From Nobody to God Doctor

Chapter 6. Betrayal Behind the Mask

Chapter 6: Betrayal Behind the Mask

...the wrinkled neck of the Grandmaster with the precision of an executioner! Thick black blood immediately sprayed out, soaking the pure white robes of the Shadow Sect leader. The tense atmosphere of the old temple was shattered instantly by the hysterical screams of the guards, who never saw that crazy plot twist coming.

"HOLY SHIT! Siska, you've got some nerve!" Zolda’s eyes went wide, the stiffness in his legs slowly fading due to the adrenaline shock pushing past his limits.

"Shut up, Zolda! Move your ass before that nerve poison turns you into a permanent statue!" Siska screamed as she yanked the scalpel out, her previously stoic face now dripping with cold sweat. "I didn't betray you, you moron! I was just waiting for the right moment to catch this geezer off guard!"

"Ghk... Siska... you... how dare you...!" The Grandmaster gasped for air, his hands trying to cover the wound on his neck, but blood kept oozing out. His eyes, which had been dull before, were now flashing red with pure rage.

"Shut your mouth, old man! Taste that poison brew I mixed myself!" Siska leaped toward Navi, cutting her bindings with a single swift motion. "Nav, you okay? Sorry for scaring you earlier!"

"Cough! Cough! You're insane, Sis! I thought you were actually gonna let Zolda go blind!" Navi spat out the gag, her face still pale but her eyes blazing again. "Zolda! Get up, hurry! The troops behind you are about to attack!"

Zolda felt an intense heat in the soles of his feet. His Kunao Inner Eye spun rapidly, forcing golden energy to burn away the remnants of the Qi-Freezing Poison injected through the floor. "Dammit... just a little more... just a little more and I'll crush them all!"

"CAPTURE THEM! DON'T LET A SINGLE ONE LEAVE ALIVE!" The Grandmaster screamed hoarsely, his voice sounding like grating rusty iron.

Hundreds of black-robed guards charged forward like a wave of death. They weren't just carrying blades; some had flamethrowers and poisoned needles.

"Yo, you two, move!" Zolda suddenly stood up straight. The floor beneath his feet exploded as he released a burst of pure energy. "I'm in a seriously bad mood thanks to being pranked by a rotting old man!"

"Zolda, watch out! Someone's shooting sleeping gas from two o'clock!" Siska yelled while dragging Navi behind a large pillar.

"Sleeping gas? Let 'em know I'm the king of all poisons, chump!" Zolda didn't dodge. Instead, he took a deep breath and fired an airwave from his palm.

BOOM!

The gas blew back, hitting the Shadow Sect's own troops. They dropped one by one like flies sprayed with insecticide.

"Weak! Is that all your precious army's got, Grandmaster?!" Zolda grinned widely, even though his shoulder still stung from the bullet wound earlier. "Come at me, all of you! I'm giving out free plastic surgery with my bare hands!"

"Don't get cocky, brat! You haven't seen the true power of the Shadow Sect!" The Grandmaster suddenly stood up from his wheelchair. His hunched back straightened, and his muscles expanded, tearing his white robe. "Siska, your little knife is nothing compared to the cell regeneration I possess!"

"Huh?! He can regenerate?! How?!" Navi’s eyes bugged out from behind the pillar. "Zolda, be careful! He's definitely using forbidden Life Essence doping!"

"Cell regeneration? Oh, sweet! That means I can punch him over and over without worrying he'll die too fast!" Zolda got even more fired up. He blitzed forward, slamming into the line of guards trying to stop him until they flew like bowling pins.

"Die, fake Medical Emperor!" The Grandmaster threw a heavy punch coated in a pitch-black aura.

CRASH!

Zolda blocked the punch with his remaining energy. The concrete floor beneath them sank ten centimeters deep. "Black aura? It reeks of rot, do you rarely shower or what?!"

"I'm gonna make you a sacrifice to awaken the true power of the Kunao Inner Eye!" The Grandmaster grew more ferocious, his attacks speeding up until Zolda had to truly focus.

