Transfer

"BOSS, you’re cool as hell."

Seeing Wang Bert instantly resolve Manhattan’s crisis, Wade froze for a moment before cupping his hands around his mouth and shouting, "I love you to death!"

"Get the hell away from me."

Wang Bert’s face darkened as he waved a hand and sent Wade flying toward the horizon.

Everyone burst into laughter. The way they looked at Wang Bert was filled with admiration. Such a massive disaster had been solved with a clap of his hands—he was as powerful as a god.

"Long live Iron Man!"

Moments later, Manhattan’s civilians, police, and military all cheered. As long as Iron Man was around, there was no trouble they needed to fear.

The battle was officially over, but plenty of trouble remained, such as Appeasing those New Mutants and cleaning up the mess Magneto had left behind.

According to rough post-battle estimates, the damage Magneto had caused across America amounted to hundreds of billions of dollars. Dozens of Steel Bridges alone had been damaged—within America alone. And that was merely a rough estimate, not including death compensation and the like.

In the end, Quicksilver Pietro took on that debt in exchange for Magneto being allowed to live as an ordinary old man.

"Can I really pay off that debt in my lifetime? I’m afraid I won’t even be able to pay off the interest."

Quicksilver complained, practically wishing he could sever his father-son relationship with Magneto. That old man had really screwed him over.

Wang Bert laughed. "It’s fine. Have a few more kids and let them help you pay it back."

"I’d rather work hard and pay it off myself. I can’t be like that old man and specialize in screwing over my own children."

Quicksilver looked miserable. He asked, "Iron Man, when are you planning to erase that old man’s memories?"

"In a few days. I have too many things to deal with first."

Wang Bert sighed. "If I’d known, I wouldn’t have become Secretary of Defense. After taking the job, there are so many things I can’t just dump on someone else."

"I hope a disaster like this never happens again."

Quicksilver sighed. "If it has to happen, please don’t let it involve me again. Hundreds of billions of dollars—God, how many deliveries and takeout orders would I have to make?"

Wang Bert stroked his chin and said, "Maybe you could try generating electricity yourself. Power plants make good money, and oil prices will keep rising."

"Is that actually viable?"

Quicksilver blinked. Driven nearly mad by poverty, he did not want to miss any chance to make money—he had agreed to those terms partly because he was broke anyway. If he had no money, what difference did it make whether he owed hundreds of billions? "Figure it out yourself."

Wang Bert smiled, returned to the White House to work, and incidentally began considering when to resign.

I’m worth hundreds of billions. Why the hell am I working this hard? In the blink of an eye, seven days passed. The immense damage Magneto had caused gradually settled down. That day, at the Rebirth Group Mutant Prison, Wang Bert brought Pietro, the Professor, and Raven to visit the imprisoned Magneto.

Along the way, Pietro kept staring at the Professor. He could not help asking, "Professor, is that really you?"

"Of course it’s me. I told you, when I was young, I was known as a beauty."

The younger Professor ran a hand through his hair with a smile. It was worth noting that he was still in a wheelchair. His psychic power was too strong, compressing his Spinal Nerves and leaving him unable to walk.

"With that face, you could become a star."

Thinking of something, Quicksilver’s eyes lit up. "Professor, how about we debut as a group? I hear superstars make a lot of money."

"Pietro."

The Professor did not know whether to laugh or cry. His old friend’s son had completely fallen into the money pit lately. In the past, he might have been able to subsidize him a little, but now he was just as poor.

At that moment, they arrived in front of Magneto’s cell. Wearing white clothes and a wristband, Magneto looked incredibly old. He looked at the group and slowly asked, "Is it time?"

"Yes, Magneto. I’ll completely strip away your memories and powers, turning you into an ordinary old man. After that, you’ll be placed under residential surveillance."

Wang Bert said, "You should thank Pietro. You’re receiving such lenient terms because he took on hundreds of billions in debt for you."

"Hundreds of billions in debt?"

Magneto froze. He looked at Pietro, and a trace of emotion flashed through his eyes. Yet on the surface, he coldly said, "Idiot. Why play by humanity’s rules? We’re mutants!"

"Old man, you really haven’t changed at all."

Quicksilver said unhappily, "Do you know how hard I work every day to make money? Hundreds of billions! I can’t even sleep peacefully now."

Magneto said, "I told you, that’s because you’re stupid. If you were smart enough, you would have broken in and rescued me. Then we could have fought the despicable humans together. As for paying money back, why should we pay for a city we destroyed with our own abilities?"

