Act 10: Who Made Who · Who's Afraid of Whom?

[Part 1: Storytelling and Opera Performance]

"They say the winds of change are strong in this Wulong Fortress, because it's a small temple with a strong demonic influence, and a shallow pond with many turtles."

A loud whistle blew, and a small bookstall was set up outside the gate's street-facing wall. Children returning home from Huaxiang No.1 Middle School and its affiliated primary school crowded around the children's bookstall, forming a dense, impenetrable crowd.

The man wearing round sunglasses didn't seem to mind the dark, overcast atmosphere of the cave; he was beaming with pride.

"The five tigers of the Madness Butterfly Sect Cult's battle gang were utterly depraved, committing atrocities, arson, murder, and looting in Lieyang Fort. One day—"

"--The Red-Maned Lion George Joshua issued an order to seize this Wulong Fortress. The White-Headed Tree Spirit Todd appointed Cold-Blooded Mad Blade Xuanfeng Hu, a member of the Bug Eye Gang under the White Shark Association."

"Xuanfeng Hu, accompanied by a dozen or so of his gang, and Double Flower Red Stick Sangmen Xing, came to challenge him. They entered the landlord's tea room, and before they could even exchange a few pleasantries, they hadn't finished a pot of Longjing tea."

"Listen!"

The storyteller blew his whistle.

The two men were the first to attack, drawing their knives and their eyes blazing with fury. They left behind a chest full of cash, demanding the landlord's land deed! One stubborn refusal, and he'd pay with his life!

"Outside the teahouse, the air was filled with the chirping of orioles and the chatter of swallows; six young women entered."

The man twisted his waist and thrust his hips, his expression becoming playful.

"My younger brother, Sangmen Xing by lust and his mind wandered away from his body."

"Brother Xuanfeng Hu is suspicious and paranoid, but he's only distracted by one thing and neglecting another in a moment!"

Suddenly, a mighty and valiant general appeared from the side—

"Clad in a shimmering Flash Butterfly Armor, treading on Black Immaculate footsteps, with golden eyes on his head, and a helmet radiating divine light."

"Step forward, seize the Sangmen Xing, and draw your sword to strike! The blade rises and falls, the blade rises and falls, the blade rises and falls!"

With three swift strokes of the knife, the man grew increasingly excited and agitated.

"The Sangmen Xing abducted the young woman transformed into the shape of a rabbit, its lips and teeth split into three pieces, red and white splattered all over the ground."

"Xuanfeng Hu looked up to dodge, but the landlord stepped on his toes. He then stood up straight and was cut in two by the nameless man. His third eye grew from his forehead to the base of his neck. His legs trembled as he went to the Merit Forest Temple to take a sinecure."

"The Sangmen Xing still wanted to cause trouble. He was both saddened and furious when his brother died. He wanted to jump out the window to save his own life, and he even ordered the nameless man to wrap a whip around his chest."

"This pair of good and evil, like intimate dance partners, twirled around the teahouse a dozen times, then looked closely at the Sangmen Xing's head that had rolled away—"

"--He's completely dead."

Although this version differs slightly from the real story, the outcome is largely the same.

Most of the children grew up listening to the stories of the Nameless Man. In recent days, rumors in Wulong Fortress have made the nearby residents uneasy. They say that a hero has come to Lieyang Fort, but this Divine Dragon Nameless Man has never appeared in front of people.

The stickers next to the small bookstall were very popular. They were titanium-plated steel stamps from the Flash Butterfly Armor mask helmet. Metal stickers and water-based stickers are things that children like and will stick on the covers of their books.

After finishing the first part, Zhao Youde took off his sunglasses and put on his Bluetooth headset.

"Ah! Boss, is it time for the next section? Is the matter finished?"

The young man continued weaving for the children--

"Come on! Xuanfeng Hu is dead, what else is there!"

"Then the three—the Bloodthirsty Monk Smiling Tiger, the Hairless Rakshasa Tattooed Tiger, and the Skinning Walker Black-Hearted Tiger—came to Wulong Fortress to investigate."

"The Lieyang Fort is full of talented people, and the White Shark Association many thugs. These three gang members have committed countless murders. They are all ruthless killers who harm the loyal and honest and are hated by both gods and ghosts."

"The nameless warrior invited his three cousins to the rooftop for a weapons contest, uh."

