Xia Fei’s arrogance was embedded in his bones. With his aura of insufferable arrogance rearing its ugly head, everyone on that bridge could feel the pressure he was exerting. A dole of turtledoves nearby might have perhaps been affected by this stifling aura he was giving off, so they flew away in a panic from within the forest, getting away as far as they could from this place.
“Yours truly will let you all experience a satisfying defeat today!” Xia Fei’s two eyes were filled with rage as he raised his one hand and made this declaration.
After that moment of shock subsided, this mob. which was acknowledged to be the best impersonators in Exiled Grounds, all flashed him a disdainful smile. Even Elder Otter heaved a sigh of relief.
If they were to compete in terms of their martial strength, Hyacinth would not have too much confidence in coming out on top. There were just under thirty in the organization who could be considered warriors, but even they were incomparable to actual professional warriors. After all, they had to take care of many logistical tasks on top of training their martial techniques. They also had to learn the methods required to set up the scenarios for impersonators, so they would surely be worse off in both the degree of specialization and what combat experience they had.
However, Xia Fei had given Hyacinth the right to choose the challenge, meaning that there was no way that they would be competing in terms of their martial strength but rather through a ruse-off between either party.
A ruse-off was essentially a scam, and impersonation was a means of method for Hyacinth. Their real goal was to cheat and acquire, and as a top-class organization that specialized in such acts, they of course had the qualifications to be proud of themselves, since this was what they were good at.
However, a look at Xia Fei’s arrogant expression, and Hyacinth could not help but be somewhat worried. There was a saying about how someone who had not specialized in something would not dare to be so rash as to undertake said task. It seemed like XIa Fei was also similarly confident in his ability to compete in this aspect. Old swindlers who had travelled the world could not help but be nervous, guessing that Xia Fei must have some trump card he had yet to unveil.
“Those are your words! You must be rather bold to actually dare challenge us Hyacinth in a ruse-off.”
“Your boldness is worthy of praise, but it is foolish not to know your limits.”
Different from the caution that the older generation of impersonators like Hyacinth, Poria, and Otter felt, the younger members all verbally mocked Xia Fei. To them, this was nothing more than a joke; Xia Fei must truly be overbearingly haughty that he would even dare to pit himself against Hyacinth with its flawless twenty-five-year record.
Sakura was very surprised, too. She had not been turned off by Xia Fei’s brazen challenge but was, instead, strongly piqued and in awe by him.
Girls loved heroes, and Sakura suddenly felt that Xia Fei was a lot taller and bigger than before. Even though she did not think that Xia Fei could win against her father and grandfather, at least he had the guts to challenge them! There were plenty who would not have even made the attempt.
“This time, Ah Fei will lose for sure. Hyacinth’s skills are no joke. Could he really have gone insane, to actually want to challenge us to a ruse-off? Sambo, who was standing beside Sakura, felt relieved.
“Tsk!” Sakura pouted as she swept her gaze over her fellow Rockies. “What’s there to be so happy about? Ruses are our bread and butter; there’s hardly any honor if we win. They’re so disgraceful, acting all happy like that. Have none of them thought that Ah Fei is a warrior, and that they may not even be his match even after ganging up together if he really clashes against us?”
Her bright eyes stared at Xia Fei. Sakura bit her lower lip and softly stated, “One against many. Even if he loses, it will be a valiant defeat.”
Sambo knitted his eyebrows. “Sakura. He’s an outsider, after all. How could you speak for an outsider?”
“So what if he is? He has far more courage than you all. Go away. I don’t want you around me anymore!”
Sakura’s willfulness was acting up again. Sambo’s face was originally purple, but it turned into an ugly shade, similar to that of a pig’s liver, after hearing what Sakura said.
