"T-They're too terrifying..." It was the first time that the leader of America witnessed the strength of the Peacekeepers, and he was naturally quite overwhelmed.
The other people from America weren't doing much better themselves, still not being able to catch their breaths from the scene that seemed straight out of a movie.
"All of them were killed in an instant..." Someone muttered dazedly behind the leader, looking at the carnage that had unfolded in the zoo.
Other than some of the animals that weren't affected by the miasma, most of the other animals were there, but now such a large army of animals was defeated in mere moments by the Peacekeepers, with the majority of the mutated animals beaten up so badly that they couldn't cause any further harm while a few of them were killed.
If they hadn't seen this with their own eyes, they would have never believed it!
But now, they're own experiences became irrefutable evidence that what they saw was true.
"They've become even stronger than before..." Cecily inhaled deeply, trying to calm herself down, before she then turned to the leader and said, "Quick, dispatch some people to deal with the zoo. Lili doesn't like to deal with the aftermath."
As taken aback as he was, the leader quickly turned around and made a call.
"See that? That was the full strength of Miss Lalisa's subordinates!" Donghyuk turned around and said to the people who wanted to help out earlier, "Now you know that you wouldn't have been able to help in the slightest, and that they are the only ones that could have done anything!"
The people who wanted to go to help earlier all looked down in the direction of the zoo in idolization and excitement. Even though the scene below was violent and bloody, all it did was make them even more motivated than ever before! How could they be as strong as the Peacekeepers?
Cecil saw that they were all excited from what they saw, so he looked at them and said, "Back when we were in the ranking battles, the team that she led was far more brutal than this one! They held back quite a lot, I can say, and you should have seen their battles against mythical beasts in the last two days of the ranking battles! Every time you see them, you think that they must be at their limit and that they couldn't become any stronger, but they always do!"
Why did he sound regretful?! Was this scene not enough for Young Master Cecil?
They turned their heads stiffly and looked at Cecil, who had already moved his gaze back towards the zoo calmly. Suddenly, they remembered that Cecil was someone that was in the top twenty rankings of the ranking battles! Someone like that did not need to deceive them.
Therefore, what he said was true, and this wasn't the extent of the power of the Peacekeepers!
After these people realized this, they all gasped in disbelief. Were they not strong enough already? Did they want to be strong enough to fight against the heavens themselves?!
"Don't give me that reaction." Cecil glanced at them, before pointing at the hellish scene below with a solemn expression. "Did you think that they became so strong just by eating and drinking? Look at this scene, and think! If you knew that you would die if you went down there, would you still go? Are these Peacekeepers strong? They are! But as strong as they are, they still seek to become even stronger no matter the cost! See that guy? He's called Shi Woojin, and remember how he didn't ask Miss Lalisa for help even though he was on the brink of collapse? He wanted to seek to break through his limits in extreme situations!"
After he said this, everyone lowered their heads in thought. No matter Cecil still locked himself up in the legacy base even though he was so strong, he must have been stimulated by these people!
Upon thinking of this, their gazes all turned resolute and determined. If the Peacekeepers could do it, why couldn't they?
The leader of America couldn't help but sigh upon seeing this change in these youngsters. Miss Lalisa hadn't said anything yet and she already had such a positive influence on them, and he could venture a guess that she had such an effect on everyone she came across, and then he thought of how much Cecily and Cecil idolized her...
"Why was Miss Lalisa not born in our country?" Why was the ancient martial arts world so lucky?
After the Peacekeepers finished dealing with the mutated animals, they all started chatting and joking with each other just like regular teenagers, and who would think that these youngsters could destroy a city if they so wished?
Lisa walked together with Rosé, and upon seeing a gash on the latter's arm, she sighed softly and took out a bottle of medicine for her to apply on her wound before she said towards all of the Peacekeepers, "All of our training and battlers are for you guys to become stronger. The great calamity is going to come soon, and I don't want any of you to be sacrificed in battle. The Peacekeepers are a team, and we won't leave anyone behind, got it?"
Lisa's voice could only be heard by the Peacekeepers, and no one else other than Jungkook could hear what she said.
