Pofa King Kong
Xue Ming was so exhausted he could barely keep his eyes open. He found the Kunwu stone carving and leaned against the rock platform to perform bone-setting surgery on himself.
At that moment, Gong Cao cleaved his collarbone in two with a single stroke, leaving his left torso with contusions and fractures, and his spine was also twisted to one side, suffering from a hidden ailment of lateral misalignment—as for how he later killed this wicked woman, Xue Ming could hardly believe that he could do it.
Perhaps, as Fragrant Dream said, in that moment of blurred consciousness and certain death, it was a hallucination that pulled him back. In the final slaughter, it was the knife technique he had practiced tens of thousands of times.
Before Jiang Xueming could finish thinking about these things, he saw Kunwu rolling and struggling. The stone shell on his head had cracked open, revealing a cunning and treacherous yet panicked expression. His mouth and tongue were freed, and he immediately began to explain.
"Brother! You should have said so earlier! If you had this ability, why would I dare to go against you?"
Kunwu the Taoist spoke eloquently--
"--The day and hour duties won't last three rounds in your hands, let me go! I'll definitely help you kill Judas!"
Jiang Xueming had considered this possibility, but he couldn't bring himself to trust Kunwu.
Even setting aside any past grievances and putting Jianying's death aside, from an adult business perspective, Kunwu's words were like an empty promise, and this insurance salesman also had a violent security team.
This guy's soul power is too strong. Even when it comes to cooperation, as long as Kunwu finds a suitable scapegoat, the final interpretation of the cooperation agreement will always be in the hands of this demon.
This is an unequal treaty, a cooperation without any credit history or guarantees.
Previously, typical examples of tainted witnesses included Flavia and Duran, but they both left incriminating evidence in the courtroom and in the hands of the Guangling Zhixi —making it impossible for them to cause any major upheaval. This is a legitimate transaction with solid collateral.
The risks of the "deal" Kunwu was discussing had far exceeded Xue Ming's expectations.
"You'll help me kill Judas?" Jiang Xueming didn't have any extra ointment, nor could he seal Kunwu's mouth. After healing his physical injuries with the Universal Elixir, he once again tried to overcome his mental damage—he picked up Kunwu and continued on his way.
Kunwu quickly assured him, "That's right, I'll help you. I definitely will—if I go back on my word, may I be struck by lightning and die a horrible death!"
A thunderclap suddenly broke the silence of the night, startling Kunwu the Taoist so much that he dared not continue speaking.
Jiang Xueming: "What are you afraid of?"
Kunwu, feeling guilty, said, "I... I'm just afraid I won't be able to resist the temptation. What if I do? Right?"
Jiang Xueming continued to emphasize, "I'm asking you, what are you afraid of? You have over six hundred lives, you wouldn't die even if you were struck by lightning, so what are you afraid of?"
At this moment, Kunwu was persuaded.
--This person's mental fortitude, cunning, and fighting spirit are skills that the demonic path has never seen before, skills that are truly divine.
The Day-Duty Officer is in the Nascent Soul stage (cocooning), while the Hour-Duty Officer is half-step into the Divine Transformation stage (feathering). These powerful spiritual monsters are nothing more than chickens and dogs to the gunsmith who has just stepped into the Gate of Death.
If the gunsmith were to approach Judas in perfect condition, he could absolutely kill the leader of the alliance.
The situation in their conversation immediately reversed, and Kunwu had to swallow his pride and beg for help.
With this motive in mind, Kunwu told the truth.
"What I was afraid of just now was the Pofa King Kong in Bodhisattva Valley."
"What is it?" Jiang Xueming climbed onto the rock platform and continued on his way, then asked, "Just say what you want to say."
"There were originally strange people in Taiye. Ever since the flood control efforts began on the Tonghe River, some strange people have been seen diving into the river to avert disaster. Later, these strange people also started moving around in the mountains. They were tall, reaching at least three or four meters in height when they grew up." Kunwu recounted the origin of these creatures. "People initially called these strange people 'Giant Spirit Hu' because I wrote a book out of boredom called 'Journey to the West,' and made a lot of money in this godforsaken place."
Jiang Xueming: "You wrote this?"
Kunwu quickly changed his story. "I copied it, I copied it."
"Later, the Lingguang Buddha preached, that is, Judas —he took these giants and left, we don't know what he went to do, probably to make elixirs of immortality."
"The official position left to me is that of a giant barbarian Pofa King Kong."
Jiang Xueming: "There was thunder just now. Are you afraid of it? It makes thunder when it wakes up?"
