Chapter 65 Adam Bernard
Leon closed his eyes, as if merging with the sofa beneath him, his breathing becoming long and drawn out.
But in Banner's perception, a will was silently spreading from the Villa as its center, across the Earth.
This was not mental power, nor was it some kind of magic.
This was the perspective of a God.
Leon's will penetrated the Earth's crust, swept across the deep sea, and covered every inch of land.
The noisy thoughts of billions of humans were like the quiet background noise in a library to him, easily filtered out.
Countless points of light lit up in his vision.
In the New York Sanctum, Sorcerer Ancient One seemed to notice something, her hand holding the teacup pausing slightly.
Then she shook her head helplessly, continuing to sip her tea as if nothing had happened.
Deep in the Atlantic Ocean, a certain man suddenly opened his eyes, a look of vigilance appearing in them.
These points of light, some bright, some dim, represented the various extraordinary beings on Earth.
Inhumans, magic users, and all sorts of strange super-powered individuals.
In Leon's eyes, these were merely well-growing weeds in a garden; although some were prickly, they were not enough to pique his interest.
His perception continued to delve deeper, filtering out these weeds, searching for the 'rare and exotic flowers' that truly interested him.
Soon, his will paused.
He found one.
This energy source was very peculiar; it was neither the wildness of gamma rays, nor the order of cosmic energy, nor the mystery of magic.
Instead, it was a paradox.
A paradox that was stably existent and constantly cycling between creation and destruction.
Matter and antimatter achieved a delicate balance at a perfect singularity, forming a self-sufficient human Universe.
Interesting.
A faint smile curled at Leon's lips.
His perception instantly locked onto the location of that energy source.
It wasn't in some secret Base, nor was it in the center of some big city.
Instead, it was in an ordinary, or one might say somewhat backward, small town in the U.S. Midwest.
And the vessel of that energy source was a seemingly ordinary middle-aged Black man, leisurely mowing his lawn in his backyard.
He was wearing a faded plaid shirt, sweat beading on his forehead, a kind smile on his face, greeting a passing neighbor.
But in Leon's vision, this man's body contained antimatter energy that could annihilate the Earth at any moment.
"Adam Bernard Brashear…"
Leon softly murmured the name in his heart.
Blue Marvel.
A superhero deliberately forgotten by history, hidden by the government.
He was also a monster with vast antimatter energy, yet content to be an ordinary Professor in a small town.
"A walking paradox, a buried Sun…" Leon slowly opened his eyes, a smile on his lips.
The Eternal were weapons left behind by the Celestials; Hulk was a miracle of gamma rays.
And this Blue Marvel was an accident of the Universe's laws.
This level of power should not be buried in peace.
It should shine brightly on the battlefield of the Universe.
Of course, under his command.
"Dr.," Leon's voice rang out again.
Banner, who was engrossed in studying data, suddenly looked up, his eyes bewildered.
"What's wrong? Sun… God."
Leon stood up from the sofa, stretched, and his joints made a series of crisp cracking sounds.
"Theoretical research can take a break for now," he said, a gentle smile returning to his face.
"It's time for the next field trip."
He walked up to Banner and patted him on the shoulder.
"Get ready, we're going to meet a living paradox. I think, as a physicist, you'll be very interested in him."
Banner was stunned for a moment, then pushed up his glasses, a flicker of curiosity in his eyes.
A living paradox?
What could that be?
Before he could ask for details, he felt a soft golden light envelop him.
The next second, the Villa living room was empty.
The experience of spatial teleportation was not unfamiliar to Bruce Banner.
He had experienced Leon's teleportation a few times.
There was no dizziness, no tearing sensation.
Banner felt as if he was immersed in warm sunlight; the entire process was very pleasant.
Is this divine power?
Banner tried to analyze this phenomenon, but the only conclusion he reached was: this is not science.
The law of conservation of energy was meaningless in the face of this method of teleportation.
Soon, a solid touch came from beneath his feet, and the golden light dissipated.
Banner blinked, adjusting to the completely different scene before him.
No longer the luxurious Villa, nor the boundless Pacific Ocean.
Before him was a tranquil and peaceful scene.
A typical U.S. Midwest small town.
Wide streets, lined with neatly trimmed lawns and single-family homes of various styles.
Several children rode bicycles, laughing as they passed a street corner, and a blonde housewife enthusiastically greeted the mailman.
The air was filled with the scent of grass, sunlight, and baked apple pie.
Everything here exuded a sense of ease and peaceful life.
Banner looked at his T-shirt and beach shorts, feeling out of place with the scene.
He felt more like a tourist who had accidentally stumbled into "The Truman Show."
"We, where are we?" Banner adjusted his glasses, asking somewhat uncertainly.
This place certainly didn't look like some secret Base holding a living paradox.
"A cage," Leon's voice sounded beside him, his tone calm.
He was still dressed in black casual wear, hands in his pockets, leisurely strolling along the town's sidewalk, like a nobleman on vacation.
His gentle smile and elegant demeanor allowed him to naturally blend into the scenery, yet without acquiring any mediocrity.
Banner looked at him, puzzled.
A cage?
This place clearly looked like an idyllic utopia.
Leon did not explain; he calmly scanned everything around him.
In his perception, beneath the tranquility of this small town lay an invisible net.
Military satellites, CIA secret agents, all kinds of surveillance equipment.
These things were like unseen eyes, watching here twenty-four hours a day.
They kept a beast that could destroy the World in a seemingly beautiful zoo, feeding it peace and family every day, making it forget the sharpness of its fangs.
What a foolish and ridiculous approach.
Leon's heart remained unperturbed.
He was long accustomed to the short-sighted and self-righteous actions of the World's power-holders.
They always feared power they couldn't control, yet yearned to use that power.
The ultimate result was often playing with Fire and getting burned.
Adam Bernard Brashear.
Blue Marvel.
A hero who should have shone like the Sun throughout an era, but was forcibly suppressed under the dust of history due to the ridiculous prejudices of that era, due to the fear of those in power.
It was simply a waste.
However, this was a good thing for him.
Banner followed behind Leon, his doubts growing deeper.
He tried to find some clues from the surrounding environment but found nothing.
Everything here was too normal, so normal that it made him, a person who lived in abnormality for years, feel somewhat uncomfortable.
Where exactly was this paradox hidden?
Soon, Leon stopped in front of a White two-story house.
The house had a beautiful courtyard, with climbing roses blooming on the White fence.
The lawn in the courtyard was meticulously trimmed, and a basketball hoop stood alone in front of the garage.
A seemingly ordinary U.S. family.
Through the fence, they could see a tall middle-aged Black man, wearing a plaid shirt and thick glasses, tinkering with a barbecue grill in the backyard.
Beside him, a gentle and virtuous White woman walked out carrying a plate of marinated steak; they smiled at each other, their eyes full of love.
Not far away, two half-grown children were chasing and playing on the lawn, their bell-like laughter carrying far.