Chapter 30
Doctor Octopus's mechanical tentacles suddenly shot out from the wreckage.
The metal joints made a piercing grinding sound, as if they had gained self-awareness, lunging toward the two of them.
"Careful! His neural link is severed—the tentacles are acting autonomously now!" Gwen quickly assumed a fighting stance.
The next second—
BOOM!!!
Yang Jian smashed down with one fist. The tentacles were instantly crushed into scrap metal by overwhelming force. The shockwave even cracked the ground in a spiderweb pattern.
Gwen: "Whoa."
She blinked and looked at Yang Jian: "That punch of yours could punch through an aircraft carrier, right?"
"Just like that." Yang Jian shook his hand as if he'd only swatted a mosquito.
"Okay… how about we go grab some coffee?" Gwen suddenly suggested.
As she spoke, Gwen pulled off her hood. Golden long hair cascaded down.
Underneath she wore a form-fitting white short-sleeve top and denim hot pants; her long legs gleamed white under the moonlight.
"You guys always like this kind of thing, right?" She tilted her head and deliberately spun once.
Yang Jian raised an eyebrow: "Guess."
Gwen gave a light laugh. The armor on Yang Jian's chest melted away like liquid.
Revealing a black shirt and long pants underneath. His entire aura instantly shifted.
"Where to?" he asked.
Gwen pointed casually: "There's a place three blocks away. I think it's pretty good… whoa!"
Before she finished speaking, the scenery blurred abruptly.
By the time she reacted, they were already standing at the entrance of a retro coffee shop.
The night breeze blew past, sending her golden hair flying. She stood frozen in place.
"This—this!"
"Super speed." Yang Jian pushed open the coffee shop door.
"Haven't you read Superman comics?"
Gwen took a deep breath and followed him inside: "I thought that was just comics!"
Inside the Coffee Shop
Under warm yellow lighting, the two sat in a corner booth. Gwen cradled a hot cocoa, occasionally sneaking glances at Yang Jian.
"So?" She bit the straw.
"You're really an alien?"
"Pretty much."
"So you came to our universe… to travel?"
Yang Jian stirred his coffee: "Something like that."
Gwen suddenly leaned in, lowering her voice: "Then you must have seen other Spider-People, right? Like that one in the red-and-blue suit, the really talkative guy?"
Yang Jian paused, looked at her expectant eyes, and suddenly smiled: "You really want to meet him?"
Gwen immediately sat up straight: "No no! Just curious. He'd probably annoy me to death."
Outside the window, sirens grew closer.
George Stacy's voice came through a loudspeaker: "All units, Green Goblin sighted in Manhattan."
Gwen shot to her feet: "Damn it—my dad!"
She fumbled to pull out her mask.
"I have to go check."
"No rush. Let's go together." Yang Jian suddenly said.
Gwen froze: "What?"
"If you want to know about other universes." He stood up.
"Then let's make it quick. We've barely touched the coffee."
"Okay then, Mr. Superman." Gwen was about to head out when Yang Jian placed a hand on her shoulder.
"You're too slow."
Gwen: ...…
Super speed activated. Before the other customers even realized what was happening, the two had vanished from the spot.
In Gwen's perspective, the world around her seemed to enter slow motion.
Everything appeared frozen while they moved at extreme speed.
She turned her head to look at Yang Jian beside her. He gave her a slight smile, then accelerated again.
Whoosh!
They flew toward their destination at supersonic speed.
New York Night Sky
Sirens pierced the night. Distant explosions lit half the sky red.
Green Goblin's manic laughter echoed between buildings. Pumpkin bombs fell from above, sending panicked crowds fleeing through the streets.
When Yang Jian and Gwen arrived, Green Goblin was standing on his glider, overlooking the chaotic street.
"Ghost-Spider!" he sneered. "Finally come to die?"
"Stand down, Green Goblin!" Gwen shouted in her suit, trying to reason with him.
"Die!" Green Goblin threw a bomb.
Gwen was about to counter when Yang Jian's eyes had already ignited red.
Shhh!
A crimson heat vision beam pierced straight through Green Goblin's chest!
"What the—?!" Gwen exclaimed as Green Goblin's laughter abruptly stopped.
He plummeted from the sky and crashed to the ground, motionless.
Gwen whipped her head toward Yang Jian: "What just happened?!"
Yang Jian pointed to the side.
Several bodies—torn apart by pumpkin bombs—lay in pools of blood. They were students in school uniforms.
"Every extra second he lived, more innocent people died." Yang Jian's voice was calm.
Gwen opened her mouth but couldn't find words to argue.
She trembled as she walked toward Green Goblin's body and lifted the mask.
"Harry?"
She staggered back a step, face deathly pale.
Beneath the mask, Harry Osborn's pale face was frozen in a mad grin.
"Why… why him!" Gwen's voice nearly broke.
Yang Jian walked to her side: "The moment he chose to become Green Goblin, your friend was already gone."
In the distance, George Stacy arrived with his police team. He was about to speak when Yang Jian wrapped an arm around Gwen's shoulders.
Whoosh!
Super speed activated. The two vanished instantly, leaving Captain Stacy standing in stunned silence.
Rooftop of a High-Rise
Night wind howled. Gwen knelt at the edge of the roof, mask clutched in her hand, golden hair disheveled by the wind.
"I could have saved him." She murmured.
"If I'd noticed sooner."
Yang Jian stood behind her. He didn't offer comfort, only said calmly: "Some paths, once taken, cannot be turned back from."
Gwen looked up. Her eyes were red under the moonlight: "In your universe… do things like this happen too?"
"Every universe has its own tragedies." Yang Jian gazed at the city lights in the distance.
"But every universe also has people willing to stand up and fight back."
Gwen was silent for a long time. Finally, she slowly stood.
Her voice became firm.
"Tell me more about other universes—about those who stand up and fight back."
Half an Hour Later Inside the Coffee Shop
The two cups of coffee on the table still steamed, as if time had never passed.
Gwen gripped the cup tightly, eyes fixed on Yang Jian.
"So you're saying… in most universes, Peter Parker is Spider-Man?" Her voice carried a question.
"And there are… a lot of versions?"
Yang Jian gently stirred his coffee: "Every universe has a different script. In some, you two are allies. In others, enemies. And in some…"
He paused.
"…you never even met."
Gwen stared at her reflection in the coffee, silent for a moment.
"What about Harry? In other universes… does he always become Green Goblin?" She sighed.
"Some fates are shared." Yang Jian set down his cup.
"But some can be changed."
Gwen's head snapped up: "What do you mean?"
"Like today—stopping Green Goblin from killing more innocent people." Yang Jian's gaze passed through the coffee shop window, toward the night sky.
"Every choice creates new branches."
Gwen took a deep breath and suddenly asked: "Then what about you? What role do you play in your universe?"
Yang Jian thought for a moment and smiled: "A variable that doesn't follow the script."
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