Chapter 190: Eternal
Lu Chen's figure quietly appeared at the entrance of a five-star hotel.
A gold bar fell on the front desk, and the on-duty manager was just about to call security when he looked up and met Lu Chen's eyes.
"Give me the best suite."
"Alright, sir."
The vigilance on the on-duty manager's face quickly disappeared, and without even asking for identification, he directly had the receptionist process the check-in.
Several receptionists nearby did not show any abnormality upon seeing this unconventional payment method.
Taking out a gold bar for payment was normal, and not having identification was normal. Even if Lu Chen said now that he wanted to buy this hotel, they would probably only ask if they needed to prepare a contract.
A few minutes later, the door closed.
Lu Chen took off his coat and casually threw it on the sofa.
Although he already had a target, the system's upgrade was not yet complete, so rashly contacting the Eternal now was of little significance.
He sat in front of the hotel computer, typed a few names into the search box, and quickly deleted them.
His memories about the Eternal were not complete; he had only watched the movie, and many details had long been blurred. However, he still roughly remembered the origins and main abilities of those people.
The Eternal were not Gods in the true sense.
They were artificial synthetic life forms created by Arishem the Judge of the Celestials, sent to different Planet to execute missions. The so-called protection of intelligent life was just to allow the population on the Planet to grow smoothly.
Because the energy generated by population growth would nourish the God seeds buried inside the Planet.
When the energy accumulated to a sufficient degree, the new God would awaken from the center of the Earth.
This process was called the emergence.
And the result of the emergence was that the entire Planet was torn apart from the inside.
"Tiamut."
Lu Chen leaned against the back of the chair, reminiscing inwardly.
The God sleeping inside the Earth was Tiamut.
The Eternal were sent to Earth. Their apparent mission was to eliminate Deviants and protect the development of human civilization, but in reality, they were clearing obstacles for Tiamut's emergence.
Protect humans?
They did protect them.
Protected until the number was large enough, so they could be used as nourishment to hatch the God.
However, the current time point was 2012, more than a decade away from the "emergence" in the original plot, and time was very abundant.
With the commotion of the Battle of New York being so huge, those ten Eternal members could not possibly be completely unaware. But they had not shown up, obviously still following Arishem the Judge's orders, forbidden from actively interfering with force, and continuing to live in seclusion in human society.
However, what truly interested Lu Chen was not their background, but the Eternal themselves.
The abilities of the ten Eternal sent to Earth varied.
Some could manipulate Universe energy to fire light bullets, some possessed super speed, and some could create illusions.
Several of these abilities were quite practical.
But there were also a few that were hard to deal with.
Sersi could change material forms, Druig could control thoughts, and Ikaris was even the one with the strongest frontal combat power among the Eternal, roughly equivalent to a little Superman.
Therefore, it was best to look for them one by one.
"Find the most conspicuous one first."
Lu Chen sat up straight again and searched for actor families in Bollywood, India on the computer.
After the Eternal came to Earth, they had long dispersed to various parts of the World, each integrating into human society. Some got married, some preached, some lived in seclusion, and some directly became stars.
Kingo was the latter.
Because the Eternal did not age, in order to remain active in Bollywood for a long time, he forcefully fabricated an entire actor family for himself.
The father was him, the son was him, and the grandson was still him.
Changing his name every few decades and claiming to the outside World that it was a family heritage.
"That saves trouble."
Lu Chen looked through the search results and quickly found several actor families that met the conditions.
The people in the photos spanned decades, with little change in facial features, only different hairstyles, beards, and makeup.
Finding Kingo should not be difficult.
However, before the system upgrade was complete, he would not go over.
Kingo could release Universe energy from his hands to fire light bullets; the power was not the strongest, but it was stable enough. Taking him to test the upgraded Copy ability was just right.
Lu Chen wrote down the information, turned off the computer, and lay back on the bed.
Now he just needed to wait.
Inside the S.H.I.E.L.D. Triskelion building, Nick Fury had no way to rest.
A hotel surveillance screenshot was projected in the center of the conference room.
In the image, Lu Chen walked into the hotel, stayed at the front desk for a minute, and then disappeared at the elevator entrance.
"He checked into a hotel?"
Alexander Pierce raised his hand and tapped on the table.
"A person who can disappear at will and can single-handedly destroy an alien fleet checked into a hotel in New York?"
Fury stared at the screen with his one eye.
"At least it shows he is not ready to leave Earth for the time being."
"Is this good news?"
"Better than him continuing to attack some country."
Fury brought up another piece of information, and his mood did not ease much.
During the Battle of New York, the power Lu Chen displayed had completely exceeded S.H.I.E.L.D.'s handling range. What was even more troublesome was that the Tesseract and Mind Stone had all fallen into his hands.
The Tesseract was borrowed away by Thor, and it would come back sooner or later.
But the scepter did not.
That thing could control minds; Loki used it to almost destroy New York. The person holding the scepter now was a hundred times more dangerous in combat power than Loki.
Fury did not like this sense of loss of control.
"We need to contact him."
Pierce leaned back against the back of the chair.
"No more observation, no more probing, it is official contact. Ask clearly about his identity, purpose, and how he plans to deal with that scepter."
Fury glanced at him.
"Who are you planning to send to question him?"
"S.H.I.E.L.D. represents the World Security Council."
"Aliens don't care about the Council, and Tianshu probably doesn't care either."
No one answered by the conference table.
This was the most troublesome part.
Conventional deterrence was meaningless to Lu Chen. Armies, Agent, public opinion, economic blockade—using these methods against him would only appear ridiculous.
Pierce was silent for a moment, his expression turning cold.
"So what is your suggestion? Let him take away the most dangerous items on Earth and then pray he maintains goodwill?"
"My suggestion is not to use stupid methods to provoke him."
Fury turned off the projection.
"I will choose the right person to contact him. Not an interrogation, but a negotiation."
"I hope your negotiation won't lose anything else."
Pierce got up and left the conference room, the toughness on his face maintained until the elevator door closed.
The numbers began to descend.
He took out a mobile phone not registered in the S.H.I.E.L.D. system and dialed the number.
"The scepter is confirmed to be in Tianshu's hands."
The other end of the phone paused for two seconds.
"Does it need to be taken back?"
Pierce's eyelids twitched.
"Who is going to take it back? You?"
The voice on the opposite side fell silent.
"Find someone with a clean identity, who has nothing to do with S.H.I.E.L.D., the Council, and any intelligence agency. Prepare chips of sufficient weight to probe his needs first."
Pierce lowered his voice.
"This kind of person cannot be forced, only won over. At least before we find a way to deal with him, he must think we are friends."
The phone hung up.
Half an hour later, a commission that had been thoroughly scrubbed fell into a private consulting firm in New York.
Inside the hotel suite, Lu Chen had just closed his eyes when the doorbell suddenly rang.
"Mr. Tianshu."
The woman outside the door spoke.
"Someone wants to talk business with you."
Chapter 191: HYDRA's Pledge of Allegiance
"Mr. Tianshu, I mean no harm."
The voice was soft and charming, carrying a hint of just-right respect.
But the door did not open.
What she waited for was a strand of psychic energy crossing the door and invading her mind.
The woman's body suddenly stiffened.
The prepared rhetoric, the client behind her, and the training she had received were all forcibly dug out.
She did not even have time to organize her thoughts before her memories were laid open page by page, left for the person in the room to inspect at will.
Inside the suite, Lu Chen leaned against the bed and touched his nose.
"HYDRA?"
