"Spider Man?"
George Stacy opened his eyes and saw Spider Man in a red and blue suit standing squarely in front of him.
Peter held the Prowler's arm with one hand. That slender wrist contained terrifying strength. No matter how hard the Prowler struggled, he could not break free.
Peter tilted his head toward George Stacy, moved, and said, "Captain, I had no idea I was that great in your heart!"
He was referring to the nice things George Stacy had said earlier, just to nail the Green Goblin to the wall.
"Shut up, you!"
Stacy's expression instantly turned as ugly as if he had swallowed a fly.
It was bad enough that he had forced himself to praise Spider Man against his will. Now the real guy had heard it too. His old face could not take it.
Thankfully, the situation did not allow Peter to keep chatting. Once the Prowler realized he could not shake Spider Man off, he immediately switched tactics. His other hand snapped its five fingers together and stabbed toward Peter's eyes like a spearhead.
So that hand got caught too.
"Hey, man, you've got two metal arms!" Peter shouted in surprise. At that moment, his nonstop talking trait fully exploded. "And your cape, are you copying Batman? Let me guess, your codename is Purple Batman, or Gay Batman?"
"Let go of me, Spider Man!"
The Prowler angrily kicked at Peter's stomach, but Peter was far more agile than he expected.
"I'll let go right now," Peter said loudly.
At the same time, he pushed off with both feet. His body instantly spun like a windmill. He flipped forward, dodging the Prowler's strike, and also tossed the Prowler away in one smooth motion.
"Bye bye, Gay Batman!"
The Prowler, flung through the air, spread his cape. The stiff fabric acted like a glider, buffering his fall and sparing him from impact damage.
"Whoa. A batsuit."
"Do you also have batarangs?"
Peter asked excitedly, but the next second his spider sense screamed. He instinctively lowered his stance, and then a black shadow pounced at him like a beast.
Kraven's grab met only air. Like a lynx, he landed on the court's table. He crouched, turned his head back, and the lion mane on his body shook.
"Spider Man!"
At this moment, excitement flickered in Kraven's eyes. With just one exchange, he had already sensed that Spider Man was anything but ordinary.
That was exactly what he wanted.
Only strong prey was worth hunting.
"And who are you, kitty cat?" Peter asked.
Even with a mask on, the suit Bant had made for him could still express his emotions. On Peter's mask, one eye looked big and the other small, as if he were utterly confused.
Kraven carried almost no equipment, yet Peter's spider sense told him the man in front of him was even more dangerous than the last guy.
That was because Kraven was a superpowered villain.
His power came from Wakanda's mysterious ritual, the Flame Three An ritual, along with herbs and potions that could grant strength.
Wakandans all believed in the Beast God.
In a way, Kraven, like Peter, had gained power that came from a beast totem.
"Spider Man, you're my prey!" Kraven reached toward Spider Man in excitement, his bent fingers curling like claws.
Peter instantly shivered, goosebumps erupting all over.
"Alright, you're even more gay than that purple guy, bro." He waved a hand, then rubbed his shoulders, stepping back with an unmistakable look of refusal. "I'm not gonna be your boyfriend."
Hearing that, Kraven did not get angry. He simply twisted his mouth into a cruel smile. "I only need you as my specimen!"
The moment the words fell, he attacked again.
Kraven moved like a beast brimming with strength. The instant his arm swung, it felt like the wild wind of open plains slammed toward Peter.
"Distance makes beauty, buddy," Peter hurriedly retreated, lifting his arms and firing webbing at his opponent.
"Also, I don't like people who come on too strong."
The web shot out, but Kraven sprang up, dodged the web line, then kicked in.
Peter bent low and slipped aside. At the same time, his gaze cut under his own hips, and he saw the Prowler flying straight for the Green Goblin.
"Stay away from him!"
Peter immediately fired a web line across the distance, but in the next moment, Kraven lunged from behind and slammed him to the floor.
"Hahahaha!"
The Green Goblin laughed wildly.
But the next second, two short batons flew out from a dark corner. The cord between them snapped tight, instantly binding the Prowler and smashing him down hard.
