Bad luck plagues him, he refuses to become a Kamen Rider.

But Yuuki wouldn't give up, closing in on him, and the two got into a fierce fight in the square.

Yu Xing's offensive was like a storm, each strike carrying black flames, forcing Jia Tou Shun to defend with all his might.

In Jia Toushun's hands, the Staff of Utopia was like an extension of his body, used for blocking, deflecting force, and suppressing gravity. The two fought fiercely in the rain, evenly matched.

Gu Linxia stood at the edge of the hole in the museum, her hand on the hilt of her knife, but she did not move forward.

He could tell that the king needed to vent his emotions; the sudden turn of events had caused Yuuki's heart to tremble violently.

Another heavy blow followed, Yuuki sheathed his sword and slammed his fist into the scepter.

The black flames exploded, sending Jia Toushun staggering back several steps. His back slammed into a lamppost, the metal pillar denting and emitting a piercing creak.

Yu Xing did not give chase, but stood still, his chest heaving, black flames dancing on his body.

Jia Toushun stood up, supporting himself with his scepter. A trace of blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. He raised his hand to wipe away the red stain, looked at the blood on his fingertips, and shook his head.

"Have you had enough?"

With a hint of helplessness in his voice, Jia Toushun thought Youxing was a real hothead, and he hated dealing with hotheads the most!

Thinking back to his past experience, Jia Toushun covered his forehead, feeling quite troubled.

Yu Xing stared at him, the anger in her eyes gradually subsiding, and indifference returning.

The long sword in his hand turned into black flames and entered Yu Xing's body. He leaned against the lamppost on the other side, looking somewhat pale.

Seeing this, Jia Tou Shun spread his hands: "I know you have fire in your heart, but fighting won't solve anything. I'm just like you now, a pitiful person trapped in this city."

Yuuki turned to look at Katoshun, narrowing her eyes: "You?"

“That’s right, the X Group has completely lost control of Fuuto. Now, the Sonozaki family is the biggest winner in Fuuto.”

Jia Tou Shun put away his weapon and walked to You Xing's side.

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the dilapidated buildings around him, and sighed softly: "I am now a rootless duckweed. Consortium X has completely abandoned me, so I think we need an alliance."

"This is better for both of us."

Yu Xing was silent for a moment, then he asked Jia Toushun in a cold voice, "Who did the hotel incident?"

"The Sonosaki family."

Jia Tou Shun answered quickly, without any hesitation.

"They sent in hybrids and attacked the hotel shortly after you left, targeting everyone who remained inside."

Yuuki clenched his fist again, black flames flickering slightly between his fingers.

“You are thwarting their plans, and they won’t let you off easily.”

Jia Tou took two steps outside, his gaze slightly shifting to the sky.

"The Sonozaki family wants to use Fuuto to achieve some goal, but I don't know what it is yet. But one thing is certain: your existence is an obstacle for them."

"Where are Manatsu and the others?"

Yu Xing leaned against the lamppost, her face expressionless, her eyes fixed on Jia Tou Shun.

Jia Toushun shook his head: "I don't know."

"You didn't know? Then why did you tell me on the big screen that you knew where she was?!"

Yu Xing's tone suddenly turned cold, and the repeated lies from Tou Shun made him very dissatisfied.

"Your guards left with that woman very quickly, so quickly that even I couldn't keep up." Kato Shun straightened his collar, which was scorched by the black flames, and said calmly, "You should know better than me that that guy is not weak. Even the Sonozaki family couldn't force him to stay."

Yu Xing fell silent, agreeing with Toushun's assessment.

Yuuki was relieved about the situation here because Shinku might seem silly, but in reality, he was much stronger than the average overlord.

Yuuki believes that Shinku can leave with Manatsu in most situations, but he is worried about the few situations that might occur.

"Don't worry, I watched them leave with my own eyes, there will be absolutely no mistakes."

As if sensing what Yuuki was thinking, Kato Shun immediately spoke to him.

Where will they go?

Yu Xing muttered to herself, her brows furrowed.

The city of Fuuto is no longer what it used to be. It is now filled with anomalies and dangers. Shinku cannot simply take Manatsu to hide somewhere; doing so would be tantamount to putting Manatsu in danger.

Although Shinku doesn't talk much and seems a bit silly, she's actually very reliable when it comes to getting things done.

Yuuki closed her eyes and quickly went through all the possible hiding places in her mind.

Suddenly, he opened his eyes; he had thought of a perfect spot.

Helheim is a place only those from other realms can enter. With Crimson there, Helheim poses almost no danger to them.

"It seems you already have the answer."

Yu Xing's expression made Jia Toushun smile. He rested the scepter in front of him, his tone inquiring: "So, what about us..."

Yu Xing turned her head and re-examined the man in front of her.

The highest-ranking person in charge of Consortium X in Fuuto, Jia Tou Shun.

