Recaps

Tang Tianqi awakened in a wedding ceremony beside Black Widow and vowed to give her the home and family she had always wanted. After they married and she completed a covert poisoning mission, he woke the next day and realized he had transmigrated.

• Tang Tianqi found himself in a cathedral as a priest asked him and Black Widow to marry.
• Tang Tianqi vowed to protect Black Widow, stand by her, and build a family with her, stirring her deeply.
• The priest pronounced them husband and wife, and they kissed before celebrating with the wedding guests.
• Black Widow secretly poisoned a wary guest during the toasts and worried about what Tang Tianqi would think if he discovered her mission.
• Tang Tianqi and Black Widow spent the night together, and he awoke the next day convinced he had transmigrated.

Apocalypse discovered that Black Widow had used their fake marriage to kill Flying Eagle, but their marriage still triggered a fortune-linking bond and gave him a Recovery Potion. Seeking opportunities to grow stronger in the United States, he paid a smuggler to take him across the border, only to be robbed before entering through an underground tunnel.

• Apocalypse learned that Flying Eagle had died and realized Black Widow had used their wedding to lure and kill him.
• Apocalypse found Black Widow's note saying their relationship had been fake, then received a system message binding them in marriage and linking their Fortune.
• Apocalypse sold his flower shop and possessions, then turned to a local smuggler after his United States visa application stalled.
• The smuggler's men searched and robbed Apocalypse, taking his cash before ordering him to wait for departure.
• At midnight, the smuggler led Apocalypse and the other migrants through an underground tunnel, and they emerged in the United States.

Apocalypse escaped a border raid, learned that Hulk had appeared at Culver University, and traveled to New York to obtain Hulk's blood before the events of Hulk 2 unfolded. He forced Dr. Sterns to inject him with the entire supply of concentrated blood, and his body swelled dangerously as the injection began.

• Apocalypse fled into the woods while a helicopter fired on illegal immigrants crossing the border.
• Apocalypse learned from a news report that Hulk had fought the military at Culver University and realized the events of Hulk 2 had begun.
• Apocalypse hitchhiked across the United States to New York, intending to obtain Hulk's blood from Dr. Sterns before Banner and Blonsky arrived.
• Apocalypse forced Dr. Sterns at gunpoint to prepare Hulk's blood and demanded the entire supply be injected into him.
• Dr. Sterns connected Apocalypse to the transfusion equipment, and Apocalypse's body swelled as Hulk's concentrated blood entered him.

Apocalypse survived his Gamma Energy transformation with a Recovery Potion and gained immense strength. After Abomination transformed and rampaged near Greystone College, Apocalypse rescued Dr. Sterns, while General Ross faced the new threat.

• Apocalypse transformed into a giant green form, drank the Recovery Potion, and returned to normal with greatly increased strength.
• Apocalypse secured Dr. Sterns's promise to keep his identity secret and left Greystone College.
• Apocalypse saw General Ross capture Doctor Banner and take Elizabeth away by helicopter.
• Blonsky transformed into Abomination after forcing Dr. Sterns to inject him with Hulk's blood, and gamma-contaminated blood caused Sterns's head to mutate.
• Apocalypse carried the injured Dr. Sterns to safety and left him a Recovery Potion, earning another potion from the system.
• Abomination rampaged through the streets and demanded a worthy opponent, alarming General Ross.

Apocalypse rescued civilians as Abomination rampaged through the city, while Doctor Banner transformed into Hulk and fought him. After Apocalypse stopped Abomination’s attack on the helicopter, he challenged both monsters to fight him together.

• Apocalypse carried pedestrians and people from cars away from Abomination, earning healing potions for each life he saved.
• General Ross, Elizabeth, and Doctor Banner spotted Apocalypse on the helicopter monitors, and Banner jumped from the helicopter before transforming into Hulk.
• Hulk emerged from the ground and fought Abomination through the streets, while Apocalypse watched.
• Abomination threw a lamppost at the helicopter, and Apocalypse caught it one-handed before it could hit Elizabeth and the others.
• Apocalypse blocked Abomination’s punch, judged his strength, and invited both Abomination and Hulk to attack him together.

Apocalypse tested his strength against Hulk and Abomination, defeated Abomination, and sent Hulk away before recruiting Dr. Sterns. He then considered the dangers of the Marvel universe and concluded that he was likely in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, though he remained wary of its hidden powerhouses.

