Pressure.At this point, it wasn't about whether Lin Yi was afraid or not. Under the relentless, lightning-fast barrage of attacks, the three-second interval of true damage stabbing through the Rhino Man's body became downright unbearable. Every bit of his fury was extinguished by Lin Yi's precise and merciless strikes.
"Ah! Ahhh!!! Stop! Please! No more! AHHHHH!"
At first, the Rhino Man still tried to counterattack with a few heavy blows. But as Lin Yi's punches grew faster and faster—his Guinsoo's Rageblade stacks piling up—the Rhino Man finally broke. He withdrew his arms, each thicker than Lin Yi's torso, and focused entirely on defense. He no longer dared to provoke the searing agony that came with Lin Yi's true damage every three seconds.
It was torture—pure torture. The kind that drove you mad. Knowing your opponent's damage was low enough that you could crush him in one hit, but being unable to land any hit at all—that frustration was soul-destroying!
And then, right before Spider-Gwen, an unbelievable scene unfolded—something that shattered all common sense.
Lin Yi—a boy who looked about her age—was actually pinning a two-meter-tall, muscle-bound Rhino Man to the ground and pummeling him senseless!
Wait… what? What am I even seeing?
Gwen's mind blanked. Was she dreaming? She wanted to slap herself just to make sure she wasn't hallucinating.
And in the end—yes, it actually happened—Lin Yi beat the Rhino Man until he cried.
The mighty Rhino Man, curled up on the ground like a scolded child, had nothing left. He couldn't fight back. Couldn't resist. Couldn't even lift his head. The humiliation was beyond anything he'd ever imagined.
He had been insulted by a kid—called a half-beast freak—and when he'd tried to take revenge, that same "kid" had pinned him down and used him as a punching bag! It was absurd. It was degrading. It was… utterly humiliating!
The Rhino Man wasn't afraid of death. He'd stared death in the face countless times without flinching. But this—being beaten into submission by a child while lying helpless on the ground—was worse than dying. His dignity, his pride, his entire spirit had been crushed.
Damn it! To get beaten like this, by a kid, while I can't even fight back… what's the point of living anymore?!
Task Completed!Defeat the Rhino Man (Completed)!
Reward:Rhino Charge!→ Dash forward! Charge up to deal 15%–35% of the target's total health as physical damage to enemies within two meters in the selected direction—with unstoppable force!
"Woohoo!"
Lin Yi threw one last, heavy punch—right across the Rhino Man's face—and even hit a weak point!
Thwack!
That final blow did it. The Rhino Man's eyes rolled back as he slumped into unconsciousness. Lin Yi quickly tallied it up—seventy-six weak-point hits in total! Counting all the other punches that dealt normal damage, he estimated that the Rhino Man had less than 20% of his health remaining before that knockout blow.
And judging by the pattern, if he pushed any opponent below 20% health, he could deliver a stunning, incapacitating strike that would finish the fight instantly.
Not bad, Lin Yi thought. Not bad at all. I'm not completely useless after all!
And that wasn't all. His passive ability—"Sixteen-Year-Old Reflexes"—was insanely powerful. Each weak-point strike gave him a speed boost and restored his stamina! As long as he kept his rhythm right, he could literally fight forever without tiring.
At this rate, even facing the Hulk, Lin Yi felt he could hold his own.
When it was over, Lin Yi had officially soloed the Rhino Man.His "Young King" achievement now displayed Elite (1/10,000).
Still, Lin Yi couldn't help but mutter in disbelief:
"Wait… the Rhino Man only counts as an elite monster? He's one of Spider-Man's villains! And that's all?!"
He sighed.
"Ah well, I guess it makes sense. He was kinda easy to beat."
After knocking out the Rhino Man, Lin Yi stepped off the body and strolled toward Spider-Gwen, smiling and waving casually.
"So? Do you believe me now?""Told you—no need to worry about me. This was just a warm-up."
Gwen just stared at him, speechless.
They left the cleanup to the American police and climbed up to a quiet rooftop. The wind was cool.
