Chapter 113: Let’s Talk About Ideals After All

Beneath the city of ZZ, within the labyrinth of underground tunnels, a strange scene unfolded.

A man and a corpse leaned against opposite walls, each smoking silently, neither breaking the quiet first.

By his feet stood the Lángshén sniper cannon, upright. From how expertly he had wielded it moments before, it was clear the weapon was like an extension of his will—masterfully handled with effortless precision.

Cao Fusheng pondered silently: If only he had known how to use such a firearm back at the chemical plant, would he still be standing here now? Or would he have been shot through the head the moment he stepped out of that factory’s gates?

“We’re even now,” Cao Fusheng finally spoke, backing against the wall. “You deafened my ears before, I returned the favor with a punch just now. The rest—you can take out on me with that sniper cannon as compensation for the mental anguish. I won’t ask for any more damages.”

Bai Ye took a deep drag from his cigarette, the smoke trailing out from the side of his mouth like he was blowing up a balloon.

He turned his head in surprise, eyes fixed on Cao Fusheng. “I thought I was thick-skinned, but you’ve got me beat—you actually said that out loud? You’ve hurt me twice: once you slashed my arm, once you shot a hole in my stomach. How do you reckon those guts of mine? And I don’t care—whatever your woman did, it’s on your head.”

Cao Fusheng replied softly, “Let’s not argue over this. I know you never truly intended to kill me. Otherwise, the first time you sneaked up on me in stealth, you’d have ended it with a single shot. But you didn’t—you had to fake it, drooping your hand on my shoulder like some kind of show-off.”

“Heh, so you noticed. Yeah, I did want to mess with you then. But don’t get the wrong idea—I never held back any other shots before that. Every bullet was aimed squarely at your ass. This thing packs a punch; shooting you in the ass or the head is the same to me.”

“Hey, do you know why I never made up my mind to kill you?”

Cao Fusheng sneered, “I don’t want to know. But you say that like you were sure you could finish me off. If it came to a fight, who’d win is anybody’s guess.”

“Oh, sorry, my wording was off. Let’s drop that. But I have to tell you why I hesitated—otherwise I can’t rest easy.”

“You’re a strange corpse. You must’ve been a strange man in the old era too. But you definitely weren’t a good man.”

Bai Ye stared deeply at him. “I didn’t kill you because I’m interested in you. You’re an experiment I don’t quite understand. I want to know what secrets you’re hiding.”

Cao Fusheng raised an eyebrow. “I’m just an ordinary man. What secrets could I possibly have?”

He deliberately filtered out the phrase “experiment material.” If he thought about it carefully, there was no fault in that term—after all, hadn’t he just been a temporary test subject?

Bai Ye pondered for a moment, as if something still eluded him. “There’s something odd about you. Back at the chemical plant, I didn’t think much—just assumed you were a failed experiment, your gene sequence unchanged. But the more I think about it, the stranger it seems. No species remains unaffected when exposed to foreign substances.”

Then his eyes blazed with a fierce light as he locked gaze on Cao Fusheng. “And you’re the only one who stayed normal. If I had the chance, I’d like to capture you for live experiments. But I don’t have a fully equipped lab right now, so I’ll have to put that idea aside for the time being.”

Cao Fusheng glanced at him but said nothing, his mind drifting back to the words of the man in the trench coat from his dream.

Back then, he had vowed that if given the chance, he would kill Bai Ye—to avenge his deafened ears and the ruined plans. But the trench coat man’s tone had turned enigmatic immediately after.

“If you get the chance, you could try.”

What did that mean?

Did the trench coat man know Bai Ye?

And the tone was as if to say, “You’ll never be able to kill him.”

“Spit it out. Are you here to talk about your undead ideals? If you’re going to ignore me, I think we’re gonna have to fight. I don’t like being left hanging.”

Bai Ye spoke with some irritation.

Cao Fusheng pushed aside his swirling thoughts, feeling as though he’d been trapped in too many pitfalls along the way.

“Bai Ye, did you ever have a dream when you were human in the old era?”

Bai Ye scoffed. “Your conversational skills are elementary at best. Ask me about dreams? I’m well past thirty… Wait, how do you know my name? Do you recognize me?”

His expression shifted dramatically, eyes wide with shock as he stared at Cao Fusheng, unconsciously stepping forward.

“I think you should calm down. If you come any closer, I’ll think you’re about to attack me again. If that happens, it won’t be easy to stop the fight.”

Cao Fusheng watched him with a mixture of mischief and caution. This unpredictable, eccentric corpse was someone he always kept on high alert.

Bai Ye raised both hands high. “Fine, fine! I bear no ill intent. You should feel at ease now. But first, tell me how you know my name. I don’t carry an ID badge or any personal belongings at the factory. There’s no way you could have found any information about me.”

Feigning sorrow, Cao Fusheng sighed. “Brother Bai, do you remember our teacher?”

“Teacher? What teacher? When did I ever have a junior like you?”

“Old Han—my teacher. You must remember Han Xiang!”

Cao Fusheng thought inwardly: Sorry, old man, I’m borrowing your name.

I took his lifetime of experience; even if he’s dead, calling him ‘teacher’ isn’t too much to ask.

It’s not outright impersonation either. Though I’ve never met Han Xiang alive, that doesn’t diminish my respect for him, flowing endlessly like a great river.

Bai Ye furrowed his brows thoughtfully. Due to his body’s peculiar nature, his frown gathered like a mass of wrinkled skin—somewhat terrifying.

“Oh, junior brother, junior brother! So it’s you! Long time no see! How’s our teacher doing these days? No health issues, I hope?”

Cao Fusheng replied, “No problems. He’s healthy, but he’s pretty upset with you. You haven’t gone to see the old man.”

Bai Ye’s face softened slightly. “That’s something. You must have been to that pastoral villa a few kilometers from the chemical plant. Let me guess—you even read the letter I wrote to our teacher? Don’t waste time with nonsense. I bet if I asked you any question about him, you wouldn’t know the answer.”

Cao Fusheng smiled. “I think it’s time we talked about ideals.”