Web of the Multiverse - 158/159 (Patreon)

Chapter 158: First Encounter with Deadpool, Venom Spider-Man Appears

Although the Venom Symbiotes in this universe didn't seem to possess much self-awareness, their hosts were still affected to some extent after bonding with them, becoming more irritable and quick-tempered.

Wolverine, in particular, was already impulsive and notoriously short-tempered.

Combined with the influence of Venom, he was practically a human powder keg ready to explode at the slightest spark.

Venom Wolverine had already taken a dislike to Peter. Now that he'd finally found an excuse to act on it, there was no way he would let the opportunity pass.

He raised both hands, his black-glowing adamantium claws scraping against each other and sending dazzling sparks through the air.

"I don't care how you got to this universe. I'll cripple you first and ask questions later. Only the dead and the crippled can't pose a threat."

As Venom Wolverine advanced on him, Peter was almost at a loss for words.

He had never once claimed that Doctor Strange's magic had summoned him here.

Yet these Venom-bonded Superheroes weren't even giving him a chance to explain before jumping straight to violence.

Peter considered himself fairly even-tempered, but even he could feel his anger surging beyond his control.

Spider-Man might be the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, but that didn't mean he had no temper at all.

If Venom Wolverine insisted on being this hostile, Peter saw no reason to be polite in return.

Besides, this was a good opportunity to show these Venom Superheroes exactly what he was capable of. It could save him plenty of trouble later.

With that thought, the eyes beneath Peter's steel mask gradually sharpened.

The next instant, Venom Wolverine roared and charged.

His Venom-enhanced adamantium claws were almost invisible in the dim light. In the blink of an eye, they were already stabbing toward Peter's heart and throat.

Peter's gaze turned colder.

That wasn't an attempt to subdue him. Wolverine was trying to kill him on the spot, leaving no room whatsoever for restraint.

In that case, Peter figured a somewhat rough counterattack was perfectly justified.

Whoosh!

Wolverine's attack was fast, but Peter was faster.

The muscles in Peter's legs tensed sharply. Moving too fast for the naked eye to follow, he drove his feet into the ground hard enough to leave two deep depressions, then vanished from where he'd been standing.

Wolverine saw only a red-and-blue blur flash before his eyes.

By the time he reacted, Spider-Man was nowhere to be seen.

The claw strike he'd been certain would land cut through empty air.

The next moment, Peter appeared behind Wolverine and spoke in a slightly cold voice.

"Just a warning. I'm about to hit back, so don't complain afterward that I sucker-punched you."

Every hair on Venom Wolverine's body stood on end as he instantly swung a claw backward.

He put all his strength into the strike. Given the sharpness of his adamantium claws, even a fully armored Iron Man would have been cut in half at the waist.

Venom Wolverine had absolute confidence in both his speed and strength.

But in the next instant, his pupils contracted to pinpoints.

His full-force strike had been stopped dead halfway through its swing.

A hand had caught his wrist with flawless precision, and the strength behind that grip was almost unbelievable.

From grip strength alone, Venom Wolverine felt as though the flesh and muscle around his wrist were on the verge of being crushed into pulp.

They weren't even operating on the same level.

Venom Wolverine felt like an ant trying to wrestle an elephant.

The difference was overwhelming.

"Your strength... how can you be this much stronger than Venom Spider-Man?"

Venom Wolverine's voice was filled with shock and disbelief.

Venom Spider-Man?

A faint glimmer flashed in Peter's eyes.

Venom Wolverine's words reminded him that this universe also had its own Spider-Man, Peter Parker.

Except this universe's Spider-Man had inevitably bonded with Venom as well.

He was the Venom Spider-Man Venom Wolverine had just mentioned.

And judging by the way Wolverine spoke about him, they clearly belonged to the same side.

That explained why Venom Wolverine was so familiar with Venom Spider-Man's level of strength.

