Counterattack

When Alex returned to the Floating Temple with the others, the battlefield had already spread across the entire Floating Giant Island. Countless buildings had collapsed and been reduced to rubble under the bombardment of Hydra robots.

The first thing Alex saw was the robots flying through the air, along with the conspicuous Hydra emblems on their chests. He froze for a moment, then turned to Emma in disbelief. "What’s going on? How is Hydra here?!"

"Forget that for now. Drive them out first!" As she watched the thriving Floating Giant Island being relentlessly destroyed by the war, Emma’s heart bled. Her face was livid, and her gaze at the Hydra army was as sharp as a blade.

Alex snapped back to his senses. With a flash, he shot into the sky. His Flame Body expanded continuously, transforming into a Flying Fire Phoenix that plunged into the Hydra army like a tiger among sheep. Blazing flames reduced every robot that dared approach him to ashes.

At the Floating Temple, Tessa, who had been struggling to hold on, saw the fire phoenix suddenly appear in the sky. A brilliant smile immediately bloomed across her face, and she quickly broadcast the news. "My fellow mutants, Alex is back!"

Tessa’s slightly excited voice rapidly spread throughout the Floating Giant Island through the loudspeakers. Both the mutants and Hydra learned the news.

The mutants, who had already begun to show signs of defeat, suddenly seemed to be pumped full of adrenaline. They erupted with renewed strength and launched a beautiful counterattack. Such was the power of a leader.

Alex, transformed into a fire phoenix, had no idea he could have such an effect. He streaked back and forth through the sky, wreaking havoc everywhere. His abilities could be somewhat taxing when used against certain mutants, but against Hydra soldiers who only knew how to use conventional firearms, they were an unstoppable weapon of destruction. No one could stop him.

Red Skull had noticed this long ago and ordered everyone to land on the ground. The robots were slower than Alex, so they could not escape him, and fighting him was useless. Red Skull could only use this method to prevent Alex from attacking without restraint.

Though it was somewhat shameless, the tactic was indeed effective.

Seeing the Hydra army descend to the ground, Alex had to worry about the buildings below whenever he wanted to attack. He even had to fear injuring ordinary mutants. Left with no choice, he could only return to his human form and begin fighting one-on-one.

Red Skull had been so focused on avoiding Alex that he forgot the Floating Giant Island was the mutants’ home ground. When facing invaders, even the most docile people would rise up, let alone mutants who had never been particularly tame.

In an instant, the entire Floating Giant Island became a vast ocean of people’s war. Mutants could be seen attacking Hydra everywhere. Their bizarre and varied abilities might not have been able to kill Hydra outright, but dripping water could wear through stone. Under the mutants’ relentless efforts, the Floating Giant Island became every Hydra soldier’s nightmare, and earth-shaking screams echoed from all directions.

The scales of war gradually tipped toward the mutants, but the casualty count rose just as quickly. Countless mutant civilians died beneath Hydra’s guns and artillery.

"This can’t continue. Strucker’s people will be here soon, and then…" Alex tore a robot to pieces with a vicious expression before contacting Emma through telepathy.

Emma’s white dress had long since turned gray. She looked exhausted from the aftereffects of repeatedly using telepathy to control the robots. With a bitter smile, she shook her head. "What do you have in mind?"

"Release my body and copy Erik’s ability!" Once Alex realized the situation was going badly, he had racked his brains for a solution. After much thought, he finally turned to Erik’s ability: controlling magnetic fields and metal.

Without question, under the current circumstances, no ability was more useful than Erik’s. It could even prove extraordinarily effective against Strucker’s rocket launchers.

"No!" Emma refused without a second thought. Then, as if a weight had lifted from her heart, she suggested, "Why not release Erik directly? Tell him the truth. He’ll help us!"

Alex shook his head and explained, "Erik’s mental strength isn’t enough to handle so many robots. Only I can do it!" Erik’s ability allowed him to control magnetic fields and metal, but it also required powerful Psionic Power. Otherwise, he could not control his own ability at all. In fact, the vast majority of Mutant Abilities required a certain degree of Psionic Power. Without it to control them, many abilities would risk spiraling out of control.

Emma was caught in a painful dilemma. On one side was Alex’s safety; on the other was the entire mutant race.

"I’m sorry!" Alex could see Emma’s pain and did not give her a chance to speak. He immediately flew toward Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters, where his body was frozen.

Watching Alex’s retreating figure, Emma was powerless to stop him. She could only vent the rage filling her heart upon Hydra.

Emma’s body had once been strengthened by fragments of the Life Diamond. Her physical fitness was on par with mutants who possessed physical enhancement abilities, and Alex had carefully trained her in combat. Naturally, she fought with astonishing ferocity, robots constantly falling behind her as she twisted, turned, and darted through the battlefield.

Using flesh and blood to fight robots was exhausting even for someone with skin of bronze and bones of iron. Yet Emma did not pause for even a moment, as though she never knew fatigue. Only one thought remained in her mind: fight, fight, and fight again.

Gradually, an extraordinary change came over Emma’s body. Her snow-white skin actually turned into transparent diamond!

The moment the mutation occurred, Emma reacted. After sensing it briefly, she discovered that her body had completely entered Diamond Form! She paused for a moment, then suddenly laughed and charged at the nearest robot like a bolt of lightning. With a reach of her hand, she pierced straight through its chest, along with the Hydra soldier inside!

"Not bad!" Emma glanced at her arm and chuckled before fighting even more fiercely.

As Emma evolved a new ability, Alex also released his body from the ice. He then connected to Zola’s Consciousness Transfer device and transferred his consciousness from the Consciousness Register back into his original body. Alex had secretly moved Zola’s device into the laboratory so he could transfer back in the future, never expecting it to come in handy now.

After returning to his original body, Alex had no time to check its condition. He used Teleportation to reach the place where Erik and the others were held. After copying Erik’s and Sebastian Shaw’s abilities in succession, Alex did not linger for even a moment before instantly returning to the battlefield.

The battlefield remained utterly chaotic. Mutants and Hydra robots were everywhere, both living and dead. Every kind of noise intertwined into a symphony of death that echoed above the Floating Giant Island.

Feeling his restored abilities, Alex’s lips curled slightly, and a vicious grin appeared in his eyes. "Now, the counterattack begins!"