Chapter 350: Chapter 348 The United States as Advertised Often Differs from the Actual United States_1
Aozawa had come to understand the Superpower of Global Travel quite well.
First and foremost, Global Travel could be used on others, provided that his palm made contact with the person’s body. Merely brushing arms was useless; he had to grasp the other person with his palm to activate the Superpower of Global Travel.
In addition, there were no limitations or cooldown periods for jumping between countries. After arriving in London, he could then transfer to Paris, Moscow, and then to some nameless small countries in Africa. He could understand the language of every country and use his Ability to speak the same language.
However, after using Global Travel to jump to a country, it was impossible to jump again to another city within that same country. For example, if he first used the Ability of Global Travel to jump from Japan to Washington D.C., he could not then use his Ability to jump to New York; he could only jump to other countries. But jumping from Washington D.C. to London, and then from London to New York, posed no problem.
Using the Ability of Global Travel was very convenient outside the range of Schrödinger’s Cat. Within its range, he believed using Schrödinger’s Cat was quicker, avoiding the need to jump back and forth between countries.
After reaching these conclusions, he reappeared on the streets of New York, having teleported from London.
This place looked like a wealthy neighborhood. The streets were clean and tidy, trash was sorted and managed, and there were no tents for the homeless. Beautifully landscaped greenery lined the roads, and the exquisite brick and stone houses gave those wandering the streets the feeling of stepping into a fairy tale world, perfectly aligning with the kind of idealized fantasies certain emigrants held about the United States. Of course, most people with such fantasies couldn’t afford to live here.
Aozawa transformed into a breeze, still covered by a Defense Barrier. Under his control, the Defense Barrier instantly morphed into tentacles that spread out around him. The Defense Barrier, now paired with Catalyst Induction, no longer had the expansive reconnaissance range it possessed before being diminished, but it was still larger than the original, weakened range of Catalyst Induction.
Images flooded his mind one after another.
Aozawa watched impassively. He was about to conduct his next experiment: to see if Global Travel could target and teleport a specific body part. This experiment required a new subject. And such people were never in short supply in New York. It was an even more bustling and darker metropolis than Shinjuku.
「New York, Brooklyn Highland.」
Most of the houses here were built before the American Civil War, with brownish-red brick houses a common sight, largely reflecting nineteenth-century Victorian architectural style. David had purchased a villa here: three stories, complete with a courtyard, a swimming pool, and a parking lot.
It was late at night.
He wasn’t sleeping. Instead, he stood by the back door, his face flushed with excitement, dressed in a suit and holding a bouquet of flowers, occasionally checking his watch.
At eleven twenty, a Chevrolet van drove up and stopped in front of him. The passenger seat window rolled down, revealing a burly man with a dark face, who waved and greeted, "David!"
"Isaac, don’t shout my name so loudly," David replied, holding up a finger to signal him to keep it down; it would be very problematic if the neighbors noticed.
It is well known that the United States is a country highly protective of children; gangster movies often depict scenes where gangs avenge children. Despite this, the United States remains the world’s largest consumer in child-related industries. But David was still cautious, not wanting his neighbors to know he was secretly buying girls.
"Don’t worry, the wealthy are all asleep by this time," Isaac said with a carefree smile, getting out of the car. He opened the van door, revealing a delicately dressed blonde girl inside.
As per David’s request, the girl was dressed in a pristine white wedding dress, her face neatly made up. Only her large, azure eyes, like those of a Puppy in a strange place, showed wariness.
"His name is Draco. He was originally a boy. With the help of a teacher at school, he realized his gender and, unbeknownst to his parents, the teacher helped him secretly transition into a girl. We lured him here through online chats. You can rest assured, no one has disciplined him yet."
Isaac winked and called to his henchman, "Quickly, help Councilman David bring the bride down."
"Be careful," David cautioned the two men, but he didn’t take Draco’s hand. People who bought girls knew that in situations like this, the two men beside him were more intimidating than he was. To avoid trouble, he had to let them handle it; the actual "disciplining" would have to wait until they were inside the house. It was for this very reason that David had ensured the house was extremely well soundproofed; no matter how loud the screams inside, not a sound would be heard outside.
The transgender girl shivered as she was led into the house.
David closed the door behind them with a sweep of his hand.
At this moment, a smile spread across his face. "Alright, you’ve scared my wife. Let go of her; I’ll take it from here."
"No problem." Isaac shrugged, signaling his henchman to release Draco. Then he asked, "Where’s the toy to be recycled?"
"In the room inside," David said, pointing casually. He then took Draco’s hand, a full smile on his face. "Don’t be afraid. You’re safe with me now. I’ll show you what true pleasure is."
Isaac strode toward the room David had indicated and gestured for his henchman to push the door open.
