Chapter 162: Chapter 161: I Am Your Father
Hearing Shen Feng’s words, Mike froze for a moment. Then his eyes narrowed as he asked:
"What... are you talking about? Have... we met before?"
Although his accent was a bit strange, he was speaking Mandarin, and far better than most foreigners.
Shen Feng was a little surprised. He hadn’t expected this Mike to know some Mandarin; he had underestimated him.
As expected of the self-proclaimed Emperor of New York’s underworld. At the very least, his diligence in learning was commendable.
"Bart, what’s going on?" Mike asked Bart.
’Why did they bring the target back here? Don’t they know this will bring trouble and ruin our reputation?’
Compared to the easily flustered John, he trusted the steady and cold-blooded Bart more.
Bart didn’t speak. Instead, John hurriedly said, "Boss, this gentleman said... he said he has a huge secret that he wanted to tell you personally."
Mike glanced at the expressionless Bart, feeling that something was off about him today.
But he didn’t have the time to worry about his subordinate’s emotional state.
Looking at the smiling Asian kid before him, he suddenly felt an inexplicable wave of disgust.
’Let’s just see what he has to say... But no matter what secret it is, I’ll have to dispose of this Asian kid’s body and eliminate all traces of him in the end.’
’Can’t ruin the Emperor Gang’s reputation.’
With a wave of his hand, the two voluptuous women beside him immediately got up and left. His other men also exited the room to stand guard at the door.
Only Bart and John remained.
"Alright, talk. If your secret isn’t good enough to satisfy me, I’ll make you regret ever being born into this world," Mike said coolly, puffing on his cigar. His tone held an authority that could not be questioned.
Shen Feng picked up a cigar from the table, lit it, walked over to the sofa, and plopped down. He took a deep drag and remarked:
"They say the most authentic cigars are rolled on the thighs of young Cuban maidens."
Mike was stunned by the other man’s brazen actions. As the master of New York’s underworld, he had never met anyone who dared to be so insolent in his presence.
The last person who acted this way had long since been encased in a concrete-filled oil drum and sunk to the bottom of the ocean.
His eyes narrowed, and he said menacingly:
"Kid, my patience is limited. You have three seconds."
Shen Feng nodded, got up, and walked over to Mike. He leaned in close to his ear and whispered in the same cool, unquestionable tone:
"The secret is... I’m your daddy."
Mike’s eyes widened, and he was about to erupt.
Just then, Bart, who was standing nearby, suddenly struck. His hands stretched out like rubber bands, clamped around Mike’s neck, and lifted him into the air!
Mike was nearly two meters tall, an absolute giant of a man, yet in Bart’s hands, he was like a child, lifted straight up to the ceiling!
Staring at the expressionless Bart and his deformed, elongated hands, Mike struggled frantically in the air, his eyes wide with disbelief at what he was seeing.
Nearby, John was so scared his legs were about to give out.
Torn between Mike’s long-established authority and this terrifying Asian kid, he had no idea what to do.
"Go on, persuade him. Explain the situation. Tell him everything he needs to know," Shen Feng said to John, placing his cigar on the table.
’This thing is making my cheeks ache. It’s a bit much for someone who’s never smoked before.’
John hurriedly said to Mike:
"Boss Mike, we... we messed with the wrong person... This... this gentleman, he’s a Mage, no, an Eastern sorcerer!"
He then poured out the whole story of what happened in the hotel, holding nothing back.
He didn’t even hide the fact that all the other men had been assimilated.
It all sounded like something out of a science fiction novel, but looking at Bart’s cold eyes, his stretched arms, and his astonishing strength, Mike found it hard not to believe.
At this moment, Mike was still a mere mortal. Although he was arrogant as the head of an underworld organization, he was definitely not a foolhardy man. He immediately patted Bart’s arm, signaling that he had something to say.
Shen Feng smiled faintly, and Bart’s hands relaxed slightly, allowing Mike to speak freely.
Mike said in a hoarse voice:
"Esteemed... gentleman from Hua Country, first, please allow me to offer my sincerest apologies. I never imagined I would offend a powerful being such as yourself. After all, I am just an ordinary, legitimate businessman..."
Shen Feng’s expression didn’t change. He simply nodded for the other man to continue.
Mike continued:
"This contract on you... I received it five hours ago. The client was a distribution channel partner of the Emperor Gang, a ’legitimate’ tobacco merchant from Canada."
Mike emphasized the word ’legitimate,’ and Shen Feng instantly understood what they were really selling.
But he still didn’t say a word.
Seeing that Shen Feng was unmoved, Mike went on:
"The amount of money he offered was nearly ten times the usual rate for a job, and he assured me he could handle the New York Police Department. So I was a bit suspicious about the whole thing and had my intelligence network tail him..."
"And we discovered his contact was an employee of the Rattlesnake Company... and this person is the personal assistant to Rattlesnake Company’s CEO, Brendan..."
Shen Feng’s eyebrow twitched, and he finally gave a slight nod.
