Magneto lifted his head and looked at the people in front of him.
He didn't know these people, nor did he know where they had suddenly appeared from.
In his eyes, their appearance was utterly inexplicable.
The surrounding environment also left him somewhat bewildered.
One second he was following Apocalypse into the Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters's basement, about to get Charles, and the next he was here.
And surrounded by several individuals who called themselves Superheroes.
These self-proclaimed Superheroes possessed special abilities, and Erik initially thought they were also mutants.
But gradually, Erik realized something was off.
The 'mutants' here seemed universally tough, and most importantly, they didn't seem to be hated by humans at all.
In fact, many people around them were cheering them on, shouting things like 'Defeat these Super Villains'.
What are Super Villains? Does that refer to him?
If so, it certainly fit his current image.
Manipulating the Earth's magnetic field, destroying the entire human world, and building a mutant nation—that was what Magneto was doing now.
From the human perspective, he truly was a Super Villain.
However, Erik's malice towards humans stemmed from their malice towards him and towards mutants.
And if humans could stop targeting mutants, Erik wouldn't necessarily insist on destroying the world.
So, facing these 'mutants' worshipped by humans, Erik was momentarily lost.
"Erik! What are you doing!?"
Erik's brief distraction was noticed by Psylocke.
Psylocke, holding a katana made from her own power, kicked Black Noir away, then yelled at the dazed Erik.
Erik instantly snapped back to attention, then saw the woman nearby, who could unleash laser beams from her hands, fire another laser 'projectile' at him.
The light formed a basketball-sized orb, hurtling towards Erik at extreme speed.
Erik raised his hand, controlling the surrounding metal to block in front of him, deflecting the light orb, then said to Psylocke:
"Leave this to you all, I'm going to do what I need to do."
Composing himself, Erik decided not to think any further.
Regardless of the attitude of the people here towards mutants, humans killed his wife and daughter—that was an undeniable fact.
Mutants, humans—Erik didn't care about any of it now.
He just wanted revenge.
Revenge on humanity.
Therefore, Erik decided to do what he should do now: follow Apocalypse's command, create a world-destroying 'natural disaster', and completely exterminate humanity!
Erik thought so.
However, before he could leave, a familiar voice instantly froze him in place:
"Erik!!!"
"...?"
Erik, suspended in the air, stopped moving. He turned to look at the source of the voice.
Indeed, he saw his old friend Charles.
Charles sat in his wheelchair, with Mystique Raven behind him, along with Beast and Alex.
They were the original X-Men.
Erik also saw Logan, whom he had met once, and a little girl who also had steel claws in her body, as well as several other X-Men he hadn't seen before.
They emerged from a portal and stood before Erik.
Mystique Raven pushed Charles's wheelchair and came before Erik:
"Erik, stop!"
"Charles..."
Looking at his old friend, Erik's eyes were filled with complex emotions.
The two looked at each other for a long time without speaking.
At this moment, a young man standing beside Charles, who looked quite young, suddenly spoke:
"Charles, Logan, I'll leave this here to you. I believe you can persuade him."
"Where are you going?" Logan turned to look at the young man.
The young man's gaze, however, was directed at the battlefield in the sky, and he said:
"I'm going to stop Apocalypse."
With that, the young man opened a portal and disappeared from everyone's sight.
...
"Who are these guys who suddenly popped up?"
Butcher, who had originally intended to deal with Magneto but was forced back by Psylocke's energy whip, turned to Starlight and asked.
Although he didn't know who these people who suddenly emerged from the portal were, Butcher could tell that they were allies.
So he chose to observe, and at the same time, confirm if these people were the reinforcements Starlight had found.
But Starlight didn't respond to him.
She looked at the young man who suddenly opened the portal, and then watched him leave through it, feeling a strange tremor in her heart.
To be honest, Starlight didn't know the young man who opened the portal.
But she remembered that portal.
The portal Kevin created when teleporting was exactly the same as the one the young man created now.
Of course, even with Starlight's wildest imagination, she wouldn't think that young man was Kevin.
Starlight just felt that the young man might have some connection to Kevin.
Perhaps a teacher-student relationship, or even a more intimate one...
Starlight didn't want to think any deeper, nor did she have the time to continue thinking.
Because in the sky, a lightning bolt struck down, targeting her!
Crackling—
Blue-white lightning, unleashed from Storm's hand, struck at Starlight's feet.
She didn't choose to hit Starlight's body, seemingly only wanting to drive Starlight away.
