Restart, Spider-Man! [178]

"Catch him!!"

"Where is he? I can't see him; he's too fast!"

"There, on the left!"

A team of agents sprang into action as Coulson, wielding a scanner, tracked a target near the edge of the island's airstrip.

Boom!

One of the aircraft began to ascend, only to wobble and crash down seconds later.

Pop-pop...

Sparks erupted from its tail, and Wade pulled his twin blades free, his mask's mouth area smudged with black smoke.

"Cough, cough...this motor oil flavor's a little rough."

Wade knocked on the cockpit window. "Hey, buddy, I'm onto you. Mind if I borrow your little friend there for some fruit-slicing practice?"

In the pilot's seat, Pietro rolled his eyes.

"Great. Just what I needed. Another weirdo."

Opening the window, Pietro—carrying the Time Monolith on his back—turned into a blur of silver, speeding past Wade.

But just as he braked, he found a blade tip inches from his face.

"Oh, my darling blade almost had you," Wade purred, kissing the blade as Pietro stared, dumbfounded.

"What...how...?"

Buzz!

Ignoring his shock, Pietro accelerated again, but Wade whipped out a dagger and flung it.

Thwack!

"Yaaah!"

Blood splattered as Pietro screamed, clutching his rear.

"No! Not again! I'm bleeding out... I'm dying..."

His attempt to accelerate had been thwarted, leaving him sprawled on the ground in horror, while Wade casually scratched his ear.

"A rookie, huh?" Wade remarked, lifting the bag with his blade. "Kid, don't go stealing things without a plan. You should've had someone distract us while you hid in a corner, waiting for us to leave before making your move."

Wade crouched beside Pietro, shaking his head. "Poor little thief."

With that, he pulled the dagger from Pietro's backside and stabbed him in the other cheek.

Thwack!

"Ahhh!"

Pietro's anguished scream echoed as Wade clapped his hands with glee.

"Perfect. Now you're even more pitiful."

"Not as pitiful as you."

A scarlet glow flared from behind, casting a red veil over everything as Wanda's energy washed over Wade, ripping him in half.

Smack!

The dragonbone fossil dropped to the ground. Wanda, with her flowing hair, approached, picked up the fossil, and tossed it into her bag.

"No wonder he kept up with your speed," she murmured, glancing at Pietro's injuries before eyeing the approaching agents with disdain.

But as the swarm of drones arrived, her expression hardened. The times had changed, and these weapons were no ordinary guns—they could seriously injure even a superpowered individual.

With a flick of her wrist, she used her scarlet energy to send a nearby aircraft crashing into the drone swarm, creating a diversion. Seizing the moment, she grabbed Pietro and leapt off the island.

"Ahhh! Slow down! I'm losing more blood!" Pietro screamed as they plummeted.

With a sigh, Wanda used her energy to seal Pietro's wounds, intensifying his screams.

As his cries echoed through the night, a streak of lightning flashed before them.

Crackle!

Stepping from a portal, Xia Luo grinned. "Hey there, sweetheart. That little trinket you're holding? It's mine."

"Spider-Man!"

Wanda's face twisted as she hastily wrapped herself and Pietro in a cocoon of scarlet energy.

Zzzt!

The arcs of electricity began clashing with her energy, each strike whittling down the scarlet aura.

Seeing her shield weaken, Pietro whispered urgently, "Use the fossil."

"I know," Wanda replied.

With a flash, golden light merged into the scarlet, and the two of them shot off like a comet, streaking toward the city below.

"Wow, now we're having fun," Xia Luo remarked, shooting a web to steady himself before calmly opening another portal.

Buzz!

He stepped through and reappeared on a rooftop in the city, hands forming a sign as the spider emblem on his chest glowed. In a flash, his body blurred.

Fwoosh!

Seven other "Spider-Men" emerged, peeling away from his form.

"Clone Technique!"

"Alright, all you handsome, charming Spider-Men...go get 'em!"

"Oh yeah, Invincible Spider-Men to the rescue!"

"Wait for me!"

"Activate the Friendly Neighborhood Dragon Fist!"

