Chapter 145: Black King Shaw
For the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj, dark magic is indeed a taboo.
However, some people still use dark magic in secret.
Setting aside the future Kaecilius for a moment...
The Ancient One herself secretly used dark magic to extend her own lifespan.
However, her use of dark magic was understandable.
After all, she needed to wait until Doctor Strange joined Kamar-Taj.
In the movies, in order to inspire Doctor Strange to grow, she calmly went to her death.
Otherwise, with her strength, let alone falling from a great height, she could survive even if she were thrown into outer space.
"I have no interest in dark magic."
Roy said with a serious expression.
He indeed had no interest in dark magic.
Or rather, he had no interest in the dark magic of the Marvel Universe.
Unlike sorcerers in other Universes, sorcerers in the Marvel Universe do not possess so-called mana.
The energy they use when casting spells is borrowed from other places.
What lends them energy might not necessarily be a living being; it could be a dimension, space, an energy-imbued object, and so on.
Whatever the source, one thing is certain: sorcerers who do not need to borrow energy are few and far between in the Marvel Universe.
For example, the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj borrow energy from the Vishanti to cast white magic.
In other words, if the other party doesn't want to lend it, the sorcerers of the Marvel Universe can only find ways to borrow energy from elsewhere.
While this saves the grueling process of accumulating mana, borrowed things are never as good as what one owns themselves.
Forget dark magic; even with white magic, Roy didn't plan to follow the path of Marvel sorcerers exactly.
His plan was simple.
First, learn enough magical knowledge at Kamar-Taj.
After mastering this magical knowledge, he would begin to create his own magic, forging a sorcerer's path that does not rely on other entities.
Although he didn't know if he could successfully walk such a path, for now, it was a small goal in his journey of learning magic.
Upon hearing Roy's answer, the Ancient One continued, "With your talent, you should be able to get started very quickly."
"As for what level you can reach, that will depend on your own efforts."
Roy nodded.
After their conversation, the Ancient One took him on a tour of Kamar-Taj and introduced him to Wong, Kaecilius, Baron Mordo, and others.
Like any newly joined sorcerer apprentice, Roy received the gray sorcerer robes representing a newcomer.
The Ancient One did not make him study with the other new students; instead, she directly gave him a list of books to study, allowing him to borrow them from the library and begin his solitary studies.
Roy didn't say anything regarding this arrangement by the Ancient One.
In fact, he quite liked this arrangement.
If he were forced to study with the other newcomers, he would have been the one feeling out of place.
No matter how you look at it, he was the famous blood angel, hailed as the strongest Superhuman on Earth.
In the time that followed, Roy officially began a life of commuting between Kamar-Taj and Manhattan.
He studied magic at Kamar-Taj during the day.
At night, he returned to Manhattan to enjoy the life of a decadent capitalist.
In this way, half a month passed by without him realizing it.
Although Roy wasn't a "Chosen One" like Doctor Strange, with the magical aptitude granted by the Stormcard, his journey in learning magic was like a galloping horse.
In just half a month, he finished reading all the books listed by the Ancient One and learned quite a few spells.
Setting aside the standard trio for Kamar-Taj sorcerers—the Portal Spell, Shield of the Seraphim, and Mirror Dimension...
He also mastered Astral Projection, the Sword of Vishanti, Ikonn's Form, the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak, the Bolts of Balthakk, the Ancient Body of Hoggoth, and other spells Doctor Strange used in the Avengers 3 movie.
His astonishing learning speed not only startled Wong, Baron Mordo, and the others, but even the Ancient Onehadn't expected him to learn so fast.
Although they were shocked, Roy didn't think there was anything strange about it.
In the comics, Storm is one of the three great witches, as famous as the Scarlet Witch and Agatha.
Even if he wasn't Storm herself, and didn't have a mystical connection with the Earth Mother Gaea or Oshtur of the Vishanti like Storm did, quickly learning the magic of Kamar-Taj was no difficult task for him.
Just as Roy was preparing to keep the momentum going and learn all the magic in Kamar-Taj, the system suddenly sent a notification.
[New Multiverse Dungeon Refreshed!]
[Multiverse Dungeon: 1]
Looking at the system message before him, Roy frowned slightly.
Unlike the normal draw counts given for free every month, the system had never explained how to obtain more Multiverse Dungeon attempts.
To put it simply, he had no idea when the system would refresh the Multiverse Dungeons.
Roy didn't think too much about it, closed the information panel, and continued browsing the magic books in front of him.
Even if he were to start a new Multiverse Dungeon challenge, he didn't need to start it immediately.
Time passed bit by bit.
After finishing a magic book as thick as a brick—one that could easily be used as a melee weapon—Roy stood up, gathered the several books by the table, and headed toward the library.
Since Kaecilius had not yet defected, the current librarian wasn't Wong, but the sorcerer Pangborn, who was killed at the beginning of the first movie.
After returning the books to Pangborn for registration, Roy went to the main hall of Kamar-Taj and saw the Ancient One brewing tea.
"I've been studying here for half a month now. I'm planning to give myself a vacation to rest for a while."
Roy said to the Ancient One.
"Alright!"
The Ancient One didn't ask why he suddenly wanted a break and replied directly.
In fact, with Roy's current level of magic, he could have graduated from Kamar-Taj long ago.
"Thank you for your guidance during this time."
Roy expressed his gratitude to the Ancient One with a serious face.
He was able to learn so many spells in half a month...
On one hand, it was because the Storm card gave him excellent magical aptitude.
On the other hand, it was the Ancient One's guidance, which answered many of his doubts.
Otherwise, he might not have been able to learn these spells so quickly.
"You're welcome."
The Ancient One nodded with a smile.
Roy said no more. He took out the suspension ring, an essential tool for casting the Portal Spell, from his system space and put it on, creating a portal back to the Vought Company Chairman's office right in front of the Ancient One.
He simply raised his right hand and casually drew a circle in the air, and a shimmering gold portal with a diameter of two meters took shape.
Without any hesitation, Roy stepped inside and returned to the Chairman's office at Vought Company.
Closing the portal behind him, he sat down behind the desk, picked up the landline, and dialed his assistant Ellie's internal number.
"Come in for a moment."
"Certainly, sir!"
Ellie's voice immediately rang out.
Before long, Ellie, wearing a black OL suit skirt and thin high heels, arrived at the office and stood before him.
Although her appearance hadn't changed much, Ellie's current temperament was markedly different from before.
At this point, Ellie was no longer human, but a Vampire.
To be precise, she was a Vampire who had been given the Embrace by Selene and had absorbed the blood of Alexander Corvinus, gaining the "Sunlight Immunity" buff.
After turning from a human into a Vampire, Ellie's already fair skin became even whiter.
"Is there anything in the company recently that requires my personal review?"
Roy asked Ellie.
"No, for the past half month, the company has been conducting superhero operations according to the plan you previously established."
Ellie replied quickly.
"That's good then."
"Nothing else. You may go."
Roy continued.
"Yes, sir!"
Ellie nodded and left the office, her long, shapely legs striding out.
After she left, Roy created a portal to return to the penthouse apartment of the Skyscraper.
Back at the apartment, he immediately found Selene, Daisy, and Mary Jane, and gave them some instructions.
Just like the last time he went to the X-Men movie Universe, he didn't tell them where he was going this time either, only saying that he would be away for a while.
While he was away, Daisy and Selene would be responsible for handling the affairs of Vought Companyand the Star Cross Knights.
As for Mary Jane, she would just continue being a stage play star.
Selene and the other two had no objections to this arrangement, and they were very understanding, not pressing him on where he was going.
After finishing his instructions, Roy went to the study, opened the system panel, and his gaze fell on the Multiverse Dungeon column.
[Proceed to the Multiverse Dungeon immediately?]
Taking a deep breath, Roy made his choice.
"Yes!"
The next second, the Multiverse Dungeon count dropped to zero.
At the same time, that pitch-black circular portal appeared before him.
Although he didn't know which Multiverse Dungeon the system had opened this time, he didn't think much of it and stepped inside with a calm expression.
The same feeling of weightlessness, the same passive flight toward the portal's exit.
After only a few short seconds, he left the time-space tunnel-like portal and arrived in another Universe.
[Current Universe: X-Men Movie Universe (1962)]
[Dungeon Quest: Change Professor X's fate of disability and become the new Master of the Hellfire Club]
[Quest Reward: SSR - Black King Shaw Card]
It's the X-Men movie Universe again?
Roy had thought the Multiverse Dungeon the system opened this time would be something else.
He didn't expect it to be the X-Men movie Universe again.
Not only that, it was the timeline of "X-Men: First Class."
Compared to "Logan," the plot timeline of "X-Men: First Class" was a bit longer.
