Chapter 63: The Invitation

Brown Glasses.

Come to think of it… wasn’t this the guy who went around challenging all the martial arts schools in the city before?

Sakaki Tetsuhei and others tried to find him, but no one had any luck.

It seemed that after injuring Akasaka, Brown Glasses hadn’t shown his face again.

He felt a little surprised inside, not expecting to meet this man again in such a situation.

He recognized the other person now. However, Brown Glasses seemed to have no memory of him at all.

Also, this guy… was pretty dangerous. There was something inside him, filling up, swelling, and spilling out — like an invisible air current, wrapped around his body, like some kind of aura.

With just one glance, Fang Jing sensed danger from the man with brown glasses.

—With that man at the center, the surrounding air felt charged, giving off a stinging malice.

“…He’s even stronger than my teacher!”

Right now, the only thing he could be sure of was this: Brown Glasses emitted a penetrating aura, a dangerous presence that made the hairs on Fang Jing’s body stand on end.

Even though the other person stood perfectly still, it gave him an intensely uneasy feeling of danger.

“Who are you… and what’s your relationship with Fujiwara?”

He shouted the question, but his mind was racing frantically. This Brown Glasses was even more dangerous than Fujiwara; there was no need to fight him. It was better to find a way to escape.

Fang Jing had lured Fujiwara here because he thought only one person was following him. He never imagined Fujiwara had other companions.

If he had known Brown Glasses existed, he definitely would have chosen a different approach.

“That waste? Like I said before, that thing is an inferior product, a weak and useless thing made for experiments…”

Brown Glasses grinned. “Actually, I’m more interested in your body… Hey, don’t get me wrong—I mean, your physical fitness is excellent, and your personality suits my taste. Compared to trash like Fujiwara, you’re more suited to join ‘us’…”

“What do you mean?”

Fang Jing curled his lip. “Are you saying you have a way to turn me into a monster like Fujiwara?”

“Haha! A monster? You’re not wrong. In a sense, we really are ‘monsters.'”

Brown Glasses said dismissively, “But have you ever thought about how wonderful it is to become a ‘monster’ like us… As for Fujiwara, he’s just an inferior product. He lacks the quality; he could never grow into a powerful being. He can’t even regenerate. After all, he’s just trash transformed by taking pills. But with you, I can arrange a better method of transformation. Given your physical quality, I guarantee you’ll gain power far beyond Fujiwara’s—a completely transformed strength.”

“Power?”

A strange glint flashed in Fang Jing’s eyes.

“That’s right.”

Brown Glasses noticed his expression and smiled. “For example, an ageless and immortal body, most wounds healing on their own, physical abilities surpassing those of humans. After joining us… you won’t age anymore; you’ll remain in your most perfect state forever.”

“To us, ordinary humans are just lowly beings. In this dangerous world full of uncertainties, they live like flies and rats in the gutter. Even the more outstanding ones—when they get old, their strength declines; broken limbs can’t be restored; they can’t break through the limits of the flesh. Time wears down their spirit. The human body is ultimately just garbage…”

“So, are you willing to waste your exceptional quality, confined in such a fragile shell? Rather than becoming garbage, why not join ‘us’? With your quality, perhaps there’s potential for further transformation.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. Honestly, I don’t understand you…”

Fang Jing shook his head, pretending to be completely baffled.

At the same time, his mind was racing, searching for a way out of this situation.

(First… what exactly is this Brown Glasses’s intention?)

From what he said, there must be more than just one or two beings like him and Fujiwara — clearly a whole group, with a certain number.

What a joke — such ‘werewolf’-like monsters actually live in a modern city.

But if what he said was true, it really wasn’t something to laugh about.

Putting that aside, for himself, finding a way to safety was the most important thing.

He had to admit, if the other person was telling the truth, his offer was very tempting.

Brown Glasses said he could transform him into a monster, and after becoming a monster, he would possess power beyond that of humans.

From his description, transformed individuals would become something like vampires or werewolves — with agelessness and bodily regeneration.

However, Fang Jing didn’t believe his boastful claims — Fujiwara clearly wasn’t that strong; in fact, he was killed by Fang Jing barehanded. Also, this transformation must have side effects.

Fujiwara seemed to be a failed product, and the reason Brown Glasses valued him was because of his physical quality. That meant the transformation heavily depended on physical factors — a crucial point indicating that this “transformation” had flaws and side effects.

Although Fang Jing really wanted to become stronger, he didn’t want his strength to be limited by defects.

“Everything you’re saying is just empty talk. Fight me first! If you win, then we can talk about the rest!”

Facing the extremely dangerous Brown Glasses, he tensed his nerves and took a fighting stance.

…The enemy might be strong, so he didn’t plan to throw an egg at a rock. But Fang Jing thought… this Brown Glasses openly “invited” him and seemed to value him highly, so the other probably wouldn’t kill him right away.

Should he go along with the request, agree to the invitation, and then look for a chance to escape?

This guy might take him to the monsters’ lair for some transformation process.

Moreover, if he agreed to the invitation and then tried to run, it would totally enrage Brown Glasses, likely prompting him to kill Fang Jing immediately.

It seemed… he couldn’t outright refuse either — at the very least, that was definitely not the right choice and would only provoke him.

Judging by his demeanor, turning to run now might get him chased down and killed, so none of these responses were right.

Then, for now, pretending to be reckless and challenging him to a fight, then seizing a chance to escape, was the best option.

From Brown Glasses’s words and actions, he seemed to be the type who respected those with strength, a kind of mutual admiration.

And he looked down on Fujiwara, openly calling him trash.

That meant, the more Fang Jing demonstrated his strength, the better the other’s attitude would be.

And that was something Fang Jing could use to his advantage.

After analyzing the situation, he made a decision and boldly taunted, “Why don’t you show me some real proof… Talking nonsense that would fool a child — how can anyone believe that?”

“…”

Brown Glasses was taken aback at first, but soon he let out an abnormally wild laugh.

“You really are interesting.”

As he spoke, he flicked a thick screw bolt with his index finger, and it fell to the ground with a ding, making a strange sound.

—Wait, what did he just do?

Fang Jing widened his eyes, trying to observe Brown Glasses’s movements closely. Only then did he notice the man had his hand on the lowest level of the fire escape staircase, pulling out the screws with his bare fingers.

“You’re right. Proof is indeed needed. So, let’s begin…”

Brown Glasses pulled out several more screws with his fingers, then showed a slight smile.

With a loud crashing sound, his fist smashed into the fire escape staircase like a hammer.

Crack!

Crash!

Sounds of steel bars breaking, twisting, and collapsing rang out. The four-story-high fire escape staircase made eerie noises, and in the next moment, like a derailed train, the steel-frame structure toppled over, collapsing and falling toward the side where Fang Jing stood.

Damn it! You’re not playing by the rules!

Watching the fire escape staircase crash down on him, he regretted his decision immensely.