Two Pulls to Celebrate

He desperately shoved his way forward.

"Make way! Please!"

The security guard frowned and reached out to stop this overconfident brat. "Hey! Back off! Kid! This isn't a place for you!"

"Please! I just... I just want to see him once!" The boy's face had gone red with urgency, and he clutched a sweat-soaked copy of the Homelander's Adventures comic tightly in his hands.

Just as the impatient guard was about to drag him out—

"Wait."

A gentle voice pierced through the noisy crowd.

Wu Yanzu stopped walking.

He turned around, his azure eyes falling on the boy.

Seeing this, the guard released the little boy, and Azu walked toward him as well.

The surroundings instantly fell silent.

As Wu Yanzu drew closer, the boy felt like he could barely breathe.

The unreachable "god" he had seen in movies and comics was now standing right in front of him.

So tall, so dazzling... every star on his cape seemed to be sparkling.

"Were you looking for me, young man?"

Wu Yanzu crouched down, bringing his gaze level with the boy's, a warm smile spreading across his face.

"I... I..."

The boy stammered. He had never been good with words, and now his tongue was completely tied.

"Don't be nervous, kid. What's your name?"

"Peter, sir." The boy nervously swallowed. "Peter Parker."

"..."

The smile on Wu Yanzu's face froze for 0.1 seconds.

Peter... Parker? Spider-Man? Damn!

In that instant, his X-Ray Vision swept over the boy's entire body.

"Skeleton... normal. No mutation. Heart rate... fast, but that's just nerves. Adrenaline... normal."

"Oh, right. He hadn't been bitten yet."

"Peter Parker..." Wu Yanzu rolled the name around in his mouth, his gaze deepening.

"Good name."

He held out his hand. "Can I see what you're holding, Peter?"

"Huh? Oh! Of course! Here... here you go!" Peter hurriedly handed over the comic, nearly dropping it because he was so nervous.

Wu Yanzu caught the comic steadily.

It was the first issue of Homelander's Adventures, its cover worn fuzzy around the edges. Clearly, its owner had read it countless times.

"Looks like you really like it." Wu Yanzu smiled and accepted a golden pen from his assistant.

"Where would you like me to sign?"

"The cover! No... the title page! Any... anywhere is fine!" Peter was so excited he was nearly crying.

Wu Yanzu opened to the title page.

He did not simply scribble his name down like he did for everyone else.

He paused, the pen hovering above the paper.

A moment later, he began to write.

His pen moved like a dragon and snake, the handwriting vigorous and powerful.

"To my like-minded friend, Peter."

"Never let this world change you."

"—Homelander"

Wu Yanzu closed the comic and handed it back to Peter.

"Friend...?"

Peter stared at those words, utterly stunned.

A like-minded friend?

Homelander... had called him his friend?

"You see," Wu Yanzu pointed to Peter's chest, his tone turning serious and sincere, "I can hear your heartbeat, Peter."

Peter jumped in fright and covered his chest.

"It's beating fast, and strongly." Wu Yanzu's eyes locked directly onto Peter, as though he could see through his soul. "But I see more than nervousness. I see... potential."

Wu Yanzu reached out and gently placed a hand on Peter's frail shoulder.

"This world is full of power, Peter."

"Some people have power, yet use it to bully the weak."

"Some people have power, yet choose to turn a blind eye."

"But you..." Wu Yanzu's voice lowered, like the teachings of a godfather. "...your eyes tell me that if you gained power, you would make the right choice."

"Just like they say in the movies... with great power comes great responsibility."

"Remember those words, Peter. They are the curse of people like us, and also our gift."

Boom—!!!

Those words exploded like a nuclear bomb deep within Peter Parker's young, sensitive heart!

Peter could no longer hold back his tears.

Looking at the man before him, radiant as the sun, he felt the blood throughout his body begin to burn.

He was not some unwanted bookworm.

He was not a useless loser who could only be bullied.

Homelander... the hero who had saved the world, had called him a like-minded friend! He had said that he... had potential!

"I... I'll remember!"

Peter Parker clenched the comic tightly and shouted with all the strength in his body.

"I swear! Mr. Homelander! I definitely... definitely won't let you down!"

"I believe in you, kid."

Wu Yanzu stood up and gave Peter's messy hair one final rub.

"All right, Peter Parker." Azu winked at him. "Go home now. Your parents will be worried."

"I... I only have Aunt May..."

"Then don't let your Aunt May worry." Azu smiled and patted his shoulder. "Go on."

"...Yes! Yes! Thank you, Mr. Homelander! Thank you!!"

Peter Parker felt as if he were dreaming.

"I can see it... one day in the future, you'll stand at my side. Together... we'll make this world a better place."

With that, Wu Yanzu flicked his cape, turned, and left, disappearing into the crowd.

Peter Parker was left standing there blankly, tightly hugging the signed comic to his chest as though he were holding the whole world.

Watching that red, white, and blue figure disappear into the distance, Peter Parker took off his glasses and wiped away his tears.

His eyes had changed.

They held the look of someone... who had found his faith.

"Homelander..." Peter murmured.

"I'm going to... become a hero like you too."

"Ding! Special Popularity Points gained: +50000!"

"Ding! Absolute Bond with special character 'Spider-Man' detected!"

"Ding! Hidden reward obtained: Spider-Sense!"

Already seated in the stretched Lincoln, Wu Yanzu nearly laughed out loud when he heard the notification.

"Fifty thousand? Just like that, fifty thousand?"

"And... Spider-Sense? The legendary Peter tingle?"

He closed his eyes and instantly felt that the world around him become somewhat different.

The movement of the air, the clicking shutters of paparazzi in the distance, even the sound of a passerby spilling coffee hundreds of meters away—all of it fed back to his brain as subtle "warning" signals.

For someone who already possessed Super Senses, this was like adding wings to a tiger!

"This little Spider-Man... really is a treasure trove."

In high spirits, Wu Yanzu casually opened the car refrigerator and took out a bottle of champagne.

He silently called up the system panel. The system prompt read, "Current Special Popularity Points: 87000."

"Twenty minutes until Beverly Hills." Azu calculated inwardly. "On a day this good, I have to make two pulls to celebrate."

"System, activate the Superhero Blind Box."

"Two consecutive draws."

"Consuming 60000 Special Popularity Points... commencing two consecutive 'Superhero Blind Box' draws..."