So, after a month of escalation, Apple City had become a chaotic free-for-all. All kinds of bizarre vehicles could be seen on the streets.
"You're surrounded. Don't even think about escaping with the money."
"Release the hostages immediately, then let's talk like gentlemen!" The squad captain stood behind a police car with a loudspeaker, shouting the usual scripted lines at the bank robbers inside.
Bang!
As the bank's glass doors were kicked open, a group of robbers swaggered out.
The squad captain was about to shout again, but when he saw the gear the robbers were wearing, he froze.
"This... what the fuck..."
"This is ridiculous..."
Merlin and Punisher, watching from the outskirts, were equally stunned.
"Wow! They really came prepared."
The robbers who emerged looked like human-shaped fortresses, each clad in thick black heavy armor that completely encased their bodies.
The burly man in the lead wore Rhino Metal Headgear and carried a Vulcan Machine Gun, its cold barrels beginning to spin slowly.
The leading brute was wearing the Rhino Heavy Armor Set. It was far more expensive than ordinary heavy armor, but it looked much cooler too.
In the game, it was a discontinued limited-edition set.
"Oh, shit..." The moment they saw him pull out a Vulcan Gatling, every police officer cursed. After firing a few tentative shots, they fled in panic.
Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat... The Vulcan Machine Gun's barrels spun at high speed, blazing with blue high-temperature flames as countless bullets screamed out in a dense barrage.
At that moment, the police cars were like paper. In the blink of an eye, they became wreckage riddled with bullet holes.
Boom! Boom! Boom... Under the machine gun's relentless sweep, police cars exploded one after another into fireballs.
Even Merlin and Punisher in the distance could feel the ground shaking and the scorching heat rushing toward them.
"Where are the snipers? Shoot him dead, now!" The soot-covered squad captain took cover behind a building and roared into his radio.
The moment he finished speaking, a gunshot rang out.
Bang! The burly robber firing the Vulcan staggered, and a bloody hole appeared in his shoulder.
Armor-Piercing Rounds!
The robbers' expressions changed instantly.
"There's a sniper! Take cover!"
But before they could retreat, an orange armored vehicle suddenly rammed through the police cars. Like a steel beast, it charged into the encirclement, stopping in front of them and blocking the sniper's line of sight.
Insurgents.
Merlin, watching from afar, could not help but feel surprised. This robbery crew was pretty wealthy.
The robbers quickly threw the money into the vehicle, then tossed their heavy weapons to the ground and dragged their bulky heavy armor into the armored vehicle.
Vroom, vroom, vroom...
"It feels like a dream." Watching the armored vehicle speed away with police cars and helicopters pursuing it relentlessly, Frank could not help but sigh.
Hell's Kitchen had clearly been the crime-ridden district before, but after coming out here, he had truly had his eyes opened. Hell's Kitchen had instead become the most peaceful place.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh... At that moment, a Vigilante vehicle with flashing police lights sped past them, kicking up a fierce gust as it chased after the armored vehicle.
Whoosh! A burst of electromagnetic waves suddenly erupted, and the armored vehicle speeding down the road immediately stalled and stopped.
Right afterward, the police convoy led by Vigilante heavily surrounded the armored vehicle.
"Pretty lively..." Merlin's eyes lit up at the sight. Tomorrow should be even livelier.
"Hahaha, Spider-Man, you'll never catch me!"
A shadow suddenly swept overhead. The two looked up to see Gwen Spider-Man pursuing someone flying through the air with a Jetpack.
Spider-Man swung between the buildings, firing webs continuously, but she had a hard time catching up to someone wearing a Jetpack.
But just as the other person was gloating, Gwen Spider-Man flicked her little hand. Instead of shooting out webbing, she suddenly conjured an Atomic Gun as if performing a magic trick and aimed it at him.
Criminal: "..."
Whoosh! A wave suddenly shot out, and the powerful impact blasted him out of the sky.
"It really is pretty lively..." Frank said faintly.
Merlin looked at the photo of Spider-Man pulling out a gun in his camera and nodded in satisfaction before climbing onto his motorcycle.
"Let's go."
Though it was night, Apple City beneath the night sky still looked as lively as New Year's. The streets, the spaces between buildings, and the sky were all in utter chaos.
Yet the shadows had become more orderly. Many people were busy earning money to buy weapons or vehicles they fancied, then going out to have fun like everyone else.
Besides that, many shut-ins had also come out. After buying weapons, they began dispensing vigilante justice.
In short, there was only one word for it—chaos.
Click! A row of lights switched on, illuminating the vast hangar brightly.
Three aircraft rested quietly in the hangar like three beasts.
They were the Stealth Striker, Hydra, and Frank's Wildfire.
"My God, you built this big guy too." Frank walked up to Hydra with shining eyes and said in amazement.
"Your Wildfire isn't bad either. I installed something good on it."
"Just like Iron Man's." Merlin walked over to Wildfire, opened the hatch in its belly, and revealed the Cold Fusion Power Core glowing white inside. He winked at Frank.
"Tony Stark was willing to give you the technology?" Frank walked over, looking up at the core emitting a milky white glow in surprise.
"Or did he help make it?"
"I made it myself. It wasn't that hard." Merlin said casually.
"After installing the fusion core, I also reinforced the fighter's outer shell. Its top speed can reach Mach 10."
"For countermeasures, I chose chaff, and it's also equipped with tracking missiles. The Cold Fusion Core solves Wildfire's slow takeoff problem..."
Merlin gave Frank a detailed rundown of Wildfire's specifications, then entered the cockpit.
"I'll test it first. I'll be right back!"
Frank took a few steps back and nodded.
Under his gaze, the compact Wildfire rolled out onto the vast plaza. Its engines started, and its nozzles rotated downward, blasting white energy. Under the immense thrust, the fighter instantly rose from the ground and shot into the night.
Whoosh!
Wildfire hovered briefly in midair before suddenly darting away. In the blink of an eye, it streaked across the night sky in a flash of white light and vanished beyond the horizon.
Merlin flew the fighter at high speed above Apple City. But just as he accelerated to Mach 1, two white lights suddenly rose ahead of him.
As they drew closer, Merlin finally saw what the two white lights were.
Iron Man and Iron Monger.
Before you continue