"Daredevil!"
Peter yelled in delight.
He truly had not expected Daredevil to show up here.
When Matt and Norman evacuated, Matt had turned into a corner. Luckily, he had anticipated this kind of accident and prepared his suit in advance.
That was why he could stop the Prowler in time.
But they did not get to celebrate for long. With Matt's appearance, a thick fog suddenly rose.
In an instant, dozens of blades tore through the gray mist and shot straight at Matt.
"Hand ninjas?"
Matt recognized them.
Not only him, Spider Man recognized them too.
A month ago, not long before they ran into Muse, Peter and Matt had been surrounded by these same ninjas. Back then, Matt had been badly injured, and Peter had carried him home.
Now, facing the incoming projectiles, Matt dodged quickly. Yet the next second, those flying blades collided in midair and abruptly changed trajectory, shooting toward the Green Goblin instead.
The Green Goblin threw both arms up.
Clang!
Sparks burst out.
The special handcuffs restraining him were struck. Then, with brute strength, he snapped them apart.
"I'm finally free!"
The Green Goblin cackled like a grotesque bat.
He lifted a heavy table with both arms and smashed it toward Peter in furious rage.
At this moment, the ninjas moved like ghosts as they sealed off the courthouse.
The Green Goblin regained his freedom, the Prowler tore free of his bindings with metal claws, Kraven the Hunter watched like a tiger stalking prey, and Peter and Matt were left completely isolated.
Now Matt understood.
This was aimed at him.
"Spider Man, they're not just trying to break the Green Goblin out, they're planning to kill us too."
Facing so many enemies, both Matt and Peter felt the pressure crash down.
Even though Peter had superpowers, he was not the only one with abnormal strength here. The Green Goblin and Kraven both possessed power beyond ordinary people.
Kraven stepped forward and said, "I only want Spider Man!"
"How about you call your other spider friend?" Matt tilted his head toward Peter and asked, almost pleading.
"Good idea."
Peter nodded. Like a traffic cop, he stretched out his palm at the advancing Kraven, signaling no entry.
And Kraven, seeing that, actually stopped. He folded his arms and waited.
On the other side, the Prowler, whose mind was filled with nothing but collecting his money now that he had rescued the Green Goblin, did not want extra trouble. He was already calculating his retreat.
One million dollars was a lot, but not enough to risk his life.
The Green Goblin, seeing no one move, also watched his surroundings warily.
So, for a moment, everyone on the scene fell into a bizarre silence.
Peter lightly tapped the web shooter on his wrist.
When Bant modified his new suit, he had already considered that Peter, wearing a skintight outfit, could not conveniently carry a phone since there were no pockets. So the wrist web shooter had also been fitted with a communicator.
And in Peter's ear was a tiny earpiece.
"Hello, H, Eunice?"
The call connected instantly. Matt, listening closely, heard a strange woman's voice.
"I'm looking for Hacker Spider Man," Peter put his hands on his hips, balancing on his toes. "What, he went shopping with Ma…? Then can you have him come over later? What, tonight he's got a date with Fi… to watch a movie?"
Peter hung up, looking dead inside.
Countless enemies were already enough to give him a headache, but his dear cousin's happy love life hurt him even more.
"Looks like you don't have reinforcements," Kraven said regretfully.
But he quickly tossed that feeling aside. After all, once he killed the Spider Man in front of him, he could just go kill the other one next.
Searching for prey was part of the joy of the hunt.
In an instant, the fight erupted again.
Kraven and the Green Goblin lunged at Peter. The Hand ninjas treated Matt as their number one target.
The Prowler wanted to retreat, but Bullseye blocked his path.
"Where are you going, Prowler?"
"The job's done. Of course I'm retreating," he said, ignoring Peter who was constantly leaping around the courthouse while still chattering.
"One million, break out the Green Goblin."
The Prowler spread his hands, making it clear that fighting Spider Man or Daredevil cost extra.
"Kingpin said whoever kills Daredevil or Spider Man gets one hundred million dollars," Bullseye said expressionlessly.
"One hundred million?"
