125: Chapter 125 Azu's Base

The morning in New York was shaken awake by chanting. At the intersection of Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street, two groups of people stood in confrontation, separated by a temporary line formed by riot police.

The crowd on the east side held up huge photos of A-Zu draped in the national flag at the entrance of the United Nations yesterday, with signs spray-painted in red letters reading "Liberator," "New World," and "Proletarians of the World, Unite."

The crowd on the west side held up photos of the ruins of Fifth Avenue that had been raked by A-Zu's laser, with signs reading "Remember 137," "Alien Butcher, Get Out of Blue Star," and "Don't Be Fooled by the Wolf Draped in the National Flag."

At first, it was just verbal abuse. Someone on the east side led a chant of "A-Zu," and the west side immediately retorted with "Butcher."

The clamor from both sides rose and fell, like two broken bells being struck at the same time.

But as the insults grew more intense, both sides began throwing things at each other—water bottles, rotten eggs, stones... whatever they could get their hands on.

Although the police on the street were desperately trying to maintain order, facing a raging tide of over three thousand people combined, the few dozen officers were as powerless as trying to block a tsunami with an umbrella.

Just then, someone threw a brick, hitting a middle-aged woman on the opposite side on the temple.

She clutched her head in pain and crouched down, her forehead instantly streaming with blood. The crowd behind her erupted into a roar, and those in the front row began pushing against the barricades.

A row of barricades collapsed instantly, and the riot police's formation was pushed back two meters. Just as the situation was about to spiral completely out of control—

A sonic boom suddenly rang out in the sky.

Both groups looked up simultaneously and saw the black dot rapidly descending from the sky.

A-Zu landed lightly on the row of barricades right between the two groups, and the noisy street instantly fell silent.

A-Zu was still draped in the national flag, and he turned to the crowd that opposed him.

The riot police instinctively took a step back, looking at him nervously.

A-Zu spoke with a gentle expression: "I know why you are cursing me, but I don't blame you, because I did kill people on Fifth Avenue yesterday. Regardless of whether it was self-defense, I owe you an apology."

He bowed and said: "But please think carefully, who caused all of this? That's right, it is those reactionaries who cannot stand to see the people living a good life. They keep instigating conflict among the kind-hearted public, which is what caused the series of tragedies that followed."

"Comrades, wake up! Please see clearly who your true enemy is. A government that only dares to leave you in the ruins, a government that keeps you trapped in astronomical medical bills—are they really worth your trust?"

A-Zu's voice suddenly rose: "What I want to do is lead you toward a new world without oppression, where everyone is equal. If you think such a world is not worth fighting for, then go ahead and attack me!"

After saying this, A-Zu closed his eyes and spread his arms, looking as if he would let them beat and curse him.

The opposing crowd fell silent. People holding the "Alien Butcher" signs lowered them. Some were still glaring at him, while others began pulling their neighbors' sleeves to leave.

After all, everyone had seen the fate of those people on Fifth Avenue; no one really wanted to challenge A-Zu's bottom line with their lives.

Eventually, the crowd slowly dispersed, and even the police put away their weapons.

A-Zu smiled and turned to face the side that supported him.

A young man leading them immediately held a megaphone over his head and shouted "A-Zu" with a hoarse voice. The cheers of the thousands behind him erupted like a lit powder keg, soaring into the sky.

"A-Zu! A-Zu! A-Zu!"

Soon, under similar operations by A-Zu, the entire New York City was submerged in this cheering.

From Harlem to Chinatown, from the Brooklyn Bridge to the Staten Island Ferry terminal, the parades supporting A-Zu turned every major thoroughfare into an ocean of signs and flags.

At the entrance of the Wuhu Ability Shop on Fifth Avenue, Sima Bei stood at the doorway, waving his folding fan unhurriedly. The footprint on his face glinted with a purplish-blue hue in the morning light.

Watching the parade that stretched for several blocks along Fifth Avenue, he smiled and said to A-Zu: "Lord A-Zu, I said the day before yesterday that you only need to raise your arms and call out at the right moment, and countless people will come to support you."

He closed his fan and tapped lightly on the door frame. "Now, you only need to do one last thing, and New York City will be yours."

A-Zu looked at Sima Bei, his eyes revealing satisfaction: "What thing?"

Sima Bei said calmly: "Negotiate with the United States government!"

"Huh?!"

——

Peter Parker stood at the entrance of Mary Rodriguez's villa and rang the doorbell for a full three minutes, but no one answered.

He knocked on the door panel again and called out "Team Leader" twice, but still no one answered. Finally, he took out his phone and called Mary Rodriguez. It rang a dozen times before automatically hanging up. He called again, and it hung up again.

He stepped back two paces and looked up at the second-floor window, discovering that although the curtains were drawn tight, a faint line of light shone through the gap.

He took a deep breath, took a running start, kicked off the three-meter high wall surrounding the villa, and then, as if his palms were sticky, flipped right over.

He pushed open the glass door to the backyard, and a smell of alcohol hit him in the face in the living room. Several empty wine bottles were strewn haphazardly across the coffee table.

Suddenly, a stumbling sound of footsteps came from upstairs. Mary Rodriguez poked half her body out from the corner of the stairs, one hand supporting herself against the wall, and the other holding half a bottle of red wine.

Her hair was messy and scattered over her shoulders. She was only wearing a wrinkled white shirt, with half the hem tucked into her pants and the other half hanging out.

She squinted down and then hiccuped: "Oh, it's you, Mr. Peter Parker."

She tapped the wine bottle against the railing. "Are you changing careers to become a thief?"

"Team Leader!" Peter Parker rushed up the stairs in two or three strides and reached out to support her. Mary Rodriguez leaned back to avoid his hand, swayed two steps, leaned back against the wall, and took another drink.

Peter Parker watched her put the bottle down, her lips still stained with deep red wine, and finally couldn't help but speak up: "Team Leader, look outside! New York City is full of parades supporting A-Zu right now! The people on Fifth Avenue tore down the Stars and Stripes and replaced it with his 'Proletarians of the World, Unite' banner!"

"He was slaughtering humans yesterday, and today he's the new leader of the human proletariat. Isn't that ridiculous? How could an alien possibly fight for the progress of Blue Star Civilization!"

Mary Rodriguez placed the wine bottle on the stair railing and looked up at him: "That is racism, Mr. Peter Parker. No one says that aliens cannot fight for Blue Star Civilization."

"When did you become so narrow-minded?"

Peter Parker's mouth opened and closed, closed and opened: "Team Leader, have you been controlled by someone?!!"