The lights in the control room were still on, and the data stream on the holographic screen hadn't stopped. Tony swiped his finger across the interface twice, bringing up the training ground's structural diagram. Ye Mo stood by the window; sunlight had already bathed the high-rises, and traffic was beginning to flow on the streets. Ordinary people were returning to their daily routines, but they knew that calm was never the norm, but merely a gap between storms.
"System notification: Multi-Ability Resonance cooling not yet complete." The voice in my head rang precisely on time, emotionless, like an alarm clock.
Ye Mo raised his hand to touch his temple and muttered under his breath, "Off-beat again."
He brought up the Gene Spiral Tower interface in his consciousness. The 20th floor slowly rotated, containing a series of glowing fragments of abilities— Self-Healing, Wall Phasing, Energy Absorption, Mind Shielding... scattered like a jigsaw puzzle incomplete. He tried to connect " Shadowcat Wall Phasing " and " Wade Self-Healing," but the moment he touched them, the system immediately displayed red text: [Combination trial failed, cooldown remaining 90 seconds].
"Alright, I'll blow myself up later." He closed the interface, turned, and walked towards the door. " Tony, are you done on your end?"
"We're missing an energy module." Tony said without looking up. "The spare is in the lockers in Sector B. Go get it yourself. I'm currently loading the dynamic obstacle program onto the holographic projection."
"You're making me run errands?" Ye Mo leaned against the doorframe. "I just used my Steel Bone to block the light cones for you."
"You're standing straighter than me now, which means you're not going to die." Tony glanced at him. "Besides, didn't you say you have thick skin and can withstand damage? This is a good opportunity to test your physical tolerance."
Ye Mo rolled his eyes, but still left. The corridor lights were stable, there was no emergency red light, and no residual green slime. Everything was moving toward "normal," but he knew that the real trouble often lurked in this illusion.
When Emma Frost was already in the control room. She sat in a metal chair in the corner, her eyes closed, her fingers lightly pressing her temples. Her Diamond Form hadn't fully dissipated, and her skin gleamed with a faint, cold light.
"Excessive mental stress?" Ye Mo handed the module to Tony and asked casually.
Emma Frost opened her eyes, her gaze cold. "A scan of the neural threshold just now revealed that the output frequency is too high. Forcing it to read could easily backfire."
"Then stop staring at me like that." Ye Mo grinned. "I don't have anything good in my head either."
"Quite the opposite," she said calmly. "Your emotions are too erratic, like a leaky faucet, dripping and sputtering."
Tony chimed in, "That's why he's perfect as bait; even the enemy has a headache with him."
"Could you two wait until I officially start practicing before you start teasing me like this?" Ye Mo sat down at the control panel, putting on his half-rimmed glasses. "From now on, I'm going to get serious."
Tony pressed the Enter key, and the holographic projection in the training ground instantly activated. The walls disappeared, replaced by a simulated city street with towering buildings, moving target drones floating in the air, and pressure-sensitive minefields covering the ground.
"Difficulty setting: Level 3 Combat Simulation," Tony said, starting the timer. "Objective: Break through the defenses and reach the central control tower. Rule: Being hit three times results in elimination."
"I don't have any armor," Ye Mo reminded him.
"You can Wall Phasing," Tony shrugged. "And you have Self-Healing; you can even come back to life after death."
I am not the Hulk.
"Your Regeneration speed is faster than Banner's transformation." Emma Frost stood up and walked to the observation area. "I will use Telepathy to help predict attack trajectories, but I can't guarantee full coverage."
"Fine, I'll treat this as a Wi-Fi signal. Don't blame me if it disconnects."
The first round begins.
Ye Mo rushed into the training ground, and the holographic enemy reacted immediately. Three drones swooped down from the sky, their pulse cannons locking onto his chest. He instinctively wanted to use " Energy Absorption," but the system indicated that it was still cooling down. In a split second, he switched to " Short-Range Wall Phasing," and with a flash, he diagonally passed through the underground pipes from the ground.
Just as I breathed a sigh of relief, a system warning popped up: [0.3-second delay in body reorganization after Wall Phasing; unable to withstand high-intensity impacts during this period].
"Who wrote the instruction manual?" he muttered under his breath.
An explosion sounded overhead, and a piece of virtual rubble hit my shoulder—the first impact.
"The rhythm is off." He mentally reviewed the situation. "You can't use Wall Phasing like Flash; you have to coordinate it with your movement rhythm."
In the second round, he adjusted his strategy. He first used small-amplitude Wall Phasing to avoid frontal fire, then activated " Rapid Regeneration " the moment he landed to strengthen his joint resilience. He rolled to dodge the minefield and sprinted along the wall.
Emma Frost's voice echoed in his mind: [Right front, three o'clock position, sniper mode activated].
He immediately sidestepped, a beam of light grazing his arm. He leaped up, using the Wall Phasing to pass through the wall's interlayer, heading straight for the control tower.
"This time it's a sure thing," he thought.
As soon as he peeked out, five robots surrounded him, suppressing him with crossfire. When he tried to Wall Phasing again, the system prompted: [Continuous use has caused local gene chain overheating; effect paused for 10 seconds.]