S.H.I.E.L.D. had just concluded the Battle of New York, and the HYDRA within it had already come knocking.
It seemed these people were not only well-informed, but their action speed was also much faster than Nick Fury.
The woman outside the door came from a private consulting company, and her identity resume was very clean.
Behind the company were several layers of relationships, ultimately connecting to an organization whose name even she did not know.
Unfortunately, identities could be forged, but memories could not.
The mission she received was very simple.
Approach Tianshu, probe for demands, and establish long-term contact.
For this, the other party prepared three bargaining chips.
A large amount of untraceable funds, a special serum said to be able to strengthen the human body, and herself.
The temptation of beauty, extra money, and even more strength.
A very standard recruitment package.
"What kind of trash serum is this."
Lu Chen saw the data of that serum from her memories and instantly lost interest.
Compared to the Super Soldier Serum used by Captain America, this thing secretly improved by HYDRA had even more flaws.
Not only was the enhancement upper limit limited, but there was also a considerable probability of causing physical deformity and mental problems.
Taking this kind of thing to recruit him?
Even Loki would have to praise him for being courageous upon seeing it.
As for the woman outside the door, she was indeed very pretty, and her figure, appearance, and speech had all been specially screened.
Unfortunately, Lu Chen had little interest in women who delivered themselves to his door with such clear motives.
On the other hand, HYDRA's global intelligence channels were barely of some use.
The Eternal had hidden in human society for thousands of years.
Some people left clear traces, while others completely disappeared into the crowd.
Relying solely on internet searches, finding Kingo was not difficult, but finding everyone else was not so easy.
HYDRA had operated for many years, penetrating various governments, the Military, and intelligence agencies, and the secret archives in its hands were shockingly numerous.
Using them to find people was just right.
Outside the door, cold sweat had already broken out on the woman's forehead.
She wanted to raise her hand to knock on the door, but found that her arms could not move at all.
Her consciousness was very clear, but her body felt as if it no longer belonged to her.
No one in the mission brief had ever told her that the other party could also control minds across a room door.
The intelligence was way too outrageous.
Just as she wanted to struggle forcefully, Lu Chen's voice sounded directly in her mind.
"Go back and tell your people that I have no interest in funds, the serum, or you."
The woman's eyelids twitched slightly, forcing herself to maintain composure.
A series of images were directly branded into the woman's mind.
Those were several different faces, male and female, with physical features as clear as if they were standing right in front of her.
Kingo, Sersi, Druig, Ikaris, Gilgamesh, several Eternal members whose appearances Lu Chen still remembered, were all inside.
Since HYDRA took the initiative to deliver themselves to his door, let them search together.
As for whether the other party would discover that these people had special identities, that was not important.
If HYDRA really dared to make a move, it would only help him test the abilities of the Eternal.
"Help me find these people."
Lu Chen's voice sounded again.
"Find them, and I can help HYDRA do one thing."
The moment the three words HYDRA appeared, the woman's breathing skipped a beat.
She truly did not know the real client, but the organization had taught her how to deal with emergencies during training.
The more it was this kind of time, the less she could admit anything.
"Sir, I only represent Adamant Consulting Company. I have never heard of this HYDRA you speak of."
"Whether you have heard of it or not, go back and ask your superiors."
Lu Chen was not surprised at all by her stubbornness.
If just any peripheral personnel of HYDRA knew the full picture of the organization, it would have been uprooted long ago; how could it still hide in S.H.I.E.L.D. and develop for decades?
However, he had no interest in investigating level by level upwards.
"Bring my words back exactly as they are."
"Find them, and I will fulfill my promise."
"If you cannot find them, do not blame me for coming to find you personally."
The ultimatum fell, and the terrifying psychic energy shrouding her instantly vanished without a trace, as if it had never appeared.
The woman bit the tip of her tongue, and the pain restored some clarity to her chaotic thoughts.
"Alright, Sir."
"I will convey your request in full."
She supported herself against the wall, took a few deep breaths in succession, said no more probing words, and turned to walk quickly toward the elevator.
The mission had already failed.
No, it should be said that from the very beginning, the two parties were not standing on the same level.
She thought she was here to negotiate, but that door had never opened from beginning to end.
The other party merely glanced through her memories across the room door and knew everything that needed to be known.
Even HYDRA was directly pointed out.
The elevator door closed, and the woman immediately took out her phone.
"A major change has occurred in the mission."
The other end of the phone asked: "Did he refuse?"
"No, he proposed a condition."
The woman wiped the sweat from her forehead.
"Also, immediately put me through to the highest person in charge."
Inside the room, Lu Chen had already withdrawn his psychic energy.
This was just a minor matter.
HYDRA wanted to recruit him, and he happened to need HYDRA's intelligence network.
Both parties took what they needed, and there was no need to clear everyone out right now.
Besides, it was just a promise for a single action.
What help to give was up to him to decide.
Lu Chen raised his hand and flipped it over, and the Mind Stone appeared in his palm.
The blue gem emitted a soft glow, and psychic energy slowly flowed along the staff body.
Controlling a few ordinary people, amplifying the negative emotions in their hearts, and then releasing energy attacks did not truly unleash the power of the Mind Stone at all.
The blue shell outside the gem was more like a layer of restriction.
The real Mind Stone was inside.
However, wanting to take it out was not easy.
The power of the Infinity Stones far exceeded the limit that ordinary life could bear.
Lu Chen was not prepared to rashly touch it with his bare hands either.
Lu Chen closed his eyes, his psychic energy carefully probed into it, and he began to try exploring that majestic power originating from the source of the Universe.
Two hours later, the woman's report went through several handovers and finally appeared on Alexander Pierce's desktop.
Several experts sat in front of computers, restoring the portraits based on the images left in her mind.
The first photo was printed out.
Followed by the second and third.
Pierce picked up the photos, his gaze lingering on Kingo's face.
"Tianshu did not see her?"
The subordinate replied in a low voice: "No. From beginning to end, the door never opened."
"Then how were the appearances of these people transmitted?"
"It appeared directly in her mind. The technical department checked; she did not lie, nor did she take hallucinogenic drugs."
Pierce put down the photo, with extremely high mobility, capable of surviving in outer space, and destructive power sufficient to destroy an alien fleet, now coupled with mind invasion.
Their understanding of Tianshu was probably not even one-tenth.
The most troublesome thing was that the other party knew HYDRA.
Yet Tianshu did not expose them, nor did he kill the person who delivered herself to the door, and instead proposed a transaction.
That was enough.
At least he was not the kind of superhero full of justice in his head.
As long as he was willing to negotiate terms, there was a possibility of cooperation.
"Send the photos down."
Pierce raised his head.
"Call upon all available channels. Facial recognition, entry and exit records, old archives, intelligence databases of various countries, check them all."
The subordinate took the photos.
"After finding them, do we need to capture them?"
"He wants to find people, so we will help him find them. Let us see if he will keep his promise after finding them."
Inside the New York Sanctum, Sorcerer Ancient One in a yellow monk's robe slowly stopped using the Time Stone.
The overlapping images dissipated one after another.
She looked toward the direction of the hotel and raised her hand to close the Eye of Agamotto.
"Fine, let him be."
Chapter 192: System Upgrade
Inside the hotel suite, Lu Chen opened his eyes from meditation.
On the system panel before his eyes, the countdown was entering its final stage.
Lu Chen stared at the countdown before him as the last number slowly ticked down.
"Three."
The hotel suite was very quiet, with only a system prompt ringing in his mind.
"Two."
