Chapter 105: 104. The Female Thief Who Stole Things
A familiar Military Base.
Hammer elegantly wiped the corners of his mouth and glanced indifferently at the researchers in front of him.
With his hands behind his back, he paced back and forth before them without saying a word.
Invisible pressure filled the room. The researchers were dripping with cold sweat, not daring to breathe too loudly, fearing they would provoke this mentally unstable boss and lose their jobs.
Hammer let out a sigh, his voice low and raspy. "I gave you the best benefits, the most advanced equipment, and the complete technology obtained from Stark."
"And what is the result?"
He swept his gaze coldly across the crowd, a flash of tyrannical killing intent in his eyes. "The result is that you could only create a piece of trash with less than a third of the original armor's performance! And you can't even find the reason!"
His voice suddenly rose. "Tell me, should I just kill all of you!"
As his words fell, everyone's expressions changed drastically, and a loud clamor broke out. Someone couldn't help but speak up: "No way, Boss, we're just employees. Even if we can't build it, it's not a capital offense, right? At most, you can fire us. If you keep this up, we're calling the police."
Hearing this, Hammer's expression froze, looking a bit embarrassed. How did he let his inner thoughts slip out?
He coughed twice to hide his embarrassment. "Ahem, I was joking. It was just to get you to perk up."
Ever since undergoing several trials from General Janssen, Hammer felt his thoughts becoming increasingly extreme. He felt like killing people at every turn, and sometimes even felt like eating them.
Instead of being worried, he felt a surge of excitement.
Because General Janssen said this was a precursor to the descent of divine power.
It was only natural for a god to despise ants.
Once the god descended, he would become a god among men, possessing incredible power and doing whatever he pleased.
When that time came, he would first kill that bodyguard whose identity information couldn't be found.
If that bodyguard hadn't pulled Stark away, how could he have fallen to the ground and suffered so much?
Then he would kill Stark too; a guy with such a foul mouth didn't deserve to live.
After that, he would unify the World and build the greatest divine kingdom for the noble god!
As he thought about it, Hammer's eyes gradually glazed over, and the corners of his mouth curled up. He stood there giggling to himself like an idiot, oblivious to everyone else.
"Hehehe—"
Everyone present:
They exchanged glances, feeling more and more that this boss was seriously ill.
Maybe he was driven mad by Stark. One moment he was like a homicidal maniac, and the next he was like a total idiot. He was practically schizophrenic!
Just as they were hesitating whether to remind him, someone sharp-eyed saw Janssen walking toward them and quickly shouted, "General!"
The shout of "General" snapped Hammer out of his trance. He wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth and hurried to meet him with a fawning expression, as if he were seeing his own father. "General! You're here!"
Seeing Hammer like this, Janssen felt a surge of joy. "The influence I've exerted is working better and better. It seems I can try to control those few old fogies and take over the entire Military first."
Then he said solemnly, "Is there still no progress on the armor production?"
Hammer smiled forcedly and shook his head. "No progress. No matter what, it only has less than a third of the original performance. Stark must have tampered with it."
"Humph!"
Janssen snorted coldly. He didn't want to talk more about that issue, simply stating, "I'll set the armor matter aside for now. First, find out who the mole was that attacked me!"
As his voice fell, a squad of soldiers immediately rushed in from outside, their dark gun barrels aimed at all the researchers.
Only now did these researchers understand why they had been gathered—it was to find a mole. They couldn't help but look at each other.
In fact, they had checked the system dozens of times and there were no traces of intrusion.
All systems were running normally; it was simply impossible for someone to control the armor through the system.
There was even a joke in the team that if someone could do such a thing, they would eat an armor suit raw!
At the time, they unanimously believed Hammer did it. After all, their boss didn't seem like a normal person, and he was the only one wearing the armor at the time.
But now the General wanted to find a mole among them, which left them completely bewildered and terrified. Some even nearly wet their pants—was this going to be a mass execution to silence them?
Was a TV drama plot becoming reality?
Janssen had already used the god's power to rule out Hammer's suspicion, so any other mole could only be among the operators behind the scenes.
Seeing no one answer, he shook his head. "Leniency for those who confess, severity for those who resist. I am giving you a chance now, otherwise, face the consequences!"
The scene was deathly silent; still, no one answered.
Janssen sneered and waved his hand. A mysterious person wearing a mask and dressed entirely in black stepped out from behind the soldiers.
"This is our cyber expert. He will analyze the armor's operating system. Whatever step is found to be abnormal, I will find the person responsible for that step."
The researchers present remained silent, some even with disdain in their eyes.
Every profession has its specialty; did they really think they couldn't find an abnormality if there was one?
The problem was that there was no abnormality at all!
They now suspected if there was some shady deal between Janssen and Hammer. Even with his hand broken, he was still protecting him.
"Do it!" Janssen stopped wasting words and gave the order.
The soldiers behind him pushed forward the scarred suit of armor.
The cyber expert immediately stepped forward, took out his portable equipment, and connected it to the armor's interface.
