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*****
"Woo-hoo!"
Luke let out an excited roar as he steered his hoverboard, weaving through the gaps of the spraying flames. The policeman he was carrying, however, had a face that turned pale—and then dark—amidst the howling winds.
This was simply too dangerous! Just a moment ago, a ball of explosive fire had practically grazed his cheek. He looked over at his colleague, who had been rescued by another streak of light, and seeing the same terrified expression on the other man's face made him feel significantly better.
For this operation, the three of them were only supposed to make contact with a suspect. Who could have guessed that the moment the suspect caught wind of anything suspicious, his reaction would be so violent? He had essentially "combusted" on the spot. If not for these local superheroes who were active in the city, they would have been blown to pieces by now.
The male officer glanced at the target still spewing fire in the distance and couldn't help but curse under his breath. These days, being a cop was getting harder and harder.
Luke dropped the officer off in a safe zone and, alongside Harry, pulled a sharp U-turn to dive back into the fray.
Meanwhile, Gwen was already locked in combat with the enemy. She hadn't transformed; she was fighting solely with her Spider-powers. Although the Spirit of Vengeance within her was starting to stir restlessly, she suppressed it. That was her trump card, and the enemy before her didn't yet deserve its attention.
The flames Wollaton unleashed weren't just scorching hot; they exploded upon contact with any object, carrying a destructive force far greater than ordinary fire.
Watching Gwen charge toward him, Wollaton—who had dubbed himself "Explosive Fire" after his transformation—let out a sneer. He swung his arms, spraying irregular bursts of flame to saturate the space in front of him.
"Die, superhero! I am invincible now!"
The temporary superpowers granted by the Power Pill had given him the intoxicating delusion that he was the ruler of the world. With this kind of strength, he felt he could even take down Mike Kent. The sudden surge of power had filled him with absolute, unbridled confidence.
However, his expression stiffened when he saw Gwen. She was weaving through the fire like a ghost, her movements so fluid and erratic that she was closing the distance at an alarming rate.
What is this?! How can anyone dodge through fire that dense?! He screamed inwardly in disbelief before letting out a guttural roar. He swung his hands again, unleashing a massive wave of fire that completely blocked the path in front of her.
"Let's see you dodge this!" he hissed, already imagining Gwen being charred to a crisp.
But Gwen suddenly vaulted into the air. She shot a strand of webbing onto a passing hoverboard, using the momentum to swing upward and clear the wall of flames.
Boom! Boom!
The fire slammed into the ground and the surrounding walls, resulting in a series of violent explosions. Just as the smoke cleared, a low chuckle echoed from right above Wollaton's head. Infuriated, Wollaton fired several more bursts of flame at the silhouettes of Gwen and Harry above him.
Harry dodged with ease, while Gwen's eyes flickered behind her mask. Releasing her web, she plummeted from mid-air, landing right next to Wollaton.
"Hey!"
With a short shout, Gwen testily fired two strands of webbing. However, the moment they touched Wollaton's body, they were instantly incinerated into ash.
"I figured as much," Gwen muttered. She fired two more strands from her wrist-mounted launchers, sticking them to the ground. Using them as a tether, she pulled hard, sliding low across the pavement to dodge a horizontal sweep of fire before popping up directly behind Wollaton.
Wollaton spun around, ready to spray more fire, but Luke came diving down on his glider. A blast of fire erupted from the glider's thrusters, aiming straight for Wollaton's face.
"Hey! Have a taste of this!"
The corners of Luke's mouth curled up beneath his mask. Since the opponent wasn't a Mutant, his specific neutralization abilities weren't effective, so he resorted to raw distraction.
Though he wasn't injured by the flames to the face, Wollaton's rage intensified, and the fire cloaking his body surged even higher. Seeing this, Luke quickly banked away.
Just as Wollaton was about to renew his attack, another red-and-blue figure came running toward him, dragging a heavy-duty fire hose.
"Target: The Torch!" Gwen shouted.
Peter gave a mock salute and aimed the "cannon" nozzle at Wollaton. Before the villain could react, Peter twisted the valve open. A crystalline column of high-pressure water erupted, drenching Wollaton from head to toe.