Lu Chen sat on the edge of the bed, tapping his fingers on his knee.
This system upgrade had lasted a full day. According to the scenes of other people's system upgrades in his memory, this one should have made some kind of commotion.
Something like golden light radiating everywhere, celestial anomalies, or a sudden flood of new functions popping up.
"One."
The countdown hit zero.
[System upgrade complete.]
Lu Chen waited for a few seconds.
Nothing happened.
"That's it?"
He lowered his head to look at his hands, then looked around. The lights in the room didn't explode, the floor didn't collapse, and even the sounds of traffic outside the window were unaffected.
Lu Chen scratched his head.
"Where is that radiant glow I was expecting? At least give me an explosion sound."
The system did not reply.
"What was upgraded this time?"
[Initial upgrade complete. Please explore new functions on your own.]
Lu Chen's expression froze.
"Explore on my own?"
[Yes.]
"You've got quite a personality."
[Thank you.]
Looking at those two words, Lu Chen was amused to the point of anger.
"Well, aren't you something, System? Didn't I just mock you a couple of times while you were upgrading? Is it really necessary to hold such a grudge?"
The system did not respond further.
Lu Chen muttered a few complaints inwardly, but finding that the system had completely no reaction, he could only suppress his emotions. Anyway, his abilities had indeed been upgraded, and as for what the new functions were, he would know after trying them out. But maybe he should be nicer to the system?
"System?"
[Present.]
"Your design is quite good."
[Thank you.]
"Your functions are also very practical."
[Thank you.]
"Stable operation, timely feedback, boundless future."
[Thank you.]
Lu Chen's face darkened slightly.
"Can you have a little bit of user experience?"
He stood up from the bed and stretched his shoulders.
Forget it, if you want something done right, do it yourself.
Lu Chen got up and walked to the window. Since the system told him to explore on his own, he might as well find someone to test the new functions on.
Who should he look for?
Lu Chen's figure disappeared from the suite.
High above New York, Lu Chen hovered in the high altitude.
His powerful mental strength spread outward, quickly piercing through streets, buildings, and crowds, covering the entire city like countless tentacles.
Lu Chen did not pry into the memories of ordinary people; he merely locked onto individual life auras to quickly screen for a target.
The location of the New York Sanctum was also within his perception.
When his mental strength spread to that area, Lu Chen paused and actively avoided that building.
Since the other party hadn't come to deal with him yet, he didn't need to deliberately stroll around right outside their doorstep.
Soon, Lu Chen locked onto an apartment in Brooklyn.
The person inside was eating.
Blonde hair, blue eyes, height close to 1.9 meters, physical data far exceeding ordinary people, with a life aura so stable it didn't look like an old man who had just been dug out of the ice.
Captain America, Steve Rogers.
"Found you."
Lu Chen disappeared instantly.
Inside the apartment, Steve was holding a cup and had just taken a sip of coffee when an inexplicable, extremely intense sense of crisis suddenly surged from his spine straight to his crown.
Danger!
The body enhanced by the Super Soldier serum reacted instantly. Steve sprang up from the chair, muscles tense, twisting his waist to the side as he assumed a standard combat posture.
However, it was too late.
A hand rested on the back of his neck.
Steve slammed his shoulder backward while his left hand grabbed for that wrist.
Lu Chen let him grab it.
Steve exerted force in his arm, intending to leverage the twist to throw the person out, but Lu Chen's wrist remained motionless, not even changing posture.
"Hello there, Rogers."
Lu Chen let go of his hand and took a step back.
Steve turned around immediately, adopting a defensive posture, his gaze locking onto Lu Chen.
"What are you doing?"
"Just saying hello."
Lu Chen brushed it off casually, his attention already falling on the system panel.
[Copyable target detected: Steve Rogers]
[Optional ability: Super Physique LV3]
It was about what he expected.
The body after injecting the serum was already close to human limits; strength, speed, endurance, reflexes, and recovery were all far beyond ordinary people, but there was still a gap from true transcendence.
At the LV3 level, it couldn't fully defend against firearms and would still be injured when facing heavy firepower, but it was enough as a test sample.
"Select, Super Physique LV3." Lu Chen issued the command in his mind.
He had already prepared himself to need continuous contact for half an hour.
However, the next second, the system prompt left him stunned.
[Contact judgment complete... Ability level is two or more levels lower than the host's highest level... Copy rules changed...]
[Copy complete.]
Just like that... complete?
Lu Chen was a little surprised.
He let go of his hand, watching Captain America, who immediately distanced himself upon regaining freedom and looked at him with great vigilance, while rapidly communicating with the system in his heart.
"System, are you this awesome now?"
[Abilities two levels or more below your current highest level can be copied upon contact.]
The system gave a concise explanation.
Looking at these words, Lu Chen finally confirmed the core change of this upgrade.
Abilities two levels or more below his current highest level only required contact to complete copying.
His current highest level was LV7.
That meant abilities at LV5 and below could be directly copied upon contacting the target.
This change didn't look exaggerated, but it could save him a lot of time in the future.
In the past, when encountering someone with strong abilities, he had to figure out a way to detain them and slowly wait for the Copy progress bar to finish.
Now, as long as he touched them once, lower-level abilities could be directly obtained.
As for abilities above LV6, he didn't know yet for the time being.
Lu Chen stared at the system panel and asked, "What about abilities above me? LV6, LV7, or even higher—how long does it take to Copy?"
[Please explore new functions on your own.]
"Damn."
Lu Chen cursed.
After this system upgrade, he couldn't tell what else changed, but its temper was definitely getting bigger.
But as long as it worked, that was fine.
The World was so big; there were bound to be plenty of bizarre abilities.
Even if the ability itself wasn't strong, it still had research value.
Come one, touch one.
"You..."
Steve looked at the man in front of him who stopped talking right after saying hello and started smiling inexplicably, feeling baffled.
Just as he wanted to open his mouth to ask something, Lu Chen had already snapped out of it.
"Hello, Captain." Lu Chen very naturally withdrew his previous pensive expression, as if the person who had wordlessly placed a hand on someone else's neck just moments ago had nothing to do with him at all.
"I saw your heroic performance yesterday," Lu Chen said. "You are the real hero."
Steve was taken aback by his sudden praise,
and he raised his hand to rub the back of his head.
"I just did what I could do."
"And I heard part of yesterday's events from Stark." Steve lowered his hand. "You're the one who truly saved New York."
Steve waited for his continuation.
But Lu Chen didn't say anything more.
The ability had already been copied; staying longer was meaningless.
"Goodbye, Captain."
"Goodbye?"
Steve frowned.
"Wait, what exactly did you come—"
Before he could finish his sentence, the person in front of him had already disappeared.
Steve stood in place, his words stuck at the edge of his lips.
He lowered his head to look at his hand, then looked up at where Lu Chen had just been standing, feeling a bit clueless.
"What is this supposed to mean?"
No one answered.
Chapter 193: Are You Also an Eternal?
Lu Chen hovered above New York, looking down at the city below that was gradually recovering its order.
Captain America's Super Physique had already finished copying.
The changes brought by this upgrade were also verified.
For abilities two levels lower than his own highest level, he could Copy them directly upon contact.
Steve's ability was LV3, and Lu Chen's current highest level was LV7, exceeding a two-level gap, which was why he could finish it with just a touch.
But what Lu Chen wanted to test was not LV3.
"It's time to find some high-level abilities to try out."
His gaze withdrew from the city and looked into the distance.
The other members of the Eternal were still having HYDRA help search for them.
