Act 9: Black Ice

[Part 1: The Great Talent Scout]

"Susan is dead?"

The talent scout from the White Shark Association asked this question, shifting his position from the office sofa to his desk.

--This shark-man hybrid has perfectly defined muscles; when its upper body is bare, the texture of its fins on its arms and back, as well as the bright red gill patterns on both sides of its neck, are visible.

His codename is Brown Bear, and like other members of the White Shark Association, he never uses his real name.

At this moment, Manager Todd stood at the street corner in the pouring rain, holding a large black umbrella, unwilling to step inside the gate.

"You really need to quit drinking lately, you're not thinking straight anymore." Todd's expression was serious and his demeanor cold. "And who the hell is Susan? Wake up! Lisa Krauser is dead!"

"Oh! Oh oh oh!" Brown Bear Shark finally came to his senses and immediately explained, "She's Susan! ~ Lisa is her nickname, or stage name. Before I brought her to the president's side, her name was Susan."

With that, Brown Bear opened the liquor cabinet, completely ignoring the manager Todd's concern.

He took out a bottle of barley wine, poured the golden liquid into a glass, and took a sip.

"Noble! Elegant! Pure Susan! Once you enter the White Shark Association, you have to change your name! Don't you agree?"

Todd was getting impatient. He folded his umbrella, squeezed into the smelly office, and went to the desk covered in soot. He chatted with his old colleague about the mission.

"Whether her name is Susan or Lisa doesn't matter. What matters is that the head of the security and defense company at Yangjiang Ferry is dead."

The Brown Bear squinted, looking at Todd with only one eye. "You want me to go back to my old ways? Bring you some girls? Find a good one to replace Susan?"

These days, Mr. Brown Bear, the master scout, no longer deals in human trafficking. The reason is simple: the market has been almost wiped out by the Nameless Ones. Ninety percent of his old customers have gone to the Merit Forest—the only one left is the White Shark Association, which now openly advertises prices for prostitutes and never forcibly takes women.

"No." Todd shook his head, his heart nearly breaking as his gaze swept over the ashtray, but he still managed a smile, "I want you to find out who did this."

"Lisa Krausa's bathhouse was littered with shell casings and showed signs of a struggle. There were no security cameras in the women's bath, and the casino's security cameras only showed a woman wearing a bunny hat hurriedly leaving the bathhouse."

"That woman has a strong sense of counter-surveillance; the surveillance cameras can't capture her face. She's hidden inside that damn hat."

"Lisa seemed to have a conflict with this woman. After she rushed out into the street, she was smashed into a pulp by a giant iron ball from a shredder."

"There were many footprints at the scene, indicating more than one person. I think this was a premeditated and organized assassination."

"Just ten minutes before the incident, Lisa's company was attacked by terrorists. Several farmers who transported cherry husks at Yangjiang Ferry were all killed, their heads severed and hung on the door lintel. Only one underage child survived and has been handed over to the war group."

"I don't know how Guangling Zhixi will treat this child. Will he keep his mouth shut? I don't know any of that. But having just escaped Gate of Hell, he'll definitely think it's safer to stay in the battle group. He'll expose the farmers along the waterways near the ferry. Everyone in that family who knows will be caught."

"Brown Bear? Brown Bear? Are you listening?!"

Shark Bro's mouth was slightly open; the alcohol had shut down his brain, and Manager Todd's long-winded speech was making him drowsy.

"Oh! What am I supposed to do?! So what am I supposed to do?!"

"I need you to realize how serious this is!" Todd yelled. "You lazy bum! Useless coward! Get up and get to work! The White Shark Association n't what it used to be! Find this bitch! If you can capture her alive, the price will double! I'm going to torture her properly!"

"I only handle kidnapping women. Murder and robbery aren't my forte!" Brown Bear said innocently. "If you want to talk about that, you'll have to ask Bloodhand Bond."

Todd: "He's dead. He died three years ago."

Brown Bear: "What about the Executioner Fogen?"

Todd: "Chopped into seven pieces by an anonymous person."

Brown Bear: "Praxstin, the Demon Master?"

