The Burn Knuckles crashed into the remaining Workers like a tidal wave. Jace's fist broke through one man's guard and shattered his jaw. Another Worker tried to swing a pipe, but Jace caught it mid-swing and drove his knee into the man's stomach so hard he folded in half and vomited. Vasco moved through three Workers in seconds—a spinning elbow cracked one's skull against a lamppost, a knee broke another's ribs, and a straight punch sent the third flying into a parked car, denting the door. The other Burn Knuckles members worked together, overwhelming the Workers with coordinated strikes. Bodies dropped one after another.
Jin Jang watched from across the street, his eyes wide. "How... how did they get this strong? Last time I saw them, they weren't like this at all!"
The remaining high-tier Workers formed a line. Cha Wonseok cracked his knuckles. Lee Dosoo rolled his shoulders. Li Maeng-Ho wiped blood from his mouth and grinned. Ha Hushing and Hwang Ho stood side by side. Noah's face was already bleeding from earlier. Jin Jang stepped forward with Lee Seunghan, Mu Baekang, and Lee Byungchan flanking him.
"All of us together," Jin Jang said. "Take them down."
They rushed forward as one unit.
Sinu Han met them head-on. His fist appeared from nowhere and caught Hwang Ho in the temple. Hwang Ho's head snapped sideways, but Ha Hushing was already swinging at Sinu's exposed ribs. Sinu twisted and the punch grazed him. He countered with an elbow that came from Ha Hushing's blind spot, cracking into his nose. Blood sprayed.
Vasco lunged at Cha Wonseok. "Skill No. 01: Hero!" His body seemed to vibrate, speed increasing dramatically. Cha Wonseok threw a punch but Vasco was already past it, his knee slamming into Wonseok's chest. The impact lifted Wonseok off his feet and sent him crashing through a wooden fence.
Lee Dosoo charged Vasco from the side. Vasco spun, his leg pulling back as far as it could go. "Skill No. 03: Compressed Low Kick!" His shin crashed into Dosoo's thigh with enough force to crack bone. Dosoo screamed and collapsed, clutching his leg.
But Li Maeng-Ho was there. His kick caught Vasco in the ribs while Vasco was recovering from his own strike. Vasco grunted and slid back several feet, leaving tracks in the wet pavement.
Sinu blocked a punch from Jin Jang, then ducked under Lee Seunghan's follow-up strike. His invisible counter caught Seunghan in the liver. Seunghan gasped and staggered. But Mu Baekang grabbed Sinu from behind in a bear hug. Noah rushed in with a straight punch aimed at Sinu's face.
Sinu jerked his head forward. His skull cracked into Noah's fist, breaking Noah's fingers. Noah screamed. Sinu then drove his head backward into Mu Baekang's face, breaking his nose. The grip loosened and Sinu slipped free, delivering a spinning backfist that sent Baekang flying into a storefront window. Glass exploded everywhere.
Vasco caught Li Maeng-Ho's next kick with both hands. "Skill No. 04: Unlimited Kneading!" His hands gripped and twisted Maeng-Ho's leg with brutal force. Maeng-Ho's knee ligaments tore. But even as he screamed, Maeng-Ho used his other leg to kick Vasco in the face. Both men separated, breathing hard.
Hwang Ho and Ha Hushing attacked Sinu simultaneously. Sinu's invisible strikes hit both—one to Hwang Ho's jaw, one to Ha Hushing's solar plexus. But before they could fall, Jin Jang was there with a heavy punch that caught Sinu in the already-injured shoulder. Sinu winced. Lee Byungchan followed up with a kick to Sinu's side. The impact sent Sinu stumbling.
Li Maeng-Ho ignored his damaged knee and charged at Vasco again. His spinning kick came from an impossible angle. Vasco raised his guard but the kick broke through and caught him in the head. Vasco's vision blurred for a moment.
"You're strong," Li Maeng-Ho panted. "But not strong enough!"
Vasco's eyes focused. "Skill No. 05: Piercing The Intestines!" He shot forward faster than Li Maeng-Ho could track. His knee drove straight into Li Maeng-Ho's stomach with devastating force. Li Maeng-Ho's eyes went wide. He coughed blood and doubled over. Vasco grabbed his head mid-fall. "Skill No. 07: Mince The Dough!" He smashed Li Maeng-Ho's face into his rising knee once, twice, three times. Blood and teeth scattered across the pavement.
But while Vasco was focused on Li Maeng-Ho, Cha Wonseok recovered and grabbed him from behind. Jin Jang rushed in from the front. "Now!"
Sinu tried to help but Noah, despite his broken fingers, tackled him from the side. They crashed through a wooden cart, scattering debris everywhere. Ha Hushing and Hwang Ho piled on top of Sinu, raining down punches.
Vasco struggled against Wonseok's grip as Jin Jang's fist came at his face. At the last second, Vasco jerked his body sideways. Jin Jang's punch hit Wonseok instead, right in the face. Wonseok's grip loosened. Vasco spun and drove his elbow into Jin Jang's ribs. The crack echoed across the street. Jin Jang wheezed and staggered back.
