Terminally Ill

The Floating Giant Island had every facility imaginable, and naturally, it had a hospital as well, right beside Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters.

Not long after Emma sent out her Mind Telepathy, a golden-skinned young man hurried in. His round face bore a faintly excited expression. Since joining X-Mansion, this was his first time setting foot in the Floating Temple.

"Joshua, take a look at Alex." Seeing him arrive, Emma quickly called out to him, pointing at Alex, who sat in a chair with a wry smile. Her expression was somewhat anxious.

Alex did not think he was sick, but neither Emma nor Monroe would allow him to voice any objections, so he could only passively accept it. Still, seeing that the newcomer had brought nothing with him, Alex could not help feeling surprised. Was he going to use the traditional diagnostic method of observation, listening, questioning, and pulse-taking?

Seemingly noticing Alex’s confusion, Emma pointed at the golden young man and introduced him. "This is Joshua Fleury. His ability can heal other people’s injuries and illnesses. So far, there hasn’t been a disease he couldn’t cure. He’s X-Mansion’s most important medical talent, and also a member of the X-Men."

"There’s an ability like that?" Alex stared in amazement at the somewhat shy young man before him and could not help exclaiming. He had long known that Mutant Abilities came in all varieties, but he had never expected one like this. "He’s practically a miracle cure!"

Emma chuckled at that and pointed at Joshua. "Joshua’s codename is Elixir."

Joshua smiled modestly. He glanced at Alex, then took the initiative to grasp his hand. His golden body suddenly brightened, becoming increasingly radiant.

Alex lowered his head to look at Joshua’s hand, then examined Joshua from head to toe. He was full of curiosity about Joshua’s ability and even felt the urge to copy it for himself.

As his thoughts wandered, Alex suddenly felt his hand loosen. He immediately snapped back to attention and looked up, only to find Joshua frowning and staring at him with a grave expression. "What is it?" he asked.

Emma and Monroe, standing nearby, also noticed that something was wrong with Joshua. Their hearts skipped a beat, and they panicked as they hurriedly asked, "What’s wrong, Joshua?"

"Teacher’s body is filled with a strange toxin. My ability can’t remove it." Joshua glanced at Alex before turning to Emma. His explanation carried a trace of a sob. "The toxin is extremely stubborn. The moment I dispel it, it reappears. It can’t be eradicated."

"Poisoned?" Alex looked at Joshua as if he were being ridiculous. He suddenly thought of those quack doctors from his previous life, and anger rose in him.

At first, Emma did not believe Joshua either. How could Alex possibly be poisoned? But when she secretly used telepathy to search Joshua’s mind and saw that every cell in Alex’s body was covered by a layer of black, her face instantly turned deathly pale.

"How could this happen?" Emma collapsed into a chair and looked up at Joshua, her expression flustered. "Is there really no way to treat it?"

Joshua gave a bitter smile and shook his head, looking despondent. "My ability is still too weak!"

Watching Joshua and Emma talk back and forth as though they had completely ignored him, Alex angrily grabbed Joshua’s hand. He gave up copying Alex’s ability and copied Joshua’s instead. Let’s see what exactly is wrong with me! With that thought, Alex activated Joshua’s ability.

In an instant, Alex saw his own body. Unlike the observation and perception he had under Energy Control, this was a genuine, direct sight, as though he were looking through a high-powered microscope. He could clearly see every single cell.

But what terrified Alex was that every cell in his body was completely covered by a layer of black. His entire body, every cell without exception.

"What the hell is going on?!" Alex was frightened by the blackness inside his own body. He looked up at Joshua, his confusion mixed with deep terror. Alex believed that he truly had been poisoned, but he had no idea when or where it had happened!

Joshua glanced at Alex and continued answering Emma’s question. "For now, the toxin hasn’t invaded the cells. It will only affect Teacher’s body temporarily and won’t endanger his life." After a pause, Joshua frowned deeply. He hesitated for a moment before continuing, "But I can’t say what will happen later. I don’t know what this toxin is either."

Alex fell silent at that. Joshua’s meaning was simple: his life could be in danger at any moment! Thinking of that, Alex began to panic. He desperately searched his memories for any place where he might have been poisoned, but no matter how hard he thought, he could find no clue.

In this short time, quite a few people had received the news and rushed over. Crystal beat Howard to the seat beside Alex, scrunching up her face as she asked, "Alex, who have you provoked lately?"

"Mandarin!" Since waking from his slumber, Alex had encountered few enemies. Mandarin was the first person who came to mind.

Hearing Alex’s answer, everyone fell silent. They had all heard Alex speak of Mandarin’s mystery and power. He also came from the unfathomable East, so poisoning Alex was certainly possible.

Seeing that his spot had been taken, Howard simply stood in front of Alex. After pondering for a moment, he turned to Joshua and asked, "Joshua, can you extract some of the toxin? I’ll see if I can formulate an antidote." Howard was not an expert in this field, but he knew people who were, which was why he suggested it.

Joshua nodded and was just about to reach for Alex’s hand when he discovered a clump of black substance already floating in Alex’s palm. It was wrapped in a transparent energy shield and was precisely the toxin inside Alex’s body.

Howard somehow produced a glass bottle, preparing to store the toxin inside.

But then something astonishing happened. The instant the toxin left the energy barrier, it turned into ash and vanished completely, as if it had never existed.

"What was that?!"

Everyone froze briefly, then turned to Joshua, Alex included. Although Alex had copied Joshua’s ability, he knew that knowledge and experience could not be copied. Those were Joshua’s most valuable assets.

Sure enough, after a brief start, Joshua’s expression changed dramatically, as if he had seen something terrifying. "It’s an Energy Toxin!"

"Energy Toxin?" The strange term left everyone bewildered.

"Energy Toxin is a general term for a type of toxin that spreads and parasitizes through energy. It’s extremely vicious." Joshua drew a deep breath and explained gravely, "Once someone is poisoned, it’s almost impossible to dispel, because the human body itself is filled with energy. Unless they die!"

Everyone was stunned by those words. Monroe burst into tears on the spot.

Alex was equally dazed. After a long while, he suddenly thought of something and spat out a name through clenched teeth. "Black Queen!"