Jason followed the trail of blood all the way to a remote riverbank. The vampire elder lay incapacitated on the ground, a large silver stake piercing through his shoulder, pinning him to the earth.
Hearing Jason's approach, Blade tightened his grip on his sword, his posture instantly alert.
"Relax. I'm a vampire hunter, just like you," Jason said, keeping his distance.
"Who the hell are you?" Blade's stance remained defensive, his eyes narrowed with suspicion.
Jason pointed to the mechanical mask covering his face. "You can call me... Iron Man!"
"Never heard of you," Blade replied flatly.
Jason shrugged. "But you've certainly heard of the hell's butcher vigilante who calls himself Night Walker, right? He's a friend of mine. Like him, I'm also a righteous superhero. Fighting crime, upholding justice, hunting vampires—all part of my job description."
Blade frowned. He did know the devil-faced vigilante. They'd crossed paths once before, and he'd almost been deceived by him. But since then... the guy hadn't exactly cultivated a heroic reputation.
"Isn't Hell's Butcher the same guy who set a fire that covered half of Manhattan in toxic smoke?" Blade asked skeptically.
Jason waved dismissively, his voice taking on an indignant tone. "Rumors! Complete misinformation! It was obviously the underground crime lord Kingpin who started that fire. He wanted everyone in Hell's Kitchen hooked on his drugs." Jason leaned in conspiratorially. "Listen, Kingpin's got serious reach—politicians, police, media—they're all in his pocket. The public never gets the real story these days, just smokescreens!"
After a moment of consideration, Blade shook his head. "I don't care about any of that. Why are you following me?"
Jason extended his hand. "I'm here to extend a sincere invitation for you to join my team. Together, we can take down Frost."
Blade's interest was instantly piqued. He'd been tracking Frost's activities for months.
Recently, the entire vampire underground in New York had been behaving strangely. Something significant was shifting within their hierarchy, and Blade was certain it was connected to Frost, the leader of the mixed-blood vampire faction.
Tonight's hunt for the vampire elder Marcus had been a calculated risk, an attempt to uncover what was really happening.
"You know what's going on?" Blade asked, his voice betraying a hint of eagerness.
Jason smiled. "It's actually a rather clichéd story. The noble pure-bloods cling to their ancient rules while blocking the ambitious mixed-bloods from ascending the ranks. So naturally, we have a tale of a mixed-blood who'll stop at nothing to reach the top." He paused for effect. "But you and I, Blade—we can stop them."
Blade's eyes turned cold. "The mixed-blood you're referring to is Frost?"
"Who else?" Jason replied with a smirk.
Blade was tempted. The man before him clearly possessed valuable intelligence—information Blade desperately needed. "How can I trust you?"
Jason shrugged and approached Marcus, who continued to struggle weakly against the stake pinning him down. Jason was surprised to see the ancient vampire's face contorted with the raw fear of impending death.
People are so different, he thought. Some live so long they become indifferent to mortality. Others grow more terrified of death with each passing century.
Drawing a small silver dagger from his belt, Jason began his performance.
In the cold night air, Marcus's shriek was cut short almost as soon as it began, devolving into unbearable groans. Jason methodically inflicted 108 precise wounds, each one carefully placed to avoid being fatal.
The grotesque spectacle was so horrific it even stirred Blade's compassion.
"Just kill him!" Blade commanded.
Sirens wailed in the distance. Jason, satisfied that the emotional level had reached its peak, yanked out the silver stake and drove it directly into Marcus's heart.
The vampire disintegrated into ashes that scattered in the night breeze.
Blade studied Jason carefully, then took the phone Jason offered him and disappeared before the police arrived.
Jason removed his mask, walked to the distant road, and flagged down a taxi.
The moment Jason returned to Hopewell Sanctuary, David tossed a stack of documents onto the table in front of him.
"Here's what you asked for," David said.
Jason couldn't help but smile as he examined the paperwork. He'd instructed David to anonymously register a series of trademarks online, including Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, Black Widow, and even Thanos.
Use these at the right moment, and they could be worth a fortune.
After collecting the documents, he asked, "Did you find anything useful on Marcus's phone? I would have interrogated him longer, but Blade showed up earlier than expected."
