Chapter Fifty-Three: A Truly Good Person

“Congratulations to Gao Wu for winning this match...”
The host raised Gao Wu’s arm high, leading him to salute the entire audience.
Gao Wu’s eyes were swollen, his brow and the corner of his mouth both split open. This appearance was rather disheveled, yet his gaze remained bright and resolute, exuding a fierce and indomitable spirit.
This look of his only earned him more cheers and applause.
Han Yang stood up to clap beneath the stage, even pulling the reluctant Yang Ru to her feet.
“They’re not even close—why do we have to clap for him?” she complained.
She didn’t like Gao Wu, much less his wild boasts. For a mere junior martial artist to claim he was the world’s number one—it was laughable!
“Still, he’s our peer. Beating Mad Dog is really impressive,” Han Yang said, his admiration genuine. He had more strength and speed than Mad Dog, but his body wasn’t nearly as tough.
Of course, Mad Dog clearly wasn’t thinking straight; by the second round he was just swinging wildly. The key was that Gao Wu managed to withstand Mad Dog’s ferocious assault—his physical resilience was simply monstrous.
There were just over twenty days until the Xue Tao Cup. If he had to face Gao Wu in the competition, Han Yang wasn’t confident he’d win. Losing to other senior martial artists was normal, but to be defeated by a peer would be humiliating.
Next April was the Qilin Cup—maybe it was time to risk trying the serum...
In the box, Lü Hongsheng was somewhat surprised. “That kid actually won.”
Truth be told, Gao Wu and Mad Dog were about evenly matched, but Mad Dog had undergone biochemical enhancements, like donning a suit of armor. That he still lost to Gao Wu could only mean Mad Dog’s brain really wasn’t working.
Huang Hai, however, was untroubled. “Gao Wu’s a smart one. Even though he won, he saw Mad Dog’s strengths. It won’t be hard to get him to take the Vajra Serum.
“He’s got physical talent too. He won’t be able to resist the temptation.”
Lü Hongsheng nodded. “I’ll leave it to you. Just hurry, we don’t have much time.”
Huang Hai nodded. “I’ll arrange for him to take the serum as soon as possible. If he does it voluntarily, the absorption will be much better. Forty to fifty days should be enough...”
There was a huge difference between a subject who willingly accepted the serum and one who was forced. Only by guiding Gao Wu to take the serum himself could he withstand the side effects. That was why they had orchestrated everything.
“As long as it’s done before April, there’s no rush,” Lü Hongsheng said.
The box was completely sealed, with bodyguards outside, so the two could speak freely.
Down in the hall, Song Mingyue glanced at the box. The one-way glass wall blocked her sight but not her spiritual power.
In fact, she had been monitoring Huang Hai and Lü Hongsheng the whole time. With her spiritual power, it was easy to eavesdrop—like maintaining a thread of invisible, sensitive silk, catching the vibrations of sound waves inside the room.
Human voices have a narrow frequency range; picking up conversations wasn’t hard. The trick was controlling her spiritual sense to catch the sound.
Song Mingyue had only gained this ability after gravely injuring an alien spirit, which had brought her spiritual power to new heights.
Having acquired crucial intelligence, Song Mingyue deduced Huang Hai’s purpose: they wanted to use Gao Wu’s body as a vessel to contain a high-level alien spirit or a consciousness from another world.
To contain such power was no easy feat—so Huang Hai and his associates were doing everything to boost Gao Wu’s physical strength.