"Thanks. You actually reminded me of something. If I can find Venom Spider-Man, he should be able to prove I'm not some suspicious outsider with bad intentions."

Peter's mood improved slightly.

Naturally, his earlier desire to give Venom Wolverine a thorough beating disappeared with it.

Peter released Wolverine's wrist.

Then he drove an ordinary-looking straight punch into Venom Wolverine's back.

BOOM!

Venom Wolverine shot across everyone's field of vision at tremendous speed, as though he'd been hit head-on by a heavy-duty truck.

He slammed straight into the wall and blasted out a massive human-shaped hole.

A few seconds later, Venom Wolverine actually crawled back out by himself, leaving his companions, who had been about to rush over and help him, visibly stunned.

The Venom suit covering his body had been almost completely destroyed.

Yet somehow, he hadn't suffered any serious injuries. All he had were superficial wounds that could easily heal on their own.

Compared with simple destructive power, this level of precise control over his strength was even more astonishing.

"Enough, Logan. You've lost completely, both in strength and technique. Stop making trouble."

Venom Captain America stepped forward and put an end to the confrontation.

Then he turned to Peter and apologized with genuine sincerity.

"Please forgive Logan's recklessness. All of his former comrades died at the hands of the Poisons, so his emotions have been somewhat unstable."

Peter nodded silently and chose not to dwell on the matter.

He turned toward Venom Doctor Strange, who was still seated in his wheelchair.

"Doctor, you're right. Your magic didn't summon me to this universe. I can travel between dimensions on my own."

Peter's answer made Venom Doctor Strange's eyes flicker.

The other Venom Superheroes clearly hadn't expected that answer either.

Venom Deadpool, sitting cross-legged atop a broken wall, let out a loud whistle.

"Whoa, a Spider-Man who can travel across the Multiverse? That is seriously cool. Mind giving me a ride sometime? I'll pay you back with a list of New York socialites. You would not believe how much work I put into getting that thing."

Peter gave Venom Deadpool an exasperated glance.

This was the first time he'd encountered Deadpool anywhere in the Parallel Universe.

As for Marvel's king of wisecracks, whose ability to talk people to death rivaled Spider-Man's own, Peter hadn't yet figured out how he was supposed to deal with him.

After all, Deadpool had the ability to break the Fourth Wall.

Who knew whether this guy might see straight through Peter's identity as a transmigrator?

Fortunately, Peter didn't have to worry about it for long.

Several dark figures suddenly emerged from the underground tunnel.

The one in the lead was Spider-Man, clad in a Venom suit.

Two women accompanied Venom Spider-Man.

The woman on the left had a slender build, and the Venom suit emphasized her tall, graceful figure. Most of her face was covered by a mask.

Even so, Peter immediately recognized her from the half that remained visible.

Mary Jane!

That's right. The woman was Mary Jane, bonded with Venom.

In one universe, Mary Jane had refused to settle for being an ordinary person. After bonding with Venom, she became a Superhero and was later summoned to this universe to fight the Poisons.

The woman on the right was slightly shorter than Venom Mary Jane and appeared younger.

Her Venom suit was somewhat unusual, covered in spiderweb-like patterns. A black mask concealed the lower half of her face, leaving her glossy black hair and dark eyes exposed.

"Spider-Silk, Cindy Moon? This universe's Spider-Man seems to be doing pretty well for himself. He even brought both of them along to form a Spider-Team."

The look Peter gave Venom Spider-Man shifted slightly.

He couldn't help wondering how the guy managed to balance such a complicated relationship.

Venom Spider-Man, who had just returned to the hideout, immediately sensed that something was wrong.

He glanced around the base and instantly noticed Peter.

Even through the Venom suit, Peter could tell that Venom Spider-Man's pupils had visibly contracted.

The two moved forward at almost the same time until they stood face to face.

Neither needed to say a word.

Their Spider-Senses resonated at the same frequency the moment they faced each other.

"This place is dangerous. You need to be prepared to die at any moment."

