I Became Spider-Man's Cousin in Anime Crossover

Chapter 586 Revisiting an Old haunt

After receiving an affirmative answer from Zhou Hao, Riley fell into a long silence.

Although Riley once stated that in his original world, apart from the uncles who adopted him, he had no other ties. Furthermore, knowing his uncles well and being certain that they could move on from their trauma, he felt that this world needed him more, needed the existence of "Rie Parker," so there was no need to return to his original world.

But this situation is clearly different from the one involving the Ancient One.

What the Ancient One gave was a one-way ticket with no return.

Riley, on the other hand, directly handed over the control of the train to himself. Whether to stay or leave was entirely up to Riley.

As a result, Riley's long-dormant longing for his homeland began to stir again.

Those images, which he himself thought had long been completely covered and buried by "Rie Parker's" life, now surged up from the depths of his memory like tea leaves thrown into boiling water...

In the sweltering summer...

The old locust tree at the entrance of the alley, emitting a faint fragrance.

The sound of cicadas filled the entire street.

I remember myself as a child, running and playing wildly on the road, rolling around on iron hoops made by my uncles.

The sound of spatulas clattering as the uncles busied themselves in the kitchen.

He hadn't thought about these things for a long time.

So long that he thought he had forgotten.

"You just gave me the coordinates like that? Aren't you worried I'll never come back? Or run back to my original world and become a native who doesn't eat beef?"

After a moment of silence, Riley finally spoke. His voice carried a hint of joking, half-seriousness, and a teasing smile played on his lips.

He leaned back in his chair, his hands folded on his knees, and looked at the former time traveler in front of him with a scrutinizing gaze, who seemed as relaxed as if he were drinking tea in his own living room.

"After all, with my current strength, I could easily destroy several countries, if not rule the whole world."

After hearing this, Zhou Hao didn't rush to answer, but just smiled and looked at Riley.

That smile wasn't the tolerance of an elder towards a younger person, nor the scrutiny of a senior towards a junior...

Rather, it's the knowing look of someone who's been there looking at someone who's been there before.

He tilted his head, tapped his fingertips lightly on his knee, and then spoke slowly, his tone carrying a calmness that was almost irritatingly certain: "To be honest, I used to have the same thoughts as you. So I'm pretty sure that if you had just transmigrated, you might have actually had that possibility. But now, just like you didn't destroy the island nation of this world, you haven't succumbed to powerful strength and personal ambition, but have held fast to your principles, knowing what you should do and what you can do."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over Riley's face, his smile deepening.

"Besides, can you really bear to abandon your companions here and leave them behind?"

Riley opened his mouth, instinctively wanting to retort defiantly. But before the words could leave his mouth, they got stuck in his throat as familiar faces flashed through his mind.

He stubbornly argued that he was just a time traveler who was just having fun in the world, and now that he could go home, what was there to be reluctant about?

I think Peter and his friends have gradually matured. Even if I leave now, it won't lead to the terrible future that the Ancient One showed us.

But after these thoughts swirled in my mind, they were all ultimately blocked by an extremely clear image.

When Peter was certain that Riley had returned to his original body, he acted nonchalantly, almost no different from his usual self. But only Riley knew that Peter's arm, which was resting on his shoulder, was trembling the whole time.

Although Peter didn't say anything sentimental throughout the whole process, Riley knew exactly what his silly brother was afraid of.

In that moment of distraction, Riley suddenly felt the ground beneath him give way, and at the same time, a foot, as fast as lightning, kicked him in the buttocks.

The speed was so fast that even Riley's prized spider-like reflexes failed to detect the approach.

The next second, under the influence of this gentle but irresistible force, Riley was lifted off the ground and a spacetime tunnel sparkling with golden flames suddenly tore open in front of him.

"Alright, alright, stop dawdling!"

"Huh!? Holy crap! I hadn't even decided whether to go back now! You ambushed me! You little trash, you can't take a joke—!!!!!"

Zhou Hao's voice came from behind him, tinged with a hint of mischief, his foot still in the position of the kick he had just made.

Then, with a smile and a wave, he watched Riley walk away, accompanied by a series of instinctive exclamations, until he quickly disappeared into the spacetime tunnel.

"Remember to go early and come back early, so you can still make it back in time to go to the celebration party with Peter and the others~"

As soon as he finished speaking, as if afraid that Riley would change his mind and fly back on his own, Zhou Hao waved his hand and closed the space-time tunnel.

Then, the smile on Zhou Hao's face quickly disappeared, replaced by a mixture of helplessness and anticipation.

"Just consider this a chance to catch your breath and enjoy this vacation, you brat..."

"When you come back from your visit, a whole host of troubles await you."

……

In the last instant the time portal closed behind him, Riley heard Zhou Hao's long, drawn-out whistle, which sounded like he was watching a good show.

Then, the golden sparks dissipated, and everything around returned to silence.

Once Riley regained his footing and, trusting Zhou Hao, allowed the energy within the spacetime tunnel to propel him forward until he finally stood firmly on his feet at the other end of the exit, the scene before him had undergone a complete transformation.

At this moment, he is standing in a cemetery.

But it wasn't a Western-style cemetery, nor was it any of the ones he had ever seen in the Marvel universe.

It was the martyrs' cemetery that Riley knew all too well, the one where his father from his previous life was buried.

The white marble monument to the martyrs gleams with a warm luster under the midday sun, and the golden inscriptions on the monument are neat and solemn.

Unlike other cemeteries, this place, though filled with tombstones, has no eerie or terrifying atmosphere whatsoever.

Even not far away, you can see several children chasing and playing in the cemetery, using the stair railings as slides, sliding down them again and again.

The pine and cypress trees on both sides were neatly trimmed, and the stone pavement was swept spotless.

Here, there is no smoke of battle, no lingering glow of magic, and no metallic smell of burnt Chitauri remains.

There was only the fresh scent of pine needles and soil, mixed with a few faint wisps of chrysanthemum fragrance drifting from afar.

These familiar scenes, which he could only occasionally recall in his dreams, convinced Riley that he had indeed returned to his hometown, and a smile involuntarily crept onto his lips.

"I never thought I'd actually be able to come back one day..."

"Thanks, senior."