On the other side, inside the conference room of the Spider-Society headquarters.
"...To sum it up, this so-called Inheritor family is just a bunch of barbarians relying on their genetic advantages. They are completely immune to Spider-Sense and can drain totem life force.
Their home base is in Earth-001, and they hide a cloning factory down there that grants them infinite resurrections. On top of that, they've kidnapped a poor bastard named the Master Weaver.
It's by exploiting his power that they can travel freely through dimensions to hunt you down so precisely. According to their lore, to defeat them, they must gather the three children of prophecy: the Bride, the Other, and the Scion."
As Peter finished speaking, the room fell dead silent.
Every single Spider felt a chilling sensation crawl up their spine.
A monstrously powerful enemy faction like that, and there were eight of them in total! Even if they excluded the technicians guarding the home front, there were still seven! And their father's raw power was completely unfathomable.
Facing opponents who completely hard-countered them, how were they supposed to handle this?
"How about this!" The young and impulsive Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man No. 3 slapped his thigh. "Let's just go all-out against them! Didn't you say their home base is in Earth-001? We form a strike team, drop a dozen missiles on them first, and then swarm the place..."
"Idiot!" Ultimate Spider-Man decisively shut down the proposal. "They have dominated that universe for centuries. How could it possibly be that easy to handle?
Furthermore, don't forget that they continuously grow stronger by absorbing our power! If you deliver yourselves as gifts, it will only make it harder for everyone else to deal with these monsters in the future!"
"I think the key lies within that prophecy," Miguel O'Hara spoke up weakly. "They need to gather the Scion, the Bride, and the Other to break their destined downfall. The Other is you, Boss. So who are the Bride and the Scion? We must find and protect them before they do!"
Miguel's suggestion received nods of agreement from several Spiders.
However, Ultimate Spider-Man once again voiced a counter-argument:
"Don't put all your eggs in one basket. What if the Boss isn't Solus's match either, and we end up bringing the Scion and the Bride straight to them? That would completely blow up in our faces!"
"Then what do you propose we do!" Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man No. 1, who had never seen eye-to-eye with him, couldn't help but snap.
Ultimate Spider-Man pushed up his glasses and spoke calmly:
"I believe we should first develop weapons capable of severely injuring them. The Boss's description reminded me of something. The original owner of this body once dealt with Morlun! He utilized nuclear radiation to severely injure him!"
"Fuck!" Before he could finish, No. 1 shouted in protest, "You want to build a nuke? Absolutely not! Leaving aside whether your nuke might be exploited by malicious people later, where would you even drop it?
Even if they genuinely fear radiation, their tolerance is bound to be significantly higher than a normal human's! By the time they actually die from it, millions of innocent civilians will have lost their lives first!"
In an instant, the entire headquarters turned into a chaotic mess. The Spiders threw out their individual opinions, and no one could convince anyone else.
"Quiet down, everyone."
Amidst the absolute chaos, Peter's voice echoed once more. It wasn't loud, but it instantly silenced the rowdy crowd. Everyone stopped arguing and quietly looked toward Peter, waiting for his final directive.
"If you ask me, we might as well execute a two-pronged approach."
"A two-pronged approach?"
Ultimate Spider-Man blanked for a second, his intellect struggling to keep up with Peter's train of thought. The other Spider-Men also wore massive question marks on their faces, looking at each other, completely baffled by Peter's meaning.
Peter shook his head helplessly and explained:
"The logic is quite simple. Right now, who do the Inheritors want to find the most?"
"You!" Spider-Punk answered rapidly, like a student eager to answer a question in class.
"Exactly." Peter snapped his fingers. "Me—the most critical 'Other' in their prophecy. Therefore, it is entirely predictable that their primary objective will be to concentrate their entire main force to capture me.
This grants us a perfect window of opportunity. What does it mean when they mobilize their entire family?"
"Their home base... will be empty!" Friendly Neighborhood No. 1's eyes lit up as he instantly understood.
"Precisely." Peter nodded approvingly. "So, my plan is to split into two paths. One path will be led by me, returning to my universe to engage them in a final showdown. The other path will seize the opportunity of their vacant rear to breach Earth-001 directly, destroy their cloning factory, and completely cut off their hopes of revival."
Hearing Peter layout this plan, the corners of the Spiders' mouths twitched violently.
They weren't deeply shaken by the brilliance of the strategy; they were utterly stunned by its sheer brute-force simplicity.
Big brother, is there any possibility that even if we all band together, fighting them head-on is a stretch? And now, you actually want us to split into two teams? Can this really work?
After a prolonged silence, Ultimate Spider-Man was the first to speak up:
"Boss, I am not questioning your strength. I am just worried..."
"Worried that the other team won't be able to handle their cloning factory, right?"
To this, Peter merely smiled faintly. The next second, a bizarre white light radiated from his body. Within the luminous glow, his physical form suddenly split into two. The two identical Peters looked at the crowd, offering highly distinct smiles simultaneously:
"Doesn't this solve the problem?"
Ultimate Spider-Man: "..."
The collective Spiders: "..."
Report this guy, he's literally using cheats!Oh, wait. The cheater is my teammate.Never mind then!
The tension and anxiety that had gripped the Spiders vanished into thin air. Their boss had literally split himself in two to lead them in a two-front war, so what else was there to say? They just needed to sit back, follow orders, and be high-quality backpack accessories for the powerhouse!
While the Spiders were cheering and celebrating because of Peter's simple and brutal plan, Gwen's brow furrowed tightly into a deep frown. She looked up at Peter, her eyes holding a trace of doubt and vigilance:
"Peter, do you truly... want our universe to become the primary battlefield?"
The scene of Daemos's self-destruction involuntarily flashed through Gwen's mind. That apocalyptic energy storm possessed enough terrifying force to reduce half a city to absolute rubble. And that was just the output of a single Daemos.
If the entire Inheritor family detonated themselves in New York... She didn't dare to overthink how catastrophic the results would be.
New York was her home, and it was Peter's home. Their families, friends, and countless innocent citizens were there. Bringing such a dangerous war straight to their own doorstep seemed entirely too risky to Gwen.
Because the potential price they might pay was simply too devastating, she found it completely impossible to comprehend. How could Peter, who valued his family and friends more than anyone, make such a reckless decision?
Could it be... that the Peter standing before her was no longer the Peter she knew?
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