Lynn's cold treatment: rejection for all

The air in the hall had been compressed into a tangible swamp by the four energies. Lynn could even feel the oxygen in his lungs being forcibly sucked out. Shards of glass floated in mid-air, blue arcs of electricity traveled along the edge of the carpet, Scarlet particles almost touched the tip of his nose.

That's enough.

Lynn's voice wasn't loud, but the moment he uttered those two words, the Chaos Origin within his body, mixed with Advanced Invisible Force Field, exploded outwards like a depth charge detonated in the deep sea.

There were no dazzling lights or shadows, only pure, brutal crushing.

The suspended glass shards instantly turned to dust. Wanda's Scarlet blade extinguished like a stubbed-out cigarette, and Susan's indestructible Dome Force Field shattered with a muffled boom, breaking into countless transparent ripples. Gwen Stacy was thrown from mid-air by the pressure, her knee slamming heavily onto the carpet. Natasha groaned, her High-Frequency Vibration Gun flying from her hand, sliding a considerable distance across the floor.

The four streams of energy, enough to destroy a block, couldn't even last a second under Lynn's outburst.

Lynn stood up. His leather shoes crunched softly on the broken pieces of liquor. He didn't look at anyone, but walked to the liquor cabinet, took out another glass, and poured himself a glass of ice water.

The crisp sound of ice cubes hitting the glass stood out starkly in the empty hall.

"Do you all think you did a great job tonight?" Lynn turned around, took a sip of ice water, the cold water sliding down his throat into his stomach, his eyes colder than the water.

Wanda opened her mouth, but the fervor in her eyes was extinguished by the coldness. She instinctively took a step forward. "Darling, I..."

"Shut up." Lynn interrupted her without hesitation.

Wanda froze, as if nailed to the spot.

Lynn strode up to Wanda. He was a head taller than Wanda, his gaze sweeping over her like a knife. "You killed Stryker, and you're proud of it? If Gwen Stacy hadn't disabled the last Sentry, if Susan's Force Field hadn't protected it, wouldn't the nuclear explosion you triggered have leveled my building and half of Manhattan?"

Lynn took a step closer, and Wanda, overwhelmed by his violence, instinctively took a half-step back.

"That's not solving the problem, that's going crazy." Lynn's words were like daggers to the heart.

Wanda's face turned deathly pale instantly, her Scarlet lips trembled slightly, and her once straight back slumped. Her eyes filled with tears, but she stubbornly refused to let them fall.

Lynn ignored her and turned his gaze to Susan, who was kneeling. He walked over and casually kicked away the piece of Sentry Armor wreckage that had been compressed to the size of a walnut. The metal piece rolled to the side of Susan's knees.

Susan tilted her head back, her blonde hair disheveled, and was about to speak in her defense when Lynn's cold laugh came crashing down on her.

"And you, Miss Storm." Lynn deliberately used this distant form of address, Susan's pupils contracted sharply. "Turning Sentry into an iron ball, was it some kind of acrobatic act? Did you even consider teamwork when you did it?"

Lynn bent down, placing his hands on his knees, and looked directly into Susan's terrified eyes. "You were only concerned with taking credit from me, completely exposing your back to the other two Sentry. If Wanda hadn't intervened, you Energy-Concentrating Cannon to smithereens by now. Is this the efficiency you're so proud of?"

Susan bit her lower lip, her face deathly pale, her fingers digging so hard into the carpet fibers that her nails almost broke.

"Uncle..." Gwen Stacy cautiously raised her head, her eyes behind the mask revealing a hint of flattery.

Lynn straightened up and walked to Gwen Stacy. He suddenly reached out, grabbed Gwen Stacy's chin, and forced her to look up at him. Gwen Stacy's body trembled violently, but she didn't dare to break free.

"You think you're so smart?" Lynn lowered his eyelids, his gaze devoid of any warmth. "Severing the Neural Web was swift and clean. But in your eagerness to claim credit, you charged straight into Wanda's magical zone. If her magic had slipped even an inch, you wouldn't have been left with a trace. Are you doing me a favor, or are you courting death?"

Lynn released her grip. Gwen Stacy seemed to have all her strength drained away, her shoulders hunching abruptly, her ingratiating gaze instantly turning into extreme fear.

Finally, Lynn looked at Natasha, who was leaning against the door.

