The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.

Only, the script hit a snag: the mantis got swatted dead by the cicada.

Shen Cong, casting himself as the oriole, faced the Great Iron Bear as it slumped on the ground, huffing and wheezing for breath. His nerves were strung to their absolute limit; he didn't dare let a single thing slip.

Once he'd charged in, he didn't hesitate — he hauled out an assault rifle straightaway.

He squeezed the trigger, and the bullets spat out in a violent tongue of flame, all of it aimed at the Great Iron Bear's face. To the Great Iron Bear, the power of a firearm's rounds was slighter than a tickle; Shen Cong had never imagined shooting it to death with bullets. He was only using them to disrupt the Great Iron Bear's perception.

Then he'd send the Four-Legged Dragon in to attack, backing her up from the side.

Big fellows, of course, had to be dealt with by big fellows.

The Four-Legged Dragon actually hadn't wanted to come — the pressure aura between animals was a serious thing. But cowed by Shen Cong's will, and with the Great Iron Bear gravely wounded, she naturally saw an opening worth exploiting.

"Coo-coo!" The Four-Legged Dragon looped straight around behind the Great Iron Bear and sprang up with a wham.

The Great Iron Bear scrambled to turn, swinging a paw.

The Four-Legged Dragon checked herself in midair, her body dropping fast, dodging the blow. She was clever, and with Shen Cong riding her head to guide her, she didn't clash head-on with the Great Iron Bear at all. Instead she kept driving up its exhaustion, denying it the quiet it needed to stanch its wounds and recover its strength.

"Little Four, come up on the left!" Shen Cong's eye was vicious-sharp — he could see the ribs on the Great Iron Bear's left side had likely snapped, its forelimb out of sync — and he told the Four-Legged Dragon at once.

The Four-Legged Dragon cooed back. "Bopo… got it… kill it!"

A wounded super-heavyweight…