Fury was sitting in his private office, and the video feed on his desk had been cut off by the nuclear electromagnetic pulse. But Fury didn't seem to care, instead closing his eyes wearily, as if in thought, or perhaps waiting for something.
A red light flashed at this moment, and Lu Yifang, Professor X, and Red Devil appeared together.
"You really came," Fury said calmly, opening his eyes at this moment.
"I thought your reaction would be a bit more intense, after all, you've always been reluctant to see me," Professor X said with a smile, and Lu Yifangcooperatively pushed Professor's wheelchair to the opposite side of Fury's desk.
"There's no need for that here. This room is equipped with devices to monitor my mind. If my mind shows any issues, then the bombs installed throughout this room will all be detonated in the next moment," Fury said to Professor X, then specifically glanced at Red Devil.
"I can guarantee, this explosion will be so fast you won't have time to leave."
"No need for such anger. You should know we're not here to cause trouble, but to seek cooperation, just like our previous collaborations. We need you, Director Furyof S.H.I.E.L.D., just as you need us," Professor X said sincerely.
"Cooperation? If you truly considered me your partner, then this wouldn't have happened today," Fury tapped on the table, looking displeased.
"You pulled off such a big news story behind my back, and I didn't even get a hint beforehand. When I was overwhelmed by magic, alien hammers, and HYDRA, I turned around to find that my allies had created a bigger problem for me than all of that. And to solve this problem, I even fell out with my superiors, the World Security Council, representing the five most powerful countries in the World. These are my good allies, indeed."
"We all have secrets, Director Fury." Against Fury's aggressive questioning, Professor X's voice remained calm. He knew very well that if Fury were truly angry, he wouldn't be talking to him at all. This Agent, with a dark face and an even darker heart, was just trying to leverage the Mutants' guilt to gain more benefits.
And Professor was happy to fulfill his wish. Without Professor needing to speak, Lu Yifang already understood and took out a USB drive, tossing it in front of Fury.
"What is this?" Fury asked, taking the USB drive with a puzzled expression.
"Research data on the x crystal, and it's all of it. With this data, you can mass-produce x crystals within a month," Lu Yifang explained.
"This thing... you're giving it to me?" Fury's face was filled with disbelief as he took the item. At this moment, he felt like the situation was akin to two large companies haggling at a negotiation table, and then one of them suddenly threw out a property deed, saying, 'Our company headquarters is yours for free.'
"Director Fury, in the current situation, there's no doubt we need to cooperate further, and this is the Mutants' sincerity. Do you think it's enough?" Professor continued with a smile.
"What do you want to gain?" Fury said, silently putting away the USB drive. This sincerity was more than enough; Fury even wondered if it was a pie falling from the sky. Of course, whether this pie was poisoned would require further probing.
"What we want is what you want to do," Professorlooked at Fury meaningfully.
"The first interstellar war of humanity, you were a full participant, so I think you should be very clear about how far Earth's technology lags behind theirs, and how many years it will take to catch up. And during this time, if aliens invade Earth again, what will we humans use to protect ourselves?"
Listening to this, Fury didn't answer, but subconsciously tightened his grip on the USB drive. To enhance humanity's overall strength, what could be faster than awakening the X gene? Humans are a very fragile species. Whether Asgardian, Chitauri, or the Devils of hell, they are born many times stronger than humans.
But Lady Luck favored humanity; they possessed the X gene. After awakening their abilities, an ordinary human would certainly not be much worse than an Asgardian. Without a doubt, this would be an evolution for all humanity, and humans, whose population is far greater than that of Asgardians, would gain immense potential for civilizational development, and now that development potential was in his hands.
And what Fury was thinking at this moment, Lu Yifangand Professor X could naturally guess, and the globalization of abilities was what the Mutants most wanted to see. Since most people fear us, then as long as we turn those people into us, and let us become the majority, that's all that's needed.
And in this World, no one is more suitable to implement this plan than the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., Nick Fury. This is a man who has dedicated most of his life to all humanity, and he is also a radical who will do anything to protect human civilization.
Just as Fury could propose a crazy plan like turning the Tesseract into a weapon to protect Earth, how could he ignore the much more reliable plan of ability globalization?
"So this is the bargaining chip you're giving me to gamble with," Nick Fury said, suddenly smiling as he recovered from his silence.
"That's right, Director Fury, we will be your staunchest supporters," Professor X said enthusiastically. He wasn't afraid of Nick Fury going back on his word, because in this World, no one could deceive him in a face-to-face situation.
"And how exactly to do it, I think you should have more experience than us in that regard."
Hearing this, Fury did not answer, but his dark smile undoubtedly represented everything. The first phase, of course, is to provide some of the x crystal data and a large number of finished products to the five permanent members of the World Security Council. In this interstellar war, the importance of Mutants is already self-evident, so this will definitely lead to an arms race, and the result will be more and more Mutants in various countries.
In the second phase, transactions can also be made with some powerful regional countries, and in this process, S.H.I.E.L.D. can obtain extremely vast resources from countries around the World, constantly strengthening itself.
These are just the external benefits of the x crystal; internally, he can also continuously allow his Agent's abilities to awaken. Of course, before that, he needs to find a way to eliminate HYDRA. He believes that the x crystal also has a huge attraction for HYDRA, so the x crystal might be a good breakthrough point. He is already prepared to 'scrape the bone to heal the poison.'
And besides the x crystal, the technology left behind by the Chitauri is also in the hands of the Mutants. These things are not very useful in the hands of Mutants, but if they fall into Fury's hands, hmph hmph....
Fighting wars with all the countries in the World? Furyisn't an idiot; how could he do that? What he wants is a top-down reform, not a bottom-up revolution.
Admittedly, things won't go perfectly smoothly, but one thing is certain: the globalization of abilities is unstoppable. After all, how many people in this Worldcan resist the temptation to become Superman? Let alone ordinary people, even those in power are the same.
And the globalization of abilities will inevitably lead to the collapse of the existing system, and what Furyneeds to do is to continuously accumulate strength and build up an increasingly high reputation for S.H.I.E.L.D.before that happens.
With humanity already in the interstellar age, the fact that there are two hundred countries globally simply doesn't fit the times. Humanity needs a United Nations. This will definitely not be the current dispensable United Nations, but rather a Human Interstellar Federation that transcends all countries and nations.
Ch 188
At seven in the morning, as the first rays of sunlight shone through the window, Lu Yifang lazily opened his eyes.
A week had passed since the Battle of New York, and after returning from Fury and relaxing his tensed nerves, Lu Yifang finally got a few good days of rest.