The Peacekeepers couldn't help but be affected by these words-Even though they've only been in the Peacekeepers for less than four months, they've trained together and gone through life and death with each other, and had already passed the point where they treated each other like family. It was true that if any one of them passed away, it would cause the others great pain!
Therefore, they needed to become even stronger!
With a few sentences, Lisa riled up the hearts of everyone in the Peacekeepers and gave them great motivation!
Alang snapped out of his daze before he looked over at Jungkook with a bitter smile. He had been warned not to harbor any ill intentions towards them the day before, but who would have the courage to do so when the Peacekeepers were this strong?
Honestly, he doubted whether Lisa and the Peacekeepers truly needed him in their team.
He had been confident in his abilities, proud even, but now all of that pride was shattered. As strong as they were, would he even make a difference if he joined them?
If someone told the past him that he would one day feel inferior because his abilities were too weak, they would probably be returned with a smack in the face. The ability to raise anyone's talent by three times wasn't strong enough? Why would he ever be self-conscious?
Now, he even questioned whether he could increase the abilities of the Peacekeepers threefold.
Meanwhile, the people from the Bai gang were still in a daze from what they saw.
Their faces paled and their hands trembled, and even though they knew that the Peacekeepers were strong, but it was only now that they realized that what they saw in their group chats was just the tip of the iceberg.
They all couldn't help but shout when they saw the Peacekeepers defeat an elephant the size of a truck!
This was the true power of the Peacekeepers!
Boss Bai's hands trembled as he took a short video and sent it into their group chat.
[Headquarters]
American Branch: [Video]
American Branch: Just watch and see.
Not one minute later, the group chat was filled with messages by the other members, wanting him to talk about the details of what had happened earlier.
Boss Bai put down his phone and looked back towards Lisa. How would he have the time to tell them what had happened when all he wanted to do now was idolize these people?
"Cecy, have some people clean this place up, okay?" Lisa took out a pure white handkerchief and wiped her hands before looking at Cecily.
Cecily nodded. "I'm already on it."
Lisa didn't say anything further, and as she was about to make her way to Jungkook, Nozawa spoke up, "Lalisa-san, is it true, what you said about Japan?"
"Why don't you call your leader and find out?" Lisa smiled and raised her eyebrows before walking towards Jungkook.
Nozawa stood there with his eyebrows locked in worry.
He tried to do that, but the line didn't go through no matter how many times he called, and he couldn't help the uneasiness in his heart as he looked at the wreckage left behind in the zoo.
"Nozawa, lemme give you some tips." Cecily smiled and whispered almost conspiratorially. "Gather up as many antiques as you can from your country and gift them to her, and all your problems will be solved."
Nozawa seemed to be quite dubious at this suggestion. Was she sure that what she was talking about were antiques and not treasures and artifacts?
"Relax, it's just one of her few interests," Cecily said, before walking away.
The leader of America muttered in question, "Why did you give him that advice?"
"I want Lili to teach them a lesson, of course." Cecily flipped her hair nonchalantly. "I don't want those pig heads coming here and talking you into doing some other suicide plan any time soon, after all."
Could she not talk about that anymore? The leader felt as if his dark history had been brought up one time too many. "But in any case, do you think she would be able to teach the entirety of the Japanese supernatural world a lesson? That doesn't sound very doable..."
Lisa was very strong, yes, but it wasn't easy to fight against an entire country at once nonetheless.
"Japan?" Cecily scoffed. "Has she ever failed in anything she set out to do? Was the Dickens family strong? Would you be able to do as well as she did and not cause any trouble, even in your position? Did you forget how she changed the leader of England? No one can stop her if she wants to change things up!"
As he listened to what she said, the leader of America had a sudden thought-If he continued to follow along with their plans, would he have been dethroned by now and replaced with Cecily?
It was scary enough that someone was so insanely strong, but pair it with an unparalleled intellect and you've got a terrifying force to be reckoned with. "How do you have such a good relationship with Miss Lalisa, anyway?"
It was true that almost everyone was still calling Lisa 'Miss Lalisa', and there was only a small margin of people that could call her by name!
Cecily only smiled, not replying to this question.
The leader of America wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, and this motion had already become a habit after he came into contact with Lisa.
