Washington D.C.
Nick Fury sat in his car. Suddenly, several motorcycles surrounded him. Before he could react, numerous gunmen opened fire.
Fury watched the assailants with cold indifference. His vehicle's armor rating exceeded even the President's beast.
"Finally making your move?"
"I've been guarding against you for too long."
Fury calmly pulled out his phone. "Hawkeye, Natasha, Cap—execute!"
He was never one to sit and wait for death.
But this time, with Project Insight progressing to this stage, he had sensed something wrong. Yet Fury hadn't terminated the project. In his view, this was the perfect moment to purge all Hydra personnel from within SHIELD.
After Vincent's repeated warnings, Fury had initiated a deeper plan. Hydra's existence was the greatest cancer destroying SHIELD.
These two rivals. Since World War II, Hydra had been SHIELD's nemesis. The very purpose of SHIELD's founding was to counter Hydra. And Hydra had once come infinitely close to their ideological victory, only for SHIELD to ruin their plans.
They were symbiotic enemies.
The moment Hydra moved against him, Fury knew a secret war had begun. The victor would truly control SHIELD.
"Sir, copy that."
"Sir, you look quite ragged right now," Natasha teased over the comms.
Captain America's shield slammed into gunmen, killing several instantly. Hawkeye's arrows flew relentlessly. Soon, this wave of attackers was cleared. These agents posed no threat to Nick Fury.
"Sir, danger neutralized. What's our next move?"
"Show our hand," Fury said coldly.
Holding the Avengers as his trump card, he didn't intend to give Hydra time to react.
"This is going to be a tough fight," Steve said grimly.
"That's why I kept you close. In WWII, you won against Hydra. You'll win again this time," Fury replied.
"Winter Soldier has arrived in D.C.," Natasha warned carefully. "Both of you need to be careful. He's a ruthless character."
Fury nodded gravely. "The Winter Soldier is confirmed Hydra. He must be the super soldier they've been experimenting to create for decades."
To SHIELD, the Winter Soldier was a massive threat.
"I actually look forward to meeting this Winter Soldier," Steve said with a confident smile.
"Alright everyone, back to HQ. Notify Hill to be ready."
Agent Hill was a card Fury hadn't played yet. Having become a Super Soldier, Hill's combat ability was off the charts—only Captain America could fight her to a draw.
Fury was certain Oscorp's serum was an improved version. And there were likely different tiers. The one Hill used was top-tier, containing infinite power.
"Sir, everything is ready," Hill's voice came through.
The encirclement of Hydra had reached its final phase. To deal with such an organization, they needed thunderous speed to dismantle it before Hydra could react.
The purge had begun. Their secret list of Hydra agents was nearly complete.
Hearing Hill's voice, Natasha suddenly remembered Vincent's offer. She still hadn't gone to Oscorp Tower to ask Raven for the injection.
Now she realized her combat power was lagging behind the others. Though trained as a Black Widow with her own enhancements, there was a vast gap compared to the Captain's serum.
Natasha made up her mind. Next time she went to New York, she would definitely have Vincent inject her. To easily enhance her strength without paying a price? She was more than willing.
The Avengers reassembled, heading for the Triskelion. This was an internal purge. The battle would be fierce and cruel. But they were confident of victory.
New York. Oscorp Tower.
Vincent went to work as usual. Technically he could abandon this life, but with Gwen back at school, having nothing to do made him idle.
Oscorp's affairs were numerous; Raven couldn't handle them alone. The internal politics were complex, with many researchers possessing absolute arrogance. But because of Vincent, no one dared voice opposition.
After all, their boss was the most terrifying man on Earth.
After months of maneuvering, Raven's control over Oscorp had increased significantly.
Vincent flirted with Julia under the desk until Raven arrived.
"Here for Iceman?" Vincent looked up at Raven's grave expression.
"Has Apocalypse already converted Robert?" Raven asked.
Vincent nodded. "Last night, Charles and I entered Robert's mind to stop Apocalypse, but we were unprepared and expelled. Trying to locate him again proved impossible—he's vanished."
"Robert was a good man. He could have led the X-Men. For him to be possessed by Apocalypse is a tragedy," Raven said with genuine regret. She and Bobby were old friends.
"Apocalypse has countless abilities. His telepathy rivals Charles's, but rather than omnipotence, his focus is absolute control over his own mind."
Vincent explained the abilities he'd encountered.
"If—and I mean if—he appeared before you, could you handle him?" Raven asked suddenly.
"I would kill him. Without hesitation." Vincent's eyes flashed with ruthlessness.
"Then I'm relieved. Apocalypse is strong, but at least we have the power to deal with him." Raven sighed in relief.
"He's tricky, but if he shows his face, I have plenty of ways to end him."
Vincent looked at his self-created skill: Omega Beams (Entry+).
This skill didn't need a limit break yet—just Wealth Points.
How powerful were Omega Beams?
Flame-Flame Fruit Limit + Superman's Heat Vision + Psychic Dominator + Glint-Glint Fruit!
It was a fusion of Vincent's powers. Even at Entry level, it was one of his strongest methods.
It was time to raise it to the peak.
"I'll use every method to find his location for you," Raven said with anger. Apocalypse's constant threat disgusted her. And he had killed Magneto—a debt that needed repaying. Erik was, after all, a mutant leader.
