The Impact of the explosion swept across the entire plaza, shattering the glass curtain wall on the ground floor of Arbitrator Tower.
Flames spewed from the collapsed entrance, and the roars of Extremis Soldiers echoed in the night, like a pack of hellhounds.
Steve Rogers raised his vibranium shield, taking a direct hit from a molten punch, the scorching Impact leaving two charred marks from his boot soles on the ground.
He retreated with the force, simultaneously letting out a low growl: "Pietro!"
A silver afterimage instantly swept across the battlefield.
Quicksilver darted through the enemy ranks at supersonic speed, his high-voltage stun baton precisely piercing the spinal nerve nodes of the Extremis Soldiers.
The struck enemies convulsed violently, their molten skin temporarily dimming, but after only two seconds, the scorching energy surged again, and the wounds rapidly healed.
"It's useless!" Pietro flashed back to Steve's side, his brows tightly furrowed, "Their self-healing speed is even faster than before!"
Wanda controlled the scarlet Chaos magic with both hands, forming an arc-shaped energy barrier in the center of the plaza, temporarily blocking the charging Extremis Soldiers.
Fine beads of sweat seeped from her forehead, and she gritted her teeth: "There are too many of them… and they're still evolving!"
Steve took a deep breath and quickly adjusted his tactics: "Pietro, keep interfering with them, don't let them break through in force! Wanda, maintain the barrier, buy me some time!"
He suddenly flung his shield, the Vibranium disk cutting a sharp arc through the air, piercing through the chests of three Extremis Soldiers in succession before bouncing back into his hand.
However, enemies continued to pour in endlessly; their skin had evolved anti-magic properties, and Wanda's barrier began to show cracks.
"Damn it…" Steve gripped his shield, preparing to meet the next wave of Impact.
Just then— Boom!!!
A deafening sonic boom came from above the Arbitrator Tower, and a golden-red meteor streaked across the night sky.
Tony Stark's Photon Wings trailed a dazzling particle trajectory behind him, diving down like a cannonball, the afterburners of his armor leaving a scorching afterimage in the air.
"Captain! Looks like you guys need a little party boost!" Tony's voice rang out in the comms channel, as the miniature missile pods on his armor's shoulders opened, locking six high-explosive warheads onto the enemy group.
—Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The missiles accurately hit the densest areas of the Extremis Soldiers, the explosion's fire instantly engulfing the center of the plaza.
However, what was shocking was that those Extremis Soldiers who were bombed actually resisted the explosion; except for the unlucky one who was blown to pieces, the other Extremis Soldiers enveloped by the explosion began to absorb the flames generated by the explosion!
"Tony! Their virus is adapting to your weapons!" Steve shouted.
Tony's faceplate scanned data frantically refreshed, and Jarvis's voice sounded: "Sir, the Extremis is evolving, and the effectiveness of conventional weapons is diminishing."
"Then try this!" Tony's laser swords popped out from his hands, the blue-white energy blades humming in the air.
The armor's energy core instantly overloaded, the brightness of the Photon Wings surged, and Tony, like a beam of light, rushed into the enemy group, his laser swords sweeping across, bisecting two Extremis Soldiers.
But this time, he deliberately made the blades vibrate at high frequency at the incision points, the continuous scorching and vibration of the high-temperature energy preventing their regeneration.
"It's effective!" Pietro's eyes lit up, and he once again transformed into a silver afterimage, coordinating with Tony's attack, specifically destroying the enemies' joints and nerve nodes.
Wanda also adjusted her strategy; the scarlet magic was no longer used for defense, but transformed into countless tiny energy threads, wrapping around the limbs of the Extremis Soldiers, forcibly slowing their movements.
The battle finally began to turn!
——
The alloy walls of the safe house remained unmoved by the aftershocks of the explosion, and the emergency lights on the ceiling emitted a soft blue glow steadily.
The holographic projector in the center of the room displayed a clear three-dimensional image, showing the intense battle outside Arbitrator Tower in real-time before everyone.
Pepper leaned her hands on the control console, and in the holographic image, Tony's armor was entangled with three Extremis Soldiers, the blue, white, and black armor covered in scorch marks.
"Happy, can you contact Tony?" Her voice was tense, her gaze never leaving the projection.
Happy wiped the sweat from his forehead, his fingers rapidly operating on the communication panel: "The signal is intermittent, but I can still connect—Tony! How are things on your end?"
Tony in the projection dodged a molten punch with a sidestep, his palm cannon shattering the enemy's head: "My dear, I suggest you focus your attention on my handsome fighting posture, and not on those ugly—", the screen suddenly shook violently, Tony was sent flying by an Impact, "Damn it! Jarvis, how much shield energy is left?"
"Tony… Chen Tian… you both must be okay…" Her voice trembled slightly.
Behind her, 2B stood silently, holding the Pure White Pact katana in her hand.
"Ms. Pepper, no need to worry." 2B's voice was gentle, "My Lord will not let anything happen here."
