X-Mansion Is About to Be Exposed

Professor Xavier finally couldn't help but sigh, rubbing his temples.

Scott's face remained livid, his shoulders pinned to the sofa by Beast, but he had at least abandoned the idea of tearing the hotel apart. Professor Xavier held unquestionable authority among his students; when he was angry, Scott had no choice but to obey, however unwillingly.

Wolverine Logan watched from the sidelines with a complex expression. He and Scott were rivals in love; back when Scott had been caught cheating, Logan had felt it was unfair to Jean, yet he had also secretly rejoiced at the dissolution of their engagement.

Of course, he hadn't been happy for more than two days before discovering that some little bastard had already swooped in to take advantage of the situation.

Among those present, Xiang Qian, the culprit behind this foul-mouthed provocation, was the most relaxed, gently swirling his glass and sipping slowly.

"Is this your perspective, James? That mutants require specific, targeted legislation?" The Professor shifted to a scrutinizing gaze. "From whose standpoint are you speaking?"

Xiang Qian met the Professor's gaze directly. "Naturally, from your own. If it weren't for you, what would American legislation have to do with me? I'm not American."

"Professor, consider my words carefully," Xiang Qian said solemnly. "If the law cannot constrain mutants, then it cannot protect them either."

"But what does all this have to do with the Mutant Serum?"

Xiang Qian swirled his glass again. "The Mutant Serum ensures that when a mutant commits a crime, law enforcement agencies have the capability to impose sanctions."

"You intend to weaponize the serum—to create a weapon specifically targeting mutants." The Professor's gaze turned sharp.

Xiang Qian didn't yield an inch, meeting the Professor's eyes. "It is a weapon, yes, but also a deterrent. Because of nuclear deterrence, the great powers remain calm in the face of war, choosing the negotiating table over the battlefield when disagreements arise."

"You want the government to possess a deterrent, forcing us to the negotiating table?" The Professor's tone grew increasingly severe; the conversation was sliding toward a breakdown.

Xiang Qian found the Professor's idealistic, naive way of thinking quite a headache.

Judging by his experience with the X-Men, Professor Xavier possessed accurate judgment and decisive action when dealing with collective crises facing mutants. Yet, once it involved the struggle for political rights, his idealistic flaws were equally deep-rooted.

"Professor, you lived through the entire Cold War," Xiang Qian asked helplessly. "Between the United States and the Soviet Union, they deterred each other with nuclear weapons. Who forced whom into disarmament talks?"

"Until they possess an effective deterrent, the U.S. government will always remain vigilant and suspicious of mutants. They cannot accept that their national security—and indeed their own safety—depends on the self-restraint of mutants."

"I have always believed that mutants are the vulnerable party," the Professor's tone softened; he realized Xiang Qian likely wasn't speaking on behalf of the U.S. government.

"Then you are gravely mistaken. The 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis was the X-Men's first appearance before the world. Once you prevented a nuclear catastrophe through your own efforts, you effectively possessed a deterrent equal to nuclear weapons. Yet, governments cannot use nuclear weapons against you—they can't exactly bomb their own cities, can they?"

"So, you want them to have targeted weapons to keep us in check?"

"I am merely proposing a hypothesis. From the moment it appeared, the weaponization of the serum became inevitable." Xiang Qian spread his hands, signaling it had nothing to do with him. "Whether this hypothesis becomes reality and how the future unfolds depends on your own choices."

The Professor fell silent once more. A choice concerning the survival of all mutants lay before him.

At this moment, Beast McCoy interjected, "James, in your country, how do mutants fight for their rights? Is it as you say—mutual deterrence, followed by negotiations, and then the creation of laws targeting mutants?"

"Of course not!" Xiang Qian laughed. "In my country, we skipped the first two steps and started directly with legislation. Our legislative body specifically reserved seats for mutants. Currently, laws concerning mutants are being drafted for public comment; it will likely take a year or two to roll out."

"Oh, and before the laws were officially issued, I heard the Supreme Court released a 'Provisional Regulation on Mutant Trials and Sentencing' last year. The public debate was quite heated, though I didn't pay much attention."

"It's that simple?" McCoy was somewhat incredulous. As the Minister of Mutant Affairs, he knew better than anyone the contradictory attitudes and endless debates within American politics regarding mutants.

Xiang Qian shrugged. "Actually, there are still many impacts. For instance, schools and educational institutions across the country have increased interventions for adolescent mental health issues, as that is the age when the vast majority of mutants awaken..."

"No, no, that's not what I meant." McCoy gestured with his large hand. "I mean, you... you just accepted mutant rights so easily and even integrated mutants into state institutions?"

"I know this is hard for you to understand, but we really are different from you." Xiang Qian's tone carried an air of extreme ease and naturalness.

In the United States, political struggle follows the law of the jungle, driven by money. Every party and interest group tears and fights within that jungle; only then can they secure and protect their rights—that is the only politics "Beast" can understand.

"Even if you agree with my opinion and use the Mutant Serum as a catalyst to fight for your rights, you will still have to endure a bloody struggle to reap a good result. To abolish racial segregation, the Black community sacrificed more than just one Martin Luther King Jr."

"But I cannot agree with your opinion," the Professor broke the silence.

Xiang Qian didn't seem surprised. "May I ask why?"

"Because of Jimmy. If I do as you say, we must sacrifice that child's freedom. I cannot do that."

"So everything I just said was for nothing?" Xiang Qian's smile showed not a hint of disappointment. "Professor, that is who you are! An idealist who can never make a decision when forced to choose between the few and the many."

