Marvel: The Sole Player

Darian had completely derailed Madam Gao’s train of thought.

She froze for a moment before snapping back to her senses, continuing, "Young man, The Hand is not as simple as you imagine. If you take your people and leave now, I can act as if nothing happened."

Darian chuckled. "I’ve always been one to respect the elderly and cherish the young. Since you’re an old woman, if you cooperate obediently, I can also let you off the hook."

"Besides, you’re already at such an age. Instead of spending your prime years dancing in public squares, you’re out here playing gang leader like those lifeless youngsters. Why bother?"

Madam Gao’s expression darkened upon hearing this. "So, you’re dead set on opposing The Hand? No one who offends The Hand meets a good end. Your family, your friends—everyone associated with you will be implicated because of you."

She spoke with a sinister chill, her tone carrying an obvious threat.

"It’s just the mere Hand."

Darian was unimpressed, his face full of disdain. "Do you even know who I am?"

Seeing Darian’s arrogant attitude, Madam Gao’s brow couldn’t help but furrow.

The Hand had investigated Darian’s background before, but the information they found was pitifully scarce, almost a complete blank.

Could this guy have some incredible background behind him?

Madam Gao felt a pang of doubt. She stared warily at Darian and asked tentatively, "Who are you?"

Darian grinned. "As long as you don’t know, it’s fine."

Madam Gao: "..."

If they didn’t even know Darian’s identity, it seemed they really couldn’t use his family and friends to threaten him.

Madam Gao’s face twitched, and her gaze grew cold inch by inch, becoming sinister and sharp.

"Since you insist on seeking death, then don’t blame me."

As soon as she finished speaking, she slammed her cane onto the ground and lunged forward, her body low as she charged with sudden force.

Her speed was astonishing, not at all like a frail old woman at the end of her days.

Darian flicked his wrist, Throwing Murakami out directly like a projectile.

Madam Gao dodged to the side, and Murakami flew past the edge of her clothes, embedding himself deeply into the wall once again.

She didn’t care about whether Murakami lived or died. In the blink of an eye, she had closed in on Darian, swinging her cane toward his head with a sharp whistle of wind.

Darian raised his hand and caught it, firmly clamping down on the cane’s shaft.

Unexpectedly, Madam Gao’s wrist suddenly twisted and pulled outward. A slender, sharp blade was actually hidden inside the cane. With a flash of cold light, it thrust straight toward Darian’s throat.

Darian reacted extremely quickly, lifting the cane shaft in his hand to block the sword strike.

With the blow missing, Madam Gao’s wrist vibrated again. The blade wound around like a venomous snake’s tongue, targeting vital points with every move—stabbing at his eyes one moment and sweeping at his lower body the next. Her moves were fast and ruthless, giving Darian no room to breathe.

Darian parried calmly, then countered with a backhanded sweep of the cane shaft.

Madam Gao held her sword vertically to block, but was blown off her feet by the sheer, tyrannical force of the strike, sending her flying backward.

She twisted in mid-air to shed most of the impact before barely managing to steady herself as she landed back on the ground.

Madam Gao narrowed her eyes and said solemnly, "Such fierce power! What technique is this?"

Darian smiled contemptuously. "Auto-attack."

"Auto? Why have I never heard of such a technique?"

Madam Gao knew nothing of gaming terminology. She didn’t understand what Darian was saying at all, assuming it was a move from some hidden sect.

She didn’t press further. Standing over ten meters away from Darian, she suddenly raised her long sword and slashed fiercely toward him.

The blade cut through the air, producing a clear, resonant ring.

Just as Darian thought the old woman’s eyes were failing her and she was hacking at empty air, he suddenly felt an invisible air blade approaching at high speed.

It was exactly like the sword qi in Darian’s memory.

Darian dodged to the side. The air blade grazed his shoulder and hit the load-bearing pillar behind him, instantly carving a deep gouge into the concrete surface.

Madam Gao took the opportunity to advance again. Sword shadows filled the air as one air blade after another, wrapped in sword light, swept toward him in a dense barrage.

Darian dodged left and right as the sword qi hit the ground, carving out a series of crisscrossing cracks.

"Good sword!"

Darian praised. "Reciprocity is key; you should taste my swordsmanship too."

With that, he flipped his palm, and a Golden Desert Eagle appeared out of thin air.

Madam Gao was stunned. "This counts as swordsmanship?"

The corner of Darian’s mouth curled up. "Why wouldn’t Iaijutsu be swordsmanship?"

Before Madam Gao could react, Darian raised his hand and pulled the trigger.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three bullets whistled out almost simultaneously, flying toward Madam Gao in a triangular formation.

