Chapter 328

"Hey, Shadow! Attack his left flank! Watch his right foot's center of gravity—don't miss!"

In the center of the training ground, the black-haired girl controlling the shadows finally snapped. She stopped moving and glared at Cyclops. "Don't call me Shadow. I'll be eligible for my driver's license in a year! Call me Shadow Woman!"

In the instant she spoke, a red-and-blue figure shot past her side with a whoosh. The girl nicknamed Shadow instinctively dodged—and was knocked to the ground. Spider-Man immediately pulled her up. "Sorry."

Shadow shot Cyclops an irritated glance. "I lost. Let Crystal take over."

Meanwhile, Colossus was briefing Crystal on tactics. "Don't stress. Just unleash your full potential."

Though Colossus looked immensely strong, his voice and tone were gentle. The girl facing him had silver hair and looked young, her expression shy and hesitant. She nodded slowly, then walked slowly to the center of the training ground.

Spider-Man winked. "You're sure she's sixteen? She looks way too small and frail. I can't bully a kid..."

Before Spider-Man finished speaking, the silver-haired girl Crystal's hair whipped through the air. A continuous cascade of sharp cracking sounds filled the room. In a single second, countless crystal clusters filled every corner. Spider-Man was trapped inside a massive crystal pillar, his face frozen in a comical expression.

Nick opened his mouth, but Shearer shook his head. "I learned from Charles that mutants don't grow stronger with age. On the contrary, some are strongest during adolescence, when they can't yet fully control their powers..."

"This is insane. Is Spider-Man okay?"

As Colossus finished speaking, a faint crackling sound began. Cracks spread across the surface of the crystal trapping Spider-Man.

Crystal extended her hand expressionlessly, clenched it gently, and a new layer of crystal formed around the pillar. She lifted her hand upward—layer upon layer of crystal wrapped upward, nearly piercing the training ground's ceiling.

After completing this, she withdrew her hand and stared at Spider-Man trapped inside the transparent crystal, her face still wearing that shy, curious expression—as if observing a doll in a display case.

"Enough, Crystal. You've won. Let him out. Otherwise he'll suffocate..." Colossus said to Crystal in the center of the training ground.

Crystal turned to look at Colossus—when suddenly, a loud bang echoed. Countless crystal shards exploded outward. Immediately, a red-and-blue figure lightly patted Crystal's shoulder and stood behind her. "Your power's awesome—so strong! I was way too careless..."

Crystal reflexively swiped her hand—Spider-Man dodged nimbly as crystal clusters erupted beneath his feet.

Colossus and Cyclops stared wide-eyed at each other. Colossus asked, "Spider-boy, what's your strength limit?"

"I don't know. Never been tested. But it's pretty high—I've ripped down streetlights and bridge pillars without breaking a sweat..."

"Could you come to our school for a physical exam? You understand—we're dedicated to collecting data on all kinds of mutants..."

"Alright, but I'm not sure you'll find anything strong enough to handle my upper limit."

"That's a problem," Cyclops murmured, stroking his chin. "Crystal's crystal clusters are extremely hard. Neither extreme heat nor cold can break them. Destroying them with pure physical strength is even harder."

"Can't your laser beams break them?" Crystal spoke up. Her voice was soft, delicate—strikingly contrasting her immense power.

"That's only because your power hasn't been fully unlocked. Didn't Beast say? Once you fully master it, you'll be able to create dense, ultra-hard materials at will."

Next up was a Black boy. Before Spider-Man could ask about his ability, he launched into a rapid-fire rap: "My codename is Amplifier. Any energy passing through my body gets amplified. Too bad—I'm just a normal human. Can't handle too much power. That's it..."

He stepped down. The two observing teachers didn't scold him—this was, after all, a support ability.

In short, the sparring between Spider-Man and the mutant students ended. Aside from Crystal's display, the S. . . . . . team wasn't overly surprised—but Colossus and Cyclops were deeply stunned by Spider-Man's strength.

As they left the training ground, the others walked ahead. Colossus and Cyclops followed behind. Colossus shook his head. "That kid in the red-and-blue spandex? He's absurdly strong."

