## Chapter 4: Peel of Destiny and the Price of Chaos
The Spider-Sense wasn't just drumming anymore; it was a klaxon blaring directly into Fang Lin's skull, vibrating his teeth. **VOID TRIBULATION REALM.** The sheer, oppressive weight of Jian Mo's power pressed down on the square, turning the festive air thick with dread. Panic rippled through the crowd, a wave of terror threatening to break into a stampede. *Emotional Resonance: Collective Terror.* The points counter in Fang Lin's mind flickered – `[ +500 Points: Emotional Resonance (Mass Terror - Silverspring Crowd) ]` – a grim, automatic tally against the backdrop of potential slaughter.
His hand closed around the smooth, cartoonishly perfect surface of an **Acme Brand Instant Banana Peel**. The absurdity was staggering. Throwing a banana peel at a being who could likely shatter mountains with a flick of her wrist? It was suicide wrapped in slapstick. But the alternative – standing by while people were dragged off for "tribute" – ignited a spark of reckless defiance within him, fueled by Deadpool's chaotic influence and the sheer, desperate need for *more points* to survive this world. *Chaos is currency. Sometimes you short-sell dignity.*
Jian Mo's amplified voice cut through the murmurs of fear. "You have ten breaths. Bring forth your wealth and the strong. Hesitate, and we shall take our tribute in blood." Her cold eyes scanned the paralyzed crowd, already singling out targets.
Fang Lin moved. Not towards the demoness, but *through* the packed throng, a shadow in his dark tunic, hood pulled low. His enhanced senses painted a vivid map: the positions of the Blood Skull cultivators, the frozen knots of civilians, the terrified merchants clutching their wares. He needed the perfect vector, the impossible angle. He spotted a raised platform near a towering paper phoenix lantern, momentarily clear as people shied away from its proximity to the demons.
He activated the **Chameleon Camouflage Cloak**. The fabric shimmered, blending him imperfectly with the shifting crowd and the lantern's multicolored glow – not true invisibility, but enough to make him a fleeting blur. He darted towards the platform, Spider-Sense screaming warnings about the Core Formation guards flanking Jian Mo. *Too close. Too strong.*
He reached the base of the platform. Jian Mo stood above, radiating icy disdain. Fang Lin focused, pouring every ounce of his enhanced reflexes and spatial awareness into the throw. He didn't aim *at* her. He aimed *for the space immediately before her descending foot* as she took a deliberate, commanding step forward.
The peel left his hand, a streak of improbable yellow through the lantern-lit air. Time seemed to slow. Fang Lin saw the peel arc, saw Jian Mo's polished, dark leather boot begin its descent. His heart hammered against his ribs. *Will it register? Will Qi deflect it? Will she just vaporize it?*
The boot landed. Not on solid stone, but squarely on the center of the Acme Banana Peel.
The effect was instantaneous and utterly physics-defying. Jian Mo's foot didn't just slip; it shot out from under her with cartoonish velocity, as if greased by the gods of absurdity. Her expression of cold command shattered into pure, unadulterated shock. Her other leg, caught mid-stride, couldn't compensate. The Void Tribulation Realm cultivator, a being capable of facing heavenly tribulations, executed a perfect, involuntary mid-air split before crashing backwards with a heavy, unceremonious *THUD* onto the platform. Her ornate helmet clattered away, revealing a face momentarily slack with disbelief before twisting into apocalyptic rage.
Silence. Utter, profound silence descended upon the square. Thousands of eyes stared, uncomprehending. The Blood Skull disciples froze, their expressions shifting from predatory confidence to utter stupefaction. Jian Mo lay sprawled amidst the scattered remains of decorative festival streamers, her dignity shattered as thoroughly as the silence.
Then, chaos.
Not the chaos of a massacre. The chaos of utter, bewildering *farce*.
A strangled snort escaped one of the Blood Skull disciples. It was choked off instantly, but the dam had broken. A wave of incredulous laughter, tinged with hysteria and overwhelming relief, rippled through the crowd. It started as a few stifled giggles, then erupted into full-throated roars. People pointed, tears streaming down their faces, doubling over. The sheer, impossible absurdity of a continent-shaking demoness felled by a *banana peel* was too much.
`[ +1000 Points: Emotional Resonance (Utter Disbelief/Absolute Humiliation - Jian Mo) ]`
`[ +800 Points: Emotional Resonance (Collective Hysterical Relief/Amazement - Silverspring Crowd) ]`
`[ +300 Points: Emotional Resonance (Profound Confusion/Mortification - Blood Skull Disciples) ]`
`[ +50 Points: Emotional Resonance (Schadenfreude - Zhang Wei, momentarily forgotten) ]`
`[ Total Points: 2795 ]`
The points flooded in like a tidal wave, momentarily staggering Fang Lin. *2795!* He could buy a *Legendary* draw! But celebration was premature. Jian Mo was already moving. Not scrambling, but pushing herself up with terrifying, deliberate slowness. The air around her crackled, not with Qi, but with pure, unfiltered *malice*. The laughter died instantly, replaced by a deeper, colder terror. Her eyes, when they found the offending peel still stuck to her boot sole, burned with the promise of annihilation.
