"Peter, would you like me to give you a lift?"
Captain George looked at Peter, a gentle yet slightly wary smile appearing on his face.
He personally liked Peter, who was kind, honest, and had excellent grades.
But... the clearly developing relationship between his daughter and Peter made him feel a bit uneasy.
The little cabbage he'd raised for eighteen years couldn't be handed over to some pig so easily!
At the very least, he had to wait until she was twenty!
"No thanks, Uncle George. Dr. Connors recommended some biology books to me. I'm planning to hit the library and check them all out at once, so I won't make you take a detour."
After dealing with George and saying goodbye to Gwen, Peter hailed a taxi and headed straight for Midtown High School.
Relying on his reputation as the school's top student, Peter used the excuse that a teacher had asked him to pick up study materials. He easily sweet-talked the security guard at the gate and slipped into the empty chemistry lab.
Cold moonlight spilled through the window, casting dappled shadows on the floor.
Peter turned on the lights, and the laboratory was instantly flooded with harsh, pale glare.
He carefully took the emerald-green Lizard Gene Extract from his pocket, holding it like a priceless treasure.
Then, he opened the medicine cabinet and, relying on his photographic memory, quickly began searching for the various catalysts needed to synthesize the serum.
He methodically grabbed a dazzling array of chemical reagents in different colors and lined them up on the lab bench.
Throughout the process, his movements were smooth and fluid, without the slightest hesitation, as if he'd practiced them a thousand times.
This was a stage that belonged to him alone.
No audience, no applause—only himself and the impending, life-changing transformation.
He poured the Lizard Gene Extract into a beaker and then added the various catalysts one by one, according to proportions precise to the milligram.
Gurgle... gurgle...
The liquid in the beaker began to boil violently, its color gradually shifting from emerald green to a heart-stopping dark green, streaked with an eerie blood-red.
A gas reeking of blood and chemicals spread through the air.
Peter held his breath, his gaze focused to the extreme.
After what felt like forever, the liquid in the beaker finally stopped churning, transforming completely into a tube of thick, dark green serum that gave off an ominous vibe.
The Lizard Serum was complete!
Peter let out a long breath and carefully drew the serum into a syringe.
He looked at the strange green liquid in the syringe, his heart pounding uncontrollably.
In a normal universe, Peter Parker was the Spider-Man chosen by fate.
But he would crown himself with his own hands!
Without any hesitation, Peter rolled up his sleeve, revealing an arm that looked way too thin due to years of malnutrition.
He raised the syringe and aimed it at his vein.
"Let's do this!"
Without a moment's pause, he plunged the needle into his skin and pushed the entire tube of serum into his bloodstream!
My fate is mine to decide, not fate's!
Cold!
This was the first sensation as the Lizard Serum entered his body.
A bone-chilling cold instantly spread through his veins to his entire body, like it was going to completely freeze his blood.
Peter's body shuddered violently, his teeth chattering uncontrollably.
However, this cold lasted for less than a second.
The next moment, a volcano erupted!
An unimaginable burning sensation, like violent lava, rampaged through his veins, frantically devouring every one of his cells!
Yes, devouring—not merging!
Peter felt like some terrifying presence was watching him, and the lizard genes in his body were trying to consume him entirely, and then... use his corpse to come back to life!
Thump-thump!
In Queens, Gwen, who'd just gotten out of the car, suddenly felt her heart beating like a drum, and an inexplicable sense of dread washed over her.
It felt like she was about to lose something incredibly important.
Alarms like electric shocks rang in her head, and countless tiny goosebumps suddenly appeared on her arms.
Spider-Sense! Also known as the Gwen-tingle!
Without any hesitation, seeing that nobody was around, Gwen used her hands and feet to cling to the wall of her house.
Her wall-crawling ability, which usually failed her, was unexpectedly reliable at this moment.
She scrambled up to her rooftop in just a few moves. Looking at the gap of over thirty feet to the opposite balcony, Gwen instinctively took a deep breath:
"It's okay, Gwen. You got this!"
She didn't know why she was taking such a risk—she simply followed her instincts, habitually pulled her hood over her head, and then leaped with all her might!
A perfect landing worthy of an Olympic gymnast—light and without a sound!
"Whoa~"
Looking back at the chasm between the two buildings that was literally impossible for a normal human to cross, Gwen marveled, her heart filling with even more confidence.
She began to run and jump through the city's concrete jungle like a parkour athlete.
Although she hadn't yet developed her own web-shooters, her speed was still way beyond that of a normal person, even allowing her to race the speeding cars below!
And the direction she was heading... was exactly Midtown High School!
"Aaaargh!"
In the laboratory, Peter could no longer hold back and let out a suppressed, agonizing roar.
Intense pain!
Pain beyond the limits of human imagination!
He felt himself being torn apart and reconstructed over and over again. His body fell heavily to the floor, twitching violently.
His skin began to take on a creepy green hue, and then, patches of fine, slime-covered scales frantically erupted from beneath his skin!
The nails on his hands and feet began to grow long and sharp, turning into terrifying claws.
His vertebrae bulged one by one with sharp cracks, and his entire frame expanded and twisted at a speed visible to the naked eye!
Bestial instincts!
Endless desires for brutality, bloodthirst, and destruction, like the most violent black tide, frantically assaulted his reason!
His pupils began to contract, turning into the cold vertical slits of reptiles, filled with undisguised bloodlust.
He wanted to tear everything before him to pieces!
He wanted to make this world tremble beneath his claws!
The birth of The Lizard seemed to have entered its countdown.
However, just as Peter's consciousness was about to be completely swallowed by that violent savagery, turning him into a monster that knew only slaughter...
A sudden change occurred!
Buzz!
A soft and warm white light glowed from within his body, then rippled out like a wave, instantly enveloping his entire being!
Noble Horse: Harm not my master!
The bestial instincts that could've completely shattered a will of steel melted away like snow meeting fire the moment they touched the white light.
The gentle white light repeatedly healed Peter's fully transformed body.
Before this irresistible magic, even the deepest hunting instincts within his genes had to retreat, until they were completely expelled!
"Huff... huff..."
Peter gasped for breath, his vacant eyes regaining their clarity.
He was saved!
But helping him regain consciousness was only the beginning!
The power of the Horse Talisman didn't stop after driving out the dominance of the beast!
Show Some Supports By Giving Powerstones
Next BONUS CHAPTER at 200 powerstones