However, it wasn't that much longer.
Judging by the time it took for Professor X to guide Banshee and Raze in mastering their superpowers, it wouldn't exceed a month.
Besides not expecting the Universe this time to be the X-Men movie Universe again, the quest reward the system gave this time was also beyond his expectations.
Although the reward this time was the SSR - Black King Shaw card, Black King Shaw was not an Omega-Level Mutant.
However, his Mutant superpower, "Energy Absorption," was quite good.
While Black King Shaw couldn't achieve infinite absorption and permanent energy storage, he could absorb energy at any time during battle and release it.
If given enough preparation time, he could also absorb energy in advance to strengthen himself to an astonishing degree.
Except for being unable to absorb psychic energy, Black King Shaw could absorb all common forms of energy.
Whether it was kinetic energy, thermal energy, or even nuclear energy, he could absorb it all.
Roy first recalled the plot of "X-Men: First Class" in his mind before sizing up his surroundings.
Soon, he confirmed his current location.
London!
With his previous experience and discovering he was currently in London, Roy realized that Professor X's first love, Agent Moira MacTaggert, hadn't come looking for him yet.
If Agent Moira had already taken Professor X and Mystique to America, the system wouldn't have set the portal's exit in London.
Just as Roy was about to use Telepathy to lock onto Professor X and Mystique, he realized he had overlooked a very important issue.
Clothing!
He was still wearing his Kamar-Taj sorcerer robes!
Realizing this, he immediately used teleportation to reach downtown London and picked a clothing store that looked decent enough.
Taking a few minutes to buy an outfit in the store that matched this era and paying with gold, he left the shop and began using Telepathy to search for Professor X and Mystique.
Without much effort, he found Professor X and Mystique.
A Mutant's psychic signal is completely different from a normal person's and is very easy to distinguish.
And in London, Roy only sensed the psychic signals of two Mutants.
More importantly, the moment he sensed one of them, the other party immediately noticed his detection.
Although the current Professor X wasn't as strong as his future self, he wasn't much weaker either.
If one had to point out any shortcomings, it would be that the current Professor X's development of Telepathy was not yet sufficient.
Additionally, he still retained the obsessive-compulsive habit of having to press his fingers to his temple to use Telepathy.
Inside a bar near Oxford University...
Professor X, who was actively hitting on a blonde female college student, suddenly frowned, an expression of surprise appearing on his face.
"What's wrong?"
The blonde student sitting next to him asked immediately.
"I just remembered something very important; I have to go back immediately."
Professor X said quickly.
After speaking, without waiting for her reply, he immediately went over to Mystique, who was sitting at another table with a face full of unhappiness, and said to her, "Leave here at once."
"Why? Aren't you going to talk about genetics with that pretty lady?"
Mystique said huffily.
To Professor X, Mystique was like a younger sister who had grown up with him since childhood.
But to Mystique, Professor X was more than just an older brother.
From the moment she was caught stealing food at Professor X's house and was told by him that she would never need to steal again, Professor X had occupied an extremely important position in her heart.
Professor X was not only the first person her age who wasn't afraid of her, but he also provided her with a place to live and food, ending her life as a wandering thief.
"Someone just tried to invade my mind."
Professor X said quickly in a voice only the two of them could hear.
"What?"
Mystique's expression changed instantly. She immediately grabbed her bag hanging nearby and stood up.
Professor X said nothing more and immediately led Mystique out of the bar.
Just as they stepped out of the bar's entrance, they were stopped by a stranger...
Chapter 146: It's fine to lie to me, but don't lie to yourself
The person who stopped them was none other than Roy, who had teleported over from the city.
The moment he was stopped by Roy, a thought popped into Professor X's mind.
He is the telepath who tried to enter my mind!
Although Professor X was not using Telepathy right now, he trusted his judgment.
"Hello, my name is Roy Chen. I am one of your kind."
Before Professor X could speak, Roy took the initiative to say.
He didn't plan on telling Professor X that he came from another Universe, but he also didn't want to waste brain cells thinking of other ways to contact Professor X.
Since they were bound to meet sooner or later anyway, it was better to just come over now.
One of their kind?
Professor X and Mystique both showed expressions of vigilance simultaneously.
"Don't look at me like that, I have no ill intent."
"Otherwise, I wouldn't be telling you these things so bluntly."
Roy looked at Professor X and Mystique with a calm face and spoke slowly.
After sizing him up for a moment, Professor X, who still had a head of beautiful long hair, spoke up: "You just tried to invade my mind, and this is what you call no ill intent?"
"No, you've misunderstood."
"I wasn't trying to invade your mind just now; you simply sensed me when I was using Telepathy to find you."
Roy said slowly.
He was telling the truth.
If he had been invading Professor X's mind just now, Professor X wouldn't have just sensed his presence, but would have felt as if someone was frantically smashing his brain with a sledgehammer.
Although his Telepathy was obtained from Professor X's card, his telepathic ability was much stronger than Professor X's.
First, he had obtained the card of an elderly Professor X.
Second, he also possessed the cards of Magneto, Iceman, Storm, and others.
Third, he had also cultivated Magnetic Field Rotation Power.
The other cards and the Magnetic Field Rotation Powerdidn't grant him Telepathy, but they enhanced the Telepathy he possessed to a certain extent.
Professor X fell silent once again.
After thinking for a few seconds, he continued: "Why did you specifically come looking for us?"
"This isn't a good place to chat, let's go inside and talk."
Roy said slowly.
Although it was noisy inside the bar, the noisy atmosphere was perfect for preventing others from overhearing their conversation.
"Alright."
Professor X nodded.
After returning to the bar, Professor X chose a table in the corner and had Mystique sit next to him.
As for Roy, he sat opposite them.
Not long after they sat down, a bar waitress came up to them and asked what they wanted to drink.
"Whiskey."
Roy said.
"I'll have a beer."
Professor X said slowly.
"I want a beer too!"
Mystique's voice rang out.
"No, give her a Coke!"
Professor X said immediately.
The waitress glanced at Mystique, nodded, and walked towards the bar.
Although Mystique looked like an adult, the waitress's intuition told her it was best to listen to Professor X at this time.
"I'm already an adult!"
Mystique looked at Professor X with a face full of unhappiness.
"Even if you're an adult, you can't drink; you're a girl!"
After saying that, Professor X stopped paying attention to Mystique and said to Roy: "Who exactly are you? What do you want with us?"
"My name is Roy Chen, you can call me Roy."
"Of course, if you want to call me Chen, I wouldn't mind either."
"As for what I'm looking for you for."
"I can see some blurry fragments of the future."
"In the future fragments I've seen, you prevented the U.S. and the Soviet Union from starting World War III, and you made Mutants appear before the World."
"I don't want to see World War III break out, and I also need some Mutant friends, so I came looking for you."
Roy said with a calm face.
Although this wasn't his real purpose for coming to this Universe, it was enough to fool Professor X and Mystique.
After hearing his answer, Professor X and Mystique's expressions became very interesting.
They knew there must be other Mutants in this World.
But they hadn't expected that Roy, as a Mutant, would appear before them in this way at this time.
Additionally, regarding the World War III Roy mentioned, they were also very concerned.
They had grown up during World War II and could be said to have personally experienced the various terrible situations brought about by a World war.
If nothing else, the fact that Mystique would run to Professor X's house to steal food showed that.
Although Roy's expression was very sincere, Professor Xdidn't fully believe what he said and spoke slowly: "If you want to stop the third World war, you should go to the high-level officials of the U.S. and the Soviet Union, not us."
"Your Telepathy seems even stronger than mine; you have enough ability to persuade them."
Roy wasn't surprised that Professor X didn't believe him immediately.
Unlike Mystique, Professor X was a bona fide high-IQ talent.
If Professor X had believed him after just a few casual words, that would have been what was wrong.
"I could indeed use Telepathy to 'persuade' the high-level officials of the U.S. and the Soviet Union, but that's a method that treats the symptoms rather than the root cause, and I can't control them forever."
"More importantly, if I really did that, I would become a Terrorist."
"No country can tolerate its high-level officials being controlled by Mutants."
Roy said unhurriedly.
Professor X nodded, acknowledging Roy's statement.
Just as he was about to continue questioning Roy, Mystique suddenly said: "Besides Telepathy and blurry precognition of the future, what other superpowers do you have?"
"I also have freezing, manipulating magnetic fields, manipulating the weather, teleportation, firing energy beams, and so on."
Roy didn't intend to list all of his superpowers, only mentioning some that he might use in the future.
"How do you have so many superpowers?"
Mystique looked at Roy with a face full of surprise.
"I don't know either, maybe this is the wonder of genetic mutation."
"Charles is a Professor of genetics; you can ask him."
Roy said slowly.
