Tony Stark officially announced that he would be shutting down his company's weapons manufacturing division.
Stark Industries' previously soaring stock began to plummet.
After all, Tony's announcement was equivalent to TikTok declaring it was abandoning its short video business.
Stockholders weren't unfamiliar with others expanding their businesses.
However, they usually either expanded or cut costs and streamlined operations; this was the first time they had seen someone directly cut the main business their company relied on for survival.
It's worth noting that news of Tony's successful rescue from the desert had reached New York days earlier.
Many people had started frantically hoarding Stark Industries' stock since then.
Goodness, one man, single-handedly, successfully escaped from Terrorists—this guy is a living legend!
You know, a President dodging a single sniper's bullet can send his approval ratings soaring, let alone someone who single-handedly fought his way back.
This led to Stark Industries' stock price climbing steadily over the past two days.
As soon as Gwen returned to New York, before Tony Stark had been found, she bought a batch of stock to hoard.
Once he returned to New York, she would sell them off.
This successfully increased their startup capital.
Of course, Gwen adhered to the principle of 'walking on two legs'.
This meant she wouldn't just think about making money from stocks.
To earn money, as the highest Commander of the Tiangong Society, she decided to vigorously promote the Tiangong Society's corporate spirit in Marvel.
The gangs in Hell's Kitchen were about to have a rough time... That night, the streets and alleys of Hell's Kitchen were filled with a damp, fishy smell.
Neon lights under the rain clouds cast an unhealthy glow, illuminating the back door of a certain abandoned factory.
Here, two groups of gang members were conducting a shady transaction.
"Where's the goods?" The bald man, his face covered in tattoos, fondled his gold-plated pistol, his Adam's apple bobbing under the pale light.
The person opposite them didn't speak but opened the trunk of an SUV.
Under the light, boxes of assault rifles and Rocket launchers were neatly stacked, their casings gleaming with a faint blue light.
Hearing the one-eyed man's question, the bald man smiled.
He also opened his own trunk and took out several black briefcases.
Opening the briefcases, several stacks of hundred-dollar bills were neatly arranged inside.
Seeing that both parties had brought what they wanted, the two leaders smiled, ready to exchange money for goods to complete the transaction, when suddenly the bald man caught a glimpse of a dark blue figure rushing over from the corner of his eye.
Everyone felt a black blur flash before their eyes, and before they could react, over thirty burly men present simultaneously collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
After knocking everyone present to the ground, XLR8 still felt uneasy and checked them one by one at an extremely fast speed.
Only after confirming that everyone present had been successfully knocked out did it straighten up and instantly arrive in front of the SUV's trunk, where the weapons were stored.
It looked at the ammunition in the car and, without hesitation, gently tapped the emblem on its chest.
In an instant, a purple light flashed, and dazzling light illuminated the area.
After the light dissipated, a strange figure appeared in its place.
This was a green-skinned alien hero with fine gills on either side of her face, and a row of green cylindrical structures extending from the top of her head down her back, subtly rising and falling with her breath.
She was adorned with spots of varying shades, and despite her short stature, her flowing curves clearly outlined her feminine grace.
If one had to make a comparison, her general physique was like that of a female Yordle, and a well-developed one at that.
Gwen had been quite curious whether the Benvictor gene she unlocked was of the 'happy' or 'sad' faction.
Yes, Gwen had transformed into Benvictor this time.
However, unlike Ben Tennyson, she observed her current state and realized that she hadn't transformed into a known type, but rather the only existing member of this race.
She was the third type.
Clearly, she was neither a 'betrayer' nor 'happy', but a Queen sub-species.
Although Gwen hadn't seen the fighting performance of the Queen sub-species in the "Ben 10" animation, the Queen sub-species in the animation even appeared somewhat disheveled due to old age.
But after Gwen herself transformed into Benvictor, she felt little difference.
Because she was hungry, having just finished dinner not long ago.
Benvictor suddenly opened her large mouth, and several sticky, long tongues shot out like lightning. The tongues flexibly wrapped around boxes of guns and ammunition, as easily as rolling noodles, and directly pulled them into her mouth.
Her Adam's apple bobbed violently a few times, and these weapons were rapidly digested in her stomach into surging energy.
Immediately after, Benvictor puffed out her cheeks and, aiming at the car full of military supplies, "poof"—spat out a ball of eerie green energy. The moment the energy ball touched the car, a violent explosion roared, flames shot skyward, and the car instantly transformed into a spectacular "firework," with a heatwave kicking up surrounding debris and trash.
Benvictor put her hands on her hips, nodded in satisfaction, and let out a strange laugh from her throat: "Consider it 'original soup, original food'."
After dealing with the military supplies, Gwen, who had transformed back into XLR8, picked up the money from a nearby box and ran... The next day, inside the temporary office of Wayne Group.
Gwen was sitting in an office chair, cleaning the ill-gotten gains from last night.
Just then, Peter suddenly pushed the door open and walked in.
He hung his head, looking pitiful, like a wet puppy, staring intently at Gwen.
Gwen noticed the intense gaze, put down what she was doing, raised an eyebrow, her eyes full of curiosity: "Why are you staring at me? Is there something on my face?"
After speaking, she even raised a hand to touch her cheek.
Peter pursed his lips, his voice tinged with helplessness: "Boss, did you go to Hell's Kitchen yesterday?"
Gwen's lips curved into a smile, and she openly admitted: "Yes, I did. What's wrong?"
"Did you take all the ill-gotten gains from there?"
"Yes, we're short on money, so it was perfect to bring them back and put them to good use."
Seeing Gwen's defiant yet confident demeanor, Peter sighed heavily, his shoulders slumping.
"I heard the commotion yesterday and followed, but..." He said, pulling out a crumpled newspaper from behind him, "Just look for yourself."
Gwen took the newspaper, her eyes scanning the prominent headline—"That Spider-Web Masked Thug Robbed a Gang Transaction Site This Time, The Vermin in New York's Sewers Have Crawled Out Again!" accompanied by a blurred image of Spider-Man surrounded by a group of Police.
Looking at this Daily Bugle, Gwen couldn't help but burst out laughing.