Chapter Nine: Shatter! The Titan of Strength! (Part Two)

"Arrived at the mission location," Xie Liu announced, cutting loose the parachute strapped to his back. "The time is 2:54. Confirm. Opening the spacetime seal." With that, he raised his hand toward the sky, and a ripple, invisible yet palpable, spread from his fingertips, forming a distorted, hemispherical space. In that instant, every person and object within the area froze in place.

"I need to rendezvous with the others first." Xie Liu stood up, looking around, and his face twitched involuntarily. He pressed a hand to his earpiece and said helplessly, "Confirmed, I am at least two hundred kilometers off target. Sorry, brothers, I won’t be of much help." With that, he gazed at the pastoral countryside before him, resignation written all over his face.

...

Gong Hou hit the ground, rolling to absorb the impact, then sliced through his parachute and stood, removing his backpack. He looked around and realized he was at a dock. Pressing his earpiece, he said, "Confirmed, I've reached the destination. Hm? Dead Fish Eyes, you bastard, where have you ended up now?"

"Stop whining," came Xie Liu’s voice. "I’m far from your location. Spirit Ghost’s 'Psionic Link' has already exceeded its maximum range—I can’t keep it up for long. Let’s disconnect here. Take care of yourself, and remember to activate the 'spacetime seal' quickly."

"Understood." Gong Hou severed the connection, then raised his hand toward the sky. "Spacetime Seal!" Just as Xie Liu had done, a silent wave radiated from his fingertips, forming a vast enclosure that shrouded the area.

Everything within stilled in an instant.

"Thank heavens, it worked. My success rate with this is nothing to brag about," Gong Hou exhaled in relief—then suddenly froze. He heard a crisp, cutesy voice nearby.

"Hey, hey, uncle, what’s wrong? Why aren’t you talking? Huh, why aren’t you moving either?" Sure enough, Ye Ling, wearing an adorable expression, was pestering a security guard standing in front of her, bombarding him with questions.

"Stop asking. I’ve activated the spacetime seal—they can’t move," Gong Hou sighed. Ye Ling, recognizing a familiar face, relaxed, but then asked, "What’s a spacetime seal?"

"It’s an ability we gained from traversing spacetime. It lets us create a barrier within a certain area, isolating everything inside from the outside world. Inside and out, time stands still."

"Time stands still?" Ye Ling blinked her large, watery eyes, curious as a child.

"Exactly," Gong Hou nodded. "No matter what we do within the seal, even if it takes ages, to the outside world it’s just an instant."

Ye Ling seemed to understand, then asked, "So why can’t these people move either?" She poked the immobilized security guard, putting on an even cuter act.

"Inside the spacetime seal, time is frozen. Only spacetime travelers and those with anti-freeze devices can move," Gong Hou explained. Ye Ling, still poking the poor guard, accidentally prodded too hard, causing the guard to topple like a statue.

"Ahhh..." Ye Ling panicked, flustered. Gong Hou shook his head. "Don’t worry. Inside the seal, whatever you do—unless you’re a traveler or have an anti-freeze device—everything reverts once the seal is lifted. That’s a rule."

"Oh." Ye Ling nodded rapidly like a pecking chick. Gong Hou’s tone grew severe. "From this rule comes a taboo: nothing must be taken out of the spacetime seal. If you remove something, when the seal vanishes, it will attempt to return to its rightful time, creating a paradox—two of the same object in the same time. That would unravel spacetime itself. Usually, time repairs itself by destroying you and the object through any number of bizarre means. Never forget this."

Ye Ling’s face twitched. She pulled a small seashell from her pocket. "I just picked this up on the beach. Does that mean I can’t take it back?"

Gong Hou glanced at the shell and sighed. "As long as you picked it up before the seal was activated, it's fine—it’s already imprinted with your 'spacetime particles,' so it won’t cause a collapse. Ugh, why am I the one explaining this? This should be Xie Liu’s job. That jerk, ending up somewhere else."

"Achoo!" Who’s talking about me? Xie Liu wiped his nose, muttering softly, then adjusted his hammock and lay down. "Ah, nothing to do, light as a feather!"