If he remembered correctly, Professor X had just been hired by Oxford University as a Professor in charge of genetics courses when Professor X's first love, Agent Moira, came to London to ask for his help.
"I am not a Professor yet; one is a Professor only if there are classes to teach, and Oxford University hasn't decided whether to hire me yet."
Professor X corrected Roy.
Not a Professor at Oxford University yet?
Then maybe Agent Moira hasn't disguised herself as a showgirl to infiltrate the Hellfire Club's nightclub yet?
Should I go to America to meet Black King Shaw and White Queen in advance?
Several thoughts immediately flashed through Roy's mind.
After thinking about it, he dismissed the idea of going over to meet Black King Shaw and White Queen early.
There was no need to cause unnecessary complications.
Even if he wanted to change Professor X's fate of being crippled and take over the Hellfire Club, he could wait until Professor X had formed the original X-Men.
He wasn't in a great hurry right now and didn't need to rush to complete the tasks.
Not long after, the waitress brought over their three drinks.
In the time that followed, Professor X briefly asked Roywhat other future fragments he had seen.
Although he knew exactly what would happen next, Roydidn't tell everything in detail, only picking out some relatively less important information to share.
For example, that people from the CIA would soon come to invite Professor X to help.
After questioning Roy, Professor X made a decision.
If the CIA really sent someone to find him in the next few days, then he would believe that what Roy said was true.
If no one came looking for him, then it would mean Roywas a liar.
Although it was also possible that Roy had planned all of this in advance, Professor X wasn't worried about that.
While he couldn't read Roy's memories, reading other people's memories was no problem at all.
If Roy had really tampered with things, he would be able to detect it very quickly.
"Do you have a place to stay in London?"
Professor X continued to ask.
"No."
Roy shook his head.
"My house has many guest rooms; if you don't mind, come stay at my place."
Professor X said quickly.
"Alright!"
Roy didn't refuse and accepted Professor X's invitation.
On the surface, Professor X was just inviting him to stay together.
But he knew that Professor X wanted to observe him better.
Compared to the future Professor X, the current Professor X wasn't as powerful or rigid, and he acted much more according to his whims.
This could be seen from how he would take the initiative to hit on beautiful women in bars and celebrate being hired by Oxford University with a drink.
To put it simply, the current Professor X didn't just have hair, but also a personality that matched his age.
"Alright, business is over, time to find some fun."
After saying that, Professor X raised the beer in front of him, drained it in one gulp, and walked towards the blonde beauty he had been hitting on earlier.
Seeing Professor X start picking up girls again, an expression of displeasure immediately appeared on Mystique's face.
She didn't like Professor X hitting on other girls at all.
Especially flirting with other girls right in front of her.
So what if their skin is a bit whiter and their hair color is a bit nicer?
What's so special about that!
I can have any look they have!
I can even have looks they don't have!
Mystique didn't say anything, but one only had to look at her expression to know what she was thinking right now.
Obviously, from her perspective, those women were all seductive sluts trying to hook up with Professor X.
"If you like him, why don't you just tell him directly?"
Roy said to Mystique.
"Who said I like him? I just think his taste is very problematic!"
Mystique said with a tsundere face.
"It's fine to lie to me, but don't lie to yourself."
"It doesn't matter if I'm fooled by you, I can just laugh it off and let you have some psychological comfort, but don't end up taking it seriously yourself."
"Some things, if you don't fight for them now, there won't be a chance later."
Roy took a sip from his glass and said to Mystique.
Hearing his words, Mystique immediately frowned and said quickly: "I always feel like you're hinting that he'll leave me in the future. Did you see that in the future fragments you predicted?"
"No, it's just some life advice."
Roy said slowly.
He wouldn't tell Mystique that she was the one who took the initiative to choose to go with Magneto after the battle on the small island in Cuba ended.
Mystique fell silent.
After a few seconds, she said seriously: "The superpower of Telepathy is quite annoying sometimes."
After saying that, she picked up the Coke in front of her and took a big gulp.
Roy didn't say anything more and looked at the female customers in the bar.
Although there were quite a few female customers in the bar, not a single one suited his taste.
Not only that, the most beautiful one was already being hit on by Professor X.
Half an hour later.
Roy and the others left the bar and took a car back to Professor X's house.
Although Professor X had hit on a beautiful female college student in the bar, he had no intention of having a physical relationship with her at all, simply enjoying the feeling of chatting with a beautiful woman.
No wonder he never got married in his whole life!
Roy complained about Professor X in his heart.
Time flew by.
Unknowingly, three days passed.
In these three days, Roy took the initiative to teach some Telepathy usage techniques to Professor X.
Although Professor X would be able to figure them out himself later, he still did it to experience what it was like to be Professor X's teacher.
Using the superpowers and experience granted by the Professor X card to teach the young Professor X how to use Telepathy better.
It had to be said, the feeling was quite good.
If Professor X initially just thought that Roy possessed more psychic energy than himself.
Then, after Roy taught him some small Telepathy usage techniques, he discovered that whether it was the total amount of psychic ability or the usage techniques, Roywas much stronger than him.
Not only that, Roy also let him see the superpowers of Magneto and Storm.
Roy was very strong!
Stronger than imagined!
After these three days of contact, Professor X confirmed one thing, which was that if Roy wanted to deal with him, he wouldn't have any ability to fight back at all.
Although Agent Moira hadn't come to find him yet, he already believed that everything Roy said was true.
As for why, the reason was simple: Roy, whose strength far exceeded his own, didn't need to spend extra effort to deceive him and Mystique.
It was normal for Professor X to reach such a conclusion.
But he would never have imagined that Roy came from another Universe.
Just like in the movie, Professor X was successfully hired by Oxford University and became the youngest Professorat Oxford University.
Night.
In a bar near Oxford University.
"Drink! Drink! Drink! Drink! Drink..."
The customers in the bar surrounded Professor X and shouted in unison.
At this time, Professor X was holding a special wine glass over a meter long, shaped like a round-bottom flask but with a larger mouth, and was constantly pouring the beer inside into his mouth.
If it were the elderly Professor X, let alone doing such a thing, even if he saw a student in the school doing it, he would show a helpless expression.
However, the young Professor X was personally performing a chug under the gaze and encouragement of the crowd.
It's good to be young!
Roy didn't join the other customers in cheering for Professor X, but sat by the bar counter, calmly enjoying the whiskey in front of him.
At the same time, he kept an eye on the bar door at all times, waiting for Agent Moira to appear.
Amidst the crowd's cheering, Professor X's face turned red, and he finished all the beer in the special wine bottle in one breath.
Then, he spread his arms and roared loudly.
"Ah!!!"
Roy didn't watch Professor X; his gaze at this time fell on a young woman who had just entered the bar.
Brown long hair, black jacket, white short skirt, plus brown tall boots!
The woman he was sizing up right now was none other than Professor X's first love in the movie, Agent Moira...
Chapter 147: Professor X's Small Request
Agent Moira was not particularly stunning in appearance, nor was her figure especially hot.
But compared to an ordinary person, she was still quite beautiful.
After entering the bar, Agent Moira quickly spotted Professor X.
At this moment, Professor X had just stepped down from a chair and stood before Mystique, giving her a hug.
Without any hesitation, Agent Moira immediately walked toward Professor X.
Roy did not stop her from approaching Professor X; he wore the expression of someone watching a play, anticipating the scene to follow.
If nothing unexpected happened, Professor X would use his usual pick-up technique on Agent Moira, only to be flatly rejected by her.
Soon, Agent Moira arrived in front of a flush-faced Professor X and quickly said, "Congratulations, Professor."
"Thank you very much. This was indeed harder than it looks."
Professor X shook the special wine bottle in his hand and spoke with a face full of confidence.
"No, I was talking about your speech."
Agent Moira continued.
"Speech? You liked my speech? That's wonderful, thank you very much for your appreciation."
Professor X patted Agent Moira's arm and said with a smile.
Under normal circumstances, he would have seen through Agent Moira's ulterior motives long ago.
But now, with the alcohol hitting his head, he was unusually slow.
Agent Moira also noticed that Professor X was a bit dull at the moment and introduced herself: "Moira MacTaggert!"
"Charles Xavier!"
Professor X shook hands with Agent Moira.
"Can we talk for a minute?"
Agent Moira said with a serious face.
"For your beautiful smile and your mutated MCR-1 gene, I'll give you five minutes."
As he spoke, Professor X raised his right hand and stroked Agent Moira's hair like a playboy.
Before Agent Moira could speak, he switched the special wine bottle to his right hand and naturally draped his left arm over Agent Moira's shoulder, leading her toward a nearby table.
Meanwhile, he continued, "MCR-1 gene is the technical name; it's actually what you call being blonde."
