Looking for Outside Help, Huh

Looking for Outside Help, Huh

Duva did not like keeping a low profile, but when he saw Magneto extend a hand and levitate a huge pile of Iron Cages through the air, utterly ignoring everything around him as he flew from Alaska to land before Duva, he still found the scene fucking surreal.

"Nice to meet you. Are you sure it's okay to be this flashy? Countless people would love nothing more than to kill you," Duva said.

"I rather hope humanity fires nuclear missiles at me. That way, I can seize the chance to teach them an unforgettable lesson."

Magneto floated more than ten meters in the air, casually dropping the cages to the ground with a series of deafening crashes.

It was obvious that he truly did not care. His tone was incomparably calm as he said those words.

"Forgive my bluntness, Mr. Erik, but have you... just given up? Do you not care about humanity at all anymore?" A warm smile spread across Duva's face. He looked like he was enthusiastically chatting with an old friend. If not for the swarm of Xenomorphs emerging behind him, his act would have been flawless.

Magneto remained expressionless. With a raised hand, he stripped metallic elements from the soil, forming a massive clump of metal that came crashing down on Duva.

His attack was abrupt, but Duva, the target, was someone skilled at launching surprise attacks himself. Naturally, he had guarded against this.

Almost the instant the Metal Ball took shape,

the Abomination Xenomorph moved. Swinging its fist, it struck the target head-on, shattering it back into countless fragments.

"Is this how you greet people?" Duva asked slowly.

"This is how I greet you," Magneto said. With a flick of his fingers, he created even more metal and sent it rushing at Duva from every direction.

Duva displayed absolute calm. He stood where he was as the Xenomorphs around him simultaneously received his command and began to move.

They went from stillness to coordinated motion like a precision War Machine powering up.

Every Xenomorph was tiny, but several dozen working together precisely dealt with each incoming attack.

They could even immediately assign themselves to resist different attacks based on their size, strength, and their own capabilities.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

A meticulous, clearly layered defensive formation took shape in an instant and demonstrated remarkable efficiency.

Every second, numerous attacks were knocked away, corroded, or blocked with their bodies.

Even Magneto was moved by the sight. He stopped attacking and watched the Xenomorphs with interest. "When you have seen the view from higher up, it is only natural to find inferior humans boring. Take you, for example. Now that you have these little things, would you still consider yourself an ordinary human?"

Magneto was comparing the differences between Xenomorphs and Deviants. No matter how he looked at it, the Xenomorphs seemed stronger.

A single Xenomorph was as fragile as an ant before him. A group of them would only cost him a little time.

But if greater numbers of extraordinary Xenomorphs gathered together—like the utterly ruthless Abomination Xenomorph—even Magneto would need to take them seriously.

Duva was not yet powerful enough to make Magneto take him seriously, but after this exchange, Magneto had already seen Duva's immense potential.

"At the very least, I still consider myself human, not a Xenomorph."

"For now. Do not think I do not know that there is also a Xenomorph in your chest. I can sense its Life Magnetic Field." A cold smile appeared on Magneto's face. "If I had not confirmed that, I might have tried to kill you the moment I first saw you instead of playing house with you here."

"That really makes it hard to answer. To guard against something like this, I even hid Raven away," Duva sighed.

"You want to use Raven to threaten me?"

"No, it is not a threat. I know that if I used her to threaten you, you would abandon her in the end. But what if we continue our transaction? I can provide you with information in exchange for the Deviants you captured."

Duva pointed at the tightly sealed Iron Cages. The Deviants inside were trying to tear through the unbelievably thick metal.

The Abomination Xenomorph silently raised its head as well, facing Magneto with its eyeless, savage visage, like an iceberg devoid of all emotion.

"Besides, I believe your old friend is watching everything here. Look, I have already noticed his psychic presence on my Xenomorphs. He is observing us." Duva pointed at Elektra behind him.

That was why Elektra was here.

"Charles, get lost," Magneto said coldly.

"Erik, I merely want to remind you not to fight in a place like this. There is also no need to attack this child. He is not our enemy."

