In the dark, damp sewer, a pair of light blue eyes flickered faintly in the darkness.
Buzz~
Charlie lightly tapped the spider emblem on his chest, and in the glow, a few rats quickly scampered into the cracks of the broken wall.
Amid the rotting, stinking sludge, Charlie did not find any footprints left by Professor Curt Connors.
But on the wall beside him, claw marks indicated the way forward into the depths of the sewer.
"What does that guy want with Dr. Otto's octopus arms, and how did he happen to intercept them?"
Charlie was puzzled. He fired webs to attach to the sewer ceiling, swinging forward, unwilling to step into the thick sludge below.
He could imagine how bad it smelled down there.
Fortunately, the air filtration system in his nanometal suit kept the stench out, preventing him from gagging on the spot.
This was his first time entering New York's sewers.
Whether in movies or anime, New York's sewers seemed like a gigantic maze, dry for years, hiding secrets and darkness unknown to the common person.
So, as the claw marks left by Professor Connors grew fewer and fewer, Charlie, who was at a crossroads in the sewer, found himself completely lost.
Chirp chirp chirp~
At this moment, his small spider companion crawled up onto Charlie's shoulder.
It looked around, then chirped toward the left passage.
"This way?" Charlie scratched his head.
Chirp chirp chirp The small spider nodded.
Charlie didn't hesitate, swinging down the left passage following his spider friend.
Though he didn't know why the small spider could sense Professor Connors, he trusted his little partner.
Under the guidance of the small spider, Charlie traversed several junctions in the sewer. The amount of wastewater gradually increased.
Splash splash~
The sound of running water grew louder, and staring at the narrow passage ahead, Charlie hesitated.
It was almost entirely submerged in wastewater.
If he had to jump in there, he'd rather quit.
What was the difference between that and jumping into a pile of manure?
He thought of his dear comrade—Old Man Steve.
Chirp chirp chirp
The small spider shot a web from its abdomen, mimicking Charlie's movement, swinging to the ceiling and slipping into the darkness above the wastewater.
"Huh?"
Seeing this, Charlie crawled along the ceiling, quickly approaching the spot where the small spider had disappeared.
Soon, he discovered a hidden hole.
Claw marks reappeared around the edges of the hole—it had clearly been dug out by claws.
"Looks like this is it."
Charlie squeezed into the hole. After crawling through the narrow concrete tunnel, the space suddenly opened up.
It was an old underground lab. Most of the metal equipment had rusted significantly.
In the dim light, he could barely make out a red-and-blue figure within a rusted cage.
Spider Mutant!
Charlie's eyes narrowed. So there were spider mutants being held here—that explained why the small spider could find the place.
Near the cage were makeshift experimental devices. The big green lizard was fiddling with the octopus arms.
"Useless bunch. I gave them so many details, yet they still triggered Otto's alarm. Idiots.
And to make it worse, they were discovered by Spider-Man. If it weren't for my timely intervention, that thing would've fallen right into Spider-Man's hands..."
Professor Curt Connors muttered complaints about those three unreliable idiots. The lizard's hideous face wore safety goggles, and his hands held tools that occasionally sparked with electricity.
He was modifying Otto's octopus arms, trying to make them more convenient for himself.
Dr. Otto had once taken him to see the lab, and that's why he remembered this device that could boost his combat power.
Soon, the arms were modified, and as Professor Connors thought of something amusing, he burst into laughter.
"Hahaha, Otto, that old devil. He dares to steal Charlie from me. I hope stealing your toy pisses you off!"
"Congratulations on succeeding, handsome four-legged lizard."
The sudden voice startled Professor Connors.
"Who's there?" He spun around, startled.
"It's me—your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. New York's most legendary superhero. Dream guy of nine million girls..."
Click!
As Charlie introduced himself, Professor Connors wasted no time, snapping the octopus arms onto his back. With a series of mechanical clicks, the arms locked into place.
Charlie: "..."
"I'm in the middle of introducing myself, and you're already putting on a weapon? So rude." He hung upside down, visibly speechless.
Professor Connors grinned fiercely. "I didn't expect you to find this place—must've been tough for you.
But congratulations to you as well—you'll be staying here forever."
Charlie shrugged. "Before we fight, care to explain what's going on here?"
He pointed to the unconscious "Spider-Man" in the cage.
He added, "I know you'll tell me."
Villains typically explained their motives when Spider-Man asked questions.
But Professor Connors seemed to be an exception.
"Get closer, and I'll tell you."
His grin widened, and the four octopus arms lashed out toward Charlie.
