Chapter 115: The Sudden Assault

When the gunshots rang out, Pepper was still looking around in confusion. Then she saw Tony, dressed in a suit, hunching over as he sprinted toward her. With a startled cry, he tackled her to the ground. How many times had this happened now?

Bullets whizzed past her scalp, grazing it, and struck a bewildered passerby behind her, who immediately collapsed motionless. These so-called “police” were deliberately sowing chaos on the streets.

They fired recklessly at pedestrians, and in the blink of an eye, dozens had fallen like ripe wheat being harvested—some dead on the spot, others screaming and crawling on the ground in sheer terror.

These socially elite figures, usually so polished and composed, could hardly believe someone dared to massacre people on Fifth Avenue. Where were the real police? Where had they gone?

Oh, right—the killers were the police themselves.

Amid the chaos at the street corner, a man in a police uniform with a scar across his face slowly approached the hiding spot where Tony and the others had taken refuge.

At that moment, a dozen frantic pedestrians followed the renowned Tony Stark, seeking shelter inside the lobby of a hotel on the ground floor, seemingly believing that with Iron Man nearby, they might be safe.

The scarred man passed by a man lying in a pool of blood, clutching his thigh in agony. Without hesitation or even a glance, he raised his gun and shot the man as the latter looked up pleadingly. Bang!

The scarred man slightly lowered his head and coldly spoke into the radio clipped to his collar, “Take the Asian boy alive. Eliminate the others.”

He calmly swapped the magazine in his handgun and leisurely stepped into the hotel where Tony and the others were hiding.

In a narrow alley beside the street, Luke had already quickly assessed the situation. The scenario was... frankly, boring.

Only a few men opposite, all armed with pistols. Once he activated his mental shield, these men posed no threat to him.

More intriguing than the threat was the identity and purpose of these men.

Behind him, aside from the stunned and speechless trio known as the Violent Birds, the four girls of the Black Rose squad were eager to spring into action, though sadly unarmed.

Even young Spider-Man’s eyes shimmered with a mixture of excitement and fear, his primordial power barely contained.

These short-legged kids in the alley were no pushovers; any one of them could easily handle the gunmen outside. So Luke felt no real tension at all.

His gaze followed the street and caught sight of the gunman who had just entered the hotel. It seemed the real concern lay on Tony’s side. Previous incidents had shown that without the Mark suit, Tony’s combat effectiveness was rated a mere five.

“General, these people are coming for us—or rather, for you,” Amy Tan analyzed calmly.

“That’s what I thought,” Luke nodded. Almost all the gunmen along the street were converging toward their position.

He counted: six outside plus the one inside the hotel, making seven in total.

“Try to capture them alive. I want to interrogate them,” Luke instructed the Black Roses.

“Yes, sir,” the four answered in unison.

Coincidentally, the opposition shared that same intent.

“Take them alive.”

The unidentified gunmen all received this order and switched to stun guns. Six of them split into two opposing flanks and began to encircle Luke’s location.

When they entered the alley, however, it was empty.

Just moments ago, there had been people here.

As confusion flickered across their faces, the leader’s vision suddenly blurred. Out of nowhere, a figure seemed to materialize from thin air and delivered a punch.

“Short punch! Jumping chest strike!”

The assailant immediately collapsed, unconscious.

The other uniformed gunmen were startled and raised their weapons, firing stun gun blasts at Luke. Five bolts shot out but were instantly blocked by a dazzling orange shield that suddenly appeared.

Luke had deployed a mental barrier, protecting everyone behind him.

Beside him, the four Black Roses and Peter Parker gradually revealed themselves. Peter looked himself over in amazement as his body reappeared, unable to suppress his praise: “This is so cool, guys!”

“General, you’ve learned the mechanic’s disguise! You’re amazing!” Rosanna’s face flushed with admiration.

“General must have made some secret deal with Albert,” Anaka teased.

Amy Tan and Obia charged forward. Though small, appearing no more than six or seven years old, their combat skills were highly trained, far surpassing ordinary soldiers. Their innocent appearance was truly deceptive.

In the blink of an eye, the two girls took down two gunmen.

Peter Parker was not to be outdone. With a strong kick from his short legs, his small body leapt several meters high, letting out a howl as he landed atop a gunman’s head.

Luke silently judged, “A Spider-Man without webs is just a flea man.”

After a flurry of chaotic punches from the little spider, the gunman begrudgingly collapsed.

The last two gunmen panicked. Was this really a group of children? Were they being mocked? Their intelligence was seriously flawed!

Without a word, they pulled out live ammunition guns and barely raised them halfway.

Luke gave them no opportunity to fire. Suddenly, a staff appeared in his hand, and with two successive Dragon Fang strikes, he pinned the two men, rendering them completely immobilized.

Luke’s expression was calm as he approached the two. “Who are you? What’s your purpose?”

Before they could answer, both men started foaming at the mouth, their bodies trembling violently before collapsing dead, eyes wide open in final refusal.

Amy Tan quickly checked and reported, “General, they had poison in their mouths. They committed suicide by toxin.”

Luke’s face darkened instantly; realization dawned.

He looked at the other four unconscious gunmen and pointed at one. “Spider, check if there’s anything in his mouth. Take it out.”

Peter Parker curiously leaned in, prying open the gunman’s mouth with his small hands. Then, with a look of astonishment, he said, “Guys, there really is something here!” He pulled out a small pill.

Luke silently nodded, knowing there was no need to ask further. He understood who these men were.

Then his thoughts turned to Tony.

“Is Tony okay? Can one gunman be dealt with by him? This looks risky.”

Considering Tony’s playboy physique and Happy’s combat prowess demonstrated in the films...

Luke decided it was better to check in personally.

Though he and Tony didn’t see eye to eye, that didn’t mean he wished to see Tony killed. Luke believed in separating personal feelings from the greater good—for humanity’s sake, at least.

Meanwhile, in the hotel lobby, Tony and Pepper found themselves in grave danger. Tony frowned, clutching his side. His white dress shirt beneath the suit was stained with fresh blood.