At a depth of 130 meters underground in the Manhattan shelter, the middle-aged Spider-Man led the three members of the K team out of the dangerous area occupied by the underground people.

There was not much communication between the two sides.

Because Mason's "enticement" of Mary Jane had greatly annoyed the only remaining superhero in New York, Peter Parker. If it weren't for Mary Jane's persuasion, they would have definitely fought.

"That guy is really strong. His power is almost on par with the drugged-up Bain during the last outbreak."

Beside Mason, Barrel Two looked dissatisfied as he held his cracked helmet. The impact earlier had protected him from getting seriously injured, proving that even the middle-aged Spider-Man had considerable destructive power.

"And he's much more agile than Bain."

Barrel Two stared at the figure in front of him and whispered:

"He's a tough opponent, but not unbeatable."

"Do you think you can defeat him if his spider senses have degraded, Jason?"

Mason surveyed the increasingly "broad" and quiet surroundings and shook his head, saying:

"Do you remember the time we had a 'duel' in the crime alley?"

"You mean the time you went crazy and turned into a monster?"

Barrel Two snorted, recalling Mason's brutal state when he transformed into "Wolverine" last time, and said in a low voice:

"The so-called 'spider senses' are the beast-like combat instincts you gained after injecting that drug, right? It's indeed quite troublesome."

"No, spider senses are even more advanced than beast-like instincts. It is the highest level of power among all combat instincts."

Mason explained:

"When Peter Parker's Spider-Man career was at its peak, he could even predict the dangers that would happen a few seconds later. It's not just super reflexes, it's more like a 'prophet'.

In that state, he couldn't be dealt with using bullets unless your super marksmanship could reach a 'guaranteed hit' level.

The Spider-Man in front of us has already been weakened.

But he can still knock all of us down in close combat. To be honest, I really wonder if my colleagues are all blind?

Why hasn't anyone tried to recruit such a powerful character?"

"Maybe it's not that they don't want to?"

Barbara thought for a moment and offered her own opinion.

She glanced at Peter Parker, who was leading the way in front, and said softly:

"Actually, when we entered the underground shelter earlier, I was thinking about a question, Mason. If all the survivors in this city were brought to the Osborn Tower as laborers, why is this shelter the only one that survived?

Do you think it's possible that Osborn Tower is also helping to hide this place?

I mean, this is the base of the Hydra Squad. Even if other pioneers don't know how powerful Spider-Man is, Mr. Sandstorm, who was born here, must know.

Maybe he also wants to recruit Spider-Man, but for various reasons, he can't.

Maybe he sees this place as his 'vegetable garden' and Spider-Man as a fruit that can be taken away at any time, or even the gathering of superheroes here as some kind of special 'resource'."

Batgirl paused and said:

"Just like Mary Jane told us last time, someone took Gwen and Frank away from the shelter. Previously, outsiders would enter the shelter every once in a while to select and take away their desired team members.

Don't you think so?

It's like a 'self-selected supermarket'!

Maybe the Hydra Squad sees this 'hero trafficking' as a business, and Spider-Man is the 'star product' left by Mr. Sandstorm himself."

"Well, that makes sense."

Mason and Barrel Two exchanged glances.

They nodded, but before they could say anything, they suddenly felt the ground shaking again.

This time, the tremor was more intense and lasted nearly twenty seconds, causing small rocks to fall around the K team on this increasingly spacious dark cave.

After the tremor subsided, the four people, including Spider-Man, fell into an indescribable silence.

The situation was deteriorating.

And it was deteriorating rapidly.

Mary Jane's concerns were not unfounded. At this rate of escalation, another earthquake in a few days would inevitably cause casualties in the underground shelter.

"Beep, beep"

Barbara's wrist computer suddenly vibrated. She glanced at it and saw that it was a communication device from Constantine. She immediately opened it, and Constantine's low voice came from it.

"Hey, Mason? Are you still alive? If you're dead, just make a sound so I can find another team with the three girls."

"Shut up."

Mason replied irritably.

The three of them stopped in their tracks, and Spider-Man, who was leading the way in front, also stopped, seemingly resting but actually eavesdropping on the K team's internal conversation.

But Mason had no intention of hiding anything.

He asked:

"How's the situation at Osborn Tower? Why did it take so long to communicate?"

"Don't mention it. There's a dumbass who can manipulate electricity constantly monitoring us."

Constantine said with frustration:

"It's a disgusting and despicable ability! It allows him to see through all electronic devices. If he wants to, he can secretly watch all the private life movies recorded by surveillance cameras in the entire city without being detected.