Hammer also leaned in. He wanted to see exactly who was framing him. Once found, he would definitely torture them to death!
Janssen watched all the researchers with a cold eye.
The researchers held their breath as they watched the expert's movements.
For a moment, the room was silent, terrifyingly quiet, with various emotions intertwined.
There was fear, confidence, anger, and disdain. And, of course, a playful mockery coming from very far away.
Everyone present was waiting to see what the final result would be.
However—
The moment the data cable was plugged in and the armor's chest arc reactor lit up, something unbelievable happened!
The armor moved!
No one was inside!
No one was controlling it from the backend!
It moved on its own!
The armor raised its arm, curled its Five Fingers into a tight fist, and then smashed it down heavily. A dull thud seemed to echo in the air!
*Splat!*
Like the sound of a watermelon being smashed, Hammer, who was standing right in front of the armor, was struck squarely by the iron fist.
His head exploded instantly. Flesh and blood flew everywhere, and red and white matter splashed in all directions. A thick bloody scent mixed with a strange stench filled the air in an instant.
In the blink of an eye, Hammer had become a headless corpse, as dead as could be.
The scene fell into a bizarre silence, which then erupted in an instant.
"Ahhh! Murder!"
"Run!"
"The armor has come to life!"
"I don't want to eat the armor!"
The scene instantly turned into chaos as everyone scattered and fled.
Janssen was ushered away by the soldiers who had finally reacted.
His face was covered in red and white matter. He instinctively licked a bit, his eyes flashing with a morbid pleasure.
But then he realized Hammer had been killed right in front of him, and he was instantly consumed by rage, roaring at the top of his lungs: "Who! Who was it! Who did this!!"
"Investigate!!! Investigate!!!"
"Don't let anyone off!!!"
At this moment, inside the Villa.
Loya lay on the sofa, looking at the screen of his hacker phone, which showed the soldiers throwing several grenades to destroy the armor. A satisfied smile appeared on his face.
"Since you, dog Hammer, hired an assassin to kill me, I'll send you straight to heaven."
With the hacker phone, the networked unmanned armor Hammer built was no different from a gift. Loya only needed to move his finger to control the armor and take him out.
He had originally planned to go there himself, but he didn't expect them to start some mole-hunting operation. Well, he wasn't going to pass up such a great opportunity.
As for who the killer was, let Janssen keep guessing. He wouldn't figure it out in a lifetime.
In fact, if it hadn't been for Hammer's mental instability and him putting a hit on him, Loya really wouldn't have bothered with such a minor character who didn't even trigger a quest. Unfortunately, some people just go looking for death.
"Well, now I can go finish Fury's task."
Loya put away the hacker phone and stretched.
Then, donning the invisibility cloak, he activated his telekinesis and Wind-Riding Powers simultaneously, and his entire being vanished from the spot.
Soon, he arrived at an abandoned factory area in Queens that had recently been purchased.
According to the information from S.H.I.E.L.D., the Life Foundation's laboratory was underground in this area. The one who bought this area was a real estate company secretly supported by the Life Foundation to act as a front.
Loya circled above the factory area, made a brief observation, and then landed next to an abandoned small building a few hundred meters away.
The Life Foundation's underground laboratory was quite large; he had to start digging a tunnel from a bit further away.
Loya selected a position, took out the diamond pickaxefrom his system space, and began swinging it rapidly toward the ground, his arms moving so fast they left afterimages.
The enchanted diamond pickaxe was several times faster at digging than before.
Before long, he had dug a tunnel over a hundred meters deep.
Loya changed direction and continued digging straight ahead. After another few hundred meters, he suddenly stopped with a speechless expression.
"Damn! I dug to the roof of the lab!"
"How is this lab so deep?"
That's right, the hundred-meter-deep tunnel Loya dug had actually only reached the top of the underground laboratory.
"They're really rich, building an underground lab this deep. Purely inhumane wealth."
Loya grumbled inwardly, then used the X-ray vision of the Death's Eye to dig down along the outer wall of the laboratory.
But before reaching the bottom, he saw through the wall two researchers—one tall and one short—wearing white lab coats, leaning against the wall, smoking and chatting.
Loya pondered for a moment and stopped his movements, preparing to eavesdrop for some intel and see how things stood.
"It's hard to believe. The lab is so deep underground, with all kinds of security, and yet classified experimental subjects could still be stolen. From what they say, it seems it was done by a woman. Truly ridiculous." The tall one took a puff of his cigarette with a sigh.
"Yeah."
The short one agreed, flicking his ash, looking a bit exasperated.
"And it was stolen during the day, with a large part of the data destroyed too. What are those security guards even for?"
"Because of that, we have to stay here late at night to repair the data."
The tall one shrugged, but he didn't look unhappy about the overtime. Instead, he smiled. "But it's fine. While we're on duty here, we can handle the corpses that died after the experiments. The internal organs are useless, but a skeleton can sell for at least a few thousand dollars. They're prime collectibles."
"Plus, it's overtime pay tacitly approved by the boss; no one can say anything. It's a bit tiring, but if we don't make more money now, life will be hard later."
