111

Chapter 111: Between the Secondary Patients

In the comics, Norman Osborn stole Tony Stark's suit, painted it in red, white, and blue, and transformed it into a new hero, the "Iron Patriot." 

At this moment, Harry Osborn wears the armor, inheriting his father's legacy. The only difference is, he is not a villain.

Closer to home, even though Harry is in battle armor, he still instinctively retreats to avoid Kingpin's enormous body, which looks like a giant beast.

This is also a wise choice.

After Harry dodged, Kingpin burst through the door behind him. If Harry had been hit, it's uncertain if his armor would remain intact.

In terms of combat power, while Kingpin isn't on par with superhumans like Gwen, he is not weaker than martial artists like Daredevil and can even hold his own against Steve. Harry's physique was only slightly enhanced after the gene serum was removed, leaving him reliant on his armor and flying wings.

Kingpin doesn't hold back, picking up a nearby bench and hurling it at Harry.

Boom! The bench misses Harry and crashes into the wall, breaking apart and demonstrating Kingpin's immense strength. 

The church descends into chaos.

Kingpin keeps throwing chairs, and Harry uses his flying wings to hover above, constantly dodging. The scene is dizzying.

When Kingpin runs out of benches, Harry seizes the opportunity and charges with his flying wings.

Unexpectedly, Kingpin had been waiting. He grabs and blocks the incoming wings.

Kingpin's massive body trembles but stabilizes.

Harry is taken aback and asks, "Have you been injected with some kind of serum?"

"No, didn't I tell you? This is the limit of human power," Kingpin says, ridiculing him. "Your father used this trick on Black Superman. What happened then?"

This infuriates Harry.

He increases the power of the flying wings, the rear jets spewing larger flames, pushing harder.

Kingpin feels immense pressure and takes two steps back but stabilizes and successfully resists the flying wings.

Kingpin throws the wings away. They crash to the ground, and Harry falls with them.

Kingpin rushes forward, pins Harry's armor, and punches him hard.

Bang! The armor absorbs the hit but Harry inside feels the impact.

Kingpin grabs Harry and says, "You know, Harry Osborn, I'm very disappointed in you."

"What do you mean?" Harry asks, regaining his senses.

"You're too cowardly," Kingpin says. "I thought Black Superman, who opposed me, was the strongest. I even felt sorry for him."

Kingpin lifts Harry, "But when I saw you, I realized you were just a kid who hasn't grown up."

He pulls Harry close, staring into his visor, "You can't even recognize yourself or admit you admire Black Superman. What qualifies you to compete with me for leadership of the church?"

He throws Harry to the ground, "Your purity is too low."

Harry roars, "What do you know?"

Kingpin turns to look at him.

Harry, with his visor off, reveals his pale face and green hair affected by the gene serum.

Kneeling, Harry says, "I've always sympathized with Black Superman's philosophy—only by fighting violence with violence can all evil be eradicated."

"But one day, I realized my father was the evil to be eliminated. Despite his flaws, he's still my father."

"I turned a blind eye as much as I could, feeling guilty. Even now, I sometimes doubt if I'm worthy."

Harry asks, "And now, you want everyone to hate him and mock him for even his son turning against him?"

"So what?" Kingpin asks lightly.

He gestures to everyone, "Do you know why I'm here?"

Harry sneers, "Why? Because you have a conscience and want to atone for your sins?"

Kingpin ignores his attitude, "No, because Black Superman said he wanted to kill me."

Harry is stunned. "He wanted to kill you? Then why..."

"This isn't a contradiction, Harry Osborn," Kingpin interrupts. "I recognized Black Superman earlier than you. From the first night he appeared, fighting crime across New York."

Kingpin smiles nostalgically, "You know, he called himself Batman then and destroyed a lot of my warehouse goods."

Peter: "..."

Harry frowns, feeling unhappy with Kingpin's smiling face.

Kingpin continues, "I once watched him kill Vulture in front of me—the first true superhuman criminal he killed."

"I remember he glanced at me from kilometers away. That was enough to make me feel cold and run away. At that time, I was trying to think of how to confront Black Superman."

Kingpin surprisingly feels proud talking about these disgraceful experiences. Harry, feeling jealous, says, "This is delusional!"