• Apocalypse attacked Hulk and Abomination, overpowering them while testing martial arts techniques as their battle wreaked havoc across New York.
• Apocalypse noticed Hulk growing stronger with his anger while Abomination began to tire, then crushed Abomination’s spine and told Hulk to leave.
• Hulk hesitated when Apocalypse mentioned his girlfriend, then leapt away into the night, while Apocalypse left Abomination and the aftermath to General Ross.
• Apocalypse found Dr. Sterns studying the Recovery Potion and offered him more potions in exchange for joining him; Sterns agreed.
• Apocalypse assessed the Marvel universe’s threats and decided the signs pointed to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but he resolved to stay cautious.

Apocalypse went to S.H.I.E.L.D. to confront Nick Fury and demand that Natasha become his wife, but the guards’ mockery and gunfire sparked a destructive fight. After Fury agreed to talk, Apocalypse insisted that Fury help him marry Natasha and threatened to destroy S.H.I.E.L.D. if he refused.

• Apocalypse went to S.H.I.E.L.D. and told the guards he had come to find his wife, Natasha.
• When the guards mocked him and S.H.I.E.L.D. opened fire, Apocalypse smashed through the guard post, survived a tank shell, and wrecked tanks and armored vehicles.
• Nick Fury came outside and apologized, then took Apocalypse to his office to talk.
• Apocalypse learned Natasha was away from headquarters and told Fury that their wedding and marriage certificate meant they were married.
• Apocalypse demanded Fury’s cooperation in marrying Natasha and threatened to smash S.H.I.E.L.D. if Fury could not help.

Apocalypse negotiated with Nick Fury over Natasha's missions and S.H.I.E.L.D.'s suspicions, then agreed to serve as a consultant for payment. Fury ended the meeting by calling Black Widow.

• Apocalypse demanded that Natasha never use her beauty or body to seduce enemies, and Fury agreed to issue the order.
• Fury asked whether Apocalypse was an agent of the Eastern power, and Apocalypse insisted he was a free man with no faction.
• Fury invited Apocalypse to join the Avengers, but Apocalypse revealed he knew the team's name and declined to enlist.
• Fury offered Apocalypse a consultant role that would let him stay in touch with Natasha, and Apocalypse accepted with conditions.
• Apocalypse and Fury haggled over his deposit, settling on 30 million dollars plus mission-based payments.
• After Apocalypse left, Fury began a holographic video call with Black Widow.

Black Widow learned that Apocalypse was the powerful man who had come to S.H.I.E.L.D. for her and struggled with whether to face their real marriage. Meanwhile, Apocalypse prepared a home and a lab, considered how to help the missing Tony Stark, and headed into the desert after discovering a limitation in his Recovery Potion.

• Nick Fury showed Black Widow footage proving Apocalypse's power and told her she could choose whether to pursue their relationship, while forbidding her from using seduction until they settled things.
• Apocalypse gave Dr. Sterns more than half of his thirty million dollars to establish a laboratory and bought a suburban villa and surrounding land as his home.
• After Tony Stark went missing in the Middle East, Apocalypse weighed rescuing him against preserving the events that would turn him into Iron Man, then asked Dr. Sterns to hack surveillance systems.
• Dr. Sterns explained that Recovery Potions could not restore injuries or organs after wounds had healed, disappointing Apocalypse's plan to help Black Widow recover from her sterilization.
• Apocalypse used his memories of Tony's disappearance to identify a canyon in the Abuqiong Country desert and went there.

Apocalypse infiltrated the Ten Rings' cave prison and brought Tony Stark and Yinsen takeout, but left them locked inside. Two days later, he hinted that Tony could escape by flying, prompting Tony to consider the missile materials in the cave.

• Apocalypse bypassed the cave's surveillance system, entered the prison cell, and introduced himself to Tony Stark and Yinsen as a takeout deliveryman.
• Tony and Yinsen ate the cheeseburgers, roast chicken, and cola Apocalypse brought, then watched him lock the door and leave.
• Two soldiers investigated the food smells but found nothing unusual, leaving Tony and Yinsen confused about Apocalypse's intentions.
• Apocalypse returned two days later, and Tony demanded to know what he wanted.
• Apocalypse asked whether Tony could fly, leading Tony to connect the idea to the missile materials and realize he might be able to escape by flying.

Tony and Yinsen’s attempt to escape the Ten Rings cave began after Yinsen was caught with a hidden chicken leg. Tony activated his armor and fought his way out, but Yinsen was gravely wounded; Apocalypse arrived just in time to save Tony from the RPG soldiers, and Tony begged him to rescue Yinsen.

