Restart, Spider-Man!

An invisible energy field suddenly enveloped Xia Luo.

Susan, now fully dressed, smiled as she maintained her energy shield. "Do we get an extra ten points for capturing the criminal?"

"Of course."

Xia Luo shrugged. "My character is just an average superpowered individual. I can't break free from your energy shield. But it seems like you overlooked something."

"What?"

"This was a team operation."

The moment he finished speaking, bright lights flared on the bridge. Wade appeared dramatically under the floodlights, holding a gun.

"Avengers scum, your days are numbered!"

Wade cackled, unleashing a spray of pulse rounds from his weapon.

Pew pew pew!

The air was instantly charged with chaotic energy. Susan quickly took cover behind The Thing.

"You okay?" she asked.

Ben swayed slightly but stayed firm. "This kind of attack is nothing to me," he replied confidently.

"Right. Nothing to us," Reed added, pulling a shining ring out of his punctured, rubbery body.

Dropping to one knee in front of Susan, he held out the ring. "Darling, will you marry me?"

Susan's face lit up with emotion. "Oh, Reed, I didn't expect this!"

Ben clasped his rocky hands against his face. "So romantic!!"

Bang!

Suddenly, rubble shot through the air, and the ring clattered to the ground.

Emerging from the debris, Xia Luo smirked. "Enjoy your last bit of romance before you're shipped off to the reserves!"

Above them, Wade jumped into the air, twin guns blazing.

"This is the end—woohoo!"

Before he could land a hit, Reed stretched out his arm, snatching Wade's guns away. The Thing seized the opportunity to charge forward.

Thud thud thud!

The bridge trembled under Ben's powerful footsteps as he barreled toward them.

"Take the hit for me," Xia Luo said nonchalantly, pulling Wade in front of him.

The Thing's brutal charge sent Wade flying, while Xia Luo slid underneath the chaos.

Boom!

The massive impact sent The Thing to his knees, clutching his groin. His pupils rolled back, and his gravelly voice cracked.

"Shattered... it's shattered..."

Ben Grimm collapsed, twitching on the ground.

In the sky, Johnny cursed loudly. "Damn it! You're not supposed to be this strong!"

Xia Luo casually waved. "You took too long. My stats have been upgraded."

"Bastard, you're doing this on purpose!"

Johnny snarled, flames bursting forth as he launched a fiery assault.

Boom!

A blazing inferno engulfed Xia Luo, but Susan quickly encapsulated the flames in an energy shield.

Inside the shield, the temperature soared. Xia Luo stood as if inside a blazing furnace, but instead of burning, purple patterns appeared on his skin. His muscles swelled as he activated the second phase of his Titan physique, rendering the flames ineffective.

"What?!"

Johnny's face twisted in disbelief as he hovered within the shield.

"Impossible!!"

Xia Luo grinned. "This is what happens when you don't take an assessment seriously. Now the enemy is in berserk mode. You've failed your mission."

"No!"

Johnny's horrified gaze locked onto Xia Luo as a pair of massive, violet-tinged hands tore through the energy shield. One of them clamped down on his throat.

In an instant, Johnny's flames were extinguished, and he reverted from his Human Torch form.

"Unbelievable!!"

Susan, witnessing the scene, fired a concentrated energy beam at Xia Luo, only for it to dissipate with a wave of his hand.

Boom!

The blast scattered energy, damaging nearby vehicles and worsening the traffic chaos. Agents scrambled to evacuate civilians.

"Agent Hill, the situation has escalated," a voice reported through a comm.

"Understood."

Hill grabbed her communicator. "Dr. Reed, the situation is critical. You need to lure the enemy to an unpopulated area."

"Got it."

Reed's expression darkened as he stretched his arms to wrap around Xia Luo like a snake.

"Johnny, hold on tight!"

"What?"

Wham!

Reed flung Xia Luo into the air with all his strength. The wind rushed past Johnny, reigniting his flames as his body tumbled uncontrollably.

Boom!

A fiery trail streaked across the sky as Xia Luo casually tossed Johnny, sending him crashing toward a city skyscraper.

"This is bad!!"