"To be honest, I've wanted to take Spider Man out for a long time!"
The Prowler turned around without hesitation. His cape spread, the thrusters inside his suit ignited, and he shot toward Spider Man at terrifying speed.
At the same time, Bullseye raised a handgun and aimed at Matt.
"Another one."
Peter, currently trading blows with the Hunter and the Green Goblin, felt his spider sense flare.
He leaned back to dodge the Prowler's sneak attack, then flipped backward in one motion, both feet kicking toward the pouncing Kraven.
Next, his wrist web shooter fired a web line that stuck to the Prowler's back, yanking him and slamming him straight into the Green Goblin.
"Get lost!"
Even though the Prowler had come to rescue him, the Green Goblin had no patience for him. He backhanded the Prowler away, sending him crashing headfirst through a wall.
Then he charged at Peter again, swinging heavy punches. Even unarmed, his destructive power was still shocking.
The modified Lizard serum coursing through him granted him immense strength. For the Green Goblin, if he wanted to kill someone, he only needed to use a little force to snap an ordinary person's neck.
Kraven attacked as well.
With both of them working together, Peter immediately found it hard to handle.
In truth, if Peter went all out, neither Kraven nor the Green Goblin would be his match.
Their superpowers were not even close to enough in front of Peter.
But Peter could not actually kill.
He had powerful control over his strength. Every time he fought an enemy, he was extremely cautious, afraid he might slip and kill them by accident.
That was why it always looked like anyone could go a few rounds with Spider Man.
Because most of the time, Spider Man was not using his full power. If anything, he was constantly avoiding direct punches and kicks.
Like now. While dodging their attacks, he shot webs to both sides, sticking two tables, then yanked hard.
In an instant, under his strength, the two tables slammed together like closing doors, as if trying to crush the Green Goblin and Kraven flat.
Bang!
Wood splinters flew.
Those fragile wooden tables could not hurt Kraven and the Green Goblin at all.
The two monsters ripped them apart in seconds, then lunged at Peter. One on each side, they seized his arms and pinned him to the ground.
"To deal with a venomous scorpion, it's best to remove its tail first," Kraven said. His powerful fingers stabbed straight through the web shooter on Peter's left wrist.
Szz!
Sticky, mist-like web fluid sprayed out.
"How pathetic, Spider Man. You've finally fallen into my hands!" the Green Goblin roared with laughter, reaching out to clamp Peter's throat. With two superpowered men holding him down, Peter could not break free for the moment.
His face flushed red. He could barely breathe.
"I'll kill you first, then kill the other Spider Man, and finally, I'll take down Norman Osborn… and take back everything that belongs to me!"
Watching Spider Man suffer, the Green Goblin grew even more exhilarated. He clenched his fist tightly, like he was swearing an oath to his own soul.
"Oh, and not just that." He leaned down, pressing his face close to Peter's mask. With one hand, he lifted a corner of it, revealing a vicious, cruel grin.
"I'm going to find out who you are, and then kill every single person you know."
"Not a chance!" Peter shouted, struggling with everything he had.
"Not a chance?" the Green Goblin let out a cold laugh.
"This is what you get for opposing me, Spider Man!" he raved, and he had already peeled the mask up to Peter's nose. Spider Man's true face was about to be exposed.
"Remember this. Those people will die because of you!"
But at that very instant, Peter released a furious roar. The strength he had been suppressing burst out, and the Green Goblin and Kraven's expressions changed at the same time.
The next moment, both of them were hurled away by overwhelming force.
Peter snapped up from the ground with a kip-up, yanked his mask back down with both hands, and behind the mask, his eyes burned with rage.
"Spider Man, your strength is actually this powerful!" Kraven grew even more shocked, and even more thrilled. He suddenly realized that a Spider Man this strong was exactly the ultimate prey he had been pursuing.
For prey like this, such a rushed hunt was practically a kind of blasphemy.
He needed to prepare thoroughly, then wait for the prey to walk into his trap.
Translation: he was getting ready to run.
Peter did not care whether he stayed or left.
Right now, the only thing that filled Peter with rage was the Green Goblin.
/-\
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