He had already done what needed to be done; even if Lu Yifang was a 5-level Mutant, the revival of Mutants was not his responsibility alone—a new World required everyone to work together to build it.
Dong dong~!
A knock on the door pulled Lu Yifang back from his daze, and a soft, gentle voice came through at that moment.
"Master, breakfast is ready."
"Got it," Lu Yifang yawned, struggling to break free from the bed's 'seal' and walked into the bathroom to wash up.
When he finished getting ready, he found Katie already sitting at the table eating breakfast, and Yuriko, dressed in a maid uniform, had already brought out Lu Yifang's portion of breakfast.
At this moment, on the television, the New York Citychannel began its morning news.
Although New York City was severely damaged and faced many difficulties, the first thing chosen to be restored was the television station, as information blockage was the most important cause of chaos.
And now on the news, the mayor, elected by the people of New York City, had begun his inauguration oath.
Undoubtedly, General Ross, who had laid so much groundwork beforehand, won the election with an absolute advantage, becoming the mayor.
As for whether this New York City mayor would be recognized by the U.S. Government, Lu Yifang was not worried.
Protests and demonstrations were breaking out all over the World, and the U.S. was even more agitated domestically.
After being labeled a hero for resisting aliens, public opinion almost entirely sided with the Mutants.
Therefore, the governments of various countries, who were in the wrong, needed to show some sincerity.
In fact, the World Security Council had already been made a scapegoat.
But what was interesting was that S.H.I.E.L.D., which was originally subordinate to the World Security Council, was not implicated; instead, its reputation soared.
The reason for this was that a S.H.I.E.L.D. Agentinadvertently "leaked" a photo of Fury disobeying the World Security Council's orders and shooting down a nuclear-armed fighter jet with one shot.
Of course, Fury's success in this action and its tacit approval by various major countries were undoubtedly related to the bargaining chips he held.
When the news ended, Lu Yifang, who had finished eating, moved a chair to the balcony and began leisurely basking in the Sun, while Yuriko, at the opportune moment, brought over a pot of hot tea.
Taking a leisurely sip of hot tea, Lu Yifang looked into the distance, where a group of people were clearing debris and beginning reconstruction work.
Although a nuclear bomb had been detonated above New York, the danger now was not great, because the radioactive dust swirling above New York had drifted towards Washington with the combined efforts of Lu Yifang and Storm.
May God bless the people of Washington, Amen!
"Slurp~! This life is really good," enjoying the Sun's rays, Lu Yifang narrowed his eyes blissfully, looking like a retired old cadre.
Turning off reflection and often sunbathing was necessary; Lu Yifang didn't want himself to become more like an albino.
Although this life was good, I seemed to have forgotten something, but if I couldn't remember it, it probably wasn't anything important.
Just as Lu Yifang was about to lie down contentedly, Katie's voice suddenly came.
"Lu Yifang, you forgot today is the Academy's first day of classes; we have to go to school."
"Huh? We still have to go to school?" Hearing this, Lu Yifang was stunned.
When was the last time I went to class? I seem to have forgotten.
"Let's go, My Lord, it's time for us to go to school," Katiesaid, pulling Lu Yifang off the lounge chair.
When Yuriko drove Lu Yifang and Katie to Sacha Lee, Lu Yifang found that today's Academy was different from its usual quietness.
Thousands of parents with their children crowded into the Academy, seemingly registering.
Although other academies in other areas of New York City had gradually resumed classes, the X Academy was the only Mutant Academy!
All parents hoped their children would have a good future, and these parents who had awakened abilities naturally understood the importance of abilities.
Despite knowing the possibility was extremely small, which Mutant parent wouldn't want their child to receive the best education and become a powerful 5-level Mutant?
In fact, even they themselves wanted to enter the Academy to study, but of course, this was clearly impossible.
The possibility of secondary evolution of abilities was highest during adolescence, and given the severe shortage of teaching staff, children could only be prioritized.
Of course, the Academy also had no intention of abandoning these adults, as abilities, once out of control, could be very dangerous.
So, the Academy used the knowledge in Apocalypse's mind to print a large number of common sense guides on ability control, distributing them free of charge to everyone.
This made the entire New York City's learning atmosphere suddenly become strong; some people even began to propose renaming New York City to Academy City.
This also gained recognition from many people, because the name New York City carried too much pain, making it difficult for many to face.
"X Mutant Academy, even the Academy's name has changed," Lu Yifang stood up and murmured, looking at the school sign.
This was normal, after all, the name Sacha Lee was previously a cover and was now completely unnecessary, and the term Mutant Academy had also been canceled, as the name Mutant clearly carried discriminatory connotations.
Currently, Mutants only had two terms: ability users or awakened ones.
The previously proposed term "New Human" was temporarily shelved after discussions with Fury and General Ross, those two old foxes.
Although this name would certainly become the true designation in the future, in the current delicate situation, it could easily challenge the nerves of ordinary people.
"Sorry, you cannot be admitted."
"Why? This child is very smart and excellent.
In his previous school, all his subjects were A's," a woman's anxious voice came.
"Madam, please calm down.
If your child is excellent, then I believe he will achieve great things in other schools, but he truly cannot enter here, because this is an Mutant Academy," the admissions officer said helplessly.
"My Peter has abilities.
When those aliens killed my husband, Peter saved me.
He has great strength and can climb walls.
But I don't know why, after that, he found it very difficult to use his abilities, which is why I brought him here, hoping he could find a solution here," the woman continued to explain, but what she received was a suspicious look from the admissions office.
"Wait, your child is named Peter!" Lu Yifang, who was about to enter the school, suddenly stepped back when he heard this voice.
"You are..." Lu Yifang's sudden approach made the woman a little confused, but then she remembered that no one stopped this person from entering the Academy, so this person should also be an Academy student, and her expression immediately became enthusiastic.
"That's right, he is my nephew, Peter Parker, a powerful ability user."
Hearing this, Lu Yifang immediately looked at Peter, who was a boy who looked about fifteen or sixteen, with a somewhat introverted and shy expression.
"Hello!" At his aunt's urging, Peter greeted Lu Yifang.
Ch 189
Peter Parker, the future Spider-Man, would definitely be a highly potential warrior if he were classified among Mutants. However, it's clear that Spider-Man is somewhat different from ordinary forcibly awakened individuals. His power comes from that Mutant spider. According to the big-brained Stern's view, Spider-Manshould be called an invasive Mutant awakening.
