Marvel’s Spider-Man: Across the Multiverse

At that moment, one of Liv's mechanical tentacles suddenly recoiled and whipped toward Middle-Aged Peter, as if trying to ensnare him.

Quick on his feet, Middle-Aged Peter grabbed the bifurcated ends of the tentacle with both hands.

To his surprise, the forked tips of the tentacle were unnervingly soft and squirmy, almost like a real octopus tentacle!

"Ewwww!" Middle-Aged Peter's skin crawled as he muttered in disgust, "This thing is way creepier than the tentacles of the Doc Ock I know."

Hearing this, Liv Octavius was so furious she nearly lost her composure.

Though she was a mad scientist, she was still a woman.

Being called gross and creepy, and seeing the disdain in Peter's reaction, was an insult she could not tolerate.

Whoosh!

Another tentacle shot toward him with precision.

This time, Middle-Aged Peter didn't dare underestimate his opponent. In his world, Doc Ock was always a formidable adversary, and he took Liv just as seriously.

Leaping into the air, he dodged the twin assault of her tentacles and landed several meters away.

The two quickly engaged in a fierce battle.

Meanwhile, with Liv taking the lead, the rest of Kingpin's lieutenants sprang into action.

Tombstone crossed his massive arms in front of his chest and charged straight at the wall facing the street, causing the ground to quake with his every step.

"Hey, buddy! Do you think you're a tank or something?" Spider-Ham appeared beside him in a flash. Lifting his pig hoof, he delivered a powerful kick, sending Tombstone flying. "Ow! My hoof—no, my foot! It feels like it's swollen! This guy's way too tough!"

Though complaining, Spider-Ham didn't slow down.

With a flick of his wrist, he fired a web to pull himself closer to Tombstone, intending to continue the fight.

"Let me show you how it's done!" Scorpion sneered, his mechanical scorpion tail rising high.

A greenish-yellow venom sphere shot out from the tip of his tail, slamming into a nearby wall.

The moment it made contact, the venom dissolved the wall into a gaping hole, and an acrid stench filled the room.

Shadow Spider sniffed the air, his expression darkening. "Be careful! That venom contains aqua regia—it's highly corrosive!"

"Impressive! You've got a good eye," Scorpion replied smugly. "But there's more! It's not just aqua regia; I've added my custom neurotoxin—Scorpion King's special formula!"

"Neurotoxin?" Shadow Spider's eyes widened in alarm. Grabbing Aunt May by the arm, he quickly retreated toward the backyard.

"This is on me. You take this and go!" Peni, now fully suited in her Spider-Mech, grabbed a small gadget from the coffee table and tossed it to Miles.

Miles caught the gadget and followed Shadow Spider into the backyard without hesitation.

Peni then shifted into a combat stance. One of her mech's hands transformed into a spinning circular saw as she charged at Scorpion.

Backyard

Bang! Bang!

Shadow Spider held Aunt May's hand and was just about to step through the backyard door when his spider-sense flared violently.

He stopped immediately.

Two gunshots rang out in the next instant.

Two bullet holes appeared right in front of them.

"Aunt May, stay here," Shadow Spider said as he released her hand. He turned to Miles, who had just caught up with them. "Miles, protect Aunt May."

"Got it!" Miles replied, gripping the small gadget nervously.

Shadow Spider nodded. Drawing his revolver, he darted out of the house.

To be honest, trying to shoot a Spider-Man was like lighting a candle in a storm—completely pointless and almost suicidal.

Guided by his spider-sense, Shadow Spider quickly pinpointed the location of the two gunmen.

With a swift roll, he exited the yard and fired two shots in midair.

Bang! Bang!

Two bullets streaked from his revolver.

Even Kingpin himself, who had stationed the gunmen, probably hadn't anticipated that one of the Spider-Men would actually use firearms as a weapon.

In all the years the Ultimate Universe Spider-Man had been active, he had relied on webs and hand-to-hand combat. At most, he might add some clever tricks to his webbing, but using a gun? Never.

Why, you ask?

Well, in modern Britain, the difference in treatment between armed and unarmed criminals is like night and day.

If a criminal is armed, the police first assess their level of threat and then decide whether to shoot to kill or attempt negotiation.

And what determines that perceived threat level?

Skin color, most likely.

The darker the skin, the higher the perceived threat.

As grim and cynical as this joke sounds, it's grounded in harsh reality.

But let's not digress too much.

Another key factor is wearing a mask.

A masked individual is almost as threatening as the aforementioned scenario.

To avoid unnecessary confrontations with the police, Spider-Men generally avoid carrying weapons. After all, a fist capable of delivering 20 tons of force is plenty dangerous on its own.

And as the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, they do their best not to provoke fear in others.

Between a masked man carrying a gun and one fighting barehanded, it's easy to see which one feels less intimidating.

However, Shadow Spider's situation was different.

He didn't know much about this world.

So, he had no reservations.

The two gunmen were killed on the spot.

Yet, his spider-sense's danger warning didn't subside.

Shadow Spider quickly realized that Kingpin must have stationed more than just two gunmen nearby!

To prevent the fight from spilling over and endangering Aunt May, he didn't hesitate and ran down the street, putting distance between himself and her.

Sure enough, the threats followed him.

Aunt May's backyard.

Now, only Miles and Aunt May remained.

Aunt May glanced at Miles's trembling legs and shook her head slightly.

She grabbed a baseball bat from nearby, slung it over her shoulder, and boldly declared, "Let's see who dares to break into my house! That's a serious violation of the law. If they come, I'll beat them to death!"

Buzz—

Music abruptly started.

A low, menacing hum echoed above their heads.

The next moment, the roof was torn open, leaving a massive hole, and a purple figure leaped down fiercely.

The target was clearly Miles!

"Ahhh—!" Miles screamed in terror.

But Aunt May was quick to react. She pushed Miles aside with one hand and swung the baseball bat from her shoulder with the other.

Thud!

The bat collided heavily with the intruder's metal suit, producing a loud, resounding impact.

Whether it was the force of the bat or a sudden change of heart, the figure veered slightly mid-air.

Aunt May, who had been exposed to the attack by pushing Miles out of harm's way, narrowly avoided being struck herself.

But the floor wasn't as lucky.

Boom!

The Prowler crashed into the ground, leaving a massive crater in the floor.

Yet he seemed unfazed, quickly rising to his feet.

The menacing, cloak-like outfit, the oppressive purple color, and the low mechanical hum of his suit's engines gave him the appearance of a demon emerging straight from hell—a truly terrifying sight.

"Step aside. I don't want to hurt an old lady," came a deep voice from beneath the Prowler's mask.

(End of Chapter)

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