Li Shu's sudden move startled both the shopkeeper and Wukong.
Wukong, not the brightest, stared at the Dragon Ball shattered on the ground and cried out, "Grandpa!"
"Wukong, enough about Grandpa. There can only be one Four-Star Ball, and that one's fake. He's trying to deceive us." Li Shu stared sharply at the shopkeeper without turning around.
At the same time, he tossed the real Four-Star Ball to Wukong. "Real Dragon Balls glow when they sense other Dragon Balls. That means there must be another one here."
He said this for Wukong's benefit, but also for the shopkeeper's.
Wukong recalled collecting Dragon Balls the last time. They had indeed reacted that way when brought near other Dragon Balls.
At last, Wukong realized they had been tricked!
He glared furiously at the shopkeeper. "You're awful! I only won five hundred thousand as the runner-up in the World Martial Arts Tournament, and you swindled every last bit of it from me!"
That was right—Li Shu had paid the five hundred thousand with Wukong's money.
The shopkeeper stared at the Four-Star Ball gleaming in Li Shu's hand and was completely stunned. If only he'd known, he should have given them a different Dragon Ball.
"Wait!" A sudden idea struck the shopkeeper, and he cried out indignantly, "I'm a victim too! I'm going to find that damn vagrant right now!"
As he spoke, the shopkeeper pulled out a handgun and stormed toward the door.
After hearing the shopkeeper's explanation, Wukong's anger immediately faded. He stared at him in surprise. "Is that so? Then hurry up and take us to find that vagrant."
Li Shu sighed and pressed a hand to his forehead, utterly speechless. Wukong's innocence was enough to bring him to tears.
Just as Li Shu was about to stop the shopkeeper and teach him a proper lesson, the door swung open from the outside.
A group of heavily armed soldiers charged in, their guns trained on them. At their head was a red-haired man with an arrogant look on his face.
The shopkeeper was frightened by the sight. His legs went weak, and he stumbled backward.
Compared with this group of armed soldiers, the big and little guys behind them seemed far more harmless.
"Oh? Three people?" Colonel Silver cracked his neck and looked the three of them up and down. "Who has the Dragon Ball?"
[Battle Power: 20]
Li Shu glanced at the red-haired man. His battle power of 20 put him completely at ease. This was a weakling who couldn't even beat Yamcha.
As for the soldiers, they were all weaklings. Nothing to worry about.
"He has it!" The shopkeeper immediately sold Li Shu out and hurriedly put some distance between them, afraid of getting dragged into it.
Li Shu sneered and nodded toward him. "He has one too."
"I don't! Don't make things up! It wasn't me!" The shopkeeper shook his head in panic. He couldn't afford to worry about anything else now; nothing mattered more than his life. He hurriedly added, "These Dragon Balls of mine are all fake. I'll show you if you don't believe me."
With that, the shopkeeper scrambled up the shelves, carried down a wooden crate, and opened it in front of everyone.
Wukong's eyes widened as he stared at the sight in disbelief. The crate was full of Dragon Balls, from the One-Star Ball to the Seven-Star Ball, and there were several complete sets.
One glance was enough for Li Shu to tell that all the Dragon Balls in the crate were fake. Not one of them reacted to the others.
Colonel Silver's mouth twitched. He immediately ordered, "You, check them."
"Yes, Colonel!"
A soldier stepped out of formation and began checking them one by one.
"Reporting, Colonel! They're all ordinary glass marbles!"
Colonel Silver's expression turned cold. "Restrain this man first. He must have a real Dragon Ball somewhere."
The shopkeeper panicked and kept trying to explain himself, but no one listened. He only angered the soldiers further, and one of them knocked him unconscious with a rifle butt. "What a racket!"
After dealing with the shopkeeper, Colonel Silver turned to Li Shu. He paid no attention to Son Goku; he was just a little brat.
"You've just come from the World Martial Arts Tournament, haven't you?" Colonel Silver asked suddenly, not rushing to ask where the Dragon Ball was.
Li Shu looked at the red-haired man in confusion. Instead of answering, he asked, "Who are you?"
"Heh." Colonel Silver gave a cold, haughty laugh. "Allow me to introduce myself. Colonel Silver, commander of the Red Ribbon Army's Silver Squad!"
Li Shu chuckled. "So you're a little nobody."
"What did you say?" Colonel Silver was instantly enraged. The Red Ribbon Army was known as "the most evil army in the world," and he was a commander in its Silver Squad. How dare someone mock him like that!
"Are you hard of hearing? I know a famous ear doctor. Want me to introduce you? Get your ears fixed first; you can be a little nobody after that."
Li Shu replied nonchalantly. He had already begun trying to farm achievements from his opponent.
One of the rules of achievements: the greater the emotional reaction, the higher the chance of earning one. That was what Li Shu had concluded from his experience over the past while.
Colonel Silver was seething with rage. Ever since he'd become commander of the Silver Squad, no one but his superiors had dared speak to him that way.
He swore he'd tear the man before him to pieces!
"What place did you get in the World Martial Arts Tournament?" Colonel Silver forced down his anger and asked coldly.
"First." Li Shu answered with a cheerful smile, as if he didn't take his opponent seriously at all.
"No wonder you're so arrogant!" Colonel Silver said, his eyes full of murderous intent. "You're nothing but a martial artist who's never killed anyone. I can take on ten men at once in the army. I'll show you what a real powerhouse looks like!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Colonel Silver shrugged off his military overcoat and punched at Li Shu.
"Ding! Limited-time achievement mission 'There's Always Someone Stronger' triggered. Defeat Colonel Silver's resolve within 30 seconds to receive [Holographic Dragon Radar]."
Li Shu's eyes lit up. His theory had been confirmed once again: emotion really was the key to triggering achievements.
Defeat his resolve within 30 seconds?
The mission sounded difficult. Beating his opponent would be easy, but how was he supposed to shatter his resolve?
With time running short, Li Shu fell into thought, searching for a plan. He didn't have time to bother with Colonel Silver's attack.
"Arrogant!" Li Shu's dismissive attitude enraged Colonel Silver. Someone was ignoring his attack! It was the ultimate insult!
"I'll punch your head clean off!" Colonel Silver roared as he landed a punch squarely on Li Shu's face.
Li Shu sucked in a sharp breath. "Tss... That stings a little."
Colonel Silver and the soldiers stared at the man before them, dumbfounded and unable to believe what they were seeing.
That punch could knock a punching bag apart! Yet the man before them hadn't moved an inch!
What kind of monster was he?
Before you continue