were pierced with silver bullets, and though it was not a fatal injury, it still made her injury worsen.
Han Jintong sat next to her, looking exhausted, panting and with a ragged breath. His face was as pale as a sheet, while his messy hair fully depicted the sorry situation he was in.
"S-Shanjenna, I… I'm suspecting that there's something in our body, some scent, or whatever it is that can be smelled by those assassins. It makes them able to keep a close chase and pester us tightly. I only know a little about vampires like you, but you should be able to think of a key solution or any plans that can deal with this." Said Han Jintong right as he caught his breath and erased the blood on the corner of his mouth.
Shanjenna hesitated for a moment and suddenly asked, "Professor, can you smell any particular scent on me?"
"No." Han Jintong shook his head.
"Smear my blood on both sides of your nose and then try again," said Shanjenna.
Han Jintong blanked, and then used a knife to cut her finger and smear the blood on both his nostrils. His complexion changed after smelling it and quickly said, "I smell a scent. It's very faint and the fragrance makes me feel good, but also brings a bit of dizziness."
Shanjenna's face instantly turned nasty, and said with an uneasy expression, "Quickly clean the blood on your nose, Professor. Shit, we're damned. They will keep chasing us no matter where we run. It's because they have cast the Darksoul Scent on me."
"What exactly is this Darksoul Scent?" Asked Han Jintong quickly.
"It's a type of special drug for the breed Race of Darkness like me, and it has a magical tracking effect," explained Shanjenna. "Once one is smeared by this Darksoul Scent, the other breeds of the Darkness Race can smell and lock the target even if the target's position is beyond hundreds of kilometers. They must have smeared it on me while I was unaware of it during the fight last night. Professor, I cannot implicate you any longer. Just quickly go and don't worry about me."
"I told you to not persuade me to leave and abandon my own student. I can never do that," said Han Jintong with knitted brows. "Since you already know that it's a Darksoul Scent, just wash it off. They won't be able to find us once you lost that scent, right?"
"You can't wash it off. The Darksoul Scent is a fragrance that enters your blood and flows with it." Shanjenna shook her head and bitterly said. "It won't wear off unless I'm dead and the blood in my body cools off, or… wait for half a month before it slowly vanishes. But given the situation we are currently in, let alone lasting for half a month, we can't even last for three days. Professor, if my guess is not mistaken, they have already caught up."
Hahaha…
A strange and jarring laughter came from the heights of the forested mountains, and the erratic echo created a gloomy and grim atmosphere in the valley.
Five hazy figures appeared in the woods from where the strange laughter came. Two Beastmen with hairy bodies, two Wingmen who flapped their wings, and a pale-faced vampire in a black trench coat. The five directly surrounded Han Jintong and Shanjenna the instant they appeared.
"Hand over the Skull Insignia, Shanjenna!"
The drifting voice seemed not to come out from these five divergent creatures but seemingly came from all directions, making it impossible to judge the position.
Shanjenna backhandedly wielded a semilunar scimitar while chiding and cursing towards the front, "The Skull Insignia is not in my hands anymore, Grove Bear. I'm being chased by elite assassins, do you think I won't hide it in a safe place? You're a Gold Badge Assassin of the Stygian Club, don't hide your head like a fucking coward. GET OUT!!!"
"The second heir of the Salzburg is indeed a brave one, eh?"
An obscure silhouette appeared in an instant. Shanjenna was unable to react as a punch sent her flying upside down and thrown into the lake. But in the next moment, she blasted upward from the water, spurted out a few mouthfuls of blood, flapped her broken wings and staggeringly floated on the surface of the lake.
"Grove Bear of the Bearkin is indeed very strong. You might be able to kill me today, but you won't get the Skull Insignia, and the content inside it will soon be obtained by the guardians of the Luminance Castle. Your mills will be destroyed when that time comes, and all your efforts will be for naught." Shanjenna's voice was a bit shrill, and yet contained incisiveness and fierceness.
"No no no, why would I kill you?" Grove Bear waved his hand. "You're a beautiful little bat in my eyes, Shanjenna. I love your body, and it must be mine. I will imprison your soul and ravage your body for days and nights. I wanna see you screaming, moaning, and begging for mercy under my crotch."
After saying said, his gaze fell on Han Jintong, raised his brows and ridiculed, "You're not a vampire, and not even one of us, the divergent races… Oh… you're unexpectedly a human being, eh? This is interesting, truly interesting. Shanjenna turned out to have sought help from a human? Seems like this human is quite powerful, no?"
"In my eyes, all walks of life who possess wisdom are equal. Human beings do have some scumbags, but I can find more scumbags among the divergent races, such as you, the assassination agents," replied Han Jintong with a sneer.