Kingpin continues, "Until one day, Black Superman appeared in front of me..."

"What happened then?" Harry asks quickly.

Kingpin says slowly, "Black Superman confronted me, questioned my crimes... It was crazy and fascinating. He said he'd kill me one day but not now."

"The next day, I admitted my identity and moved into this building."

"Why..."

"Why do I trust him even though he said he'd kill me?" Kingpin interrupts, "Why not? This has nothing to do with position or interest. Even if I've committed countless crimes and will be killed by him, I'm still curious and hope he cleanses this disgusting world."

Kingpin laughs deeply, "Just thinking about it is thrilling..."

Harry is shocked by Kingpin's speech, feeling mixed emotions.

Harry doesn't know if he should call Kingpin crazy, or be jealous of his close contact with Black Superman, or admire his enlightenment and deeper understanding of Black Superman.

Harry is discouraged, feeling he lost to Kingpin regarding Black Superman. The "Fanatic Pope" lived up to his name.

He can't imagine facing Black Superman if he wanted to kill him or hurt people like Peter again.

Maybe, he really isn't pure enough as Kingpin said.

His faith wavers.

Kingpin walks up to Harry, looks down, and extends his hand, "So, surrender to me. Let me lead the Black Superman's church. I am the most suitable candidate, and I will guide his followers to a better future."

Kingpin subtly shakes Harry's faith with his words. 

There's a reason why he built a mafia empire.

Harry, in various shocks and self-doubts, exposes his flaws. Kingpin's invitation plants a seed of doubt—perhaps he should give up and let Kingpin lead.

But Harry has experienced ups and downs.

As his hand is about to touch Kingpin's, Harry regains his focus and shakes off Kingpin's hand, "No, don't even think about it!"

Kingpin isn't annoyed, "Why? I can obviously do better than you, Harry. With your help, our future territory will be even greater."

"It's your territory, Kingpin," Harry sneers.

Kingpin falls silent, then grins cruelly, "In that case, I won't be merciful, Harry Osborn. You'll regret this decision today."

At this moment, Kingpin's cruelty hidden under his grace finally surfaces.

He steps forward to capture Harry again, but Harry prepares for battle. His flying wings activate under his control.

Another round of battle is about to break out when,

"That's enough."

A voice reaches their ears, making them stiff.

"Black Superman!?"

But the voice is unmistakable, and their reactions confirm it.

"Did you hear that too?" Kingpin asks.

Harry nods, collapsing to the ground, "Black Superman is here? Did he see everything just now?"

Harry feels a wave of difficult emotions spread through him. It's like being caught red-handed in a bad act.

He feels like the real owner caught him saying and doing shameful things with Kingpin.

Harry's face turns red.

Kingpin, a more severe patient, feels no shame. He's excited, the several hundred-pound man as happy as a child, "Black Superman! You're here! You're watching me!"

He gasps excitedly, "Have you seen it? My faith in you is pure. I'll always follow you, watch you, and see how you cleanse this dirty world. Hahahaha!"

Harry falls silent. Perhaps his purity isn't enough. In a way, Kingpin truly admires and yearns for him.

Damn, thinking of Black Superman here just now, he feels like there are ants crawling on him. He wishes he could live on another planet!

And with Black Superman's command, they can't continue fighting.

Of course, the struggle for the church leadership isn't over. There will be future conflicts and friction.

But for today, the matter is temporarily resolved. Kingpin and Harry part with different moods.

---

Where did Black Superman go?

If he appeared during the final fight between Kingpin and Harry, the effect would have been even more explosive.

Kingpin would be more fanatical, and Harry more ashamed.

But Peter had to leave.

In a deserted New York alley, a blue rectangular door appears in the air, and heavily armed soldiers step out.

"Is this an abnormal timeline?" one soldier asks.

Their captain, a black woman, warns, "Don't be careless. This timeline is very dangerous."

"Dangerous? Can it survive the danger?"

"Hard to say."

"It's hard to say?" the soldier is stunned. "Captain, we've been on many missions. This is the first time I've heard you comment on a timeline like this."

The captain shakes her head, "We have to ask the observers of this timeline."

The last person walking out of the door looks just like Peter Parker.