The jeep's engine was still sputtering, spewing black smoke from the exhaust pipe, mixed with the hot, dusty smell of Africa night. Ye Mo didn't immediately step on the gas; his gaze went past the windshield, fixed on the chaotic center of the square.
Emma Frost stood beside the car, her hands trembling slightly. The mental shock from Klaue's attack had left her feeling terrible, and she was gritting her teeth, trying to calm the surging blood in her body. Her face was as pale as paper, and her lips were bitten until they bled, but her pale purple eyes still burned with an unquenchable rage.
"How much longer are we going to mess around?" Ye Mo pushed open the car door, his shoes crunching on the gravel. He straightened the collar of his black hooded sweatshirt and pushed his silver half-rimmed glasses up his nose, concealing the fleeting glint in his eyes.
Emma Frost took a deep breath, forcing herself to stand up straight. " T'Challa's struggling a bit. Klaue's sonic weapon has been stopped, but the mercenaries haven't been completely cleared out. And..." She paused, her brow furrowing, "I sense someone lurking in the shadows, not Klaue's people, but more like some kind of... more professional cleanup crew."
Ye Mo chuckled, pulled a lollipop from his pocket, unwrapped it, and popped it into his mouth. The sweetness melted on his tongue, suppressing the restlessness caused by the system warning. "Cleaners? Hmph, who cares who they are? As long as they're not in my way, I'll let them fend for themselves. But before that, I need to check if my 'little fans' are injured."
His so-called "little fans" referred to the panicked civilians in the square.
The attack came too suddenly, and the crowd was running around like headless flies. Although Ye Mo was observing from a distance, his eyes, enhanced by the X-Gene Resonance, could capture the slightest movement. Just now, while T'Challa was fighting the mercenaries and Emma Frost was doing her best to maintain her Mental Barrier, a mother and child, overcome with fear, hid in an extremely narrow corner behind a broken wall at the edge of the square.
That's a blind spot.
It is also a blind spot in terms of firepower coverage.
Ye Mo strode towards the edge of the plaza, his steps seemingly casual, yet each one perfectly timed. He didn't take the main road, but instead used the remaining white mist from the smoke grenades as cover, moving swiftly along the wall. The surrounding air was filled with the smell of gunpowder and burning, accompanied by shouts and the clanging of metal.
Ye Mo stopped behind a collapsed stone pillar.
Through the crack, he saw the mother and child.
The mother wore a dusty floral dress, her hair disheveled and falling across her face. She was trembling violently, her hands tightly covering the mouth of the boy beside her, who looked about seven or eight years old. The boy's eyes were wide with terror, tears welling up in them, but he dared not cry out.
On the other side of the crumbling wall where they were hiding, a burly mercenary was holding a flashlight, its beam sweeping across the ruins. The man's gun was slightly raised, clearly searching for survivors. The flashlight beam repeatedly swept across the corner where the mother and child were hiding; each time it shone, the mother's pupils contracted slightly, and the child's body stiffened a little.
Time seemed to stand still.
Ye Mo did not hesitate.
Conventional methods are definitely out of the question. Rushing out to rescue them? That would immediately expose their position and attract the concentrated fire of all the surrounding enemies. Besides, the wall isn't thick, but it's not something that can be broken down by human force in an instant.
He needs speed. He needs a speed that can ignore physical obstacles.
Ye Mo closed his eyes, quickly retrieving the fragment about " Shadowcat " from the Gene Spiral Tower in his mind. It was a fragment of ability that he had accidentally captured in a previous battle, which had been sealed deep in his consciousness and had never been truly used. At this moment, guided by his will, those dormant gene fragments began to activate, rapidly spreading throughout his body along his spinal nerves.
A faint gray sheen appeared on his skin, as if some kind of special energy field enveloped his body.
He made no sound, even deliberately slowing his breathing to the extreme.
Press yourself against the wall, take a deep breath, and then—let it penetrate.
The feeling was strange. It was like a drop of water seeping into a sponge, or a wisp of smoke passing through a screen window. The originally hard concrete wall became transparent and soft in his eyes. Ye Mo's body gradually became illusory, its outline blurred, and finally it completely lost its physical presence.
He passed through the thick stone wall silently.
The space inside the walls was narrow and oppressive, filled with dust and a musty smell. With his keen senses, Ye Mo instantly located the mother and child in the corner.
