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*****
Walter plummeted straight down from the high altitude. The intense wind whipped against his face, bringing a trace of coolness that slightly sobered his mind, which had been burning with boiling blood.
Yet, as he watched the ground rapidly approaching, he felt not a single shred of fear.
Boom!
With a deafening explosion, his feet slammed into the earth. He bent his knees slightly to absorb the massive impact, but the ground beneath his feet instantly spiderwebbed with terrifying cracks.
Without a moment's hesitation, he chose a direction and prepared to sprint away.
Just then, he spotted Alan standing not far from the building, staring at him in shock.
Wait... why did Alan look so small?
Walter hesitated for a split second before rushing toward him. He reached out, grabbed Alan with surprising ease, and tucked him under his arm against his waist like a football.
"Mr. Walter?" Alan stammered.
Walter didn't answer. He strode forward, carrying Alan as he turned and ran.
Just as he vacated the spot, a figure dropped from the roof. Like an expressionless machine, surrounded by a black mist of nanobots, the figure chased after Walter with the ferocity of a cheetah.
Sprinting made Walter feel incredible.
An endless torrent of power surged from within his body. He ran faster and faster, feeling as if nothing in existence could bring him to a halt. Anything that dared to block his path was smashed to pieces.
Cars, buildings, steel...
For the obstacles in front of him, there was only one outcome: being shattered into oblivion.
Finally, after smashing through the outer wall of yet another building and charging inside—sending everyone screaming and fleeing—he came to a stop, panting slightly. He set down Alan, whom he had been protecting.
"B-Boss! You really are amazing!" Alan looked at Walter with excitement.
Walter grinned, but as he looked down at his own enlarged body, his face filled with confusion. What kind of ability was this?
MODOK's Nano-Soldiers?
It didn't feel like it...
Suddenly, sensing something, he moved rapidly, taking two large steps to shield Alan.
Bang!
A loud explosion rang out as Walter blocked a black mechanical arm with his body. A shockwave swept outward, shattering the glass that had miraculously survived Walter's initial entry.
The terrifying scene made Alan cower and cover his head in fear.
But Walter's body didn't tremble in the slightest.
He looked at the expressionless man in front of him and spoke in a deep, muffled voice, "A Nano-Soldier?"
He didn't see any cybernetic limbs on the opponent, which implied this was one of MODOK's "perfect" Nano-Soldiers.
He should have been terrified of this opponent, yet right now, he felt that the person in front of him was incredibly fragile...
He swung his arm. His massive palm, carrying a fierce gust of wind, slapped the Nano-Soldier. It landed on the enemy's body like he was swatting a fly; he felt absolutely no resistance.
It seemed the Nano-Soldier's strength was far inferior to his own.
However, with just a twist of his body, the Nano-Soldier mitigated the force of Walter's blow. The moment he touched the ground, the nanobots inside him reinforced his structure, turning him into a black arrow that shot forward once again.
Walter took a deep breath. Just as he was preparing to finish the opponent off, a smudge of blue appeared in the space before him. It was as if the fabric of space itself was being dyed, expanding rapidly until it transformed into a portal right in front of his face.
What is this?
Startled, Walter took two steps back.
In the next instant, a man appeared. He had grayish skin, wore a black suit, and exuded an aura of superiority, looking down on the world like an emperor.
He looked at the Nano-Soldier that had rushed in front of him, chuckled low, and his eyes flashed. An invisible force froze the opponent in place. He then looked at the nanobots swimming across the soldier's surface and gave a faint smile.
Was it this junk that granted the opponent such super strength?
"Mere ordinary humans, yet greedily desiring the power of gods and the chosen ones?"
As his voice fell, he reached out toward the Nano-Soldier and slowly clenched his hand.
An invisible force, like a giant hand, crumpled the opponent into a nauseating ball of flesh. With a casual wave of his hand, a destructive wave of energy surged forth, turning the ball of flesh into dust.
Even though the nanobots could provide strength, reinforce the body, and even grant rapid regeneration, now that he was reduced to this state...
Witnessing this scene, Walter sucked in a cold breath, and Alan's face was filled with terror.
