Chapter 86: Meditation Is No Match for Sleep

Seeing these gangsters, Zhong Shenxiu immediately understood: his little enforcer, Peter Parker the Spider-Man, after idling away most of the day, had finally resumed his diligent work.

Today, the injuries on these gangsters were all rather light, suggesting that young Peter had shown some restraint. Though light is a relative term—when Zhong Shenxiu treated their wounds with his medical skills, nearly every gangster would suck in a sharp breath and curse under their breath, “Damn that short guy in red.”

After all, Zhong Shenxiu didn’t use anesthesia. Firstly, it was difficult to procure, and secondly, it was simply unnecessary—a waste of money.

Once their wounds were handled, the gangsters would pull out a handful of crumpled twenty-dollar bills from their pockets and, with gratitude on their faces, hand them to Zhong Shenxiu. Their eyes betrayed nothing but anticipation for the paid time off that awaited them.

Altogether, this batch of gangsters brought Zhong Shenxiu a little over seven hundred dollars. Compared to Tony, it was pitifully little. As for their abilities, there was no comparison at all. Lately, it seemed that all the more capable gangsters had been sent off to recover from Peter’s beatings, for the ones left were uniquely inept.

For instance, Zhong Shenxiu had just encountered a portly African-American, and when he peered at him through the Eye of True Sight, guess what ability he could acquire? “Digestive Acceleration, Beginner: Increases digestion speed by twenty percent, making you hungry faster.” With a power like that, one might as well have none.

Another memorable one was a man whose sole ability was to blow perfect smoke rings every single time...

In short, it was all rather indescribable. Disappointing.

Now, these gangsters served only to give Peter some practice, provide cover for Zhong Shenxiu, and help pass the time.

As sunlight faded from the sky and night descended, Zhong Shenxiu, living alone, prepared a simple bowl of noodle soup with shredded pork, slurped it down, and then turned off the lights in his home. In the darkness, he expertly slipped out the back door without making a sound. After navigating a series of blind spots in the surveillance system, he set out for his secret base.

From the outside, this rough, old villa still appeared desolate, as if no sign of life could be found. As Zhong Shenxiu approached the door, a concealed electronic camera twisted towards him—a movement so slight and subtle that, were it not for his vision enhanced by the Body of Chaos, he would never have noticed it in the night.

This was Ivan’s handiwork. The previous setup by Hyde was far too conspicuous—an abandoned villa with a glaring camera right at the entrance practically screamed, “Something’s amiss here.”

Zhong Shenxiu looked up, exposing his face to the camera’s field of vision. After about three or four seconds, there was a click, and the door swung open.

He quickly stepped inside, and just as he passed through, the door closed automatically behind him. Clearly, this routine was practiced and familiar.

Upon entering, the hidden elevator in the courtyard rose up in sync, as usual. Zhong Shenxiu would normally walk straight to the elevator, waiting for the silver doors to open so he could step inside without delay. This time, however, he turned his gaze toward the courtyard.

There sat Anton Vanko, his face still a ruddy shade beneath graying hair and whiskers. He lounged in the mechanical rocking chair Ivan had made for him, eyes closed, snoring soundly. Even in sleep, he muttered, “Spin—” “...Spin—”

The reason for his early slumber was obvious from the bottle in his hand. At Zhong Shenxiu’s suggestion, Vanko had abandoned the elusive vodka of Queens and taken up drinking Jiangxiaobai instead. At first, Zhong Shenxiu had intended to recommend Maotai, but it was far too expensive here, so he opted for the cheaper alternative.

Despite his years, the old man could truly drink—after only a few days, empty Jiangxiaobai bottles were piling up in the corner. No wonder he could drink himself into cirrhosis.

Zhong Shenxiu conjured a concentrated sphere of chaotic magic, enveloped Vanko, and with a thought, gently moved him onto a bed inside the house. This technique was similar to how he extracted shrapnel from Tony, the only difference being the amount of chaos magic expended.

With this done, Zhong Shenxiu stepped into the elevator that had long since opened for him, entering the secret base once again.

As the elevator descended, Zhong Shenxiu habitually summoned the Eye of True Sight, large enough to sweep the entire base for any unusual activity. As expected, there was none.

Wanda sat on her bed, eyes closed in meditation as Zhong Shenxiu had taught her, training her mental strength. For some reason, Wanda was particularly fond of meditation—or rather, obsessed with improving her mental abilities. She had nearly substituted meditation for sleep.

At this rate, it wouldn’t be long before Wanda became a true asset to Zhong Shenxiu’s camp, at least reaching the level of the Scarlet Witch when she first appeared in Avengers 2.

Meditation, however, was useless to Zhong Shenxiu; his mental power couldn’t be increased by it, nor would it recover if he meditated. For him, sleep was far more reliable.

Ivan, meanwhile, sat in what used to be the base's “living room,” now his workshop, not working or tinkering with strange inventions, but watching TV. Zhong Shenxiu approached, but Ivan was so absorbed in the broadcast that he didn’t even notice, testifying to the draw of the television’s content.

Ivan had modified the small TV himself, and Zhong Shenxiu had no idea where it received its signal, but the encryption was top-notch, achieving the level of secrecy Zhong Shenxiu had always desired.

This was something he greatly admired about Ivan.

The broadcast playing now was none other than the press conference Tony Stark held upon his return. Despite the incident involving Zhong Shenxiu, Tony had remained true to himself and announced the closure of Stark Industries’ weapons development and manufacturing division.

This news had sparked the most widespread and heated discussion across the globe. Nearly every news program and talk show on television was covering it.

After watching for a moment, Zhong Shenxiu cleared his throat to alert Ivan of his presence. When Ivan finally turned his attention from the screen to him, Zhong Shenxiu spoke: “Stark Industries’ stock is about to plunge. Be ready—you might seize the opportunity to buy at the bottom.”