Quicksilver repeatedly shook his head. The old man truly was beyond saving. He said to Wang Bert, "Iron Man, I’ll leave it to you."

Magneto grabbed the plastic fence and shouted, "Iron Man, you may defeat me, but you can’t defeat mutants! Another me will rise to lead mutants against humanity!"

"I won’t allow that to happen."

Wang Bert could not be bothered to say more to Magneto. He turned to the Professor and said, "Honestly, if it weren’t for a special reason, I would rather kill Magneto outright. Whenever I watched movies before, I hated those plots where the protagonist captured the enemy but refused to kill them."

The Professor smiled. "I’m curious. What kind of charm does Erik’s daughter have that even you like her so much?"

"She’s the most perfect woman."

Wang Bert smiled and continued, "To prevent a repeat of last time, I’ll completely strip Magneto of his powers. That way, even if someone rescues him again in the future, he won’t be able to stir up any trouble."

"Mutant powers can be stripped away?"

Everyone was stunned. The Professor asked, "Bert, wouldn’t it be better to use the Leech and turn him back into an ordinary person?"

"That Leech doesn’t work permanently. Even if it did, there would still be ways to reverse it."

Wang Bert said, "I’ll completely strip Magneto of his powers, in a way that can never be restored. Professor, the reason I’m telling you so much is because I want to give Magneto’s powers to you."

"Give Erik’s powers to me?"

The Professor was stunned. "Mutant powers can be transferred?"

"They can, as long as Mystique’s genes are used for neutralization."

Wang Bert nodded. "Professor, although you want to retire, you know about the Celestial Group. I need help. After you merge with Magneto’s powers, there’s a very high chance you’ll become an Omega-Level Mutant."

The Professor thought for a moment, then turned to Magneto and asked, "Erik, are you willing to let me use your powers?"

"Does it matter if I’m unwilling?"

Magneto snorted. After a moment of silence, he said, "It’s better to give this power to you than to someone else. At the very least, you’ll wholeheartedly protect mutants."

"Then I won’t stand on ceremony."

The Professor took a deep breath and said, "Bert, I agree. It’ll also let me earn some retirement money. Pietro, I’ll help you bear part of the debt."

Quicksilver’s eyes lit up. "Really? Professor, you’re amazing. You’re way more reliable than that old man."

Magneto’s expression darkened slightly. He said, "I don’t mind becoming an ordinary person, but I don’t want to live with Pietro, Lorna, and the others. Staying with them would probably shorten my life by at least ten years. Just throw me into some nursing home."

Quicksilver was deeply dissatisfied. "Old man, do you have any conscience at all? I took on hundreds of billions in debt for you! Hundreds of billions! Do you know how many pairs of running shoes that could buy?"

"That isn’t up to you. In fact, if you died from anger, the whole world would cheer."

Wang Bert snorted. He stopped wasting time and raised his hand. A transparent sphere of light appeared out of thin air in his palm. Immediately afterward, it flew into Magneto’s body. Magneto let out a painful cry, feeling something immensely important being stripped away.

Soon, the transparent sphere turned into a Blood-Colored Light Sphere and flew out of Magneto’s body. Magneto collapsed to the floor and passed out.

Quicksilver, who had just been arguing with Magneto, immediately panicked and wanted to go inside to check on him, but he did not have the key.

Wang Bert ignored Quicksilver. He controlled the Blood-Colored Light Sphere as it floated out, sent a thread of Special Aura into it, then pointed a finger. The Blood-Colored Light Sphere flew straight into the Professor’s body, and the Professor felt his body swelling.

"Ah!" Suddenly, the Professor let out a roar and floated into the air. Then every metal object around them began to shake violently.

In the Professor’s eyes, everything around him suddenly changed. There were no people, no ground, no buildings—only magnetic fields. More importantly, he could freely control those magnetic fields and alter them at will.

From this moment on, I am Magneto.

The thought flashed through the Professor’s mind. The surroundings immediately returned to normal, and the Professor fell from the air, drenched in sweat, landing back in his wheelchair.

Raven hurriedly checked on the Professor. He waved his hand to signal that he was fine, then said, "Bert, Erik’s power has merged smoothly with mine, but I’ll need some time before I can fully master it."

Wang Bert smiled. "With your wisdom and experience, Professor, there definitely won’t be a problem."

Seeing that the transfer was complete, Quicksilver hurriedly asked, "Iron Man, can I go in and see that old man now?"

