Chapter 5163 — Summoned by the Center

"There's no point in fighting on..." Bing Wushuang shook his head with a bitter smile. That one punch had been enough to make him recognize the vast, unbridgeable gulf in strength between them. He did not know what realm the man belonged to—did not even know whether he was a cultivator at all, for from first to last he had sensed not the slightest ripple of true qi—but he already knew he had no hope whatsoever.

"Just as well. Injuring you for real would only be a nuisance." Lin Dongfang nodded. He knew Wei Zhao could heal a person swiftly, but a punch like that would leave Bing Wushuang badly hurt, and even Wei Zhao could not restore him in short order—which would easily invite suspicion.

"What do you mean?" Bing Wushuang frowned. Although his heart had been full of resentment ever since he was crippled last time, from the moment he recognized the overwhelming gap between them just now, that resentment had dissolved into nothing. Such was human nature: hatred existed only between people of roughly equal standing. Once two people were utterly beyond comparison, all that remained was looking up in awe and dread, and hatred and the like naturally became as fleeting as clouds.

"I mean, it's time you had a new employer. Why not give it some thought?" Wei Zhao walked over and said with a faint smile, "Don't worry about that poison gas the Center uses to threaten you. I can take care of it."

"Are you joking with me?" Bing Wushuang's expression darkened, though inwardly he was shaken to the core. How could this thing know about all that?!

"Whether I'm joking, you'll know soon enough." As he spoke, Wei Zhao laid a hand on him and, with practiced ease, used the five-element killing qi to strangle and destroy the poison gas lurking in the other man's dantian.

With Lin Dongfang standing by to cow him, Bing Wushuang dared not shake off Wei Zhao's grip even though he resisted. When Qin Yuanming and the others had had their poison gas strangled, every one of them had been in such agony they wished they were dead; yet apart from a somewhat ugly look on his face, Bing Wushuang did not make a single sound from start to finish.

"You... just what sort of divine being are you?" This was already the second time in a very short span that Bing Wushuang had asked this, because he had just discovered that the poison gas which had left him utterly helpless had, in the space of a few short moments, truly been wiped out clean by Wei Zhao. Such ability was simply inconceivable; and counting the wondrous methods the man had displayed before, he was truly unfathomable!

"I said it before—that question is for you to ponder at your leisure. I trust it won't disappoint you." Wei Zhao could not help but smile, then said, "I know you joined the Center because you had no choice. Now that the poison gas no longer threatens you, why not make your choice over again?"

"Do I have any other choice?" Bing Wushuang asked in return.

"You're clever. No, you don't." Wei Zhao answered without the slightest hesitation. If he had meant to give the man a second option, why would he have gone to all this trouble?

Ever since he had returned to this transfer archipelago, Bing Wushuang had been one of his primary surveillance targets, and the final conclusion was that this man was highly rational and pragmatic, with no real loyalties to speak of—a fact evident from the way he had agreed to join the Center without a moment's hesitation. It was precisely for this reason that Wei Zhao had marked Bing Wushuang as a target.

Bing Wushuang fell silent, his gaze sweeping back and forth between Wei Zhao and Lin Dongfang. That Lin Dongfang was unfathomable went without saying—even with his current late Golden Core strength, he could not summon the will to contend with the man. As for Wei Zhao, though on the surface he appeared to be merely at the consummation of Foundation Establishment, his wondrous methods emerged one after another without end. He too was a transcendent figure whom Bing Wushuang could not see through.

Faced with such an unfathomable pair, and pressed by circumstance, he truly had no second choice—just as Wei Zhao had said. Unless he wished to die.

After a long while, Bing Wushuang said, "What do you want me to do?"

"Simple. Stay in the Center and be my inside man," Wei Zhao said.

"Fine." Bing Wushuang agreed with remarkable readiness.

"Very good. You are indeed a man who knows how to read the times. But to be safe, we'll have to put you to a little trouble." Wei Zhao nodded and at once had Lin Dongfang plant a gu parasite in him.

Bing Wushuang had expected this much. Whatever he thought inwardly, on the surface he showed not the slightest sign of resistance—on the contrary, he was entirely cooperative. Yet after Lin Dongfang finished planting the gu, he was once again stunned, sighing to himself that these two creatures were truly extraordinary.

After Wei Zhao had finished explaining a few precautions, Bing Wushuang rose to leave; but just before he went, Wei Zhao suddenly called him back and tossed him a pill. "Consider this a welcome gift. Do well from now on."

"A golden core pill? And a top-grade one at that!" Bing Wushuang's eyelids twitched. To every consummate Foundation Establishment expert and Golden Core expert alike, golden core pills were the stuff of dreams—and a top-grade one especially. The impact of this was even greater than when he had first obtained the Center's improved pill. True, that one's effects had been more direct and terrifying, but to a connoisseur like him, the value of a top-grade golden core pill was absolutely no less—if anything, greater!

Watching Bing Wushuang's departing figure, silent throughout, Lin Dongfang suddenly spoke up: "Why are you so generous with this thing?"

"He's worth the price. Don't you think so, old man?" Wei Zhao replied.

"Passable, I suppose." Lin Dongfang was noncommittal. At least compared with the other disciples of the Primordial Alliance—including Xin Yi'an, the senior uncle leading the team—Bing Wushuang was clearly a cut above in every respect, and his innate aptitude was first-rate as well. He was indeed worth investing a little more in.

"I've got pills to spare anyway. The others have no use for them, and you don't want them. Might as well give him a taste of something sweet first," Wei Zhao said mildly.

"What would I want this thing for? What damned use is it!" Lin Dongfang scoffed at his pills.

"..." Wei Zhao was left speechless. Any single one of these pills of his, casually released, would cause a sensation—not to mention in this mortal world, even on the Cloud Terrace Island. Yet in Old Man Wei's eyes they were worthless, and he even looked disgusted with them. Wei Zhao truly did not know what to say.

"All right, tell me the next step," Lin Dongfang asked casually.

"Fine. We'll set Xue Jianming aside for now. For the next step, I plan to look into that bunch around Jing Taiyang and see what I can find. They were brainwashed and controlled by the Center's drugs—not as simple and direct as the poison gas—but there may still be a way to find a solution," Wei Zhao said.

"That would be best. Fifteen Foundation Establishment experts is no joke, after all—especially since this is only the mortal world," Lin Dongfang nodded.

Elsewhere, not long after Bing Wushuang left the North Island Cangwu Sect's private islet, he received a summons from Dr. Spectacles. His heart skipped a beat, but he dared not dawdle, and hurried off. (To be continued.)