Chapter Ninety-Three: A Powerful Character

"Master, as I understand it, having multiple personalities is not really frightening at all—as long as their goals are the same."

"What if their goals are different?" A foreboding chill crept over Geng Haoshi.

"Then the mind would fracture, Master..."

"..." Geng Haoshi was too stunned for words. But after a moment he thought better of it; the most important thing was not to worry about that now. So he went on asking 9527, "Then when will he give up control? If his consciousness stays awake all the time, won't I never get out?" The more Geng Haoshi thought about it, the more uneasy he became.

"Master, please give me a little time. I'll try to connect your consciousness with his, just like I did with Geng Haoshi 2.0."

9527 began attempting to build a link between Geng Haoshi and Geng Haoshi X. For the moment, Geng Haoshi X still held control of Geng Haoshi's body.

"Nice shot!" Geng Haoshi X drove a straight punch into Tony's face, and Lin Ling cried out in delight.

"That's two points already!" Yang Mimi clenched her fist, her face alight with excitement.

"Ah—Senior—so amazing!" Li Shishi was still waving her arms and shouting from the sideline.

"Did Junior Two take some banned drug or something?" "Could he have been possessed?" "Or is this a burst of last-minute vitality?" ...The teammates stood frozen nearby, shocked, dumbfounded, unable to believe what they were seeing.

But no one was more astonished than Geng Haoshi himself. Along with astonishment came a faint trace of irritation—why were Geng Haoshi 2.0 and this guy both stronger than me? Aren't we one and the same?

Though he knew 9527 was busy trying to open a channel between himself and Geng Haoshi X, Geng Haoshi could not hold back any longer. "9527, why is it that with the same body, their personalities can make it move so well, but under my control it performs so ordinarily?"

9527 was about to answer when Geng Haoshi 2.0 cut in first: "What's there to ask? Obviously because our personalities are stronger than yours! ...Idiot!"

Geng Haoshi wanted nothing more than to slap Geng Haoshi 2.0 across the face several times, but then he thought: forget it, if I hit him, isn't that the same as hitting myself?

9527 cleared its throat. "Ahem, Master, as Geng Haoshi 2.0 said, their consciousnesses are indeed somewhat stronger than yours... well, much stronger, actually."

"..." Geng Haoshi was speechless for a moment, but still unconvinced. "Didn't Geng Haoshi 2.0 collapse after only ten or twenty minutes every time he came out? If he withers that fast, how can that count as a strong consciousness?"

He snorted coldly, feeling that this at least won back a little dignity.

After a brief silence, 9527 said softly, "Master, the reason he collapses after ten or twenty minutes is mainly because your own physique isn't strong enough. After the 'Power Surge' quickly drains your stamina, you... wither."

"..." Geng Haoshi was left dumbstruck: Damn it! I dug another pit and buried myself in it again!

On one side, Geng Haoshi, 9527, and Geng Haoshi 2.0 were talking in consciousness. On the other, Geng Haoshi X struck Tony's face again and scored another point.

"Wait, hasn't this guy already scored three points?... Yes, three points! ...Then the twenty-thousand-yuan assessment bonus is mine?!" Geng Haoshi grew excited again, briefly forgetting that his body was still under Geng Haoshi X's control.

Geng Haoshi X and Tony continued sparring for another twenty-plus minutes. As it drew close to eight in the evening, Tony finally stopped. "All right, it's almost eight. You still have basketball practice later, so let's call it a day."

Tony smiled at Geng Haoshi. "Junior Two, not bad... That twenty thousand goes to you."

"Ha! It's mine?" Geng Haoshi pumped both fists in excitement. ...Wait, have I taken back control of my body again?! Looking at his waving arms, Geng Haoshi thought: What happened? When did that guy step down?

At that moment, 9527 spoke up as well. "Master, your third consciousness has just gone offline. I can't get in touch with him for the moment..."

"Mm, he hit and ran... This guy still has a sense of measure," Geng Haoshi said with a nod, quite satisfied with his third personality.

P.S. Since this is Geng Haoshi's third personality, let's call him Geng Haoshi 3.0.

"What the hell, leaving without even saying goodbye." Geng Haoshi 2.0 sounded somewhat dismissive, then seemed to remember something and asked, "9527, this is really strange. Why can't I feel his presence at all?"

Geng Haoshi was puzzled by this as well. Normally, when Geng Haoshi 2.0 was not talking to him, he could still sense Geng Haoshi 2.0's presence; as long as he spoke in consciousness, he could immediately connect with him. But with Geng Haoshi 3.0, Geng Haoshi could not even sense where his consciousness was, let alone speak with him.

"This isn't difficult to explain," 9527 replied. "Every personality has its own neural circuit, like an isolated island of sorts. Under normal circumstances, when one personality among the multiple personalities occupies the primary consciousness, the other personalities remain in their own islands of consciousness, unable to communicate with one another. The reason Master and Geng Haoshi 2.0 can converse in real time is that under the strong intervention of 'Power Surge,' your consciousnesses were opened to one another. In other words, a bridge was built between your island of consciousness and Geng Haoshi 2.0's island of consciousness, allowing passage between them."

Geng Haoshi understood. "So Geng Haoshi 3.0's consciousness is now staying on his own island, and that island hasn't been opened to us yet, right?"

"Yes, Master." 9527 suddenly felt relieved. "Master, your intelligence seems to have improved."

"..." Geng Haoshi rolled his eyes and ignored 9527.

Just then, Zhu Di came over to Geng Haoshi and slapped him hard on the shoulder. "Junior Two, what are you spacing out about?"

"Nothing," Geng Haoshi said, coming back to himself.

"By the way, where's my twenty-thousand-yuan assessment bonus?" Geng Haoshi was already eager to touch the exquisite patterns on those banknotes.

Yu Manman walked behind the team and snapped a whip hard against the floor. "It's already eight o'clock! Start training now!"

The players all jumped, hurrying off to practice, leaving only Geng Haoshi still staring at Yu Manman...