• Tony blamed the smell of roast chicken on the Ten Rings leader, diverting the soldiers’ suspicions and protecting his food supply with Yinsen.
• After the armor was nearly complete, the Ten Rings leader questioned why Tony and Yinsen had gained weight, and Tony claimed they had edema and an infection.
• The Ten Rings discovered Yinsen’s hidden chicken leg and dragged him away for questioning, prompting him to tell Tony to hurry.
• Tony activated the crude armor, broke out of the cell, and fought the soldiers, but Yinsen was wounded by ricochets as he shielded him.
• Yinsen urged Tony to leave and cherish his life, and Tony fled as an RPG exploded inside the cave.
• Apocalypse arrived, killed the soldiers aiming RPGs at Tony with thrown stones, and Tony begged him to save Yinsen.

Apocalypse rescued Yinsen and Tony from the collapsing cave, then took them to safety while Tony wondered why he had been kidnapped. The chapter left Apocalypse flying with Yinsen toward Komila Town, while Tony called Colonel Rhodes.

• Apocalypse healed Yinsen with a Recovery Potion and punched through the collapsing cave to escape with him.
• Apocalypse caught Tony after his armor ran out of power, and Tony thanked him for saving both their lives.
• Tony gained 30% Iron Man Luck Sharing, and Apocalypse warned that Tony’s return with Yinsen could draw suspicion and put them both at risk.
• Apocalypse took Tony and Yinsen to a city, offered to protect Yinsen, and told Tony to call Colonel Rhodes for a pickup.
• Yinsen declined to return to Komila Town, but Apocalypse took him there while Tony called Colonel Rhodes.

Tony returned to the United States, confirmed his kidnapping, and announced that Stark International would immediately shut down its weapons division. After Tony’s unfinished Mark I armor failed during a high-altitude test, Apocalypse rescued him and treated his injuries, then carried him home.

• Colonel Rhodes sent a fighter jet to bring Tony back, and Pepper Potts and Happy greeted him at the airport.
• At a press conference, Tony described his imprisonment and credited a mysterious delivery guy with bringing food and saving him and his benefactor.
• Tony announced that Stark International would shut down its weapons manufacturing division, effective immediately.
• Apocalypse saw Tony’s Mark I armor fly out for a test, but icing shut down its power system and Tony crashed into the ground.
• Apocalypse gave Tony a Recovery Potion that healed his injuries, then carried him home after Tony asked him not to dismantle the armor.

Apocalypse stayed with Tony as he perfected the Mark II armor, then Tony flew to Gulmira to destroy Stark Industries weapons and protect the civilians. On his way back, two F-22 fighters attacked him, and Apocalypse set out to help.

• Pepper welcomed Apocalypse to Tony’s home, and Tony reluctantly agreed to let him stay nearby.
• Tony completed the Mark II armor, painted it gold and red, and went to a party while Apocalypse stayed behind.
• After learning that Stark Industries weapons were being used in Gulmira, Tony decided to destroy them and flew there without telling Pepper.
• Tony destroyed the weapons and defeated the militants, then left their leader to face the angry townspeople.
• Two F-22 fighters intercepted Tony near the United States border, damaged his armor, and forced him to call Apocalypse for help.
• Apocalypse grabbed two antique medieval spears and leaped toward the border to rescue Tony.

Apocalypse and Tony escaped pursuing fighters, and Tony agreed to develop portable armor for Apocalypse. When Obadiah Stane stole Tony’s Arc Reactor and left him near death, Apocalypse rescued him with a prototype reactor, leaving Tony wondering how Apocalypse knew what would happen.

• Apocalypse guided Tony into luring two F-22s low, then brought both fighters down by throwing ordinary spears into their engines.
• Colonel Rhodes and the rescue crew discovered the spears, leaving the general to face an impossible report about the fighters’ destruction.
• Apocalypse asked Tony to build him a compact, powerful flight suit, and Tony agreed to work on it.
• JARVIS reported that Pepper Potts’s call had ended with a scream, and Apocalypse identified Obadiah Stane as the likely culprit.
• Obadiah Stane paralyzed Tony with an ultrasonic device, removed his Arc Reactor, and left with it.
• Apocalypse dropped Tony into the underground laboratory and installed the prototype Arc Reactor, saving his life; Tony then questioned how Apocalypse knew so much.

Apocalypse rescued Pepper Potts from Stark Industries while Tony fought Stane in his armored suit. Tony was badly outmatched, but ordered JARVIS to send him skyward with only 15% power remaining.