David shrugged. "There's some promising data. We're still sorting through it. Results should be ready by tomorrow."
"Perfect," Jason replied.
After washing up, Jason sat devoutly beside his bed, summoned the system interface, and opened the first silver-level gift package.
[Congratulations on gaining the reward: Electrokinesis]
Holy shit, am I about to reach a new level? His mind immediately flashed to the infamous villain Electro, who had repeatedly made Spider-Man's life a living hell.
But as he delved deeper into understanding the ability, he realized he'd been overly optimistic.
The so-called "Electrokinesis" currently offered only basic capabilities.
First, he gained immunity to electrical shocks—meaning he could wander the streets during a thunderstorm with a metal umbrella if he felt so inclined.
Second, he could generate electric discharges, unleashing dazzling bolts of lightning within a range of several dozen meters.
Impressive. Very impressive. Extremely impressive.
The power was formidable, but limited to three consecutive discharges, after which it entered a recovery phase.
Okay...
Need to find an ability upgrade card ASAP.
The following evening, Jason received his newly completed combat suit.
He was impressed that someone with such craftsmanship existed in Hell's Kitchen. The suit was vastly superior to his previous homemade version.
Bulletproof in vital areas, puncture-resistant throughout, lightweight yet durable, with exquisite attention to detail.
The surface of the combat suit featured striking gold and red lines that made it look remarkably similar to the Iron Man Mark armor—about 46% similar, by Jason's estimation.
Wearing this suit and mask, who wouldn't believe he was Iron Man?
Tonight would be special—the official debut of Iron Man in the Marvel universe!
David had extracted an address from Marcus's phone: the location of the New York vampires' archive. Jason had notified Blade, and the two planned to meet there.
Outside a nondescript bar, music thumped so loudly it spilled onto the street. Jason observed for a while and noticed not only vampires entering but ordinary humans as well.
It doesn't matter, he thought. As long as the system identifies you as target, everyone gets counted.
When Blade arrived, he gave Jason's outfit a thorough once-over.
"Cool, right?" Jason asked proudly.
After a moment of silence, Blade replied, "Well... slightly less impressive than mine."
"Tough critic!"
Jason turned his attention to the bar entrance. "According to my intel, the vampire archives are hidden in the kitchen. You can head there directly." He paused. "Leave the vampires in the main area to me."
Blade hesitated, unaccustomed to not taking the lead in these situations.
But Jason didn't give him time to object. Drawing two pistols, he charged through the doors.
The sound of rapid gunfire erupted from inside, and Blade shrugged before following him in.
The bar, which moments ago had been filled with cheerful patrons, now echoed with screams of terror.
Blood splattered the walls.
Ashes drifted through the air.
Blade stood dumbfounded at the entrance. If they weren't supposed to be allies, why were there so many human corpses on the floor?
Aren't we vampire hunters?
Jason noticed Blade's confusion and laughed. "Don't worry, I only killed those who deserved it. Don't believe me? Check for yourself. I've been in this business for two and a half years, and I've never eliminated the wrong target!"
Blade, at a loss for words, could only proceed toward the kitchen.
Jason methodically continued clearing out the hidden target throughout the bar.
When he reached the kitchen, he found the refrigerator door standing wide open, revealing a narrow corridor inside.
Before he could enter, a deafening roar shook the building, and a cloud of dust billowed into his face.
Stepping through the corridor, Jason discovered a collapsed heavy iron door. Inside the secret chamber beyond lay the remaining pages of the vampire bible, the legendary "Book of Erebus."
Next to the destroyed door lay an enormous figure—an 800-pound man called Pearl, the archive's guardian. His body was covered in fresh wounds, undoubtedly inflicted by Blade.
Jason didn't even bother to examine him closely before firing a single shot into Pearl's heart. True to his massive size, the guardian collapsed into a pile of ashes larger than any Jason had seen before.
Jason entered the secret chamber. Enormous pages from ancient texts were sealed behind glass panels, filling the entire room and arranged like dominoes.
He turned to Blade with genuine curiosity. "So, how much do you think these things are worth?"