But Starlight didn't realize this; she thought the lightning was aimed directly at her.
And facing an enemy's attack, Starlight dared not be careless. She instantly raised her hand to unleash light, which collided with the lightning in mid-air.
Boom!
The lightning and Starlight collided, producing a roaring sound.
Butcher looked up at Storm, a grin forming on his lips:
"Can use lightning? Reminds me of a woman I dislike."
"Butcher, be careful later, she's still a child!"
Starlight heard Butcher's words and said to him with concern.
Storm, now one of Apocalypse's Four Horsemen, was still young, appearing to be only fifteen or sixteen years old.
Starlight, no matter what, was a Superhero; even if Storm was an enemy, she still felt a bit of pity.
Starlight firmly believed that no child was born wanting to be evil, and Storm must have been forced to follow Apocalypse.
Besides, she, Starlight, was a Superhero, and as a Superhero, she had to be careful when acting.
If Storm were to suffer any accident in battle, even though Starlight was the most popular Superhero in the world right now, netizens would still scold her without mercy.
"...Still a woman, after all."
Hearing Starlight's words, Butcher muttered to himself.
In his opinion, regardless of age, if someone possessed superpowers and had the intention to do evil, they should be prepared to be killed.
If only Butcher were here alone, he would undoubtedly kill Storm without hesitation.
However, since Starlight said so, and she was currently the acting president of the Hero Association, there was no harm in him listening to her command.
Thinking this, Butcher's laser, originally aimed at Storm's vital points, shifted to her shoulder.
A golden laser shot out, and Storm, unable to dodge in time, was grazed by the laser, causing her to fall from the sky.
Seeing this, Starlight immediately rushed forward, about to pin Storm down.
But as she approached Storm, she realized that this little one, who had just been summoning wind and rain, was now lying motionless on the ground, maintaining a fallen posture, her eyes staring straight ahead.
It was as if her time had been paused.
"This..."
"They won't harm you. Just tie them up."
A voice interjected from the side.
Charles, who had been pushed over by Laura, placed his right hand on the side of his forehead.
He was using his abilities to control the other three besides Magneto, while speaking to Starlight.
Only then did Starlight realize that it wasn't Storm's time that had paused, but that someone had used their ability to control her.
Having spent a long time with Cate, Starlight could roughly discern Storm's current situation.
Her mind was being controlled by the person in front of her.
This person in the wheelchair was a telepath even more powerful than Cate.
...
In the sky, Captain Marvel and Apocalypse were locked in a fierce battle.
Carol was incredibly strong; as the powerhouse of the Marvel Cinematic Universe in terms of combat power, she almost always brought unparalleled confidence whenever she appeared in the Avengers series of films.
In the movies, she dominated Thanos, and in what if, she beat Ultron and Thor.
Even Kevin in the Marvel World had to be wary of Carol.
After all, this woman was indeed formidable.
But Apocalypse was not weak either.
Although his performance in the movies seemed mediocre, as if he only had a passable ability to control sand.
In reality, his strength, reaction, speed, and regenerative abilities were all top-notch.
According to Marvel's power ratings, apart from combat skills, Apocalypse's stats were almost all above 6.
And the current Captain Marvel had only recently awakened her powers and had not yet fully mastered them.
Because of this, the two were surprisingly evenly matched.
Carol could only barely gain an advantage over Apocalypse with her combat skills.
But Apocalypse quickly found an opportunity.
Chaos appeared in his eyes, and Apocalypse controlled molecules in the air to form sand, entangling Carol's movements.
Then he raised a hand, knocking Carol away, thereby creating distance between them.
"Who are you? You are not one of us!"
Having only recently arrived in this world, Apocalypse didn't yet know the differences between this world and others, and initially thought a powerful fellow mutant had come to trouble him.
But after fighting Carol, Apocalypse realized that the other party was not a mutant at all.
If she wasn't a mutant, then where did her immense power come from?
"I don't think I'm a fellow creature with a blue-skinned guy."
Creating distance, Carol mocked.
When she was in the Kree Empire, she didn't particularly like the blue-skinned Ronan.
And this Apocalypse in front of her also had blue skin, so Carol immediately associated him with Ronan, and her tone naturally became much harsher.
Apocalypse frowned slightly, very displeased with Carol's tone.
As a deity in this world, Apocalypse could not tolerate anyone insulting him like this.
But Apocalypse did not react.
Because he knew very well that the person in front of him was an existence equal to himself; at least in terms of power, the other party was on par with him.
