Chapter 23 The Man in Armor

"Tony Stark, you truly are my lucky star!"

Seeing his fan count hit the target, Anton was ecstatic, so thrilled he even broke into a tap dance on the floor.

He had expected to wait until the next day to unlock the main Batman template, but after Betty quickly released the news of "Tony's final work" to promote the movie, Batman Begins shot to the top of trending topics, attracting even more attention.

Those who initially had no interest in the movie decided to buy a ticket to pay tribute to the "deceased" Tony Stark.

After watching the movie, many found Batman incredibly cool, feeling it was worth the ticket, and joined the Batman fan club.

Spending money and showing support, fan numbers surged dramatically.

In just a day, the fan count grew faster than on the movie's release day.

"Redeem!"

Anton immediately entered the system space and redeemed the Batman base template.

Something miraculous happened.

Anton, standing just over six feet, suddenly grew a few centimeters, reaching a height of 188 cm.

His muscles tensed and firmed up, every muscle fiber filled with explosive power, especially his eight sharply defined abs, as hard as a thick steel plate.

Simultaneously, new knowledge flooded into his mind.

In front of him, a skill interface visible only to him revealed a string of abilities.

Ultimate Stamina, Encyclopedic Knowledge, Indomitable Will, Martial Arts Master, Detective Master, Tactical Master, Language Expert, Intimidation Expert, Interrogation Master, Skills Master, Escape Artist, Disguise Master, and Tracking Master.

A dense list of skills all lit up!

Anton took a deep breath. Batman was truly something else.

With this new knowledge in mind, he felt genuine admiration for Batman's dedication.

Bruce Wayne was a man who pushed human potential to the absolute limit.

Top-notch skills, exceptional intelligence, and high-tech weapons—these three essentials were the secrets to Batman's undefeated prowess.

With a thought, the base suit materialized around him.

The Batsuit included the cowl, uniform, gauntlets, utility belt, boots, signal transmitter, cape, Batarang, grappling gun, cable launcher, and more.

The equipment associated with the base suit appeared in the system toolbar, visible only to Anton.

Thud!

This was too exhilarating!

Anton stifled the urge to laugh out loud and continued exploring the joys of having the Batman main template.

He noticed there was a vehicle option in the toolbar.

[Vehicles]: Batmobile, Batplane, Batcycle, Batboat, Batjet, Batcopter, Bat Ski.

He chose the Batcycle.

Swoosh!

A motorcycle with massive tires and wing-mounted machine guns and heavy weaponry appeared on the floor in front of him.

Luckily, his room was spacious enough to accommodate the Batcycle.

Seeing the unique and bold design of the motorcycle, Anton straddled it in a low stance, slightly twisting the handlebar, feeling an instant connection.

After a moment of enjoyment, he got off, waved his hand, and the Batcycle, suit, increased height, and newly gained muscles all disappeared.

Returning to his original form, he felt a strange emptiness, like those exhausting nights.

"If that's the case, I might as well stay in Batman mode; the physical changes aren't that extreme. I could easily pass it off as gym training."

Anton rubbed his chin.

With a thought, he transformed back into his muscular Batman form.

While the physical changes were nice, his real love was for the Batsuit.

Summoning it around his body, he continuously ran his hands over the cool, sleek surface, finding immense satisfaction.

Suddenly, he understood why Tony Stark became obsessed with making Iron Man suits after becoming Iron Man.

Nothing compares to suiting up!

Following the knowledge in his mind, Anton activated various functions in the Batsuit's visor.

Infrared scan, thermal sensing.

Hmm?

Anton noticed a figure crouching outside his room, slowly approaching the window.

The heat signature of a human form moved closer inch by inch.

His expression turned curious.

A thief?

This was a high-security residential area. Security shouldn't be this lax.

Especially at night, patrols were usually increased.

This could be interesting.

After a moment of thought, Anton grabbed a small stool and sat by the window.

He familiarized himself with the Batsuit's controls while watching the figure climb up to his window.

Swoosh!

John Wick cautiously pushed open the window and lifted the curtain.

He froze.

In front of him sat a man in a high-tech, intimidating suit with two pointed ears on his helmet, lounging in a chair with his legs crossed.

Two intense eyes, almost magnetic, gazed at him with interest.

The moment their eyes met, the man smirked and vanished before him.

Not good!

John Wick instinctively let go, attempting to leap from the second-floor window onto the lawn, but a sudden blow to his head sent him tumbling backward, landing sprawled out on the grass.

Ugh!

With a muffled groan, he was dazed for a moment. Ignoring the pain, he instinctively got up to run.

Luckily, the soft grass cushioned his fall, and with his combat-hardened experience, he adjusted his posture mid-air, avoiding severe injury.

Bang!

But that dark figure seemed to follow him closely, moving skillfully.

John Wick didn't get far before a sharp pain shot through his knee, causing him to roll forward again.

"Damn it!"

Gritting his teeth, he realized his opponent was formidable, and running wouldn't work. He made a quick decision.

Standing still, he raised his gun, focusing on the shadow in the dark.

"Heh!"

A low, mocking laugh seemed to float on the breeze, taunting John Wick's efforts.

Swish!

The figure approached swiftly, enlarging in John's vision.

He pulled the trigger without hesitation.

Pew pew!

With a silencer, the pistol silently spat bullets, the projectiles slicing through the air, aimed straight at the figure's chest.

Clang!

The sound of impact filled John Wick with despair.

The armor was bulletproof!

This was unfair!

That was his last thought as his vision went dark, and he lost consciousness, collapsing on the lawn.

When John Wick awoke, he found himself bound by chains in a dimly lit basement, unable to move.

In front of him stood the same mysterious man in the armor and helmet, with extraordinary skills.

"Talk."

The man crossed his arms, looking down at him with an authoritative air.

In a commanding tone, he asked, "Who sent you?"