KOF: Rise of the King of Fighters

It was dusk, in the territory of the Axe Gang in Shanghai.

Most of the Axe Gang's houses are traditional Chinese classical buildings. The headquarters building stands in the center of this complex, and its upturned eaves exude an aura of majesty in the setting sun.

Outside this building, there are various businesses meticulously managed by the Axe Gang. Although the facilities are luxurious, it is a world of gangsters, and where there is prosperity, there are also corners of poverty and misery.

On the wide road, groups of gang members dressed in black Chinese suits and top hats could be seen walking by from time to time.

Each of these disciples carried an axe at their waist, their eyes filled with arrogance as they surveyed their surroundings with unbridled bravado, as if the entire world belonged to them.

In a secluded corner, some disciples were intently polishing their beloved axes.

They would burst into deafening laughter at times, and at other times they would erupt into fierce arguments due to disagreements, making the scene extremely irritable and noisy.

Inside the building, a faint, lingering aroma of alcohol and tobacco permeated the spacious and bright lobby.

A few people were also whispering about some confidential matters.

At that very moment, not far from this territory, two figures were approaching the front gate of the Axe Gang with steady steps.

Shenwu turned to Yanyue beside him and said, "Yanyue, I'll take care of those four protectors later!" His words were filled with vengeful anger and a thirst for battle.

“Sure, since you’re so confident, this is a good opportunity to do some new tests.”

Shenwu couldn't help but ask curiously, "A test?"

Yan Yue smiled gently and explained, "What I meant was that it could be used to test new Nen techniques."

"Nianqi, I'd like to see it too..."

Soon, the two arrived at the gates of the Axe Gang's headquarters. At that very moment, the previously nonchalant guards at the gate finally noticed Shenwu and Yanyue.

At this moment, Yan Yue had already gathered all the spiritual energy in her body in front of her.

[Nature Flow] Open!

Yan Yue instantly transformed into a blur, her spiritual energy and fist techniques combining to unleash a sharp beam of light that swept towards the guards at the gate.

In the blink of an eye, dozens of gang members in front of Yan Yue had fallen. Then Yan Yue called out:

"Shenwu, let's go up to the roof."

"Shouldn't we use their clothes to cover our tracks? The rooftops are heavily guarded."

Yan Yue shook her head slightly and replied confidently, "There's no need to go through all that trouble. Since there are guards on the roof getting in the way, we'll take care of them all. I'll help you pinpoint the target."

After speaking, Yan Yue activated her [Perception Domain] without hesitation. In an instant, powerful sensory energy spread from Yan Yue's body.

Upon hearing this, Shenwu's eyes lit up, and he said excitedly, "Haha, so that's how it is! As long as we take care of all these guards up there, no one will notice our whereabouts. Yan Yue, your idea is brilliant!"

As he spoke, Shenwu rubbed his hands excitedly, a mischievous grin spreading across his face as he began to imagine the scene after infiltrating. He followed Yan Yue and leaped onto the roof, adjusting his gloves.

"Eliminating those who discover us can also be considered a form of infiltration."

So, Yan Yue and Shen Wu worked together and began searching for the guards on the roof.

……

Yan Yue closed her eyes, concentrated her mind, and let her senses spread outwards like fine spider silk. After a moment, she whispered, "One at two o'clock; two at ten o'clock."

Upon receiving instructions, Shenwu crouched low and stealthily crept towards the two o'clock direction. The guard was idly gazing into the distance when Shenwu, usually so rough, became incredibly attentive. He delivered a heavy blow to the back of the guard's neck, and the guard fell to the ground silently. Shenwu then dragged the guard into the shadows.

Meanwhile, Yan Yue ran to the ten o'clock position and locked onto other targets.

Thus, under Yan Yue's instructions, Shenwu constantly changed positions, defeating his enemies one by one with his agile skills and powerful attacks.

Occasionally, when encountering two guards who are close together, Shenwu would pick up a roof tile and throw it at one of them to attract its attention while quickly rushing towards the other.

Using Yan Yue's senses, the two carefully made their way along the edge of the roof.

Unbeknownst to them, all the guards on the roof had been eliminated by Yan Yue and Shen Wu.

They avoided the line of sight of the patrolling personnel below, found a skylight, and Yan Yue quietly opened it first. After confirming that no one was below, the two of them slid down the windowsill into the house.

