The Battle of SkyView

Section 1: Declaration of War

The next morning, the management office of SkyView Mall received a strange letter.

It was a formal declaration of war, signed by Pastor Simon. Part of it read:

“For too long, wickedness has corrupted these grounds. We, the righteous followers of Humbleism, hereby declare our sacred duty to purge this territory of evil and reclaim it in the name of faith and divine justice. The light shall prevail.”

Naturally, Simon made no mention of protection fees. That would have made the letter considerably less holy.

The letter was soon delivered to Canelo.

With a cigarette hanging from his mouth, Canelo read it once. Then he read it again, more carefully. On the third attempt, he leaned forward and studied every line with intense concentration.

Finally, he lowered the letter.

“What the fuck? I don’t understand a single word he said.”

Canelo had only finished elementary school. He could understand everyday English, but a formal declaration of war was way beyond him.

His assistant took the letter and read it over.

“They’re challenging you. It’s from a church. They intend to take over your territory.”

Canelo stared at him.

“What the fuck? Ain’t churches supposed to be preaching some holy nonsense or something? Why the hell are they fighting gangs for territory now? Wait… maybe they want the protection money too?”

Before his assistant could answer, a commotion broke out near the mall entrance.

Pastor Simon had arrived.

Behind him, dozens of Humbleism followers in ceremonial white robes poured into SkyView Mall like a storm.

Inside the restaurant RamenHood, the owner paused from chopping vegetables as the commotion erupted outside.

“Oh no. Not another turf war.”

His daughter clasped her hands together and looked toward the entrance.

“Lord Canelo is the best of those gangsters. I really hope he can defend us again.”

Then they went back to cooking as if nothing had happened.

Not far from RamenHood, four young men stood around smoking.

Directly behind them, a large sign read:

NO SMOKING IN THE MALL

One of Simon’s followers squinted at the sign.

“Holy shit. There’s something written underneath.”

In one corner, someone had scribbled a tiny handwritten warning, full of misspellings and looking like the work of a bored little kid:

IF U SMOKE HERE I CHOP UR DIK OFF.

Simon barely noticed. His attention had already shifted to one of the four men—a short, badass-looking guy in a black hoodie and ripped jeans, standing casually with a cigarette hanging from his mouth.

Simon smiled.

“That was easy. Target acquired.”

He pointed at the man.

“There he is—the infamous Peeing Man, Canelo. Some people even call him Lord Canelo.”

Simon found the title ridiculous for such a low-level fighter.

“What a joke. Lord my ass.”

Section 2: Domain Expansion

Simon stepped toward the four smokers, then suddenly stopped.

His expression turned solemn. Slowly, he brought his palms together before his chest in a prayer gesture.

The white-robed followers behind him froze. One of them widened his eyes.

“Oh no… Pastor, don’t tell me you’re using your ultimate move already…”

For a moment, the entire mall seemed to hold its breath.

Simon closed his eyes.

“Domain Expansion: Eternal Heavenly Sanctuary.”

His eyes snapped open.

The followers moved instantly.

Dozens of white-robed figures rushed outward, spreading around Simon and the four young men. Within seconds, they had formed a circle nearly twenty meters wide, standing shoulder to shoulder to create a human barrier. No one could enter, and no one could leave.

Only five people remained inside: Pastor Simon and four smokers who had absolutely no idea what the hell was going on.

“Hey, Canelo! You and your lackeys have nowhere to run. Surrender now, leave this mall, and never come back. Do that, and I’ll spare your lives.”

The short man in the black hoodie stared at him, completely confused.

“I really don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about.”

Simon took that as a no.

“All right, then. So be it.”

He charged forward and threw both fists at once. Two smokers dropped unconscious.

Another immediately ran for the barrier.

The moment he tried to break through, a few nearby followers stepped out of formation and pummeled him with fists and kicks. Within seconds, he collapsed beside the human wall.

The followers calmly returned to their original positions, sealing the barrier again as if nothing had happened.

Simon turned toward the only smoker still standing.

“All right. It’s only you and me now, Canelo.”

The man backed away in panic.

“You’re insane! Help! Somebody help me!”

Then one of the followers called out.

“Pastor! Here—catch!”

A stone flew into the circle. Without even looking back, Simon caught it with three fingers.

It was about the size of an apple.

He looked at the terrified smoker.

“All right. You forced me to do this. This might be a little overkill.”

Simon drew his arm back and threw the stone, greatly suppressing his power to avoid blowing up the entire food court.

The stone tore through the air in an S-shaped path, smashed straight through the man’s kneecap, and struck the floor behind him.

BOOM!

A small blast erupted on impact.

The smoker crashed down screaming for his mama, struggled for a few seconds, then passed out from the agony.

Simon slowly lowered his hand.

“It’s over… Finally. After all this time, it’s finally over.”

The entire battle had lasted less than a minute.

Around him, the followers broke formation, and the Eternal Heavenly Sanctuary dissolved.