That group of people had been hiding for thousands of years, and their whereabouts were indeed very hard to trace.
But Kingo was different; he was a big Bollywood star with many public activities, so finding his location was not difficult.
Lu Chen took out his phone and glanced at the news he had just searched for.
Mumbai.
A movie press conference.
Kingo was at the scene.
"A member of the Eternal has actually managed to become a Bollywood star."
This career choice was pretty good.
Lu Chen put away his phone, his figure disappearing from above New York.
Mumbai.
At the movie press conference, Kingo on stage was wearing a well-fitted suit, holding a microphone, and smiling as he faced countless cameras and microphones.
"This movie is the work my father always wanted to complete before he passed away."
Kingo looked at the densely packed crowd below the stage, a hint of nostalgia in his tone.
"Now, I have finally filmed it. Directed and starred by myself, this is a story about family, inheritance, and heroes. I hope everyone can step into the cinema and feel this emotion."
Applause sounded from below the stage.
Reporters raised their cameras, and flashes lit up one after another.
Someone in the crowd lowered their voice in discussion.
"As expected of an acting family, he perfectly inherited his father's talent."
"Who's to say otherwise? It's said that several generations of his family have been in this business. Acting is truly carved into his bones."
"Now that he can film his posthumous work, it can be considered fulfilling the old man's wish."
These words reached Lu Chen's ears without missing a single word.
He slowly descended from high altitude.
The reporters who were still taking pictures suddenly stopped their movements, and the people below the stage raised their heads, looking past the press conference scene to see a young man wearing a black trench coat walking from the sky.
No ropes.
No equipment.
Nor any landing devices whatsoever.
Lu Chen landed slowly with his hands behind his back.
The scene went quiet for an instant.
The next second, gasps erupted forcefully.
"Good heavens!"
"How did he come down?"
"That's the superhero from yesterday's Battle of New York!"
The crowd quickly retreated backward, and security guards also rushed over, but no one dared to truly approach Lu Chen.
Kingo on stage had already recognized him.
After the Battle of New York, Lu Chen's photo appeared in intelligence agencies and news media of various countries.
For ordinary people, he was a mysteriously powerful person who rose suddenly. For the Eternal hidden on Earth like Kingo, this person was even more worthy of vigilance.
Because Lu Chen was too strong, it was even possible that he could threaten the development of civilization.
In that battle in New York, the abilities he displayed had already exceeded most people's understanding of superheroes.
Kingo held the microphone, the smile on his face slowly fading away.
"Is he coming for me?"
As soon as this thought appeared, Kingo denied it.
"Impossible."
"I have been hiding here for hundreds of years, and I have never exposed my identity as an Eternal."
"Why would Lu Chen come looking for me?"
"Could it just be a coincidence?"
Kingo glanced at the riotous crowd below the stage, and then looked at Lu Chen, who was getting closer and closer to him.
"I can't stay here."
"Everyone, I'm sorry, I am feeling a bit unwell."
He handed the microphone to the person next to him and turned to walk towards the backstage.
Kingo's steps were not fast, and the expression on his face did not change, but several thoughts had already flashed through his mind.
"No matter whether the other party came for me or not, I should leave this place exposed under the spotlight first."
As soon as he walked backstage, a hand rested on his shoulder.
Kingo's steps stopped.
A voice carrying a hint of mockery rang in his ear.
"Hello, big star."
Kingo did not turn his head.
"You and I hit it off at first sight, yet you want to leave. Why is that?"
Lu Chen's tone was relaxed, his palm resting on Kingo's shoulder. Just now in the sky, he had already locked onto Kingo's life aura.
Completely different from ordinary people.
The inside of the body contained powerful energy, the life state was stable, and the degree of cell activity far exceeded ordinary people.
And the system panel also verified this result.
[Copyable target detected]
[Optional ability: Immortality LV6]
[Optional ability: Super Physique LV6]
[Optional ability: Energy Blast LV6: Can continuously fire golden Universe energy blasts, with stronger power after charging.]
Immortality, Super Physique, and Energy Blast.
All three abilities were LV6.
Lu Chen's gaze fell on the last ability.
His own energy manipulation and Super Physique were both LV7.
But compared to physique, he was more interested in the Universe energy specially introduced by the system.
Kingo turned his head, his gaze falling on the hand Lu Chen had placed on his shoulder.
"What do you want to do?" His voice was low and alert.
His right hand was hidden at his side, and golden light had already gathered in his palm.
As long as Lu Chen made any abnormal moves, he would strike immediately.
"Don't be nervous."
Lu Chen let go of his hand and took two steps back.
"I just want to chat with you."
"There is nothing for us to chat about."
Kingo turned around, the golden energy blast in his hand having already condensed.
The energy light illuminated half of his face.
"Do you know my identity?"
Lu Chen did not answer.
His attention fell on the system panel, directly making a choice.
"Copy, Energy Blast LV6."
[Energy Blast LV6 copying has begun.]
[Current progress: Fifty percent.]
[Estimated completion time: 4.2 hours.]
[Before copying is complete, energy blasts with halved power can be used.]
Lu Chen looked at the prompt on the panel and raised his eyebrows slightly.
Four hours?
This is the copying speed of LV6 abilities after upgrading?
Before the upgrade, copying an LV6 ability took a week.
However, after just a touch this time, the copying progress jumped directly to 50 percent.
"System."
[Present.]
"I think you are pretty awesome."
[Thank you.]
"It's also good that there are no flashy special effects; low-profile, steady, consistent with my usual style of doing things."
[Thank you.]
"And letting the host explore new functions by himself shows that you have a lot of confidence in the host."
[Thank you.]
"Besides thank you, can you say anything else?"
The system did not answer.
"Truly aloof."
The moment the progress bar started to rise, a new energy appeared inside Lu Chen's body.
As soon as it appeared, it occupied a position inside the body, as if declaring its existence.
This is the unique Universe energy of the Eternal?
Lu Chen did not rush to activate it.
He could feel that the quality of this energy was very high, and it contained special operational rules internally.
As long as it was given a little time, it could quickly integrate into his own power system.
But the next moment, the Omni-Energy inside his body had already sensed it.
That energy belonging to LV7 lunged straight forward.
Relying on its advantages in quantity and level, the Omni-Energy grabbed the newcomer energy and refined it instantly.
Lu Chen could clearly feel that his Omni-Energy, after devouring this wispy Universe energy, became purer and more condensed.
Although the improvement was negligible, it was indeed growing stronger.
Good stuff.
Lu Chen praised inwardly.
The next second, Lu Chen extended his right index finger. On his fingertip, a wisp of golden light exactly the same as the one in Kingo's hand slowly lit up, like a tiny star.
Kingo stared dead at that beam of light, the energy blast in his right hand not being fired out.
He wouldn't mistake it.
This was the special energy that only the Eternal could use.
For hundreds of years, he had seen quite a few people with superpowers, and had also met Earth powerhouses capable of manipulating energy.
But no matter how those people's powers changed, this kind of energy fluctuation would not appear.
Only the Eternal.
Kingo stared at him and finally spoke.
"Are you from our clan?"
Chapter 194: You Have Successfully Piqued My Interest
"Are you one of our kind?"
Kingo stared at the golden light on Lu Chen's fingertips, a clear panic appearing in his voice for the first time.
Lu Chen glanced at him.
"Oh?"
He raised his hand, and the golden light on his fingertips brightened a bit more.
"I'm not like you guys with such single-dimensional abilities."