"Hold!"
Hit on the third time, eliminated.
The lights and shadows on the training ground went out, returning it to an empty metal hall. Ye Mo removed his protective gear; the burn on his arm from yesterday hadn't completely faded, and the edges were still slightly red.
"What's the problem?" Tony walked over, holding a data analysis board.
"There's a delay after Wall Phasing, like a lagging app," Ye Mo rubbed his shoulder. "And it starts to overheat after two consecutive uses, and then it just stops working."
"You think this is fast charging for a phone?" Tony checked the data. "My data shows that every time you Wall Phasing, the peak energy fluctuation is nearly 1.8 times that of Wade Wilson, which means you're forcibly accelerating, and your body can't handle it."
"What should we do then? Wait for it to cool down? The enemy won't give me a break."
"Then use it less." Emma Frost walked over. "You don't need to go all the way through the Wall Phasing every time. You can just go through the surface and create Feint. I was reading your combat intentions just now, and I noticed that you always try to get to the point in one go, which actually reveals your rhythm."
Ye Mo pondered for a moment, "Does that mean I don't actually have to go through it, but just pretend to, to trick them into opening fire?"
"Be smart." She nodded.
Tony made the decision. "Next simulation, add interference. Ye Mo will be in charge of the surprise attack, Emma Frost will predict the enemy AI logic, and I'll remotely control the weapons to clear the field. The three of us will work together, not rely on individual recklessness."
The third round begins.
This time, Ye Mo learned his lesson. After rushing into the block, he deliberately made a Wall Phasing gesture in front of the wall, and the enemy indeed focused their fire on the wall. He took the opportunity to move sideways and circle around from the side. Emma Frost simultaneously alerted him: [Pursuers behind, two with concussion guns].
Without turning around, he channeled his Regeneration abilities into his calf muscles, braked sharply, spun around, Regeneration to cushion the impact of his landing. He then threw a training grenade at his pursuers.
Amidst the smoke of the explosion, he activated the Wall Phasing again, this time penetrating only halfway. His body got stuck in the wall for a second before he quickly withdrew. The enemy misjudged his position and their fire went astray.
"That's a dirty trick," Tony laughed from the monitor. "Like a street thug trying to cheat."
"As long as it's practical, that's fine." Ye Mo panted as he approached the control tower.
In the final ten meters, three heavy mechs blocked his path. He didn't force his way through, but instead used " Energy Absorption " to deflect a pulse cannon shot. His genetic chains hummed, and the system notification read: [Energy conversion in progress, one high-voltage electric shock can be released].
This is the moment he's been waiting for.
He rushed forward, his left hand touching the ground, and a high-voltage arc exploded along the metal surface, short-circuiting all three mechs simultaneously. He flipped onto the tower and pressed the stop button.
"Done." He leaned against the tower wall, sweat dripping down his chin.
"It took three minutes and fourteen seconds, almost a minute faster than the last round," Tony checked the data. "And you were only hit once, and that was because you stepped on a landmine yourself."
"That's not my fault, the map wasn't marked clearly."
"You think this is a Minesweeper game?" Emma Frost walked over and handed her a bottle of water. "However, your cooperation has improved. I just tried not to force you to read your next move, but to capture your emotional trends—you clench your teeth when you're nervous, and you touch your glasses when you hesitate. These little actions are more honest than your thoughts."
"So I should change these habits?"
"No need," she shook her head, "I'll get used to you."
After Tony finished adjusting the weapon system, he synchronized the new data into Ye Mo's auxiliary armor. "I lowered the oscillation frequency by 12%, so it won't cause electromagnetic interference anymore. You can use the absorption + counterattack combo with confidence next time."
"Thanks." Ye Mo tightened the wrist guard. "But could you make something lighter next time? I'm afraid I won't be able to keep up with the removal process after my Regeneration."
"You Regeneration pretty quickly," Tony chuckled, "But your brain's a beat slow."
"This is strategic slowness on my part."
The three returned to the control room. The training field lights were completely turned off, leaving only the blue light from the control panel reflecting off the wall. As evening approached, the first wave of streetlights illuminated the city outside the window.
Ye Mo the protective gear, looked at the burn marks on his arm, and said softly, "I made it this time."
Tony walked over and patted him on the shoulder. "You need to be faster next time."
Emma Frost retracted her Diamond Form, her skin returning to normal temperature, and said calmly, "I'll follow."
No one said anything more. Ye Mo sat back down at the control panel, opened the system log, and silently recorded today's trial and error data. Tony left with his toolbox, saying he was going to check the Mark 42's flight module. Emma Frost stood at the entrance to the living area corridor, glanced back at them, nodded, and then pushed open the door to go inside.
Ye Mo was the only one left in the control room. The screen displayed the cooling progress of the Gene Spiral Tower, and the 90th notification flashed: [" Regenerative Phasing " combination cooldown: 87 seconds remaining].
He stared at the line of text, without moving.
The sound of knocking from the repair shop drifted from afar, one knock after another, like some kind of countdown.