With the appearance of Guoba, the surrounding Bangbu instantly fell silent.
However.
These Bangboo clearly weren't pushovers. They weren't freshly manufactured new Bangboo, but veterans who'd been roaming the streets of New Eridu for years, temporarily summoned by the Public Security Bureau.
The next moment.
A Bangboo stepped out, bristling with aggression, a fruit knife clutched in its hand.
"Hmm-hmm, hmm-hmm-hmm (Little Bear Bangboo, wanna fight?)—"
"Lu, lu-lu-lu—"
"Hmm-hmm, hmm-hmm-da, hmm-hmm (The Public Security Bureau folks are gone now. Let this big shot see what you're made of—dare to be my trainer?)..."
As he spoke, the fruit-knife-wielding Bangboo let out a loud "hmm-neh" and charged straight at Guoba.
Seeing this, Billy gasped, "Hey hey hey, Nicole-san, Xiangling, Sam Li, trouble! Guoba's about to fight a Bangboo!"
Nekomata hurriedly meowed, "Mew, what should we do?"
Hearing this, Xiangling called out, "Guoba! We're here to train them! Don't hurt them!"
Billy froze. "I mean… he's weak now. Won't he get knocked down by the Bangboo?"
Hu Tao chuckled. "Don't worry. Just watch Guoba's performance."
Then.
Under everyone's gaze, the fruit-knife-wielding Bangboo rushed up to Guoba. With a quick twist, Guoba slipped past the attack—then flicked his paw and knocked the charging Bangboo flat onto the ground.
Guoba didn't press the attack. Instead, he walked over and said, "Lu, lu-lu-lu—"
The Bangboo scrambled up. "Mm-hmm, mm-hmm mm-hmm (I lost. What's your name?)—"
Guoba continued, "Lu-lu—"
The Bangboo nodded eagerly. "Mm-hmm, mm-hmm-da (Okay, Big Brother Guoba, we'll listen to you)—"
Meanwhile.
Billy couldn't understand Guoba, but he could follow the Bangboo. Clearly, with just one exchange, Guoba had tamed this troublemaker—he even called him Brother Guoba. Billy's jaw dropped.
And it wasn't just that Bangboo. After witnessing Guoba's prowess, the others instantly turned into well-behaved little ones.
Seeing this, Nicole smiled faintly. "Alright, let's officially begin Bangboo training."
In fact, "Bangboo training" wasn't arbitrary—it followed a strict template. For example, teaching Bangboo to use various weapons like firearms and blades to give them basic combat capability.
Beyond combat, they also needed to master operating instruments and equipment: simple portable Hollow observation devices, Ethereals detectors, communication gear, and so on...
Nicole and Billy from Hare's House happened to excel with firearms and other hot weapons...
While Belle from the video store specialized in handling all kinds of observation instruments...
This was precisely why they'd been invited to serve as trainers and examiners.
Next, Billy made a stylish entrance to lecture the Bangboo on firearms.
"The origins of firearms trace back to the olden days..."
"Mmm-hmm, mmm-hmm—"
"Regarding firearm usage..."
"Mmm-hmm, mmm-hmm—"
"Alright, you've got it down. Now let's move on to some thrilling live-fire practice."
"Billy, you're being way too half-assed, meow. If we train like this, none of the Bangboos will pass the exam..."
"Then how should we teach them?"
"Let me handle it, meow. Little Bangboos, come learn the authentic Meow Meow Fist—the most powerful style in New Eridu!"
"Nekomata, stop messing around. Let me teach them..."
"Miss Hu Tao, you're not going to teach them how to dig graves and bury bodies, are you?"
"Huh? Of course not! I'll teach them how to use polearms, naturally."
...
They chattered away, each vying to instruct the Bangboo. Watching this, Belle couldn't help but sigh. If Zhu Yuan and Qingyi saw this, they'd surely regret inviting them to train and evaluate these Bangboo.
"Stop butting in," Belle said. "Let me teach them how to use the various instruments."
Saying this, she casually pulled out some simple observation devices.
Just then, one of the instruments in her hand suddenly began to beep.
Xiangling frowned. "Manager, why did these things start beeping all of a sudden?"
"Hold on," Belle said, puzzled. "Let me see which one it is..."
Soon, she located the incessantly beeping device. It was a portable Ethereals detector. Her heart sank at once.
"Oh no—" Belle muttered.
"What's wrong?" Xiangling asked.
Belle suddenly tensed. "There's an Ethereal nearby. Everyone, be careful—an Ethereal has appeared."
As she spoke, Belle looked up and scanned the surroundings.
Hearing this, the others fell silent and gathered around.
"What's going on, Manager?" Billy asked.
"The Ethereals detector just went off," Belle said gravely. "There might be a high-tier Ethereal nearby..."
Immediately after, she lifted the portable Hollow observer. Both Ether concentration and Ether activity had spiked sharply—and were still rising.
Seeing this, Billy looked baffled. "Didn't Zhu Yuan and Qingyi say this was a decaying Hollow, with no Ethereals other than the officially controlled ones?"
"I have no idea what's happening..." Belle shook her head. The instruments showed what they showed. Either the gear was faulty, or a high-tier Ethereal had really appeared nearby.
Beside them, Hu Tao showed no sign of worry; instead, she smiled. "Perfect timing. No training beats a live demonstration. Let's bring these Bangboo and go wipe out those Ethereals."
Anby said seriously, "This training plan is too risky. Under normal circumstances, no one would agree..."
"I agree—" Hu Tao declared.
"I agree too—" Xiangling nodded.
Belle thought for a moment. "Since we accepted this commission, we can't just leave the Bangboo here. Better to keep them with us. I agree..."
"I agree," Sam Li said evenly.
Billy hesitated, then nodded. "I… I agree too. Sorry, Anby."
"It's fine," Anby said slowly. "This is an exceptional circumstance."
With the majority in agreement, they led the Bangboo out of the training grounds and headed outside.
Billy looked around, puzzled. "Where's the high-tier Ethereals?"
Belle gripped the detector. "Over there. Be careful—every Ether reading is sky-high. It should be a high-tier Ethereal."
Billy drew his weapon. "Bangboo, stay behind me. I'll show you how to fight."