Chapter 140: Ascension to Heaven
Above the city night sky, dozens of bright lights appeared in tight formation.
Just like Xi Nian and Lorna, they too were headed straight toward the private dock.
Xi Nian's deep blue eyes reflected the distant glimmers.
They were all Iron Man suits, each clad in Tony Stark's signature red-and-gold plating, palms and feet spewing bright exhaust flames as they thundered across the sky. Together, they formed a mighty steel army.
"I knew it. That guy doesn't die that easily," Xi Nian muttered as he held Lorna's light, soft body, easily dodging past a few suits that streaked by in mid-air.
After all, if Stark could survive while trapped inside that black feline fusion form—yes, with help, but still—then his ability to cling to life was maxed out.
If Tony really died at the hands of some terrorists with only low-tier superpowers, now that would be unbelievable.
…
At Roxxon's dock, floodlights blazed everywhere. Nearly fifty people worked busily across the wide grounds.
Between two towering cranes, thirty meters above the ground, War Machine's armor was strung up by steel cables. But the man inside wasn't Rhodey—it was a government cabinet official.
The terrorists had fully taken over the port. They were preparing to broadcast live across America: the execution of a high-ranking government official and War Machine.
This was Killian's long-planned revenge spectacle.
Originally, he wanted to capture the President himself. But with Superman's resurrection and both the Avengers and Justice League rising to prominence, Killian feared drawing too much attention from superpowered beings. So instead, he settled for abducting a government official as a substitute.
On top of a crane, Killian—dressed in a sharp suit—stood beside the bound Pepper Potts, barking orders into a communicator as his Extremis-enhanced soldiers carried out the plan.
Then—
Bang!
A gunshot rang out from one corner of the dock.
Killian turned, fury blazing in his eyes. From the shadows, a bandaged Tony Stark emerged, the arc reactor glowing at his chest.
Tony raised his hands like he was hosting a party: "Good evening, everyone! From now on, this place is called Stark Plaza!"
No sooner had he spoken than the sky rumbled.
Dozens of Iron Man suits hovered overhead, forming a formation above the port.
"Target the hot ones and let's start the party. Also—JARVIS, send me a Mark suit!" Tony called out coolly.
Immediately, the army of Iron Man armors dove down at the Extremis soldiers.
The soldiers roared as their bodies ignited, skin glowing like molten lava. They charged the suits like frenzied berserkers, engaging the autonomous armors in a brutal clash.
Sparks, explosions, and steel filled the battlefield.
Man versus machine.
"Tony Stark!" Killian laughed darkly. Tearing off his shirt, he revealed his muscular torso, veins bulging and glowing like molten rock beneath his skin. The air around him surged in temperature.
Like his men, Killian had also taken the Extremis virus—but his was perfected. His regenerative powers and heat output far surpassed theirs, stable and refined through his own research.
Boom!
With one blazing punch, he shattered a diving Iron Man suit, half its frame melting under his heat.
His face twisted in a grin as he prepared to plunge into the fight—
But suddenly, his burning body froze in place.
From her perch, Pepper blinked in disbelief. In her eyes, Killian stood there like a statue.
It wasn't that he didn't want to move.
He couldn't.
It felt like the air had hardened into concrete around him. His eyes darted wildly as steam hissed off his molten body, but he couldn't twitch a single muscle.
"Don't bother. You can't move," came a calm teenage voice from the empty air ahead.
"Who… who are you?" Killian's eyes twitched.
"Who?" the boy mused, then answered, "Let's just say… someone's subordinate."
"Subordinate? Who sent you?!" Killian bellowed. Veins bulged on his forehead and chest as his molten blood boiled, pushing his Extremis power to the limit.
But Xi Nian only shook his head.
Even in his Superpowered Mode, he wasn't invincible. His physical stats were still human. What changed was his control over external forces—and control depended on distance.
At 10,000 meters, he could only move something the size of a cup.
At 5,000 meters, a car.
At 1,000 meters, a jet plane or ferry.
At 100 meters, even a skyscraper could be lifted.
And within 10 meters—
Xi Nian called it his Superpower Domain. A space where multiple force fields overlapped and twisted, even light struggled to escape. He believed fewer than three people on Earth could break free.
Invisible, untouchable, and absolute.
So long as his opponent was weaker than him in this mode, once they entered his domain, they became prey—unable to resist, no matter what powers they held.
Killian realized the truth. He couldn't escape. No matter how much he struggled, he couldn't move an inch.
"Killian, you haven't forgotten me, have you?" a girl's childish voice rang out.
Killian's eyes widened in terror. He recognized it immediately.
Her. She had come for revenge.
Whoosh—
A Mark 42 armor streaked upward—Tony inside. But as he closed in, his suit suddenly stalled mid-air, like it had flown into invisible quicksand.
"What the hell?!" Tony cursed inside the armor.
"How should I deal with him, boss?" Xi Nian asked softly, either obeying or teasing.
Lorna tilted her head, thought for a moment, then smiled and pointed at the sky.
"Got it," Xi Nian chuckled. "Then… ascend."
Ascend. Ascend. Ascend!
The words echoed in Killian's mind. Then, his body shot upward, faster and faster, like a human rocket.
Xi Nian followed behind with Lorna in his arms, ensuring the flight continued skyward.
"No! Stop!!"
Killian's desperate screams faded as his burning body streaked through the clouds, breaking into the upper atmosphere—
Soaring like a man ascending straight to heaven.
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