Facing the splendid meteor descending from the sky, Ebony Maw and the others finally felt a strong sense of threat.
Ebony Maw no longer dared to counter with one hand. As he waved both arms, the surrounding cars quickly floated upward under the control of telekinesis. More and more cars formed an impregnable wall.
"Crack, crack, crack—"
It still didn't feel safe enough. The steel and concrete of the bridge flipped upward at that moment, all to block this magnificent and terrifying finishing blow.
"Buzz~"
The next instant, the meteor plummeting at high speed began to spin. The brilliant light it released stirred up a violent magical tornado.
And that was not all.
[100 Kill Points, 100% Critical Hit!]
"Boom!!"
In an instant, the radiant meteor's light intensified, distorting even the night sky.
The oppressive force surged sharply, and beads of cold sweat appeared on Ebony Maw's forehead.
Cull Obsidian and the others trembled violently in their hearts.
"Damn it, run!!"
In a flash, the three others dove away without hesitation, leaving Ebony Maw alone to face this terrifying meteor.
"Bastards…"
Seeing them flee, Ebony Maw's face was ashen, once again regretting his choice to confront the enemy head-on.
Actually, with his speed, he could have easily evacuated the battlefield at the start.
But for the sake of "the bigger picture," to protect teammates who weren't fast enough, he chose to hold the line against Spider-Man.
Now it seemed he was dead wrong.
At this point, it was too late to escape.
He could only grit his teeth and face it.
"Ah!!"
He roared, telekinetic force surging wildly to reinforce his "shield."
But with a thunderous crash, the shield was completely torn apart by the brilliant magical tornado. Unimaginable power shattered his telekinesis, and countless fragments of automobiles, propelled by violent energy, flew in all directions, instantly piercing Ebony Maw's body.
"Ah!!"
In agony, Ebony Maw screamed miserably, watching helplessly as the radiant meteor completely engulfed him.
"No!!!"
"Rumble!"
The meteor crashed into the bridge. Hundreds of tons of impact plus the destructive force of magical energy acting like a drill caused the entire bridge to quake. The steel and concrete seemed as fragile as paper, instantly snapped in half by the dazzling meteor.
"Boom!"
At the center of the bridge, as the meteor plunged into the sea, cars were swept into the gap by the raging winds.
"Shit, looks like we're late."
Arriving at the scene, Elderly Steve and the others felt a tremendous shake beneath their feet. The entire bridge swayed.
After an unknown amount of time, the trembling ceased.
Obviously, the bridge's supporting piers held firm.
Soon, everyone approached the broken section of the bridge.
Witnessing this shocking scene, their eyes were filled with astonishment.
"That guy got even stronger." Lizard Parker gasped in disbelief.
Gwen stared blankly at the shattered bridge, full of incredulity.
"He's really Spider-Man? Why…"
They were both Spider-People, but the gap in strength was outrageous.
Felicia snapped out of it, "Why didn't Charlie Parker use this move against Kingpin?"
Carter shook her head, "Two possibilities: either he forgot, or he underestimated Kingpin."
"Impossible."
Elderly Steve spoke with absolute certainty, "Little Spider definitely wanted to meet me in the Resurrection Match again, so he deliberately got himself killed. I'm so moved!!"
Saying this, he wiped away nonexistent tears with his sleeve.
Carter held her forehead, "Stop acting. He fell into the sea."
"Oh, right, I forgot."
Elderly Steve instantly ended his performance and looked across the gap.
On the opposite side, Cull Obsidian and the others were slowly recovering their senses.
"That's Spider-Man?" Cull Obsidian's giant axe fell to the ground, his eyes full of shock.
Corvus Glaive's face was grim, "Even Lord Thanos might not be able to withstand that move."
Proxima Midnight gripped her spear tightly, "What do we do now? Ebony Maw is dead. With our strength, it's impossible to stand against Spider-Man."
"How about we join them!"
Cull Obsidian grinned, "Anyway, we're in the neutral team. If we can't beat them, just join them. It's no big deal."
