Restart, Spider-Man!

Ophelia was completely spent; though she possessed a lethal toxin, her physical resilience wasn't particularly strong.

Meanwhile, Xia Luo, with his growing toxin resistance, had endured until now.

"Well done, Spider-Man. I appreciate the gift you've given me."

Ophelia dabbed her forehead with a silk handkerchief, a hint of regret on her face.

"But you're of no further use to me. My child doesn't need a father to share his perfection with."

She smirked. "As my first man, I'll make sure you die with some dignity."

Hearing this, Xia Luo couldn't help but roll his eyes.

He could feel a dull ache spreading through his body—another toxin, it seemed, one responsible for the endless cycle of deaths he'd endured.

But it didn't stop him from making his move.

Though his body felt sluggish, he could still manage small movements.

After two and a half hours, he finally completed a magic circle, summoning his little spider companion.

"Chirp, chirp!"

With a flash of vibrant light, the weakened little spider landed on Ophelia's shoulder.

Since Xia Luo's condition was linked to the spider's, it too was affected by the gene toxin. Using the little spider for a sneak attack had never been a real option—he knew it wouldn't stand a chance of killing Ophelia.

But this time, killing her wasn't his goal.

All he needed was one bite. That might just end it all.

In an instant, the little spider's tiny fangs pierced Ophelia's skin, injecting a fraction of mutated spider cells into her bloodstream.

"Aagh!!"

Ophelia let out a scream and collapsed onto the bed.

Outside the door, Cindy didn't react. She was no naive girl and knew this sort of noise was perfectly normal.

Meanwhile, Ophelia lay writhing in pain, her voice all but gone.

Green veins twisted across her skin as the red and blue mutated cells invaded her body, throwing her toxin system into a brief standstill.

Soon, the toxins seemed to reach a decision.

Rather than expel or destroy the invading spider cells, they allowed them to spread, reconfiguring her body and transforming her toward a spider-mutation.

The toxins remained solely focused on "punishing" Spider-Man.

As spider silk proteins began to form within Ophelia's body and spider glands emerged on her wrists, her senses rapidly deteriorated.

The anti-Spider-Man gene toxin worked quickly, destroying her.

At last, Ophelia was fully transformed into a Spider-Man. The toxin-secreting glands vanished as a result, but the residual gene toxin remained.

Ophelia sat in a stupor.

Xia Luo blinked, waiting for a notification that the mission had been completed.

Unfortunately, the joyful message didn't appear—not even when Cindy's voice echoed from outside.

"Madam?"

"Madam?"

After calling a few times and hearing no response, Cindy mustered her courage and opened the door.

Noticing Ophelia's blank expression, Cindy's face changed.

That vacant look...

"You're not seeing things. She's turned into a Spider-Man," Xia Luo said.

Cindy blinked in surprise. Then, after some tentative checking, she let out a crazed laugh.

"Hahaha, perfect! You got what you deserved, Ophelia!"

Right in front of Xia Luo, Cindy seized Ophelia's throat and choked her until Ophelia was dead.

Xia Luo frowned. The Viper Lady was dead, yet still, no mission success notice had popped up.

Had he missed something?

But soon enough, he understood he hadn't made a mistake.

"Spider-Man, I must thank you for everything you've done for me," Cindy said, her expression transforming as she fully unleashed her ambition.

"From now on, everything that was Ophelia's is mine!"

Xia Luo: "…"

Alright, looks like I still have to deal with her.

---

Twentieth Resurrection Round.

Xia Luo finished his part, and Old Man Steve had wrapped up dealing with all the Cindys right on schedule.

"Hey, little spider, I'm heading in," Steve announced.

"Hold up, don't come in just yet—make sure you've taken care of all the Cindys carrying gene toxin. I don't want anyone else finding out my secret to beating the round," Xia Luo quickly called out.

He really didn't want anyone knowing how he'd pulled this off. It was...embarrassing.

Steve was confused but chose to respect his request and waved for Carter and the others to leave with him.

Meanwhile, deep in the base, Lizard Parker tossed the remaining Cindy corpses into the incinerator.

"Guess that little twerp actually pulled it off. How'd he manage to handle such a terrifying opponent?" He was genuinely curious.

Felicia, standing nearby, just shook her head. "No idea, but a win's a win. I can finally go back and see my dad," she said, visibly excited.