He reached out and gently patted the mother's tense shoulder.
The mother shuddered and opened her eyes in terror. When she saw the man in front of her, wearing a black hoodie and silver-rimmed glasses, the fear in her eyes did not dissipate but intensified. She wanted to scream, but Ye Mo forcibly suppressed her with a "shush" gesture made with his other hand.
Ye Mo pointed to the other end of the wall in front of him, where there was a relatively open and safe area with a good view and low visibility.
Then, he put one arm around the child's back and the other hand on the mother's shoulder.
Reactivate the Wall Phasing ability.
This time, he led two people through the last section of the wall.
The entire process takes no more than five seconds.
When Ye Mo reappeared outside the wall, he landed steadily on an untouched concrete step. The mercenaries outside the wall were still pacing back and forth, their flashlight beams sweeping over the spot where the mother and child had been hiding, but they found nothing. One of them frowned in confusion, muttered something in an unintelligible foreign language, and turned to walk in another direction.
The crisis is over.
Ye Mo placed the mother and child behind a well-preserved pillar, where they had a good view, making it easy to observe the situation and defend themselves.
He crouched down, trying to bring his line of sight to the child's. He took off his silver half-rimmed glasses, revealing eyes that usually held a playful glint, but now were incredibly sincere. He pulled a clean handkerchief from his pocket—a habit he had casually slipped into his pocket before leaving the house; though it seemed out of place in this dusty place, at least it was clean.
He handed the handkerchief to the child and said softly, "It's alright, uncle is here."
The sound wasn't loud, but it stood out clearly and powerfully against the noisy background.
The child looked at him timidly, took the handkerchief, and gradually stopped crying, replaced by sobs.
Ye Mo turned to the mother, his gaze sweeping over her tear-streaked face, and said firmly, "Don't be afraid. As long as I'm standing, no one can hurt you."
This wasn't just empty consolation; it stemmed from his confidence in his own abilities and his assessment of the situation. He pointed towards T'Challa, who was engaged in combat with mercenaries in the distance, and added, "Look over there, our friends are working hard to drive the bad guys away. Everything will be alright soon."
The mother held her child tightly, her eyes filled with gratitude and dependence. She opened her mouth, as if to say something to express her thanks, but in the end, she only nodded slightly and remained silent. The weakness she felt after surviving the ordeal left her without the strength to speak.
Ye Mo stood up, put his glasses back on, and resumed his nonchalant demeanor. He straightened the collar of his black hooded sweatshirt and glanced back at the mother and child.
Rescue operation complete.
But this is just the beginning.
He turned to face the center of the square, a cold smile playing on his lips, his eyes sharpening once more. Emma Frost was still holding off Klaue's mental interference in the center, T'Challa, though valiant, was showing signs of fatigue against the overwhelming number of mercenaries. Although that bastard Klaue was temporarily suppressed, the prototype sonic weapon in his hands still posed a threat.
Ye Mo touched the miniature listening device in his pocket; it was left behind at the observation post. Now, it was time to close the net.
He crouched low, gliding silently towards the center of the square like a cheetah. His movements were light and steady, each step avoiding any noise from the ground. The surrounding explosions and shouts of battle provided excellent cover.
Emma Frost noticed his approach, turned her head slightly, and a hint of surprise flashed in her eyes.
"Is it done?" she asked Telepathy, her voice weak but urgent.
"All done," Ye Mo thought to himself. "Now, it's time to teach this ' Vibranium dealer' a lesson in what real trouble is like."
He looked in Klaue's direction. The man was waving his arms triumphantly, enjoying the thrill of the chaos. He thought he was the chess player, but little did he know that in Ye Mo's eyes, he was nothing more than a lamb to the slaughter.
Ye Mo clenched his fist, and the X-Gene Resonance System within his body began to vibrate slightly. He could feel that the fragments dormant in the Gene Spiral Tower were awakening, waiting for the next eruption.
But he did not choose to activate them now.
He needs to observe and find the best opportunity.
Just then, Klaue seemed to sense something. He turned his head, his eyes behind the mask fixed on the direction where Ye Mo had disappeared, his brows furrowed.
"Something's not right," Klaue muttered to himself.
Ye Mo hid behind cover, a smile playing on his lips.
The game has only just begun.