Venom Spider-Man skipped the pleasantries and warned Peter immediately.

"Actually, I've been to places a lot more dangerous than this, so you don't have to worry about me slowing you down."

Peter extended a hand toward Venom Spider-Man.

Smack!

The two Spider-Men clasped hands firmly.

"Welcome aboard, my friend."

Venom Spider-Man pulled Peter toward the Venom Superheroes, whose expressions had visibly relaxed.

"Let me introduce everyone. This is Wade from Canada..."

Venom Spider-Man had barely begun introducing Venom Deadpool when Deadpool immediately took over.

"Wade Wilson, the hottest Canadian in the entire Multiverse. Hotter than Logan Howlett."

Venom Deadpool gave Peter an exaggerated wink.

"You'll get used to it. Wade has a rather unique sense of humor."

Venom Spider-Man shrugged at Peter before moving on to the next person.

With Venom Spider-Man introducing everyone one by one, Peter completed the first step toward joining the Resistance.

Venom Doctor Strange, still seated in his wheelchair, wore a rather strange expression.

Ever since Peter first appeared, Venom Doctor Strange had been treating him in an unusual way.

Whether Venom Wolverine was attacking Peter or Venom Spider-Man was introducing him to everyone afterward, Venom Doctor Strange showed no intention of interfering.

Judging by his behavior, he didn't resemble the leader of the Resistance at all.

He seemed more like an uninvolved bystander.

Peter had already sensed that something about this was unusual.

But he'd only just arrived, and he had very few clues to work with.

He couldn't draw any deeper conclusions yet. For now, all he could do was remain alert and see how things developed.

The group then moved on to the next item on the agenda.

Venom Doctor Strange would lead a meeting where everyone shared intelligence and assessed the current state of the war.

Their unit was one of the stronger core teams within the Resistance.

That gave them considerable strategic importance.

Every move they made had to be decided with great care.

That was also why Venom Wolverine had been so aggressive earlier.

He simply couldn't trust someone who had only just arrived and whose background was completely unknown.

Venom Spider-Man pushed Venom Doctor Strange's wheelchair into the middle of the group.

Just as Venom Doctor Strange was about to begin the meeting, he suddenly frowned and looked toward the tunnel entrance.

His hand shot up from the wheelchair handle and traced several intricate arcs through the air.

A circular magical array appeared.

The next instant, what little color remained in his face vanished completely.

"Evacuate immediately! They found this hideout. Someone was followed..."

...

Fifteen minutes earlier, Venom Spider-Man had led his Spider-Team into the subway entrance.

Roughly ten minutes later, a figure appeared at the mouth of the alley where the subway station was located.

The figure wore a yellow coat that looked as though it had been made from the pelt of some ferocious beast.

He carried a spear made from an unknown material.

The spearhead emitted a dark green glow, as though it contained an extremely potent poison.

He was one of the few Villains in the Marvel Universe capable of tracking Spider-Man.

Kraven the Hunter.

However, Kraven the Hunter's face was covered by a white demon mask.

That was the most obvious characteristic of a Poison Host.

Without exception, every Villain or Superhero assimilated by the Poisons and turned into a host wore one of those white demon masks.

Their abilities were also enhanced to varying degrees.

That was precisely why Poison Kraven the Hunter had managed to successfully track Venom Spider-Man.

Now that the Resistance hideout had been located, it was time for the Poisons to launch their attack.

Several figures of different sizes slowly emerged behind Poison Kraven the Hunter.

As moonlight broke through the clouds and spilled across the street, the figures were fully illuminated.

They were the Sinister Six, all assimilated by the Poisons.

Poison Doctor Octopus, Poison Scorpion, Poison Sandman, Poison Green Goblin, and Poison Vulture.

Empowered by the Poisons, every member of the Sinister Six had received a terrifying increase in strength.

They far surpassed their ordinary counterparts.

...