"So," Gwen finally asked, "you're saying… you're not from this world?"
"That's right~" Lin Yi replied without hesitation.
He saw no reason to hide it. In a world full of superheroes, who didn't have some strange background? And if anyone tried to mess with him, he had plenty of ways to make them regret it.
"In my world," Lin Yi continued, "you're actually a comic book character—and not just that. You're in movies too. Though, sorry to say, not your own movie. You're more of a side character in Miles's story."
"Miles? Who's that?" Gwen tilted her head, confused.
"Hm~ a Black kid. Pretty cool guy. In the comics and movies, you end up falling for him because of his charm and personality. Then you both go through a bunch of adventures together."
"Really? What does he look like?"
"Uh… Afro. Dark skin."
A long silence followed. The wind was the only sound between them.
"You do realize most Black people look like that, right?"
"I mean, yeah, but that's literally all I remember! When I watch movies, I focus on the plot and special effects. Who stares at the protagonist's face the whole time?" Lin Yi said with a shrug.
Gwen rolled her eyes.
"Fine. Then you must know my real name too, right?"
"Of course! Gwen Stacy. Your dad's a cop, and your best friends are Peter Parker and Harry Osborn."
"You even know that much detail?"
"Not really that hard. Family, friends—it's all standard comic backstory."
"Then… what are my hobbies?"
"Music and rock. You're in a school band called The Mary Janes, and you're the drummer."
Gwen's eyes lit up.
"Wow, that's spot on! What about my favorite food?"
"Uh, the comics didn't say. But I do know this—your friend Peter Parker eventually injects himself with a weird serum to stop being bullied, turns into a giant Lizard Man, and dies from an overdose."
"WHAT?!" Gwen jumped up in shock. "That actually happens?!"
"Yeah. Writers love making you protagonists suffer. Lose a family member, lose a friend—same old formula. I guess they ran out of new ideas."
Gwen exhaled, trembling slightly.
"Still, I'm glad you told me. Now that I know, I can try to stop it—to save Peter."
Lin Yi smirked.
"Maybe. But even if you stop it once, unless Peter overcomes his self-hatred and fear of bullying, he'll just find another way to destroy himself."
"But I have to try! I can't just stand by and watch him fall!"
"Of course. Otherwise, I wouldn't have warned you. Just remember—don't waste time on things that can't change."
Gwen fell quiet, thinking deeply.
"Then what should I do?"
"Get him to work out. Transfer schools. Or worst case, drop out."
"Drop out?! Why would I tell him that?!"
Lin Yi shrugged.
"Look, he's a genius. He doesn't need school to succeed. He could build something amazing from home and still change the world."
Gwen went silent again.
"Anyway, that's just my take," Lin Yi said. "What you do is up to you. He's your friend, not mine. You know him better than any comic ever could."
Gwen stared at him for a long moment, then smiled softly.
"Thank you."
"Hey, no need for that—we're friends now, aren't we?" Lin Yi grinned. "And speaking of friends, don't you have class right about now?"
"Oh shoot! You're right—I'm almost late for first period!"
As she turned to go, she suddenly paused.
"Wait! I still don't know your name."
"Ah, right." Lin Yi smirked. "Ezio. Ezio Auditore."
"Ezio, huh? Nice name."
"Thanks."
"Well then, Ezio, thanks for everything. See you next time!"
"See you."
And with that, Gwen fired a webline, swung off between the skyscrapers, and vanished from sight.
Lin Yi watched her go, stretching lazily.
"Alright then… time to think about how I'm gonna settle into this new world."
He looked down at the street below—and froze.
Raven.
"Well, well… didn't expect this world to mash DC and Marvel together. So this really is a fanfiction-style crossover universe, huh? Not bad. I wonder if Street Fighter characters will pop up too. Technically Japanese, but hey, global appeal, right?"
He grinned.
"Anyway, let's go see what the lovely Raven is up to down there…"
And with that thought, Lin Yi headed downstairs.