It seemed to confirm Nolan's suspicion.
Low, threatening growls filled the air.
"Grrr~"
Along with the sound appeared several vicious dogs.
They blocked every path in front of the two of them.
No, these were not ordinary dogs!
Both of them could clearly see that these so-called dogs had no fur. Their bodies were rigid, like… corpses.
Even more unnerving, their size far exceeded normal bounds, each as large as a calf.
"Looks like we're being watched," Nolan said, his tone calm, though tinged with helplessness.
Sharon Carter was not as composed. She had already drawn a small pistol from somewhere Nolan could not imagine. Seeing his peculiar expression, she asked,
"Can you tell me where I hid this before?"
Nolan looked her over, but could not find any spot on her where a pistol could be concealed.
"Now really isn't the time," Sharon muttered, eyes fixed warily on the monstrous dogs.
"These are barely a challenge," Nolan scoffed.
As soon as the words left his mouth, heavy footsteps thundered closer.
Bang, bang…
A creature four or five meters tall emerged in front of them.
Nolan's pupils contracted sharply.
"Abomination!"
It was too similar, an exact replica.
It almost felt as though he had been transported back to that fateful night.
With Abomination's appearance, a horde of monsters followed, quickly surrounding the two of them.
Nolan did not focus on the creatures but scanned the surroundings.
This was not Abomination, no matter how it looked.
Abomination had died at his hands.
No one understood better than him just how completely it had been killed.
Its appearance now could only mean that someone had recreated it or cloned a new version.
But all of this relied on one precondition.
The person behind it had to be confident enough to control Abomination.
Not far away, Samuel Sterns watched the two encircled figures with a smile on his face.
"How interesting. Now, hand over your perfect genes," he said, greed practically radiating from his eyes.
In his mind, the ultimate genetic material had once been the Hulk's. He had already cultivated a batch of Hulk genes.
Those genes, combined with Abomination's, had created the monsters before them.
But then he noticed that Nolan Locke's genes were exceptional as well.
The Hulk's genes were flawed.
Nolan Locke's, however, caused no visible adverse effects.
In other words, if he captured Nolan, he could potentially acquire these perfect genes.
"Now, for perfect evolution, for the future of this world, die, Nolan Locke," Sterns muttered to himself.
The next second, the gene-enhanced monsters surged toward them.
Sharon immediately fired back, but her small pistol was useless. Not even the calf-sized gene dogs could be stopped.
"Boss, we need to run!"
She had no intention of continuing the fight.
The moment she realized her gun was ineffective, she understood the only path to survival was escape.
"I'm afraid we can't get out," Nolan said, shaking his head.
"This street isn't usually this quiet.
"The noise these disgusting creatures make would normally attract attention, yet no one has appeared. There's only one explanation."
Sharon felt a chill run down her spine.
Nolan continued, "There are no living people around.
"When it's gone this far, do you really think they'll let us leave so easily?"
Nolan sighed.
Ever since Deadpool had been hired to assassinate him, he knew he might be targeted again.
Although he did not fear it, he had moved from the Hive base to Locke Tower to gain more control and investigation time.
He had thought that being in a bustling city would make hidden attackers hesitant.
But now, the reality was clear.
Never negotiate with a creature that has lost all humanity.
Nolan's words made Sharon feel as if the world had gone dark.
No living people left!
Previously, this had been a busy neighborhood.
Even in a small area nearby, how many people lived here?
Dozens? Hundreds?
She could not imagine the madness of a world like this.
"This can't be!" Sharon gasped instinctively.
"Nothing is impossible," Nolan said through clenched teeth. "Some people in this world simply do not value human life."
At that moment, Nolan's anger boiled over.
In this world called Marvel, he knew there were many villains.
Loki had provoked war. Abomination had been transformed into a monster.
Abomination was dead, its eyes only knowing battle. And Loki he wasn't even human.
Nolan had always believed that, whether hero or villain, humanity existed somewhere.
For him, bearing the title 'Hero Nolan' was both a tool and a restraint.
He worried about losing his humanity in this unfamiliar world.
But now?
A madman stood before him, showing him exactly what it meant to be devoid of humanity.
"Despicable creature," Nolan muttered darkly.
The monsters paid no attention to his words.
Here, perhaps only Sharon cared.
Yet he still spoke.
"I really want to tear you apart, Samuel Sterns!"
Nolan roared.
From afar, Samuel Sterns heard him and showed a flicker of surprise.
He did not understand how his perfect concealment had been exposed.
After surprise came a smile.
A dead man's words meant nothing to him.
"Rip him apart, bring me his genes! My masterpiece is about to be born!"
Sterns shouted with mania.
At that moment, Nolan caught sight of him.
He looked toward the sound and saw a man with an enormous head, arms wide as he screamed.
"Found you…" Nolan murmured.
"Red Queen!"
With a roar, streaks of missiles fell toward Nolan's position.
Boom!
A massive box hit the ground and opened.
Dozens of missiles shot out in all directions.
With thunderous explosions, the monsters charging toward Nolan were intercepted.
Then the Thor Armor appeared.
More meteors followed.
Nolan's expression hardened.
Having survived one assassination attempt, how could he be unprepared?
And his preparation was simple.
An army of Iron Legion.
Assassination?
You try me!
…