Challenge

Watching Bucky disappear completely, Alex let out a long sigh and turned his gaze to the envelope in his hand. The dark red envelope was exceptionally distinctive, as though it had been soaked in blood, carrying a faint yet palpable baleful aura.

Emma studied Alex’s expression, wanting to offer a few words of comfort, only to find that he had already recovered swiftly. She quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

Alex gave Emma a light smile, tore open the envelope, and drew out a sheet of equally blood-red stationery. There were only a few lines on it, yet it was actually a letter of challenge.

"What?!" Quite a few people stood behind Alex, and those with sharp eyes naturally saw it. They immediately began shouting, hurling particularly vicious insults with indignant expressions.

The others did not know what the letter said. Seeing those people cursing away only made them more confused. The impatient ones immediately asked, but after asking for quite some time, no one answered. Left with no choice, everyone turned their eyes toward Alex and waited for his response.

"It’s nothing. They just want to have a match with us." Alex casually handed the letter to Emma as he spoke in an offhand tone, but inwardly, he was pondering. With Strucker’s and the Hellfire Club’s influence, plus the Brotherhood of Mutants, the three sides joining forces were no weaker than X-Mansion. There was no need for them to arrange a one-on-one contest at a time like this.

Emma swept her eyes over the words on the letter, her expression turning somewhat grave. She looked up at Alex and found that his thoughts were much the same as hers. Both of them felt that something was wrong with Strucker’s challenge.

"Could it be a trap?" Rather than discussing it openly, Alex and Emma chose to communicate telepathically, bringing Tessa into the exchange as well. Tessa was one of X-Mansion’s few strategists.

Hearing Emma’s words, Alex shook his head almost imperceptibly. After pondering for a long while, he said, "It probably isn’t a trap. They aren’t stupid enough to frame us with such a method." After a brief pause, Alex added, "Besides, strictly speaking, the location for this match is our territory. Even if they wanted to set a trap, they couldn’t."

Tessa did not speak, but the slight furrow of her brows showed that her computer-like mind was racing at high speed.

"Then what do we do? Do we go or not?" Emma glanced at Tessa before turning her eyes to Alex. Her brows were tightly knit, and she seemed nervous.

"We go. Of course we go. Why wouldn’t we?" No matter what schemes Strucker or the Black Queen had laid out, the fact that they had sent Bucky meant Alex would never back down. "If they want a fight, then we’ll give them one…"

Before Alex could finish, Tessa’s stiff, mechanical voice suddenly rang out, cold enough to be unsettling.

"According to my calculations, their most likely plan is to lure the tiger away from the mountain!" Tessa’s chilly gaze swept across Alex and Emma. A trace of concern flashed across her otherwise expressionless face. "While our attention is focused on the challenge match, they will secretly send people to attack the Floating Temple."

Alex froze slightly and looked at Tessa in disbelief. "A challenge match only requires a small number of people. How would that lure the tiger away from the mountain?" Alex was no fool. He would not foolishly send all their elites out for a mere match. Besides, the guards on the Floating Giant Island were far from weak. Many of them were even stronger than the X-Men.

"They only need to lure away the big tiger!" Tessa curled her lips into a mocking smile. Of course, it was not aimed at Alex, but at Strucker’s group.

Alex and Emma looked at each other, both utterly confused. "It won’t be easy for them to lure away our big tiger." Alex possessed Teleportation, and his speed far surpassed Strucker’s group. If he discovered that something was wrong with the opponents at the match, he could instantly return. Their plan to lure the tiger away from the mountain would collapse on its own.

"The only possibility is that they have more experts now!" Tessa’s face darkened as she stared deeply in the direction Bucky had vanished, her expression grave. She recalled the genetic enhancement serum Alex had mentioned. Perhaps the mutant members of the Brotherhood would become a surprise force. Perhaps some among them had reached an unimaginable level of power.

Alex and Emma had clearly thought of the same possibility, and their brows furrowed slightly.

After pondering for a while, Alex came up with a countermeasure. "Find someone to impersonate me at the match. I’ll remain at the Floating Temple!" Even after losing his duplication ability, Alex was still one of X-Mansion’s top experts. The challenge match would definitely require his presence, and he was destined to become the center of attention there.

Following Alex’s arrangements, everything was quickly set in motion. More than half of the X-Men remained at their posts as though nothing had happened, while quite a few experts were secretly recalled and concealed throughout the Floating Giant Island.

They also found someone to impersonate Alex: a mutant proficient in shapeshifting. Her ability was similar to Mystique’s, though somewhat weaker. She could only take on another person’s appearance and could not mimic superpowers. Fortunately, this shapeshifter also possessed a certain degree of telepathy, which made up for it somewhat.

By the time all preparations were complete, it was already dawn the next day. Without delaying any longer, Alex personally sent the people prepared to take part in the challenge match to their destination: a city situated on the plains, right between AIM’s sphere of influence and X-Mansion’s, though closer to X-Mansion.

"There are no abnormalities!" An X-Man skilled in reconnaissance scanned the area and confirmed that there was no danger, not even a single person. "There isn’t anyone within several kilometers."

Alex nodded and looked at Emma, carefully reminding her, "I’ll be watching this place at all times. If anything goes wrong, I’ll come over immediately!" The Floating Temple’s holographic control console could observe this location, allowing Alex to know everything happening here in real time.

Emma gently hugged Alex, not forgetting to remind him as well. "You need to be careful too." She paused slightly, her tone lifting with faint concern. "After all, things aren’t what they used to be. Don’t push yourself."

Alex looked at Emma with amused exasperation. After kissing her goodbye, he activated Teleportation and returned to the Floating Temple.

Crystal sat beside the Floating Temple’s control console, her expression extremely solemn. To prepare for the possible battle ahead, Alex had specifically invited Crystal out. Among the mutants, Crystal, who could control the four great elements, was among the best and would be a major source of support.

"Ready?" Sensing Alex’s arrival, Crystal spoke without turning around, a hint of teasing in her expression.

Alex watched helplessly as his body gradually began to change shape, then glared at Crystal in annoyance. "Stop fooling around!" Alex’s body was made of fire, and among the four great elements Crystal could activate and control, fire happened to be one of them.

What left Alex even more speechless was that, at his current stage, his Energy Control could not compare with Crystal’s command over the four great elements. In other words, Crystal could control Alex’s body whenever she wanted, making him do whatever she wished, while Alex was powerless to resist.