Natasha's face was already quite pale, but she still forced herself to stand up straight, trying to maintain the dignity of a top agent.

Lynn walked up to her, so close that he could smell the lingering scent of blood and gunpowder on her.

"As for you, my Intelligence Officer," Lynn's voice was soft, yet chillingly cold, "Cutting off communications and blocking air defenses—that was certainly well done. But the worst thing you could have done was provoke the dogs who risked their lives on the front lines afterward. Did you think stirring up infighting would make you seem superior?"

Natasha's breath hitched, and a fine layer of cold sweat appeared on her forehead.

"You're undermining me," Lynn concluded.

Natasha immediately lowered her head, not daring to look Lynn in the eye, and even her breathing became cautious.

Lynn turned around and looked at the four women standing at the top of the pyramid. Just a moment ago they wanted to tear each other apart, but now they looked like four schoolchildren who had done something wrong, trembling and waiting for judgment.

Lynn felt a surge of triumphant control, but his face remained impassive. He didn't need them to get along, but he had to be the one to set the rules. He couldn't be lenient; these Yandere were like wolves—give them a piece of meat and they'll tear it up. He had to whip them mercilessly to show them who the real master was.

"You're not solving my problem, you're my biggest problem yourself." Lynn's voice was flat, yet it struck everyone's hearts like a hammer. "Completely uncooperative, selfish, like a pack of wild dogs tearing each other apart over a bone."

The only sound in the lobby was the faint hum of the central air conditioning. The four women held their breath, afraid of further angering the man before them.

"Special privileges tonight?" Lynn smirked, his eyes full of mockery. "You think you're worthy?"

After saying that, he turned around without hesitation and strode towards the master bedroom at the end of the corridor.

"Lynn!" Wanda panicked completely. Forgetting all Skyfather-level pride, she lunged forward, trying to grab Lynn's clothes.

Lynn turned to the side, coldly avoiding her hand.

Wanda missed her target, stumbled, and tears finally welled up in her eyes.

Lynn didn't even turn her head, and went straight into the bedroom.

Bang!

The heavy solid wood door slammed shut. Immediately following was an extremely jarring "click".

He locked the door from the inside.

The hall fell completely silent.

Without Lynn's suppression, the four tense energies never ignited again.

Wanda stared blankly at the closed door, her fingers still gripping. The Scarlet in her eyes had completely faded, replaced by extreme panic. She had angered him. He didn't want her anymore. Once this thought arose, it spread wildly in her heart like poison, suffocating her.

Susan slumped onto the carpet, covering her face with her hands. She thought she had done everything perfectly; she thought offering the building and energy would earn her favor, but Lynn's cold gaze shattered all her self-esteem. She began frantically questioning whether she had truly done something wrong.

Gwen Stacy pulled off her mask, revealing a pure yet terrified face. She bit her thumbnail, crouching in a corner, tears streaming down her face. The older man had scolded her; he thought she was a nuisance. Would he never speak to her again?

Natasha leaned against the wall, her body slowly sliding down. She knew Lynn's methods better than the other three. That aloof indifference was more deadly than any physical torture. The indispensability she had just built up became worthless in the face of Lynn's words.

The four women, who were mortal enemies just a moment ago, were now trapped in the same Abyss of despair. They glanced at each other. There was no mockery, no murderous intent, only the fear of losing what they had gained.

The night is still long.

Wanda gritted her teeth, walked to the door, and like an abandoned stray cat, slowly sat down, hugging her knees. She buried her face in her knees, her shoulders trembling slightly.

Seeing this, Susan silently moved to the other side of the door, leaned against the wall, and stared blankly at the floor.

Gwen Stacy climbed up the ceiling like a gecko, hanging upside down directly above the bedroom, staring intently at the door, not daring to blink.

Natasha picked up the gun from the ground and sat down silently at the entrance of the corridor, like a humble night watchman.

Four top-tier combatants, like prisoners on night watch, endured the suffocatingly long night outside the tightly closed door.

Inside the door, Lynn took off his gunpowder-smelling coat and tossed it onto the sofa. Listening to the extremely subdued sounds outside, a satisfied, cold smile finally crept onto his lips.

The first step in taming the beasts is complete. Just leave them out to roam for one more night, and tomorrow morning, these haughty women will be transformed into the most obedient hunting dogs.