Exploration Progress 20%

Exploration Progress 20%

Gotham,

City Hall.

A car pulled up in front of the Christmas tree that had been erected early but had yet to be decorated.

The figure in the white lab coat pushed open the door. After giving the people in the car a friendly wave, the car fled in panic, nearly hitting several pedestrians.

"I shouldn't have come to Gotham," he muttered.

Batman killed people. Gotham was clearly a dangerous place.

He had managed to keep his life last time, but this time might be different.

Ignoring the curious stares around him, Li Zu fixed his gaze on a damp, dim alleyway in the distance. With his hands in his pockets, he sauntered over.

Gotham had several iconic features.

The clouds forever piled overhead,

the Bat-Signal shining onto the clouds at night,

and... damp alleys and curly-tailed rats.

Interesting things always happened near these landmarks.

Tap, tap~

His soles stepped into puddles.

The dress shoes Li Zu had taken from the special police officer were a little too big, wobbling on his feet.

Before he arrived, the alley already had its own residents.

A punk with a mohawk wore a leather jacket that exposed both arms, with metal-studded punk accessories draped over his shoulders.

Two others were curled up in a pile of trash, clutching several bottles of expensive liquor.

The three were clearly the masters of this alley, as well as homeless men from the lowest rung of the city.

And that pile of "trash" consisted entirely of high-end women's handbags, briefcases, expensive shoes, and more...

It was not hard to guess this group's line of work.

Robbing canaries foolish enough to wander into this damp hellhole!

"Where did this kid come from?"

The white mohawked thug took two steps forward and came before Li Zu, glaring down at him with bulging eyes.

A heavy stench of alcohol puffed from his nostrils.

"Pan, use your fists to knock this brat's front teeth out! Hurry, give him some trouble!" Cheers immediately came from the distance.

Spurred on by his companions' jeering, Pan raised his hand and prepared to grab Li Zu by the head.

Slap~

Li Zu was faster, grabbing Pan's thick wrist.

Compared to Pan's burly wrist, his slender arm was like an iron nail trying to resist a rubber baton.

Yet the unbelievable still happened.

"Ah!!"

Pan screamed and collapsed to the ground.

With a flick of Li Zu's hand, something fell onto the "trash pile."

"What is this?" The two homeless men scrambled up and looked at the thing Li Zu had thrown over.

A hand.

A pink plastic toy hand.

"Hahaha, kid, if you want to scare someone, at least make it look real, okay~" One homeless man picked up the pink plastic hand and shook it. "It's obviously fake!"

"Yeah, Pan! Stop pretending!" The other homeless man walked over to Pan and kicked him. "The prank's over!"

The homeless man suddenly sniffed.

It was the pungent smell of blood!

He lowered his head and discovered that Pan, writhing on the ground, had lost his left hand at the wrist. Blood was spraying everywhere!

"T-that... that really is your hand!" The homeless man dropped to the ground with a thump. The curly-tailed rat beneath him failed to dodge in time and was crushed flat. Its dying squeaks mingled with Pan's screams, echoing throughout the alley.

Li Zu suddenly took a step forward. The three men scrambled backward in terror. In their eyes, Li Zu, who could turn people into toys, was the most terrifying thing of all.

"I remember now, he's Toyman! He's Toyman!" one of the homeless men shouted, pointing at Li Zu.

"What? It's him? Wasn't he locked up in Arkham?"

Supervillains were on an entirely different level from ordinary street thugs.

Li Zu walked straight to the pile of "trash" and picked up a green swallowtail suit.

"You don't want these things, right?"

"You can take them all, take everything! It's fine!" All five of the three men's remaining hands waved in unison.

The three nearly coughed up blood. He had come in so menacingly, and his target turned out to be the "trash" they did not want?

Did that mean they would not have suffered this disaster if they had not provoked him?

Pan, with one hand turned into a toy, had gone deathly pale. It was impossible to tell whether it was from regret or blood loss.

"Thanks~"

Li Zu took off his bloodstained white lab coat and changed into the green suit, trousers, and a pair of properly fitting yellow Oxford shoes.

He reached up and swept his messy black bangs back from his forehead.

"Well then, goodbye~" Li Zu waved and left the alley in satisfaction, leaving behind three men who were both terrified and greatly relieved.

They feared Li Zu's ability, yet were relieved that he had not continued to hurt them.

"My head's a little dizzy. I've used my ability too much!"

Li Zu emerged from the alley, leaned against a wall, and rubbed his head.

On the panel only he could see, it clearly displayed:

Toyification: Mastery (21%)

He could feel it himself. He had become far more proficient in using this ability.

"Now it's time to leave Gotham... Hm?"

Li Zu was just about to set off and find somewhere to hide.

But the constantly jumping numbers on the panel caught his attention.

World Exploration Progress 11%

The World Exploration Progress, which had remained at 10%, suddenly jumped up by one point.

Then 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%...

It did not stop until 18%.

He had merely stood there without moving.

He could not make sense of what had happened.

"Then how about..." The corners of his mouth curled up uncontrollably again.

His clear eyes began to turn mad.

He shouted at the top of his lungs, "Nobody move! Whoever moves, I'll shoot him dead!"

"Ah!"

"Help!"

The people of Gotham were like startled birds. Upon hearing the word "shoot," they did not stop to consider whether it was real and immediately scattered in all directions.

Amid the crowd, a figure in a yellow leather jacket shoved through the people and charged over, punching Li Zu in the face.

Bang!

It was a solid punch.

Li Zu wanted to dodge, but the other man had clearly trained in martial arts. One punch successfully shut him up.

His back hit the ground, his mouth tasted salty, and his teeth felt loose.

Yet Li Zu burst into loud laughter.

His mad behavior had filled everyone else with fear.

But the young man who had punched Li Zu to the ground seemed completely unsurprised.

The reason for his joy lay with the young man before him. After the other man gave him that punch, his World Exploration Progress rapidly surged, reaching 20% in the blink of an eye!

Clang~

It was like something had fallen into an empty wooden box.

Reaching 20% had clearly earned him something, and it was most likely inside the item box he could summon.

The numbers had not stopped jumping. 21%, 22%, 23%...

When they stopped at 26%, Li Zu felt somewhat disappointed. He still wanted to find out what he would get at 30%.

But a flash of insight seemed to strike his mind, and he clearly had a new theory about World Exploration Progress.

Li Zu extended his right hand, trying to turn the person before him into a toy.

Slap!

The young man's elbow slammed into the inside of Li Zu's arm, interrupting his movement and inadvertently saving himself from falling into hell.

(End of Chapter)