From the brief exchange just now, he could sense that this person's strength was no less than his own, and the power of the Utopia Staff in Jia Toushun's hand was far from being fully unleashed.

"You're saying the Sonozaki family is the mastermind," Yuuki said. "Where's the evidence?"

Kato Shun chuckled lightly: "Evidence? That hotel reduced to ashes is the best evidence. In Fuuto right now, only the Sonozaki family has the ability to mobilize such power in such a short time. Besides..."

He took a broken fragment of memory from his pocket and tossed it to Yuuki.

"This was found in the ruins of the hotel."

Yuuki caught the shard with her hand and glanced down at it.

The memory fragments still bear faint purple patterns, but they have broken into several pieces. This is a power possessed only by core members of the Sonozaki family.

Yuuki put the fragment into her pocket, her expression not changing much.

“What do you want?” he asked directly, looking straight at Jia Toushun.

Jia Tou Shun's smile faded, and he said seriously, "I've said it before, the X Group has abandoned me. I'm now a rootless duckweed, but I'm not the kind of person who's willing to wait for death."

He took two steps forward and stood side by side with Yuuki: "The Sonozaki family wanted to monopolize the secrets of Fuuto, and they ruined me because of it. I will not let them get away with this."

"So you're asking me to collaborate?"

“To be precise, it’s a win-win situation.” Kato turned his head to look at Yuuki. “Although our ultimate goals are different, we must eliminate the Sonozaki family first, no matter what, right?”

“We’ll cooperate to destroy the Sonozaki family. You’ll rescue your people, I’ll get what I want, and then everything in Fuuto will be none of my business.”

Jia Tou Shun's voice was so sincere that it was almost impossible to find a reason to refuse.

Yu Xing stared at him for a long time before finally uttering a single word.

"it is good."

Upon hearing Yuuki's reply, Kato Shun smiled and extended his right hand: "Then, it's a pleasure to cooperate."

Yu Xing didn't shake that hand, but turned and walked out of the square.

"I'll contact you once I find Manatsu and confirm her safety." His voice came through the rain, and a black flame landed on Kato Shun's shoulder. "Other than that, I have no desire to see you."

Jia Tou smoothly withdrew his hand, showing no displeasure whatsoever, and simply bowed slightly: "Waiting for good news."

Gu Linxia jumped down from the hole in the museum and followed closely behind Youxing. The two quickly disappeared into the rain.

Only Jia Toushun remained in the square.

He stood in the rain, watching the direction Yu Xing had left in, the smile on his face gradually freezing, then slowly twisting into a completely different expression.

"Hehehe..."

A low laugh escaped from the depths of his throat, starting softly, then growing louder and louder, finally echoing across the empty square.

He raised his head and looked up at the gray sky.

"Yuyuki Haruno..." he murmured the name, a sinister smile curving his lips. "Do you really think I need you?"

He took out a black-covered notebook from his pocket, opened one of the pages, and found it filled with dense writing, all about Yuuki's team.

He hid in the shadows, secretly gathering a lot of information, just waiting for the final comeback.

“The outside forces and resistance forces in Fengdu…” He counted them one by one, his finger lightly tracing across the paper. “Eliminating them one by one is too slow. Rather than that, let them kill each other.”

He closed his notebook and looked up at the sky one last time.

The rain blurred his vision, but he seemed to already see the future of the city.

“When you are all dead, the wind will be ours… no, the whole world.”

Jia Tou Shun stopped smiling, gripped the scepter in his hand, and turned to walk towards the other end of the square.

The leather shoes made a crisp sound as they stepped into the puddles, and then gradually disappeared into the distance.

The square fell silent again, with only the rain continuing to fall, washing away the scorch marks and cracks on the ground, as if nothing had ever happened.

……

On the street, Yuuki walked ahead, with Kobayashi Natsumi following half a step behind.

"Your Majesty, do you really believe that person?" Gu Linxia asked in a low voice, her tone filled with obvious doubt.

"I don't believe you," Yu Xing replied quickly, without pausing in her steps.

Gu Linxia was taken aback: "Then why..."

“Because we need to cooperate now, otherwise our actions will be too slow.” Yuuki interrupted him. “We know too little about the Sonozaki family in Fuuto. Kato Jun knows this, so he’s using it as leverage.”

"What if he tampered with the intelligence..."

“So we have to verify it ourselves.” Youxing turned her head and glanced at Gu Linxia. “You’re in charge of keeping an eye on him. If anything seems amiss, take action immediately and report back.”

Gu Linxia's eyes lit up, and she nodded emphatically: "Understood."

"Also, contact Hikawa Makoto and the others, tell them I'm fine, and ask them to wait for me at the hotel." Yu Xing paused for a moment. "Also, tell them to be prepared, we might have to go somewhere else."

"Change places?"

“Helheim.” Yuuki looked up ahead. “Shinku and Manatsu are there. I have to go find them.”

Gu Linxia didn't ask any more questions. With a flash, he disappeared around the street corner.