A Piece of Vibranium

Donnie spent a long time touring the city of steel, and he was deeply shaken.

It was an incomparably vast city where countless Mutants lived, trained, fought, and slept with weapons at their side, always ready for war, ready to fight for Magneto.

Rather than a city, it was more like a military fortress, endlessly training warriors for the Brotherhood and sending them into war.

A massive war machine, led by Level 4 Mutants. Every year, the Brotherhood searched the globe for young Mutants with talent and value, bringing them all here for training.

That was also why countries around the world harbored such deep concerns. Magneto, the greatest terrorist leader on the planet, was openly and brazenly training an army loyal to himself under everyone’s watchful eyes, treating the whole world as if it were nothing and acting with absolute force.

In truth, this place was also Magneto’s weakness. He could not let go of it, nor could he abandon his people here. That gave nations and major organizations an opportunity to exploit it, barely maintaining a strange sort of tacit balance in the end.

After all, Magneto could not remain motionless on this island for the rest of his life.

That aside, what made Donnie the most envious was the island’s vast supply of precious metals.

The defense of his Transformers had never been satisfactory. Their greatest flaw was their materials. Ordinary vehicles were not made of high-quality materials; even normal collisions could damage them, let alone using them in battle.

At present, the Transformers’ defenses were largely sustained by an endless supply of Spark Energy, constantly reinforcing them, but reinforcement had its limits.

Even if you put a god-tier gem onto a piece of basic equipment, how much power could that basic equipment truly wield, even if it pierced the heavens?

Donnie drove his little truck around, watching some Mutants on the streets use their abilities. He fell into thought, his eyes opened to a whole new world.

This was an independent nation, a nation of Mutants.

But it did not belong to him. He still had to return to New York. That was the center of countless major events, a place where superheroes were everywhere.

With a sharp sound, Red Devil appeared beside Donnie.

Red Devil regretfully told him that Magneto could not meet him yet, because there was something immensely important he needed to handle.

"Erik wants to meet you, but he can’t. There’s something even more urgent, something that could affect the future of Mutants."

Red Devil relayed Magneto’s words. If this matter succeeded, it would change the Mutants’ situation in one stroke and might even end their awkward position.

Donnie shrugged, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

Red Devil told Donnie that if he did not want to stay here, he could send him back to New York.

"Magneto has been very lenient with you. He feels close to you. It has been many years since a natural Level 4 Mutant appeared… Though, you seem rather weak right now. Only Level 3?" Red Devil teased.

"Come on, let’s discuss something. Do you have any Adamantium or Vibranium or anything like that?"

Donnie gestured as he changed the subject, having Optimus Prime transform into a form over two meters tall as he negotiated with Red Devil. He was the kind of person who could discuss anything as long as both sides laid their cards on the table. Unless it was a mortal grudge like the one with Hulk, everything was negotiable.

Many passing Mutants noticed Optimus Prime. Their eyes widened as they cried out in surprise, stopping to watch and discussing among themselves how another new Mutant had appeared.

Donnie wanted to negotiate with Red Devil.

"If you give me enough Adamantium or Vibranium to make one this size, then multiply that amount by ten, I’ll join your Brotherhood. That shouldn’t be difficult for an organization as large as yours," Donnie said.

"Difficult my ass!" Red Devil’s face turned red-purple as he grew agitated. "Over two meters tall? And ten times that amount? You want to remake your weapon of war with Adamantium and Vibranium? You couldn’t find that much on the entire planet!"

"That just shows how ignorant you are!" Donnie shot back. "Oh, and the Adamantium has to be at least second-generation. Anything later than that won’t do."

Red Devil’s face darkened. He wanted to punch this kid. The kid had some nerve.

Even with the Brotherhood’s enormous resources, they could not afford to use them like that. He could not agree to Donnie’s request; Magneto himself would have to decide something like this.

"Does the Brotherhood lack money or something?" Donnie argued indignantly, demanding benefits from Red Devil and declaring that as long as the metal was delivered, he would belong to the Brotherhood and would be willing to shed blood for it.

Who was the richest in the world? Tony Stark and the Stark Industries he controlled? Bruce Wayne and the Wayne Enterprises he controlled? Or the king of Wakanda and his kingdom?

Wrong. If Magneto heard that, he would laugh out loud. Excluding the priceless Vibranium mines, Magneto was the richest. He could manipulate precious metals across the globe at will and bury you in money until you had no temper left.

Naturally, Red Devil scoffed at Donnie’s words. Shed blood? He did not believe a single word of it. With Magneto absent, if Donnie really got enough metal, the kid would probably grab the goods and run without hesitation.

"Besides, are you sure you can control Adamantium or Vibranium as you are now? Are you sure you can alter their molecular structures?" Red Devil said mockingly.

That truly struck Donnie’s weak spot.

First-generation Adamantium was known as the hardest metal in the universe, while Vibranium possessed the ability to absorb and reflect energy. Both metals were incomparably precious.

Even if Donnie were given a weakened secondary Adamantium, he would likely be constrained at every turn. Modifying it would be extraordinarily difficult.

His abilities were still insufficient. He could not modify them. At the very least, he had to recover to Level 4 before he was even barely qualified to work with Adamantium.

Even Magneto himself would have to go all out to destroy something made of Adamantium.

In the end, Donnie managed to obtain a small piece of Vibranium from the Brotherhood. It was not large, only a little bigger than his palm. After modification, it could probably form a thin layer over one of his arms and part of his shoulder.

The awkward part was that Donnie could do nothing with it. He could not modify it.

Donnie used the AllSpark, letting its energy seep inside, only for it to be absorbed instantly. Curious, Donnie poured in more energy, and it rebounded violently, knocking him to the ground.

"Why give me this Vibranium? Am I supposed to use it like a brick and smash it into someone when I’m fighting for my life?"

Red Devil let out a strange, chilling chuckle. He was a devil to begin with, not a good person.

Donnie had actually been wary of Red Devil all along.

"I’ll send you back to New York. Erik said you can return anytime you want." Red Devil grabbed Donnie and Optimus Prime, directly teleporting them to the outskirts of America.

Red Devil released him and told him he could leave. Whenever he wanted to join the Brotherhood, he could come at any time.

"Erik asked me to remind you not to believe Charles’s deception. His ideals are far too hypocritical." Red Devil warned him solemnly. Professor X’s side was not a good place to go. If Donnie joined them, he would become their enemy.

Donnie asked him, "Why are you in such a hurry? Where are you going?"

"I just heard someone report that a winged Mutant has appeared."

"You’re going to bring that person back to the Brotherhood?"

"No, of course not. I’m going to determine whether he’s Angel, then kill him," Red Devil said casually. "The Devil and Angel Mutant bloodlines have been fighting for thousands of years."

"…Aren’t you afraid Erik will kill you?" Donnie was speechless.

Red Devil said nothing more. After greeting Donnie, he disappeared.

Donnie frowned deeply. He had always been highly wary of that ancient monster who had lived for thousands of years. Red Devil was not someone easy to get along with.

He did not believe a single word Red Devil said. He had to examine every sentence again and again to see whether some trap had been prepared for him.

At least the piece of Vibranium in his hand was real. The trip had not been for nothing.