"And he's well-rounded—immense strength, incredible speed, precognitive danger sense. Scott, you know my biggest flaw? I'm too slow..."

Cyclops nodded as they walked. "True. And didn't you notice? His combat skills are top-tier. Damn, he's just a sixteen-year-old high schooler..."

"And he knows how to disrupt opponents with words during lulls in battle. That's rare—most kids at school just want to show off when they fight..."

"But that's good. He sets an example—shows the students there's always someone stronger, a higher ceiling. Didn't you see? Even Shadow, usually so arrogant, said nothing after he took her down."

"Exactly. With him and Captain America around, we just need to check in on their progress occasionally. That one-eyed guy might be shady, but Captain America's integrity is solid."

Saying this, the two quickened their pace and caught up to the children. "There's still plenty of work waiting for us at school. We'll be away for a while. Remember what we told you before leaving? During your internship, be sure to..."

"The Arrival of Heaven"

"Stay safe, be polite, control your power... Don't worry, we've got it. Go already," Shadow waved dismissively, impatient as any kid eager to be rid of teachers on a field trip.

After Colossus and Cyclops left, the students buzzed with excitement. Shadow hurried over to Spider-Man's side. "Do you know what mission we're going on? I've never been on one since I started school. My dad said missions are dangerous—is that true? Oh, by the way, he's a retired instructor—used to be in the Navy..."

She chattered on endlessly until Crystal tugged her arm. Amplifier stepped forward and bumped Peter's shoulder. "Ignore her. She's always like this—kinda neurotic..."

"Your mission hasn't been approved yet—the paperwork's on its way. Right now, let's head to the cafeteria. Follow me..." Steve said from the front.

Shearer and Nick remained in the observation room. Nick was about to speak when his phone rang. He answered: "... hat? A spaceship?... crashed spaceship?"

"Aliens on it? Colorful aliens? What are you talking about?... ooks like who? Venom? Isn't that a symbiote?"

"You're saying a spaceship just crashed over New Mexico, and several colorful, Venom-looking alien symbiotes stepped out?"

"Understood. I'm on my way."

Nick called Strange. Instantly, a portal opened. Strange used magic to transport them both to the crash site in New Mexico. Far off, thick black smoke curled upward.

The three approached and found a massive crater holding a strangely shaped spaceship. Several colorful symbiotes, resembling Venom dipped in a paint vat, stood around it, shaking their heads in dismay.

One smaller symbiote with six legs, yellow in color, approached them. Before Nick could speak, the symbiote addressed him in perfect English: "Hello. Are you the leader of humanity? I am Thunder, captain of the Cosmic Agents, from the Klinta star in the Andromeda Nebula. We require your assistance."

Nick stepped forward to shake hands—but Thunder resembled a spider, and Nick couldn't tell which limb to grasp.

The other three symbiotes stepped forward. The largest, green one, shook Nick's hand. "I'm Green Spike. This is Blue Spirit. He's Red Bee. We're all members of the Cosmic Agents—and also symbiotes, as you call them..."

"You're very different from the symbiotes I've met," Nick observed.

Red Bee covered his head. "If the symbiote you met was Venom, I must say—he's insane. We're the normal ones!"

Green Spike turned to Thunder. "I told you—we should issue a warrant for Venom. He's ruining our reputation across the cosmos..."

At that moment, Strange spoke: "I am the agent of the Sorcerer Supreme. As an alien race, you breached Earth's magical defense network and crashed onto its surface. From an interstellar diplomacy standpoint, you are illegal invaders..."

"Hey, wait—we were forced! Our ship was suddenly attacked by an unknown force—we had to make an emergency landing..."

"Come with us first," Nick gestured. The symbiotes glanced back at their nearly shattered ship, sighed, and followed Nick.

Shearer and Strange walked last. Strange lowered his voice. "This is what you meant by nature's gift?"

"Yes. Thanks to Hela, nature."

Strange sucked in a breath. "Hela brought them down?"

"Don't be absurd. He was aiming for Loki."

"Then how did Loki... Oh, you did this, didn't you? You're despicable."

"Likewise."

————EXTRA NOTES————

Here we go again.