As the system points disappeared like flowing water...
In the next second, Matthew suddenly had the illusion that his body was bulging frantically...
Or rather... it wasn't an illusion.
Inside the secret room, as the G-Virus fully integrated, Matthew's body began to expand rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye.
In an instant, a giant cocoon of flesh and blood, four meters high, took shape.
A large amount of heat dissipated from the cocoon, filling the entire secret room with mist.
The cocoon pulsed rhythmically with each breath.
Its surface gradually became dry and hard as the heat billowed out.
An unknown amount of time passed, and once the cocoon was completely dry, Matthew, wrapped inside, finally showed signs of movement.
Like tearing open a dry, cracked membrane, he ripped a gap in the cocoon and stepped out stark naked.
At this moment, the muscles on his body had become more compact and well-proportioned, as if meticulously carved from marble by a master craftsman.
Feeling the power surging through his body, Matthew was in no hurry to test it. Instead, he summoned the system panel to check it carefully.
[Name: Matthew (T+V+G-Virus Host)]
[Abilities↓]
Regenerative Evolution LV2: A mutant ability produced after the fusion of V+T+G viruses.
In a normal state, body damage below sixty percent will have no impact.
Regenerated parts will become tougher and harder to damage (there is a limit).
Limb regeneration efficiency increased by ten seconds. After contact with blood, important organs including the heart and brain can be quickly restored.
Monstrous Strength LV3: General buildings are as fragile as thin paper before you. You can use brute force to penetrate thickened tank armor and tear tanks into pieces.
The limit speed when running at full power can reach 110 meters per second.
Blood Mistification LV1: Can decompose oneself into blood mist for movement, during which one is immune to low-level physical damage.
Endurance LV3: Can engage in high-intensity combat for 120 consecutive hours without the need for food, water, or sleep.
Neural Reflexes LV3: Can react to the trajectory of close-range supersonic bullets and easily dodge them.
Evolvability LV1: An ability granted by the G-Virus.
Can undergo staged positive evolution when near death.
Flesh Manipulation LV1: A mutant ability produced after the fusion of G+V viruses.
And small-scale manipulation of flesh for weaponization and armorization.]
After reviewing each ability listed on the personal panel, Matthew nodded in satisfaction.
After merging with the G-Virus, all of his stats had significantly improved.
Especially strength, which jumped directly from Level 1 to Level 3.
Even the previous high-speed regeneration had upgraded to 'Regenerative Evolution,' becoming tougher than before after each injury recovery.
What surprised Matthew the most was the 'Evolvability' unique to the G-Virus.
With this ability, he essentially held the key to evolution, opening a path for continuous self-transformation.
Thinking this, Matthew turned his gaze to 'Flesh Manipulation' at the bottom of the panel.
After merging with the G-Virus, he could indeed clearly sense something extra in his body.
To describe it, it was like a new skill automatically learned after leveling up; he could perform it with just a thought.
At this thought, he couldn't wait to give it a try.
The moment the idea arose, the flesh on his arm began to churn violently.
In an instant, Matthew's right hand transformed into a giant war blade composed of flesh and blood.
The body of the blade was covered in a layer of deep red flesh, while the edge of the blade presented a texture similar to metal, looking somewhat similar to the blade form in Prototype.
He walked to the mirror outside the secret room and, like a child who had just discovered a novel toy, began to constantly try transforming into various forms.
Shields, whipfists, hammers, and even chainsaws...
Anything he could think of seemed to change according to his will.
Of course, this transformation wasn't without limits.
After multiple tests, Matthew found that the transformed parts could not exceed twice their original volume, nor could they transform into long-range weapons.
Once the volume of the Flesh Manipulation exceeded the original limit, it would be forced back to its normal form.
If he tried to launch his flesh as a long-range weapon, the detached flesh would automatically 'mistify' halfway and lose all connection.
However, these two weaknesses were almost negligible in Matthew's eyes.
There was plenty of time; he could slowly optimize them in the future.
Thinking this, Matthew returned to the secret room.
He summoned the system again.
Only this time, he turned his gaze to the customized modification page.
If he remembered correctly, he still had one Intermediate Modification attempt left. He might as well use it on himself.
After thinking for a moment, Matthew spoke in a deep voice: "I hope that when I evolve, I can undergo counter-evolution specifically against the opponent's attacks."
As soon as he finished speaking, a white light flashed across the system screen, and several modification options that met the requirements popped up together.
[Targeted Evolution: During evolution, a Targeted Evolution can be performed against the opponent's attack, weakening the effect caused by the opponent's attack.
Requires spending five thousand system points for modification.]
[Dynamic Adaptive Evolution: Evolution form will always be active, allowing for continuous adaptation to the opponent's attacks during combat and performing counter-measures.
Requires spending thirty thousand system points for modification.]
[Immunity Evolution: Every near-death experience will grant immunity to the attack that last caused you to be near death.
Requires spending one hundred and fifty thousand system points for modification.]
[...]
His eyes scanned the trait options popping up on the system panel one by one. Matthew found every single one of them mouth-watering, wishing he could take all of them for himself...
Unfortunately, despite his greed, his pockets were empty; for now, he could only get the cheapest one to satisfy his craving.
"I choose Targeted Evolution, consuming one Intermediate Modification attempt."
[Intermediate Modification Attempt -1]
[Modifying...]
The subtitles disappeared.
Soon, Matthew discovered that 'Evolvability' in his personal panel had undergone some changes.
[Evolvability · Targeted Evolution LV1: Can perform staged positive evolution against enemy attacks when near death, weakening the effects of the enemy's same-type attacks.]
...
...
On the other side, the Osborn Mansion.
The Green Goblin, having flown back to the mansion in a sorry state on his goblin glider, ripped off the goblin mask on his face and gasped for air.
He really didn't expect Spider-Man's abilities to be so strong!
So strong that he couldn't even gain the slightest upper hand!
When his fists hit the other's body, it felt no different from hitting a rock.
But when the opponent threw a punch, he felt as if that spot had been smashed by a sledgehammer!
If he hadn't relied on the mobility of the goblin glider, he feared he would have been pinned to the ground and pummeled by Spider-Man the moment he showed his face...
The Green Goblin took off his armor and stood before the mirror, looking at his chest.
There, several black and purple fist prints were visible...
And this was even with the armor acting as a buffer!
Without the armor to cushion the blows, he could hardly imagine what his fate would have been...
"Spider-Man..." the Green Goblin muttered, his eyes narrowing slightly, revealing a hint of evil.
"I'll remember you."
After saying that, he burst into a fit of wild laughter at the mirror: "Hahahaha!!!"
"Henry! You said I'm out, didn't you?!"
"What about now? Am I out! — No!" He glared at the mirror: "It's you who are out! It's all of you who are out!"
"And I am the biggest winner of this game!"
His laughter was sharp and piercing, echoing throughout the empty Villa.
When the laughter finally died down, a voice that the Green Goblin hadn't expected suddenly rang out in the silent mansion.
"Green Goblin, you are not the biggest winner."
The voice said calmly: "...My boss is."
As soon as the words fell, before the Green Goblin could look towards the source of the voice, a slender needle had already shot into the Green Goblin's neck!