Are You OK?

"Fire Cloud Evil God... was killed just like that?"

Please forgive the Defenders for how they felt at that moment. That was a man even explosives could not kill, yet a single streak of red sword energy had split him in two.

Not even his corpse remained after death. It turned into black particles and dispersed into the heavens and earth.

The sense of unreality stirred some unrest among them, but they soon saw the grave expression on Bu Jingyun's face.

It was an exceptionally solemn look, as though he had sensed some lurking beast prowling nearby and had to keep his nerves taut and remain vigilant at all times.

Whoosh.

A light breeze carrying a faint chill swept several dead leaves from the ground. The leaves spun through the air, and before they could land, one corner of each had already turned to ice crystals.

A bead of sweat rolled from the tip of his nose and fell to the ground. With a grim face, Bu Jingyun moved two steps to the left and issued a warning.

"Be careful. There's another expert here."

Another expert?

Who was it?

The Defenders were startled. They hurriedly raised their weapons and cautiously scanned their surroundings.

One second, two seconds, three seconds.

Yet as time slowly passed, they found nothing.

None of them thought Bu Jingyun was joking. But when they turned to question him, they suddenly saw a man standing silently behind Bu Jingyun, though none knew when he had appeared.

Terrifying!!

[Emotion Points from Matt Murdock +663]

[Emotion Points from Frank Castle +657]

[Emotion Points from Luke Cage +671]

[Emotion Points from Jessica Jones +677]

Clap, clap, clap.

Applauding, the man spoke.

"Pitiful. Tragic. This is what happens when one abuses a Killing Stone Fragment.

Tsk, tsk. With an evil-spirit-transformed body, not even a complete corpse can be left behind after death."

The man's gaze briefly swept over the Killing Stone Fragment on the ground before quickly moving away, as though in disdain—or perhaps with a certain wariness.

He had long black hair, wore a black robe, and had an ice mask covering his face.

His voice was low and powerful. Though it was not loud, it seemed to echo beside everyone's ears, like the voice of an emperor looking down from on high.

His presence was extraordinarily imposing. Simply standing there, he seemed like a massive vortex, affecting the air within a hundred meters around him.

"Achoo~"

Rubbing her hands together, Jessica could not help sneezing.

"Ah, it's so cold. Who the hell is this guy?"

The Defenders wanted to ask that question, but Bu Jingyun, standing before the man, wanted the answer even more.

His way of asking, however, was rather direct.

With a flick of his wrist, he spun swiftly, drawing the Peerless Sword into an arc as he slashed sideways at high speed.

Clang~

The attack came without warning, yet as easily as reaching into a bag for something, two fingers lightly caught the Peerless Sword's blade.

Those fingers seemed to possess tremendous strength. No matter how hard Bu Jingyun pulled, he could not withdraw the blade even an inch.

"Truly a fine sword."

The man seemed intrigued. After examining it closely for a few moments, he suddenly released his fingers and casually flicked the blade.

Clang~

"But the man... is still lacking."

With that assessment, immense force traveled along the Peerless Sword and slammed into Bu Jingyun's wrist.

Had he not gripped the sword desperately with both hands, it would have been knocked clean from his grasp!

Even so, Bu Jingyun was shoved backward by that force, and both his hands throbbed with pain.

Ignoring his reddened, aching wrists, Bu Jingyun coldly asked, "Who exactly are you?"

"I am Emperor Shitian.

Master of Heaven Gate, and the Eighth Ring of the Ten Rings."

With no intention of concealing anything, Emperor Shitian clasped his hands behind his back and directly revealed his identity.

Frowning, Bu Jingyun pondered for a long time, yet could not recall ever hearing of anyone named Emperor Shitian.

He could be certain that he had never heard this name at any point in his life.

Seeing that the other party showed no hostility, he temporarily sheathed his sword and asked about his purpose.

"I came here to recruit Fire Cloud Evil God into Heaven Gate and make him a flute-playing attendant.

"But your appearance has truly caught my eye!"

He chuckled and took two steps forward.

"Let me ask you this: are you willing to join Heaven Gate and become my subordinate?"

What for?

To act as a flute-playing page boy?

Bu Jingyun had his dignity. His face immediately turned cold as he flatly refused.

The power of the man before him was indeed unfathomable, but thinking he could make Bu Jingyun his lackey with that alone was far too naïve.

Having been rejected to his face, Emperor Shitian was somewhat displeased. Just as he was about to say a few more words to save face, his ears twitched. A rapid set of footsteps was approaching.

He turned around and looked in that direction with displeasure.

A group of well-equipped S.H.I.E.L.D. agents carrying machine guns came rushing over, surrounding the two of them.

Coulson leaned on his cane, trailing far behind and exerting all his strength as he walked and shouted.

"Gentlemen, S.H.I.E.L.D. is very sincere. Can we talk?"

The only reply he received was a disdainful snort.

"The American government? Hmph. I admire your courage, but I pity your ignorance."

"Wait, let's talk this over."

Coulson sensed that something was wrong and tried to salvage the situation.

But Emperor Shitian had already run out of patience. He waved his sleeve, and a burst of icy cold erupted in an instant.

Massive icicles surged high from the ground. In the blink of an eye, every gun-toting agent was frozen solid.

"Bu Jingyun, you had better think it over. We shall meet again someday!"

Completely ignoring Coulson's ugly expression, Emperor Shitian moved and vanished in an instant.

Frowning, Bu Jingyun tossed a black gourd to Chun-Li. After walking over and giving her a few instructions on how to use it, he employed his lightness skill and quickly departed as well.

"Wait. Don't leave!"

Holding out a hand with a bitter smile, Coulson felt that this was far too difficult.

These people relied on their formidable abilities and none of them took S.H.I.E.L.D. seriously. They came whenever they wanted and left whenever they wanted.

Are you OK?

It was just a conversation. Was that really so hard?

Turning his head, Coulson met Frank and the others' pitiful gazes and awkwardly said, "How about... we talk?"

After speaking with Coulson, Chun-Li and the others left.

The gourd Bu Jingyun had left behind was truly miraculous.

Following Bu Jingyun's instructions, Chun-Li took a small drink of the water inside. Her body immediately trembled, and her limbs and bones felt as though they had been soaked in a hot spring. Her injuries recovered at a visible rate.

Seeing this, Matt and the others each took the gourd and drank several large mouthfuls. They marveled at the sensation of being healed, so comfortable that they immediately let out soft groans.

Even the unconscious Danny was fed several mouthfuls. Before long, he woke up while stretching lazily.

However, the gourd had no effect on the dead Elektra.

That was only natural. This healing item from Black Myth: Wukong could restore health, but using it to bring someone back to life was impossible.

Over the next few days, Coulson frequently arranged meetings with Chun-Li to ask for information.

Chun-Li did not hide anything. She gave Coulson a general account of what she knew about the Ethereal Immortal Realm and the demon realm.

Then, after refusing Coulson's invitation to join S.H.I.E.L.D., she attended Elektra's funeral with several of her companions from the Defenders.

Not long afterward, news arrived that Shadaloo was active in Europe, and Chun-Li bid everyone farewell and left.

Thanks to Aiting Shu You for the Qidian coin donation.