The short one nodded, also smiling. "Yeah, if it weren't for that female thief, we wouldn't have this chance."
He took a final puff of his cigarette and urged, "There seem to be a dozen or so corpses in the lab. Smoke up quickly. After we finish, let's process the skeletons first, then go fix the data. Filling our wallets is the real priority."
With Loya's hearing, even through a wall, he could clearly hear their conversation.
Hearing this, he rubbed his chin, lost in thought.
"A woman? Stealing things?"
Loya's eyes narrowed.
"No way? Such a coincidence?"
Chapter 106: 105. Cat Goddess is in danger!
Loya remembered.
Not long ago, when Felicia and Cat Goddess left, they said they had spotted a good treasure and were going to gather information to prepare for the job.
He had always assumed it was some wealthy person's art collection, or perhaps a prized possession from a museum.
But now it seemed, that was highly unlikely.
The Life Foundation had been burgled, the thief was a woman, and she had managed to succeed under such tight security.
It was hard not to associate this with Felicia and her companion.
Although he didn't know why they would steal this, Loyawasn't too worried.
After all, they had already escaped with the items, which meant the symbiotes hadn't bonded with them and posed no threat at all.
Not to mention the people at the Life Foundation; Felicianot only had a physique far exceeding ordinary people, but she also had Cat Goddess by her side.
Furthermore, his mission didn't require him to bring the symbiotes back; destroying the laboratory directly would achieve the same result.
But since he was already here, Loya decided to go in and take a look.
He was still quite interested in the symbiotes; using them to feed Gulu would be a wonderful thing.
If Gulu could mimic the symbiotes and then mimic other abilities, wouldn't that become a multi-faceted biological armor? It would be a perfect utilization of Gulu's abilities.
So, he swung his pickaxe again and dug fiercely into the ground.
Before long, he arrived at the bottom of the laboratory.
Loya used his X-ray vision to look upward and quickly found the target room.
This room was covered by surveillance in all directions, with not a single blind spot.
Inside the room, seven special glass containers were placed, and even the floor of this room was a monolithic structure made of some kind of special alloy.
Outside the room, there were three alloy doors that required triple verification of password, fingerprint, and iris to open.
Clearly, with such tight protection, the things inside were the symbiotes.
Loya took out the "hacker phone" and hacked into the laboratory's internal system.
He changed the surveillance feed to a frozen image and ensured it wouldn't trigger an alarm.
He also copied all the data inside the entire laboratory; since the "hacker phone" had infinite storage, it would be a waste not to take it. Maybe he could use it to deal with Fury's missions in the future.
Then, he directly chiseled through the alloy floor with the "diamond pickaxe".
The one-meter-thick alloy floor was no different from mud in front of the "diamond pickaxe".
It had to be said that with the help of various items, his current infiltration ability was simply incredible.
Who could have imagined that someone could dig a tunnel over a thousand meters long in such a short time while silently hacking into a network security system?
After entering the room, Loya walked to the glass containers first.
When he saw the scene inside, his pupils constricted slightly.
"Why is there nothing here?"
Indeed, the glass containers were empty; there was nothing.
"Could it be that Felicia took them all?"
This was the only possibility Loya could think of.
But wouldn't seven symbiotes fight if they were put together?
Besides, since the symbiotes had already been stolen, why was the Life Foundation still guarding this place so tightly? Could they be waiting for someone to return?
While thinking, Loya placed a few TNTs in the room; to complete the mission, he still had to destroy this laboratory.
He jumped back into the tunnel and was just about to place TNTs in other rooms when his body suddenly paused, and his expression changed slightly.
"Seven symbiotes?"
"That doesn't seem right, does it?"
Loya frowned and suddenly recalled that according to the normal plot development, the Life Foundation should have obtained Venom and then used Venom to cultivate the other five symbiotes. There should only be a total of six symbiotes.
But why were there seven here? Could it be that something else had changed?
After a moment of thought, he took out the "hacker phone" and began to check the information he had obtained earlier.
A while later, he put away the phone with a helpless expression.
Well, nothing. Just as those two researchers said earlier.
A large portion of this laboratory's data had been destroyed, and among the remaining data, there was very little about the symbiotes.
But why would Felicia do this? According to her habits, shouldn't she just take the things and run? Why go through the trouble?
The more Loya thought about it, the stranger he felt; his intuition told him there must be a problem here.
His eyes rolled: "Almost forgot there were still two miserable overtime corpse collectors here."
Meanwhile, in a bright and spacious room.
Two laboratory researchers, one tall and one short, wearing masks, goggles, and special gloves, were busy with something in a huge glass tank.
The two did not feel tired from their labor; instead, their faces were filled with satisfied smiles.
But when their eyes fell into the tank and they saw what was inside, those smiles looked so eerie and terrifying.
The glass tank was filled with more than half a tank of turbid and eerie solution.
In the solution, a male corpse with dull skin was soaking.
Under the effect of the solution, the flesh and tissue wrapping the bones were rapidly decomposed. In just a few minutes, the flesh disappeared completely, leaving only a complete skeleton, shimmering with an inexplicable light under the lamps.
