Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1203: Overlooking All Beings (3)

The young man’s body quickly fell from the wall, coughing up two mouthfuls of blood… he could no longer recall the last time he had bled, only vaguely remembering a long-ago time and space when a pretty girl had joked with him.

—Coughing up blood repeatedly, it becomes a habit.

But it really wasn’t a habit… The young man took a breath, but the broken ribs seemed to pierce his lungs, and the motion caused his entire body to spasm in pain.

Wang Hu stepped directly in front of him, his massive shadow enough to engulf the young man completely.

“You’re too weak.”

The young man moved his lips… the last time he had heard those words in his consciousness coincided almost exactly with the last time he had coughed up blood.

“I didn’t expect there to be a warrior with such good physical fitness…” he coughed up another mouthful of blood.

A glint of cold light suddenly appeared in his eyes hidden under his bangs, and a shadow launched rapidly from the side toward Wang Hu.

Wang Hu’s face remained impassive, but his arm suddenly swung out without warning, dispersing the shadow.

Seeing Wang Hu’s seemingly clueless demeanor yet executing such precise and overwhelming movements, the young man twitched at the corner of his eye… what kind of monster is this?While Wang Hu was showing his strength, kicking the mysterious young man into helplessness, Liu Minghao and Wei Zidào were also moving—though doubtful of Wang Hu’s combat ability, their first priority was still to subdue this mysterious youth.

They quickly drew the tools developed by the Management Bureau for capturing transcendent beings and rushed forward.

Unexpectedly, the young man suddenly bit his palm, blood gushing out. As it touched the floor, it merged into the surface.

Instantly, the floor seemed to melt, undulating like a waterbed, making it impossible to maintain balance.

Liu Minghao and Wei Zidào instantly lost balance and fell to the ground… Wang Hu, however, remained towering and unmoved, like a mountain, though he instinctively furrowed his brow.

He instinctively clenched his fists, then relaxed; the vast demonic energy had not yet erupted but had already settled, and he stomped once.

The entire newly constructed teaching building trembled violently. Layers of cement dust shook loose but did not damage the foundation, while surrounding anomalies were cleared.

Liu Minghao and Wei Zidào, though fallen, realized they were merely sitting on the ground.

But the mysterious young man had already vanished.

“Where’s the criminal?!” Bu Bugao rushed forward, grabbing Wang Hu’s arm.

Wang Hu looked blank and shook his head.

Even in normal conditions, Wang Hu would likely be confused—this young man’s methods were extremely strange, completely different from the Divine Land’s Taoist techniques.

Seeing Wang Hu also had no clue how the criminal disappeared, Bu Bugao felt disappointed.

Liu Minghao and Wei Zidào’s expressions were also grim—despite the young man appearing severely injured, he still managed to escape.

Fortunately, the mysterious young man had already been quietly recorded; next would be issuing a wanted notice—though first, they needed to understand him better.

Dong Shaofeng remained unconscious, leaving only Zhao Le at the scene, drawing everyone’s attention.

…

“I—I’m not really sure. This person says his name is 24…”

Zhao Le was extremely nervous—even though the man who called himself Liu Minghao had treated his injuries, he was still shaken by the scene of the Management Bureau agents fighting the mysterious young man.

He vaguely heard from snippets of conversation that they were investigating the mysterious person with the silver handgun…

Zhao Le understood—these Management Bureau agents were probably tracking the silver gun he had hidden in his backpack.

The mysterious 24 was innocent in this matter.

Yet Zhao Le didn’t want to reveal everything; he instinctively kept the truth to himself and cooperated with their questioning, explaining why he came to the location but omitting the threats he had faced.

Bu Bugao carefully recorded Zhao Le’s statements in a notebook, asking detailed questions about his background.

Liu Minghao and Wei Zidào listened, not interrupting—after all, these inquiries were necessary, and Bu Bugao had volunteered.

“According to Zhao Le, this self-proclaimed 24 accepted a commission from Xiang Qiang to kill a boss in charge of the entire building project,” Wei Zidào began analyzing.

Liu Minghao considered this too, adding thoughts on Wang Hu. For now, he chose to observe Wei Zidào’s reaction without interrupting.

“Xiang Qiang likely wanted to back out afterward or was trying to protect himself, planning to kill either Zhao Le or Dong Shaofeng to take his place,” Wei Zidào said gravely. “Though Dong Shaofeng’s wounds were treated, a strange energy remains in his body… perhaps we can trace 24’s movements using this energy.”

“Also, Zhao Le knows about this incident. 24 might come for him again… If so, Brother Hao, I think we shouldn’t erase Zhao Le memory for now,” Wei Zidào suggested, looking at Liu Minghao.

Liu Minghao nodded. “Indeed… but we shouldn’t stay here. Let’s take Zhao Le and Dong Shaofeng back first.”

Wei Zidào nodded and went to stand by Bu Bugao.

Thus, with Zhao Le extremely uneasy, he had no choice but to leave with them.

…

The 4K-quality projection froze.

As for Chen Mingming, his expression aside, Boss Luo displayed a strange look—emerging when seeing the mysterious 24 draw the silver short firearm.

Even Luo Qiu, in such a coincidence, could not help marveling at fate… indeed, sometimes one gets caught in the crossfire without reason.