Before he could finish speaking, a round head flew in from dozens of meters away.

It lay on the road in front of the bookstall, its eyes wide open in death.

--Judging from the tiger stripes all over its face, it is indeed a tiger with tattooed face.

Brother Youde packed up his stall to focus on keeping watch, and stopped telling stories, because reality was more vivid and fascinating than his tales.

The gang leader's head rolled down the slope towards the Old Pipe Alley. His underlings, who had been watching the scene from outside, hurriedly followed, trying to retrieve their boss's remains.

Its head had no hair and offered little resistance, making it perfect for kicking like a ball. A little kid stepped forward and kicked it, and it immediately sprinted towards the riverside scenic area.

Just as the henchmen of the Zhan Gang were about to lash out at the child, drawing their steel knives to leave a childhood trauma on the ignorant kid, a strong man walked out of the butcher shop.

The man had a thick beard and hair, and was shirtless. His bronze skin looked like steel under the streetlights. He grabbed the steel knife that was being slashed at him, and his iron hands were covered with cut-resistant chainmail made from cow bones. He twisted his wrists and used a knightly combat technique—the battle gang's underlings spun like tops, spinning five or six times on the slope, and the weapon in his hand fell into someone else's hands.

They dared not make a sound, so they continued chasing the head of the tattooed tiger until they finally rushed out of the street corner, where they saw a large truck delivering knives rushing towards them from the Laiyang No. 2 Ironworks.

The wicked tattooed tiger was not left with a complete corpse; his head exploded like a watermelon under the crushing weight of the steel wheels. The fastest and most loyal henchmen also turned into carpets on the road, following their boss.

The second-ranking, less loyal henchman, still reeling from the shock, witnessed the tattooed tiger's skull being crushed by a truck when two eyeballs suddenly shot out and pierced the unfortunate man's throat. Unable to breathe, he was choked to death by his boss's eyes.

The other members of the Zhan Gang were terrified and wept uncontrollably, not knowing what to do for a moment. Without their cousin's command, they saw the truck tire burst and the cargo rack tip over.

The remaining dozen or so henchmen intended to take the body away from the asphalt road, but as the vehicle tilted, the thousands of sharp blades in the overloaded cargo compartment slashed open the nylon bags and spilled out, causing a bloodbath that was too gruesome to bear.

Traffic management in Lieyang Fort is extremely chaotic, comparable to the notorious overloading in Baisha, Baki. There are so many road accidents every day that it's a common sight for passersby.

A young man from the knife factory jumped out of the driver's seat; he was also Youde's roommate. He hurriedly ran back to Wulong Fortress, looking for help.

At this very moment--

--Bai Bailu had already slain two ferocious tigers. She held the watermelon knife upside down; it was a strange staff given to her by Ming De. It was named [Mingde's Masterpiece, Supreme Artifact, Tasukaru kirisaku (Watermelon Slicer)].

The headless corpse of the tattooed tiger had not yet fallen; it continued to gush blood.

The smiling tiger was already lying next to the water room on the rooftop, dead.

Both of them had used firearms, and there were many bullet holes at the scene, but conventional firepower was meaningless against the nameless man's armor.

Initially, the cousins came to Wulong Fortress simply to find out whether the Xuanfeng Hu brothers were alive or dead. After exchanging a few pleasantries with Dongfang Hao, they were invited to the rooftop to discuss a "big deal"—the purchase of this auspicious hilly land of Wulong Fortress, a deal that the White Shark Association had explicitly forbidden, as George Joshua had no immediate interest in such territories. However, the cousins from the War Gang were extremely interested.

You should know that such a well-ventilated and water-sheltered piece of land right next to a school could be used to build a valuable school district property, even in the most ordinary, civilized world.

However, the land deed is in the hands of Dongfang Hao, an Earth Dragon. Now, it's just a small, dilapidated wooden building, inhabited by all sorts of migrant workers. In the eyes of the Zhan Gang cousins, this is simply a waste of resources!

This place shelters all sorts of orphans, homeless people, vagrants who can't afford rent, prostitutes who are mixed-breeds of wild beasts, and poor people who can't find work and are destined to starve to death on the streets. It's practically harboring criminals!

That's right! You heard me correctly!

My cousins never considered themselves criminals; poverty was the real crime.

