Chương 40: Chapter 39 — Special Operative Taskforce

Xu Fang stared at the gagged man in the closet and his heart sank low. He reached into his pocket and kept his finger on the power button, ready to click it enough times to dial emergency services in case things went wrong. Guo Mingzhe noticed this shift and simply put a hand in Xu Fang's shoulder, which communicated a'let's see how this plays out first' to him. Lin Che moved his arms in the direction of Chen Wei and took a deep breath in, ready for his announcement.

"I'm going to sound crazy for a second here," he began.

"But I have to disclose some information to you all. There's a parallel society operating within and alongside the ordinary world, where practitioners have developed internal energy, known as Qi, to varying degrees. Are you all with me?" Mingzhe nodded.

"You mean cultivation? Like in novels? You're right, you do sound crazy," blurted out Xu Fang, voice slightly higher than usual, breathing slightly uneven.

"Exactly like in novels!" applauded Lin Che.

"I knew you'd catch on quick. Most people don't know about it, and the major clans have a significant interest in keeping it that way." He paused to let that land.

"The Shen Clan," he said, "is one such powerful clan. About three months ago, I was quietly approached by a senior figure within their organisation. They told me that the clan has identified a strategic need — they need a special operations unit built from external talent." He opened his notebook but didn't look down at it." The idea is that they wish to create a unit that moves differently, without political allegiances or faction loyalties.

Just four people who are good at what they do and can be trusted to operate independently when the situation calls for it." Xu Fang was staring at him.

"You're saying you've been recruited by a—""And as part of that process, I was asked to identify and assess suitable candidates whom I could personally vouch for. The assessment phase is, well, you've both been through parts of it already, though I appreciate you didn't know it at the time." Guo Mingzhe, who had been very still for the past thirty seconds, interjected: "The spar we had."

"Amongst other things, yes." A pause.

"What about him?" asked Xu Fang, pointing at Chen Wei.

"What's this got to do with a man being gagged in your closet?"

"Chen Wei is an existing clan operative," said Lin Che.

"He was sent to locate me, which tells me that the communication about this particular operation hasn't spread, thankfully. He didn't have the full picture about why he's here." He looked at Chen Wei with an expression of sympathy.

"He tried to attack me last night under clan orders, but only because the clan orders he'd received were in fact false ones sent to lead him here. To join us." Chen Wei, still gagged, nodded as vigorously as he could in a way that suggested he found this explanation very plausible.

"This is insane," said Xu Fang.

"You're both insane. Cultivation isn't—""I've met a cultivator before," said Guo Mingzhe.

"He was powerful and taught me a couple of things that made me stronger. I believe you." Xu Fang looked between them.

"That doesn't prove anything. That just means Lin Che is—" Lin Che held up one hand, palm open. He let his awareness expand outward and drew a thin band of external Qi into the air just above his open palm. He shaped it slowly into a flat ring, which held its form as it moved to position itself above his head as a halo. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Guo Mingzhe went very still.

"Wow, it's beautiful," he said, in awe.

"What? I don't see anything."

"There's a ring above his head."

"I don't see a ring; I don't see anything."

"Ordinary mortals without any cultivation foundation generally can't perceive external Qi directly," said Lin Che, lowering his hand and dissipating his halo.

"That's not a reflection on you — it just means your starting point is different. Which is actually why I have this." He tapped the notebook.

"Mingzhe, you already have somewhat of a foundation. Xu Fang, you'd be starting from scratch. The techniques I've prepared account for that." Xu Fang stood with his mouth slightly open, his mind erroring in disbelief at how quickly Guo Mingzhe had accepted this explanation. At some point, however, his finger moved away from the power key of his phone.

"You're seriously telling me," he summarised, slowly, "that there's an entire secret world of people who can do—" He gestured vaguely at the space above Lin Che's head.

"That. And that you want us to be part of some kind of special operations unit, and that the man in the wardrobe is a colleague of yours."

"That's correct," said Lin Che.

"You know what, I don't believe you one bit. But I've known you long enough to know you're not bullshitting me, so show me what you've got." Lin Che placed the notebook on the bed and gestured for the two to follow him and read. What followed was a forty minute explanation on the Liuhe Breathing Method, which ended up leaving Xu Fang with more questions than he had started with, whilst Guo Mingzhe attempted to digest what he had read.

For Mingzhe, it was much easier to understand these things, as he could sense and manipulate the little sliver of Qi he had within him to begin replicating the first steps of the Liuhe Breathing Method. Xu Fang ended up requiring the video tutorial, which he was watching off Lin Che's phone. After finishing the first video, he sat himself cross-legged on Lin Che's bed and repeated exactly as the instructor had done so, but not much happened. Then, came a rumble from his stomach.

"I can't do this at all," complained Xu Fang.

"I at least need some energy in me first."

"Right, yes, we should go grab breakfast, shouldn't we?" said Lin Che, tapping Guo Mingzhe on the forehead to wake him up from his deep concentration.

"And how about that guy? Chen Wei was it?" asked Xu Fang. Chen Wei had disassociated around an hour ago when it was clear that the rest of the group had forgotten about him and that he had no way of freeing himself from the gag in his mouth and the makeshift rope, created out of multiple towels, which bound his hands. Once he heard his name, he perked right up. Lin Che walked over, crouched down in front of the wardrobe, and looked up at Chen Wei's face for a moment.

He untied the binding around his wrists and reached up to remove the socks from his mouth in one swift motion. Chen Wei worked his jaw for a moment, massaging his cheeks and coughing to clear out his throat. Lin Che remained crouched and watched him with a calm attention, like a lion ready to pounce. Chen Wei looked at the two men sitting with the notebook open across the room. His eyes then moved onto Lin Che. A slow, enormous grin spread across his face.

"I knew it! he said.

"I knew Elder Fang had something big going on. She's been so secretive lately — I thought it was just the infidelity situation, but this—" He gestured at the room with an open hand encompassing the entire operation.

"A special unit with external talent separate from the clan structure." He was nodding now, rapidly.

"This is why she sent me personally." He stood up and straightened his back and stretched his limbs.

"I'm glad to be a part of this team!" The other three in the room all exchanged glances with each other. It was strange to see a man so cheery after being tied up and gagged all night, but they didn't wish to cast their judgement on Chen Wei. After all, he was free to enjoy anything in his own free time.

"Chen Wei," began Lin Che, placing his hands on Chen Wei's shoulders and looking him straight in the eyes.

"Your role is to help these two learn whatever techniques you have at your disposal. Since this taskforce has been assembled outside of any clan influence, you are free to teach any and all methods at your disposal, so long as you're willing to, of course, be a part of this special taskforce."

"I'm all in," said Chen Wei.

"And, seriously, thank you so much for choosing me to be a part of this. I heard you're an analyst, which must be why we see each other eye to eye. My other team never appreciated analysts, but I'm sure we'll get along well together." Lin Che forced a smile before clapping his hands.

"So it's decided! Let's go get some breakfast." Just as the group of four left the room, Xu Fang mumbled to himself.

"Well, Mingzhe and I never agreed to join some random clan…"