I Think We Both Need to Calm Down

I Think We Both Need to Calm Down

Starlight was actually that full of herself? That was Li Wei's first reaction.

I was the protector of New Jersey, for crying out loud. How could I spend all day revolving around you?

But before he could speak, Starlight continued shouting, "Is that your child?"

Huh? Li Wei was instantly caught between laughter and tears. He had to admit, Starlight had quite an imagination.

On the surface, however, he put on a flustered act as if he had only just noticed her, hurriedly switching off his phone screen.

"What? No, I'm not even twenty yet. How could I possibly already have a child?"

When he turned around, Li Wei saw Starlight, also dressed in casual clothes and wearing a mask and oversized sunglasses, staring at him with an extremely peculiar look—as if she had been cheated on.

Well, technically, she had been cheated on, but it had nothing to do with those photos. It was simply because she lacked a bit of femininity.

Li Wei had always firmly believed that bigger was better.

Of course, someone like She-Beast was outside the scope of that discussion.

Come to think of it, more than a dozen hours had passed since the Heroes' Gathering, yet Blue Hawk had not called to curse him out. Could it be that he had grown fond of driving a tank?

"I need an explanation." Starlight's tone was clearly displeased.

Li Wei gritted his teeth and quickly swept his gaze around. Seeing no one suspicious, he grabbed Starlight's hand. "Somewhere else. Vought absolutely cannot find out about this!"

Huh? The moment that particular word came up, most of Starlight's attention was instantly diverted.

She was no fool. She began to realize that she might have misunderstood something, so she did not shake off Li Wei's hand.

After running for more than ten miles, Li Wei finally found a relatively suitable place.

He did not waste any words and spoke bluntly. "I've been investigating a major incident concerning the origins of all Vought superheroes. I kept you out of it before for your safety, but since you've been discovered, I won't hide it from you anymore."

"But I need to confirm once more: do you really want to hear this?"

"It could overturn everything you believe in and destroy the life you and your mother have now."

This was the first time Starlight had ever seen Li Wei so solemn, and it made her realize the severity of the matter once again.

"Would it be more shocking than the true faces of The Deep and Translucent?"

Li Wei answered without hesitation, "Yes. More than a hundred times worse!"

Vought International's true trump card had never been its superheroes, but Compound V!

Starlight continued seriously, "Is it the right thing to do?"

Li Wei could not help shaking his head with a smile. Innocent—far too innocent.

In all of The Boys' World, there were only a handful of people who could truly be called heroes, or who had the potential to become real heroes.

The Starlight before him counted as one. Even after becoming one of The Seven and seeing so much, she was still full of fantasies about heroes.

Queen Maeve of The Seven counted as half. The reformed A-Train and A-Train later on, combined, could barely count as another half.

Beyond that, there was basically no one.

In Li Wei's view, the superheroes of The Boys' World bore more than a passing resemblance to the gods of Greek Mythology.

Both possessed considerable power, allowing them to indulge their countless desires without restraint and embrace hedonism.

Good and evil, morality and ethics—most of it meant nothing to them.

Some superheroes merely hid it better, while others lacked the ability to fulfill their dreams, so they did not cause much death or destruction. But that did not mean they were truly good people.

Someone as innocent as Starlight might be better suited for DC. There were real heroes there.

But with her powers and her brains, if she really went there, those Supervillains would probably trick her senseless within three days—or simply turn her into an RBQ.

Still, he could not be bothered to tell Starlight all that. He was not her babysitter.

"Whether something is right or wrong, good or evil, often depends on which side you stand on. But at least in my eyes, this is the right thing."

Starlight nodded resolutely. "Okay, then tell me!"

Since Starlight was so determined, Li Wei did not try to dissuade her further. To keep her from misunderstanding or failing to grasp it, he explained the entire matter in the simplest and most direct terms possible.

He shared the photos on his phone with her as well.

Naturally, he glossed over or simply omitted the less important details, such as his killing people and Kimiko living at his house. Those were not the point, anyway.

Even though she had tried to prepare herself beforehand, once Starlight truly heard everything, her eyes went blank. Her mind was a mess as though her whole world were collapsing.

Her superpowers had not been a gift from God, as her mother had claimed. They came from Vought International's Compound V. She was not some chosen one at all!

Aside from this lie, how many other lies had her mother told her?

After taking a deep breath, Starlight stammered, "I-I think I need some time to calm down."

Li Wei nodded along. "That's right. I think we both need to calm down."

Starlight immediately realized something was wrong with Li Wei's tone. This time, he was probably genuinely angry.

She hurriedly apologized. "Sorry, Li Wei. I shouldn't have followed you or doubted you. Next time, I—"

Before she could finish, Li Wei raised a hand to stop her. "No, Annie, I'm serious. You need to think carefully about the road ahead, too."

"Compound V is tied to Vought's very foundation. If you keep digging into it, you'll be putting yourself in extreme danger. Think about your mother."