"No, I'm going with the Friendly Neighborhood Nuke Kick!"

"Aw, you're just no fun."

"Hey, watch out! You almost ran into me!"

"No, that was almost a kiss."

"No worries! We're all on the same team here."

With that, the seven noisy "Xia Luos" charged up like lightning, leaving Xia Luo behind, who muttered to himself.

"Something about this feels...off."

Above, arcs of energy and colorful blasts exploded as Wanda found herself cornered by seven Spider-Men.

"Damn it, Spider-Man! Why are there so many of you?"

Boom!

Before Wanda could make a move, another burst of magic exploded around them, as scarlet energy and dazzling sparks lit up the night sky like fireworks.

"No!!"

As the drill pierced through the thinning scarlet energy, Wanda and Pietro were sent hurtling down, crashing into a web slung between two skyscrapers.

"My blood's leaking again!" Pietro yelped, horrified, while Wanda tore off a piece of her shirt and handed it to him.

"Make do."

"Did you disinfect it?"

"Of course. My laundry detergent is very high-end."

With that, Wanda glanced back up at the sky.

Seeing the seven Spider-Men vanish into thin air, her brow furrowed.

"So, it's true... Spider-Man can use duplication magic," she muttered. Every time he died, he grew stronger.

As Pietro stuffed the cloth into his wound, his face was slick with sweat. "So the master was right; we can't kill Spider-Man. If we do, he'll only grow stronger until he's truly unbeatable."

Taking a deep breath, Wanda saw the red-and-blue figure approaching, her face darkening. "Looks like we won't be able to take the Time Monolith with us today."

"Then let's follow the master's orders."

"Understood."

Nodding, Wanda tossed the bag high into the night.

Unfazed by the Time Monolith's arc in the air, Xia Luo landed directly on the web, shooting out more webs to secure the two.

"The Monolith's right there," Wanda signaled with her gaze.

Xia Luo shrugged. "Spider-Man doesn't fall for the same tricks twice. I bet that bag's rigged to blow if I touch it."

Wanda: "..."

Pietro: "..."

Crash!

Bits of debris tumbled from the bag as it hit the ground, shattering the Time Monolith into pieces.

Xia Luo: "..."

He glanced back at them. "So... no secret weapon inside?"

Wanda turned her head, refusing to engage with this cocky fool.

With a wry smile, Pietro muttered, "Our job was to steal it. If we couldn't take it, at least we left it behind. Now we can just try to steal it again next time."

Xia Luo's face darkened. "Why didn't you mention that before?"

"I thought you'd catch it."

"But I didn't."

"That sounds like a you problem."

"No, that's a you two problem."

Suppressing his frustration, Xia Luo tapped his nano device.

"Commander Carter, Wanda and Pietro destroyed the Time Monolith," he reported.

Wanda's eyes widened. "You liar!"

Xia Luo smirked, adding, "Oh, and they also called S.H.I.E.L.D. useless."

Pietro shouted, "That's slander! Spider-Man's slandering us!"

"I've already hung up; she can't hear you."

With a smug smile, Xia Luo watched the siblings exchange a glance and finally lower their heads in defeat.

Wanda sighed, then looked up at him. "Spider-Man, thank you for saving Pietro last time."

Xia Luo blinked. "And how do you plan to repay me?"

She thought for a moment, her eyes gleaming with an intense scarlet light.

"I'm broke, so verbal thanks will have to do."

In an instant, Xia Luo's spider-sense flared, and he leapt from the web to cling to the side of the building, just as the web was torn apart by a chilling burst of scarlet energy.

Boom!

As energy surged, the glowing dragonbone fossil in her bag shattered completely, scarlet tendrils swirling around her as Wanda slowly floated into the air. Her long hair billowed, and a powerful aura radiated from her, startling even Xia Luo.

"Chaos magic?" Xia Luo muttered, tensing.

With Pietro in her grip, Wanda's eyes shimmered with scarlet light.

"As thanks, I'll give you one warning: the master has awakened. The age of mutants has arrived. Immortality is nothing to him. But you're different. Your body is a rare treasure—guard it well."

