Acrobatics

The acrobatics tent stood three stories tall.

At the center of the stage, several lights shone on the star standing there with his arms spread wide, savoring the attention focused on him, the screams, and the cheers.

The circus ringmaster, dressed in a tailcoat and carrying a cane, tugged at the red bow tie beneath his neck and cleared his throat. "Ahem, today! The Flying Graysons and Boston Brand will bring you the most thrilling and perfect visual spectacle with their graceful acrobatics!"

"Wow!"

"Graysons! Graysons!"

"Boston!"

"Boston Brand!!"

"Ah!!"

"..."

They were like great heroes or superstars. The screams alone showed how popular they were.

Behind the circus ringmaster—

The Grayson family, dressed in gorgeous leotards, stood shoulder to shoulder.

John Grayson smiled confidently at his son, who was a head shorter than him. "Dick, relax. This will be a perfect performance. Once I let go of the bar, all you need to do is catch me!"

"Yes, don't worry." Mary Grayson also comforted her youngest son. "The Graysons are dancers of the sky, nimble robins. As long as you keep calm, nothing will go wrong!"

"But I..." Dick Grayson's throat bobbed as he secretly swallowed.

"Dick Grayson! Dick Grayson!"

Voices from beneath the stage called his name, making Dick briefly think he was hearing things.

He searched the audience and quickly spotted an Asian man in a green suit, waving his hand with all his strength.

"He must be your first fan," John Grayson said with a smile, delighted that his son had a fan of his own.

Dick nodded lightly in agreement and gave his first fan a friendly smile.

Li Zu lowered his waving hand. The audience here was like a frenzy of star-chasing fanatics. Once he lowered his hand, he was quickly swallowed by the sea of voices and people.

"Dick Grayson~" he murmured softly, reciting the true name of a certain superhero.

It was a completely broken world, where every superhero had taken an entirely different path.

A young couple sat beside Li Zu, openly mocking the Flying Graysons' tights and their ridiculous color scheme.

"Buddy, where are you from?" the German man sitting beside Li Zu asked, lightly poking his arm.

"Gotham."

"Gotham? North America? What a shame!" The German man looked regretful.

"I heard there's a flying alien who shoots flames from his eyes and wiped out more than half of Washington, D.C. It's like hell on earth now!" The woman beside him leaned over and joined the conversation.

"Is that so?" Li Zu's lips curled upward. "Looks like our Kal-El found his own fairness and freedom~"

"Bill, he looks kind of strange~" the woman whispered, tugging her boyfriend's arm.

"That's right." The German man nodded.

The two of them moved away from Li Zu because of the smile on his face, which looked almost pathological.

The performance began.

The lights went out, plunging the tent into darkness.

Five seconds later, a blinding beam of light lit up in the corner of the stage, drawing everyone's attention.

Under the powerful spotlight, a bald figure in red stood with both arms spread atop a sixteen-foot pole. Six feet away from him, only a thin rope swayed from side to side.

The audience began to applaud. They could already guess what kind of performance this was.

"Boston Brand!" Even a fat woman let out a scream.

It was obvious that she loved this thrilling man who set her hormones racing.

Boston Brand leaped lightly into the air.

There was no grace to it at all. He simply plunged headfirst toward the ground in a straight line, ignoring even the rope right beside him.

The distance to the ground went from sixteen feet, to fifteen, fourteen, thirteen...

Closer and closer.

Yet Boston Brand continued to ignore the rope within reach.

His head drew closer and closer to the ground.

Five feet remained, no more than the height of a man.

The tent fell silent.

Was it an accident?

Some people had already closed their eyes. They did not want to see a pile of mangled flesh splattered across the floor. It would surely leave them unable to eat for days.

At the very last limit—

Brand finally reached out and grabbed the rope.

Stopped!

At the final instant!

His head was only a thigh's length from the ground.

Gasp—!

The audience collectively sucked in a breath.

Then came thunderous screams and cheers.

Though it lacked grace and was even simple and brutal, this extreme feat that nearly challenged life and death won the entire audience over.

A very successful warm-up.

Li Zu applauded along with them.

"Next, please welcome the Flying Graysons!"

The lights came on. The elegant dancers of the sky walked to the front as if performing ballet on steel wires, displaying breathtaking flexibility.

They danced through the air, while the ropes and horizontal bars that seemed to support their bodies were merely branches for them to perch on temporarily.

Elegant, full of beauty~

The audience smiled as they watched the scene.

Suddenly—

With a ripping sound, the tent was torn apart.

A figure ripped through the top of the tent and smashed into the robin family dancing through the air.

Another figure crashed into the challenger of death—Boston Brand.

A dense mass of intruders appeared.

They were women, clad in armor and wielding swords and shields, murderous intent boiling in their eyes.

The Amazons of Themyscira!

"Find Nabu's Helmet!" the leading Amazon warrior said as she turned her head. "It's nearby!"

The Amazons' sudden intrusion threw the venue into chaos.

Confusion, screams, and flight!

People scattered in every direction.

The Amazons had come. Before long, this place would become a battlefield!

Only Li Zu remained seated, unhurried and calm.

Another figure knelt on the ground and wept bitterly.

Dick Grayson.

As the final performer, he had not yet stepped into the light, so he had escaped disaster.

He was the only one who survived.

World Exploration Progress 45%

Merciless blades slit innocent throats, cut open their chests, and hacked off their arms.

The Amazons swung their weapons, slaughtering ordinary people as if butchering cattle and sheep.

Li Zu sat obediently in his chair without trying to run.

He watched the Amazons massacre people and leave, until only he and Dick Grayson remained in the tent, each with an Amazon warrior standing beside them.

A cold sword pointed at his head.

"I'm guessing you treat those who don't resist well, right?" Li Zu glanced at the gleaming blade, then looked at the Amazon warrior.

The proud Amazon looked down at Li Zu. "Your cowardice saved your miserable life! You can go on barely surviving in a concentration camp!"

"Of course. I've always cherished my life. Only by staying alive can I explore more of the world!" Li Zu raised both hands to make sure she knew he would not resist.

"But I don't agree that I'm cowardly."

The Amazon warrior sneered. "With one swing of my sword, I can slit your throat!"

Li Zu suddenly bent backward, widening the distance between himself and the blade.

Supporting himself on the chair with one hand, he performed a difficult 360-degree backflip, escaping the sword's attack range.

He landed, his body swaying slightly.

Like an acrobat.

Acrobatics: Basic (2%)

Thanks to "Tell Yanchuan Who Is the Kami of the New World" for the 100 Qidian Coins reward.

(End of Chapter)