49. Paralysis and... (Second update!)

As Dilos tackled Qin Jiayin to the ground, he felt a gust of wind brush against his cheek. Simultaneously, he instinctively opened his five senses, and the world in his vision began to slow down as his perception sharpened.

He saw clearly as a black sedan, tumbling through the air, whistled past just inches above them the moment they hit the pavement.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Immediately after, the air filled with the cacophony of heavy collisions and frantic car horns.

Ignoring the unfortunate waiter who had been reduced to a bloody mess behind him, Dilos helped a dazed Qin Jiayin to her feet. He looked through the gap where the car had smashed through the wall and froze.

At the intersection outside, cars were piled up like a dense mound of ants. Several vehicles had slammed into each other, their frames crumpled and dented. Fortunately, those impacts were relatively minor, and the occupants had escaped serious injury.

However, the cars crushed or struck by buses, trucks, and cement mixers were not so lucky. Dilos glanced at a dump truck nearby, then back at the mangled sedan behind him. Given the force of such impacts, even those inside the vehicles would have been crushed; if they weren't dead, they were in no better shape.

Dilos stepped forward to scan the surroundings, quickly identifying the primary cause of the massive accident.

The traffic lights at the nearby intersection had all turned green at once.

"How could this happen?"

Qin Jiayin finally regained her senses, her eyes filled with terror as she looked around, clearly unable to process the disaster unfolding before her.

The street, which had been filled with laughter and chatter only a moment ago, had transformed into a scene of catastrophe.

Dilos said nothing, merely patting her shoulder in a gesture of comfort.

Yet, Dilos realized this was only the beginning.

Televisions in shop windows, in other restaurants, and across the internet were broadcasting the same frantic message.

The entire United States' transportation network had collapsed!

It started in New York, then spread to surrounding cities. The paralysis acted like a virus, gnawing through cities starting from New York. In less than three hours, the entire nation's traffic had ground to a halt.

This dire situation made Dilos worry about Chloe and Gabe back in Smallville. Anxious, he immediately dialed their numbers. But...

Beep, beep, beep, beep...

No matter how many times he called, the line remained dead. Dilos tried calling others, but the result was the same. It wasn't just him; Qin Jiayin and the nearby pedestrians were also panicking as they realized their phones were useless.

Not only that, but the internet was down as well!

"Damn it!" Dilos cursed in frustration. This sudden turn of events had caught him off guard, leaving him momentarily agitated. However, his years of experience soon allowed him to suppress his panic and begin analyzing the situation calmly.

The entire country must be in chaos—transportation paralyzed, communications down, and perhaps other major incidents occurring that Dilos wasn't yet aware of. Though he didn't know what else had happened, he was certain that whoever was behind this wasn't finished.

"Who on earth is doing this?"

Paralyzing the transportation and communication of the entire United States was no small feat. Beyond requiring elite hacking skills, it demanded massive financial backing to develop such a virus or to recruit a legion of top-tier hackers.

Is it Hydra? Dilos immediately suspected the cockroach-like villainous organization from his past life. But he quickly dismissed the possibility.

Hydra wanted to rule the world, yes, but such an act would bring more harm than good to their ambitions.

Dilos began mentally filtering through the powerful figures he knew, but no matter how he thought about it, he couldn't pinpoint a culprit. Even if the wealthy elite possessed the capability, such an act was counterproductive—just like with Hydra, the costs outweighed the benefits.

Though, one can't rule out someone losing their mind... Dilos mused. After a long moment of contemplation, one name surfaced in his mind.

Wilson Fisk.

Also known as Kingpin.

Dilos considered this carefully. As the most formidable crime lord in the United States, Fisk was essentially the emperor of the underworld. In terms of wealth, he was the richest among all gang leaders. In terms of ambition, he was unrivaled.

Dilos knew that this man had strangled his own beloved wife to death simply because he believed he "could not have weaknesses." Given the sheer madness of this underworld emperor, if he had the means, he was exactly the type to commit such a deranged act. Furthermore, in Dilos's memory, Kingpin's corporate headquarters were in New York. Combined with the reports that New York was where it all began, Kingpin was indeed the prime suspect.

"Aaaaaahhh!!!"

Just as Dilos was wondering if Kingpin had orchestrated this terror, a series of screams drew his attention. He turned toward the source. About a hundred meters away, hundreds of men and women were running in terror, scrambling over stalled vehicles and knocking down bystanders who hadn't yet realized what was happening.

It was the frantic pace of people fleeing a great disaster.

Thump, thump, thump, thump...

Because of the sheer number of people, the sound of their stampede was deafening; Dilos could even feel the ground vibrating. The commotion caused even those who hadn't understood the situation to panic, either joining the flight or scrambling for cover to avoid being trampled.

While Dilos's physical constitution meant he didn't fear such a collision, he had no interest in standing there to be hit. Moreover, Qin Jiayin was with him. Without hesitation, he pulled her into a nearby supermarket.

The chaos lasted for two full minutes, and then, Dilos understood why hundreds of people were running for their lives.

Thud!

Thud!

Thud!

Thud!

Thud!

Thud!

Looking through the supermarket window, Dilos's pupils contracted to pinpricks. On the street just ahead, two semi-humanoid lizard monsters, five meters tall and covered in silver-white scales, were stepping with heavy, massive feet onto stalled cars, crushing them into scrap metal with a single stomp!