(T/N: Wahoo new translation baby~ I'll try to make this as less chi- supremacy lmao. Hope y'all enjoy Also you can support me in patre0n so you get 50 chapter ahead hehe 20 here and 30 the other :p)
Manhattan, Lower Town, Chinatown.
"Kanna, be good at school, listen to your teachers, and don't cause trouble, okay?"
"Mm-hmm."
"2B—no, Sylvia, on your way back, could you stop by the supermarket?"
"Sure, cooking wine, soy sauce, and fermentation starter, right?"
"Yes. Thank you."
At the entrance of a small shop stood three people: one man and two females.
From their conversation, they were clearly a family, but looking at their appearances, they couldn't be more mismatched.
A hulking man standing two meters tall, with a shaved head and muscles all over.
Though he had no tattoos or scars, his physique and demeanor were more intimidating than any street thug.
In front of the big man were two females, one tall and one small.
The taller one stood around 1.6 meters.
While her height might be slightly below the local female average, her figure was perfectly proportioned with curves in all the right places.
Her shapely legs, perfectly balanced between fullness and proportion, were even more beautiful than a model.
The smaller one wasn't even a meter tall.
Her round, adorable face was rosy and healthy, with pure white hair—not sickly-looking at all—braided into two plaits behind her head, topped with a pink sun hat.
From a distance, her almost chibi-like proportions made the little girl look even more adorable.
"Kanna, it's time to go."
"Okay."
The little girl Kanna nodded firmly while holding her sister's hand.
After taking a few steps, remembering yesterday promise, the little girl turned back to look at the big man standing at the shop entrance:
"Xiaolei, Xiaolei, will there be pudding when I come back this afternoon?"
"Don't worry, I promise you'll be satisfied."
The big man gave a thumbs up, grinning with a flash of white teeth.
"I want two~!"
"No problem, if you can get a little red flower sticker."
"It's a promise, don't go back on your word~."
Watching the two females get into a car and disappear down the street, Shi Xiao Lei lowered his right hand, bent down to pull up the rolling shutter door, and entered the shop to begin his busy day.
It had been almost three months since he crossed over to this world.
Although science claims it takes 90 days to form a stable habit, and he'd almost reached that mark, truthfully, every time he saw those "hints" on TV or in newspapers, Shi Xiao Lei still felt like he was in a dream, unable to fully adapt.
The Smithsonian Museum in New York displayed various equipment once used by Captain America.
Tony Stark, who appeared in entertainment gossip news every few days, unabashedly claiming he'd had another one-night stand with some famous model.
The Osborn Tower just a few streets away...
All of this silently proved to Shi Xiaolei that this wasn't the world he had once lived in, but the Marvel universe—a place with an unbearable weight for ordinary people.
To be honest, when he first realized this, Shi Xiaolei was nearly scared to death.
Having narrowly escaped death and given a chance to live again, he ended up in the dangerous Marvel world, and worse, "born" directly in the most perilous New York.
Whether it was the Iron Monger battling Iron Man in "Iron Man 1," the demolition battle in "The Incredible Hulk," or the alien invasion in "The Avengers," all happened in this city.
For superheroes, this city that frequently spawned major events might be the best stage to showcase their abilities, but for an ordinary person with a power level of just 5, this city was simply too dangerous.
To be frank, when Shi Xiaolei confirmed he was in the Marvel universe and in New York, his first thought was "moving away."
But reality wasn't as simple as he imagined.
As a dimensional traveler, Shi Xiaolei was completely undocumented.
Without any identity papers, even traveling far was difficult, let alone settling down elsewhere.
Chinatown, his "birthplace," was somewhat easier to blend into, as there were still many countrymen who had smuggled themselves in to work illegally, also without identity papers.
Mixed among these people, Shi Xiao Lei wasn't particularly conspicuous except for his large build.
Another reason was the restriction from the "system."
On his way to get a faulty hard drive repaired at the computer mall, he'd been struck by lightning and turned to charcoal.
As Shi Xiao Lei crossed over to the Marvel world, the broken hard drive, washed by the river of time and space, evolved into his symbiotic divine artifact.
Perhaps because it was originally a computer hard drive, this artifact manifested in his consciousness as a system.
The system came with two functions: daily check-ins and mystery box exchanges.
As long as he remained within New York City, he could check in once daily to receive 10 check-in points and a random reward.
If Shi Xiao Lei wasn't in New York City, the daily check-in points would be halved, and the random reward would be canceled.
Most check-in rewards were useless items like toilet paper, canned cola, or expired magazines.
In three months, the best check-in reward had been just $200 in cash.
Honestly, Shi Xiao Lei didn't care much about the check-in rewards.
The key was the "mystery box exchange."
All the games, anime, and movies stored on the hard drive had become a material library.
Any props, characters, or abilities that had appeared in these works were contained in the mystery boxes, which could be exchanged with enough check-in points.
How to survive in the dangerous Marvel world?
In Shi Xiaolei view, there were only two paths: One, continuously strengthen oneself, enhancing abilities to a level that could withstand crises. Two, unite more allies and face crises as a team.
Undoubtedly, both methods could be achieved through the "mystery box exchange" function.
So, to accumulate check-in points, Shi Xiaolei had to abandon the idea of moving and firmly planted his roots in Chinatown.
In the first month, he accumulated 300 check-in points and opened his first mystery box.
Perhaps due to high compatibility, or perhaps due to heaven care, Shi Xiao Lei received the Barbarian bloodline from "Diablo 2."
Relying on his strong physique and fighting ability superior to a boxing champion, Shi Xiao Lei, through an introduction from a well-connected countryman, fought several underground matches, earning nearly $200,000.
With this money, he bought a "legitimate" ID that could withstand scrutiny and rented a small storefront in Chinatown to open a modest restaurant.
The money came quickly, but such shortcuts always left behind potential troubles.
Sure enough, after sending off his two "family members," Shi Xiaolei, while preparing in the store, received two unwelcome visitors.
(T/N: Like the story fellow daoist?you can read 20 chapters ahead on my P@treon [p@treon.com/DaoistRongyi] Thanks for your support! 😊)