Conditions

"The fact that they can receive rewards means killing helps Original Sin. In other words, the more people die, the stronger He becomes."

Bert Wang narrowed his eyes slightly. After thinking for a moment, he took out his phone and informed Hank and the president about how the Evil Believers could "level up by killing monsters."

The president swallowed and asked, "So they’ll keep getting stronger?"

Bert Wang nodded. "That’s right."

"Damn it."

Hank could not help cursing. Then he shot the president on the screen a displeased look. If this guy had not kept refusing, the Guardians would have been established long ago.

With the Guardians in place, things would never have gotten this bad.

The president noticed Hank’s gaze and shrugged innocently. Whether I agreed to the Guardians or not, the outcome would have been the same.

The president did not have as much authority as people imagined.

Bert Wang said, "Yuriko, tell me about the current situation."

"Boss, there are fifty-three groups of Evil Believers across America this time, and they all launched their attacks in small towns."

Yuriko immediately replied, "Thirty-two of those towns have requested our assistance one after another. Thanks to the efforts of the Security Teams and the X-Men, the Evil Believers in twenty-one towns have already been dealt with. We are doing everything we can to eliminate them in the remaining eleven.

"The military is handling the twenty-one towns that did not request aid, but so far, they have only eliminated the Evil Believers in five towns. Fierce battles are still underway in the remaining sixteen.

"Also, according to intelligence, the military has deployed some heavy weapons to eliminate the Evil Believers."

"So many?"

Bert Wang frowned. The president said from the side, "Actually, Evil Believers have appeared not only in our country. Mexico and Great Canada have them too. Their armies are terrible and cannot hold out at all, so they have been constantly asking us for help.

"I sent our overseas troops to assist them. I have not checked on the exact battle situation yet, but judging from things now, it probably isn’t optimistic. After all, the Evil Believers can level up."

"We can’t worry about Great Canada and Mexico right now. We should deal with domestic matters first."

Bert Wang shook his head and said, "Mr. President, pass this intelligence on to the military."

The president asked, "Bert, are we only passing on the intelligence?"

"They aren’t waiting for me to beg them now. They’re the ones who need to beg me."

Bert Wang snorted. "Mr. President, aside from the intelligence, there is no need to say anything else. I want to see whether they come begging to me."

The military had only two paths ahead of them. One was to ask the mutants for help. The other was to activate their hidden trump card. Either way was good news for Bert Wang.

Hank hesitated before saying, "Is that really okay? Bert, for the sake of the American people, we should take the initiative to contact the military and offer them assistance."

Bert Wang said, "If we do that, your Guardians will never be established. Hank, this is the best opportunity. Besides, they need to pay a price for what they have done. Otherwise, they will do it again next time."

Hank wanted to say more, but the president said, "Hank, listen to Bert. He may be younger than all of you, but his political wisdom far surpasses yours. You are all too kind-hearted. You aren’t suited for politics."

Hank hesitated for a moment, then said, "All right. We’ll listen to you this time."

"Good. When the time comes, you and Professor Charles should not answer the military’s calls. Leave everything to me."

Bert Wang nodded. Then, as if remembering something, he said to Yuriko, "Yuriko, go to the Recycling Plant and ask those prisoners whether they are willing to help. If they are, I will give them a bonus. Listen carefully—it is only a bonus, not their freedom.

"Also, put tracking watches on them so they do not escape."

Yuriko said, "Boss, I know what to do."

The president was unusually generous. "Bert, if anything goes wrong with those prisoners, I’ll share the responsibility with you. Either way, I’m definitely taking the blame this time."

The president had already been unlikely to win reelection. After this incident, it would be even more impossible. There was an eighty percent chance he would be made to pay for the military’s mistakes.

"Thanks."

Bert Wang smiled and hung up. Then he pulled out a stack of banknotes and said, "Tell me, which town are Greed and Wrath in?"

Information immediately flooded into Bert Wang’s mind—Kosha County, Texas!

Without wasting any words, Bert Wang immediately teleported to Kosha County, Texas.

It was still the same conference room. After hearing the message sent by the president, the old general could not help cursing. "No wonder those Evil Believers keep getting stronger the more we fight them. So they can level up by killing people. Damn it, this is going to be troublesome."

