Act16 Iron Hand
Foreword:
There is no such thing as absolute sorrow, just as there is no such thing as absolute joy.
Leo Tolstoy | War and Peace
[Part 1: The Lion Hunts the Rabbit]
"Storm Eye of the Storm!"
CC invoked the spirit power of Lord Pellegrini, and the strong hawk-faced humanoid once again rose from the flesh!
It flapped its wings, clenched its powerful steel fists, and with a bluish-gray gale between its fingers, it pressed close behind CC as it sprinted forward!
The two were only 150 centimeters apart when Storm Eye's straight punch was already thrown.
--A spiraling eye of wind rapidly gathered in the air, and the vortex, resembling a rolling drum, almost locked Xue Ming's body in place!
Hasben Madison, still conscious, was shocked by what he saw. He looked at his teacher, who was defending with his arms bent, and alarm bells were ringing in his mind—it was this move! It was this huge phantom spirit that had locked him firmly in place and turned him into a pile of mud with a single sneak attack.
Gunsmith Master! If you stay in that place, the upcoming Soul Might attack will tear you to pieces! Find a way to escape! You must find a way to escape the raging winds!
Hasben was speechless; he could only watch helplessly as the storm engulfed the gunsmith.
A blurry figure appeared in the gale. Jiang Xueming remained crouched and low to the ground, without any armor. His short-sleeved shirt and backpack were torn to shreds by the wind pressure.
After only a moment's hesitation, the gunsmith's combat experience immediately reminded him—this was Eye Of The Storm Eye's target acquisition method!
Almost simultaneously, CC's coordinated attack was about to begin! Eye of the Storm Eye's wings twisted into fists, transforming together with her hands into the fighting stance of a four-armed Asura.
Hahahaha! Hahahaha!
The chaotic fist-shaped images resembled machine gun bullets continuously and at high speed bombarding the afterimage at the center of the storm, almost tearing the target to shreds!
"Hahahaha! That was exhilarating! Absolutely exhilarating! So satisfying!"
CC roared, his fighting spirit burning fiercely—he had never imagined he would face the Gunsmith head-on; it was in his Red Stone People nature, a crucial experience in his life.
The storm carried a blood-red, Storm Eye -smelling aura, even drawing blood from the floor. In just over ten seconds, Storm Eye unleashed over a hundred punches, finally showing signs of slowing down.
It wasn't because CC's spiritual power was about to run out; he and Soul Might were one, and he could sense that his spiritual body seemed to have touched nothing! It had all missed its mark?!
All of them?! Not a single punch landed?!
But what was that torn shadow just now?!
Could it be that...
Before CC could think it through, the <Tornado> that had been running through the lounge and restaurant gradually slowed down. As the wind speed decreased, the scene inside the rolling duct became clearer.
The gunsmith's figure swayed in the storm, his upper body bare, a wound on his upper arm—a wound he had deliberately bled out, exposing his elemental information; the blood was stained with strangely shaped fragments—
--Those fragments were things CC broke, but they were just some blood-stained fabric, a thermos flask and a fast food box from her backpack.
CC stared at the figure bobbing up and down, momentarily losing her composure in shock. The Gunsmith didn't fight against the raging winds created by Eye of the Storm Eye; instead, he merged into the storm, drifting outwards along the spiral funnel of the wind tunnel, leaving his blood as bait for Inspiration, about to enter another room!
"Don't even think about escaping!" CC frowned and glared, roaring, "We must settle this today!"
"Then try to catch up." The gunsmith, unusually talkative, left behind this provocative remark and slid along the curved wall of the psionic gale, as if riding a slide, his body flying backward. In the blink of an eye, his feet landed and he began to run wildly.
CC rushed to the load-bearing wall of the restaurant's corridor and punched it hard!
The gunsmith, standing outside the corridor, first heard a muffled thud and knew something was wrong—
--The gust of wind whistled through the wall like a high-speed spinning drill! It struck him squarely in the side!
The sparks that erupted from his waist and abdomen sent him flying to the ceiling!