Having lived abroad for many years, Madam Gao naturally knew the terror of this weapon.

Her expression changed. Not daring to be careless, she immediately raised her long sword and flicked her wrist repeatedly, slashing out three bursts of sword qi to intercept the bullets in mid-air.

Madam Gao barked out an insult, "Young man, you have no martial ethics! What kind of swordsmanship fires bullets!?"

Darian said righteously, "This is sword qi."

Sword qi my foot!

Madam Gao’s mouth twitched. She moved to close the distance with Darian, her long sword sweeping out wrapped in an air blade!

As the saying goes...

Beyond seven steps, the gun is fast; within seven steps, the sword is fast!

Darian kicked off the ground, flipping over her head in mid-air and firing a rapid volley backhandedly.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Bullets rained down from above. Madam Gao hurriedly raised her sword to block, parrying the incoming bullets one by one.

But before she could catch her breath, Darian had landed steadily, and another Golden Desert Eagle appeared in his other hand. Holding both guns, he unleashed a wave of close-range rapid fire at her.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang—!

With the Dead Eye enhancement, Darian activated infinite ammo mode, pouring bullets toward Madam Gao as if they cost nothing.

Madam Gao’s expression changed drastically as she desperately swung her sword to intercept them.

But the bullets were too dense and fast, especially at such close range; they were simply impossible to block completely.

Pfft!

A bullet pierced straight through her calf, bringing with it a spray of blood.

"Ah!"

Madam Gao cried out in pain. Her right leg buckled, and she nearly fell to one knee.

Before she could steady herself, the dark muzzle of a gun was already pressed against her forehead.

Darian looked at her as if she were a fool. "You actually dared to close the distance? Didn’t you know that within seven steps, a gun isn’t just fast—it’s exceptionally accurate?"

Madam Gao: "..."

You finally admit it’s a gun!?

With a gun barrel against her forehead, even a top-tier expert like Madam Gao couldn’t help but feel a chill in her heart.

To save her life, she squeezed out a smile that looked worse than crying. "Young man, let’s talk this out. Didn’t you say you respect the elderly and cherish the young? You wouldn’t really lay a hand on an old woman like me, would you?"

Darian grinned. "That’s right, I do respect the elderly and cherish the young."

Madam Gao had just breathed a sigh of relief when she heard Darian add another sentence.

"But you aren’t ’the young.’"

Madam Gao: "..."

Darian scanned the scene and saw that Matt’s trio was gradually falling into a disadvantage. He said to Madam Gao, "Tell all those ninjas under you to stop."

Madam Gao didn’t dare disobey and could only shout, "All of you, stand down!"

Hearing the order, the surrounding ninjas didn’t hesitate for a second, immediately pulling back their attacks and retreating.

Matt and the others could finally catch their breath.

Facing a group of opponents who seemingly couldn’t be killed, the pressure was truly immense.

Darian looked down at Madam Gao and asked, "Tell me, what exactly is The Hand plotting?"

Hearing this, Madam Gao’s expression stiffened slightly, but she continued to hold out. "I don’t know what you’re talking about."

Matt frowned and said in a heavy voice, "Stop pretending. We already know about your business—building an altar underground and using the blood of living people as sacrifices to The Hand’s evil god."

Madam Gao simply closed her eyes and remained silent, playing dead.

Seeing this, Frank’s short temper flared up. "Let me handle it. I guarantee I’ll pry her mouth open."

Darian looked at Madam Gao’s fearless face and shook his head. "It’s no use. This old hag’s mental fortitude is quite tough. Ordinary interrogation and torture won’t make her talk."

"Then just kill her!"

Frank was surging with murderous intent, raising his gun to pull the trigger.

He was different from other Superheroes; he had only one principle: the guilty must die.

Madam Gao was not only a core member of The Hand but also the preeminent drug lord in Hells Kitchen.

To prevent the secrets of her drug production from leaking, she had ordered many innocent people to be blinded, muted, and deafened, Throwing them into dark underground workshops to toil for her. She had done every evil deed imaginable.

In Frank’s eyes, such a person didn’t deserve to live at all.

Matt quickly stepped forward to stop him. He insisted that all criminals should be handed over to the law for judgment, which was diametrically opposed to Frank’s principles.

The two immediately started arguing, beginning a debate about guilt and innocence.

Darian waved his hand. "It’s fine. I have a set of Great Memory Recovery Technique. I guarantee I can make this old hag remember everything."

Hearing this, the expressions of Matt and Elektra changed drastically.

Madam Gao didn’t yet understand what was about to happen. She had just opened her eyes to see what Darian was up to when she saw a large foot rapidly enlarging in her field of vision.

Bang!