Fortunately, this little gadget that Barbara gave me is beyond his understanding and has the ability to block detection, otherwise, I wouldn't be able to keep it.

Right now, that brainless guy who wants to pick up girls has been drunk by Selina and Elizabeth working together. I found a chance to hide in the bathroom and talk to you guys.

Alright, to make a long story short.

Sandstorm is a complete scumbag. He confiscated our equipment and effectively imprisoned us here. It seems like he has no intention of helping."

He has several reserve members on this side, and currently there are two who have appeared: the vulture who manipulates the super large mechanical wings, and the electric man who can transform into electric light and shuttle through electric currents.

I also found a violent lunatic in Osborn Tower who dresses like a jungle hunter. I don't know if he is Sandman's servant, but that guy has set his sights on Selina.

But it's not the normal kind of attention a man gives to a woman.

I can feel that he sees Selina as a "prey" to relieve his boredom.

According to the indiscreet words of the drunk electric man, there should be another guy in their reserve team who plays with illusions, called the Mysterious Guest, as well as two cannon fodder who fight with mechanical armor and brute force.

One is called Scorpion, the other is called Rhino.

Now they and the vulture have been sent to the city, and no one knows what they are doing there."

"The Evil Six, as expected."

Mason noted this information and asked again:

"Do you have any news about the timed vibrations?"

"The electric man doesn't know much, but in order to show off his 'charm' to Elizabeth, he shared a secret."

Conners laughed smugly.

He said:

"In addition to the Six-Headed Snake Squad, there is another mastermind in Osborn Tower called the 'Green Devil'. That guy is the true owner here.

It is said that he is a cooperative partner of the Star Alliance in this world.

But the Green Devil not only serves the Star Alliance, according to the electric man, that two-faced guy also serves the 'Cleaners' at the same time.

He helps them mine certain things in this world, and the entire Osborn Tower was built for this reason.

The recurring vibrations are related to the things being mined.

Oh, one more thing.

According to the electric man, the vibrations happening in the city these days are specially arranged by their leader, with the purpose of forcing an archenemy to appear.

After Sandman's team was wiped out, he urgently needs some powerful individuals to join him.

That archenemy is his target."

After Conners finished speaking, the three of them turned to look at Spider-Man at the same time.

The middle-aged man with a beer belly kicked a small stone by his feet fiercely. Barbara's guess came true. It was indeed all aimed at Spider-Man.

"Alright, I won't talk to you anymore. If I don't come out of the bathroom soon, they will suspect my manhood."

The sound of flushing came from Conners' side, and he continued:

"You guys hurry up and finish, Sandman is not a patient guy. I suspect that he will confront us at the latest tomorrow.

Perhaps he sent three subordinates to the city just for you guys.

Do you understand what I mean, Mason? If he can bring back your head, then the K Squad joining the Six-Headed Snake Squad is a done deal. It seems like you really offended him last time."

"That's a good thing, John."

Mason smirked and said:

"This means that we don't have to bear any psychological pressure when we kill them. You and Charles take care of the girls and don't let those idiots take advantage of them.

We will act as soon as possible."

After finishing speaking, the communication was cut off.

Mason flexed his fingers and looked up at Spider-Man in front of him, saying:

"Do you still doubt our motives now, Peter? You see, I said from the beginning that we can cooperate. The Sandmen obviously want to use the lives of the people in the shelter to blackmail you. Your enemies are the ones who understand your power the most."

"They are bastards, but that doesn't mean you guys aren't."

Peter still had that cynical look.

He said impatiently:

"Go find Dr. Conners first and figure out what Osborn Tower is up to before talking about cooperation."

"Okay."

Mason didn't mind, and the four of them set off again. But a few seconds later, Mason suddenly spoke up:

"It doesn't matter if one bastard destroys another. The internal war between evil and evil will always benefit the side of justice, Peter.

I know you and your world have experienced a lot of torment that I can't imagine, but even from the most pragmatic and realistic perspective, you should help us.

It won't do you any harm."

"Hush!"

Spider-Man turned around and made a gesture for silence. He whispered:

"Dr. Conners' laboratory is nearby! Be quiet! As far as I know, that once respectable professor has been injecting himself with mutagenic agents since before the apocalypse, and he hasn't returned to human form for several years.

As a cold-blooded creature, he doesn't have much emotion to speak of. We have to be careful when approaching him and make it clear that we have no ill intentions in order to have a chance to talk to him.

And!

Don't try to attack him.

