That's right...
What was she afraid of?
What was she hesitating for?
He was just a criminal who murdered her father!
And she was an Interpol agent representing justice!
How could righteousness lose to evil?!
The confusion born of fear in Chun-Li's eyes vanished in an instant! Replaced by unprecedented determination and clarity!
A staggeringly massive surge of ki exploded from her petite frame!
Blue ki flames erupted skyward like a tsunami!
"Hmm?!"
Vega's supposedly certain killing blow was actually forced back half a step by this sudden eruption of ki!
He stared in shock at this woman whose presence had undergone a complete transformation.
"Your ki... how could it...?!"
Chun-Li slowly opened her eyes.
Gone were anger and hatred. Only the vast expanse of justice and conviction remained—as boundless as the sky!
She looked at Vega and slowly raised both hands.
All her ki began frantically converging and compressing toward her palms!
A blue energy sphere—larger, more brilliant, more solid than any Kikoken she'd ever produced—began forming in her hands!
"You pervert..."
Chun-Li's voice was calm yet filled with power.
"Take this move, condensed from all my conviction..."
"KIKOKEN ULTIMATE!!!"
BOOM—!!!!!
A pillar of blue light, like an orbital strike weapon, instantly consumed the entire ring!
Before that pillar of "positive energy," Vega didn't even have time to scream.
His prized bizarre footwork failed him.
His razor-sharp steel claws melted instantly.
The metal mask protecting his "beautiful" face shattered piece by piece within the light!
"NOOO—! MY FACE—!!!"
Those were his last words in this world.
When the light faded—
Only Chun-Li remained in the ring.
She held her palms-forward stance, gasping heavily.
Where Vega had stood, there was no trace of him. Only a massive breach in the ring and a shattered mask proved he'd ever existed.
One strike.
Just one strike.
The battle ended in the most shocking, most unreasonable way possible.
First came dead silence.
Then erupted cheers more fervent and thunderous than any before!
"CHUN-LI! CHUN-LI! CHUN-LI!"
Hearing those tsunami-like chants, Chun-Li slowly straightened up.
She looked at her hands, still glowing with blue light, then instinctively toward the stands—toward the man giving her a thumbs up.
A brilliant, confident smile bloomed across her face.
That smile was more radiant than the sun itself.
In this moment, she hadn't just won a match.
More importantly—she had conquered her past self.
...
Chun-Li's "awakening" battle became a phenomenal topic of this "Street Fighter" tournament.
Her earth-shattering "Kikoken Ultimate" hadn't just obliterated Vega, one of Shadaloo's Four Heavenly Kings—it had cemented her status as the "Fighting Queen."
Countless fans were captivated by her heroic bearing and unwavering conviction.
Of course, the biggest contributor to this victory—Cloud—remained hidden behind the scenes.
He was like a "king-tier booster" operating from the shadows, watching the "bronze" teammate he'd coached successfully climb to "king" rank, wearing a satisfied auntie smile.
"Not bad, not bad. The kid can be taught." Cloud sipped his soda while speaking to Chun-Li, who'd just left the ring, still riding high on excitement. "So, how'd I do as ringside coach? Pretty professional, right? Want to consider hiring me long-term? Salary's negotiable—you could pay me by offering yourself."
"Get lost!" Chun-Li's cheeks flushed red as she rolled her eyes at him, though those watery eyes couldn't hide the gratitude and deeper feelings within.
She knew—without Cloud's final "toxic chicken soup" guidance, she absolutely couldn't have overcome her inner demons today.
This man wasn't just unfathomably powerful. Even more terrifying was that mind of his, seemingly able to see through everything about a person.
...
Soon, another spotlight match of the quarterfinals began.
"Next up are two competitors—"
"From India, the mysterious ascetic, the yoga master—Dhalsim!"
"And the biggest dark horse of this tournament, the mysterious powerhouse from Earth—Cloud!"
When both names rang out, the atmosphere reached a new peak.
If Cloud was this tournament's "ceiling of martial prowess"—crushing everything without reason—
Then Dhalsim was the "ceiling of mystery"—each of his matches seeming like magic tricks.
The audience was extremely curious: when the pinnacle of "martial arts" met the bizarreness of "mystic arts," what kind of clash would ensue?
In the ring.
Dhalsim maintained his ascetic appearance—thin as a stick, skulls hanging from his neck, legs crossed, floating in midair.
Within those sunken eye sockets gleamed wisdom and compassion.
"Young man," Dhalsim began slowly, his voice ethereal and distant, as if traveling from far across time and space.
"Within you, I sense many powerful forces. Destruction and creation. Domination and protection. You are an existence filled with contradictions."
"Oh? Master reads faces too?" Cloud smiled. "Then tell me—is my forehead a bit purple today? Does that mean purple qi from the east, ensuring victory?"
Dhalsim shook his head, ignoring Cloud's quips.
"Your strength is beyond question." His tone remained calm. "But power too great, without a compassionate heart to guide it, will ultimately become a calamity that destroys the world. Today, allow me to test whether you are worthy of possessing such power."
...
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