Chapter 239: Checking the Status of Each Shadow General
John had originally used his life as a bargaining chip to get the Shadow General to lend him power. Once his life force was overextended, he should have died. Unexpectedly, the Ancient One healed his wounds, and the dark energy remained within him, acting as a tether to keep him alive.
Currently, John's life could be described as a small boat in a vast ocean; a slightly larger wave would capsize him. However, the presence of the dark energy made his life force oddly vibrant—even if the boat flipped, the darkness would flip it right back.
"Sigh... whatever. Whether you live or die is up to you now." Silas had initially considered helping John further but decided against it. Helping John would be somewhat unfair to the previous General, Kezli. No matter how disgusting Kezli was, he had once been a Shadow General too.
Setting aside character flaws, Kezli actually had a great talent for merging with the Shadow General's power. While his raw talent didn't match Jenny's, he was able to merge much earlier due to his inherent darkness. The Shadow Generals preferred a dark mind and were more willing to grant such individuals power.
Unfortunately for Kezli, he killed Mike first, which pushed John to the brink and forced him to unleash the General's power. In the end, Kezli met a tragic end at John's hands.
On the Other Side
"Uncle Matthew, it's all my fault. But in that situation, we had to run, or we both would have been stuck there." Jenny was explaining the situation to Matthew with an air of pure sincerity.
Matthew sat silently on the sofa. He didn't blame Jenny for fleeing; he blamed her for knocking him out.
"Uncle Matthew, I'm hungry. I'm going to go whip something up in the kitchen." Jenny felt a pang of hunger again. Seeing no response from Matthew, she turned and headed toward the kitchen.
"Jen... sigh." Matthew wanted to tell her to let him handle it, but the words caught in his throat.
The Kitchen
Jenny stepped onto a Shadow-Eater Ninja to reach the upper cabinet. She needed some cereal; she was starving. As the General of the Shadow-Eaters, she was like a gluttonous queen—never truly full and hungry almost all the time.
"It looks like the Shadow-Eater General is also close to a successful merger." Silas stood nearby, invisible. Jenny couldn't sense him, but her Shadow-Eaters certainly did. However, Silas had commanded them not to react to him.
The Shadow-Eater Ninjas could only pant with their long tongues, a silent gesture of friendliness toward Silas.
"Jenny, let me do it." Just as Jenny grabbed the cereal, Matthew appeared at the kitchen door.
"So you're not mad at me anymore, Uncle Matthew?" Jenny blinked her large, watery eyes, looking incredibly cute. Unfortunately, Matthew couldn't see it.
"I'm not mad at you. I was just... thinking about some things," Matthew said helplessly.
"Really?" Jenny didn't believe him. Who ignores their own family just to "think about things"?
"Of course." Matthew walked over to Jenny, but suddenly lashed out with his blind cane toward the spot where Silas was standing.
Silas reacted instantly, retreating into the Shadow Kingdom. Matthew's cane struck only the empty air near the wall.
"What's wrong, Uncle Matthew?" Jenny asked, confused.
Matthew retracted his cane, his face solemn. "Someone was just here. Didn't you see them?"
"Someone?" Jenny was even more baffled. There was no one around her.
Judging by Jenny's tone, Matthew didn't think she was lying. But his radar sense—the reflection of sound—had clearly shown a person standing right there.
"Never mind. You want cereal? I'll help you." Matthew set aside his doubts. He decided not to worry Jenny with it for now.
Jenny, however, remained suspicious. Uncle Matthew was definitely hiding something. He said there was someone there? Why didn't she see anything?
The Shadow Kingdom
"Almost forgot about Daredevil's abilities." Luckily, Silas was fast. The moment Matthew's cane moved, he had opened the rift.
Daredevil could form a 3D map in his mind through sound reflections. Even if Silas was invisible and masked his scent/breath, he could still be "seen."
"Now that I've checked on the Generals, I should head back." Silas opened the path home. Ben and May were returning.
Hotel Suite
"Phew~ I heard there's a parade and festival this afternoon. Let's go check it out together." Ben Parker entered the room to find Silas sitting on the sofa watching TV.
"That sounds like a great idea," Silas said with a smile. He was free anyway.
"Is Peter still sleeping?" Aunt May asked worriedly. Usually, Peter was full of energy; seeing him bedridden was unusual.
"Still sleeping. Don't worry, Aunt May, he got up once to use the bathroom," Silas said, having known this through his ninjas.
"Relax, May. Peter's fine. He's probably just exhausted." Ben had seen today's newspaper mentioning Spider-Man appearing in San Francisco. He knew the boy had been out being a hero again. Truly a dedicated young man.
"Exhausted? From what?" Aunt May put down her bag, feeling a bit tired from the walk herself.
"We'll grab lunch at the restaurant first. The parade starts at 2:00 PM," Ben said, checking his watch.
"Since we're about to eat, I'll go wake him up," Aunt May said.
Silas stood up immediately. "I'll do it."
Inside the Room
"What is it, Silas?" Peter sat up instinctively at the sound of the door. He relaxed when he saw it was his brother.
"Nothing, just lunch time. They want you ready for the restaurant," Silas explained.
Peter stretched. He had dreamed of the Battle of New York again, fighting off Chitauri invaders.
"You look like you didn't sleep well," Silas remarked.
"For some reason, the Battle of New York keeps popping up in my head. As soon as I close my eyes, it's like I'm back there," Peter confided. He really needed someone to talk to, and Silas was a great listener.
"Don't overthink it, Peter. That battle is long over." Silas knew Peter was just overworked and under-rested.
Peter rubbed his head and hopped out of bed to get dressed. "Let's go. Aunt May and Uncle Ben are waiting."
The Parker family headed to the restaurant and ordered lunch. During the meal, Ben and May both stepped away to the restroom.
"Silas, do you know what happened to me last night?" Peter decided to tell him about his experience.
"What happened?" Silas pretended not to know.
"I ran into something very strange..." Peter slowly recounted his encounter. "Do you think it's actually the government?"
"I doubt it. Are you planning to investigate further tonight?" Silas asked.
"Definitely. I already have a plan. I'm going to catch the mastermind behind this." Peter looked incredibly confident in his scheme.
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