"Do not be afraid, child."
Accompanying a gentle, deep voice, the man who had suddenly appeared turned to look at Walter.
"I happened to be nearby and sensed a child lost in confusion. Is that you?"
He looked at Walter and spoke slowly. His voice was majestic, yet it gave Walter a strange sense of warmth.
"Who are you?"
"Me?"
The man smiled faintly and introduced himself, "I have many identities. King, God... but most people call me Apocalypse."
"Apocalypse?" Walter murmured.
Apocalypse nodded, looking Walter up and down, and exclaimed in admiration, "I can feel the powerful energy within your body. It seems you have only recently awakened, haven't you, child?"
"You know what happened to me?" Walter asked with pleasant surprise.
"Of course!"
Apocalypse smiled slightly. "Your talent has awakened. And not just you..."
As he spoke, he turned to look at Alan beside him. "Him as well. I can sense the hidden talent within his body."
He reached out a hand toward Alan. "Let me help you."
He paused, then suddenly added, "Let us change location. There are too many flies here."
More importantly, he didn't want to attract the attention of those people just yet.
With a thought, a portal appeared behind them.
"Follow me."
Apocalypse spoke to the two of them. Once they stepped toward him, he whisked them away, vanishing from the spot.
In the next second, the two reappeared amidst yellow sands, standing on the edge of a strange, foreign country.
Seeing this instantaneous shift, both of them dropped their jaws in shock.
Apocalypse smiled at them. "Do not be too surprised. Starting today, you will slowly begin to see the true nature of this world."
He slowly floated upward until he was positioned slightly higher than Walter, then placed his hand on Walter's head.
Walter instinctively shrank back, but Apocalypse pressed his hand firmly onto his scalp. "Don't be afraid. Let me see your power."
"Super strength, an indestructible body, tireless stamina, an unstoppable charge..."
Apocalypse suddenly opened his eyes, delight evident in his voice. "You are simply a war machine!"
Walter was a bit confused.
Just a moment ago he was a lab experiment, and now he was a war machine?
Before he could ask, Apocalypse flew over to Alan and pressed his hand onto Alan's body. "Let me activate your talent!"
"Ah!"
Alan instantly fell into a trance, but he could feel something waking up inside him.
Seconds later, he felt different.
"Absorbing essence to strengthen oneself?"
Apocalypse was ecstatic.
The abilities of these two were simply magnificent!
And this was just their current state. If he amplified them, the improvement would be exaggeratedly powerful!
He looked at the two as if he were looking at precious treasures.
But Alan and Walter couldn't help but take a step back.
This man's gaze was very strange...
"Join me, children! I can grant you even greater power, and as long as we stand united, we will inevitably change the entire world!"
Apocalypse delivered a stirring speech.
Alan's eyes flickered. Thinking of the power Apocalypse had just awakened in him, he nodded. "I'll join!"
Both of them looked at Walter.
Walter asked doubtfully, "What do you mean by 'change the world'?"
Apocalypse smiled faintly. He reached out and tapped both Walter and Alan on the forehead, transmitting images and his ideology directly into their minds.
A moment later, Walter groaned in thought and said, "I'll join!"
"Welcome to the fold!"
Even for Apocalypse, finding two of his Horsemen at once made his mood uncontrollably joyful.
"Now, you shall receive even greater power!"
Apocalypse spoke to them, and with a thought, he activated his ability, using his power amplification on both men.
"Argh! Ahhh!"
The two screamed in pain as their bodies underwent astonishing changes.
Alan's brown hair turned stark white, and his eyes became pitch black.
Compared to Alan, Walter's transformation was even more obvious and shocking.
Walter's already large frame expanded again like an inflated balloon. He grew to over four meters tall, becoming a veritable giant.
Rip, tear!
The tattered clothes on his body were completely shredded, leaving him utterly naked.
Alan glanced over, silently turned his head away, and made a gesture with his hand; his whole demeanor seemed to turn gray with second-hand embarrassment.
Several seconds later, Walter panted as he regained his senses, then froze.
"My clothes?"
He covered his vital areas with his hands, looking around blankly.