A strong smell of blood hit them, and the henchman almost vomited on the spot. "UGH, what the hell is this?!"
"HAHA." Isaac let out a mischievous, triumphant laugh and patted his underling on the back. "Sim, toughen up. If you can’t handle this, you won’t last long in the Gang."
Sim’s gaze swept over the room. Various torture devices hung on the walls, still caked with blood and flesh, some even teeming with maggots. The floor was streaked with blood, and a petite girl lay there like a broken toy.
"But it really does stink." Isaac waved his hand. He couldn’t tolerate the stench in the air, nor could he imagine how David could be in the mood for *that* sort of thing in such foul surroundings. Their Gang even required regular cleaning of the children’s dwellings to prevent odors from affecting the selling price, but these customers clearly cared even less.
"Boss, I feel like throwing up."
"Spineless fool, hold it in."
Isaac mocked Sim’s cowardice and strode forward. He bent down, intending to grab the girl’s hair and drag her out. But as he pulled, the scalp came off along with the hair.
"WHOA!" Sim could no longer hold it back and vomited on the floor.
Isaac felt his own skin crawl. David’s games were becoming more and more perverse, and his skills more and more refined, to the point where he could flay a person’s scalp to such a degree without it being immediately noticeable.
"Stop throwing up and hurry up and move the body. Take it to the slaughterhouse tonight; we have to sell the meat tomorrow."
Isaac slapped Sim on the back. To better help their clients conceal bodies, they operated a slaughterhouse—a form of recycling, in a way. In the Gang, everything was about money.
"Okay." Sim fought back the urge to vomit and picked up the scarred body.
Isaac replaced the scalp.
As the two left the room, David was sitting on the sofa, tenderly comforting the newcomer, Draco. Her face, which had softened a bit, instantly contorted in terror upon seeing the rag-doll-like corpse.
David touched Draco’s cheek and smiled. "Don’t be afraid. As long as you’re an obedient child, that won’t happen to you."
He then turned his head. "Aren’t you two leaving yet?"
"Okay." Isaac shrugged and headed for the door.
BANG! The wind suddenly slammed the door shut. As Isaac wondered what was happening, a nearby electrical socket suddenly began to CRACKLE, emitting a shower of sparks.
"What is this?!" He retreated in fear as the electric light in the air quickly coalesced into a tall human figure.
Then, the light vanished, and a blonde Caucasian man stood there. He was tall and stout, strangely dressed, yet exuding a trendy, fashionable aesthetic.
Isaac, true to being in an American Gang, drew his gun much faster than any Japanese Yakuza could have. "Who the hell are you?" he shouted.
"I have no need to answer your question," Aozawa replied flatly.
"FARK!" Isaac’s temper flared. He pulled the trigger, firing multiple shots.
BANG, BANG, BANG.
The loud gunfire echoed through the living room.
Suddenly, a colorful, diamond-shaped Light Shield appeared in the air. The bullets struck its surface and were instantly deflected. Under Aozawa’s control, all the bullets missed Isaac and Sim, instead shattering the glass coffee table and the LCD television on the wall.
"What’s going on?!" David, on the sofa, was aghast. Staring at the shattered glass on the floor, he felt as if his understanding of reality had been completely overturned.
Isaac was also dumbfounded. It was the first time in his life he had encountered someone impervious to bullets. His hands trembled as he asked, "What kind of monster are you?"
As he finished speaking, Isaac’s pupils dilated. The man who had been by the door moments before suddenly appeared beside him, his hand resting on Isaac’s right arm.
"Do you fancy a trip ten thousand meters under the sea?" Aozawa said, then activated his Global Travel Ability, limiting it to his right hand.
POP.
With a soft sound, Isaac’s right arm vanished. He let out a horrified scream, "AH!" His left hand could no longer hold the gun. He tried to staunch the bleeding from the hole in his right shoulder, but blood gushed out between his fingers.
Aozawa placed his hand on Isaac’s head and activated the Global Travel Ability again. The entire head disappeared.
Blood erupted from the severed neck, struck the diamond-shaped Defense Barrier, and splattered onto Sim, who was standing behind.
"AAH! AAH!" Sim shrieked, dropping the girl’s corpse. He fell to his knees. "God, this has nothing to do with me! I just joined the Gang! Please, spare my life!"
The Defense Barrier gently lowered the girl’s body to the ground.
"Since you wish to know if God will forgive your sins," Aozawa said, placing his right hand on Sim’s shoulder, "I’ll send you to find out." He configured the Global Travel Ability to affect half the body.
POP. Half of the man’s body instantly vanished. Only his left side remained kneeling for a moment before toppling over.
Aozawa turned his head to the man on the sofa and smiled. "Now, it’s your turn, Councilman David."