"Yes, you've definitely been enhanced. Now go… no, hurry up and try it out!" Tony Stark responded eagerly, looking at Barry Allen. "The Saiyan just said the energy inside you is incredibly powerful. Test it out; come on, let's go!"
"Powerful energy? I can definitely feel a strange force within me; it's like…" Barry replied, snapping out of his daze as he concentrated on the energy inside him. But before he could finish speaking, a layer of golden lightning enveloped his body, and he vanished instantly.
"He's going to crash!" None of the Avengers could track Barry's movements, but Robert was able to see his high-speed trajectory as Barry sped directly toward the wall on the other side of the lab.
"No, no, no!" Barry, seeing the wall closing in, widened his eyes in panic, putting his hands out in front of him as he shouted in alarm.
Then something unexpected happened. As Barry's fingers touched the wall, the golden lightning around him grew brighter, and his hand began to blur.
In an instant, Barry's entire body blurred and phased through the wall, disappearing from the lab in a flash. It all happened so fast that even Robert could only catch a brief glimpse of Barry's entire form becoming a haze as he phased through the wall.
"Phasing?" Robert muttered, a hint of amazement in his eyes as he recalled ancient legends describing similar abilities.
In a way, phasing shares some similarities with teleportation. If one were to master it, achieving the ability to pass through all forms of matter could almost mimic teleportation, especially with someone as fast as Barry.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the wall, Barry was still dazed and unsure how he'd managed to phase through. He hadn't even figured out how to stop, as he still didn't have control over this new energy inside him.
Previously, Barry's speed had been more of a physical enhancement, a raw ability rather than one involving special energy. That's why Pietro had quickly surpassed him when he powered up. Now, though, Barry's current level was in an entirely different dimension, and the leap was so massive that he couldn't immediately control it.
Since Barry's speed was now incredibly fast, he disappeared from the Avengers' surveillance range in the blink of an eye.
"Yeah, he's definitely fast, but doesn't seem able to stop," Robert remarked, sensing Barry's departure. He shook his head and instantly vanished from his spot.
"JARVIS, did you record that? Play it back at a speed we can actually see," Tony ordered after Robert left.
Pietro perked up as well, eager to see just how powerful Barry had become, as he hadn't been able to catch Barry's movements either.
"Don't feel bad; I didn't see a thing either," Morbius patted Pietro on the shoulder comfortingly. "Barry's speed just now was unreal. That electric energy around him didn't seem to harm anything, but compared to him, it's like we're not even speedsters."
"We're only called speedsters because we lack strength in other areas. Saiyan, Superman, Supergirl, and Martian Manhunter—each of them is faster than us." Pietro shrugged helplessly. "Let's face it; we're kind of underpowered these days. I'll need another power-up. Superman, help me get a second miracle! Oh, and maybe throw in one for Lorna too."
Seeing Lorna looking his way, Pietro quickly added her name. Although they had both received powers, Lorna's growth and contributions far exceeded his.
If it ever came down to a fight, Pietro's speed wouldn't give him an advantage over Lorna, whose telekinetic shields were beyond his attacks. Plus, her disintegration power would be instant death if he got too close.
"Really, you're treating me like some kind of wish-granting deity?" In a hidden realm of Kamar-Taj, Wanda opened her eyes, glancing in the direction of the Avengers base with a wry smile. But her attention soon shifted to Barry Allen.
"Another form of ultimate power? It's like this energy was made for him. Poor Pietro, though; he's fallen behind again. But then, Barry really is the speedster supreme."
Meanwhile, far from the Avengers base in a remote wilderness, Robert appeared in front of the golden lightning streak that was Barry, stopping him in his tracks.
Electric sparks continued to crackle around Barry, signaling that his energy was still wildly active. His legs even continued moving, almost as if trying to drag Robert along.
"Can't stop, huh? Then I'll have to intervene," Robert warned.
Barry gasped, and his body blurred again, trying to phase through Robert. But before he could fully vanish, Robert released a burst of energy that forced Barry back.
