Preparation

After leaving the hotel, Han Lin had no intention of returning to Steve's home. Since he was going to meet Howard Stark the next day, he needed to make some preparations. If things did not work out with Howard Stark, he would at least have a backup plan.

After the taxi turned a corner, Han Lin asked the driver to stop and got back the extra fare. Walking through New York, United States, in 1942, surrounded by old red-brick buildings and narrow alleys, he was struck by the weathered atmosphere of America's old era. As he looked around at the aged yet not overly shabby buildings, two Black American thugs appeared at the alley corner. Han Lin was cleanly and plainly dressed, but the material was clearly high-quality. He obviously was not poor, was Asian, and was alone in an unfamiliar place. To the two men, he was a fat sheep.

The two men stepped forward and surrounded Han Lin. One of them grabbed him and dragged him toward the alley. "Kid, behave yourself if you don't want to get stabbed!"

New York was still very chaotic at the time. Han Lin found it somewhat absurd that these two men were robbing him, and he smiled speechlessly before quietly following them inside.

Dragged into a dead end by the two thugs, Han Lin watched as the tall Black thug came over to search him. After his body had been enhanced, whenever Han Lin concentrated fully, he could enter a state of slowed Dynamic Vision. Watching the large dark hand reach toward him, Han Lin grabbed the man's wrist and squeezed hard. A crack of shattering bone rang out. "Aahhh..." A miserable scream burst from the thug's mouth.

Seeing his companion injured, the other thug pulled out a knife to help, only to be struck by the body Han Lin flung at him. The two collapsed to the ground. Han Lin had not dared use too much strength; he still could not fully control himself, so he did not dare go all out.

Watching the two groan on the ground, Han Lin walked over and said slowly, "I ask, you answer. If I'm not satisfied, I'll break one of your fingers. Where's the nearest gang hideout?"

The tall Black thug blurted out, "The biggest gang in Brooklyn is the Shark Gang. They control the harbor and the smuggling business! Their boss is usually at the docks, two blocks from here!"

"Not bad. Be a good person from now on." After taking less than a hundred dollars from them, Han Lin headed toward the harbor two blocks away.

As the harbor drew closer, he saw young thugs carrying crate after crate of smuggled goods beneath the brightly lit docks. Han Lin slowly approached. The thugs saw that he looked harmless and had witnessed their smuggling operation, so their leader sent several quick-handed men over to deal with him.

Han Lin looked at the iron bars in their hands... and smiled disdainfully. "If I were you, I wouldn't do that."

The thugs were usually obedient enough. Without another word, they swung their iron bars and charged.

Dynamic Vision activated. Everything around Han Lin began to slow down. He ducked beneath the first thug's attack and kicked him in the calf. Crack... The sound of bone splitting reached everyone's ears. The young man fell to the ground, his face turning purple. "Oh... shit... fuck!"

The thugs behind him were startled by Han Lin's ruthlessness and did not dare rush forward recklessly. Han Lin looked at their leader and asked, "Still want to fight? If not, I have a few questions for you!"

"Who are you?" The thug leader looked at the more than twenty men on his side and asked fearlessly.

"Now I ask, and you answer!" As he spoke, Han Lin took a large step forward and appeared before another thug. Grabbing the man's iron bar, he pulled and twisted, throwing him far away. In truth, Han Lin was relying on his speed. He could dodge the thugs' attacks, so he intended to establish his authority right from the start.

Seeing Han Lin's forcefulness, the leader became somewhat afraid. "What do you want to know?"

"Where is your boss? Take me to him." Han Lin's heart was beating at 120 beats per minute. Honestly, he had only seen this many people fighting in gangs on television. Before crossing over, he had merely been an impatient office worker. Though he was panicking badly, he could not show it. So what he needed to do now was make their boss come out. Capture the ringleader first; once he had their boss in hand, he could relax a little.

When the leader heard that Han Lin had come for the boss, he felt miserable. If I take him there, the boss will chop me up. If I don't, this hard-handed Asian won't let me off easily. Either way, I'm screwed. What do I do?