• Tony tracked the bald man's car to Stark Industries, while Apocalypse followed him and warned Rhodes to keep the airspace clear.
• Apocalypse encountered Coulson's agents, broke through the basement floors, subdued the guards, and freed Pepper Potts.
• Apocalypse carried Pepper Potts out and persuaded Coulson's agents to lower their weapons.
• Tony's fight with Stane spread across the street and highway, where Stane's heavily armed armor overwhelmed him.
• With his armor down to 15% power, Tony ordered JARVIS to propel him upward at full power.

Apocalypse defeated Obadiah Stane’s mech and helped Tony survive the battle, after which Tony publicly admitted he was Iron Man. As Tony faced a congressional challenge and kept his armor technology private, a man in Siberia studied blueprints for the Miniature Arc Reactor.

• Tony escaped Obadiah Stane’s frozen mech, but Stane ambushed him on Stark Tower until decoy flares let him break free.
• Apocalypse arrived, tore apart Stane’s mech and armor, and left Tony to handle the aftermath in exchange for a bullet-resistant suit.
• At a press conference, Tony impulsively announced, “I am Iron Man!” after a reporter challenged his denial.
• Tony deflected Hammer Industries’ attempt to force him to hand over his armor technology at a congressional debate and declared that he had privatized world peace.
• A burly man in Siberia watched Tony on television while studying blueprints for the Miniature Arc Reactor.

Apocalypse helped Iron Man manage the toxins from his palladium reactor, then sparred with Happy while Black Widow arrived at Stark's home under an assumed identity. Tony tried to flirt with her, and Apocalypse stepped in as the chapter ended.

• Iron Man learned that Apocalypse's Recovery Potions could remove only the toxins accumulated the previous day, and he asked Apocalypse and Happy to keep his condition from Pepper Potts and Happy.
• Happy challenged Apocalypse to spar, but Apocalypse used a Tai Chi move to send him bouncing across the ring.
• Pepper Potts introduced Natasha Rushman as a legal assistant, and Black Widow was startled to see Apocalypse, her husband whom she had been avoiding.
• Tony flirted with Natasha and asked Pepper to transfer her to his side, but Natasha dodged his advances by sparring with Happy and quickly pinning him.
• Apocalypse told Tony that his flirting skills were terrible and offered to demonstrate how to do better.

Apocalypse drew Black Widow into a public romance and joined her and Iron Man at a European racing banquet, where Justin Hammer challenged him over her. The chapter ended with Hammer proposing a duel that would wager a race car against Black Widow’s company.

• Apocalypse kissed Black Widow, gave her a house key, and watched her leave with Iron Man’s legal papers.
• Three days later, Apocalypse and Black Widow attended a European racing banquet with Iron Man, Pepper Potts, and Happy.
• Justin Hammer confronted Iron Man and mocked Apocalypse for being an unemployed Easterner and Black Widow’s boyfriend.
• Hammer tried to lure Black Widow away, but Apocalypse challenged him over his behavior.
• Hammer proposed a duel, wagering an eight-million-dollar race car against Black Widow accompanying him for the day.

Apocalypse defeated Hammer’s serum-enhanced bodyguards and stopped him from cheating, winning the race car and Hammer Industries shares while Iron Man claimed the wagered armor. At the race, Ivan Vanko entered the track and caused a crash, beginning the events of Iron Man 2.

• Iron Man wagered his armor, blueprints, and patent rights against Hammer’s race car and shares, while Apocalypse agreed to fight Hammer’s two bodyguards without letting a wine glass break.
• Apocalypse slammed the first bodyguard into the floor with a Heaven-Flipping Hand Seal, then rescued a noblewoman and defeated the second bodyguard before he could reach her wine glass.
• Apocalypse stopped Hammer from smashing his own glass and forced him to admit defeat, then took the car key and gave the car to Black Widow while Iron Man claimed Hammer’s shares.
• In the restroom, Iron Man checked his rising toxin concentration, and Apocalypse offered him Recovery Potions while withholding what he knew about the New Element.
• Iron Man joined the race and reached eighth place before Ivan Vanko walked onto the track, causing a driver to crash and explode.

Ivan attacked Tony Stark at the racetrack, forcing Tony to fight for his life while Apocalypse carried the armor suitcase to him. Apocalypse helped Tony break free of Ivan’s Electric Whips, and Tony subdued Ivan, who promised to settle the score another day.

