บท 103: Restart, Spider-Man! [103]
In the next instant, though, he glanced over at Tony, hastily covering his mouth.
"You… you can't be him. You're a different Spider-Man. That guy doesn't have webs like that."
Hearing this, Xia Luo straightened up, his inverted triangular eyes flickering faintly with a blue glow.
"So, you're just going to forget the bond we shared in battle? Is that it?"
"What?"
The familiar voice sent Aleksei into a spiral. "No! It really is you. But that's impossible… no, this has to be a hallucination. Just an aftereffect from the experiments. I'll fight through it, and I'll crush you!"
Boom!!
Right then, Rhino clenched his fists, the crackling of air reverberating around him. His brute-force stomp skill sent flames flickering across the ground, and in a blink, Aleksei had already closed in on Xia Luo.
"Die!!"
As his massive fist tore through the air, Xia Luo crouched low. The ground beneath him cracked as he unleashed a punch of his own.
Boom!!
The instant their fists collided, a resounding boom filled the air. Chunks of debris shot in every direction, the force of the shockwave snuffing out nearby flames in its wake.
Whoosh…
A fierce gust whipped past, and Carter raised her shield, deflecting shards of rock that clinked and clattered against it.
The scene left her in awe.
"Has he gotten even stronger since the revival tournament?"
Nearby, Natasha ducked low, avoiding flying rubble, her expression tense.
"Nick, I can confirm, that's definitely the real Spider-Man. No one else has that kind of raw power."
"I'm watching," Nick Fury replied, his single eye fixed intently on the video feed.
Behind him, Dr. Banner sighed. "Two monsters. Only a monster would have strength like that."
"Dr. Banner, you might want to be careful with your experiments. Otherwise, you'll be the next monster," Agent Hill shot back, disliking anyone referring to Spider-Man as a monster.
Banner missed her tone entirely, offering a sheepish grin.
"Thanks for the warning, Agent Hill, but I'm confident I won't fail."
"Good luck with that," she replied coolly.
—
Back on the battlefield…
The ground had caved slightly beneath Xia Luo and Aleksei. The destruction from their sheer force finally settled, and Aleksei's fist emitted a loud crack, the armor coating it splintering as chunks fell to the ground.
"No! My hand… ahh!!"
As pieces of the compound flaked from his fists, Aleksei stared in disbelief.
"How… how is this possible? I'm so much stronger now. Why can't I…?"
"Naïve brute. Who taught you to run your mouth in the middle of a fight?"
Xia Luo interrupted, stepping in close, his fist crackling with power. Dodging Aleksei's swing, he struck him square in the stomach.
Crack…
Boom!!
The compound armor on Aleksei's abdomen shattered as his massive body staggered backward, clutching his stomach and retching in pain.
"Ugh… I don't understand… how could this happen?"
"Spider-Man," Xia Luo muttered, cutting him off as he spun around, landing a powerful kick to Aleksei's face.
Bam!
Bam! Bam! Bam!
A rapid-fire series of punches rained down on Aleksei, sending pieces of his compound armor flying with every blow. His once-invincible body was left completely defenseless.
In Xia Luo's hands, Aleksei's super strength and near-impenetrable body were liabilities, slowing him down and making him a helpless target.
"No! Stop, stop! I give up!"
"I'm not done yet."
"Fine! I surrender!"
"Sorry, can't hear you. Let's put a little dust in those eyes!"
"Nooooo!!"
As his screams echoed out, the once-towering Rhino was reduced to a fleeing, shattered figure, pieces of his armor littering the ground as his massive body began to shrink.
Watching the spectacle, Harry went silent.
Is this really Spider-Man?
Something seemed… off.
Tony, still brushing off the debris of a smashed car, also found himself questioning it as he checked his armor's damage.
They had no idea that after Xia Luo's training with Thanos, he had a newfound ability to harness his raw power in more controlled ways. With his basic stats boosted, even simple moves hit with incredible effect.
Training with Thanos, a top-tier fighter across the galaxy, had been anything but ordinary.
Aleksei, despite his brute strength, lacked the skill to make the most of it. Facing Xia Luo now, he was outmatched.
"Alright, warm-up's over. Time to finish this."
With that, Xia Luo stopped his pursuit, tightening his grip on his web.
Whirr…
Within seconds, Aleksei was entangled in Xia Luo's web, the strands slicing through his compound armor as he struggled.
With Aleksei trapped, Xia Luo shot another web, launching himself skyward.
Whoosh!
As he soared through the air, he briefly hung suspended at the peak before diving down.
Wings spread wide, Xia Luo's red-and-blue suit spiraled downward in a rapid corkscrew, his four spider-lances converging like a drill.
"Friendly Neighborhood Venomous Drill!"
Boom!
The impact was like a bomb going off, chunks of rock erupting ten meters high, completely swallowing Aleksei's body.
"Nooo…"
His agonized screams quickly faded as his defeated body slumped to the ground, the light leaving his eyes.
With Rhino down, Xia Luo landed smoothly, and a notification appeared before him.
[As the friendly neighborhood hero rescuing the Avengers, you have been awarded 5 restart points.]
Great. As the Spider-Man updates keep coming, the villains are getting less and less rewarding.
Xia Luo held back a laugh, shaking his head as he turned to Carter and the others.
"Say thank you."
Everyone: "???"
"Oh, right… thanks."
Carter snapped back to the moment, her earpiece buzzing with a reminder from Nick Fury.
"With a guard this powerful, there has to be something inside that factory worth finding."
"I get it."
Carter signaled the agents to follow her towards the factory.
As she passed Xia Luo, she paused. "Come with us. They've got your friends inside too."
"Friends?"