"Your MCR-1 gene is mutated, which is why your hair is brown instead of blonde."
Before they knew it, he and Agent Moira had sat down at the table.
"It's a mutation—a very charming mutation."
"Do you know about mutation?"
"Mutation took us from single-celled organisms to the Earth's..."
After sitting down, Professor X looked at Agent Moirawith the soulful gaze that could enchant most women and spoke slowly.
However, before he could finish, he was interrupted by Agent Moira.
"That routine might work on female students, but I'm here on official business."
Agent Moira looked at Professor X with a helpless expression, starting to regret not approaching him immediately after the speech.
"What?"
Professor X, who had never failed before, looked at Agent Moira in surprise.
Just as Agent Moira was about to say more, Roy, having finished watching the show, came over and said, "She is a CIA Agent. She saw our kind in Las Vegas, but her superiors don't believe her, so she came to you to confirm if Mutants really exist."
Hearing Roy's words, both Professor X and Agent Moirashowed surprised expressions.
Professor X was surprised because he hadn't expected the beauty before him to be a CIA Agent.
Agent Moira was surprised because she hadn't expected Roy to know who she was and why she had come.
Is he a spy?
Due to professional habit, Agent Moira's first reaction was that Roy was a spy.
"I'm not a spy; I just have Telepathy."
"By the way, Charles is currently using Telepathy to read your memories."
Roy pointedly reminded Agent Moira.
Reading my memories?
Agent Moira immediately turned her head toward Professor X.
At this moment, Professor X habitually pressed his fingers to his temple, using Telepathy to read Agent Moira's memories.
In Agent Moira's memories, Professor X saw Black King Shaw, White Queen, Red Devil, and Riptide.
Although Black King Shaw didn't display any superpowers, seeing White Queen turn into her diamond form and Red Devil using teleportation to take away Colonel Hendry, he made his decision.
He would go to CIA headquarters to help Agent Moiraprove the existence of Mutants!
After reading Agent Moira's memories, Professor Xsobered up quite a bit and said to her, "If you need my help, I will do my absolute best to assist you."
He was now certain that everything Roy had told him before was true.
Agent Moira and White Queen's group were the best evidence.
"Thank you!"
"Then we set off tomorrow!"
Agent Moira replied quickly.
"No problem!"
"Do you mind if I bring Roy and Raven along?"
"Raven is my sister; she is also a Mutant with shapeshifting abilities."
Professor X asked Agent Moira.
"Of course not!"
Agent Moira certainly wouldn't refuse and agreed immediately.
If only Professor X went back to the CIA with her, her superiors and other high-ranking officials might not be willing to believe in the existence of Mutants.
Having only one person with superpowers was not enough to prove the existence of Mutants as a whole.
But if Roy and Raven went as well, it would not only prove that Mutants were real but also show that their numbers weren't that scarce.
Simply put, it would be easier to convince her superiors and other CIA higher-ups.
"Good, then let's set off tomorrow. I'll have someone arrange a private jet."
Professor X said naturally.
"You have a private jet?"
Agent Moira looked at Professor X in surprise.
"Strictly speaking, it's not mine, but the family's."
"However, there aren't many members left in the Xavier Family now."
Professor X said slowly.
Agent Moira said nothing more and nodded.
Suburbs of London.
The Xavier Family estate.
To make it convenient to head to the airport together tomorrow, Professor X invited Agent Moira to stay at the manor.
After returning to the manor, Professor X asked Mystiqueto take Agent Moira to a guest room.
As for him, he went to the drawing room with Roy.
"The future you predicted is starting to come true."
"We're going to America tomorrow. Do you have any advice?"
Professor X sat down on the sofa in the drawing room, rubbed his temples, and asked Roy.
"No special advice."
"If I must say something, it's that tomorrow's trip to the CIA won't be very smooth."
"Even if we prove the existence of Mutants to the CIAhigher-ups, their first reaction will be to lock us up."
"So, you and Raven better be mentally prepared."
Roy sat down opposite Professor X and spoke unhurriedly.
"I guessed back when I was in elementary school that humans wouldn't be able to accept the existence of Mutants."
"By the way, can I make a small request?"
Professor X looked at Roy earnestly.
"What request?"
Roy replied.
"Um... could you try your best not to harm the Mutants Agent Moira discovered?"
"Although I can't read your memories, I can tell you've killed people before, and quite a few at that."
"I don't know what you've been through, but if possible, I don't want you to keep killing."
"Besides killing, there are many other solutions."
Compared to his older self, the current Professor X was indeed much more young and impetuous.
But one thing was the same: he didn't quite approve of using violence to solve problems.
Of course, he also knew that sometimes violence was unavoidable.
But unless there was no other choice, he generally didn't support the use of violence.
As for killing...
That went without saying.
Roy looked Professor X over and said slowly, "No problem, I can promise to try my best not to kill."
Aside from Black King Shaw, the other three—White Queen and the others—fell into the category of those he could either kill or spare.
As long as they didn't interfere with his mission, sparing their lives didn't matter.
In the movie 'X-Men: First Class', the only Mutants who died were Black King Shaw and Darwin.
Hearing Roy's answer, Professor X nodded at him gratefully.
The next morning.
After finishing breakfast at the manor, the four of them took a car to a small airport in the suburbs.
This small airport didn't belong to the British government; it was a private airport.
The planes parked on the runway and in the hangars were all private jets belonging to the wealthy.
Although it was 1962, jet technology and design were already quite mature and had entered commercial use.
The Xavier Family's private jet, from its appearance, was not much different from a 21st-century private jet.
Once they boarded, the pilot immediately started the plane and flew toward America on the other side of the Atlantic.
After a flight of more than 7 hours, Roy and the others arrived at a private airport in Virginia and took a car to the CIA's new headquarters, Langley.
In the 21st century, it was common knowledge that the CIA headquarters was in Langley.
Even if one didn't know, a quick search on the internet would reveal that the CIA headquarters was in Langley, at the border of Washington D.C. and Virginia.
However, right now, the CIA had only just moved its headquarters to Langley last year.
Before that, the CIA headquarters had been in Washington D.C.
With Agent Moira, an unquestionable CIA Agent, leading the way—and mainly because she had already called her superior the previous night—the security personnel only did a simple check for weapons before letting Roy and the others into the CIA headquarters.
In a meeting room on the third floor.
Wearing a grey hand-tailored suit, Professor X stood in front of the conference table, using a projector to explain genetic mutation and Mutants to the CIA higher-ups.
"The arrival of the nuclear age has, to some extent, accelerated human genetic mutation."
"People who possess special abilities due to genetic mutation have already appeared, and they are hidden among the masses."
"Thank you!"
Having finished his explanation, Professor X turned off the projector and sat down in his seat.
"Agent MacTaggert, you don't really think this young, eccentric scientist can make me believe you saw a woman who can turn into diamond and a man who can disappear, do you?"
"You've just bought yourself a one-way ticket back to being a typist."
"This is a waste of time. The meeting is over!"
Wearing a black suit, with a head of white hair and thin-framed glasses, CIA Director McCone closed the materials Professor X had specially prepared and spoke to Agent Moira.
Just as Agent Moira was about to stand up and explain, Professor X's voice rang out.
"Please sit down, Agent Moira."
Professor X said to Agent Moira.
Hearing his words, Agent Moira, who had just stood up, sat back down.
At the same time, Professor X said to CIA DirectorMcCone, "I didn't expect you to believe me, because while I was speaking, you were thinking about what kind of pie the cafeteria is selling today."
"I can tell you now, the cafeteria is selling apple walnut pie today."
"The genetic mutation I just spoke of can grant many special abilities far beyond normal human understanding, such as me being able to know what you're thinking."
Professor X, in his 20s, wasn't going to indulge the self-righteous CIA Director McCone.
The impatient expression on Director McCone's face vanished instantly, replaced by a look of utter seriousness as he stared at Professor X.
Just as Agent Stryker, who was next to Director McCone, was about to speak, Roy said, "Charles, to convince them, just stating their thoughts isn't enough."
"Sometimes, you have to be a bit more direct."
"For example, directly controlling their bodies and having them slap each other."
As soon as Roy finished speaking, Director McCone and Agent Stryker involuntarily raised their right hands.
Slap! Slap!
Amidst their expressions of utter disbelief, they gave each other a heavy slap.
Seeing this scene, the expressions of Agent Moira and the others turned incredibly grim.
"Roy, doing this will only provoke them."
Professor X said with a frown.
"They will indeed be angry, but anger comes after shock and fear."
"If you don't believe me, you can read their thoughts."
Roy looked at Professor X calmly and made a gesturing motion.
Professor X sighed helplessly and once again used Telepathy.
Just as Roy said, only shock and fear remained in the minds of Director McCone and Agent Stryker.
