Xiao Bing woke up!
But Han Huabin didn’t worry about it. He believed that it would only take some extra effort to take him. He never regarded Xiao Bing as his match.
But he just could not understand how Xiao Bing managed to escape from his trap.
From Xiao Bing’s clear eyes, he knew that this man was no longer trapped in his illusions. But he seemed slightly exhausted. Obviously his mental energy was greatly consumed during that five or six minutes.
Han Huabin said in vast disbelief, “How did you get out of the array?
“Array? I suppose it’s more like an illusion.” Xiao Bing grinned, his gleaming eyes fixed on Han Huabin. Though he seemed tired, the light in his eyes was brighter than ever. His sudden discovery made him both shocked and excited. “I have met one enemy who specialized in arrays. I was trapped in one. Though it was intriguing, it didn’t create a world where there were forests and seas. I thought that even the best of his kind would not be capable of that.”
Han Huabin asked in a deep voice, “So?”
“So it was not an array but an illusion. Thought it sounds mysterious and unrealistic, I was told that it truly exists. It’s the most sophisticated Ninjitsu in Country R. But actually it’s a very advanced hypnotism. If the hypnotist is good enough, he can make a man get lost in his illusions perpetually.”
Xiao Bing still seemed uneasy when he looked at Han Huabin. “Your art of hypnotism has reached a very high level. There’s just one thing I couldn’t understand. Hypnotism is one art from Country R’s Ninjitsu, which is one of the most sophisticated means of attacking. Why are you so good at it? You are not Chinese?”
Han Huabin didn’t think that Xiao Bing knew this much. But he snorted when hearing Xiao Bing mention Ninjitsu. “They learned everything from China, even their history and civilization was a copy of ours. There’s not much to say about them.”
“Your hypnotism…”
“You think only the people from Country R can do it? In truth, they learned it from China. It’s just that our ancestors somehow failed to pass this art to the next generation while Country R developed it and made it worldly known. But actually, it’s we Chinese that created it!”
Han Huabin sneered and said haughtily, “The Chinese kong fu is extensive and profound. Country R will never catch up with us on that matter.”
Xiao Bing looked at Han Huabin sternly and said, “If I win, I shall not kill you, due to what you had just said and your age.”
“You are a conceited boy, aren’t you?” Han Huabin then raised his cane, seemingly intending to hit Xiao Bing with the end of it. But Xiao Bing just watched it coming at his face. He calculated the time he should dodge, but suddenly, the cane extended some inches.
Xiao Bing’s eyes were opened wide. He then tried to dodge in a flurry. The cane passed him near the tip of his nose, which made him break out in a cold sweat.
Han Huabin smiled. “Now do you think you can still defeat me?”
Xiao Bing asked in disbelief, “You are beyond the Gang-strength Stage?”
“If I was not that powerful, how was Lord Long supposed to be what he is now?”
Then his cane began twining around Xiao Bing like a serpent, trying to hit Xiao Bing’s weak spots.
Xiao Bing was dodging the attack the whole time. He found it impossible for him to fight back. Even to get rid of the cane was no easy task for him.
What surprised Xiao Bing was that although this man’s strength was inferior to Lord Long’s and perhaps he was only at the early stage of Gang-strength, the subtly and his comprehension of martial arts were both very superior to Lord Long’s, or even Xiao Bing’s.
In other words, though Han Huabin was weaker than Xiao Bing in terms of strength, the subtly of his movements and his comprehension of martial arts were even better than Xiao Bing when he was at the level of Void-breaking.
Xiao Bing had never met his equal since he was on this path. After his power was sealed by Zhang Yizhi, Xiao Bing met many enemies who were more powerful than him. Xiao Bing could not even deliver a single blow when fighting with them.
But it was mostly because Xiao Bing was inferior to them in terms of physical strength. For instance, when he was fighting Lord Long, he was only at the Transforming-strength stage while Lord Long was at the pinnacle of Gang-strength, which already made him the most powerful being in the world. Hence, no matter how intriguing Xiao Bing’s movements were, he was like a five-year-old child fighting an adult. It was impossible for him to win.
