"No! Get out of the way!"
Amidst the chaotic noise, an urgent call yanked a drifting soul back into its body from afar.
The next second, he suddenly opened his eyes.
Where is this?
Lynch rubbed his throbbing head and looked around in confusion.
Wasn't I just watching Avengers: Endgame?
How did I end up here?
A prank? Kidnapping? Or am I dreaming?
One question after another flashed through his mind.
But the screams, cries for help, and the sound of explosions interrupted his thoughts.
Lynch quickly realized that his situation was not looking good.
This is... a street?
Is there a terrorist attack going on here?
Or is it some kind of natural disaster?
Before Lynch could observe further, two rapidly approaching objects caught his full attention.
One was a speeding car, completely out of control judging by the terrified expressions of the people inside.
But what really shocked Lynch was the gold-and-red armored figure clinging to the car's undercarriage.
"Iron Man?"
Lynch was stunned.
The figure struggling beneath the car, sparking all the way, was unmistakably the famous Iron Man from the Marvel movies.
And from the looks of it, that's Mark III, one of the earlier models.
Did I... Transmigrate?
All I did was watch a movie—did it really have to come to this?
Lynch's brain short-circuited for just a moment before panic kicked in, and he tried to roll out of the way.
Because right now, that out-of-control car was barreling straight at him at breakneck speed, with less than ten meters left between them.
At this distance...
In a moment of crisis, the mind is often faster than the body.
Halfway through dodging, Lynch was already mourning for himself in his mind.
It's over. A Transmigrator getting hit by a car right after arriving?
Does it have to be this tragic?
Wait a minute!
If I've time-traveled, surely there's a cheat ability coming my way?
"System? Cheat ability? Mysterious old man?"
Ding! "Superman system successfully installed. The 'Young Superman' template is now loaded. Please click to view."
Superman system?
Wow, does this mean I'm invincible?
As these thoughts flashed through his mind, the car was already upon him.
The people inside had shut their eyes in terror, unable to bear watching what was about to happen.
Even the Iron Man hanging beneath the car cursed bitterly, "Damn it."
In the distance, a massive silver-gray Iron Man paused to watch, seemingly curious about the impending disaster.
Everyone here believed that this unlucky young guy was about to become today's casualty.
But at the moment the system notification rang out, Lynch suppressed his urge to flee. His mind raced to come up with the best countermeasure.
Taking a deep breath, everything seemed to slow down. He quickly leaned forward, arms outstretched to brace himself, legs spread apart in a low stance.
Then, a heart-stopping screech rang out.
To everyone's shock, the out-of-control car came to a gradual stop after colliding with Lynch!
It was Lynch!
Everyone could see him holding the smoking car by the front bumper, with deep skid marks left in the ground where he stood.
The once chaotic scene suddenly fell silent as everyone stared in disbelief at Lynch.
Sure, today's Iron Man battle was already something out of a sci-fi movie, dazzling and surreal.
But...
From an ordinary person's perspective, at least Iron Man's tech is somewhat understandable.
But this guy...
Look what he just did!
He stopped a speeding car with nothing but his bare hands!
"Oh my God, is this boy sent by you to save us?" a tall blonde woman whispered in awe, covering her mouth.
Even the Iron Man under the car, Tony Stark, opened his eyes and stared at Lynch in bewilderment.
He hadn't seen what happened, but with his intelligence, it wasn't hard to guess.
"Jarvis, can you tell me what just happened?" he asked, disbelief evident in his voice, hoping for an explanation that made sense.
But Jarvis's emotionless voice shattered his hopes.
"He stopped the car with his hands and brought it to a halt."
WTF?
Tony fell silent, his emotions a bit conflicted.
He had noticed this unconscious young man lying in the road earlier and had been trying to stop the out-of-control car, but as it turned out...
He failed and ended up being dragged along helplessly, crashing into the young man along with the car.
In that instant, he felt an overwhelming sense of guilt.
He had caused another death, just like all those killed by the weapons he once made. Another life added to Tony Stark's ledger.
Damn it, the Mark III still has too many flaws...
If only I had more time to improve it, I could've saved that kid...
But after the guilt came shock—this young man wasn't dead.
Not only was he alive, but he also seemed to be doing fine.
What kind of monster is he?
Could he be a synthetic robot?
Or a superhuman experiment subject from some secret organization?
Or maybe an undiscovered superpowered being?
...