This reminded Xue Ming of the final chapter of their journey to Niflheim, where the giant god-king riding a reindeer also summoned thunder.
If Judas had gained the support of the giants' offspring two or three hundred years earlier, he would have immediately fled back to these mythical creatures if he had alerted them.
"Yes and no." Kunwu first posed a riddle, then revealed the answer, "This annual duty officer, the Pofa King Kong, I can only ask him for one thing a year—you know the daily duty officer and the hourly duty officer, you understand the meaning, he's my dear little cotton-padded jacket."
"Everyone here is just trying to make a living. It usually stays in Bodhisattva Valley. It only comes to me if I suffer a major disaster, or if I don't want to work anymore and want to leave Taiye. It tries to persuade me to keep working properly and not bother with trivial matters."
"Gunsmith, if you consider me one of your own, I'll tell you what's on my mind."
"In your current state, if you were to fight this mythical creature to the death, your feigned death would turn into a real one."
"Take my advice, let's make a gentleman's agreement. You untie me, and I'll watch over you for a few hours so you can get some sleep—avoid this Pofa King Kong, and you won't have to fight it to the death. You can get a peaceful night's rest."
"When he wakes up, we can talk about how to kill Judas, okay?"
After going around in circles, Kunwu finally returned to the topic of business.
Jiang Xueming neither immediately agreed nor immediately refused.
He carried Kunwu toward the other side of the valley. In the latter half of the Bodhisattva Valley, you can see huge Buddha statues on the rock walls. These ghost Buddhas have three heads and six arms, and most of them are Vajra statues with ferocious faces.
In the pitch-black rainy night, a thin mist rose from the mountain stream, and the moss on the Ghost Buddha became the only source of light. The smooth, weathered rocks looked lifelike at this moment.
Xue Ming wasn't sure if his Inspiration was still working; he could feel a suffocating drumming sound—not real musical notes, but the Inspiration Pressure.
Among the many ghostly Buddhas, there was indeed a mythical unit hidden. Although the feeling was so distant that it was somewhat unfamiliar, when facing the Ice Man's subordinates at Red Star Hill, and when facing the children of Surter, judging from the intensity of the psionic tide, Kunwu might not have lied to Xue Ming —what the sorcerer said was true.
Coming from the direction of Black Wind Ridge, Xue Ming, accompanied by two students, did not sense anything unusual; the stone statue was simply an inanimate object.
However, after Kunwu entered Bodhisattva Valley, lightning bolts would occasionally strike amidst the raging winds and rain, always heading in the direction of the Ghost Buddha Stone Carvings—such frequent lightning strikes must be ghostly.
Xue Ming was also having second thoughts. He didn't want to discuss cooperation with Kunwu, nor did he want to give up here. Should he turn back? Was it a choice between the two?
"Any later and there won't be any time left." Kunwu continued his verbal coercion, "I respect you as a hero and I don't want to see you die here. I swear, I really swear, I swear on my life."
"As long as this deal goes through, I will never use [Defying Heaven and Changing Fate] to harm you. On the contrary, I will help you—find you a dozen or twenty scapegoats. With our combined strength, there's nowhere in the world we can't go?"
"I know your biggest weakness is this mortal body; your standby time is far too short."
Kunwu's incessant chatter led him to make a fatal mistake.
"Your soul power can only last for two hours at most? Three hours?"
"I'll find a few strong young men to change your fate and then perform the Blood Ceremony again. I'll give you an elixir; a spirit blessed by that elixir will be incredibly powerful. Its range and endurance will be like a nuclear reactor, guaranteeing you'll never shut down."
"Has your brain been filled with nuclear wastewater?" Jiang Xueming's eyes were filled with incomprehension and disbelief. When this topic came up, this usually refined and easy-going person was almost bursting with anger. "Kunwu! You worked at the Fukushima nuclear power plant? You were taking a bath in the fuel pile when the reactor core melted down? What are you talking about?"
You want me to eat people?
Kunwu didn't understand gunsmiths; from Judas's perspective, he was an enemy.
He knew the gunsmith's stats, but wasn't clear about Fragrant Dream's abilities, and only mentioned the person's personality briefly.
The demonic Daoist priest asked in surprise, "Uh..."
Jiang Xueming had initially been hesitant to back out, but now there was no room for negotiation.
"How far does your Soul Power attack range, Kunwu?"
"Hehe." Kunwu, of course, wouldn't say that.
Jiang Xueming: "If I take you to Sendai, will your spiritual energy still be effective? What if I take you to the other side of the sea? To the mortal world? Or put you in a rocket and launch you to the moon?"