The Rattlesnake Company, a small arms company in Eagle Country. Although not a behemoth like the Lockheed Martin Company, it had its own unique expertise in certain cutting-edge, black-tech weapons, especially drones, bomb disposal robots, and combat androids.
’I just don’t know how this Brendan found and targeted me.’
Seeing that Shen Feng now looked somewhat satisfied, Mike continued:
"They also left a sketch. We used this sketch to confirm your identity."
He pointed to a stack of documents on the table.
On top was a photocopy of a sketch. Shen Feng picked it up and looked at it, his eyes narrowing.
The drawing depicted a person in a hood with a large backpack, their face obscured. Behind them were massive, wildly thrashing tentacles, like a Devil straight from Hell.
The backpack, however, was very conspicuous—it was Shen Feng’s.
’What the hell? Is this supposed to be Cthulhu?’
The moment he saw this kind of sketch, Shen Feng understood that it was definitely connected to the Purification Society.
The sketch from Faulkner was still in his bag.
’Based on the sketch from Faulkner, it’s highly likely that at some point in the future, someone from the Purification Society witnessed me killing someone with the Nanomechanical Cluster and recorded my image.’
’Looks like I need to be more low-key from now on. I have to be careful to keep my back to the target when I kill someone...’
’As for this Brendan from the Rattlesnake Company, he’s a big fish that delivered himself right to my door...’
Thinking of this, Shen Feng said:
"Contact your client. Tell them you’ve completed the job and to pay the remaining balance immediately."
While Mike was hesitating, "Bart" had already set him down.
Then, a short, expressionless subordinate walked in, lay down on the floor, and his whole body began to writhe and change rapidly, like melting wax.
Clearly, this was another one of those indescribable things under the other man’s control.
In the blink of an eye, the "subordinate" had transformed into a likeness of the Asian kid, but its body was covered in blood, and there was a large hole in its forehead, looking as if it had been shot through the head.
It was a corpse that couldn’t be any more dead.
Shen Feng looked at "his own" corpse on the floor and clucked his tongue in admiration.
’The Nanomechanical Cluster’s mimicry can’t replicate the sense of touch—it still feels like cold metal—but visually, by adjusting external light, color, and form, it can be perfectly convincing.’
’At a glance, I’d really think I had died here.’
"Take a picture and send it to him. If they ask for the body, just say you’ve already filled it with cement and sunk it to the bottom of the ocean," Shen Feng commanded.
He wasn’t ready to touch this Brendan from the Rattlesnake Company just yet.
’Can’t tip my hand and startle the prey. I need to let out a long line to catch a big fish.’
’I finally found a living member of the Purification Society who hasn’t been alerted. I absolutely have to follow this lead to unravel their network. Best case scenario, I find that Cthulhu from the Purification Society and wipe them all out in one go.’
Mike’s face was grim. He looked at the convincingly fake corpse, said nothing, and simply picked up his phone. He first took a picture of the body, then sent it directly to the "legitimate" Canadian tobacco merchant who had approached him for the job, demanding the final payment.
As Shen Feng expected, the client did indeed ask to see the body, but Mike put him off with a fabricated story about using chemicals to dissolve it and destroy the evidence.
Soon, a new string of numbers appeared in the separate account he had set up. The client had paid the balance.
Shen Feng’s Consciousness Antennae already controlled all the electronic devices in the room and were monitoring Mike’s account. Seeing the final payment of several hundred thousand US Dollars, he couldn’t help but raise his eyebrows.
’No wonder Mike found it hard to refuse. It’s a lot of money.’
After all this was done, Mike took a deep breath, suppressing the defiance in his heart, and asked Shen Feng:
"Esteemed Mr. Asia, is there anything else I can do for you?"
From beginning to end, he never even asked for the other man’s name.
He understood that when facing a power he currently couldn’t fight, the less he knew, the better.
The less he knew, the safer he was.
Then he added another sentence:
"If you need it, the Emperor Gang is at your disposal at any time."
’I have to prove my worth to have a bargaining chip.’
He now understood that behind this young man and the Rattlesnake Company, there was undoubtedly a powerful force he had never encountered before, one that might even be connected to the truth behind the entire world.
’If I can join them and get a piece of the pie, this disaster might even turn into a blessing in disguise.’
In the midst of danger also lies a place for ambition to grow and opportunity to be born.
Shen Feng gave a low chuckle and said:
"You’ve said something similar to me before."
Mike froze, now even more certain that they must have crossed paths before. He just had no memory of it. He asked:
"Where have we met? I really can’t recall..."
Shen Feng didn’t answer his question and continued:
"The Emperor of the New York underworld, Boss Mike of the Emperor Gang... this identity can be preserved..."
Hearing this, Mike understood he had escaped disaster. He hurriedly said with delight:
"Thank you for your mercy, sir. What do you need me to do? Please, just ask."
Shen Feng wore a warm smile and said:
"I need you to die."
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