At this moment, Roy spoke to Director McCone: "I know your time is valuable, as you are all high-ranking CIAofficials, but our time is equally valuable."
"We sat on a plane for over seven hours and crossed the Atlantic not to perform magic tricks for you, but to help!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Roy's eyes glowed with a ruby-like light.
In the next second, two laser-like optic blasts shot out, accurately hitting the water glasses in front of DirectorMcCone and Agent Stryker.
Bang! Bang!
The glass cups shattered instantly!
If it were in the past, Roy would have added one more sentence at the end.
"If you guys still treat us like a sideshow, I'll blow your heads off right now!"
Out of respect for Professor X, he didn't say it.
Looking at the shattered glasses, Director McCone and Agent Stryker, who had just slapped each other, both fell silent.
After a few seconds, Director McCone finally spoke: "Agent Pratt, your department is responsible for investigating and researching how supernatural powers can be used for military defense. They are in your hands."
"Yes, sir!"
Agent Pratt, who was sitting by the wall, replied immediately.
Although he was the head of the supernatural powers department, everyone else in the CIA treated him like a joke...
Chapter 148: Master of Storms
It wasn't just others; Agent Platt sometimes felt like a joke himself.
But now, seeing the superpowers displayed by Professor X and Roy, he knew he wasn't a joke.
Mutants are real!
Supernatural powers are also real!
After hearing Agent Platt's answer, CIA Director McConedidn't hesitate and immediately stood up and left the conference room.
Agent Stryker and the others followed closely, leaving without looking back.
Soon, only Roy, Professor X, Agent Moira, and Agent Platt remained in the conference room.
Calming himself down, the obese Agent Platt, who clearly wasn't suited for fieldwork, stood up and walked over to Roy and Professor X.
"Hello, my name is Oliver Platt. You can just call me Pratt. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Agent Platt said to Roy and Professor X.
After speaking, he proactively extended his right hand.
Roy and Professor X shook his hand.
"My department isn't here. I'll take you to my department now."
Agent Platt said quickly.
"No, before going to your department, we need to help Agent Moira catch Sebastian Shaw first."
"If we don't act now, it will be even harder to catch him later."
Professor X said to Agent Platt.
As soon as he finished speaking, Agent Moira stood up and said seriously, "Charles is right, we must find Sebastian Shaw as soon as possible."
"Colonel Hendry's sudden change of mind to support the deployment of Cupid missiles in Turkey must be Shaw's plan."
"If we don't stop Sebastian Shaw, then World War III will break out before long."
Agent Platt turned to look at Agent Moira and quickly began to think.
After a few seconds, he spoke, "Do you know Sebastian Shaw's whereabouts?"
"Yes!"
"Intelligence has been keeping an eye on his whereabouts; he's in Miami now."
"If we leave now, we can start the arrest operation tonight."
Agent Moira continued.
"Alright, I'll fully cooperate with you."
Agent Platt nodded... Evening.
A port in Miami.
Taking a CIA plane, Roy and the others arrived in Miamibefore nightfall and boarded a Coast Guard vessel.
Agent Platt's position in the CIA wasn't very high.
The supernatural powers department he was in charge of was also not highly valued by the CIA.
However, to the Miami Coast Guard, he was still an out-and-out high-ranking government official.
After explaining his purpose and identity, he quickly persuaded the Miami Coast Guard to cooperate with their operation tonight.
Many luxury yachts were docked in the harbor.
Among them, the the caspadina was Roy's target for tonight.
More precisely, it was Professor X and Agent Moira's target.
Unlike them, who only knew that Black King Shaw was currently on the the caspadina, Roy not only knew that Black King Shaw, White Queen, and Riptide were on board.
He also knew that beneath the the caspadina, which appeared to be just a luxury yacht, was connected a nuclear submarine.
Although he had come to Miami with Professor X and Agent Moira, he didn't plan to kill Black King Shawtonight.
If Black King Shaw died now,
then he wouldn't be able to witness Magneto's famous scene of manipulating missiles.
This was one of Magneto's classic highlight moments.
If he missed it, he would feel regret.
Additionally, if Black King Shaw were killed now, Professor X and Magneto, these good buddies, wouldn't recruit Banshee, Angel, and Darwin to establish the first generation of X-Men.
On the Coast Guard ship, Roy, Professor X, and Mystiquestood on the deck, looking at the distant the caspadina.
As for Agent Platt and Agent Moira, they were explaining the details of tonight's operation to the Coast Guardsoldiers.
"Will our arrest operation tonight be successful?"
Professor X turned to Roy and asked.
"I only saw some vague future fragments; I don't have the superpower of precognition."
"Besides, the future can be changed."
Roy replied.
Though he said that, he knew tonight's arrest operation would definitely not succeed.
Unless he changed his mind and decided to kill Black King Shaw tonight.
Otherwise, tonight's arrest operation would definitely end in failure.
After hearing Roy's answer, Professor X said nothing more, gazing intently at the the caspadina docked in the harbor.
Roy wasn't paying too much attention to the the caspadina at the moment, subtly using Telepathy.
Without much effort, he sensed Magneto's psychic signal.
Just as he remembered, Magneto was currently in the sea, wearing a diving suit, continuously approaching the the caspadina.
Before long, Magneto boarded the the caspadina.
After finding Black King Shaw and the other two on the yacht's sundeck, he drew his Dagger, engraved with "Blood and Glory," no longer hiding, and walked towards the three of them, speaking in German:
"Dr., we finally meet again!"
Black King Shaw and the other two immediately stood up.
White Queen and Riptide watched Magneto warily, ready to unleash their superpowers at any moment.
Unlike the wary White Queen and Riptide, Black King Shaw's face showed a relieved expression upon seeing Magneto.
"I knew you would come for me, but I didn't expect you to find this place."
Black King Shaw replied in German as well.
Magneto didn't answer him, holding the Dagger, and walked towards Black King Shaw with murderous intent.
"He's here to kill you!"
White Queen's voice rang out. The next second, Magnetoexperienced an unprecedented severe headache, the Dagger in his hand dropped to the ground, and he clutched his head, involuntarily squatting down.
The next second, Magneto experienced an unprecedented severe headache, the Dagger in his hand dropped to the ground, and he clutched his head, involuntarily squatting down.
At the same time, the inhumane experiments he had endured years ago resurfaced in his mind.
"I taught you how to use your superpower. Is your reward wanting to kill me?"
"After all these years, you still haven't changed at all."
Black King Shaw said slowly, looking at Magneto's pained expression.
Magneto endured the pain in his mind, glaring at Black King Shaw with murderous intent.
The intense killing intent made him temporarily ignore the pain, and he began to use his Magnetism Manipulation Superpower.
He raised his hand and waved, and the Dagger on the ground flew rapidly towards Black King Shaw like an arrow.
Before the Dagger could hit Black King Shaw, White Queen, in her diamond form, grabbed it.
Magneto stood up, looking at White Queen in surprise.
Before he could react, White Queen appeared before him and slapped his chest.
The immense force instantly sent Magneto flying, and he plunged into the sea.
After sending Magneto flying, White Queen immediately deactivated her diamond form.
"Emma, we don't harm our own kind."
Black King Shaw said to White Queen.
Just as White Queen was about to say something, the Coast Guard ship where Roy and the others were located turned on its searchlights and fired several flares into the sky.
"We are the Coast Guard. Do not attempt to leave the port. Remain in place."
Meaningless warning sounds blared from the loudspeaker.
At the same time, three landing crafts sped towards the the caspadina.
"They have telepaths, and two of them."
After speaking, White Queen once again transformed into her diamond form, creating a psychic dampening field on the the caspadina.
"I can't see them anymore. They also have a telepath; my perception is blocked."
Professor X looked at Roy helplessly.
"Don't look at me; my Telepathy is also blocked."
Roy replied.
"Could it be that the telepath on the other side is stronger than both of you?"
Mystique looked at Roy and Professor X in surprise.
"It's not that the opponent's Telepathy is stronger than mine and Charles', but because the opponent is using a superpower that grants immunity to Telepathy."
Roy said unhurriedly.
Mystique didn't have Telepathy and didn't understand White Queen, so she instinctively thought White Queen's Telepathy was stronger than theirs.
She couldn't be blamed for that.
Let alone Mystique, even Professor X wouldn't have thought of a superpower that granted immunity to Telepathy before.
After hearing Roy's answer, Mystique continued, "Don't you have other superpowers? Can't you use other superpowers to deal with them?"
"Of course."
Roy replied.
Although he didn't plan to kill Black King Shaw tonight, he didn't mind a small display of power.
For example, letting Riptide know what a true Master of Storms is.
Riptide in the comics and Riptide in the movies possessed different superpowers.