Fragrant Dream had been protecting the gunsmith's organs, and when it directly confronted the Storm Eye with psionic energy, the resulting heat almost scorched Jiang Xueming's right ribs!
He froze in mid-air for a full two seconds before beginning to fall. A sweet taste rose in his throat, and he coughed up blood. The burns on his abdomen covered the knife scar that ran from his navel to his chest. During the expedition, such sudden injuries that could not be dealt with in time, and the unpredictable psionic attacks, would leave Xue Ming with one or two scars that were difficult to heal.
This time, CC succeeded; he successfully injured the gunsmith!
And it was a blatant slap in the face! The anonymous person had just made a boastful statement and immediately suffered a heavy blow!
"Crimson Fortress! One point!"
CC smashed through the restaurant's load-bearing wall, emerging from the crater covered in dust and dirt, a wicked grin on his face, unable to contain his elation as he looked at the gunsmith, who had just been injured and landed in a disheveled state.
"I know what you're up to! You want to go to the supermarket, right? You want to find a handy weapon and do some fancy tricks for me!"
"That's enough! Lord Pellegrini's soul power is so strong! And my elemental essence is far superior to yours! With our spirit and body united, killing you will be as easy as crushing a small insect!"
"Fragrant Dream!" Xue Ming rallied, leaping into the air. His soul power responded to the summons, advancing in sync with his physical body, ready for a head-on clash!
CC opened his arms, and a god with a human body and an eagle's head emerged from his body, engaging in a fierce battle with the bastard child of the cat god Best!
A sudden gust of wind swept through the narrow corridor, the sonic booms sounding like artillery shells colliding. The skylight shattered, the glass turning into fine sand before it even hit the ground.
The illusory fists and feet of the two spirits created a blue and silver holographic light, and the high-speed collision of the spirits caused the organs of the two carbon-based beings to swell.
The instant when spiritual power reaches its limit! The instant when the spirit ceases its attack!
Without the slightest hesitation, Xue Ming rushed straight towards CC.
"How could this be!" CC was momentarily dazed. The gunsmith would actually use his mortal body to fight against the Blood-Bestowed Beast!
This is unreasonable! Absolutely unreasonable!
Does he have some backup plan? Some deadly move? Does he still have a gun?
A moment of fear made his body stiffen, and he lost the initiative in the fight!
With a sudden, low-lying dive, the gunsmith moved like a nimble leopard, leaving a bloody mark on his knees as they scraped against the dust on the floor.
--The moment the spirits went on strike, the gunsmith had already planned the attack route in his mind.
To break through CC's defense, you must avoid his amazing wingspan and block his striking techniques, but you cannot engage in direct physical confrontation!
This guy's physique is absolutely outrageous! He's stronger than a meteor! He's almost 250 centimeters tall!
At this moment, Jiang Xueming gritted his teeth and attacked, only to find himself in a difficult predicament once again.
He reached for CC's right leg, but CC's reflexes were unusually strong. The big boot that came flying at him almost scraped off his head. To make him lower himself, Xue Ming changed his approach, grabbed the lower leg, and then kicked it upwards with his body.
CC's face turned ashen! His eyes almost popped out of their sockets, and he felt as if his vital brother between his legs had left him!
He involuntarily bent over, his groin having been severely struck and losing core strength, his skull about to be exposed Gate of Death! But his excellent combat skills brought him back to life, and he used his right leg to throw the gunsmith against the wall.
One kick! And another!
Like shaking off the mud off your shoes!
The gunsmith's body flew through the air and then fell, crashing against the wall with a painful back, repeating this cycle twice!
He first lost his balance due to the feeling of weightlessness, and the second time he immediately raised his elbow and struck CC's side knee hard, with a cracking sound!
The blood-bearing monster's meniscus was torn, and it was no longer as agile and nimble as it had been in the first round!
CC was surprised when she felt the pain, and after the surprise came fear.
--The gunsmith. That guy.
Is this guy really human? Who is the Blood-giving Monster? He seems completely oblivious to pain!