And it's clear that the current Peter Parker hasn't been bitten by the spider yet. Although he seems to have the X gene in his body now, the process of forced awakening doesn't seem to be too smooth.
Of course, this doesn't affect Lu Yifang's optimism about Peter Parker. After all, only a few people can withstand an invasive awakening, and Stern is currently conducting research on invasive awakening. So, Spider-Man in his current state is definitely worth studying. Moreover, based on the research data they possess, with further research, creating a complete Spider-Manin the future is almost a certainty.
Thinking of this, Lu Yifang patted Spider-Man on the shoulder. "Peter Parker, you're accepted."
"Excuse me, are you...?" At this moment, the person from the Academy City's admissions office frowned slightly as he looked at Lu Yifang. Although he was a new staff member hired after the Academy City's expansion, for the sake of this job, he had specifically memorized some important figures within the school.
But among the people he had seen, it seemed there had never been this person. Not only that, was this person even from the school? Why did he feel like he had never seen him before?
"Oh! Aren't you Student Union Vice President Katie?" When the person saw Katie, he quickly stood up.
"You look somewhat familiar, but I can't recall your name," Katie said thoughtfully, looking at the person.
"My name is Jonah Jameson. It's understandable that you don't remember me; after all, I'm just a small staff member in charge of admissions." Jameson chuckled awkwardly, then looked at Lu Yifang. "So, this person beside you is..."
"I'm the Vice President of the Student Union, so this one is the President."
"What? You're the rumored President of the Student Union who's always... always out on missions?" Risking biting his tongue, Jameson managed to smooth over his words. He was quite quick-witted, one had to admit.
Lu Yifang naturally didn't care what he was about to say. Instead, he picked up the application form and focused on the 'Counselor' section. In the U.S., a counselor is equivalent to a homeroom teacher, which is quite important for students.
So Lu Yifang decided to choose a suitable homeroom teacher for Peter. Lu Yifang vaguely remembered that guy also being forcibly pulled into the Academy Citydue to a shortage of teachers. Thus, Lu Yifangunhesitatingly wrote "Deadpool" in the 'Counselor' section.
"Work hard. You can join the Student Union if you get the chance." Lu Yifang waved at Peter, then turned and left with Katie amidst the surprised gazes of everyone.
"Katie, the Student Union's status seems to have changed again. This isn't my imagination, is it?" Lu Yifang, walking into the Academy City, turned back and said to Katie.
"This is normal. There aren't many teachers in the Academy City to begin with, and they also have to go out on missions. How could they constantly supervise students' studies like in a normal school? And when the number of students increases, especially when most of these students have Mutant abilities, accidents can easily happen. So, the power of the Student Union and the Lionheart Society, these two student self-governing organizations, will naturally rise," Katie explained to Lu Yifang.
"How exactly will it rise?" Lu Yifang asked curiously.
"Don't forget the name of the city we're in right now is Academy City, so you should understand better than me, after all, you're also one of the builders of this city." Katie winked at Lu Yifang and smiled playfully.
"A new power mechanism." Lu Yifang's eyes flashed with understanding upon hearing this. This interstellar war had almost destroyed all the old systems of the former New York City. General Ross had established a new system by relying on members of the Brotherhoodand the X-Men.
And most of these members were teachers at the Academy City, so the core of power in the entire Academy City was surprisingly the Mutant Academy. And whether they were X-Men or Brotherhoodmembers, they would certainly absorb outstanding students from the Academy City in the future. This was clearly a newly born power mechanism.
"Since you understand the importance of your identity, it's time to fulfill your duties. I've specially prepared your itinerary for today," Katie said, pulling out a long list from somewhere.
"First, at nine in the morning, there's the welcoming new student speech. At ten, the regular Student Unionmeeting. At eleven-thirty, a meeting with the Enforcement Team to discuss the first batch of Student Union members to join the Enforcement Team. Then at one in the afternoon... Huh, where is he?" When Katiecame back to her senses, Lu Yifang was already gone, his escape speed definitely supersonic.
Upon seeing the long list in Katie's hand, Lu Yifangmade the wisest choice—skipping class.
What a joke! I came to school for a vacation after saving the World, not for overtime work. And even if I did work overtime, I wouldn't get credits like you guys. Who wants to do this volunteer labor?
Of course, despite saying that, Lu Yifang still unconsciously walked to the Mission Hall. Idling around the school wasn't an option, because no matter where he went, he could feel gazes of awe from all directions.
So, it was better to go out and do a mission, just for entertainment. Compared to last time, the Mission Hall had been expanded again, and both the number of people and the number of missions had greatly increased.
Some of these missions were the simplest C-Rank missions, such as leading new junior students to get to know the campus. More difficult B-Rank missions required leaving the Academy City, for example, a certain construction team needing specific Mutantassistance, or going to a certain area to spread literacy. Of course, here 'literacy' referred to popularizing some basic Mutant knowledge.
And the higher-level ones mostly involved combat. New York City had awakened two million Mutants in total, and among them, those who lost control of their abilities or committed evil after gaining abilities were not few.
Although General Ross had organized an Enforcement Team to maintain order, it was clear that the Enforcement Team was severely understaffed and needed to invite some helpers from the Academy City.
And at the top of these missions, the most eye-catching was an S-Rank mission specially marked in red:
"S-Rank Mission: Assist the Enforcement Team in subduing or killing several suspicious entities invading Academy City (Note: The opponent may possess Mutant weapons specifically designed to counter Mutants). Requirements: A Lv3 Ice or Electric ability user is needed.
Mission Issuer: Enforcement Team Captain FrankCastle."
"Suspected Mutant weapons." Lu Yifang chewed on the words, his expression becoming serious. Lu Yifang was not unfamiliar with the term 'Mutant weapon'. When Apocalypse first awakened, the armor he wore was actually a Mutant equipment he had forged himself, similar in function to magic equipment.
Lu Yifang wasn't very interested in Mutant weapons themselves, as there were simply too few Mutantequipments that could assist a 5-level Mutant; they were not that easy to obtain.
Lu Yifang was concerned about the incident itself, because due to the broken inheritance of Mutants in the past, no one in modern times could manufacture Mutantweapons. Even Stern, after obtaining Apocalypse's knowledge, was only in the experimental stage of researching Mutant weapons. So, where exactly did these Mutant weapons come from?
Ch 190
The Enforcers, for Lu Yifang, was a term that was neither unfamiliar nor entirely strange. It was familiar because the idea for General Ross to establish The Enforcers team was given by Lu Yifang. It was strange because he only offered the idea, and Lu Yifang had no idea how everything else progressed.
