Genius Club

“I’m your friend.”

“I don’t recall having a friend like you,” CC replied coldly.

Thud!

Lin Xian kicked the corpse on the ground. Blood trickled from the Rhine Cat mask, pooling beneath it. He stepped aside, giving CC a clearer view.

“The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”

CC remained silent, her gaze fixed on the Rhine Cat mask adorning the corpse, taking in every detail.

“You lured Big Cat Face here with tales of hidden money and gold bricks in the warehouse,” Lin Xian circled around to the other side of the body, facing CC. “Once the truth was revealed, a showdown was inevitable. It was uncertain who would survive.”

“Now that I’ve eliminated this threat for you, doesn’t that make me your friend?”

CC clutched her gun, her stance tense. “Why should I trust you?”

Lin Xian gave a slight smile, slowly lifted his gun, then flipped it, presenting the handle toward her. He tossed it across the warehouse floor. “Does this demonstrate my sincerity? Now, I want to see yours.”

“We share a common goal—to crack open Lin Xian’s safe. You can take whatever you find inside; I just want the information.”

“You need to decide quickly. The power will be back soon, and once the alarm sounds, our window closes.”

After a moment’s hesitation, CC mimicked Lin Xian, throwing her gun away as well. It arced gracefully—Thud.

Her gun struck the safe with a dull clang and rolled to a stop.

Click!

A gun barrel pressed against the back of CC’s head. Big Cat Face slowly emerged from his hiding place behind a cabinet.

“Liar.” CC stared at Lin Xian through her mask, her eyes filled with deep disappointment.

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“You’re the real liar!” Big Cat Face yelled, enraged. “If my brother hadn’t seen through your scheme, I’d be dead because of you!”

His grip on his gun tightened as he seethed. “If it weren’t for my brother holding me back, you’d already be dead!”

Lin Xian gestured for calm and addressed CC seriously, “Let’s reassess the situation. I have no intention of harming you or anyone else. I just need an answer from you. After that, you can do as you please with the safe. We won’t interfere. And I promise, I’ll help Big Cat Face secure the funds he needs. We’re all here driven by our interests; let’s avoid unnecessary conflict.”

CC, always pragmatic, recognized the truth in his words. “What do you want to know?” she asked quietly.

Lin Xian loosened the strap of his mask and removed it, taking a deep breath as he looked directly at CC. “Do you know me?”

“No.” CC shook her head.

“Have you ever seen or heard of me before?”

“No,” she replied again.

Lin Xian rubbed his temple, puzzled. “Think about this—when you see or hear me, does anything come to mind? A person, an event? Is there a reason you treat me differently? You could easily have eliminated Big Cat Face, but you hesitated with me.”

Even Big Cat Face, despite his anger, couldn’t suppress a chuckle. The situation seemed overly dramatic, like a soap opera. Yet CC remained impassive, not reacting like Big Cat Face. Her gaze was fixed on Lin Xian, inscrutable behind her mask.

Lin Xian’s eyes narrowed; he sensed a breakthrough. CC must have recognized something in him, which explained why she saved him in their past encounters and refrained from killing him.

“Speak!” Big Cat Face demanded. Silence followed. CC didn’t respond.

“Is this secret worth more than your life?” Lin Xian asked, his tone a mix of frustration and curiosity.

“Humph…” CC scoffed, her expression one of disdain. “That depends on whether you’re brave enough to end my life.”

“Damn you! Do you think I won’t?” Big Cat Face, unable to contain himself, aimed his gun at CC’s temple with renewed vigor.

CC raised her hands slowly, placing them behind her head. “Big Cat Face,” she began softly.

His anger peaked. “There’s no cash here, but that safe holds something crucial for you.”

“What… what did you say?”

Big Cat Face’s eyes widened in panic. “Something crucial for me?”

CC’s smile was cryptic as she watched him. “Consider this—if the safe had nothing of value to you, why would I involve you? I want to open it for both our benefits.”

In an instant, realization dawned on Big Cat Face. “An invitation!” he exclaimed. “Are you saying it contains an invite to the Genius Club?”

CC remained silent, her smile enigmatic.

“Don’t listen to her!” Lin Xian intervened, seeing Big Cat Face’s confusion escalate. “She’s bluffing. She doesn’t know what’s in the safe any more than any of us!”

“Do you dare to bet?” CC challenged Big Cat Face directly, her eyes piercing. “This could be your only chance.”

Big Cat Face’s face flushed with a mix of doubt and anticipation. He glanced between CC and Lin Xian, then back at the safe, unable to decide whom to trust.

Bang!!!

A deafening gunshot echoed through the warehouse.

Big Cat Face’s head burst open, his body collapsing like a felled tree!

Lin Xian staggered back in shock…

CC’s hair flowed loosely around her shoulders, the red ribbon that had bound it fluttering slowly to the ground. In her hand was a gun, previously concealed within her hair.

Thud.

Big Cat Face’s body hit the ground heavily.

“Take a guess… will I kill you?” CC advanced toward Lin Xian, gun aimed and ready.