He wasn't a mutant, yet he possessed power beyond any mutant. To be honest, Apocalypse was quite curious about Carol.
If he could, he really wanted to capture her right now and see if he could acquire Carol's power through his own abilities.
Unfortunately, he didn't have that much time right now.
Looking slightly downwards, Apocalypse saw his current target, Professor X Charles.
Compared to Carol in front of him, Professor X Charles's power interested him more.
So, after a moment of thought, Apocalypse softly said, "You shouldn't resist me, child. You can be like us and become a god of this world."
"Claiming to be a god just because you have great power? I've seen too much of this. Don't you guys have any other tricks?"
Carol was unimpressed, a clear look of disdain in her eyes.
Having been on missions with the Kree Empire for so long, Carol had visited countless planets and seen many people who, relying on their high technology or special powers, went to remote and backward planets to proclaim themselves gods and lord over others.
Carol had seen gods like Apocalypse before.
She had even killed them!
So, what Apocalypse said held no allure for her.
"Alright, then it seems... negotiations failed?"
"From the very beginning, I never intended to negotiate with you!"
No sooner had Apocalypse finished speaking than Carol charged at him again!
A human-shaped comet with a brilliant tail flame, with an aura that threatened to smash anything to pieces, bore down on Apocalypse.
But Apocalypse remained unmoved at the sight.
As Carol was about to charge over, he merely raised his hand slightly, creating a black portal in front of him.
"!?"
The portal appeared at a very opportune moment, precisely the instant Carol arrived in front of Apocalypse.
Carol had no time to react and charged directly into the portal.
Immediately after, Apocalypse quickly closed the portal, cutting off Carol's path back.
"I don't have time to waste here."
Having teleported Carol to an unknown location, Apocalypse said coldly.
Carol was a difficult opponent. If Apocalypse didn't have urgent matters right now, he might have played with her.
But Charles was below, and to prevent Charles from slipping away from him again, Apocalypse could only end the fight with Carol as quickly as possible.
Whether it was defeating her or sending her away.
As long as she didn't delay his time here, that was his, Apocalypse's, victory!
Once Apocalypse obtained Charles's ability, he would be omnipresent, able to enter everyone's minds and control them.
No matter how strong Carol was, she couldn't resist a mental attack.
After sending Carol away, Apocalypse was about to open the portal again to go to the ground and capture Charles.
But just as he was about to use his ability, Apocalypse discovered that he couldn't teleport away.
The space here was locked!
"Where are you going, blue skin?"
A young voice came from behind Apocalypse.
He turned his head and saw a young man standing behind him.
The young man had a faint smile on his face, but there was no amusement in his eyes. He stared intently at Apocalypse, making Apocalypse feel as if he was being targeted by a beast.
Apocalypse turned his head to look at the young man behind him.
He wondered if it was his own illusion.
He felt that every cell in his body was screaming one word at him.
Run!
Run quickly!
"You are...?"
Apocalypse clenched his fists, staring intently at the young man in front of him, asking for his name.
"God."
The young man simply uttered a word, making Apocalypse's blue face instantly darken.
Even though his instincts were desperately warning him, and even though Apocalypse knew very well that the young man in front of him was probably not simple.
But Apocalypse still became enraged.
"I am God!!"
Boom!!!
As if in response to the weather's fury, a thunderous roar came from the sky.
However, Apocalypse's expression became extremely grim, because the thunder had nothing to do with him.
It was the young man in front of him; he had created the thunderclouds, and it was he who, in an instant, used extremely powerful telekinesis to pull Apocalypse down from the sky.
Like a bird with broken wings, Apocalypse plummeted straight down from the sky.
In just two seconds, he fell from the sky to the ground, smashing onto the hard concrete road, lying sprawled on the ground in a sorry state.
The young man in the sky didn't move. He looked down at Apocalypse, then took a small step forward with his right foot.
He didn't seem to use any teleportation abilities, yet in the next second, he appeared in front of Apocalypse.
"In front of me? You dare to call yourself God?"
The young man's voice was indifferent, and his eyes, radiating a brilliant blue light, revealed an apathy towards all life.
He looked down at Apocalypse, his gaze devoid of any emotion.
Apocalypse saw him extend his hand towards him.
"Merely a mortal who can't even see his own place."
The young man evaluated Apocalypse thus, then slammed his right hand down.
"Ahhhhhh!!!!"
Anger and pain made Apocalypse roar loudly.
