"Erin, be careful from now on, don't be so reckless. When you encounter an unfamiliar opponent, first try a probing attack to figure out their background."
"After that, adjust your rhythm and tactical choices." Gwen constantly reminded Erin in her ear.
By then, some time had passed since Sandman was defeated by Gwen.
After defeating Sandman, Gwen quickly left the scene with Erin, and after getting out of public sight, they circled back to find Lucas and the others.
"I understand, Gwen." Erin said, her voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz.
She knew that her recklessness had put her in danger. Fortunately, Gwen's strength was much greater than Sandman's, allowing her to rescue Erin in time.
"Alright, Gwen, Erin was just worried about you. She doesn't have experience fighting real super-powered individuals yet, and concern can lead to errors. Some mistakes are normal." Lucas interjected, trying to smooth things over.
In fact, Lucas didn't think Erin's tactical choice was a mistake. She simply lacked the strength, it had little to do with tactics.
On the surface, Sandman was easily defeated by Gwen, making him seem weak. In reality, Sandman's combat power was no less than Hulk's.
In one comic, Sandman knocked out Hulk twice and held his own against other Super Heroes.
Sandman possessed a special, almost elemental body, with the ability to control sand particles, making him immune to physical attacks. In his normal state, he had nearly a hundred tons of strength.
When his body increased in size, his strength would increase accordingly.
The reason Sandman was easily defeated by Gwen was that Lucas's energy suppressed his sand-controlling abilities, inhibiting his power at its root.
And Erin?
Although her physique far surpassed that of an ordinary person, she was essentially just a normal Vampire, with all side effects removed.
The hard power gap between her and Sandman was roughly the difference between a minion and a mini-boss. It was a gap that could not be bridged by all soft skills combined, such as tactics, wisdom, courage, and willpower.
"Erin, I don't mean to blame you. On the contrary, I'm very grateful that you risked yourself to save me."
"However, I still need to remind you that facing ordinary criminals is different from facing super-powered criminals."
"You must be more cautious when facing the latter. Otherwise, you could easily get injured or even die." Gwen said, holding Erin's small hand.
Her tone softened, but she remained very serious.
"In the first two years after I gained my superpowers, I was injured multiple times while saving people in battles against some Super Villains. That's when I realized that the prerequisite for helping others is to protect yourself."
"I hope my experience can be of some help to you."
Lucas asked, "What if you, Gwen, were in Erin's situation just now? What would you do?"
"Would you protect yourself and watch Erin get hurt, or would you risk saving Erin?"
Has the sun risen from the west?
Spider-Man telling others not to sacrifice themselves, but to protect themselves.
Shouldn't Spider-Man's line be, "With great power comes great responsibility"?
Erin, Helen, and Little Gwen pricked up their ears, waiting for Gwen's answer.
"I would shoot a web and save Erin." Gwen replied.
"Erin doesn't have webs." Lucas pressed.
"Then I'd kick Sandman away and stall him." Gwen answered again.
Lucas shrugged, looking at Erin, Helen, and Little Gwen, indicating with body language: I knew she would do that.
"See, Gwen. You yourself would do that, so why are you telling Erin to choose another approach?"
Gwen, embarrassed, nudged Lucas, but still said seriously, "That's different. I can't ask Erin to choose to sacrifice herself just because I choose to sacrifice myself."
"That's wrong. The correct approach is to protect yourself first."
Amidst the laughter of Erin, Helen, and Little Gwen, the topic was temporarily dropped.
Only Lucas smiled meaningfully.
The best solution to this kind of problem is not to solve the problem, but to solve the person who poses the problem.
That is, to avoid getting into such a predicament as much as possible.
Lucas looked up at the night sky, his gaze profound.
In a place more distant than the night sky, several invisible webs pierced through the void, extending towards them.
The webs continuously stretched and connected in the void, weaving a vast, endless net that seemed to cover the entire Universe.
And this vast net was just an offshoot of another net. On that larger net, this vast net covering the entire Universe was merely a single strand.
The Web of Life and Destiny!
As the vast net wove in the void, and the Web of Life and Destiny extended to Earth-404, Gwen immediately sensed it. Her spider-sense was frantically warning her.
Gwen looked up at the night sky but saw nothing.
"Lucas, what's there?" Gwen asked, pointing at the night sky.
Although she couldn't see it, she had a mouth and could ask.
"The Web of Life and Destiny has extended to this Universe." Lucas replied.
Lucas also looked at the night sky, suddenly understanding.
No wonder he had been encountering villains from the Spider-Man series these past few months. It turned out to be the power of the Web of Life and Destiny extending here.
And it was getting closer and closer, its influence on this Universe growing stronger.
The first villain, Vulture, he encountered was just an ordinary person embarking on a criminal path.
The second villain, Mysterio, he encountered already possessed impressive special effects technology.
The third villain, Sandman, he encountered had gained superpowers.
The three individuals' abilities gradually approached their strength when they became Spider-Man villains.
In the night sky, after the Web of Life and Destiny extended, a vibrant red spider crawled out of the void along the web.
The red spider roared skyward, emitting a series of squeaking, friction-like sounds, as if from leather. Immediately after, the red spider's body stretched and widened, as if flattened, dimensionality-reduced from a three-dimensional being to a two-dimensional being.
Finally, the red spider disappeared, replaced by a vibrant red spider totem.
This was the source of Spider-Man's power.
The red spider totem flickered in the night sky, swaying around, looking like a lost headless fly.
It's not looking for me, is it?
As soon as this thought emerged, Lucas immediately confirmed it.
This spider totem was indeed looking for him.
He was the rightful, Web of Life and Destiny-certified Sorcerer Spider-Man.
Erin was an imposter.
With a thought, Lucas actively released his aura.
In the night sky, the spider totem, sensing his aura, zipped across the night sky towards him.
As the spider totem approached, Gwen's spider-sense grew even stronger.
Although she couldn't see it with her eyes, her spider-sense clearly told her that something was rapidly flying towards them.
"What is that?"
"A spider totem."
Lucas smiled, explaining to Gwen, and casually caught the flying spider totem, slapping it onto the back of his hand with a "splat."