Chapter 228: Helping You Awaken the Shadow Corps
After two days of long-distance travel, the Parker family finally drove into Los Angeles. Ben Parker had booked a hotel well in advance.
"We're finally here. My old back is killing me," Ben Parker said, rubbing his lower back. Sitting in the driver's seat all day had left him feeling like his spine was about to snap.
"Get to the hotel and have a good rest." Aunt May reached out and gently massaged Ben's back.
Ben led the family to the hotel front desk, provided his information, and checked them in.
"Let's go, Peter. Stop looking around." Silas led Peter toward their room. Ben had booked a suite, which was just large enough for the whole family.
"Finally, a bed." Silas collapsed onto the mattress the moment he entered the room. He decided he was going to spend the entire afternoon sleeping.
Peter, however, couldn't sit still. As soon as he dropped his backpack, he pulled out his Spider-Man suit and slipped out.
"Woo-hoo!" Peter used his webs to swing through the city of Los Angeles. He had never been here before.
"Hello, Los Angeles! Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is here!" Peter shouted with high energy mid-air. Even though he was quite far from his actual neighborhood, he figured he could still count as a neighbor.
Hell's Kitchen: Shadow Boxing Arena
"Boss, they're here again." A lackey stood trembling before Kezli. To Kezli's left lay the remains of a gambler who had been dismembered.
Kezli wiped his hands with a handkerchief and said, "It's just Kingpin. What's there to fear? If he dares to show up, I'll make sure he never leaves."
"But he's the Emperor of the Underworld. If..." Before the subordinate could finish, a Squid Ninja's tentacle pierced through his chest.
"I told you not to be afraid. Now you can calm down." Kezli stood up and walked out.
His conquest of the local gangs had alerted Wilson Fisk, the Kingpin. Kingpin could not tolerate anyone running an independent gray industry on his turf without his permission. He had sent men to warn Kezli, and Kezli had simply ordered his ninjas to kill them.
With the Shadow Corps at his back, Kezli truly didn't fear the Underworld Emperor. In fact, he wanted a shot at the title himself.
"Boss." A group of armed gang members shouted respectfully as Kezli appeared.
Kezli nodded slightly and looked at Kingpin's representatives. "Where is that coward Fisk? Why hasn't he shown himself?"
One of Kingpin's men pulled out a laptop, opened it on a table, and turned the screen toward Kezli. The screen lit up, revealing Kingpin's face.
"Hahaha! This is the Emperor of the Underworld? A piece of trash who's too afraid to even meet in person?" Kezli mocked immediately.
"Shut up, you piece of filth! Or I'll have you thrown into the ocean to feed the fish," Kingpin roared, his face darkened with rage. He was a cautious man who avoided traps; video chat was the safest method.
"Heh, then come and try to throw me in," Kezli said with a punchable smirk. He wished Kingpin were right there in front of him.
"F***!" Kingpin slammed his desk. "I have never seen anyone dare to touch my territory. You are the first, kid."
"Sorry, but today you've seen it." Kezli kept his smiling face. If he knew Kingpin's location, he could kill him in minutes.
"Very well. You like running a gambling arena? Let's see if you can keep it open," Kingpin threatened. With a word from him, no one would dare gamble at the Shadow Arena. This was, after all, Kingpin's city.
"You can try. I only have this one arena, but you have many businesses." Kezli wasn't short on money anymore. He didn't fear Kingpin's threats; in fact, he intended to start dismantling Kingpin's assets.
"No one! No one speaks to me like that! You're good, you little brat! Don't think that just because you got some extraordinary power from somewhere, you can act big in front of me. I was killing people before you were even weaned!" Kingpin swept everything off his desk in a rage. He pointed at the camera. "I will make you wish you were dead."
"Wish I were dead? Stop yapping on the internet. If you have the guts, let's settle this in person." Kezli didn't know how Kingpin became the Emperor of the Underworld; being insulted like this, the man still wouldn't show his face.
"Hahaha!" Kingpin suddenly burst into laughter.
"What's so funny?" Kezli asked.
After laughing for a moment, Kingpin said, "Don't regret this."
Crack! The screen went to static. Kingpin had punched the camera.
"Tch! Let's see what you can do." Kezli was also angry. His ninjas leaped up and killed Kingpin's remaining henchmen. If he couldn't kill Kingpin yet, he'd vent his anger on the lackeys.
"Boss, what do we do? Kingpin is..." The gang members were clearly terrified. The name Kingpin wasn't just for show.
"You're afraid of a coward?" Kezli sneered, putting his arm around a blonde woman and walking into his room. The remaining gang members looked at each other. Kezli wasn't afraid, but that didn't mean they weren't. If not for those elusive Shadow Ninjas, they would have rebelled and handed Kezli over to Kingpin to beg for forgiveness.
Matthew's Home
"A mask?" Jenny was enjoying her cartoons when her back suddenly felt itchy. She reached back and pulled, and a mask appeared in her hand.
As she looked at the mask, a flood of memories rushed into her mind. After a long time, she opened her eyes.
"Shadow General... I see." Jenny finally understood why Kezli had invited her. They were meant to be on the same side. "But I'm sorry, the Shadow General needs a replacement." Jenny couldn't stand Kezli, and the feeling was mutual. There was no chance for reconciliation.
"What is a Shadow General?" Although Jenny's voice was tiny, it didn't escape Matthew's ears. He walked out of the kitchen with food.
"I am the Shadow General." Jenny told Matthew what she currently knew. However, she kept the "dark side" of the Shadow Generals as her own little secret.
"So that's how it is. Doesn't that make Kezli invincible? If he's in danger, he can just hide in the Shadow Kingdom?" Matthew felt the situation was becoming difficult.
