Want to Fight?

After telling Quicksilver about his father's identity, Ron and Emma left Quicksilver's home. He had Emma send people to keep an eye on Quicksilver's family and make sure the government did not find them.

The future mutant kingdom would need powerful mutants like Quicksilver.

As for him being Magneto's son, what did that matter? He had said himself that he would never coexist with evil.

After spending some more time with Raven, Ron gave Emma information on several other mutants and told her to find a way to recruit them. Then, carrying an Adamantium knife, he returned to The Boys Universe.

He had spent nearly a month over there.

In The Boys Universe, only an afternoon and a night had passed.

The weather was clear and sunny.

Inside a minimalist, understated luxury apartment, before the floor-to-ceiling balcony windows.

Ron looked down at the city streets outside and drew his long blade.

The silver blade forged from Adamantium had an edge as thin as paper. It reflected the light and was incomparably sharp.

Not even ten or a hundred tons of force could bend it.

"It's a good blade."

But he did not know whether it could hurt Homelander. With a flick, he sheathed the blade and casually set it aside.

The X-Men universe still retained the previous time-coordinate flow rate.

For him, founding a nation was not difficult.

"But creating a nation that could independently shelter every mutant in the world would not be easy."

A country composed primarily of mutants would easily end up opposed to the entire world. Mutants gathered in one place could very well become targets for nuclear bombs.

He kept the matter progressing under his control. Only after solving that problem would he formally establish the nation.

Otherwise, not long after founding the country and becoming the mutant leader, a nuclear bomb might land in his nation. He himself did not yet have the ability to survive a high-yield blast.

Humanity's exclusion and hostility toward mutants in the X-Men universe had never been in doubt. More than once, mutants had been exterminated at human hands.

Besides, relations between the two sides in the X-Men universe were even more tense and dangerous now.

"I just dealt with two robbers on a nearby street. I was heading back to the company when I happened to see you, Dark Star."

A voice suddenly came from the balcony. Homelander descended slowly from the sky with his arms folded, a brilliant smile on his face.

"My new teammate, Vought Tower assigned every member of The Seven a private room. Are you not comfortable staying there?"

He looked friendly, like a captain concerned for a newly joined team member.

"I'm not used to staying in other people's places."

Ron coldly watched Homelander descend from above, not believing his explanation in the slightest.

He happened to run into him?

More likely, he had come looking for him.

"How is it someone else's place?

You joined The Seven. We're all family now."

He smiled as he walked inside.

But Ron gave him no face at all.

"What do you want?"

The smile on Homelander's face remained unchanged.

"Nothing much, just..."

Before he could finish, he suddenly moved. The space around them seemed to slow as he reached for Ron's shoulder at a speed exceeding more than ten times the speed of sound.

"Let me see what you can do, kid.

Whether you possess power close to a god's!"

His expression did not change, but he sneered inwardly.

Homelander was merely testing him and had no intention of truly attacking. When faced with another person's sudden movement, everyone generally reacted on instinct.

From that, he could judge Ron's speed.

One meter... half a meter... closer and closer.

Ron showed no reaction or movement whatsoever. His cold eyes stared directly at him, as if he had not noticed a thing.

"Too slow. I knew it..."

Ron had not reacted even after half a meter had passed. A faint smile bloomed across Homelander's face, arrogance rising in his eyes.

No one could approach a god!

He was a great miracle. Even Vought, which had created him, could not reproduce another him.

Homelander prepared to finish the motion, naturally placing a hand on Ron's shoulder and offering a word or two of concern and encouragement to the new teammate.

This pathetic defective product has no idea that in less than a millisecond, I've already seen through him.

But the next instant.

Just as Homelander was about to place his hand on Ron's shoulder, with only around ten centimeters left between them.

Smack!

"Just talk. Don't get handsy."

Ron remained expressionless. Without even looking at him, he casually grabbed Homelander's wrist at nearly twice his speed and spoke slowly.

"Are we that close?"

"..."

His wrist caught, Homelander's smile instantly froze.

Ron had reacted, and Ron's speed just now had actually been faster than his—nearly twice as fast.

"Impossible!"

"What's impossible about it?"

Homelander exclaimed, and Ron immediately sneered in reply.

Ron had seen that Homelander had wanted to test his strength.

"How can you have that kind of speed!"

Homelander violently shook off Ron's hand. His face darkened as he did so, unable to accept it, and red light lit up in his eyes.

Though he did not show much rage, unprecedented panic and fury spread through his heart.

Having been accustomed since childhood to being unique, to being far stronger than everyone else, with arrogance steeped into his bones, he could not accept this.

"There can only be one Homelander!"

He stepped forward and grabbed Ron by the collar, almost uncontrollable killing intent in his eyes as he warned him coldly, word by word.

"Listen, I don't care who created you. Don't think being a little faster means you can compare to me, much less replace me..."

"Want to fight?"

Knowing this was anger born from fear and panic that had left him at a loss, Ron calmly picked up the blade standing beside him and cut him off.

"You think I wouldn't? You damn brat!"

Taking it as a provocation, Homelander replied viciously, word by word. He seemed on the verge of losing control, the glow of his Laser Eyes blazing in his gaze, yet he never made a move.

He was clearly still wary, bound by the chains of public approval and fans.

"Then come on."

But Ron was truly inviting him. He genuinely wanted to fight him and see whether his current self could defeat Homelander.

Boom!

On a deserted island somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean.

Ron appeared there with Homelander.

An endless sea, crashing waves, a deserted island, and sandy shores.

"Where is this?"

As the surrounding scenery suddenly changed, Homelander took a step back and looked around, asking in a dark tone.

Having seen Ron's ability before, he was not surprised in the slightest. He merely wanted to know where they were.

"Somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean. Here, you can unleash your strength as freely as you please, without worrying about destroying anything, losing fans, or seeing your approval fall.

There is only endless seawater here."

Red flames of light rose around his body. Ron spread his arms as though presenting this world to Homelander, his tone mocking.

"Of course, without your favorite audience, spotlights, and cameras, I wonder if you can even get excited!"

"Good. Very good!"

After thinking for several seconds, Homelander clenched his fists. Like a terrifying volcano suppressed for too long and about to erupt, he stared at Ron and sneered through gritted teeth.

"Since I was a child, no one has ever dared tell me that I could unleash my power without restraint."

Though he had lost slightly to Ron in speed, the gap was not large. Besides, speed was merely his weakest attribute.

"You think one advantage in speed is enough to challenge me, to challenge the strongest superhero on this planet?"

He shouted, his voice rolling like thunder. With a stomp, he blasted a crater several meters wide beneath his feet, sending sea sand flying. In an instant, he reached Ron and threw a punch.

"I'll show you how utterly wrong you are!"

The terrifying force of tens of thousands of tons nearly compressed the air into something solid.

The force of his fist tore through the air, roaring violently.

Whoosh!

Ron swayed aside to evade it, and his long blade left its sheath.

"You talk too much."

The battle began!