Chapter 310 : Let's watch a Movie

"Maria disappeared?"

In San Francisco's Chinatown, Eddie, a shabby-looking, scruffy-bearded man, asks a disheveled bald homeless man about Maria. Maria is a homeless woman who collects public newspapers and sells them to others every day.

"Not only Maria, but many homeless people are missing," the homeless man replies.

"Some people say that the government thinks we're an eyesore and has secretly sent soldiers to arrest us, sending us to an alien planet for mining," he continues, expressing his frustration towards the government. "Damn government! If it weren't for the high-tech they've been developing, how could we end up homeless? I used to be a programmer!"

'It shouldn't be the government. Could it be some evil scientists conducting experiments?' Eddie ponders. Then he asks casually, "Didn't the Osborn Group and Stark Industries offer reemployment training? Didn't you attend?"

"No, I can't learn, and I don't want to go to another planet. I just want to be a programmer like I used to be," the homeless man responds.

"You can't always do what you want; you have to adapt to the times," Eddie remarks before shaking his head and walking away. Along the way, he encounters Dr. Dora from the Life Foundation.

Dr. Dora is in charge of symbiote research and is known for her kind nature. She is deeply disturbed by Dr. Drake's use of homeless people as experimental subjects. Seeking Eddie's help, she hopes he will assist in exposing the Life Foundation.

After some hesitation, Eddie decides to team up with Dr. Dora. He still possesses a shred of justice, and he wants to help his homeless friend.

Eddie and Dora devise a simple plan—to infiltrate the Life Foundation, gather evidence, and report it to S.W.O.R.D. to bring justice to the situation.

Although Eddie lost his job due to the Blood God incident, he still trusts S.W.O.R.D.

Meanwhile, on a rooftop in New York, Spider-Man, with a big belly, sighs while eating a hamburger donated by others. Compared to other Spider-Men, this Spider-Man's life is quite tragic—failed investments, a divorce from his wife, middle-aged and overweight, seeking solace in the toilet, and crying alone. And now, inexplicably, he finds himself in another world.

That's all. However, in this world, Spider-Man is exceptionally successful. His suit is worth over 100 million US dollars, and his various merchandise and movies are extremely popular, intensifying the jealousy of the middle-aged Spider-Man.

"I also want a suit worth over 100 million dollars, and I want to star in a movie too," sighed the middle-aged Spider-Man. Just then, a voice chimed in, "I've never seen a Spider-Man with such a big belly that he has to wear slacks."

The middle-aged Spider-Man quickly put on his mask and turned his head, only to see a bald white man and a familiar sullen-faced man walking towards him from the gate.

"Norman!"

Recognizing Norman as his archenemy, the middle-aged Spider-Man exclaimed in amazement, "Aren't you supposed to be dead?"

"I am dead in your world. In this world, I am also dead, but in my own world, I'm very much alive," replied Norman coldly. His body quickly morphed into the form of the Green Goblin, turning green in an instant.

Simultaneously, the lower half of the bald white man transformed into four mechanical scorpion legs, with his hands turning into pincers and a tail emerging from behind.

Confused, the middle-aged Spider-Man complained, "Isn't the Green Goblin just a title? How did it become a real Green Goblin?"

"Where are you getting all this nonsense?" Norman sneered, charging aggressively at the middle-aged Spider-Man. Reacting swiftly, the middle-aged Spider-Man leaped high into the air, performing a mid-air roll, and kicked Norman forward with his right foot.

"So clumsy," Norman scoffed. Suddenly, his body turned transparent, and the middle-aged Spider-Man passed right through him, astonished.

In an instant, Norman returned to his solid form, firmly grasping the middle-aged Spider-Man from behind. Just as the middle-aged Spider-Man was about to resist, a scorpion tail flew from the side and struck him on the head, sending him crashing onto the roof with a loud thud, leaving him dazed.

"You're the worst Spider-Man I've ever seen," Norman taunted, stepping forward to incapacitate the middle-aged Spider-Man. Suddenly, a strand of spider web descended from above, attaching to Norman's wings. Before he knew it, Spider-Man threw him with force, causing Norman to crash heavily into the iron gate of the rooftop, bending it with the impact.

After being thrown away, both Spider-Men landed simultaneously. The Spider-Man on the left asked excitedly, "We've finally found you, Norman, Scorpion, but where's Kim?"

"It appears you are the Spider-Man of our world," Norman sneered, rising from the ground and charging menacingly at the blond Spider-Man, leaving deep footprints in the concrete floor with each step.

"Norman, this time I won't hold back," declared the blond Spider-Man as he confronted his old rival.

