"Cuz, let me give you a lift."
Five magic pendants were embedded in the bracer on Gwendolyn's right arm.
One of them, the Charm of Levitation, quietly lit up.
Gwendolyn floated into the air, gently took Lucian's hand, and lifted him off the ground.
The two of them flew toward the Ben10000 headquarters.
...
After everyone left, the Galactic Enforcers strode toward the battered Dr. Animo.
Dr. Animo kept his head lowered, bound inside the gene chamber, and let out a self-mocking laugh. "Looks like I'm out of options..."
"Dr. Animo, there's no escape for you now." Ultimo stepped forward, ready to arrest him.
Suddenly, a wave of gray toxic wind burst from the vent in the white-haired gorilla's chest.
In an instant, the trio collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
"Heh. How laughable."
Dr. Animo ripped off his restraints, stood back up, and stretched lazily.
Then he planted one foot on Ultimo and looked down at him. "The toxic mist I painstakingly developed. Not even the dead can avoid it! Hahahaha!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Dr. Animo swept his gaze around the room, his eyes lighting up at once.
"This place contains the genetic material of every life-form in the entire galaxy. For a genius like Dr. Animo, this is paradise!"
The white-haired gorilla raised both arms and let out a deafening roar.
"But the one I'm most interested in... is that guy."
Dr. Animo turned his head toward a massive gene chamber not far away.
Boom!
He smashed it open with one punch, sending liquid splashing everywhere.
Soon, the thick genetic slime drained away, revealing what was inside.
Several massive green severed limbs lay quietly in the chamber, each one enormous, like the remains of some giant beast.
Dr. Animo pulled out a device from behind his back, aimed it at the remains, and fired a crimson beam.
Whoosh.
Bathed in the red light, the remains stirred as if they had come back to life, rapidly drawing together and fusing into one body.
A little over ten seconds later, they had formed a terrifying monster.
It had a massive octopus-like head, blood-red eyes, and an incredibly powerful build that stood at least five meters tall. Its left arm was grotesquely thick, like that of a giant crab, giving it an asymmetrical body packed with explosive muscle.
Dr. Animo chuckled. "What a pleasure to see you, Mr. Vilgax. You're back to support me again."
"The Tennysons..." Vilgax's eyes overflowed with terrifying killing intent.
Dr. Animo ignored him and walked over to another gene chamber.
He smashed the glass enclosure with a single punch.
Inside the shattered chamber, several purple specks of light flickered faintly, almost as if they were breathing.
The moment Dr. Animo saw them, his expression turned nearly frenzied. "Oh, my God. You really are impossible to kill. Even with only a tiny bit of DNA left, you can still survive."
"Come on, let me bring you back to life. Then the two of us can deal with Ben Tennyson together! Hahahaha!"
Dr. Animo repeated the process and activated the gene device, letting the red light scan the purple specks.
Taking advantage of the moment, he slowly strolled toward the other gene chambers.
"A To'kustar, hehe... and a Petrosapien too. What an unexpected harvest..."
Dr. Animo grinned, exposing his disgusting yellow teeth.
...
On the way there, XLR8 carried Ben and Gwen as he raced through the traffic, weaving between cars with ease.
"Has Dr. Animo really been causing trouble this whole time?" Ben asked.
"He broke out of prison a few years ago. I wasn't sure whether he'd come back, but... he shouldn't be causing any more trouble now," XLR8 replied.
At the mention of the Null Void, Gwen seemed to remember something, and a terrifying figure flashed through her mind.
"What about Vilgax?" Gwen asked quietly.
If Dr. Animo was around in the future, then Vilgax had to be around too. Maybe even stronger than before.
XLR8 grinned. "Last time I saw him, I cut him into pieces. Got it?"
Ben was stunned. Was his future self really that strong? He could even tear Vilgax apart?
A moment later, the group arrived at Ben10000 Headquarters.
Ben10000 Headquarters was located on Mount Rushmore.
It stood with the towering presidential sculpture at its back.
At the foot of the mountain stood a ring-shaped structure made entirely of steel. Green light glowed from within, and it rose at least a hundred meters high, making for an awe-inspiring sight.
A huge central pillar connected the ring-shaped structure to the ground, supporting the entire building.
"Are we taking the elevator up?" Gwen asked with an awkward laugh.
"No. Too much trouble." As XLR8 spoke, he transformed into Stinkfly.
Then he grabbed the two of them and flew straight to the control room.
Ben looked around at all the futuristic technology, his blood pumping with excitement. "Awesome! This is my headquarters? It's insanely cool! I'm definitely gonna come hang out here all the time!"
"Wrong. I patrol all over the world, so I don't need to come here very often." XLR8 ran to the control console and started pressing buttons at high speed, apparently operating something.
"'So I don't need to'?" Ben blinked. "I actually talk like that in the future? Have I really become that boring? That's way too lame!"
"You'll understand soon enough. Being me isn't fun." XLR8's tone turned stern.
He pointed at the floor beneath them. "Stay here and wait for Gwendolyn to come back. Don't touch anything."
After giving those instructions, XLR8 went back to work and rushed over to another control panel, frantically pressing more buttons.
But Ben had never been the type to sit still.
"Cool! That's Tetrax Shard's hoverboard!" Ben caught sight of the board mounted on the nearby wall.
It was the first piece of alien technology Tetrax Shard had ever given him, so it meant a lot.
When Gwen saw Ben running toward it, she immediately tried to stop him. "Hey, didn't he just say not to touch anything?"
"Why should I listen to myself? You didn't listen either." Ben waved her off, unfolded the hoverboard, and stepped onto it.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Ben zipped through the control room in style, looking every bit like a hoverboard prince.
Not only that, he even swooped right up in front of Gwen and scared the daylights out of her.
"Get down from there right now!" XLR8 snapped.
"Oh, come on. I just scared Gwen, and you didn't even crack a smile. You're even worse than I thought!" Ben stared at XLR8 in disbelief.
"Get down. Now."
But Ben was never the kind of person who listened so easily. He had rebellion in his bones. Instead, he started showing off.
Standing on the hoverboard, he twisted and spun at high speed, pulling off one difficult trick after another until XLR8 was grinding his teeth in frustration.
"Get down right now!"
"Hahaha, let's race!" Ben shot right up in front of him.
XLR8 yanked the hoverboard away. "No. Those days are over!"
Ben hit the floor hard on his backside, instantly getting mad too. "If I turn into someone like you, I'd rather not be a hero at all. I'd become a boring idiot!"
Just then, Gwendolyn arrived with Lucian...