"Have you found anything?" Vincent asked.
"I received word that besides Iceman, many powerful mutants have vanished in Africa. Apocalypse is hunting mutants, harvesting their lives to strengthen himself," Raven whispered.
"I know. His ultimate goal is to kill me." Vincent smiled brightly. Having such an opponent kept him from feeling lonely.
"So we must act fast. This is our best chance. He's started the ritual to transfer into Robert. Even if he completes it, there will be a vulnerability." Raven smiled.
"Any existing pyramid would be noticed if activated. So Apocalypse would build his own in a no-man's land. That's his lair."
Vincent's eyes lit up.
"Have F.R.I.D.A.Y. help you. Hack all satellites to scan African deserts. Maybe we'll get a surprise."
Raven nodded and left.
Julia crawled out from under the desk, wiped her mouth, rolled her eyes at Vincent, and left the office. Raven hadn't noticed her. Julia knew Vincent's powers had concealed her presence.
Vincent closed his eyes and summoned the system.
"System, upgrade Omega Beams!"
[Consumed 90 million Wealth Points. Omega Beams upgraded to Mastery.]
Vincent's eyes grew warm. Massive amounts of information flooded his mind—how to use the beams, how to increase their power.
"Continue upgrading Omega Beams!"
[Deducted 900 million Wealth Points. Omega Beams upgraded to Dominator!]
[To upgrade to Peak, prerequisites: Flame-Flame Fruit and Glint-Glint Fruit must reach Tier 3 Peak. Psychic Dominator must break current limit.]
The system prompt left Vincent speechless.
"System, upgrade Glint-Glint, Flame-Flame, and Ice-Ice Fruits to Tier 3 Peak."
[Deducted 16 billion Wealth Points. Glint-Glint, Flame-Flame, and Ice-Ice Fruits upgraded to Tier 3 Peak!]
Feeling three powerful Devil Fruit forces surging within, Vincent truly sensed their essence. One step away.
"Tier 4... Laws?"
"System, break limit on Psychic Dominator!"
Psychic Dominator was already the second stage (above Psychic Immunity). It matched Apocalypse and Charles's current level. Vincent wanted to see the third stage.
[Deducted 30 million Desire Points. Psychic Dominator ascended to Divine Dominator!]
A sacred light shattered Vincent's mind. His spirit transformed, his soul evolved. Derived divinity condensed into a crystalline existence.
Divine Dominator!
At this moment, all of New York lay beneath his will. Terrifying psychic power made Vincent feel omnipresent like a god. The sensation was intoxicating.
"System, upgrade Omega Beams!" Vincent suppressed the impulse and commanded.
[Deducted 9 billion Wealth Points. Omega Beams ascended to Peak!]
Wealth Points: 81,546,750,000 (Available)
Desire Points: 3,237,900,000 (Available)
Bloodlines: Kryptonian (Gene Lock Stage 1), Human (Gene Lock Stage 3)
Talents: Elephant's Strength, Dragon Veins, Bioelectric Field
Abilities:
Ice-Ice Fruit (Tier 3 Origin Peak+)Flame-Flame Fruit (Tier 3 Origin Peak+)Glint-Glint Fruit (Tier 3 Origin Peak+)Divine Dominator (Dominator+)Water Magic (Dominator+)Man of Steel (Peak+)Super Flight (Peak+)Freeze Breath (Peak+)Heat Vision (Peak+)X-Ray Vision (Peak+)Super Hearing (Peak+)Super Brain (Peak+)Dimensional Pocket (Micro+)
Skills:
Bajiquan (Mastery+)Dragon-Elephant Wisdom (13th Layer Peak+)Omega Beams (Peak)Forging (Atomic+)Enchantment (Atomic+)
This upgrade consumed 26 billion Wealth Points.
What truly shocked Vincent was that Omega Beams could no longer be upgraded. This meant even his 3.2 billion Desire Points weren't enough to break its limit. Terrifying.
He realized his money was actually quite low. Despite earning billions daily, it was too slow. Unless he listed Oscorp or Tesla Energy to inflate his wealth via stock prices. But he wasn't willing to do that yet.
"F.R.I.D.A.Y., have you found the pyramid in the African no-man's land?"
Vincent looked up. F.R.I.D.A.Y.'s virtual screen appeared.
"Hacked Stark satellites. Using Stark Industries resources, located new pyramid in Africa."
F.R.I.D.A.Y. displayed the footage.
"Energy anomaly in Sahara Desert. Scans confirm underground structure: a pyramid."
"Apocalypse is talented. Building his lair where no humans tread. Neither Charles nor I could sense him there. A perfect sanctuary for the transfer."
"Hard for anyone to find a pyramid in the Sahara."
But Apocalypse underestimated human technology. Tony Stark, to ensure his suits had global support, had built a massive satellite network—practically a Starlink.
Vincent watched the footage, his smile widening. He looked at the Space Stone ring on his hand.
Apocalypse had teleportation.
"The Space Stone won't even be needed yet," Vincent said.
He had two other methods.
Frozen Spacetime. Stop him from fleeing.
Or... Omega Beams. Once locked on, no matter where he ran, he would be hit.
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