"If all human beings were of the same mind as you, we—the Beastman would have long taken control of mankind's destiny instead of hiding ourselves in the world of darkness, being afraid to use our strength too much, being afraid of openly hunt and kill humans in the broad daylight to consume their flesh and blood…"
Chapter 702: Drawing A Sword To Render Help
Grove Bear gave highfalutin remarks on his own audacious and shameless words. But the bloody cruelty among the words and between the lines along with the burning ambition within revealed his genuine state of mind.
Mankind. This existence in his eyes was probably nothing but ants. He believed that he was standing at the top of the food chain, and yet, was being ruled by the human world. The unwillingness to curb his bloodthirsty nature eventually became the cause for him to become an assassination agent, hiding under the dark sky and mercilessly harvesting lives.
Desperation filled Han Jintong's heart, and yet, he suddenly unleashed the thought in his innermost heart of being in a desperate strait with not the slightest opportunity to live. Having defeated his own fear, he proudly straightened his chest and retorted, "This great country of mine, China, has been in existence for five millenniums. During which heroes and wise sages have been unyieldingly clinging onto with their everything in every era. I always believed in the first line stated in the Three Character Classics, that man is fundamentally good in nature at birth, but yours is what the Chinese call 'evil'. Since the ancient times, evil can never prevail over good; for why the reason for the pathetic you who have a military force and yet is an evil heathen, can only drag out your feeble existence and hide in the dark as a result."
An evil heathen?
Grove Bear clenched his fists, and the killing intent inside him surged out from all over his body. He abhorred this name, because those bastards from the Luminance Castle liked calling them by it.
"KILL HIM!" Grove Bear snarled in fury. "I want to see his minced flesh and his blood raining down. Make his soul suffer and scream!"
In the distant mountain forest, two blurry figures stood behind the thick trees, watching the scene in the valley through their binoculars. The night was dim, but they could see clearly everything with the binoculars, and yet, their faces were that of restlessness and their eyes would shift away from those "breeds of evil and demons" from time to time. They wanted to leave them, and yet kept staying not far away.
And there! There were four existences lying dormant, ones that they needed to look up to.
"What should we do now?"
"Just wait!"
The four lurking middle-aged men communicated through gestures. They still did not move although the werewolf-like Beastman wielded his sledgehammer from his shoulder and hideously grinned as he walked toward Han Jintong, whereas the other vampire took out a black bottle exuding an evil aura.
They would not rashly move and act without instructions, thus would wait until the Boss arrived and give them instructions.
"It's really a pity!" Jin Shi sighed inwardly.
He had been abroad for more than a decade, yet he was of a Chinese descent with Chinese blood within him. He felt pity and sympathized upon seeing the white-haired, scarred Han Jintong, who straightened up his chest and unyieldingly spoke those heroic words he approved of, was about to be killed.
Han Jintong had no weapon, thus he just watched the stocky demi-human stride towards him. He gritted his teeth to mobilize all the True Essence he had left. He would not sit still for death to come. Despite the current dire situation, he secretly vowed that he would make this thing pay a grievous price even if he had to die in this thing's hands.
"I can guarantee that you will never leave China alive. Just wait! A terrifying powerhouse who will make you shudder will appear in front of you and utterly obliterate you all."
Han Jintong roared and did not glance at Shanjenna, who was flying back to him. His body was as though a straight arrow that shot towards the Beastman. His blood was boiling, muscles tightening to the limit, and his power constantly transmitted to his limbs in order to blast out the most strength he could muster at this moment.
"What a stupid human." A mocking expression painted the Beastman's face. He flipped his wrist and created a howling sound as he brandished his sledgehammer down. His hammer was extremely fast, even the Iron Man would be smashed to a pulp if he was hit.
BOOM…
The sledgehammer only struck an afterimage as it heavily slammed on the cold ground. Han Jintong himself did not evade it. He was as though a berserk rushing bull, dashing barbarically to strike at the Beastman, as he quickly pulled out a sharp fruit knife from his body and fiercely stabbed the Beastman in the chest. Just as the Beastman retreated, he sent a somersault kick to the side of the Beastman body.
The sharp fruit knife broke into two pieces and was only able to pierce the Beastman's skin without much damage. The Beastman was kicked and staggered for a few meters before he stabilized his footing. On the contrary, the moment he staggered to the side, he threw his sledgehammer on Han Jintong's hand, breaking his arm and also striking his body.
ROAR…
Shanjenna flapped her wings and instantly dashed to where Han Jintong fell. She opened her wings and covered Han Jintong, while a heavy killing intent burst from her scarlet eyes. She was already 200 years of age, similar to a 20 years old human girl according to the vampire age. Han Jintong was her teacher, and respect toward Han Jintong had grown in her after so many years in contact with him.
The Beastman casually wiped off the blood seeping out of his chest and let out a strange grin as he said, "Your level of strength is very powerful for a human! Unfortunately, you have no sharp sacred objects and my skin is even harder than diamonds. So… you can't kill me, but I can slaughter you easily. Shanjenna, get the hell of my way, you damn little bat! Else, I'll smash you first."