Blond Peter faced off against the Scorpion man, raising his hand to spray a web at him and remarking, "Where did you make this metal body? The quality is so poor. Look, your left foot is clearly bigger than your right foot. It's lopsided."

"Shut up, you Spider-Man! Why are you so chatty?" retorted the Scorpion man, visibly annoyed. He smashed the spider web with his pair of pliers and swiftly lunged at Peter, attempting to strike his head.

Blond Peter agilely dodged the attack and swept his leg towards the Scorpion man's waist. Just as the middle-aged Spider-Man regained his senses, he urgently warned, "Be careful, they can phase through."

Before the middle-aged Spider-Man could finish speaking, the Scorpion man transformed into a phantom. Blond Peter's right foot swept through the space where his waist had been, and the Scorpion man grinned, retaliating by jabbing Blond Peter's head with his spiky tail.

Sensing the imminent danger, Blond Peter swiftly dropped to the ground, evading the attack. He retaliated by kicking the Scorpion man's metallic feet with both his own, prompting the Scorpion man to revert to his solid form.

As Blond Peter's feet passed, the Scorpion man solidified, and his pincers forcefully swung towards Peter. In an embarrassed maneuver, Peter rolled away, but was struck in the chest by the sinister tail of the Scorpion.

"Haha, Spider-Man, that's it," the Scorpion man taunted proudly.

However, at that moment, Another Spider-Man struck the ground with a punch, unleashing a burst of energy that propelled the Scorpion man, sending him crashing through the wall, leaving a gaping hole.

The Scorpion man tumbled out from the wall, wearing an incredulous expression.

"Are you alright?" Peter asked.

"Though I'm a bit sorry, my clothes are made of Vibranium, and you can't break them," Peter shrugged. Initially, he had reservations about the suit's exorbitant cost, but once he put it on, he couldn't help but think it was fantastic.

The middle-aged Spider-Man, who had gotten back on his feet, cast an envious glance at Peter. He then spoke in a traditional manner, "Spider-Man shouldn't wear such expensive clothes. If you have money, you should donate it to charity and help people."

Peter responded somewhat sheepishly, "I've donated all my peripheral income. This suit is a company-issued work uniform. Otherwise, do you think I would dare to ask for it?"

The middle-aged Spider-Man became excited and asked, "A work uniform? Does your company charge for it?"

"Don't worry about trivial matters. Let's hurry up and catch these two guys. Whether we can return to our own world depends on them," the blond Spider-Man said angrily. He couldn't fathom why there would be such a terrible Spider-Man.

"Return to our own world?" The middle-aged Spider-Man's eyes lit up, and he immediately joined forces with Peter to deal with the Scorpion man. Although the Scorpion man could phase through, their combined attacks proved invincible, especially with two Spider-Men opposing him.

"Norman, retreat," commanded the Scorpion man through gritted teeth. Norman grumbled unwillingly, flapping his wings and taking off into the sky.

The blond Spider-Man swiftly shot strands of spider silk at Norman, but he quickly transformed into a phantom and effortlessly evaded capture.

"Chase," commanded the blond Spider-Man, and Peter and the others split up to pursue Norman and the Scorpion. However, they soon lost them as the two villains escaped into the sewers, evading their pursuers.

"We failed," sighed the three Spider-Men simultaneously, feeling disheartened. They had finally found a lead, only to lose it again.

Peter contacted Jarvis through his headset and said, "Jarvis, help us locate Scorpion and Norman."

"Peter, you're aware that there are no cameras in the sewers," Jarvis responded helplessly. "Well, I'll send some drones down there and hope for the best."

"Thank you," Peter expressed his gratitude.

Meanwhile, the blond Spider-Man removed his mask and introduced himself to the middle-aged Spider-Man, saying, "Hello, I'm Peter Parker."

"Hello, I'm Peter Parker too," replied the middle-aged Spider-Man, removing his own mask. Despite their different hair colors, they looked exactly the same, leaving the blond Spider-Man somewhat speechless. Could this be his future self?

The blond Spider-Man provided a brief explanation of the situation and suggested, "I hope you'll come with us to S.W.O.R.D. Norman and the others might have some information that could help you."

"No problem," readily agreed the middle-aged Spider-Man. He added that Spider-Man doesn't have enemies and said, "By the way, does S.W.O.R.D. provide meals? I didn't bring any money to this world, and Spider-Man can't steal from others."

Despite being down on his luck and a bit disheveled, the middle-aged Spider-Man still had the essence of Spider-Man.

