Divine Astral Dress: Fourth

Big Eye extended a tentacle and scratched its head, quite surprised by Garou's abnormal mental state. But it had always valued strength above all else; even if he was crazy, it did not matter.

As its Dragon-Level telekinesis activated, multicolored elements rose from the ground and swiftly assembled into a portrait.

"Who is this?!"

"Nappa from Dragon Ball, a noble of Planet Vegeta, Vegeta's subordinate..." As the Monster Association's strategist, Big Eye was naturally familiar with this classic manga.

"...He's an Earthling, not a Saiyan." Garou could not help rubbing his forehead. Back when he had been hiding from **, he had secretly read plenty of Dragon Ball too.

The image instantly reassembled into Master Roshi's appearance.

"He doesn't have a beard! His face is smoother!" Veins bulged on Garou's forehead.

The pattern changed again, this time into the form of The Ancient One. Though Big Eye feared her magic, it secretly memorized her appearance.

"A man! No **!" Garou was nearly driven mad.

The Ghost Rider image that appeared next made Garou cover his face outright.

Big Eye suddenly had an idea and pieced together a new hero from the League of Heroes. "This is S-Class Hero Koro-sensei..."

"A human! That's a human!" Garou's eyes were bloodshot as he roared himself hoarse, "Not an octopus monster! And not Master Roshi, Piccolo, or Buu! Do you people even understand human language?!"

It seemed that even after being beaten into amnesia, Garou's fear of Li Chen was still deeply etched into his heart.

Even if his opponent had become bald, that fear had not diminished in the slightest.

"Fine. Go on."

"I, the great hero **, punched Hawkeye, kicked ** Captain, and single-handedly took down S.H.I.E.L.D.'s elite agents! Those guys were fully armed, yet I dealt with every last one using a single Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist!" Garou's eyes were bloodshot, and something was clearly off about his expression.

Champion glanced at Big Eye and tapped his temple with a finger—was this kid brain-damaged?

Big Eye merely shrugged, indicating that while this person was not quite normal, he was still within manageable limits.

"Then I crawled out of the sewers, and then... then I ran into a bald guy!"

Garou alternated between excitement and fury as he incoherently recounted what had happened over the past month. In his madness, he forcibly connected the bald image with the person who had knocked him unconscious.

"That bald guy rushed over and just went 'smack'—he floored me!"

"Pfft... cough, cough..."

Big Eye nearly laughed out loud, hurriedly holding it in—unexpectedly, Garou had quite a talent for comedy when making up stories.

"What are you laughing at?"

"I thought of something happy."

"What?"

"I can beat up B-Class Heroes."

Big Eye waved a hand for Garou to calm down, thinking the kid had probably spent too long in the sewers and suffered **, which was why he was spouting nonsense. He needed proper recovery.

"Pfft..."

"You're laughing again?"

Garou glared viciously at the overwhelmingly imposing Champion. Though Champion really wanted to slap this kid into a meat patty, he held back out of respect for Big Eye.

"I can beat up B-Class Heroes too."

"Let me stress this again! I'm not joking!"

"Yes, yes, yes..."

The two agreed verbally, but their bodies shook from suppressing laughter. After all, Garou's story sounded as absurd as the fantasy of an intellectually disabled teenager.

"Hey!!!"

Champion narrowed his eyes. "Back to the point. That bald guy you mentioned... what rank of hero was he?"

Garou waved his arms frantically. "He can't be measured by rank at all! He was so special... so special... that boiled-egg-like bald head, fists as big as sandbags, paired with that blank expression—an absolutely perfect match! Unfortunately, he moved too fast. I didn't even see his face clearly."

"Hmm?!" Champion suddenly shuddered, a chill running up his spine. That image inexplicably made him think of something capable of killing him with one punch. But on second thought, as a Dragon-Level monster, even a king would need three moves to defeat him.

"You look terrible." Big Eye noticed the abnormality.

Garou was completely immersed in his own world. "You don't understand at all! I can knock down ten B-Class Heroes right now!" Blood streaked the whites of his eyes, and he was clearly not in his right state.