"Aaaagh!"
Wollaton screamed, clutching his head as the sheer force of the water pushed him back. The flames covering him began to extinguish rapidly.
"Wow, look at him! I think he loves it!" Peter shouted, holding the hose steady with ease.
"Then let's give him the full treatment! Give him his fill!" Gwen said with a faint smile.
Suddenly, her eyes narrowed, and she yelled, "Stop him! He's trying to take more pills!"
Hearing this, Luke and Harry dove in immediately. But they were a second too late.
Wollaton let out an angry, desperate howl and shoved several Power Pills into his mouth at once. In the next instant, the flames that had been doused by the water erupted with renewed, terrifying vigor.
"Die, all of you!" Wollaton roared.
Clack!
A small, inconspicuous metallic sound rang out—the sound of a small metal ball hitting the pavement. Wollaton felt a sudden chill of dread and looked down.
A metal ball?
Just as the question formed in his mind, the orb exploded. There were no flames; instead, a thick cloud of white gas spread rapidly, instantly flash-freezing the water on the ground into solid ice.
"No!"
Wollaton screamed as white frost crept up his limbs. As his flames were smothered again, the high-pressure water stream still hitting him froze into layers of ice, sealing him within a block of solid permafrost.
Seeing the villain neutralized, the team let out a sigh of relief. Peter shut off the valve and tossed the hose aside.
"Nice work!" Luke praised. Harry raised his eyebrows proudly.
"Nice work, my foot!" Gwen snapped. "If you freeze him like this, will he even survive? His ability only lasts five minutes! Once those five minutes are up, he's just a regular human!"
In the end, she would be the one tasked with the "defrosting" process. Harry's proud expression vanished instantly, and he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
Just as Gwen walked toward the frozen Wollaton, Peter noticed a spark of fire appearing deep within the ice sculpture. It was expanding at an incredible rate.
"Gwen! Get back!"
He roared, lunging toward her. Gwen's spider-sense also flared with a warning, and she leaped backward with all her might.
The next second—BOOM!
With a violent explosion, the ice sculpture shattered. A ball of flame that seemed to have been compressed to its limit detonated. The air vibrated as a shockwave of fire swept in all directions.
Amidst the continuous series of explosions, the frozen Wollaton was reduced to a pile of ash.
Watching this, Gwen and the others wore grim expressions. All that work for nothing.
Luke's eyes flickered as he said, "He took too many pills and couldn't control the power." He patted Harry on the shoulder. "It wasn't your fault."
Harry gritted his teeth. "If I had told you guys about this earlier, maybe..."
"There are no 'maybe's," Gwen said, pursing her lips. "Even if you told us earlier, we would have had a conflict once we found him. And as long as there's a fight, we can't guarantee he wouldn't swallow a handful of pills. So... don't overthink it."
Harry let out a frustrated shout and sped off on his glider.
"I'll go check on him!" Luke said, chasing after him.
Peter sifted through the pile of ash. Finding nothing useful, he looked at Gwen with disappointment. "No evidence left."
"It would be strange if there were..." Gwen muttered. She turned her gaze toward the three undercover officers. "Maybe they have some information they can give us."
Peter paused, then walked over to the officers with Gwen.
Under the cover of night, Gwen climbed through her window and back into her room. Taking off her mask, she couldn't hide the exhaustion on her face. It wasn't physical fatigue; it was mental.
The situation with the Power Pills was proving to be much more difficult than she had imagined. After a whole night of work, they hadn't found any further leads; in fact, the current lead had literally gone up in smoke. Thinking of Wollaton being reduced to ash, she felt a pang of guilt.
Just then, a knock sounded at her door.
Gwen tossed her mask aside, quickly changed out of her suit, and rushed to open the door.
"Dad."
Gwen greeted Mike in a low voice. Mike reached out and patted her head. "Hungry?"
With a flick of his wrist, a plate of snacks appeared in his hand.
"Thanks, Dad." This late-night care made Gwen feel a surge of warmth.
Mike walked into Gwen's room with the snacks and placed them on her desk. He turned to her and asked, "What's wrong? What happened?"