"Ah!!!--"
CC was severely injured. In order to escape this disgusting entanglement, he took a step forward and slammed into the load-bearing wall again, using the gunsmith who was holding his right leg as a cushion. His two strong arms could not throw a high-quality punch. In this position, he could not punch his own leg. He had no choice but to resort to this.
Before the two even made contact with the wall, as they shifted their positions, the gunsmith's punch was aimed straight for CC's groin, with no intention of leaving that leg. He watched helplessly as the wall drew closer and closer, protecting his head, then smashing through the bricks and having steel bars cut through his flesh, before returning to the restaurant.
"Hoo!" CC's face was covered in cold sweat. Due to the excruciating pain in his groin and the nameless man's fighting spirit, he could no longer laugh.
It seems the Soul Might has disappeared--
He's nothing compared to the gunsmith!
As he stumbled to his feet, he saw Jiang Xueming —the nameless man—still in a fighting stance, struggling to regulate his breathing. The intermittent fluctuations of his spiritual energy indicated that he was constantly trying to summon his spirit for a second round of the duel. Several more scars appeared on his body, and they were still bleeding.
"You're finished, Gunsmith!" CC shouted menacingly, ready to lend her support.
Jiang Xueming waved his hand, sensing that Fragrant Dream was still recuperating, and loudly replied, "Come!"
CC spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, rubbed his festering genitals, and muttered under his breath, "Damn it."
Jiang Xueming continued waving, "Come on! Come on!"
In the blink of an eye, before the bloody spittle had even hit the ground, CC pounced on Xue Ming like a tiger suddenly attacking! His movement was completely unexpected!
This is the explosive power of the Blood-giving Monster! It's the jumping ability brought about by his astonishing physique!
Xue Ming dodged and dodged, his nimble steps following CC's massive waist in a semi-circle. His legs and knees were about to hit the ground again when he suddenly found himself in a side position and punched CC hard in the ribs. The fist left solid finger marks, splattering blood and sweat along with the blows!
CC winced in pain, turned around, and swung his arm, trying to keep grabbing the agile boxer. He wanted to take the ground fighting to a wrestling match! His speed and agility were far inferior to the gunsmith's; he needed to at least hold onto the gunsmith to have a chance of winning!
Xue Ming dodged again, but his timing was caught when he tried to counterattack with a punch. His heel buckled, and CC tripped him with a kick, causing him to lose his balance. A large hand reached out to scoop his head into her arms!
He didn't dodge; in the instant his lower body lost its strength, he bit down hard on the large hand that was grabbing at him! He bit off three fingers of CC's right hand!
As the gunsmith's biting motion came, CC's eyes blazed with fury. He pulled back his arms and head, using his upper body to lift half of the gunsmith's body. With just a little effort, he pulled the unbalanced rat into his arms!
[Part 2: Why I Gave Up]
This is the perfect time!
A powerful, sweeping left arm punch slammed into Jiang Xueming's body!
Xue Ming's eyes rolled back from the heavy punch, but he regained consciousness in an instant. The arm that had blocked the punch seemed to be broken! He lost his balance and staggered to the ground. As he tried to get up, he saw CC holding his hands tightly and slamming down hard!
Thump--
It missed at first, then rolled to the side to avoid it!
Thump----
The floor cracked, but I still didn't win! I rolled over and got up!
"Damn it! Why aren't you dead yet!" CC was frustrated and angry. His two full-force attacks hit empty air, like the QTE prompt for an execution had lit up, but the result was not as expected.
Jiang Xueming clutched his severed arm and snapped it back into place with a crack. He was in so much pain that he was almost losing his mind, but he still stared intently into CC's eyes.
"Come on, keep going!"
"Storm Eye of the Storm!" CC prayed to the gods again, but before he could finish his prayer, an iron bowl appeared on his face.
Xue Ming grabbed the cutlery on the table and threw it at CC.
The azure Eagle Falcon reappeared, and CC's anger surged, simply because the gunsmith had thrown it like a child's game, and damn well, it had thrown it fast and accurately!
Bowls, chopsticks, knives, and forks used for eating, ceramic soup bowls from the electric slow cooker, and even table legs were broken off and thrown over as small props to obstruct the spirit's power!