Section 3: The Unexpected Entrance

The Humbleism followers immediately began clearing the battlefield.

They dragged the four unconscious smokers toward the mall entrance and dumped them beside a pile of trash outside. After all, SkyView Mall belonged to them now. They couldn’t leave garbage lying around their newly conquered territory.

But before they could finish cleaning up, a large group of men appeared at the entrance.

The followers stopped.

At the center of the group was a short man in a black hoodie and ripped jeans, walking slowly with both hands in his pockets and a cigarette hanging from the corner of his mouth.

Behind him came dozens of men.

Simon turned toward them.

“Canelo has been defeated. The war is over, and this mall belongs to us now.”

He raised an eyebrow.

“So who the hell are you guys? What do you want?”

One of the men beside Canelo looked at him and scratched his head.

“Oh, Lord Canelo. I’m sorry to hear you lost the battle. So… should we retreat now, since you already got defeated?”

Canelo slapped him across the mouth.

“Yo, what the fuck? I’m Canelo. I’m right fucking here. I don’t know what Canelo this dude’s talking about.”

One of the Humbleism followers suddenly leaned toward Simon.

“Oh, hey, Pastor. Those guys you just beat up were only some random smokers. This is the real Canelo.”

Simon stared at him.

Then at Canelo.

Then back toward the mall entrance, where the four smokers had just been dumped beside the trash.

“Shit.”

He frowned.

“I wasted my ultimate move. I can’t use Domain Expansion too often on the same day.”

Meanwhile, Canelo had spent that time gathering his men elsewhere in the mall.

Simon turned back toward Canelo’s gang and raised one hand.

His voice suddenly became solemn again.

“In the name of divine justice, we shall cleanse this sacred ground of evil!”

He thrust his hand forward.

“Attack!”

The white-robed followers charged.

Canelo’s men rushed forward to meet them.

Within seconds, the two sides crashed into each other, and the food court erupted into chaos.

Men flew in both directions. White robes and gangsters crashed over tables, chairs, and each other.

One gangster slipped beside a yellow WET FLOOR sign and crashed onto his back.

A Humbleism follower immediately picked up the sign and repeatedly smacked him across the face with it.

When he was done, he calmly placed the sign back where it had been and charged toward his next opponent.

Nearby, another follower grabbed a gangster by the legs, lifted him completely upside down, and stuffed him headfirst into a trash can. Only his legs remained sticking out.

Then, in the middle of the chaos, another Humbleism follower suddenly ran into a nearby store.

He punched the owner unconscious, shoved him aside, yanked open the cash register, and began stuffing handfuls of money into his pockets as fast as he could.

The battle remained fierce and chaotic, but neither side could gain the upper hand. The two forces were dead even.

The holy crusade continued.

Section 4: The Secret Weapon

In the middle of the battle, one of the followers rushed over carrying a basket of stones.

“Use these, Pastor. With your power, you’ll be able to wipe them all out.”

Simon looked down at the stones and nodded.

“Right. These low-level gangsters don’t stand a ghost of a chance.”

He reached toward the basket, then stopped.

An idea had entered his mind.

The stones would certainly work. But this battle presented a rare opportunity to test one of Humbleism’s newly developed ultimate weapons.

After all, every new weapon needed proper field testing before an important battle. Today was the perfect opportunity.

The follower’s expression changed.

“Oh, Pastor… you don’t mean…”

Simon looked at him.

“Yes, I do.”

The follower immediately reached into their equipment box and pulled out a pair of nunchucks. He proudly presented them to Simon.

Simon stared at them.

“Not this, you dumbass! I don’t even know how to use those!”

He slapped the follower across the face.

“I mean the Human Missile.”

Kyle immediately stepped forward and stood at attention.

“Excuse me, Pastor, sir! I volunteer to become the Holy Human Missile! In the name of Humbleism, I am prepared to sacrifice myself!”

Simon looked him up and down.

Kyle stood perfectly straight and rigid. Perfect for a Human Missile.

Simon considered it for a moment. But then he reconsidered. Kyle was one of his masterpieces. It would be a shame to waste him on a battle like this.

Simon placed a hand on Kyle’s shoulder.

“Young lad, you still have a bright future ahead of you. Your sacred path does not end here today.”

Kyle stared at him with determination.

“Yes, sir!”

Simon nodded, then slowly turned toward the follower standing beside him.

The follower saw the look in Simon’s eyes.

His face went pale.

“Oh no. Not me, Pastor. I still have two kids.”

Simon placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Life is short, my brother. We are like fireworks. What matters is not how long we shine, but how brightly we light up the sky—even if only for a moment. Today, your light shall illuminate the future of humanity.”

The follower’s trembling slowly stopped. His body became rigid, and the fear in his eyes gave way to absolute determination.

“Yes, sir! In the name of Humbleism, I’ll light up the world!”

Simon smiled.

