Tony's suspicions were quickly proven entirely correct.
Magneto had indeed met with disaster—his wife and daughter were dead!
Even Tony couldn't help but shake his head in sympathy. *How tragic for Magneto,* he thought. *His mother was killed in childhood, and now his wife and daughter have met the same fate as adults!*
For someone who had survived the Auschwitz concentration camp, this was the ultimate cruelty.
Even more ironic was that Magneto's wife and daughter died precisely because of his compassion. He had used his powers to save a co-worker.
Though not explicitly stated in the diary, the co-worker he saved must have been an ordinary human.
In other words, the man who hated ordinary humans had saved one.
What did this prove?
Deep down, Magneto wasn't a truly evil man.
His lifelong attacks on humanity, his extreme actions—all of it had been forced upon him.
"Is this Magneto's true power?"
With a slight sigh, the Playboy refocused his attention on the diary, immediately struck by its contents.
*Controlling the Earth's magnetic field!*
*Could Magneto really do such a thing?*
*His magnetic control actually covers the entire planet!*
*Is this the Level Four Mutant on Professor X's level?*
Tony had already been astonished by Magneto's ability to flip an entire football stadium.
Now he realized that was mere child's play.
No wonder the diary's author had joked that a Magneto who could flip a football stadium was merely the "Iron King."
Looking back, that joke now seemed quite apt.
Even setting aside other factors, in terms of sheer ability application, Magneto was even more powerful than Professor X.
After all, Professor X needed Cerebro to cover the entire Earth, while Magneto could achieve it with his own powers!
"Erik."
Charles, standing before another diary, wore a far more complex expression.
Though this short passage contained few details, the information it revealed was substantial.
It provided Charles with several crucial pieces of intelligence.
First, it revealed Erik's next move: taking advantage of this opportunity to target the Sentinel Robots.
Second, it revealed Erik's subsequent actions: surprisingly, he had actually followed Charles's advice and integrated himself into ordinary human society.
This development completely defied Charles's expectations, leaving him utterly surprised.
*Is this really Erik?*
*The Erik who constantly stirs up trouble, the one who can't rest until he's struck a blow against human society?*
Yet, alongside his astonishment, Charles felt an overwhelming sense of relief.
He had always believed that a core of goodness lay hidden within Erik, buried deep beneath layers of anger and resentment.
Now, it seemed he had been right about Erik all along!
This is the most severe global crisis humanity has faced since Professor X nearly killed everyone, right?
Of course, that time it wasn't really Professor X's fault. He was controlled by Mastermind, after all.
Killing all of humanity was never his intention.
Strictly speaking, it was all Stryker's doing.
That guy tried to control Professor X and kill all the Mutants on Earth.
But who knew Magneto would pull off a counter-move, successfully switching the target from annihilation to depowering everyone?
If Storm hadn't been so awesome and cracked Mastermind's illusion in time, humanity would have been doomed.
"So that's what happened?"
The Playboy couldn't help but show a look of sudden understanding.
The diary had mentioned before that Professor X nearly killed all of humanity.
At the time, Tony had been impressed by Professor X's power, but also deeply puzzled and confused.
Why would Professor X do something like that?
After all, Professor X was different from Magneto—he was a true superhero, an absolute force for good.
Finally, the diary provided a concrete answer.
It turned out Professor X had been manipulated all along.
According to the diary, Stryker used a mutant named Mastermind to control Professor X.
And what was Stryker's original goal?
To kill all mutants on Earth, not all of humanity.
It was only because Magneto intervened and made some adjustments that Professor X nearly wiped out humanity.
How convoluted and twisted!
Tony never expected such a series of twists and turns behind this whole affair.
It was all Stryker and Magneto's doing; Professor X was completely innocent.
He was merely a tool being used.
So yes, Professor X was still the trustworthy superhero everyone believed him to be, and he was blameless in all of this.
The real question was:
Who exactly was this Stryker?
And why did he want to kill all mutants?
Judging by the tone of the diary, the writer was clearly an ordinary person. This makes the underlying reasons behind their actions worth pondering.
Could this be another Sentinel Robot manufactured by the human government?
And then there's the Illusion Master.
The nickname leaves no doubt that this individual is also a Mutant.
Their abilities are equally obvious: creating illusions.
This ability is closely related to Professor X's, both being mental powers.
But could the Illusion Master actually control someone on Professor X's level?
That's truly remarkable.
After all, Professor X is a Level Four Mutant!
If he can control even a Level Four Mutant with mental abilities, what level is the Illusion Master?
Fifth-Level?
Even if not, they must be at least as powerful as Professor X—at least Level Four, right?
Beyond that...
Why was Storm able to break through the Illusion Master's illusions?
Does Storm also possess mental abilities?
And what exactly did Magneto do to make Professor X replace his intended target with all of humanity?
One question after another flashed through Tony's mind.
Unfortunately, the "Professor X annihilates humanity" event was clearly an incredibly complex matter.
It was far too complicated for the Playboy to untangle from these fragmented descriptions.
"Stryker?"
"Mastermind?"
Charles, standing before another notebook, couldn't help but frown.
*So this is the truth behind why I almost killed all of humanity?*
*It was all their doing!*
But after careful consideration, Charles realized he had never heard of either Stryker or Mastermind.