As soon as he finished speaking, the golden energy orb shot out instantly.
Boom!
The energy orb streaked through the narrow backstage corridor, the high temperature directly melting the walls and equipment along its path.
Kingo's eyelids twitched violently. The combat instincts honed from thousands of years of fighting Deviants forcibly took over his body at this moment. He had no time to think about why the opponent could use his ability; his right hand instinctively hurled the energy sphere he had been charging for a long time.
The two spheres collided in mid-air. Although he could only use half the power of the energy orb, propelled by the even more massive energy inside Lu Chen's body, even half the power was stronger than Kingo's.
The blinding golden light exploded, and the Impact blew away the entire backstage, sending the ruined walls and debris flying into the air as gravel and dust soared into the sky, obscuring their vision.
Kingo retreated under the cover of the explosion.
The power of Lu Chen's energy orb just now had confirmed one thing for him.
This person didn't come to chat.
More troublesomely, the energy the opponent used was similar to his own, yet it was more condensed and had stronger explosive power than his own attacks.
Could he be related to the Deviants?
He had to leave this place first and find his other teammates.
Before the dust had even settled, Kingo had already dashed several streets away, sprinting toward the outskirts of the city.
He glanced back and found Lu Chen following him unhurriedly, but the distance was not widening; instead, it was shrinking bit by bit.
Kingo grit his teeth, raised his hands, and flicked his fingers continuously.
Over a dozen golden energy orbs shot out simultaneously, trailing long streaks of light, blocking all paths in front of Lu Chen.
Lu Chen didn't stop his pace.
Facing the rapidly approaching energy orbs, he simply raised his right hand and casually waved it in front of him.
Smack! Smack! Smack!
The energy orbs were swatted away and dispersed one by one. Kingo caught this scene out of the corner of his eye while running, and his heart clenched violently.
How is this possible?
What kind of monster-level physical body is this?
Two names flashed through Kingo's mind.
Ikaris.
Gilgamesh.
In his knowledge, of the entire Eternal race, those who could withstand such energy bombardment with their pure physical bodies and remain completely unharmed were probably only those two.
No.
I can't die here.
He had to find his teammates; as long as the others arrived, there would still be a chance.
His desire to survive caused Kingo's speed to surge once again. He turned into a golden afterimage, closed his hands in front of him as golden light continuously gathered. Then, he abruptly pulled his hands apart to both sides, and a golden energy beam as thick as a bucket blasted out from between his palms.
Looking at the roaring golden beam, a hint of boredom flashed in Lu Chen's eyes.
"Firing light beams, are we?"
He pointed a single finger.
The next moment, a blazing white pillar of light erupted from Lu Chen's fingertip, crashing head-on into Kingo's attack.
Boom!
There was no stalemate.
There was no evenly matched struggle; the white pillar of light surged forward, crushing the golden beam like dry weeds.
Kingo's expression froze.
He wanted to dodge, but it was already too late.
The pillar of light struck his chest, sending him flying backward. His body rolled repeatedly along the ground before finally crashing into a wasteland.
Dust flew everywhere.
Kingo gasped heavily. His tailored suit had completely turned to ashes, and a large area of skin on his chest was severely burned. His proud Super Physique almost collapsed directly under this single strike.
The sound of unhurried footsteps echoed.
Stepping on the gravel of the wasteland, Lu Chen slowly walked up to Kingo, looking down at him.
Kingo barely propped up half of his body, the intense pain causing his facial muscles to twitch continuously. He looked at Lu Chen's face, his eyes filled with panic.
"Who on Earth are you?"
Kingo's voice carried an irrepressible dread.
"Are you related to the Deviants? Were you sent by them?"
For thousands of years, their only enemies had been the Deviants. Aside from those monsters, he couldn't think of anyone else on Earth who could possess such absurd power, and who would want to wipe out the Eternal race completely.
"You ask a lot of questions."
Lu Chen raised his finger.
Kingo's body tensed, and he gathered energy in his hands once more, but the light that had just coalesced quickly began to tremble. He was already injured, and his energy flow had been disrupted by the beam of light just now.
"Wait!"
He grit his teeth and said, "We can talk! Whatever you want to know, I can tell you!"
"I originally thought that among you folks who have lived for so long, there would be some emergency method to contact your teammates," Lu Chen squatted down and looked at Kingo. "Like sending a signal to call for backup when in mortal danger. I purposely held back to let you run for so long, but in the end, you did nothing but run blindly."
Kingo grit his teeth hard, his body trembling uncontrollably due to extreme fear and pain.
"It seems there really isn't one."
Lu Chen shook his head in disappointment. He had wanted to use Kingo to lure out the other Eternals, saving him the trouble of searching everywhere. Now it seemed these people not only hid deeply but didn't even have an emergency survival channel.
Light shone from Lu Chen's fingertip once again.
Kingo watched the light, the color rapidly draining from his face.
"No!"
The pillar of light blasted out.
Kingo's body was engulfed by the white light. His newly propped-up body collapsed again, his hands falling limply to the ground as he passed out completely.
Lu Chen pressed his palm against his shoulder.
Lu Chen reached out and pressed Kingo's shoulder once more.
"[Re-establishing contact.]"
"[Detected that the target of Copying is in an unresisting state.]"
"[New rule in effect: Copy speed doubled.]"
"[Current Copy progress: Fifty-three percent.]"
Lu Chen stared at the line of text, his eyes lighting up.
The original LV6 Copy speed was already much faster than before the upgrade, but he didn't expect it to double against an incapacitated target.
"Awesome, System."
"[Thank you.]"
He kept his hand pressed on Kingo's shoulder while his spiritual power expanded outward, covering the entirety of Mumbai.
The commotion at the press conference just now was too loud, involving not only ordinary people but also a large number of media reporters. Those people had seen him descend from the sky and had witnessed his conflict with Kingo. Since Kingo had no way of contacting his teammates, the other Eternals likely didn't know what had happened here yet.
To avoid alerting the enemy, it would be best to wipe the tracks clean.
Just as Lu Chen was preparing to perform a collective memory wipe on the entire area, the edge of his spiritual power suddenly captured a strange movement.
Someone was approaching.
An ordinary person, with a rapid heartbeat, in an extremely excited state.
Lu Chen stopped his actions and turned to look toward the other side of the wasteland.
A middle-aged man in a gray jacket was stumbling his way over. He held his hands high to show he wasn't carrying any weapons, shouting at the top of his lungs as he ran.
"Mr. Tianshu! Mr. Tianshu!"
Lu Chen stood in place, looking at the sweating man running toward him, a strange look flashing in his eyes.
Tianshu.
This codename was currently only circulating within S.H.I.E.L.D. and among the Avengers. An ordinary Mumbai citizen couldn't possibly know this name.
The middle-aged man ran to a spot several meters away from Lu Chen and stopped, panting heavily. He deliberately avoided the half-dead Kingo on the ground, warily scanning the empty wasteland around them.
After confirming there was no one else around, the man stood up straight and looked at Lu Chen, his expression becoming extremely solemn and fanatical.
Lowering his voice, he uttered a firm sentence.
"Hail HYDRA."
Chapter 195: Ancient One, Having You Is My Blessing
"Hail HYDRA."
The middle-aged man lowered his voice, speaking this classic slogan with a fanatical tone that bordered on a holy pilgrimage.
Lu Chen sized him up and down, then glanced at the smoking city district in the distance.
As expected of HYDRA.
Their combat power might not be much, but their infiltration capabilities were truly undeniable. He had only implanted his demands into that female PR Agent's mind yesterday, and today, while he was in Mumbai, they were already able to send someone straight to his door.