He felt everything on his body gradually disintegrating, turning into the purest dust under immense pressure.
But due to his self-healing ability, Apocalypse couldn't immediately disappear and die.
His body was repeatedly disappearing and recovering, a process that was extremely painful, making him unable to stop screaming.
Apocalypse wanted to fight back, but he was powerless.
All his abilities, including his ability to control dust and his ability to teleport away, completely vanished at this moment.
At this moment, he was like the purest mortal, enduring unbearable torture under the young man's oppression.
Perhaps seeing how resilient Apocalypse was, the young man spoke again:
"Hmm, at most, a more resilient mortal, but that's all."
As the young man spoke, he clenched his right fist, and Apocalypse's body disintegrated even faster.
And it was then that Apocalypse saw that the parts of his body that were disintegrating were not turning into dust or any other fragments.
His body was turning into drops of water, and he was dissolving as if melting.
Anger, fear, regret.
All sorts of emotions appeared in Apocalypse's mind.
He finally couldn't help but question loudly:
"You! Who! Are you!!!"
"I told you."
The light in the young man's eyes remained, even growing a little brighter, then he clenched his right fist forcefully, and Apocalypse completely turned into the purest water.
"I am God, the God of this world!"
As his voice fell, Apocalypse completely turned into a stream of water, then into a thinner mist, dissipating into this world.
Apocalypse, who was invincible in the mutant world, thus turned into a mist and dissipated into this world at the hands of the young man.
The mutants and Superheroes who witnessed this scene all fell silent at this moment.
Their gazes were all focused on the young man standing in the distance, various expressions converging at one point.
The atmosphere in the arena was quite tense.
Although the mutants knew that the young man was on their side, seeing him so easily destroy Apocalypse, they couldn't help but feel a bit of fear.
Only Logan, Laura, and Charles remained relatively calm.
As for the Superheroes, there was even less to say.
They were already extremely wary of these outsiders, and now, witnessing the young man's power firsthand, they became even more vigilant.
If the young man hadn't helped them, they would probably have already fought him.
The scene became increasingly tense, but fortunately, this atmosphere didn't last long.
Soon, the young man spoke, easing the tension in the air.
"Annie, don't you recognize me? I'm Kevin."
The young man turned his head, the blue light containing energy in his eyes dissipated, and he smiled as he spoke to Starlight.
Upon hearing the young man's self-introduction, everyone in the Hero Association widened their eyes in surprise.
...
The crisis brought by Apocalypse ended safely, though with some fright, thanks to the participation of the X-Men and Kevin.
However, because Apocalypse and others arrived here unprepared, there were still quite a few casualties.
The Hero Association and the government immediately began organizing rescue teams to provide aid to the area.
And after some explanation, Kevin, who finally clarified his identity, was finally reunited with Starlight.
However, perhaps it was because his current appearance was too youthful, which aroused Starlight's 'maternal love.' From their reunion until now, she hadn't let go of Kevin.
She kept hugging him, making him lose all his composure.
"I say, Annie, that's enough..."
"No!"
Annie sat on the sofa, hugging Kevin. She rested her chin on Kevin's head and said in a muffled voice:
"You've been missing for so long, what's wrong with me hugging you for a while?"
"But you've been hugging me for almost two hours. Aren't you tired of it?"
"No! I want to hug you for a day and a night!"
"...Ms. Annie, your thoughts are very dangerous right now. My current body is probably still underage."
Kevin was very helpless.
Although he had been separated from Annie for some time, Kevin also wanted to catch up with Annie and do things that fiancés should do.
But Kevin's current physical age was probably around thirteen.
Before figuring out why he had become like this, Kevin felt it was better to be cautious.
After all, if he were to do 'that and that' with Annie and it resulted in him not growing taller in the future, always maintaining a youthful appearance, then Kevin would truly cry himself to death.
So, before that, Kevin needed to give himself a complete and detailed physical examination to feel at ease.
That's what Kevin thought, but when Annie heard Kevin's words, her eyes lit up even more. She gently squeezed the hand holding Kevin's head, making Kevin face her.
After staring at him for a long time, Annie licked the corner of her mouth:
"It doesn't seem impossible?"
???
What doesn't seem impossible?
What are you thinking?!
What do you want to do?!
Looking at Annie's somewhat dangerous eyes, Kevin shivered.
At that moment, Kevin finally understood the true meaning of the phrase, 'Boys also need to protect themselves when they're outside.'