Following the location indicated in the mission, Lu Yifang arrived in front of a building that looked somewhat like a research institute. Of course, no matter what this building was used for in the past, its current purpose was to serve as The Enforcers' Base.
The so-called Enforcers' Base was not as heavily guarded as imagined; in fact, there were still many large holes in some of the walls, left from the battle against the aliens. The people inside apparently had no intention of repairing them immediately.
Withdrawing his gaze, Lu Yifang walked into the building. The building was spacious inside, filled with a large amount of miscellaneous items, and overall, it appeared very dim.
Just as Lu Yifang was observing his surroundings, a strong beam of light suddenly shot towards Lu Yifang, shining directly and unfriendlily into his eyes.
"Little brother, you've come to the wrong place, haven't you? Just a kind reminder, most of the people who come here are not here voluntarily," a man with sideburns said playfully, leaning on the railing, the strong light emanating from his palm.
"If this is The Enforcers' building, then I haven't come to the wrong place." Lu Yifang looked up and smiled at the man. Lu Yifang's eyes suddenly became dazzling at that moment, and that brief eye contact made the man feel as if his eyes had been blinded.
"I'm from the Student Union, here to help with the mission you issued."
"Very good, you look decent enough." The man immediately retracted the strong light from his hand. "But performing missions with The Enforcers carries a danger that cannot be compared to those childish missions on the Academy City's mission board. Captainthrowing this mission into the Academy City was a mistake. So if you want to live, abandon this mission, do you understand?"
"Don't worry, I've done hell-level dangerous missions before," Lu Yifang shrugged, saying nonchalantly.
"That's not funny at all, kid. This isn't the time to be reckless, you..." The man's face immediately darkened upon hearing this, but just as he reached out to touch Lu Yifang, a woman's voice came at that moment.
"Eclipse, he's not lying. Compared to him, what we've done is just small-time. After all, he's our new BOSS."
Hearing this, Lu Yifang immediately looked up and saw a green-haired woman with heavy black makeup walking over.
"New boss? You mean he's Alester?" The man's expression instantly became incredulous as he looked at Lu Yifang.
"So you were transferred from the Brotherhood." A hint of realization flashed in Lu Yifang's eyes. Alester was the alias Lu Yifang used when appearing in the Brotherhood to prevent his identity from being exposed.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Beijixing~!" The woman walked over and said respectfully.
"Beijixing, you're Magneto's daughter." Now it was Lu Yifang's turn to be surprised.
"Did my father ever mention me to you? That truly surprises me." Hearing this, Beijixing's eyes lit up, but then the joy in her eyes turned to sorrow.
"Magneto, my father, is a great hero who fought for the future of Mutants, but it's not easy to be the relative of a great hero. He left my mother since I was born, and when I found him as an adult, he didn't even recognize me as his daughter."
Seeing Beijixing's expression, Eclipse also walked over and tightly held her hand.
"Sorry, I lost my composure." Taking a deep breath, Beijixing had already suppressed the complex emotions in her heart. "Let me formally introduce them: this is Eclipse, and those two over there are Blink and Thunderbird."
Following the direction Beijixing pointed, Lu Yifang saw a strong young man who had just walked in, and a purple-haired woman.
"They are all my teammates, and most of The Enforcersare friends who came over from the Brotherhood."
"I've also carried out a few missions with people from the Brotherhood, but this is the first time I've met you and these friends," Lu Yifang said with some surprise, observing the four of them.
"Of course, because we are rats," Beijixing said calmly.
In the past, Mutant power was divided into two parts: visible and hidden. The X-Men were Mutants who walked in the light, and there were many things The X-Men could not do. Although Magneto himself was notoriously high-profile, always stirring up big news, a true comparison would reveal that only a few members of the Brotherhood were infamous. The rest were 'rats' who hid in the Shadow and rarely showed themselves.
These 'rats' protected the safety of Mutants in the dark corners unseen by ordinary people, for example, destroying some Mutant research institutes and silently assassinating certain extremely stubborn factions. It's imaginable that without them, the plight of Mutants would have been even more miserable.
"The establishment of Academy City has made all Mutants into Awakened ones. The power of The X-Menand the Brotherhood has now been integrated," Beijixing said, specifically glancing at Lu Yifang.
"Father truly didn't misjudge you; no one is more suitable to inherit his mantle than you. You truly led us towards the light."
"That's not my credit alone," Lu Yifang waved his hand, saying earnestly.
Upon hearing this, Beijixing merely smiled faintly and didn't dwell on the topic, instead suddenly changing the subject. "Although light is beautiful, unfortunately, we are rats; darkness is our true home."
"So you joined The Enforcers," Lu Yifang said, thoughtfully looking at the four.
"There is darkness everywhere. To maintain the beauty of Academy City, someone always has to do the dirty work," Beijixing said with a smile. "To deal with evildoers, you must be more evil and more ruthless than them. Only then can you protect what is beautiful. This is what The Punisher, our current Captain, says."
"It seems you all respect The Punisher very much," Lu Yifang raised an eyebrow upon hearing this. Don't let the current Beijixing, who is chatty like a big sister next door, fool you. From her tone, it's clear that when she deals with enemies, she will absolutely not show a trace of mercy. Weakness is a fatal flaw for rats living in the Shadow.
And The Punisher, in less than a week as the Captain of The Enforcers, managed to earn the respect of these tough individuals. One can imagine his methods after awakening his powers.
And a rumor Lu Yifang heard two days ago now seemed to be true. After The Punisher became the Captain of The Enforcers, it only took him three days to reduce Academy City's crime rate by eighty percent, and the chaotic public order suddenly became orderly.
The Punisher's reputation came from this. Some criminals even voluntarily confessed and surrendered, simply because they were afraid of encountering The Enforcers led by The Punisher. After all, going to prison only means being reformed, but those targeted by The Punisher generally do not reappear.
Of course, regarding The Punisher's ruthless methods, some superheroes might disapprove, but Lu Yifang did not find it objectionable. In chaotic times, severe measures are needed. In this increasingly chaotic era, to maintain order in Academy City and protect this Mutanthome from harm, a ruthless person like The Punisher is indispensable.
Ch 191
The Punisher, whose real name is Frank Castle, was once a special forces soldier in the Marine Corps.
He is proficient in various tactics, skilled in using any firearm and vehicle, and possesses master-level combat techniques, making him an ace among elites.
He had completed many seemingly impossible missions, so much so that even Fury was impressed by him, rating him as a "Level Ten Agent."