"Zolda! His weak point is the solar plexus! I saw it when he regenerated earlier, there's a two-second lag right there!" Siska yelled while firing tranquilizer darts at guards trying to get close to Navi.

"Okay, thanks for the info, Pretty Doctor! Nav, hold on tight, this is gonna shake a bit!" Zolda ducked, dodging a swipe from the Grandmaster's hand that nearly took his head off.

"Just smash him, Zolda! No mercy for that stressed-out geezer!" Navi yelled enthusiastically, now wielding an iron pipe she picked up from the floor. "Hey, Siska, you're seriously not gonna betray us again, right?"

"Hell no, stupid! I just wanted to save my family they were holding hostage! Zolda wiped out their elite team earlier, so I figured this was the perfect moment to defect from this cult!" Siska replied while kicking a guard in the crotch. "Ouch, so hard! Are you wearing a cup?!"

"Focus, Sis! Stop talking about people's crotches!" Navi shook her head.

Zolda was getting pushed into the corner of the temple. The Grandmaster, who had transformed into a monster, was unbelievably strong. Every punch created air blasts that made ears ring.

"What's wrong, Zolda? Running out of breath?!" The Grandmaster laughed evilly. "The Shadow Sect has ruled for thousands of years, and you think you can destroy it in one night?!"

"Thousands of years? Means you're stale, chump! Go retire and raise catfish in the village!" Zolda suddenly vanished from the Grandmaster's sight.

"What?! Where did he go?!" The Grandmaster looked around, his red eyes scanning for Zolda.

"Above you, dumb geezer!" Zolda appeared from the ceiling, his body enveloped in a golden aura so bright it blinded the whole room. "Taste this, God's Heart-Destroying Technique!"

Zolda shot down like a meteor. His hand aimed straight for the Grandmaster's solar plexus. But just as his fingertips were about to touch the old man's body, Siska screamed loudly.

"ZOLDA, DON'T! IT'S A TRAP!"

SSHHHHK!

Suddenly, black tentacles with razor-sharp tips shot out from the Grandmaster's back. The tentacles immediately wrapped around Zolda mid-air, completely immobilizing him.

"Hahaha! You think I didn't know Siska would leak that weak point?!" The Grandmaster smirked cunningly. "Siska is a double agent, Zolda. But she forgot that I am a triple agent, infinitely more cunning than her!"

"Zolda!" Navi ran to help, but was immediately blocked by the remaining guards. "Move, you scum! I'll smash your heads in one by one!"

"Damn... let me go, bastard!" Zolda struggled, but the tentacles tightened around him until his bones audibly creaked.

"Feel this! This needle will drain all the Kunao Inner Eye energy from your body!" The Grandmaster pulled out a giant needle from under his robe, its tip glowing a darker purple than before.

"Siska! Do it now!" Zolda suddenly shouted, even though his face was blue from the pain.

Siska, who looked panicked before, suddenly smiled faintly. She reached into her pocket and threw a small smoke bomb at the Grandmaster. "Copy that, Boss!"

Poof!

Thick white smoke instantly filled the area around the Grandmaster. Amid the smoke, Siska darted not to attack the Grandmaster, but to cut the black tentacles with acid from a small bottle she carried.

"AAAAHHH! What liquid is this?! My skin... my skin is melting!" The Grandmaster screamed in pain as his tentacles dissolved upon contact with the acid.

Zolda was free! He flipped in the air and landed right in front of the Grandmaster, who was busy dealing with his blistering wounds. "That's why you don't get cocky being a bad guy! Siska was a double agent, but she doubled back to my side, idiot!"

"You wretches... all of you...!" The Grandmaster tried to attack again, but his body suddenly went rigid. "Why... why can't I move?!"