Hoseok and the others were the ones that reacted to the entire scene the calmest, and even though they were quite taken aback by how they've become stronger once again, they had been following their ascent for a long time now. Donghyuk even took out his phone and recorded everything to be posted in the ancient martial arts forum.
Upon looking up, he realized that everyone was looking at Lisa and the Peacekeepers with sparkles in their eyes, and he knew that they had already been conquered by their strength and ability.
After this battle, the name of the Peacekeepers would be spread far and wide, far surpassing the boundaries of the ancient martial arts world.
Upon thinking of this, Donghyuk tutted slightly before looking at Hoseok. "As expected of Miss Lalisa and the Peace Manor, wreaking havoc and turning tables no matter where they go."
"I think, with Miss Lalisa by their side, they only need to focus on one thing-getting stronger." Jaehyun quickly added on to Donghyuk's statement. "Miss Lalisa should be able to handle the rest of the matters herself."
"Will something happen to the Peacekeepers if things go on at this rate?" asked Donghyuk with a surprised expression.
They shouldn't be relying too much on her all the time, right? What would happen if the day comes when Lisa won't be able to oversee their operations constantly?
"Your worries are in futility," responded Hoseok. "Perhaps you have forgotten about the commander of the Peacekeepers?"
"Commander?" Donghyuk was puzzled. Why didn't he know about this? Who was the commander?
"You think Luo Yoongi, the founder of Peace Manor is just there for show? That man's intellect is arguably on par with that of Miss Lalisa's. You two wait and see for yourselves. The men Miss Lalisa recruits are all masters in their own game." Hoseok turned towards Alang.
He wondered what powers were hidden within this newly-recruited member of the Peacekeepers.
Perhaps out of exhaustion, the Peacekeepers sat down on the floor and were chatting away casually. Hoseok overheard Jimin chatting with his mates about war tactics when he looked over.
Then, he heard him say the following, "Rosé, you are quite powerful. From now on, we'll try to immobilize the enemy, which is when you'll use all your might against him. We'll strike fear into their hearts whenever they hear about us in the future."
Rosé looked down at the injury on her arm, which was healing up gradually. Quietly, she mumbled her reply, "Fine."
Fine? Nothing about this conversation sounds fine! Hoseok was at a loss for words. Silently, he turned away, not wanting to hear more about their morbid discussion.
"Say, where's Xixi and Dog Feed?" Jimin suddenly realized that Xixi and Dog Feed were nowhere to be seen after the battle had ended. Going by how events would play out in the past, those two should've been receiving praise from their fellow team members by now. Why did they leave so soon today?
He looked around, only to find his men shake their heads at him, an indication that they too, had no idea where those two were.
Jimin spun around once but saw no signs of Xixi nor Dog Feed. Instead, he saw Alang, who was standing next to Jiji. His eyes lit up and he got onto his feet immediately. Walking up to Alang, he asked, "Are you the new member they're talking about?"
Alang's mind had yet to register Jimin's words but he had already started nodding unconsciously. Recognizing that this was the person whom he battled the giant serpent alongside, he muttered under his breath, "I think so?"
Alang was shocked to discover that he'd have such powerful comrades.
"I'm Wu Jimin from the 1st squad. Still, I couldn't help but notice how weak you were." Jimin patted his shoulder. "You can't stay like this forever. You'd get crushed to death when we get back to the Ancient Martial Arts World."
Jimin's words reminded Alang of what Donghyuk had said previously. He now understood perfectly what Donghyuk was trying to tell him. What a terrifying organization he was getting into unknowingly. But, many must've envied him to be able to do so.
Alang no longer possessed the sense of self-satisfaction he had from the beginning. That was because he was reminded of his place in the hierarchy upon seeing how insanely powerful the rest of his peers were.
"I will strive to get stronger," replied Alang with his fists balled up tightly. He proceeded to introduce himself, "My name's Alang!"
"Okay. Well, I wish you good luck with that. Now, Alang, let's bring you to our captain." Jimin brought Alang, whose spirit was at its peak, over to meet the leader of the Peacekeepers.
Rosé glanced at him and answered instantly, "His power is insufficient. Work hard, there are more battles waiting for you in the future."
