Listening to the woman and seeing the web once again wrapped around his hand, Meng Ran said coldly, "Very well, Ghost, this is the second time you've interrupted my judgment."
"I'm starting to lose my patience. If you keep pulling on my wrist, I can't guarantee I won't teach you a lesson."
"Otherwise, you might not understand what it means to mind your own business. I'll give you three seconds."
"Three!"
"Two!"
"It seems I don't even need to count one," Meng Ran said, looking at Ghost, who remained unmoved.
The next moment, Meng Ran suddenly vanished.
Ghost was startled. Before she could react, a warning flashed in her mind, which she called Ghost Warning (similar to Spider-Sense).
She instinctively crouched down, and at the same time, a whooshing sound came from above her head.
It was clear that if she hadn't ducked in time, that kick would have landed squarely on her head.
And judging by the force, it would have been enough to embed her in the wall, rendering her unconscious, even with her strong physique.
"Oh? Quite a good reaction, you've got something there."
Meng Ran looked at Ghost, who had easily dodged his kick, and let out a teasing compliment in his hoarse voice, making it sound incredibly strange.
Ghost looked at Meng Ran in front of her, listening to his peculiar tone, and a surge of anger rose within her.
She extended both hands and shot out several web lines, attempting to entangle Meng Ran.
Meng Ran would not let her have her way; it would be too comical if he couldn't dodge a direct shot.
He lightly leaped up, just barely avoiding the web lines.
While in the air, he pushed off the wall with both feet, accelerating as he lunged towards Ghost.
"Let's see what you're made of," Meng Ran said in a deep voice.
The two instantly became entangled in a fight. Meng Ran, of course, wasn't using his full strength. He could feel that Ghost's fighting style was very rusty, not yet forming her own rhythm, and she was only parrying Meng Ran's attacks by relying on her physical fitness and super-fast reaction ability.
"Alright, little Ghost, I don't have time to play with you anymore."
Ghost, who was struggling to parry the attacks, suddenly heard Meng Ran's hoarse voice.
Before she could react, Ghost felt a huge force strike her abdomen, and then she was slammed against the wall again.
The sharp pain in her abdomen made Ghost double over.
Leaning against the wall, she gasped for breath, only then realizing that Meng Ran hadn't been using his full strength earlier. She had originally thought she could fight him on even terms, but now it seemed she had been overthinking it.
Ghost struggled to stand up, leaning on the wall, and saw Meng Ran had already walked back to the robber.
The robber had fully regained consciousness and, seeing the two fighting, tried to take the opportunity to slip away quickly.
But just as he made a move, Meng Ran reappeared ghost-like in front of his face.
This scared him into sitting back down on the ground.
"Forget it, no need to waste time," Meng Ran said, looking down at the criminal by the wall, and once again, he extended his hand.
Ghost, leaning against the wall, once again shot out a web line.
"Whoosh!" The web still wrapped around Meng Ran's hand, but at the same time...
"Bang!" A gunshot rang out, and a bloody hole appeared in the robber's head. His panic and unease stopped at that moment.
"Unnamed robber!"
"The Evil Ghost judges your sins!"
Meng Ran said in a hoarse, cold voice. After speaking, he dipped his finger in the robber's blood and expertly drew an Evil Ghost graffiti on the wall.
It took a total of ten seconds for a vivid red Evil Ghost graffiti to appear on the wall.
If you ask why it was so fast, it's nothing but sheer practice!
Ghost looked at Meng Ran drawing on the wall, a bit bewildered. How could he not follow the script? Why was he using a handgun now?
Snap! It was too fast.
After finishing the drawing, Meng Ran abruptly pulled his right hand, and the stunned Ghost was pulled over by Meng Ran.
The pulled-over Ghost was instantly embraced by Meng Ran... just kidding!
A pair of large hands gripped Ghost's neck, pinning her against the wall.
Ghost struggled to pry Meng Ran's hands away.
Looking at Meng Ran's close face, those demon-like eyes, and his cold, evil aura, Ghost instantly experienced the same fear as the criminals.
Meng Ran looked at Ghost and said coldly, "Little Ghost, my patience with you is limited."
"If you want to fight crime, then go."
"If you don't like killing people and prefer to tie them up and take them to the police station, that's up to you."
"Do whatever you want, as long as you don't commit crimes, I'm too lazy to bother with you."
"But don't interfere with my judgment, understand?"
"I have my own path to walk. If you dare to get in my way again, I'll deal with you too."
With that, Meng Ran released his hands, and Ghost immediately dropped to the ground, leaning against the wall, gasping for breath and occasionally coughing.
Ghost clutched her neck and said, "Cough, cough, you won't, Mr. Evil Ghost."
