: The Amazing Four

Donghan Square.

Helicopters roared in the sky, and searchlights illuminated the entire square as if it were daytime.

That building stands on the north side of the square, thirty stories high.

Qiao Ye arrived here.

Ahead were police lines and riot police holding shields, and all around were dense crowds of reporters and onlookers.

Everyone looked up with worried expressions.

On the rooftop, Hua Xiong's figure stood out prominently in the searchlight.

The dozens of hostages behind him huddled together, shivering in the night wind.

Before arriving, Qiao Ye had already learned about Hua Xiong from the news.

Name: Hua Xiong

Codename: Riki-Oh

Crime Level: A

[Ability: Super Strength - The power will continuously increase as the battle progresses.]

[Experience: Born into underground boxing, he killed his opponent in a match when he was seventeen.]

After awakening his superpowers, he specializes in killing superheroes and is known for his love of torturing them.

[One A-rank hero, two B-rank heroes, and countless C-rank and below heroes have been defeated.]

This is a real thug.

His opponent, Azure Dragon Knight, whom he was waiting for, was also a heavyweight—

Codename: Azure Dragon Knight

[Hero Tier: S]

[Abilities: Unknown. Based on limited publicly available footage, it is speculated that they possess super strength, super speed, and some form of energy release.]

【Experience: He suddenly appeared five years ago, prefers to act alone, and grew from an unknown person to an S-class superhero in just one year.

[His achievements include, but are not limited to: single-handedly defeating three Class A criminals, intercepting a derailed subway line 4, and collaborating with the Superhero Association to destroy the overseas criminal organization "Bloody Sparta"...]

He is one of the top five superheroes in Donghan City.

But three months ago, it suddenly disappeared without a trace.

Some believe that Qinglongxia was likely seriously injured and unable to fight.

However, some people believe that Qinglongxia simply left Donghan City.

It now seems that Hua Xiong was probably the former.

Otherwise, he wouldn't dare to provoke like this.

At this point, there was less than an hour left until the deadline given by Hua Xiong.

But there was still no sign of Qinglongxia appearing.

The crowd began to stir.

"Why isn't Azure Dragon Knight here yet?"

"He wouldn't really have left Donghan City, would he?"

"I think it's probably just fear."

"Impossible! Azure Dragon Knight isn't that kind of person!"

An unease spread through the crowd.

Just then—

Suddenly, a whooshing sound came from the sky.

Everyone looked up.

Four figures descended from the sky and landed in front of the police line.

The one at the front was wearing a red bodysuit with a huge "1" printed on his chest.

He was followed by three others, dressed in blue, green, and yellow uniforms, with the numbers 2, 3, and 4 printed on their chests.

They are not the Azure Dragon Warriors, but they are a well-known superhero duo in Donghan City.

The reporters' flashbulbs went off instantly.

"It's the Fantastic Four!"

"Bao Zhong! Zu Mao! Yu She! Pan Feng!"

"Do they have any hope?"

The crowd erupted in cheers.

The Fantastic Four?

Qiao Ye stood at the back of the crowd, looking at the four people.

Bao Zhong appeared to be the leader; he was in his thirties and exuded confidence.

Zu Mao was tall and thin, Yu She was short and stocky, and Pan Feng was the youngest, still waving to the crowd.

Bao Zhong looked up at the rooftop and shouted loudly in the direction of the searchlight:

"Hua Xiong! You want to fight? We four brothers will fight you!"

Hua Xiong's arrogant laughter echoed from the rooftop.

The laughter was so powerful that it made the car alarms downstairs go off several times.

"Ha ha ha ha--!"

Hua Xiong leaned out halfway, looking down at the four brightly colored figures below.

"Bao Zhong? Zu Mao? Yu She? Pan Feng?"

He read out the names one by one, his tone full of mockery.

"You four good-for-nothings dare to call yourselves the 'Fantastic Four'? That's hilarious!"

Bao Zhong's face turned red.

"Hua Xiong! You—"

"Stop talking nonsense."

Hua Xiong interrupted him, "Since you want to die, then come on! Before killing the hostages, let's warm up with you first."

A commotion broke out among the hostages behind him.

Bao Zhong stopped talking.

With a wave of his hand, the four of them soared into the sky and flew towards the rooftop.

Then--

Less than half a minute.

Qiao Ye didn't even see what happened.

Four screams were heard, and then four figures fell from the rooftop, crashing to the ground and creating four craters.

Bao Zhong lay on the ground, unable to get up.

Zu Mao's leg was broken and twisted at an eerie angle.

Yu She was unconscious, with blood foam coming out of his mouth.

Pan Feng clutched her chest, writhing on the ground in pain.

The onlookers gasped in surprise.

"Too weak!"

Hua Xiong stood on the edge of the rooftop and dusted off his hands.

"Is this all? You dare to embarrass yourself here?"

He looked up into the distance.

"Azure Dragon Knight! Ten minutes left! If you don't come soon, I'm going to start killing!"

The crowd was deathly silent.

Qiao Ye stood at the back of the crowd, his brows furrowed.

He recalled the line from the system mission: "Help Guan Yu accept his identity."

Accept your identity?

Could it be that the Azure Dragon Hero has refused to appear so far because he no longer wants to be a hero?

Time slowly passed.

The Fantastic Four had already been carried away on stretchers, and anxiety spread through the crowd.

Someone in the crowd started shouting, "Azure Dragon Hero! Come out!"

"Save them!"

"Aren't you a hero?"

However, no one responded.

The time has finally come.

Hua Xiong reached out, grabbed the nearest hostage, and dragged him to the edge of the rooftop.

"Time's up!"

He smiled at the camera, "Azure Dragon Warrior, this is the first one!"

Just as he was about to let go—

A sudden commotion broke out at the back of the crowd.

A person squeezed out of the crowd and rushed towards the police line.

He was dressed in a blue battle suit, with a cloak draped over his back and a mask covering his face.

The crowd erupted instantly.

"Azure Dragon Warrior!"

"He's here!"

"I knew he'd come!"

However, some people who were relatively close by suddenly frowned.

"Is this the Azure Dragon Warrior?"

"Something seems off about the suit."

"Although the styles are exactly the same, it looks cheap."

But anyway, at least someone came.

The man in blue rushed to the police cordon but was stopped by the police.

"I am the Azure Dragon Knight," the man said. "Let me in!"

Once these words were spoken, those who had initially been skeptical no longer hesitated.

The sound is fine.

It was Qinglongxia's voice, low and hoarse, like he had phlegm stuck in his throat.

The police officers exchanged glances, deemed there was no problem, and cleared the way.

Qinglongxia walked through the riot shields, across the empty square, and all the way to the building.

Hua Xiong looked down at him and smiled.

"Finally, you've decided to let go?"

Qinglongxia remained silent.

He just stood there, looking up at the rooftop and at the hostages.

Hua Xiong dragged the hostage back, threw him on the ground, and then jumped down.

boom--!

The ground was smashed into a large crater, and debris flew everywhere.

Hua Xiong stood up from the pit, twisted his neck, and his bones cracked.

"Finally, the Azure Dragon Knight has arrived!"

His eyes burned with boundless fighting spirit as he opened his arms wide.

"Come! Let me witness the power of an S-class superhero!"

Without wasting words, Qinglong Xia charged straight in.

His speed was astonishing; in the blink of an eye, he had already rushed in front of Hua Xiong and punched him in the chest.

Hua Xiong raised his hand to block.

A fist slammed into his arm, and he took a step back.

Then--

Hua Xiong realized that the force was a bit off.

It feels so light and airy that even the senses and defenses are superfluous.

"this one?"