Fake Battle

Fake Battle

Captain Iron Ox looked in the direction Gray Dog was pointing. In the distance lay a stretch of murky river water. "The Yangtze River?" Captain Iron Ox asked.

"Seems like it. It's not far ahead—I caught his scent." Gray Dog nodded in confirmation.

"That guy's moving so slowly, we can't even slack off. Fuck. Are we really going up there?" White Cat looked at the captain, waiting for his decision.

"Let's go. We can't run anyway. We offended Li Kanghua last time—even if we escape this time, there'll still be a next time." Captain Iron Ox pulled the cigarette from his mouth, tossed it to the ground, and ground it beneath his feet.

"Fuck, that Li Kanghua is no good. He thinks he's somebody just because he latched onto Mao Shaohui. He's nothing but that guy's dog." White Cat muttered under his breath.

"Say less. Complaining here won't help. If you had the strength to stand on the same level as the Flame King and the Thunder God, Li Kanghua definitely wouldn't dare provoke you." Toad, whose face was covered in acne, cut in.

"Isn't that obvious? If I were as strong as the Flame King, would I still be here? And look at our superpowers—the physical mutation type. Fuck, every time we activate them, we turn into something like half-beasts."

"What the fuck are you complaining about? At least your White Cat form looks kind of handsome normally. Look at those three cat markings on your face—I've heard those little nurses say more than once that you're pretty handsome. Look at me instead. I'm fucking a toad. Not only am I ugly after transforming, my face is always covered in acne. Who am I supposed to complain to..." Toad lost his temper too, sounding even more resentful than White Cat.

With two smacks, Iron Ox slapped both of them on the backs of their heads. "Enough complaining. Get ready to move." Looking down from the Shanghai River embankment, they saw a man holding a little girl's hand as they slowly walked along the riverside path.

"Plump Pig, stop eating. The target is right ahead."

"Okay, okay. Last piece of beef." The huge fat man in the group poured the rest of the "Sichuan Five-Spice Beef Jerky" into his mouth.

This was the National Superpower Special Security Department's Eighth Squad, also known as Beast Squad.

Captain Iron Ox was a physical mutation-type superpowered individual. In battle, he could transform into a minotaur. His specialty was strength.

Gray Dog was a physical mutation-type superpowered individual. In battle, he transformed into Gray Dog. His specialties were speed and scent.

White Cat was a physical mutation-type superpowered individual. In battle, he transformed into White Cat. His specialties were agility and speed.

Toad was a physical mutation-type superpowered individual. In battle, he transformed into a toad. His specialty was poison.

Plump Pig was a physical mutation-type superpowered individual. (He actually just disliked being called Fat Pig.) In battle, he transformed into a fat pig. His specialties were physical defense and strength.

Clearly, the members of this squad had been specially assigned from above. Five superpowered individuals of the same physical mutation type had been gathered together to form this squad. Among superpowered individuals, the physical mutation type was basically at the bottom rung. Though they could transform, they generally had no outstanding traits. At best, they were like powerful wild beasts, only more intelligent.

Hong Mo held Lingyin's hand as they walked beside the Yangtze River, the wind carrying the damp scent of river water. It was not that Hong Mo was being carefree and pretending to be relaxed; he had simply figured something out.

This was China. No matter how he ran, as long as he remained in China, it made no difference where he went. If he truly wanted to evade pursuit, he would probably have to go abroad. Having understood that, Hong Mo no longer fled stupidly without pause. Instead, he leisurely took Lingyin along to enjoy the scenery by the river.

Hong Mo's superpower field had remained expanded, without any deliberate concealment. Within a radius of two kilometers, he could clearly perceive rough, blurry images. The closer something came to Hong Mo, the clearer the surrounding scene became, as though he were looking at it with his naked eyes—perhaps even more clearly than that.

How could Hong Mo fail to notice five people with such distinct personalities entering his superpower field? He simply could not be bothered making any unnecessary moves.

When they were a hundred meters away from Hong Mo, the five finally stopped.

"You're here?" Hong Mo turned and smiled at them, as though greeting friends.

"You don't seem worried at all?" White Cat tilted his head, somewhat puzzled.

"I suddenly figured something out. As long as I'm in the country, everywhere is about the same. The state's strength is always this overwhelming. Rather than let you chase me around like a dog, I might as well wait leisurely for you to come to me." Hong Mo shrugged helplessly.

"Ahaha, so that's why. No wonder you've been walking slower and slower." Iron Ox scratched his head, looking simple and honest.

"What?"

"Actually, we don't really want to fight you. We're kind of scared of dying." The moment Plump Pig opened his mouth, he exposed a secret.

"You stupid fat pig, what the fuck are you saying?" White Cat pounced on Plump Pig, smacking his head in frustration.

"I'm only plump. Plump. Don't call me Fat Pig." The fat on Plump Pig's body rippled, bouncing White Cat away.

