Peter stared at the comic in front of him, his heart pounding as he read the words again:
"Just started, dying in pain, always thinking that even if I take a day off... Even if I'm tired, even if I vomit blood..."
"Even if your feet are so painful that you can't move, you still have to squat, even if your arms creak and make weird noises, you still have to do push-ups."
Practicing until he vomits blood? Feet so painful they can't move? Arms unable to hold up anymore? The words leaped out at Peter, and he couldn't help but wonder what was going on. His eyes moved quickly past the earlier lines, focusing intently on these details.
Everyone had laughed off Saitama's "secret" training routine in the comic as something simple—100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, and a 10-kilometer run. It sounded almost laughably easy, something that shouldn't turn anyone into the world's strongest hero.
But Peter was beginning to realize there was more to it. If this routine was so easy, why did it mention "vomiting blood," "arms making weird noises," and "feet that can't move"?
Nobody does 100 push-ups and ends up vomiting blood. That's just not how it works. Unless... unless Saitama was doing something different, something extreme.
What if, instead of stopping after one round of push-ups, sit-ups, and squats, he kept going? What if he did ten rounds? A hundred rounds? A thousand push-ups, 10,000 sit-ups, 10,000 squats? What if he ran not just 10 kilometers, but 100 kilometers, or even more?
What if he exercised every single day, pushing his body to its absolute limits, never stopping, no matter how much it hurt, no matter how exhausted he became?
Peter sat down, stunned. This was what Saitama meant by "persistence." It wasn't just about doing the routine—it was about pushing through the pain, the exhaustion, the limits of what seemed possible. It was about continuing, day after day, for years, without a single break.
Was this how Saitama became the strongest?
Peter didn't know for sure, but now, more than ever, he wanted to find out. Maybe he could get stronger too.
Meanwhile, Xu Mo was watching Saitama play video games with Kaneki Ken. Saitama, as always, was losing badly.
"You're too easy to beat, Saitama. Why don't you let Genos have a turn?" Xu Mo said, trying to hide a grin. He knew Saitama was no good at games—it was King who could dominate with just two fingers, after all.
As Saitama got ready for another round, his phone buzzed. Xu Mo glanced at the message and then back at the screen. He had been thinking a lot about the concept of "limiters" in One Punch Man—the idea that every creature has a natural limit to their growth, a boundary that keeps them from becoming too powerful.
Saitama was different. He had somehow broken through his limiter, becoming stronger than anyone else while still remaining human.
But could Peter do the same? Could anyone in the Marvel Universe? The idea was intriguing. Maybe it was possible, maybe not, but either way, Peter was determined to try.
While Xu Mo pondered, the comic artist in him couldn't help but imagine how this could play out in his stories. The idea of Saitama playing his own character in a video game and losing was too funny to resist.
His thoughts were interrupted by a notification from Twitter. As expected, the internet was blowing up.
"I swear, I saw Saitama!" one post read.
"Yeah, right. Next, you'll tell me you saw Genos—wearing women's clothes!" replied another.
"Get real, it's just cosplay. Or special effects!" someone else chimed in.
"No way, the guy in the comic came to life!" one more insisted.
Xu Mo smiled. The forums were exploding with speculation. Some thought the comic artist knew Saitama personally and was just drawing him for fun. Others were convinced it was all a hoax. But few understood the truth.
As he scrolled, Xu Mo noticed that both the Department of Defense and the White House were downplaying the incident, trying to suppress media coverage.
"S.H.I.E.L.D. is moving fast," he murmured. They were clearly trying to control the narrative, but Xu Mo knew it was too late. The secret was out, and no amount of suppression could change that.
His phone buzzed again. It was Andy from the company.
"Xu Mo, we've received a joint investigation notice from the Intellectual Property Office and the local state government," Andy said.
Xu Mo smirked. "They're really grasping at straws, aren't they? As long as we're still allowed to publish the comics, let them do what they want. Oh, and make sure we release an extra issue tomorrow."
"What comic?" Andy asked.
"The one that's going to slap them all in the face."