Seeing this level of efficiency would make Vought shed tears.
Very well, HYDRA. You have successfully caught this Lu's attention. This Lu has decided to show his gratitude by absorbing you.
Seeing that Lu Chen did not react, the middle-aged man seemed a bit nervous, but he braced himself and continued,
"Mr. Tianshu, you didn't leave any contact information, so we had no choice but to disturb you in this manner."
As he spoke, he pulled out a tablet-like device from his coat, holding it with both hands and presenting it respectfully.
"Regarding the request you made last night, we mobilized all our intelligence channels. After tireless global facial recognition matching, we have indeed found several individuals whose faces highly resemble the ones you provided."
"These are the results of our global facial recognition matching from last night. Because these individuals have used multiple identities and some records aren't even online, verification took a little time."
Lu Chen didn't step closer; he simply raised his hand.
The device broke free from the man's palm and flew directly into his hand.
The middle-aged man's eyelids twitched, and he immediately lowered his head, pretending he had seen nothing.
He knew his place, didn't ask questions, and didn't look around.
The quality of HYDRA's low-level operatives was indeed better than that of ordinary Agents. Leaving this group of people to someone like Pierce was somewhat of a waste.
Lu Chen tapped the screen.
At the very top was a gentle-looking middle-aged woman.
Ajak.
The data showed that she had settled down on a farm in South Dakota and rarely left.
Below her was Phastos.
This guy was living in Chicago, had married a man, and had a stable family relationship. His movements had already been tracked and locked down by HYDRA.
Further down was Sprite, a girl who looked to be only in her teens and was currently in London.
And living with her was one of Lu Chen's most interested targets, Sersi.
"Very good."
Lu Chen turned off the device. "Keep looking for the rest."
The middle-aged man nodded hastily.
"We are already expanding our search parameters, but there is too little identity information on these targets. Some of them haven't had any public activity for decades."
"That is your problem."
"Yes, sir."
Lu Chen tossed the device back.
The middle-aged man caught it in a flurry, almost dropping it.
"Go back and tell your superiors."
Lu Chen looked at him, his lips curling up slowly. "I am very satisfied with this gift. I will come to thank them in person."
The middle-aged man opened his mouth.
Visit in person?
This didn't sound like a promise; it sounded more like a threat.
Not daring to make any response on behalf of his superiors, he could only lower his head and say, "I will convey your exact words in full."
Lu Chen ignored him.
His majestic mental power instantly expanded, sweeping through the press conference venue and the surrounding blocks.
Those who had witnessed the battle, those who had recorded videos, and those uploading data onto the internet were all locked onto by him. Their memories were uniformly erased, and the photos and videos on their phones, cameras, and computers were cleared by their own hands under Mind Control.
Reporters who were frantically contacting media outlets just a second ago stared blankly at their empty photo galleries the next second.
"What am I doing here?"
"Is the press conference over?"
"Where did Mr. Kingo go?"
Chaos quickly spread, yet no one remembered Lu Chen anymore.
The middle-aged man stood where he was, clutching the device tightly, even softening his breathing.
He didn't know what had happened; he only saw the crowd in the distance suddenly fall into chaos. This kind of method, which completely transcended his understanding, made him all the more glad that he hadn't spoken out of turn.
Lu Chen glanced at him but did not erase his memory.
He kept it so the man could pass on the message.
The next moment, he grabbed Kingo's shoulder and soared into the sky.
Target: South Dakota.
The others could wait, but that Ajak had to be taken down first.
She was not only the nominal leader of the Eternals, but she also had a Celestial communication sphere embedded inside her body. Relying on that thing, she could establish an interstellar mental link to report the situation on Earth directly to Arishem the Judge.
Once she snitched, things would get troublesome.
Lu Chen wasn't afraid of ordinary Eternals.
But facing the Celestials head-on at this stage was clearly not a smart choice. An existence of Arishem the Judge's level could crush a Planet just by his size alone.
Moreover, Ajak could not die.
Once she died, the communication sphere inside her would detach on its own and select the next successor from among the other Eternals. When that happened, he wouldn't even know where the new leader was hiding, making it even harder to deal with.
Halfway through his flight, Lu Chen suddenly thought of a crucial question.
"Strange."
He had caused such a massive scene, which might even draw out existences of the Celestials' caliber, yet the Ancient One hadn't appeared to warn him even once from beginning to end.
This wasn't like her style as the "Guardian of Earth."
The only explanation was that the Ancient One had used the Time Stone to look into the future and knew that his action this time would not attract the attention of Arishem the Judge.
Doesn't that mean my trip is bound to succeed?
Very good.
Lu Chen felt completely reassured.
It was so comfortable to have a spoiler-fiend backing him up. Sometimes, the Ancient One not showing up was even more reassuring than her showing up in person.
Just then, a series of system notification tones rang in his mind.
[Copy Progress: 100%.]
[Ability solidified.]
[LV6 Energy Blast has been fused into Element Control LV7.]
The moment the prompt appeared, a pure and majestic Cosmic Energy emerged out of air inside Lu Chen's body,
but almost instantly, it was completely swallowed, refined, and fused by the even more overbearing Omni-Energy already inside his body.
Lu Chen could clearly feel that the energy inside him had become a bit more refined.
"The tool guy can get off work now."
Lu Chen looked down at the unconscious Kingo in his hand.
Killing him would be a bit of a waste; it would be better to put him to some use.
On the surface, Kingo was a Bollywood star with public movements, so other Eternals might actively come looking for him. It would be a waste to throw away such a ready-made bait.
Invading Kingo's mind with mental power, he erased all memories of their contact and battle. Having done this, Lu Chen left an imprint deep within his psyche.
As long as another Eternal approached, he would be able to sense it immediately.
After finishing all this, he casually threw Kingo down from an altitude of ten thousand meters.
He wouldn't die from the fall anyway.
Lu Chen accelerated once more.
South Dakota.
A secluded farm far from civilization.
The afterglow of the setting sun spilled over the vast pasture, gilding the stables and barns in a warm golden hue.
Ajak finished her day's work and was preparing to return to her cottage to rest.
But just as she stepped out of the stable, her footsteps halted.
The surroundings... seemed to have become too quiet.
The chirping of insects, the rustle of the wind blowing through the grass, the distant cries of livestock... all sounds seemed to vanish entirely in this instant.
The entire World fell into a bizarre, dead silence.
A strong sense of unease rose in Ajak's heart.
She looked around warily.
The farm was still the same farm, the setting sun was still the same setting sun, and everything looked no different.
Perhaps she was being too sensitive?
Just as Ajak turned back around, a sudden chill pressed against her neck.
"Who's there?"
She only had time to utter a single word.
Mental energy instantly surged into her brain. All the scenery before her eyes rapidly went black, and she completely lost consciousness.
Lu Chen revealed his figure from behind her, reaching out to support her collapsing body.
"Got you."
Chapter 196: What Are You Going To Do To Her
"Caught you."
Lu Chen supported Ajak, and his palm pressed against her neck.
The system prompt popped up accordingly.
[Copyable target detected.]
[Super Physique LV5.]
[Energy Healing LV6: Consume Universe energy to repair others' physical injuries and mental traumas.]
With two abilities placed before him, the choice was not difficult.
Super Physique LV5 was of limited use to Lu Chen right now, but Energy Healing could fill his shortcomings.
Furthermore, Ajak's healing could even repair mental traumas.
