[Man of Steel] Awakens

Rat-a-tat-tat... beep-beep-beep...

On the empty farm, only a harsh roar kept rumbling.

The old lawnmower, driven by the violent combustion of diesel, was like a runaway horse, hard to control.

Yet the diesel burned fully, mixing with the unique scent of aromatic hydrocarbons—not pungent, but even carrying a hint of strange pleasure.

"Mmm... feels great."

At that moment, Peter, pushing the mower, strolled across the empty farm.

Like an old man with nothing to do, pushing a cart leisurely through a supermarket.

Rows of weeds were instantly sliced by the mower's sharp blades. If viewed from above, the scene might be even more satisfying than those carpet-cleaning videos on Douyin.

Under the sunlight overhead, Peter felt no trace of fatigue in his body.

As time passed, the sun grew hotter.

He seemed to sense something special awakening inside him.

Every cell in his body became unusually active under the sun's rays.

Like a plant undergoing photosynthesis, absorbing sunlight and releasing immense energy.

Such a comfortable feeling made Peter forget all exhaustion.

He even half-closed his eyes, savoring the intense pleasure coursing through his body.

The wild mower, which at first he had to wrestle with all his strength to tame, now seemed docile.

Gradually, he no longer needed both hands—just one hand lightly resting on the handle was enough to control it easily.

This blissful process only ended when the sun finally set.

"Whoa, is this what it feels like to be full of power?"

Clenching his fist hard, Peter felt himself brimming with strength.

At night, lying in bed, Peter had nothing to do.

The whole day's labor left him not the slightest bit tired.

"Open my panel."

Peter had a feeling that his body had undergone a massive change after just one day of sunlight exposure.

Name: Peter Parker
Life Script: Superman (formerly Lizardman)
Character Template: Normal Superman
Abilities: Solar Energy Absorption (Awakened), Man of Steel (Awakened), Super Strength (Inactive), Super Speed (Inactive), ...
Weakness: None
Points: 0 (Points can be exchanged for character templates, items, etc.)
Point Shop: Not opened

Quickly scanning his character panel, Peter's eyes locked onto "Awakened" next to Man of Steel.

"Sure enough, Man of Steel in the ability column is already in an awakened state."

After just one day of sunlight exposure, the Man of Steel ability had awakened.

Though this was still far from the Kryptonian Warrior Zod, who awakened abilities within a day of arriving on Earth.

It was, however, much faster than Superman, who took over a decade to fully awaken.

"Maybe it's because of my age right now."

Peter felt that the speed of ability awakening might be closely tied to age.

"Besides, Man of Steel seems more like a passive growth skill—probably the easiest to awaken."

Anyone who's played games knows passive skills are the easiest to get, but also the hardest to grow.

Yet once they reach a certain level, they become the most powerful.

"Yeah, tomorrow I'll keep at it and hurry to awaken the other abilities."

After a day of sunlight, the passive Man of Steel only made Peter a bit stronger than an ordinary person.

Not even close to blocking a nuclear blast head-on like in the movies.

Even a strong bullet could probably kill him.

"Play it safe, don't get cocky..."

Peter eagerly awaited the moment when other, more powerful abilities would awaken.

[Congratulations to the host for successfully awakening an ability for the first time. A mission has now been issued.]

Just as Peter was planning to lie low and focus on sunbathing to awaken other abilities in the near future, the system's voice suddenly rang out in his mind.

[Wealth unreturned to one's hometown is like walking in brocade at night. With the power of a Superman, you should show your strength to the world.

But your life is yours to decide.

Please choose:

1: Show the world you are a kind and loving Superman. Resolve a crime in progress, and shout "I am Superman" on the scene.

Reward: 100 points, random awakening of one ability. (First mission bonus. Reward void after all abilities awakened.)

2: The greater the power, the more I go wild. Create a large-scale disturbance in the city. (To hell with Superman, I am Homelander!)

Reward: 100 points, random awakening of one ability.

3: Everything normal. Lie low, keep developing. (I am the Sage of Biding.)

Reward: Tenfold efficiency in absorbing sunlight for one day.

4: To hell with the mission. I do whatever I want!

Reward: Forge a free and unbound life. (Choose carefully.)]

"..."

Looking at the several mission choices floating on the system panel, Peter was silent for a moment.

"The first and second choices both have rich rewards, but I'm currently in a suburban farm far from the city center. Even if I wanted to do them, I couldn't."

"Besides, with my just-awakened Man of Steel barely able to withstand birdshot bullets, it seems quite dangerous and easier to expose my identity."

"As for the fourth, any smart person can see there's a trap. You might choose it today, and the next moment the system leaves you, granting you that free and unbound life."

So, Peter had no hesitation at this point.

"I choose the third."

[Congratulations, host. Mission complete. Reward received: "Tenfold efficiency in absorbing sunlight for one day, activated at midnight tonight." (Note: If you violate the mission requirement during the reward period by exposing your abilities in front of others, the reward will immediately cease!)]

"Tenfold sunlight absorption efficiency. Looks like my strength will take a huge leap tomorrow."

In just one day, Peter's body had already grown strong enough to nearly block ordinary bullets.

And with tenfold efficiency tomorrow, like that battery commercial says—one day equals ten—Peter couldn't imagine how powerful he would become by then.

"It's a pity the reward time can't be paused or accumulated. Only daytime has sunlight, so the reward is cut in half directly."

"If it's cloudy or rainy tomorrow, that'll be even more frustrating."

"I hope tomorrow is a good day."

With that hope for tomorrow, Peter unknowingly drifted off to sleep.

And in his sleep, his body underwent drastic changes visible to the naked eye.

His originally frail frame seemed to transform completely.

His already decent height shot up several centimeters overnight.

As for his body, the change was even greater. Where there had been almost no defined muscle, he now had a full set of eight-pack abs.

The muscles on his arms were as hard as steel.

His thick pectorals could almost rival that certain someone who goes fifty-fifty with anyone in this world.

However, waking up to such enormous changes overnight, Peter found it a bit troublesome.

"This much change... it's going to be hard to hide."