The two stared at this skeleton, seeing not horror and fear, but green banknotes.
This one was worth at least several thousand dollars, and such a complete skeleton in good condition was worth even more.
The tall researcher said excitedly: "How about it? This is a good thing I got from Hell's Kitchen. It is said to be a special solution recently researched by The Hand. It can quickly dissolve flesh and tissue, leaving only the skeleton. Honestly, this effect is really a bit outrageous."
Then he lowered his voice and said, "And these bones can be sold directly to The Hand. They buy them at 30% above the market price, and they buy an unlimited amount. I don't know what they want to use them for; it's said that organization is quite sinister."
"That good?" The short researcher widened his eyes, his body trembling with excitement, completely ignoring the news that The Hand was sinister.
If that was the case, a skeleton in their hands could sell for ten thousand dollars or even more; it was practically a business with zero cost.
He nudged the tall one's arm with his elbow and whispered: "These were all using homeless people for experiments, so can't we just go find homeless people directly? Anyway, this solution processes them so quickly; as long as we are careful, no one will be able to find out. The boss uses homeless people, why can't we?"
Having been told this, the tall researcher was also tempted.
What was the thing New York lacked the least? Wasn't it people? There were so many homeless people, and every one of them was green banknotes.
Moreover, no one cared about homeless people at all. As long as they weren't discovered in broad daylight, there really wouldn't be a problem. Didn't their own boss do the same?
And as far as he knew, some police officers in Hell's Kitchen would also do this.
The two looked at each other, the corners of their mouths curled up slightly; everything was understood without words.
Thinking of the good days ahead, the tall researcher couldn't help but urge: "Then let's hurry up, finish today's work, and we can get off work early, then catch a few homeless people to try."
However, this time, no one answered him.
"Huh? Why aren't you talking?"
The tall researcher was a bit confused and turned his head subconsciously.
It was this turn that almost scared him into wetting himself.
He saw the strong-bodied Loya standing behind them, one hand pressing on the short researcher's shoulder.
The short researcher was trembling all over with fear, a clear liquid flowed out from his trouser leg, and a foul stench suddenly filled the air.
"Who are you! How did you get in!?"
Extreme fear instantly turned into near-insane rage.
The tall researcher suddenly scooped up the solution in the glass tank with his hand and splashed it towards that man.
He was certain that no matter how this man got in, as long as he touched this solution, he would definitely die.
"Ahhhhh!!!"
Sure enough, a shrill scream rang out in the room.
But it wasn't the unknown man, but his own partner.
The solution splashed out by the tall researcher, under the influence of an invisible force, gathered into a ball and fell directly onto the short researcher's body.
In just a few seconds, the short researcher died in extreme pain, and the remaining solution was still corroding his body.
The tall researcher was scared out of his wits, extremely intimidated, and knelt down with a bang, his crotch already soaked.
The mysterious power just now made him understand that he couldn't afford to provoke the person in front of him.
The tall researcher kowtowed, crying and begging for mercy: "Spare — spare my life, this mighty sir, I have old parents and young children, and I have mortgages, car loans, and credit cards to pay. My life is bitter, my wife and children cannot lose me. I don't want to die, don't let them become homeless people."
Loya was speechless; where was the viciousness of this guy wanting to kill someone just a moment ago?
And he didn't want his family to become homeless, so was it reasonable for him to use other homeless people as banknotes?
And there was one most crucial point: Loya sensed that this guy's emotions were wrong; he was lying entirely, and in fact, he didn't have a wife or children at all.
"Stop crying!" Loya shouted coldly, "Answer my question, I won't use my hands to kill you; you're not worthy!"
Hearing this, the tall researcher immediately stopped crying, kneeling on the ground with a fawning face: "You speak, just speak."
Loya didn't talk nonsense and got straight to the point: "Among your seven symbiotes, is there one that is quite strange?"
The tall researcher was stunned upon hearing this. How did this person know? Could he be an accomplice of that female thief?
After a brief thought, he said at a very fast speed: "No, the boss only obtained one symbiote, and then cultivated the other five symbiotes. The other one, accurately speaking, is not a symbiote at all. We don't know what that is either. We only know that thing has always been sleeping. And it has extremely strong hostility towards symbiotes. Even when it's sleeping, it will launch instinctive attacks. Moreover, after our tests, this thing possesses a very powerful characteristic: it can grow by devouring organic matter; it is very powerful."
The tall researcher rolled his eyes and feigned urgency to remind him: "By the way, Lord, if that female thief is your companion, then you must hurry to help her. We have had extremely accurate experiments; as long as that thing devours a symbiote, it will completely wake up. It will become abnormally powerful, and your companion will definitely not be able to stop it and will be eaten!"
Loya's eyes narrowed; this guy's words were half true and half false, and he was really full of tricks.
However, after what the other party said, his instinctive intuition derived from "Minds Eye" was indeed constantly warning him. He had to go to Felicia's side to avoid unknown accidents.
