Chapter 41: Do You Take Me for an Easy Target?

Gu Changqing sized up the people before and behind him. The man in front was about one meter seventy-five, dressed in black, his hair casually tied at the back of his head. The man behind was about the same height as Gu Changqing himself, but his build was even broader.

Xu Sheng and Jin Hu.

Both of them were Awakened with physical enhancement abilities.

After all, if they possessed the Five Elements, Yin-Yang, or other special abilities, even if they had a criminal record, as long as it wasn’t too severe, they would have already been absorbed into the Guards. In this era, what mattered most? Talent.

Therefore, most Awakened left on the outside had limited strength and potential, usually had some criminal history, or simply didn’t wish to be under jurisdiction for various reasons. That was why they hadn’t been recruited. Most of these Awakened were in the physical enhancement category.

Of course, there was also the kind who had committed too many crimes.

For instance, some members of Spiritfire had been wanted serial killers even before awakening, so no matter how strong they were, recruitment was impossible.

“Officer Gu, it’s really not easy to meet you in person!” Xu Sheng and Jin Hu didn’t approach him, keeping a distance of ten meters.

They were in an underground parking lot, with both exits blocked by the two men, leaving Gu Changqing with virtually no way to escape.

“Li Nan died by your hand, didn’t he?”

Li Nan was the Awakened who controlled flesh and blood.

“But there’s no need to be tense. We’re mainly here to talk,” Xu Sheng said at a steady pace, his voice low and magnetic.

Gu Changqing immediately recalled Xu Sheng’s file: before he awakened, he was a con artist, having deceived over twenty women under the pretense of romance, swindling more than three million.

“I’m a soldier, you’re criminals. What could we possibly have to talk about?” Gu Changqing took a dozen steps and leaned against the hood of a car opposite them. If a fight broke out, he didn’t want his own car to get wrecked—it was expensive.

“Besides, which eye of yours saw me nervous? I’m actually quite happy right now!”

“All right, Officer Gu, let’s skip Li Nan. But you have the item, don’t you?” Xu Sheng continued.

“What’s in those bottles?” Gu Changqing asked with interest. Although feeding that stuff to a living creature only produced a hatchling-level anomaly, it was still special.

“I don’t know the details,” Xu Sheng didn’t hide anything. “We’re just errand boys.”

“I only know that stuff is useless for ordinary Awakened. Officer Gu, keeping it won’t benefit you.”

“It’s not ours, either—it’s wanted by a big boss. Now that it’s missing, we have nothing to show for it.”

“I am a bit curious, though—who is this big boss you speak of?” Gu Changqing narrowed his eyes.

“Officer Gu, knowing too much isn’t good for you. All I can say is, we can’t afford to cross him,” Xu Sheng said, stepping forward with a heavy tone. “Hand over the item, and we’ll go our separate ways. We don’t want to offend Chongming, either.”

Although Chongming’s branch in Angang was only starting to take shape, its headquarters in Yong’an had been established for half a year and had made a name with several major cases. The surveillance footage from the Garden Community had already stirred up local rumors, so Xu Sheng was well aware that Gu Changqing now belonged to Chongming.

“Can’t afford to cross him?”

“So I’m the soft target here?” Gu Changqing smiled, his eyes glinting with killing intent.

“If we cross Chongming, worst case we run to Qichao… But if we cross him, we won’t survive anywhere. We have no choice!” Jin Hu said as he walked closer.

“Who says you have no choice?” Gu Changqing slapped his thigh, laughing.

“What do you mean?” Xu Sheng asked.

“There’s another way—just merge with me!” Gu Changqing bared his teeth, his blood surging violently, thick veins bulging all over his body.

The car hood beneath him instantly warped, as if struck by another vehicle.

With a sudden burst, Gu Changqing launched himself straight at Xu Sheng.

Though both adversaries were physically enhanced, Xu Sheng was more balanced—fast and strong. Jin Hu, on the other hand, specialized in hardening and brute force.

Even though Jin Hu was stronger, Xu Sheng posed a greater threat to Gu Changqing.

Gu Changqing struck first, intending to kill Xu Sheng before they could figure out his abilities.