"He really does need to sharpen his abilities," said Lisa who walked over from behind. Walking next to her was the tall Jungkook.
The sun was already setting on the western horizon at this point, where their shadows beneath their feet started to lengthen. As they had approached from the direction of the sun, it was hard to make out clearly their faces.
The Peacekeepers sprung to their feet right after seeing these two.
Kihyun, Jimin, and Rosé were all looking at Jungkook. During the battle, they were able to sense quite clearly, the forces that were interacting with each other and how powerful each attack was. Lisa's lightning attacks contained the most amount of energy and consequently, had the most destructive power. They were, however, surprised by the person standing next to her.
For some reason, Jungkook was able to control the energy within Lisa's attack.
Not only had he managed to bring it under his control, but he was also able to manipulate it as if he understood the mechanism's ins and outs perfectly. They had speculated about his strength in the past but the Jungkook of today, they felt had become degrees more powerful than the Jungkook of the past.
He raised his head and his eyes scanned the faces of the Peacekeepers calmly. Despite how tranquil the situation looked to an outsider, chills crept up nearly every one of their spines the moment they made eye contact with Jungkook.
"Miss Lalisa, Mister Jeon," they greeted.
Jungkook bowed slightly whereas Lisa acknowledged their greeting verbally. Turning towards Alang, she said, "Today, Xixi and Dog Feed won't be with us. However, they still are part of the team. I'll have them explain themselves when they return."
Alang had by now managed to stomach how a flower could be so powerful. There was a brief pause before he spoke up, "I have already seen them."
"Seen them?" Lisa questioned. "What's the matter with them?"
Alang glanced back at Lisa, wondering if he should say something in response.
Jungkook merely shot him a brief glance before chuckling in Lisa's direction. He showed more expressions in the past five minutes than the past combined. His smile melted away the layer of ice that separated him and the outside world, or like dark clouds that were parted, revealing a ray of sunlight that lit up the ground below.
Lisa looked up at him. It was definitely a rare sight to see him laughing. "Brother Jungkook, do you know anything about their disappearance?"
"They were with him before they left. Dog Feed-" Jungkook paused for a while to think about the oddness of this name Lisa had come up with for that flower. "Dog Feed wanted to swallow him, but was stopped by Xixi."
"Pfft!" The Peacekeepers erupted into laughter right after Jungkook ended his sentence. Then, some of them asked if Alang had done anything to piss off that flower.
"..."
His weakness wasn't the problem here, that flower was way too powerful!
Jungkook walked up to the leader of the American supernatural organizations and told him, "Get the people in command of your supernatural organizations into your meeting room. We have an important announcement to make."
Their leader had zero doubts about something which Jungkook was claiming to be an important matter. He turned towards his men and hastily ordered them to do as told.
Dusk was approaching as the last rays of sunlight shot up into the clouds. From the rooftop, one could see the cracks on the ground which stretched across the zoo, as well as the carcasses of many different animals. Indeed, it was a gory sight to behold.
Lisa and her team had already left, but there were still a number of people not wanting to leave this place behind.
"I'm guessing the person who is behind this plot is crying his eyes out," said Hoseok with a snicker. "Maybe they wanted to cripple the United States, or perhaps they wanted to wipe out half of the supernatural forces here but what they got instead, was an ass-whooping by the Peacekeepers."
If not for Lisa, anarchy would've descended upon the people of the United States.
Donghyuk, Jaehyun, and the rest of the men all thought the same.
Their biggest mistake was not taking into account the fact that Lisa would come here personally with her Peacekeepers to completely wipe them off the face of the earth, denying them completely the opportunity to proceed with their plans, let alone retaliate.
***
Seokjin stood at one side, observing the aftermath of the battle. He inhaled deeply as a smile broke across his face. Just as she had said, it really was an interesting show.
He pulled out his phone and snapped a few photos. Then, a notification popped up simultaneously.
[Minotaur Among Men]
Director Cheng: Seokjin, you're in the cast of 'Intergalactic Warfare' aren't you?
Director Cheng: Did Miss Lalisa come over to the States for vacation?
Director Cheng: I spoke to Neil today. He told me he's going to meet her!
