Chapter 62: Who Could Possibly Deceive Me?

In a daze, Lu Chengwen slowly opened his eyes.

The surrounding light was very dim. Jagged, strange rocks were everywhere, and the air was filled with a damp, fishy, and sour scent.

He propped his body up with effort and managed to sit up. Ahead of him, an elderly man with unkempt white hair, a full white beard, and tattered clothes was sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed.

Right across from him, Hua Xuening was lying on the ground, completely passed out.

Long Aotian looked bruised and battered all over, glaring right at him.

"Hahaha!" The old man suddenly burst into a wild laugh. "My old self has lived in seclusion here, meditating for years. Never would I have thought so many guests would arrive all at once today. This cave is certainly lively enough!"

Long Aotian cupped his fists weakly. "May this junior be so bold as to ask the senior's honorable name?"

The old man smiled slightly. "This old man's humble name is unheard of in the pugilistic world. Better left unmentioned."

Lu Chengwen's brain spun at lightning speed.

Damn it all!

The protagonist is indeed the protagonist. I knew he wouldn't die that easily!

Fortunately, I followed him down here; otherwise, this old man would definitely have taken him in as an adoptive son and then taught him supreme martial arts to help him level up.

No way! I have to ruin this!

Lu Chengwen quickly cupped his fists as well. "Seeing how sharp and bright the senior's gaze is, how your voice resonates like a mighty bell, and how extraordinary your bearing is—with the aura of a hero lingering at the corners of your eyes and brows—could it be that you are the legendary senior who has long vanished from the martial arts world..."

"Correct! The Six-Fingered Ape Demon, Hun Tiangang, is none other than me!"

Long Aotian was practically dying of anger.

Did he say your name was "Hun Tiangang"? Did he?!

He merely buttered you up with a few compliments, and you blurted out your own name and moniker!

Lu Chengwen thought to himself that this book had completely gone off the rails. He didn't even recognize many of the characters here. This person wasn't in the original novel, right?

Lu Chengwen hurriedly said, "Senior Tiangang's heroic deeds are renowned throughout the world. To be blessed with the honor of beholding the senior's supreme visage today is my greatest fortune in three lifetimes, a death without regrets."

Hun Tiangang glanced sideways at Lu Chengwen. "Hmph, flattery-boy. This old man detests those who fawn and flatter the most! You don't look like a good person either, all slick and greasy, with the face of a scoundrel."

Long Aotian burst into bitter laughter. "Lu Chengwen, do you really think you can win the senior's favor just by sucking up? What kind of person do you take the senior for? Senior, this man is Lu Chengwen, the greatest unscrupulous merchant in Snow City. He is devoid of benevolence, utterly cunning, seizes men's wives and plunders women, and commits every conceivable evil! Please uphold justice, Senior!"

Lu Chengwen narrowed his eyes: Oh, so you're playing that game, Long Aotian. Clearly, you can't move a muscle yourself, so you're trying to use Hun Tiangang's hands to get me killed!

Lu Chengwen quickly defended himself. "Senior, I am no unscrupulous merchant; I am a conscientious businessman. I just invested fifty billion into a shanty town redevelopment project for the impoverished common folk. Everyone in Snow City knows about this nowadays!"

"Shut up, both of you!"

Hun Tiangang majestically looked left and right at the two of them. "Neither of you looks like a good person. As the Six-Fingered Ape Demon Hun Tiangang traveling the pugilistic world, the character I care about most is 'benevolence.' Anyone who lacks benevolence, lacks righteousness, and harbors wicked intentions—if I see one, I kill one. I never show mercy!"

With that, he threw out a single palm strike. A boulder in the distance exploded into fragments with a loud bang.

This display shocked both Lu Chengwen and Long Aotian.

Splitting a stone with one hand was no big deal; ordinary ancient martial artists could do that. If you couldn't even smash a rock, would you dare call yourself an ancient martial artist?

However, it was more than twenty meters from here to the cave entrance. To shatter a boulder from afar using purely internal energy—how profound must one's cultivation of internal strength be to achieve that?!

Both of them felt deeply nervous inside.

Hun Tiangang's long-term confinement seemed to have made his temper rather eccentric. With a weirdo like this, if he got displeased and hit you in the head with a move like that, who could possibly survive it?

Long Aotian sneered. "Lu Chengwen, do you see this? You're a dead man today."