Women were said to be very outspoken, and it seemed that this was very true. Sambo was on the verge of dejection. It was clearly Sakura who had incited her grandfather into dealing with Xia Fei, causing this situation to descend into its current unmanageable state. Now, Sakura was speaking up for the human. Not too long ago, the man threw her into a muddy puddle. Not only did she no longer bear a grudge, she even showed a measure of fondness and respect for the bully Xia Fei. Just what sort of logic was this?!
“If I knew that this would happen, I’d have beaten you up, too,” Sambo indignantly said as he watched her walk away.
How would Xia Fei know that he had inadvertently left a very bad impression on the mind of the idiot Sambo, who now believed that it was necessary to beat up a woman in order to woo her…
Actually, in the ancient times, there were ancestors who would find a solid stick and bludgeon the one that they were fond of, dragging them back into a cave to consummate. Somehow, Sambo’s thinking was no different from the ancient ones right now, a return to the old ways.
Unfortunately, they were already a spacefaring society, and technique was required in everything. Though Xia Fei did manage to beat out feelings from someone, the young Sambo would most likely end up paying a terrible price if he tried to re-enact the same thing.
…
*Splash*
Xia Fei tossed that curly haired man in his hand on the bridge; the latter then curled up and coughed heavily.
Hyacinth furrowed his brows and ordered someone to help the man back. He approached Xia Fei by himself, “Since Brother Ah Fei has thrown the gauntlet, we will accept your challenge.”
Xia Fei smiled and lit a cigarette. “So you’ve decided?”
Hyacinth slightly nodded. “I’ve already seen what Brother Ah Fei is capable of, and we will merely be overestimating ourselves if we accept a martial fight. We are impersonators, not warriors, after all, so we can only accept the aptitude challenge. We shall do a ruse-off.”
Xia Fei pouted. Hyacinth had spoken with great morality, as if Xia Fei had forced him to pick the ruse-off challenge. His eyes gave away smugness, seemingly having already assumed that Xia Fei would lose terribly.
Seth tugged at Xia Fei and hesitantly stated, “Master, perhaps you should reconsider this.”
Worry was etched all over his face. Seth did not believe that Xia Fei could win against these very clever swindlers.
Xia Fei did not give any indication beyond a casual: “The method will be very simple. Since you’re all impersonators, we’ll have a competition of impersonation.”
Hyacinth was slightly stunned before letting out a gasp of relief. Impersonation meant disguising as someone different. This was their line of work, and they were able to imitate a stranger right down to the slightest detail. No matter how they look or what they did, they would not have any problem at all.
Xia Fei actually wanted to challenge impersonators in impersonation? That was as good as pointing the barrel of a gun right into his own mouth; no one would be optimistic of his chances.
“Still, I wonder how we will be competing?” Hyacinth was gloating deep down, but his face was completely stern, looking very proper and humble. Even Seth could not bear to watch this any longer, believing that the man is clearly just bullying his master.
Xia Fei flashed a slight smile. “It’s very simple. There will be two of me later, and as long as you can determine who’s the real one, and which is the fake, you’ll win.”
There was no need to tell just how happy Hyacinth felt deep down. They were all experts at impersonation and disguises, and he was even feeling a slight pity toward Xia Fei. This was clearly an act of trying to crack a stone with eggs, and Xia Fei must clearly have shorted out in his mind so much so that he would want to compete in this.
“Alright, we’ll do as you suggested.” Feeling that the win was well within his grasp, Hyacinth spoke a lot more easily and gave off the air of a master.
Xia Fei coldly harrumphed. “There ought to be something to be wagered for winning or losing, right?”
Hyacinth agreed. “But of course. We’ll listen to what Brother Ah Fei suggests.”
Xia Fei had been waiting for these words. Flicking away the cigarette butt in his hand, drawing a beautiful arc in the air before it landed in the water, Xia Fei somberly said, “Then let’s bet our lives!”
He had not uttered this line loudly, but it was enough for everyone present to hear him.
They were all astounded! A life wager was unlike anything else. Losing meant that their lives would be forfeit, and whether they lived or died would depend on what the other demanded. This was too heavy a bet to make!
