Sin Becomes a God

Chapter 4: Tricking Chen Jinnan

Since graduating from a third-rate vocational college, a string of failed job interviews had already brought Lu Renjia out of his fantasy phase—where his ambitions soared as high as the sky but his fate was as fragile as paper. Faced with the cold, harsh pressure of reality, Lu Renjia understood himself better than anyone else. Although Lu Renjia had now, through soul-travel, possessed the body of Feng Xifan—a legendary martial arts master—in the world of the film adaptation of *The Deer and the Cauldron*, and had even received a “newbie starter pack” from the “Evil God System,” he did not believe that these advantages alone would be enough to take down Ao Bai. After all, based on his memories of watching *The Deer and the Cauldron* back then, it would be no exaggeration to say that Ao Bai was the greatest martial artist in the film adaptation. Had it not been for Stephen Chow’s protagonist aura shattering his “Thirteen Protectors’ Horizontal Refinement Golden Bell Shield,” no one—not Eunuch Hai, the Sacred Maiden of the Divine Dragon Sect, nor Chen Jinnan—would have stood a chance against him. Although in the original storyline, Feng Xifan—with the assistance of the “Six Harmonies Boy”—managed to capture Chen Jinnan alive, seemingly matching Ao Bai’s prowess, one must not forget that Ao Bai had severely wounded Chen Jinnan even while his inner energy was restrained by nine Divine Dragon Daggers. Moreover, Lu Renjia was merely using the “Evil God System” to take over Feng Xifan’s body,and his soul had merely taken possession of Feng Xifan’s body—meaning he could only harness about eighty percent of Feng Xifan’s original martial arts prowess. Without teaming up with Chen Jinnan and the Holy Maiden of the Divine Dragon Sect—two formidable masters—Lu Renjia wouldn’t have had the guts to take on Ao Bai single-handedly. Rushing as fast as he could, Feng Xifan—riding the thousand-li horse gifted to him by Prince Pingxi Wu Sangui—traveled day and night without rest or sleep and finally arrived in the capital. Over the years, with the massive financial backing of Prince Wu Sangui, Feng Xifan—who had risen from the martial arts underworld—had thrived. Not only had he planted spies deep within the imperial palace, but he had also gathered extensive intelligence on various martial arts factions. Lu Renjia, having inherited Feng Xifan’s memories, was undoubtedly the beneficiary of all this. Armed with all the intelligence from his memories regarding the Heaven and Earth Union and Chen Jinnan, Lu Renjia rode that thousand-li horse, accompanied by the “Six Harmonies Disciple”—who had long since changed into black robes—to a manor on the outskirts of the capital. With the keen eye of a martial artist of Feng Xifan’s caliber, he could naturally tell that every farmer walking or working in the vicinity was a skilled martial artist. “Whoa…” Lu Renjia pulled tight on the reins, and the thousand-li steed beneath him snorted and came to a halt. Gathering his inner energy, Lu Renjia shouted, “Junior Brother… It’s been several years since we last met… Why not come out to greet your Senior Brother on this visit…?” The roar, emanating from his profound inner energy, spread out like the sound of evening drums and morning bells. The farmers working in the fields immediately braced for battle. Though they didn’t know who the “junior brother” mentioned by the white-haired, baby-faced old man was, such profound inner strength could only mean the visitor meant them harm. Gripping their hoes and sickles, they swiftly surrounded Feng Xifan and his party of seven. This sudden commotion startled Chen Jinnan, who was inside the estate plotting an assassination attempt on Ao Bai. “Why has he come?” Chen Jinnan asked in puzzlement. Seeing this, the head of the Qingmu Hall, standing nearby, asked, “Grand Master… the newcomer possesses profound inner strength. Could it be your senior brother, Feng Xifan? I’ve heard he defected to the ranks of that traitor Wu Sangui and, over the years, has helped that great traitor exploit the people’s wealth…” Although Chen Jinnan had not killed Feng Xifan back then, he still held his senior brother in considerable awe,After all, they had trained together since childhood, and Chen Jinnan knew his senior