Volume 1: Welcoming Gotham Chapter 43 The Second Customer on the Opening Day of Cooper's Store
The fully armed Mason finally didn't wait for the naughty kid behind the background to come and tear down his store. It feels like you put all your heart into preparing a table of dishes but are suddenly notified that the guests are not coming.
Two words to describe it: spoil the fun.
One word to describe it: fuck!
Mason felt a little relieved and turned to check the clock.
It was nearly midnight.
Today's shop opening was obviously a failure, so it would be better to close it early and enter the magic suitcase to continue improving alchemy skills.
He stood up from the counter and was about to pull down the shutter, but as he stood at the door, Mason suddenly saw a ball of sparks in the alley across the street.
Looking closely, I saw a guy in a khaki windbreaker with his hands in his pockets, walking slowly along the dark alley.
Hey, isn’t this Mr. Zha Kang, the master of black magic?
Mason didn't know what he was thinking of, and a welcoming smile appeared on his face. He waved to Zha Kang, indicating that he should come into his shop to chat.
"It seems your alchemy skills have improved, young man."
The same lazy and carefree Zha Kang as he appeared last time glanced around Mason's shop, his eyes lingered on the display case of alchemical creations for a few seconds, and then sneered in an annoying tone:
"I can see that you are very hardworking, but your craftsmanship is a bit trendy. How dare you use these inferior garbage to exchange for materials? Listen to me, kid, you may not be suitable for this line of work.
The mysterious alchemy is not as simple as a child playing with urine mud."
"You seem to be in a bad mood, and even your words are full of resentment."
Mason thought Zha Kang was just farting. He picked up the water cup and poured a glass of water for Zha Kang. Looking at his stubbled face and haggard appearance, he asked:
"Have you been having a bad time lately, my friend?"
"Don't mention it."
The magic master leaned on Mason's counter, blowing smoke rings and complaining:
"Zuck and I have completely broken up. She kicked me out of the Mystery House. As you can see, I am homeless now... Oh, I am down and out."
"How is this going?"
Mason asked curiously:
"Did Miss Zatanna discover your research on Horcruxes?"
"That's not the case."
Zha Kang shrugged and whispered:
"An evil succubus from the Nine Layers of Hell shamelessly attacked me in the bathroom. To protect myself, I had no choice but to fight her for three hundred rounds in that narrow space.
The battle is in full swing and at the critical moment when the master is about to succeed in the physical exorcism, guess what?
Xiao Zha on the bed actually woke up!
I got kicked out that night and nearly burned my pants, but I don’t think that was the main reason… I think it was that bastard who liked to mess around with bats who spoke badly about me to Zuckerberg.”
Constantine stood on the land of Gotham and wantonly cursed the most unoffendable master in Gotham City.
He cursed:
"Isn't it just that I dug up some unwanted antiques in Gotham? That bastard Batman actually slandered me for using black magic of mass destruction in the city, causing Zack to call me a scum who took human life lightly.
I was really wronged.
It would be fine if I did the bad thing, but that’s not the problem!
I took the blame for a bunch of bastards.
I'm so pissed, for the love of the Nine Hells, don't let me find those bastards!"
Listening to Zha Kang complaining, Mason, with a blank expression, immediately showed an appearance of sharing the same hatred with the enemy, but in fact he felt a little insecure.
Zha Kang still doesn't know that this seemingly honest young man in front of him is the culprit who caused him to be kicked out of the house by Xiao Zha... No! Wait! Zha Kang was kicked out of the house entirely because of his own fault!
He has such a beautiful girlfriend who is a white wizard with a profound family background, but he still wants to have an affair with a succubus from hell. This scumbag deserves to be homeless.
What does this have to do with me?
Putting aside the facts, even if I am 99% wrong, doesn't Constantine have that 1% problem?
This guy really needs to review his own behavior.
"Okay, stop talking about these unhappy things."
Mason quickly changed the subject, patted Zha Kang on the shoulder, pointed to his own shop and said:
"You won't have nowhere to go, my friend. Although my place is not spacious, you are welcome to live here for a long time. If you can't get used to this shabby place, my friend Charles has just taken over the most luxurious bar in Gotham. I can reserve a private room for you there for a long time.
You're welcome, this is what friends do.
Come!
Let me look at this first."
The young man pulled down the shutter, announcing the end of Cooper's shop's failed first day of business, and then he pulled up the sleeve of his left arm in front of Zha Kang under the light.
Zha Kang, who was holding a glass of water and feeling sorry for himself, glanced over here. After seeing the drastically changed tattoo on Mason's arm, he couldn't hold back his mouthful of water and spit it out.
"You! What have you done these days?"