Apocalypse smiled slightly. He pointed a finger at Walter, and the sand beneath their feet adhered to Walter's body, transforming into a suit of blood-red armor.
Seeing this, Apocalypse nodded secretly.
These two before him would be his War and Famine. Coupled with Pestilence, who had already infiltrated Kent Star, he was only missing one Horseman to complete his four apostles.
As for the final Death, he already had a target.
That person was in Japan.
"By the way, do we have codenames?" Walter asked curiously. Due to the changes in his body, his voice had become extremely deep and muffled.
Alan looked at Walter, grinned, and said, "Brother Walter, wearing that armor, you look exactly like a red tank. How about we call you Juggernaut?"
"That works!"
Walter agreed casually, then turned to Apocalypse. "Lord, how many of us are there?"
"There will be many. For now, come with me to Japan."
With that, he opened a large portal and took the two of them, disappearing from sight.
...
Tony Stark stood amidst a sea of fire. One by one, Iron Legion drones carried the unconscious Nano-Soldiers away from the rooftop.
Because he had summoned a large number of Iron Legion drones to assist, the battle was successfully contained to the roof of MODOK's skyscraper, causing no harm to innocent bystanders.
As for the Nano-Soldiers, since he knew most of them were victims, he had only knocked them unconscious as best he could.
Once he brought them back to Avengers Tower, he would figure out a way to help them remove the nanobots' control.
Unfortunately, MODOK had taken advantage of the chaos to escape.
"It's a good thing that Walter guy got someone to send a message. Otherwise, if MODOK's plan had succeeded, the casualties would have been horrific."
"Speaking of Walter, I remember he was right here just a moment ago. Where did he go?"
As soon as he spoke, the virtual screen before his eyes displayed the footage of Walter jumping off the building.
Jumping off the building?
Tony watched the footage, his sharp eyes noticing Walter's constantly changing body.
What is going on?
He remembered this unlucky car thief was just an ordinary person. That night, Mike...
Mike. I wonder where that guy went for his vacation?
Tony murmured, involuntarily thinking of Mike, who had taken his whole family on a trip.
I really envy that guy.
Tony chuckled. After issuing orders for the other Iron Legion drones to extinguish the fire, he quickly departed.
Meanwhile, Mike and his family were enjoying a delightful vacation.
This trip was special because they had no set destination; they only decided where to go each evening.
Today, they had arrived in a small town.
The town seemed to be holding a festival celebration, and the entire place had turned into an ocean of joy.
Delicious snacks, various fun games, and even speed dating events—all sorts of interesting activities were underway.
"There! Over there!"
Little Lamb sat on Mike's shoulders, pointing his small finger into the distance.
Gwen glanced over and said with a look of resignation, "That looks like they're holding a turtle race. I'm not interested."
She turned to Mike and asked for permission, "Dad, can I go look around other places by myself?"
"Don't go too far," Mike instructed Gwen.
Gwen smiled happily. "Have fun!"
She blew a kiss to the three of them and ran off in another direction.
" will she be okay?" Mystique (Raven) asked worriedly.
Mike laughed and said, "Gwen has grown up, and she's certainly not an ordinary girl."
Raven nodded, and under Little Lamb's urging, the three of them walked toward the turtle racing competition.
On the other side, after separating from Mike and the others, Gwen appeared quite relaxed.
She ate ice cream while browsing the stalls she had never seen before.
Suddenly, as if she had discovered something interesting, she squeezed into a crowd.
"Hey! Step right up and give it a try! A game from the ancient East, with thousands of years of history! Toss the ring, and whatever you ring, you keep! Simple rules! Honest business, no tricks!"
Watching the middle-aged boss barking his wares, Gwen asked curiously, "Boss, how do you play this?"
The bearded boss looked at Gwen, his eyes lighting up. He held up a small plastic hoop in his hand and smiled. "Use this to loop the items. As long as it lands around it, the item is yours! One dollar per ring!"
That is way too simple!
Gwen chuckled mischievously. She looked at some items in the furthest back row and muttered, "I'll win those and give them to Little Lamb to play with!"
With that, she reached out her hand. "Give me ten to start!"
(End of Chapter)