On the abandoned dock, the originally rust-stained cargo ship was now engulfed in raging flames, mostly submerged in the river water.
Continuous rain fell on the dock's shore, where standing tall was...
A pink pig nearly the size of two buses.
Upon closer inspection, one would realize this chubby little pig wasn't a living creature, but an enormous piggy bank.
Fish and over ten Marauders members climbed ashore dripping wet from the seawater, all somewhat astonished at the sight of this little pig.
"What the hell is this thing?!" Fish couldn't help but curse.
Answering her was a Marauders member from Jiangcheng.
"Big Sis Fish, this is Tycoon's [Matthew Piggy Bank]... The boss of Jiang'an Hall has made his move!"
Fish spat in disgust. "Tycoon? Not surprising - that guy's nothing but Order's loyal dog!"
The members from Jiangcheng and other city branches silently complied, but those from Yanjing grew anxious.
"Sis Fish, you're going to face Tycoon alone?"
"That old bastard is Fourth Tier, right? How can you take such a risk?!"
As they chattered noisily, Fish clapped her hands sharply. "Shut your damn mouths! You know he's Fourth Tier and still want to interfere? Someone ranked in the top thirty nationally is way out of your league!"
"Get the hell back and don't cause trouble! If you really want to help, then hide properly so I don't have to waste energy saving your asses!"
Fish spoke fiercely, and the four from Yanjing immediately fell in line.
"Scatter! Scatter!"
They called out to other Marauders members, and soon these guys dispersed into the darkness like rats, hiding among the various debris piles scattered around the old dock.
Instantly, only Fish remained alone on the dock's shore.
She looked up at the distant pink piggy bank, focusing on the two figures standing on its back.
Two flintlocks appeared in her hands as Fish shouted clearly:
"Hey—Pretty Boy Hua, what's the meaning of ambushing me in the middle of the night?"
"And that nouveau riche uncle over there, what brings you to this party?!"
Fish's voice echoed across the dock.
They called out to other Marauders members, and soon these guys dispersed into the darkness like rats, hiding among the various piles of debris scattered around the old dock.
"Yanjing's Fish, right? First time meeting you, though I've long heard of your reputation," Tycoon's hearty, enthusiastic voice rang out. "How could I not personally welcome someone of your stature coming to Jiangcheng!"
Li Hua also spoke coldly: "Enough nonsense. You planned to ally with Free Alliance ahead of schedule and kidnapped one of Order's external members—you declared war on us first."
While listening to Tycoon, Fish's expression remained relatively calm.
But when she heard Li Hua's words, Fish nearly lost her composure.
"Bull-fucking-shit! Damn you, Li Hua! When did I ever ally with Free Alliance? When did I kidnap your external member?!"
She said furiously.
Li Hua adjusted his glasses. "Heh, denying it doesn't matter... How do you think we found this place? Every participant in this operation has a tracker on them!"
"His last known location was right here—hand him over, and maybe we can still resolve this peacefully."
Fish's frown deepened upon hearing this.
Although she was carefree and didn't pay much attention to details, and as a high-ranking Marauder had done plenty of burning, killing, and looting...
Being falsely accused of something she hadn't done still made Fish feel both irritated and uneasy.
"What kind of nonsense is this? Never heard of it!"
Thoughts raced through her mind as her straightforward thought process considered several possibilities.
Were Li Hua and Tycoon framing her?
That didn't make sense—those Order bastards never needed excuses to attack! Marauders and Order were completely hostile anyway!
Could it be that some Marauders members kidnapped an Order member before coming here? But what about Free Alliance's involvement?
Fish's mind felt completely tangled.
Just as she decided to stop overthinking and fight first...
A heavy "thump" sounded from the container area on the opposite side of the dock.
Four figures appeared atop the containers.
Fish, Tycoon, and Li Hua all looked toward these four uninvited guests, recognizing their identities.
"Free Alliance members—I see Magician," Li Hua said, pushing up his glasses.
Tycoon also narrowed his eyes: "And Jiangcheng's Master Thief, that headache-inducing girl is here too."
The other two were obviously also Free Alliance members.
Li Hua looked back at Fish. "Still claiming you're not working with them?"
Facing Li Hua's accusation while looking at the timely arrival of the four Free Alliance members...
Fish's less-educated mind suddenly had a moment of clarity.
She felt she had figured it out!
"Fuck! Free Alliance set me up! This is what they call forcing someone to join the rebels, right?!"
These four must have kidnapped the Order member to frame her!
Thinking this, Fish glared at the Free Alliance group with intense hatred.
"Go to hell! Trying to force me to ally with you?! Despicable! Shameless!"
Fish turned one of her guns, aiming at the four Free Alliance members.
The four had just arrived and barely found their footing when Fish started cursing at them and pointing guns their way, leaving them completely confused.
Phantom spoke in bewilderment: "What's all this nonsense? Shouldn't we team up against those two Order guys?"
"You're talking like we're the ones who brought Order here!"
Fish gritted her teeth: "Aren't you?"
As she spoke, she fired a shot.
"BANG!"
The shot struck the container at the Free Alliance members' feet, sending bright sparks flying.
"Whoa! Fish, you're playing for real!"
Li Nian jumped in place, startled, quickly hiding behind Old Zhou.
The brawny Old Zhou's thought process actually connected with Fish's.
"I think our timing was just unfortunate, leading to some misunderstanding..."
"How do we clear up this misunderstanding then?" Xiaoyun asked softly, tilting her head at Old Zhou.
The other two were obviously also Free Alliance members, as expected.
As he spoke...
He crouched slightly, then leaped like a cannonball!
"BOOM!"
A tremendous sound echoed like a high-powered internal combustion engine starting, the metal container beneath his feet denting from the force!
With this immense momentum, Old Zhou's figure traced a perfect parabola through the air above the dock, heading straight for Tycoon and Li Hua.
Seeing Old Zhou suddenly attack, Tycoon's expression changed slightly.
He discarded his transparent umbrella and raised both hands, and Old Zhou seemed to crash into some invisible barrier.
"Interesting!"
Old Zhou adjusted his posture, then two tonfa appeared in his hands!
The dual tonfa descended with crackling electric arcs, exploding with blue-white lightning through the rain curtain, outlining the silhouette of what blocked his path!
It was a transparent giant hand!
"That's [Hayek's Invisible Hand]!" Li Nian shouted a warning. "Be careful, Old Zhou! That thing's incredibly tough!"
On the piggy bank, Li Hua also sprang into action, pulling out a deck of playing cards. Just as he prepared to provide support...
"BANG!"
A gunshot rang out, the playing cards in Li Hua's hands scattering as the tremendous impact forced him back three steps, nearly making him fall off the piggy bank.
Just as Old Zhou had predicted—Fish had ultimately chosen to help after all.
She lowered her flintlock with an displeased expression.
"I'll settle accounts with you later, Free Alliance!"
Between the two sides...
Fish indeed still hated Order more!