"Select [Energy Healing LV6]."
[Energy Healing LV6 has been selected.]
[The Copy target is detected to be in an unresisting conscious state, and the Copy speed is doubled.]
[Copy progress: 50.01%.]
[Estimated completion time: Two hours.]
Lu Chen glanced over the prompt, and his spiritual power continued to suppress Ajak's consciousness.
Two hours wasn't long, but the problem was that this place wasn't safe enough.
Ajak had a communication orb of the Celestials hidden inside her body. She couldn't be killed, nor could she be released. If he wanted long-term control, it would be best to completely remove her from the view of the Eternal.
Lu Chen raised his hand to press on her forehead, directly searching her recent memories.
Farm life.
Tending to livestock.
Eating alone.
Occasionally paying attention to the news.
In recent months, Ajak had not actively contacted other Eternal.
Nor was there a continuous connection between her and Arishem the Judge. Only by actively activating the orb inside her body would her consciousness cross the sea of stars and reach the location of the Celestials.
This saved quite a lot of trouble.
Lu Chen sealed her cognition regarding the farm and implanted a simplest command into her.
Sleep.
Unless he woke her up, she would remain trapped in a dreamless coma.
"You are quite a failure as a leader."
Lu Chen picked her up and rushed into the high altitude.
"Missing for a few years, probably nobody would even notice."
The sound barrier cloud spread out behind him.
Two hours later, the buildings of New York already appeared at the end of his vision.
Lu Chen did not bring Ajak back to the hotel.
The hotel was crowded and full of eyes, and S.H.I.E.L.D. and HYDRA might also be watching. Not to mention the New York Sanctum; Ancient One turning a blind eye to his actions did not mean she allowed him to shove the leader of the Eternal right under the mages' noses.
After screening half the city, he locked onto a gang base in Hell's Kitchen.
There was no place more chaotic and more suitable for hiding dirt and accepting filth than this.
Outside the base, two guards were leaning against the iron gate smoking.
Just as one of them reached for his waist, his movement froze halfway.
Lu Chen carried Ajak and descended from the sky, his soles landing on the concrete pavement.
"Open the door."
The two guards simultaneously put out their cigarette butts and pulled open the iron gate.
"Welcome back, Boss."
Mind Control had only given an order to open the door, yet these two actually supplemented their own identities.
The human brain is sometimes very good at self-perfection.
Firearms and a few packages of unsealed White powder were placed in the hall. Over a dozen gang members gathered around the table.
The bald man at the head pulled out a pistol.
"Who are you?"
Lu Chen's spiritual power swept across the hall, and the expressions of the dozen or so people fell into a daze simultaneously.
"Forget the woman you saw today."
"Yes."
"Guard this place, no one is allowed to enter the Underground Room."
"Yes."
The responses were neat and uniform.
Lu Chen sent Ajak into the underground secret room, pulled over a chair, and placed her on it.
[Copy progress: 99.98%.]
[Copy progress: 100%.]
[Ability has solidified.]
[Energy Healing LV6 has integrated into LV7 Element Manipulation, and the energy within the body has gained the characteristic of healing others.]
Lu Chen walked out of the secret room, golden Universe energy oozing from his palm, fine rays of light wandering along his five fingers.
Lu Chen flicked his fingers.
The light fell on the shoulder of the bald gang leader.
The old injuries left by the gunfight were quickly repaired, and the shrapnel stuck in the bone joints was squeezed out by flesh and blood, falling onto the floor with a clatter.
The bald man touched his shoulder.
The arm that originally couldn't be raised now had no obstacles in its movement.
The control in his brain was still there, but his bodily instincts still made him kneel down.
"Thank you, Boss."
Lu Chen ignored him and withdrew the energy from his palm.
The effect was even better than estimated.
The tool man's durability received an epic-level enhancement.
After letting everyone out, Lu Chen spread his five fingers outward.
The entire building began to vibrate.
The steel bars in the walls were extracted by the magnetic field, and the water pipes, iron doors, firearm parts, and metal components buried underground were all disassembled and reassembled.
Large patches of metal clung to the outer wall of the secret room, compacted layer after layer.
The gang members stood on the outer perimeter of the building, and no one dared to approach.
Lu Chen pressed his five fingers downward.
The metal cube crushed through the soil and continued to sink underground until it fell to a depth of one hundred meters.
The soil refilled the gaps.
Only an empty Underground Room shell was left on the ground.
Unless Ajak woke up and transformed the entire metal cube into other substances, as a healer, she wouldn't even be able to find a point of leverage.
Moreover, the spiritual command left by Lu Chen was enough to make her sleep for a very long time.
"Guard this building well."
"Understood."
The bald man bent over, and only until Lu Chen rose into the air did he dare to stand straight again.
Lu Chen flew towards the Atlantic Ocean, but felt somewhat helpless in his heart.
The former King of Wakanda had the spiritual imprint of the Panther Goddess Bast hanging on him.
The current Ajak could also establish spiritual communication with the Celestials.
People with such backgrounds were more troublesome to capture one after another, not to mention complete Mind Control.
Kingo was still more reassuring.
After Copying the ability, throwing him down from high altitude meant finishing work.
When arriving in London, the city had already entered night.
The information provided by HYDRA was quite detailed, even making a table of the time Sersi entered the museum every day.
Lu Chen released his spiritual power and quickly locked onto the target.
Inside the London Natural History Museum, Sersi had just finished work and was holding a few documents while crossing the side hall.
Ordinary attire, ordinary pace.
If one ignored the Universe energy within her body that far exceeded humans, no one would connect her with the Eternal who had survived for thousands of years.
Sersi's ability was "Material Transformation".
She could freely carry out material transformation and structural reshaping at the molecular level.
Stones turned into petals, the ground turned into quicksand, and earthen walls turned into steel plates.
This ability seemed to have great restrictions and must be in contact to activate, but its upper limit was ridiculously high.
He must take her down directly with thunderous momentum before she could react!
However, just at the moment he was about to act, a strong sense of crisis suddenly came from the rear side.
Someone was approaching at an extremely high speed!
Lu Chen turned around abruptly, not even having time to see the newcomer's appearance. Purely out of combat instinct, he mobilized all his body's strength and punched forward!
The opponent did not dodge and similarly delivered a punch.
The two fists collided above London.
Impact swept across the street, shattering the glass along the street in patches. Cars parked along the road sounded their alarms one after another, and a few passersby were knocked over by the air wave, hugging street lamps to barely steady their bodies.
The museum on-duty security guard lay by the window, capturing only two figures suspended in the air.
The next second, the entire window shattered into fine slag in front of him.
In mid-air, Lu Chen's figure was blasted flying backwards for dozens of meters by this immense force before he barely stabilized his stance.
After coming to this World, this was the first time someone had repelled him with head-on strength.
He shook his right hand and looked up.
The man opposite was wearing casual clothes, with a tall stature, staring at him with an extremely vigilant and angry gaze.
That man slowly retracted his fist, golden Universe energy circulating endlessly on the surface of his body.
He clearly didn't expect Lu Chen's strength to be so terrifying, but what he cared more about was another matter.
"What are you going to do to Sersi?"
Chapter 197: Black-Robed Superman vs. Eternal Superman
"What are you going to do to Sersi?"
Ikaris hovered in mid-air, golden Universe energy flowing across his body.
He stared fixedly at Lu Chen, his eyes full of vigilance.
Lu Chen shook his numb right hand, recognizing the newcomer.
The strongest combatant of the Eternal.
Ikaris.