Of course, besides Frank's exceptional abilities, another reason Fury might have done this was probably because "what you can't get is always the best."
Fury, who had maxed out his 'small hoe' skill points, had spent a lot of effort but still couldn't recruit him from the Military to S.H.I.E.L.D. as an Agent.
Instead, Frank himself grew tired of slaughter and Death, directly retiring from the Military and returning to New York to live a quiet life.
Originally, the plot of a special forces king returning to the city should have involved him punching the government and kicking the underworld, with domineering female CEOs and beautiful campus queens throwing themselves at him.
But unfortunately, the house he sold was in New York.
He didn't get power, money, or beautiful women.
After finally managing to marry a wife, she and their child were gone within a few years of peace.
And during this alien invasion, the government he had originally served not only failed to send the Military to rescue his family but instead directly launched a nuclear apocalypse.
This made Frank completely disillusioned with the current government.
Therefore, when General Ross proposed that New Yorkimplement self-governance, Frank quickly stepped forward to respond.
He no longer wanted to hide in a corner waiting for a superhero's rescue; he wanted to stand up and use his own strength to judge evil and protect this city he had once failed to protect.
And now, this middle-aged man with a sparse goatee, resting his chin on his hands, always looking serious as if deep in thought, has reached the pinnacle of Academy City's underworld, becoming The Punisher, a name that strikes fear into the hearts of criminals.
"Knock, knock!"
As Frank was pondering, a knock on the door suddenly came, and after receiving permission, Beijixing led Lu Yifang in.
"It's you, Lu Yifang, the Academy City Academy President!"
When Frank saw Lu Yifang, he was also startled.
"When did my reputation become so great?"
Lu Yifang raised an eyebrow.
Compared to Magneto, who was so high-profile he'd practically hold a press conference when causing trouble, Lu Yifang preferred to stay behind the scenes and create big news.
"It's alright, General Ross...the Mayor mentioned you to me, and while I don't like politics, I do try to understand the higher-ups in Academy City," Frank explained, then invited Lu Yifang to sit down.
"I originally thought that if this S-Rank mission could attract the ice-element President of the Lionheart Society, it would already be very good, but I didn't expect the effect to be even better than anticipated.
It seems this mission has something that interests you."
Frank wasn't a fool.
A high-ranking individual like Lu Yifang was either making big news or on the way to making big news.
How could he come down to the grassroots level to be an auxiliary police officer for the law enforcement team, maintaining city order?
"Tell me about the problem you've encountered."
Lu Yifang waved his hand, signaling Frank to get straight to the point.
"We discovered several invaders, all of whom are Mutants, and they seem to be carrying devices that can weaken Mutants' powers, so they are a bit troublesome to deal with.
These are some photos we obtained."
Frank said, handing over some photos.
In the photos, the foremost figure was a blonde man whose upper body looked no different from an ordinary person, but his lower body was in the form of Water.
Behind him stood several blue-skinned Mutants, holding tridents and wearing unusual armor, with scales vaguely visible on some parts of their bodies.
"The one in front is a villain nicknamed Water Man; his real name is Morris Bench.
After awakening his powers through the x crystal, he went around committing evil.
Because of his special abilities, he has escaped from me twice.
As for these Mutants behind him, I couldn't find any information about them in the archives, so they should be foreign invaders, and the weapons specifically used to deal with Mutants were brought by them."
"What is their purpose?"
Lu Yifang asked, his gaze not leaving the blue-skinned Mutants.
"It should be the x crystal," Frank replied.
"If that's the case, then we can rule out spies from various governments."
Lu Yifang concluded.
Although the first batch of x crystal provided by S.H.I.E.L.D. was only for the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, with Fury's shrewdness, if the stakes were high enough, a small opening could be made.
So, if it's just for research and not mass production of Mutants, then undoubtedly, countries around the Worldall have x crystal.
And even the five permanent members who want to mass-produce Mutant warriors would absolutely not infiltrate Academy City to steal the x crystal at this time, as it would be a net loss.
Their current focus is definitely on analyzing the x crystal formula.
But unfortunately, they will soon be disappointed; the x crystal was manufactured by combining Kreetechnological data.
How could it be so easy to analyze?
After reaching this conclusion, Lu Yifang also breathed a sigh of relief.
The relationship between Academy City and various governments is currently very delicate.
On one hand, Mutants are heroes who defeated alien civilizations, enjoying greatly increased prestige among ordinary citizens and strong backing from S.H.I.E.L.D., which makes the governments hesitant to act.
On the other hand, there are two million Mutants suddenly appearing in this World, and although Academy City has them firmly confined to one place, this power is something no authority can ignore.
Therefore, although they will not easily resort to force, there will certainly be no shortage of invading spies, and dealing with them is also a very troublesome matter.
"So you believe these invaders come from some terrorist organization or force?" Frank analyzed.
"It's also possible they are other, more special entities."
Lu Yifang smiled mysteriously.
"So, tell me about your capture plan.
Since you've even gone to the Academy to post a mission, you must have a plan in mind."
"That's natural."
A rare smile appeared on Frank's serious face.
"Tonight at 8 PM, the Mutant Research Institute will provide a batch of x crystal to S.H.I.E.L.D.
We just need to wait at the airport, and I'm sure they will come."
Although Fury had already obtained the x crystalformula, for now, Fury still let Academy City provide the supply and did not choose to mass-produce it himself, after all, the HYDRA problem in his agency had not yet been resolved.
"Since it's decided, let's act.
Do you usually drive or fly?"
Lu Yifang stood up and said.
"Neither."
Flicker smiled mysteriously and strode to the door, and as a purple light flashed, when he opened the door, the other side of this door was already a spacious airport.
"We always go through doors."
"Very good."
A hint of surprise appeared on Lu Yifang's face.
"You might be the only person not graduated from Kamar-Taj who can play with opening doors so skillfully."
Ch 192
At 8 PM, Lu Yifang and The Punisher stood in the airport's surveillance room, watching as the research institute staff loaded the x crystal onto the plane.
"The plane is about to take off, but those people still haven't appeared," Lu Yifang said, frowning.
"No, those guys have very likely already arrived. Given today's weather, the fog shouldn't be this dense. Thunderbird, have you found anything?" The experienced Frank immediately turned his gaze to Thunderbird.
"That guy has definitely already entered the plane," Thunderbird replied, his eyes flickering.
Thunderbird's ability is very special, it should be summarized as two types: first, he possesses an enhanced physique; second, through information gathering and inference, he can deduce events that happened in the short past and will happen in the future, similar to a super profiler.