Director Cheng: If she has the time to go on vacation, why hasn't she the time to help me in two more films?
Jieun: Director Cheng, stop spamming. Miss Lalisa's doing a job over there!
Director Cheng: A job? I don't buy it. There's no way she'll ever treat her job seriously!
Seokjin looked down at the message and thought to himself, 'But that really was the truth. First, she replaced the head of the Dickens family and then turned the American political arena into a chaotic sh*tshow, before proceeding to raze a zoo to the ground. How could she not be busy?'
Seokjin: [jpeg] Look what she's done to this zoo. Director Cheng, read up on the recent events happening in America and you'll know just what Lisa has been up to.
Director Cheng, who was currently in China, saw the picture and tapped the link which Seokjin sent him. Upon reading the article, he couldn't help but ask, "She removed the leader of the Dickens family? And she did this to the poor animals? Perhaps it's time for you to get your brain checked, Li Seokjin."
Jieun: As expected of her!
Suzy: I'm impressed!
Yugyeom: I was wondering about the purpose of Miss Lalisa's visit to the United States. I keep seeing discussions in the group about the situation for the Bai gang, but I must say, only Miss Lalisa is capable of such things.
Director Cheng: ...
Suzy: I'm guessing you're at the scene of the battle? Man, I should've accepted that role in 'Intergalactic Warfare' too!
Director Cheng: ...
Jieun: Oh god, I should've been there personally. Say, Senior Li, did you manage to record the fight?
Director Cheng: ...
Lisa had already arrived at the great hall where the supernatural organizations of the United States usually congregated. Seeing that nobody was here yet, she pulled out her phone. Just as she was about to boot up her favorite game, a couple of notifications popped up on her phone.
Upon reading through their conversation, she sent an emoticon.
For A Millenium: ^_^
***
Cecily and her brother looked for seats closer to Lisa and Jungkook. "Miss Lalisa, what important announcement are you guys gonna make?" Cecil was rather curious about it.
Lisa looked up and gave him a cheeky smile. "You'll know when we announce it."
Jungkook on the other hand, kept his eyes glued onto the main entrance.
The higher-ups of the American supernatural organizations arrived in a timely fashion. Except for the handful whom Lisa got to know at the zoo, most of them were fresh faces. They knew who Jungkook was but virtually knew nothing about Lisa. What's more, Lisa's seat was behind Jungkook so her presence was hard to notice.
"Mister Jeon, everyone is present today," said the leader of the American supernatural organizations.
Jungkook nodded. He rose from his seat, about to say something.
Just then, a young girl smashed through the front door with a loud 'bang'.
"Uncle, these two are trying to eat your treasured items!"
She was fairly young but her face was filled with rage. She was holding onto a red bird with one hand, and a pink little blossom in the other.
Her unexpected appearance in the hall meant that all eyes were on her. These weren't ordinary eyes mind you, for the people gathered here today were all high-status members of the supernatural world.
They recognized who this girl was in an instant. She was none other than the beloved niece of the second-in-command.
"Terribly sorry about that," said Lisa who suddenly got up from her seat. She directed an apologetic look at the young girl. "These are my pets. You tell me what these two ate later alright? I'll provide compensation for the trouble they have caused."
Their leader's expression darkened the moment he heard about their treasures being eaten. And this girl must have guts to admit that they were her pets. Was she looking for an early death? Those who did not know her looked at her with sympathy, for they knew this place was where she would die.
Suddenly, Narry shot up from his seat.
It's all over now, thought the Americans. In the next second, however, they almost fell out of their seats in surprise.
"Carrie, hurry up and return them to Miss Lalisa!" yelled Narry. "Miss Lalisa, we are pleased to hear that our treasures are appreciated by these two grandmasters," he said in a respectful tone.
They all stared at Narry in disbelief. What's up with him today? God, was this the same, petty Narry that they knew from before?
Only a handful of people present in the hall knew of the truth. Narry of course had not gone mad. The thing is, he was speaking to Lisa. In fact, even if her pets decided to turn the United States of America upside-down, he still wouldn't dare to utter a word in protest!
Just wait and see. You'll definitely get the shock of your life!