After hearing Jane's story, Jean and Diana were both astonished. To turn a magic weapon filled with death and resentment into a luminous artifact in such a short time? This was utterly unprecedented, like transmuting stone into gold!
"Incredible..." Diana couldn't help but marvel, first glancing at Lucci with a strange look—mutely thinking, "What a monster!"—then focusing on Jane, her eyes burning with fighting spirit.
"Now you have both weapon and power. Don't you want to know your own strength? Want to try sparring?"
"Absolutely!" Jane replied with newfound confidence, agreeing without hesitation. Thus, the two crossed to the training field, ready to compete.
After they left, only Lucci and Jean remained on the hillside. Jean, obviously jealous, said, "Hmph! If I'd known, I wouldn't have given her a chance to be alone with you! You just hand out artifacts as soon as someone asks. And what about me? After all this time, you haven't given me anything!"
Seeing Jean's adorable, jealous face, Lucci couldn't help but laugh. With a thought, the power of the "Reality Stone" instantly gathered in his palm—countless threads of law intertwining, condensing from the air.
Unlike the starforging method, there was no overwhelming force—it was the most fundamental creation, quietly moistening things and altering "reality" at the conceptual level. In just a few seconds, a peerlessly exquisite and clever bracelet slowly took shape in his palm.
The bracelet seemed woven from the purest starlight, dotted with tiny crystalline energy gems like diamonds. At its center was a delicate red phoenix totem, like a work of art.
"What's this?" Jean asked with interest.
"It's made especially for you," Lucci smiled, placing the bracelet on Jean's fair wrist. "Try mobilizing the power of the phoenix."
Jean closed her eyes, skeptical. The next moment, she abruptly opened them, her turquoise pupils full of amazement! When she tried to mobilize her inner Phoenix power, the force flowing through the bracelet condensed to an extreme degree, multiplying her power by more than ten times! This bracelet actually enhanced her control over the Phoenix Force! This was the most suitable artifact for her!
"Wow! It's so beautiful! I love it!" Jean exclaimed, unable to let go, raising her wrist to gaze at it repeatedly in the sunlight, her smile brighter than the sun. The earlier incident was already forgotten.
Not far away, Diana stood heroically before Jane, holding Hephaestus's sword and her divine power shield. Her eyes held a hint of observation and curiosity. As the Amazon's mightiest warrior, she knew true strength was not gained overnight. Jane might have powerful energy fluctuations now, but her combat technique, reaction speed, and power control should still be at the human level. Thus, Diana figured she could easily "defeat" Jane with at most a few moves, understanding that strength and fighting ability were not the same.
"Ready, Jane?" Diana said with a smile.
"Let's go!" Jane took a deep breath, gripped the platinum holy sword in both hands, and assumed a defensive stance unlike any before.
Diana said no more. Moving like an arrow loosed from a bow, she closed the distance in an instant. Hephaestus's sword in hand, she drew a sharp arc, slashing at Jane's sword—not at full power, just to test Jane's reaction.
But something unexpected happened! Faced with this lightning-fast strike, Jane's mind barely had time to react, yet the platinum holy sword in her hands suddenly burst with brilliant golden light, automatically meeting Diana's attack!
Clang—
A crisp, exhilarating sound like a symphony of metal and stone exploded on the training field! Diana felt a massive, limitless, star-like weight from Jane's blade! Her sword, strong enough to split mountains, was actually... blocked!
Even more astonishing, though the force was immense, it wasn't violent; instead, the sword absorbed all the power and even rebounded it with a shock!
Diana was stunned by the impact, her wrist numbing, forcing her to take half a step back!
"How... how is this possible?" For the first time, Diana's beautiful eyes showed true shock! She stabilized herself, glancing at Jane, who looked just as bewildered by what had happened. The shock in Diana's heart was unparalleled! Although she had only used about 70% of her sword's power, a newbie who had just gained strength should never have been able to block it!
Simply put... no, it was the sacred blade in Jane's hand that had blocked it, and easily at that!
This was just a weapon Lucci had casually transformed and given out—could it really let an ordinary human wield such terrifying strength?
Diana couldn't believe it. Her eyes hardened, her divine power surging as she prepared another attack—faster and stronger!
Sword-light flashed wildly, enveloping Jane from all directions like a fierce storm. Yet, no matter how fast or skillfully Diana attacked, the platinum holy sword in Jane's hands would, at the critical moment, unleash exquisite force, transforming into a golden curtain of light that flawlessly blocked every strike!
As the battle continued, Jane gradually regained her composure from the initial panic. She tried to stop being passive, swinging the holy sword and channeling the vast star power within her, beginning to take the initiative! Although her moves were still clumsy and rough, each swing exuded an unparalleled, majestic divine power!
For a while, she fought Diana, who had never lost a fight, to a standstill!
The training field was already surrounded by mutants drawn by the commotion. Hulk stopped clashing with Logan, staring wide-eyed at the two dazzlingly battling women. How had Jane, once just a human, suddenly become so formidable? Wolverine, Storm, Cyclops, and all the X-Men were even more shocked!
Everyone knew Diana's strength—she was a demigod! Yet this scientist, always thought of as someone to be protected, now relied solely on a weapon to withstand Diana's attacks? Unbelievable!
Their gazes unconsciously shifted to the distant hillside, where that godlike man watched calmly, a faint smile on his face. As expected of Prince Lucci—a casual gift enables a mortal to ascend to the heavens in one step, standing shoulder to shoulder with demigods!