"Blink, start the encirclement," Frank ordered without hesitation upon hearing this.
"Okay, Captain," Blink said, hearing the command, and directly opened a portal to the warehouse.
At this moment, a middle-aged man suddenly appeared in the plane's cargo hold, and in front of him was the box containing the x crystal.
"Quite a surprise, you bitch," Frank said, pulling out a shotgun and firing it at the man's chest.
Bang! The man's body exploded at that moment, but what flew everywhere was not blood and organs, but a pool of clear Water.
"As expected of The Punisher, he truly cannot be underestimated." At this moment, the man's laughter also came, and the splashing Water quickly re-condensed into the man's form, appearing to have not suffered any damage.
"Then how about this?" Eclipse suddenly rushed out from behind Frank, and an extremely dazzling light appeared in his hand. Although light is not Fire, if it's strong enough, heating it to melt steel is effortless.
While short-term high temperatures didn't cause much harm to the Water Man, it was enough to make him very uncomfortable, so after cursing "Damn it," the Water Man suddenly transformed into a thick mist, wrapping the box of x crystal and escaping.
"Quick, chase!" Although the x crystal in that box had long been swapped, missing this opportunity today would make it even harder to catch this guy.
However, when the group chased him out, they found that the Water Man hadn't escaped; instead, he stood there waiting for them.
"The Punisher, you seem to have misunderstood. I don't need to escape from you guys at all. After all, I am the Water Man, and 71% of this World is my main battlefield," the Water Man said, suddenly raising his hand. A large amount of Water vapor began to surge into the Water Man's body, causing his size to instantly increase by a circle.
"Huh, what's going on?" This small change was clearly far from what the Water Man had expected. The Water Man can control any non-biological Water vapor. According to his prediction, as soon as he waved his hand, all the nearby Water should be drawn to him. But besides the fog in the air, what were these few boxes of mineral Water that flew in?
"Sorry, the airport's Water is off today," Frank said, pulling out a pre-prepared Rocket launcher and firing a shot at the Water Man.
"Colossus, Hedgehog, and those friends, if the My Lordbehind you is truly interested in the x crystal, then you must eliminate these obstacles!" No sooner had the Water Man roared than the airport wall was suddenly shattered by a giant man, followed by a man covered in spikes and two blue-skinned mutants wearing armor and wielding tridents.
Seeing that reinforcements had arrived, the Water Man's confidence grew. He suddenly transformed his hand into a gun barrel and aimed it at Lu Yifang and the others.
"Da da da!" Intense gunfire erupted. Through high-pressure conversion between Water vapor, the Water Man rapidly shot out Water as bullets, with power even surpassing ordinary firearms.
"I'll take care of this guy," Lu Yifang said, looking at the dodging crowd. He charged at the Water Man without hesitation, enduring the Water gun, and blasted him into a splash of Water with a single punch.
"You're courting death!" The Water Man instantly re-condensed in front of Lu Yifang and aimed the gun barrel at Lu Yifang's eyes.
Bang! The bullet, the moment it was fired, returned to his body, creating a ripple across him.
Whoosh! Lu Yifang backhanded him, shattering the Water Man into pieces again.
"How is this possible? What exactly are you..." The re-condensed Water Man had already retreated more than ten meters away, a look of shock on his face, but before he could finish his sentence, he was once again shattered by the pursuing Lu Yifang.
"It's useless, pure strength can't hurt me." The Water Man was indeed right; Lu Yifang hadn't noticed any exhaustion from him being constantly dispersed and re-condensed. Instead, by continuously absorbing the surrounding mist, this guy had already grown to ten meters in size.
"Interesting, your body structure is indeed very special, but that's all it is." Lu Yifang, who had shattered the Water Man once again, did not let the Water Man re-condense into a huge body. Instead, while the Water Man was still relatively small, he reached out and squeezed, and the Water flow that was originally converging towards the Water Man was suddenly isolated and dispersed by a strong wind.
The Water Man himself was trapped within a three-meter sphere; high-speed flowing wind bound him at the very center, and the omnipresent pressure compressed him into a spherical shape.
"Looks like I've caught you," Lu Yifang said, walking over with a playful expression.
"You, you..." The Water ball at this moment condensed into a terrified face. Besides the monarch from the deep sea who made him unable to resist in the slightest, this was the second time he had encountered someone who could so easily capture him.
"It's useless, I am the Water Man. Changes in the gaseous, liquid, and solid states will not cause me much harm. You can only temporarily hold me," the Water Man said calmly, suppressing the fear in his heart.
"Junior high chemistry question, what happens when Water with impurities encounters a strong electric current?" Lu Yifang said, then clenched his hand tightly.
The next moment, the sphere emitted dazzling electrical light, looking at first glance like a giant spherical lightning bolt glowing, and from the center of the plasma ball, the Water Man's screams could be heard.
Having subdued the Water Man, Lu Yifang turned to look at the others. Frank was entangled with the man named Hedgehog, and with his enhanced healing ability, Frank had already gained an absolute upper hand. Thunderbird and Blink were fighting the two blue-skinned mutants.
However, the most eye-catching battle was between Beijixing and Eclipse against Colossus. This Colossus mutant, true to his nickname, could transform into a giant over ten meters tall, forcing Beijixing and Eclipseinto a difficult struggle.
"Do you need my help?" Lu Yifang asked at this moment. The Water Man in the lightning ball was already screaming less, so Lu Yifang wasn't worried about him escaping.
"No need, I have a way to deal with him," Beijixing said, pulling a coin from her pocket. The familiar energy field around Beijixing also appeared.
Beijixing, with electric sparks flickering on her hand, tossed the coin. The next moment, as a dazzling light ignited, a terrifying torrent of electricity tore through the air, becoming an unavoidable pillar of light that poured onto Colossus.
Bang! Flesh splattered at that moment, and the smell of burning quickly spread through the air. When Colossus regained his senses, a large hole had already appeared in his chest.
"This is... Magneto taught you?" Lu Yifang stammered, seeing this scene.
"My ability is the same as my father's, so my father taught me a bit when we last met. It's just a pity that my ability is far inferior to my father's, and my proficiency isn't enough. For now, I can only launch small things, like a coin," Beijixing said with some self-deprecation, shaking the coin in her hand.
"It's okay, I have high hopes for your potential," Lu Yifang said, his eyes brightening slightly. He quickly took Beijixing's hand and comforted her, "One day, the electric light dancing on your fingertips will be the unchanging... for many people in this life."