Gwen's emotions were impossible to hide from him. She took a bite of a fragrant green bean cake and slowly recounted the events of the night. She told him about the Power Pills and what had happened to Wollaton.
Mike's expression remained unchanged as he smiled. "That doesn't count as a major event."
Gwen looked at him helplessly. Yes, in her father's eyes, this really wasn't that big of a deal.
"In your eyes, Dad, what does count as a major event?" Gwen couldn't help but ask.
Mike smiled faintly, pinched her nose, and said softly, "You kids, of course."
Gwen rolled her eyes. "Truly a predictable answer." But it still made her feel warm inside.
Then, Mike added, "Power Pills... now that is an interesting concept."
Be a Superman for five minutes or die. If this thing were to spread, the rate of superpowered crime would skyrocket, and the superheroes would be kept very busy.
Mike rubbed his chin and smiled at Gwen. "I believe you all can handle it."
"Of course we can!" Gwen shouted, pumping her fist, but then she deflated like a popped balloon. "But the lead is gone now."
"The lead is gone?" Mike looked surprised. "How can you say it's gone?"
"Huh?"
"Haven't you already identified one of the dealers? Even if he self-destructed, he still left behind a life, a history, and social connections in this world. Through those, you might find more clues."
Gwen's eyes lit up. "Oh, right!" She stuck out her tongue sheepishly. "His self-destruction tonight made my brain stall. I'm only realizing it now."
"Only realizing it now?" Mike looked at her suspiciously.
Gwen huffed in embarrassment. "What's with that look?"
"The look I give a little dummy?"
"Aaaagh!" Gwen yelled in frustration, pushing Mike toward the door. "Out! Get out! You're so annoying!"
"Hahaha!" Mike laughed heartily. After stepping out, he helpfully closed the door for her.
Inside the room, Gwen happily kicked off her shoes and lay on her bed with the snacks, contacting her teammates. Tomorrow was Saturday, no school, which meant they could handle this. She wanted to settle it as soon as possible.
Outside the door, Mike heard the movement inside, shook his head with a smile, and went back to his bedroom.
The next day.
Gwen yawned, heading downstairs with a mess of messy hair. Although she hadn't slept much, her spirit was high.
Suddenly, her gaze turned cold, and a flickering blue flame appeared in her hand. "Lamb, do you have a death wish?"
"No! I didn't do anything!" Little Lamb shouted, running downstairs, though his phone screen was still glowing with a white light.
"Humph!" Gwen snorted. She touched her hair, hesitated for a moment, and then walked into the bathroom. She decided to tidy herself up before eating. Little Lamb was too much—always trying to catch embarrassing footage of her to use for blackmail.
In the kitchen, Mike's low voice could be heard.
"Right, grab it and give it a gentle squeeze."
"Okay, like this?" Oren's voice sounded a bit nervous.
"Yes, be a bit bolder. Give it a good pull."
"It... it broke!"
"It's fine. It'll still work once you put it together!"
"That's great!"
"Next, put it in here."
"Got it!"
A few seconds later...
"Look at that. Hasn't it become bigger, longer, and harder?"
"It's amazing!"
Oren, making youtiao for the first time, used chopsticks to flip the dough sticks in the oil vat, his face filled with a happy smile. This period of time had been the happiest and most relaxed he had felt in the past two years. A leisurely life, eating delicious food, visiting places he had never been before, and learning new things. Oren loved this life.
After all, he was only nineteen—an age where one wants to try everything. It was just that his world had never given him such an opportunity.
"Alright, watch it. Once it's fried golden brown, you can take it out."
"Okay!" Oren replied, staring intently at the youtiao tumbling in the oil. Mike suspected he had even activated his Super Vision.
"Clark used to love these when he was little."
Hearing Mike's words, Oren suddenly thought of his father. His heart felt a bit heavy, but he became even more focused.
Mike paused for a moment and whispered to himself, "Just as long as you don't burn a hole through the pot."
A few minutes later, under Oren's strict supervision, the tempting, golden-brown youtiao were ready. Oren took a long breath, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and flashed a smile at Mike.
Mike's eyelids twitched slightly, but he gave Oren a big thumbs-up. At that, Oren's smile grew even wider.
(End of Chapter)