The room was dimly lit, and the faint sound of voices could be heard in the distance. They had successfully infiltrated the Axe Gang, and a thrilling operation was about to unfold.

……

Inside the magnificent building, in the spacious and brightly lit entertainment hall, the atmosphere was unusually heavy. A tall, robust adult man stood there, dressed in an elegant long robe, his face serious, his eyes gleaming with a cold light, intently listening to the report from his subordinates.

"Lord Shen, the personnel we sent out to pursue her have not returned yet. That Heavenly Demoness... has escaped!" The subordinate in charge of the report trembled slightly, and cold sweat dripped from his forehead.

Upon hearing this news, the middle-aged man, respectfully addressed as Lord Shen, instantly turned ferocious and terrifying. His eyes widened in anger, and he roared, "What?!" Then, without warning, he raised his thick, powerful right leg and kicked the subordinate who had reported the news.

The kick landed squarely on the subordinate's chest, producing a dull thud.

The poor subordinate was sent flying violently, crashing heavily to the ground several meters away. He curled up in pain, spitting out a mouthful of bright red blood that stained the white floor tiles beneath him.

Upon witnessing this scene, the other subordinates around him gasped in shock, their faces turning deathly pale. They lowered their heads in terror, bowing respectfully to Lord Shen to show their awe and obedience, fearing that the slightest misstep would make them the next victim.

For a moment, the entire hall was silent, with only the faint groans of the wounded subordinate echoing in the air.

"A bunch of useless trash! I told you long ago that this operation was to capture the Heavenly Demoness in one fell swoop. She was clearly ambushed and seriously injured, but you bunch of good-for-nothings still managed to let her escape!"

Lord Shen roared through gritted teeth in anger, his murderous intent chilling to the bone.

Then, Lord Shen quickly calmed down and ordered, "Have someone contact the Xin'an Society and the Hung Hing Gang to cooperate with them. We must get this Heavenly Demoness!"

"Yes..." the subordinate who had been kicked away answered with difficulty, and was then helped down by his other subordinates, who were trembling.

……

Not far from the main hall, in a dimly lit storage room, Yan Yue clearly heard Lord Shen's conversation using her perception, and couldn't help but frown.

"Who is this Heavenly Demoness? I've never heard of her before."

At this moment, Shenwu interrupted Yan Yue's thoughts, "Yan Yue, are you done yet? I can't wait to challenge the Four Guardians!"

"They're here." Yan Yue snapped out of her daze, immediately formed a hand seal, and used the [Spiritual Flow Circulation] technique!

Yan Yue closed her eyes tightly and gradually gathered her inner energy between her palms. When the energy reached its peak, Yan Yue placed her palms on Shenwu's back.

In an instant, an incomparably powerful surge of energy entered Shenwu's body. He felt an external force spreading through his meridians and acupoints, causing him to tremble involuntarily.

"Shenwu, quickly try out the power of this new energy I just developed. Try to integrate it with your own internal energy, and then use your physical techniques."

Before he finished speaking, Shenwu already felt himself enveloped by an extremely dense layer of spiritual energy. The blue energy was like a surging sea, extremely violent and aggressive. Shenwu himself was like a warrior bathed in this powerful force, his face filled with undisguised surprise.

"This amazing feeling! Right now, I feel like I can destroy everything!" Shenwu exclaimed excitedly.

At that moment, Yan Yue gave the order to attack without hesitation: "The target is right there, right in front of us is the hall where the Axe Gang leader is! Let's charge straight in!"

"Understood! Yan Yue, watch closely!" Shen Wu's spirits lifted upon hearing this. He immediately crouched down slightly to lower his center of gravity, while raising his right hand high and clenching it into a fist, secretly gathering his strength to launch a thunderous strike.

At this moment, Shenwu combined all his internal energy with the spiritual energy that Yan Yue had transmitted to him, and that energy became even more violent, even turning into golden light.

After gathering his strongest power in one hand, Shenwu suddenly opened his eyes. Then, Shenwu sprang up and threw a punch forward.

Ultimate move: Fist of Fury! (Nen Enhancement Version)!

The [Fierce Fist] was unleashed like the sun breaking through the clouds, its dazzling golden light instantly illuminating the entire space. The power surged forth like a raging tide in all directions.

