Chapter 412

Spider-Man discovered Venom's secret and immediately got an idea.

"Mayday, Mayday! We need naval gunfire support! We need fire support!"

"Sir, this is Broadway, there are still a lot of civilians who haven't evacuated! Friendly fire is too easy!"

"I don't care! Contact the fleet, now! This monster can't be dealt with at all!"

The military officer was already panicking — the black creature was devouring not only the enemy, but also their own men! It was completely beyond their comprehension!

At that very moment, Spider-Man dropped from the sky, nearly causing the "127" military personnel, nerves already stretched to breaking, to open fire.

"Whoa whoa whoa, don't shoot, I'll handle him!"

"Can you do it?"

The officer with the rank of Second Lieutenant looked at Spider-Man, his face full of doubt.

Compared to Venom's two-meter frame, Spider-Man looked a bit on the slender side.

"Just watch me — whatever you do, don't shoot!"

Spider-Man swung in, firing web after web to yank the weapons from several gang members, snapping the guns apart and pulling out the energy cores inside.

"Hey, buddy! Halloween's still a ways off — you won't get any candy dressed like that either!"

"Raaagh!"

Seeing this, Venom lunged at Spider-Man without hesitation.

These two arch-enemies from the comics faced off head-on for several rounds, with no clear winner.

Peter didn't have time to go toe-to-toe with him — Gwen was still in danger!

He hurriedly tossed an energy core into Venom's mouth.

"Want some candy? I've got plenty!"

"Raaagh—"

Venom roared and charged after Spider-Man at full speed.

The military on the scene immediately felt the pressure ease,

and the gang members opposite them breathed a sigh of relief as well.

The two sides, originally locked in a standoff, unexpectedly fell into a brief, uneasy peace, exchanging bewildered glances.

The Second Lieutenant officer reacted fast —

a lot of the enemy's weapons had been snatched away by Spider-Man, wasn't this the perfect opening?

"Open fire! Hit them hard!"

The gang members were scared out of their wits, covering their heads and scattering like rats.

Elsewhere, Spider-Man swung along on his webs, tossing an energy core every now and then, luring Venom to follow him toward the enemy base.

At first Venom was just running along the ground, but he learned fast — he quickly mastered the ability to mimic shapes!

Peter Parker had just been about to turn back and toss another energy core when Venom suddenly swung on black filaments straight at him, closing in to point-blank range!

"Jesus!!"

Peter pulled off a high-difficulty twisting somersault in mid-air, dodging Venom's pursuit!

The chase entered its second phase — the danger ratcheted up across the board!

Luckily, Spider-Man's rich experience swinging let him always use the terrain cleverly and evade Venom's lunges.

Xu Can used a one-take filming technique to capture this thrilling, heart-pounding chase scene!

The abundance of showy camerawork and first-person perspectives

made the audience feel immersed, as if they themselves were swinging through the air, being chased by Venom — the pressure was off the charts!

This segment was even more nerve-racking than the later horror game *Outlast*!

People with heart conditions could barely take it!

Fortunately, the enemy base wasn't far.

After a chase, Peter arrived at his destination — an abandoned factory building.

He had just swung down on a web to the open ground in front of the factory when a strange feeling suddenly came over him.

The whole world went quiet all at once, and inside the factory there seemed to be a figure slumped in a chair, barely clinging to life.

"Peter! Peter!"

It was Gwen!

The blonde Gwen was calling for help!

She wasn't Spider-Gwen — she was his girlfriend, Gwen!

Even though he sensed something was off, Peter Parker still rushed in on instinct, intending to free Gwen from her bonds.

"Peter, why did you only come now? Were you hoping I'd run into danger?"

"No, Gwen, I wasn't!"

"If it weren't for you, I could have survived!"

"Yes, it's all my fault, Gwen, all my fault!"

The truth was, Peter Parker had never been able to pull himself out of it these past few years — every day he sank deeper into self-blame, every day he was being eaten away from the inside.

Later, fans pieced together from the film's details that Peter had started out scruffy — stubble, dark circles under his eyes, listless.

Clearly, he wasn't doing well.

But after meeting Spider-Gwen, the whole Peter came back to life — his old vigor returned, he shaved off the stubble, and his eyes were lively again.

These subtle changes, though hard to notice, indirectly reflected Peter Parker's state.

He could never let go of Gwen's death — it was Spider-Gwen who pulled him out of the abyss of despair.

Yet the Gwen before his eyes plunged him back into agony.

Although Peter clearly knew the Gwen before him was fake, he still couldn't break through his inner demon.

While Peter was drowning in regret, the mechanical tentacles behind him were quietly reaching over.

They had even evaded Peter Parker's spider-sense and were about to grab Peter Parker.

"Peter—"

The faint call of Gwen from afar jolted Peter Parker awake at once!

The voice wasn't right in front of him, but from some direction in the distance!

"Peter, I've forgiven you. Don't be sad."

The blonde Gwen before him suddenly turned gentle again, the archer preparing to stroke Peter Parker's face.

At this very moment, both of their performances had reached their peak.

Xu Can rendered Peter Parker's emotions to perfection, making people completely forget he was Hollywood's rising film star who had the industry at his beck and call,

He was, at this very moment, Peter Parker himself!

Emma Stone's performance was equally brilliant,

Spider-Gwen's wild and dashing style versus the girlfriend Gwen's gentle and lively style were clearly distinct—she was completely two different people!

Just as Gwen's hand was about to touch Peter's face, Peter gripped her wrist.

"Gwen, I know. You're never coming back."

"This really was my mistake. I won't keep drowning in it."

"There are more people waiting for me to save. They need a stronger Spider-Man."

"I love you, so please, go in peace."

"Peter—"

Gwen's face rapidly rotted, turning into the appearance of a zombie.

Soon, another black shadow lunged over, only to be gripped by Peter's other hand.

Bang!

The surrounding scenery instantly shattered, scattering in all directions as a swarm of drones.

The Gwen wrist Peter had gripped, as well as the other black shadow, were both Doctor Octopus's arms!

Spider-Gwen descended from the sky, shattering the illusion.

Seeing Peter Parker was unharmed, Gwen finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Peter, I thought you were about to fall for it."

"Am I really that lame?"

"Lame. Your speech was utterly lame."

"None of your business!"