Translator: Exodus Tales
Editor: Exodus Tales
Yin-Chui-Si-Ting (Interesting)1
The black youth smiled even more deeply, his mouth opening to reveal his molars. “That’s wonderful. We were planning to go to a bar, but we didn’t know the time. If you tell us, you can come along, and we’ll treat you to a drink.”
“What a coincidence. I was just thinking of getting a drink myself.”
Luo Su smiled as he opened the while mentally using ‘Item Card: M9’. Thus, when he opened the door, the black youth suddenly had a gun to his head and was forced to step back.
The remaining gangsters saw that things had gone sour and turned to run. But before they could get far, they heard Luo Su’s savage shout.
“The one running the fastest will get my first bullet!”
The gangsters had no other choice but to stop. After glancing at each other, they stood in a row by the wall with their hands in the air. In the United States, this was a basic life skill and was nothing to be surprised about.
“Brother, we didn’t mean any harm. We really just wanted to ask you for the time. Could you move the gun away?” The black youth was on the verge of tears. Their goal had been very simple. They simply wanted to borrow the car and then sell it for some money once they were done with it.
“Sorry, you might not have had any bad intentions, but I do!” Luo Su continued to smile as he ordered, “Empty your pockets! Each of you only gets one chance. If I find that you’re hiding something from me, I might get angry and misfire.”
The gangsters mentally cursed as they dejectedly bowed their heads in submission. They began to empty their pockets, taking out money, knives, driver licenses… After Luo Su had them scram, he began to pick through the pile. The largest denomination of currency in the pole of money was a 20 dollar bill, and there were 80 dollars in total.
“They don’t even have a credit card…”
Luo Su sighed, and as he went to pick up a folding knife, he discovered to his delight a driver’s license for an Asian. From the young face depicted, it had probably belonged to a college student who these gangsters often bullied.
Luo Su happily took this driver’s license for himself to use. For most Americans, all Asians basically looked the same. If you put Tony Ooki and Jay Chou together1, they wouldn’t be able to tell the difference.
…
A bar!
It was now 8 pm. Luo Su had spent 10 dollars at KFC to handle dinner, but to be frank; he hadn’t been able to finish the combo meal he had ordered.
After taking care of dinner, Luo Su traveled two blocks to get to this bar. As the bar employee silently watched, he threw down a 10 dollar tip and ordered a cup of ice water.
The music in the bar was soft and gentle. Many people chose to meet up with friends here after work. Luo Su found a corner where he could wait for Cross.
He wasn’t worried that Cross couldn’t find him. For a top-class assassin, finding a rookie like him would be an easy task.
Time continued to pass, and Luo Su had already down two cups of water with the same unperturbed expression. He continued to remain cool and collected, without the slightest impatience. He knew that Cross was watching from the shadows, so he needed to act as an expert so that their following conversation was easier.
This was a minor negotiation skill that was easy to use and allowed one to easily seize the initiative.
Dinglingling~~Dinglingling~~
The cellphone rang. Luo Su looked at the number displayed and smiled. With this confident smile, he picked up the phone and put it by his ear.
Cross’s voice was still deep and hoarse, possessing an almost magnetic quality. He coldly said, “Jesus, I spent two hours and still couldn’t find you! Where are you hiding?”
Luo Su: “…”
…
Twenty minutes later, the travel-worn Cross came to the bar Luo Su had directed him to. The two of them looked across the table at each other like two big bosses, each with a cup of ice water.
Cross: “…”
Luo Su: “…”
Cross’s appearance matched his voice. He had an untidy and somewhat dejected stubble and wore a gray jean jacket. There didn’t seem to be anything special about him. But this downcast middle-aged man was the world’s best assassin, and no one could escape his gun.
Cross was very embarrassed. He had earlier promised that he would be able to find Luo Su, but all he found was an empty pickup truck. If Luo Su hadn’t given him the address of this bar, he would have still been running around the streets.
But Cross quickly cast aside his awkwardness. He was an elite assassin and had a hardy temperament. He put on a smile like he was meeting an old friend and started to chat.
“This should be our first formal meeting. Let me introduce myself. You can call me Cross.”
“Luo Su!”
Cross raised an eyebrow. “Russell? This name sounds like a basketball player, that supercenter who played for the Celtics.”
“You’re talking about the Ring King? I thought you would bring up the Ninja Turtle1!”
Cross asked in confusion, “Ninja Turtle…who’s that?”
Luo Su was speechless. The world he was in was the Movie World of ‘Wanted,’ and it was currently the year 2000 in this world. In this world, Ninja Turtle was still a young kid and had yet to become the MVP who had three triple-double seasons in a row. He was probably a complete unknown.
Luo Su once more thanked his English proficiency. Otherwise, he would have never been able to answer Cross properly with the level of English that basically amounted to ‘Yin-Chui-Si-Ting, Hao-Si-Pi-Tou, Yi-Ke-Si-Pi-Er-Run-Si, Si-Bai-Shou’ (Interesting, Hospital, Experience, Special).
After a moment of awkwardness, Cross got to the main subject. “I saw your fight on the roof. It was wonderful, and something that no ordinary person could do…you have talent!”
Luo Su asked, “What talent?”
“The talent to become a top-class assassin!”
Luo Su: “…”
“Are you very confused as to why bullets can curve, and how a human body could be so strong as to leap between skyscrapers?” Cross, seeing that Luo Su had said nothing, continued to speak.
It was all just script and directing!
Luo Su mentally answered, but he cooperated with Cross and put on a confused expression. “Why?”
Cross softly chuckled. The fish had taken the bait.
“It’s a skill that can unlock a human’s potential. You can also do it if you go through rigorous training.”
Luo Su pretended to consider it, his brows creasing. “It sounds very easy, but I’ve never seen, mm, or even heard of such a thing before!”
“It’s only right that you’ve never heard about it before. Even a genius would take ten years to curve a bullet, and it takes twenty years to activate that skill on will.”
Luo Su spread apart his hands. “Twenty years…what an absurd number. I definitely wouldn’t be able to last for that long.”
Cross chuckled again, making a profound smile. “No, a genius needs twenty years, but you’re different. You’re a natural assassin!”
Luo Su: “…”
What eyes are you using that you think I’m a natural assassin? If you keep with this nonsense, don’t think I won’t give you an elbow!
Cross took a sip of his ice water and explained, “On the roof, when you were in danger, didn’t you enter some sort of bizarre state? Your heart began to beat faster, and you could clearly sense the air flowing around you, and your opponent began to move slower…there’s no need for you to answer. At the last moment, I saw that you were able to do it.”
Luo Su: “…”
You might have misunderstood something.
Cross put down his ice water and whispered in his hoarse voice, “When your heart starts to beat four hundred times a minute, your blood will be pumped with adrenaline, causing you to have sharper eyes and faster reactions than the ordinary person. This is a talent you were born with, and only a few people in the entire world have this talent. All of them are top-class assassins. Do you understand my explanation?”
Luo Su nodded. Cross was basically saying that it wasn’t blooded running through the veins of top-class assassins, but adrenaline!
“If my guess is correct…” Cross paused, glancing at Luo Su before going on, “Either your father or mother was a top-class assassin. They are where your talent comes from.”
Luo Su was speechless at these words. His parents truly were assassins, but, alas, they spent their days collecting rent and playing mahjong. The words ‘top-class’ had nothing to do with them.
“From the look on your face, my guess is right!”
No, it’s all your imagination!