So Loya tapped the other party's head and smiled faintly: "Well then, see you never ~"
As his voice fell, Loya's figure vanished instantly.
"Whew!"
The tall researcher saw Loya disappear instantly, and his crotch got wetter with fear.
But a moment later, he let out a long sigh of relief, his eyes revealing the relief of surviving a disaster: "Fortunately, I am smart; I made up a half-true, half-false excuse and tricked this monster away, otherwise I would have been finished."
He glanced at his partner, who was only half left, the upper body having become bones.
The tall researcher couldn't help but sigh, a glimmer of ruthlessness flashing in his eyes.
Just as he was about to get up to sound the intrusion alarm, his peripheral vision suddenly saw something round.
It was a golden — — — — grenade?
"Huh?"
"hallelujah!!!"
Holy light illuminated the earth, holy sounds echoed everywhere, bringing the final rest to the souls of this place!
[Mission "Life Foundation Theft" completed]
[Reward: Experience points +2000, Item "Disassembly Furnace", Item "Blackening Mask"]
[Disassembly Furnace: Put creations into it, and they will be disassembled into corresponding basic materials]
[Blackening Mask: Wearing the mask, you can gain an increase in all attributes and be immune to all mental control, but it will amplify certain negative emotions]
[Evaluation: Wearing the mask, perhaps that is when the mask is taken off]
Chapter 107 106. Such an overpowered name is just an elite monster?
Brooklyn, abandoned dock.
"Can you run any faster!"
"Don't let that guy eat me!"
A deep, hoarse voice with a sticky quality suddenly exploded in the night sky, its tone filled with the fear of encountering a natural predator.
"Can you shut up!"
Felicia yelled irritably. She was already flustered, and this thing kept chattering away.
At the same time, as if she could foresee the future, she leaped onto an abandoned shipping container, then performed another beautiful side jump, landing on top of another container not far away.
She didn't even have time to catch her breath.
The next moment!
A giant tentacle made of some black substance descended from the sky, smashing directly into the spot where Feliciahad originally been.
Boom!
The abandoned shipping container was smashed from 3D to 2D. The powerful force even bored through the concrete ground, leaving a large hole, with fine cracks spreading out like a spider web.
Fortunately, Felicia reacted quickly enough, narrowly avoiding it at the last moment before the tentacle landed.
She took advantage of this gap to glance back, her pupils shrinking, sensing that things were bad.
She saw that beside the shipping container, an irregular, viscous sphere surging like water was constantly deforming, and a tentacle several meters long was extending from its body.
The attack just now was clearly launched by this guy.
"How did this guy get even bigger!"
Felicia exclaimed, her little face instantly turning pale.
She couldn't beat it from the start, and now it was clearly bigger; not only could she not beat it, but whether she could even escape was becoming a problem.
"Run! Run!"
"That guy will devour all kinds of matter and become stronger as a result. Absolutely do not let it eat me, otherwise the World is doomed!"
That sticky, hoarse voice sounded again, its tone very urgent.
The voice came from Felicia's hand, where a blob of viscous black liquid was wriggling anxiously inside a glass bottle.
Felicia's body was tense, her feet exerting force as she continuously wove and leaped between the shipping containers, yet she was unable to shake off the black viscous blob behind her.
The viscous blob was huge, but its movement speed was frighteningly fast, its body gliding through the air as if it had no weight.
And every tentacle it extended had terrifying power.
Just a light whip could smash a steel shipping container into pieces.
Or with a single sweep, a shipping container would be knocked flying dozens of meters away, crashing into an abandoned building.
If she were hit, she would definitely be torn into pieces.
"Cat—Cat—" Felicia panted heavily, her body already soaked in sweat, as if she had just been fished out of the water.
Without waiting for context, she suddenly leaned down, almost lying flat on the ground, barely dodging a tentacle attack, then rolled to one side and took the opportunity to jump onto a shipping container, urgently saying: "I'm saying—can we throw away this thing called Venom? That monster chasing us is not a solution."
"No!" Cat Goddess Bastet flatly rejected this proposal.
She was sitting upright on Felicia's shoulder at this moment, her body not swaying due to the bumps, a mysterious symbol flashing deep within her eyes.
"If Venom is eaten, it will open a terrible channel and bring unimaginable disaster to this Universe!"
"Right, right, right!" Venom hurriedly chimed in, "Run! Run! I don't want to die!"
Felicia sighed secretly and could only muster her strength to continue running.
She hadn't expected that the unremarkable little thing, after eating those few symbiotes, would become so terrifying.
Not only had its size skyrocketed and its movement speed become extremely fast, but it was almost immune to physical attacks, while its own attacks were ridiculously strong.
Now it even had the ability to devour matter to strengthen itself; this was too unfair!
Felicia swung her long whip, the end of the whip wrapping around a rusty crane arm, and she pulled hard, swinging herself into mid-air.
At the same time, a special high-explosive grenade slipped from her waist and fell accurately into the monster's body.
Boom!
A violent explosion rang out, scorching flames shot into the sky, and the shockwave from the explosion overturned several shipping containers.