Lu Chengwen thought for a moment. "Senior, could this palm technique be the long-lost..."

"That's right!" Hun Tiangang looked at his own palm and sighed. "You certainly have an eye for this. This is the long-lost Hundun Eight Trigrams Palm!"

Long Aotian was about to die of frustration.

First he announced his own name, and now he was announcing his own palm technique!

Did Lu Chengwen say anything? Did he say it was the Hundun Eight Trigrams Palm?

It was entirely your own doing, wasn't it?

So whenever Lu Chengwen said half a sentence, you automatically filled in the rest?!

Long Aotian thought to himself that this old man had too strange a temper; he didn't like flattery, nor did he like bad guys. I must be careful. It would be best to use his hands to finish off Lu Chengwen!

At this moment, Lu Chengwen exclaimed in admiration, "Senior's palm technique is truly powerful and vigorous, combining hardness with softness while possessing immense technical mastery. With such a brilliant palm technique, I presume very few people under the sun could learn it. Without supreme natural talent, it is impossible to fathom the mysteries of this palm technique!"

Hun Tiangang glanced sideways at Lu Chengwen. "Flatterer. Hmph."

Lu Chengwen smiled and said, "This junior is expressing his sincere admiration."

"Truly sincere?"

"Absolutely sincere, let the sun and moon bear witness."

"Hm. Hungry? I have some roasted meat here."

Long Aotian opened his eyes wide, thinking: What on earth?!

Didn't you just say you detest people who fawn and flatter? What is the meaning of this?

Lu Chengwen blows smoke up your skirt a couple of times, and you swallow it whole?

Lu Chengwen replied, "This junior took a nasty fall and can't stomach heavy meats anymore."

"Heh, you took a terribly heavy fall indeed. But as it happens, I have a Bone-Restoring Vitality Pill here. Swallow it, and it can heal all bone fractures and external injuries!"

Hun Tiangang hesitated for a moment. "However, there are two of you here... this..."

Hearing this, Long Aotian panicked. "Senior, you absolutely must not save him! He is a bad person, an unrighteous and heartless villain to the core!"

Hun Tiangang looked at Lu Chengwen. "Are you a heartless villain?"

"No."

Hun Tiangang glared at Long Aotian and shouted, "He said he's not!"

Long Aotian felt completely bewildered.

Has your brain turned to mush, old man? Is this something where you just take someone's word for it? Why are you glaring at me?

Long Aotian forced a smile and said, "Lu Chengwen's wealth rivals nations, yet he lacks all benevolence. He amasses massive fortunes through extortion and plunder. The people of Snow City would love to eat his flesh and drink his blood. Ask him if he dares admit to this or not."

Lu Chengwen nodded. "I admit it!"

Long Aotian said excitedly, "Senior, he admitted it! He admitted it!"

Hun Tiangang glared at Long Aotian. "I'm not deaf! Stop shouting!"

Hun Tiangang asked Lu Chengwen, "Kid, why are you unbenevolent, why do you extort, plunder, and hoard massive wealth?"

Lu Chengwen replied, "Senior, this involves economics and sociology."

"Oh?"

"The operation of the world requires capital. Capital generates kinetic energy, and kinetic energy drives society forward. Capitalists need to gather capital to accomplish great things. I run pharmaceutical factories, bringing together engineers and scientists to develop new medicines and cure impoverished commoners. All of this costs money."

"A good capitalist is someone who, on one hand, knows how to make money, because the more money you make, the more funds you have to accomplish tasks. At the same time, they must know how to spend money. When you make that much money, you can never possibly spend it all yourself. That money must be transformed into kinetic energy, into a force pushing society forward. The more I earn, the more I spend; the more I spend, the faster society progresses, and the more people benefit. When capital accumulates to a certain extent, I will launch companies in batches, step into the stock market, and allow the broad masses of the people to become leeks... I mean, shareholders, so that everyone holds dividend rights in my enterprise..."

Long Aotian interrupted angrily, "Lu Chengwen! Senior is a reclusive expert! What are you blabbering about with capital, industry, kinetic energy, and equity? Can he possibly understand any of that?"

Hun Tiangang was already somewhat lost in a fog, struggling awkwardly to keep up with Lu Chengwen's rhythm. Hearing Long Aotian's words, he flew into a rage. "Bulls**t! How do you know I can't understand? Isn't he just saying... make money, then spend money, and the world gets better!"