In the comics, Riptide's superpower was to spin his body at high speed, making him appear as if he were riding a tornado.
In addition, his skin could secrete special substances and transform these secreted substances into sharp, snowflake-shaped blades.
In the movie, Riptide's superpower was to create and control whirlwinds.
Seeing the Coast Guard soldiers speeding towards the the caspadina in landing crafts, Riptide, dressed in a gray suit, came to the edge of the deck, raised his hands, and created two small tornadoes, over a meter high.
When the small tornadoes formed, he hurled them towards the landing crafts.
As the flying distance increased, the small tornadoes, originally just over a meter high, swelled to tens of meters high.
Just as the surging tornadoes were about to overturn the landing crafts, Roy made his move.
He didn't choose to dissipate the tornadoes created by Riptide; instead, he created two even larger tornadoes.
Under everyone's gaze, giant tornadoes, with diameters of ten to twenty meters, descended from the sky, like predatory dragons, swallowing the tornadoes created by Riptide whole.
To avoid accidentally harming the Coast Guard soldiers, Roy continued to control the tornadoes, making them fly to the left and right, bypassing the landing crafts.
This... Upon seeing this scene, Black King Shaw, Riptide, White Queen, Professor X, Mystique, and the others all showed expressions of disbelief.
Especially Riptide.
He never imagined that someone could control giant tornadoes to such a degree of precision.
Although he could also control hurricanes, his control was very limited.
Compared to controlling, he was better at creating whirlwinds.
However, even in creating whirlwinds, he was far inferior to Roy.
Among other things, when he created whirlwinds, he needed to start with small ones.
Only by first creating small whirlwinds could he gradually expand their size; he couldn't create astonishingly large whirlwinds from the start.
"We should go!"
Black King Shaw said to Riptide and White Queen.
Although he didn't know who was controlling the giant tornadoes now, one thing he was sure of was that the opponent's strength was much greater than Riptide's.
Without any hesitation, Black King Shaw and the other two immediately walked towards the ship's cabin, preparing to go to the nuclear submarine at the bottom of the ship.
Just then, the anchor chain, connected to the anchor, emerged from beneath the sea like a black giant dragon, striking towards the the caspadina's cabin.
It was clear without a doubt that this was Magneto's doing.
Under Magneto's control, the thick anchor chain wildly damaged the ship's hull, leaving the the caspadina in ruins and disarray.
Although Magneto caused a great commotion, his blind attack only brought Black King Shaw and his group some minor trouble.
Soon, Black King Shaw and the other two reached the nuclear submarine at the bottom of the ship, detaching the submarine from the the caspadina.
Upon seeing the submarine emerge from beneath the ship, Magneto immediately gave up control of the anchor chain, attempting to stop the nuclear submarine.
If it were his future self, or if he had been enlightened by Professor X and no longer used hatred to drive his superpowers, he could easily stop this submarine.
But now, not only could he not stop the submarine, but he was also being dragged along by it.
Seeing Magneto behind the submarine, Professor Xshouted, "Let go, you must let go!"
Professor X didn't know Magneto yet.
However, he still didn't want to see Magneto die in front of him.
Magneto had no intention of letting go, getting closer and closer to the Coast Guard ship.
Just as Professor X was about to jump down to stop Magneto, Roy's voice rang out.
"Jumping into the sea late at night isn't a good idea. Just use Telepathy; there's no need to jump down."
Roy said to Professor X.
Upon hearing his words, Professor X finally reacted.
That's right!
I don't need to jump down at all; I can still use my superpower to persuade him to let go while staying on the ship!
Without any hesitation, he immediately used Telepathy.
"You'll drown, you must let go!"
"I know this is important to you, but if you don't let go, you'll die here!"
"Calm down, Eric!"
Professor X's voice echoed in Magneto's mind.
He could have directly taken control of Magneto's body and forced him to stop, but he didn't do so, choosing instead to persuade Magneto.
The innate will to survive, coupled with Professor X's persuasion, ultimately led Magneto to stop using his superpower, surface from the sea, and gasp for air.
When watching the movie, Roy found the scene where Professor X jumped into the sea to stop Magneto quite absurd.
He knew the Director and screenwriter wanted to make the first encounter between Professor X and Magnetomore dramatic through this plot.
But the problem was that this forcibly created drama sometimes made Professor X appear foolish.
Professor X was not some third-rate telepath.
Even if he hadn't developed his superpower to its limit yet, he could still remotely control Magneto or engage in long-distance telepathic conversations with him.
A few minutes later.
Magneto, floating on the sea, was brought onto the Coast Guard ship.
"Who were the people who created the tornadoes and entered my mind just now?"
Magneto quickly asked, scrutinizing Roy, Professor X, and the others.
"Hello, my name is Charles, and I was the one speaking in your mind just now."
"As for the tornadoes, Roy created them."
"By the way, he also has the same Telepathy ability as me."
Professor X replied while handing Magneto the towel he was holding.
Chapter 149 – Roy vs. Magneto
Magneto took the towel from Professor X, wiped the seawater from his face and head, and said to him, "You just entered my mind. How did you do that?"
"You have your superpower, and I have mine."
"We're both Mutants—genetic variants. We're the same kind."
Professor X replied.
"Before tonight, I always thought I was the only one with a superpower," Magneto said slowly.
"No, you're not alone. There are many more of us."
Professor X looked at Magneto with complete seriousness.
The next day.
Washington D.C.
Roy and Professor X rode in a luxurious 1960s executive sedan to Agent Pratt's division.
It was a building in the D.C. suburbs, its grounds nearly as large as CIA headquarters at Langley.
Although the CIA hadn't previously valued his division, it hadn't stinted on resources either.
Besides this building, the Agency had given Agent Prattample funding and personnel.
"Welcome to my division. As for what we do, you already—"
Agent Pratt paused, glanced at Magneto, then continued, "We investigate supernatural forces and find ways to use them for military defense."
"Or for military attack!" Magneto said, eyeing the building through his dark glasses.
Hearing that, Agent Pratt quickly replied, "We haven't started planning offensive supernatural operations.
After last night's raid I contacted headquarters.
Further field work shows Sebastian Shaw wasn't just working with Colonel Hendry—he's also cooperating with the Soviet Union.
The sub they escaped in was a retrofitted Soviet vessel.
While investigating Colonel Hendry, our people learned he flew to Miami yesterday.
Now the Colonel has vanished; we suspect Shaw's group killed him.
CIA Director McCone hadn't taken Sebastian Shawseriously.
But after Roy and Professor X demonstrated their powers and proved Mutants exist, he changed his mind.
While Roy's team flew to Miami, the Director ordered every available Agent to investigate Black King Shaw and Hendry.
Once the CIA got serious, they quickly uncovered Shaw's Soviet links.
On learning that, Director McCone gave Agent Pratt a standing order: stop Black King Shaw—no matter what.
Not only that—stop him fast.
McCone doesn't know the full extent of Shaw's deal with the Soviets,
but his gut says Shaw is planning something big.
If it goes wrong, it could spark World War III between America and the Soviet Union.
"So we're to become the CIA's Mutant division?" Professor X asked Agent Pratt.
"Pretty much."
"The CIA will back you without reserve. Whatever you need, if we can supply it, it's yours," Agent Prattanswered at once.
Professor X merely nodded.
Though he'd never worked with the CIA and no Xavier had ever entered U.S. politics, he knew how the Agency operated.
Right now the CIA looked supportive, but once the Shaw crisis passed they'd brand the Mutants a national threat.
Soon Agent Pratt led Roy and the others into one of the building's labs.
Inside hung a scale model of an unusual aircraft.
The first-generation blackbird fighter jet.
"I designed and built this supersonic plane myself—state-of-the-art, nothing else comes close,"
said Hank, brown-haired, black-framed glasses, lab coat, every inch the bookish prodigy.
"The prototype's in a hangar outside the city; I'll show it to you when I can."
After Hank finished, Agent Pratt said, "Hank, these are the new people I told you about."
"Hank's our most gifted—and youngest—researcher."
Hank gave an awkward nod to Roy and the group.
"There's already a Mutant here—wonderful!"
Professor X stepped forward and shook Hank's hand,
then turned to Pratt. "Why didn't you mention this earlier?"
"Mention what?"
Agent Pratt looked puzzled.
Seeing his face, Professor X understood.
"Because you didn't know."
"Hank, I'm sorry—very sorry,"
Professor X said earnestly.
He'd assumed Pratt knew Hank was a Mutant; clearly he'd overestimated the CIA.
After the apology, Pratt finally caught on and approached Hank in surprise.
"Hank—you're a Mutant too?"
"You never asked, so I didn't mention it," Hank murmured, eyes down.
Before Pratt could respond, Mystique spoke up.
