Chapter 109: Parker
Author: Yue Shang Xintou
"Dark Avengers, Collin Roper?"
"It seems you've been hiding something important from me..."
Noticing the reaction of the Thunderbolts members, the Green Goblin turned his grotesque mask, sized up Colin, and let out a low chuckle.
"So, your target this time is Spider-Man?"
Seeing Colin appear, Crossbones instinctively linked it to the actions of The Resistants.
"Us?"
However, facing Crossbones' question, Colin explained in a deadpan tone, "No, not us. Just me. This is purely my own personal operation, and it has nothing to do with the Avengers."
"A personal operation?"
Hearing Colin's reply, a cold sneer appeared on Crossbones' scarred, hideous face beneath his mask. He raised his pistol, aimed it at him, and pulled the trigger without hesitation. "You think I'd believe such a clumsy lie?"
"I'm clearly telling the truth, why does no one believe me?"
Sighing silently to himself, Colin suddenly ducked down, evading the bullet.
His legs tensed. Under the effect of [Super Strength], the hospital roof fractured into a web of fine cracks. His entire body, propelled by this immense power, shot forward like a cannonball, his fist flying toward Crossbones.
"What?!"
Seeing Colin's explosive charge, the expression under Crossbones' mask changed abruptly.
He had no time to dodge and could only raise his muscular, sturdy arm, trying to block the punch.
Boom!
However, in the next second.
Under the impact of [Super Strength], Crossbones' stout body held for less than half a second before he was sent flying. Accompanied by a series of shattering bones, he slammed hard into the rooftop's guardrail, cracking the wall and sending large chunks of it breaking away.
[Contact with a Twisted Time Node. A small amount of Time Shards ×2 collected.]
"Cough, cough..."
Crossbones spat out a mouthful of blood under his mask, his face contorting in a ferocious expression as he assessed the condition of his arm.
He hadn't expected Colin to neutralize him with a single blow.
His gaze swept over the faintly visible text before him. With his [Super Hearing] constantly active, he detected an anomaly to his side. Colin turned and subconsciously used his [Super X-Ray Vision]. In his sight, a spectral figure appeared. The special supersuit the figure wore constantly shifted the surrounding environment, allowing it to blend seamlessly into the air.
But Colin's [Super X-Ray Vision] pierced through the suit's Invisibility, seeing the flesh and bone underneath.
He sidestepped, dodging the figure's sneak attack.
With his X-ray Vision, Colin could clearly see the shocked expression on the face beneath the mask.
However, before the figure could express their surprise.
Colin swung his fist and landed a heavy blow.
The punch tore through the air with a violent whoosh, striking the Ghost's body.
In mid-air, the supersuit on the Ghost flickered in and out of existence, seemingly trying to mitigate the damage from the punch.
Bang!
In the end, it still couldn't completely negate the force of the impact. The figure crashed to the ground, revealing the full appearance of a grayish-white supersuit, and lay motionless, neutralized.
[Contact with a Twisted Time Node. A small amount of Time Shards ×1 collected.]
[Time Shard (Ghost)] ×1
Ghost?
His eyes lingered for a moment on the prompt after [Time Shard].
A power that allowed one to disappear and phase through objects at will was indeed quite similar to a ghost. What a pity. The person using the power was too fragile and couldn't unleash the full potential of this supersuit at all.
The thought flashed through his mind.
But Colin's actions didn't hesitate in the slightest. He took advantage of the two injured Thunderbolts members being unable to fight back.
He spun and lunged forward, reaching Spider-Man in just a few steps.
He reached out and effortlessly grabbed the fallen Spider-Man from the ground. The moment his palm made contact, text immediately appeared before his eyes.
[Contact with a Twisted Time Node. A small amount of Time Shards ×4 collected.]
[Time Shard (May Parker)] ×4
May Parker? Aunt May!
The prompt caused Colin's expression to freeze, and even his grip on Spider-Man paused.
He had considered all sorts of possibilities for Spider-Man in the Anti-World, but he had never expected this.
In this world, the one who became Spider-Man wasn't Peter Parker, but May Parker.
Although it was still a Parker, the difference between them was night and day.
No wonder this Spider-Man had been avoiding the media's cameras and acting so taciturn ever since appearing.
"Hahaha, an opening!"
Seeing Colin's movements pause, although he didn't know why he had suddenly become dazed, the Green Goblin certainly wasn't going to miss such an opportunity. He took out one of his Pumpkin Bombs and hurled it viciously in his direction.
Just as the bomb was about to hit its target and cause a massive explosion, a smirk unconsciously formed on the Green Goblin's lips beneath his grotesque mask.
But just then.
Colin, who had been dazed by Spider-Man's identity, extended his other arm and accurately snatched the Pumpkin Bomb thrown by the Green Goblin out of the air.
"What?!"
Seeing Colin catch the bomb, the expression under the Green Goblin's mask froze.
Boom!
Immediately after, a violent explosion erupted from the Pumpkin Bomb in his hand. The scorching flames and the blast wave instantly engulfed Colin.
The flames burned intensely, leaving black smoke and a huge crater on the rooftop. Even Songbird, who wasn't far away, could feel the shockwave from the explosion.
However, as the explosion dissipated, what was revealed from within the flames was Colin, completely unscathed.
Aside from his clothes being torn to shreds by the blast, there wasn't a single injury on his body. Even the Spider-Man he held in his arm—May Parker—was perfectly protected, completely unaffected by the impact.
Maybe I should consider designing a power for Superman that can protect his clothes? Or maybe I should just perfect the Bio-Field concept. I can't be fighting naked after every battle, can I? It's bad for the image.
A thought flashed through Colin's mind as he looked at himself, dressed in tatters with hardly any intact clothes. He then glanced at the equipment worn by the Green Goblin and the Thunderbolts members before him, then back at his own current state.
Anyone who didn't know better would think he was the one who had been beaten to a pulp.
Yet, he had clearly maintained the advantage throughout the entire fight.
(end of chapter)