038 The Banquet of Chaos

When Mu Sheng’s dark, thick gun barrel aimed at him, Cao Chen knew there was no escape. He wasn't foolish enough to turn his back on a gunslinger wielding two submachine guns. What would be the difference between that and shaking a hot dog in front of a pack of hungry wolves?

Since it had come to this, he had no choice but to fight!

Cao Chen locked eyes with Mu Sheng for a fleeting moment, a dark, sinister look in his gaze. Then, before the next breath could be drawn, they moved.

Mu Sheng raised his muzzle and began a barrage of suppressing fire. Bullets poured out like a torrential downpour, *tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat*... It sounded like a ballad composed of iron and blood.

Meanwhile, Cao Chen caught a glimpse of himself in the reflection of his blade. His pupils, once a standard brownish-black, were now patterned with interwoven purple markings. His speed reached an impossible level, turning him into little more than a blur. Mu Sheng’s bullets were always a step behind him, trailing like a tail.

"Tch, using your ability to plant a subconscious suggestion to enhance your physical performance?" Mu Sheng muttered. "But you can't keep this state up for long, can you?"

Without hesitation, Mu Sheng tossed aside his submachine guns, pulled a thirty-centimeter watermelon knife from his pocket, and charged toward Mo Bai. Even with his hemorrhoids, he knew that Cao Chen’s target could only be Mo Bai.

And he was right. The black blur, ghost-like, lunged toward Mo Bai, who had been watching the spectacle from not far away.

Fast. Extremely fast.

Cao Chen’s goal was simple: bypass Mu Sheng’s gunfire, seize Mo Bai, and plant a mental suggestion. *Your gun fires fast, but what are you going to do against a mental trigger?*

"Old Mo, run!" Mu Sheng shouted, telling Mo Bai to flee so as not to hinder his performance. Yet, under the gaze of both men, Mo Bai simply pulled a pack of malted milk balls from his pocket and let out a sinister grin.

*If he has to dodge bullets, it means bullets can hurt him. And if they can hurt him, that means he can be blown up too.*

*What the hell am I afraid of?*

*Ever heard of the Jade-Faced Grenade King?*

"Mu Sheng, get back!" Mo Bai took the initiative, telling Mu Sheng to stay clear before lunging toward the blur himself. One wanted to plant a suggestion, the other wanted to blow his opponent to bits. It was a mutual "rendezvous." Both had a bright future ahead of them.

To Mu Sheng’s shock, Mo Bai pulled a zero-frame move, and the explosion occurred. It was the same blast that had wrecked the kitchen, filled with fragments of food. With his self-detonation, Mo Bai showed Mu Sheng exactly who the true Ultraman was.

Art is an explosion.

The black blur, unable to dodge in time, crashed straight into Mo Bai and was caught in the blast.

"Old Mo!!!" Mu Sheng dropped to his knees, reaching out toward the explosion in agony. "What are you doing?!" *Why would you just blow yourself up out of nowhere? And where the hell did you get that bomb?*

"Rest in peace, my friend. I’ll make sure to take care of Mo Mo!"

"Screw you!" A voice cursed from within the swirling sparks and smoke. "Stop holding a funeral and come help me, you bastard! This animal—holy crap, he’s been blown to pieces and he’s still crawling over to grope me!"

As the smoke cleared, the situation was revealed. Cao Chen was pinning Mo Bai down. Both of his knives had been shattered, leaving him to wrestle with Mo Bai like a common street thug. Cao Chen, hit point-blank by the explosion, was in a horrific state. Half his face had been blown away, leaving a bloody, charred mess that rivaled Two-Face from Batman. Yet, he still pinned Mo Bai down, his bloodshot eyes staring intensely, desperate to complete the mental suggestion.

Mo Bai was nearly wetting himself. *It’s bad enough you’re ugly, do you have to come out and scare people? And why are you so close? I can smell your burnt flesh! And your saliva—damn it, it’s about to drip on my face! It’s so unhygienic! Even if you don't have a girlfriend, you could at least have some manners!*

The reason Cao Chen could still engage in a heated struggle despite the blast was simple: the suggestion he planted on himself not only enhanced his physical capabilities but also blocked his sense of pain. Of course, it only blocked the pain; the damage was real. They were now just two idiots pecking at each other. He hadn't expected this jerk to blow himself up at every turn, and worse, the idiot didn't seem to take damage from his own explosions. He’d been blown to hell, and the guy was acting like nothing happened.

*Are you hacking too?*

His suggestion had a time limit. Once it expired, the pain from the explosion and his torn muscles would wash over him like a tidal wave, likely rendering him incapacitated instantly. At that point, he would be at their mercy.

*No, I won’t allow it! I must reach the Star-Union stage and then retire safely!*

At the thought of retirement, Cao Chen’s adrenaline spiked, and his strength increased once more.

"Damn it, I can’t hold him off! Are you an animal? Where is all this strength coming from..." Mo Bai was gasping for air, his hands pinned by Cao Chen, unable to reach the food in his pockets. He couldn't use his "Kitchen Queen" ability and let out a miserable cry: "Mu Sheng, why are you just standing there?!"

"Come save me!"

Mu Sheng: "OMO."

"Don't panic, Old Mo. Hold on for a second while I reload."

Mu Sheng pulled a silver pistol from his pant leg, loaded a special bullet into the magazine, and a faint smile touched his lips. From Mo Bai’s perspective, Cao Chen was trying to take his life, but to Mu Sheng, it looked like two "Mo Bais" were strangling each other, both begging him for help.

Their appearances and clothing were identical. There was no doubt this was the effect of Cao Chen’s relic, "The Banquet of Chaos."

The relic originated from a medieval feast where someone kidnapped the host. In the ensuing chaos, the guards couldn't distinguish the kidnapper from the host, and the host was ultimately gunned down by musket fire. Later, a certain alchemist forged the blood-stained garment, sublimating the concept of "Chaos" into a low-grade relic.

The effect was exactly what Mu Sheng was experiencing now. He couldn't "tell the difference" between Mo Bai and Cao Chen.

"Heh, mental suggestion combined with a chaos-inducing relic. You’ve got a knack for gear, kid. But," Mu Sheng raised his pistol, aiming at one of the Mo Bais with a cold expression, "in the end, these are just cheap, underhanded tricks. I am no incompetent guard."

"Under the influence of the relic, your appearances may be identical, but the subtle movements between you are worlds apart. How could I possibly fail to recognize who my real son is? Don’t underestimate our ten years of friendship and bond, you bastard!"

The bullet struck one of the Mo Bais without mercy, the immense impact sending him flying. He lay on the ground, twitching like a dead dog.

Mo Bai let out a sigh of relief and lay peacefully on the ground, while Cao Chen, not far away, slowly closed his eyes.

Just as Mu Sheng had said at the beginning, it was just a low-grade relic with no real combat capability. It was never worth worrying about in the first place.