Xia Luo glanced at Harry. "I don't see any…"
Carter's mouth twitched. "Your two little girlfriends."
"Hey, don't twist it. I'm just a kid. And anyway, I like them a bit older."
"Coulson, keep an eye on things out here."
"Understood."
Coulson took charge, and Harry flew overhead on his glider, following the agents into the building.
Tony hesitated but decided to tag along. He'd come this far, after all. Going back early just meant getting dragged into yoga with Pepper.
Such hard work.
"You good?" Natasha walked over, checking on Tony.
"Of course. I could do this all day."
That line gave him pause. Something about it just didn't feel right.
Seeing he was fine, Natasha activated her earpiece. "No need for an ambulance."
With that, she quickly caught up with the others.
"Anything so far?" she asked.
Carter scanned the empty warehouse, her brows furrowing. "Nothing yet."
"I think I've got something."
Natasha moved through the shadows, her trained eyes quickly spotting a hidden entrance.
She reached the corner, revealing a secret passage to the basement below.
Xia Luo leaned over to Carter, grinning. "Now that's what you call professional."
Without missing a beat, Carter replied, "I'm the leader. I don't need to learn any of this," before leading her team underground.
Xia Luo shrugged. "Getting colder by the minute."
After a few moments, they reached a dimly lit underground bunker. Rows of steel cages lined the ceiling, each holding a trapped imposter Spider-Man.
In the center of the room stood a massive red-and-blue reactor-like machine, connected to each cage by thick hoses, siphoning something from the captives.
Seeing the team arrive, the imprisoned Spider-Men began shouting out.
"Look! Someone's here!"
"It's not them!"
"We're saved! Somebody came to help!"
"Help us!"
"We're saved…"
"Look! It's Spider-Man! He's got the metal suit!"
Everyone seemed relieved. But Xia Luo narrowed his eyes as his gaze fell upon two familiar figures in the cages.
"Gwen… it's Spider-Man. He's here!" Mary Jane called weakly, but Gwen, lying closest to the reactor, was unconscious, her energy completely drained.
Xia Luo's senses tingled with caution.
This place wasn't safe.
Carter scanned the dimly lit corners, raising her hand for the agents to bring up the lights.
Whirr…
Before anyone could move, the underground bunker flooded with light, revealing a shadowed figure on a ledge above.
"Ha ha ha! Congratulations on making it this far. I hope you're ready to say your goodbyes."
The voice was all too familiar. As the figure stepped into the light, Xia Luo's eyes narrowed, and Carter's expression darkened.
"It's Bucky," she said.
Xia Luo nodded. "I know."
He thought for a moment before turning to Bucky. "Mind telling me what's going on?"
A cruel smirk crept onto Bucky's face.
"You're all about to die anyway, so I'll answer the last question you'll ever ask."
He raised a hand, and one of the armed guards brought over a framed photo of Steve.
"Since there's a clone of the Captain, of course, there's a clone of Bucky too."
The cloned Bucky clutched the photo, glaring at Xia Luo with pure hatred in his eyes.
"From the moment I was created, I knew I only had one friend in this life."
"We were either going to die together, or we'd both live."
"For countless lonely and freezing nights, we, two pitiful clones, clung to each other for warmth and survived together."
"Nobody understands what we endured—how we survived the world's cruelest training and the most horrifying experiments."
"Among all the failed test subjects, only we made it through."
"Our plan was nearly complete. Freedom was just within reach."
"But because of you, Spider-Man, you crushed all our hopes."
"You killed cloned Steve, killed my only friend. I have nothing left to lose."
"So, Spider-Man, you have to die!"
Bucky's furious tirade echoed through the room, and Xia Luo just shrugged.
"Sorry, but you should know by now—I can't die."
"Oh, I know."
Bucky sneered, "That's why this terrifying machine was built specifically for you."
"No, more accurately, it's meant for every Spider-Man out there."
It can drain the mutant cells from your bodies, creating a new, ultimate Spider-Man!"
"Ultimate Spider-Man?" Xia Luo raised an eyebrow. "That does sound… interesting."
Beside him, Natasha's expression grew serious. "I don't think that's the whole story."
Carter nodded. "We need to find a way to free those Spider-Men."
Xia Luo rubbed his chin. "Tricky. I'm guessing he plans to blow the place up."
"Blow up?"
The others looked at him in confusion.
Xia Luo explained, "He just said he's got nothing left to lose. Guys who say that usually mean they're ready to go all out."
Carter nodded in realization. "I've watched a lot of movies lately, and that does seem to be true."
"Oh? What kind of movies do you like?" Xia Luo asked, curious.
Carter thought for a moment. "Romance, action, and…"
"What? You watch them separately? Such a shame."
Natasha frowned and reminded her, "Agent Carter, this is not the time for a movie discussion."
Carter quickly snapped back to the present. "Sorry."
As they spoke, the red-and-blue machine's spinning speed suddenly increased, whipping up a violent wind that tore through the underground bunker.
Vrrrmmm…
The machine emitted a loud, grating noise as it ran. Bucky waved his hand, and a horde of enhanced soldiers emerged from the shadows, blocking the exits.
"You have two options now," Bucky taunted. "Kill us all and escape, leaving these impostors to be drained dry…"
"Or, you try to save them. But as soon as any of those tubes are removed, the entire machine will explode, killing every one of us here.""
Everyone's faces turned grim.
But Xia Luo just smiled.
"I think there's a third option."
---
T/N: Is it just me that ships Carter and Xia Luo? Yes? Okay...
Thanks for reading! Let me know if you spot any mistakes or inconsistencies!
If you wish to support me or read ahead here's a link! [patreon.com/WiseTL]
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