Perhaps I'll go to hell, but not today

Gandy spat out a mouthful of blood, followed by a violent coughing fit, before he laboriously pulled his hand free from the pile of rubble it was wedged in.

He had plowed across the ground moments ago, scraping up countless chunks of debris across the open space of the parking lot and piling them into a small hill.

Now his body was embedded in that chaotic heap. After yanking his arm out, he looked up at Homelander hovering in midair.

Malice dripped from every one of his spider-eyes. Gandy let out a roar and raised all four arms.

Instantly, every cable in the entire parking lot began to tremble. They were manipulated by an invisible force, rising from the floor trenches.

Then, one by one, the cables snapped, sparking with electricity, and coiled like tentacles toward Homelander in the sky.

Azu let out an "Oh." "Is this your superpower?"

"Controlling wires?"

"A bit more interesting than the last one."

As he spoke, he dodged the cables one after another. The agility of flight became clear here.

Azu moved through various maneuvers with ease, making it hard for Gandy to lock onto him.

Gandy glanced at the cars around him. While keeping the cables writhing, he directed a few to wrap around nearby vehicles and then hurled them at Azu one after another.

This gave Gandy a much wider range of attacks.

Azu had to deal with the cars while evading the cables.

Sometimes he punched them apart, sometimes he kicked them away, sometimes he sliced through them with his Laser Eyes.

Throughout it all, he let out a few exaggerated yelps.

Maeve, lying on the ground too weak to move, twitched at the corner of her mouth. "That guy isn't even trying. He's just toying with his opponent."

Just then, Azu sliced another car in half with his Laser Eyes. From behind the split vehicle, a thick cluster of cables burst forth like blooming flower stamens, wrapping around Azu's feet, body, arms, neck, and head.

"Got you, you bastard!" Gandy shouted in excitement, controlling even more cables to coil around Homelander and sending electric shocks through the ones already latched on.

In an instant, Azu was completely tangled in cables, his head wrapped tight, turning him into a mummy.

The reporters gasped. The police who had rushed over at the noise stood helpless.

Since the scene was being broadcast live, comments flew across the online platforms like a storm.

'Oh my god, Homelander got caught.'

'Serves him right. Should've finished the fight when he had the chance.'

'Homelander, just die already!'

'Go Homelander! The one I like isn't losing to some monster!'

Right then, on the screen, two red lights flickered on the face of the mummy floating in midair.

Two crimson beams shot through the air, then swept across the ground, carving a 'Z' into the parking lot.

Boom!

Along the path of the Laser Eyes, bursts of deep red flames erupted in succession, blasting the cables wrapped around Homelander into scattered pieces.

The barrage of comments surged instantly.

'See? I told you this wouldn't stop Homelander.'

'Homelander forever!'

'I'm excited! I'm climaxing!'

'Damn it, when does the villain get to win? Mr. Monster, you gotta step it up.'

'Why can't Homelander just die!'

Amid the cacophony of voices, the man who had broken free from the cables shot down from the sky, crashing into the parking lot and sending the Spider-Man flying.

In the parking lot of Vought International Department Store, Gandy was slammed into the air. Before he could fall, Azu chased after him and punched him back down.

Azu descended with the motion, planting a foot on Gandy's chest. His eyes glowed faintly red, his face expressionless. "I'll ask you one last time."

"What exactly is Vought?"

Gandy spat a mouthful of blood at the man towering over him. "Go to hell, you demon."

Azu let out a dry laugh, a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "Maybe I will go to hell. But not today."

Without another word, he fired his Laser Eyes, blasting them into Gandy's spider-eyes.

Gandy screamed in agony. The skin on his head began to glow red from the inside out, every capillary illuminated.

His tissues were being destroyed, but his cells were frantically Self-Healing. The process was excruciating, and his screams didn't stop.

But a few seconds later, as faint deep-red light seeped through his skin, the screaming abruptly ceased. Then a torrent of crimson flames erupted from beneath Gandy's skin.

Boom.

Gandy's head exploded entirely. His thrashing body went still. His four arms thudded to the ground, and then his body crumbled like ash, scattering into black powder on the wind.

You have perfectly resolved this incident.

Incident disaster level assessment: E+

'Perfect' evaluation settlement reward: Dim Proficiency Essence*48

New items have been added to your shop.

On his retina, lines of information surged up wildly.

Azu couldn't keep up with the flood.

Laser Eyes +2: Proficiency 27/100

Regeneration +1: 7/30

Flight +1: 28/30

Super Speed +1: Proficiency 22/30

Super Strength +1: Proficiency 26/30

Your 'Steel Body +1' proficiency is full.

Now upgrading to 'Steel Body +2'.

Steel Body +2: Body density +110%, physical impact resistance +70%, energy impact resistance +20%, physical damage immunity 10%

Your 'Insight' proficiency is full.

Now upgrading to 'Insight +1'.

Insight +1: Able to obtain more basic information.

Two talents have been upgraded.

'Super Speed' and 'Super Strength' will be ready to upgrade soon too.

Most importantly, he got 48 Proficiency Essences in one go.

Plus what he had before, he now had 93 essences.

Aside from exchanging one gene serum, he could use the rest to boost his talent proficiency.

Good. This way, he was one step closer to 'Superman'.

Azu smiled in satisfaction, then flew out to the Parking Lot, hovering above the crowd.

Reporters and police all looked up at Azu nervously. Finally, one reporter raised a microphone high and said, "Homelander, what happened to that monster?"

Azu pointed a finger toward the sky, then flashed a grin full of white teeth. "I sent him to meet God."

Instantly, cheers erupted from the crowd.

Then flashes went off nonstop—who knew how much film the reporters burned through.

Azu didn't linger long. After letting the reporters take their photos, he waved and left.

He flew over to Maeve, picked up the limp 'Queen' in his arms, and with a whoosh shot into the sky, heading toward the 'Seven Tower'.

Midair, Azu glanced at Maeve in his arms. "Now, can we talk about that date tonight?"