NOVEL WEB Vol. 1 - Ch. 393 - Trade
Gu ZhaoChuan wanted to speak, but right now, even breathing felt like a struggle.
He lay there on the ground, staring up at HuMing.
HuMing, meanwhile, casually sat down not far away. He reached into his pocket, popped two pieces of gum into his mouth, and started chewing.
Honestly, it had been a while since HuMing fought like this.
Unfortunately for Gu ZhaoChuan, he'd run into that version of HuMing tonight.
It reminded him of the day he stormed Francis's base—how he had looked at him with those terrified eyes, like he was staring at some kind of monster.
That day, he had caused HuMin's death—and taken someone important from HuMing.
There was never any so-called light in HuMing's life. From start to finish, it had always been shrouded in darkness.
He had never dreamed of leaving behind the life of a killer, finding a woman, settling down, starting a family, living quietly under a new name.
His future had always belonged to the shadows.
That is, until he came to this world.
For the first time, he realized he could live that life.
Here, no one knew who he really was. No one knew what he'd done.
He could live out his days like a normal person. Just be HuMing. That would be enough.
But fate, it seemed, enjoyed playing cruel jokes.
He stepped away from the battlefield—only to be pulled into yet another storm.
No one understood... he simply wanted to live an ordinary life. As HuMing.
The dim yellow rooftop light cast his shadow long across the floor. He leaned back slightly, eyes half-closed, chewing gum as he gazed up at the moon.
But before he could truly relax, a new sound broke the night: the hum of a helicopter approaching.
A harsh spotlight swept over him, forcing HuMing to shield his eyes.
"Well, well. We meet again, Mr. HuMing."
The voice was familiar—amplified by a loudspeaker. The man was smiling.
It was Zero.
He held onto a side handle of the helicopter, looking utterly unsurprised by the scene below.
HuMing stood slowly, gripping the rust-covered railing, staring up at Zero with unreadable eyes.
"Sorry, but Gu ZhaoChuan happens to be one of my business partners. I'd rather not let him die here. So, may I take him with me?"
"Why should I let you?"
"I know trying to get something for nothing is a long shot," Zero admitted with a chuckle. "So how about this—his life in exchange for a valuable piece of information?"
HuMing didn't answer right away.
Zero wasn't naive. He hadn't expected HuMing to agree so easily. Especially not after making his own guesses about who HuMing really was in his past life. That alone made this situation... delicate.
"What valuable information could you possibly have?"
"For starters, the location of that man."
At those words, HuMing's eyes narrowed.
And in the cockpit of the helicopter, the pilot visibly flinched. He turned to look at Zero in disbelief.
That man—the one—had personally selected Zero. And now he was... betraying him?
Zero ignored the pilot's reaction, still focused on HuMing.
"You're going to betray Francis over Gu ZhaoChuan? You really think that's a fair trade?"
"Value is subjective. To you, Gu ZhaoChuan might be worthless. But to me, he's a rare and useful partner."
HuMing glanced down at the unconscious Gu ZhaoChuan at his feet.
Crushing him like a bug wouldn't be difficult. Even if Gu ZhaoChuan recovered and came back for more, HuMing was confident he could take him down again.
But if trading him meant getting closer to Francis—then yes, it might be worth it.
That is... if the intel was real.
After all, Zero could be feeding him false information.
He claimed to be Han YunXi's brother, but HuMing had never seen them interact—who knew what his real motives were?
Seeing HuMing's hesitation, Zero grabbed a rope and rappelled down from the chopper.
He walked straight up to HuMing, glanced at Gu ZhaoChuan, and raised a brow at the sorry sight.
Even he hadn't expected Gu ZhaoChuan—after enhancement—to be left in this condition.
"For someone who took enhancement drugs, he still got his ass kicked. Guess the old man's people aren't much of a threat to you. Even I don't think I could beat someone that badly."
But the more he saw, the more convinced he became of HuMing's strength.
"Which is good, we're after the same thing—bringing that man down from his pedestal."
"No, I'm going to erase him from this world."
In the past, he would've relied on his intel network to hunt someone like Francis. But now? He needed Zero's help.
Trading Gu ZhaoChuan's life for this information? A good deal—if it was real.
HuMing looked up at Zero, his gaze sharp.
"Then prove it. Give me something solid. Otherwise... you're not leaving either."
The helicopter above them suddenly rose higher, as if preparing to leave the scene.
The pilot had made up his mind—Zero was clearly about to betray that man, and this was his chance to report it.
Once he told the boss, he'd surely be rewarded!
Without a second thought, he began to fly away, ignoring Zero entirely.
HuMing looked up, then back at Zero—calm, composed, entirely unfazed.
And in that moment, he understood something.
He raised a brow but said nothing.
"I know you'll doubt anything I say. So let me make this simple. I'll take you to him personally. That way, you'll know it's real."
"Of course, if you think it's a trap, you're free to walk away from our partnership."
From beginning to end, Zero spoke only of cooperation.
To him, everything was transactional.
That was both reassuring and dangerous.
Reassuring because Zero would sell out Francis for profit. Dangerous because he'd sell out HuMing just as easily if the price was right.
It all came down to who could offer more.
This made him very different from people like Han ShuYi or Gu ZhaoChuan.
He was more like the information brokers HuMing used to deal with—utterly driven by benefit.
Still, the fact that he dared to propose this meant he was confident HuMing would accept.
And truthfully, HuMing would accept.
Because this was the fastest way to reach Francis.
"When?" HuMing asked.
A wide smile spread across Zero's face.
He pulled a remote from his pocket—and pressed it.
A sudden flash lit up the night sky behind him.
BOOM!
The helicopter exploded mid-air, a blazing fireball crashing down from above.
"Two days," Zero said casually. "I figured you'd need some time to say goodbye to the people around you."
He bent down and lifted Gu ZhaoChuan, then started down the rooftop stairs.
Below, the sound of police sirens began to blare through the streets.
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