Kamen Rider ZZZ, the American comic book spiritual mentor

The vehicle hummed as it slowly drove away, gradually disappearing into the intricate and winding alleyways of Hell's Kitchen.

Lin Nan and Peter stood at the back door of the bookstore, watching the car drive away. Neither of them spoke for a long time.

“You can go home now, Peter. It’s best not to appear as Spider-Man for now, let’s wait until things settle down.” Lin Nan patted Peter on the shoulder. “If anything unexpected happens, contact me immediately.”

Peter nodded and then asked, "Lin, have you been skipping school these past few days?"

Lin Nan shook her head: "I won't go for now, I have some things to take care of."

Peter took a deep breath: "Okay, Lin, you should be careful too."

The dawn in Hell's Kitchen is fleeting. Inside a van, Norman Osborne, wrapped in a blanket, leans back in his seat.

His eyes were tightly closed, but he couldn't fall asleep. Every bump in the vehicle brought him excruciating pain. He could also feel the malicious intent emanating from the green threads within his body.

These spiritual powers, combined with the mild euphoria imparted by the serum, created a very strange effect.

Matt, the lawyer sitting in the passenger seat, had no expression on his face, but his head was slightly tilted back as he listened to the voice inside Norman Osborn using his radar senses.

“It’s as if there are two heartbeats in him, one belonging to Norman Osborn, weak and rational,” Matt suddenly said. “The other is full of violence and malice, like a mad beast.”

The retired military doctor driving the car glanced at Norman in the rearview mirror without saying a word, but his eyes showed some wariness.

His trust in Attorney Matt doesn't mean he'll trust someone who could suddenly go insane and throw bombs around on a scooter.

Norman opened his eyes and said bitterly, "Attorney Matt's analogy is quite apt. That thing really is like the heart of a beast, constantly sending me crazy and twisted blood."

"Lin, that boy, I suppressed him in some way, but I can sense that he has been waiting for an opportunity to resurface."

“Lin Nan…” Attorney Matt repeated the name, trying to search his memory for anything about this Asian teenager.

In his memory, the Asian boy seemed to have been subtly paying attention to him ever since he started working at the old bookstore.

Could it be that he had planned this day from that time onward?

Matt's heart skipped a beat. Did he have the ability to foresee the future? Also, the faint fluctuations on his body were very similar to those of the armored man "Knight" who had recently appeared in New York, and he possessed the ability to interfere with the mind.

Who exactly is he?

Norman seemed to sense Matt's confusion and said in a complicated tone, "He's really special. His way of looking at problems is effective, direct, and insightful. He's nothing like an ordinary high school student."

“My son, and Peter, trust him completely.”

Matt then thought of Peter and said, "Peter Parker, he seems special too."

Daredevil doesn't actually see the world through his eyes; disguises are almost useless in his judgment. He already knew Spider-Man's true identity, but he just didn't reveal it.

Norman nodded, not pursuing the topic any further. He closed his eyes, conserving his energy, and tried to think about how to deal with the special department Lin Nan had mentioned.

The carriage fell silent again, with only the roar of the engine and the noise of the city remaining.

Meanwhile, on the top floor of Stark Tower.

Tony Stark stared intently at the holographic projection before him. He'd noticed the unusual fluctuations in the signal since Hell's Kitchen.

His path was completely different from the one he took, and even different from any known path in the world.

It is a combination of mechanical, biological, and spiritual forces.

Upon Tony's return, he immediately had Jarvis create the "Genesis" program to simulate the synthesis of elements.

Above the holographic projection, the white-gold, structurally stable elemental model stabilized at an extremely slow pace.

Although the stable time may only be a few nanoseconds, Jarvis successfully captures it, refines it, and guides the next iteration.

As time went on, the stable time became longer and longer, eventually reaching 0.3 seconds.

Tony Stark clapped his hands excitedly: "It works! Continue the simulation, Jarvis!"

Jarvis's elegant British accent rang out: "Sir, you need to rest! Your vital signs monitor shows..."

"I'm perfectly fine now!" But the dizziness in his head still made Tony, who was forcing himself, sit down in the chair.

He leaned back, supporting his temples, his back pressed against the chair back, and closed his eyes.

The model on the holographic projection kept flashing in my eyes. Its exquisite structure completely surpassed the existing physical framework, which was simply mesmerizing!

Who exactly sent this mysterious signal from Hell's Kitchen?

Thinking of this, Tony opened his eyes: "Jarvis, mobilize all the satellites we can, and focus on monitoring the New York area."

"I need to know how many surprises our neighbors have been hiding for me!"

"Also, Jarvis! Norman Osborn, that old madman, his research seems to be somewhat related to this. I need a list of all the research projects the Osborn Group has undertaken over the past five years."

“Yes, sir. But even though the Osborne Group is in disarray right now, the risk of being discovered for hacking into their core database remains very high.”

Tony chuckled. "It's fine. We can pretend to be those idiots from Hammer Industries!"

Chapter 36 Harmony

Lin Nan dragged his tired body back to his temporary residence. He locked the door, drew the curtains, and lay down on the bed, hoping to get a good night's sleep.

But the numbers on his wrist suddenly started jumping: [Causality Value +89, +210, +...]