Corvus Glaive's face darkened, "You, you spineless scoundrel. A true warrior would never—"
Before he could finish, a Vibranium shield flew across the gap and smashed into his forehead.
"Ow!! Who did that?!"
The shield bounced back. Elderly Steve, using web-shooters to cross, caught the shield as he landed.
"We meet again, friends. Actually, he's right; you can join us."
"It's you!"
Corvus Glaive and Proxima Midnight's faces changed. They recognized Steve at a glance.
Back then, under Thanos's order, they infiltrated Earth to kill Vision and seize the Mind Stone. It was this guy who stopped them.
Although he was older now and his shield was round, they would never forget those eyes.
Steve Rogers!
"What's with those looks?"
Elderly Steve noticed their strange expressions and was puzzled.
"We haven't seen each other for long. Right, the dark sorcerer didn't kill you last time. How did you die?"
Obviously, he'd mistaken them for another version.
In his eyes, these aliens all looked similar.
Corvus Glaive and Proxima Midnight were too perplexed to answer his question.
No time to think.
"Hmph, if you want us to submit, you must defeat us first!" Corvus Glaive raised his blade, ready to fight to the death.
However, Cull Obsidian raised his hand and shouted,
"Don't fight! We're on the same side. I'm joining you!"
Corvus Glaive: "…"
"You spineless coward! You're unworthy of being one of the Children of Thanos!" Proxima Midnight gnashed her teeth.
Cull Obsidian glanced at them, "They're inviting us to join, not asking us to surrender. You idiots, if we can't beat them, just join. Is it that hard?"
With that, he disdainfully turned his head and jogged over to Elderly Steve.
Without Thanos's suppression, he wouldn't obey anyone else.
"Haha, I remember you. Where's your beard?" he asked.
Elderly Steve touched his chin and glanced at the mechanical prosthetic arm the other was sporting, finally realizing who this was.
The one whose arm was cut off by a sorcerer, who had seen him with a beard.
"Oh, I misunderstood."
He smiled, then his expression turned furious.
"So it's you! You killed so many people on the battlefield. I do not accept your surrender!"
"What?"
Cull Obsidian froze. The next second, he saw the old man transform into a muscular devil, grabbing the shield and slashing at his head.
"Wait, what are you doing? No abusing prisoners—!"
Cull Obsidian raised his hand to block the shield. Sparks flew as Vibranium scraped against his metal arm.
"Clang~"
Metal clashed with metal, and the shield's edge sank into his metal arm.
Before Cull Obsidian could strike back, Elderly Steve flipped onto his shoulder, raining blows down like a storm.
"No! I've already surrendered, you bastard! Stop treating me like this…"
"I said I don't accept your surrender."
This sudden turn of events left everyone stunned.
"Wasn't he trying to persuade them to surrender?" Lizard Parker was bewildered.
Carter frowned, "I've never seen him so angry before."
"They're fighting back!" Gwen exclaimed.
Felicia fired her grappling hook, "Let's finish them off first."
She handed the grappling line to Lizard Parker, "I can't beat them. You go."
Lizard Parker: "????"
"Go!"
Immediately, Carter fired webs to swing over, and Gwen followed closely.
Seeing them charge forward, Lizard Parker didn't waste words.
"How do I use this thing?" he asked Felicia.
Felicia's lips curled into a mischievous smile. She lightly pulled the trigger.
"Easy, just like this."
"Whoosh~"
The hook tautened, and Lizard Parker was yanked across to the other side.
"No, I don't think I have spare clothes—"
"Rip!"
In mid-air, Lizard Parker's muscles expanded, green skin tearing through his garments. Transforming into the Lizard, he pounced on Proxima Midnight, knocking her down.
"Sorry, ma'am, I'm not—ugh, how ugly!!"
At close range, seeing Proxima Midnight's face scared him senseless. Lizard Parker, terrified, flailed his claws wildly.
"You scared me to death. Die, die, die!"
"Rip!!"
In a flash, Proxima Midnight's battle attire was torn apart. Enraged and humiliated, she delivered a fierce headbutt.