brother’s martial arts talent inside and out. Although their master had passed down the secret technique “Blood-Coagulating Divine Claw” to him and expelled Feng Xifan from the sect, it was said that after Feng Xifan’s defeat at Chen Jinnan’s hands, he went into seclusion for fifteen years. Upon emerging, he challenged countless martial arts masters in Jiangnan, becoming unrivaled in fame for a time,Eventually, he was recruited by Prince Wu San-gui of Pingxi and became known as the foremost martial artist in the Prince of Pingxi’s court. After a moment of deep thought, Chen Jinnan spoke before his men: “No rush… Since he’s come alone, I’ll have a go at him… Hmph! I was able to defeat him back then, and I can still do so now…” “The Grand Master’s divine martial arts are peerless in this world!!” “Grand Master Shi Bo Yuntian…” Wave after wave of flattering sycophancy made Chen Jinnan feel incredibly comfortable. Lu Renjia, seated calmly on his horse, remained unflappable. The reason was simple: aside from his unwavering faith in the “Newbie Pack” bestowed by the “Evil God System,” he also had complete confidence in his own martial arts skills. If he could capture Chen Jinnan—the Heaven and Earth Society’s top martial artist—alive, surely he could take down these worthless scoundrels? Looking up at the sky at a 45-degree angle, Lu Renjia saw a man in a white robe slowly emerge from the mountain villa, followed by seventy or eighty burly men. It must be said that Chen Jinnan, portrayed by Liu Songren, exuded both elegance and the aura of a martial arts master—a far more captivating sight than the malicious glint in the eyes of Feng Xifan, the man inhabiting Lu Renjia’s body. “Junior Brother… It’s been several years since we last met. Have you been well?” “Hmph! Thank you for your concern, Senior Brother… Now that you are a guest of honor at the Prince of Pingxi’s court, what brings you to this desolate mountain wilderness? Do you intend to lead troops to crush us, these anti-Qing patriots? Or do you wish to trade my, Chen Jinnan’s, head for fame and fortune?” Chen Jinnan asked with righteous indignation, while the Heaven and Earth Society members behind him stood their ground. Accusations of being a “traitor” and a “collaborator” rained down on Feng Xifan like a storm. Although the soul inhabiting this body at the moment was Lu Renjia’s, facing the verbal abuse of hundreds of people right to his face, even a clay figurine would lose its temper. “Damn it!! Do I eat your rice or use your Wi-Fi? I’ve only said ten words…” Suppressing his inner rage, Lu Renjia forced a smile and said, “Junior Brother, I’ve never forgotten the mercy you showed me by sparing my life all those years ago. How could I possibly repay kindness with betrayal? I’ve come today to discuss a matter of great importance… Might you please ask your attendants to step aside?” Watching Feng Xifan constantly refer to “favor” and “junior brother,” Chen Jinnan began to feel confused. In Chen Jinnan’s memory, this senior brother of his had always been a competitive and headstrong man; the fact that he was now lowering his stance like this clearly demonstrated his sincerity. As the Grand Master of the Heaven and Earth Society, standing before all his subordinates, Chen Jinnan—though harboring doubts—could not afford to lose face. “Very well! Follow me…” With that, Chen Jinnan turned and walked toward the interior of the mountain villa. Lu Renjia immediately gave an order to the “Six Harmonies Disciples” behind him: “Wait here. Do not act rashly…” “As you command, Master!” the Liuhe Tongzi replied, moving like a puppet. After dismounting, Feng Xifan deliberately unstrapped the two thirty-jin-heavy pudao from his back before following Chen Jinnan inside. Out of the corner of his eye, Chen Jinnan caught Feng Xifan’s action and paused in surprise. “What’s this sneaky, despicable fellow up to? He isn’t even carrying a weapon? Could it be that Wu Sangui is trying to recruit me?” Unlike Wu Sangui’s opulent Prince of Pingxi Mansion, the Heaven and Earth Society’s headquarters was, at best, only slightly more impressive than an ordinary wealthy household. In the main hall hung a plaque inscribed with “Heavenly Father, Earthly Mother,” flanked on either side by the classic couplet: “The earth trembles on the high