Agents gasped in shock, and Coulson's face paled. "This was supposed to be a standard assessment! If this turns into a disaster, we're all on the hook!"

Hill, however, remained calm.

"Don't worry. If Spider-Man dares to use live assessments, he must have countermeasures prepared."

True to her words, just as Johnny was about to collide with the skyscraper, a flash of electricity streaked through the air.

Crackle!

Boom!

The fiery light clashed with the electric current, and sparks flew. Johnny, now wrapped in electric arcs, landed safely on the street below.

"Rookie, you've failed the assessment."

A cold voice came from a figure dressed in black standing before Johnny.

"Who are you?"

Johnny blinked at the cloaked figure in confusion before angrily protesting.

"Wait, that was an accident! I don't accept this!"

The mysterious figure ignored him and vanished in a flash of lightning.

Meanwhile, Xia Luo landed with a crash in an abandoned factory by the coast.

Boom!

Like a cannonball, he shattered the decrepit structure.

Susan, carrying Reed with her flight abilities, arrived at the scene, only to be greeted by Carter's stern expression.

"No need to continue," Carter said, shaking her head as she reviewed the assessment results.

"Based on this performance, Ben didn't fully utilize his abilities, Johnny couldn't control his impulsiveness, and none of you treated this assessment seriously.

Not everyone can be like Spider-Man—balancing humor with resolving serious incidents. You've overestimated yourselves.

I'm sorry, but you'll have to join the reserves."

Hearing this, Susan and Reed exchanged helpless glances.

"What about my promised research funding?" Reed, the ever-hopeful scientist, asked weakly.

"That will need to be reconsidered," Carter replied before adding, "There will be another assessment in a month. Work on your teamwork. I hope to see you in the main team then."

The pair breathed a sigh of relief. As long as there was another chance, it wasn't a total disgrace.

After delegating the aftermath to Coulson, Carter left the factory to find Xia Luo near a lighthouse.

"You used a clone technique earlier," Carter noted.

Xia Luo nodded without elaborating.

"You knew they wouldn't pass?"

"Yes."

Xia Luo gazed out at the sea, smiling. "Your concerns were valid. They have potential, but they're not ready for the Avengers yet. If you activated them now, the complications would drive you insane."

"Then I owe you my thanks."

Carter glanced around. "So, what's the surprise you mentioned?"

"Over there."

Carter frowned. "Johnny nearly crashed into that building."

"Exactly."

Xia Luo raised his hand, and a small electric spider crawled onto his palm.

"The wheels of fate are turning again. It seems I can't avoid it. I've got work to do."

"I'm coming with you."

"Alright."

In a flash of electricity, Xia Luo enveloped Carter, and the two shot toward the skyscraper.

As they traveled, Carter shivered involuntarily.

"That tingles!"

Moments later, they landed in the building's basement.

The air was thick with acrid smoke. Xia Luo's nano-suit protected him, but Carter covered her mouth and nose, frowning.

"Looks like an electrical malfunction. Something's been burned."

"There."

Her eyes locked onto a puddle of water, where electric eels writhed. Among them was a strange figure convulsing, faint blue arcs crawling across his skin.

"His body is mutating," Carter observed with a deepening frown.

Xia Luo nodded. "Yes. This world's Electro, Max Dillon, couldn't escape his fate."

"Electro?"

Carter glanced at Xia Luo. "Spider-Man's nemesis has returned."

"No, he's not an enemy."

Xia Luo smiled and shot a web to pull the mutating Max out.

"Let's go. This is your surprise."

"I'm intrigued."

The two left the building.

---

Half an Hour Later, S.H.I.E.L.D. Medical Wing

On the hospital bed, Max slowly regained consciousness. His eyes widened at the sight of pale blue, inverted triangles staring back at him.

"Spider-Man?!" Max exclaimed, his voice filled with excitement.

But his joy was short-lived. Sparks began to crackle uncontrollably from his body. Lights flickered, and the equipment nearby sputtered and sparked.

"What's happening to me?"

Max stared at his now semi-transparent hands, his blue eyes narrowing in terror.

"No! My body!"

"Calm down."

Xia Luo placed a reassuring hand on Max's shoulder.