Stryker was ordinary enough, no doubt a regular human.
But Mastermind was a mutant.
A mutant whose psychic abilities rivaled his own!
And this mutant, he had never heard of either.
"Damn it!"
Charles gritted his teeth slightly.
Now that he knew about this future, he naturally wanted to find these two and prevent it from happening.
But to his dismay, Charles had completely lost his powers!
Even if Hank's potion wore off and he regained his abilities, he would never be able to use Cerebro again.
Charles was also experiencing psychological issues.
*What should I do?*
*What can I possibly do?*
Charles felt a suffocating pressure in his chest.
Stryker! That bastard is Wolverine's lifelong enemy.
He's the one who injected Adamantium into Wolverine's body, plunging him into a lifelong nightmare.
No, he's not just Wolverine's enemy—he's the enemy of all Mutants.
Stryker's entire life was spent experimenting on, suppressing, and annihilating Mutants.
He even came close to wiping out all Mutants.
Even though Magneto killed him in the end, his son ultimately succeeded in that endeavor.
Mutants were once again driven to extinction, this time from the very source.
So Wolverine and the others' future was reversed for nothing.
"It was him!" Tony exclaimed.
So the Adamantium in Wolverine's body wasn't self-injected at all—it was forced into him by this Stryker.
*No wonder...*
*Who would be so insane as to do something so twisted to themselves?*
*Turns out it wasn't voluntary—he was forced.*
Otherwise, how could such a thing have brought Wolverine endless nightmares?
Considering that Stryker spent his entire life experimenting on mutants, as mentioned in the diary, this was hardly surprising.
It was clear that Stryker had subjected Wolverine to human experimentation.
How cruel!
How brutal!
Even Tony couldn't help but frown.
Stryker was truly a cold-blooded, deranged, and ruthless madman. Otherwise, how could he have injected molten metal into a living body?
Is this even something a human could do?!
The mere thought of it made one's scalp tingle!
Only such a cold and heartless person could have attempted to exterminate the entire mutant race.
Playboy felt no sympathy whatsoever for Stryker's death at Magneto's hands.
In fact, he felt it was a job well done, a cause for celebration.
"Mutants... wiped out again?"
"Even after Days of Future Past?"
Playboy was taken aback, completely caught off guard by this outcome.
The diary had been crystal clear: Wolverine and the others had traveled back in time to alter the future precisely because Sentinels were on the verge of annihilating the mutant race in the original timeline.
The result was...
Even after reversing the future, the mutants still couldn't escape their fate!
How infuriating!
But on second thought, the Playboy didn't feel too surprised.
The Sentinel Robots were merely tools.
Wolverine could reverse the future to prevent their creation, but they couldn't stop humanity's desire to exterminate mutants.
And that desire was the root of it all.
As long as that desire persisted, it was merely a matter of method.
Even without the Sentinel Robots, they would simply devise another way!
Just like Stryker's son—he actually eradicated mutants at the source.
So, in the new future, the one who exterminated the mutants was Stryker's son?
Talk about following in his father's footsteps.
And "surpassing him at his own game."
His father only came close to wiping out mutants, but this guy actually made it happen.
And he did it by eradicating them "at the source."
But what exactly did "at the source" mean?
Through the diary's spoilers, Tony had already learned that the X-Gene had dominant and recessive forms.
In other words, some ordinary people also carry the X-Gene within them.
And while the X-Gene might be recessive in their own bodies, it could become dominant when passed on to their children.
In other words:
Even if all mutants were killed, it would only be temporary. Mutants would still emerge again afterward.
If you think about it from this perspective, did Stryker's son somehow completely eradicate the X-Gene?
Wouldn't that make him just like the Sentinel Robots, killing off even ordinary people who carry the X-Gene?
This man, just like his father Stryker, is truly a monster.
"Why... is it like this?"
Charles, standing before another diary, was filled with bitterness and disbelief.
Was the future of mutant extinction truly unchangeable?
Even after reversing it once and starting over, it still ended up this way?
This realization struck Charles like a blow, sending his spirits plummeting.
"Stryker!"
It took several seconds for Charles to regain his composure.
His attention immediately focused on that name.
This man was the mastermind behind it all!
A critical figure in everything that had transpired.
Charles couldn't say for sure about everything else, but he was certain that if they had intervened in time after learning of Trask's actions, they could have prevented both his attempt to control himself and nearly kill all of humanity, and his son's extermination of the mutants.
True, Charles knew that even if these specific disasters were averted, the mutants would still face countless other calamities. Extinction remained a possibility.
But now they had this miraculous diary!
By using the diary to learn about the future in advance, they could act early and change the course of events.
This was Charles' greatest source of confidence!
As he thought of this, Charles felt a slight easing of his heart.
Even now, Stryker remains one of Trask's key generals, capturing numerous mutants for Trask's experiments.
In the original future, it was Stryker who captured Raven after her assassination attempt on Trask!
Stryker also played an indispensable role in the creation of the Sentinel Robots.
This man is truly the mutants' lifelong enemy.
If Magneto represents the radical fringe among mutants, then Stryker represents the radical fringe among ordinary humans.
He's become obsessed with eradicating mutants, even going so far as to control Nightcrawler to assassinate the president and frame the mutants.