Big Eye spread open its mechanical arms. "Listen, we're well-trained. Unless you're too weak, you won't be instantly defeated. Why not join us first?"

"No need." Garou turned to leave. "My advice is, if you run into that bald guy, bring a few more Dragon-Level helpers."

Champion muttered quietly, "Coward."

"What did you say?!" Garou spun around.

Big Eye hurriedly smoothed things over. "He was praising your caution! Anything else to add?"

"No." Garou had barely taken a step when Champion suddenly blocked the door, his fists cracking as he clenched them. "If you don't join, don't even think about leaving."

"Champion!" Big Eye cried out as battle became imminent.

"163"

Big Eye's expression changed drastically, and it hurriedly spoke up:

Even if Garou refused to join the Monster Association at this moment, Big Eye bore him not the slightest resentment.

After all, time was long, and Garou had the same nature as monsters flowing through his bones. When he came to understand it, he would naturally submit.

If things became openly hostile now, it would instead go against Big Eye's original intentions.

"Enough nonsense! Today, I'm going to smash this arrogant brat to pieces!" "Gladly! Watch me blow your head apart!" The Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist, built up for so long, erupted at once.

Dragging his battered body along, Garou poured every last bit of his remaining strength into his fists.

Blazing fighting spirit burst from his chest, and a mysterious premonition rose in his heart—this battle might help him break through his shackles,

and enter the realm of Dragon-Level Disasters in one stroke!

"Inside a maid café in Queens, New York, decorated with lily-of-the-valley wind chimes.

A young waitress wearing a bow headband carried a tray as she moved between the booths.

(Solemn declaration: all services provided by this establishment comply with Article 17 of New York State labor law.)

"Three special omelet rice orders, please."

"At once, Master~"

The maid secretly glanced at the two girls beside Li Chen, her eyes sparkling.

Whether it was the lively Yatogami Tohka or the silver-haired girl who seemed like the embodiment of divine favor, their stunning beauty had long surpassed ordinary standards of aesthetics. If not for workplace rules, she truly wanted to pull out her phone and ask for a photo.

"Dust, you've been staring at that napkin for ages?"

"I just didn't expect Zero to look so dazzling in casual clothes."

Upon hearing that, the star-dust hairpin in Zero's hair chimed softly with her movements. The pale blue aura surrounding her made customers at neighboring tables glance over repeatedly, and one bespectacled waitress even accidentally spilled lemonade.

"Daz... dazzling?"

The silver-haired girl's ears instantly turned rose-colored, while her fingertips unconsciously drew circles on the tablecloth.

"Very... happy..."

The smile blooming on her face seemed capable of melting all the snow along the entire street, making one want to hold that beauty in their arms—though doing so in public would at least earn three months of community service.

"What about me, what about me?" Tohka puffed out her cheeks and leaned her face close.

"My Tohka is obviously the cutest in the universe." Li Chen casually pinched the ahoge on top of her head.

With a soft chime of bells, steaming omelet rice was served on the table, the heart drawn in ketchup trembling slightly on the ** of the plate.

The brand-new table knife suddenly reflected a cold gleam, while uncleaned ketchup still clung to the edge of the white porcelain plate. The moment Li Chen pierced the soft-boiled egg with his fork, golden yolk slowly flowed over the ridges of the grilled sausage—just like the blood of the alien creature Tohka had sliced apart last night.

"May... may I take a photo with this **?" The waitress with cream stains on the hem of her uniform skirt shakily raised a Polaroid camera. There was a pale blue birthmark on the second knuckle of her ring finger, a detail Raven had forgotten to conceal during her seventh disguise.

Zero's pupils abruptly constricted into two crimson slits, honeycomb-like energy patterns appearing over the surface of her irises. She caught the scent of shapeshifter gene fluid seeping from the other's pores, that sweet fishy smell mixed with sodium chloride identical to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s laboratories.

"I suggest using your original form. It would be more memorable." Li Chen flicked a grain of salt into the air, and the crystal shattered into three perfect diamonds before hitting the ground. Tohka was blowing bubbles into her lemon tea with a straw, and one bubble suddenly transformed into a miniature silhouette of Mystique.