Meng Ran, who was turning to leave, paused and asked, "What?"
Ghost gasped a few times and said, "I said you won't kill me, because I'm not a criminal, and I haven't done anything heinous. Mr. Evil Ghost, although he kills, also has his own principles."
Meng Ran heard this and sneered, "Hmph, you can try."
Then he vanished into the night.
Ghost leaned against the wall, taking deep breaths.
"I will try," she murmured softly.
Her brief encounter with Meng Ran made her realize that her strength was still insufficient. Although she had many abilities, she couldn't utilize them effectively yet, and she hadn't fully mastered them.
"Mr. Evil Ghost doesn't know me? That shouldn't be right, there's been quite a bit of news about me these past few days."
Ghost climbed to the top of a tall building and sat on the edge, pondering.
"Could he be an old man who never goes online?"
Ghost had just thought of a relatively reasonable explanation, then immediately shook her head.
"No, he even hacked Times Square before. It's impossible for him not to be online."
Ghost was at a loss, scratching her head, and incidentally took off her hood.
With the hood off, a delicate and beautiful face was revealed. Her long golden hair was neatly tied back for convenience, and a few playful strands were blown by the wind, falling near her sky-blue eyes.
She tucked her hair behind her ear with one hand, while with the other, she tapped the earphone she was wearing.
"Mary, what kind of person do you think he is?" The girl's sweet voice rang out. Compared to the maturity in her voice when wearing the mask, this slightly tender tone now matched her face.
A similarly pleasant female voice, tinged with a slight scolding, came from the earphone: "Gwen! How many times have I told you to call me by my codename at times like this!"
It turned out that Ghost Spider was Gwen, and Mary Jane knew about it and was providing her with some technical support.
Gwen quickly lowered the volume and appeased her, "Alright, alright, I'm sorry. Red Rose, Red Rose, I remember."
"You just called me by my name too," Gwen pouted.
Mary Jane in the earphone was momentarily speechless: "Uh."
"I was just mad at you! Hmph!"
Gwen chuckled teasingly, "Yes! Red Rose!"
Mary Jane huffed, "Hmph, good that you know, Ghost. We're a professional team."
Then Mary Jane said with lingering fear, "But that Evil Ghost is really a bit scary! I got goosebumps just watching him through the screen."
Gwen comforted her, "Mr. Evil Ghost does that on purpose. He just wants to intimidate the criminals."
"Didn't you see how he was before we showed up? He was even scarier then."
"But after we appeared, didn't he go back to normal?"
Mary Jane added, "You mentioning it just reminded me, that mouth is really terrifying!"
"I might have insomnia tonight. Why don't you come stay with me?"
Gwen said exasperatedly, "That joke isn't funny at all. Don't you know I sneak out at night?"
"I still have to go back and catch up on sleep later."
"Hiss~"
As Gwen was speaking and about to stand up, she accidentally aggravated the injury on her stomach, and immediately gasped in pain.
Actually, Meng Ran had held back a lot of force. This punch would only hurt for a few days, and when he fought Ghost, he also realized that her physical fitness was not that of an ordinary person.
Hearing Gwen's cry of pain, Mary Jane couldn't help but say with concern, "How's your injury?"
Then, thinking of the Evil Ghost who had struck her, Mary Jane cursed, "That damn Evil Ghost, to hit you so hard. You're not a criminal."
Gwen rubbed her stomach and said, "Phew~, it's nothing. Compared to those criminals, this is actually a very light injury. I'll be fine after two days of rest."
After speaking, Gwen stood up and put on her mask.
Talking to Mary Jane, she swung home using her webs.
At the same time, Meng Ran had dealt with several petty thieves, all of whom were stealing things or cars.
After teaching them a lesson, Meng Ran had Xiao Bai record their information.
If these people were incorrigible and he caught them again...
Twice, broken legs; three times, meet God.
He would even give them some medical expenses for their broken legs, what's called a combination of kindness and severity (tactical lean back).
Thanks to Meng Ran's swift actions, the crime rate in this area had dropped significantly.
After working for most of the day, it was time for Meng Ran to head home.
However, Meng Ran didn't know why, but he felt a bit restless on his way home.
Lying in bed at home, Meng Ran thought for a long time but couldn't figure out the reason.
Unable to figure it out, he simply stopped thinking. Meng Ran meditated for a while, then pulled up the covers and fell into a deep sleep.
On the other side, Gwen was gasping as she bandaged herself.
"Meng Ran said this Yunnan Baiyao works very well. I hope it helps me recover quickly."
After bandaging herself, Gwen also pulled up the covers and went to sleep, though the pain made her pretty brows furrow occasionally even in her dreams.