Chapter 14: Golden Apple
The next morning, Diana took Luka to the training grounds.
The car drove out of the city and into the suburbs for over half an hour before finally stopping in front of a fenced-off open area.
There were no signs at the fence entrance. Diana swiped her metal wristband at the entrance, and the fence slowly opened.
As they stepped inside, a brief look of astonishment appeared on Luka's face.
The training grounds were far more expansive than he had imagined, rivaling the size of a standard golf course. The ground was covered in a specially designed elastic material, and several uniquely shaped training targets stood in the distance. Transparent energy barriers shimmered faintly in the sunlight.
"Superman and Batman helped set up the equipment here," Diana explained as they walked.
"Inside, there's an anti-gravity generator that can simulate the vacuum of space, and an energy impact simulator that can simulate attacks of varying intensity."
She pressed a button on a nearby control panel. Luka suddenly felt lighter as the gravity around him instantly decreased by more than half, making the ground beneath his feet feel soft and yielding.
For the next week, Luka began systematic training.
Diana's training methods were starkly different from the brutal trials of Viltrum. She never asked Luka to perform destructive attacks. Instead, she focused on refining his precision and control.
"Strength can be used for destruction, but it can also be used for protection," she said, guiding Luka's wrist to direct his power precisely onto the target's designated spot.
"You must learn to sense the flow of your power, to make it act according to your will, not driven by instinct."
Luka studied diligently.
He discovered that Diana's strength far exceeded his imagination. Even when she deliberately suppressed her power, her centuries of accumulated combat experience allowed her to effortlessly defeat him.
This pure reliance on technique and experience wasn't entirely unfamiliar to Luka.
In fact, the Viltrumites also underwent combat skills training.
However, given the Viltrumites' inherently superior physical prowess over most other planets, their martial arts style was designed to kill enemies of equal strength as quickly as possible. It was overwhelmingly offensive, with every strike aimed at the opponent's vital points with maximum force.
The fighting style Diana taught Luka resembled the combat techniques used by the weaker indigenous populations on planets conquered by the Viltrumites.
To put it bluntly, against the Viltrumites' overwhelming strength and brick-flying attacks, this style was utterly useless.
The natives often couldn't even track the Viltrumites' speed before being punched through the chest.
But Diana's demonstration was different.
When their strength was evenly matched, Luka's savage fighting style gained no advantage against her.
During breaks in training, Diana would occasionally receive calls for help from other areas and leave to deal with chaos caused by supervillains. During those times, Luka would stay at the training ground to practice alone, or put on a hoodie and wander the streets of Boston by himself.
Boston's streets were filled with a blend of retro and modern vibes.
He strolled slowly along the Freedom Trail, admiring the contrast between the 18th-century brick buildings and modern shops lining the red-brick path.
He paused at Quincy Market, savoring the aroma of grilled lobster and clam chowder.
Sitting on a bench by the Charles River, he watched sunlight sparkle on the water's surface, while young people rowed boats and played in the distance.
This peaceful scenery was something he had never experienced on Viltrum. The tension that had gripped his nerves for more than a decade gradually began to loosen.
Sometimes, Luka would observe Diana from afar as she dealt with villains.
Diana wielded the Godkiller sword, its blade glinting in the sunlight, yet she never inflicted fatal wounds on the villains. Each of her attacks precisely injured the opponent's meridians, robbing them of mobility, before following up with a non-lethal heavy blow to knock them unconscious.
Luka stood in the shadows of a street corner, frowning deeply. In his Viltrumite education, this way of fighting was practically suicidal.
Holding a blade capable of slaying gods, yet only attacking non-lethal areas? It wasted stamina and gave the enemy a chance to counterattack. His instincts screamed at him to rush up and resolve things in the most direct, violent way possible, but he always held back in the end.
Diana's formidable combat prowess and unwavering composure forced him to acknowledge that this "non-destructive" fighting style was also a mark of a true warrior.
Unbeknownst to him as he observed the battle, a black-robed figure hidden behind the clouds was staring intently at him with eyes that glowed with an eerie red light.
"My dear sister, when did you acquire such a valiant follower?" the mysterious figure murmured.
Using magic to probe further, the figure grew increasingly astonished.
This seemingly young man possessed an astonishingly potent combat power within him, his body radiating a thick, bloody aura.