Chapter 159: Hulk Attacks, Fighting Alongside Deadpool

The most obvious changes in the Sinister Six were their appearance and sheer size.

Poison Doctor Octopus and Poison Lizard, in particular, had both grown to more than five meters tall.

Even Thanos, who stood three meters tall, would have looked like a dwarf beside them.

Poison Kraven the Hunter held his spear and waited until all his companions had gathered.

Only then did he slowly raise the weapon, pointing its blackish-green tip toward the disguised subway entrance at the end of the alley.

The mouth of his white demon mask split into a bloodthirsty grin, revealing rows of tightly packed, shark-like teeth that gleamed coldly beneath it.

"Finally found where those little bugs are hiding. I didn't expect them to still have the nerve to stay in New York, and underground at that. Bugs really are bugs. Even when they're running for their lives, they have to burrow into the ground."

Poison Kraven the Hunter's voice was filled with undisguised contempt.

When the Poisons devoured a host, they consumed the host's memories and abilities along with everything else.

As a result, they also inherited the host's memories and personality.

It was like spilling ink on a blank sheet of paper. Black stains would inevitably remain.

This was also the greatest weakness the Poisons possessed.

Because they were inevitably influenced by their hosts' memories and personalities, each Poison developed different preferences and habits.

That meant the Poisons could never be completely united.

Once Venom was no longer their shared prey, infighting would inevitably break out among them because of their conflicting personalities.

Kraven the Hunter, for example, viewed every enemy as prey that had to be hunted down by any means necessary.

Kraven the Hunter was also arrogant by nature and looked down on the other members of the Sinister Six.

Poison Kraven the Hunter had inherited those traits perfectly.

Just as Poison Kraven the Hunter was about to call for his companions to enter the subway station, the enormous Poison Lizard, whose appearance resembled a Tyrannosaurus rex, suddenly lowered his body.

His huge nostrils moved close to the mouth of the alley before flaring wide as he sucked in an enormous volume of air.

Even before being enhanced by the Poisons, The Lizard's sense of smell had been more than ten times sharper than a hyena's.

Now that he had been enhanced, his sense of smell had reached an almost unimaginable level.

He could instantly isolate precise information from tens of millions of scent molecules.

In less than three seconds, Poison Lizard had his answer.

"Kraven was right. There are plenty of Venom hosts hiding down there. Looks like we're in for another feast."

Poison Lizard's voice was extremely hoarse because his vocal cords were no longer structured like those of a mammal, but a reptile.

"And I recognize several of these scents. A few core members of the Resistance are probably hiding below. Wait..."

Poison Lizard suddenly stopped mid-sentence.

The golden vertical pupils hidden behind his white demon mask instantly narrowed into blade-thin slits.

"Connors, is something wrong?"

Poison Vulture folded his enormous wings in midair and landed silently on Poison Lizard's shoulder.

"Don't tell me there's some kind of trap down there. I'd rather not walk in and find myself surrounded by explosives."

Poison Vulture's voice was as shrill as glass scraping against glass. From his words, it sounded as though he had suffered through something similar not long ago.

"It's not a trap. It's something else."

Poison Lizard shook his massive head.

Then his enormous tail slammed against the ground, whipping up a violent gust through the ruined street.

"I smell something that shouldn't be here. There's not even the faintest trace of Venom on it. It's almost unnaturally clean."

"Someone who's never had any contact with Venom shouldn't be here."

"Someone who's never come into contact with Venom? Could one of the Mutants hiding on Krakoa have come out? If so, that's good news."

Poison Sandman formed a body of white sand and joined the conversation.

"If that's really the case, then no matter what, we need to capture them and force them to tell us how to get onto Krakoa."

Krakoa was the Mutants' last homeland and one of the few places in the world that had not been invaded by the Poisons.

Krakoa was now controlled by the Hellfire Club. The Black King, Sebastian, used some kind of advanced technological shield to protect the entire island, making it one of the few remaining safe zones in the world.