You've seen Dr. Conners' followers, those half-lizard creatures are already difficult to deal with, but you will know what 'fear' means when you face the Lizard Doctor himself.

His crocodile-like teeth still give me nightmares, you know?"

Peter looked at the three people in front of him, who all raised their weapons and aimed at him with changed expressions. Then he made a silent motion to retreat. The expression under his mask twitched for a moment, and he said:

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"He's behind me, right?"

"Don't move, Peter."

Mason stared at the huge creature slowly emerging from the darkness behind Spider-Man. He tightened his grip on the Widowmaker rifle in his hand and loaded it with the most powerful enchanted explosive rounds.

He whispered:

"Don't move, his teeth are right above your head, just a gentle bite."

"Just like the legendary Gustave crocodile!"

Barbara couldn't help but comment in a low voice.

She had never seen anything as exaggerated as this in Gotham. The giant lizard in front of her, wearing a white robe, was much more "exciting" than the Killer Croc.

This thing in front of her, including its tail that was as long as its body when straightened, was over eight meters long!

Those eerie eyes that reflected light in the darkness not only had the ferocity of a beast, but also a chilling human-like intelligence.The most peculiar thing was that in his front limbs, which were strong enough to crush a skull with a single claw, he was holding a beaker containing blue liquid.

And above the ferocious mouth of this lizard doctor, there was a pair of oversized black-framed glasses.

These two things somewhat added a touch of "humanity" to this behemoth.

"Dr. Conners! Do you remember me?"

Spider-Man took a deep breath, took off his mask, and turned to the towering lizard in front of him, saying:

"I'm Parker, your former intern. Hmm, you've gotten even bigger than before. Have you made any significant progress with the reptile enhancement serum you've been working on?"

"Peter, of course, I remember you."

To everyone's relief, this fierce upright lizard didn't seem to have any intention of attacking, although his deep and hoarse voice was uncomfortable to listen to, he was indeed speaking.

This meant that he still retained his former intelligence.

Mason put down his gun, and Conners and Barbara also put down their weapons. This action caused the lizard doctor's eyes to flicker like a real lizard, glancing at them before losing interest.

He looked at Spider-Man in front of him, sizing him up, and said:

"You seem to have had a rough few years, Peter. That bulging belly is not the physique Spider-Man should have. I am improving my serum. It requires long-term research and concentration, so I won't invite you into my lab.

So, what brings you here?"

The lizard doctor pushed his glasses with his other claw and said coldly:

"You should understand that hiding 130 meters underground means that I don't want to be disturbed."

"The impending disaster is right in front of us, Doctor."

Spider-Man didn't hide anything and revealed everything he had just learned. After finishing, Mason even presented the recording of their conversation as evidence.

The young man looked up and down at the powerful appearance of the lizard doctor and the explosive power hidden beneath the green scales. He pushed the gold wire glasses on his nose without lenses and said softly:

"In fact, Peter is still too kind. Even after experiencing hardships, he is unwilling to think of humanity as too dark. But I have another guess, Dr. Conners.

Perhaps Sandman and Green Goblin's continuous earthquakes in the city are not just to threaten Peter. You are also likely to be their target.

Your value may even be higher in their eyes than middle-aged Peter.

The lizard mutation serum you hold in your hands can turn a group of unarmed civilians into a killing horde overnight. What's even more valuable is that your serum is already very advanced and causes minimal harm to the users.

For the organization I serve, this is exactly the 'strategic item' they need."

Mason coughed and stared at the large lizard in front of him, summarizing:

"In conclusion, helping us is also helping you. If our raid fails, Osborn Tower will have an absolute advantage when facing the underground people.

This is not a good outcome for you."

"I know all of this."

Dr. Conners, in the form of a large lizard, sighed in a very human-like manner. Although he was a cold-blooded creature, he showed a glimpse of the calm and wise biologist he used to be at this moment.

He said:

"Osborn invited me two years ago, but I refused. I expected that guy to be untrustworthy. I have been improving the serum to prevent him from taking desperate measures.

Peter, personally, I am inclined to help you.

But whether the underground people are willing to go or not, you have to convince them yourselves. I never interfere with their lives underground and their brutal and boring little politics.

However, I cannot give you an answer about the vibrations. That is not my area of expertise."

The lizard doctor licked his intimidating teeth with his bright red tongue and said:

"But you don't have to be disappointed. You can go find someone else. He will definitely give you a satisfactory answer, and he lives nearby, an 'unpopular' neighbor.

Hmm, Peter, don't look so surprised.

The world above ground may have been destroyed, but there are still many recluses underground."

(End of this chapter)