• Ivan stepped onto the racetrack and used his Electric Whips to destroy a race car before cutting Tony’s car in half, forcing Tony to leap clear.
• Pepper Potts and Happy gave Apocalypse the red suitcase armor and asked him to take it to Tony; Apocalypse handed Black Widow responsibility for protecting them.
• Apocalypse threw the suitcase to Tony, who donned the armor and fought Ivan while spectators watched from the stands.
• Ivan wrapped his Electric Whips around Tony’s neck, and Tony struggled to free himself even after ripping out Ivan’s chest Arc Reactor.
• Apocalypse grabbed the whips and tore them apart, allowing Tony to defeat Ivan and remove his second Arc Reactor.
• Security personnel took Ivan away as he shouted that he would reclaim what Tony and his father owed him.

Apocalypse and Iron Man learned why Ivan Vanko had attacked: Ivan blamed the Starks for his father’s ruined life and stolen credit for their Arc Reactor research. Apocalypse demonstrated that Ivan could be saved from a fatal injury with a Recovery Potion, hinting at a cure for palladium poisoning and revealing his plan to recruit Ivan later.

• Apocalypse and Iron Man returned to the VIP section, where Black Widow and Pepper Potts checked on them while Happy stood awkwardly aside.
• Apocalypse asked Black Widow to find Ivan Vanko’s Siberian address, then sent Yinsen there to retrieve a bird.
• Iron Man and Apocalypse visited Ivan in prison, where Ivan explained his father’s history with Howard Stark and accused him of stealing the Arc Reactor research.
• Ivan taunted Iron Man about palladium poisoning, and Apocalypse claimed a non-radioactive New Element could exist despite current theories.
• Apocalypse pulled Ivan’s heart from his chest, then used a Recovery Potion to regrow it and prove that Ivan’s view of science was limited.
• Iron Man realized Apocalypse meant to recruit Ivan, but Apocalypse said the time was not right.

As Iron Man’s palladium poisoning worsened, his reckless behavior pushed Colonel Rhodes to take one of his prototype armors and leave. Coulson gave Iron Man his father’s Arc Reactor research, while Apocalypse learned Coulson was heading to New Mexico and planned to investigate Thor’s Hammer after helping Iron Man.

• Hammer used his influence to bring Ivan to the United States, where Ivan secretly prepared contingencies while researching at Hammer Industries.
• Iron Man’s palladium toxin level reached 90%, and Apocalypse told him his Recovery Potions had run out; Iron Man kept his condition from Pepper Potts and threw himself into partying.
• Iron Man’s drunken party antics angered Colonel Rhodes, who put on a prototype armor and fought him before flying away with it; Iron Man had deliberately let him take the armor as a contingency.
• Coulson brought Iron Man research materials his father had left with S.H.I.E.L.D., but Iron Man dismissed their usefulness.
• Coulson told Apocalypse he was going to New Mexico, and Apocalypse revealed he knew about the hammer there and planned to investigate after resolving Iron Man’s crisis.

Iron Man and Apocalypse discovered the New Element hidden in Howard Stark’s city model and built a Miniature Arc Reactor that could save Iron Man’s life. Iron Man thanked Apocalypse for helping him, but Ivan called to announce his plan to take revenge within forty minutes.

• Iron Man brought strawberries to Pepper Potts, and Apocalypse eased the awkward moment by giving her kiwis and explaining that Tony had bought them for her.
• Iron Man spoke privately with Pepper Potts but still could not tell her the truth about his condition.
• Apocalypse prompted Iron Man to inspect Howard’s city model, and Iron Man uncovered data for a powerful New Element hidden inside it.
• Iron Man and Apocalypse built a Miniature Particle Accelerator and used it to transform palladium into a New Element, creating a stronger Miniature Arc Reactor.
• Iron Man thanked Apocalypse for his help, and Ivan called to say he had made his device dual-cycle and would take revenge within forty minutes.

Apocalypse flew to Hammer's weapons presentation in a sky-blue armor suit while Iron Man headed there to protect Pepper Potts and Natasha. After warning the crowd to leave, Apocalypse exposed the Steel Soldiers' vulnerability, and Ivan activated them against the audience.

• Iron Man gave Apocalypse a flight-focused armor suit, and Apocalypse accelerated it to Mach 3.5 on the way to Hammer Industries.
• Apocalypse called Yinsen and ordered him to hide a Siberian bird in the downtown botanical garden ahead of a possible battle.
• At Hammer's presentation, Hammer introduced his Steel Soldiers and presented Colonel Rhodes's War Machine armor as his own prototype.
• Apocalypse landed onstage, warned the audience to evacuate, and challenged Hammer's claims about the Steel Soldiers' speed.
• Apocalypse told Rhodes to ask who designed the weapons and whether Hammer controlled the Steel Soldiers, and Ivan activated the machines, which aimed their weapons at the crowd.