Marvel’s Spider-Man: Across the Multiverse

In truth, Peter was recounting the backstory of Kingpin from the 1994 animated Spider-Man series.

He was gambling—betting that the Kingpin of this world would have a similar trajectory. After all, their achievements appeared to align quite closely!

A person's environment shapes their personality, and their personality defines their success.

By reverse reasoning, one could deduce a person's personality and upbringing based on their achievements—at least under these unique circumstances.

Peter knew the entire backstory of the other Kingpin and was familiar with his accomplishments. By reasoning backward from this Kingpin's accomplishments, he hoped to connect the dots.

Judging from Kingpin's expression, Peter's guess was more or less correct.

Meanwhile, Kingpin was reeling internally.

The events Peter recounted, many of which were so obscure that even Kingpin himself had almost forgotten them, were laid bare before him.

Hearing these details left him in awe of the mysteries of parallel universes. It also convinced him that "this Spider-Man had defeated a Kingpin before."

After all, who but a significant adversary would bother to know so much about him?

This realization made Kingpin suppress some of his initial schemes.

Originally, he'd planned to agree to Peter's terms on the surface while secretly plotting against him.

For instance, he'd considered leveraging his influence to have the New York police target these Spider-people.

Being from parallel universes, they clearly had identity issues. Using this as leverage could easily cause trouble for them.

But now, realizing the depth of Peter's knowledge about him, Kingpin decided to confront him directly instead of resorting to underhanded tactics.

As the ruler of New York's underworld, Kingpin prided himself on his boldness.

He reached into his pocket.

This action immediately put Peter and Gwen on high alert.

But in the next moment, Kingpin pulled out a gold-embossed invitation.

With a flick of his wrist, he sent the card flying like a boomerang.

Peter calmly caught it mid-air and opened it.

The card read:

"Dear Mr./Ms. XXX,

We are honored to invite you to the memorial service for 'Our Most Beloved Spider-Man,' to be held on December 16th at Fisk Tower."

The date printed below was yesterday, and the signature read Wilson Fisk.

Clearly, this was an invitation issued under Kingpin's public guise as a respectable businessman.

The contents, however, referred to the same memorial Peter and Shadow Spider had overheard Kingpin mention when they first arrived!

Crack!

Peter clenched the invitation tightly in his hand, his face dark with anger. "Are you mocking us?"

Inviting Spider-Men to attend Spider-Man's memorial?

And this memorial was being hosted by the very person responsible for his death?

"Mocking you? Oh no, not at all," Kingpin replied, feigning offense as if Peter's words had gravely insulted him. He raised his voice, "In fact, whether you believe me or not, I personally have great admiration for Spider-Man."

"Oh? Is that why you killed him with your own hands? Do you really think I'd fall for such nonsense?" Peter retorted coldly. Kingpin's hypocritical words ignited a dangerous spark of anger in him.

Looking at Kingpin's smug, pretentious face, Peter felt an overwhelming urge to drive his fist into it.

But his friends' lives hung in the balance, holding his reason in check.

Kingpin laughed loudly. "Admiration and appreciation don't mean I'd tolerate him repeatedly interfering with my operations. Anything or anyone that stands in my way will be crushed beneath the iron fists of Wilson Fisk!"

His laughter carried a mocking tone, as though ridiculing Peter's naïveté.

Peter stared back at him with icy eyes.

At that moment, Gwen approached Peter and placed her hand on his tightly clenched fist.

Startled, Peter turned to look at her, his grip loosening slightly.

Gwen gently pried his fingers open, took the invitation from his hand, glanced at it, and then turned to Kingpin. "Very well, Mr. Fisk. Tonight, nine o'clock, Fisk Tower. We'll see you there."

Peter looked at her in confusion, unsure why she would agree to such a proposition.

Kingpin's words weren't even worth a single punctuation mark of trust!

But Gwen didn't explain. Instead, she gave him a quick, reassuring glance, signaling him to stay calm, before turning back to Kingpin.

"Ha! Tonight at nine, Fisk Tower. I'll be waiting, Spider-Man… Miss," Kingpin replied, his tone tinged with amusement as his gaze lingered on Gwen. A flicker of surprise crossed his eyes.

Gwen, however, ignored him, grabbed Peter's hand, and headed straight back toward Aunt May's house.

Behind them, Kingpin watched their retreating figures, his mind racing with thoughts. Yet no matter how much he pondered, he couldn't decipher Gwen's sudden willingness to agree.

After a moment, he pulled out his phone and spoke in an indifferent tone, "Pack it up. We're leaving."

With Kingpin's command, the battles raging across the area came to an abrupt halt.

Still, Kingpin had suffered a significant loss in this round.

In terms of high-level combatants, the Prowler had been personally shot and injured by Kingpin. He now lay on a rooftop awaiting rescue.

Even if his life could be saved, it was unlikely he would ever work for Kingpin again.

Meanwhile, in the battle between Spider-Ham, Middle-Aged Peter Spider, and the Spider-Mecha Girl versus Doctor Octopus, Scorpion, and Tombstone, there were significant casualties.

Spider-Ham, going all out, gave the three villains a severe beating.

Scorpion had his mechanical scorpion tail ripped off, Doctor Octopus nearly lost one of her mechanical arms, and Tombstone was knocked flat and rendered unconscious.

Spider-Ham's group decided to leave Tombstone on the street for the NYPD.

As a notorious gang leader with a long list of crimes, Tombstone was certain to face severe consequences. Even if Kingpin wanted to bail him out, it would likely require significant effort.

Thus, of the four elite enforcers Kingpin had brought, one was gravely injured, one was unconscious and captured, and the remaining two fled in disgrace.

Elsewhere:

Shadow Spider had single-handedly taken out four snipers armed with rifles and over a dozen handgun-wielding assailants.

His methods were ruthless; the snipers were taken down with precise, lethal shots, while the handgun-wielding thugs were left alive but injured to varying degrees, ensuring they would all require hospital visits.

Additionally, there were the 30+ gang members Peter and Gwen had defeated in the subway station.

All in all, the battle was a resounding success.

Of course, the Spider-Men hadn't emerged unscathed.

The most serious injury was sustained by Middle-Aged Peter Spider, who had been burned on his back by Scorpion's venom.

Scorpion's venom was composed mainly of aqua regia, a mixture of concentrated hydrochloric acid and nitric acid in a 3:1 ratio by volume. This powerful substance could even dissolve metal.

Middle-Aged Peter explained that he had an old injury on his back from many years ago. Although he had sensed the attack coming, he reacted just a fraction too late, resulting in him being hit.

(The template for Middle-Aged Peter Spider is similar to Tobey Spider-Man, who had mentioned in his series that he had a back injury.)

(End of Chapter)

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