"What's your power—super-intelligence?"
she asked, intrigued.
Pratt answered for him: "Must be—Hank graduated college at fifteen."
Whether from lack of contact with girls or because Mystique's current blonde-and-blue form matched his ideal, Hank stared at her and said softly, "If only it were just that."
His expression turned bleak.
"We're all friends here, Hank. You can show us," Professor X encouraged.
Hank hesitated, then kicked off his shoes and peeled away his socks, revealing feet as dexterous as hands.
"Magnificent,"
Professor X exclaimed, genuinely awed.
Though the feet weren't beautiful by human standards, to him they were perfect evolution.
He also realized why Hank's intellect surpassed the norm.
Humanity had left other apes behind because, two million years ago in the Homo habilis era, we learned to use stone flakes and hammers.
Structurally, early human hands were no different from those of ancestral apes.
The only difference was that other ancient apes used their hands only to grab food and climb.
Humans, on the other hand, had already begun to use tools with their hands.
From today's perspective, using tools with your hands is the most natural thing in the World.
Yet for humans of that era, it was precisely the mastery of tool-use that gradually widened the intellectual gap between them and the ancient apes.
Modern science has proven that dexterous hand movements can, to a certain extent, influence the development of intelligence.
To ordinary people, Hank's large feet looked bizarre.
To Professor X, however, they were precisely why Hankwas smarter than the average person.
Put another way, the relationship between Hank and ordinary humans resembled that between Homo habilis and the ancient apes two million years ago.
Not only did Professor X consider Hank's genetic mutation a brilliant evolution; Mystique also found his variation quite interesting.
Or rather, seeing Hank's feet made her feel she wasn't the only freak in the World.
Right now Mystique didn't know many Mutants.
Apart from Black King Shaw's group—whom she hadn't actually seen—she had met only Roy, Professor X, and Magneto.
Although all were Mutants, Roy, Professor X, and Magneto showed no external differences and looked exactly like ordinary humans.
As a child, Mystique had simply felt her appearance was unusual; she hadn't experienced any special sense of inferiority.
As she grew older, however, she became increasingly self-conscious about how she looked.
Take the present moment, for example.
She revealed her true form only in front of Professor X.
In front of everyone else she maintained the image of the blonde beauty she now wore.
Seeing the captivating smile on Mystique's face, Hankcouldn't help but feel the urge to show off a little in front of her.
Under the gaze of Roy, Professor X, and the others, he walked beneath the prototype blackbird fighter jet model.
Then, with a light jump, he gripped the edge of the model with his feet and hung upside-down.
At the sight, Mystique's smile grew even brighter.
She walked straight up to Hank and said, "That was amazing."
"Really?"
Hank replied.
Mystique nodded.
Unlike Professor X and Mystique, whose attention was fixed on Hank, Roy and Magneto paid little heed to the display.
Roy's lack of interest stemmed from having long known Hank possessed such abilities.
Not only that, he also knew Hank would one day turn blue because of Mystique's genes.
Magneto's indifference, by contrast, was simply a matter of temperament.
At present he cared about only one thing: killing Black King Shaw to avenge his mother.
Until then, he had little interest in anything else.
"Charles tells me you can manipulate magnetic fields?"
Magneto asked Roy.
"Yes."
Roy nodded.
"How large a field can you control?"
Magneto pressed.
"Never tested it."
"I rarely use this superpower."
Roy answered slowly.
"If you've got time, let's spar."
Magneto regarded him with utter seriousness.
"All right."
Roy nodded…
Night.
After dinner in the mess, Roy walked alone onto the lawn to the right of the building and gazed at the radar dome that looked like a giant golf ball.
Once he learned that Charles's Telepathy operated via brainwaves, Hank volunteered to refit the golf-ball-shaped radar into an amplifier for those waves.
To anyone else the task would be daunting.
For Hank it would take only a day.
Just then Magneto walked up beside Roy and said, "Care for some post-dinner exercise?"
Roy glanced at him and replied slowly, "Since you're in the mood, I'll humor you."
"Just playing around?"
Magneto drew a coin from his pocket and set it floating around his right hand.
"If we went all-out, this place would be rubble in seconds."
Roy said with complete seriousness.
"Fine, we'll keep it light."
The moment he spoke, the coin circling his hand shot toward Roy like a bullet.
Its speed far exceeded an ordinary person's reaction time.
To Roy, however, the coin seemed almost slow.
Only when it was a meter away did he casually activate his Magnetism Manipulation Superpower.
Isolation Field!
With a thought, a high-intensity barrier that repelled both matter and energy sprang up around him.
The bullet-fast coin struck the invisible field and was instantly deflected.
Using magnetic fields for defense?
Magneto stared in surprise.
Though he couldn't see the field, he clearly sensed the powerful magnetic forces surrounding Roy.
"How did you do that?"
he asked.
"You should ask why you never realized magnetism could be used this way."
"Manipulating metal is only the most basic application."
"If you want to grow stronger, learn what magnetism truly is instead of treating it like a mere metal-moving trick."
Roy looked at him solemnly.
The essence of magnetism?
Magneto frowned and pondered.
Roy made no move to press the attack.
With his current strength, defeating Magneto would be effortless.
After a dozen seconds of silence Magneto said, "I'll take your advice."
He raised his right hand toward Roy, intent on shattering the Isolation Field.
The idea was good; reality was cruel.
Roy had no intention of watching the field collapse.
Magnetic Cage!
The instant Magneto lifted his arm, Roy created a cage of magnetic force that completely enclosed him.
The next moment Magneto was flung skyward, rocketing toward the heavens.
Normally a Magnetic Cage could only trap its target; it couldn't make it fly.
Yet by adding a few extra conditions, the cage itself could be sent aloft.
Like poles repel!
By generating an identical pole beneath the cage, it could be made to rise.
Moreover, by shifting the orientation of the poles, the cage could be piloted through the air like a drone.
The principle was simple!
But achieving the effect demanded extraordinarily precise control.
Encased in the Magnetic Cage, Magneto soon hovered a thousand meters above the ground.
Glancing upward, Roy dissolved the cage.
With the cage gone, Magneto immediately experienced a free-fall far more thrilling than any bungee jump…
Chapter 150: The First Generation cerebro
On his path to take revenge against Black King Shaw, Magneto had considered that he might die.
But he never imagined that one day he would be falling towards the ground from a height of a thousand meters in a free fall.
He did not fear death, but he didn't want to die in such a pathetic and unsightly way.
Driven by the will to survive, his brain worked frantically, thinking of a way to keep himself alive.
Soon, he thought of a self-rescue plan.
Without any hesitation, he immediately took off his belt, held it in his hand, and used his superpowers to control the metal buckle on the belt.
The self-rescue method he came up with was simple: to slow down his descent by manipulating the metal buckle.
If everything went smoothly, he would be able to land safe and sound.
The idea was beautiful, but reality was cruel!
Although he had awakened his superpowers long ago and usually practiced precise operations by manipulating coins when he had free time,
his current level of control was still not superb; it could only be described as barely passable.
Under his control, the metal buckle flew up.
Then, the belt he was holding in his hand slipped out of his grasp.
Damn it!
Magneto cursed inwardly and continued to manipulate the metal buckle.
If he were given enough time, he could indeed use the metal buckle to slow his descent and land safely on the ground.
But the problem was, he was running out of time.
Not only that, the high-speed fall also affected his mental concentration and control to a certain extent.
Five hundred meters!
Three hundred meters!
One hundred meters!
Fifty meters!
...When Magneto was only ten meters away from the ground, Roy once again created a Magnetic Cage, completely enveloping Magneto.
Then, by manipulating the magnetic field around the Magnetic Cage, he let Magneto fall gently to the ground like a fallen leaf.
"You are older than me, but your control is far inferior to mine."
"With your current level of control, you can't possibly be a match for Shaw."
Roy released the Magnetic Cage and said to Magneto.
Whether it was Magneto or Professor X, their development of their superpowers was far from sufficient.
If it weren't for their protagonist halos and the fact that they were two against one, they could never have been a match for Black King Shaw.
"Have you fought Shaw before?"
Magneto asked with a frown.
"No, but I know he is stronger than you."
"By the way, he is also a Mutant."
"To be precise, after discovering that you had superpowers, he also awakened his own."
Roy looked at Magneto calmly and said slowly.
"Then how do you know he has superpowers and is stronger than me?"
Magneto continued to ask.
"Because I can see some blurry fragments of the future."
Roy replied.
Magneto fell silent, said nothing more, turned toward the building, and disappeared from Roy's sight.
Roy didn't mind his departure, wondering if Magnetowould steal Black King Shaw's data just like in the movie.
