Hades, the Urban Legend

Chapter 522: A Key Figure

Though Yang Chen knew of the Jaguar Mercenaries, due to regional differences, he had had little interaction with this mercenary group in the past. Now, he had no time to deal with this heavily injured and unconscious man. He bypassed the man and entered the dance hall.

Entering the brightly lit, glitzy hall, Yang Chen immediately saw the source of the previous commotion.

Four burly men from the Jaguar Mercenaries were confronting four arrogant-looking white men and women dressed in blue leather jackets.

Seeing their attire, Yang Chen couldn't help but sigh. It seemed that the Blue Storm from the United States always appeared wherever trouble brewed. They were involved in the affair at the Zang District and the incident at Sakura Hon Nichijo Castle. Now, attending this secret meeting, the first commotion he witnessed involved them again.

However, Yang Chen had no interest in getting involved. Pretending to pass by, he headed to the nearby bar and sat down.

"Give me a Jack Daniel's," Yang Chen casually ordered the most common American brand whiskey from the bartender, wanting to see what would happen next.

The bartender, who had been specially selected from the military, wasn't fazed by the fight outside and professionally served Yang Chen his drink.

Yang Chen looked towards the two groups facing off, feeling quite bored. They had already started fighting; why were they still hesitating to continue?

"Your look is truly the epitome of schadenfreude," said a familiar female voice from nearby.

Yang Chen turned his head and was surprised to see, "Shitai?"

Two seats away sat a middle-aged woman in a black and red dress, holding a glass of champagne. It was none other than Yun Miao Shitai, whom Yang Chen had met just before leaving the country!

Yang Chen hadn't recognized Yun Miao Shitai at first because of her drastically different appearance. Her usual Taoist nun outfit was gone. Instead, she had her hair elegantly tied back, lightly applied makeup concealing some of her crow's feet, a string of delicate pearls around her neck, and a black and red dress with sheer fabric that highlighted her dignified and graceful temperament.

Although Yun Miao Shitai was in her sixties, her profound internal skills and beauty-preserving techniques made her look no older than forty.

As Yang Chen looked closely, he couldn't help but feel sorry for Lin Zhiguo, who had failed to cherish such a beautiful wife.

Seeing Yang Chen staring at her, Yun Miao Shitai blushed, "You rascal, what are you thinking? I'm old enough to be your grandmother. Is it appropriate to stare at me like that?"

Yang Chen quickly waved his hand and smiled wryly, "Shitai, please don't get the wrong idea. Even if you do look very beautiful, I'm not interested in you in that way. Don't worry, I just haven't seen you dressed like this before and wanted to take a few more looks."

"Hmph," Yun Miao Shitai finally felt a bit more at ease. She was well aware of Yang Chen's tendencies. Sending her granddaughter Hui Lin to Yang Chen's side had always felt like a significant mistake to her, a decision she could no longer take back. She felt indebted to her senior brother, Song Tianxing, which is why she had tolerated it so far. However, if Yang Chen ever dared to set his sights on even her, Yun Miao Shitai would stop at nothing to take Hui Lin back.

"I'm here alone, representing the Yan Huang Iron Brigade at this meeting, so my appearance doesn't really matter. If I walked around in my Taoist robe, I'd stand out too much. It's better to wear something ordinary and blend in," Yun Miao Shitai explained. Yang Chen nodded in agreement. A Taoist nun walking the streets would indeed draw more attention than an ordinary woman. Besides, Yun Miao Shitai was still managing the Lin family affairs, and as the matriarch, she couldn't always wear her Taoist robe. A nun should live a life of purity and detachment, not be involved in worldly matters.

Yun Miao Shitai squinted at Yang Chen and said, "I thought you wouldn't come. Looks like you heard about the 'Sword of Death' and came to seize it?"

Yang Chen shook his head, "I have no interest in that. I'm just here for the fun of it and to see if something I'm worried about might happen."

Yun Miao Shitai saw that Yang Chen truly had no interest in the sword and didn't press further, knowing he didn't want to explain more.

"Shitai, have you been watching all this time? How did this happen?" Yang Chen asked casually.

Yun Miao gestured towards the Jaguar Mercenaries and said, "The big guy who got kicked out tried to hit on that woman from Blue Storm, but she didn't appreciate it and made a few jokes with the other three Americans, which angered him. He tried to make a move but was no match for the four from Blue Storm. You arrived just as the tallest American kicked him out."

Yang Chen made an interested "Oh" and glanced around the hall at the scattered conference attendees, laughing, "Everyone's calmly watching, looks like they all want to see the show."

