Vol. 5 Chapter 4: Encounter

Chapter 4: Encounter

While Lu Li was contemplating his next steps, Luo Yan was driving Fu Bin to a residential area. As soon as they got out of the car, a black cat ran over. Luo Yan knelt down to pet the cat, which then turned around and led the way.

The two of them gradually sensed the presence of another mask. Soon, they arrived at a house where the mask was hidden in one of the rooms. At the entrance, two people were sitting and sorting vegetables.

One was a common-looking middle-aged woman, and the other was a young man, about seventeen or eighteen years old. When the young man saw Fu Bin approaching, he tensed up and stood up nervously. "Fu Bin, what are you doing here?"

The young man was visibly anxious, putting down the vegetables and walking towards Fu Bin. The middle-aged woman sensed something was off and hesitantly asked, "Son, is he a friend of yours?"

"Mom, I need to talk to him about something." The young man forced a smile at the middle-aged woman and then lowered his voice as he approached Fu Bin. "Fu Bin, what are you doing here? It's all in the past. I was just helping out Tian Ge back then. I know I wronged you, but there's no need to bring this to my home."

"Meng He? I didn't expect this to be your place. I was just hoping to buy it," Fu Bin said, speaking words the young man didn't understand. After ensuring there were no other people or surveillance around, he put on a mask and a black substance flashed in his hand, piercing the young man's throat. "Considering you were just a helper, I won't torture you."

The middle-aged woman, wide-eyed and about to scream, had her face covered by a black substance and was then killed in the same manner. "Raising a son but not educating him, you are guilty too."

Entering the house, Fu Bin saw a crib with a baby inside, who was staring at him in confusion before bursting into tears. It was likely a second child born after the policy change. Seeing Fu Bin raise his hand again, Luo Yan, suppressing her discomfort, entered the room and said, "It's just a child, there's no need. Aren't you the self-proclaimed god of justice?"

"You overestimate me!" Fu Bin lowered his hand, following his senses to a room. Luo Yan sighed, looking at the crying baby, when she heard the screeching of tires outside. Turning quickly, she saw three people entering from the alley.

Meng Xi saw the two bodies from a distance and tried to rush over, but Xiao Zhang and Zheng Long held him back. Based on their senses, they realized there were three mask reactions ahead. With Meng Xi's family's mask included, it was clear who the other two belonged to.

"I told you, the mask is trouble. But we arrived too late, the killer hasn't left yet. Going now is suicide," Xiao Zhang said with a bitter smile. Meng Xi, tears streaming down his face, looked at his wife's and child's bodies in the distance and heard the baby's cries. Thinking of his second child inside, he struggled fiercely. "My second child is still inside, let me go!"

Xiao Zhang and Zheng Long exchanged a glance. Xiao Zhang sighed, put on his mask, and rushed over, black flames appearing in his hands. Zheng Long patted Meng Xi's shoulder and said, "Brother, we'll go instead!"

"I'm the protagonist. How can I miss this scene of saving the weak?" Zheng Long said, putting on his mask and activating his powers. This time, without his cloak, it was clear to see small orange-red wings sprouting from his back, looking like chicken wings.

Rushing over, Xiao Zhang saw two black shadows leaping at him. He released a large amount of flames to shield himself and then heard two painful cat cries. Moving his hands away, he saw two burning cats in front of him, crying in pain.

More cats started coming from all directions, and opposite him stood a masked... catwoman?

Luo Yan, dressed in leather, had a tail swaying behind her. Her demon mask also had cat ears. She wielded a whip and wore high heels, resembling a cat queen.

"Controlling cats?" Xiao Zhang quickly assessed the situation, sending a black flame towards the cat queen and charging with his entire body aflame. The wild cats, urged by Luo Yan, ignored the black flames and attacked Xiao Zhang. Despite the pain, he struggled and threw the cats off, lunging at the cat queen.

Seeing Xiao Zhang, aflame, charging at her, Luo Yan panicked and retreated, swinging her whip. Despite having powers from her mask, she was still a person from a peaceful era, and fighting to the death was nerve-wracking.

At that moment, Zheng Long, with his chicken wings, threw an iron chain at the cat queen, shouting, "My throws never miss."

The chain hit Luo Yan's whip hand, wrapping around her arm. With a pull, Xiao Zhang, engulfed in flames, was upon her, tearing off her mask with one hand and nearly burning her face with the other.

The flames on Xiao Zhang's body slowly died down, revealing cracked skin covered in cat scratches. The cats around him had turned to ashes, lifeless.

"So it is you." Fu Bin walked out of the room, holding another mask. "I didn't come looking for trouble, yet you dare to come to me."

"You madman, killing innocent people like this." Zheng Long, furious at the sight of the bodies, remembered his fallen comrades and was filled with rage.

"Innocent? They were far from it," Fu Bin said, emitting black smoke. "Fine, I'll deal with all of you today."

"Don't you care about your friend?" Xiao Zhang threatened, lowering his fiery hand towards Luo Yan's face.

"How about a trade?" Fu Bin pondered. "My friend and her mask, for the mask in my hand."

"Do you think we're idiots? We'd be at a loss," Zheng Long said angrily. If they traded, the catwoman, once reactivated, would become a strong opponent, while they would still need to find a new host for the mask they received.

"You have no choice." Black smoke from Fu Bin began to spread, nearing the crib. Xiao Zhang, gritting his teeth, reluctantly agreed to the exchange.