292: Poor acting

"Di Renjie, look at me now. Do I look like a wandering hero?"

Dressed in short, practical clothes, long hair flowing, a long sword hanging at his waist—what a dashing, carefree young hero.

"Holy Monk, by dressing like this, could it be that you want to..."

Before Di Renjie could finish his sentence, the wandering hero that Tang Ku had transformed into smiled slightly, his body moving onto the roof beam, indescribably dashing and elegant.

"If one is fishing, how can there be no bait?"

Tang Ku smiled slightly, "Since they want young talents, then I will give them a young talent... Hmm, there have been no missing persons in the last two days, so today is just the right time to try it their way..."

As he spoke, Tang Ku leaped over houses and across ridges, heading in another direction. His movements were agile, but he did not reveal his true strength. Come to think of it, Di Renjie was actually like someone in a movie, really knowing martial arts, and it seemed quite good. He followed closely behind Tang Ku. The two of them, one after the other, leaped over walls and walked on roofs in Bianzhou, crossing half the city in search of an opportunity to perform a chivalrous act.

However, they returned to the yamen at dusk, feeling extremely disappointed.

Because people were in a panic, regardless of their social class, everyone was terrified even to go out for a stroll, so where would any bullies or madmen dare to come out and cause trouble?

Helpless, the two returned to the yamen and discussed for half the night before setting another plan: to recruit people to pretend to be landlords, bullies, and the like, and stage a play to see if it would have any effect.

The next day, on the main street, a rather attractive woman in plain clothes was being harassed in public by a bully leading a group of evil servants, who wanted to forcibly take this widow home to be his concubine. The woman's elderly father tried to stop them but was beaten until his head was broken and bleeding, his condition so miserable that it made people feel pity...

Well, these bullies, thugs, and the woman's father were all played by yamen officers. As for the attractive woman, she was a singer found from a local brothel. The acting of this group was so exaggerated, and their movements and expressions so stiff, that Tang Ku could not bear to watch.

Di Renjie, standing to the side, also twitched his mouth and persuaded: "Holy Monk, do not blame them. In such a rush, this is the best they could do. Although it is embarrassing, it is at least a pretext... Hmm, when shall we make our move?"

Tang Ku said helplessly: "Let's go now, otherwise I will die of embarrassment..."

The two young heroes finally made their move. These two were not only handsome but also highly skilled in martial arts. They fought with these "bullies" and saved the two innocent people. The people on the street all clapped and cheered... This made Tang Ku feel so ashamed he wanted to hide. It must be said that the customs of the Tang Dynasty were still very simple and honest; even such a flawed play could be taken seriously.

However, the matter was successfully glossed over for the day. Of course, Tang Ku did not really pin his hopes on such clumsy acting; he just considered it a last-ditch effort.

Looking up at the sky, Di Renjie could not help but frown slightly: "Why is there no movement at all? Could it be that our acting was too fake?"

"Those missing persons all disappeared from their own homes. I think it is not yet time... Hmm, let's go back to the yamen and wait. Perhaps they will come after nightfall..." Tang Ku suddenly said in a deep voice, "Master Di, this matter actually carries considerable risk. It is best that you and I stay together. In case we encounter any danger, Poor Monk can save you. You must know, someone with such ability is not simple; it is not a role that an ordinary Martial Artist can deal with!"

"Holy Monk, rest assured, I understand!"

Di Renjie nodded.

Having finished their performance, they were actually exhausted, not because they had consumed physical strength, but because of the high mental pressure. So, when the two returned to the yamen, they prepared wine and food and began to eat and drink in a guest room.

During the meal, Tang Ku asked him more than once if he was willing to return to Chang'an with him, and revealed that he could help him rise to the top and become the chief minister of the dynasty. But Di Renjie politely declined Tang Ku's kindness, the reason being that he wanted to accomplish something in the local area and climb up step by step based on his own true ability.

With wine flowing and spirits high, the two chatted quite congenially. Looking at Di Renjie, he was already eight parts drunk... After all, as a Mortal, his body could not compare to Tang Ku's. After half a jin of wine, he was already a bit dizzy. Although most Tang Dynasty wines had very low alcohol content, drinking too much could still make one drunk, especially since Di Renjie's tolerance was really not very good.

Just as Di Renjie stood up unsteadily, intending to go out to relieve himself before returning to drink, he was suddenly stunned. His whole body froze in place, staring motionlessly at the sky, his eyes wide and blank, as if he had lost his soul.

"Oh... is it time?"

Tang Ku smiled slightly. His Void Eye had already seen a strange energy permeating the air, distributed all around, but it was completely invisible to the naked eye.

Suddenly, a huge suction force seemed to descend from the sky. Di Renjie on the opposite side trembled all over, and his whole person disappeared instantly. His clothes, however, fell to the ground like a snake shedding its skin, and even the jade pendant, metal belt buckle, and even the hairpin on his head fell to the ground.

"Some kind of teleportation device? For some reason, it can only take the body away, but not other things? Hehe, this is strange... Hmm, is it my turn?"

A huge suction force hit him suddenly. Tang Ku only saw a flash of strong light before his eyes, and a very strong brainwave was constantly being transmitted, seemingly trying to hypnotize him. However, Tang Ku's will was firm; how could he be defeated by this level of hypnosis? He couldn't help but narrow his eyes slightly, pretending that he had been controlled, and then he also disappeared from the room. The only difference from Di Renjie was that he used Buddha Power to protect his clothes and items, and he did not end up naked.

"!?"

After the strong light, Tang Ku opened his eyes and was shocked to find himself in a huge, dimly lit space. In front, behind, to the left, and to the right of him, there were countless naked men of completely different heights standing in a phalanx!

And directly opposite him was Di Renjie, who had been captured in the same way.

Looking up, under the illumination of strong spotlights on the highly technological dome, it still could not make the place look bright, which showed that the height of this dome was beyond imagination.

Not far away, above a high platform, there was actually a wide observation window. Then Tang Ku saw a few guys with big heads and thin necks, and big eyeballs like aliens, pointing at this direction, as if they were a group of numbered commodities being wholesaled!