Pepper looked back at her, forcing a faint smile: "I know Chen Tian is very strong, but this time the enemies…"
2B shook her head slightly, revealing a hint of a smile, "Ms. Pepper, you seem to have forgotten, My Lord's uncles."
2B pointed to a spot on the holographic projection, "They are very strong."
As soon as 2B finished speaking, the entire battlefield suddenly fell into an eerie stillness.
The flames of the explosion solidified in mid-air, bullets hung suspended, and even the howling wind disappeared.
Vergil's voice then sounded.
"Dimension Slash."
The next second, hundreds of silver-white sword lights intertwined into a net over the plaza, each one precisely passing through the bodies of the Extremis Soldiers.
Vergil's figure appeared in the sword light, his Yamato elegantly sheathed.
With a 'click', all the enemies struck simultaneously shattered into neat cubes.
"You're too greedy, bro!" Dante's voice came from high in the sky, accompanied by Dante's shout, Rebellion, wreathed in red flames, smashed into the enemy group, the Impact instantly clearing a twenty-meter radius.
He casually flung out his twin pistols, bullets tracing golden trajectories in the air, completely evaporating the molten chunks attempting to reassemble.
The entire battlefield suddenly fell into an eerie sense of disjunction—on one side was Dante and Vergil's fluid art of slaughter, and on the other was the Arbitrators' almost leisurely state of spectating.
"Dimensional Slash - Absolute."
As soon as Vergil's voice fell, Tony saw seven Extremis Soldiers suddenly freeze in place.
Their bodies developed a fine blue grid, and the next second they shattered into neat cubes like jelly cut by an invisible blade.
Those fragments even remained suspended in the air, maintaining the posture from the moment they were struck.
"Jarvis, analyze the principle behind that."
"Sir, according to the scan, those cubes are undergoing spatial-level cutting.
Simply put—"
"Stop, I've changed my mind." Tony flipped open his faceplate, pulled out a bag of dried blueberries from a hidden compartment in his armor, "This kind of super-standard physical phenomenon can be left for Banner to worry about."
Not far away, Dante's Rebellion ignited with a ghostly blue flame.
His eyes sharpened, and the blade cut a perfect arc, bisecting three Extremis Soldiers.
Unlike his usual playful demeanor, his movements were precise and deadly at this moment.
"Brother, the left side is yours," he said in a deep voice, while his right hand, Ebony, fired continuously, each bullet precisely hitting the enemies' nerve nodes, and even more terrifying, these bullets carried a strange destructive power, destroying the cells within the Extremis Soldiers' bodies.
"This is simply…" Pietro stood next to Steve, still holding a stun baton he hadn't had time to throw, "What exactly were we fighting against before?"
Wanda withdrew her Chaos magic, recovering her stamina.
"I suddenly feel like my earlier tension was very unnecessary," she said, looking at Dante's fluid fighting posture.
"Chen Tian's family are all freaks…"
As if remembering something, a blush spread across Wanda's face, and her legs subtly tightened.
With the addition of the two My Lords, the Extremis Soldiers on the battlefield were like lambs to the slaughter, and the kind that were bound in turtle shell restraints, utterly defenseless under the rampage of the two freaks.
Soon, the battlefield was cleared.
On the plaza, where the smoke of battle had not yet dissipated, Vergil's figure vanished from the battlefield, the 'click' of Yamato sheathing itself seemed like a signal; all the cubic fragments suspended in the air simultaneously turned to dust, shimmering with tiny blue light as they scattered in the moonlight.
"It's… over?" Pietro looked at the mess, he knew Chen Tian's two uncles were strong, but he had never seen them when he was little.
Tony brushed off the crumbs of the blueberry snack in his hand: "Jarvis, battlefield scan."
"No life signs in the area, Sir." The AI paused for half a second, "Correction: except for us."
Dante had appeared beside Tony at some point, Rebellion casually slung over his shoulder: "So, rich guy? How many strawberry sundaes is this performance worth?" His other hand familiarly rested on Tony's shoulder.
"Red-clad uncle, you and blue-clad uncle don't match at all with your cool demeanor," Tony brushed Dante's hand away, but couldn't help but curve his lips, "Looks like someone converted their appearance fee into sweets."
"Hey!" Dante pretended to be hurt, clutching his chest, "I risked getting fat to save the day!"
From the first-floor entrance of the Arbitrators, Pepper walked out quickly.
She first carefully inspected Tony's armor, then turned to Dante: "I've already had someone order the pepperoni pizza you raved about last time."
Dante's eyes instantly lit up: "Deal!" He turned and shouted into the void: "Brother! Extra meal!"
Vergil's figure solidified in the moonlight, his blue coat spotless: "Childish." But as he walked towards Pepper, he still nodded slightly: "Black tea, thank you."
Steve put his shield back on his back, looking at the cubic debris shimmering with blue light all over the ground, and shook his head with a wry smile: "I didn't attend your family party last time, it seems I missed a lot of exciting shows."
Tony was about to respond when he suddenly froze: "Wait!" He slapped his forehead abruptly, "Jarvis, immediately connect to Chen Tian's communication!"