Long Aotian was shocked.

He thought: Damn it, you really have to save face, don't you?

Do you have to fake understanding when you clearly don't?

Lu Chengwen immediately clapped his hands. "Senior! Brilliant! I explained so much, yet you captured the core of the core in a single sentence! Exactly—make money, spend money, and then peace on earth! Oh, Senior, your philosophical thinking simply leaves this junior in absolute awe!"

Hun Tiangang looked fully satisfied, his face wreathed in smiles as he waved his hand. "Cut the crap. I hate flattery the most."

Long Aotian was about to die of anger.

You hate flattery? Aren't you enjoying this immensely?

Hun Tiangang leaned closer to Lu Chengwen. "Actually, my brain isn't useless."

"Yes, yes, absolutely."

"Making money is just like practicing martial arts. When practicing martial arts, you have to put in the effort; making money requires effort too."

"Senior, you are practically a god. How can everything you say make so much sense?"

"Did you think all ancient martial artists who practice martial arts are old-fashioned and stubborn? My thinking is very open-minded."

"Senior, you've really given me a lesson today. I truly regret not jumping off the cliff sooner so I could have listened to your teachings earlier."

Hun Tiangang laughed heartily. "Cut the crap. I never listen to flattery."

Long Aotian felt his chest tightening with frustration.

Not only had he suffered internal injuries from the Iron Cudgel King, but falling from up there had also broken many of his bones, adding severe external trauma to his condition. If Hua Xuening hadn't used her own body to shield him, he surely would have been dashed to pieces.

Now, finally regaining consciousness after all that, he runs into this old fogey.

Completely brainless!

He's being led around by the nose by Lu Chengwen.

I must get that Bone-Restoring Vitality Pill. As long as I can walk and move, I can finish off Lu Chengwen!

Hun Tiangang fumbled around his waistband for a long time before digging out the pill. "Do you recognize this?"

Long Aotian thought to himself: You just said it yourself a moment ago—it's the Bone-Restoring Vitality Pill! Has your brain turned to mush? How can someone be this muddled?

Lu Chengwen, however, looked greatly astonished. "Senior, could this possibly be..."

"That's right!"

Long Aotian finally snapped. "Enough is enough, you two!"

Both Lu Chengwen and Hun Tiangang turned to look at him.

Long Aotian felt a welling wave of grievance:

"What is going on here? Starting from your name, every time you said the first half of a sentence, he finished the second half. Whatever you said, he just said 'That's right!' How could you fall for such a trick, Senior? He clearly knew nothing, yet he deliberately said the first half to trick you into blurting out the second half yourself! He is swindling you!"

Hun Tiangang slowly turned his head and stared fixedly at Lu Chengwen. "Are you swindling me?"

Lu Chengwen shook his head. "No."

Hun Tiangang turned back. "He said no!"

Long Aotian felt a tightness in his chest, starved of breath.

"Senior, you stated yourself earlier that this pill is the Bone-Restoring Vitality Pill, which is why he only pretended to be surprised! He is definitely deceiving you! Even your moniker—I guarantee he has never heard of it before. And your palm technique—I dare bet my life that before you uttered the words 'Hundun Eight Trigrams Palm,' he had no idea such a technique even existed in this world. If you don't believe me, ask him!"

Hun Tiangang turned back, narrowing his eyes. "Kid, you're quite crafty. You dare trick this old man?"

Lu Chengwen calmly replied, "Senior, with your supreme wisdom, could I possibly deceive you? Are you the kind of foolish person who falls for tricks so easily?"

"Let's look at it another way: you've achieved extraordinary things in your life and live here in seclusion as a hermit, yet two half-dead kids randomly drop out of the sky and manage to spin you around in circles? Do you believe that yourself? Your wisdom is entirely superior to mine, and this junior can only bow in worship. Attempting any little tricks in front of you would be like brandishing a broadsword before Guan Yu or wielding an axe outside Lu Ban's workshop—too shameful to even look at. You would certainly see through my little tricks at a single glance!"

Hun Tiangang smiled. "Stop buttering me up. This old man doesn't buy that routine!"

Long Aotian felt his internal injuries worsen as a mouthful of fresh blood sprayed from his lips.

He was practically angry enough to pass out.