"Remember the poison Siska injected into your neck earlier? It wasn't just a regular nerve toxin, gramps. It was a Chain Reaction Trigger for the acid she just splashed on you. When they meet, your motor nerves die completely for five minutes!" Zolda explained while making the most annoying face in the world. "And five minutes is more than enough for me to turn you into chicken porridge."

"Zolda, finish him quick! I'm out of acid!" Siska yelled from afar, still beating up guards with Navi.

"Got it! Navi, wanna see a human firework show?!" Zolda asked, turning to Navi.

"Totally! Blow his head off while you're at it!" Navi shouted back, kicking a guard in the face until teeth flew.

Zolda took a deep breath. He focused all his Kunao Inner Eye energy into his right palm. The golden light intensified until it turned blood red. "Grandmaster, goodbye. Say hi to the devils in hell for me!"

"Don't... please... I have lots of wealth... I have medical secrets greater than the Kunao Inner Eye...!" The Grandmaster started whimpering, his monster face reverting to that of a scared old man.

"Your wealth can't buy the lives of the people you slaughtered! And your medical secrets? I don't need garbage!" Zolda delivered his final blow.

BAAAMMM!

Zolda's punch squarely hit the Grandmaster's solar plexus. But strangely, no blood came out. Instead, a black light emerged, sucking in the energy around it.

"Hahaha... fool! You just unlocked my final seal!" The Grandmaster's voice suddenly changed to the sound of thousands of people speaking in unison. "Thank you, Zolda. Now, I can fully resurrect!"

Suddenly, the Grandmaster's body exploded, creating a shockwave that sent Zolda, Siska, and Navi flying into the temple walls. From the explosion, a giant black shadow emerged, towering up to touch the temple roof.

"What the hell is that?! Why did he get bigger?!" Navi yelled, clutching her spinning head.

"That... that's the Ancestral Spirit of the Shadow Sect!" Siska went pale, shaking violently. "Zolda, we have to bail! We can't fight that thing now!"

"Bail? That word isn't in my dictionary!" Zolda stood up again, his clothes in tatters and his body covered in wounds. "I'm gonna destroy that shadow down to its roots!"

"Zolda, are you crazy?! Your energy is almost gone!" Navi approached Zolda, trying to pull his hand.

"Nav, listen to me. If I don't finish this now, they'll keep chasing us. You want to live on the run forever?!" Zolda looked into Navi's eyes seriously. "Trust me. I have one more trick I haven't shown."

"What trick? Don't do anything stupid!" Navi was extremely worried.

Zolda didn't answer. He sat cross-legged in the middle of the crumbling temple. He closed his eyes and began chanting ancient mantras that made the whole building shake.

Kunao Inner Eye... Final Stage Evolution: Divine Judgment!

Zolda's eyes opened, and this time there were no whites. Everything turned pure gold, glowing as bright as the sun.

"Crazy... the aura... I can barely breathe!" Siska backed away, feeling Zolda's aura was truly like a wrathful war god now.

The black shadow roared loudly, shattering all the glass in the industrial area. It raised a giant hand, ready to squash Zolda flat.

"Feel the wrath of the ancestors, lowly human!" the shadow screamed.

Zolda just smiled thinly. He raised one finger to the sky. "Ancestors? Your ancestors are just dirt beneath my master's feet!"

Suddenly, golden yellow lightning struck from the sky, piercing the temple roof and hitting Zolda. Zolda wasn't electrocuted; instead, the lightning seemed to become a giant sword in his hand.

"Navi, Siska, duck!" Zolda barked.

Zolda swung the lightning sword at the black shadow.

SLAASSSHHH!

The black shadow was split in two! But instead of disappearing, the two halves turned into two more giant shadows.

"Damn it! Now there are two!" Navi panicked. "Zolda, are you trying to get us killed?!"

"Patience, Nav! This is just the intro!" Zolda darted between the two shadows. He spun his body like a top, creating a golden tornado that sucked all the black shadows inside.

"AAAAHHH! What are you doing?! Release us!" screamed the shadows.