With that, a scarlet whirlwind enveloped Wanda and Pietro, whisking them away into the night.

Watching the glow of the scarlet energy vanish into the darkness, Xia Luo stood in silent contemplation.

Though Wanda hadn't fully tapped into her chaos magic, her power was already formidable.

And as for "the master"...

The age of mutants?

Xia Luo rubbed his chin as the faint blue glow in his eyes pulsed.

The Ancient One had warned him. The world's direction was shifting into something unpredictable.

He swung down to the street, grabbed the bag, and stepped through a portal.

---

S.H.I.E.L.D.

In the presence of waiting agents, Xia Luo emerged from the portal, casually tossing the bag to Coulson.

Coulson opened it and stared down at the shattered remains of the Monument, his face grim.

"It's destroyed," he reported to Carter.

Carter glanced at Xia Luo, then back to Coulson. "See if there's any way to restore it."

Gesturing to Xia Luo, she led him to her office.

In her office, Xia Luo leaned forward. "Look up a man named Max Eisenhardt from the last century. He also went by Erik Lehnsherr."

"Does this have to do with the Monument incident?" Carter asked, already tapping away on her computer.

After a moment, she turned to Xia Luo. "Found it. According to our records, he died during the war."

"Check for Charles Francis Xavier."

"Another record... They were comrades. He died too."

"And Logan?"

"Logan?" Carter raised a brow. "The guy with the claws?"

They had encountered him in the resurrection tournament.

Xia Luo nodded. "Yeah, Logan Howlett."

"Also dead," Carter said, studying his expression. "These people...are they connected to all this?"

"Not certain, but in an era of mutants, Magneto, Professor X, Wolverine—they'd all be central players."

Carter thought it over. "Mutants are similar to superpowered individuals, right?"

"Kind of, but their system is more...complex."

"There's a system?"

"A grading scale for their powers, you could say."

"Well, that sounds...interesting."

Seeing her relaxed expression, Xia Luo sighed, rubbing his temples.

"You don't seem very worried."

Carter shrugged. "Why would I be? Unless they invent some anti-Spider-Man weapon, there aren't many who can challenge you."

Xia Luo shook his head, leaning forward with a serious look. "If a mutant appears with the power to control all metals and the Earth's magnetic field, we wouldn't stand a chance."

"Control metal and magnetic fields?" Carter's eyes narrowed as she processed this new potential. "Is that even possible?"

"Absolutely. You've already seen Professor X's terrifying mental abilities firsthand."

At the mention of that frightening bald man, Carter's face grew grim.

"But we're flying blind here. Any idea where to start?"

Xia Luo considered her question. "Looks like we'll need to ask him for help."

"Who?"

"The one and only."

---

"What? You want me to go grave robbing with you?"

In the Eisen apartment, Wade, who had just regrown his lower half, gawked at Xia Luo, eyes full of intrigue.

"But those guys have been dead for years! How am I supposed to know where they're buried?"

Xia Luo poured Wade a steaming cup of milk. "Oh, you'll figure it out," he said with a grin.

Thinking it over, Wade tapped the time-travel device strapped to his waist and gave a sly, mischievous smile.

"I knew you understood me best. But hey, I'm still growing, so you'll have to wait until I'm all grown up to make any moves," he added, gesturing to his... infant-sized lower half.

"No worries. You'll grow up fast," Xia Luo replied, turning on the TV and cueing up a very... mature film for Wade.

"For a man, growing up is easy."

Wade's eyes lit up. "Hand me that remote so I can fast-forward."

"Sure thing."

Xia Luo handed over the remote, then headed for the door. "Once you're... 'grown up,' call me."

"Where are you going?" Wade asked, "You're not gonna stick around?"

"Thanks for the invite, but I have other plans. Take your time."

"Don't worry, in this situation, three minutes, tops."

"That fast?"

"I could be faster."

---

Hello! Thank you so much for reading this chapter. WiseTL has worked hard to bring these wonderful stories to you, and I'm so happy we could share this moment together! Don't you think stories are a little like dreams? Each one has its own colors and shapes, and they grow even brighter when shared with others.

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