"What? Frank's been wanted?"
Qin Xiao froze in disbelief, thinking he must've misheard.
He'd been staying in Kamar-Taj for several weeks now.
During all that time, Frank hadn't called him once.
He assumed that meant everything at Stark Industries was fine.
If he hadn't just learned the Mirror Dimension and the Portal spell—and decided to return to New York—
he'd probably still be in Kamar-Taj, quietly cultivating.
Ever since his transmigration, every step Qin Xiao took had been carefully planned.
Back then, he was nothing but an ordinary man,
so every move had to be cautious and deliberate.
By a stroke of luck—and some clever persuasion—he got Frank to eat the Swamp Fruit,
earning himself his first reliable ally.
From there, he slowly began to lay his plans:
making contact with Kingpin, setting up connections within Stark Industries,
and finding opportunities to appear in front of Tony Stark.
Every link in the chain had been meticulously arranged.
Learning magic was the cornerstone of all of it.
Once he mastered the Mirror Dimension and Portal spells,
he'd finally have true means of survival and escape.
So before that,
no matter how much chaos erupted around Kingpin or Tony—
even if billions were at stake—
he had decided not to get involved.
But now… Frank was wanted by the authorities?
This was completely off-script.
Seeing Qin Xiao's confusion, Daniel gave a small sigh and explained:
"Stark Industries hasn't exactly been calm lately.
They shut down the weapons division,
the stock price tanked,
and the media's been ripping them apart.
That's all manageable—at least no one got killed.
But a couple of days ago, something big happened.
Obadiah Stane, one of Stark Industries' senior board members,
was assassinated—by Tony's personal bodyguard."
Daniel casually picked up a newspaper from the table and handed it to Qin Xiao.
Qin Xiao frowned and took a look.
The front page headline was exactly as Daniel described:
Obadiah Stane Assassinated—Killer Identified as Frank Castle!
The report went on to say that several Stark Industries board members
and a number of military representatives had also been killed during the incident.
It seemed Frank had attacked during a major corporate meeting—
slaughtering everyone present.
And at the very end of the article, one particular line caught Qin Xiao's eye:
"The suspect is believed to be a mutant."
A chill ran down his spine.
That meant Frank had used his powers.
"But why would there be so many people at the scene?
What exactly happened that day?"
Questions flooded Qin Xiao's mind.
If Frank had truly gone rogue, why hadn't he contacted him?
This was already two days old—something didn't add up.
Behind him, Gu Yi's calm voice broke the silence:
"It seems you have something urgent to take care of."
Qin Xiao turned and nodded.
"Indeed, Master Gu Yi. I need to look into this."
"The Mirror Dimension is a fine spell for observation,"
Gu Yi said softly, "and the Portal can take you anywhere."
He instantly understood—
that was her way of telling him: don't rush, investigate first.
"I understand," Qin Xiao said,
a wry smile tugging at his lips.
"So much for lying low and cultivating."
But now, it was time to return to New York and find out what really happened.
After saying a brief goodbye to Gu Yi and Daniel,
he opened a portal and left.
In the car, Qin Xiao dialed Frank's number.
The call connected after a few rings.
"Qin? You're back in New York?"
Frank's voice was steady—too steady.
That alone made Qin Xiao breathe a little easier.
"I just saw the news. What the hell happened?
According to the plan, even if you took action,
it should've been under the pretense of protecting Tony.
How did you end up branded as an assassin?
And why were board members and the military involved?"
He fired off question after question,
needing to understand what had gone wrong.
Frank's reply came through gritted teeth:
"Qin… I was set up."
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