...

"Lishen, are you there?" Xu Xiong’s voice sounded in Gong Hou’s mind. Gong Hou pressed his earpiece. "Here. What is it?"

"I’ve located the target, less than thirty meters from you," Xu Xiong replied coolly. "There are many people. I suggest you withdraw for now."

"How many—wait, I think...I can’t get away." Gong Hou saw several figures emerging ahead. They must have spotted him and Ye Ling, for they fanned out, surrounding them.

"Did you activate the spacetime seal?" The leader, cloaked in black, spoke with a chilling mechanical tone.

Gong Hou stepped forward, shielding Ye Ling, and declared loudly, "Don’t you guys have any originality? Always with the same boring questions. Honestly, you villains are a disgrace. No wonder you didn’t show up until eight thousand words into this chapter. Of course I activated the spacetime seal. What of it? Unhappy? Hit me then, go on—hit me!"

"......"

His opponents seemed momentarily stunned, even the black-robed leader pausing before bursting into laughter, his whole body shaking. Gong Hou rolled his eyes. "The classic villain’s maniacal laughter, huh? This guy’s doomed."

"You have guts. Soon you’ll be begging for death." The leader stepped forward, gloved hand reaching inside his robe as if to draw a sword.

"Wait a minute!" Gong Hou spread his hands and shouted. The black-robed man halted. "What, scared?"

"Hmph." Gong Hou brushed aside his bangs. "I want to take on ten at once!" He stretched out a hand, palm open, toward his adversaries.

Ye Ling stood by, expressionless, watching Gong Hou’s bravado. She responded coolly, "Stop embarrassing yourself."

"Embarrassing? Wasn’t that cool? Wasn’t that bold? Are you not dazzled by my presence?" Gong Hou protested. Ye Ling replied flatly, "First, you’re not Ip Man. If you want to fight ten at once, go home and train for a few years. Second, there are only seven people over there. How did you count ten? Did your PE teacher teach you math in elementary school? Third, why show one hand? If you say you’ll fight ten, a hand only has five fingers."

Gong Hou’s facial muscles twitched; he laughed and gritted his teeth. "You’re ruthless. I’ve been the king of chatter for over twenty years, yet you, a little girl, are a hidden master."

"Enough chitchat—finish them off," Ye Ling said, picking a shipping container to lean against, visibly annoyed.

"Yes, ma’am!" Gong Hou laughed heartily, facing his opponents. "Since the young lady has given the order, I’ll have to deal with you properly." He cracked his ten knuckles, the sound echoing ominously.

"Come forth, Antimatter Battle Armor!" With a furious shout, Gong Hou’s backpack sprang open, revealing a folded suit of armor. At his roar, the armor rapidly assembled itself, expanding from the size of a small pack to envelop his burly form.

The dark blue armor covered every part of him but his head, exuding an overwhelming sense of power. Gong Hou laughed, then reached into the pack and drew forth a crimson light that transformed into a two-meter-long, blood-red battleaxe.

"That’s the Antimatter Armor! Could he be 'Lishen'?!" one of the henchmen cried in terror. Gong Hou flexed his fists. "You guessed right. Now, enjoy the one-sided slaughter!"

"Damn, everyone be careful! This guy’s a LEVEL 8 esper. Don’t let him hit you!" the black-cloaked leader barked. Gong Hou bellowed, "Too late for that!" At that moment, a massive shipping container hurtled toward him like a bullet.

"Zheng—" A blade flashed; the container split in two, but a heap of steel bars rained down, burying the black-robed man alive.

"Heh, forgot to mention—this is a steel trade zone. Getting crushed here is a real risk," Gong Hou quipped, ignoring the buried foe as he charged the remaining six.

"According to intel, five are just ordinary gene-modified grunts. Among these six, five are likely cannon fodder. Let’s clear them out first," Gong Hou thought, closing in rapidly.

"Scatter!" another armored man shouted. The six scattered, drawing their guns and firing at Gong Hou.