Sinu exploded from under the pile of bodies. His invisible strikes hit all three—Noah's jaw, Ha Hushing's temple, Hwang Ho's throat. They scattered like bowling pins. But Li Maeng-Ho was back up, limping badly but still moving. He grabbed Sinu's injured shoulder and squeezed. Sinu screamed. Li Maeng-Ho's other hand formed a fist and slammed into Sinu's face.
Vasco saw Sinu in trouble. "Skill No. 09: Super Strength Strikes!" He rushed at Li Maeng-Ho, his fist pulling back. But Lee Dosoo, despite his broken leg, threw himself in Vasco's path. Vasco's punch caught him in the chest and sent him flying through a brick wall. The entire wall section collapsed inward with a thunderous crash.
Li Maeng-Ho used the distraction to slam Sinu into the ground, creating a crater. He raised his fist for a finishing blow. But Sinu's leg swept out from an invisible angle, taking Li Maeng-Ho's good leg out from under him. Both men crashed to the pavement.
The fight continued in brutal exchanges. Vasco grabbed Mu Baekang who had recovered from the window crash. "Skill No. 08: Rice Bag Smash!" He sat on top of Baekang and drove his elbow down repeatedly into Baekang's face. The pavement under Baekang's head cracked and then shattered, creating a small crater. Baekang's face was a bloody mess.
But Jin Jang tackled Vasco off of Baekang. They rolled across the street, trading punches. Jin Jang's experience showed as he landed several solid hits to Vasco's body.
Sinu fought Li Maeng-Ho and Lee Seunghan at the same time. His invisible strikes kept them off-balance, but every time he focused on one, the other would land a hit. Li Maeng-Ho's kick caught Sinu's ribs. Seunghan's punch hit his jaw. Sinu's counter strike broke Seunghan's arm, but Li Maeng-Ho immediately followed up with a knee to Sinu's back.
A parked motorcycle exploded when Sinu and Li Maeng-Ho crashed into it. Flames erupted briefly before the rain suppressed them. Both men were covered in bruises and cuts now.
Vasco managed to throw Jin Jang off and stood up. But he was breathing heavily. Cha Wonseok, despite his broken nose from earlier, charged again. Lee Byungchan came from the other side. Noah, with his mangled fingers, still tried to help, throwing a clumsy punch.
"There's too many bad guys!" Vasco grunted as he blocked and countered, but more kept coming.
Sinu was in a similar situation. Even with his invisible strikes, the sheer numbers were wearing him down. Li Maeng-Ho especially was a problem—every time Sinu engaged someone else, Li Maeng-Ho would attack from behind or the side.
Li Maeng-Ho's kick came at Sinu's head while Sinu was punching Hwang Ho. Sinu barely ducked, and the kick demolished a street sign instead. The metal post bent completely in half.
A car alarm blared as Vasco threw Lee Byungchan through its windshield. But Cha Wonseok used that moment to grab Vasco in a chokehold. Jin Jang approached with a heavy right hand cocked back.
Suddenly, a voice cut through the chaos.
"Workers, I come on his behalf. You're eliminated from the four major crews. It seems Big Deal has the Workers already in a clutch."
Everyone stopped and turned. A lean figure in a black hoodie stood at the entrance of the street. He reached up and pulled the hood back, revealing his face.
Little Daniel.
"Workers, we will start disposing of them."
Before anyone could react, the sound of bicycle wheels squeaking filled the air. Zack Lee pedaled furiously while Warren sat on the back, both of them covered in sweat. Four bodies were slumped over them—Jake, Olly, Yuseong, and Xiaolong, all unconscious.
"God, these guys are so fucking heavy!" Zack complained, barely keeping the bike upright. "We should've just left them on the road!"
Warren grunted. "Stop complaining and keep pedaling."
At that exact moment, a section of brick wall exploded outward. Two figures came crashing through—Mary Kim and Mandeok. Mandeok hit the ground hard, his body covered in bruises and blood, but he immediately tried to stand up. Mary Kim walked through the dust cloud, her clothes torn and dirt covering her face. She had several cuts but looked far better than Mandeok.
"Stay down," Mary Kim said coldly.
"Not... yet..." Mandeok wheezed, trying to raise his fists.
Another crash. A figure came flying through the air and slammed into a metal dumpster with a deafening bang. The dumpster crumpled inward. Ryuhei climbed out slowly, his wooden chained sword smoking slightly. His face was bleeding badly.
Vin Jin walked in behind him, his upper body completely bare, his shirt torn away. Several brutal cuts covered his torso and arms. "Fuck you motherfucker! What kind of sword is that shit?!"
Then came more footsteps. Jewoo, Taebong, Wooseok, and Hyungjae appeared, dragging the injured bodies of Jason, Brad, and Lineman. Behind them, Kenta Magami lay in the middle of the street where they'd left him.
Little Daniel looked at all the Workers members scattered across Big Deal Street. Then he looked at the assembled fighters—Sinu Han, Vasco, the Burn Knuckles, Mary Kim, Vin Jin, Zack, Warren, and the others.
"This ends now," Little Daniel said.