Jenny shook her head. "Don't worry, Uncle Matthew. I can enter the Shadow Kingdom too."
"Then pull me in with you when the time comes." Matthew didn't want Jenny facing Kezli alone.
"I can't, Uncle Matthew. If you stay in the Shadow Kingdom too long, you'll be assimilated into the Shadow Corps." Jenny refused. Except for the Generals, anyone entering the Shadow Kingdom would be corrupted by dark energy, no matter how righteous they were.
"But it's dangerous. Even if you're both Generals, Kezli is an adult." Matthew stated his biggest concern.
"It's okay. We can find allies," Jenny smiled.
"Allies?" Matthew was confused. Did they know another General?
Jenny giggled. She remembered that at the police station, Lieutenant John's black tattoo had been exposed when he was pinned down. That was a mark exclusive to Shadow Generals. "Uncle Matthew, do you remember Lieutenant John from the station? The one with the strong sense of justice?"
Matthew thought of the officer. "Is he a Shadow General too?"
"Yes. He might not be skilled yet, but he is definitely a General." Jenny remembered how John had been manhandled by the Squid Ninjas. The fact that he hadn't called his own army meant he hadn't fully awakened yet.
"But he didn't look like a General."
"He hasn't mastered his power. I have to find him and help him summon his army as soon as possible," Jenny said.
Matthew nodded. "When do we look for him?"
"Right now." Jenny didn't want to wait. If Kezli fully assimilated his power first, they would be the ones destroyed.
Police Precinct Substation
Because the main headquarters had collapsed, everyone was working out of this substation. Desks meant for one person were now shared by five. Even the Lieutenant's private office was packed with ten people.
"It's too crowded," Mike said, sitting next to John.
"Nothing we can do. Headquarters is still being rebuilt. We have to endure," John replied, feeling equally cramped. Mike was a bit better off; as a senior Lieutenant, he had slightly more space.
"I heard that scoundrel Kezli opened a boxing arena," John said, amazed by Kezli's audacity.
"Don't worry. The Commissioner is deploying a plan right now. We'll be moving in to arrest him soon. Just wait," Mike sighed. He had never seen a criminal so brazen; even Kingpin didn't put himself in the spotlight like this.
Knock, knock, knock! An officer squeezed through the crowd and came up to John. "Lieutenant John... someone is outside looking for you."
"For me?" John was surprised. Who could it be?
"Let's go, John. I'll come with you. I need to stretch anyway," Mike said. He usually liked office work, but right now he was desperate to get out. John nodded and led Mike out.
Police Station Entrance
"What? A little girl?" Mike's eyes widened. What could a little girl want with them? "Little girl, if you want the police to catch some boys who bullied you, I'm sorry, we're very busy. Go find your parents." Mike prepared to dismiss her, thinking it was a waste of time—especially since she was wearing an Iron Man mask.
John stood by silently. This girl looked exactly like the one from the station—also wearing an Iron Man mask.
"Lieutenant John, can you summon the Shadow Corps yet?" Jenny asked in her childish voice.
"What Shadow Corps... You know about the Shadow Corps!" Mike was stunned.
John also turned serious. This was the girl who had summoned monsters to fight Kezli that night. "Do you know how to summon them?" John desperately wanted to know; it was the only way to defeat Kezli.
"I know. Come with me, Lieutenant John." Jenny walked into an alley next to the station and dove into the Shadow Kingdom.
"Wait, John! Are you sure about this?" Mike grabbed John. What if it was a trap?
"Don't worry. Trust me." If not for this girl, Kezli would have strangled John to death. John followed Jenny into the shadow, and Mike, gritting his teeth, pulled out his weapon and followed.
Another Part of Hell's Kitchen
"We're on the East Side?" Mike was shocked as they stepped out of the shadow. Was this the teleportation ability John had mentioned?
"You really are a Shadow General," John said, looking at the girl.
"We are on the same side. Kezli is our common enemy," Jenny said as her opening statement.
"I agree with that," John said.
Clap, clap! Jenny clapped her hands, and Daredevil Matthew leaped out from the side.
"Daredevil!" Mike hadn't expected him to be here too.
"Our common enemy is Kezli," Matthew said.
"I can already see Kezli crying for mercy," Mike laughed. Four of them, plus his special weapon—they could do this.
"Don't celebrate too early, Lieutenant Mike. Kezli is dangerous. He's almost finished merging with his General's power," Jenny said.
"Merging with a General?" Mike was confused; John hadn't mentioned this. Matthew wasn't surprised; Jenny had explained it to him already.
"Doesn't that mean he's about to become a true Shadow General?" John was shocked. If that were the case, the four of them wouldn't even be enough to fill the gaps between Kezli's teeth.
"So we must stop him early. But before that, you must activate your Shadow Corps," Jenny told John.
John pleaded in frustration, "Please, help me. No matter how hard I try, I just can't summon them." He had given it his all.
"No! You haven't tried hard enough." Jenny gave a slight cough.
Matthew immediately received the signal. He actually pulled out a pistol and aimed it at John.
Bang!
John's eyes widened. He rolled desperately to the side, barely dodging the bullet.
"What are you doing!" Mike shouted, horrified that they were shooting at them.
"Almost there, but..." Jenny's lips curled into a smirk.
Boom! The Shadow-Eater Ninja Little Five erupted from the shadows, opening its abyssal maw, making a move to swallow Lieutenant John whole.
John had his back against a wall, and his sides were blocked by other Shadow-Eaters. He had nowhere to run!
"John!" Mike anxiously reached for his weapon, but Matthew's blind cane hooked it away.
Matthew weighed the weapon in his hand and smiled. "Leave this to me for a moment, Captain Mike."
"No! Aren't we on the same team!" Mike cried out, but it was too late.
Little Five's giant fangs were right in front of John's face.
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