"Bang!"
With a miserable scream, Lizard Parker, dizzy and disoriented, collapsed in convulsions.
"Yin!"
The next second, her trident whistled through the air, aiming to cut Lizard Parker into pieces.
"Peter!"
Seeing this, Gwen cried out. She fired a strand of web, snatching Lizard Parker away, then leaped and landed behind Proxima Midnight's neck.
"Wow~ Big sister, your hair is so green."
"It's blue! Die!!"
Proxima Midnight roared through gritted teeth. Her trident once again split into three crimson beams lancing upward.
"What!"
Warned by Spider-Sense, Gwen was alerted, but she couldn't dodge in time.
Her pupils contracted, and she felt the presence of death.
"Puff~~"
Suddenly, several strands of magical webbing shot forth, landing at Proxima Midnight's feet.
"Buzz~"
"Boom!!"
The webbing exploded, tossing Proxima Midnight to the ground. The three crimson beams reverted to a trident, which was caught by the red-and-blue figure who rushed in.
"Hey, Midnight Little Star, your weapon seems starved."
Charlie flipped as he landed, casually waving the trident. The ground bore three deep gashes in its wake.
He was right. If the trident's wielder was attacked, it couldn't maintain its crimson beam form to chase the enemy.
"Damn you, Spider-Man, that's my artifact!"
Proxima Midnight roared, rushing forward, her fist aimed at Charlie's chest.
Charlie casually blocked. The fist was easily deflected by the trident.
Proxima Midnight: "????"
Charlie: "????"
"How is this possible!!" Proxima Midnight stared at her own hands in disbelief.
Charlie was curious, "You're weaker than I thought."
"Damn insect!!"
Proxima Midnight sprang forth, turning into a killing machine. From impossible angles, she attacked Charlie's vital points.
Yet Charlie easily deflected every strike, as if he had practiced these counters countless times.
This bizarre scene left Gwen in a daze.
Are they playing house?
On the other side, Carter confronted Corvus Glaive and noticed something was off.
"Clang, clang, clang~"
"Bang!!"
Shield and blade clashed. Carter instinctively used the cosmic fighting techniques Charlie had taught her.
"Zzzt zzzt~"
She angled the shield slightly, letting the blade's edge slide. Carter swiftly slipped behind Corvus Glaive, grabbing and slamming him down.
"Boom!!"
In an instant, Corvus Glaive's head was buried in the bridge's concrete. Carter followed up by seizing his blade.
"Slash!!"
Blood gushed forth, and Corvus Glaive fell silent as his body disintegrated into countless fragments.
For Corvus Glaive, as long as his glaive wasn't destroyed, he could regenerate indefinitely.
But if he died by his own glaive, his healing ability failed completely.
He had died the same way at Vision's hands before.
Simultaneously, Charlie hurled the trident in his hand like lightning, pinning the now weaponless Proxima Midnight to the bridge deck.
Now, only the thick-skinned Cull Obsidian remained.
Seeing Elderly Steve execute a stylish Brazilian dance kick to knock his opponent down, Charlie stroked his chin.
"You think that move could really hit the target?" he asked Carter.
Carter spat out a breath, "Depends on who uses it."
"Right, the fighting style you taught me seems off," Carter said.
"I know."
Charlie pulled out the trident and smiled, "Thanos taught it to me. I suspect he did it on purpose."
"What do you mean?" Carter was curious.
Charlie glanced at the corpses of Corvus Glaive and Proxima Midnight, "Although they're not from the same universe, the Black Order members don't differ much in strength.
They followed Thanos for so many years, their combat style and techniques carry Thanos's influence. Thanos himself taught them how to fight.
So naturally, Thanos would know how to counter them."
Carter was surprised.
"You suspect Thanos deliberately taught you how to deal with them. Why would he do that?"
Charlie shook his head, "Maybe he fears that if one day he dies, his subordinates might cause even greater disasters in the universe."
The more he interacted with Thanos, the more he sensed the titan's inner turmoil and conflict.
