Chapter 693: The Infinite U Event (IX) (Patreon)

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At that moment, in the shrubbery on the periphery of the warehouse, Ward narrowed his eyes. He had heard the two gunshots but had not heard any screams of agony or sounds of someone dodging bullets. This was abnormal.

He intended to assess the situation a little longer. However, a few minutes hadn't passed when more intense gunfire erupted inside the warehouse, followed by intermittent screams. Ward couldn't afford to wait any longer, recognizing among the wails the voices of people he knew.

Though now endowed with special abilities, Ward didn't utilize his superhuman strength immediately. Instead, he ran toward the warehouse like an average person, arrived at a window, crouched, and peered inside.

The battle within was fierce. Agents, armed with various weapons, were besieging a man.

This man was incredibly agile and powerful. More importantly, every bullet that struck him was absorbed into his body.

Long-range weapons were useless, and the agents engaging him in close combat were at no advantage either. This man evidently possessed extraordinary hand-to-hand combat skills.

He threw a punch, striking an agent in the face and knocking him to the ground. Then, with a swift turn, he elbowed Coulson aside, dodged an attack from a female agent, and landed a punch that floored her.

Ward could see he was a professional boxer and realized the agents wouldn't last long against him.

Entering through the window, Ward found all the agents, including Coulson, had been knocked down.

"Who are you?" Ward asked, drawing his handgun and aiming at the man, seemingly unaware that he could absorb the bullets.

The man didn't answer. Ward advanced swiftly. The Bald Man, unafraid, tightened his core muscles, steadied himself, and launched a quick punch, which then landed on a yellow glow.

Ward was enveloped in a yellow light, the residual power of the Yellow Lantern within him. In a blink, he teleported behind the man, sending him flying with a punch.

Seeing the tide turn, the man attempted to flee. But as he neared the warehouse's rear exit, he spotted the close-proximity 084 box.

He hesitated for a split second before dashing toward it, intending to grab the box and escape. At that moment, a shadow lunged forward, and Coulson landed a punch on the Bald Man's shoulder.

Coulson's ambush was successful, causing the Bald Man to stagger, seemingly provoked by the pain. He roared, his muscles tensing, and he sent Coulson flying with a single punch.

Still unsatisfied, he leaped high, slamming an elbow into Coulson's chest. The sound of breaking ribs was distinct. Coulson screamed in agony as blood spurted from his nose and mouth.

Ward teleported directly behind the Bald Man, grabbing his neck and throwing him to the ground. Now, he could clearly see the large hole in Coulson's chest.

This Bald Man with special abilities was no ordinary person; his bare-handed strikes could kill an adult like Coulson.

Ward bent down, placing his hand on Coulson's shoulder, but the Yellow Lantern Energy, unlike the Green Lantern's, could heal wounds on a Yellow Lantern but not restore life force to ordinary people.

Not a true Yellow Lantern, Ward hadn't been trained and didn't know how to use this energy. Despite his desperate attempts to energize Coulson, life continued to slip away from his friend.

Eventually, Ward exhausted all the Yellow Lantern Energy, only managing to slow the deterioration of Coulson's wounds. The other agents got up, carrying Coulson to a vehicle.

The car headed towards S.H.I.E.L.D., but Coulson wasn't a Yellow Lantern. He lacked experience in controlling this energy, didn't know how to allow it to heal his body, nor how to retain this power.

The Yellow Lantern Energy brought more than just positive effects; it induced fear.

Lying in the car, Coulson saw patients, faces twisted in pain, walking out of hospital rooms like the living dead, screaming and incessantly questioning him.

The bloody scenes that once terrified him replayed in his mind. The wound that should have led directly to death, once coagulated, brought even greater agony. The dual torment of spirit and flesh had Coulson murmuring, "…kill me, please end this…"

Coulson could be considered the only friend Ward had in S.H.I.E.L.D., and he naturally wanted to save him. However, as Coulson's will to live weakened, the yellow lantern power began to fade.

By the time the car was less than a hundred meters from S.H.I.E.L.D., the last traces of yellow light had vanished, and Coulson had lost all signs of life.

Ward, filled with anger, punched the car door. He and the other agents swiftly got out and carried Coulson's body into the S.H.I.E.L.D. base. Seeing this, Nick immediately dismissed all unrelated personnel, allowing only Natasha and Ward to stay.

When Schiller arrived, Ward was already preparing to inject Coulson with a syringe.

"Wait, don't use the medicine yet. Let me have a look," Schiller stopped Ward, stepping forward. He used a Grey Mist to examine Coulson's body, but unfortunately, there was indeed no life left in him.

Simply repairing Coulson's body wouldn't bring him back. A regular person's soul would depart at the moment of death, heading where they were meant to go. If it was just the instant of passing, there might be a chance to pull them back. But several minutes had elapsed, and Coulson's soul was now untraceable, making its retrieval seemingly impossible.

However, previous experiments had proven the GH series of medicine could resurrect individuals. Still, Schiller, preoccupied with using Knull's energy to vie for the Bat Totem against Solus, hadn't observed this resurrection process closely.

Discovering Coulson was truly dead, Schiller stepped aside. Ward, holding the GH medicine, injected it into Coulson's body.