"Heh, brother, I don't want to go against you. If I say anything that upsets you, you can hit me or scold me, right?" Kunwu continued to laugh, cold sweat beading on his forehead. He had no chance to test the limits of his attack range with his spirit body enhanced by the elixir—he was like Judas's caged bird, trapped and dying in Taiye City.
"Hit you?" Jiang Xueming sneered, "And then your scapegoat will suffer the consequences for you?"
"I'm trying to figure something out! I'm trying to help you get over your anger. Isn't this spoiling you?" Kunwu felt guilty. He knew that the prerequisite for persuading Jiang Xueming was to overcome a Dashan of hatred, a mountain where Zhao Jianying was buried. If Xiangxiang wasn't having an easy time in the city either, the young couple would have to be buried together.
What is the rarest ability in the world?
In Kunwu's mind, it was actually about organizational skills and the ability to build relationships. If he could tame this tiger and resolve this hatred, everything would become simpler.
As a transmigrator, he was born with superhuman arrogance and confidence, firmly believing that he was the chosen one of this world, the chosen one of heaven.
"I don't want to talk to you anymore." Jiang Xueming ended the conversation abruptly, not wanting to speak again, "You're talking to me about business—I don't talk about business."
"Why?!" Kunwu broke down instantly, losing all reason. "Why?! Why?"
He didn't understand Jiang Xueming's actions, just as he couldn't understand Zhao Jianying's suicide by cutting open her heart.
A way out is right in front of us; even ants try to survive; and we have already laid out our burning, sincere heart at the negotiating table!
As long as the gunsmith agrees, there are countless benefits. Could a gunsmith not figure out such a simple elementary arithmetic problem?
Further on, the Pofa King Kong Awakens, a monster with genuine giant blood and extraordinary talent.
Given the gunsmith's current condition, is he really going to risk his life again? How many lives does he even have?
Before long, Kunwu also began to have doubts.
--Could this guy's spirit really reverse time?
According to intelligence gathered in previous years, the gunsmith's psionic trait is related to time.
Otherwise, what was he thinking?
Kunwu, of course, couldn't fathom Xue Ming's thoughts.
Because Xue Ming's Brain Injury is very severe, he is unable to perform complex mental calculations. He cannot calculate the debts of human lives lost, nor can he assess the specific functions and strategic significance of Kunwu, a high-value target.
His brain couldn't think that far ahead; all he knew was that Jianying was dead, that he had fought for his life.
Kunwu actually wanted to talk business with him, then it turned into a business involving human lives—he wanted him to eat a piece of human flesh.
From the previous conversation, Jiang Xueming could vaguely sense that Kunwu and Teacher Wood might be the same kind of people. Judging from their words, actions, and quirks, they were people from civilized society, modern people who had been stranded in a barbaric world.
But he never expected that the civilized people of this civilized society could eat human flesh without any burden, and even order nameless soldiers to eat human flesh. They wanted everyone to smile peacefully, stuff their mouths full of human flesh first, and then finish reading the business manual.
He suppressed his murderous intent several times, pressing down on his violently trembling hands, and his Steel Heart began to erupt with a powerful surge of psionic energy. It seemed that Xiao Qi sensed her husband's hatred and told herself in her heart—it's not time yet.
"I don't want to talk to you anymore." After saying this, Xue Ming shut up completely.
On the contrary, it was Kunwu's mother-in-law who seemed to have been wronged.
"--I'm helping you! Gunsmith! I'm helping you! You should thank me! You should say thank you!"
"I'm trying to help you, you know that? How can you be so ungrateful?"
"If you had just done what I said, you wouldn't have died!"
"I don't want to see the Nian Zhi Gong Cao! Don't lead me to the Ghost Buddha Stone Carvings! If this continues, you're dead! I have no hope for survival!"
"Gunsmith! Gunsmith! Gunsmith!!!"
"Listen to my advice. Why are you being so stubborn, kid?"
Kunwu almost burst into tears. He climbed to the high ground on the southwest slope, where he could see the exit of the deep valley and sense the giant barbarian among the ghost Buddhas. Thunder struck a rock, scattering the rain and sending up lightning like serpents.
The stone carving came to life, straightened up from the rock platform, slowly shook off the rock fragments, exhaled two puffs of white mist from its nostrils, and then stood up.
This Pofa King Kong was originally gray and white, but as lightning swirled around it, its arms, as thick as tree trunks, turned blood red. Stones crashed onto the mudflats, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Its right arm was wrapped with a thick, bright red rope, which, after being struck by lightning, immediately twisted and transformed into a lifelike dragon with whiskers and a tail.
