"Super Saiyan? What kind of race is that?"
"A warrior race?"
"What?"
Fiora's eyes narrowed. Someone who could infiltrate her room silently had to be a formidable opponent.
She'd never heard of them.
Behind her, Charlie grinned. "Do me a favor."
"What favor?"
"Find someone."
"Why should I help you?"
"Good question."
Charlie leaned closer, his tone chilling.
"If you don't, I'll—"
"You'll what?"
A flicker of disdain crossed Fiora's eyes. "I'm a warrior. Warriors fear no threats, even if you—"
Before she could finish, Charlie hoisted her up and slammed her into the ground several times.
Looking down at the lifeless Fiora sprawled on the floor, Charlie loomed over her.
"Hulk's methods never fail."
With that, he lifted the limp Fiora, using her retina to unlock the liquid geometry system.
Tossing her aside, he expertly navigated the system, quickly locating Carnage's whereabouts.
When he'd enlarged earlier, he'd felt a disturbance in his Spider-Totem.
Carnage's Leech Totem had locked onto him.
The guy had finally shown himself.
In the liquid display, Carnage emerged from the lake, then crawled ashore, heading toward the city center.
Thanks to the chaos caused by the giant, Kryptonian soldiers hadn't noticed the outsider.
After watching the feed, Charlie continued searching, frowning.
Still no sign of Gwen.
Where was she?
Charlie worried she might have been corrupted by the Black Death Sword, turning into something like Venom Parker.
But if Gwen was in the Resurrection Match with the Black Death Sword, she couldn't have stayed silent this long.
After some thought, Charlie decided to secure the resurrection slots for elderly Steve and the others first.
He couldn't let his enemies claim them.
With a glance at the dejected Fiora, he smirked.
"Looks like I failed to make you a fan. No worries, next time for sure."
With a wave of his hand, magical sparks flared, and he vanished through a portal.
"Magic?"
Fiora's eyes narrowed as she witnessed it.
A portal like the dark mage's—so this guy wasn't a Super Saiyan, but an Earthling!
Soon, she recovered, dragging her battered body to the medbay to treat her injuries.
Shortly after, she donned her armor again and joined General Zod. Meanwhile, a shrunken Charlie leapt from her shoulder, heading toward the lake where Carnage lurked.
After the giant vanished, Carnage had returned to the lake.
Something there was drawing him in.
Gurgle~
The tiny insect plunged into the water, a spark of electricity darting through.
The lake was dim, with vine-like plants stretching from the bottom, covered in dense bubble-like membranes. Inside each were curled, unborn Kryptonian infants.
This was one of Krypton's Genesis Chambers, where infants were cultivated.
There wasn't just one—some were lakes, others nutrient pods, and some buried underground.
As Charlie ventured deeper, robotic soldiers zipped past, scanning the tiny insect.
The Genesis Chamber, made of organic material, bred bacteria. These robots were designed to eliminate microbes.
A bug in their scanning range couldn't escape their notice.
Beep beep~
"Unknown insect detected. Unable to determine threat to Genesis Chamber. Recommend immediate extermination."
Instantly, nearby robotic soldiers surged forward, water currents swirling. Charlie had no choice but to dive into a gap between the vines.
Seeing the insect hide, the robots extended tendrils, surrounding the vine segment. Their fuzzy appendages spread into the gaps, strangling the elusive bug from all sides.
"Damn! So many tentacles!!!"
Bang!!
The vines burst apart as Charlie reverted to normal size, firing crimson webbing. The high-heat webbing swept like a laser, momentarily halting the robots.
Beep beep~
"Detected 1,500°C thermal ray. Insufficient sustained heat to damage chassis. Confirmed non-threatening. No need to report to main system."
The robots attacked again, and Charlie, to avoid trouble, fled toward the surface.
But besides the robots, someone else had their eyes on him.
Bang!!
The lake's surface exploded, waves surging. A massive Leech Totem writhed in the water, and a blazing red trident shot out, hurtling toward Charlie.
But blood-red tendrils spread, like a deep-sea kraken breaking the current, wrapping tightly around the incoming trident.
Grrk~
With a burst of force, Carnage was dragged back into the water.
Zzz~
Webbing rays fired again, waves churning on the lake's surface.
The disturbance drew scores of Kryptonian soldiers.
They activated underwater armor, diving in, only to be swept into the air by a hundred-meter red trident amid torrents of water.
Splash~~
Zzz~
As the water fell like a deluge, an electric arc wove through the rain, vanishing into the complex terrain.
On the lake's surface, the giant trident collapsed. Carnage, wearing diving goggles, emerged, the bloodlust in his eyes fading.
…
Meanwhile, in the slums where shell-like buildings stacked together.
In a corner, Charlie leaned against a wall, catching his breath.
In their brief clash, he'd noticed Carnage's strength had doubled since last time—strangely so.
Without Spider-Magic, he'd struggle to handle him.
The answer lay at the bottom of the Genesis Chamber's lake.
But Charlie had no interest in uncovering the truth.
Even if something there could make him immensely powerful, it meant nothing if he couldn't resurrect.
He certainly wouldn't let Carnage claim a resurrection slot.
Night fell.
Krypton's sky held no stars.
As time passed, darkness enveloped Charlie.
His battle with Carnage had fully exposed him.
So, Dark Strange finally found the pesky Spider-Man.
The Dark Dimension warped the surrounding space, trapping Charlie.
"Tell me, where's the real Superman Clark?" Dark Strange demanded, his face grim.
Charlie shrugged. "The one I gave you was real."
"I don't believe you."
"Fine, it wasn't real."
"I knew you lied! Die!!"
