With a hint of helplessness, Shiller turned his head to the side, then said, "Peter Parker of this universe was infected with the zombie virus and consumed his own aunt and fiancée. Moreover, he is trapped in a time loop, meaning he will witness this horrifying reality countless times."
"The Spider-Men of the Multiverse, receiving the care of the Central Universe, have gathered their Totem Power on Nick Fury, who in turn can influence all Spider-Men."
"Nick is essentially managing the Time Management Bureau, his influence extends to the timeline level as well, this has brought about a situation he never anticipated— the Spider-Man in this universe might have already awakened, but is unable to extricate himself from this horrifying cycle."
It took a while for Stark to digest this information. He gradually stood upright, no longer clinging to the wall like a mollusk. He looked at Shiller and asked, "You know I'm going to save him, don't you?"
"Of course you would."
"But I didn't bring any mechas or weapons."
"You don't need those."
Stark turned his head away and sighed, his hands lifting the hem of his suit, standing akimbo. He said, "You do know that I can level up, right? Wouldn't it be a matter of moments for me, as Iron Demon God, to pull Peter out? Is this what your revenge entails?"
Shiller looked at Stark, shook his head slowly, "These two universes have reached a fragile yet stable symbiotic relationship. Any action of internal sabotage or external interference has a certain probability of causing both universes to turn to dust."
"You can choose to gamble, that the sequence of your actions—tearing through the Cosmic Frontier to level up, then reaching back to rescue people—won't cause an overreaction from the universe, that the barriers made more sensitive and fragile due to the symbiotic relationship will show you enough patience."
Shiller walked up to Stark, very close to him, tilted his head and said, "Or maybe they are even less patient than you. Even a tiny bit of external interference, or even the observations of your cross–universe communication devices, could upset their balance, resulting in the destruction of everything in this universe."
"Bang!"
Stark threw a left hook, hitting Shiller's face, then grabbed his collar and threw him onto the lab table nearby. Shiller's head hit the edge of the lab table, blood gushed out immediately.
Looking at Shiller's bloody face, Stark seemed to have a sudden stress response. He took a deep breath and rushed at Shiller. Meanwhile, Shiller propped up his upper body with his elbow, wiped the blood off his face with his fingers, and looked at a panicked Stark, "Will you please explain to your good doctor how this wound came about when he arrives?"
"I... I didn't mean..."
In the blink of an eye, Stark felt he was lifted up, an arm strangled his neck tightly and dragged him backwards to the edge of the lab table.
"Bang!"
Stark's head was slammed directly onto the lab table. He felt his nose break instantly, followed by another slam! The second time, bang! The third time...
When Shiller let go, Stark slipped onto the ground, laying weakly on his side, with flashes of light in front of his eyes.
Shiller approached, grabbed Stark's neck and lifted him up again. This time Stark truly felt the threat of death.
"I am indeed not well-suited for 'manipulation,' please, have mercy, Mr. Stark. I've not eaten in a long while."
Stark struggled with all his strength, finally managing to free himself when his elbow jabbed at Shiller's neck.
He stumbled forward, but was choked by his own blood when he reached the corner and leaned on the lab table, retching violently.
The shadow behind him was closing in. Stark had never seen such an oppressive Shiller before, as if he was going to kill him... wouldn't he?
No, that's a hungry beast. When they're hungry, their most brutal primal instincts drive them to devour anyone, I must think, I need to think fast!
Stark dashed towards the cabinet on the side of the lab table with all his strength, stumbled and slammed his shoulder into a corner of the cabinet, tipped its balance, then pulled it forward and rolled ahead.
The large metal cabinet fell directly, unexpected for Stark was that Shiller didn't even dodge.
Seeing Shiller being hit directly, Stark began to shake all over, he went mad and ran back to lift the cabinet, but a hand caught his wrist like a hobgoblin.
Stark pulled back his hand in fear, blood flowed out from under the cabinet, he had to start lifting the cabinet again in panic. Fortunately, the cabinet was empty and it wasn't heavy, Stark let out a low growl from his throat and turned the cabinet over with all his strength.
Shiller was lying on the ground, his entire back of the head was covered in blood, just as Stark hesitated for a moment, Shiller pushed his body up slowly with his hand.
In the moment their eyes met, Stark turned around and ran.
He ran like a madman because he saw in Shiller's eyes the most primal and irresistible human desire—hunger.
Stark was so flustered that he hardly had time to recall the layout of Stark Building, he rushed out of the door, hesitated for a second, then ran back to close the door and locked the safety lock with trembling hands.
The next second, he heard a strong bang on the door, unlike anything a human could produce. Stark slipped while running and fell down, adrenaline made him forget the pain, he got up as quickly as he could and ran into another room.
There was a figure standing in the room.
