Severely Injured Nightcrawler

The X-Jet carried Jean Grey, Guan Heng, and the three young men through the clouds at breakneck speed, arriving above the outskirts of New York City in the blink of an eye. It then landed at a secret base disguised as an abandoned farm.

After they got off the plane, Jean drove a sleek, all-black SUV out of the garage. Following the Tracking Device on Guan Heng's communicator, she drove southwest for nearly twenty kilometers.

Jean lightly tapped the brakes and suddenly said, "Wait. I sense an unusual energy fluctuation nearby."

Guan Heng checked the tracker and nodded. "That's right. The red dot isn't moving anymore. He should be nearby. Everyone, get out."

Aside from the Abandoned Farm, there were only a few dilapidated barns and storehouses nearby. The area was completely open to view. The five of them walked forward for about a hundred meters before Jean suddenly stopped and shot Guan Heng a look. He understood and instructed the three young men, "You guys, surround the second barn from the left. Remember, don't get too close, or you'll alert him."

Fireman, Iceman, and Colossus answered softly in unison, "Yes, boss."

The answer grated on Jean Grey's ears. Frowning, she said to Guan Heng, "It's only been a little while. How did you turn them into members of the Black Gang? First it's 'you guys,' then 'boss.'"

Guan Heng was already a little afraid to meet Jean's eyes. Turning his head away, he said softly, "Catching him is what matters. I'll explain the unimportant stuff later."

The three young men split up and hid to the east, west, and north. Guan Heng and Jean Grey strolled unhurriedly toward the barn door on the south side. After only seven or eight steps, they stopped beneath a beam. Jean signaled to Guan Heng that their target was lurking motionless above them.

"Strange," Guan Heng suddenly said to Jean. "Do you smell something weird?"

"What smell? I don't smell anything," Jean Grey replied.

"It's the stench of a filthy thief," Guan Heng said with deliberate seriousness. As soon as he finished speaking, the two of them sprang apart.

At the same moment, a dark-blue demon-shaped Nightcrawler suddenly pounced down from the beam, heading straight for Phoenix. He thought a woman would be easier to deal with.

Before Jean Grey could act, Guan Heng pushed off with his toes and sprang in front of Nightcrawler in an instant. He kicked hard at his chest. Whoosh! Nightcrawler vanished. Guan Heng's kick hit nothing, and Nightcrawler suddenly reappeared behind him, his tail whipping through the air toward Guan Heng's neck.

"You little Azazel, you dare act so arrogantly?" Guan Heng sneered. He threw a punch at the wall, and with a bang, used the powerful rebound to slam his back into Nightcrawler's chest. Nightcrawler immediately crashed to the ground.

"Ugh!" Nightcrawler rolled over and pushed himself up onto one knee.

"Freeze!" Jean Grey saw her chance and thrust both hands forward, trying to use Mind Control to restrain him.

But Nightcrawler's teleportation was faster than her ability. His figure vanished again and appeared behind Phoenix in the blink of an eye. The sharp tip of his tail became a spear and pierced through the air toward the back of Jean Grey's heart.

"No! Don't touch her!" Seeing that Jean Grey was about to be hurt, Guan Heng suddenly let out a heaven-shaking Dragon Roar.

Rumble! The entire barn collapsed beneath the roar. Jean had already taken the opportunity to run outside.

Nightcrawler clutched his ears in agony, blood pouring through the gaps between his fingers. The furious roar had burst his eardrums.

Guan Heng's figure suddenly became a streak of meteoric afterimages. Smack! He stomped Nightcrawler's tail into the ground, then spun and slapped him so hard that he flew more than ten meters. Nightcrawler howled miserably as he tumbled straight out of the barn door.

"Ugh! My chest!" Guan Heng felt an unbearable heat in his chest. He tore open his shirt and saw the Flying Dragon Tattoo, glowing with golden light and silver flames, appear over his heart once more. It was the mark of the Iron Fist Successor from the Kunlun Secret Realm.

Suddenly, Guan Heng roared in a strange voice he didn't recognize: "Anyone who dares harm Phoenix will suffer the wrath of the Dragon God!"

Nearby, Jean Grey heard the roar. Her delicate body shuddered, and lightning flashed through her mind again and again.

Guan Heng suddenly clutched his head. "Ugh, it hurts! It feels like some kind of message is drilling into my head. Hmm, no, I need to catch Azazel first."

Guan Heng had knocked Nightcrawler out of the barn, and he was so terrified that he turned to run. Then he saw a scorching ball of fire rushing toward him.

Whoosh! His body vanished as he teleported again. Boom! The charging fireball slammed into the barn's crumbling wall and began to burn with a crackle.

"Oh, look what you've done!" Iceman shouted irritably. He was about to rush over and put out the fire when the Ice Storm Ring on Guan Heng's hand flashed blue. "Put it out!"

A rush of icy air instantly froze the burning debris—even the flames froze.

"Wow, boss, you can use ice too? That's amazing!" Iceman began to praise him, but Guan Heng shouted, "Watch out behind you!"

Bang! Nightcrawler seized the opening and struck Iceman with his tail.

Iceman instantly froze over, blocking most of the attack and emerging almost unscathed.

"Little Steel, protect Sister Qin!" Guan Heng shouted. "Don't let that blue monster get near her again!"

Colossus answered the order and stepped in front of Jean Grey to protect her.

"That bastard teleports too fast. We need to find a way to restrict his movement." Guan Heng's eyes shifted as he came up with a plan. He shouted, "Little Ice, freeze the ground within a hundred meters!"

After saying that, Guan Heng activated the Ice Storm Ring himself. A vast swath of cold air swept over the ground, turning the area into a skating rink. Iceman followed his example nearby.

The whole thing took less than three seconds. Nightcrawler reappeared after teleporting and set one foot on the ice. He immediately slipped and fell flat on his face.

"Now's our chance! Grab him!" Guan Heng hurriedly shouted. The Ice and Fire Twin Heroes charged from opposite sides.

Iceman thought he'd managed to grab Azazel, so he summoned all the cold air in his body and froze the person in his arms into a block of ice.

"Haha, boss, I—I caught him!" Iceman shouted excitedly.

"You idiot!" Guan Heng grunted in exasperation. "Take a good look at who you've frozen!"

Iceman looked closely. Good grief! Fireman was glaring at him from inside the block of ice. He quickly thawed him out, and the Ice and Fire Twin Heroes nearly came to blows over it.

Nightcrawler's teleportation was still too fast. Guan Heng stared at the frightened Azazel in front of him. At the last moment, Azazel had teleported clear of the Ice and Fire Twin Heroes' attack, but Guan Heng had blocked his escape route.

It had to be said that Guan Heng's trick of freezing the ground had restricted his movements within a small area. If Azazel teleported again, he would still slip within the hundred-meter radius. He didn't dare act rashly.

"Hmph! Take this!" Guan Heng suddenly gathered strength in both fists and hammered the frozen ground repeatedly.

Crack, crack, crack! A large section of the frozen ice was driven into the ground by the force of his punches, tilting into sharp spikes.

Nightcrawler immediately lost his footing. As the ice tilted, he ran uncontrollably toward Guan Heng.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! Three throwing knives closed in around Azazel from the east, west, and north. Forced into a corner, he gritted his teeth and teleported.

"Right here! Hah!" The instant Azazel appeared on the south side, Guan Heng rushed in like a ferocious tiger and slammed his shoulder into Nightcrawler with all his strength.

Pfft! Nightcrawler was driven into the ice, leaving a huge spiderweb of cracks. He spat out a mouthful of blood and was gravely injured.