The private jet landed at a manor in northern New York State.
Levi stepped down the gangway, with Sean and Angel following behind him.
Charles was already waiting at the entrance. Beside his wheelchair stood Jean, her gaze complicated as she looked at Levi.
"Welcome back," Charles said, his eyes shifting to Sean and Angel.
"They need training," Levi said. "I'll stay a few days and teach them the basics."
"You still won't stay?"
"I have something more important to do." Levi looked into the distance. "Egypt."
Charles turned his wheelchair slightly, his mental power probing outward—only to be blocked by an invisible barrier. He sighed.
"What are you looking for?"
"An old relic who's been sleeping for thousands of years," Levi said without hiding it. "Apocalypse."
Charles's expression changed.
"That's just a legend."
"He exists," Levi cut him off. "And he's about to wake up. I need to prepare."
Charles fell silent. He knew Levi's temperament—once he decided something, he wouldn't change it.
"What do you plan to do?"
"Find him first. Then we'll see." Levi walked into the manor. "I'll stay three days. After I finish training them, I'll leave."
For the next three days, Levi stayed in the training room.
He helped Sean stabilize his sonic waves, making their output more precise. He also guided Angel, teaching her how to better utilize her wings and acidic projectiles.
Jean often stood outside the training room watching, her eyes filled with both awe and confusion.
On the evening of the third day, after training ended, Jean stopped him.
"You're really going to Egypt?"
"Yeah."
"Apocalypse might be more dangerous than you think." There was worry in her voice.
"I know." Levi looked at her. "But I need his ability."
Jean bit her lip.
"If you run into trouble, come back. The school will always have your back."
Levi didn't respond. He turned and walked away.
Early the next morning, he flew alone to Egypt.
After landing in Cairo, Levi rented an off-road vehicle and drove into the desert.
His mental force swept across the sands like radar, while the Law of Space searched for energy signatures. He was looking for an ancient power source buried beneath thousands of years of sand.
Three days later, the vehicle stopped at a set of ruins two hundred kilometers from the city.
He had found it.
His mental power locked onto a dormant energy source deep underground—ancient, sinister, yet strangely alluring.
"Found you," Levi murmured.
He raised his hand. Spatial energy gathered in his palm, tearing open a fissure that led directly to the underground tomb.
Levi jumped in.
Space laws formed a tunnel around him. Sand and rock parted automatically, then sealed behind him.
After descending about fifty meters, he landed in a massive stone chamber.
The air reeked of decay and death. Ancient Egyptian murals covered the walls, depicting a blue-skinned giant ruling the world.
At the center of the chamber lay a massive stone sarcophagus atop an altar, surrounded by a complex energy array.
Levi cautiously extended his mental force into the sarcophagus, sensing the dormant existence within.
Apocalypse.
The first mutant—alive for thousands of years, possessing countless abilities.
His body slowly regenerated in sleep, awaiting his next awakening.
[Detected multiple ability sources. Please select a target for copying.]
A list of abilities flooded Levi's mind: super strength, immortality, super speed, molecular manipulation, energy control… each one S-tier. But he only had one choice.
He already had super strength. Immortality as well. Speed and endurance were more than sufficient. As for energy control and force fields—his Law Domain already covered those.
Only one stood out.
Molecular Manipulation.
He had never encountered this ability before.
It allowed restructuring matter at the molecular level—altering form and properties, even rewriting a person's physical structure. It was dangerously close to conceptual-level power, with limitless potential.
"That's the one."
Levi placed his hand on the sarcophagus. His mental force seeped in like threads, establishing a shallow connection with Apocalypse's consciousness core. He had no intention of waking him—just extracting a fragment from his ability source.
[Copying ability: Molecular Manipulation]
[Rank: S+]
Levi's mind expanded.
He saw atomic structures, molecular arrangements, the entire process of matter transformation.
The complexity far exceeded his expectations.
Ten minutes later, the copy was complete.