Sure enough, Hyacinth was worthy of being the leader of these impersonators. While others would panic upon hearing that, he, instead, appeared calm and composed> “Brother Ah Fei, you are but one person, and we have over a hundred lives here. Won’t it be a little unfair for us to wager our lives on this?”
Xia Fei simply replied, “Who says it’s just me? I have the Law Emperor Seth with me and the Holy Beast Shatterstar on my shoulder. The three lives of us will be used in exchange for yours, your father’s, and your daughter’s life. Isn’t that fair?”
“Well…” Hyacinth hesitated. Xia Fei was very strong, Seth was also very strong, and the Holy Beast Shatterstar was a unique existence throughout the entire universe! It almost seemed as if they were the ones who would be at the advantage if they wagered with them evenly.
However, never could he understand just what trump card Xia Fei held that he would dare bet his life on this!
There was no need to mention the regret that Seth was feeling; he had been afraid of being hunted down by Quinn, which was why he sold himself off as a slave. He did not think that he would meet a master who would be so insane. Had he known that this would happen, he would have just gone all out against Quinn; at least then, he would not be used by Xia Fei as a wager.
Furball stuck his tongue out unhappily, but he was not worried about Xia Fei. He knew very well just how insane his master was and that Xia Fei was no fool. There was no way he would take on a fight he was not confident in winning, and winning measured risks had always been a move Xia Fei often used.
The crowd was reeling. Nobody had expected this wager to be so significant!
Hyacinth noticed his father slightly nod as he hesitated; he let out a sigh and knew right away what Otter meant.
He was an impersonator. Even if he were to take a subsequent loss from an outsider like Xia Fei, though the latter might not want to take his life, he would no longer have the face to continue living, either. He would simply become a laughingstock to everyone of his species.
Facing such a situation, the only option he had was to accept!
It was uncharacteristic for the purple-blood Rockies to be cowards!
“I agree.” Hyacinth readily nodded once he thought about this, quite decisively regaining the graceful bearing that he had as the top impersonator.
Xia Fei did not say a word, though the corner of his mouth did curve into a strange arc.
…
Hyacinth was the first to step forward in the first round of this ruse-off.
Two middle-aged men of Hyacinth appeared on the bridge!
Their clothes, looks, height, weight, and facial features… were all the same! Even their breathing was at the same cadence!
They sure lived up to their name as top impersonators and being part of an organization that had not met with failure in twenty-five years!
Though it was unknown who was impersonating Hyacinth, they were no doubt an expert!
It was not hard to impersonate someone, and the hardest to impersonate would be their disposition, and these two Hyacinth’s heartbeat and breathing were even in sync. It was completely unbelievable!
These impersonators had long realized that, when two people appeared at the same time, they would likely see an increase in heartbeat due to feelings of doubts, and their blood pressure would rise as well. Any impersonator with experience would be able to determine who was real and who was fake by this!
In order to avoid being exposed, Hyacinth had studied a physiological synchronization skill, so forget about Xia Fei wanting to differentiate the two in this manner, even someone in their line of work would be unable to determine the real from the fake, and this was something he was very confident about!
The time limit was three minutes, where he would have to admit defeat if he could not identify the real Hyacinth between the two!
Delighted chuckles sounded from the forest around. Honestly, even these juniors of Hyacinth had no way of telling the real from fake, so they were absolutely certain that Xia Fei would lose! This was why they were laughing, with some even ridiculing Xia Fei.
“The left is the fake,” Xia Fei softly answered. He did not even look at the two intently.
The mockery came to an awkward stop. They had not even properly displayed their arrogance in full, yet Xia Fei had slapped them back to reality!
The two Hyacinths sweated profusely, nearly fainting over.
Not even ten seconds had passed!
The top-class master impersonator Hyacinth could not even last ten seconds against Xia Fei? Now, that was what mockery really meant!
