Zhao Rong took out another small, flowered umbrella. As he transformed it into a large waterfall, he smiled at the Underground Salamander.

"Underground Salamander, you think you’re pretty tough, don’t you?" he said. "Let’s just see how much fire you have in that belly of yours. I’ll be happy to help you put it out..."

The Underground Salamander spat out a second, third, and then a fourth blast of fire. Undaunted, Zhao Rong brought out a second, third, and fourth flowered umbrella, transforming them one by one into waterfalls to block the colossal flames.

The exchange was effortless for Zhao Rong, who easily turned the umbrellas into waterfalls. In contrast, the Underground Salamander had to exert immense effort just to breathe fire. After a few rounds, Zhao Rong appeared perfectly relaxed, while the creature was on the verge of collapse.

After spitting fire six or seven times in a row, the Underground Salamander finally collapsed, exhausted. It slumped against the rocks, its head lolling to the side and its eyes glazed over. "Damn it," it wheezed. "I’ve seen tough opponents before, but I’ve never seen anyone as relentless as you! I just don’t get it... where did you find so many waterfalls? All this water to counter my flames?"

When Zhao Rong and his companions heard the terrifying Underground Salamander speak, they were so shocked they all fell to the ground.

Zhao Rong scrambled back to his feet, still clutching a flowered umbrella. "Damn it, aren’t you supposed to be some prehistoric monster?" he questioned the salamander. "How can you speak? And you’re even speaking Chinese?"

Drool trickled from the exhausted salamander’s mouth. "I may be a prehistoric monster," it said, "but I’m being controlled by one of your human AI brains. I’m employed by the bosses, Zhou Xiaoer and Hong Ju..."

When Zhao Rong and his four companions heard the massive creature was being controlled by an AI brain, their eyes widened. They immediately thought of the masterminds behind everything, Hong Ju and Zhou Xiaoer.

Zhao Rong took a step forward. "What did you just say?" he demanded of the exhausted salamander. "You’re being controlled by an AI brain? Does that mean the ones operating you right now are the villains, Hong Ju and Zhou Xiaoer?"

"It’s not just me," the Underground Salamander said weakly. "Every expert you encountered in Ba Da Alley and every monster you’ve fought since entering the Underground Dark River... they are all being directly controlled by Hong Ju and Zhou Xiaoer’s AI brain."

Hearing this, Zhao Rong was stunned. "You’ve got to be kidding me," he said in disbelief. "So you’re saying our every move has been monitored by Zhou Xiaoer and Hong Ju this entire time..."

Gasping for air, the salamander added, "Not only have they been monitoring your actions, but every expert you’ve fought was also being directly controlled by them."

Zhao Rong was utterly astonished. "So you’re saying that every opponent we’ve fought wasn’t actually themselves? That it was really the masterminds, Hong Ju and Zhou Xiaoer, pulling the strings..."

The assistant stepped forward in disbelief. "Brother Zhao Rong, does that mean that in every battle we’ve fought, we were actually fighting Hong Ju and Zhou Xiaoer? Does that mean we’ve already clashed with them, even before meeting them face-to-face?"

"That’s right," the salamander nodded. "Every person you fought was, in essence, Hong Ju and Zhou Xiaoer. You were just fighting them inside a different body."

Hearing this, Lili burst out laughing. "And here I thought the masterminds Zhou Xiaoer and Hong Ju were supposed to be so incredible! Turns out they’re just a couple of incompetent losers who’ve been getting their butts kicked by Brother Zhao Rong this whole time."

Xuelian looked to the sky and shouted, "Hong Ju and Zhou Xiaoer! If you two have any guts, come out and face our Brother Zhao Rong in a real duel! Stop hiding behind the scenes and making these puppets fight your battles for you! You’re nothing but a pair of spineless cowards!"

Then, Yu Lan questioned the creature. "Underground Salamander, something you’re saying is contradictory. If your brain is truly being controlled by the AI of the masterminds, Hong Ju and Zhou Xiaoer, then how are you able to speak with us so freely? And why are you exposing them?"

"You don’t understand," the salamander explained. "While it’s true we’re all just puppets controlled by the masterminds, their AI brain’s control isn’t constant. It doesn’t have a lock on us every single second of every single minute. There are... interruptions in the signal.

"The only reason I can talk to you like this and reveal their plans is because there was a signal interruption while their AI was connected to my brain. Otherwise, I would just be their puppet, forced to fight you endlessly until I died from exhaustion..."

Before the Underground Salamander could finish, it suddenly shot to its feet, its movements no longer its own. Its jaw snapped open, and it once again began spewing fire at Zhao Rong and his group.

Seeing this, Zhao Rong immediately understood. "This is bad! The signal from Hong Ju and Zhou Xiaoer’s AI brain must have reconnected! Look! They’re controlling it like a puppet again, forcing it to attack us!"

As he spoke, Zhao Rong snatched another flowered umbrella from the nearby basket and instantly transformed it into a massive waterfall, blocking the torrent of flames from the salamander’s mouth.

Seeing the salamander once again lose control of its own body and start breathing fire, the assistant exploded in anger. "Damn it! Those villains, that father and son duo Hong Ju and Zhou Xiaoer, are too despicable! When we finally catch them, we have to tear them limb from limb and leave their corpses out for three days! Only then will this hatred in my heart be appeased!"

Lili slammed her hand on a rock and shot to her feet, her expression furious. "If anyone’s dragging those two villains to hell, it’ll be me! Once I get my hands on Hong Ju and Zhou Xiaoer, I’ll make them beg for a death that will not come!"

Yu Lan picked up a large stone, her voice filled with rage. "When I catch those two villains, that father and son, Hong Ju and Zhou Xiaoer, I’ll personally execute them by stoning!"

Xuelian produced two cans of pepper spray. Opening one, she packed it with TNT. She held the makeshift bomb high in her hand, her knuckles white. "When I catch that plague of a father and son, Hong Ju and Zhou Xiaoer," she snarled, "I’m going to shove this can into his mouth and blow him to smithereens!"