"Don't panic. Now, tell me..."

Xia Luo leaned closer. "I gave you unemployment benefits. Why did you go back to work for that company?"

Max's gaze faltered under Xia Luo's scrutiny.

He had once been a downtrodden worker, buried under the weight of his job. Spider-Man had been a beacon of hope, encouraging him to reclaim his life and reject exploitation.

With Spider-Man's help—and a generous payout—Max had experienced freedom for the first time.

He didn't want to disappoint his only friend, but finding work had proven difficult. When his old company offered him a lucrative sum to fix their electrical system, he'd agreed, hoping to ease Spider-Man's financial burden.

But he hadn't expected to slip into a vat of mutant eels, a mistake that had nearly cost him his life.

Under Xia Luo's questioning, Max stammered, "They... offered me money to repair the basement's circuits."

Xia Luo sighed. "Alright, Max. You're not an ordinary man anymore. Do you remember what I told you before?"

Max's heart raced. "With great power comes great responsibility," he recited.

"Exactly. So, Max, join me and Spider-Man. Become a superhero."

An hour later, Xia Luo emerged from the hospital room, where Carter waited at the door.

"That's your surprise?" she asked, her expression skeptical.

Xia Luo nodded. "Yes. Professor X shared a wealth of information with me. That's how I found these destined 'enemies' before their rise.

By helping them through their struggles with my own resources, I've turned them into allies."

Carter's brow twitched. "Congratulations, Spider-Man. Your network just keeps growing."

"Indeed."

Xia Luo chuckled. "Max has agreed to undergo your training. He'll master his powers soon—definitely more reliable than those four rookies."

Still, Carter had her doubts.

"Even if you've saved them, unpredictable situations can still arise. These are supposed to be your mortal foes. Are you sure about this?"

"Carter," Xia Luo replied seriously, "it's not destiny that turns them into villains—it's prejudice, a mountain that crushes their spirit."

Carter froze, his words hitting close to home.

It reminded her of Steve Rogers. If Steve hadn't been ostracized, would his story have unfolded differently?

"Your words are always so profound," she said wistfully.

"I stole them," Xia Luo quipped.

Carter: "..."

"Alright, no more chatting. I've got another villain to save. Bye~"

With that, Xia Luo transformed into a streak of lightning, cutting through the night sky.

---

Stark Tower.

At the base of the tower, a disheveled Quentin Beck stumbled out of this so-called city of dreams under the watchful eyes of the security guards.

By the fountain, the cool mist brought a faint flicker of life back to his otherwise dull and lifeless gaze.

He turned and looked up at the top floor of the tower—the residence of Tony Stark.

A man as high and untouchable as Stark wouldn't waste his time meeting a nobody like him, a mere special effects artist.

Quentin had dared to dream of success, but that dream could only exist in his sleep.

This had been his last shot.

And he'd blown it.

Despair weighed him down, transforming into hatred toward the world.

Why were some people born with everything?

While others spent their entire lives chasing scraps, never able to obtain even what others discarded without a second thought?

Even the garbage they deemed worthless was out of reach.

It wasn't fair!

If fairness didn't exist, then the only way forward was through any means necessary.

As the resentment in his eyes deepened, a commotion from nearby snapped him out of his spiral.

"Spider-Man!"

The red-and-blue figure swung down and landed in front of him. Quentin froze in shock.

He remembered now—Spider-Man had approached him not long ago and promised to sponsor him.

At the time, he hadn't taken it seriously.

After all, everyone knew Spider-Man was broke.

"Hey! New York's most talented effects artist, remember me?" Xia Luo greeted with a wave.

Quentin blinked, his surprise giving way to a glimmer of hope.

"Spider-Man… were you serious back then?"

"Of course."

Xia Luo spread his hands. "Anyone who's been friends with Spider-Man knows this—Spider-Man never lies."

To Xia Luo, it was far better for Quentin to become a Hollywood superstar than to walk down the path of Mysterio.

At least that way, they could all make money together instead of fighting.

And when push came to shove, Quentin could even lend a hand in dealing with other villains.

Now that's what you call a solid network!

---

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