Madam Gao’s vision went dark, and she slammed heavily onto the ground.

Before she could recover, a rain of punches and kicks fell upon her, sending her rolling across the floor as she screamed in agony.

The scene of an old lady being brutally beaten was indeed a bit too savage.

Elektra stood to the side, watching this scene, her whole body trembling uncontrollably as if some very unpleasant memory had been triggered.

This time, it was Matt who couldn’t take it. He raised his foot to step in and stop it, but was grabbed by Frank.

"Forget it, forget it."

Frank said it, but his expression clearly showed he wished Darian would put in even more effort.

Darian indeed had no intention of stopping. Every punch and kick was full of power. Madam Gao felt as if her old bones would fall apart at any moment.

"Wait... I’ll talk..."

Madam Gao couldn’t bear the pain and finally broke, opening her mouth to say something.

Before she could finish, Darian smashed an elbow into her mouth, forcing the words back down.

Darian praised sincerely, "Truly tough mental fortitude. Even like this, she refuses to say a word."

Everyone:"....."

Not far away, the blood-covered Murakami had just pried himself out of the wall. Looking up at the scene, he silently stuffed himself back in.

You can’t see me, you can’t see me.

Darian thrashed her for several full minutes without asking a single question from start to finish.

The several people present suspected if this guy just had itchy hands and wanted an excuse to beat someone up.

Seeing that Madam Gao’s consciousness was fading, Darian decisively used his hypnosis skill, a surge of mental power piercing directly into the depths of her consciousness.

An unknown energy suddenly welled up within Madam Gao’s body, attempting to resist Darian’s mental intrusion.

But her mental defenses had long been shattered by Darian’s purely physical methods. That energy was like a pile of loose sand, unable to coalesce at all, and was easily broken through by Darian’s mental power.

Madam Gao’s body shivered, and her gaze gradually became hollow and dull.

Darian spoke again, asking, "Tell me, what exactly is The Hand planning?"

"Summon the Beast. Have the Beast’s vessel, the Black Sky, lead The Hand to conquer K’un-Lun and seize the Dragon Bones."

Under Darian’s hypnosis, Madam Gao no longer had any secrets.

"What is K’un-Lun? And what are Dragon Bones?"

Darian was immediately intrigued. These two terms sounded heavily flavored with mystery.

Madam Gao explained, "K’un-Lun is one of the oldest sacred lands in the East. It is the source of martial arts and mystical power. The Guardian of K’un-Lun, the Iron Fist, possesses great power, and their power comes from defeating and absorbing the essence of the immortal dragon, Shou-Lao."

"As for the Dragon Bones, those are the remains left behind after Shou-Lao’s death. Those bones contain incredible life essence that can extend human life or be used to resurrect the dead."

After listening, a clearly surprised look appeared on Darian’s face.

He had originally only thought of The Hand as a small organization hidden in Hells Kitchen. He didn’t expect that pulling on this thread would reveal such a massive backstory.

Earth really is a place of hidden dragons and crouching tigers.

Darian sighed inwardly, then asked, "And what is the origin of your Hand?"

Madam Gao answered mechanically, "The Five Fingers of our Hand were originally people of K’un-Lun. Back then, it was because we stole Dragon Bones without permission in an attempt to pursue eternal life that we were deemed rebels by the Elders of K’un-Lun and were banished from the sacred land together."

Darian suddenly understood.

No wonder Madam Gao had such skills; they were learned from K’un-Lun.

Darian followed up, "Where are the Dragon Bones you stole?"

Madam Gao replied, "They were used up long ago. It was by relying on the lifespan granted by the Dragon Bones that the five of us have lived until today, which is at least several hundred years. But over these years, the Dragon Bones have been exhausted, with almost nothing remaining."

"Once the supply of Dragon Bones is cut off, our lives will come to an end. That is why we are summoning the Beast at any cost, to use its power to return to K’un-Lun, seize the Dragon Bones, and continue extending our lives."

What a waste!

Darian inwardly lamented the loss, then continued asking, "Where is this K’un-Lun?"

Madam Gao said, "The entrance is located deep within the Himalayas. However, the portal to K’un-Lun does not stay open all the time. It only opens once every ten years, and for a very short duration each time."

"Only during the opening period can outsiders enter K’un-Lun through a special portal. Once the gateway closes, no one can enter K’un-Lun."

Hearing this, Darian was stunned for a moment.

The Himalayas?

Isn’t that where Kamar-Taj is hidden?

It turns out Kamar-Taj and K’un-Lun are actually neighbors!

Darian immediately made up his mind to visit the neighboring K’un-Lun later.

No other reason, just simply to exchange neighborly pleasantries.

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