To save the universe, Thanos didn't mind slaughtering countless lives.
But if he failed and died on some battlefield, he'd gladly accept release.
He wouldn't need to keep killing.
Nor would he want the uncontrolled Black Order to follow in his footsteps of conquest.
So someone had to stop them.
Thanos chose Charlie, believing Charlie would do just that.
Carter didn't understand his reasoning, and she wasn't interested.
"Should we help him?" She looked at Elderly Steve.
Charlie waved his hand, "No need. He can handle it."
As he spoke, he fired a web to retrieve the trident.
"Buzz!"
In an instant, the trident re-formed into three crimson beams, piercing Cull Obsidian's body repeatedly.
"No!!"
"Boom~"
Cull Obsidian fell, unwilling and defeated. Carter was momentarily speechless.
"Didn't you say you wouldn't accept their surrender?"
"I didn't say that about them," Charlie pointed at the trident.
Carter: "..."
Having defeated the Black Order, they regrouped.
Gwen took a deep breath, "They're much stronger than the Sinister Six."
Lizard Parker rubbed his forehead, "So the Sinister Six poses no real threat to us."
"Not to 'us,' to me," Charlie corrected.
"Little Spider, don't sweat the small details."
Elderly Steve surveyed the scene, spotting the trident and Corvus Glaive's weapon. He then quietly picked up Cull Obsidian's battle-axe.
"Their weapons are quite good. With these, we won't have to worry about encountering any enemy."
He smiled.
Charlie lifted the trident and nodded slightly.
"Yes, especially Carter's weapon—Corvus Glaive's blade—it seems to inhibit regenerative cells. It should also counter those Hydra brothers."
The Hydra brothers referred to Hydra Steve and Bucky.
He suspected both had entered this Resurrection Match.
Norman was already dead, killed by him.
Curt Connors could be ignored; he was too weak.
Thor and Loki were probably somewhere else, playing at being saviors. No need to worry.
As for Peter Parker and Electro—
He guessed Peter Parker was the Venom Parker who kept showing up in these matches. This time should be no exception.
Electro was fast, but he hadn't caused any commotion yet, probably learned to keep a low profile after his previous failure.
These two weren't big threats.
He had a feeling he might clear the mission in one go this time!
Haha, he was getting better and better.
"Little Spider, your smile is like a silver bullet," Elderly Steve said quietly.
"What?"
Charlie touched his mask, "You can see me smiling?"
"I can imagine it," Elderly Steve said, suppressing the blue glow in his eyes.
"Then your imagination is also a silver bullet."
Hearing sirens, Charlie waved his hand.
"Let's go. Next, we'll find a chance to take down the Sinister Six and the other contestants. This round should be secure."
"You guys go ahead. I'll stay to explain things to George."
Gwen handed her apartment keys to Charlie, "This is the apartment I just bought. George doesn't know about it."
"What? You bought a house?"
Charlie gritted his teeth, "You're not worthy of being Spider-Man."
Gwen: "…"
Jealousy made Spider-Man unspeakably ugly.
Lizard Parker looked worried and said to Gwen, "Your father doesn't like Spider-Man. Be careful."
"That was before."
Gwen looked relaxed. She took out her phone.
"He already knows my identity, so he gave me this to help the police anytime."
"Really? Congratulations, he's accepted Spider-Man."
Lizard Parker sighed with relief.
If he could accept Spider-Man, he could probably accept Peter Parker turning into a lizard.
A bug and a four-legged lizard shouldn't make much difference.
Soon, they left.
When the police arrived, George got out of the car and waved to Gwen.
"Jerry, watch the area. Don't let anyone disturb us."
"Got it."
Jerry got out of the car and ignored Spider-Man who climbed into it.
Clearly, this wasn't the first time father and daughter had done this.
Inside the car, Gwen briefly recounted the events. George felt a headache.
"This is terrible news. Visitors from parallel worlds… How do they plan to save the world?"
He looked at Gwen, "Can they be trusted?"
Gwen nodded, "Of course. There's a Spider-Man on their team.