But no matter how hard the Sinister Six racked their brains, they never could have imagined that the person they were discussing was Spider-Man, who had arrived in this universe through Interdimensional Travel on his own.

"Whether this person came from Krakoa or not, we have to capture them. Compared to every other target, someone completely untouched by Venom will be our highest priority during this operation."

Poison Doctor Octopus was the leader of the Sinister Six.

Once he made the final decision, no one dared object.

Poison Kraven the Hunter remained silent, his eyes fixed on the subway entrance.

He hated the companions around him, and he hated the stranger who had suddenly appeared and ruined the mood of his hunt.

But just then, a massive figure slowly emerged from the darkness at the far end of the ruined street behind the Sinister Six.

It was a colossal giant more than four meters tall, his muscles bulging explosively beneath his skin, their contours as hard and sharply defined as stone.

Countless veins pulsed wildly beneath his dark green skin as if they were alive.

Every step he took made the entire street tremble.

Deep footprints were left behind wherever he walked.

Even the white demon mask covering his face looked more savage and terrifying than those worn by any member of the Sinister Six.

Instead of normal eyes behind the mask's eye sockets, two eerie green flames flickered like ghostly fire.

He was Poison Hulk.

"Why did you stop?"

Poison Hulk's voice boomed like rolling thunder, making the shattered glass in the ruined shops lining the street buzz and rattle.

Poison Kraven the Hunter tilted his chin toward Poison Lizard, immediately shifting the blame onto him.

"Connors smelled something unfamiliar down there. Someone who's never come into contact with Venom. He's worried something unexpected might happen."

"Hulk doesn't care about smells! Hulk doesn't care about surprises either!"

Poison Hulk angrily smashed a fist into an overturned pickup truck beside him.

BOOM!

The pickup truck shot away like a cannonball, smashing through the walls of five storefronts before finally coming to a stop.

"Hulk will find every last one of them and crush them all! Now! Attack!"

Poison Kraven the Hunter watched coldly.

"What an idiot. Nothing but brute strength, without the slightest bit of technique. I've already lost interest in this hunt."

...

Inside the subway tunnel, all the Venom Superheroes were retreating in an orderly formation.

The moment Venom Doctor Strange detected something wrong, they had immediately cut the meeting short and evacuated the hideout.

As for why Venom Doctor Strange didn't simply open a Portal and let everyone escape, repeatedly summoning Venom Superheroes from other dimensions into this universe had nearly exhausted his magical power.

For the time being, Venom Doctor Strange could no longer cast any magic at all.

That was also why he was so weak that he had to rely on a wheelchair to move around.

As everyone continued their orderly retreat, the entire subway tunnel suddenly began to tremble.

Dust poured down from the concrete ceiling, while countless fine cracks rapidly spread through it under the vibrations.

Peter's Spider-Sense erupted into a frenzy.

At the other end of the group, Venom Spider-Man also stopped abruptly.

The two Spider-Men looked at each other and shouted at the same time without hesitation.

"Watch out above!!!"

The instant their warning rang out, a massive dark green fist punched straight through the tunnel ceiling.

Then the fist opened, grabbed the edge of the opening, and tore.

RIP!

The thick concrete ceiling was ripped open as easily as a sheet of paper.

Broken rebar and chunks of concrete came crashing down like a waterfall.

Thanks to the Spider-Men's warning, the surrounding Venom Superheroes had already prepared to evade and managed to escape unharmed.

The instant Peter saw that dark green fist, he knew exactly what had arrived.

It was Hulk, assimilated by the Poisons.

And Poison Hulk was even more direct and brutal than Peter had expected.

He hadn't bothered entering the underground tunnels to track them.

Instead, he'd simply punched his way down from the surface.

Before the chaos could settle, Poison Hulk's massive dark green body dropped through the opening.

Apart from his signature torn purple shorts, his joints were covered in layers of white armor made from some unknown material, making him look even more savage and dangerous.