Han Lin was out of patience. He sprinted and jumped, instantly crossing over the front row of thugs. With Movement Level 1: sprint speed +10%, jump height +50%, his speed was already four times that of an ordinary person, plus another 10%. In one second, he appeared behind the leader more than ten meters away. Han Lin shook off the discomfort caused by not yet being used to such extreme speed.

He said to the leader, "Can you do it now?"

The leader looked despairingly at the young Easterner, nodded, and led Han Lin toward a warehouse at the docks.

Marcus Helen was sitting at his desk sorting through his accounts. Because he had contacts within the Trade Bureau, his smuggling business had grown larger and larger.

A shipment of rather valuable Chinese luxury goods had arrived that night. He was considering how much to give William, the director of the Trade Bureau, the next day when he heard fighting outside.

The gang boss stood up and walked out of his office. Seeing that his usual four guards were already down, he hurriedly pulled out the pistol tucked at his waist and fired three shots at Han Lin. Just as the fourth shot was about to ring out, a pair of hands seized his hand from the side and crushed both of them with brutal force.

Han Lin had originally planned to talk things over with him properly, but the man was decisive. The instant he saw danger, he drew his gun and fired. Fortunately, Han Lin's Danger Perception had warned him in advance, allowing him to dodge a bullet aimed at him and rapidly close the distance. Angered, Han Lin could not help using his full strength, crushing the man's hand bones and pistol together into a pile of mangled flesh wrapped around the gun.

Marcus Helen passed out on the spot. Seeing their boss unconscious, the underlings outside quickly abandoned everything and fled.

Han Lin looked at his blood-covered hands, wiped them on the gang boss's clothes, dragged him back into the office by the collar, picked up the hot coffee on the desk, and poured it over the boss's face.

The wet, painful sensation on his face woke him up, but the agonizing pain in his hands made him let out a silent roar. Looking at his hands, the gang boss took a long time to recover before asking, "Who are you? Why are you doing this to me? Who sent you?"

Han Lin shook his head innocently. "No one. I'm just out of money, so I need somewhere that can provide it. You were unlucky today and happened to run into me. I originally wanted to discuss things properly. I would take some money and leave, but you shot at me. I still can't control my strength very well." Han Lin shrugged, looking innocently at the gang boss as if none of this had been his doing.

The gang boss understood. He had run into a robber through sheer bad luck. "How much do you want? I can give it to you. Don't kill me. I'll give you everything!" Looking at the gang boss's face, already twisted by pain, Han Lin felt a little sorry for him. "Tell me where the money is, quickly. I'll take it and leave."

"The safe in the corner. The combination is 32, 14, 27, 31, 40."

Han Lin walked to the corner and opened the safe. Looking at the bundles of U.S. dollars and gold bars, he found a sturdy leather bag, stuffed the gold into it, then took several tens of thousands in cash for everyday use. Walking back to the gang boss, he said shamelessly, "I didn't take everything. I'm taking the gold and some cash, not much. Use the rest to see a doctor. Be a good person!"

The gang boss was so furious that he nearly vomited blood and died. After leaving the docks, Han Lin suddenly remembered the extreme speed he had displayed earlier and thought of the protagonist James Heller's ability to run across walls and rooftops in the game.

Wanting to test it, Han Lin accelerated toward the rows of buildings along the street. He stepped against a wall, and his foot seemed to gain adhesive force. Rather than falling away, he charged upward in a diving posture. Han Lin felt a surge of exhilaration and leapt higher.

Weaving through the high-rises, Han Lin felt that he had developed another incredible ability. However, he still seemed unable to Glide through the air. After confirming his direction, he leapt toward Steve's home. Han Lin felt a little like a parkour master, except he did not have to worry about being seen. A trip that would have taken half an hour by taxi was shortened to ten minutes, since he did not need to take detours.

After returning to Steve's home and greeting him, Han Lin washed up and went to rest.