"I'm sending you all back to where you came from—NOTHINGNESS!" Zolda pressed both palms to the floor.

BOOOOOMMMM!

A massive golden light explosion filled the entire temple. Navi and Siska had to cover their eyes from the glare. When the light faded, the temple was leveled. No more black shadows, no more robed guards. Only Zolda stood alone in the ruins, panting heavily.

"Zolda! You alive?!" Navi ran to Zolda, hugging him tightly. "You idiot! I thought you were gonna blow up with the temple!"

"Ouch, easy, Nav! Think I popped a rib!" Zolda winced but kept smiling. "How was that? Cool, right?"

"Cool my ass! We almost died, you know!" Navi pinched Zolda's waist, making him yelp in pain.

Siska approached them with a relieved face. "I didn't expect you to awaken the Final Stage Evolution that fast, Zolda. You really are the biggest medical monster ever."

"Medical monster? Nice nickname. But right now, I need food. My goat fried rice from earlier, you're paying, Sis!" Zolda patted Siska's shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah. Anything for a crazy hero like you," Siska laughed.

But suddenly, the calm atmosphere turned tense again. From the distance, dozens of police and military spotlights appeared. Sirens wailed louder.

"Uh oh, cops. We gotta bounce now!" Navi panicked.

"Cops are easy. Look up at the sky!" Zolda pointed up.

There was a sleek, pitch-black luxury helicopter without any logos. At the door, a young man in a pristine white suit stood looking at Zolda through binoculars, then saluted with two fingers and a mysterious smile.

"Who's that? New enemy?!" Navi asked, readying her iron pipe.

"Probably not. But he feels... familiar," muttered Siska, squinting to see better.

The man in the helicopter spoke through a loudspeaker, his voice calm but chilling. "Zolda... good show. But remember, the Shadow Sect was just a pawn on this chessboard. We will meet soon at the 'Feast of the Gods' next month. Don't die before I get a taste of that Kunao Inner Eye."

The helicopter flew away at high speed, disappearing into the cloudy sky.

"Feast of the Gods? What kind of name is that?! Jakarta's getting weirder every day," Zolda grumbled, dusting off his jacket.

"We have to move, Zolda. The whole country will be looking for you because of that explosion," Siska pulled Zolda and Navi. "I have a private helicopter hidden in the warehouse next door. We go to Singapore now!"

"Singapore? That's far! I haven't packed!" Zolda protested.

"Just come! I'll buy you a whole store of clothes there!" Navi forced Zolda along.

They ran to the warehouse next door. Siska really had a small helicopter ready to fly. They hopped in, and as they took off, they saw the industrial area swarming with soldiers and police tape.

"Zolda, do you know why that white-suited guy said you looked familiar?" Siska asked once they were airborne.

"Hell if I know. Maybe I look like his ex," Zolda replied casually, leaning back in his seat.

"No, Zolda. I just remembered. That man... he's Mr. Wijaya's long-lost son. His name is Arka Wijaya. And he's the leader of an organization scarier than the Shadow Sect: 'The Empire of Medicine'."

Zolda sat up straight. "Arka Wijaya? Son of that bald bastard? So my business with the Wijaya family isn't over?"

"Not over, just starting. Arka is a genius with no equal. He invented the biotech poison technology that was in Navi," Siska explained seriously.

"Good. I love crushing people who think they're geniuses," Zolda grinned widely, eyes flashing gold again. "Nav, you ready to flatten your own family's kingdom?"

"I've been ready since the day they tossed me out, Zolda. Let's make them regret ever being born!" Navi clenched her fists.

The helicopter kept flying toward Singapore. But mid-journey, the radar blared loudly. A missile was locked on them!

"DAMN IT! INCOMING MISSILE!" Siska screamed, trying to swerve.

"Missile?! Today just keeps trying to kill me!" Zolda stood at the open door. "Siska, Nav, hold on tight! I'm gonna try..."

Suddenly, the missile exploded right next to the helicopter, sending it spinning out of control and...