His veins coiled like snakes, his appearance fearsome. In an instant, he leapt the ten-meter gap, swinging a palm as broad as a fan at Xu Sheng, stirring the air with force.

Xu Sheng’s face darkened as he blocked the blow. “So you’re determined to be stubborn?”

He sneered and raised his arm to catch the attack, his body suddenly sinking as the concrete beneath his feet cracked.

At the same time, Xu Sheng’s foot shot out like a viper, kicking upward.

Gu Changqing had killed Li Nan, but that man was a weakling to begin with. The two of them were on a different level.

If you won’t relent, then we’ll just capture you and make you hand it over.

Gu Changqing braced himself with his left hand, colliding with the kick. He felt a tremendous force surge from Xu Sheng’s leg.

But in that instant, two blood-red threads snaked from Gu Changqing’s hand and stabbed into Xu Sheng’s calf.

Blood Sea Wasp Needle!

Boom!

The two separated on impact. Gu Changqing crashed into the ceiling of the underground lot, then flipped in midair and landed on his feet.

“No wonder you’re a third-level physical enhancement Awakened…” Gu Changqing grinned, eyeing Xu Sheng as though looking at a feast.

“But I fear no physical enhancement Awakened…” he said with a booming laugh.

Xu Sheng stared at Gu Changqing’s hand, his face grim. His calf had just been pricked by two needles, which infuriated him.

“Just a cheap trick!” Xu Sheng sneered.

But the next second, an agonizing pain shot up his calf, something wriggling along his veins, the pain spreading through his body.

Xu Sheng’s expression changed dramatically. He grabbed his thigh artery. “What the hell is this?”

But even clamping his artery couldn’t stop the Blood Sea Wasp Needle from burrowing deeper; in a mere moment’s hesitation, it had reached his abdominal cavity.

Those two blood threads began to multiply, corrode, and devour everything inside Xu Sheng.

Xu Sheng clutched his abdomen, face pale as death, sweat streaming down his forehead, eyes filled with disbelief.

He still had no idea what had happened.

With just one exchange, Xu Sheng was crippled.

Even high-tier, feather-class blood-and-flesh thralls couldn’t withstand a single blow—so Gu Changqing never feared physical enhancement Awakened, especially those who fought barehanded.

Jin Hu charged at Gu Changqing, each step shattering the ground beneath his feet.

Though just one man, he felt as unstoppable as a runaway dump truck.

His entire body took on a metallic blue sheen.

Hardening.

With his hardening ability, Jin Hu could even take on a real dump truck head-on.

Gu Changqing flipped onto a nearby car, flicking two Blood Sea Wasp Needles at Jin Hu’s eyes.

Jin Hu simply closed his eyelids; the needles, which could pierce concrete walls, left nothing more than two white marks.

Gu Changqing raised an eyebrow—just as the files said, in his hardened state, he could shrug off rifle bullets, and even his eyelids were that tough!

Jin Hu grabbed a car with one hand and swung it. Gu Changqing dodged with the agility of a monkey.

Boom!

Jin Hu smashed the car down with one hand.

“What strength!” Gu Changqing’s grin reached his ears as he sent a blood python flying at Jin Hu.

“So you’re not physically enhanced after all!” Jin Hu sneered, having thought Gu Changqing was one of them based on earlier transformations.

He still didn’t know what happened to Xu Sheng.

Jin Hu tore the blood python apart in midair, but to his surprise, the blood was as insubstantial as ordinary liquid, shattering without resistance.

The splattered blood landed on his body, emitting agonized wails that rang in Jin Hu’s ears.

Then, the blood began to flow—not downward, but up toward his head.

Wherever the blood passed, there were faint traces of corrosion. With his hardened body, Jin Hu barely felt any pain.

But the blood crawling toward his face made him uneasy. He quickly wiped at it, but a great deal of blood still wormed its way into his ears and nostrils.

His face twisted with violence as he hurled another car at Gu Changqing.

Two or three tons of steel flew across the parking lot. Even as he dodged, Gu Changqing felt a chill.

This brute’s strength was monstrous.

With hardening, he was practically a bulldozer.

Unfortunately, he ran into me.