He grabbed the follower’s rigid body, lifted him off the ground, and balanced him across one shoulder like a human projectile ready to be launched.

At that exact moment, several white-robed followers came flying out of the battle and crashed onto the floor in front of Simon.

One of them coughed up blood.

Another follower stumbled backward toward him.

“Hey, what do we do, Pastor? We might be losing.”

Simon glanced at the Human Missile resting on his shoulder.

“Fear not, my brothers and sisters. Victory is already assured.”

Section 5: The Human Missile

Across the battlefield, Canelo raised his fist and shouted at his men.

“Yo! Come on, brothers! We gotta protect this mall! We took these people’s protection money, so protecting them is our duty!”

He pointed toward the white-robed followers.

“We’re the good guys! Beat the shit outta the bad guys!”

His men roared and charged forward.

Canelo stayed closer to the mall entrance, directing the battle from behind his men.

At that moment, the followers in front of Simon quickly moved aside, opening a clear path through the battlefield.

Simon tightened his grip on the Human Missile resting across his shoulder.

Then he twisted his entire body and swung forward with everything he had.

The muscles across his chest strained to their limit.

He released.

The Human Missile shot forward in a perfectly straight line.

His rigid body flew horizontally through the food court, spinning faster and faster through the air.

The first gangster he struck was launched dozens of meters away and slammed into a wall before crashing back to the floor.

Then another.

And another.

The Human Missile tore through the gangsters like a bowling ball smashing into a row of pins. Bodies scattered in every direction.

He wasn’t particularly selective.

One unfortunate Humbleism follower wandered into his path and was struck so hard that he spun away into a row of chairs. Another took the Human Missile straight through his shoulder and went down screaming.

Then a gangster took the impact head-on. The collision tore off all four of his limbs, sending his torso and head spinning diagonally across the food court.

Near the mall entrance, Canelo was still shouting orders at his men.

“Yo! Get around ’em! Attack the middle! Don’t let those white-robed assholes—”

Something suddenly caught his eye.

Canelo turned his head.

A flying torso was coming straight at him.

“YO! What in the motherfucking—?!”

BOOM!

The torso slammed into Canelo’s chest.

The secondary impact sent him flying backward through the wide-open mall entrance and far into the distance.

The Human Missile continued straight across the food court, still spinning at tremendous speed, before slamming into a wall.

BOOM!

The wall shattered on impact.

Dust and debris exploded everywhere.

A few seconds later, his battered body dropped from the wreckage and hit the floor. One leg was bent at an unnatural angle. The other was nowhere to be found. His white robe was soaked with blood, and cuts covered his body.

Then he lay completely still.

The Human Missile had completed its mission.

With Canelo gone, his remaining lackeys lost all will to fight. They scattered like rats, fleeing through every available exit.

The white-robed followers immediately threw their fists into the air and roared in victory.

One follower hurried over and handed Simon a loudspeaker.

Simon raised it to his mouth.

“Attention, everyone! The forces of evil have been driven from this sacred ground! From this day forward, SkyView Mall enters a new era under the protection of Humbleism!”

He raised one hand toward the ceiling.

“A new order begins today! All stores in this mall shall now pay their protection fees to us!”

The followers erupted into another cheer.

Inside RamenHood, the owner’s daughter rushed to the entrance and stared at the victorious white-robed army in horror.

She dropped to her hands and knees and sobbed.

“Oh no! Lord Canelo! What are we going to do without you?”

Section 6: The Holy Promise

Not long after the battle, Simon, Kyle, and several followers gathered around the Human Missile. His broken body lay among the rubble, completely still. For a moment, everyone thought he was dead.

Then his fingers twitched. A faint breath escaped his lips, and his eyes slowly opened.

The followers fell silent. Several lowered their heads, their eyes filling with tears.

Simon immediately crouched beside him.

“My brother, you sacrificed your body for Humbleism. Your courage brought us victory today, and your sacrifice will never be forgotten.”

The man’s body trembled weakly. His lips moved, but almost no sound came out. Simon leaned closer, bringing his ear near the man’s mouth.

“Pastor…”

“I’m listening, my brother.”

“I have… two kids.”

His breathing grew shallower. Every word seemed to drain what little strength he had left.

“Please… promise me.”

He struggled for another breath.

“Take care of them… for me.”

Someone in the crowd quietly began to sob.

Simon gently placed a hand on the man’s chest.

“You have my word.”

The man stared at him for a moment. A faint smile appeared on his face. Then his trembling stopped, and his eyes slowly closed.

This time, they did not open again.

A few steps away, Kyle slowly lowered his phone. He had recorded the entire thing.

That night, he uploaded the video to YouTube. The story of the fallen Human Missile and Pastor Simon’s compassionate promise quickly touched thousands of viewers. Humbleism gained another wave of followers, and donations poured in.

A few days later, Simon found the man’s two children.

He sold them straight to human traffickers for cash, then walked away humming a cheerful tune.