Ch 193
With a scream, the Mutant named Hedgehog had also been killed by Frank. As a Level 10 Agent who had awakened the ability of enhanced healing, his strength was naturally not to be underestimated.
Seeing that their helpers had been taken care of, the two blue-skinned Mutants became anxious. They forcefully disengaged from their battle with Thunderbird and Blink... Well, saying they only got rid of Thunderbird might be more accurate, as Blink's primary role was to open portals for the team, after which she could hide in a corner, at most providing support with a pistol.
Looking at the crowd surrounding them, the two blue-skinned Mutants exchanged glances. One of them then took down a pillar from behind him.
This pillar was about one meter long and made of a material that resembled golden fish bone, though its color was golden. Many runes were carved onto the pillar. These runes were very different from those of the magic users and the armor on Apocalypse, clearly indicating they were not from the same civilization system.
One of the blue-skinned Mutants suddenly cut the skin of his palm, letting blood flow onto the golden fish bone pillar.
"For Atlantis!" As the fish bone pillar heavily struck the ground, both of them knelt down sincerely.
At the same time, the red fish eye at the top of the golden fish bone pillar suddenly lit up. The next moment, a blood-red Impact suddenly spread out.
Beijixing and the others who were hit by this Impact all grunted and knelt on the ground, looking uncomfortable. At this moment, only Lu Yifang was still standing, but even he felt a slight discomfort.
This was what Frank had mentioned: the weapon in their hands that could suppress Mutants' abilities. For it to make a group of Level 3 Mutants so uncomfortable, its power was indeed considerable.
Thinking of this, Lu Yifang strode to the fish bone pillar and pulled it out of the ground.
"I can take it back for research," Lu Yifang said, then put the fish bone pillar into his magic ring.
"You land dweller... How is this possible?" The two blue-skinned Mutants kneeling on the ground were stunned. They had stimulated the power of the ocean totem to its maximum extent, almost exhausting all their strength, but the result was this.
"Speak, who exactly are you?" Lu Yifang asked coldly, looking down at them.
"Land dweller, although you are powerful, we are loyal to our King and will never betray him," one of the blue-skinned Mutants said resolutely.
"You keep saying 'land dweller', so you are not from the land, but from the ocean," Frank said as he walked over, staring at the scales on the two Mutants.
"And you're from the Atlantis civilization in the Atlantic Ocean. Don't look at me so surprised," Lu Yifang gave them a side glance. "You already said it when you activated that thing and chanted the spell."
Underwater people: "..."
"Why did you come to the land? Is the mastermind the King you just mentioned?" Frank had already pointed his gun at one of their foreheads.
But that person showed no fear; instead, a resolute glint flashed in his eyes. "Don't dream. Even if you kill me, I won't say anything."
Frank was not angered by this; instead, a smirk appeared on his lips, and he put his gun away. "You know what? The Punisher is actually better at interrogation than killing. Eclipse, you know what to do."
"If you live underwater, are you afraid of heat?" Eclipsesaid, walking up to them and extending his hand towards them. "My ability is light, and if light is strong enough, it can even melt steel. Guess how many seconds you can last."
"Eclipse, we're not in a hurry, so you can take ten minutes to slowly roast them into dried fish," Frankreminded him with a cold voice.
"The one who instructed us... is the King of Atlantis, Aquaman Namor," facing The Punisher's ruthless interrogation methods, one of the underwater people finally succumbed.
"What exactly do you want to do by coming to the land?" Frank continued to press.
"We don't know either, we only know that one day Aquaman secretly brought a guard team ashore and came to a desert with remnants of battle traces. Then, for some reason, Aquaman brought us here."
"Desert?" Hearing this, Lu Yifang's eyes flashed, and he suddenly understood. It seemed the Atlanteans were drawn by Apocalypse's distress signal.
"So where is this Aquaman now?" Frank asked again.
"Aquaman is currently on the island where that huge statue is located," the two Atlanteans said, pointing in the direction of Liberty Island in the distance.
"Since he's already here, let's go meet him," Lu Yifangsaid, his eyes flickering. Lu Yifang was very interested in the existence of Atlantis.
Because Atlanteans are actually a branch of Mutants; they did not perish as Apocalypse thought, but survived to this day. It was normal for them, possessing partial heritage, to be able to create Mutant weapons.
Frank nodded at Lu Yifang's suggestion. Since the invaders were within Academy City, he naturally couldn't ignore them. So everyone turned their gaze towards Blink again.
And the meaning of these gazes was surprisingly consistent: stop hiding, the battle is over, come quickly and open the portal!
Liberty Island, once New York's most famous tourist destination and a proud symbol for New Yorkers, seemed to have been subconsciously overlooked by the Mutants, who were diligently rebuilding after the alien invasion. When Blink opened the teleportation portal, Lu Yifang could only see vast ruins and metal debris, as the Liberty Statue had long since collapsed due to the attack from a Chitauri Mothership.
The pride of the New York people had become a scar on Academy City, almost no one willing to mention it, and no one wanting to come here. This made Lu Yifang sigh a little, after all, his first mission was also on Liberty Island.
Now Liberty Island was no longer Liberty Island, and Lu Yifang was no longer the naive Mutant who had just entered the academy and knew nothing. He was the Academy's student council president, a core high-level member of Academy City, and a truly powerful Level 5 Mutant.
"My King, please forgive us," while Lu Yifang was lost in thought, the two Atlanteans knelt on the ground in terror.
Following their gaze, Lu Yifang saw a short-haired man with bare arms, sitting on the rubble of the ruins, holding a golden trident.
Noticing the gaze of Lu Yifang and his group, AquamanNamor suddenly raised his golden trident and struck the ground. In an instant, a blood-red Impact spread from the scepter. A stronger oppressive force than the ocean totem surged, forcefully pressing Frank and the others to the ground. This was the dignity and wrath of the ocean King.
"Land dweller, why do you not kneel when you see King?" Aquaman Namor raised his head and spoke to Lu Yifang with authority.
Ch 194
Your trident looks quite good." Facing Namo's imposing words, Lu Yifang merely looked calmly at Namo's trident.
He could feel that what was truly powerful wasn't Namo, but the trident in his hand. If he wasn't mistaken, this trident was the symbol of the Atlantis king's authority, and perhaps the prototype of the trident Poseidon held in myths and legends.
"Land dweller, are you provoking the dignity of the Ocean Monarch?" Hearing Lu Yifang's words, a hint of displeasure appeared on Namo's face.