Bang, bang, bang—the gunfire raked over him, but Gong Hou only smiled coldly. A helmet snapped into place on his armor, and he waded through the hail of bullets, brandishing his massive axe.

"Stay alert, spread out, don’t let him grab you!" the armored man ordered, then shouted at the steel heap, "Mantis, get out of there! That won’t kill you!"

"Worry about yourself first." Gong Hou’s voice sounded behind him. The armored man spun around just as the giant axe descended. He leapt aside, dodging the blow.

Boom—the concrete shattered, but the armored man escaped. Gong Hou, unperturbed, seized a nearby shipping container full of steel and hefted it.

"Is he even human?" the armored man muttered, stunned. "He seems less human than we are!"

"Hahaha, die!" Gong Hou leapt three meters high, slamming the container down. The enemies scattered in panic. The container burst apart, steel flying everywhere. Gong Hou barreled into the storm of metal, snatching bars and hurling them like missiles.

"Die! All of you, die!" he roared, flinging steel with terrifying force.

Brutal—uncompromising violence. That was Ye Ling’s only impression. Gong Hou battered the enemy relentlessly, giving them no chance to fight back.

Boom—after a prolonged barrage, one foe was finally struck, crushed beneath the steel, almost certainly dead.

The survivors turned pale. This was a massacre—how could they possibly win?

"This guy’s a LEVEL 8 esper, power: 'Aerokinesis.' His strength is off the charts—don’t go head-to-head!" The man previously buried under steel climbed out, his robe in tatters, revealing his true form. Still vaguely human-shaped, his body was now entirely metallic, with a pair of folded steel wings on his back.

"A mantis-type cyborg?" Gong Hou sneered, just as Ye Ling shouted, "Look out!"

Gong Hou whipped around. In the moment he’d been distracted, the remaining four cannon fodder had regrouped, aiming rocket launchers at him.

"Urban rocket launchers: portable, easy to use, essential for murder, arson, and robbery," Gong Hou mocked as a rocket streaked toward him.

He snatched the projectile out of the air.

"Impossible!" the four grunts gasped. Gong Hou laughed, "Fire in the hole—run for it!" He hurled the rocket back.

"Run!" The four scattered in terror. Half a second later, the explosion blasted them off their feet.

Gong Hou gave them no chance to recover, charging with his axe raised. The blast had left the four sprawled on the ground, barely able to rise. As his axe descended, the armored man intervened, sword clashing against the axe.

Ding—the axe was deflected, and the armored man shielded the four. "Go! I’ll—" He couldn’t finish. Gong Hou smashed him to the ground with a backhanded punch, then grabbed him by the leg and slammed him down.

Boom—a crater appeared in the ground. The armored man howled. Gong Hou sneered, "A leopard-type cyborg? Speed alone won’t save you." He flung the man away like a cannonball, sending him crashing through four containers into a pile of steel.

"Scatter—every man for himself!" the mantis cyborg took flight, shouting orders as the four survivors fled in all directions. Gong Hou observed coldly. "Clever, but do you really think you can escape?" He began to run, picking up speed.

"What’s he doing?" The armored man, crawling from the wreckage, found his leg severed—sparks flickered from exposed circuitry. He tried to stand, but failed, shaken by a fear of death he’d never known.

"Earthquake!" Gong Hou roared, crouching and leaping so violently the ground shattered. He soared ten meters high, spinning the blood-red axe in the air, whipping up a cyclone.

With a mighty shout, he dove, slamming the axe into the ground. "Shatter!"

A thunderous crash—the ground exploded, a radius of ten meters upheaved, concrete flying like paper under the force.

"Ahhh!" The four fleeing grunts were blasted a dozen meters into the sky, caught in a storm of steel, and buried beneath it all. None seemed likely to survive.

When the dust settled, Gong Hou’s imposing figure stood triumphant.

"Pathetic—you all went down before I even got warmed up," he gloated, turning to the mantis in the sky with what he thought was a rakish grin.

"This is bad. Retreat!" The mantis cyborg, seeing his comrades obliterated, decided he’d be next if he stayed. His wings buzzed as he fled.

