An interrogation beyond jurisdiction in the Mental Dimension, the Phoenix Firewall's reversal
The White Bone Hall was very quiet.
Lynn picked up the teacup, and when the rim touched her lips, she could feel a just-right warmth.
The tea was freshly brewed.
The rising steam blurred the face contorted with rage on the screen in front of him.
The surveillance footage from the temporary detention center at C-7 Portal played silently. Baron Mordo paced back and forth in the pure white cell, like a trapped Beast, growling at the empty corner, venting his bargaining chips and final threat.
"The Supreme Judgment of the Illuminati..."
"Your mental coordinates have been locked..."
"The trial is about to transcend the physical Dimension and begin directly in your mind..."
Lynn's gaze fell on the malicious curve of Mordo's lips.
He calmly took a sip of tea.
The tea slid down my throat, bringing a warm sensation.
He didn't put down his teacup, but instead shifted his gaze from the screen to the darkness deep within the hall.
There was nothing there.
But an invisible pressure is spreading from that darkness.
It's not wind pressure at the physical level, nor is it energy fluctuation. It's more like a conceptual infiltration, silent and imperceptible, attempting to rewrite the very "existence" of the entire White Bone Hall from within.
The air seemed to move more slowly.
The light was stretched into tiny threads.
The sense of time seemed to freeze for an extremely brief moment.
This is an attack that bypasses all physical defenses and directly targets the levels of perception and cognition.
The door to Lynn's office was open.
Outside the door, the faint hum of the Department of Technology's server cluster could be heard—the heartbeat of the stable operation of the Negative Zone.
But now, this foreign force is trying to implant a foreign pacemaker into this heart.
Lynn remained seated on the Throne forged from bones and metal.
He could "see" that power.
It was powerful and vast, carrying a condescending sense of judgment, like an endless net cast from a distant Dimension, precisely locking onto his mind.
On the other end of the network lies a Mind Stone powerful enough to overlook countless realities.
Professor X, Charles Xavier.
The Supreme Judgment of Earth-838.
The opposing side clearly believed that physical confrontation was no longer a viable strategy. Rules and procedures were merely mundane weapons. The most efficient and fundamental victory lay in directly controlling the enemy's leadership on a psychological level.
Once Lynn is under control, the entire Negative Zone Management Committee will collapse on its own.
That colossal mental net, imbued with an undeniable will, descended upon us.
It encountered no decent resistance.
Lynn's defenses were like a city without walls, allowing this force to penetrate unimpeded.
He could even sense a hint of surprise in the other person's expression, as if they hadn't expected things to go so smoothly.
After the initial shock came an even more arrogant control.
Countless fragments of mixed will began to flood into Lynn's mind.
A voice questioned him: why did he harbor dangerous Variant?
Footage showed chaos under his rule, accusing him of being the root cause of all disorder.
He was being manipulated by emotions, which made him feel guilty and remorseful, causing him to deny everything he had built from the bottom of his heart.
This is a trial unfolding in the Dimension the Mind Stone.
The plaintiff, the judge, and the jury were all Charles alone.
It seems that all Lynn has to do is bow her head and confess.
Lynn took another sip of tea.
His eyes remained completely still.
He simply listened quietly, analyzing the composition of this Psychic Power, its operational logic, its intensity, and the deep-rooted arrogance behind it.
It's like an experienced engineer inspecting a complex machine with serious design flaws, yet who is overconfident in its design.
Just as that giant mental network was about to touch the very core of his consciousness, preparing to completely take over everything he had.
A tiny spark ignited quietly from the deepest recesses of Lynn's consciousness.
It was very weak at first, like a candle flickering in the wind.
But the moment Charles's vast Psychic Power touched it.
The candlelight suddenly burst into flames, spreading like wildfire.
That wasn't a physical flame, but a pure "concept".
It is destruction, it is devouring, it is the ultimate silence after burning everything, and it is also the beginning of rebirth from the ashes.