Buzz~
In an instant, the clawed ends of the arms opened like beastly mouths, with red lights targeting Charlie.
"Take this!!"
The four mechanical arms whipped through the air, but Charlie had vanished from the spot.
Boom! Boom!
There were several loud crashes, and rubble scattered throughout the underground lab.
In the blink of an eye, the red-and-blue figure darted behind Professor Connors, reaching for his back.
This was something Charlie had lots of experience with.
"Gotcha!"
The next second, it was as though Professor Connors had eyes in the back of his head. He spun around, claws swiping just as Charlie was about to touch his back.
Zzzt zzzt~
The air sizzled as the claws slashed through it. Charlie's expression remained unchanged, and he clenched his hand into a fist.
Boom!!
Thud!!
With a resounding boom, Professor Connors' body was sent flying tens of meters away, slamming into a concrete wall like a cannonball.
"Argh!!"
The wall cracked as Professor Connors coughed up a mouthful of green blood, his aura weakening significantly.
Meanwhile, Charlie slowly retracted his fist.
"I didn't even use my full strength, and you're down already." The blue light in his eyes flickered slightly, and his tone was mocking.
Professor Connors was stronger than the lizard Parker, but still far from enough.
With just around thirty tons of strength, he was no match for Charlie.
Without hesitation, he fired webbing from both hands, launching himself forward like a slingshot.
Boom!!
A terrifying force approached, and Professor Connors' expression darkened. The four octopus arms on his back lashed out, the claws merging into blades, intent on shredding the annoying Spider-Man.
Clang!
Boom!
The impact shattered the wall, but Professor Connors grinned.
"This time, I've finally caught you."
The four mechanical arms managed to grab Charlie's limbs, exerting over twenty tons of force.
Crack crack crack
Tear!
With a violent pull from the mechanical arms, the parts of Charlie's suit covering his limbs were torn apart.
"You're dead!" Professor Connors' eyes were filled with excitement.
But Charlie remained calm and smiled. "Congratulations, you just broke my limiter."
"What?"
Under Professor Connors' shocked gaze, Charlie's muscles suddenly swelled, and his exposed skin was covered in purplish veins.
Boom!!
With Titan-like strength, Charlie grabbed the mechanical arms holding his hands.
Thud~
Crack crack crack
With a fierce shake, Charlie's ten fingers dug into the mechanical arms. The two arms twisted like pretzels, sparking wildly.
"No, this can't be..."
Professor Connors gasped. He tried to use the remaining two mechanical arms to escape, but the broken fragments of Charlie's nanometal suit flowed over the arms.
Buzz
Crack crack
The red-blue nanometal covered the mechanical arms, and the chip at the back of Professor Connors' neck went dim. He lost control of the arms.
"What happened?"
"You'll find out."
Charlie grinned. The nanometal from his broken suit spread over the two twisted arms, quickly engulfing the damaged arms to repair the suit.
At the same time, he tapped his wrist, and the remaining two functional mechanical arms, controlled by the onboard AI, wrapped around Professor Connors like two giant pythons, binding him tightly.
Soon, the nanometal finished repairing Charlie's suit.
Chirp chirp chirp
The small spider climbed onto Charlie's shoulder, signaling for him to look toward the cage.
The spider mutants in the cage had lost their Spider-Man powers with the help of the small spider.
"Good job."
Charlie patted the small spider's head gently, then stepped up to the struggling Professor Connors.
"Why did you capture those mutants?" he asked.
Professor Connors, his mouth bleeding, scoffed. "You think I'm going to tell you?"
"Won't you?"
Charlie smiled. "Then I'll leave you at the school for your students to see you like this."
"No, please!"
Professor Connors' eyes widened in fear. "No, you can't do that. They'd be so disappointed in me."
"Then answer me honestly. I'll take you somewhere safe, where no one will know who you are."
"I..."
Professor Connors gritted his teeth. "Alright, I agree.
I don't know how you figured out who I am, but I trust Spider-Man wouldn't lie to me."
"You can trust me," Charlie nodded.
He wondered—did Spider-Man really have such a good reputation?
He didn't remember ever being particularly honorable.
Before he could think further, Professor Connors spoke. "My body has problems. I need their mutated cells to relieve my pain."
"Hmm?"
Charlie frowned. "The lizard's genes and spider genes shouldn't overlap at all, right?"
Professor Connors shook his head. "I don't know either. I just have this overwhelming urge to attack them when I'm in pain. My body tells me I need to consume them."