Through the lens of magic, Luka's entire being was wreathed in crimson and black energy, entangled with countless vengeful spirits. In sheer quantity, these spirits rivaled even those surrounding her brother, the God of War Ares.
Yet such a terrifying mortal was absent from all divine records, as if he had appeared in this world out of thin air.
"An intriguing little creature," the black-robed figure mused, the corner of her lips curling into a strange smile.
Diana had repeatedly disrupted her efforts to harvest energy in the mortal realm, and she had long desired to teach her a bone-deep lesson.
Perhaps this enigmatic youth who had suddenly appeared was precisely the 'material' she needed.
That afternoon, Luka finished his training and strolled through Boston's North End district, wearing a gray hoodie.
This was the heart of the Italian-American community, where the streets were filled with the rich aromas of pizza shops and cafes, and vibrant graffiti adorned the walls.
As Luka browsed handcrafted jewelry at a roadside stall, a shadow, its form shrouded in magic, silently landed beside him.
The sudden sense of being watched triggered his instincts.
He instinctively turned to look, only to see a bald white woman.
She had eerie green eyes, wore golden hoop earrings, and was dressed in a tight black bodycon dress that accentuated her curves.
Luka frowned, instinctively finding her appearance a little too bold. Assuming she might be from a particular profession, he moved to sidestep around her.
"Excuse me," he said.
"Don't be in such a hurry, little one," the woman replied, her voice carrying an uncanny allure as she slowly opened her palm.
In the palm of her hand lay a golden apple, its surface radiating a soft, golden glow as if countless tiny runes were flowing across its surface.
"I have something special I want to give you," she said.
The moment Luka saw the golden apple, his pupils constricted sharply.
An indescribable desire surged from the depths of his heart. It was the Viltrumite instinct of possession, an overwhelming craving for power and rare treasures. His breathing quickened, his gaze locked onto the golden apple, while the destructive urges and killing instincts he had been suppressing began to howl in his mind.
A hint of triumph appeared in the woman's eyes. She could feel the apple's magic taking effect. This was no ordinary fruit. It was a divine artifact, one that had even tempted Zeus in his youth.
Just one more push, and this young man would completely lose control.
What she had not anticipated was that Luka's response would be far more direct, and far more savage, than she imagined.
The instant the desire surged, Luka didn't hesitate. His body exploded into motion, moving so fast he left a lingering afterimage in the air.
Before the woman could react, his fist, whistling through the air, had already pierced straight through her chest.
"Ugh..."
The smugness in her eyes froze instantly, replaced by disbelief and shock.
She stared down at the bloody hole in her chest, completely bewildered by how things had escalated to this point.
Luka ignored her shock. He reached out with his other hand, intending to snatch the golden apple from her palm.
The woman coughed up a mouthful of blood, her eyes widening in panic. Instinctively, she channeled her magic, causing Luka's hand to pass right through the golden apple as if they existed in separate dimensions, completely intangible to each other.
"Damn it! Where did this barbarian come from?!"
The woman tried to breathe a sigh of relief, but Luka's second reaction was even swifter.
He pulled back the arm that had pierced her body, then clamped his fingers around her spine.
Though he had never encountered magic before, Luka's peak combat instincts told him that to seize the treasure, he first needed to incapacitate the woman.
She was one of the goddesses of calamity. Her divine body was resilient, but she was not a combat-oriented deity. She had no way to withstand Luka's monstrous strength.
Crack, crack, crack.
Hundreds of thousands of tons of force were unleashed without restraint. Under the unbearable strain, her spine shattered with a sickening sound.
The woman screamed in agony, her mental turmoil disrupting the protective magic surrounding the golden apple.
In the next instant, Luka seized the apple at last, and with a brutal pull, tore her spine apart completely.
The cold metallic feel of the spine contrasted strangely with the apple's warm surface. That seductive magical aura deepened his gaze even further.
On Viltrum, the rules of survival were simple. When you encountered something valuable, you took it. The fate of the opponent was never a consideration.
The woman's body began to fade, her eyes shifting from confusion to venomous resentment and bitter defiance before finally dissolving into a wisp of black smoke that vanished into the air.
Luka stood where he was, gripping the golden apple. The haze in his eyes slowly faded, giving way to clarity.
He lowered his head, examining the gleaming golden apple in his hand, and scratched his head in puzzlement.
"What is this thing?"