Todd: "He went to assassinate the gunsmith, but the body was never found. The forensic doctor examined the carcass at the crime scene and was completely baffled."

Brown Bear: "The Cursed One, Morella Akhan?"

Todd: "He took sixty-four bullets, survived, repented, and surrendered in time. He should be vacationing in Hedland now."

The Brown Bear almost lost its grip on the cup upon hearing that.

--To be honest, he was among the group that retired relatively early, thus escaping the brutal and bloody violent struggles of the Great Expedition era.

Before the White Shark Association dealt a severe blow, the Brown Bear had already retired gracefully, made enough money, and was preparing for her retirement. This hybrid monster, who loved watching the drama unfold, would even sit in front of the TV, munching on popcorn while watching the former president get beaten up, occasionally cheering for the Big Sister.

After George Joshua returned to Lieyang Fort, the Brown Bear resurfaced, searching for suitable girls for the White Shark Association Society to capture and re-enhance on Cruise Ship Two. Lisa Krauser was one of them.

He only made a few deals, and since then Brown Bear, the Armadillo Hunters, has lived a peaceful life. If it weren't for Manager Todd bringing up the old story today, the Brown Bear would have almost forgotten about Susan.

This criminal wasn't particularly ambitious and never imagined he could become a ruthless and heinous killer. Todd only found Brown Bear because he sensed danger—these assassinations were targeting White Shark Association executives, and he needed an intermediary to investigate.

"On a main road?" the Brown Bear suddenly asked.

Todd: "Yes."

Brown Bear: "A ball crusher? You mean one where a crane lifts up huge iron balls, iron balls weighing tens of tons?"

Todd: "Yes."

Brown Bear: "In an instant! You turned Susan into mincemeat?"

Todd: "Yes."

The Brown Bear asked cheerfully, "Is there surveillance footage?"

Todd's forehead veins bulged. "If there were surveillance cameras, would I still be asking you to come out of retirement? All the surveillance cameras along the riverside scenic area are fucking dead!"

The Brown Bear looked disappointed and muttered, "Oh, what a pity. I was hoping to see how Susan would perform the magic trick of making people disappear."

Todd roared, "You want to see another highlight reel of a kill?!"

"Seeing it with your own eyes is definitely different from hearing about it!" the Brown Bear explained lazily. "Think about it, if a cast iron ball weighing tens of tons comes at you, how far can those colorful internal organs, bones, blood, and brains fly? How many times in a lifetime can you see such a scene? How rare is that?"

"Fahan! Fahan Frodo!" Todd gasped, calling out Brown Bear's real name, "Enough! Get to work!"

The Brown Bear quickly fell silent, signaling, "No, no, no, don't get excited, don't call me by my full name, thank you."

However, the Brown Bear then made another offer.

"You have to pay the advance payment, right?"

Manager Todd, disgruntled, pulled a wad of cash from his coat, about 120,000 Hui Stone Currency, without a counting machine.

The Brown Bear didn't even look at it, and put it in the desk.

--This shark-man hybrid immediately stood up, his image becoming glorious and majestic, and spoke righteously.

"I sense it! The forces of evil are calling me! I will act immediately!"

After saying those words of encouragement before setting off, Brown Bear leisurely returned to the kitchen and stuffed two slices of toast into the toaster.

Manager Todd watched as his brother slowly and leisurely prepared breakfast, step by step.

His gaunt and gloomy face was filled with disbelief, his mouth slightly open, revealing the sharp teeth of the Blood-giving Monster, like a shocked cat's emoji.

Brown Bear kept rambling on and on about his breakfast. "I like to use two fried eggs as a sandwich filling. Do you know how sandwiches came about, Todd?"

Todd shook his head.

Brown Bear: "It started as a group of bored gamblers who were addicted to playing cards. They didn't have time to eat, so they made these fast food meals. They would just grab something, eat it, and then continue playing cards."

Todd: "I said."

The Brown Bear quickly waved its paws, signaling Todd to be quiet.

"No, no, no, eating is very important. I've recently started to try Homo sapiens' food, and cooked food tastes much better than raw meat."

"For example, add a slice of tomato, a slice of cheese, sprinkle some salt and pepper, and then!"

