"How dare you disrespect the goddess! Take him down!" Thanos raised his right hand, shouting.
Wade knelt, roaring, "No way!"
"Take him down!"
"No way!"
"Take him down!"
"No way!!"
Slap!
Death backhanded Wade, killing him on the spot. "Noisy pest," she said, full of disdain.
Charlie fumed instantly. "You bastard, you hit Wade? Then I'll hit Thanos!"
Slap!
He backhanded Thanos, sending him flying.
Wade, revived from death, saw this, tears welling in his eyes.
"Wahhh, Little Spider, I'm so touched… ouch!"
With a scream, Wade was slapped dead by Death again.
Not far off, Thanos, clutching his swollen cheek, wept like a fountain.
"Wahhh~ The goddess killed his dog for me. I'm so touched—sorry, I won't move."
Staring at the Necrosword resting on his shoulder, Thanos quietly wiped his tears.
Just moments ago, even with the Cosmic Cube, he wasn't a match for Spider-Man in a single blow. This power couldn't protect him.
It proved the resurrected Spider-Man had gained even greater strength.
He was no opponent.
So, he started worrying about the goddess.
"Little bug, don't hurt the goddess, I beg you," Thanos pleaded pitifully.
Seeing Thanos's pathetic state, Charlie's forehead was lined with exasperation.
"I'm still not used to this side of you."
He kicked Thanos down, turning to face Death.
Though the Laughing Virus had briefly corrupted her, it quickly lost its effect.
Dark-side powers didn't work much on Death.
With that thought, he opened one hand, the twelve talismans of Shendu and the eight Immortals' relics glowing in the light.
Before Charlie could act further, Death raised a hand. "Wait, we don't need to fight."
Charlie didn't budge. As the eight Immortals' relics blazed with radiant light, Death was instantly locked onto by this pure divine power.
But the threat wasn't significant.
The real danger was Spider-Man's embryonic domain.
That thing was dangerous.
Death's expression grew grave.
"Are you sure you want to do this?"
"Not unless you make Thanos and Wade normal again," Charlie said.
Death glanced at the two, then shook her head.
"Sorry, it's not my doing."
"I! Don't! Believe!"
"You have to believe."
Death swayed gracefully, sitting on her throne with legs crossed, her long legs under her gown making Thanos's eyes gleam.
"You should know, anyone who's ever revered death becomes hopelessly enamored with it."
Death's lips curled slightly. "So, as death itself, I am their lifelong love."
At that, Charlie frowned.
"What's that weird nonsense?"
He glanced at Thanos and Wade, lost under Death's spell, and sort of understood.
Thanos once sought to save the universe but walked a bloody path, with death as his only means to his ideal.
His hands were stained with blood, a devotee of death.
Wade was even more obvious—Death granted him immortality, and that perverse power made him supremely perverse.
Yeah, super perverse.
Watching Wade try to lick Death's toes, Charlie grimaced in disgust.
"Fine, I get it."
Charlie gave up on making them normal.
For the first time, he faced Death squarely, ignoring her seductive yet dangerous beauty.
Spider-Man had sworn a no-kill oath as a superhero; he wouldn't be swayed by Death.
Yup, that's right.
He had zero interest in long legs.
Black stockings? Same deal.
Mere big bunnies? Not worth mentioning.
Spider-Man himself was the ultimate succubus!
"So, why did you have Thanos bring me here?" Charlie asked, eyes steady.
Death was pleased with Spider-Man's attitude.
Worthy of Spider-Man.
She kicked away the lapdog Wade, rising and dissolving into dark particles, appearing beside Charlie in an instant.
Her pale fingers lightly rested on Charlie's shoulder, her alluring face leaning close to his ear.
"To team up, of course," she said slowly, her tone dripping with strange temptation.
This scene made Thanos grit his teeth and Wade drool with envy.
But the upright Spider-Man pushed Death away.
"Teaming up is fine, but like this? That's a different price!" Charlie snapped.
Thanos: "…"
Wade: "…"
Death: "!!!!"
She froze, then glared at Charlie irritably.
"You're agreeing to team up?"
"Tell me what's up first."