ridge—a branch of the Western Mountains, timeless in its beauty; the gate faces the sea—the Sanhe River flows for ten thousand years.” “Hmph! You drove my master to his death all those years ago. So what? Now that you’ve climbed the social ladder, you’re here to laugh at me? Do you think it’s such a big deal to collect a monthly salary of several thousand taels from Wu Sangui, the Prince of Pingxi? “That’s all the people’s hard-earned money! Do you think it’s something special to have beauties accompanying you wherever you go? Let me tell you… even if you brought mountains of gold and silver here today and offered up hundreds of beauties, I, Chen Jinnan, would never betray His Imperial Highness!” Chen Jinnan’s words, spoken with righteous indignation, made Lu Renjia sense a hint of bitterness. It felt just like a class reunion after a long separation, where the former top student and the former underachiever meet again—only now, the underachiever has far outdone the top student. And Chen Jinnan, the former top student, naturally looked down on Feng Xifan, the former underachiever, with an air of haughty disdain for the wealth he’d acquired through despicable and underhanded means. Lu Renjia’s mouth twitched slightly, and he thought to himself, “I haven’t even tried to recruit you yet… and you’ve already named your price… Hero, could you show a little more restraint? Sigh… I guess that’s what happens when you end up in Stephen Chow’s version of *The Deer and the Cauldron*…” Lu Renjia glanced around. Seeing that no one was nearby, an idea struck him, and the “Evil God System” dialog box appeared in his mind. He clicked on “Newbie Gift Pack.” He silently chanted, “Activate the ‘Talking Nonsense’ skill!” “Hum…” A strange red glow flashed. The moment the “Bluster” package unfolded, Lu Renjia could clearly feel as if he’d become a pyramid scheme lecturer who twisted the truth—even more brazen than that Crazy English guru Li So-and-so, who dared to bellow at tens of thousands of people. “Hehe… Junior Brother, it seems you’ve already guessed why I’m here. We’re all smart people, so I won’t waste time trying to recruit you. If you don’t want to betray His Imperial Majesty, I won’t force you—but then again…My main reason for coming to the capital this time is to eliminate Ao Bai. It’s a win-win situation—after all, you guys in the Heaven and Earth Society are also looking to take out that scoundrel Ao Bai. And let’s face it, a green, wet-behind-the-ears kid like Kangxi is far easier to deal with than that bastard Ao Bai. While Ao Bai hasn’t yet deposed Kangxi and crowned himself emperor, why don’t we… join forces?” Under the influence of the “Off-the-Cuff” skill provided by the “Evil God System,” Chen Jinnan was tempted. Over the years, the Heaven and Earth Society had plotted countless assassination attempts against Ao Bai, but Ao Bai’s martial arts skills were no joke—even Chen Jinnan himself wouldn’t dare take him on head-on. With the addition of Feng Xifan, a master of his own right, Chen Jinnan was confident he could eliminate Ao Bai. “You want to assassinate Ao Bai?” Chen Jinnan probed. “Hehe… I have no grudge against him, and besides, Ao Bai’s martial arts are on par with mine. If it weren’t for the Prince of Pingxi’s orders, I wouldn’t take such a risk! Junior Brother… if the two of us join forces to take out Ao Bai, you’ll earn a major merit in the eyes of His Imperial Highness. Besides, even if—by some chance—the Prince of Pingxi were to take control of the Central Plains in the future, wouldn’t you be able to secure some official position thanks to your merit in assassinating that villain Ao Bai? No matter how you look at it, you’ve got nothing to lose…” Lu Renjia chuckled slyly. “Alright! When and where?” “I’ll let you know once I’ve arrived in the capital and worked out the details…” Seeing that Chen Jinnan had agreed under the influence of the “Talking Out of Both Sides of His Mouth” skill, Lu Renjia was secretly delighted. According to Feng Xifan’s memories, Chen Jinnan was a top-tier martial artist who had opened three of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians, and his strength was only slightly inferior to his own. With Chen Jinnan as an ally, he was confident that their chances of killing Ao Bai would increase significantly.