"So, did that hulking prison guard say how we're supposed to get that brooch?" Finn asked from the bottom bunk. "Actually, maybe we don't even need to go to Sector Two. What if the Netherworld gate is right here in Sector One? It could even be in our cell."
Valmont was just about to say something when Shendu hijacked his body. His eyes glowed a sinister red. "Take precautions. Go get that brooch back for me!"
Finn hopped off the bed and walked over to Ratso. "Let's go, Ratso. This reminds me of the good old days when we were hunting for Talismans."
Ratso scratched his head, looking a bit uncertain. "That guy said if we want a ticket, we have to at least make him happy, or give him a fight to his heart's content."
Hearing this, Finn felt it would be a breeze. When it came to combat power, he and Ratso weren't half bad. Relatively speaking, their trio was top-tier among ordinary folks.
"Hey, big guy! Yeah, you, the guy with the weird hat. You wanna fight? Let me, Finn, play with you for a bit."
He struck a standard martial arts pose. But before he could even see what happened, he was sent flying backward, smashing hard against the wall.
Lying on the ground, Finn felt his internal organs churning. He turned his head to look at Ratso, only to see the latter shaking his head. "I didn't see a thing, and you just went flying."
What was the meaning of this? A superpowered prison guard? Even Jackie Chan had to obey the basic laws of physics!
Supported by Ratso, Finn limped back to the cell. Meeting Shendu's unfriendly glare, Finn quickly explained, "Shendu, that guy is way too strong. We're no match for him!"
"Yeah, yeah! That guard seems to have magic or something," Ratso chimed in.
Shendu didn't say much. He simply waved his hand, and countless shadows began darting around the room.
"Hak Fu and the others will be here soon. You need to get the brooch as quickly as possible. The Shadowkhan will assist you."
No one knew where the Shadowkhan ninja emerged from, but the prison's rule was that passes didn't ask for origins. If they grabbed a handful of brooches in the chaos, the guy at the door would have no reason to stop them.
Under the flickering lights, Jotaro watched the monsters crawl out of the shadows, finally showing a hint of interest.
"Stands? No, it looks like the magical power of this world. Let me test your mettle."
Jotaro didn't summon Star Platinum right away. Relying on his tough physique—buffed by an Enchanted Golden Apple—he brawled with the ninja hand-to-hand, practically taking them down with a single punch each.
The ninja simply couldn't withstand the force of Jotaro's fists. Upon impact, they exploded into puffs of blue smoke on the spot.
But their sheer numbers were an issue. The ninja were practically endless. Although Jotaro was a capable fighter, his style was rooted in street brawling without professional martial arts training, making his efficiency slightly lacking against a swarm.
Suddenly, the purple figure of Star Platinum materialized out of thin air, causing the ninja to collectively freeze.
As magical constructs with elemental bodies, the Shadowkhan could naturally see Stands. But seeing it didn't mean they could beat it. They couldn't even defeat Jotaro's main body, let alone trade blows with the 5A-stat Star Platinum.
To Finn and Ratso, the scene looked incredibly bizarre. The prison guard, who had just been throwing punches, suddenly stood perfectly still with his shoulders squared, rapidly shouting, "Ora Ora Ora!" on the spot.
Then, the surrounding ninja rapidly exploded one by one.
"I get it! This is Chi magic! It's the exact same principle as that old geezer chanting 'Yu Mo Gui Gwai Fai Di Zao'!"
The two of them bolted at the speed of light. In this situation, relying on these two lackeys was useless. They would just have to wait until their muscle, Hak Fu, arrived.
When that time came, it would be big guy versus big guy. Surely, it couldn't be that even Hak Fu wasn't his match, right?
As facts would soon prove, Hak Fu wasn't his match either.
In terms of pure martial prowess, Hak Fu could bend steel pipes with his bare fists and smash concrete walls with his head. However, there was still a tiny bit of a gap between him and Star Platinum.
Furthermore, Hak Fu couldn't even see Star Platinum.
Chow and Hak Fu had sneaked in to deliver the Pan'ku Box. Chow managed to leave safely, but Hak Fu, due to assaulting... rather, being assaulted by the prison guard, was locked up in Valmont's cell. The four-person room was now at full capacity.
"What we can confirm is that there is no Netherworld gate in Sector One. To release Xiao Fung, we must head into Sector Two's territory."
During the fight, Shendu had hung far back. "That wasn't Chi magic. To deal with him, we would need the power of the Sheep Talisman or the use of Dark Chi magic."
The Shadowkhan weren't affected by the terrain and could freely phase through the prison walls. However, creatures aligned with Dark Chi couldn't touch the Pan'ku Box.
Even a great demon like Shendu would be burned by the righteous Chi inside if he touched the Pan'ku Box, let alone lesser creatures like the ninja.
Truly backed into a corner with no other options, Shendu and his crew chose to avoid a frontal clash entirely. They decided to dig a tunnel.
Zenith, who was coordinating the entire operation, was left utterly speechless when he saw Shendu cast a silencing spell and then use the Dragon Blast to start blasting a hole in the floor.
He walked over to find Jotaro. "Weren't you supposed to go easy on them? Are these guys really this weak?"
Jotaro gave him a look that clearly said, *'Figure it out yourself.'* He hadn't even used Time Stop.
Before Zenith could finish his thought, a loud rumble echoed from beneath his feet. He tapped his toe against the iron floor; it had already become completely hollow.
"..." Jotaro stared in silence.
"..." Zenith was equally speechless.
*So exhausting. Forget it, I'll just pretend I didn't hear anything,* Zenith thought. If they really kept the villains trapped in Sector One, what if Shendu couldn't bear the frustration and just ran away entirely?
Although his frontal combat power was currently lacking, Shendu was still a highly skilled Dark Chi wizard who had mastered many ancient spells.
For instance, Shendu knew several different versions of "Town Portal" spells that could teleport everyone back to their base.
However, Shendu's memory wasn't very good. His spells were transcribed in his Book of Magic, and he hadn't actually memorized many of them.
This situation seemed to be the norm in the Jackie Chan Adventures world; Uncle was exactly the same. The only person who purely memorized a massive arsenal of spells seemed to be the later Dark Chi wizard, Daolon Wong.
That was exactly why these Light Chi wizards, who only ever crammed at the eleventh hour, were no match for Daolon Wong. Even Uncle's master, Master Fong, had been defeated by him.
Listening to the muffled sounds, Zenith figured Shendu and his crew had already reached Sector Two's territory. These guys were completely unprofessional at digging tunnels. They had only used silencing measures inside the cell; once they were in the tunnel, they just let loose and blasted away.
"Levi in Sector Two shouldn't be a problem. As for Stark in Sector Three..."
That was meant to be the final test left for them, one that required them to use their brains. If it came down to a pure physical brawl, it would take a full-status Shendu to win.
When it came to slaying dragons, Stark was a professional. Beating an adult Solar Dragon to death only took him thirty seconds.
Ordinary fantasy dragons were definitely no match for Shendu, but from a destructive power perspective, the gap between the two didn't seem that large.
The only difference was that Shendu was much tankier, possessing rapid healing and conceptual immortality. Even if he didn't fight back, he could just stall Stark to death.
As for this current soul-state, base-level Shendu... *heh*, it was much more cost-effective to just save some energy.