"Boss, what exactly was that ability you just used?" Logan asked, his voice low and riddled with confusion as he stared intently at Huang Wen. He wasn't just asking about teleportation; he was asking about the smooth, effortless, non-physical nature of the power. "You just popped out of existence and came back. Is that still considered martial arts in your world?"
"That was a fleeting demonstration of a secret technique rooted in the ancient ways of Chinese Taoism," Huang Wen explained with practiced vagueness, quickly changing the subject before Logan could press for specifics on his Shen power.
He then turned to Magneto and the others, his expression darkening with urgency. "We must move now. My sensory power briefly pierced their defenses. The two men in the wheelchairs—Charles and his hypnotist—are already nearing the Cerebro control console."
"A Taoist secret technique!" Zhong Qiang's eyes sparkled downstairs, back at the martial arts school. He couldn't help but gush to Reece Fisk,
"Brother Wen, this is utterly unbelievable! Is he truly evolving past mere martial arts and into some kind of cultivation for immortality? No, wait, it's not quite true immortality cultivation; those powers are meant to move mountains and oceans. This is still martial arts at its core, but… a mystical kind. It's a bridge between the mundane and the impossible!"
"What? That fast?!" Magneto's pupils contracted sharply at Huang Wen's chilling confirmation. He understood the gravity of the situation instantly; every second counted if Charles was already being moved into position. He nodded sharply, signaling the group to move with reckless speed.
"Nightcrawler is exhausted and needs to recover. Banner, John, what about you two? Are you coming?" Huang Wen glanced at the still-trembling Nightcrawler, then turned his attention to Bruce Banner and John Allerdyce (Pyro), who had remained behind with the others.
"Uh, is it alright if I pass?" Bruce Banner scratched his head, instinctively recoiling from the prospect of a violent confrontation with a military zealot. "I could stay here and… you know, look after the martial arts school for you…"
"You'll watch over the martial arts school…" Huang Wen's lips twitched almost imperceptibly. Given the destructive potential latent in Banner, if anything went wrong, Banner would probably end up helping Huang Wen dismantle the school with a single, furious swing.
"I want to go, Master! I need to see this through, and I want you to observe my powers!" John the Fireman was, by contrast, bursting with expressive enthusiasm. Though he and Bruce Banner were fellow students, John deeply felt that Huang Wen paid far more focused attention to Banner.
Learning that even a titan like Magneto had been easily subdued by Huang Wen—at least in John's excited interpretation—had pushed his admiration to a fever pitch. He desperately wanted to prove his own worth and perhaps even learn how to better control his abilities under Huang Wen's tutelage, even if the master hadn't started teaching him properly yet.
"Understood. Banner, you remain here. Just make sure you stay calm and don't overthink things. John, you'll join us," Huang Wen finally conceded. He then looked at Zhong Qiang and Reece Fisk. "Have you sent out the notification? As of today, only the apprentice-level students will continue their training. All other classes for general trainees are suspended until further notice—a maximum of five days."
"The notifications are out," Reece Fiskconfirmed, giving a quick, formal nod. "Teacher, please be extremely cautious."
"Yes, Brother Wen, you need to be careful! Don't let them catch you with any more weird technology!" Zhong Qiang finally snapped out of his silent awe and quickly chimed in.
"Relax, I've got this," Huang Wen smiled reassuringly, waving his hand dismissively.
With a second, silent flash, everyone—Huang Wen, Logan, Magneto, Jean Grey, Ororo, Mystique, Rogue, Iceman, and Pyro John—vanished into thin air, leaving only Nightcrawler, Bruce Banner, Zhong Qiang, and Riesfisk in the suddenly empty training hall.
"How… how did he do that?" Nightcrawler muttered, his eyes wide with a mixture of fatigue and utter disbelief. It was the first time he had encountered a person with an ability that mimicked and vastly exceeded his own spatial displacement, and it seemed to have no discernible limitation.
"Chinese culture runs deeper than any of you foreigners can imagine. What has been forgotten doesn't mean it ceased to exist!" Zhong Qiang declared, his expression excited and full of national pride. "I knew it! Brother Wen's family martial arts were never just simple fighting techniques!"
At this point, a slightly regretful thought crossed Zhong Qiang's mind. "What a shame! Brother Wen started his true martial path too late. Otherwise, Uncle Hong wouldn't have met such a terrible end. Or if Uncle Hong had possessed Brother Wen's talent, he might have practiced these arts himself… Wait a minute!"
A sudden, sharp realization flashed in Zhong Qiang's eyes. He quickly sat down right at the top of the stairs, acting as a wary, self-appointed guardian.
In Zhong Qiang's mind, since Huang Hong hadn't fully mastered these transcendent martial arts but Huang Wen had, there must be some kind of ancestral secret manual in the upstairs office. He absolutely could not allow any of these strange, powerful foreigners—even the apparently friendly Banner—to wander upstairs unsupervised.