The staff officer said, "General, we must do something. As soon as those bureaucrats receive the news, they will immediately ask the mutants for help. When that happens, the military will become the target of everyone’s condemnation."

The old general’s expression darkened. "If we fail to eliminate the Evil Believers and also prevent the Governors from seeking help from the mutants, then if that becomes public, I might even have to resign."

The staff officer said, "General, I suggest deploying the Sentinel Robots to eliminate the Evil Believers. Only then can we save the military’s reputation."

"The robots cannot move. Don’t worry, I have a way to solve this."

The old general took out a phone and called Professor Charles. "Professor Charles is kinder and more considerate of the bigger picture than anyone else. If I say a few nice things, he will send the X-Men to help me."

The staff officer was speechless. Since you know the Professor is a good man, why do you target and scheme against him every day?

The staff officer secretly sighed. Why does it feel like we’re the real villains?

The old general confidently made the call, but to his astonishment, the professor’s phone was switched off. The old general frowned and called the Mutant Academy’s landline, only to find that it could not be reached either.

After thinking it over, the old general called Hank. Before he could say anything, Hank said, "All mutant matters are being handled by Iron Man."

With that, Hank hung up without waiting for the old general to respond—he was afraid the old general might persuade him. Bert Wang’s approach was completely different from that of the X-Men. To be honest, Hank felt guilty.

The X-Men were a group of good people, good people who did not know how to fight for benefits and instead begged bad people to let them help.

"Iron Man!"

The old general cursed. Iron Man had definitely arranged this. After hesitating for a moment, he humiliatingly dialed Iron Man’s number.

Bert Wang, who was searching Kosha County for Greed and Wrath, said coldly, "I’m busy right now. Say what you have to say quickly, and don’t waste my time."

The old general froze, then said with some anger, "Bert Wang, do you know how many innocent civilians will die because of your delay?"

The only response the old general received was a string of beeps—Bert Wang had hung up.

The old general was so furious he nearly smashed his phone on the floor. The staff officer tactfully reminded him, "General, Bert Wang is not the Professor. Those righteous speeches will not work on him. If you want his help, you must pay a price. I still personally recommend deploying the Sentinel Robots."

"We cannot deploy the Sentinels. He wants benefits, so we will give him benefits."

The old general stubbornly insisted on his own way and called Bert Wang again. Bert Wang said impatiently, "Can you speak like a human? If you can, then keep talking. If not, don’t waste my time."

"Like a human?"

The old general’s face turned red with rage. A brat actually dared to insult him like this. He was one of America’s highest-ranking generals.

The old general was just about to curse when beeping sounded in his ear again. This time, he really smashed the phone.

The staff officer said again, "General, deploy the robots."

"Fine… wait, I nearly fell for it. That brat Bert Wang was deliberately trying to provoke me."

The old general was about to agree when he suddenly realized what was happening. He snorted, picked up a new phone, and dialed Bert Wang again.

This time, before Bert Wang could say anything, the old general directly asked, "Iron Man, what do you want?"

Bert Wang said faintly, "I want world peace."

The old general nearly smashed the phone again. He snapped, "Bert Wang, stop playing tricks. If you are unwilling to negotiate, I will personally fly over to see the Professor."

"I don’t need to play tricks on you."

Bert Wang said calmly. He was simply humiliating the other man. "I can help your military, but the military must agree to let the Mutant Affairs Department establish the Guardians. Also, my Security Company needs to be upgraded to the highest clearance level, and the military must sell me a batch of armed helicopters."

"A batch? What do you think armed helicopters are? At most, a few."

Hearing Bert Wang finally begin discussing terms, the old general secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He snorted. "As for the Guardians, the military will no longer obstruct them. Whether you can establish them depends on your own abilities."

Bert Wang said, "Fine. Oh, and my Security Company will be expanding on a large scale. The military cannot interfere."

The old general asked, "Expanding on a large scale? Aren’t your Security Teams enough?"

"They are enough to protect my companies, but nowhere near enough to protect America. In the future, the Security Company will accept government contracts and help the government protect America."

Bert Wang said, "If you are interested, General, you can hire us too."