"Wait, my energy's calming down—don't go rough on me!" Barry quickly got to his feet, smiling sheepishly at Robert as he noticed the energy in his body stabilizing.
"Just now, it seemed you had something similar to the Kryptonians' force field around your body. But your physical body doesn't appear to be enhanced," Robert said, frowning. "With so much energy, it can't all be for speed alone, can it?"
"I'm not sure either," Barry admitted, scratching his head. "I feel stronger than before, but my speed and this energy far surpass any physical improvement."
"Let's head back and study this properly. The energy within you feels unique, almost on par with the Infinity Stones. Your powers likely go far beyond what we've seen so far—even including your phasing ability," Robert observed, then teleported both of them back to the Avengers base.
"Man, your teleporting ability is really something for us speedsters to envy!" Back at the base, Barry couldn't help commenting on Robert's teleportation.
Short distances didn't give teleportation much advantage since speedsters could reach their target almost instantly. But over long distances, teleportation's advantage became immense. Even at the speed of light or beyond, a speedster would still take time to travel, but teleportation was truly instant. It was enough to make any speedster despair.
"Trust me, Barry, the energy inside you is probably even more powerful than teleportation," Robert said with a smile. "I'm curious to see what you'll accomplish with your abilities fully developed…"
"Really? That powerful?" Barry asked, a bit skeptical. Still, given Robert's consistent reliability, especially regarding supernatural abilities, he started to believe it.
And seeing Robert's look of expectation, Barry realized that his energy might even interest Robert more than the Infinity Stones.
"Barry, you're unbelievably fast!" Tony and the others emerged from the lab. They had reviewed the footage, but even slowed down, they were stunned by what they'd seen.
"How did you do it? You actually phased through the wall! Does this mean you can phase through any material? And wouldn't that make you immune to attacks?" Pietro asked excitedly.
"I don't really know how I did it. If I could phase through all materials, Robert wouldn't have been able to stop me just now," Barry pointed out. He didn't feel invincible, especially since Robert had so easily blocked him.
"Let's go to the training room," Robert suggested. "Pietro, you might be able to study Barry's phasing technique and see if you can mimic it with your energy."
Pietro had fully developed his previous abilities, channeling energy for feather-like blade attacks and even running mid-air. Although his energy wasn't as strong as Barry's, if he could learn to phase, it would make him more resilient in battle.
The group soon arrived at the training room, with Barry, Robert, and Pietro on the field while the others watched from the observation area. Tony and Reed, however, were busy with other projects like studying Venom, so they weren't present.
While the Avengers were focused on their own research and Barry's new powers, an invisible spaceship crashed in Earth's upper atmosphere—not a landing, but a crash. From the wreckage, a green light emerged and disappeared into the sky.
Meanwhile, in a modest house, a group gathered around a striking man named Hal Jordan, a test pilot who'd recently pulled some dangerous stunts that led to an accident. Although he'd ejected in time, his family had been extremely worried and came to check on him.
"I'm really fine. I just need a little rest," Hal assured them with a grin. "Don't worry. By tomorrow, you'll see the handsome Hal you all know and love!"
After seeing off his concerned family, Hal went to his room. But as he entered, he heard a cheeky voice.
"Didn't I tell you not to sneak into my room?"
The voice was none other than Wade, who hadn't been around much lately. His absence was understandable—during the recent battles against vampires and werewolves, Wade had earned quite a lot from Tony and the Avengers, enough to take a vacation and spend lavishly.
"Since when is this your room? And why are you using my lines? Also, why are you lying in my bed?" Hal glared at Wade, firing off a series of annoyed questions.
"Oh, this is your room? I thought those photos over there were mine," Wade said, feigning surprise as he pointed at a nearby table.
"That's me from last month during a flight. You've long since stopped looking like that," Hal sighed, unbothered by Wade's vanity. He knew Wade had come to terms with his appearance long ago.
"How dare you insult my looks! It seems you haven't developed any psychological scars from your crash, but my feelings are definitely hurt…" Wade cl
utched his chest dramatically, muttering in a huff, "I curse you to become something I hate to see! Something glowing green all over!"
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