For the initial few seconds, there were no changes. Schiller, employing magical energy on his eyes, then observed Coulson's soul drifting back from an expanse of nothingness, voluntarily re-entering his body.

Focusing on the place where Coulson's soul had emerged, Schiller sensed a familiar presence—Death.

He realized that the principle behind Coulson's resurrection was the same as that of the followers of the Egyptian Pantheon. Death had kicked him out of the Realm of Death, and thus, he was resurrected.

However, Coulson couldn't possibly have struck a deal with Death. The only question that remained was about the syringe.

The raw material for the syringe, derived from a descendant of the Kree spy, couldn't possibly have any dealings with Death either. But the Kree Empire, one of the three great Space Empires, that was another story.

The following day, Schiller received from Ward a box marked "084." Upon opening it, he discovered a strangely shaped object lying silently within.

Although it was called an Obelisk, its appearance more closely resembled a trophy. From the plot of a TV show, Schiller understood the Obelisk to be corrosive, and that touching it with bare hands could have severe consequences. However, rubber was known to provide insulation against the Obelisk's corrosive effects.

Donning prepared rubber gloves, Schiller reached into the box. The moment he touched the Obelisk, he once again felt that familiar aura.

He had experienced this sensation before, with an item known as the Balance, which he had previously acquired from the Ship of the Underworld.

Schiller took the Obelisk out and examined it closely. On his unobscured half-face, a sinister smile emerged.

He looked at the Obelisk, not as one would regard a treasure, but as if evaluating a brand new... mobile phone that had just arrived.

Meanwhile, at the Spider-Army's base, the Spider-Men were ready for action. The Amazing Spider-Man declared, “Even if the Inheritor Family's base has vanished, we must track them down, or more Spider-Men will fall.”

“We can't split up as we did before, or we will be defeated one by one. We need to investigate in squads...” The Amazing Spider-Man surveyed all the Spider-Men and finally fixed his gaze on Peter.

“So, which squad should I join?” Peter asked, rubbing his hands together, eager for action. Just as the Amazing Spider-Man was about to invite him to join his squad, Otto Parker stepped forward, blocking Peter with one of his tentacles, and stated, “He’s with me.”

“What are you up to?” The Amazing Spider-Man challenged, stepping forward and staring at Otto Parker.

“A brute who rushes around and a kid with power he can't control will only create a big mess,” Otto Parker retorted mercilessly.

“Hold on! Stop fighting! How about... rock-paper-scissors?”

Peter intervened, and both parties scoffed. Ultimately, it was the Amazing Spider-Man who conceded, “Fine, go with him. But remember, if he asks you to do something bad, don’t..."

“Don’t worry, I’m Spider-Man,” Peter assured before walking behind Otto Parker and leaving with him.

Spider-Gwen stepped forward, watching Peter's retreating figure. “He’s a lucky kid, isn’t he?”

For once, the Amazing Spider-Man showed a trace of melancholy. “I hope he cherishes these times. He might soon realize these are the best moments of his life.”

Peter, who had left with Otto Parker, didn’t hear their conversation. Shortly, they teleported to another space, a temporary halt for the Spider-Men led by Otto Parker.

After briefing on the mission, Otto Parker returned to his room, summoning Peter before he left.

Once in the room, Peter looked around curiously. “Now, you should introduce yourself,” Otto Parker said, watching him.

“Introduce? But didn’t I do that already? I’m Peter Parker, code name Spider-Man. I recently started college...”

“I don’t mean that.” With no outsiders present, Otto Parker’s tone grew cold. “Tell me everything from your past, everyone you know, your relationships with them...”

“I’m not a criminal. Why the interrogation?” Peter complained. “You tried to ambush me before. I asked if we had bad blood, you said no. But I feel like you do have a grudge against me.”

Otto Parker paused, then admitted, “Yes, from the moment I saw you, I disliked you.”

“Why?” Peter was genuinely puzzled.

“All you need to do is answer one question,” Otto Parker stepped closer, face-to-face with Peter, and asked, “...have you ever lost?”

“What do you mean... lost?”

“Everything important to you, every person, every ambition... Have you lost them?”

Peter stared back at Otto Parker, silent, contemplating, then resolutely shook his head. “No. Everything important to me, everyone important to me, is still with me. I’m achieving what I set out to do, and all my plans are progressing smoothly...”

Suddenly, Otto Parker laughed. “It seems you’ve come at an opportune time. This will be your last fond memory.”

“I don’t understand what you’re saying...”

“You need to answer another question,” Otto Parker lowered his head slightly, then asked, “Who told you ‘with great power comes great responsibility’?”

“It was...” Peter paused, recalling, “Dr. Schiller, a good doctor, my teacher...”

“You’re about to lose him.”

Otto Parker took a couple of steps back. Despite the mask, Peter could see the mockery on his face. “What are you talking about? Are you cursing him?”

“No, it’s not me cursing him. It’s us, all the Spider-Men, who are cursed,” Otto Parker’s voice grew somber, and his next words struck Peter like a bolt from the blue.

“With great power comes great responsibility. That’s our curse.”

“All who made us understand this reason, who uttered those words to us... they are doomed.”

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Next Chapter>>Chapter 694: Event of Infinite Magnitude (Part 10)