Stepping through the portal located at the Multiverse Spider Legion base, the next second, Peter found himself in another small space. This was obviously the universe space, just that it couldn't compare to the newly built Spider Legion base in terms of brightness and space.
"Is this a space station?" Peter asked, looking around at the environment. He realized it had no sense of futuristic technology. Instead, pipelines exposed everywhere even made it seem like technology had regressed.
"This is a small space station above New York Sky Island. It's the only station I have access to." Spider-Man 2099 explained as he led Peter into the living room of the space station.
There was a small window here through which Earth could be seen.
As Peter walked over, he was stunned by the view.
Outside the space station, instead of the blue planet he recognized, was a celestial body shattered into countless fragments.
Although Earth still maintained its spherical shape, to be precise, it maintained a spherical radial shape, like a firework bursting open with countless fragments arranged on different orbits, having long lost its original completeness and roundness.
The edges of each fragment were embedded with mechanical equipment, which seemed to be used to maintain gravity and orbit. It was not hard to see that these devices came in multiple styles and were likely from different companies.
Moreover, many fragments were connected by mechanical devices. However, while the devices on the Sky Island were physical, the ones used for connection were more like energy chains.
The number of energy chains was so numerous that the naked eye couldn't distinguish them. Many abandoned parts were not repaired, and the endless energy chains were like terrifying tentacles, swinging constantly near the Earth. The entire Earth looked like meat chopped into pieces but threaded together by wires, horrifying, ugly, and hair-raising.
The many small ships flying between the fragments were like flies drawn to this rotting meat. There was no semblance of order brought by technology, only dense masses that induced revulsion.
Peter was so shocked by the sight that he stood still without speaking for a long time.
Spider-Man 2099 stood by his side, also looking at his homeland through the small window. He said, "I'm sorry, I didn't go directly to your universe to find you because I am really afraid to see Earth intact."
"From my birth, my homeland has always been like this, until one day, in another universe in the multiverse, I saw what Earth should have been like. These greedy corporations have ruined our beautiful home planet..."
To his surprise, the young Peter didn't wallow in negative emotions for long. He turned to Spider-Man 2099 and asked, "Did you say this is your space station?"
"That's right, in this era, space stations are privately owned. As long as you have money, you can buy all kinds of luxury houses. The shareholders of the big companies live in such space stations with spacious rooms, beautiful greenhouses, and fresh air..."
"As for the surface of the earth, apart from the slums, there are factories built by big companies. Everything produced in these factories is for the wealthy people on the space stations. This is why they conspire to destroy the Earth."
Spider-Man 2099 guided Peter further in and said, "In the few decades before Earth was destroyed, there was an active global equality movement. People thought that all of Earth's resources should be concentrated and then distributed evenly."
"The wealthy conspirators, of course, didn't want that. So they established large corporations, monopolized history, culture, and technology, and finally, using their technological means, they directly destroyed the Earth."
"Only they had the capability to build space stations and live on them, while those civilians who couldn't do so were left on the broken surface of the Earth. To maintain their lives, they had to depend on the corporations."
"And so, the entire Earth became a huge resource extractor, with these large corporations in control of the switch. Resources were continuously transported to the corporate shareholders to enjoy, while the poor on Earth didn't have any means to rebel. They couldn't even touch the lofty space stations."
"However, people did not give up. Even under corporate tyranny, a group of freedom fighters who wanted to overturn the current situation was born. I am one of them."
From Spider-Man 2099's words, Peter detected some key points, so he asked, "Why were freedom fighters born? Shouldn't all the oppressed common people unite to rebel?"
Spider-Man 2099 shook his head and said, "You're oversimplifying things. The big companies all have robots that can completely replace manpower. That is to say, their willingness to give civilians a job is already a mercy... or to put it another way, all current surviving civilians are actually for the amusement of the wealthy. They are their entertainment projects, not necessities."
"The big companies would implant an identity system into the civilians, which would upload all their private information to the company database. The shareholders could then choose from the database the civilians they wanted for their amusement and send ships to bring them home."
"My daughter...died like that..."
Peter felt a sudden weight on his heart. He already guessed why. The sharp chin Spider-Man 2099 displayed earlier when drinking suggested that he was indeed quite handsome, so his daughter might have been very beautiful too.
To Spider-Man 2099's surprise, instead of angrily cursing the companies, Peter asked a question that sent chills down his spine.
"What powers the space station's flight in the universe?"
"Of course, it's the large corporations' power systems, but you better not get any ideas. Even the most capable hacker can't infiltrate this system..."