[Part ② - Going Mad]

In the short time it took to meet them, the three vicious tigers completely forgot about the safety of the Xuanfeng Hu brothers. They arrived at the rooftop with their bodyguards and saw the nameless man in the Flash Butterfly Armor standing with his hands behind his back.

As the elegant and agile figure turned around, the gold and blue attire instantly extinguished any thoughts of resistance among the gang members.

--Because the titanium-plated steel stamp on the helmet is a golden V-shaped mark unique to War King Glory.

After Bailu grew up, she always wore her brother's battle armor, which was her best talisman.

She lit the openwork incense burner on her wrist, and the pyroxene inside, scorched by the flames, lit up, emitting a dim green light. More than ten gang members had already chosen to jump off the building to escape, and without exception, they were all finished off by the aunties and uncles in the walled compound with farm tools.

The residents had been waiting for this day, and they knew what the consequences of going against the White Shark Association be. They might lose their lives, or they might end up like Dongfang Hao's beloved son, a corpse hanging from the station archway. But the gunsmith had mentioned this in the Knight's Combat Techniques.

"Don't listen to the devil's lies, don't show weakness, don't surrender."

"Hoping that criminals will show mercy is no better than praying for Jesus to appear. There are no gods in this world, but there are terrifying demons."

Fortunately, violence can make the devil back down; violence can make the devil fear.

When the smiling tiger came to make peace and exchanged pleasantries, he ordered Bailu to swiftly step forward and smash its head in two with a single stroke. The heavy, powerful watermelon-cutting blade was so thick that the tungsten steel club barely cut through it; it was like a blunt instrument tearing open the tiger's skull.

The smiling tiger fell two or three meters, retaining a sliver of will to live, and only died completely when it reached the water room.

At the same time, the tattooed tiger finally came to his senses, so frightened that he wet his pants, but dared not jump off the building to save his life. So he stepped forward to challenge them, trying to awaken his fighting spirit, while secretly telling his underlings to go and die first.

When a dozen pistols and submachine guns were pointed at Bailu, this upstart, an unknown figure, suddenly displayed astonishing mobility. He stepped onto the roof using the pipes of the water room, then jumped into the crowd using the railing, snatched a hand axe from a member of the gang, and used both hands to send him on his way.

The chaotic battle suddenly became clear. In the midst of the chaos, the tattooed tiger was unable to dodge in time and was first hooked on the ankle by a hand axe, causing him to lose his balance.

Then, as Black Immaculate stepped onto his back, the axe flew out along with the skin and flesh of his neck—it was because Bailu couldn't use this weapon and hadn't diligently practiced knightly combat skills, so the axe flew out of the city and landed on the street along with his head.

The remaining gang members were so frightened that they dared not fight back, so they all chose to climb over walls and tear down water pipes to escape.

The last Black Tiger started out in the drug trade and was involved in the most violent crimes, including clashes with the marine police and life-or-death battles with the warband.

He didn't want to escape, nor did he dare to escape.

--Then I saw a gangster enter a residential balcony between the buildings, and a tenant in Wulong Fortress was cleaved open in the chest with a cleaver. Blood splattered from the eighth floor to the first, staining the clothes on the street-facing balcony bright red. But then I heard someone shout, "Bring in the laundry!"

Black-hearted Tiger was then awakened!

These tenants came prepared; they were all waiting at home!

Who gave them the courage? What made these commoners dare to fight back against the militia?!

A few years ago, when these elderly, weak, sick, and disabled people encountered members of the Zhan Gang, they could only kneel on the ground and kowtow to beg for mercy!

"I challenge you to a duel!"

Blackheart Tiger took off his coat, revealing a muscular and burly man. He had risen to the position of the White Shark Association's cousin by relying on his muscular physique and handsome face comparable to Daniel Wu to live off women.

Now he had to use the law to protect himself—it was the duel method personally promulgated by Ming De. If he could win the duel, he might still have a way out.

"Oh ho!" Jiang Bailu was already bloodthirsty. She brandished the watermelon knife in her hand, not reaching for her gun, "How do we fight?"

"Heh." Blackheart Tiger tossed his hair aside to clear his view. "Following the rules, I'll initiate the duel, and you set the rules."