It was still impossible for Xiao Bing to defeat Lord Long even now. The gap between the middle stage of Elixir-strength and the pinnacle of Gang-strength was like that between a child and an adult. The gap could not be narrowed by the subtlety of the movements.
Though Xiao Bing had met enemies whom he could not defeat, it was mainly because of the difference of their strength. But when it came to the comprehension of martial arts, Xiao Bing believed that no one could exceed him on that matter. Because if one was at the level of Elixir-strength, it was nearly impossible for his comprehension of martial arts to be the same as that of a Master of Gang-strength. The advancements of levels were not only about the increase in strength, but they were also the elevation of comprehension and outlook.
Likewise, the comprehension of the masters of the Gang-strength stage could not compare with that of Void-breaking-level masters.
Hence, though Xiao Bing’s power was sealed, his comprehension of martial arts remained, since he once was at the level of Void-breaking.
But now, what surprised Xiao Bing was that this old man was superior to him in both terms of strength and comprehension of martial arts.
Han Huabin seemed to be a top master who had been living a reclusive life. His movements were light and seemingly desultory. His cane kept blocking Xiao Bing’s way of retreating. If he had been more serious, Xiao Bing would have been knocked down a long time ago.
Even though Han Huabin’s blows seemed desultory, Xiao Bing had to spare no effort in trying to not be defeated. But he was already soaked in sweat. He had spent most of his mental energy when he was trapped in his illusions. And now his physical strength was being consumed. It seemed that Xiao Bing’s failure was certain.
He would definitely lose.
The men Xiao Bing had sent out had all accomplished their missions. They gathered in a mansion. Lord Long’s house was circled by the Black Crow Army.
Upon hearing that Xiao Bing went to confront Han Huabin himself, Zhang Jinku’s face turned eery. He asked tentatively, “If Xiao Bing died, who would be our next boss?”
Dumbass seemed about to scold him out of anger. But Gao Fei suddenly stopped Dumbass. He looked at Zhang Jinku and asked, “What do you mean by saying that? How powerful is that Han Huabin.”
“I don’t know.” Zhang Jinku shook his head and said, “But Lord Long once told me that that old man is the only man he is afraid of in this world. But lucky for him, that old man is under his control, but he is still very wary of him. You know Lord Long is an arrogant man who always believes that he’s the mightiest man on earth. Yet he’s afraid of that old man. So, can you tell me if this old man is dreadful or not?”
After hearing that, Dumbass and Zhan Hongyan said impulsively, “Brother Bing needs our help.”
“You all can just stay here. I’ll go.”
None of them, including Wuya, were stronger than Gao Fei. They all fell silent upon hearing that Gao Fei wished to go. Gao Fei trotted out of the mansion while hoping that Xiao Bing would be fine. He still remembered how Xiao Bing wished to make Jiang City a peaceful place in the north to protect them from Mr. Buddha.
Gao Fei, who had always been a placid man, found that there was another person he was worried about besides Maggie. During the time he was working in the noddle house, he became concerned about everyone in this noodle house. It was something never happened to him before.
He was the Demon’s Envoy, which meant that he was no ordinary man. Anyone who had heard his name all regarded him as a devil and a dreadful sword that had no human emotion.
But Gao Fei knew that it was not true. If he was as ruthless as they said, he would not have helped Maggie escape, stayed in Jiang City, or come to Xiao Bing’s aid now.
“Xiao Bing, you must hold on until I get there.”
Gao Fei was as fast as the wind. His eyes gleamed red like the crimson light in Xiao Bing’s eyes every time he lost consciousness. But Xiao Bing’s were as red as blood.
At that moment, Xiao Bing felt that he was in a very intriguing state of mind. He forgot about life and death, the difference of their strength, and this crucial fight he was caught in. He felt like he was playing chess, trying to avoid every blow his enemy was delivering. He enjoyed it a lot.