Charlie: "…"
…
[You have been eliminated and cannot obtain a resurrection slot. Reward: Web Ray +1 second.]
[56 retries remaining. Restart?]
Restart!
Fifth Resurrection Match.
As the countdown ended, Charlie summoned a tiny spider.
"Hellspawn magic spider, wreak havoc!"
He slapped a Pym disc onto the spider's head and flung it into the sky.
Squeak squeak~~ ROAR!!
The faint chirps turned ferocious. Amid flickering light, a giant red-and-blue spider monster descended on Krypton's city, sending countless Kryptonians fleeing in panic.
"Ah!! Run!!"
"What a terrifying beast!"
The city descended into chaos. Charlie swung toward Tony's location.
Soon, he gathered Tony and the others.
"Little Spider, finally, we can—"
Charlie pushed away elderly Steve's enthusiastic face, rejecting his hug.
Ignoring Steve's resentful look, he turned to Harry and the others. "No time. Stick to the plan."
"Got it."
Harry and the others dispersed, blending into the chaotic crowd.
Charlie watched as the tiny spider was blasted by Kryptonian weapons, silently mourning for three seconds.
Then, wiping nonexistent tears, he roared.
"Poor little spider, I'll avenge you!!"
BOOM!!
The red-and-blue Spider-Man enlarged, charging toward the conference hall.
Seeing the giant Spider-Man approach, Dark Strange's face lit up with excitement.
"Bug, you've finally shown yourself!"
Instantly, countless dark tendrils surged forward, enveloping the giant Spider-Man as expected.
Whoosh~
The tendrils dissipated, but Dark Strange found no trace of Charlie.
"Pym Particles."
Realizing this, Dark Strange's face darkened.
Once shrunken, finding him would be impossible.
…
Soon, in the gene chamber.
"While Zod's distracted by the giant, we must let Kal take the Codex of Life…"
As Joe-El spoke, a loud crash interrupted.
Bang!!
His beloved wife was slammed into the wall by a red-and-blue figure, enraging him.
"You bastard—"
Bang!
The next second, his wife was hurled to the ground, transforming into a green, hideous creature.
"What?"
Joe-El was stunned. Before he could process, Charlie, as an electric arc, vanished. The infant and Codex of Life disappeared from the platform.
"Want the kid? Tell Zod to meet me."
"Kal!!"
Joe-El rushed out, but the arc vanished around a corridor corner, too fast to pursue.
Behind him, Gravik, recovering, stood with a grim face, wiping green blood from his mouth.
"Damn Spider-Man, you won't escape!"
He turned into a silver blur, vanishing from the gene chamber.
As for Joe-El.
He stood, lost in thought, then decided to find Zod.
With Kal and the Codex stolen, he had no choice.
His wife…
In that moment, he seemed to age decades.
…
Meanwhile, the conference hall's upper levels exploded, an electric arc surging out, followed by a silver phantom.
"Spider-Man, you can't escape!!"
"Whoa, you can fly!"
"Fly?"
Midair, Gravik froze, then plummeted toward the ground.
"Jerk!"
As the arc streaked across the sky, Gravik, still falling, abandoned Quicksilver's powers, activating mutant genes instead. Flesh wings sprouted, propelling him skyward.
But wings were no match for Charlie's speed. He could only watch Charlie vanish into the city.
Before he could plan his next move, the Phantom Engine above the conference hall activated.
"You monster, I'll avenge Laura!"
Joe-El roared, the Phantom Engine warping space to slow Gravik. Particle weapons around the building unleashed beams of light.
"No!!"
BOOM!!
Kryptonian weapons obliterated Gravik. Joe-El turned to Zod.
"You win. I surrender."
Zod, expressionless, said, "Don't worry, I'll find your son."
"That guy's strange. How will you save Kal?"
Joe-El recalled the scene. "With that dark mage?"
"Yes, he's already moving."
…
In the slums, an empty warehouse.
Zzz~
The arc faded, and Charlie safely delivered Clark and the Codex.
Elderly Steve and the others gathered around.
"This is Superman?"
"So cute!"
Steve pinched Clark's startled face. "He looks like me," he chuckled.
Charlie glanced at him. "I think he looks like me."
Carter rolled her eyes. "Childish men. How does he look like either of you?"
"His suit's colors," Charlie said.
Carter: "…"
"He's just a baby. What suit?"
"The future."
"Fine, it's your superpower again."
As Carter sighed, the warehouse flipped. The Dark Dimension sealed it, the ceiling peeling away. Dark Strange stood atop a dark golden structure, looming over them.
The ground split, forming a cage around Carter and the others.
"Damn bug, give me Kal, and I'll let them go," Dark Strange demanded, extending a hand.
Charlie, holding baby Superman, grinned.
"Want him? Come take him!" He shrugged nonchalantly.
Dark Strange's eyes grew cold but hesitated.
If Charlie used even slight force, the infant Superman could be "defeated," earning two resurrection slots.
He didn't dare risk it.
Gritting his teeth, he took a deep breath.
"I know you're keeping him to bargain. Name your terms."
"The other resurrection slots, obviously."
Charlie pointed at Carter and the others, addressing Dark Strange.
"You know me. Spider-Man never abandons a friend."
Before Dark Strange could respond, elderly Steve was already sobbing.
"Wahhh~ Little Spider's making deals with a demon for us. I'm so touched!!"
Dark Strange's forehead twitched. "Your friend's quite emotional," he said to Charlie.
Charlie shrugged. "I'm used to it."
He continued, "Help me clear the other tasks, and Superman's yours.
You know me—Spider-Man never lies."
At that, Harry and the others quietly lowered their heads.
Clearly, even Spider-Man's friends didn't buy it.