This Is Mine!

Stick was helpless.

I didn’t want this either, but what else could I do?

True Pure Ones Society had a few people in New York, embedded in The Hand to handle intelligence work. They were the ones who told me about Madame Gao and Iron Fist.

But they were dead now. The Hand did it.

If things hadn’t gotten this bad, I wouldn’t have come to you for help!

If I had a whole bunch of brothers under me, I’d have dragged them over to fight The Hand head-on already. Would I be this pathetic now?

With no one to back you up, what the hell could you say… Matt simply didn’t know what to say.

The Hand could casually send dozens of men, all armed. Madame Gao had even more subordinates before—several hundred of them—and that was only two Fingers.

One was Japanese, the other Chinese. New York wasn’t their home turf.

And Alexandra, the one with the real home-field advantage, hadn’t even made a move yet!

There were only the two of you in True Pure Ones Society, and you didn’t even have guns. One old man and one woman—where had all the men gone?

Stick, were you here to make a joke?

"Don’t worry. We can get away. I have experience," Stick reassured him.

"We were hunted down the moment we got off the plane. Things weren’t much better than they are now, but we still escaped," Elektra added.

You two, what was there to be proud of… And you came looking for me even while being hunted down. Truly worthy of being my great teacher and ex-girlfriend… Matt sighed and picked up his phone to dial a number. "I’d better call for help myself…"

Bang!

A bullet came flying at him.

Matt hurriedly dodged.

Several more shots rang out. Matt had no choice but to throw away his phone and focus entirely on evasion.

The call had gone through, but it only rang once before the phone hit the ground and shattered.

(My phone was shattered by my baby too. Sigh.)

A bloody battle had begun.

Azeroth Specialties Shop.

It was already nighttime. Robbie and Gabe, unwilling to be third wheels, had gone home long ago.

After dinner, the shop closed. Old Wang gave Skye some private instruction, using True Qi to regulate her body and speed up the absorption of the essence within it.

Skye might be the woman destined to become "Quake," but her "shockwave" Inhuman ability put a tremendous burden on her body. The stronger her body became, the faster and more powerful vibrations it could withstand, and the greater the power of her shockwaves.

Although Skye wasn’t gifted at martial arts and kept getting all kinds of positions wrong, that didn’t mean there was no way for her to possess True Qi.

Before he had the Heart of Azeroth, Old Wang had relied entirely on his own cultivation. He wasn’t strong enough to help Skye open her meridians and acupoints, stimulate her body into producing True Qi, and establish a stable internal circulation system for it.

But now, after drinking so much Well of Eternity Water essence, his physical abilities had improved further. The total amount of True Qi in his body had already reached the level of a Monk master, just one tier below Old Chen and Taran Zhu. Naturally, he could help Skye.

Of course, this was a gradual process. It couldn’t be done in a day; you couldn’t swallow a Hulk in one bite.

Old Wang decided to sleep in the shop with Skye.

Skye had proposed it herself. She wanted to make the most of the time and couldn’t wait to experience the mysteries of "True Qi," like a young girl unable to resist stealing a taste of forbidden fruit.

No one could resist that temptation.

"Change positions. Let’s do it again." Old Wang patted Skye’s butt.

True Qi stimulation also required different positions. Lying down, lying face-down, standing, sitting—the effects all differed. In this regard, Old Wang was a master among masters. Even Madame Gao probably didn’t understand as much as he did.

Back then, to help Pandaria’s pandas quickly improve their strength and fight the Sha and the Burning Legion, Old Wang had specially drawn an illustrated manual. It contained 108 positions, each with corresponding movements and pictures alongside text. It remained in use even after Old Wang left, and was even exported to other continents, benefiting all of Warcraft.

Suddenly, the phone rang.

"Huh? It’s that blind lawyer. Why’s he calling so late?"

Skye frowned, deeply dissatisfied that he had interrupted her good time with Old Wang.

Just as she was about to answer—

The call disconnected.