Felicia was also carried by this shockwave, her speed suddenly soaring, flying out like a cannonball. After flying dozens of meters, relying on her superb skills, she did a forward roll to dissipate the momentum and landed steadily.
Clearly, this was intentional.
Just after landing, Felicia did not stop, continuing to sprint forward.
A grenade couldn't kill that monster; the monster was like water, and after being blown apart by the grenade, it would quickly recover as before.
The explosion could only delay it for a while.
Taking advantage of this rare gap, Felicia wiped the sweat from the corner of her eye and asked: "Venom, that thing is targeting you, come up with a solution! It can't possibly have no weaknesses!"
Venom was silent for a moment, its voice becoming very painful, its viscous body trembling and splitting inside the bottle.
"Wait—wait a moment, I—my brain is a bit messy, my memory is incomplete, you run first! Run faster! Let me think carefully."
Falling off the chain at a critical moment!
Felicia was speechless and could only grit her teeth and increase her speed again.
Quickly scanning the surrounding environment, she chose the warehouse area ahead; the terrain there was complex with many obstacles, making it more suitable for her to leverage her advantages.
Whoosh!
A sharp sound of breaking air suddenly rang out.
A thin, long tentacle whipped over like a long lash.
"Dodge to the left!" Cat Goddess shouted, her reaction clearly faster.
Before Felicia's brain could react, her body had already reacted subconsciously, her right foot kicking the ground, instantly blasting a small pit, and her body ejected like a cannonball.
Bang!
The tentacle whipped onto the ground, leaving a deep gully, and it was even emitting charred black smoke.
Thud!
With a dull impact sound, because the dodge was too hasty, Felicia crashed into a shipping container nearby, causing it to dent.
Fortunately, her physique was strong, and she was not affected.
After stabilizing her figure, she immediately rushed out again.
She took a glance behind her with her peripheral vision, and her soul was instantly terrified.
She saw that the monster had changed again.
Many fine tentacles extended from the surface of its spherical body, waving wildly in the air. Under the moonlight, the distorted shadows wriggled on the ground, making one's SAN value drop wildly.
The tentacles looked fine, but in reality, their power was ridiculously great.
Several tentacles adhered to the shipping containers, and with a hard flick, several containers were knocked flying, whistling away.
Seeing the shipping container crashing over, Felicia didn't dodge; instead, she slowed down.
Just as the container was about to collide, she nimbly dodged, one hand quickly grabbing a corner of the container, her body taking flight with it towards the distance.
"Bye-bye~ Mr. Monster~"
Felicia blinked her eyes, her tone light, finally able to catch her breath properly.
With such continuous high-intensity dodging and running, even with her powerful physique, she felt somewhat unable to hold on.
Boom!
The shipping container crashed heavily into the warehouse wall, the wall instantly shattered, gravel splattered, and dust filled the air.
Felicia, taking advantage of the cover of the dust, had already disappeared.
"Venom? Venom?"
Felicia leaned against a hidden wall corner, gently shaking the bottle in her hand, trying to wake up the frantically wriggling Venom.
A few seconds later, Venom stopped wriggling, its liquid body slowly condensing into a ferocious head, its scarlet tongue licking its fangs.
It laughed: "Hahaha, I finally completely—finally completely remembered!"
"Stop laughing!" Felicia gritted her teeth and interrupted it, shaking the bottle hard, "Tell me quickly how to deal with that monster."
At a time like this, what was there to laugh about?
The monster had been left behind, but no one knew when it would catch up again. The top priority was to solve it, or get rid of it completely.
"Stop shaking, stop shaking!" Venom was shaken until it was dizzy, and hurriedly shouted, "That thing is a carrier of dark and void power; only the power of order and light can completely destroy it. Otherwise, it will always make a comeback."
"Order and light?"
Felicia and Cat Goddess looked at each other and said in unison: "Loya!"
They had seen Loya's Holy Light; that was a powerful Holy Light that even the Dimensional Demon God "Beast" praised, so it should be able to deal with this monster.
Loya?
Hearing this name, Venom was obviously stunned, and then fell into deep thought.
It carefully searched its vast memory, only to find there was no superhero named Loya at all. Why would these two women think of Loya?
Could it be that this variant Universe had a new hero?
Venom was suspicious, but it still urged: "Then hurry up and call him over, that monster can locate my position and can also walk in the Shadow!"
It would have been better if it hadn't said this, but as soon as it did, it was as if it had provided coordinates to the monster, confirming a certain fact.
As soon as the voice fell, several tentacles suddenly drilled out from the shadows beneath them, attacking them.
Fortunately, Felicia reacted extremely quickly, lunging forward in an instant.
But even though her reaction was extreme, one tentacle still unavoidably grazed her back, her combat suit instantly tore, and a piercing pain came from her back.
"Ah! My back!"
Felicia screamed, falling to the ground. Her back felt as if it were being burned by flames, and a scorching yet cold power spread along the wound, making it difficult for her to move.