Blue scales suddenly seeped from the waitress's apron pocket, while the ketchup she had knocked over formed the X-Men symbol across the tablecloth. As the automatic doors cut her panicked figure into fragments, Li Chen noticed the S.H.I.E.L.D.-issued quantum communicator on her right ear.

Fury's black coat dragged bloody streaks across the bulletproof glass. Those droplets of blood floated upward against gravity, arranging themselves into the Morse code for "Hydra." Li Chen flung the table knife thirty degrees behind him, its tip precisely knocking away the miniature ** embedded in Fury's shoulder blade—a nanobot marked with a Stark Industries serial number.

"This time, turn Tohka into a cherry hairpin." Zero played with her dessert spoon, its metal surface reflecting three Tohkas with different hair colors. Outside the glass, Fury began using his bleeding wounds to write Hebrew, while Li Chen calculated the probability of opening a spatial rift on the back of the menu.

Li Chen scratched his head and rose from the maid café. He turned into a secluded alley and found the injured Fury weakly leaning against a wall. As one of the few people who knew the true face of the League of Heroes' leader, Fury looked especially miserable at the moment.

"Weren't you dealing with Hydra? How did you end up like this?"

"During the investigation... they noticed me. Now the entire organization is ** me," Fury answered, gasping for breath.

"I'll stop the bleeding first." Li Chen used telekinesis to remove the bullet from Fury's abdomen, then roughly pinched the wound shut. The method was simple and brutal, but it did stop the bleeding.

"Hiss—you couldn't be gentler?"

"Sorry. My medical knowledge is limited. I only know this direct and effective method."

"I need your help..."

"No time."

"Listen! Hydra has already taken control of the entire S.H.I.E.L.D..."

"Quiet." Li Chen made a silencing gesture, and Fury's mouth immediately became unable to make a sound, as though sealed by an invisible force.

"For this kind of minor scuffle, just find the patrol heroes in Queens. ** Captain and Spider-Man should be able to help you. I don't want this to ruin my date, or else..." Li Chen narrowed his eyes. "You'll see what a real apocalypse looks like."

In his eyes, aside from Winter Soldier, who had some ability, Hydra's members were all pathetic cannon fodder. Seeing Li Chen's firm attitude, Fury, unable to speak, could only nod helplessly.

After watching Li Chen leave, Fury suddenly felt a chill at his neck. At some point, the clear sky had been covered by dark clouds, and raindrops as large as beans began to crash down.

"Damn it, it was sunny just a moment ago..."

The curtain of rain provided natural cover, making it easier to conceal one's tracks.

"Drip—"

The sound of someone stepping into a puddle suddenly rang out.

Fury spun around and caught a glimpse of a petite figure wearing a rabbit ** flash through the rain and mist...

"Whoosh—"

Torrential rain poured down like a river from the heavens, silver strands weaving across the sky.

Caught off guard, pedestrians scattered and fled, and the street became empty in an instant. Only a blue-haired girl stood on tiptoe, happily splashing up strings of water.

She wore a green rabbit-eared cloak—"Divine Astral Dress: Fourth." The comical rabbit puppet in her left hand swayed with her movements, as if the entire rain-soaked alley were her personal playground.

"Bang! Bang!"

Gunshots tore through the curtain of rain.

Fury had only just found his old friend Rogers when Hydra's ambush pushed them into a desperate situation. Surrounded by S.H.I.E.L.D. traitors and Winter Soldier, the king of spies looked as bedraggled as a drowned rat.

"Clang—"

The Vibranium Shield deflected the warped bullet.

"What hornet's nest did you poke?!" ** Captain gripped his shield and roared.

"It's Hydra! They hollowed out S.H.I.E.L.D. long ago!"

"Damn it! I need reinforcements!"

The captain blocked Winter Soldier's mechanical arm—the face so similar to Bucky's made him hesitate. Fury pulled out his communicator. "I'll call Spider-Man right now..."

"Forget it, that kid is still solving linear equations in two variables."

"Just my luck." Fury felt that his luck today was absolutely terrible. "Where do we run?"

"Find Tony Stark?"

"Iron Man... that works too."