Management Committee Internal Security Protocol - S-rank - Passive Defense Matrix
Code name, "Phoenix".
Jean Grey's power, acting as the "conceptual firewall" at the very bottom of the Negative Zone, was automatically triggered.
It doesn't even require the piano player to actively control it.
Any unauthorized and hostile mental probing that touches Lynn, the Highest Access Privileges, will be judged by this firewall as the highest level of intrusion.
Charles's vast, all-encompassing mental network encountered this firewall.
There was no violent collision, no energy clash.
The net, however, ignited silently.
Starting from the point of contact, an incomprehensible and inextinguishable "fire of concepts" burned back along every thread of the Mind Link, at a speed beyond thought.
All the questions, images, and emotions that were tried to be directed at Lynn were instantly incinerated into nothingness.
That condescending judgment was as fragile as toilet paper before the "Phoenix".
White Bone Hall, the suffocating pressure vanished instantly.
The air began to flow again.
The lighting has returned to normal.
The sense of time has also returned to its original state.
The tea in front of Lynn was still steaming.
It was as if nothing had happened.
His Personal Terminal on his wrist vibrated slightly.
An encrypted message from the office of the Minister of the Technology Integration Department popped up automatically.
From: Jean Grey.
The content consists of only one line of text.
"An A+ level mental intrusion was detected. It has been automatically blocked and the reverse path has been destroyed. Assessment: Threat level: Low."
Lynn tapped the screen lightly with her fingertip, closing the message.
He drank the rest of the tea in his cup in one gulp.
Earth-838, Headquarters of the Illuminati.
The huge circular conference hall was deathly silent.
Mister Fantastic Reed Richards, Captain Marvel Maria Rambo, Black Bolt, Captain Carter —all eyes were fixed on the uniquely shaped wheelchair in the center of the conference hall.
In his wheelchair, Professor Xavier Charles Xavier's face was ashen, and his forehead was covered in a fine layer of cold sweat.
His body was trembling violently and uncontrollably.
Just now, following the beacon on Mordo's body, he projected his powerful Mind Stone energy into that Dimension called "Negative Zone," preparing to conduct an unassailable "interrogation" of the Management Committee Director.
Everything went more smoothly than I had imagined.
He easily broke through the other party's defenses, as if entering an empty field.
But just as he was about to complete the final step of control, he crashed into a wall.
A wall made of flames, incomprehensible and insurmountable.
The flames, following his Mind Link, burned back.
He felt his entire Mental World ignite.
The excruciating pain that burned his soul nearly caused even this most powerful Mind Stone to collapse on the spot.
He expended immense willpower to sever the connection with the other side at the last moment and escaped back in a sorry state.
Even so, his spirit suffered an unprecedented blow.
"Charles?" Reed Richards broke the silence with concern, "What did you see?"
Charles gasped for breath, and it took him a long time to finally calm his trembling.
He looked up, his eyes filled with the shock of surviving a disaster and deep confusion.
"I... I saw a bird."
His voice was dry and hoarse.
"A Phoenix... made of flames."
Inside the conference room, you could hear a pin drop.
Everyone looked at each other, unable to understand the meaning of those words.
Conventional weapons were rendered ineffective, legal procedures were countered, and even the most powerful Mind Stone attacks were overwhelmingly and deterred.
How many cards does this Negative Zone, this Management Committee Director named Lynn, really have up his sleeve?
In silence, Reed Richards slowly stood up and walked to the Control Console.
His expression was more solemn than ever before.
"It seems that conventional methods are no longer effective against him."
He pulled up a file that had been sealed with the Highest Access Privileges; the file's code name consisted of only one word.
"Wanda".
"Since neither rules nor the Mind Stone can defeat him..." Reed's voice turned cold, "Then we can only use our most powerful 'biological weapon' to carry out the final judgment."
He glanced at Charles, then his gaze swept over everyone present.
"I will sign the Illuminati's highest directive, dispatching our top Executive Officer to cross Dimension into the Negative Zone."
"Use magic to defeat magic."