See that broken part of the bridge? Spider-Man did that. He's very powerful, no need to trick me."
George glanced at the broken bridge, deep worry etched between his brows.
"If there really is a world crisis, my daughter, I hope you won't join their actions. It's too dangerous."
"Father, I'm Spider-Man."
Gwen spoke earnestly, "Since I was little, you taught me to help the weak, punish criminals, try to clean the city, let everyone see hope. I've done that, and I hope you support me."
George sighed, "All parents teach their children this because they themselves can't do it. I'm the same.
If a child really does it, we adults don't want them to continue because it's dangerous. I could lose you at any time."
"But at least let me try."
Gwen hugged her father gently, "Saving the world isn't just for everyone, it's for you too, Dad. You live on Earth as well. If the world is destroyed, I won't have a father anymore."
The whispered words made George's heart tremble. His hands shook as he patted Gwen's back.
"Gwen, you… you must do your best."
"Mm, thank you, Father."
Outside the car, Eddie excitedly stared at the photos he'd taken, then made a phone call.
"Boss, I got it! The secret of Captain George and Spider-Man. I saw them hugging!"
"What!!"
In his office, J. Jonah Jameson bit down on his cigar, laughing.
"Hahaha, great! So they're in cahoots. No wonder there's been no news about Spider-Man recently. This time, I'll expose them to everyone, definitely!"
"Knock, knock~"
At that moment, the door opened and Betty entered.
"Boss, did you hire a new reporter?"
Jameson hung up the phone. "Impossible. I have no intention of hiring new staff."
He was in a good mood and didn't yell at Betty.
Betty looked puzzled, "But there's a strange guy who came here to report in, and he has our employee ID."
"Employee ID?"
Jameson took the ID from Betty.
"Peter Parker? Graduated from Blue University?"
Jameson frowned and casually tossed it aside.
"What a crappy school, never heard of it. Tell him to beat it."
"Okay."
Betty picked up the ID helplessly, turned, and closed the door behind her. She returned to her desk.
A young man sat there dazed, posture stiff.
"Peter Parker, sorry, we're not hiring, and you're not our employee."
Betty returned the ID, looking sympathetic.
This guy seemed slow-witted, barely able to answer one out of every ten questions.
Probably escaped from a mental hospital.
For some reason, the moment Betty saw Peter Parker, she felt familiarity, as if she'd seen him before.
Instinctively, she wanted to help him.
Betty spoke softly, "Do you have any friends? I can call them to pick you up."
"I…"
Peter Parker thought carefully, "I seem to have friends, but maybe not…"
"Take your time. Want some coffee?"
Betty handed him a cup of hot milk.
"This isn't coffee," Peter Parker stared blankly at Betty.
Betty smiled, "Looks like your condition isn't too severe."
"I'm not sick," Peter Parker lowered his head, weakly refuting.
Suddenly, he seemed to remember something.
"I recall, I have a friend."
"What's his name and phone number?" Betty asked quickly.
Peter Parker rubbed his forehead, "He's Peter Parker, he's—"
"Sir, you're Peter Parker," Betty sighed again, disappointed.
Peter Parker nodded blankly, "Yes, I'm Peter Parker.
Oh right, I know where I live now." He grinned stupidly.
Betty saw this and shook her head, sighing.
"Alright, I've finished my overtime. I'll take you home."
"Thank you, but I'm hungry."
"I'll buy you dinner."
"Thanks."
Late night, old apartment building.
Outside the door, Peter Parker fumbled for a non-existent key, while the landlord kept an eye on the door opposite.
"Peter Parker, you're finally back. You owe me five months' rent!"
Hearing the noise, the landlord opened the door, roaring. But upon seeing a refined lady standing beside Peter Parker, he awkwardly rubbed his bald head.
"Are you one of Peter's creditors too?" he asked with a forced smile.
Betty frowned, not answering.
"Living in a place like this, working under pressure. No wonder he's mentally disturbed," she muttered.
With this thought, her sympathy overflowed even more.