"FIND HIM!" Her voice, no longer amplified but raw with fury, cut through the renewed silence like a shard of ice. "FIND THE INSECT WHO DARES MOCK THE BLOOD SKULL ALTAR AND FLAY HIM ALIVE!" She ripped the peel off and crushed it in her fist, the pulp vanishing in a wisp of dark energy.
Fang Lin didn't wait. He was already moving, the Chameleon Cloak flaring as he shoved through the suddenly panicked crowd again. *Run. Hide. Now.* His Spider-Sense screamed anew – not just Jian Mo's rage, but multiple vectors converging. The Blood Skull disciples, shaken from their stupor, were fanning out, their Core Formation auras flaring, scanning the crowd with murderous intent. And worse, cutting through the throng like a vengeful shark, was Zhang Wei, his face alight with furious recognition. He'd seen Fang Lin near the platform!
"There! The hooded rat! HE DID IT!" Zhang Wei bellowed, pointing directly at Fang Lin's camouflaged form.
`[ +100 Points: Emotional Resonance (Vengeful Triumph - Zhang Wei) ]`
`[ Analyze Insight: Target (Zhang Wei) has irrevocably identified you as the instigator. Threat Level: Critical (Personal Vendetta + Demon Attention). ]`
*Damn it!* Fang Lin abandoned subtlety. He ripped off the now-useless Chameleon Cloak, its duration nearly expired, revealing his dark tunic. He sprinted, not towards the main exits choked with fleeing people, but deeper into the maze of festival stalls and side alleys. He needed terrain, obstacles, *chaos* he could control.
"GET HIM!" Zhang Wei roared, crashing through stalls after him, his two thugs close behind. The Spider-Sense pinged relentlessly – Zhang Wei closing fast, the thugs flanking, and the chilling awareness of Core Formation cultivators beginning to converge on the commotion.
Fang Lin ducked under a collapsing awning, kicked over a rack of painted masks, sending them scattering. He pulled out a **Smoke Pellet** and slammed it behind him. *POOF!* Grey smoke billowed, momentarily obscuring Zhang Wei and his thugs. `[ +20 Points: Emotional Resonance (Frustration/Choking - Pursuers) ]`
He didn't stop. He knew the rooftops were likely being watched by the Blood Skull disciples. He needed ground-level chaos. He burst onto a narrower street dedicated to lantern crafts, filled with intricate paper sculptures glowing softly. He spotted a large, elaborate lantern shaped like a coiled serpent, its internal light flickering. Pulling the **Basic Grapnel Launcher**, he fired not upwards, but *sideways*. The grapnel hooked onto the serpent lantern's structural frame. He yanked the release lever.
*ZZZZIP! CRUNCH!*
The grapnel mechanism hauled him off his feet, swinging him across the street. Simultaneously, the force ripped the large lantern from its mounting. It crashed down onto the street directly behind him, blocking the path in a tangle of glowing paper, bamboo, and startled shouts. Zhang Wei and the thugs slammed into the debris, cursing violently. `[ +50 Points: Emotional Resonance (Frustrated Rage - Zhang Wei & Thugs) ]` `[ +20 Points: Emotional Resonance (Shock/Indignation - Lantern Artisan) ]`
Fang Lin landed hard, rolled, and kept running, the Spider-Sense now pinging a new, chilling warning. *Above.* He glanced up. A Blood Skull disciple, clad in dark armor, stood silhouetted on a rooftop, his gaze locked onto Fang Lin. Core Formation pressure radiated down, cold and heavy. The disciple raised a hand, dark energy coalescing into crackling shards of ice.
*No!* Fang Lin threw himself sideways into a narrow alleyway just as the shards slammed into the spot he'd occupied, freezing the cobblestones instantly. The cold washed over him, stealing his breath. He scrambled deeper into the alley, a dead-end looming ahead. The Core Formation disciple landed lightly at the alley entrance, blocking his escape. A cruel smile touched the disciple's lips.
"Insolent gnat. Your farce ends here." He raised his hand again, dark energy swirling.
Fang Lin's mind raced. 2795 points. He needed something *now*. He couldn't draw a card in the middle of an attack! Or… could he? The system interface was mental. He focused desperately, visualizing the **Legendary Pool** (10,000 points – too expensive!) – no, **Rare Pool** (1,000 points). He had enough. He initiated the draw as the Blood Skull disciple unleashed a wave of freezing darkness.