Charlie seemed thoughtful, then asked, "Why did you inject the regeneration serum? If I'm not mistaken, someone warned you to be patient."
Hearing that, Professor Connors' pupils shrank.
"That was Charlie—the kid. You know him?" He asked, his eyes glinting.
"Of course. He's my contact. We've known each other for a long time," Charlie replied.
Professor Connors gave a bitter smile. "He must have told you about me, which is why you guessed my identity."
Charlie nodded. "Yes, in his eyes, you're an excellent scientist. He doesn't want anything bad to happen to you.
If he found out you'd turned into this, he'd want to save you."
"No, please don't let him know. Please."
"That depends on you."
"Okay, I'll tell you everything I know."
Professor Connors took a deep breath. "Actually, I had enough funding for my experiment. I wasn't planning on risking injecting the serum.
But that night, I was attacked.
I was seriously injured, and no one would take me to a hospital. I was dying, and the only thing near me was the regeneration serum I had just completed.
I had no choice. I did what I had to in order to survive.
I injected the serum, and I turned into a monster, which makes me miserable."
Professor Connors looked pained, but Charlie shook his head.
"You're lying."
"No, please believe me."
"Professor, if what you're saying is true, then how did you find this place?"
Charlie looked around. "If no one arranged all of this, you wouldn't have been able to find it."
Professor Connors looked down. "I found it by accident," he insisted.
"And what about this equipment?"
Charlie pointed to the makeshift lab. "All your funds went into the experiment, and the school equipment hasn't diminished. You don't have extra money for all this gear."
"Don't ask anymore," Professor Connors pleaded, "For Charlie's sake."
Charlie opened his mouth but eventually didn't press further.
His gut told him Professor Connors was in this state because of him.
Zzt zzt~
Suddenly, a projection appeared in the dim underground lab.
"Hello, Spider-Man. I am the one you're looking for."
On the screen, a massive figure stood in the shadows, making it hard to make out specific features.
The figure was very, very fat—so much that it was unimaginable for a regular person.
Charlie's eyes narrowed. Judging by that body shape, he could guess the person's identity.
The king of the underworld—Kingpin!
"What do you want to say?" he asked.
"We should have a good talk," Kingpin said calmly.
Charlie casually fired webs, leaning back on them, waiting to hear what came next.
Kingpin paused. "Is this for the ritual?"
He raised a hand, and his assistant Caitlin handed him a cigar.
Puff~
Slowly exhaling smoke, he said, "Spider-Man, you're a threat to me—at least, that's what they tell me.
But I never saw you as a threat. In fact, we have no conflicts of interest. The ones you catch are merely insignificant pests—they mean nothing to me."
He was referring to the usual criminals. Some were his men, but not necessarily.
Charlie listened and then asked, "And?"
Kingpin took a puff of his cigar. "They paid me a lot, so I joined in on their actions.
But they're dead now, and I have no reason to target you anymore."
"And what about Professor Connors?"
"That was an accident. I wanted to fund his experiment, but he refused my investment."
"So you sent people to assassinate him?"
"I only meant to scare him."
"But you ended up turning him into a monster."
"I told you—it was an accident."
Kingpin put down his cigar. "A beautiful accident. He gained power, and that's a good thing."
"No, it's not!" Professor Connors gritted his teeth. "I didn't need to become a monster."
If he had more time, maybe he could've completed the real regeneration serum.
Kingpin glanced at Professor Connors. "Work for me, and I'll fund your serum research. It's a fair deal—your only choice."
Before Professor Connors could respond, Kingpin added, "But your first mission failed. You've been stalling me, so I used the people around you to threaten you."
"Charlie Parker?" Charlie said his own name.
"Yes."
Kingpin smiled. "That kid seems different. Both Aleksei and Curt like him—very surprising to me.
And now there's you, Spider-Man. You're friends with Charlie, too—just perfect."
"You want to use him against me?" Charlie's eyes narrowed.
Kingpin shook his head. "No, I want to make a deal."
"You think that's possible?"
"Of course."
Kingpin grinned. "Dark forces can be traded like any other commodity. Why can't we?"
He continued, "I don't like using hostages against enemies. It brings back bad memories. But I don't mind making myself sad."
"Then you'll be disappointed."
Charlie shrugged. "I'm not close to Charlie. He's too brilliant—it makes me feel ashamed."
Kingpin wasn't buying such a flimsy lie, and continued, "The Black Cat stole something from me. Find her, and bring it back, and the deal is done.
Afterward, I won't bother you again, and Professor Connors will be free."
Hearing that, Charlie raised an eyebrow.
