Chapter 327: Come, Let's Duel!
Jenny glanced back at the relentless John, her face devoid of concern. She called out toward the front, "The Pink Lion really is something else!"
As she spoke, she popped open the wooden box, revealing the luxurious and radiant Pink Lion within.
The gang members on the fifth floor were stunned. How had the enemy suddenly gotten behind them? And more importantly, why was the Pink Lion in the hands of that little girl?
"Leave the Lion!" The gangsters couldn't sit still. They pivoted their weapons toward Jenny and opened fire.
Rat-tat-tat—Bang! Rat-tat-tat—
The spray of automatic fire didn't faze Jenny. Suddenly, a five-meter-tall Shadow Eater materialized in front of her. Its giant frame tore through the ceiling, leaving only its legs and its massive, gaping maw visible to those in the room.
The sudden appearance of the behemoth sent a wave of terror through the gang members, their hands trembling on their triggers.
"Don't be afraid! Keep firing!" one gangster with a machine gun shouted.
His words had little effect. Many threw down their guns and bolted. Why fight a monster like that? For a meager gang salary? Not worth it. Not even close.
As the gang fell into chaotic commotion, Jenny beamed. This had been her plan all along.
John, who had been hot on her heels, was forced to stop. He summoned several Claw Ninjas to deal with the chaos and stop the thugs from fleeing blindly. He tried to resume his pursuit, but the five-meter giant blocked his path.
"Big guy, you're not really going to stop me, are you?" John asked, looking up at the Shadow Eater.
Thud!
The Shadow Eater slammed its body against the surrounding ceiling, shattering the structure, and let out a deafening roar at the man at its feet: "ROAR!"
The powerful sound wave ruffled John's hair and left his ears ringing.
"Fine... I didn't really want to fight you either." John rubbed his ears and summoned five Claw Ninjas to his side.
The battle broke out instantly. Due to its size, the Shadow Eater held the psychological advantage, but in such a cramped floor, it couldn't exert its full strength. John and his Claw Ninjas darted around it with fluid coordination, landing strikes while the giant struggled to react. Even when it did, it was constantly hindered by the low ceiling.
However, Jenny had only summoned it to stall John. Defeating him was a pipe dream.
The Three-Way Stand-off
"Dear little girl, could I trouble you to let me see that little box in your hand?" Deadpool stepped out, blocking Jenny's path.
"Don't listen to him. We are both Shadow Generals; you should give it to me," Rei said with a smile, resting the Muramasa on her shoulder.
"Oh~ my god, are you guys together?" Deadpool looked between them in surprise, then added quickly, "In that case, I'm joining your team starting now."
"No, I refuse," Rei said flatly. This Deadpool really is shameless.
"Don't be like that. We all have masks, we all have swords—we're natural teammates!" Deadpool winked at Rei and Jenny.
"No matter what you say, I'm not handing it over," Jenny insisted. She was set on playing with it for a few days and wouldn't yield to anyone.
"Then I guess there's nothing to talk about~" Rei didn't really know Jenny; she was only being polite because they shared the title of Shadow General.
"Ooh, ooh~ kid, you're in trouble now. You've upset the Big Sis, and she's definitely going to chop you. Give the box to me, and I'll distract her for you." Deadpool figured the girl would be easy to trick. He couldn't believe he wouldn't be able to get a box from a child.
"I won't give it to you." Instead of running toward Rei, Jenny charged straight at Deadpool.
"What's the situation?" Deadpool patted his chest. Do I look that weak?
Puchi!
Jenny produced a dagger from nowhere and plunged it into Deadpool's abdomen. "I know you won't die, but even if you can't die, it still hurts, doesn't it?"
"It does hurt, but compared to what I felt earlier, this is nothing," Deadpool said, pointing to his crotch before pulling the dagger out. His expression turned serious as he drew his twin katanas. "Little girl, I'm playing for keeps now. Hand it over."
"Great~ but I'm still not giving it up." As Jenny spoke, a massive shadow loomed behind Deadpool.
Deadpool looked at the gargantuan shadow at his feet. He turned, saw another Shadow Eater, and tilted his head. "My god, what kind of sh*t is this?"
Before he could finish, the Shadow Eater opened its abyssal mouth and swallowed Deadpool whole.
"What a terrifying Shadow Eater," Rei whispered in awe.
"See? Thinking about surrendering yet?" Jenny thought Rei might back down.
Rei shook her head, dragging her Muramasa slowly toward Jenny. "I just want to see if my blade can actually cut through a Shadow Eater like that!"
Boom!
At that moment, the stomach of the Shadow Eater that had swallowed Deadpool was riddled with countless sword slashes before it exploded into black mist.
Deadpool stepped out of the haze. "What do you normally feed that thing? I just took a look, and it seems its stomach is terrible—it couldn't digest me. So, I decided to perform some internal surgery."
"Impressive. You're the first person I've seen walk out of a Shadow Eater's stomach," Jenny praised him sincerely.
"Thanks for the compliment, kid. I'd be even happier if you gave me the Pink Lion," Deadpool said. He didn't know where these people came from, but with his "immortality" gimmick, he wasn't afraid of anyone.
"Did you think putting that power-dampening collar on me would turn me into Hawkeye? That's just movie plot convenience," Deadpool said, suddenly tossing a quip to the side.
Jenny and Rei didn't react; they just assumed his mental illness was acting up again.
"My original goal was the Pink Lion, but I've changed my mind." Rei's eyes burned with intensity as she looked at Deadpool.
Deadpool recoiled, covering his body bashfully. "Lady, if you want me, can we at least wait until we get the diamond before we do 'research'?"
"You're delusional. I'm only interested in your swordsmanship!" A crazed look crossed Rei's face. For a swordsman, nothing was more exhilarating than meeting a master of the same craft.
"Ehh... I don't really want to fight you." Deadpool knew his goal: grab the diamond and shake his tail out of there. Staying for a duel would be too cliché; the audience wouldn't buy it.
"You don't have a choice!" Rei blurred into motion.
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