"Hand-to-hand combat." Jiang Bailu removed the radiance stone and put down the watermelon knife. "Do you want me to take off my armor?"

Black-Hearted Tiger: "That won't be necessary, Big Sister —I've seen the Flash Butterfly Armor; I bet she wasn't wearing anything underneath, was she? This outfit is only effective when worn close to the skin."

Jiang Bailu: "I admire your courage, come on!"

As she said this, Bailu removed her armor.

Unlike Glory, she still wore a tube top and shorts.

Bailu doesn't have the exaggerated figure of the Big Sister; she doesn't have such strong thighs and pectoral muscles.

When Black Tiger saw Bailu's true face, he was stunned for a moment.

"So young"

"Killing you is enough!" Bailu took a lunge stance, extending two fingers from her right arm before slowly clenching her fist.

Black-Hearted Tiger cautiously shifted his feet, testing the distance and observing Jiang Bailu's height.

--My wingspan is an advantage! This woman is too arrogant! If it weren't for Soul Power's help, I might actually have been able to defeat her!

His confidence stemmed from a half-finished elixir, and from the fact that he lived off his wife's good looks, which gave Black Tiger a heart of darkness.

His natural metabolism and muscle exertion far exceed those of ordinary people, making him a calamity beast with a constitution similar to Lisa Krauser.

Xiao Qi suffered greatly in his fight with Lisa. Even in such an unfair duel, where he was armed against unarmed and armored against unarmored, he still struggled to fight.

At this moment, Bailu could feel the unusual spiritual pressure emanating from the dark heart in the other person's chest, but she was not afraid.

--If the Big Sister can do it, she can definitely do it too.

Jiang Xueming had said that Bailu would be even more powerful, but it would just take a little while longer.

At the critical moment, 9527, carrying the stereo, ruined the atmosphere and destroyed all the sense of ceremony.

The duel between Bailu and Heixinhu has already begun, and this little incident inevitably distracted the little sister.

She knew her sister-in-law was mentally unstable, but she never imagined she was this insane.

Xiao Qi, like a comedian, arrived at the duel scene and watched Bailu and Hei Xin Hu fight with fists and feet. Then, she took out a microphone to cheer Bailu on and sang a song called "I Am a Girl".

"Don't try to get close to me~ My face is as hard as a pressure cooker!"

"Don't try to test me with your footwork; my punches will only hit you halfway."

"Don't try to be like that Johnny Kang Que! Hiding in a corner and using your psionic powers to toy with me!"

"Don't give me the counterattack timing! Oh my god!~"

"Because we've never had a dojo date!"

"I'm a girl! A pretty girl!"

"I'm a girl! A strong girl!~"

"I'm a girl! You can't beat a girl!"

While Bailu was brutally beating Hei Xin Hu, she took a moment to glance at her sister-in-law.

"Have you always been like this?!"

Xiao Qi was so focused on applauding herself that she completely ignored the soaring Madness Index in her head. All she knew was that the villain's death meant it was time to pop the champagne. She then immediately applied the second level of mental intensity to Bailu.

"Don't make any fake movements on the ground, I'll help you set your bones and give you a massage."

"Don't try to run away from me like a shrimp, or I'll kneel down and send you to meet your maker."

"Don't try to run away and then stretch out your arm, or I'll slam a flying kick into your face like a hot pot."

"Don't throw stones at me! Ohhhhhh!~"

"Watch this throw! ~Hellish Paradise Drop!~"

It should have ended--

Just as Bailu caught Hei Xin Hu, borrowed a height difference from the water room, sat on the enemy's lower back, and slammed him hard to the ground, Hei Xin Hu was already almost dead.

Xiao Qi was still singing; she kept going crazy.

"I'm a girl! ~An invincible girl!~"

"I'm a girl! ~ An elegant girl! La la la ~ la la la la! ~"

"I'm a girl! I've never lost to a boy!"

"I'm a girl! Yay!~"

"A girl who's boxing!"

After cleaning up Blackheart Tiger's corpse, Bailu put on her clothes.

It's clear that my sister-in-law is really happy.

Some people are just not very happy--

--At the moment when the black-hearted tiger lost its life due to a broken spine.

Shark, the Brown Bear who was about to enter Wulong Fortress, suddenly shivered.

"Damn! Is that young man at the door spouting nonsense actually telling the truth?!"