Fu Daqiang was completely dumbfounded. Is this woman for real?
Her friend had been taken hostage, and she didn't even hesitate for a second!
Fu Daqiang yanked Xu Mu backward more than ten meters and roared, "You damn girl! You think I'm joking? Believe it or not, I'll gouge out his eyes first!"
"Go ahead," Jiang Huihui said coolly. "If you do, I'll burn him a beautiful woman every Qingming Festival — she can take care of him in the afterlife."
She stopped and began walking toward Xu Mu one step at a time.
"You brat! What's your relationship with her?" Fu Daqiang shouted.
"Us? Good friends, I guess," Xu Mu replied casually.
"Good friends? Hah! There's no such thing as pure friendship between men and women! You like each other, don't you?"
Fu Daqiang sneered, then barked, "Say you love her!"
He couldn't escape easily out here in the wilderness. His only chance now was to make them confess to each other — build up a little 'romance.' That way, the hostage in his hand might actually be useful.
"What good is it if he loves me? I don't love him," Jiang Huihui said evenly.
"Why not? You two are handsome and beautiful — a perfect match! You're already husband and wife, aren't you?"
Fu Daqiang eyed her warily, terrified she'd attack.
"Huh?" Jiang Huihui blinked, her face going a bit red. "What nonsense are you spouting?"
Fu Daqiang's eyes lit up — she was embarrassed! That meant their relationship wasn't simple at all. Maybe he really had a chance to escape.
"I'm serious! I know some face-reading techniques — your fortunes are completely aligned. If you marry, it'll bless both your families and future generations!"
He paused for effect. "In fact, I can even tell — you'll have seven sons, all dragons among men!"
Jiang Huihui's trembling hand reached into her pocket. She pulled out some gum, popped it in her mouth, and chewed — trying to stay calm.
"If you don't want to ruin your destined bond, get out of my way! Let me go, and I'll release this kid—"
"To hell with you!"
Xu Mu's palm lashed out, sending Fu Daqiang flying.
Wham!
Fu Daqiang crashed through two trees before hitting the ground.
"Pfft!"
He spat blood, staring at Xu Mu in horror. "You…!"
He hadn't expected this man to be a master too.
"Seven sons? What are we, raising a litter of gourd babies?" Xu Mu said flatly, walking toward him. "I can't afford that many."
Whoosh!
Jiang Huihui flashed forward, charging at Fu Daqiang.
He scrambled to his feet, but his ribs were broken; the pain made it impossible to fight for long.
After just two or three exchanges, he collapsed to the ground.
"Done!" Jiang Huihui said proudly — only for Xu Mu to smack her on the butt.
Her cheeks flushed pink. "What are you doing?"
"What am I doing? I was just held hostage by a criminal, and you didn't even pretend to be worried! You promised to burn me virgins and sports cars — you trying to ruin my image?"
Xu Mu folded his arms, glaring at her.
"Hmph! If you can't even handle him, how do you expect to compete in the Marriage Tournament?"
Jiang Huihui snorted and turned to the captive. "Black Robe, you're under arrest—"
"Wait. Let me handle this."
Xu Mu cut her off sharply. If Fu Daqiang learned too soon that Jiang Huihui was a cleaner, they wouldn't get much useful information out of him.
"Fu Daqiang — that's your real name, isn't it?" Xu Mu crouched down with a faint smile.
Fu Daqiang's eyes went wide. "You… how do you know that name?"
For years, he'd lived under aliases — no one knew his true identity. People only knew him as Black Robe.
"I know not only your name," Xu Mu said, "but also that you have ties to the Heavenly Sword Sect."
He watched the man's reaction closely. "And you're connected to the Immortality Research Institute, too."
"What? The Immortality Research Institute?"
Jiang Huihui froze — that was a top-tier red-alert criminal organization wanted by the cleaners.
Fu Daqiang's jaw dropped. "Who… who the hell are you people?"
"Never mind that," Xu Mu said darkly. "Now I'm the one asking questions. If you hide anything, your end will be miserable."
"Talk — what's your relationship with the Heavenly Sword Sect and the Immortality Research Institute?"
"I… I'll die no matter what I say. Why should I tell you?" Fu Daqiang's eyes hardened.
"If you tell the truth, you'll live. I keep my word," Xu Mu said calmly. "If not… I'll let you experience dismemberment by a thousand cuts. I'm pretty good at it — I'll make sure you survive until the thousandth slash."
That was exactly the effect Xu Mu wanted.
If Jiang Huihui had already revealed she was a cleaner, this threat wouldn't work — government agents wouldn't torture people.
But now, with his identity unknown, Fu Daqiang had every reason to believe him.
Sure enough, Fu Daqiang trembled uncontrollably, his legs shaking violently.
"I'll talk! I'll talk!" he blurted out. "I was originally with the Heavenly Sword Sect — under the Grand Elder of Qingmu Mountain!"
Xu Mu frowned slightly. Qingmu Mountain again.
"The Grand Elder has ties to the Immortality Research Institute," Fu Daqiang continued. "But he didn't trust them, so he planted me there as an undercover agent."
He hesitated, then went on, "But the Institute soon found out — and forced me to take one of their experimental drugs."
"What kind of drug?" Xu Mu asked.
"An addictive one — a hundred times stronger than any narcotic. If you go a month without it, your skin starts to itch unbearably… then your insides. I once saw someone so desperate he cut himself open just to scratch the pain."
Fu Daqiang shuddered. "Few survive long enough for the final stage — the brain."
"No wonder the Immortality Research Institute is so notorious," Jiang Huihui said coldly. "Truly vile."
"And after you took the drug?" Xu Mu pressed.
"They used me against the Grand Elder — made me feed him false information," Fu Daqiang said.
Xu Mu nodded slightly. So that's why his profile listed him as a double agent.
"Then why become an assassin?" Jiang Huihui asked curiously.
"The Institute gave me the task," Fu Daqiang sighed. "We external operatives have to earn money through missions — that's the only way they'll give us the drug."
"Has anything major happened in the Heavenly Sword Sect lately?"
Xu Mu suddenly thought of Dai Xingluo. Once Jiang Huihui's Marriage Tournament was over, he'd be heading there — might as well get a heads-up.
"The Heavenly Sword Sect… actually is about to face something big," Fu Daqiang said, staring at Xu Mu.