Chapter 170: Encirclement and Counter-Encirclement

"Who's there!"

Spider-Man 2099 and several other Spider-Men were simultaneously startled.

Especially Spider-Man 2099.

He had just used his self-developed device to open the parallel universe portal — how could there be someone else's voice inside?

Moreover, the voice was filled with hostility!

Wait… this voice sounded somewhat familiar—

Spider-Man 2099's heart sank. Although his spider sense hadn't given him any warning, he instinctively dodged to the side.

Boom!

His quick reflexes indeed saved his life.

An attack resembling an electric arc flashed past him, striking another Spider-Man behind him.

That Spider-Man, from an unknown universe, was instantly sent flying several meters away, crashing to the ground, motionless.

Thud.

A foot stepped out from the parallel universe portal, landing on the ground. Soon, the entire figure appeared in front of Spider-Man 2099 and the others.

The figure wore a red and blue spider suit with a metallic sheen. A large golden spider emblem was emblazoned on the chest, and a red cape draped behind him.

Although there was no wind, the cape automatically floated slightly, as if defying gravity.

For some reason, Spider-Man 2099 saw a fusion of science and mysticism in this figure.

"Interdimensional Task Force Captain… Peter?" Spider-Man 2099 immediately recognized the intruder.

The other Spider-Men also tensed up, ready for battle.

Peter had been investigating the Spider Society, and naturally, the Spider Society had done its own research on the Interdimensional Task Force.

In fact, they had gathered considerable information on several key members.

For instance, not only was Spider-Gwen the first vice-captain of the Task Force, but she was also Peter's partner. They knew that Gwen possessed a symbiotic suit and had analyzed her combat footage through image tracing devices, estimating her strength, speed, combat techniques, and overall capabilities.

They had also collected data on other long-time Task Force members like Electro, Pteranodon Norman, and the Paper Bag Vulture.

Only Peter remained an enigma.

As the captain of the Interdimensional Task Force, Peter's activity level was not low.

He had been to many timelines, yet Spider-Man 2099 and his team found it strangely difficult to track any traces of Peter's battles. The most they could gather were witness testimonies from nearby bystanders at the scenes.

It was bizarre.

It was as if Peter possessed some method to exist in the world and yet not exist at the same time.

A state of both presence and absence.

It reminded Spider-Man 2099 of "Schrödinger's Cat."

Could this guy be a "Schrödinger's Spider"?

Whether or not he was, Peter didn't care.

However, he was indeed a spider with magic.

Before Spider-Man 2099 and his Spider Society members could react, several glowing rings appeared from all directions. From each ring, a light whip shot out, aiming to bind every Spider-Man present.

Spider-Man 2099 and his subordinates quickly dodged.

But these energy whips were incredibly fast — and they could bypass spider senses!

Only the most battle-hardened veteran Spider-Men, who didn't rely solely on their spider senses, managed to narrowly evade the surprise attack.

As a result, four or five Spider-Men were immediately bound and fell to the ground.

At the same time, figures leaped out of the glowing rings following the appearance of the energy whips.

One of them radiated a brilliant blue glow. The moment he appeared, he suddenly erupted into an endless burst of light, transforming into multiple streaks of lightning in an instant, which closely followed the Energy Whip as it struck toward the Spider-Men.

The Spider-Men had just dodged the Energy Whip's attack, leaving them in a state where their old momentum had dissipated, but new strength had yet to arise.

Fortunately, this attack triggered their spider-sense. Amidst the chaos, each of them shot out webs toward the nearest anchor point, forcefully changing their direction to evade the incoming strike.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Bolts of electricity crashed onto the ground, their intense currents carrying extreme heat, scorching the surface and leaving behind patches of charred earth.

Electric arcs leaped across the ground before ultimately converging mid-air, forming a humanoid figure that hovered silently.

It was none other than the second vice-captain of the Interdimensional Task Force—Electro-Man!

Whoosh—

A figure shot out from a nearby portal at high speed, launching several strands of black webbing mid-air.

The earlier carpet-bombing attack from the Energy Whip and Electro-Man had forced the surrounding Spider-Men into disarray, leaving a temporary defensive vacuum around the three Spider-Slayers.

Gwen took full advantage of the situation. She swiftly wrapped up the three restrained Spider-Slayers on the ground and hurled them into the air.

At that moment, a winged figure emerged from the portal above. With a single motion, he caught hold of the webbing—along with the three captives bound within it.

"You three idiots just keep causing trouble for the boss!" Paper-Bag Vulture grumbled in frustration, though his tone carried a hint of pride—after all, a sharp-witted and competent person like him never caused trouble for the boss!

As he spoke, he reached into his suit with his free hand and pulled out three vials, tossing them at the Bone Spider trio.

Crash! Crash! Crash!

With three distinct shattering sounds, the glass vials broke, releasing their contents.

As soon as the webbing binding the three made contact with the liquid, it rapidly dissolved into a thick, sticky substance, completely losing its restraining effect.

The trio exerted their strength mid-air, breaking free from their bindings simultaneously.

In the next moment, Ghost-Spider flickered in the air, causing the space around him to ripple like water. With a swift motion, he vanished on the spot.

Meanwhile, Goliath-Spider let out a furious roar and plummeted downward.

The earlier ambush by the Spider Society had caught them off guard, and Goliath-Spider was seething with rage.

With a sharp cry, Bone Spider twisted his body mid-air and lunged toward the battlefield below.

At the same time, a figure gradually emerged on the wall of a nearby skyscraper.

It was the captain of the Spider-Slayer Squad—Kaine Parker from Earth-12041!

When the Spider-Slayer Squad was ambushed by Spider-Man 2099 and his team, Kaine quickly assessed the situation and was the first to retreat from the battlefield.

However, he didn't flee completely. Instead, he remained on the outskirts, using the cloaking ability of his suit to stay hidden while relaying real-time updates to Bide, who was deep within the Quantum Realm.

Thanks to his precise location tracking, Bide was able to open multiple interdimensional portals right beside Spider-Man 2099 and his allies while secretly deploying a temporal barrier—cutting off their escape route!

And only now did Spider-Man 2099 realize what had happened.

His dimensional travel watch was broken!

They... had been counter-ambushed!

(End of Chapter)

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