"So I can't take Professor Connors now?"
"Of course not. He hasn't completed his task for me."
"And if I insist on taking him?"
"He won't want to go."
Kingpin's words were followed by Professor Connors' dark expression.
"Spider-Man, I won't go. There's too much that can be used against me."
His eyes dimmed. "My students, my friends, all my research data—he can easily destroy all of that. His influence is too vast.
So vast that, with just one word, all of New York could fall into chaos. Even politicians would be forced to make concessions to him."
Charlie fell silent.
Indeed, Kingpin wasn't the most powerful villain—though, in a certain universe, he did once punch Spider-Man to death.
But he was undoubtedly one of the most troublesome villains.
Countless members of the underworld obeyed his commands.
With just a word, New York would fall into panic overnight.
Without lifting a finger, he could kill any ordinary person.
He had absolute power over the situation.
So, only by finding and defeating him could the hidden threat be removed.
Compared to Hydra's hard-working leader, who got personally involved in everything, Kingpin was even harder to deal with.
After thinking it through, Charlie looked up. "Alright, I agree. Where should I bring what you want?"
"I'll let you know."
Charlie shrugged. "I've dealt with your subordinates—they're idiots. If they lose your item, you'll definitely think it's my fault."
Kingpin smiled. "I get it. When the time comes, I'll be there myself."
"You're not afraid?"
"Afraid?"
Kingpin laughed loudly. "Hahaha, Spider-Man, you are indeed strong. You defeated that Captain with the strange powers.
But did you know?
I've spent my whole life coming back from defeat—you'll never beat me."
Charlie gave him a thumbs-up. "Great. I hope you keep that confidence, otherwise I'll be disappointed."
Since this guy was willing to show up, his demand was no longer a threat.
It really was a fair deal.
He walked behind Professor Connors, lightly tapping his wrist, and the octopus arms loosened.
Freed, Professor Connors didn't attack Charlie.
He stood up and faced Charlie. "If you fail, I will kill you—that way, maybe Charlie will survive."
"I won't fail."
Charlie said, as he lightly tapped his fingers, a holographic projection of the octopus arm appeared.
Click click~
The next second, the octopus arms detached from Professor Connors' back.
"Alright, you can go now."
Charlie turned to the projection of Kingpin. "You can leave too."
Buzz~
Instantly, the projection disappeared, and Professor Connors turned to climb the wall, leaving through another opening.
Charlie then tapped his projection again.
Swish swish~
Soon, the nanometal completely engulfed the two functional mechanical arms and quickly analyzed their structure.
After upgrading his nanometal suit, Charlie had gradually figured out its various functions.
Its defense wasn't the strongest, but its versatility was unmatched.
Once the structure of the arms was analyzed, the nanometal could replicate something similar.
As expected, once the analysis was complete, the nanometal at Charlie's back twisted, extending four dark-golden octopus arms.
Charlie focused, and one of the arms slowly stretched in front of him.
At this moment, his vision shifted slightly—he could see his own face.
Each arm had an independent camera, which was why Professor Connors, after implanting them, could spot Charlie's sneak attack.
"Interesting."
Charlie nodded in satisfaction. Then, tapping the model, he changed the appearance of the octopus arms into four dark-golden spider spears.
The exterior had changed, but the mechanics were still based on Dr. Otto's technology.
It looked much better now.
Charlie turned off the virtual computer, then carried the unconscious mutant out of the underground lab.
Clang~
In a corner of the city, the sewer grate spun and landed. Charlie finally returned to the surface.
He replaced the cover, then placed the mutant near a hospital before swinging away.
[You played the friendly neighborhood hero, saving an innocent citizen. +1 restart point]
Alright, feeling happy again.
Near the seaside villa, Charlie retracted the Spider-Man suit, planning to return to Dr. Otto's house to report back.
Even though he didn't find the stolen arms, he'd done his best.
Dr. Otto would surely be touched.
With that thought, he walked briskly toward the villa.
Clang~
Suddenly, a sewer grate in the distance flipped, and a mud-covered Professor Connors returned to the surface.
He'd gotten lost just now.
He was a lizard, not a rat.
Connors cursed his bad luck, but turned and froze.
"Charlie..."
Charlie also froze. "Professor Connors?"
What were the chances?
"No, I'm not him. You've got the wrong guy."
Professor Connors' face went pale, and he hurriedly covered his face, ducking back into the sewers, not wanting anyone to see him in such a sorry state.
Damn Spider-Man, you really told someone my secret.
You lied to me—I swear I'll tear you apart!
Professor Connors vowed.