A holographic projection unfolded on his armor's arm, and Chen Tian's image appeared.
At this moment, he stood in a sea of fire; if one observed carefully, they could see the remains of a Villa, and he was in the ruins of that Villa.
"Tony, have you guys resolved things on your end?"
Tony's eyes widened as he looked at Chen Tian's surroundings: the burning Villa remains, molten slag dripping from twisted metal frames, and ashes flying everywhere.
Fragments of what were once priceless artworks now floated in the air with the heat waves.
"Chen Tian! What's going on over there?" Tony shouted.
"What's going on?" Chen Tian spread his hands, gesturing to his surroundings, "Well, it's like this."
Chen Tian bent down and picked up a charred metal piece; it was the remains of Tony's favorite coffee machine.
"Don't be nervous," he gently brushed the dust off the fragment, "Your treasured bottle of Black Pearl is still there."
"That's not the problem!" Tony loudly interrupted Chen Tian, "I'm talking about the armor! My 'family party'!"
Chen Tian shifted the camera, and in the former underground laboratory, there was only a huge empty hole.
Inside, nearly thirty suits of armor that Tony had continuously built since Chen Tian's disappearance three years ago, were now covered in molten lava, slowly melting.
"Damn it!" Tony stomped his foot in anger, but then seemed to remember something, "Wait, Chen Tian! This lava isn't ordinary stuff! I have a few suits of armor that were specifically tested for high temperatures; they wouldn't melt even if thrown into a volcano and left for a day!"
The camera turned to Chen Tian again, who now had a serious expression, "Yes, Tony, your Mark-2 - Devil Edition is also gone."
"What?!" Tony's voice was almost a shriek; everyone looked at Tony in surprise, they rarely saw him so distraught.
Tony's pupils contracted violently, and the breathing system under his faceplate suddenly emitted an urgent alarm.
"Sir, your heart rate has exceeded 140." Jarvis reminded him promptly.
Tony came back to his senses at Jarvis's reminder; he took a few deep breaths and looked at Chen Tian's image, "Kid, is it really gone, or was it blown away?"
Chen Tian was also very serious, "I've searched all around me, you know, it's made of Diablo scales, I can feel it, it is indeed gone."
Tony took another deep breath, just about to say something, when Chen Tian interrupted him, "Tony, wait for me on the top floor of Arbitrator Tower, I just found some things to show you guys."
Upon hearing Chen Tian say this, Tony stopped pressing, closed the communication, and turned to the worried crowd looking at him.
Tony spread his hands and said, "You heard the Arbitrator Leader, let's go to the top floor."
Then, ignoring everyone's reactions, he piloted his armor and flew towards the top floor.
Steve and Pietro exchanged glances, Vergil was the first to enter the Arbitrator Tower, while Dante, with Rebellion slung behind his back, his hands clasped behind his head, whistled as he followed Vergil.
Pepper anxiously asked 2B, who had just come out, "2B, do you know what's going on?"
2B didn't answer, just shook her head, then led Wanda into the Arbitrator Tower.
——
In the ruins of the Malibu Villa, after Chen Tian finished communicating with Tony, he pressed his wristband a few times.
"Adjudicator, eliminate Aldrich Killian and his AIM, capture the fake Mandarin alive, obtain all Extremis data, Red Room, investigate Maya Hansen's true identity."
After saying this to his wristband, he took it off and threw it into a pool of still-rolling lava.
Only after the wristband was completely melted did his figure disappear from the spot.
——
Malibu Villa ruins, 1000 meters away, Maya stumbled out of the burning bushes, completely naked, her hair burned off, her left arm completely carbonized, constantly peeling off charred debris with every movement.
The exposed muscle tissue twisted under high temperatures, like a wax figure eroded by lava, but the Extremis was still frantically repairing her body—each cell reorganization was accompanied by a violent burning sensation, as if countless tiny fire snakes were swimming in her blood vessels.
She gasped, supporting herself with her remaining right hand on a charred, withered tree trunk, her nails digging deep into the bark.
Her vision was blurred by the heat, but the towering flames of the Villa in the distance still stung her pupils.
"Bucky Barnes, you damned bastard." She cursed hoarsely, her voice squeezed from her burned vocal cords, like a vengeful ghost.
Maya looked down at her damaged body.
The Extremis was still working, but its efficiency had clearly decreased, perhaps due to the demonic power at play within it.
"Bucky Barnes! You and Tony will die! Die without even a trace left!" Maya cursed venomously, then slipped into the darkness.
(Here's an explanation regarding the evolution of the Extremis: In the original setting, the Extremis is evolvable, with two evolutionary paths: natural evolution and scientific evolution.)
(The essence of the virus is to grant extraordinary abilities by altering the host's genetic structure.
Similar to natural viruses, it can achieve self-evolution through gene mutation or horizontal gene transfer.)
(In Marvel's setting, the Extremis has been modified multiple times, implying that its evolution relies not only on natural mechanisms but also on iterative technological means.)
(Extremis data comes from Marvel Wiki.)
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