Chapter 16: Restart, Spider-Man! [16]
In the vastness of space, atop a giant web.
[Congratulations! You have received an invitation to the Revival Tournament!]
[Would you like to participate in the Revival Tournament?]
[Yes] [No]
Looking at the familiar notification, Xia Luo sat up from the web, utterly confused.
Seriously, what's wrong with these people?
Using a missile to bomb a bug—what kind of crazy rich man logic is that?
After thinking for a while, Xia Luo finally clicked [Yes].
Since he was already dead, might as well rest easy. The top priority now was to get stronger by winning the Revival Tournament.
Only strength could bring about revenge.
[Ding! You are entering the Revival Tournament scenario.]
[You currently have 12 restart opportunities.]
The void engulfed Xia Luo's body, and the next moment, he found himself standing under the night sky of New York.
[Scenario: Marvel Cinematic Universe]
[Mission 1: Go to the Afghan desert and rescue Tony Stark, who has been kidnapped by the Ten Rings.]
[Mission 2: Go to the Afghan desert and prevent the contestants from rescuing Tony Stark.]
[Reward 1: Revival quota x1]
[Reward 2: Strength +10 tons]
[Participants: Xia Luo Parker, Peter Parker, Peter Parker, Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanoff, Norman Osborn.]
[The participants will be divided into two teams. Team assignments in progress...]
[Team assignment complete!]
[Team Old, Weak, Sick, and Disabled (Mission 1): Xia Luo Parker, Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanoff.]
[Team Ruthless and Cruel (Mission 2): Peter Parker, Peter Parker, Norman Osborn.]
[If your team wins, each member will receive a revival quota of x1.]
[Mission starts in: 3 minutes.]
[Mission ends in: 24 hours.]
Immediately after, a scene from the storyline where Tony was kidnapped appeared before their eyes.
The scorching sun beat down, as endless yellow sand howled across the desert.
The air was hot, the sand scorching, but Xia Luo's heart felt cold.
Being part of the "Old, Weak, Sick, and Disabled" team, he had a bad feeling about this.
On his left was the sultry and charming Natasha Romanoff, whose special ability was slowing the aging process.
On his right was a frail, wrinkled old man, with white hair and wearing a loose Captain America uniform. He clutched his shield with a cloudy, dull look in his eyes, his hunched figure looking like he might be swallowed by the endless desert at any moment.
Xia Luo was speechless.
It really was the "Old, Weak, Sick, and Disabled" team.
Compared to the "Ruthless and Cruel" team, which had two Peter Parkers and the terrifying Green Goblin, Xia Luo's team didn't seem to stand a chance.
Rescuing Tony Stark while the other team intervened seemed like an impossible task.
Xia Luo felt a wave of frustration.
Next to him, old Steve Rogers seemed stunned at first, then his gaze fell on Natasha. His weathered face suddenly trembled.
"Natasha, is that you?"
Natasha, still confused, remembered only her last moments on Vormir.
"Steve?" She frowned, as the elderly man before her slowly overlapped with the dashing Captain she remembered.
"It's me. It's so good to see you again. This is incredible."
"What happened? Did everyone come back?"
"They came back, but Thanos returned as well. In the end, Tony snapped his fingers. He sacrificed himself."
"What? No way! Bruce was supposed to use the Infinity Gauntlet…"
"Hey, you two, this is the Revival Tournament. Maybe we should talk about how to win?" Xia Luo couldn't help but interrupt their reunion. Their team was already at a disadvantage, and wasting time would make completing the rescue mission impossible.
Hearing his voice, Steve finally noticed Xia Luo. "Peter, is that you?" he asked, surprised.
Xia Luo twitched slightly. "I'm not Peter Parker. My name is Xia Luo. Xia Luo Parker." He retracted the nanometal from his face.
"Oh, right. I remember now. Peter isn't in this team." Steve smacked his forehead.
Looking at the young man in front of her, Natasha was also surprised. "Peter Parker is on the other team—two of him, actually. Unbelievable."
Steve nodded thoughtfully. "This must be the multiverse. Doctor Strange talked to me about this."
Xia Luo scowled. "Did you guys hear me? This is the Revival Tournament," he reminded them again.
But Steve seemed unfazed, turning to Natasha. "That mission, when you didn't come back… everyone was devastated."
"I know. Clint watched me jump. I feel sorry for him. It was too cruel."
"It's okay. Now, we get to see you again."
"Steve, you've aged. What happened afterward?"
"After Tony's death, I went back in time to return the Infinity Stones. But I decided to stay in that timeline. I had a life with Peggy. I didn't break my promise."
"Oh, congratulations. No regrets, huh?"
"None. Seventy years later, I handed the shield to Sam. I finally retired."
"But it seems like only the dead can come here."
"Am I dead?" Steve realized. "I only remember feeling really tired that night. Then I lost consciousness. So I did die."
He didn't seem too surprised, as if he had long expected his death.
He looked down at his old uniform, sighing as he covered his face with his hand.
"It's been a while since I wore this."
Natasha teased him. "Your muscles have atrophied quite a bit. I wonder how much strength you have left."
Steve raised his shield. "You can test me." His face still bore a confident smile.
Looking around, he called out, "Xia Luo Parker, we can start... huh, where is he?"
Not seeing Xia Luo anywhere, Steve was puzzled. "Did he leave?"
Natasha scanned the area and pointed toward the distant valley, laughing as she spotted Xia Luo sprinting off. "Looks like this Spider-Man couldn't wait."
Steve looked embarrassed. "I guess we did waste too much time."
Natasha shrugged. "It's fine. We're Avengers. We need to have faith in ourselves," she said, pulling out her small handgun.
"Yeah, it's been a while since I've felt this fired up."
Steve stretched, eager for action.
"Even though I'm not interested in coming back to life, if this game is real, I'll make sure you return."
"Same here."
They smiled at each other, but the peace was quickly broken by the sound of fire and explosions in the sky.
Boom!!
A violent explosion erupted in the desert, and when Xia Luo turned back to look, he saw that both of them had disappeared in a massive cloud of fire. His last bit of hope died.
The "Ruthless and Cruel" team had already made their move, using the Ten Rings' missiles to bomb the site.
Both his teammates were dead, leaving only him.
At this rate, it was going to be a total wipeout.
Unable to swing his webs in the loose sand dunes, Xia Luo wasn't slow on his feet, but as he neared the valley, a familiar figure suddenly leaped down from the sand dunes.
Boom!!
A heavy object slammed into the ground, sand flying everywhere as a sinister green Lizardman slowly emerged from the dust.
"Xia Luo Parker, we meet again."
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