He commanded his spirit to block the flying objects, roaring angrily.
"You've made this fight a laughingstock! You deserve to die, Gunsmith!"
"There is no such thing as absolute sorrow, just as there is no such thing as absolute joy." The gunsmith gently offered psychological counseling to the troublesome Wings of Light: "You need to take it easy, relax. There aren't many Blood-giving Monsters that can push me to this point. Life is not easy, don't go to extremes so easily."
"Bullshit! This is the final blow!"
CC unleashed a powerful punch, aiming to concentrate all the spiraling power of the Storm Eye into one place!
The gunsmith did not dodge, but extended his scarred, severed arm, as if playing rock-paper-scissors, trying to use the simple paper to accept this vicious stone.
Blackened blood gushed from the severed arm, a horrific injury caused by the rapid rotation of bones and muscles. It did not go any further, remaining perfectly sealed there.
The Fragrant Dream spirit lingered on Jiang Xueming's body, revealing only a pair of vertical pupils.
CC was too surprised to remain silent; she was even pleasantly surprised.
--With that battered and bruised right hand? He thinks he can take Lord Pellegrini's punch? What is this guy dreaming of!
The traction from the rapidly rotating bones and flesh was all retained in a cluster of precise, centrifuge-like rotor blades. These were glass shards that Fragrant Dream had meticulously crafted, altered the shape of its arms, and bound together with a complex gear structure and a ring-shaped airflow pump. The glass was what Xue Ming had deliberately collected from the fragments in the corridor Fragrant Dream during the first round of Soul Might's attack.
Affected by the Storm Eye, these crystals rapidly cut through Xue Ming's severed arm. The immense spiraling force caused the rollers in the arm to spin faster and faster until the harder sand completely severed Xue Ming's arm, and the force of the rotation was absorbed into the wound on his right arm.
In an instant, the propeller blades changed direction and sprayed sand and gravel. Brilliant blood flowers, mixed with thousands of sharp water jets made of sand and blood, were sprayed towards CC!
At that moment, he sensed the gunsmith's essence—it was so sweet, so delicious.
--Then everything changed, and the air became scorching hot.
Everything was melting and being destroyed. The kitchen, which had been like rotting jelly, began to emit a golden, high-temperature light.
CC had a wonderful dream. He came to the Palace of Ten Thousand Demons, to the place where the predecessors of the Madness Butterfly Sect were.
He crossed a large bridge, surrounded by the iron-nickel core tentacles of Mother Earth. In the golden lava, he could vaguely see the phantom of a giant butterfly. He seemed to have completed his mission and completely killed the gunsmith!
He crossed the bridge between life and death and arrived in the city, where he saw pavilions, towers, and mansions reaching into the sky.
And his former idol, Lawrence Madison—
--This brightly colored, handsome leader of the Madness Butterfly is being interviewed by a reporter.
CC curiously squeezed into the crowd, smelling the strong aura of monstrous beasts on the people. He felt a joy like returning home. Lord Pellegrini hadn't lied to him! He had achieved unification and arrived in the eternally peaceful paradise!
What's the topic of today's interview?
CC looked curiously at the broadcast team, who were all prominent figures from the Madness Butterfly Sect in the past.
The bright red banner read, "Why I Gave Up on Killing the Big Sister."
Lawrence, beaming with joy, chatted amiably with Mary Stuart on stage.
The script supervisor clapped his hands in signal, and director Kang Que Concord immediately shouted, "Hurry up! There won't be any time later! We have to go back to our cells!"
Mary handed over the microphone. "I heard before that you had this idea."
"I originally wanted to kill the gunsmith," Lawrence interrupted immediately, his expression turning serious. "And the Big Sister too!"
Mary nodded.
Lawrence continued, "Isn't that quite daring?"
Mary: "On your turf?"
Lawrence: "Right here on my turf! Clearwater Bay, Zero Platform, kill the Big Sister."
Mary: "Oh"
Lawrence: "When I first asked my cousin and the War Gang to talk to all the team members, I said it was about killing the Big Sister. Wow, everyone was so excited, it was unbelievable—White Gloves, Flavia, and Duran, they were all so excited."
