American Comics: The Strongest Villain

"Who?" Su Sheng replied casually.

"The perfume on you—who does it belong to?"

"Is there? I took a bath, so maybe I picked it up afterward," Su Sheng said, taking a quick sniff but smelling nothing. Sometimes, a woman's sense of smell was sharper than a bloodhound's. He pulled Felicity into an embrace with a smile. "I supervised Laurel's training this morning, helped someone get rid of some bodyguards in the afternoon, then hitched a ride to Central City and just got back."

"This is the sonic device I got for Laurel. Could you check it over to make sure it's all good?" Su Sheng handed the sonic equipment to Felicity and kissed her cheek. "I'm going to take a shower. Is there anything to eat? Could you fix me something? I haven't eaten yet."

Felicity watched in a daze as Su Sheng walked naturally to the bathroom.

"Sonic equipment?" she mumbled, looking down at the device in her hands. After heating up some food for him in the kitchen, she returned to the living room to inspect it. The more she examined it, the more impressed she became. It was an incredibly sleek and powerful design. Compact and easy to carry, the sonic waves were adjustable in intensity, making it a formidable tool when used without warning.

"How is it?"

Su Sheng asked as he came to Felicity's side, freshly showered and having eaten. He wrapped his arms around her.

"It's a great design, and there are no flaws in the structure," Felicity replied. "There's just one problem: when activated, the user is also affected, so you need to be prepared."

"As long as there's no tracker, that's good enough. Just get a pair of earplugs to reduce the sound, and that should solve the issue," Su Sheng said dismissively.

"Yeah." Felicity nodded, understanding that while she could create the necessary earplugs, the lack of professional equipment, materials, and money made it a challenge. Su Sheng decided to leave that part to Laurel to figure out on her own.

After asking Felicity to check Talia al Ghul's phone number, Su Sheng met Laurel the next day at the same hotel from the previous day. Coincidentally, they were assigned the same room.

"Do we have to meet here?" Laurel asked, a bit embarrassed.

"What? Afraid someone will see us?" Su Sheng asked with a smirk.

"I don't have enough money to book a room with you every day," Laurel responded with frustration.

"Then make some money. If you want to be a hero who protects the city and fights evil, you can't do it without money. Anyway, here's the sonic equipment I got for you yesterday." Su Sheng handed the device to her.

Laurel was stunned. "Did you kidnap someone again?"

"Don't like it? Then stop me when you're strong enough," Su Sheng said, explaining how to use the device. "You can't use it just yet. We'll talk about it after you've laid the groundwork. Now, stop stalling and let's start today's training."

"In the morning, we'll focus on physical training, and in the afternoon, I'll teach you fighting techniques."

Laurel realized that sometimes in life, when you can't resist a situation, you just have to endure it. She wasn't sure if Su Sheng's methods were that of a tyrant, but she had no choice but to comply.

Taking off her coat in silence, she gritted her teeth and got back to work as Su Sheng lounged on the bed, just as he had the day before.

Determined to avoid being shocked again, Laurel was meticulous and focused in her training. Despite her efforts, she still got shocked numerous times by the end of the morning, leaving her wondering if she was becoming immune to electricity.

After a quick shower and a short rest, they began the afternoon's fighting training.

Laurel had little experience in combat, so Su Sheng selected techniques that would best suit her physical attributes—primarily Muay Thai and Savate, combined with elements of freestyle fighting. He would've liked to teach her Wing Chun, but the person he copied didn't know it, and Su Sheng was too lazy to learn. He figured he could wait until Batman returned. For now, what he had was more than enough to keep Laurel busy for a while.

Su Sheng didn't seem to understand the concept of going easy on someone. He didn't hold back just because Laurel was a woman, or because she was partially unclothed. By the end of the session, Laurel's pale skin was bruised and battered.

"Go home and rest. Don't be late tomorrow," Su Sheng said as they left the hotel.

"I might not be able to come tomorrow," Laurel replied hesitantly.

"Why not?"

"I'm moving tomorrow," Laurel explained.

"Moving into your own place? That's convenient. We can continue after you're settled."

"Okay."

Laurel nodded and limped away, exhausted.

Su Sheng walked around the neighborhood until he found a public phone booth and dialed Talia al Ghul's number.

"Hello?"

The moment he greeted her, he heard Talia scoff on the other end.

"It's you."

Su Sheng chuckled. "Impressive. You remember my voice so well. Does Bruce Wayne know?"

"What do you want?" Talia asked coldly.

"I want a suit made of the same material as Batman's. I'll give you the size and specifications. Write it down."

"You're blackmailing me?"

"..."

Su Sheng paused for a moment, then laughed. "Yes, I'm blackmailing you. If you don't do what I say, I'll expose your identity and release the gadgets I've recorded. How does that sound? Scared? Think I'm shameless? Do you want to kill me? Does it make your blood boil? Do you feel that itch to get rid of me?"

...