The Brown Bear tossed the ingredients into the air, clapped his paws together, and the toast that popped out of the toaster became his breakfast.

"Isn't it amazing? I've been practicing this for the past few years! All the miracles you've seen are the result of hard work and dedication!"

Todd felt the sentence sounded familiar, as if he had heard it somewhere before.

"--That's what the gunsmith said," Brown Bear said. "It makes a lot of sense."

Manager Todd finally couldn't stand the guy anymore. He waved goodbye, left without a word, and slammed the door shut as he went.

Just as Todd was about to go downhill and out of the street, the Brown Bear opened the window, as if trying to solicit customers.

"Hey! You're not even going to say goodbye?"

Todd: "Goodbye!"

Brown Bear pulled out a photo, a recent street shot of the neighborhood near Cruise Ship No. 2.

"Look closely! I've found a pretty and elegant young woman who might be able to take over Susan's position."

Manager Todd took a closer look--

The person in the photo doesn't look exactly like the War King, but their facial features are similar and their physique is the same.

The excellent footage captured by this talent scout was taken by Jiang Bailu, who was gathering intelligence.

"Can you find it?" Todd asked immediately, adding, "Stop talking nonsense!"

The Brown Bear grinned and said, "Of course! Should I catch it? Or should I invite it over?"

The word "arrest" refers to forced kidnapping, while "invite" refers to forced kidnapping with money. The methods are the same, but there is a difference in cost. One is a direct violation of the law, while the other is a violation of the law with a signed contract.

Todd took the photos, intending to curry favor with President George Joshua.

"Take care of things at Yangjiang Ferry, then go and invite this young lady to the No. 2 cruise ship."

The Brown Bear replied with a smile.

"No problem! My good brother!"

Once Todd was out of sight, Brown Bear yawned. Faced with a murder case that had no clues or leads, he decided to take a nap and catch up on his sleep before thinking about the killer again.

The feeling of fullness made him dizzy and lightheaded, and he soon fell asleep leaning against his desk.

In his hazy state, he thought of Susan again—

--It reminded me of Lisa Krauss.

[Part ② - Born a Jerk]

It was an exciting day. Before the start of the Moon God Cup preliminary rounds in Fifty-fifth District, a car drove along the road beside the railway towards the paddy field farm on the outskirts of Lieyang Fort.

The driver and his gang were still discussing the betting details of the Moon God Cup, deciding which team to bet on.

While the farmer was planting rice seedlings outside, the housewife was twisting hemp thread in the warehouse.

Susan, who had just received her university acceptance letter, stood by the window, dreaming about her future life.

The shark-man hybrid was the first to get out of the car. He leisurely trampled on the cabbages in the dry field until he heard the farmer's curses.

"We've finally found your family!" The Brown Bear's blood-red eyes gleamed with excitement.

Upon seeing the White Shark Association's emblem on the truck, the farmer began to tremble, his eyes filled with terror.

He hurried back into the house, hid his daughter in the basement, and then leisurely came to greet the guests.

When the Brown Bear squeezed through the gate, his tall and strong figure almost blocked out all the light sources of the ultraviolet lamps on the dry land. He was wrapped in a black coat and wore a top hat, and he was as polite as a magician in a circus.

I've heard some things recently.

The Brown Bear sat in its owner's seat, just like the two Xuanfeng Hu brothers a few years later.

He said to the male homeowner, "You have a daughter, right? People say she's like Big Sister, with a great figure like War King."

The farmer didn't reply; his eyes were fixed blankly.

The Brown Bear casually took the wine from the table, took only a small sip, and immediately spat it onto the floor. "It's fucking awful. How can there be such awful wine in the world?"

The farmer still didn't reply; he could sense the strong pheromones emanating from these hybrid beasts.

The Brown Bear then rolled a cigarette for himself and another for the farmer.

Do you smoke?

The farmer nodded and took it.

Brown Bear lights a fire for a farmer.

"--You know what White Shark Association wants, right? And you know I'm a talent scout, right?"

The farmer shook his head, feigning innocence.

The Brown Bear glanced into the next room, where, although the children's room had been turned into a storage room for old things, it still contained picture books and autographs.