Earlier, Huang Hai had given Gao Wu the Blood Dragon Serum for this very purpose. Considering their ongoing rituals to the alien spirit, that spirit was likely a beacon, guiding a powerful consciousness to descend.
Song Mingyue was well versed in the rituals of the Church of All Gods. She had resonated with alien spirits herself and had done extensive research.
Piecing together what Huang and Lü had said, she could pretty much guess their real purpose.
In another box, her father was quietly conferring with Han Lingxia. From what she could see, her father didn’t seem directly connected with Lü and Huang.
Even so, she couldn’t rule out his involvement. The Church of All Gods was extremely complicated, and even its followers often didn’t know each other. Even if her father wasn’t a devotee of the dark gods, he was still ambitious but incompetent—not someone to trust with such matters.
As Gao Wu stepped off the platform, he saw Huang Hai waiting for him with a staff member.
The staff member politely handled the formalities, transferring fifteen thousand yuan in prize money and bonuses to Gao Wu’s phone.
When the staffer left, Huang Hai asked, “Are your injuries serious?”
“I’m fine, nothing major,” Gao Wu replied.
“You won today, but there was some luck involved. Mad Dog’s physique was far superior to yours.”
Huang Hai eyed Gao Wu. “Come to the martial arts gym at ten tomorrow—I want a good talk.”
“Thank you, Coach.” Gao Wu exchanged some pleasantries with Huang Hai before leaving the Jinsheng Hotel with Song Mingyue.
Song Mingyue drove him back to Yunhu Villa and asked Aunt Lan to check his injuries.
In just twenty minutes, Gao Wu’s bruises had faded and the cuts on his brow and mouth had closed—he looked none the worse for wear.
Aunt Lan hadn’t watched the match, so she simply disinfected his wounds once more.
When Aunt Lan left, Song Mingyue said to Gao Wu, “Huang Hai and Lü Hongsheng want to give you the Vajra Serum, and from what I overheard, they’ll combine it with Spinosaurus Energy Solution.”
“That’s generous,” Gao Wu said, surprised and pleased.
“They want to use you as a vessel. Naturally, the stronger your body, the better,” Song Mingyue warned. “The Vajra Serum comes in various formulas. The one they’re using is based on Ironbone Spinosaurus bone cells. The effects are powerful, but the side effects are terrifying.
“The adult Ironbone Spinosaurus is a level-six exotic beast. The cells of such a creature are extremely aggressive. The serum often causes genetic collapse—within days, all your organs could fail. Medicine can’t cure it yet.
“The Spinosaurus Energy Solution is extracted from the beast’s flesh and blood, then combined with other agents. When used with the serum, both the effects and the dangers are doubled.”
Song Mingyue looked at Gao Wu seriously. “Even with your talent, this is dangerous.”
Gao Wu thought for a moment. “I’m still too weak. I want to try.”
The side effects were indeed frightening, but he had a constitution of fifteen and had mastered the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra. If he couldn’t withstand the side effects, no martial artist could.
His battle with Mad Dog had taught him that there were many ways for advanced martial artists to push their limits. Even with the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra, he couldn’t claim to sweep all others aside. Strengthening himself with the Vajra Serum could only help.

“Very well,” Song Mingyue relented, though she didn’t agree with his choice.
She added, “They said they just need things settled before April. As long as you’re on the serum, they won’t touch you—in fact, they’ll support you in every way.
“If you can withstand the side effects, you’ll have plenty of time...”
“No problem!” Gao Wu was brimming with confidence in his body.
Song Mingyue discussed a few more details: how to deal with Huang Hai, what to do if things went wrong, and how to get in touch...

The next day was Saturday. Normally, school was off and the martial arts team as well.
Gao Wu arrived at the martial arts gym at ten. The huge facility was empty except for Huang Hai.
Knowing he was dealing with a devotee of the dark gods, Gao Wu was understandably tense. If the old man suddenly went berserk, he’d be in trouble.
That’s why he carried his sword wherever he went. After being attacked by a cultist, a little caution was only wise—no need to explain.
Most importantly, there were classmates like Shen Yue waiting outside. Huang Hai probably wouldn’t risk anything.
Huang Hai didn’t care about such details. As a seasoned martial artist, he wasn’t threatened by a sword, let alone a gun.
“Your main problem is your lack of physical strength. Against martial artists like Mad Dog, you’re at a disadvantage. You only won because Mad Dog lost his head. There are plenty of advanced martial artists just like him.
“I have the Vajra Serum here—it will greatly increase your physical strength. You’re at the perfect age to use it. It will boost your strength by a huge margin.”
Huang Hai went over all the benefits of the serum, concluding, “With your drug tolerance, you’re a perfect candidate...”
“But I’m broke, Coach,” Gao Wu replied, listening to Huang Hai’s pitch. It was word for word what Song Mingyue had told him, which put him at ease.
With the information on his side, he held all the initiative. Little Huang Hai was already in his hand.
“The Vajra Serum is expensive—I can’t just give it away. How about this: help me fight twenty arena matches, give me forty percent of your earnings for the next two years, and I’ll advance you the serum...”
Huang Hai produced two contracts, already printed out. “Take a look. Sign, and the serum’s yours.”
“Thank you, Coach!” Gao Wu was overjoyed. He skimmed the contract and scrawled his name.
After all, Huang Hai was a cultist—soon he’d be stripped of all civil rights. His contract would be worthless in court.
Accepting the serum, Gao Wu said with heartfelt sincerity, “Coach, you truly are a good man!”

(Happy Children’s Day to all! I’ve always believed that no matter your age, there’s a child inside each of us. That’s our truest self. I hope everyone finds a bit of simple happiness today. And don’t forget to vote for the monthly ranking~)