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Chapter 176 - Chapter 176: Invitation

Boom...

The massive planet-class battleship made a catastrophic emergency landing on the ground, causing the earth to shake violently with tremendous force, dust and sand filling the air in thick clouds, creating a scene that resembled the apocalyptic end of the world.

On the highway near the emergency landing site, Rhodes and Sam worked together to direct the civilian cars on the road to turn around immediately and leave the dangerous area as quickly as possible.

Elsewhere on the makeshift settlement grounds, with the efficient cooperation of Steve, Natasha, and Barton, Black Bolt and the Royal Family were busy arranging for the displaced Inhumans to receive the emergency supplies sent by S.H.I.E.L.D. and temporarily settle down in this wilderness location. With the helpful cooperation of some Inhumans who possessed unique abilities, they soon established a surprisingly large settlement. Tents of all sizes were quickly set up across the ground, giving the area the appearance of a substantial village that had sprung up overnight.

Steve stood alongside Black Bolt and Medusa and said with diplomatic care, "Black Bolt, I have absolutely no intention of interfering in your Inhumans' internal affairs or governance. It is just that your Inhuman caste system is truly backward by modern standards. In fact, if it were not for this backward and oppressive caste system, this entire rebellion would never have occurred in the first place."

Black Bolt nodded slightly in acknowledgment at Steve's honest words and waved his hand in a specific gesture. Medusa immediately understood his meaning perfectly and said on his behalf, "My king understands the inherent backwardness of the caste system and wishes to learn about the governmental history of Earth's various nations. I wonder if you could share that knowledge with us."

Black Bolt was truly a wise and perceptive monarch. After arriving on Earth, he had quickly learned about the various forms of government that existed and naturally understood that the rigid caste system, which his Inhumans had always strictly adhered to, was a relic of the past. Any truly civilized nation had long since abandoned this ridiculous and oppressive system.

Only those nations that still clung to barbarism and willful ignorance at their core had been slow to abandon the cruel torment of the caste system.

However, due to the Inhumans of the Afterlife settlement and his complicated relationship with Jiaying, Black Bolt had not fully understood the complete situation until now. Now, with this opportunity presenting itself, and Steve having received specific instructions from certain influential individuals to relay particular words to Black Bolt, the Inhuman king seized the opportunity and began seriously considering implementing sweeping reforms.

After all, Attilan on the moon had been completely and utterly destroyed, and rebuilding it in that location was now impossible. They had no choice but to settle permanently on Earth, where they naturally would seek allies and assistance from the established powers. Therefore, the Inhumans could not maintain their original outdated system and had to find ways to integrate with Earth's societies and complete necessary reforms.

S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and members of the Avengers worked together to retrieve the surviving Kree soldiers from the crashed warship's wreckage. Each of them was securely shackled with specially crafted S.H.I.E.L.D. handcuffs and leg irons that were specifically designed for restraining super-powered individuals.

The remaining Kree were few in number, only about twenty or so survivors. Among them was Yon-Rogg, their commanding officer. He followed along with the other Kree prisoners as they were herded into the secure prisoner transport plane. Each transport plane was accompanied by a flying Avenger to ensure the prisoners would not attempt to escape.

Sebastian had never had any real interest in dealing with these tedious aftermath situations. He said a brief word to Tony and went straight over to where Black Bolt was standing.

Without allowing Medusa to follow along, Sebastian simply walked to the other side of the settlement with Black Bolt alone.

With a slight wave of his wand, an invisible magical barrier fell into place around them, effectively blocking out all prying eyes and preventing any sounds from escaping. At the same time, Sebastian pointed his wand again with precision, and a faint red light connected Sebastian and Black Bolt's minds directly.

"Black Bolt, my magic connects our subconscious minds together. We can communicate directly without speaking aloud."

"I... I really can speak this way..."

"Have you not tried this method of communication before?"

"In recent years, there are very few individuals with psychic abilities among the Inhumans living in Attilan."

The only significant psychic ability belonged to Black Bolt's younger brother Maximus, who had now escaped to an unknown location.

"Black Bolt, if there are no unexpected exceptions, your people will settle down on Earth permanently and eventually form an independent nation of Inhumans, correct?"

Looking directly at Sebastian with his intense gaze, Black Bolt nodded slowly and said through their mental connection, "Yes, we plan to build our own sovereign country here on Earth. Although every inch of land on Earth now belongs to a different established country, we can use some of Attilan's unique advanced technology to purchase an island large enough for our population. I have already confirmed this possibility with Mr. Tony Stark, and he has agreed to help us with the negotiations."

"Buying an island is an extremely smart choice. This approach avoids the complicated borders of different countries and can help you avoid many potential problems. I believe you also understand what a country and race that are all super-powered, or have the potential to become super-powered, and can continue to reproduce and pass on super-powered abilities to their children, means to ordinary humanity. Otherwise, you would not have chosen to build your own isolated country on an island, correct?"

Hearing this perceptive observation, Black Bolt once again became the calculating leader of the Inhumans, the king of Attilan. He nodded to Sebastian and said cautiously, "Yes, that is exactly right, but you should not say these sensitive words so casually, should you?"

"Of course not. I am here specifically to invite you to join an organization I have temporarily set up. The core concept of this organization is mutual benefit, resource exchange, and mutual protection among members. I can guarantee that as long as you join us, even if humans ever have any hostile ideas about you Inhumans, the other members can help you perfectly solve any Inhuman crisis that arises."

"Why should I believe you and your promises? How do I know you do not simply want to use the Inhumans for your own purposes?" Black Bolt's expression remained completely noncommittal, and it was impossible to tell what he was truly thinking behind his stoic face.

"I have taken advantage of you Inhumans in this crisis, and you Inhumans can also take advantage of my magic school and its resources, Tony's vast wealth and his status as an Avenger, Reed Richards who is the smartest man in the world, and Atlantis, the powerful kingdom under the deep sea which controls the ocean. Is that not enough benefit for you?"

"You are telling me all this now, but are you not afraid that I will refuse to join you and will leak information about your secret organization out to others?"

With a knowing chuckle, Sebastian said to Black Bolt confidently, "That is not a shameful organization that needs to hide. Of course, if you were to do that, I think you would definitely regret it deeply. Inhumans are actually a subspecies of humans that evolved from baseline humans through Kree experimentation. In the final analysis, they are still just humans at their core.

My magic is specifically designed to affect humans and their derivatives. Believe me when I say, even you cannot really last long under my magic if I were to attack you directly. Besides, even if I somehow cannot deal with you personally, your people definitely cannot resist my magic."

Black Bolt did not say much in response to Sebastian's words, which were obviously a direct threat. For the leader of a country, carefully judging the situation and striving for maximum benefits are the main priorities. As for personal disgust or other petty emotional problems, they are all largely irrelevant and unnecessary considerations.

Sebastian's words sounded overtly threatening on the surface, but they were actually completely true. He was simply explaining his bargaining chips to Black Bolt clearly, and Black Bolt obviously understood Sebastian's words perfectly and fell into deep thought about the proposal.

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