Death crossed her arms, eyeing Charlie. "You must've noticed this world's off."
Charlie nodded. "If I'm not wrong, this is the Battleworld created by the Beyonder, and all the multiverse's superheroes have been pulled here."
From the start, he'd sensed the Beyonder's power in this world.
If it were the Beyonders' doing, it wouldn't be this subtle.
So, ruling out the Beyonders, it had to be the Beyonder, who wielded their power.
The Beyonder, an immature member of the Beyonder race, was born in the Marvel Universe to observe its events.
But after his birth, he acted like a reckless child, ignoring the tasks assigned by the Beyonders.
Battleworld was one of his whimsical games.
After the invincible Spider-Man vanished, the Beyonder appeared. Charlie didn't believe it was a coincidence.
Sure enough, Death smiled. "Yes, but not quite."
"What do you mean?" Charlie asked, puzzled.
Death replied: "It is Battleworld, but an upgraded version."
She looked at Charlie. "Because of you, Spider-Man. Your existence intrigued the Beyonder, so he's been perfecting this world daily, dragging more people into it to wait for you."
"Is that so?"
Charlie frowned. "What's his goal?"
"He wants to play a game."
Death's face turned serious.
"In this world, everyone must fight until only one remains. The last one standing gets a wish—any wish—granted by the Beyonder."
"Even you can't resist?" Charlie was surprised.
Death shrugged. "Not just me. The other four cosmic entities are here too."
Charlie pondered. "So, you want to team up to take out the other competitors?"
"I don't care about wishes!"
Death scoffed. "Death has everything. I can't think of a wish I'd need."
"Then why…?"
Under Charlie's puzzled gaze, Death smiled mysteriously.
"I've already allied with Eternity and Infinity. They've agreed to help me break this world."
Hearing this, Charlie understood.
This was a rebellion!
"What about the last cosmic entity, Oblivion?" he asked.
Death sighed helplessly. "Though Oblivion is one of the four abstract entities like us, he represents nonexistent or impossible imaginary spaces. If he doesn't want to be found, no one can find him, not even me."
"And Galactus," Charlie reminded.
At the mention of Galactus, Death grew annoyed.
"That guy's the sole survivor of the Big Bang before the universe. Though called one of the five cosmic entities, he's not like us."
"You just look down on him, don't you?" Charlie said dryly.
Death didn't hide it. "Yes, he doesn't deserve to be ranked with us. His defeats can't be counted on two hands. Embarrassing." She sighed.
Charlie nodded. "I get it. So, you plan to gradually seize his power."
"Exactly."
Death released part of Galactus's power that Thanos had brought. "He's too greedy. To devour this universe faster, he split his power to surround it.
Too bad he can't. The Beyonder creates faster than he devours.
Once the Beyonder starts the game, Galactus will have to spit out everything he's swallowed."
She'd already foreseen Galactus's fate.
Charlie understood Death's plan.
Before the Beyonder acted, she'd steal Galactus's power to boost their odds of breaking Battleworld.
Charlie had the same idea.
Their eyes met.
"Deal."
As they shook hands, the entire universe trembled under sudden auroras.
The next moment, a massive face appeared in the sky's auroras.
"Ladies and gentlemen, Spider-Man's back, so the game officially begins."
The Beyonder's face was full of innocence and sincerity, but his words chilled everyone.
"Only one of you can survive. The last one standing gets a wish from me—any wish!"
The Beyonder winked playfully, then the auroras dissipated.
Short and to the point, no nonsense from the Beyonder.
Before anyone could react, massive meteors shot from all directions, forming a terrifying meteor swarm.
The swarm coalesced into a demonic skull in the universe, locking onto Battleworld's lone Earth in an instant.
Gagaga~~
Eerie laughter echoed across Earth, the world shrouded in shadow.
The giant demonic skull opened its abyssal maw, slowly devouring the planet.
Charlie, seeing this, chuckled.
"Couldn't hold back, huh? That's just asking to be ganged up on."
As he spoke, dazzling golden light erupted from Earth's other side.
The light pierced the dark universe, six Celestial eyes blooming in the starry sky.
"Celestials?" Charlie curiously eyed the starry eyes, then realized.
