But immediately, a single sentence from Ryan caused everyone from this Universe present to change their expressions drastically.
Ryan said indifferently, "Alright, this is the second matter of today's meeting. I will be leaving this Universe for a period of time because of this..."
The heroes of this Universe, who were just feeling lucky to have Ryan around and not having to worry about anything, especially the Spider Family with Ryan as their backbone, instantly became panicked.
With Ryan around, even though they knew a cosmic overlord like Thanos was eyeing Earth greedily, they weren't worried at all and had the courage and confidence to face all future crises and obstacles.
But then again, once Ryan was gone, they started to panic even before any crisis had even appeared.
This was the advantage and disadvantage brought about by Ryan's consistently strong attitude towards them.
The advantage was that Ryan was the sole decision-maker for the Spider Family; the entire Spider Family was his word alone, with no risk of internal division like the Avengers.
And the disadvantage was also obvious: once the Spider Family lost him as their decision-maker one day, it would be difficult for the other members to make decisions on their own.
Thump! ——————!
Ryan rapped the tabletop heavily with his knuckles; the long, heavy sound acted like a dose of cardiac stimulant and sedative, calming everyone's panicked hearts a little.
Then, Ryan's cold gaze swept across the members of the Spider Family one by one as he said sternly, "I'm only leaving for a while, it's not like I'm never coming back. What's all the panic for?"
"And if just my departure makes you panic like this, if a massive crisis occurs in our Universe in the future and I happen to be away, wouldn't you all be scared into wetting your pants?"
"Look at yourselves now, and look at the suits you're wearing that represent the Spider Family. If any of you feel that you're afraid to face future crises just because I'm not here, then take it off right now, go crawl back into your blankets and cry, so you don't embarrass my Spider Family later!"
Hearing Ryan's scolding, the members of the Spider Family subconsciously lowered their heads in shame, but before they could fully do so, Ryan's scolding came again:
"No lowering your heads! Everyone, raise your heads and look into my eyes. Now, answer me one by one: when I'm gone, can you protect the honor and responsibility of the Spider Family?!"
"I can!"
The first person to answer, to everyone's surprise, was actually Gwen, who had been Spider-Man for less than a day!
Gwen's gaze toward Ryan was incredibly firm: "I can. Even if you're not here, I promise I will protect the Spider Family you created, in the way you taught me today!"
Upon hearing this, a trace of a smile finally appeared at the corner of Ryan's mouth.
In the way he taught today... tsk tsk, it seems that the criminals of New York will have a hard time even if he's not around~
Seeing that Gwen, who had just joined the Spider Family and was the only female, was so courageous, the others' eyes also became firm amidst their shame.
Powerful cries of "I can!" came from the mouths of the Spider Family members one after another.
Finally, a satisfied smile spread across Ryan's face.
Now that he had basically secured his position in the hearts of everyone in the Spider Family, he no longer needed them to blindly follow his every word; he now had to cultivate their independence for when he was away.
Because Ryan had a premonition that the time he spent away from New York would likely increase...
Next, Ryan looked toward Nano Tony and Ant-Man and asked, "How is it? Are the things manufactured and obtained?"
First, Nano Tony took out a white uniform from a briefcase and smiled confidently:
"Although this Universe doesn't have a ready-made Nano-printer yet, and manufacturing Nano-machines from scratch would take a lot of time, I used existing equipment to make a standard Shuttle suit. Aside from lacking nano-functions, it can also take you through the Quantum Realm."
Ryan nodded, "Mm, it's enough as long as it works."
After Nano Tony finished speaking, he suddenly tossed a USB drive to the Tony of this Universe.
Tony caught the USB drive with his one good hand, raised an eyebrow, and asked, "What's this?"
Nano Tony replied with a smile, "Nano-suit technology. According to Ryan, mutual interference between Universes will no longer lead to unknown disasters, so I think your Universe can master Nano-technology ahead of time. Consider it a thank-you gift for Ryan's generous help."
Tony nodded in understanding, "Understood. Once I've completely mastered the Nano-technology inside, I'll share it with Ryan's Spider Family."
Seeing that his counterpart from the other Universe understood, Nano Tony nodded and said no more.
After all, talking to oneself felt strange not just for Tony, but for Nano Tony as well...
Meanwhile, Ryan was very satisfied with Nano Tony's proactive and sensible behavior.
Look, this is what a truly smart person is like, knowing how to reciprocate proactively instead of taking the other party's kindness for granted like some people!
Next was Ant-Man Scott. He placed a briefcase on the table and said proudly, "With me on the job, the Pym Particles were naturally obtained. And not only is there enough for this trip and backup, but there's even enough for a backup of the backup!"
With that, Ant-Man opened the briefcase on the table.
Hiss——————
And seeing the briefcase opened by Ant-Man, filled to the brim with red Pym Particle test tubes, even Ryan couldn't help but suck in a breath of cold air:
"Scott, how much did you take? You didn't just rob your father-in-law's house of all its Pym Particles, did you?"
Ant-Man was stunned, the proud expression on his face from successfully obtaining the Pym Particles slowly faded, and he said weakly, "This... didn't you say to take more? You didn't tell me to leave any for Hank..."
Ryan covered his face with one hand, simply unable to look at Ant-Man.
Did he really need to say that explicitly?
Captain America knew to only take enough to travel back and a backup when he traveled to the past, but Ant-Man, as Dr. Pym's future son-in-law, just went ahead and emptied the man's warehouse!
He could already imagine the look of pure rage on Dr. Pym's face when he saw that all his Pym Particles had been stolen...
However, since Ant-Man had already taken them, there was no point in returning them, so Ryan unceremoniously pulled the stuffed briefcase in front of himself.
Then, after pulling out a few tubes, he closed the box again and handed the briefcase containing the remaining large amount of Pym Particles to Peter: "After the meeting, put this in my vault for me. Don't let anyone steal it again!"
Peter took the briefcase and nodded seriously, "Don't worry, I definitely won't let it be stolen by ants or anything like that!"
Ant-Man:?
Ryan nodded slightly and picked up the Shuttle suit. Without even putting it on, the Silver-gray Symbiote on his hand surged and swallowed the Shuttle suit.
Immediately, the Symbiote mimicked the material and structure of the Shuttle suit on Ryan's body, making it even more form-fitting and comfortable.
Standing up in the white Shuttle suit, looking quite distinctive, Ryan announced:
"Alright, this meeting has concluded successfully. If everything goes as planned, I should be back soon. If something unexpected happens, I'll just be back a bit later. While I'm away, just act as you see fit."
With that, Ryan gave Nano Tony and the others a look. They all put on their nano-Shuttle suits and pressed the Return button together with Ryan.
Finally, in a white light of spatial distortion, Ryan and Nano Tony's group of four vanished.
And so the gears of fate began to turn... No one, including Ryan, knew that a future even more different from the original timeline and even more exciting was about to begin because of this journey!