"Understood, Professor," Mark said sincerely, "but I truly haven't given up. My dream is to uncover the mysteries of Mars in my lifetime and pave the way for humanity to step foot on Mars, even transforming it into our second home."
His words weren't entirely deceiving. This had indeed been his biggest dream before becoming Spider-Man. And now, by mentioning it again, he wanted to assure Dr. Harper that he hadn't given up on his aspirations.
"Are you really just going out to relax?" Dr. Harper fixed his gaze on Mark.
Mark nodded emphatically, "Yes, I truly just need some time to relax."
"Very well," Dr. Harper nodded and picked up a pen from the table, signing his name on Mark's leave application, "It's not easy to get some time off, so I'll approve a month's leave for you. We might be stuck here for the next few years."
"Thank you, Professor," Mark expressed his gratitude.
Dr. Harper then opened a drawer and took out a bank card, handing it to Mark, "You probably don't have much money on you. Take this card, the password is ******."
"Professor, how can I accept your money?" Mark pushed the card back.
"Just take it!" the elderly man insisted, showing signs of annoyance, "You can pay me back once you receive project bonuses."
"Alright then," Mark accepted the card and solemnly put it in his pocket.
He didn't have much money on him, as he received only a meager stipend of 2000 dollars each month as a graduate student. This stipend was directly provided by the institution. Any additional expenses in the base were covered by extra allowances from above, otherwise, he would have starved long ago.
With this stipend, he could only save a couple of hundred bucks each month, especially since he often spent money on snacks when he went outside or when he asked the procurement team to bring him some. His total balance was just over a grand.
Clearly, Dr. Harper cared for him, even if he didn't say it outright.
Feeling touched, Mark bid farewell to Dr. Harper and returned to his room, where he quickly packed his belongings. However, getting permission to leave the base was no easy task. Despite Dr. Harper's approval, the approval process still took two days. Finally, on the third day, Mark's leave request was granted.
Coincidentally, there was a flight from a nearby airport to the capital of Mongolia around noon on that day.
Subsequently, on the third day around noon, two base security personnel drove a sand-colored off-road vehicle, taking Mark to the airport located 180 kilometers away.
The journey was silent, and the world remained as peaceful and quiet as before, with no chaotic monsters, demons, or gods appearing just because Mark had become extraordinary.
By the time Mark disembarked from the plane, it was already evening. He only carried a backpack with him, containing a set of clothes for disguise, the web-shooter, and he didn't even bring his laptop.
This time, he was planning to find a suitable place to directly cross over. His laptop was too big, and he wasn't sure if he could take it with him.
In comparison, a smartphone was much more convenient. Gwen and the others could bring their phones, so there was no reason he couldn't.
After leaving the airport, Mark found a nearby hotel and spent the night there. The next day, he checked out and used his smartphone to search for a small well-known scenic spot nearby. Pretending to go mountain climbing, he then slipped into the forest.
...
In the city, a train was speeding through the skyscrapers. Strangely, even though the train had already passed its final destination, it didn't stop. Instead, it maintained its high speed as it traveled onward.
Ahead, a bridge was under construction—a bridge spanning across the river.
And there was no way forward!
On the front of the train, a young man dressed in a red spandex suit was standing there, contemplating a solution.
His name was Peter Parker.
He was the Spider-Man of this world.
Prior to this, he had been engaged in a fierce battle with the sudden appearance of Dr. Octopus. However, the cunning Dr. Octopus led him onto this moving train and destroyed its brakes.
Because he knew that, according to Spider-Man's usual style, he would never sit idly by while innocent people on the train faced danger!
The next moment, Peter made an astonishing decision.
He moved both his hands simultaneously and shot web threads frantically towards the buildings on both sides of the track, tightly gripping the other ends of the web threads in his hands.
He was attempting to use his own strength to stop the train!
"Ah-arrggghhh!—"
The tension from the web threads on both sides and the kinetic energy accumulated from the fast-moving train were continuously wreaking havoc on his body, causing him to emit a mix of painful screams and roars.
The immense force shattered all the glass on the train's front, and even the carriages underwent severe deformation, but Peter still held on.
On the side of a nearby high-rise building, Dr. Octopus was firmly attached to the wall using his mechanical tentacles, watching the scene below with a smile of successful conspiracy on his face.
A octopus from the deep sea could change their colors and structure to match the environment. At times, they appeared like an algae-covered rock, while at others, they disguised themselves as a cluster of corals. When prey approached, they would then reveal themselves, pouncing on the prey, leaving them with no time to comprehend what had happened.
At this moment, Doctor Octopus seemed exactly like a genuine octopus, waiting for Spider-Man to exhaust his strength, and then he would emerge to effortlessly capture him!
This was Dr. Octopus!
Though he possessed great power, he was even more skilled in using his extraordinary intelligence to deal with enemies.
*Snap!*
Amid his intense focus on what was happening below, Dr. Octopus failed to notice a faint sound behind him.
Then, a head emerged from the rooftop.
The person first glanced at Dr. Octopus, who was hanging about six or seven meters below him, and clicked his tongue.
Then, following the source of the sound, he looked down at Peter Parker, who was pulling the train.
"I thought I would end up at the beginning, but I didn't expect to directly land in the middle."
"Who?" Hearing the faint whisper from above, Dr. Octopus suddenly looked up.
Mark carefully examined this "classic" version of Dr. Octopus and even extended his hand in a greeting, saying, "Hello there, Dr. Otto Octavius."
Thump, thump, thump.
Dr. Octopus furrowed his brows slightly, exerting his mechanical tentacles to quickly climb to the rooftop, standing not far from Mark, looking at his relatively good-looking face, and asked, "Who are you?"
Mark smiled and replied, "You may not know me, but I know you. Moreover, I also know a female version of you."
"Hmm?" Dr. Octopus's brows furrowed tighter with a mix of confusion and annoyance. "What do you mean?"
A/N: A new universe which we all are familiar about. Give me stones so that this journey can continue.
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