Chapter 1302: Interstellar Grand Stage (Nine)_2

Gwen was about to introduce herself when her cell phone suddenly rang. She held up a hand to signal for Riley to keep quiet and answered the call, "Hello? Peter, what's up?... Oh, is that so?... Yes, I'm currently explaining the basic situation of this universe to him... No, I've clarified that it has nothing to do with him. If you're uneasy, why don't you come over yourself?"

After hanging up the phone, Gwen said, "Alright, this universe's Peter Parker is somewhat anxious. He's worried you might have gotten involved in matters you shouldn't because of someone's misguidance. You should know, all the Peters look alike. If you do something inappropriate, all the Peters will have to face the consequences."

"I was just about to ask," Riley looked into Gwen's eyes with a serious expression, "I've heard that the Spiderman in this universe has already died, killed in a massive explosion. The current Spiderman is the third-generation Spiderman, what's all that about?"

Gwen showed a troubled expression. The baby-faced female Spiderman touched her chin with a finger, opened her mouth but then closed it again. The look on her face was so expressive that Riley couldn't understand at all.

"It's really hard for me to explain this to you," Gwen wore a troubled expression, "If I were to say there's anything bad about this universe... Well, things here can get a bit crazy. Every superhero here has died, some even more than once."

"Forget it, let Peter come and explain it to you himself. He's been wanting to meet you, anyway."

As Gwen finished talking, she stepped to the side, but Riley, looking at her movements, was a bit puzzled. He asked, "Does he work nearby?"

"Of course not, he's on the other side of New York, but he should be here soon."

Just as Gwen finished speaking, a "zzz" sound echoed as another teleportation portal opened in mid-air. A short-haired Peter Parker, wearing glasses and a lab outfit, stepped out. He took off his gloves, came forward and shook Riley's hand, "Hello, I'm Peter Parker 6302, you should have received your own serial number by now, right?"

Riley was startled, but Gwen stepped forward to explain, "No, he is not Peter Parker, so he does not have your special serial number. His name is Ben Riley, Peter Parker's clone."

Riley was left with his mouth agape, "A serial number, what's that?"

"Because there are so many Peters, we all look the same. In order to differentiate, each of us has a serial number. In fact, Peter Parker isn't important, the serial number is what matters."

Peter then said with a hint of surprise, "Oh, you're a clone. I guess you and Kane would have something in common, and me as well."

Riley's face was stuck in a look of astonishment, he asked, "What do you mean, you as well?"

Riley was even more shocked when the Peter Parker before him began to turn blue, appearing as an alien. However, he quickly changed back.

"I'm a Skrull, of course, I'm also Peter Parker, and I'm the second Spiderman reported in the media. At the moment, I am standing in for Peter on Earth."

Riley stood frozen in place, so Gwen pushed him down onto the sofa, sitting next to him and said, "Don't be so surprised."

"But how can you...you...I mean, don't you think, umm?" Riley stammered, occasionally pointing to himself, and then at the Peter across from him.

Peter seemed to understand his meaning, and gave a bitter smile, "You're not upset about your clone identity, are you? How about this, I'll arrange for you to work as an assistant to Director Nick at S.H.I.E.L.D for a few days."

"By the time that comes, you'll realize, whoever you are, as long as you can grow into Peter Parker's looks and own his genius brain, then Nick wouldn't care who you are, he'd just yell at you, 'I don't care whether you're Spiderman or an alien, now get your brilliant ideas out of your head quickly and contribute to the human cause, until you drop dead!!!'."

Peter shrugged and said, "Honestly, I had already planned to journey with my people to the vacant new area of the Dark Quadrant, to rebuild the old Skrull Empire, but then Nick called me through my fellow aliens I left on Earth, saying that Stark and Strange are fighting crazily over Spiderman, they've fought three times in a week, so I should hurry back and be Spiderman again, then they'll have one each."

"So, you're handling the magic side of things now?" Gwen asked, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"On the contrary, I deal with the tech side." Peter spread his hands and said, "The Skrulls' mimicry capacity can only imitate the abilities that the others originally had. They can't mimic things like symbiotes which are kind of like external armor capabilities."

"The real Peter of this universe's magic abilities are actually the abilities of his symbiote. I don't have a symbiote, so naturally, I can't use magic. Therefore, Peter is the one handling the magic side while I stay in the Stark Building doing experiments."

Peter nodded at Riley and said, "You must be wondering how they trust me, but in reality, this was originally considered a flaw in the Skrulls' ability to mimic others. Now, however, it's seen as an advantage."

"Because we inherit all the abilities and memories, we often forget who we are. Most of the time, I feel like I am Peter Parker. If it weren't for that psychologist who helped me maintain the life experiences I have as a Skrull, I would have thought I was Spiderman."

"As for the guilt you might feel for stealing someone else's life, all I can say is that if the world only needed one Spiderman, you might indeed be superfluous. But this universe is short of Spidermen, very short even. We might need more than twenty thousand Spidermen. If you want to be Spiderman, it would be our honor."

Riley was completely stunned and reeling, the information he had received just within the last two hours was infecting his mind like some kind of crazy virus.

At this time, Gwen Spiderman lowered her head again and gently stroked her long hair, saying, "I admire this universe and love it here. It's like a beautiful dream I have when I'm tucked into bed on a warm night."

"But no matter how barren or chaotic my world is, it's my home. I'll use the knowledge I've learned here and the abilities I've gained to build it, to make it as lovely as it is here."

"I don't care who I am, and I don't care if there's another me in this world living a better life than me. All I know is that the purpose and source of happiness in my life should only come from how I've used my abilities to change the world, making it better."

"By then, the happiness felt by every person whose life has improved will be my happiness, their joy and satisfaction will be my joy and satisfaction, their laughter will be my laughter, and the hope they see will be my hope."

Gwen's eyes sparkled with an unmatched radiance, like the glow on a grass field that has been washed over by spring rain, carrying a woman's unique gentleness and a calm strength.

This made Riley understand that the reason they are Spidermen is not because of their looks or abilities, but because they each are a kind of light."

"This is the highest value that every Spiderman who comes here and stays here strives for. We won't be us any longer, but instead, we'll be the possibilities for our universe, our civilization, our race to journey to the star ocean and attain ultimate happiness."

Peter looked into the newcomer's eyes and said, "So, don't be afraid of not being you. If you go and be Spiderman, then you are Spiderman. I'm not Spiderman, but I am a grain of sand in the same great ideal."

"I don't need to be me, and I don't need to achieve the success."