Current causality value: 503/500

Lin Nan sat up abruptly, her eyes wide. What was going on?

Why did so many suddenly increase?

After thinking for a moment, he made a guess: perhaps because this incident involved a large number of people and cases, it was settled all at once.

This incident involves General Ross, Norman Osborn, Spider-Man, Daredevil, and even Iron Man, the epicenter of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

It seems reasonable that so many causal values ​​could be obtained at once.

Being able to draw the Dream Capsule again is indeed a good thing, as it means he has more trump cards in his hand.

Overjoyed, Lin Nan jumped out of bed and stood in the middle of the apartment, focusing his attention on the gashapon machine. He silently prayed, "Give me a heavyweight one!"

The gashapon machine deep within my consciousness began to slowly rotate, various orbs of light shifting until they finally turned silvery-white, the exit opening to spit out a silvery-white dream capsule.

Lin Nan frowned deeply. "This dream capsule is silver-white. I've never seen it before."

He reached out his hand, and the dream capsule appeared in his palm. He examined it repeatedly.

This dream capsule is almost transparent. Inside the transparent shell, there are no chibi figures. Instead, it looks like a starry sky formed by white light spots, swirling and merging within it.

Lin Nan focused his consciousness on it, and his mind jolted slightly as he received some information.

【reconcile】

[Harmony: Enhanced effects during lucid dreams or mental intervention, harmonizing abnormal mental entities, etc.]

[Reconnaissance: Can be used to detect abnormal mental and energy fluctuations, shield reconnaissance perception, and psychological suggestion, etc.]

These messages were very brief, just a few words, but Lin Nan still managed to glean some useful information from them.

What does this word "等" mean? Am I supposed to figure it out myself?

Oh, Temple of Cause and Effect, I finally got some instructions, and all I get is a "wait" sign.

After making a few complaints, Lin Nan began to ponder.

This dream capsule cannot grant the armor a new form; it can only be used for support. However, the name "Harmony" has a connotation of "balance."

Maybe I'm overthinking it.

Lin Nan felt a little annoyed. 500 points, and all he got was one support skill?!

However, he quickly perked up and, from these simple descriptions, he connected them to Norman's Green Goblin personality. If Norman hadn't been transferred away by Daredevil, it seemed that this dream capsule could have played a significant role.

Moreover, the reconnaissance function seems pretty good, but I don't know how it performs in actual use.

Lin didn't rush to the experiment; instead, she got up and drew back the curtains. Outside, the sun was shining brightly, workers were busy at work, and housewives were chatting and laughing as they went grocery shopping with their friends.

These ordinary people lived their lives peacefully and happily. They were completely unaware of the darkness, the distortion, and the impending danger behind this city.

After staring out the window for a while, I took out my new phone and a new SIM card from my bag, inserted them, and turned it on, but I didn't try to contact anyone.

I first connected to a public Wi-Fi network and started browsing news websites and forums. Most of the headlines were about the Osborne Group's stock price plummeting and its collapse.

However, it seems that news about the Green Goblin, Red Hulk, and Long Island Manor has not been seen in mainstream media.

Discussions can only be found on some fringe forums.

"I heard that General Ross's estate was demolished."

"I saw something emitting blue light flying in the sky."

"Did Spider-Man's gear get upgraded? He can fly now!"

Lin Nan keenly sensed that the silence of the mainstream media indicated that an intelligence organization like S.H.I.E.L.D. had intervened, and that they had likely quickly blocked the news and controlled public opinion.

So he sent Peter a encrypted message: "Safe, do not reply."

After doing all that, I meditated in bed and recovered some of my energy. Only then did I replace the [Harmony] Dream Capsule.

Lin Nan cleared his mind and focused his consciousness into the dream capsule. This dream capsule was like an amplifier that could amplify perception countless times. The consciousness he put into it spread wildly in all directions, like tentacles, centered on itself.

At first, he could only sense the faint fluctuations of the electrical appliances in the apartment and the tracks of vehicles passing by on the street.

As consciousness became more deeply involved, the mental tentacles extended further and further, even sensing a faint but sharp mental fluctuation from the distant Stark Tower.

This mental fluctuation, filled with anxiety, survival instinct, and desire, should be Tony Stark.

He also sensed a sinister, eerie green energy, twisted like a venomous snake, in a corner of Hell's Kitchen, which he believed to be Norman Osborn.

Nearby, there was another wave, as solid as a rock, exuding both vigilance and pity—Matt Murdoch!

This sensation was vague and intermittent, and extremely mentally taxing. Before it lasted even a few dozen seconds, Lin Nan felt a sharp, needle-like pain in his temples.

He immediately severed the connection with the dream capsule, his eyes gleaming.

This dream capsule granted him an extremely valuable intelligence-gathering ability, allowing him to more intuitively perceive the state and activities of key characters in the plot.

Although it's vague and mentally taxing, it might be because the scope is too broad and requires more exploration.

After resting for a while, Lin Nan made a conjecture: if this dream capsule can detect abnormal fluctuations in reality, what about in dreams?

With that thought in mind, he closed his eyes, lay down on the bed, and entered a lucid dream space.