The sun had already disappeared.
The technology exhibition grounds were nearly empty.
Only the parking lots, loading bays, and maintenance roads remained lit by scattered lamps.
It was perfect, quiet and isolated.
Exactly the kind of place ET preferred.
Qiū Huà Bǐ stood near a concrete barrier, holding a large bucket of popcorn.
Nobody knew where he got it, not even him.
A handful disappeared into his mouth.
Crunch.
"...This is surprisingly entertaining."
Across from him, several figures emerged from the darkness.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
The Sì Faces Of Doom.
Huáng Nián Qīng stepped forward first.
Calm as always.
The wind moved gently around her.
Beside her stood a broad-shouldered man whose arms looked capable of punching through a truck.
Shí Kǎi.
A woman with pale eyes and frost gathering around her fingertips.
Bái Hán Shuāng.
And finally—
A man grinning like he'd been waiting all week for violence.
Guō Yán Huǒ.
"Oh good."
Guō Yán Huǒ cracked his neck.
"I was getting bored."
Then—
Several other figures emerged from the shadows opposite them.
Ān Bái.
Ān Shēn.
Ān Tiān Qǐ.
Mù Xiāo Xiāo.
All Members Of Factor IV
The two groups stopped.
Facing one another.
Silence.
Guō Yán Huǒ pointed.
"Which one am I fighting?"
Ān Tiān Qǐ looked mildly annoyed already.
"The males fight the males."
She pointed casually.
"The females fight the females."
Guō Yán Huǒ shrugged.
"Fine by me."
Huáng Nián Qīng sighed.
"You make every mission sound like a playground."
"It is."
"You're thirty."
"I refuse to acknowledge that."
Qiū Huà Bǐ stuffed more popcorn into his mouth.
"...This is tense."
Nobody acknowledged him.
---
Elsewhere
Yè Yī's Side
The abandoned garden behind the exhibition hall was silent.
Yè Yī walked slowly through the stone pathway.
Crunch.
Snow.
His eyes narrowed.
There shouldn't have been snow.
Not in June.
A second later—
The first ice spear shot toward him.
Yè Yī moved.
CRACK.
The spear shattered against a stone pillar.
Another appeared.
Then another.
Then dozens.
The entire garden began filling with ice.
Yè Yī finally stopped walking.
"...Come out."
No answer.
Instead—
Several ice sculptures emerged from behind the trees.
Human shaped.
Not alive but moving.
Their surfaces glittered under the moonlight.
The first charged.
Yè Yī raised a hand.
Frost spread instantly.
The statue froze solid.
Then exploded.
BOOM.
Ice fragments scattered across the pathway.
Another attacked.
Then another.
The garden became a battlefield of frozen debris.
CRACK.
BOOM.
CRASH.
Until finally—
Everything stopped.
The last statue collapsed.
Silence returned.
Yè Yī stood in the center of shattered ice.
"...Enough."
A figure slowly emerged from behind one of the trees.
Nán Xuě.
Holding a small notebook.
And several tiny ice figurines.
She stared at him.
"...You broke them."
Yè Yī blinked.
"...They attacked me."
"I spent three hours making those."
"..."
"..."
Yè Yī suddenly felt like he'd missed part of the conversation.
Nán Xuě looked genuinely disappointed.
Then she carefully placed another tiny ice figure onto a stone bench.
It looked vaguely like a rabbit.
Yè Yī stared.
"...Why?"
"Why what?"
"The rabbit."
Nán Xuě looked at the sculpture.
"...I like rabbits."
The silence somehow became stranger.
---
Meanwhile—
Several kilometers away—
Guō Yán Huǒ launched himself forward like a missile.
The battle had officially begun.
Battlefield One
Ān Bái vs Guō Yán Huǒ
Fire exploded.
Water surged.
Steam immediately consumed the entire area.
Qiū Huà Bǐ leaned forward.
"Oooo."
Then focused.
His Void-enhanced senses reached outward.
Thoughts ,Voices and Minds.
He heard them all.
Guō Yán Huǒ:
FINALLY.
SOMEONE WHO LOOKS STRONG.
Ān Bái:
Why is he smiling?
Guō Yán Huǒ:
THIS IS AWESOME.
Ān Bái:
Ah.
He's insane.
Qiū Huà Bǐ nearly choked laughing.
Battlefield Two
Ān Shēn vs Shí Kǎi
Earth rose.
Stone shattered.
Neither man moved much, just enough.
Every strike felt like two mountains colliding.
Qiū Huà Bǐ listened again.
Shí Kǎi:
Strong.
Ān Shēn:
Strong.
Shí Kǎi:
Respectable.
Ān Shēn:
Respectable.
Qiū Huà Bǐ blinked.
"...Are they having an entire conversation?"
Nobody answered. Nobody heard.
Battlefield Three
Mù Xiāo Xiāo vs Bái Hán Shuāng
The temperature dropped.
Ice met Earth.
Frost spread across the pavement.
Stone erupted from beneath it.
For several seconds neither woman spoke, just attacked.
Until—
Mù Xiāo Xiāo suddenly asked:
"...Do you like fried chicken?"
Bái Hán Shuāng paused.
"...What?"
"Fried chicken."
"...We're fighting."
"I know."
"Then why are you asking?"
Mù Xiāo Xiāo thought for a moment.
"...Conversation helps bonding."
Bái Hán Shuāng looked offended by the concept.
Qiū Huà Bǐ listened.
Bái Hán Shuāng:
What is wrong with her?
Mù Xiāo Xiāo:
She looks hungry.
Qiū Huà Bǐ almost dropped the popcorn.
Battlefield Four
Ān Tiān Qǐ vs Huáng Nián Qīng
The wind rose.
Gold light shimmered.
The ground beneath them cracked.
Neither woman attacked first.
Both observed.
Measured and Calculated.
Huáng Nián Qīng smiled faintly.
"So."
"Factor IV."
Ān Tiān Qǐ smiled back.
"ET."
The wind intensified.
Neither smile reached their eyes.
---
Far away—
Yè Yī sat cross legged, on a stone bench opposite Nán Xuě.
The battle atmosphere completely gone.
Nán Xuě carefully adjusted one of her tiny ice sculptures.
"...Do you always carry that plaque?"
"Usually."
She wrote something down.
"...Interesting."
"What are you writing?"
"Observations."
Yè Yī regretted asking immediately.
---
And somewhere in the city—
Violet watched both situations through folded arms.
One battlefield exploding into chaos.
The other turning into the world's strangest interview.
She stared at Nán Xuě for a few seconds.
Then sighed.
"...I give it ten minutes before I get bored."
Unfortunately for Nán Xuě—
Violet's patience had never been particularly long.