Chen Mingming finally withdrew his gaze and exhaled, looking at Luo Qiu… he was used to thinking carefully but could not grasp this mysterious boss’s intentions.

Did he invite him just to watch this scene unfold?

Wait—why did he perceive it as… a performance, rather than reality? Chen Mingming fell into deep thought.

Luo Qiu did not disturb him, patiently sitting… he knew Chen Mingming would speak first, as his mind was full of questions.

Finally, Chen Mingming exhaled and said calmly, “He didn’t fire… and he probably won’t use this gun in the future.”

Luo Qiu smiled faintly. “That depends on your choice. Whether it’s used also depends on the person who gave it to him and to what extent.”

Chen Mingming frowned.

Luo Qiu continued, “First, you handed the gun to Zhao Le without explaining much about it, only how to use it… Imagine, someone raised entirely in modern science—how could they immediately believe in its power? His first reaction is likely fear, not amazement… What do you think he’s afraid of?”

Chen Mingming pondered, “He’s afraid of guns.”

Luo Qiu nodded. “Correct. A law-abiding person, when facing a weapon forbidden by society, will naturally feel fear. But obviously, what he cares about even more is—who put the gun in his hands. What he fears is more about the intentions behind it.”

Chen Mingming nodded; he had considered this as well. That’s why Zhao Le hadn’t used the gun yet—it was within his expectations.

Luo Qiu smiled. “If you want someone to use this gun, the first thing you need to do is make them believe it’s a magical firearm… Of course, your approach isn’t wrong. This gun’s characteristics ensure that even if it kills, it does so with perfect secrecy. The gun itself is perfect in concealment, but the user is not. If you choose to stay behind the scenes, naturally you won’t meet people directly, which lowers credibility. But if you show up, even speaking face-to-face and gaining trust, you inevitably become part of the relationship.”

Chen Mingming shook his head. “I’m not you, and I don’t have your uncanny ability to appear and disappear at will.”

“The key is actually intelligence,” Luo Qiu said with a smile. “The use of intelligence allows you, even if you’re not present in the relationship, even if you’re just an ordinary person, to operate freely.”

“Intelligence?” Chen Mingming was startled… He suddenly felt something strange, as if this conversation was a form of teaching.

“Intelligence about people,” Luo Qiu nodded. “Suppose the gun’s capabilities have already been exposed, but you haven’t revealed yourself—say, multiple deaths have occurred because of this gun. When people learn this, the next time the gun appears, its credibility will naturally be higher.”

Chen Mingming nodded. He was clever; with just a little explanation, he could understand the method—indeed, if multiple deaths occurred and became public knowledge, and people knew such a gun existed, the next recipient would likely accept it quickly, even experiment with it. Naturally, through experimentation, they would learn the gun’s true capabilities.

The key is… intelligence.

Chen Mingming instinctively looked at the nearby projection screens—they still felt unreal.

Sitting quietly there, he could easily perceive what was happening outside—he realized this method was truly hidden, leaving no trace, a godlike perspective.

“Observe carefully,” Luo Qiu smiled slightly and gestured. “Not just one person, but everyone, every aspect, every moment… even everything.”

Accompanied by Boss Luo’s voice, blocks of projections began appearing before Chen Mingming—like countless camera feeds, like constantly popping computer windows, each showing ongoing events.

Far and near, public and private, top-down and bottom-up, sorrowful, joyful, angry, happy… every person, every event, no matter how big or small.

At this moment, an unprecedented sense of impact made it difficult for Chen Mingming to remain calm.

He felt as if he had become an omnipresent pair of eyes, looking… down upon all beings.

Just as he and Luo Qiu had watched together in the classroom minutes ago—from Xiang Qiang’s madness, to 24’s appearance, to the Management Bureau’s rash advance, and then the confrontation—every word, every action, all of it was in view.

Even secrets ceased to exist… constantly facing the truth.

It was a strange sensation.

A feeling as if he could control everything, subtly intoxicating.

After a long while, Chen Mingming finally returned to normal, exhaling slowly and looking directly at Luo Qiu. “What is your purpose?”

Luo Qiu smiled. “Mr. Chen, have you ever considered working under me?”

Chen Mingming was taken aback, remaining silent for a moment. “Why me?”

Luo Qiu replied calmly, “Because fate has guided you to me.”

Chen Mingming frowned, feeling the reason somewhat unreal, even… childish.

“Just kidding,” Luo Qiu smiled faintly. “You shouldn’t mind… as for the reason, if possible, I hope you can discover it yourself.”

“The condition being… I join you?”

“Yes, the condition is that you join us.”

“Just accepting your invitation?”

“Of course, you also need to meet certain requirements.”

“What requirements?”

Luo Qiu waved his hand, and two scrolls appeared in his hands. He placed them on the table and said lightly, “Consider this an assessment—these are the background materials and questions.”

Chen Mingming instinctively took them.

Luo Qiu said calmly, “No need to open them immediately. I won’t force you… These scrolls will last twelve hours; you have twelve hours to consider. If you don’t open them in time, they disappear and you will forget today’s events. But if you open them within the time limit, you must complete the task within five days. Otherwise, you will lose eligibility and forget this matter… The choice is yours.”

“Five days…” Chen Mingming nodded.

He was leaving the country in just five days anyway…

“You Ye, escort Mr. Chen back. Mr. Chen, I will wait here for your answer.”

(End of Chapter)