On the hillside, Lucci watched the fight, nodding lightly in satisfaction. This "new Cosmic glaive," fused with star power, was not bad. Not only could it independently defend its wielder, but it also channeled the user's energy, allowing even a beginner to rapidly unleash formidable combat power. For Jane right now, it was perfect.
But just then, Lucci's calm expression shifted. He looked up, his deep eyes piercing the atmosphere, gazing into deep space. The MagicNet's malicious detection had just activated! A powerful being with extremely high energy and overflowing with malice and destructive intent had landed on Earth! What's more, this malice seemed directed at him!
Before Lucci could probe further through the MagicNet, an anxious voice sounded in his mind.
"Prince Lucci! Beware!"
"Hela... she's coming for you!" It was Heimdall's voice.
Lucci's eyes flashed with surprise. Hela? The so-called "elder sister" sealed by Odin for thousands of years—had she truly broken free?
"Heimdall?" Lucci frowned slightly.
"Yes, Prince Lucci, it's me!"
"What happened?"
"It's like this, Prince Lucci!" Heimdall spoke with pain in his voice. "Just now, a terrifying aura of death burst out from the palace! Then... a huge cloud of black smoke erupted, condensing into a woman of immense, terrifying power! She called herself Hela, Odin's eldest daughter! She also declared... she is the true Crown Princess of Asgard!"
Lucci caught the pain in Heimdall's voice and said quietly, "Are you hurt?"
Heimdall gave a bitter smile. "Just a scratch, nothing serious! She just casually swatted me away, that's all." "After learning that you are the current Crown Prince, she headed straight for Midgard through the Bifrost!"
Hearing this, Lucci's frown deepened. "No. Hela was sealed by Father's divine power. Unless his strength weakened, she shouldn't have been able to escape. Did something happen in Asgard?"
Heimdall hesitated, unsure whether to mention Odin's departure. But from his tone, Lucci immediately guessed Odin was involved, his voice instantly turning cold.
"Heimdall, you'd better tell me everything right now. Otherwise, I'll return to Asgard immediately!"
Heimdall sighed helplessly and told Lucci the truth. "All-Father... went to a duel."
"A duel? With whom?"
"Thanos." Heimdall quickly explained that Thanos had challenged Odin, and Odin, to avoid distracting Lucci, had gone alone to a wild planet as promised, also to prove his sword was still sharp.
After hearing Heimdall's account, Lucci's heart suddenly sank! His mind raced, instantly connecting all the dots—Thanos! Odin! Hela!
Corvus Glaive had just died by his own hand, and Thanos turned to challenge Odin? Right after Odin left Asgard, Hela broke her seal? Was this really a coincidence?
Thanos was arrogant but never reckless. He always acted with a plan. It was impossible for him to challenge Odin immediately after losing a general for no reason! What if... this challenge wasn't about winning or losing at all? Instead... a ruse to lure the tiger from the mountain!
The moment Odin left, the seal on Asgard weakened, losing the direct suppression of his divine power and giving some people an opportunity! And the first target of the freed Hela was the "usurping" Crown Prince—her brother!
What a scheme! Thanos was using Hela to weaken Lucci, hoping to profit from the resulting civil war!
Having grasped it all, Lucci's eyes flashed coldly. "Thanos..." he murmured, already sentencing the cosmic "purple potato" to death in his heart. After dealing with Hela, he'd have to return to Asgard as soon as possible—not just for his father's safety, but also to make this self-proclaimed genius pay dearly for his cleverness!
"Lucci, what's wrong?" Jean, sensing something off, looked at Lucci worriedly. She felt the aura around him, once cold and indifferent, suddenly turn sharp and chilling, like a divine sword about to be unsheathed. Lucci snapped out of it, meeting Jean's concerned gaze, the killing intent in his eyes slowly receding as he smiled gently.
"It's nothing," he said, touching Jean's hair. "It's just... my so-called 'elder sister'—whom I've never met—might drop by soon."
"Sister?" Jean was stunned, then tense. Sister? Lucci's sister? Wasn't that the Princess of Asgard?
"Eh? Then... do we need to prepare a gift? What does she like?" Jean's confusion was adorable, as if meeting a future sister-in-law. Lucci couldn't help but laugh.
"No need for a gift," he said softly. "Because... she's coming to kill me!"
The instant he said that, the tension and panic on Jean's face vanished, replaced by an icy, stabbing chill! A golden phoenix flashed in her eyes.
"What? Here to kill you? Then I'll kill her first!" In Jean's heart, anyone who threatened Lucci—no matter who—would be erased from the universe!
Just then, two figures approached in a rush—it was Professor Charles and Magneto.
"Prince Lucci!" Professor Charles sat in his hovering wheelchair, his expression solemn. "Just now, while searching for new mutants with the pseudo-Gaia terminal, I detected an extremely powerful life signal, full of destructive intent and malice, suddenly appearing on Earth! What's more, after arriving, this being made straight for... our school! She's closing in at great speed!"
Lucci saw their nervousness and nodded calmly. "I know. She's coming for me."
Hearing that, Charles and Magneto's expressions changed dramatically! The two exchanged glances, seeing the same determination in each other's eyes. Without hesitation, they both bowed to Lucci.
"Prince Lucci, rest assured!" Charles said, his voice calm and powerful. "We may not know who the enemy is, but we do know you are the master and protector of the mutant race!"
Magneto added more bluntly, "Anyone who becomes your enemy is the enemy of all mutants! Every mutant is ready... to fight for you!"