"Not yet. I’ll modify his memories first. Once that’s done, you can take him home and care for him properly."

Wang Bert said, "Without his powers, even if someone rescues him, even if he regains his memories, he won’t pose a threat anymore."

Quicksilver said worriedly, "Can’t you modify his memories next time? He doesn’t look too good."

"Modifying memories has nothing to do with the body."

Wang Bert shook his head. Using the Professor’s ability, he altered Magneto’s memories and slightly changed his appearance.

Very soon, "Magneto" disappeared. All that remained was the ordinary old man Erik, a bad-tempered old geezer whose children had thoroughly screwed him over.

Wang Bert then opened the fence and said to Quicksilver, "Once you complete the paperwork, you can take Erik away."

"Okay, Iron Man. Thank you."

Quicksilver was overjoyed and hurried inside to check on Erik.

After finishing that matter, Wang Bert said to Mystique Raven, "Raven, do you want to become an ordinary person again?"

"Yes, I’m tired. I want to inject the Leech and become an ordinary person again."

Raven nodded. "It doesn’t matter even if it isn’t permanent. I won’t use my Shapeshifting Ability again."

Wang Bert hesitated for a moment, then said, "Your ability is very special. If you awaken your potential and complete your genes, you might become an Omega-Level Mutant."

"I can become an Omega-Level Mutant too?"

Raven was stunned. Since when had Omega-Level Mutants become so common? Wang Bert nodded. "Yes. Your Mutant Gene is very unusual. Once completed, it can imitate other mutant genes, just like a Sentinel Robot."

Raven hesitated. After a moment, she shook her head. "I’m tired. I don’t want to keep fighting. Iron Man, please forgive me."

"That’s a pity, but I respect your choice."

Wang Bert said. This was not something that could be forced, nor was there any need to force it.

Raven said, "Thank you."

That matter came to an end. As for what would happen to Quicksilver and Erik in the future, that was their own business. Magneto had completely disappeared.

In the blink of an eye, another seven days passed. That day, at the Rebirth Group Training Ground, Wang Bert summoned the Professor, Wade, Wolverine, Psylocke, Iceman, Shadowcat, Yuriko, Quicksilver, and Leech.

Wade asked, "BOSS, what are your orders?"

Wang Bert smiled. "No rush. First, let me tell you some history—history related to the Celestial Group."

"The Celestial Group?"

Most of them were confused. Wang Bert did not waste words and briefly introduced the Celestial Group. "The reason mutants were born is because the Celestial Group experimented on primitive humans…"

Wolverine frowned. "So we’re all experimental subjects?"

"You could say that."

Wang Bert nodded. "Since the Celestial Group conducted the experiment, they’ll naturally return to inspect the results. Unless something unexpected happens, They’ll descend soon. At that time, every Elite Mutant will be one of Their targets."

Wade shouted, "They can forget it! We mutants aren’t livestock. If They want to capture mutants, They’ll have to step over my corpse first!"

Everyone was speechless. You were not even a mutant, okay? Why were you shouting so loudly and righteously?

"That’s why I summoned you all. Every one of you has extraordinary potential. I want to give you special training so that you’ll possess the strength to contend with the Celestial Group."

Wang Bert smiled. The Mutant God naturally needed followers, and the Celestial Group had many members. Wang Bert needed others to help share the burden.

"Contend with the Celestial Group?"

Everyone could not help frowning, including Wade and Psylocke. The Professor said, "Bert, based on what you said, the Celestial Group is stronger than Apocalypse. I’m one thing—after merging with Erik’s powers, I can barely fight Apocalypse—but the gap between them and Apocalypse is far from small."

Everyone nodded, especially Leech. He was nearly scared to tears. Fighting was already terrifying enough for him, let alone fighting the Celestial Group.

"Don’t worry. Everyone I selected has enough potential. We’ll go one by one."

Wang Bert smiled. "First is Wade. I’ll help you contain as many superpowers as possible. When the time comes, you’ll undergo a qualitative transformation. Even against Apocalypse, you’ll be able to fight."

Wade was delighted, then immediately declared his loyalty. "BOSS, whatever you say goes. I’ll definitely follow you."

"Very good."

Wang Bert nodded in satisfaction, then said, "Next are Wolverine and Yuriko. You both possess healing abilities. I’ll inject Romulus’s powers into your bodies. By then, both your healing abilities and your overall strength will rise dramatically."