"What a psycho," Skye muttered. Then she lay back down, kneeling with her legs on the floor and supporting herself with both hands, ready to enjoy Old Wang’s service.

But Old Wang patted his butt and stood up.

"What’s wrong?" Feeling the forbidden fruit… True Qi flowing into her body disappear, Skye realized something had happened and hurriedly asked Old Wang.

"My instincts are telling me something isn’t right."

He picked up the phone and called back. It was turned off.

His phone ran out of battery?

Too much of a coincidence. The future Daredevil wouldn’t make such a rookie mistake.

"Skye, hack into Columbia University’s surveillance cameras and stay in contact."

Old Wang was worried about the future Daredevil. He didn’t want that young man to die for no clear reason because of the butterfly effect caused by his arrival in this world, just like Madame Gao.

He needed no equipment.

He absolutely wasn’t driving.

After putting on a mask, Old Wang fixed his eyes on the direction and began to run beneath the cover of night.

In Chinatown under the night sky, a slightly chubby phantom leaped between the buildings, like a Spider-Man yet to be born.

Bang bang bang!

The unending gunfire woke the sleeping Columbia University.

The law school dormitory area was utterly quiet. None of the students jolted awake from their dreams tried to play hero. They stayed hidden inside, at most calling the police.

Western education taught people to ensure their own safety first. Staying alive came above all else.

Choosing to avoid thugs one couldn’t resist wasn’t cowardice. Sometimes, it was more worthy of praise. Meaningless sacrifice had little value; only by living could one contribute to society.

Even Old John, the gatekeeper, clung tightly to his Alaskan malamute.

Three figures fled through the darkness, with dozens of Yamaguchi-gumi ninjas behind them.

Matt ran wildly through the pain.

He had been shot.

Stick really was old. His reactions weren’t fast enough. If Matt hadn’t taken a bullet for him at the crucial moment, Stick would probably have become a cold corpse by now.

The light of justice shone in his heart, but the pain in his back and the strength continuously draining from his body dragged him back to reality.

The enemy was strong, and they were weak. There was no point facing them head-on. Finding a battlefield with complicated terrain and fighting guerrilla-style would be more advantageous.

Most importantly, there were many students in the dormitories.

The Yamaguchi-gumi clearly wouldn’t, and didn’t dare, carry out a massacre that would shock the entire country. That would enrage the public and force the police to come down hard on them. But stray bullets could still hurt innocent people. Just moments ago, Matt had heard several screams from the small grove nearby, along with… less miserable cries.

Matt didn’t want his classmates to get hurt.

They had to change battlefields.

The nearest gymnasium was the best choice.

Stick and Elektra were experienced, while Matt’s senses were exceptionally sharp.

He could even determine the direction and timing of the ninjas’ shots from the sounds of their bodies moving and blood flowing, allowing him to dodge in advance.

But when the bullets became too dense, there was simply no way to avoid them. His body, not strong enough, held back his senses.

Even if he reacted the instant a bullet left the barrel, he still couldn’t evade it.

The gymnasium was right before them.

Yet those few dozen meters seemed like an unreachable shore.

The flame of life might be extinguished in the next moment. Matt’s heart burned with a desire to live and a love for this bustling world. But if he could die together with his ex-girlfriend and teacher, at least he wouldn’t be alone. God has not treated me poorly.

Dozens of ninjas opened fire at once.

Working in perfect coordination, they wove their bullets into a net—a net that could not possibly be dodged.

Death’s scythe had already fallen.

A muffled groan. A scream.

Matt’s heart trembled.

Both Stick and Elektra had been shot. Matt himself was struck in the back by a bullet as well. Death was only moments away.

Suddenly.

A spherical object rolled over from the opposite side at incredible speed. As it passed them, it changed direction and came to Matt’s back.

"Take them and go first."

The sphere unfolded, becoming a slightly chubby figure, yet he stood like a mountain.

Old Wang held out his hand. A bullet fell from his palm with a crisp clink. "I’ll handle this!"