Chapter 97: Chapter 79: Let Me See Your Web-Shooter

But for some reason, the man before him was like an iron tower. The gun barrel pressed against him felt like it was touching a solid steel statue.

"Blackie, cut the crap," Li Wei sighed. "Just admit it. That thing in your hand is just a toy, blackie."

"I told you to shut up!" The robber was completely enraged. His attention was totally captivated by Li Wei’s unstoppable mouth. His finger slammed down on the trigger. "You asked for this!"

BANG!!

The 9mm bullet exploded at close range with a deafening roar. Muzzle flash lit up the narrow space in front of the counter, and the smell of gunpowder instantly filled the air.

The gunshot knocked Wang Haoran to the ground, his ears filled with a sharp ringing.

He squeezed his eyes shut in despair. ’That Spider-Man must’ve gotten his brains blown out.’

However, the expected thud of a body hitting the floor never came.

Just 0.3 seconds before the robber fired, Li Wei had shifted his head a mere ten centimeters to the side.

The bullet whizzed past his ear, tearing through the air with a piercing shriek. It precisely shattered a $12.88 jar of Lao Gan Ma on the shelf behind him, splattering dark red chili oil all over the floor.

"Whoa! Damn, I was this close to meeting Stan Lee," Li Wei exclaimed, his right hand darting out to expertly clamp down on the Glock 17’s grip. "Little kids shouldn’t play with such dangerous toys."

He squeezed, his fingers like hydraulic pincers, forcing the robber to cry out and release his hold on the gun.

"You—"

Before the robber could even finish, Li Wei had closed the distance, moving like a phantom.

"And by the way, for a robber," he said, driving a vicious punch into the man’s side, "that skull mask you’re wearing is seriously ugly. It just makes your face look bigger."

With the aid of his [Knight Fighting Art], Li Wei was a natural at close-quarters combat. The blow was precisely aimed, bypassing the man’s ribs and sinking through his abdominal muscles deep into his liver.

The robber’s face, once contorted with rage, instantly turned ashen. The roar in his throat died, replaced by a choked, wheezing gasp. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

His body curled up in agony like an oversized, twitching lobster. The intense shock to his nervous system made his eyes instantly flood with blood.

"Hey!" Li Wei griped. "No sleeping allowed!"

But the robber couldn’t utter a single word. He just twitched on the ground, even spitting up some bile.

Li Wei turned to look at Wang Haoran, who was still slumped on the floor.

Wang Haoran instinctively shrank back, his back bumping against the cigarette rack with a faint rattle.

"Relax," Li Wei shrugged. "If I were you, I’d call 911. But I’d suggest tying him up before you do."

He pointed at the robber on the ground.

"One more thing..." Li Wei grabbed a bag of Huangfeihong spicy peanuts from a shelf and expertly tore it open. But then he remembered he was still wearing his mask and reluctantly stuffed the bag into his pocket.

He slapped $5 onto the counter.

"I need my change," he said. "One cent, thank you."

Once in a deserted alley, Li Wei pulled off his mask, tossed a few peanuts into his mouth, and crunched them loudly.

He looked at the system panel that appeared in his vision:

[Mission Complete: Right a Wrong]

[The poor apprentice at the Elf Inn, only on the job for a few days, was robbed by a Dark Elf. Resolve the crisis without causing too much damage.]

[Mission Reward: Free Attribute Points +0.1]

[Mission Reward granted.]

Li Wei saw that his available free attribute points had reached 0.5 and let out a satisfied hum.

’Just need to save up a little more. Once I have 0.9 points, I can bring my Agility to 3.0. Might even unlock a new physical trait.’

’Allocating points... what a wonderful feeling.’

He glanced back. The police cars were finally arriving. As two officers rushed into the grocery store, Li Wei slowly melted back into the shadows.

’He’d actually recognized his classmate, Wang Haoran, right away. He only stepped in out of concern for a classmate and fellow countryman, even if it seemed Wang Haoran’s entire family was a bit screwed in the head.’

Li Wei recalled the Indian girl who had come to tattle on Wang Haoran for talking trash about him, then tried to friend him afterward. He couldn’t help but shrug.

’He had a bright future and limitless potential; it was pointless to bother with a pathetic hater like him. If he really wanted to give him trouble, he just had to say the word to Travis and Craig. The big, burly football players would be happy to take care of it for him.’

’Shit,’ he suddenly thought. ’Have I become the school bully?’

Chewing away, Li Wei tossed the empty bag into a trash can, pulled his mask back on, and melted into the crowd. A few subway stops later, he was near Times Square.

Halloween was a huge celebration in New York, arguably even more lively than Christmas in some ways.

Christmas, much like New Year’s in the Celestial Dynasty, was a time for family reunions and big meals. With the exception of friendless loners or Asians who didn’t celebrate it, most people chose to stay home with their relatives.

Even though it was past midnight, Times Square was still buzzing. Neon lights cast mesmerizing reflections in the puddles left by the rain. Giant billboards lit up half the sky, making it flicker between light and shadow. Even in the wee hours of the morning, the area was still swarming with a boisterous crowd.

Wearing his Spider-Man mask, Li Wei weaved through crowds of people dressed as zombies, vampires, and an assortment of politicians. He’d already spotted four or five people in masks with golden hair.

He hadn’t even crossed Broadway Avenue when he was stopped by a few young women dressed as sexy kittens.

"Hey, Spidey!" A Caucasian girl with extravagant purple eyeshadow lit up when she saw Li Wei’s chest and lean waist, and she immediately pressed herself against him. "Is that body for real? Are you Thor wearing a Spider-Man mask?"

"Whoa, there, miss," Li Wei said. "Please maintain social distancing, or you’re going to set off my spider-sense!"

The girls just giggled, completely ignoring him. They doubled down, crowding around him as camera flashes went off with a series of clicks.

"Come on, you poor little spider, give us a smile—even if we can’t see it," another girl said, wrapping an arm around Li Wei’s waist from the side. Her hand roamed naughtily over his abs. "Where’s your web? Where does it shoot from? Why can’t I feel it?"

"Is your web-shooter big?"

All the girls roared with laughter.

"Easy there, ladies," Li Wei shrugged. "The great Spider-Man has criminals to fight and civilians to save!"

"We’re the criminals," one girl breathed in his ear. "We’re the Criminal Kittens. You gonna bust us, Spider-Man?"

However, their looks and figures weren’t really Li Wei’s type. Besides, no mission had popped up for this.

’Now, if it had been someone like Samantha or Daphne, he probably would’ve had to punish them severely with his web-shooter.’

’As for someone like Anya...’ Li Wei shook his head. ’Anya wouldn’t play these kinds of games.’

It took some effort to shake off the clingy girls. He wandered through the crowd for a while longer, not heading home until three or four in the morning when the streets finally cleared. He managed to catch one of New York’s last late-night subway trains.

The night was quiet back in Bei Ling Ridge. Now that it was November, the sea breeze had a biting chill. Puddles on the uneven ground reflected the distant, sleepless lights of Manhattan.

’It’s especially quiet tonight,’ Li Wei thought. ’Uncle Don Quixote isn’t out sleepwalking.’

He walked over to a trash can, pulled off the Spider-Man mask, and tossed it inside.

It wasn’t until he pushed his door open that it occurred to him: he’d been surprisingly good at trash-talking today.

’Is this my true self?’

’It seems that by putting on a mask, I’ve actually taken one off.’

Lying back on his bed, he could hear the steady sound of Don Quixote’s snores from downstairs.

"Time to sleep," Li Wei said, closing his eyes. "The finals are tomorrow. A lot of media outlets will be there to cover the match."