She gritted her teeth and cursed in a low voice: "Venom—you bastard, why—why didn't you say so earlier?"
Venom was a bit embarrassed: "I—I—my memory was a bit chaotic, I didn't think of it for a moment."
Felicia: "—"
I really want to throw you into that monster's mouth.
Slap!
Another tentacle whipped over with a whistling sound.
Felicia was weak and unable to dodge, and could only watch this whip strike.
An unprecedented sense of crisis flooded her heart. Countless past images flashed through her mind, finally turning into a sigh: "I haven't enjoyed Loya's taste enough yet."
Just at this critical moment, a slender arm hugged her, taking her and dodging this attack as if teleporting.
Felicia looked closely; the one who saved her was Cat Goddess. She didn't know when, but she had changed from her cat form to her human form.
And at this moment, Cat Goddess was different from the past; her whole body was shrouded in a layer of golden radiance. These radiances outlined a gorgeous armor, and fine lightning lingered on it, making it exceptionally sacred and majestic.
Felicia saw this and was worried rather than happy: "Cat, aren't you—not allowed to use these powers?"
She remembered clearly.
Cat had once said that she could not use all her power.
Once fully unleashed, she would have to leave and participate in a war that might mean eternal death but was meaningless.
This was also the reason why Felicia had always been unwilling to let Cat take action; she didn't want Cat to be in danger.
Cat Goddess smiled slightly, her tone gentle and reluctant: "Yes, but compared to my own survival, I am more willing to protect everything I cherish. Perhaps—this is the meaning of power."
She clenched her fist, and a cat-like rune slowly outlined on her chest.
"Cat's awareness is too high!"
Just at this moment, a familiar voice came from behind.
Cat Goddess shook, and the power that had been constantly rising instantly calmed down and was retracted into her body again.
She turned her head, a flash of surprise in her eyes, and a relieved smile appeared on her face: "You're here."
Loya smiled and nodded, one hand resting on Felicia's shoulder, a flash of blue light passing by, and Felicia's injuries instantly healed.
The two women stared at him with burning eyes.
He rubbed the heads of the two women, shielded them behind him, and said gently: "Now, leave it to me."
If he hadn't arrived in time, the consequences would have been unimaginable!
Loya's eyes were cold, and a hideous mask as dark as an abyss appeared in his hand, which he slowly put on his face.
The next moment!
Extremely violent killing intent soared to the sky, dark red flames visible to the naked eye rose from his body, and a vague blood-red "Heaven" character faintly appeared behind him.
The dust on the ground was affected by an invisible force, hovering more than ten centimeters above the ground.
"Dare to touch my people? I cn—go to hell!"
"Fist Bone · Impact!"
Loya clenched his right fist and threw it out. At the fist tip, several different colored powers intertwined and compressed, emitting a suffocating aura of destruction.
Boom!
A visible shockwave blasted out, and the surrounding abandoned warehouses were instantly shattered by the shockwave.
A gorgeous beam of energy erupted from the tip of his fist, as if it wanted to split the earth in two.
The stars dimmed, all things lost their color, and the unparalleled radiance seemed to pierce through the entire World!
There was no accident; the monster was hit!
It tried its best to resist this angry blow, completely revealing its three-story-high huge body from the shadows, black slime surging crazily, looking particularly terrifying in the night sky.
At the same time, a system prompt rang in Loya's ear.
[Triggered special elite monster "Universal Devourer Larva"]
[Introduction: A biological weapon created by an incredible evil existence, carrying void and darkness, possessing the potential to devour the entire Universe]
[Task Goal: Eliminate the Universal Devourer Larva]
[Reward: Experience +5000, Random Precious Item * 1, Random Special Item * 1]
"Such an overpowered name, and it's actually just an elite monster?"
Chapter 108: 107. Cruel Sun
"Roar!"
The monster named the "Universe Devourer" let out a shrill roar.
This was the first sound it had made in this unfamiliar Universe, and it was not to herald destruction, but born from extreme pain.
The power that hit it should have been its nourishment, but now, it had become the source of its agony.
The Universe Devourer indeed possessed near-infinite potential, but potential is just potential; it does not represent strength.
Until potential is converted into strength, it is all empty talk.
Anyone with a brain would surely keep a low profile, accumulate resources, and delay claiming the throne.
But this monster clearly lacked intelligence; more accurately, it seemed to act purely on instinct.
Loya's strike used precise and powerful telekinesis to forcibly merge various powers together.
In addition, he had activated "Absolute Value" and donned the "blackened mask."
Under the double amplification, the energy contained within had long since exceeded the limit that the Universe Devourer could currently withstand.
The monster exhausted its strength, its body swelling to its limit like a towering city wall.
But it only held out for a few short seconds before being pierced by the violent power, leaving a shocking hole.
The surging force didn't lose its momentum, passing through the massive hole and continuing to spread backward.
Wherever it passed, whether warehouses or containers, they were instantly torn to shreds. Wood chips filled the air, countless stones splattered, and a deep trench was plowed into the earth.
The viscous black substance on the Universe Devourer's body wriggled and split, extending tentacles to fill the void, only to be sizzled by the beam of light.