"It's the Godslayer armor made from Celestial bodies. Tony's outdone himself."
Soon, endless thunder followed the Godslayer armor.
In the wasteland town, thunderbolts tore through the void, converging. Old Steve, summoning all Mjolnirs, transformed into Captain Universe as Thunder God and charged the demonic skull.
"Ugly freak, taste Captain Universe's hammer—hammer hammer hammer~~~"
"Wow, so many hammers."
Fat Thor gazed enviously at Old Steve, surrounded by countless Mjolnirs.
Behind him, Young Thor pointed at the old man, cursing.
"Jerk, give me back my Mjolnir!!"
Young Thor was distraught. Fat Thor sighed, patting his shoulder. "Don't be sad. It'll pass."
Young Thor wiped a tear, looking at Fat Thor. "Your hammer must've been stolen too."
"Nope."
Fat Thor summoned Stormbreaker, kissing it lovingly. "This is my true love."
Young Thor: "…"
BOOM!!
The next moment, the universe erupted in dazzling fireworks, thunder exploding as the demonic skull roared in fury.
"Puny humans, die!!"
"You're the one who's done!!"
The Godslayer armor unleashed cosmic auroras, making the demonic skull tremble and curse repeatedly.
"Bastard"
BOOM!!
At Earth's edge, Harry, wielding the Casket of Ancient Winters, unleashed maximum output. Low damage, but not much insult either.
Peggy Carter nearby shook her head. "You can't kill it like that."
With that, she erupted in blinding golden energy, stellar light surging into her body. At lightspeed, she joined Old Steve and Tony's Godslayer armor, charging Galactus.
In Earth's desert, Emperor Thanos, holding a dog leash, squinted at the scene.
He tugged the leash, releasing his super-pet Hulk.
"Go, unleash your rage."
He patted Hulk's head. The beastly Hulk shot into space like a cannonball.
ROAR!!
BOOM!
As Emperor Thanos joined the beatdown on Galactus, radiant webbing spanned the sky, making the superheroes witnessing it cry out.
"Could it be!!"
"The invincible Spider-Man!!"
"Charlie Parker!!"
"No, not Charlie Parker—it's me, Peter Parker!"
On the magical webbing, Supreme Peter formed hand seals, bombarding the demonic skull with spider-magic.
The crowd lost interest instantly.
"Just a B-list hero," Human Torch quipped.
Supreme Peter: "…"
Then, more Spider-Men answered the magical webbing.
BOOM!!
In the ruined city, light flickered. A massive Lizard holding a comic book rose slowly.
"Wow, it's Godzilla!" a passing Spider-Man exclaimed.
Lizard Parker glared. "I'm the invincible Spider-Man's good friend, the invincible Lizard!"
The passerby Spider-Man scratched his head awkwardly. "Sorry, wrong lizard. So, can you breathe fire? Like, roar roar roar, boom boom boom blue energy?"
Lizard Parker: "…"
"I've said it before, I'm not Godzilla!!"
Lizard Parker roared in frustration, his sonic waves toppling buildings.
Amid the smoke and dust, more Spider-Men shot webbing, swinging into action.
BOOM!
T-Rex Peter leaped forward, Gwen on his back wielding the Necrosword, slashing the starry sky.
Roar!!
The next second, another Necrosword responded from Earth's other side.
BOOM~~
In an instant, the fire of vengeance surged into the Necrosword, its absolute dark abyssal power erupting, making Galactus wary.
"NO!!"
BOOM!!
Under the group assault, Galactus's meteor skull shattered.
In the city ruins, as T-Rex Peter landed, Gwen turned toward the spreading fire of vengeance, her eyes conflicted.
"He's back, but…"
Her sword-wielding hand trembled, the symbiote god's mental power threatening to consume her.
Before she could decide, a familiar voice sounded behind her.
"Don't worry, this time I'll take him down in one go."
The warmth by her ear made Gwen tremble.
"You…"
"It's me."
Charlie gently hugged Gwen's body.
Under the auroras, time seemed to slow.
At their feet, T-Rex Peter rolled his eyes, his face full of exasperation.
You two jerks, treating me like some kaiju prop, huh?!