Steve rubbed his chin, a thoughtful look crossing his face.

"Feels off. Loki didn't even show up this time... Can this really be the end of the resurrection round?"

Carter gave him a pat on the shoulder. "What're you thinking so hard about? Just throw that symbiote into the flames. It's another gene toxin carrier."

Steve moved toward an adjacent lab and tossed the weakened symbiote into the incinerator.

"It's separated now, but... next time we see Parker, will he still be Venom Parker?" he wondered.

"Oh, by the way, has anyone seen that guy?" he asked Carter.

"Which guy?"

"That Hydra Captain. You know, your old pal?"

Carter made a face. "He's no friend of mine."

Hell's Kitchen, Fisk's Villa.

"Mr. Rogers, Lady Viper's messenger just came by. They've captured Spider-Man—a man named Xia Luo Parker," Fisk reported.

At this, Hydra Steve's face broke into a grin.

"They caught him? Excellent!"

He was thrilled, already making his way out the door toward Osborne's castle.

"Wait," said Fisk. "Our plan still needs some fine-tuning. We can't underestimate the other participants."

Hydra Steve scoffed. "Apart from Spider-Man, the others aren't worth mentioning. This time, victory is ours."

The moment he finished speaking, a mission failure message appeared before him.

Hydra Steve: "…"

"Mr. Fisk, I need to know one thing."

"What's that?"

"When did you get the news about Spider-Man's capture?"

"Two hours ago."

"Two hours…"

Hydra Steve's expression soured.

"So he turned the tables in just two hours... Xia Luo Parker, impressive. Next time…"

Before he could finish his threat, Bucky interjected.

"Steve, there won't be a next time. I don't think we'll ever beat him."

"What are you talking about?"

"Ever since we met that guy, I feel like we're living in his shadow. There's just no beating him," Bucky said dejectedly.

"Bucky, you're already dead. You can't 'live' in anyone's shadow."

"I'm serious."

"So am I."

Hydra Steve looked out into the night sky, pulling an old pocket watch from his coat pocket. He opened the watch, revealing a faded photo of the woman he had once loved.

Oddly enough, even though he'd lost in such a baffling way, he still felt a strange sense of relief.

After all, only one of them needed to fall into this abyss.

Cosmic Web.

With his mission complete, Xia Luo decided not to use up his remaining restarts farming for more toxin resistance.

Ten restarts left—just enough to handle any future surprises.

The only reason he'd managed to win this round was because he'd had so many retries. Without that resistance, he'd have been helpless against the gene toxin.

From now on, he'd need to conserve restarts carefully, the same way some folks guarded their supply of Holy Land relics.

Then, he turned his attention to this round's rewards.

[Congratulations! You have successfully won this resurrection round!]

[Reward 1: Resurrection Ticket x1]

[Reward 2 (Choose One): Titan Body - Phase II or Strength (+30 tons)]

[Bonus Reward 1: Spider Totem Power x1]

[Bonus Reward 2: Spider-Man Exclusive Spell: "Summon Little Spider" (Youth Version)]

[Remaining Restart Count: 10 (Saved for Next Resurrection Round)]

Looking at the options, Xia Luo didn't hesitate before choosing "Titan Body - Phase II."

With roughly 20% resistance to the gene toxin, plus this upgrade to his Titan Body, his strength would increase by at least 30 tons, with similar boosts to his durability, stamina, and other stats.

Most importantly, he'd no longer be vulnerable to the spider-specific gene disruptor.

From now on, killing the invincible Spider-Man would require some serious firepower.

As for the youth version of "Summon Little Spider"...

Xia Luo pondered it.

Suddenly, the void swallowed his figure.

When he opened his eyes, Xia Luo was standing in a chaotic lab, clearly the scene of a recent battle.

Right away, he spotted a gleaming, bald head.

"Are you OK?" Xia Luo asked, giving a little wave.

The bald man froze, forcing a strained smile.

"OK…"

The next moment, he spun around and yelled, "Spider-Man's alive! Get the gene disruptor, now!"

Xia Luo: "…"

So, word about the gene disruptor being Spider-Man's kryptonite had already spread?

---

T/N: Two hours...? They went at it for at least two hours

If you notice anything that feels off, just let me know—I don't mind fixing things up.

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