A sliver of light from the curtains sliced the New York night into a thin line.
Inside the room, the only sounds were two heartbeats and one breath, a profound silence.
The distance between them was compressed to its limit; the air was hot and sticky.
Lynt could clearly see the undisguised desire and scrutiny in Raven's amber beast-like eyes, like a blue female leopard assessing its prey.
He adopted a 'since I'm already here, why not go all out' attitude.
He embraced the survival philosophy of 'even if it's ugly, I'll still kill it'.
More importantly, he saw this as a roundabout way to save the country, a tactical compromise with a fucked-up fate.
Lynt offered no resistance.
Mystique (Raven)'s arm snaked around his neck, a half-smile playing on her lips, carrying three parts provocation and seven parts playfulness, as she subtly lifted her chin.
The physical distance between them began to change.
Deep -18, Steady 0.
Gentle -6, Steady 0.
Round and round, never tiring.
"Good…"
Raven let out a satisfied purr, husky and magnetic.
However, at that very moment, Lynt's attention was completely captivated by the virtual light screen that abruptly unfolded in his mind!
It was a minimalist system panel, glowing with a faint golden light, visible only to him.
On the panel, several lines of cold text slowly appeared, imbued with an undeniable authority.
[Dual Cultivation Mode Activated…]
[Target Locked: Mystique (Raven Darkhölme)]
[Strength Rating: B-Class Mutant (Genetic Potential: Excellent)]
[Dual Cultivation Connected… Energy Conversion Program Executing… Gene Chain Resonance Analysis in Progress…]
Lynt's eye twitched violently.
It's really called Dual Cultivation, goddammit?! Can't this system come up with a slightly more serious name?!
He cursed inwardly, but his body had to contend with the increasingly enthusiastic blue big cat.
At the same time, his eyes were fixed on the data in his mind, his heart pounding like a drum.
This thing was his only trump card for survival in this perilous, godforsaken place he had transmigrated to!
Time, in an extreme torment and a strange stimulation, was infinitely stretched, distorted, and finally melted away.
Until the thin line of night outside the window was completely brightened by a streak of dawn.
The panel in his mind suddenly erupted with brilliant light, as if announcing the completion of a grand ceremony.
[Dual Cultivation Complete!]
[Settling…]
[Congratulations, Host! In this Dual Cultivation, your overall attributes have received a 0.1x all-around boost!]
[Congratulations, Host! You have received an additional reward: $10,000 USD!]
[Partner 'Mystique' has received a 0.5x all-around boost! Her mutant abilities and physical attributes have been permanently enhanced!]
[System Prompt: Same Dual Cultivation target, cooldown 24 hours. Enhancement effect is related to the target's potential and current state.]
Almost the very next second after the prompt appeared, an indescribable warm current—no, it was lava!
A scorching torrent of life lava violently ignited from the deepest part of his body, like a bursting dam, instantly surging through his limbs, every muscle and bone, every single cell!
"Ugh!"
Lynt couldn't help but let out a muffled groan, his muscles instantly tensing.
It was a violent baptism of rebirth!
Strength, speed, reactions, five senses… everything, on his pitiful mortal foundation, was multiplied by 0.1!
Although his original foundation was poor, the improvement was also small.
Perhaps the current improvement was insignificant in the face of true powerhouses, but the change was so clear it made his scalp tingle!
And what made his heart surge even more was the $10,000 reward!
Ten thousand dollars!
For Lynt, who used to be a rich second-generation, this wasn't even enough for a bottle of wine.
But for the current penniless, friendless illegal immigrant in New York, this was the startup capital for a new life, the dignity to survive!
This golden finger… though its name was ridiculously cheesy, its function was too damn practical!
Just as Lynt was immersed in the immense joy of his sudden power surge and unexpected windfall, Raven, who was on top of him, suddenly stiffened.
Her body, in an instant, became as taut as steel.
Immediately after, she abruptly sat up, her movements so swift that they created a tearing gust of wind.
"This… this is…"
Raven looked down in disbelief, spreading her hands.
In her amber beast-like eyes, there was first extreme shock, then it was drowned by a flood of wild joy!
A power so immense it made her very soul tremble was frantically growing and surging from every cell in her body!
Her body, her abilities—she knew them best.
But now, the strength, speed, and self-healing factors contained within this body had all, in an incredibly brutal way, directly doubled!
This was not an illusion!
With a thought, the blue skin and scales on her body instantly flowed like liquid metal.
A precise mimicry that would normally take a second to complete now happened almost as soon as she willed it!
She even felt she could perfectly replicate the cold touch of metal, the fibrous texture of fabric!
How was this possible?!
Could this change be a secondary mutation?
Or… the only variable… Raven suddenly turned her head, her eyes, which had just held a trace of wild joy, were instantly replaced by a cold vigilance and a burning scrutiny.
Her gaze was like two scalpels, locked onto Lynt, as if to dissect him completely from soul to body!
"You!"
She grabbed Lynt's arm, her fingers tightening like iron clamps.
Lynt, who had just been slightly enhanced, felt an intense pain as if his bones were about to be crushed!
"You…"
Raven's voice was suppressed with a violent tremor, mixed with three parts uncontrollable excitement, three parts bone-deep vigilance, and four parts almost fanatical inquiry.
"…What exactly did you do to me?"
Facing Mystique's almost cannibalistic gaze, Lynt grimaced in pain, but his mind was furiously calculating.
Tell her the truth?
Tell her he had a "Yin-Yang Joyful Buddha Body" that could make her stronger just by sleeping with him, and he'd get some benefits too?
Are you kidding me!
He had no doubt that if he told the truth, his fate would absolutely not be to become a partner, but to be completely imprisoned by Raven, used as an exclusive "enhancement tool" and "mobile blood bank" to be summoned and dismissed at will.
He would completely lose all freedom and dignity, becoming a canary kept in a cage—no, a "human power bank."
In this Marvel world where human lives were as cheap as grass, entrusting his entire life and safety to a shrewd, suspicious woman who had no emotional connection to him was the height of foolishness.
He had to lie! And it had to be a flawless lie!
"I… I don't know!"
Lynt forced out a perfectly calibrated expression of pain, bewilderment, and innocence.
"I woke up here, and I don't know anything! Maybe… maybe I awakened some mutant ability?"
He cleverly pushed everything onto "mutant ability awakening."