Poison Hulk was one of the Poison Hosts Peter least wanted to encounter.

Hulk was already famous for his nearly indestructible body and strength that could continue increasing without limit.

Now that the Poisons had enhanced him even further, not even Peter could predict how powerful Poison Hulk had become.

But since he was already here, Peter had no choice but to face him.

"You guys retreat through the side passage. I'll deal with Hulk."

Without looking back, Peter raised a hand and waved twice behind him, signaling everyone else to continue evacuating.

Before anyone could answer, his entire body shot forward.

A blurred red-and-blue afterimage streaked through the air as Peter charged straight at Poison Hulk before the giant could fully steady himself.

BOOM!

Peter collided head-on with Poison Hulk.

His fist struck Poison Hulk's jaw with pinpoint accuracy.

The shockwave created by the impact instantly blasted away every trace of dust nearby.

Poison Hulk's head snapped backward.

The tremendous force made the muscles in his neck, which were thicker than a normal person's thighs, tense with an unpleasant straining sound.

But just as Peter had expected, Poison Hulk's physical defenses were terrifyingly strong.

The muscles in Poison Hulk's neck suddenly tightened.

He actually braced his chin against Peter's fist and began forcing it back, inch by inch.

When their eyes met, Peter saw a blazing fire of fighting spirit burning deep within Poison Hulk's ghostly green eyes.

Peter didn't give him a chance to counterattack.

The instant Poison Hulk swung a fist at him, Peter stepped off the giant's head and launched himself high into the air, flipping through the air and avoiding the attack without taking so much as a scratch.

But after missing his strike, Poison Hulk had no intention of letting Peter go.

It had been a long time since he'd encountered an opponent like Peter, someone capable of landing a meaningful hit on him head-on.

Most Superheroes were like poorly made [toys] in Poison Hulk's hands, falling apart after only two or three hits.

Now that he'd finally found such a high-quality [toy], Poison Hulk had no intention of letting him escape.

"Thunderclap!"

Poison Hulk unleashed a furious roar and used his signature move.

He spread his hands apart, then slammed his palms together with all his strength.

The sheer violence of the impact instantly compressed the air, creating a mid-to-long-range blast like an air cannon.

Combined with the cramped confines of the underground tunnel, the power of this Thunderclap reached an unprecedented level.

BOOM!

The entire underground tunnel seemed to be caught in a hurricane, with sand and debris flying everywhere as violent winds roared through the passage.

Fortunately, the Venom Superheroes had already evacuated through the side passage.

Otherwise, that single attack might have been enough to wipe out the entire group.

Peter instantly activated [Bullet Time] and executed a perfect dodge amid the chaos of flying sand and debris, escaping without injury.

But just as Peter thought he would continue fighting Poison Hulk one-on-one, an unexpected figure suddenly charged in from behind and rushed straight at Poison Hulk.

It was Venom Deadpool.

Venom Deadpool seemed to be trying to ambush Poison Hulk.

What he didn't realize was that Poison Hulk hadn't lost himself to rage at all.

He was still perfectly calm.

Poison Hulk punched straight at him, driving his fist completely through Venom Deadpool's torso.

"Aaaah! You punched through my gorgeous pecs! How are you planning to compensate me for that?"

Venom Deadpool was furious, and that meant consequences.

He suddenly drew the twin blades strapped across his back and began carving furiously into Poison Hulk's arm.

"Don't think having huge muscles makes you tough! I'm not scared of you, you big dumb Hulk!"

"I swear I'm going to shove a high-explosive grenade up your ass and let you find out what 'burning hot' really means!"

Peter watched Venom Deadpool, who was being held in Poison Hulk's hand and somehow still firing off an endless stream of dirty jokes, and couldn't help feeling a little helpless.

He had only just arrived in this universe through Interdimensional Travel, and already he was fighting side by side with Venom Deadpool.

And their opponent was a heavyweight like Poison Hulk.

This really was an experience unlike anything he'd ever had before.