"Of course I will not attack him, because he is no longer purely human. Pursuing power—I admire that kind of behavior," Magneto said.

He wanted to build a world without humans. He admired any thought or action that separated itself from "humanity," especially in someone as exceptionally talented as Duva.

Duva's expression did not change. In truth, if he wanted to, he could strip the Xenomorph from his body at any time. There was no need for him to make that clear.

He was far more interested in those Deviants.

This branch of Deviants possessed the ability to absorb a target's life force and genes, allowing them to gain the supernatural powers wielded by that target.

Ordinary Deviants possessed this ability as well.

"You two keep talking. I am going to collect my goods."

Duva's thoughts shifted, and nearly twenty Xenomorphs instantly rushed out, first surrounding one Iron Cage.

Under Magneto's interested gaze, one Xenomorph tore open its own body. A large amount of blood splashed out, instantly corroding through layers of metal.

"That level of acidity... perhaps only Vibranium or Adamantium can withstand it." Surprise appeared on Magneto's face.

This was far too extraordinary. The existence of such a creature was simply unnatural.

One Deviant tried to use the opportunity to escape. In an instant, it was pounced on and pinned to the ground by a large swarm of Xenomorphs. It let out a piercing cry and fought the Xenomorphs, only to be suppressed in every respect.

The Xenomorphs launched a relentless barrage of attacks. No matter how the Deviant struggled, it was useless. It could only be knocked down again and again as countless wounds across its body split open.

"I conducted genetic testing on them. I have to admit that the genes in these things are very similar to the X-Gene," Magneto said coldly.

"So that discovery has left you quite frustrated." Duva nodded in understanding. "Anyone would be surprised to learn that, but there is no need to worry. This branch of Deviants is not related to mutants."

"That is what I wanted to ask you. Why do mutants still exist, while the Deviants, the origin of mutants, vanished?"

"You are truly cunning. That should clearly count as two questions—because the Deviants failed their Creator's judgment and were personally wiped from Earth by their Creator. Only some humans who inherited Deviant genes survived."

Duva began focusing on capturing the Deviants. He impatiently dragged them underground and began implanting them on the spot.

Before long, he would have another batch of truly formidable soldiers with outrageous growth potential! Neither Magneto nor Professor X, S.H.I.E.L.D., or the other forces monitoring this place realized this. They did not even know how terrifying the Deviants' potential for growth truly was.

"This question is worth ten Deviants. It involves ancient gods, so it is well worth the price. You are not going to renege, are you?"

"No. I never break a promise, but your price is expensive. Deviants are becoming fewer and fewer. We are killing them, and so are those Eternals."

As Magneto spoke, his mind was occupied with thoughts of gods.

A god had created the Eternals and Deviants in ancient times? How terrifying would such a god have to be? It was simply unimaginable.

After all, the strongest mutants today possessed the power to intimidate the entire world by themselves, yet even Magneto did not dare claim that such individuals could surpass the Deviants who had once dominated Earth.

But the Deviants had been exterminated.

Magneto decided to go back and thoroughly investigate various myths and legends, searching for traces related to those gods.

"You had better not have deceived me, much less played word games mixing truth and falsehood. I will verify it." Magneto flew into the sky and departed without looking back.

"Professor Charles, your good friend has left, so it is time for you to leave as well, right? Honestly, I am deeply honored that you chose not to invade my mind." Duva turned to Elektra.

"There is another reason Erik did not attack you. He suspects that you may also be a mutant, perhaps one who awakened the ability to create and control genetic organisms," Professor X said.

"Something like Mr. Sinister? That is interesting. I have never had my X-Gene tested." Duva brushed it off.

While Duva was racing to strengthen himself,

the chain reaction he had created had already officially taken shape.

Having noticed that Magneto was looking for Duva, the terrified vampires finally could not endure any longer. They decided to wage war against Duva and seek powerful help to deal with him.

"Kaecilius, that is the situation. We need you, the esteemed chief disciple of the Sorcerer Supreme, to help us kill him!"