"Hey? You’re not fighting?" Gong Hou stared, dumbfounded. "Damn, he can fly—I can’t reach him!"

As his enemy approached a hundred meters distance, Gong Hou roared, "To hell with it!" and hurled his axe after him. "Stop right there, you birdman! If you’re tough, come down and fight me!"

"I’m not tough. Have you ever seen a robot with guts?" the mantis called back, not looking over his shoulder.

Gong Hou: "......"

He was at a loss for words watching the cowardly robot flee. Then his eyes gleamed; he grabbed a steel bar and flung it like a missile.

"I’ll dodge!" The cyborg twisted and turned midair, evading each projectile, laughing. "You can’t hit me—" But then, the sky darkened as steel, containers, cars—Cherys and Rolls Royces alike, living and non-living—filled the firmament, raining down from all directions.

"You’ve got to be kidding!" The enemy was stunned. Dodging a few bars was one thing, but this deluge was absurd—total chaos.

"I’ve got power, so I do as I please! What can you do?" Gong Hou laughed wickedly, hurling everything within reach at blinding speed.

"You’re cheating..." the mantis cyborg muttered as the sky fell, burying him. Gong Hou, still unsatisfied, tossed another five or six thousand tons of steel onto the heap, piling it five or six meters high before grinning with satisfaction.

"Mission complete," Gong Hou clapped his hands, turning to find Ye Ling—but then,

"Oh no, this is bad..."

...

While Gong Hou was off pursuing the enemy, Ye Ling had been left alone. Not that it mattered—his rampage had left the foes no chance to threaten her, and she stood at the back, yawning. Watching the chaos, she decided Gong Hou was the perfect example of brawn with "no" brains.

"This scene is way too bloody. Should be R-rated," Ye Ling muttered, rubbing her forehead, oblivious to the leopard cyborg creeping up behind her.

Though battered and sparking, the cyborg had survived by playing dead. Watching Gong Hou slaughter his allies, he’d decided to lie low—until he saw Ye Ling pass by. His circuits still malfunctioning, he acted on impulse, sneaking up behind her.

Ye Ling, bored, was watching Gong Hou rage when suddenly her eyes widened—a cold gleam flashed, and a gleaming blade pressed against her throat, chilling her to the bone.

"Little girl, if you want to live, tell that maniac to stop!" the leopard cyborg threatened, the sharp blade already drawing blood at her neck.

"Uh..." Ye Ling froze, caught off guard. Where had this guy come from? As the blade bit into her skin, terror gripped her.

"Someone, help me..." Ye Ling whispered a prayer, then paused. "Wait, that sounded familiar..."

"You bastard! How dare you bully my teammate—I’ll beat you so hard your own father won’t recognize you!" Gong Hou, turning and seeing Ye Ling in the cyborg’s grip, bristled with rage.

"You think I’m just a cartoon cat when I’m not angry?" Gong Hou seethed, on the verge of going berserk.

"You’re always angry!" the cyborg nearly sobbed, his sword hand trembling. He tightened his grip on Ye Ling’s shoulder, pointing his sword at Gong Hou. "Come any closer, and I’ll kill her!"

"Is that so? You call that intimidating?" Gong Hou cracked his knuckles, his neck popping ominously. "Let me show you what real power looks like!" He slammed his battleaxe into the ground and stomped his foot.

"Huh?" The cyborg hadn’t realized what was happening. In a flash, the ground beneath him exploded upward—a column of concrete blasting him a dozen meters into the air.

Ye Ling gasped, but Gong Hou had judged the force perfectly—she was untouched.

He’d focused the impact directly beneath the cyborg, launching him helplessly skyward. Then Gong Hou snatched up his axe. "Checkmate!" With a mighty swing, he hurled the spinning, blood-red axe, cleaving the cyborg apart before he could scream.

Steel fragments rained down as the axe ripped the foe to shreds.

The spinning axe whirled in the air, creating a mini-cyclone before returning to Gong Hou’s hand. A sea breeze ruffled his hair as he stretched and smiled. "Mission complete."