What a joke. Playing around normally was one thing, but now she had even learned to follow him? What would she be capable of after that?

Come to think of it, he seemed never to have formally confessed to her. This did not even count as a breakup, did it?

Starlight immediately looked even more despondent, but she knew very well that once Li Wei had made a decision, there was no room left to change it.

She could only nod with great difficulty and apologize again. "Sorry, Li Wei. I understand. I'll work hard and prove it to you."

Li Wei nodded slightly. "Be careful. Remember, you're not alone. Vought's dark methods are beyond anything you can imagine."

With her mother's life at stake, she would not dare act recklessly. Even if she truly wanted to take action, she would most likely still come looking for him. Hopefully, by then, she would have learned how to be a good tool.

Starlight's heart immediately leaped with joy. Li Wei still cared about her safety—she still had hope!

She hurriedly nodded. "You too!"

After returning home, Firecracker rushed over to greet him and told him that dinner was ready. They were having dumplings today.

It had to be said that Firecracker might be weak when it came to superpowers, and her intelligence was only at an ordinary person's level, but she possessed one trait Li Wei valued greatly: she was willing to work hard to improve herself!

After learning that Li Wei was of Chinese descent and was not used to eating hamburgers, she quickly began learning how to cook Chinese food.

Although so far, she could only make simple things like steamed buns, dumplings, and fried dough sticks, that had already far exceeded Li Wei's expectations.

After a brief intimate moment, Firecracker saw that Li Wei seemed to have something to discuss with Kimiko in private, so she tactfully made an excuse and left.

She had no thoughts of jealousy. After all, she was not Li Wei's girlfriend in the first place; they were merely living together.

Besides, compared to Kimiko, who could not speak and had a rather slight figure, Firecracker felt that she held a considerable advantage!

Seeing how sensible she was, Li Wei was quite satisfied. Firecracker really was an exceptionally qualified maid.

What he liked even more was Firecracker's self-awareness. Being a little stupid or weak was acceptable, but what he truly could not tolerate were idiots who thought themselves clever yet constantly ruined things.

Besides, Firecracker was extremely open about matters between men and women. She would let him have his way with her.

Without wasting any time, Li Wei quickly told Kimiko some of the relevant information, selectively.

He had previously promised to help her find her younger brother, and now there had finally been some progress. At least she would not suspect that he had been stringing her along.

Though unable to speak, Kimiko was no fool.

There was no need to tell her about Compound V, because she had known about it long ago.

Before she was captured and experimented on, she had merely been a fairly capable assassin. It was only after the experiments that she gained these superpowers.

After listening, Kimiko was deeply grateful. Besides thanking him, she also took the initiative to type on her phone and tell Li Wei that if he ever needed her, he only had to ask.

After studying with Firecracker for several days, she had already become very proficient at using phones, computers, and the like. She especially liked phones, because they could speak in place of her mouth.

Li Wei chuckled. "We're friends now. It's only natural to do things for a friend, isn't it?"

As Kimiko nodded very seriously, Li Wei's heart leaped with delight.

No matter what Kimiko truly thought in her heart, as far as the system was concerned, this meant that she had agreed. Now, as long as they engaged in relatively intimate contact, he could copy Kimiko's superpower—Super Healing!

If he could obtain that ability, along with The Mesmerizer's bone blades, Li Wei could completely cosplay Wolverine.

However, unless absolutely necessary, Li Wei still did not want to use either of those superpowers, especially the latter.

He had conducted many experiments before. When activating the bone blades, his muscles and skin would not automatically make room for them. In other words, every time the bone blades extended, they first had to cut their way out through the inside of his arms!

Yet because he had already copied Starlight's Super Defense, even the inside of his body was quite tough. Mere bone blades could not smoothly break through it in one go.

As a result, every time he used the bone blades, he had to endure a rather miserable and painful ordeal before they could finally see the light of day. It left him speechless.

Compared to the pain they brought Li Wei, their boost to his combat power was hardly worth mentioning.

Unless Li Wei followed Marvel's Wolverine and replaced the claws with metal ones, then installed specially designed slots that would allow them to extend more easily, they might have some use.

But with the system, Li Wei had far too many ways to grow stronger. There was no need for him to suffer like that.

Unless one day his strength reached a point where he could advance no further, perhaps then he would give it some thought.

Still, to obtain Super Healing, he needed to have intimate contact with Kimiko for more than two hours.

For someone as relatively shy as Kimiko, who definitely had never had a boyfriend, she would probably feel rather strongly resistant. He would need a simple little scheme.

Given their current relationship, even if he got drunk one night and accidentally entered her bedroom, she probably would not kill him on the spot, right?

As he pondered this, Li Wei reassured Kimiko and told her not to worry.

Now that he had found a crucial clue, as long as he followed the trail, he would find her younger brother sooner or later!