The experienced master of black magic almost popped his eyes out and exclaimed:
"I've only been away for less than a week! How did this curse grow to this level? Did you complete the blasphemous sacrifice of 999 pure souls to that evil god in the past few days?
young people!
You are only one step away from becoming the 'Son of the Devil'!"
"Not so fast actually. We still have two levels to go."
Mason sighed and said in his heart.
He glanced at the black tattoo on his arm, which looked quite eerie and hideous under the light. The twisted lines that looked like flames seemed to be spinning if he looked at them for a long time.
Zha Kang, who had always been lazy, did not dare to be negligent when he saw this situation.
He took the cigarette from his mouth and used it as a medium for casting spells, silently chanting a spell and letting the ember-like ash fly and hover above Mason's arm tattoo.
He first formed a barrier to isolate magic power, then he took out a teardrop-shaped gem pendant from his pocket and carefully approached the tattoo.
The closer the pendant got, the brighter the sacred luster of the teardrop crystal became. The moment it touched Mason's skin, the light emitted by the small crystal even overshadowed the light tube above his head.
"boom"
Amid Zha Kang's exclamation of extreme pain, this magical weapon that looked very valuable was shattered into pieces, and Constantine's forehead was instantly covered with sweat.
"This is not a problem I can solve, Mason."
A rare serious expression appeared on Zha Kang's face.
He seemed to be able to feel a chill, and after taking two steps back, he stared at the dark tattoo on Mason's arm and said:
"This time I came to Gotham, in addition to severely teaching the Batboy who bewitched my girlfriend a lesson, I also brought you good news. I have found a spell in the family library of Zack Snyder.
But apparently I was late.
You are already terminally ill, this curse is entangled with your soul and coexists with you. If I forcibly dispel it, it means that your soul will also suffer severe damage. "
"But there must be a way, right?"
Mason said:
“I don’t ask to completely dispel it, and I can even accept long-term symbiosis, but I must protect my soul from being eroded before the curse takes effect.
If you lower your standards, you will find a way, right?"
"Um……"
Zha Kang pursed his lips reluctantly.
It can be seen that he may indeed have a way, but it will definitely cost him a price .
This time it's not a matter of waiting for a price. The fact that this scumbag didn't even ask for compensation shows that he is really backing down.
Zha Kang doesn't want to play anymore.
"boom"
Mason took the remaining Horcrux of Voldemort out of his bag and placed it on the counter in front of Zack. The young man placed his hand on the grimoire and said to the dark wizard:
"Help me! I can give you this right now. You want it badly, Constantine, I can feel it."
"I really do want to."
Zha Kang glanced at the magic book on the counter and said with his lips pursed:
"But this situation has developed beyond my ability, Mason.
Learning soul cutting can indeed save me from a lot of trouble, but if I continue to get involved, I am not sure if I can survive more than three days.
You are not from our circle, so you cannot understand the source of my fear.”
The black magician lit up another cigarette.
He looked at Mason with a look of pity and said:
"I also have a lot of curses on me that represent the mess in my past life. I have a lot of creditors 'above' and 'below', but they are probably not as troublesome as the thing on you.
So sorry, friend.
I am tempted by your offer, but I can’t help you.”
"boom"
Mason did not pray, but took out Grindelwald's Encyclopedia of the Dark Arts and placed it next to Voldemort's Horcrux research. Zha Kang's eyes immediately jumped.
The young man glanced at him.
He opened the suitcase beside him, picked up the Elder Wand that was broken into three sections, and placed it next to the two magic books.
Even though the Deathly Hallows had been broken, the domineering aura it exuded as the most powerful weapon in the wizarding world still made Zha Kang's heart skip a beat.
Mason reached into the suitcase again with a gloomy look in his eyes.
This time he took out a blood-colored crystal the size of his little finger...
"That's enough! Stop tempting me!"
Constantine covered his eyes and shouted:
"Believe it or not, I am robbing you right here and now! I am a dark wizard with no bottom line!"
"Batman is on patrol seven blocks away right now. I didn't choose this store in a random location, my friend."
Mason waved the Batphone in his hand, and the emergency dial popped up.
He pushed the dazzling array of things on the counter forward and said:
"Of course you can rob me. I am powerless to resist a master of magic, but I can guarantee that your hated Batboy has a hundred ways to beat you up and send you to Arkham Asylum.
But these things can be yours.
As long as you help me.
Didn’t you say you brought me some useful news?”
"I repeat, I can't break that curse!"
Zha Kang raised his hands, took a deep puff of his cigarette and blew out thick smoke rings, then walked forward and took Voldemort's Horcrux research book in his hand without any hesitation.
Through a thin veil of smoke he said to Mason:
"But I told you last time that the appearance of this curse is not all bad. The spell I found can take effect on ordinary people and allow you to feel the energy flow in a short period of time.