"The food at S.W.O.R.D. is excellent, but uncle, isn't it time for you to lose some weight?" Peter complained, as if he had encountered another Thor.

"At my age, what's the point of losing weight? Everything happens," the middle-aged Spider-Man retorted, pulling up his slacks nonchalantly. The blond Spider-Man was left speechless. He took both Peter and the middle-aged Spider-Man out of the sewers and returned to S.W.O.R.D.

"Wow, there are three Spider-Men now. Hey, why is one of them wearing slacks?" Citizens once again had a new topic to discuss.

"Damn, I hate Spider-Man," Norman fumed in the sewer, smashing the wall in frustration. The Scorpion man echoed, "I hate him too, especially the rich Spider-Man. How can Spider-Man be rich? He's tarnishing the glory of Spider-Man!"

"You're not telling me you're a Spider-Man fan?" Norman looked at the Scorpion man incredulously. Just then, a voice emerged from the darkness ahead, saying, "Who are you? I don't remember knowing you."

Accompanied by the voice, a figure dressed in black and white, wearing a hat and windbreaker, emerged from the darkness. Yes, even though they were in the sewer with no wind, his windbreaker still billowed as if it were caught in a breeze.

"Faking the wind, always by my side!" the figure proclaimed.

"Are you Spider-Man?" Norman and the Scorpion man exchanged glances, overjoyed by the unexpected turn of events. They hadn't expected to stumble upon someone who clearly didn't belong to their world based on his distinctive style.

"Yes, I am Spider-Man," affirmed the black and white Spider-Man, nodding. Since arriving in this world, his unique appearance had caused some confusion, so he had taken refuge in the sewers.

To be honest, the black and white Spider-Man didn't understand why people were so surprised to see him. After all, everyone looked the same, didn't they?

Norman and the Scorpion attacked the black and white Spider-Man simultaneously with grins on their faces. Despite his skills, the black and white Spider-Man was quickly overpowered by two quantized opponents.

Norman contacted Kingpin and informed him of what had transpired.

"Black and white Spider-Man?" Kingpin was taken aback. He instructed, "Send him to the New York branch of the Life Foundation, and the two of you can stay in New York."

"No problem," Norman agreed, and together with the Scorpion, they relocated the black and white Spider-Man out of the sewers.

...

"Kingpin wants to capture Spider-Man?" Bert asked in surprise when he heard the news in the large garden behind the Blood God Manor. "Why would he do that?"

"Perhaps he wants to acquire Spider-Man's ability to sense others," Tony speculated. "That blond Spider-Man mentioned that Kingpin wanted to reunite with his wife and son, and telepathy could come in handy."

"I see," Bert mused. "Maybe we can set a trap using Spider-Man."

Tony's eyes lit up, and he said, "That's doable. I'll discuss it with Steve."

"You can handle it yourself," Bert replied, as always, taking on the role of the bystander. At that moment, he received information from the drop of blood he had placed on Eddie, indicating that Eddie was about to infiltrate the Life Foundation.

Eddie, the protagonist of "Venom," had received a drop of Bert's blood the last time they met, setting certain conditions.

"Let Eddie handle it himself. If he can resolve the riot, then all is well. If not, then I'll deal with the rocket."

Bert didn't concern himself too much with this matter. Even at the level of Venom and Riot, they could be easily overcome by the S.W.O.R.D.

The reason he played games with Eddie was merely a precaution.

Tony sighed, "Why do I feel like you're becoming lazier?"

Bert smiled and replied, "Laziness is also part of human nature. It shows that I have recovered well over the past year."

"Recovering your humanity? That's the most absurd excuse I've ever heard, and only a naive girl like Wanda would believe it." Tony complained, "If I were to use that excuse to pick up girls, Pepper would definitely tear me apart."

Bert looked disdainful and said, "That's because you're a weakling, and you let Pepper beat you up every day and call the police."

"That's why I let her," Tony retorted coldly but fell silent for a moment. Pepper's martial arts talent was truly terrifying. After obtaining a dragon soul, she could even contend with Tony in battle armor.

"Forget about that. Why did you bring us here? This isn't just a barbecue conference, is it?" Tony inquired.

"I'm actually holding a movie screening," Bert revealed with a smile. It would be entertaining to present "Avengers 4" to the Avengers themselves.

"Wait, "Avengers 4"? Why skip the first three? And can you even watch a film shot in seven days?" Tony questioned.

Bert replied, "The first three movies have already happened, so there's no need to shoot them again."

Tony's eyes lit up as he asked, "So, you mean "Avengers 4" depicts something that hasn't occurred yet?"

Bert teased, "You'll find out once you watch it."