Peter didn't say anything, making Spider-Man 2099 unable to read him. Hence, he half-jokingly said, "I thought only Shadow Spider-Man would be so taciturn..."
Having finished speaking, he pushed open a door, behind which stood a small shuttle. It looked like a fighter jet, but without large wings, relying instead on rear cosmic thrusters.
Spider-Man 2099 pulled open the cockpit and climbed in. Peter took his seat in the co-pilot's position. Accompanied by the roar of the engine, the small aircraft flew towards one of the celestial fragments.
Upon landing, Peter was more surprised by the scene. The ground was not very damaged, nor was it desolate. On the contrary, there was a highly advanced and bustling city.
"Before Earth was destroyed, we already had a very advanced technology. Those shareholders, to deceive the public, claimed that they had left the city and gave up their properties."
"So many people moved into the downtown buildings. However, all this was nothing more than a scam. People thought they had what they wanted, but the disaster struck the next second."
Spider-Man 2099 pressed a button and the shuttle disappeared on the spot. As he led Peter into an alley, he said, "Miracle Lady should be in the Nord Building. That's not a free zone. It's full of company staff, mercenaries, vagabonds. We need to manage to cheat the Identity Recognition System to get in and then find her."
"Wait a minute." Peter stopped Spider-Man 2099 and then said, "It's not me, but another Loki who's looking for female Loki. Now that we have a definite clue, I can call him over now. He's also the God of Mischief, maybe he can help…"
Spider-Man 2099 sighed and said, "If I weren't in this condition, I wouldn't need anyone's help. We all are Spider-Men. Don't feel like you're the only one who would do scientific research."
Peter reached out, patted Spider-Man 2099's shoulder, asking him to sit and rest for a while. Then he dialed Loki's number and explained the circumstances.
Soon, with an orange square portal appearing on the ground, Loki, carrying Helen, appeared before the two Spider-Men.
At this moment, she still looked like a woman, but after seeing the astonishment in Spider-Man 2099's eyes, she transformed back into male Loki.
But soon, Spider-Man 2099's gaze fell on Helen's face. Before Loki could respond, Spider-Man 2099 asked him, "Is she your daughter?"
Before Loki could answer, Helen spoke up first, waving her hand and saying, "Yes, this is my dad. Ah, sometimes he is my mom…"
Spider-Man 2099 hesitated as if fearing to frighten Helen. He then said, "Don't be afraid, little girl. It's just…you look quite like my daughter."
Before Loki could say anything, Peter gave him a sidelong glance, making Loki change the subject.
"I heard you've found a clue to Sylvie's whereabouts. Where is she? I hope to find her soon."
"She's in the Nord Building. However, it's no longer a prosperous commercial center. You can think of it as a market, a paradise for brokers. If we want to get in, we need to crack the Identity Recognition System there…"
"That's easy." Loki snapped his fingers, saying, "Just let me have a glimpse of someone who can get in. I can figure out a way to disguise us."
"Disguise won't work." Spider-Man 2099 shook his head, saying, "The chip of the Identity Recognition System is implanted in the body. Merely imitating the appearance won't fool the security system."
"I didn't plan to simply imitate the appearance. What I use is not Illusion Technique." Loki shook his head, saying, "Let's go there first. You'll know soon…"
Spider-Man 2099 didn't seem to agree with Loki's approach. However, Peter sided with Loki, and it's their mission. So, Spider-Man 2099 led them through the alley to an abandoned station.
The transportation here surprised Peter, resembling the thriving shuttles in the universe of his earth.
"Are you amazed? Actually, there's nothing shocking about that. Earth in my universe once set course for the Star Ocean, sadly…" Spider-Man 2099 shook his head, saying, "In the end, all achievements of human civilization belonged to big corporations. They have nothing to do with ordinary people…"
The deeper they went into the station, the darker it became. Peter saw traces of countless pedestrians here. At some point in time, this place might have been as civilized, prosperous, and vibrant as his hometown.
"Who are we developing for, after all?" Peter asked softly, murmuring to himself, "If not every person can enjoy the fruits of civilization, then what's the meaning of us doing all this?"
Spider-Man 2099 led the way into the darkness. In the dark, he turned around to look at Peter, his eyes conveying a sense of sadness and helplessness that Peter could sense.
"Big corporations took away everything, including my child and many others' children."
"If I were like you, born at the beginning of a booming civilization, I would have the same doubts."
"After having experienced all this, I can only tell you the answer in my heart—Spider-Man is always born for the ordinary people."
"No matter how high or how far others fly, I'll always stay the same, defending the interests of ordinary people like me, to the death."