The old general clenched his teeth in secret. Bert Wang was clearly trying to cut into the military’s funding. He said, "Fine, I agree."

Bert Wang smiled. "One final condition: fifty million US dollars."

The old general paused, then sneered. "Bert Wang, you really are greedy."

Bert Wang snorted. "I don’t care about a mere fifty million US dollars. I want the money because I need to use Money Power to restore everyone’s stamina. They have been fighting for over two hours. Aside from Wolverine, everyone else is already exhausted."

"Money Power!"

The old general knew about this. He said, "Fine. Fifty million US dollars will be transferred to you immediately. You and those mutants should come help us at once."

"I need to deal with Greed and Wrath, so I have no time to help you. I’ll have others take action."

With that, Bert Wang hung up again. The old general ground his teeth in fury. Not a shred of manners. What a typical American bastard.

"I’ve reached an agreement with Iron Man. The mutants will help us."

The old general took a deep breath and spoke to the staff officer. The staff officer was about to reply when there was a knock at the door. "Hello, I’m Nightcrawler Kurt. Mr. Wang sent me to help you."

"That teleporting Nightcrawler?"

The old general had someone open the door and invite Nightcrawler in. Upon seeing his appearance, both the old general and the staff officer frowned slightly. Had this guy really not crawled out of Hell?

Nightcrawler was already used to other people’s stares. He said, "Mr. Wang said I am to transfer your soldiers and equipment to the Frontlines. Also, once the mutants have assembled, I will take them over."

The old general’s eyes lit up. "How much equipment can you carry? Can you carry tanks?"

Nightcrawler said, "Yes. Mr. Wang just restored my stamina. Two or three tanks should not be a problem."

The old general pointed to a base on the map and said excitedly, "Good. Go to this military base. I’ll have people prepare the soldiers and supplies."

"Okay."

Nightcrawler nodded and transformed into a cloud of blue smoke, vanishing.

The staff officer said enviously, "What an incredible ability. If we had it too, what would mere Evil Believers amount to?"

"The age of superhumans has arrived. Ordinary combat power will gradually be phased out. Tell the departments below to speed up their research into mutants and robots."

The old general sighed. "Especially people with spatial abilities. We must have one. Only then can we protect America and counter Iron Man. After this battle, Iron Man, who will have saved countless civilians, will gain even greater prestige—prestige like that of a god."

"Mutant abilities are random and cannot be controlled."

After considering it, the staff officer said, "However, I can ask Trask Industries and see whether they can create a teleportation robot."

The old general said, "The sooner, the better. I have a feeling that what happened today is only the beginning."

In Kosha County, Texas, Greed sat in an armed helicopter, wildly firing its mounted machine gun at the ground below. Watching blood flowers continuously bloom, he was ecstatic. He loved destruction, because only destruction was real.

At this moment, both Greed and the Wrath rampaging below had recovered their strength. As for the police and military who had come to stop them, they had long since been dealt with. The helicopter was one of their spoils of war.

"My God has blessed us. Everything has gone smoothly today."

Greed burst into laughter, but it came to an abrupt stop when a figure appeared out of thin air in the sky.

That figure was undoubtedly Bert Wang. He immediately locked onto Greed in the helicopter and flew over as he asked icily, "Having fun?"

"Iron Man, you’re too late."

Greed released the machine gun and said with a smile, "I’ve already recovered."

"It doesn’t matter. I’ll beat you into a serious injury again. No, this time, you won’t even have the chance to be seriously injured."

Without wasting words, Bert Wang raised his hand. A black hole appeared beside Greed, attempting to swallow him.

Greed activated the Scapegoat Eye. Bert Wang was about to seal the space when a fierce whistling sound came from below, and he hurriedly teleported away.

In the next instant, an iron rod passed through the spot where Bert Wang had been floating, smashing through the helicopter’s rotor blades. The helicopter then spun as it fell toward the ground, before crashing down and exploding with a thunderous boom moments later.

Beside the flames, Wrath raised his head and glared viciously at Bert Wang as he reappeared. Wrath had thrown that iron rod.

Greed appeared beside Wrath and shouted at Bert Wang, "Iron Man, don’t attack yet. I have a gift for you."