Shenwu's entire body transformed into a cannonball and charged toward the target. The air expanded rapidly, like a ignited explosive charge, generating visible shockwaves.

"Boom... Boom!"

The wall, as fragile as paper, was pierced through by Shenwu's attack. The fragments of the wall, carrying powerful air currents, hurtled towards the Axe Gang members.

This power not only possesses the ferocity to destroy matter, but also an invisible sense of oppression. Those henchmen who were slightly closer did not even have time to make a defensive move before being blasted away by the energy ripples. Their bodies crashed into the tables, chairs, or walls behind them with a dull thud, and they collapsed to the ground, spitting blood.

The ground shook from the residual force, as if a small earthquake had occurred. Amidst the billowing dust, Shenwu, like a war god, smashed through several layers of walls and rushed to the center of the hall.

The Axe Gang members, who had been standing together menacingly, all showed surprise when they saw that the newcomer was Shenwu.

However, Shenwu paid no attention to the gazes of these people. The corners of his mouth turned up slightly, revealing a hint of confidence and disdain.

Immediately afterwards, Shenwu launched an attack without hesitation, his movements as swift as lightning, leaving those around him no time to react.

【Axe Spinning Fist】

【Tiger Strike】

【Dragon Strike】

Shenwu swung his thick, powerful arms, each punch carrying immense force.

Shenwu's fighting style may seem like simple and brutal punches, but it actually contains exquisite techniques. Every punch hits the most painful spot on the body, and the wind from the punches is whistling and chilling.

If Shenwu hits, even a strong enemy will be sent flying like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily into the wall with a dull thud.

At the same time, Shenwu would count as he knocked down each opponent: "12...13...15..."

While Shenwu was wreaking havoc, Yan Yue was not idle either. He concentrated his mind and gathered a large amount of spiritual energy in his body.

[Spherical Nen Wave]!

A moment later, clusters of blazing, dazzling energy balls took shape in her hand. With a wave of her arm, Yan Yue sent those energy balls flying like cannonballs around the building.

[Nen - Tempest Kick]!

Then Yan Yue indiscriminately kicked out multiple arc-shaped bursts of Nen energy.

"Boom boom boom..." A series of deafening explosions rang out. The Axe Gang's headquarters building was instantly engulfed in smoke and dust.

"17...20..." Yan Yue also sensed the number of people she had defeated and began to count them, just like Shen Wu.

The immense force of the explosion caused the entire building to sway precariously, as if it were about to collapse at any moment. Seeing the dire situation, many gang members panicked and ran frantically towards where Yan Yue and Shen Wu were.

Because there were too many reinforcements coming, and because Yan Yue and Shen Wu's attacks were indistinguishable, the scene became extremely chaotic.

Some people fled in all directions, their shouts and screams mingling together. Some were knocked to the ground by their companions and trampled; others, unable to dodge in time, were thrown into the air by the shockwave of the explosion and then crashed heavily to the ground.

As the leader of the main branch, Lord Shen naturally knew about Shenwu. However, Shenwu, who had been hunted down by several gangs, dared to break into the gang headquarters on his own!

With only Yan Yue as his helper, Shenwu dared to rampage across the entire Axe Gang's territory, causing widespread destruction. Wherever they went, chaos followed.

At this moment, Lord Shen stood on the other side of the hall, witnessing everything that was happening before his eyes. His eyes grew colder and colder, and the killing intent within them intensified.

What's even more infuriating is that Shenwu and Yanyue were shouting numbers all the while they were fighting. Listening closely, it sounded like they were having a competition, seeing who could defeat more enemies. They completely disregarded the top gang in Shanghai.

Suddenly, a gust of wind howled past, and then four ghostly figures flashed out of the building's window. These four people descended from the sky like ghosts, each holding a different weapon.

The leader held an incredibly sharp longsword; the second gripped a thick, heavy spiked club; the third held a short sword in each hand, the blades as thin as hair yet exceptionally tough, wielding them like two venomous snakes flicking their tongues; and the last man carried a giant battle axe, its blade broad and heavy, stained with blood, clearly having drunk the blood of countless enemies.

"Four Guardians, heed my command! Kill these fools who have no regard for their own lives!" Lord Shen roared through gritted teeth, his eyes wide with rage and veins bulging on his forehead.

At this moment, his heart was filled with endless anger and murderous intent, and he vowed to personally cut off their heads and hang them on the top of the building.