Return and a Sudden Turn

"That's right, Boss! You're amazing!" the three younger brothers cheered in unison.

The Ice and Fire Twin Heroes had been badly weakened, and Colossus had to protect Jean Grey. Her Mind Control couldn't keep up with Teleportation, so Guan Heng had taken Nightcrawler down on his own. The fight had sounded complicated, but it had only taken a few minutes for Guan Heng to leave Blue-skinned Kid gravely injured. His strength was astonishing.

Guan Heng had also made clever use of tactics, fully grasping the weaknesses in his opponent's abilities. Blue-skinned Kid's Teleportation only worked within a range of a dozen or so meters. Once that area was under control, his movements could be restricted, leaving him at his opponent's mercy. That was also why Blue-skinned Kid hadn't fully developed his ability. If he could teleport several kilometers away at a time, this tactic wouldn't work.

After spitting out a mouthful of blood, Nightcrawler slumped to the ground. His eyes, which had been glowing red the whole time, suddenly returned to their normal color. When he shook his head and struggled to his feet, he looked utterly bewildered.

Could this kid have been under someone's control? Guan Heng wondered. Then he thought, Never mind that for now. I'll beat you down first.

Guan Heng moved in a flash and appeared in front of Nightcrawler, throwing a punch.

Panicked, Nightcrawler instinctively used Teleportation in his desperation, and his figure vanished again.

"Roar!" Guan Heng instinctively let out another Dragon's Roar. Everyone nearby clapped their hands over their ears. Several meters away, someone fell to the ground with a thud. It was Nightcrawler.

Nightcrawler rolled across the ground, cried out in pain, and passed out. He could no longer use his ability. He had already been gravely injured, and his desperate Teleportation had been purely instinctive, pushing him beyond his physical limits. Then Guan Heng's Dragon's Roar had shaken him to the core, and he'd lost consciousness.

"What's going on with that roar of mine?" Guan Heng wondered aloud, baffled.

Jean Grey said from beside him, "Your roar didn't feel like a simple sonic attack. It seemed to directly affect the mind, like my telepathic attacks on the human brain—but your mental power was much stronger than mine."

"Is that so?" Guan Heng murmured. Then he said, "We've caught him. We should head back to the academy."

Guan Heng then said, puzzled, "I never had this ability before, but when I saw you being attacked, I suddenly awakened some kind of power." He thought of the scorching Flying Dragon Emblem, as if it were coiled around his heart. It struck him as strange. "And I think I'm remembering something from a dream—a memory that had been sleeping in my mind."

Jean Grey murmured, "I feel like something has awakened in my mind, too. And... I feel as if we've known each other for countless centuries."

"I feel the same way!" Guan Heng exclaimed. "What is—"

Before he could finish, Iceman and Fireman called out together, "Boss, is this guy about to die? Did your roar just kill him?"

"I'll check." Guan Heng walked past Jean Grey and said quietly, "We should take care of the immediate business first. We can talk about the rest later."

After examining the unconscious Nightcrawler, Guan Heng said, "He's fine. He's just passed out. I also crashed into him earlier and broke a few ribs. Other than that, he doesn't have any life-threatening injuries."

Guan Heng casually set Nightcrawler's broken bones, then pressed one hand to his shoulder. Crack, crack—he covered Nightcrawler in a thin layer of ice.

Guan Heng then tossed him to Iceman. "Catch him. Let's go."

Iceman caught him and jumped in surprise. "I—I can't believe this guy feels cold to me! I'm Iceman! Boss, I've been meaning to ask: the frost you make is bone-chillingly cold. What exactly is it?"

"I don't mind telling you," Guan Heng said with a smile. "My Frost Breath can freeze even the bodies of the gods."

The Ice and Fire Twin Heroes and Colossus all marveled at his power. Guan Heng said to Jean Grey, who was driving, "That Blue-skinned Kid was probably being controlled. Whoever's behind this is clearly trying to turn all Mutants against one another, but the control must be remote. The person giving him orders isn't nearby."

Phoenix said, "When we get back, I'll search his memories with Professor X. We might find a clue. We need to hurry back."

Fury had said that Blue-skinned Kid was to be taken back to S.H.I.E.L.D. for questioning, Guan Heng thought. But S.H.I.E.L.D. might not be able to get Nightcrawler to talk quickly. It would be faster to have Phoenix and Professor X search his mind directly.

"Mm, I think you're right," Guan Heng said with a nod. "We have to get back to the academy as quickly as possible. For some reason, I feel uneasy. I can't shake the feeling that something's about to happen."

"Agreed." Jean Grey pressed the accelerator, and the SUV sped toward the hangar where the X-Jet was parked.

At the same time, outside X Academy, Wolverine's vicious, bloodthirsty brother, Sabretooth, had appeared. He and his men had surrounded the entire academy. They weren't ordinary mercenaries armed to the teeth; they were Magneto's elite agents from the Brotherhood of Mutants.

They had all been handpicked to take on the X-Men. One-on-one, they might not pose much of a threat, but working together in groups of two or three, they could easily overpower the X-Men.

Inside the academy, Logan, Li Qianhuan, Rogue, and the recently awakened Kitty had just returned and met with Professor X. Professor X had agreed with Logan, and they were in the middle of talking when a commotion broke out at the entrance. They ran out to see what was happening, only to find Sabretooth had come knocking.

"Victor, you're not welcome here. Get out!" Professor X waved a hand and sent a telepathic command, attempting to drive Sabretooth and his men away.

"Haha! It's our turn to take the stage!" The pair of Twin Brothers behind Sabretooth stepped forward and folded their arms. Four eyes squinted at Professor X. "Old Baldy, that Mind Control of yours is worth jack squat against us!"

These two men, who worked for Magneto, had been born with the ability to emit a magnetic field that blocked telepathic signals. This ability was useless against other Mutants with physical powers, but it was the bane of Mutants like Professor X and Phoenix, who specialized in Mind Control.

Within a radius of several kilometers centered on where the two men stood, Professor X couldn't use his telepathy at all. He was reduced to an ordinary old man in a wheelchair.

Sabretooth flashed a cruel, bloodthirsty grin and slowly raised both hands. Hiss, hiss, hiss—his long, sharp claws sprang out. He worked for Magneto, but Magneto wasn't there. That didn't matter; Victor was still every bit as arrogant.

"Professor X—Xavier, they say you're a Mutant leader on a par with my boss, Magneto!" Sabretooth laughed wildly. "Too bad you can't throw your weight around now. You're just an ordinary old bald man! Hahaha!"

"You bastard!" Cyclops stepped forward, while Ororo stood guard beside Professor X's wheelchair. Scott wanted nothing more than to charge at Sabretooth and fight him, but his responsibilities wouldn't allow it. He still had to protect Professor X and the children at the academy.

Waving his claws in an extremely provocative gesture, Sabretooth said to Wolverine, "My dear brother, we meet again. Hand over the little girl behind you who can walk through walls, and Rogue. My boss, Magneto, has demanded them both repeatedly."

Sabretooth stuck out his blood-red tongue and licked his lips, cackling. "Just hand them over without a fuss, and I promise I won't tear you limb from limb this time. I'll give you a quick death instead."

With a metallic hiss, six Adamantium Claws slowly slid out of Logan's hands. He crossed them in front of himself. Wolverine spat. "Victor, it's only been a few days and you've changed your diet? I bet you eat shit for breakfast now. Your breath stinks."

"Fuck you! Come on!" Logan swung his claws, his fury blazing. "I'll kill every last one of you!"