"Buzz!"
At the desolate, metallic edge of Lake Alkali, the large group instantly materialized. This time, Huang Wen hadn't needed physical contact with anyone; the sheer scope of his Shen power, enhanced by the Rebirth Dragon Chapter, allowed him to anchor and transport the entire group simultaneously.
He could have simply dropped them miles away in an arctic wasteland or on an uninhabited desert island, leaving the conflict resolved without a fight. As long as the enemy lacked spatial abilities, they would never find him. The sheer utility of the Dream Butterfly Escape Technique was a profound realization for Huang Wen.
"That's… even more potent than Nightcrawler's power!" Magneto's gaze was sharp, unforgiving, and deeply analytical as he studied Huang Wen. His eyes lingered for a moment on the area of Huang Wen's chest beneath the tunic.
There, Magneto sensed a strange, subtle, yet powerful metallic texture he had never encountered before—an anomalous signature, almost like a piece of living, mysterious metal was integrated into the man's very essence.
"Where is the entrance?" Logan demanded, his claws already itching to spring out. "How do we get into that concrete hellhole?"
"I have a memory of some access tunnels, but they're likely heavily guarded and booby-trapped," Jean Grey admitted, her voice cautious as she accessed the mental blueprint gleaned from Nightcrawler.
"Well, now that we have arrived at the final destination, I assume Mr. Magneto has a more effective, direct plan to breach this facility?" Huang Wen deliberately turned and addressed the Master of Magnetism. He was subtly baiting him.
In the original timeline, Magneto relied on Mystique's stealth. Huang Wen was curious to see if the recent confrontation and the display of Dream Butterfly Escape Technique had wounded Magneto's pride enough to force a direct, overwhelming display of power.
Huang Wen was also intensely curious to observe Mystique's unique transformation ability up close. While Chinese martial arts possessed detailed disguise techniques, they were usually low-tech and relied on makeup and demeanor. Mystique's cellular transformation was on another level entirely, one that only the mythical disguise arts seen in stories like Qin's Moon might rival.
"Why would I waste time worrying about a hidden entrance? This entire fortress is made of iron and steel," Magneto declared, his voice booming with arrogant confidence, exactly as Huang Wen had hoped. He spread his arms wide, drawing upon the magnetic field of the entire planet. "How can mere metal possibly stop me?"
"Buzz!"
"Click-clack-CRRRACK!"
The ground beneath their feet began to tremble violently. The massive, concrete-and-steel façade of the subterranean base began to groan and shriek as colossal, invisible forces worked upon it.
Iron girders bent like wet noodles, titanium alloy plates tore apart like tissue paper, and concrete barriers were explosively pulverized by the immense compression of metal within their structures. A massive, ragged fissure, a yawning gateway into the earth, was violently ripped open by Magneto's terrifying power.
Huang Wen watched the spectacular display with keen interest. He was here to ensure that Magneto's focus remained on William Stryker. The Master of Magnetism was, after all, fully prepared to exploit this situation, having learned of Stryker's plan.
If Charles succeeded in killing all humans, the necessity for a peaceful coexistence, championed by Charles, would vanish. For Magneto, even Charles—as important as he was—could become a necessary sacrifice for the survival of the entire mutant race, which Magneto interpreted as replacing the human race.
Indeed, Magneto's ultimate, dark counter-plan was to reverse Jason Stryker's hypnotic programming, forcing Charles to use the massive power of Cerebro to wipe out the entire human population of Earth in a single, devastating psychic surge.
The resulting global psychic trauma would kill virtually everyone, leaving only a handful of super-powered individuals to potentially survive the fallout.
"Ding! Mission: Transport Magneto and the X-Men to Lake Alkali is complete. Reward: One draw for an Extraordinary ability!"
The system notification arrived just as the massive hole in the earth stabilized. Huang Wen quickly moved away from the group, pretending to adjust his clothes, and began the lottery with a slight sense of amusement at the timing.
A blinding, crisp white light, characteristic of the Extraordinary tier, flashed briefly across his mental view. The instantaneous nature of the result was always slightly anticlimactic, and Huang Wen felt a brief wave of disappointment that it wasn't a Legendary skill.
"Ding! Congratulations, you have acquired the Extraordinary skill: Frost and Fire Palm (derived from the peerless martial arts technique of the movie The Legendary Twins, also the divine skill that Jiang Yulang perfected.
After system optimization, this technique allows you to manifest absolute control over opposing thermal energies, wielding freezing Ice (Frost) in the left hand and searing Fire (Blaze) in the right. The two opposing Qi types can be fused into an incredibly destructive, self-reinforcing force)."
"Frost and Fire Palm? A fusion of elemental energies. That's unexpectedly useful and versatile," Huang Wen murmured to himself, a slight smirk playing on his lips as he glanced over at the two elemental mutants standing nearby.
"You're in luck, John. I might have just found a good way to motivate you."