The spectral wheel spun in his mind's eye, a frantic blur of extraordinary symbols: a lightning bolt, a web, a shield, a ring, a symbiote maw. The wave of freezing death surged down the alley. Fang Lin braced, regeneration flaring, knowing it wouldn't be enough against Core Formation power. The wheel clanged to a stop as the wave hit.
`[ Acquired: Card - Ability: Electrokinesis (Static Shock Variant - Basic) ]`
`[ Type: Permanent Ability Card. Consume to gain ability. ]`
`[ Description: Generate and manipulate electrical energy. Basic level: Emit localized shocks, disrupt low-level electronics/energy fields, minor electromagnetic manipulation (e.g., repel small metal objects). Voltage: Moderate. Control: Rudimentary. Warning: Uncontrolled discharge may cause user injury or unintended collateral damage. ]`
Fang Lin consumed the card *as* the wave of freezing darkness washed over him. Agony exploded through his body – a deep, bone-chilling cold that sought to freeze his blood and shatter his cells. His Deadpool regeneration screamed into overdrive, fighting the invasive energy. At the same moment, raw electrical power surged through his nervous system, a counterpoint to the cold. The two opposing forces warred within him.
**CRACKLE-BOOM!**
A burst of uncontrolled blue-white electricity erupted from Fang Lin's body, grounding out violently into the damp alley walls and the incoming wave of dark ice. The electrical surge met the freezing energy in a spectacular shower of sparks and exploding ice shards. The concussive blast threw Fang Lin backwards against the dead-end wall, knocking the wind out of him. It also blasted the wave of darkness off-course, slamming it into the wall beside the Blood Skull disciple, who staggered back, his expression shifting from cruel satisfaction to shock. His dark energy shield flickered violently from the electromagnetic disruption.
`[ +150 Points: Emotional Resonance (Shock/Disrupted Focus - Blood Skull Disciple) ]`
`[ +100 Points: Annihilation Bonus (Severe Disruption - Core Formation Attack) ]`
`[ Total Points: 3045 ]`
Fang Lin gasped, smoke rising from his clothes, his body singing with residual electricity and aching from the cold and impact. But he was alive. And crackling energy danced along his fingertips. *Electrokinesis!* He pushed himself up, ignoring the pain. The Blood Skull disciple recovered, his face contorted with fury. "You dare wield lightning, worm?!"
He gathered darker energy, preparing a more focused strike. Fang Lin didn't hesitate. He focused the raw, chaotic electricity within him and thrust his hands forward. Not a controlled bolt, but a sizzling *cascade* of blue-white energy that arced wildly down the alley. It wasn't aimed to kill; it was aimed to *disrupt* and *surprise*.
The electrical surge slammed into the disciple's reforming shield. It didn't break it, but it made it sputter and flare erratically, forcing the disciple to divert energy to maintain it. More importantly, the violent, unpredictable arcs grounded out onto nearby metal brackets and damp stone, filling the alley with blinding light, deafening cracks, and the acrid smell of ozone. The Core Formation cultivator flinched, momentarily blinded and disoriented.
`[ +50 Points: Emotional Resonance (Disoriented Fury - Blood Skull Disciple) ]`
Fang Lin saw his chance. He didn't try to fight. He turned and *ran* at the alley wall. It was high, maybe fifteen feet of rough stone. Impossible without Qi. But he had the Grapnel Launcher and a desperate idea. He fired the grapnel upwards, not at the roof edge (where other disciples might be), but at a sturdy-looking metal lantern bracket bolted high on the wall itself. *THWIP!* It caught. He hauled himself up the cord with adrenaline-fueled strength, the Spider-Sense screaming warnings about the recovering disciple below.
Just as he reached the bracket, a blast of concentrated dark ice shattered the stone where his feet had been a second before. Fang Lin scrambled onto the narrow ledge, unhooked the grapnel, and launched himself sideways onto the sloping roof of the adjacent building. He rolled, coming up into a crouch.
The view was panoramic chaos. Silverspring Town burned with lantern light and pockets of violence. Blood Skull disciples clashed with Silver Scale guards near the main square. Jian Mo was back on her feet, radiating visible waves of dark fury, directing her forces. And Zhang Wei was below, pointing frantically up at Fang Lin's position on the roof. "UP THERE! THE LIGHTNING THROWER!"