In the movie, after stealing Black King Shaw's data, it was Professor X who stopped Magneto and made him change his mind.
Now, because of his intervention, Magneto might directly drop the idea of stealing the data and leaving.
Although he could use Telepathy to read Magneto's thoughts now, he didn't intend to do so, deciding instead to leave the answer for tomorrow morning.
Inside Hank's laboratory.
Mystique and Hank sat facing each other on the floor of the wind tunnel test area.
"When I was a kid, I promised myself that I would find a cure."
"You don't know how much I wanted to become..."
Before Hank could finish his sentence, Mystique spoke up: "Normal, to become normal!"
Hearing Mystique's words, Hank found that he liked her even more.
"Charles also never understands why I want to be normal. He's not like us. Or rather, he, Roy, and Eric are different from us; they don't need to disguise themselves or hide."
"As long as they don't use their superpowers, others won't discover they are Mutants."
Mystique said with a sigh of emotion.
"Yes, none of them have developed dominant physical mutations."
"From an evolutionary perspective, they have evolved more perfectly than us."
"Compared to them, we are like defective products in the evolutionary process."
Although Hank had an IQ and athletic ability far exceeding normal people, his unusual feet also brought him deep-seated insecurity.
Because of such unique feet, he didn't dare to participate in the sports he liked, nor did he dare to have much contact with the girls he liked.
He was afraid others would see his feet and afraid of being treated like a freak.
"Hank, the Serum you're making will only make our appearance normal; it won't affect our superpowers, will it?"
Mystique continued.
After dinner, Hank had specifically found Mystique and told her about the Serum he had researched.
"Yes!"
"I've tested it repeatedly. The Serum won't affect our superpowers; it will only turn our dominant physical mutations into recessive ones."
Hank nodded and said quickly.
"Then do you think the Serum will be effective for me?"
Mystique looked at Hank with expectation.
She had no dissatisfaction with her superpowers; she just didn't like her mutated appearance.
If there were no external mutations, she would like her shapeshifting superpower even more.
"If you're willing to provide some blood for me, I can test it."
"To have you come here specifically and then make such a strange request of you, it's the least I can do."
Hank said shyly.
Looking at the shy Hank, Mystique said with a smile, "You're right, usually when other men ask me out, they don't ask to draw my blood."
Hank, who had lacked experience with the opposite sex since childhood, clearly didn't understand Mystique's subtext and said quickly, "Sorry, I didn't mean to be so forward."
"I'm just... very excited."
"You know, your shapeshifting superpower is very special."
"If there's any gene that is the key to changing appearance, it must be yours."
"It's precisely because of this that you can turn into anyone at will."
Looking at Hank, who had become a bit nervous and awkward for fear that she would misunderstand, Mystique suddenly felt that Hank was even cuter than she had imagined.
"Hank, I mean, your request isn't forward. I'm very willing to cooperate with you..."
Saying this, Mystique moved her face closer to Hank, placed her right hand in front of him, and continued, "Come on, take my blood!"
Hank nodded and rolled up Mystique's sleeve.
After finishing the disinfection, he picked up a syringe and pricked Mystique's fair arm.
Mystique frowned uncontrollably.
"Sorry, I hurt you."
Hank immediately apologized.
Looking at Hank close at hand, Mystique closed her eyes and leaned in to kiss Hank's lips.
Just as they were about to kiss, Magneto, who had just experienced a strong sense of failure with Roy, came near Mystique and Hank and coughed.
The sudden coughing sound caused Mystique and Hank, who were about to kiss, to separate immediately.
Magneto didn't care about their surprise and said to Mystique, "If I were you, I wouldn't change my appearance."
After saying that, without waiting for Mystique or Hank to speak, he put his hands in his pockets and left without looking back.
Interrupted by Magneto, the originally ambiguous atmosphere vanished without a trace.
Looking at Magneto's departing back, Hank complained about him in his heart.
On purpose!
He definitely did it on purpose!
Hank was not someone who liked to complain about others, but he now had a strong dissatisfaction with Magneto.
If Magneto hadn't appeared, his first kiss would have been taken by Mystique.
For someone who had never been in a relationship and hadn't even held a girl's hand, Magneto had intentionally interrupted him and Mystique.
The next morning.
Agent Pratt called Roy and Professor X to his office, pointed at the white radar outside the window that looked like a giant golf ball, and said, "Hank has modified the radar into a signal transmitter that can enhance your brainwaves, which can significantly increase your perception range."
"With this, you can help us find other Mutants hidden in the crowd and have them join us."
Just as Agent Pratt finished speaking, Magneto's voice came from the doorway.
"What if they don't want to be found?"
Roy and the other two turned to look at Magneto at the same time.
Seeing Magneto, Professor X showed an 'as expected' expression.
He hadn't gone to the lawn last night.
But he had stood by the window in the building's hallway and witnessed the entire process of Roy and Magneto's encounter.
After seeing Roy defeat Magneto effortlessly, he knew Magneto would definitely stay.
Unlike Roy, he had used Telepathy on Magneto in Miami, read Magneto's memories, and knew what kind of person Magneto was.
If Magneto hadn't lost to Roy, he could guarantee that Magneto would have stolen Black King Shaw's data and left.
Because for Magneto, seeking revenge against Black King Shaw was his only purpose in life right now.
Magneto first glanced at Roy and Professor X, then said to Agent Pratt, "If a new species appears, they should be discovered by their own kind."
"Roy, Charles, and I will be responsible for finding them and persuading them to join."
"Just persuading them to join, not recruiting them on behalf of the CIA."
Hearing Magneto's words, Agent Pratt said quickly, "First of all, that machine outside is mine."
"More importantly, Roy and Charles have already promised me; they don't mind the CIA's involvement."
Professor X looked at Magneto and soon made a decision.
However, before he could speak, Roy spoke first, "No, I've changed my mind. I agree with Eric. We'll go find them ourselves, as fellow Mutants, not as CIA Agents."
"Me too,"
Professor X added immediately.
"And if I don't agree?"
Agent Pratt said with a frown.
"Then you can use that machine yourself."
"Or, maybe your luck will be very good and you'll find a new telepath."
Roy looked at Agent Pratt calmly and said unhurriedly.
Looking at Roy and the others who had instantly reached an agreement, Agent Pratt's expression became somewhat unsightly.
Let alone finding a new telepath, before meeting Roy and the others, he hadn't found a single Mutant.
Hank didn't count!
Hank had joined of his own accord; he wasn't found by Pratt.
Besides, before Professor X revealed Hank's identity, he had no idea Hank was a Mutant.
Hank had joined his department as a researcher, not as a field Agent, so he hadn't performed any physical examination on Hank at all.
However, even if he had wanted to perform a physical examination on Hank, Hank would not have agreed; he would have directly refused and then given up on joining.
After a helpless sigh, Agent Pratt had no choice but to agree to let Roy and the others go find the Mutants alone.
After leaving the office, Roy, Professor X, Magneto, Mystique, and Agent Moira came to the first generation cerebro that Hank had modified.
The first generation machine was indeed much cruder!
After entering the interior of the first generation cerebro, Roy made a quiet complaint in his heart.
"I've given it a new name."
"cerebro!"
Hank, wearing a white lab coat, came before Roy and the others and said quickly.
In the movie, Hank said 'cerebro' in Spanish, but now, he didn't use Spanish, just English.
"The electrodes will receive your brainwave signals and then transmit them with higher power using the transmitter on the roof."
"Although I don't have Telepathy, I tested it with my own brainwaves. The roof transmitter can transmit brainwave signals, so there shouldn't be any problems."
"When you perceive a Mutant, your brain will emit a signal, and this instrument will display their coordinates."
Hank introduced the various instruments nearby with a face full of pride.
"You designed all of this yesterday?"
Mystique asked Hank.
"Yes!"
Hank nodded.
Professor X looked at the translucent helmet with many exposed connection wires and said to Roy, "You first or me first?"
"You go first."
Roy replied.
Unlike Professor X, he had long ago experienced what it felt like to use a cerebro.
Not only that, the cerebro he used was much stronger than this first-generation version.
In addition to stronger amplification performance, the cerebro he used also had a holographic projection function that could directly display the perceived targets, rather than just displaying coordinates through an instrument as large as a desk like this one.
"Okay, then I won't be polite!"
After saying that, Professor X came under the cerebrohelmet, adjusted the helmet to the appropriate height, placed his hands behind his back, and his expression became incredibly serious.
Just then, Magneto's voice rang out.
"Charles, you look like a cute little lab rat right now."
"Eric, now is not a good time for jokes."
Professor X immediately replied.
That being said, Magneto still didn't intend to shut up and continued, "I've been a lab rat, so I know what a lab rat looks like."
"I've seen your memories, I know too."
Professor X continued to reply...