"Then I'll be frank: I want your daughter to come with me. Her Susan, isn't it?"

The farmer chuckled and said, "That's my wife's nickname, sir. I don't have a daughter."

The Brown Bear wasn't in a hurry at all.

After the War King defeated the Madness Butterfly Sect, the White Shark Association could no longer be as ostentatious and blatant in its abduction of people as before.

No one wants to shed blood unless absolutely necessary. Major criminal cases would attract even more terrifying anonymous perpetrators, forcing these farmers to willingly sell their children.

Brown Bear, with a cigarette dangling from his lips and arms crossed, stared intently at the old farmer, his expression hardening as he looked at the timid man covered in cold sweat.

The old farmer's fingers trembled as he smoked his pipe. He had no idea what these cannibals would do to his family. His wife seemed oblivious; she was in the kitchen making coffee to entertain the driver and his two henchmen.

One minute passed, then two minutes passed.

The coffee pot emitted a sharp whistling sound until the whistling gradually stopped.

The Brown Bear finally spoke, whispering, "I won't tell them, you can rest assured."

Farmer: "What are you worried about? I don't understand."

Brown Bear: "You hid Susan in the basement, didn't you?"

The farmer fell silent, his eyes dull and lifeless.

Brown Bear: "Do you know the consequences? Can you really bear the consequences of deceiving the White Shark Association?"

The farmer simply shook his head.

"That driver will strip your wife naked and give birth to your second child right in front of you, contributing to the birth rate in Fifty-fifth District," Brown Bear muttered under his breath. "The other two gang members have an even more unique skill. They don't like women, so they'll probably take you to the basement for a heart-to-heart talk—and your Susan will be dismantled and sent to White Lady's factory."

"George Joshua dislikes liars; he hates dishonest people the most."

"I'm different from them, brother."

"I'm a killer, I'll find a way to help you. As long as Susan comes with me, she can become incredibly rich."

The Brown Bear took out a banknote, flicked it, and said smugly.

"Here's one hundred yuan. This is all I'll give you if you don't want to ask for it yourself."

Immediately afterwards, the talent scout pulled out a wad of cash, about 15,000 Hui Stone Currency.

"If you become honest and courageous, all of this will be yours, because George Joshua likes honest and courageous people. This is your friendship."

The farmer thought about it for a long, long time.

He finally succumbed to his fear and gave in.

Brown Bear: "Just nod your head."

The farmer nodded in agreement.

Brown Bear: "As long as you take the initiative to speak."

The farmer then spoke up, "Susan is in the basement. In the wine cellar."

Brown Bear: "Where in the wine cellar?"

Farmer: "In the large wooden barrel, the fourth one from the left, there are two empty barrels because this year's harvest was poor."

The Brown Bear pulled out a gun and shattered both of the farmer's kneecaps.

--The shark monster revealed its true form, beckoning to its three brothers in the kitchen, intending to drag the housewife over.

In an instant, the housewife screamed, but her throat and tongue felt frozen, as if gripped tightly by an unseen "demon," leaving bruises on her neck.

"Give Susan a lesson, make her learn something." The Brown Bear snapped his fingers, and the peasant woman was suddenly slammed against the table by an inexplicable force. "Learn how to serve Chairman Joshua."

"Alright, brother!" The driver pulled down his pants and prepared to get down to business, intending to tear off the woman's clothes.

The Brown Bear pocketed the money, then kicked the dying old farmer. The screams and howls stopped abruptly, as if under a spell; the old man couldn't utter another sound. Even his arms seemed frozen to the floor, making it impossible for him to turn over!

The Brown Bear excitedly ran to the cellar, intending to drag Susan out.

Just then--

--The dream is over.

"I don't understand! Why the hell do I wake up every time we get to the most exciting part?!"

At this moment, Brown Bear rolled off the sofa, recalling his past happy criminal experiences and his elegant methods of committing crimes. Compared to those cruel thugs who murder entire families, he was practically a gentleman.

"Okay! I'm starting to get back into the swing of things!"

"Todd's text message... Hmm. A new face that's been appearing lately."

Pick up your phone; the killer is about to pounce.

"Wulong Fortress? That's a great place!"