Stark was immediately alerted. He was not lying, he saw the scenes of the zombie siege on the way down, and also saw zombies from TV shows and games, inflexible as they were, jump directly onto the balcony without any run-up.
At this moment, he finally remembered that Stark Laboratory's safety and security policy required, once disaster broke out, research personnel must be evacuated first, and security personnel need to come to the laboratory to destroy data.
But it was too late to realize that, because the zombie standing in front of him was over two-meters tall, it must be one of the most elite security personnel even without looking at its face.
Stark didn't know how zombies detected humans, but he was sure the big guy in front of him had already spotted him.
Stark, being 185 cm tall and not wearing his battlesuit, was not on the same level of muscle mass compared to the big guy. The difference was so vast it could be described as two tiers apart. Even if Stark knew how to fight, he wouldn't have been able to beat him. He did not know how to, but fortunately, he was clear-headed enough to turn around and run.
As soon as he took two steps, Shiller, his face covered in blood, appeared at the doorstep. He was standing there like a hobgoblin, his gaze fixed on Stark.
Stark swallowed.
The next second, he was sent flying by a chair. A painful groan escaped his lips. As he struggled to get back on his feet, Shiller's gaze was drawn to the zombie trying to bite his head off.
In the dark lab, Stark could hardly see Shiller's movements. All he could see was a silhouette that sent the muscular zombie guard flying.
Caught off guard, the zombie was knocked to the ground. The silhouette picked up his leg and swung it towards the sharpest corner of the lab table.
There was a crunch as the lumbar spine shattered, then a thump as the internal organs ruptured. Stark could only watch in horror as Shiller straddled the big guy, forcefully twisting his head off.
But the zombie's body did not stop moving. It continued to struggle. Upon discovering this, Shiller nonchalantly tossed the head aside and dug his fingers into the zombie's back. He cut through the skin, tore the muscles apart, and one by one, scooped out the vertebrae.
Vertebrates cannot lose their spine. Otherwise, all their bones would not be able to function together. Stark could sense that the zombie, despite being still alive, was completely immobile due to the destruction of its vital body structure.
And then──
The good news was the zombie didn't bite Shiller. The bad news was Shiller bit the zombie.
Shiller took a bite of the spinal musculature he had just dug out, only to spit it out again.
Stark was utterly shocked, he even lost the strength to run away.
Shiller wobbled onto his feet.
Stark was about to cry. He felt unfairly treated. After all this, was Shiller holding a grudge against him for trying to find a way to cure him? Did his methods seem radical now?!
Shiller took a deep breath. As he approached, Stark struggled to back away into a corner. His breath hitched when Shiller reached out towards him.
Shiller removed the chair that had hit Stark, looked at him in the dark, and said, "Saving Spider-Man is a long-term goal. Your first priority should be finding a way to save me."
Stark was about to say something but was cut off by Shiller, "...to also save yourself, my emergency supplies."
Stark swallowed again.
"You said you were very hungry. Are you the gluttony among the seven deadly sins? Uh, don't get me wrong, it's just that pride, greed, and things like that can easily make one think of it."
"You could say that." Shiller answered indifferently.
Bearing the pain, Stark got up from the floor, glanced at the slaughtered zombie, then at Shiller, and carefully asked, "What do you eat?... Alright, I shouldn't have asked. But let me be straightforward, I'm afraid that even if you could accept human flesh, there isn't much clean flesh left in this world."
"Zombie flesh can't be eaten." Shiller said with a hint of regret as he looked at the zombie lying on the ground. "Their brains secrete a special substance, making their muscles and organs smell terrible and taste bitter. This might be nature's way of preventing them from cannibalizing each other."
"But I'm afraid there isn't any…"
"There wasn't before." Shiller interrupted, looking towards the window. "The trash has been thrown out."
Stark was confused, but he followed Shiller's gaze anyway.
He saw the foot of a hanged man.
"Ahhhhhhhhhh!!" Stark screamed.
"Stop screaming." Shiller said impatiently. "Figure out a way to capture it, I want to taste it to see if I can eat it."
"... Eh?!"
The sudden changes left Stark feeling as though his mind had gone blank.
First, he saw a ghost, then, Shiller saw it too, and in the end, Shiller was asking him to capture the ghost - because he wanted to eat it.
At this moment, Stark's brilliant mind clicked into gear. He instinctively started to recite the ghost-related research he had studied before.
"The essence of ghosts is electromagnetic waves. They provide different types of energy due to their varying properties, and are also affected by other energy types. Both high voltage electrical grids and magic cages can capture them."
As he saw Shiller staring expectantly at him, like a star chef, Stark gritted his teeth and said,
"I know where the power outlet of Stark Building is. Follow me!"
"Thank you, emergency supplies."