"Kill the Big Sister once, I've always said 'kill the Big Sister once,' just once."
"What they kept saying was, 'Kill the Big Sister.'"
"So when I told the team members at the time--"
"--I need you for twenty days, or twenty-five days."
"Wait until I've finished dealing with things in Sanhe Town."
"They asked why?"
"I said it's simple, we'll try it twice a day."
"Rehearse once in the morning and once in the evening."
"I die twice a day, I'll be dead for ten days."
"If you die twenty times, you'll eventually find a way to win."
"The mission to kill the Big Sister is now complete."
"Wow! Everyone thinks that's amazing! Killing the Big Sister! That's incredibly challenging!"
"There can't be even the slightest mistake!"
"But I gave up in the end."
At this point, Lawrence burst into laughter.
Do you know why?
"I studied a lot of the Big Sister's combat records, including some videos of her suffering defeats, like the gunsmith's defeats."
"I've seen both domestic and international works; I've specifically studied and researched them."
"I just can't bring myself to make that decision."
Lawrence laughed through gritted teeth.
"I've never been able to do it. Actually, when I was looking at Mr. Kang Que's death record, I wanted to try and see if I could kill the Big Sister."
"They didn't do it afterward. Do you know what the biggest problem was?"
Simply put--
Lawrence waved his hand dramatically and began to operate the invisible accordion.
"--We just can't beat them."
"Because of the mass of a soul's power and the configuration of its elemental matter, it has no way to..."
"For a high-reaction, high-speed, high-intensity battle, such a tense pace is not feasible--"
"--The conditions for killing the Big Sister are not met. Even if you manage to cripple the gunsmith by luck, it's still not enough."
"Because you can't just rub against her—that's how you take down the Big Sister."
"Impossible."
"You slowed down by even a second in the process of getting from here to here."
"You're gone."
"So no matter what, after thinking it over, because I'm an expert, I've died quite a few times in Fragrant Dream. A little less than director Johnny, but still quite a lot."
"I don't need to die many times to know that if I can't kill the Big Sister, the gunsmith will be hard to kill too."
"The second point is that if we want to kill them, we'll lose at least half of our own people."
"Everyone will lose more than half their life."
"They're either visible or invisible; the casualty rate is too high, they're all gone."
"Then the Religious order will be in a difficult position, the Religious order will be in a difficult position."
"After nearly a month of internal struggle, I made a major decision."
"My first call was to my old comrades from the Zhan Gang; I even appeared to them in a dream. I told them I was giving up."
"That little brother of the War Gang, RUARUARUARUA!, just can't accept it!"
"That guy from the Unborn Alliance, and the brothers from District 38, and the Crimson Fortress from District 15, especially that CC guy—he just can't accept it. He's completely absorbed in killing the gunsmith and the Big Sister, you know that?"
"I like it so much, how could I possibly—oh dear, oh dear, come over and ask me why the Big Sister isn't killed, and why the gunsmith isn't killed either."
Mary asked at the opportune moment, "So?"
"Of course I was very sad too, hehehe, hahaha, very sad." Lawrence smiled broadly, "At the time, everyone felt, 'Oh, what a pity.' It was like they didn't want to live anymore, hehehe, very frustrated, very disappointed."
"So, maybe this is a wake-up call for me. After all, my son can still date the Big Sister), just kidding, haha, just kidding--"
"--Or perhaps it's one of my learning insights."
Shards of glass fell from CC's shattered body.
--He was washed into a skeleton by the sharp sand.
In a fraction of a second, the power of the Storm Eye, along with the Fragrant Dream, used a spiraling gale carrying sharp sand and blood blades to wash CC into a skeletal specimen, and also took away the gunsmith's severed arm.
Jiang Xueming walked unsteadily to Hasben, pointed at the disappointing student, and patted the boy's face first.
Then they found a small bottle of Universal Elixir on Hasben, drank half of it, and poured the other half on Hasben.
"My hand is broken and needs time to heal. Be proactive and remove all the nails from your body, then we'll leave."