Old Man was, of course, designed to be a master of Qi Magic.
Jiang Xiang invented a backstory for Old Man as his father's distant cousin, an archaeologist who had spent years living in various remote mountain regions.
Having just heard that Jiang Xiang was in New York and that his father had passed away, Old Man, who happened to have decided to retire, chose to come to New York and open an antique shop.
Jiang Xiang had even prepared an antique shop for his debut.
Of course, Jiang Xiang also added a few other "minor" details and patched in some knowledge to explain the origins of Qi Magic and so on.
After Old Man made his debut, Jiang Xiang gained a tiny, insignificant boost.
For instance, his memory improved, and he learned a little about Qi Magic.
His enhanced memory let him recall the movies from his previous life more clearly.
Apparently... Iron Man was kidnapped in 2005, and the movie came out in 2008?
Then what year did Tony announce that he was Iron Man?
That was a little awkward.
But after so many years of practice...
Jiang Xiang was no longer that naive little boy. He no longer felt so helpless.
Back then, hoping to speed up his progress, Jiang Xiang had thought forming an organization might make things easier, so he founded the Distillery. Later, the master thief avatar joined and kept pulling flashy stunts to earn Emotional Value.
Since Jiang Xiang had saved Sheriff Sherlock's life, he accepted the invitation and joined the Distillery.
Through a year of cautious "crimes," Jiang Xiang finally saved up over eight hundred Emotional Value.
He called them crimes, but they were really just pranks pulled here and there, flashy stunts that drew attention.
As for why he didn't keep milking Gwen Stacy and the others, it was because emotions kept changing.
The first time he won a chemistry competition, his uncle and grandfather were surprised. By the second and third times, they were used to it, and he could hardly squeeze any Emotional Value out of them.
For that reason, before the end of 2004, Jiang Xiang planned to use avatars and characters to stage several major events and welcome the arrival of 2005.
The spectacle of supernatural phenomena appearing on a large scale was about to unfold.
This event would display a few supernatural abilities, serving as a warm-up.
George, I hope you can handle the truth this time.
Sheriff Sherlock silently wished George well.
Sherlock actually didn't know the specifics of Kidd's plan.
But Kidd had only asked him to help build a hot-air balloon and neon lights, along with decorating a large basket.
He hadn't asked for any maps, information on the guards, or details about valuable items. That suggested he really was just planning a prank.
He wasn't planning any sort of heist.
Of course, Charles hadn't committed many crimes in the first place.
Otherwise, it wouldn't have been just the New York Police Department chasing him.
At midnight, countless brilliantly colored balloons rose into the sky!
A figure darted among the balloons!
"Oh my God! What's that? Wirework?"
"Mom, come out and look! I saw a flying Superman! No! I'm not kidding!"
[Emotional Value from Tiyaqi and John—temporarily disregarded] [Emotional Value from George Stacy—+1]
Over the past year, Jiang Xiang had earned some Emotional Value through his inventive methods of committing crimes.
As people grew used to those low-profile crimes, his gains dwindled.
So he had to use something fresher to give the increasingly numb public and police officers a jolt.
This time, he would put supernatural power on full display!
In the future, whenever he had the chance, he could come out every so often and reap another harvest under the Distillery's banner, expanding the Distillery along the way.
Perfect!
The nighttime bells rang right on schedule.
"Is he really flying through the sky?"
George forced down his panic and asked with a trace of astonishment.
"No wires detected."
"No helicopters detected!"
Every communications channel told him the same thing-nothing unusual!
"What exactly is this notorious master thief planning to do?"
George muttered to himself, unsure how to react.
Just then, multicolored lights suddenly lit up the sky.
Pop-
A soft report came from the sky, like a firework.
The man strolling leisurely through the air set off more fireworks and firecrackers, and even prepared a banner bearing a holiday greeting for the sheriff!
The banner boldly read, "Happy holidays, Sheriff!!"
Multicolored flashing lights hung from the hot-air balloon. The side facing the intersection read "Surprise," while the other side read "Big."
So that was the big surprise!
It read, "Once again, happy holidays, Sheriff! Whatever holiday today happens to be!"
Before you continue