Chapter 268: Chapter 268: What Skills Does the Golden Toad Have?_1
"Boss, you’re thinking of giving them a lift?" As soon as Zhao Yuansi saw Su Xuan slowing down, he asked him anxiously.
The two people trying to flag down a car were none other than Zhao Ling and Wei Haojie.
"It wouldn’t hurt to give them a ride." A playful smile touched Su Xuan’s lips. He rolled down the window and said to the two men, "Hop in!"
"This..." Zhao Ling and Wei Haojie hesitated. They hadn’t expected the random car they flagged down to be Su Xuan’s.
They were enemies. Was it appropriate to ride in the same car?
"If you’re not getting in, I’m leaving." Su Xuan started to roll the window back up.
"Get in!" Zhao Ling shot Wei Haojie a look, then opened the back door and climbed inside. Wei Haojie had no choice but to follow.
In reality, if they didn’t get a ride from Su Xuan, they wouldn’t be able to find another car. They didn’t have money for a taxi, either.
After getting in, the two of them sat bolt upright in the back seat, their expressions grim.
"I don’t believe I’ve gotten your names," Su Xuan said, glancing at them in the rearview mirror.
"My surname is Zhao, given name Ling."
"I’m Wei Haojie."
The two of them stated their names.
"Oh, so it’s Brother Zhao and Brother Wei." Su Xuan glanced at them in the mirror again before suddenly asking, "Brother Wei, what happened to your face? I don’t remember hitting you there when we fought."
There was a scratch on Wei Haojie’s face. It hadn’t scabbed over yet and was clearly a fresh wound.
"Ugh, don’t even ask. He’s had some terrible luck tonight," Zhao Ling answered for Wei Haojie. "When he was leaving that village, the trunk of a tree by the road suddenly snapped. It grazed his face as it fell. Luckily, he dodged quickly. Otherwise, he would’ve been crushed half to death."
"That is some bad luck," Su Xuan commented, glancing at Zhao Yuansi in the passenger seat.
Zhao Yuansi gave Su Xuan a mysterious nod.
The two of them had a pretty good idea of what was going on. It looked like an accident, but it was anything but. This was most likely retaliation from Zhuilong Mountain, as Zhao Ling and Wei Haojie were now burdened by its curse.
"By the way, what’s the name of your organization... or sect?" Su Xuan asked, making small talk.
"It’s called the Five Poisons Sect," Zhao Ling replied.
"Sounds like it has a real martial-world flair," Su Xuan said.
"Yes, yes." Zhao Ling responded a bit awkwardly. "Our sect has a history of two to three hundred years. A hundred years ago was our most prosperous period, but we’ve declined in recent years because people don’t really believe in this stuff anymore."
"Times have changed, huh?" Su Xuan said. "In the sect, can you use your phones and all that?"
"We can," Zhao Ling said. "We can also watch TV, work out, play sports, that kind of thing."
"That’s pretty good."
"Brother Su, could I have a cigarette?" Zhao Ling suddenly asked.
"Go ahead."
Su Xuan rolled down the rear window for him. He wasn’t driving for Didi again tonight, so a little smoke didn’t matter.
"Thanks!"
Zhao Ling took out a cigarette and placed it between his lips. Just as he was about to pull out his lighter, Wei Haojie reached over and asked for one, too.
They both really wanted a smoke. They were by no means friends with Su Xuan, yet here they were, sitting in his car and chatting like old pals. The mood was indescribably strange, and they thought a cigarette might help ease the bizarre feeling.
FLICK!
Zhao Ling took out his lighter and sparked a flame.
Just then, the unexpected happened!
BOOM!
The lighter suddenly exploded. A ball of fire erupted in front of Zhao Ling and Wei Haojie, then vanished without a trace.
SCREECH!
Su Xuan slammed on the brakes, pulling the car over to the side of the road. He turned to look at the two men in the back.
Their faces were blackened with soot and their hair was singed, still faintly smoking.
"What happened?" Su Xuan asked, trying to suppress his laughter.
"The lighter must have leaked... it just blew up," Zhao Ling said, patting his hair and wiping his face with his sleeve. He glanced at Wei Haojie, then said to Su Xuan, "Sorry for the spectacle, Brother Su. We’re fine, you can keep driving."
"Alright."
Su Xuan started the car again, shooting another glance at Zhao Yuansi, who once again gave him a mysterious nod.
The curse from Zhuilong Mountain is truly formidable! If that had been a gas canister in Zhao Ling’s hand instead of a lighter, they’d definitely be dead!
"Here, use this," Su Xuan said, pushing in the car’s cigarette lighter and passing it back to Zhao Ling once it was hot.
"Many thanks!" Zhao Ling thanked Su Xuan again. Finally, he and Wei Haojie were able to light their cigarettes.
"Brother Wei, I’d like to ask you something," Su Xuan suddenly said to the taciturn Wei Haojie. "What kind of tricks can your poison toad do?"
He wanted to learn a couple of ways to control the poison toad so he could go home and amuse his younger siblings.
"It has many abilities," Wei Haojie said, looking at the back of Su Xuan’s head. "Which aspect are you asking about?"
"Anything that would amuse kids?" Su Xuan asked.
"Uh..." Wei Haojie’s mouth twitched. My poison toad is a killing tool, and you want to use it to entertain children? Isn’t that a massive underutilization?
Nevertheless, he patiently explained to Su Xuan, "It can do a handstand, roll over, and even walk upright. As for hopping and jumping, that goes without saying—it’s second nature to it."
"Would you be willing to teach me?" Su Xuan asked.
"I... I can!"
With a sour expression, Wei Haojie explained the methods for controlling its movements to Su Xuan.
To make the demonstration easier, Su Xuan even placed the poison toad on the car’s center console. The toad was a brilliant gold. Sitting there, it looked just like one of those money toads meant to attract wealth; all it was missing was a coin in its mouth.
Before long, Su Xuan had learned the control methods, steering with one hand while holding the flute in the other.
Wanting Su Xuan to appreciate the true value of his poison toad, Wei Haojie also taught him a killing technique.
Su Xuan learned that as well.
"Alright, we’re in the city. You two can get out here." After a while, the car entered the downtown area, and Su Xuan dropped Zhao Ling and Wei Haojie off at the side of the road. He didn’t dare let them stay in his car for too long. A curse was following them, and if another "accident" happened, he and Zhao Yuansi might get caught up in it.
"Brother Zhao, Brother Wei, I know you’re coming after me on official business, and I can understand that," Su Xuan said after they got out of the car. "But I want to say, next time you come looking for trouble, don’t do it sneakily. You’re more than welcome to come at me openly. How about it?"
"Yes, yes," the two men replied hastily. "Next time we look for you, we’ll be sure to knock on your door."
"Farewell, then!" Su Xuan bid them farewell with a classic martial-world flourish.
As his car drove off into the distance, Zhao Ling and Wei Haojie sighed in frustration.
What was that all about? Were they actually acting like friends?
When Su Xuan dropped off Zhao Yuansi and returned to his own home, he encountered someone...