"Those brutes from Jaguar can't beat the four from Blue Storm. They're all genetically modified superhumans. I don't understand why they're still arguing... sigh," Yun Miao Shitai sighed.

Yang Chen took a sip of his drink and muttered, "That may not be the case."

Yun Miao Shitai vaguely heard Yang Chen's words but didn't take them seriously, shaking her head at the Jaguar Mercenaries.

At this moment, the four Jaguar members were already furious. Faced with Blue Storm's absolute refusal to apologize or reconcile, they couldn't back down without losing face, even if they didn't want to cause trouble on the ship.

"Damned American scum, do you really think Jaguars are easy to bully?! This is your last chance, kneel and apologize to Sloth!" one bald man shouted, pointing to the black man who had been beaten and was now awake, sitting on a chair near the door, gasping for breath and glaring at the Blue Storm members.

The beaten man, codenamed Sloth, was panting and clutching his chest, his eyes full of hatred.

"Are you an idiot or have you spent too much time in the jungle, turning into gorillas?" the brunette woman from Blue Storm sneered. "A loser who got kicked out with one foot wants to hit on me? And you think you can negotiate terms of apology with us?"

"Milly, let's not waste time with them," the tall American who had just kicked the man out said coldly. "Move aside, or I'll kick all of you out like that guy."

The four burly men's eyes were blazing with anger. "This is too much! Sloth just said a few words, and you're already resorting to violence? Don't think we're afraid of you just because you're from Sam's Country! Today, if we don't get justice, we'll fight you to the death!"

As the bald man finished speaking, a figure flashed in front of him. A hand suddenly grabbed his shoulder but then quickly released it.

"Ah!" The bald man let out a miserable cry and fell to his knees, clutching his shoulder with his other hand.

"Alan, don't you think you're talking too much? Just do it," said the man in sunglasses, who had appeared in front of the bald man. He was lean, with some stubble, and he sneered at the tall man from Sam's Country.

"You bastard! What did you do to Rhino?!" The remaining three men, hearing the bald man's anguished cries, immediately demanded of the man in sunglasses.

The man in sunglasses snorted, "Nothing much, just shattered a few bones in his shoulder."

This statement instantly enraged the remaining three Jaguar warriors. They simultaneously lunged at the Blue Storm members in combat stances.

Unfortunately, though the three were elite mercenaries with top-notch fighting skills, the four Blue Storm ability users were evidently much stronger.

The tall man from Sam's Country didn't wait for a warrior to get close to him. He raised his leg and kicked toward the warrior's chest from nearly a meter away.

"Whoosh!" The warrior was inexplicably thrown back by an invisible force, tracing a straight line and crashing into a steel wall ten meters away, just like Sloth earlier.

The woman named Millie also seemed very relaxed. Facing a charging warrior, she simply opened her lips and said something.

The warrior, just about to reach Millie, suddenly froze, then clutched his ears in agony, collapsing to the ground and writhing in pain.

The last warrior, who had lunged at the man in sunglasses, grabbed his shoulder, only to hear the sound of bones cracking and groaning.

The bones in his entire hand shattered in an instant!

Seeing the Jaguar mercenaries defeated and writhing in pain, Yun Miao Shitai frowned and said, "The difference in power is too great. These Blue Storm ability users are using brain-stimulating sonic waves capable of shattering bones, vibration abilities, and air field manipulation. There's even one who hasn't made a move yet. These mercenaries, no matter how skilled in combat and firearms, can't get close enough to defeat them." Many spectators also found it uninteresting but were not too surprised. After all, while the abilities of Blue Storm from Sam's Country might not be as powerful as those of the "true" Sword in the Stone members, relying on genetic technology and many high-tech products, they have always been world leaders in combat power. Most of the ability users in Sword in the Stone are born with innate talents and bloodlines, but Blue Storm can create ability users from ordinary people, giving them a numerical advantage.

Yang Chen, who had remained silent, now downed his drink and smacked his lips before saying, "Don't underestimate these Jaguar guys. They wouldn't have come with just five people. The key figures should be arriving soon."

Yun Miao Shitai was stunned, not quite understanding what Yang Chen meant.

"Look, they're here," Yang Chen said, pointing to the entrance.

Yun Miao Shitai looked over, a few traces of doubt in her eyes.

It was a strangely dressed woman. Her skin was a shade of malt, and she had black hair adorned with colorful feathers on both sides. She wore a vibrant, multicolored dress similar to those worn by ethnic minority girls in the summer. What was even more puzzling was that she had variously colored lines painted on her face. Sports fans often do this to show support for their teams by painting flags, but her face was decorated with what looked like random scribbles.

Observant onlookers also noticed that the woman was barefoot as she walked into the hall.