"Yes, so what?" Lu Yifang said indifferently. The other party's high-and-mighty attitude also made Lu Yifangvery displeased.
"Then you need to understand the price of provoking the Ocean Monarch." Namo was enraged. He was already short-tempered, and now the other party had not only captured his people but also disrespected him, which made it impossible for the hot-tempered Namo to tolerate.
He wanted to properly teach this land-based mutant how to respect an Atlantis monarch. This was from Namo's pride and confidence, because Atlantis's mutant inheritance had not been cut off like that on land.
"Whoosh~!" The originally calm river water suddenly became turbulent, and the rising Water level instantly spread to Lu Yifang's feet. At this moment, Namo also stood up and pointed his trident at Lu Yifang.
"Boom~!" A ten-meter-high wave appeared without warning, and Namo had already jumped to the top of the wave, stepping on it and looking down at Lu Yifangfrom above, raising his trident and thrusting it forward with a low roar.
Lu Yifang glanced at Frank and Beijixing and the others. This wave would be troublesome for them. With a flash in his eyes, Lu Yifang took a step forward and extended his hand towards Namo.
"Shinra Tensei~!" As the air deformed in an instant, the next moment, the wave created by Namo directly collided with a terrifying force and disintegrated.
And Namo himself was sent flying backward, happily tumbling on the river surface like a skipping stone.
"My King~!" Seeing this scene, the two Atlanteans immediately changed their expressions. The powerful Ocean Monarch being sent flying like this was something they found unacceptable.
But Namo was not as fragile as they imagined. He quickly stabilized himself, and with a gloomy expression, Namo gripped his trident and slammed it onto the Water surface. A faint golden light suddenly emanated from the bottom of the trident, quickly spreading across the entire river surface. Under the effect of this mysterious power, the entire river seemed to come alive, churning violently, and dozens of meters high waves suddenly surged up again, threatening to engulf a good portion of New York.
"Land dweller, you are very powerful, but can you contend with the rivers and seas?" Namo on the wave coldly stared at Lu Yifang. For him, causing a wave to engulf a city was incredibly easy.
"It is indeed a bit troublesome, but it's enough to deal with you." Lu Yifang said, suddenly raising his hand. A light sphere sparkling with intense electrical sparks appeared, then quickly expanded into a plasma ball with a diameter of five meters. "I wonder if you, who live under the sea, have ever seen a torpedo fishing."
Lu Yifang finished speaking and directly threw this huge plasma ball out, and Namo was naturally not foolish. Feeling the terrifying current of the plasma ball that made his scalp tingle, a somewhat unnerved Namoimmediately dove into the Water.
But it was already too late. The plasma bomb had already exploded in the Water, and high-intensity currents spread through the Water at the speed of light, giving Namo no time to escape.
"Boom~!" The giant wave, at this moment, lost control and crashed down, surging towards the rebuilt New York City. Upon seeing this, Lu Yifang immediately rushed into the wave, using his power to forcibly pull the violently inertial Water flow back into the river. And when the Water surface completely calmed down, Lu Yifang also threw the electrocuted Namo back onto the land.
"Do you still want to continue playing?" Lu Yifanglooked down at Namo from above, still toying with several basketball-sized plasma balls in his hands.
"We… perhaps we can talk!" There was no doubt Namochickened out. Initially, he was so arrogant, besides genuinely looking down on land dwellers whose mutant inheritance had been cut off, it was also because he was in the wrong in this matter. So Namo intended to act like a powerful dragon suppressing a local snake, deal with this group of people, grab the x crystal, and then just leave and go back to the bottom of the sea.
But now, facing a situation where he was being rubbed on the ground by someone else, if he still maintained an arrogant and unyielding face, that would not be arrogance, but foolishness.
"You want to talk? Answer my questions first." Lu Yifangsaid unceremoniously. If you say talk, then my fight would have been in White.
Hearing this, Namo, who understood that circumstances were stronger than him, merely glanced at the two bound Atlantis warriors, then said, "As long as you release my people, I will answer your questions."
Lu Yifang did not refuse Namo's request. After all, the main target had already been captured. "Speak, why did you come to the land? Was it because of the distress signal Apocalypse sent earlier?"
"Exactly." Namo nodded. "Apocalypse once established an alliance with Atlantis, but he has been missing for five thousand years. I only understood that this was a distress signal after consulting my ancestors' ancient texts. That's why I personally came to the land with a few escorts to investigate, but I didn't find Apocalypse. Instead, I heard about the x crystal."
After Namo finished speaking, his gaze towards Lu Yifang also became strange. Didn't they say that the land's mutant inheritance had been cut off? Why were they able to invent x crystal that even Atlantis couldn't produce, and their combat power was so fierce? Did you use a cheat, or did you have alien assistance?
"So you're interested in the x crystal." Lu Yifang's gaze became playful.
"Of course." Namo said, steeling himself. "Even with Atlantis's technology, we are still at a loss when it comes to spontaneously awakening powers. We only have some auxiliary methods to increase the awakening rate."
"That's good. It just so happens that I'm also interested in your mutant weapons." Lu Yifang picked up the trident and began to play with it, and as Lu Yifangmoved, the river surface also began to churn.
There was no doubt that although Namo's power could control Water flow, his ability to easily reach that level just now was also greatly assisted by this trident.
"Perhaps we can cooperate, after all, we are originally of the same race." Lu Yifang said, returning the trident to Namo, and his expression also became enthusiastic.
"You want to make a trade." Namo took the trident and stood up, saying. If the x crystal could truly achieve the effect he envisioned, then exchanging it for some Atlantis technology would definitely be worthwhile, after all, the x crystal concerned the very foundation of their race.
"I hope our cooperation is more than just a transaction. You have been isolated from the land for so long, have you never thought of restoring contact with the land?" Lu Yifang patted Namo's shoulder, his tone becoming serious. "There are many threats in this World, and there will be even more threats in the future. Perhaps we can continue that ancient alliance."
"That's an idea worth considering." The matter was too significant; even if Namo was the King of Atlantis, he couldn't simply agree to everything because of a few words from Lu Yifang.
"Oh, by the way, I have one more question. What exactly happened to Apocalypse?" Although Namo had no interest in Apocalypse, whom he had never met, he had come ashore because of him, so he couldn't help but ask now.
"Apocalypse, huh~." Hearing this, the smile on Lu Yifang's face stiffened. "He is… very well now. Our mutants owe a lot to his selfless dedication today. He has now retired to the background, using his knowledge to teach a new generation of mutants."