Bruce Wayne's private estate.
As the group drove into the garden, Bruce Wayne introduced, "The security system here was personally designed by me. It's very safe."
Charlie glanced out the car window at the sprawling green lawn and suddenly asked, "Do you have a castle?"
Bruce Wayne looked at Charlie. "You like castles?"
"No, I have a friend who lives in one." Charlie puffed up with pride.
Bruce turned back. "It's your friend's, not yours. I heard you're pretty broke."
Charlie: "…"
"Hers is mine," he said stubbornly.
"Alright, Mr. Spider-Man, you own an entire castle."
Bruce continued, "But I own a few castles myself. I find them old-fashioned and outdated, so I don't live in them. If you want one, I can give you one, but you'll have to pay for the gardeners, chefs, and staff yourself."
"No thanks, I actually don't like castles." Charlie refused without hesitation.
He couldn't afford the payroll.
Soon, the car pulled into the estate's villa. Bruce Wayne got out and addressed Clark and the others. "I have a secret base here, underground. I hope you'll keep it confidential."
Everyone agreed.
Clark whispered to Diana, "He's actually taking us to his secret base. Looks like he doesn't have bad intentions."
Diana gave him a sidelong glance. "You trust people too easily. That's why you died by his hand."
Clark: "…"
She had a point.
If it were Diana, she might not have held back and gotten counter-killed.
Soon, the group followed Wayne into Batman's exclusive Batcave.
Advanced tech devices filled the space, with various Bat-suits neatly lined up along the walls.
An upgraded Batmobile sat, not yet activated.
Clark and the others marveled at the setup, awed by Wayne's wealth.
Charlie glanced around casually. "I have a friend—"
"Whose place is fancier than mine, right?" Wayne cut in.
Charlie: "…"
"So, how do I cooperate?" he asked.
Wayne made a phone call, then said to Charlie, "I'll arrange for my private team to give you a full check-up. We'll need some blood. Any objections?"
Charlie shrugged. "None at all."
He was ready for Batman's wild antics.
As long as it helped create a way to avoid dying by the Necrosword, a little blood was nothing.
Half an hour later.
Charlie stared at tube after tube of golden blood, his mouth twitching uncontrollably.
"Hey, hey, enough already! If this keeps up, I'll die by your hand before anyone else's," he shouted at Wayne.
Wayne waved off the stunned researchers, awestruck by the golden blood. "Don't worry, they'll keep it confidential," he reassured Charlie.
Charlie rolled his eyes. "I don't care."
He stood, rubbing the needle mark on his wrist. "What's the next test?"
Wayne glanced at the golden blood. "Your blood is special. I need some time."
"I'm asking what else you need from me to cooperate," Charlie pressed.
Wayne pointed to a nearby scanning machine. "Get in there."
"Fine."
Ten minutes later, Charlie completed the body scan.
Wayne stared at the computer, frowning deeply.
"Medical scans don't work on you. Your body's more complex than I thought."
Charlie grabbed a juice from the table. "Of course, I'm a god now."
"So gods can die too, right?" Wayne's words were oddly cryptic.
Charlie ignored him. "You don't seem to need me right now. Get me a room; I need to rest."
"No problem. Talk to the butler."
"Cool."
After Charlie left, Wayne stared at the blood samples, his brow furrowed.
Spider-Man and Superman's bodies seemed human but were far beyond carbon-based life.
Kryptonite could counter Superman.
But Spider-Man? Wayne had never seen the mysterious weapon Spider-Man mentioned.
No matter. He was confident.
…
Half a month later.
Charlie still hadn't seen Batman's confidence bear fruit.
The guy holed up in the Batcave all day, with no clear progress.
When asked, he gave vague answers.
Charlie felt scammed.
With the "assassination" date nearing, Charlie grew oddly expectant.
How would he die this time? With that thought, he quietly left Bruce's estate and strolled boldly down the street.
At a newsstand, Charlie noticed a headline about Batman.
"Joker vs. Batman?"
He picked up the paper casually. "This is years-old news."
Then he looked closer, frowning.
"The timeline shifted again? This was a month ago?"
He put the paper down, shaking his head. "I hate time travelers."
As he turned to leave, a black glint grazed his jacket, embedding in the newsstand.
CLANG~
Hearing the sound, Charlie glanced back, his forehead lined with exasperation.
What a coincidence.
He approached the Necrosword, looking around but finding no attacker.
Naturally, he didn't touch it.
"Hey, Bruce, it's me. I found something. Come over."
After notifying Wayne, Charlie stayed put, waiting.
Soon, Wayne arrived and took the Necrosword.
With a sample, Bruce seemed excited.
He quickly reached a conclusion.
"The weapon's made of ordinary metal, but it's coated with a mysterious substance. Just a trace can instantly break down your blood, paralyze your nerves, and disrupt your totem power, putting you into a deep sleep." Bruce found Charlie and explained.
Charlie frowned. "Just sleep?"
Wayne nodded. "Yes. Almost no toxin can kill you, so this isn't a toxin—it's more like… magic, I suppose. Once you're asleep, the guy you mentioned could easily finish you off."
Getting a clear answer, Charlie pondered.
Doctor Doom knew him well.
"Can you make an antidote?" he asked.
Wayne considered. "I need time."
He wasn't versed in magic, so he wasn't certain.
Charlie didn't hold much hope either.
But he'd gained a new clue.
The Necrosword wasn't a god-slaying blade; the magic-like substance was likely a potion crafted by Doctor Doom.
If it was artificial, there had to be a formula.
In this world, only a few powers could affect Spider-Man: the Leech Totem, Infinity Stones, Celestial power, and Kryptonite.
If he could neutralize one, the substance's effect would be weakened.