Levi withdrew his hand and took a deep breath. He felt subtle changes within his internal law system. This new "key" of molecular manipulation deepened his understanding of reality distortion laws.
He didn't leave immediately. Instead, he studied the energy array around the chamber.
At its core was a countdown mechanism, drawing geothermal and solar energy to charge Apocalypse.
At the current rate, Apocalypse would naturally awaken in just a few hours.
"Can't let him wake up so easily."
Levi needed Apocalypse—but not now. At least not before he had fully mastered molecular manipulation.
More importantly, Apocalypse still had other abilities worth copying—such as his amplification ability, which could enhance other mutants' powers.
But copying required cooldown. Until then, Apocalypse had to remain asleep.
Levi raised his hand. Spatial energy condensed in his palm.
Around the original array, he constructed an even more complex sealing barrier.
A Spatial Lock, cutting off external energy.
A Temporal Lock, slowing time within the chamber.
A Mental Lock, suppressing Apocalypse's consciousness.
With the triple-layer seal complete, the chamber's energy fluctuations dropped to a minimum. Satisfied, Levi left a tiny spatial coordinate mark on the sarcophagus, allowing him to monitor Apocalypse at any time.
Just as he was about to leave, a faint fluctuation came from within the sarcophagus.
Apocalypse's subconscious had detected the intrusion and was attempting to awaken.
"Troublesome," Levi muttered.
He hadn't expected such sharp awareness. If left unchecked, Apocalypse could break through the seal within hours.
Levi took a deep breath and made a risky decision.
He pressed his hand back onto the sarcophagus. His mental force surged in like a tidal wave, directly striking Apocalypse's consciousness core.
Apocalypse's mental world was a barren desert beneath a blood-red sun.
"Intruder." A deep, ancient voice echoed from all directions. "You dare trespass upon a god's domain?"
Levi ignored him.
Countless phantom projections of Apocalypse rose from the الرمال dunes, rushing toward him. As the first one reached him, Levi's mental force erupted like an invisible blade, slicing it apart instantly.
"Interesting," the voice sounded again, now tinged with curiosity. "Your mental power is strong—but in my domain, you are still just an intruder."
The desert trembled. Black tendrils burst from the ground, writhing toward Levi. He blocked them with spatial laws, but they multiplied endlessly, regenerating as they pressed in.
Levi frowned.
Within Apocalypse's mental world, the opponent held the home-field advantage. If this dragged on, his mental energy would eventually run dry.
He needed a more direct approach.
"If this is your domain," Levi said quietly, "then let me show you what real power looks like."
He closed his eyes. Ten laws within him resonated simultaneously.
Space. Power. Time. Mind. Reality. Life. Death. Soul. Devouring. Physique.
The ten forces intertwined into a vast net, rapidly expanding to cover the entire mental world.
Apocalypse's domain began to collapse.
The projections screamed and disintegrated. The black tendrils withered, losing their regenerative ability. The blood-red sun dimmed, cracks spreading across the sky.
"Impossible!" Apocalypse's voice wavered for the first time. "How can you wield so many laws? What are you?"
"Someone more greedy than you," Levi said, opening his eyes with a cold gleam.
He raised his hand. The ten laws condensed into an invisible spear, aimed directly at Apocalypse's consciousness core.
"Now—go back to sleep."
The spear shot forward, piercing through layers of defense. A thunderous explosion echoed through the mental world as everything collapsed.
Levi's consciousness was forcibly expelled. He snapped his eyes open, still standing in the stone chamber, his hand pressed against the sarcophagus.
The energy fluctuations within had completely stilled.
Apocalypse had fallen back into deep slumber.
Levi exhaled, withdrawing his hand. Sweat covered his forehead—the mental clash had drained him considerably.
He cast one last glance at the sarcophagus before stepping into the spatial rift.
When Apocalypse awakens, he will be the perfect catalyst to trigger the Phoenix Force within Jean.
Before that… I'll squeeze every last bit of value out of you.
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