The portal opened completely in the courtyard of Parker Manor, its edges shimmering with intertwined crimson and dark gold Chaos Magic patterns, like a wound forcibly torn open, leaking the aura of another Universe.
America stumbled back two steps, bumping into Wanda, her eyes wide and lips trembling: "Impossible... I didn't open a portal, how did she arrive in this Universe..."
Neither Wanda nor Peter had the time to pay attention to the girl who had caused this trouble; they were currently observing the group appearing on the opposite side with great interest.
The person leading them was none other than the Wanda from a parallel World.
She had the same chestnut hair, the same facial contours, and the same tall, slender figure.
But this Wanda's state was clearly much worse.
Her eye sockets were sunken, her eyes were bloodshot, and a faint, somewhat sickly smile hung on the corners of her mouth.
Behind her, nine figures stepped out of the portal one by one.
The second one to walk out was a guy radiating red light, wearing a classic red and blue suit; on his wrist, the Spider-Society watch was still emitting a faint glow—it was a Spider-Man from who knows which Universe.
The moment he saw this guy, Peter understood everything.
Well, needless to say, it looked like the Spider-Society had suffered another blow while he was in the Dark Dimension.
After Spider-Man, one figure after another, familiar yet different, stepped out of the portal.
First was the blonde woman holding Captain America's shield, none other than the Carter version of Captain America.
Then came Red Hulk, Black Bolt, the evil Doctor Strange with a third eye on his forehead, the black girl wearing an Iron Man Suit, "Ironheart," Magneto, and... a weirdo in a gold bodysuit and blue cape, and a blonde man wearing a classic stars-and-stripes suit.
The moment he saw the last two figures walk out, even Peter's expression couldn't help but change.
The reason was simple: these two were none other than the Sentinel and a gender-swapped Captain Marvel!
As for the others, Peter really didn't care about them at all, but these two were the kind of guys who could punch a hole through Earth if he wasn't careful!
Seeing the evil Witch (to distinguish her from Wanda) bring so many people, America shrank behind Wanda, her thin body trembling like a sieve: "She... she didn't bring this many people when she was hunting me before..."
"That's because she needed you to lead the way before," Peter commented sharply, "Now... you have no use left, so she can just go all in."
Hearing this, Wanda instinctively turned her head to look at Peter, a look of appreciation bordering on infatuation appearing on her face: "You are indeed as sharp and powerful as I observed."
As she spoke, her gaze subconsciously shifted to the arm Peter had draped around Wanda's waist.
She stared at it for a good while, seemingly imagining the feeling of being held by that arm herself, before looking at Wanda.
Seeing Wanda's eyes, which were so clear they were almost devoid of any gloom, the evil Witch's pupils contracted sharply, and a low, almost choked sound escaped her throat.
Her Vision was gone.
In her Universe, her Vision was killed by Thanos.
To create a World with Vision, she turned the entire Westview into her theater years later.
But in the end, her dream shattered.
Vision, the children, everything she had struggled so hard to build, had finally left her.
To change all of this, she spent years using the power of the darkhold, constantly observing one Universe after another.
She tried to find a World where she and Vision lived happily together.
Her plan failed; no matter the World, Vision seemed destined not to survive for long.
Just as she was nearing despair, she accidentally discovered the parallel Universe where Peter was.
She saw various happy scenes of Peter and Wanda living together.
This man was more vivid, more gentle, more romantic, and also—more powerful than Vision!
Since who knows when, she began to obsessively peek into the lives of Peter and Wanda.
Watching them stroll by the Aegean Sea, watching them gaze at the night sky amidst the lavender of Provence, watching them in perfect harmony at Parker Manor time and time again.
The more she watched, the more she yearned, and the flames of jealousy burned ever more fiercely.
Why?
Why does the Wanda of this World get to be so lucky?
Why doesn't she have to lose anything?
Brother, lover, friends... these things she could never possess in her entire life were all gathered around her.
Why does she get to have all this without doing anything?
Why is it that I put in so much effort, only to end up with nothing?
Thinking of this, the red glow in the evil Witch's eyes grew even more intense.
"You really are happy," she spoke, but there was not a hint of blessing in her voice, only jealousy and resentment so thick it could not be dissolved, "So good that... it makes my eyes ache."
Wanda suddenly felt a strong sense of crisis; she could feel the Chaos Magic within both herself and the other woman churning wildly.
"What exactly do you want to do?" Wanda asked.
"To replace you," the evil Witch's answer was concise.
She raised her hand, and Chaos Magic condensed into a crimson vortex in her palm: "Your happiness, your lover, everything you have in this World—since you are me, it's only natural that I can become you."
Speaking of this, she paused, her gaze falling on Peter again, her posture suddenly becoming slightly hunched, her breathing growing ragged: "Your man... looks like he could satisfy me more than Vision."
"In your dreams!" Scarlet Chaos Magic surged from Wanda's eyes as well; two streams of Chaos Magic, clearly originating from the same source, exploded around them, causing the entire manor to groan under the unbearable strain.
Just as both sides were at daggers drawn...
Snap! A finger snap sounded quietly.
The next second, everyone present felt the World spinning before their eyes.
The surrounding scene changed instantly.
Everywhere was filled with dark green netherfire, and the entire World was desolate.
It was the Underworld shared by Earth and Asgard.
Peter used his authority to directly transfer the battlefield here.
If he hadn't done this, the aftermath of today's battle would likely have punched a hole through all of America.
Although Peter could use the Samsara Heavenly Life Technique to resurrect everyone, he didn't have the time to use the Horse Talisman to fix those damaged buildings bit by bit during the fight.
After completing the battlefield switch, he looked at the members of the Illuminati opposite him, their expressions filled with shock and uncertainty, and after a roll of his eyes, he immediately had a new idea.
Since the script was set as Illuminati vs. Avengers, how could it be that only he and Wanda were fighting on this side?
Thinking of this, Peter snapped his fingers again.
With this action, several portals opened in front of Captain America, Tony, Harry, Gwen, Felicia, and others.
Before long, ten figures had gathered behind Peter as well.
Cyber Cricket Fighting, initiate!
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