"That is why I am merely a professor, not a politician."

"Then what do you intend to do?" Xiang Qian asked.

"We will stop Magneto from killing the child, and then, I will take him away," the Professor said firmly. "As long as Jimmy remains in the laboratory, Magneto or other radical mutants will never stop trying to kill him."

"Are you certain you can protect that child?"

The Professor said confidently, "Of course. They will never find him."

"I see. Just like outsiders can never find the address of your school. Does that include Magneto?"

"Erik knows the address of the school, but as long as the child stays there, Erik will not kill him; that is the unspoken agreement between us."

Xiang Qian found it hard to refute the Professor. "Yes, that 'unspoken agreement' of yours is like a couple married for fifty years!"

The X-Men: "..."

That foul mouth couldn't stay quiet for even ten minutes.

"Fine, then at least one thing is certain." Xiang Qian continued to swirl his glass. "You will participate in the defense of Alcatraz Island—if Magneto truly attacks it."

The Professor nodded. "Of course. If Erik doesn't go, it will be difficult for us to take the child. After all, we do not wish to become direct enemies of the government and the military."

"Very well, then we are, for the moment, collaborators." Xiang Qian set down his glass, walked over to the Professor, and leaned down to look him in the eye.

"Out of professional courtesy, I must tell you a piece of vital information."

"What is it?" The Professor's brow furrowed; in his experience with Xiang Qian, whenever he became this solemn, it usually meant bad news.

"The news is this: the secret of the X-Mansion's location will likely be leaked very soon."

"That is impossible!" Professor Xavier's gaze turned stern and dangerous. "Are you implying that you..."

"Of course not!" Xiang Qian denied it flatly. "I would never leak the location of the school."

"Besides you, only Erik knows. Only you two can retain memories of the school while remaining unaffected by me. But I am certain Erik would not do so either."

"It isn't Magneto, either." Xiang Qian felt a bit guilty. He pulled a palm-sized, rectangular object from his jacket pocket. "It is because of this thing."

"A mobile phone?"

Xiang Qian shook his head. "Not a phone. It is a Cerebral Wave Disruptor manufactured by the Five Elements Laboratory—this is a portable, personal version."

"Cerebral... what?"

"Forget it, Professor. It would be better if you experienced it yourself." Xiang Qian stuffed the 'phone' into McCoy's jacket pocket. "Think of anything you like, Mr. Secretary. Let the Professor try to sense what is on your mind."

Beast was bewildered by Xiang Qian's sudden move. He looked at the Professor, at a loss, only to find the Professor's brow furrowed in deep concentration.

"Hank, what were you just thinking about?" the Professor asked.

Beast replied with dissatisfaction, "I was thinking about what kind of mischief this little bastard is up to again." The words, blurted out, revealed his true attitude toward Xiang Qian.

"Little bastard?" Xiang Qian asked back subconsciously.

"For Raven," McCoy replied in a low voice.

While the two were bickering, the Professor's words struck like a thunderbolt: "I cannot sense your thoughts at all, Hank."

The X-Men were shocked, and soon all eyes were fixed on the device in Beast's hand.

Beast did not possess the ability to block telepathy; the failure of the Professor's power must have stemmed from that small device.

"Professor, I can guess how you made the X-Mansion disappear from the eyes of the world." Xiang Qian took back the device. "Municipal departments, intelligence agencies, and even community workers—everyone who had direct contact with the X-Mansion or attempted to find the school has had their minds interfered with."

"Under the manipulation of your telepathic abilities, all intelligence agencies destroyed their records of the school's address, including the municipal property files. The school still stands there, but in every document, it is merely an ordinary luxury estate."

"Without anyone noticing, you used your telepathic abilities to conduct a global brainwashing operation."

The Professor listened to Xiang Qian quietly, without the slightest intention of denying it.

"But this device interferes with your telepathic abilities. With it, as long as they invest enough manpower and time, they will certainly be able to find the X-Mansion."

The X-Men were on high alert. The secrecy of the school's location was the foundation of their ten years of peaceful life; a leak was undoubtedly a major crisis.

"Did you build this?" the Professor asked.

Xiang Qian nodded. "From the day I confirmed that the Professor's telepathic abilities had no effect on me, I began to study my own brainwaves; it took me several years."

"Has this thing been widely distributed?"

Hearing this question, Xiang Qian subconsciously glanced at Wolverine Logan and the others nearby, all of whom wore grim expressions.

"I am a businessman, after all. Exclusive products and a monopoly have brought me nearly ten billion in profits; this business was simply too easy to run." Xiang Qian spoke of making money with complete peace of mind. "Besides, there is a lot of high-end technology in both Europe and America that we are in urgent need of."

"One more thing I can reveal is that the largest purchaser is the United States government, including the military and intelligence agencies. I just found one on Alcatraz Island; it was a large-scale model specifically for the U.S. military, capable of covering an entire military base—which, of course, includes Alcatraz Island."

"Bastard!" This time, it was Wolverine Logan who couldn't hold back; as he spoke, six cold, gleaming blades extended from between his knuckles.

"This is a national-level exchange of interests. Killing me now won't help." Xiang Qian acted as if he were immune to threats, walking leisurely back to the small bar to pick up his glass again.

"I just wanted to remind you that the plan to take Jimmy away and hide him is no longer feasible. You need to consider a new plan."

Just then, the door to the presidential suite was opened from the outside, and a tall man with an eyepatch, dressed entirely in black, walked in.

"I agree with Mr. James, and I would be happy to explain a brand-new plan to Professor Xavier."