The Deceitful One



Bryan stood in front of an abandoned building and scouted the surroundings first. He found that not a lot of people were around.

He took out his pocket watch to check the time, "Hmm, ten minutes to 2."

"Time to raise some hell." He grinned as he headed inside the entrance of the building. He brought his fedora hat and brought it in front of his face.

His face twisted and contorted for a few moments, and then changed to a brand new face. This was the face that he had never worn before. This was also the face that he loathed with all his being.

The face was that of a young man in his twenties. He had brown hair and a neatly trimmed mustache of the same color. And his eyes… They were the darkest shade of red! Of course, they weren't visible beneath his sunglasses.

This face belonged to none other than Ron!

Bryan wasn't planning to hide his face at all for this secret gathering. Well, technically he had already concealed his face beneath that of Ron's.

The reason why he was doing this was firstly, he wanted to bring some trouble to Ron. And secondly, if anyone happened to recognize this face then Bryan could effectively find out the whereabouts of Ron!

And how would he do that?

Simple. He would visit the dream of whoever recognized this face! Of course, Bryan would limit himself to wearing Ron's face only at secret gatherings, until he found out his whereabouts.

He had also factored in all the disadvantages that wearing Ron's face could bring him. If he was attacked by others thinking that he was from the Holy Blood Sect, then he would simply change his face once again and escape.

Bryan was slowly beginning to realize the true terror of the mask, Deceit!

He walked towards the basement of the building. At the other end of the basement, he saw two figures wearing robes and guarding a metal door.

Bryan approached them and gave them the secret code required for entering the secret convention. The guards standing by the door nodded and made way for him.

However, they couldn't help but wonder if Bryan was simply too bold or just an idiot. They were puzzled as to why he wasn't wearing a mask to conceal his identity. But little did they know…

Bryan walked inside and soon found himself in a small underground cavern. He was quite taken aback that there was actually an underground cave right underneath a ten-storied building.

As he observed the walls and the ceiling of this cavern, his eyes lit up as he thought inwardly, 'I see… the walls and ceiling are strengthened by runes! No wonder this place hasn't caved in yet.'

The people wearing cloaks and masks who had already seated themselves in this gathering looked at Bryan and couldn't help but wonder just what gave him the courage to come here without hiding his identity.

Some were looking at him with a sneer, while others pitying his stupidity. Bryan also noticed a few people who seemed to recognize him!

When Bryan realized this, he couldn't help but smirk. The people already gathered at the convention misunderstood Bryan's smirk to be that of confidence.

He soon took a seat and patiently waited for the convention to begin. All the while, the smile on his face never faded.

Inwardly he was thinking, 'This is sure to get Ron into some trouble, hehe.'

After all, he could feel hostility from the gazes of some of the people gathered. Moreover, he could also sense concern from some of the people.

Bryan felt that even if he didn't acquire any of the ingredients for the potion recipe for his advancement to Rank 2, this trip to the secret gathering was definitely worth it.

Soon, the convener of the gathering had declared the beginning of the convention. The Transcendents that had gathered, went on to sell and buy items. Some bargained intensely, while others completed their transactions without many problems.

Bryan silently sat there and watched everything take place. Fifteen minutes into the convention, he realized that none of the people present had what he wanted.

He didn't know if they actually didn't have these specific items or if they didn't wish to conduct business with him, considering that they knew exactly who this face belonged to.

After all, the Holy Blood Sect and its members were hated everywhere they went. And their striking eye color was quite the giveaway.

Bryan only hoped that the strongest person in the gathering, which was usually always the convener, didn't have any grudges against the Holy Blood Sect. Although he was confident in his ability to escape, it would definitely be troublesome.

Seeing that no one had the ingredients that he wanted, in the end, he could only place an order for it so that he could get it in the future. Unsurprisingly, he received very few responses.

And soon, the gathering came to an end. One by one, people got up from their seats and began to depart individually or in groups.

When it was Bryan's turn, he slowly got up from his seat and looked around the room with a cocky smile on his face. He then took one of the tunnel exits and soon left the cavern.

The exit led to another abandoned building a couple of blocks away. Bryan looked around and saw that no one was in the vicinity.

He then slowly jogged towards an alleyway, giving ample time for people to follow him. As Bryan entered the alley, he saw that the path ahead was a dead end. His lips couldn't help but curl up into a smirk.

Bryan walked towards the end of the alley and then turned around, his back facing the wall. He looked at the entrance of the alley and mumbled, "Now, who will it be? A friend…or a foe."

And he was right! Not even five minutes had passed and already two figures clad in black robes had arrived at the entrance of the alley.

They stopped and looked in Bryan's direction for a few moments and then finally walked toward him. Since they were wearing hooded cloaks, Bryan could naturally not see their faces.

However, from the aura they were emanating, he could tell that these two people were Rank 2 Transcendents!

Bryan wasn't worried in the least. After all, his physique was already compared to a Rank 2 Transcendent. Hence, he was confident in his ability to battle two Rank 2s at the same time.

Although he wouldn't be able to kill either of them if they fought head-on, he would most definitely be able to escape.

Bryan intently looked at the two figures slowly walking towards him. Meanwhile, the two figures were also doing the same. They stopped just a dozen feet away from Bryan, the stare-down intensifying.

A few moments later, the two figures removed their hoods and knelt down in front of Bryan!

"Greetings, Master Ron." The two figures spoke simultaneously.

Bryan's eyes lit up as he saw the appearance of the two figures. They had red eyes! He was overjoyed that he was able to hook the prey just like he had intended to.

However, on the surface, he showed an expression of disappointment, "Tsk! So, it's you guys."

One of the figures raised his head and asked respectfully, "Master, were you expecting someone else?"

Bryan replied with a scoff, "Why else do you think I wantonly showed my face at the secret gathering?"

The two figures came to a realization, "I see! So that was the reason."

"Anyways, it looks like my trap failed," Bryan replied, "Let's go back to our base."

The two figures got up to their feet and bowed, "Yes Master!"

Although the two figures were Rank 2 Transcendents, they showed proper respect and etiquette to 'Ron'. This was naturally because of Sean Marx.

Bryan believed that people in the Holy Blood Sect were surely aware of the teacher-student relationship that the two shared.

But more importantly, from the behavior of the two people in front of him, Bryan deduced that Ron might also have advanced to a Rank 2 Transcendent!

It made sense because more than a year had passed since the incident at Damascus. And at the time Ron had already reached the peak of Rank 1.

The two figures turned around and led the way. All Bryan had to do was follow. He didn't have to go to the base of the Holy Blood Sect with them. All he needed was for one of them to be asleep!

As the three people traversed the narrow alleys of Nadir, Bryan who was running right behind them, couldn't help but smile coldly.

His eyes narrowed and the next moment, four long tendrils protruded from his back!

One of the tendrils accurately stabbed the back and pierced the heart of the person on the left, while one of his other tendrils coiled around the second person and instantly bind him tightly.

"Aaarrggghh!!" The person on the left saw a silver tendril pierce his back and come out from inside his chest! He turned his head with great difficulty and looked at Bryan in disbelief.

The other person, unable to free himself from Bryan's tendril's hold, looked at him and muttered in fear, "Y-You're not Ron!"

Bryan looked at him and grinned, "No, I'm not."

"W-Who are you?" The person who had been stabbed asked as he coughed up blood.

Bryan, through his tendril, brought the person closer to him. His right palm turned into a long and sharp claw! He grabbed the person's head with his claw and muttered coldly, "Dead men don't need to know."