Fang Lin's Spider-Sense spiked again, this time a complex weave of threats: Jian Mo's attention turning towards the rooftop disturbance, multiple Blood Skull disciples converging, Zhang Wei's relentless pursuit, and… something new. A powerful, resonant aura approaching fast from the direction of the Verdant Cloud Mountain. Multiple auras, actually. Strong. Authoritative. *Sect Elders.*
"ENOUGH!" The amplified voice boomed across the town, shaking the very rooftops. It wasn't Jian Mo. It was deeper, infused with profound Qi, carrying the weight of immense authority. A figure clad in pristine Verdant Cloud Sect elder robes, flanked by four others, descended like avatars onto the roof of a tall building overlooking the main square. Their combined auras momentarily stilled the chaotic fighting below. The lead elder, his face stern, eyes sharp as flint, fixed his gaze first on Jian Mo, then swept it towards the rooftop where Fang Lin crouched.
"Jian Mo of the Blood Skull Altar," the elder's voice cut through the din. "You trespass. You threaten. You dare disrupt our territory?" His gaze then snapped to Fang Lin. "And you, disciple? What madness is this? Lightning? Chaos?" His eyes narrowed, seeing the remnants of the Chameleon Cloak, the lack of sect robes, the crackle of fading electricity on Fang Lin's hands. `[ Analyze: Target - Elder Wu. Cultivation: Skyrend Realm (Estimated). Emotional State: Cold Fury/Profound Disbelief. Threat Level: ABSOLUTE. ]`
Fang Lin froze. Caught between the demonic fury below and the sect's judgment above. Jian Mo's voice, thick with malice, answered the elder. "This… *insect* dared insult the Blood Skull Altar! His life is forfeit! Stand aside, Wu Feng, or this town burns!"
Elder Wu Feng's expression remained impassive, but the air crackled with tension between the two powerhouses. His gaze, however, remained locked on Fang Lin. "You will explain yourself, disciple. Now."
Fang Lin's mind raced. 3045 points. A Legendary draw was within reach. But drawing it now, under the scrutiny of a Skyrend elder? Suicide. He needed to vanish. He needed a miracle. He looked down at the chaotic town, at Zhang Wei still pointing, at the converging Blood Skull disciples, at the terrifying focus of two beings capable of leveling city blocks.
His hand went to his pouch. He had smoke pellets. He had one last trick. He pulled out the most absurd card left: the **"Inconspicuous" Fake Mustache**. With desperate speed, he slapped it onto his upper lip. It felt ridiculous, itchy, and utterly inadequate.
He stood up on the roof ridge, silhouetted against the twin moons and the flickering lanterns below. He raised his hands, electricity crackling weakly but visibly around them again. He pitched his voice to carry, injecting as much false bravado as he could muster, aiming his words not at the elders or demons, but at the terrified, watching town.
"BEHOLD!" he shouted, the mustache wobbling precariously. "The power of… THE ELECTRIC NEMESIS! Fear not, citizens! Chaos reigns, but… uh… order is… overrated! BANZAIIII!"
He threw down his last two **Smoke Pellets** at his own feet. *POOF! POOF!* A massive cloud of grey smoke engulfed him on the rooftop. At the same moment, he triggered the **Chameleon Cloak** again, its depleted energy flaring weakly as he threw himself sideways off the roof ridge, not down into the alley, but towards a lower, adjoining rooftop shrouded in the shadow of a massive paper dragon display.
As the smoke cleared under the gaze of Elder Wu, Jian Mo, and hundreds of eyes, the rooftop was empty. Only a faint crackle of ozone and the lingering scent of smoke remained. And drifting down slowly, landing incongruously on the tiles, was a single, bushy, brown fake mustache.
Silence fell once more, thick with utter, bewildered confusion.
`[ +1000 Points: Emotional Resonance (Collective Profound Bewilderment - Entire Town) ]`
`[ +500 Points: Emotional Resonance (Apopleptic Rage/Utter Confusion - Jian Mo) ]`
`[ +300 Points: Emotional Resonance (Stunned Disbelief/Intense Curiosity - Elder Wu Feng) ]`
`[ +100 Points: Emotional Resonance (Frustrated Incomprehension - Zhang Wei) ]`
`[ Total Points: 4945 ]`
Fang Lin, clinging precariously to the shadowed side of the lower roof, the Chameleon Cloak sputtering its last, his body aching and crackling with residual electricity, watched the points roll in. He was bruised, battered, hunted by demons and his own sect, and now possibly known as "The Electric Nemesis." But he was alive. And he had 4945 points.
As the standoff between Elder Wu and Jian Mo reignited below, filled with accusations and threats now tinged with shared, furious confusion, Fang Lin slithered deeper into the shadows. *Time,* he thought, a manic grin spreading beneath his fading cloak, *for a Legendary draw.* The spectral wheel began to spin once more in his mind, promising power, salvation, or perhaps, just more glorious, chaotic trouble.