Strength, speed, Flight, and Heat Vision—several of his abilities were at the top tier of the Eternal.
During the final battle, he alone could suppress the rest of the Eternal joining forces.
What was even more troublesome was that Sersi was his reverse scale.
The two had lived together for thousands of years, and after becoming husband and wife, they accompanied each other for over a thousand years more.
Later, when Ikaris learned the truth of the Emergence, he concluded that the mission of the Celestials was higher than Earth, and also higher than their relationship.
He knew that Sersi deeply loved humanity.
As long as she learned that the birth of the God required destroying Earth, she would inevitably stand on the opposite side of Ikaris.
Ikaris chose to hide everything and voluntarily left her, but he had never truly let go.
But he never expected that this man had disappeared for many years and was still secretly watching Sersi.
"I'll ask again."
The golden light in Ikaris's eyes became increasingly dazzling.
"Who are you, and what do you want to do to Sersi?"
Lu Chen swept his gaze across the museum below.
Sersi had already reached the broken window, looking up at the two of them.
She recognized Ikaris, and her expression changed from shock to vigilance.
Fine.
Sersi couldn't run away; he would test Ikaris's caliber first.
If even the strongest of the Eternal could be taken down head-on, the remaining few wouldn't be much of a threat.
Conversely, if Ikaris was stronger than estimated, Lu Chen could still evacuate using spatial abilities.
"There's nothing to talk about."
Lu Chen raised his eyes to meet that patch of golden light.
"Let's settle this with our strength."
As his voice fell, he soared straight up into the high altitude.
The sonic boom shattered the broken glass above the museum, and his figure crossed the clouds in the blink of an eye.
Ikaris did not pursue immediately.
He lowered his eyes to stare at Sersi below, confirming that she was uninjured, before looking up.
Breaking through the clouds, he pursued Lu Chen.
Sersi rushed to the window, pressing her palms against the shattered wall.
The bricks and stones surged, transforming into hard metal to support the collapsing exterior wall.
"Ikaris!"
Her shouts could not keep up with the speed of the two.
The museum security guard hugged the display case, his ears still buzzing.
He only saw two figures drill into the high altitude, and the entire cloud layer subsequently split from the middle.
Those superheroes on television could at least be captured by cameras.
These two people only left White marks that shattered the clouds.
Inside the stratosphere, Lu Chen stopped his movement.
The city beneath his feet shrank into a patch of grayish-white buildings.
Ikaris passed through the last layer of thin clouds, giving Lu Chen no chance to speak at all, and his speed climbed once again.
The air didn't have time to push aside to the sides before being compressed into a scorching air barrier in front of him.
He folded back down from an extremely high altitude, his body drawing a straight fire meteor in the atmosphere.
Supersonic dive, the Universe energy accumulated over a millennium unreservedly tensed every inch of his muscles.
This punch went straight for Lu Chen's face.
Lu Chen didn't dodge, nor did he want to dodge at all.
He synchronized his speed, meeting the oppressive force falling from above, the muscles on his right arm bulging chunk by chunk, and he punched upward with all his might.
Their fists collided squarely in the stratosphere.
Two thunderclaps pierced through the high altitude one after another.
The air beneath their feet collapsed inward, and White shockwaves spread around the two for several kilometers.
The surviving clouds were pushed into a ring shape, revealing a huge circular cavity above London.
Lu Chen only felt a giant force pour into his forearm along the fist's edge.
He lost his balance entirely, flying backward downwards like a cannonball for hundreds of meters before barely stabilizing his figure and shedding the remaining force.
His arms were sore and swollen, and his skin was flushed red.
The opponent's strength solidly surpassed his by half a head.
But that was about it.
No lacerations, no fractures.
His physical body could completely withstand this level of injury, coupled with Super Healing automatically circulating inside his body, that slight soreness vanished completely in half a second.
Ikaris also retreated dozens of meters.
He lowered his head to glance at his own fist.
The previous sensation was neither an energy shield nor a special battle armor.
The opponent had caught it with his physical body, but no matter who he was, if he wanted to lay a hand on Sersi, he had to get past him first.
Before Lu Chen could adjust his breathing, Ikaris had already approached once again.
This time, he changed his tactics, taking advantage of the residual momentum of the dive to cut directly into close combat range.
Fists, elbows, and knees smashed down in succession, every attack cutting off Lu Chen before he could change direction.
A shoulder charge followed by a knee strike, and then his right fist smashed toward the temple from a blind spot in vision.
Lu Chen raised his arm to block the fist, but his chest took a knee strike.
Ikaris had completely turned into a precision killing machine, every joint being a lethal weapon.
Every strike delivered carried a terrifying kinetic energy capable of shattering mountains.
Lu Chen could only raise his attention to the highest level, his arms erecting afterimages in front of him.
Bang!
He blocked the elbow strike heading for his temple.
Bang!
He sidestepped to avoid the knee strike heading for his chest, taking advantage of the momentum to push and unload half of the opponent's force.
The two grappled and slaughtered each other in the air, fighting all the way from the stratosphere to low altitude.
The high-speed aerial combat tore apart the clouds along the way, and the aftermath of their collisions continuously shattered the surrounding airflow barriers.
In an occasional out-of-control collision, the two tumbled down toward the ground, their bodies fiercely brushing past an abandoned building.
Reinforced concrete was pulverized like tofu, and the glass curtain wall exploded into a torrential downpour of shards.
A reporter raised their mobile phone, capturing only Lu Chen's back hanging in front of the building's breach.
But Lu Chen was always half a beat slower.
He could block it, and his body could withstand it, but Ikaris never competed with him on a single ability.
Energy, physical body, and experience were kneaded by the opponent into a complete set of lethal methods.
This was a top-tier Eternal who had lived for thousands of years.
Lu Chen deflected his body by taking advantage of a punch clash, grabbed Ikaris's wrist, and drove his knee toward the opponent's abdomen.
Ikaris lifted his leg to block, slamming his forehead directly forward.
Bang!
Lu Chen's nasal bridge broke, but before the blood could surge out, his bones realigned under Super Healing.
Ikaris caught this detail.
The time it took for the injuries to recover was less than half a second.
He had seen Ajak heal the wounded, but he had never seen this kind of fully automatic physical recovery.
If he couldn't destroy the opponent in a single strike, all attacks were just a waste of effort.
He pushed Lu Chen away and retreated a thousand meters back.
The moment they distanced themselves, the two used their abilities simultaneously.
Ikaris's eyes erupted with supernova-like blinding golden light.
Lu Chen's eyes surged with a pitch-black abyss that annihilated everything.
Two high-heat beams collided with a roar!
The center point where the beams collided instantly exploded into an extremely dazzling high-temperature plasma vortex.
The terrifying heatwave radiated outward in a ring.
The surface began to melt.
The asphalt road instantly vaporized, rising with pungent black smoke.
Ikaris hovered in place, the energy in his eyes continuously strengthening.
The golden beam with a destructive momentum forcefully suppressed Lu Chen's ray back.
Lu Chen decisively closed his eyes, cutting off the output of Heat Vision, and rapidly retreated in mid-air, dodging to the side.
The golden beam brushed past his shoulder, directly cutting the distant sky in half.
Looking at Ikaris who was attacking again, Lu Chen had roughly judged his strength level.
In a pure physical clash, he was steadily suppressed by the opponent's experience and explosive power.
A pure Heat Vision beam clash wasn't a match either, but if it was just like this, he hadn't used his full strength yet.
The probing was already over, and the second round had just begun.