"Oh?" Hong Mo was surprised, but he was not rash enough to believe them so easily. He released Lingyin's hand, letting his right arm hang naturally at his side. "Come on. Since you're here, just flapping your gums won't cut it." At the same time, a ball of electric light lit up in Hong Mo's right hand, stray currents making a piercing crackling sound.

"Let's begin. Don't die." After Captain Iron Ox's brief warning, he charged fiercely toward Hong Mo. As he ran, his entire body abruptly swelled by a full size. Thud, thud, thud. Iron Ox's footsteps grew heavier and heavier. By the time he reached Hong Mo, he had become a three-meter-tall bull-headed giant. And that was not all—a thick metal spiked club appeared out of thin air in Iron Ox's hand.

As Iron Ox charged, the other four moved as well. White Cat and Gray Dog, though moving later, arrived first. They had completely transformed into beast forms and lunged at Hong Mo with sharp claws bared.

A whole beast legion, huh? These pursuers really were strange. Hong Mo wondered inwardly, but his hands did not slow. With a flick of his right hand, he threw the ball of electric light outward.

"Your aim sure sucks, haha." White Cat, now sporting a cat's head, saw the lightning ball fall to the ground and laughed, exposing his sharp fangs. But the sound abruptly stopped. The instant the lightning ball hit the ground, it erupted, enveloping everything within five meters in a mass of lightning—catching both him and Iron Ox inside.

A sizzling current rang out. Iron Ox rushed out with white smoke rising all over his body, while White Cat collapsed where he stood, his eyes rolled white.

Even Hong Mo was stunned. The result was absurdly funny. Were these pursuers really that useless? They were not here to throw their lives away, were they?

In that moment of distraction, the other three did not slow down. They had already reached Hong Mo.

"Beast Combo Attack."

"Finishing move!"

"Plump Pig's Charge." Several bizarre voices rang out.

Hong Mo swept both hands in an arc, brilliant electric light streaking past his fingers and tracing a semicircle. Thunder Domain! Almost instantly, the entire space opened between Hong Mo's hands filled with violent currents.

The three who charged into the area immediately began convulsing all over. Though their bodies were out of control, their powerful momentum still carried them down upon Hong Mo. Plump Pig's enormous body in particular, even as all his fat shook wildly, bore down with terrifying force.

Hong Mo moved several times, seemingly slow but actually fast. Borrowing the force of their forward lunge, he threw all three of them away. Using four ounces to deflect a thousand pounds! Hong Mo had practiced ancient martial arts long ago, though he had never achieved much with them. But after Su Mu had given him a vicious beating a few days ago, Hong Mo had picked them up again.

He did not need to become some incredible master. At the very least, he needed some ability to fight back. Being beaten by Su Mu like last time, without even the slightest chance to retaliate, had been far too humiliating.

The three who fell to the ground had bluish smoke rising from their bodies. They looked as though they had been roasted, lying motionless on the ground.

Hong Mo was puzzled again. He could not be this strong, could he? Or were these people truly just too weak?

"Thousand-Pound Smash!" At that moment, Captain Iron Ox finally reached Hong Mo. The thick spiked club came crashing down.

What was going on? Hong Mo felt an indescribable sense of discord, as if something was off. Though his thoughts raced, his body still easily dodged the blow. At the same time, he pulled Lingyin aside.

That strike looked ferocious, but it was actually very slow.

BOOM!

As if an earthquake had struck, several enormous cracks spread out from where the spiked club hit the ground. A huge section of the solid concrete embankment collapsed under the blow.

What incredible strength! Hong Mo was startled, then caught Gray Dog rolling aside out of the corner of his eye to avoid a flying stone.

Huh? What was going on? Don't tell him what had just happened was only an accident.

Hong Mo darted forward and pressed his right hand against Iron Ox's back. A powerful current surged forth. Captain Iron Ox's eyes immediately rolled back, and his thick spiked club fell to the ground with a clang.

Was that it?

Even Hong Mo could hardly believe it. He stood where he was, his face dark with suspicion.

'Damn it, the fight's already over. Hurry up and get lost,' White Cat said.

'Please, I hope that guy doesn't get ruthless,' Gray Dog said.

'After this, I need to get more beef jerky to make up for it. This was a loss,' Plump Pig said.

'What a hassle. He was so close just now—if I'd used poison, he might already be on the ground,' Toad said.

'You bastards remember this. You could at least have told me before playing dead. You made me suffer for nothing,' Iron Ox said.

Hong Mo remained motionless, staring fixedly at Gray Dog lying on the ground. After a long while with no movement, Gray Dog opened his eyes in confusion—only to meet Hong Mo's gaze. His mouth fell open stupidly, then he abruptly shut his eyes again and continued playing dead.

This was fucking terrible acting. Hong Mo did not know whether to laugh or cry. Though he had no idea what was really going on, since they were not seriously fighting him, he had no intention of pressing them too hard. Besides, he had always been the sort of person who returned a foot of respect with a yard of respect.

"Lingyin, let's go." Hong Mo walked over and took Lingyin's small hand.

"Okay." Lingyin placed her hand in Hong Mo's, and the two slowly disappeared into the distance.