This kind of 'super sense' is useless in most cases except making some exciting things more exciting, but it is very suitable in your case."
Constantine's eyes wandered over the goodies on the counter, an undisguised greed gleaming in his eyes, and the master of black magic licked his lips like a big bad wolf seeing a little white rabbit.
He said to Mason:
“As the curse grows on you, it also means that the evil god from another dimension is pouring more and more energy into you.
The 'attention' of those supernatural creatures is something on a symbolic level, which is difficult to explain in one or two sentences. You can understand that you have established an increasingly deep connection with it.
This means that you can use the tattoo on your arm to actively draw some "power" from the evil god."
Zha Kang's words flashed through Mason's mind like a bolt of lightning.
He immediately thought of Old K's strange "flash swordsmanship". After confirming that Old K was a demon hunter, Mason had been curious about where that "flash" ability came from?
As far as he knew, demon hunters who had passed the Trial of Green Grass could indeed gain superhuman physical fitness and magical powers, but unless they were of ancient bloodline, it was impossible for them to have such an absurdly strong ability as passive spatial flicker.
Now, Zha Kang has solved the mystery for Mason.
Lao K’s passive flash is definitely not inherited from the Demon Hunter!
That was the "blessing" of the evil god worshipped by the Stars. Even the ability similar to "Force Drag" that Mr. Hunter had shown in a fleeting glimpse before came from this.
"So, this is the real 'employee benefit'."
Mason blinked and whispered. He stroked the evil tattoo on his arm and said to Zha Kang:
“What can I do to feel that hidden power?”
"Are you sure you want to do this?"
Zha Kang flipped through Voldemort's grimoire, glanced at Mason and said dimly:
"Just because I tell you you can do this doesn't mean I encourage you to do it. For the sake of this reward, I have to remind you one more thing, Mason, young man!
If your curse is already growing rapidly, actively calling upon the power of the evil god may cause you to fall even faster.
You may think you are strong-willed, but I can tell you responsibly that I have seen that everyone who actively deals with dark forces ends up in a very bad way.
You should listen to Batboy's teachings and stay away from the darkness that tempts people's hearts."
"But aren't you the same way?"
Mason said:
"I see you're having a very easy time."
"Well, look at this little angel before me, and you actually think that your friend John will have a good ending at the end of his life. Oh, that's really the most heartwarming thing I've heard this year."
Zha Kang covered his chest and said sarcastically:
"It's a luxury for me to go to hell intact after I die. You actually use me as an example. You are really ignorant and fearless. Okay, since you want it, I'll give it to you.
Dear John never stops others from seeking death. This is the professional ethics of dark wizards.
But...
This 'handling fee' must be paid in advance, so take this as payment."
Constantine waved his hand, picked up the Elder Wand that was broken into three sections and put it in his arms.
Mason saw clearly that he actually reached out to take the Philosopher's Stone fragment, but for some reason this guy actually gave up this real treasure on his own initiative.
"Don't be so reserved, John. Take them all."
The young man generously pushed everything in front of him to Zha Kang, saying:
"I may not live long enough to keep them anyway, so giving them to your good friend is a good idea. Take them, take them all."
"So generous?"
Zha Kang looked at Mason suspiciously.
After confirming that Mason was not joking, he grinned as well and stuffed all his stuff into his windbreaker pockets which never seemed to be full.
It's not Zha Kang's style to not take advantage of a good opportunity.
And when Mason saw that Zha Kang had taken out everything he had taken out, a gentle and satisfied smile appeared on his face.
He took it!
Everyone has seen it!
John Constantine accepted these priceless items!
Although he did not explicitly say that these treasures represented an invitation to join Team K, since Zha Kang had taken these treasures that clearly exceeded his remuneration, he should have been mentally prepared to pay more.
This way, I won't have to feel guilty about inviting Zha Kang to an exciting and fun trip to another world.
Mr. Hunter reminded himself to strengthen Team K as much as possible within two months to face future pioneering tasks. Although Zha Kang has a bad character, he is strong and has no bottom line. He is definitely a master in exploring other worlds.
Add in Catwoman who has verbally agreed and Kite Man who has no skills but is loyal enough, isn't the skeleton of Team K complete?
"I'm just confirming once again, we are friends, right? John."
Mason looked at Zha Kang, who looked smug like a fox who had stolen a chicken, and suddenly asked.
The master of dark magic reached out and held Mason's hand with a "sincere" look on his face. His expression was as touching as if he had met his long-lost half-brother.
This actor even started crying and said:
"Of course, Mason, don't insult our relationship by using the word 'friend'. In my heart, you and I are as close as brothers. Come on, get ready.
Let your brother John help you cast a spell to gain strength."
