At a farm estate.
"It would have been better if it were earlier."
Caitlin played with the Tiger Talisman in her hand, looking up at the farmer and his family frozen against the wall.
"Stop playing with it."
Bruce took the Tiger Talisman from Caitlin and placed it beside the Talisman Tracker. The Dragon's Eye activated, emitting a red light towards the talisman.
"Confirmed, no issues."
Bruce said to the despondent farmer, "Once we leave, you and your family will be free."
With that, he produced a magic-isolating box and placed the Tiger Talisman inside.
Just then, the sound of helicopter propellers echoed from a distance. The two looked up, and a helicopter was flying towards them.
"Did Valmont send a helicopter?"
Bruce asked Afen beside him.
Afen shook his head and said, "No, the Dark Hand's helicopters are all crashed. This is likely from the Dragon Chows."
"Dragon Chows?"
Upon hearing Afen mention the Dragon Chows, Caitlin perked up. This was her first mission after completing training with Bruce, and she felt something was missing if they just returned. Now that the Dragon Chows were here, it was perfect.
Caitlin rubbed her hands together and said, "I've heard how powerful the Dragon Chows are. Today, I'll get to witness it."
Seeing Caitlin eager to play, Bruce pulled her aside and said, "Don't stir up trouble. Shendu ordered us to return immediately after retrieving the talisman, not to get involved with the Dragon Chows or Section 13. Don't you remember?"
Seeing Caitlin still unconvinced, Bruce continued, "This mission is vouched for by Lord Valmont. If it fails, Lord Valmont will be punished." Su Dan Novel Network
Indeed, when dealing with Caitlin's defiance, bringing up Valmont was the right approach.
As soon as she heard Valmont's name, Caitlin immediately became as obedient as a cat.
Bruce handed the box containing the talisman to a Shadow Ninja beside him. The Shadow Ninja skillfully took the box and tucked it away, then dissolved into a shadow, preparing to lead everyone away through the Shadow Realm.
At that moment, Caitlin suddenly jumped out of the shadow.
"Caitlin, what are you doing!?"
Bruce was shocked and fearful at Caitlin's actions. He hadn't expected her to cause such trouble at the brink of mission completion.
However, it was now impossible to bring Caitlin back. Even if Caitlin cooperated, the Shadow Ninjas wouldn't agree.
The current Shadow Ninjas only obeyed Bai Qi, and Bai Qi's instructions to them were to return immediately after obtaining the talisman, with the retrieval of the talisman being the top priority.
Watching Bruce and the others leave, Caitlin strutted into the barn, preparing to ambush the Dragon Chows.
Soon, the helicopter landed in an open space on the farm.
The farmer and his family, seeing the fully armed agents disembarking from the helicopter, beamed with smiles, believing they would soon be rescued. However, when a man in a blue sweater and jeans stepped out, their faces darkened. When a young girl descended from the helicopter, their faces turned as black as soot.
After being rescued by Section 13 agents, they were not as enthusiastic when questioned.
After collating the gathered information, an agent approached the Dragon Chows and said, "Advisor Dragon, based on our understanding, a group of people in strange attire broke into the farm. One of them could use ice magic, another could turn his body into metal, and the talisman was taken by several individuals dressed like Japanese ninjas."
Hearing the agent's report, the Dragon Chows scratched his head in frustration. They were late again. The Japanese ninjas could only be the Shadow Ninjas under Shendu.
"Let's go to the place where the talisman was discovered first. We might find some useful information."
After walking a few steps, the Dragon Chows suddenly turned and said, "Right, have the local police intercept any suspicious helicopters or vehicles. We might be able to catch the departing Dark Hand organization."
The agent sighed and said, "Don't worry, Advisor Dragon. I've already given the instructions. It's just highly unlikely, considering the Dark Hand organization has a group of ninjas who can appear and disappear without a trace."
The first scene where the Tiger Talisman was discovered was underground in the farm's barn.
As the barn door was pushed open, a chill rushed out, making the Dragon Chows shiver.
"Is this a barn or a cold storage?"
As the Dragon Chows and the agent entered the barn, the barn door closed on its own, and two ice spikes shot towards them.
The Dragon Chows reacted quickly, pushing the agent aside and then rolling to dodge the incoming ice spikes.
"Who are you..."
The agent, who had gotten back up, looked up and saw Caitlin's face. Before he could finish speaking, Caitlin pressed her hand against his face, and within seconds, he was frozen into an ice sculpture.
"Who are you? Are you with the Dark Hand?"
The Dragon Chows, having gotten back up, stared intently at Caitlin and asked.
Caitlin said, "The Dark Hand? No, I only have one master, and that is Shendu. But you can call me Frostbite."
With a wave of her hands, several more ice spikes shot out.
"Whoa!"
The Dragon Chows shouted and dodged rapidly.
Caitlin pressed her advantage, placing her hands on the ground. Instantly, the ground became covered in ice. The Dragon Chows lost his footing and sat down on the ground.
Coincidentally, as the Dragon Chows sat down, the ice spikes flew over his head, and none of them hit him.
Caitlin said with displeasure, "Lucky guy."
Caitlin chose a very unwise fighting style, believing her martial arts skills were extremely proficient, and engaged in close combat with the Dragon Chows.
This was like showing off to a master craftsman.
Despite the Dragon Chows constantly saying he wouldn't hit women, his hands never stopped.
The outcome was as expected: the Dragon Chows won.
As for how he won, it was thanks to our little warrior, Jade.
Caitlin, whose attention was entirely focused on the Dragon Chows, was ambushed from behind by Jade, who used a wooden bucket to cover her head and hit her repeatedly. When she finally managed to get rid of Jade and remove the bucket, she was met with a punch to the face from the Dragon Chows, knocking her unconscious.
The dazed Caitlin was then bound and gagged by the Dragon Chows and handed over to Section 13, hoping to extract internal information about the Dark Hand organization from her.
The Dragon Chows, considering himself an archaeologist and having no expertise in interrogating criminals, hurried back to the antique shop after completing his task for Section 13. As for Jade, despite her keen interest in interrogating criminals, she was forced to return to the antique shop under her Uncle's coercion.
To add a side note, the Dragon Chows' family did live in Section 13 for a period. However, soon the father couldn't stand the environment of Section 13 and, in a fit of pique, returned to the antique shop alone. The Dragon Chows, having no choice and unable to leave his father alone in the antique shop, which would be even more unsafe, moved back with Jade.
However, this time, Captain Black had stationed twice as many experienced guards around the antique shop and provided 24-hour security, resolutely preventing a repeat of the previous incident.