Recalling past Resurrection Matches, Doctor Doom had first controlled the Inheritors, then killed the mature Celestial.
Maybe the Corrupted Supermen's power was part of his plan too.
With that in mind… Charlie had a plan.
In a flash, he sensed something.
The surrounding space warped, Earth's space locked by magic.
In the sky, a black meteor hurtled down, blazing straight for Batman's estate.
Seeing this, Charlie's forehead darkened.
This guy had a whole stockpile! Once the meteor's substance spread, Spider-Man, unable to open a portal, had no escape.
Well, crap.
This round was busted too.
…
[You have been eliminated and cannot obtain a Resurrection Match slot. Reward: Purification +1.]
[Remaining 176 retries. Would you like to restart?]
Restart!
Landing in the DC Universe, Charlie didn't waste time with Doctor Doom.
He first went to outer space to find the mature Celestial.
Its massive size had no chance to evade the bloodthirsty Spider-Man.
ROAR!!
As blood-red swordlight spewed vengeful flames, a crimson inferno engulfed the cosmos.
The flames consumed the colossal Celestial, a scene Doctor Doom witnessed.
"Did he figure something out?" Doom's eyes narrowed, and he slipped into a portal.
Days later, when Doom returned to Earth, he found the Inheritors' presence gone.
Spider-Man! He instantly thought of Charlie.
"This guy moves fast."
Green light flickered in his eyes, a mocking smile curling his lips.
"No wonder it's you. You predicted this, but you have no idea the power I wield now."
He glanced coldly at the Mother Box's location, his green eyes turning red.
Omega Beams!
…
Half a month later.
Another black meteor descended from the sky, and Charlie lost it.
"What the hell happened?"
Staring at the falling meteor, Charlie went berserk.
He'd taken out the Inheritors and the Celestial early, so how was this guy still making that anti-Spider-Man substance? Was he wrong?
No, he'd missed something.
Keep going!
Remaining 175 retries. Restart!
HUMM~
Landing in the DC Universe, Charlie left the Empire State Building first.
This time, he changed the order.
He took out the Inheritors first, then went to space to slay the Celestial.
Same outcome.
Wrong, still wrong.
Restart!
Remaining 174 retries. Remaining 173 retries. Remaining 166 retries. Remaining 151 retries. Through relentless retries, no matter how early Charlie eliminated threats or how hard he fought to leave Doctor Doom half-dead, he couldn't avoid getting blasted in the end.
In the Cosmic Web, Charlie lay there, eyes vacant, heart exhausted.
He couldn't take out Doctor Doom or stop him from making targeted weapons.
And he was no match for Darkseid.
How was he supposed to survive?! Charlie sighed.
It'd been so long since his last Resurrection Match. His skills had dulled.
He needed more practice.
Resurrection Matches were like rowing against the current—not moving forward meant falling back.
This time, he'd hit a brick wall.
After the time limit, Charlie was forcibly sent to the DC Universe.
This time, he ignored Earth's crises, wandering aimlessly through the streets.
If he couldn't fight, he'd slack off a bit.
"Ah! Help!!"
Under the night sky, a woman's cry for help echoed from a nearby alley.
Yawning, Charlie strolled to the alley's entrance and called out lazily, "Hey, I'm Spider-Man. You can leave now."
"Spider-Man?"
The thugs in the dark froze, then abandoned their target and fled the other way.
Charlie was surprised.
First time he'd seen such naive crooks.
Didn't they check if he was the real Spider-Man? But the next moment, he froze.
Another guy in a Spider-suit helped an injured woman out of the alley.
Seeing Charlie, the impostor grinned.
"Hey, buddy, you're late. I got here first."
He patted the spider emblem on his chest. "My suit's cooler than yours."
Charlie: "???"
"I'm the real Spider-Man," he said helplessly.
The impostor laughed louder.
"Haha, sure, sure, you're real, and so am I."
He leaned in. "Like that guy just now—he couldn't tell if I was the real Spider-Man or not.
So, buddy, you missed the bus. Leave earlier next time, or you won't meet pretty girls."
Patting Charlie's shoulder earnestly, he left with the woman.
Watching his back, Charlie mused.
"Looks like I took the wrong path."
He had an idea.
Checking the time, he saw there was still a chance.
He opened a portal and stepped through to Apokolips.
On the barren planet, endless Parademons roared.
Landing on Apokolips, Charlie shouted, "Darkseid, I'm here to negotiate terms!"
Instantly, countless Parademons swarmed. Charlie raised a hand, summoning the Necrosword.
If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.
ROAR!!
RUMBLE!!
One swing unleashed a terrifying wave of blood-red flames, incinerating swaths of Parademons in vengeful fire as they screamed and turned to ash.
The commotion drew Darkseid.
He strode through the Parademons, his eyes firing two crimson beams.
HUMM~~
PUFF!!
The Omega Beams pierced Charlie's body instantly.
His clone collapsed, but Charlie reappeared from the void.
As the Omega Beams refracted back, Charlie swung the Necrosword without hesitation, vengeful flames raging.
RUMBLE!!
The flames overwhelmed the Omega Beams, but the red beams wove through, reappearing behind Charlie in a blink.
HUMM~
PUFF
The Omega Beams flashed, and Charlie's body collapsed again.
Another clone!
The Apokolips battle went unnoticed.
Doctor Doom, naturally, had no idea.
Unable to find Spider-Man, he grew uneasy.
His mission was to kill Spider-Man, so he couldn't wait.
He needed the universe's strongest power to defeat him.
As a green spell array bloomed on Earth's surface, figures flashed through Doom's mind.
These were Earth's mightiest, but they paled compared to Spider-Man.
However… He noticed a strange figure from outer space.
A steel bull with horns, seemingly with a master.
Perfect.
Find its master and team up to give Spider-Man a big surprise!