As countless speculations ran through Tony's mind, his curiosity got the better of him. "Jarvis, look up this person's information."
"Search complete. No information found related to this individual."
Nothing?
Tony frowned, curiosity piqued even more. "Could Captain America do what he just did?"
"Based on available data simulations, yes."
After mulling it over for a while, Tony couldn't figure it out, so he decided to let it go for now.
He crawled out from under the car and looked toward the massive silver-gray Iron Man in the distance.
There's still a problem that needs dealing with—hopefully, that guy doesn't turn out to be another one.
In the distance, inside the giant silver-gray Iron Man suit, Tony Stark's enemy—Obadiah—was furious when he saw Lynch unharmed.
"Where did this freak come from?"
He had been eager to see Tony fail to save the day and suffer the pain of it.
For Obadiah, anything that could hurt Tony was something he'd gladly see happen.
He both envied and despised Tony—envied his extraordinary genius and unique talents, despised his selfishness and recklessness.
Why wasn't I born with such talent? Why does he get everything I could only dream of? Why do I have to clean up his messes every time?
These thoughts constantly gnawed at Obadiah's heart.
But he kept everything hidden behind a facade, feigning loyalty while biding his time for the perfect opportunity.
Finally, he had the perfect chance.
Once I get rid of this damn guy, everything will be mine!
Obadiah roared internally.
But after witnessing Lynch's astonishing feat, he was taken aback.
What's up with this guy?
Where did this monster come from?
Still, his surprise was fleeting as he quickly dismissed Lynch with a sneer.
Monster? No matter how strong a creature is, it's still just flesh and blood. How could it compare to real steel?
This suit is nothing like that loser Tony's junk!
Since you escaped once, I'll crush you to a pulp myself!
With a cruel grin, Obadiah maneuvered his Iron Monger suit toward Lynch.
Meanwhile, Lynch was just as shocked as everyone else.
He slowly released the smoking car bumper, then closed his eyes, feeling the power surging within him.
This strength was immense, overwhelming.
It felt like he could leap into the sky or shatter the earth with a single punch.
Of course, this was just the illusion of gaining new power. He was far from reaching such heights.
Lynch clearly remembered the words "Young Superman Template."
"System," he called out mentally, and a screen appeared before him.
Superman System
Current Template: Young Superman 100%, Teen Superman 0%.
Template Exchange List: Teen Superman, Superman, Silver age Superman, Golden Superman, Superboy prime...
Justice Points: 8.
With just a glance, Lynch grasped the system's simple mechanics.
The initial template is the so-called "Young Superman." Based on what he could sense, he couldn't fly yet, nor did he have heat vision, freeze breath, or x-ray vision...
All he had were super strength, super speed, and a super brain, among other abilities.
Justice Points could be used to unlock more powerful templates.
Lynch didn't dwell on the system for long because he was still furious.
I was this close!
Just a little more, and I would've become the laughingstock of all Transmigrators!
Scanning the crowd's varied expressions, Lynch walked straight toward Iron Monger.
The scene was familiar to him—this was the Iron Man vs. Iron Monger fight from the first movie.
"System, will I get Justice Points if I take this guy down?"
"Yes."
As he passed Iron Man, Lynch gave him a curious glance, then sped up toward the towering, ugly Iron Monger.
"Iron Monger, huh? If I don't smash you into pieces today, my name isn't Lynch!"
Standing a few meters apart, neither Lynch nor Obadiah spoke, but their eyes blazed with mutual determination to crush the other.
"Yaaah!"
Lynch charged forward, his speed building with each step. Suddenly, he let out a roar, leaping high into the air with a tightly clenched fist raised above his head.
"Die!"
From a distance, he looked like a brave knight facing off against a dragon.
Such courage was admirable, but many onlookers were worried and confused.
How could a human take on a steel giant?
How can a human challenge such a giant steel monster?
In the next moment, everyone witnessed an awe-inspiring scene.
Lynch threw a fierce punch at the Iron Monger before it could react. A thunderous boom erupted!
In an instant, the Iron Monger was sent flying like it had been hit by a speeding locomotive, completely losing control of its body.
The entire crowd fell silent, only for an even more intense cheer to erupt shortly after.
Nearby, Iron Man was about to stop Lynch but was left speechless by the shocking sight. The usually talkative Tony Stark swallowed his words along with his shock.
After landing from his punch, Lynch shook his hand and suddenly had a profound realization.
From today on, it seems like he won't be living like a normal person anymore!