"I could kill you easily if they were not here, stupid wolf!" Shanjenna shrilly yelled. "SCRAM! Else I'll drag you to death with me."
The Beastman shot her a contemptuous look, as though it was the funniest thing he heard in the world. He raised the back of his hairy hand, pointed at his nose and asked, "You wanna drag me to death with you? What a bluff you, little bat. Aren't you a real idiot? Do you want to explode your Core Nucleus? You won't be able to kill me even if you do that!"
Shanjenna knew that this Beastman was right. The strongest killing move she could unleash was indeed to explode her Core Nucleus. However, she would also be blasted into smithereens and directly die.
HAHAHA. The Beastman maniacally laughed and said, "Are you scared? Get the fuck lost to this Granddad! Else, this Granddad will blow up your fucking balls!"
Suddenly, a discernible voice was heard and its tone was full of sarcasm, "Whoever says that the Beastmen have wisdom later, I'll definitely think that person is an idiot. How come a female vampire has… Hahaha…"
The Beastman's face changed and quickly turned around and took a fast glance at the surrounding, shouting, "Who the hell are you? Get fucking out and face this Granddad!"
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Four figures streaked from the woods like a zap of lightning, along with flying swords hovering around them. As they waved their arms, the swords were as though four long rainbows that shot forward to strike at the Beastman. Despite the latter's extremely swift reflexes, the four flying swords still tore his skin and left four bloody slits on his body.
Tang Xiu's figure came floating. Behind him was Mo Awu and six other experts of the Everlasting Feast Hall, as they appeared in everyone's sight in the blink of an eye.
Jin Shi's group of four retracted their flying swords back and intently stared at the Beastman with cold expressions. They only needed Tang Xiu's order to unleash their fiercest strike without hesitation.
Grove Bear, who originally thought that victory was imminent, had his pupils suddenly contracted violently. A bad premonition suddenly emerged inside his heart the moment Tang Xiu and the others appeared. It was said that there was a special kind of human being in the mysterious ancient oriental country called Daoist cultivators by the Western forces of darkness.
In an instant, he determined that these people were absolutely those so-called cultivators, because their speed was fast to the extreme, and they wielded weapons the likes of Darkfiend Artifact and Lightsacred Artifact, all of which could be controlled by special means to kill the enemies.
However, he did not offend them at all. What forces did they belong to, and why did they want to meddle in this matter?
"Who are you?"
Unwilling to provoke trouble so as to accomplish his mission, Grove Bear employed a cautious approach. The strength possessed by cultivators were something that many races dreaded. For example, the old geezer who was protecting Shanjenna. Though his strength was mediocre, he should be a cultivator as well.
Wait…
Grove Bear's countenance suddenly changed, and his bad premonition grew more intense. Do these people come from the same place as this old geezer who is protecting Shanjenna?
Tang Xiu ignored Grove Bear completely but blinked toward Han Jintong, who was guarded by Shanjenna. He would have straightly helped Han Jintong had he known that this old man asked him to deal with these Western races of darkness without him regarding it as a favor.
"Take this!" Tang Xiu flipped his hand, took out a porcelain bottle and threw it to Shanjenna.
Shanjenna was like a bird startled by the twang of a bow-string. The arrival of Tang Xiu and the others was a joyful thing to her, and yet also made her anxious. She was joyful since these people attacked the Beastman, but what worried her was that she did not know what were their origins. If they just acted because the other party said something audacious, she and the professor would still be facing imminent doom.
"What is this?" Asked Shanjenna with difficulty.
"Take it and give it to that old man so that it can treat his injuries," said Tang Xiu faintly.
"This…" Shanjenna hesitated. She did not know if she could trust this man. If the contents inside this porcelain bottle were poison, the professor would be poisoned.
Han Jintong's aura was chaotic, but the desperation in his eyes had vanished without a trace when Tang Xiu and his men appeared, and was replaced with ecstasy.
"Give it to me, Shanjenna."
Han Jintong pushed her wings and reached out to pick the porcelain bottle. After opening it, he poured the Holy Healing medicine directly into his mouth. As scarce as the remaining True Essence flowing through his meridians, that pill turned into a surging torrent that flowed to his four limbs and five bones in an instant, as its special efficacy constantly healed his injuries.
"Thank you, Mr. Tang," said Han Jintong gratefully from his heart.
Tang Xiu hummed coldly at him and said, "Do remember my words. I, Tang Xiu, never need others to pay me anything for saving their lives, for I never condone business deals over this matter. I can help you get rid of these foreign divergent races, but you must answer some questions of mine."
Han Jintong finally realized why Tang Xiu flatly refused his plea for help and did not even try to listen to why he asked for help. It turned out that he had made Tang Xiu disgusted of him due to his tone about making it as a business deal. As he realized this point, he could not describe what he felt through words other than forcing out a wry smile.