It stood up completely, its body radiating a burst of high-temperature water vapor, and under the light of thunder, its shoulders transformed into a wheel of light.
"Alright! Now look what's happened! You have no idea what you've gotten yourself into! You had to come and see for yourself." Kunwu felt nothing but regret. The business deal was off, and if Judas found out about this, considering the lives lost by the two hall masters on duty—he would have to pay out a huge sum of money.
"Run! Run! Gunsmith! Run! It's not too late to run!"
"No need to run anymore, I can't run anymore." Jiang Xueming raised his left hand and looked at the clean steel rings—they were all glowing.
The Pofa King Kong, with heavy steps, slowly carried the Chilong pet forward. Its hair and eyebrows were dark red, indicating that it had already undergone the Blood Ceremony.
It began to leap and charge quickly, trying to get closer to the ant in front of it. In the eyes of this giant's offspring, Jiang Xueming, who was deeply troubled by the Gate of Death, was like a tender and delicious piece of meat.
"Run even if you can't! Damn it!" Kunwu cursed, "Useless trash!"
With about thirty feet to go, Xue Ming raised his left arm, radiating the brilliance of the Steel Heart in all directions from the high ground of the slope.
The sounds he heard included not only the roar and footsteps of the mythical unit, but also another familiar rumble—because his brilliance was glowing, and he was certain that his other half, the most important person in his life, was here, not far from him.
The Pofa King Kong spread its arms and pounced straight at its prey.
--A diesel engine whistled, and a dark shadow flew low over the hillside, leaping off the rocky platform.
Four round, bulging eyes burst forth from the night, and a colossal, dark green steel statue leaped up from the north slope!
The two big eyes are the headlights of the [материализм·Materialism] walking armor Big Frog, and two light yellow fog lights are flashing under its cockpit--
--Iron Fist and Pofa King Kong clashed.
The cracking sound of metal scraping against the rocky beach was a dialogue between sparks and thunder.
The flying sand and stones covered everything, and mud and dust sprayed all over Kunwu's face.
Its miniature fission reactor hummed, and two iron fists gripped the arms of the Pofa King Kong tightly—
--The engine roared, straining the chain muscles and steel frame, the hydraulic pump started working, and two thick thighs sprang out of the foundation pile anchor, stomping deeply into the solid rock platform.
The powertrain consists of two V46 twelve-cylinder turbo diesel engines, with a total output of around 1,500 horsepower. It is over six meters tall, making even a giant Big Frog look like a small fry in front of it.
The Pofa King Kong was wrapped in dragons. This calamity beast was eager to protect its master and arched its body to bite at the head of the iron lump—but for a moment it could not find the head!
The Big Frog's cockpit is cramped and was originally an industrial artifact used as a maintenance tool for other bipedal walking armors. There is no protruding "head" reference point.
In that brief moment of hesitation, steel-core machine gun rounds erupted from under the armpits of the armor, and the 12.7mm coaxial machine guns spat out deadly flames—
--The dragon was initially hit by the machine gun, its head arched up and its body went limp. The indestructible bullets broke its spine and tore its neck open, causing the giant barbarian to cover his face and retreat with screams of alarm.
The first round has just ended.
The rain was torrential, and the nameless helmet's steel imprint could be seen on the dark green iron armor—the cooling columns sprang out from the Big Frog's legs and arms, and as soon as the rain hit them, they sizzled and popped upon contact with the scalding cooling oil.
The hatch opened, 9527 stood up, removed the mask from his Flash Butterfly Armor Suit, and carefully examined the disheveled deity.
"They say once you're on your turf, there's no more blessing from Ming De! No more Lady Luck!"
She clenched her fist and covered her chest with her other hand.
"To be honest, my car is too small! Just like my heart, it can't fit that many people! I don't need any goddesses!"
"One beautiful woman is enough! Don't you think?"
Xiao Qi turned her head to look at her husband.
Jiang Xueming covered his mouth and nose, tormented by the shock of sound and light and the spiritual pressure, bleeding from all seven orifices, unable to think of any words to describe it.
"Awesome, I am a beauty, yes, that's me, you say so, that's it."
Xiao Qi confirmed her husband's mental state, saw his bald head, and smelled the stench of Gate of Death —her eyes blazed with anger as she scrambled back into the driver's seat.
A furious roar, filled with gritted teeth, blared from the Big Frog's loudspeaker.
"You fucking bastards! You all deserve to die!"
I briefly overcame my brain fog using this foot soaking method, it was truly amazing, but I can't guarantee I'll be able to update tomorrow!
Today, as is customary, I'm taking a leave of absence!