It was Holy Light!
Loya had also infused Holy Light into this power!
In a sense, Holy Light can act as a stabilizer between various powers, preventing collapse.
And this Universe Devourer happened to be countered by Holy Light.
Realizing it was countered and couldn't win, the Universe Devourer immediately followed its instinct, its body merging into the Shadow, fleeing like a rat.
"Trying to run? You're not worthy!"
The dark red flames on Loya's body burned even more vigorously; this was the manifestation of the "Surge of Killing Intent's" power.
The negative emotions randomly amplified by the "blackened mask" happened to be violent killing intent.
And killing intent could enhance the intensity of the "Surge of Killing Intent," thereby strengthening his physique.
Furthermore, the ability "Surge of Killing Intent" itself could easily control killing intent without suffering backlash.
In short, the current Loya was unaffected by any downsides, purely leeching the benefits of the "blackened mask." Stepping on his own left foot with his right, he was practically taking flight.
His gaze narrowed as he sensed the rapidly receding killing intent. His figure blurred, appearing meters away instantly like a teleport, vanishing after a few flickers.
Only a mess remained at the scene, along with a deep trench of intertwined Fire and lightning stretching into the depths of the night.
Everything happened in a flash.
From Loya's appearance to his strike, then to the monster's escape, only a few seconds had passed.
The people present were dumbfounded. Before they could react, he had already chased the monster and disappeared.
Just a moment ago, they were being chased miserably by that monster; now, it was the monster's turn to be chased miserably.
The reversal between hunter and prey was truly too fast.
At this time, Venom, inside the glass bottle, had its mouth wide open and its tongue lolling out unconsciously, clearly shocked.
It closed its mouth and said in shock, "That's Loya?"
Felicia snapped out of it, her face full of pride. "Yes, how is he? Impressive, right?"
Venom nodded. "Truly impressive."
This was much more powerful than the old heroes in its memory, like Captain America, Daredevil, or Spider-Man. As expected, the power level of new heroes is high.
It seemed to think of something and teased, "Is he the mate of you two?"
"How did you know?" Felicia's face turned red. She brought Venom to her eyes and glared at it.
"Hehehe—" Venom laughed lecherously. "This Great One can smell all kinds of scents on you two."
"You've already mated with him many times, and just now when he arrived, the hormone concentration in you two was about to explode. You must want to—"
Before it could finish, Felicia blushed and shook the bottle frantically, cutting Venom off. It was fine to think these things, but hearing them from someone else's mouth was too embarrassing.
"Wait! Stop shaking! I'm going to die!" Venom tumbled inside the bottle and quickly begged for mercy.
Felicia gave it a few more hard shakes before stopping, glaring at it. "What 'mating' or not? How vulgar—"
Venom lolled its tongue, saying weakly, "Actually... actually, I think you two are the impressive ones."
"What do you mean?" Cat Goddess also leaned in, asking with curiosity.
Venom chuckled, still looking lecherous and annoying. "I can see that to some extent, you are two souls in one body. Wouldn't that mean double the pleasure? You—"
Before it could finish, Cat Goddess snatched the bottle, her arm swinging like a blur. Venom slammed back and forth in the bottle, screaming repeatedly.
"Ahhh!!!"
"I was wrong, I was wrong! Stop shaking, I'm really going to die!"
Venom wailed for mercy.
Cat Goddess snorted, held the bottle up to her eyes, and stared at Venom. "You guy, why do you like joking about these things so much?"
Venom said unclearly, "Just... just lightening the mood. Don't mind it, don't mind it."
"Hmph!" The two women each snorted, but said nothing more.
After this row, the atmosphere had indeed lightened a bit, thinning the previous tension, and their relationship grew a bit closer through the joke.
Venom sensed that their guard against it had weakened significantly and felt secret joy. "This Great One's method of getting close is indeed as simple and efficient as ever."
"First get close to them, then start with the two women to get on good terms with that Loya."
"In that case, I can take the opportunity to possess Loyaand copy his superpowers."
"With such a high starting point, this time, I will definitely have my revenge! I will climb to the top, step by step!"
"Hahahahaha!"
Just as Venom was imagining a beautiful future in its mind, Loya abruptly appeared before the two women.
Before they could ask, Loya grabbed their slender waists and took to the air.
The moment he flew into the sky, at the spot where they had been standing, hundreds of thin tentacles burst out from the shadows, whipping wildly in the night and making a series of sonic booms.
"This guy was playing dumb; it has a brain!"
Loya cursed.
From its previous performance, he thought this Universe Devourer was just a monster acting purely on instinct.
But after chasing it for a distance, this guy actually used some means to return at an unimaginable speed, preparing for a surprise attack.
It was clearly using a 'luring the tiger away from the mountain' tactic.
Fortunately, Loya had teleportation and was much faster than this monster; otherwise, he really would have been tricked.
"Like to play dirty, do you? Want to play in the dark? Then I'll play along with you."
Loya sneered. Using telekinesis to suspend the two women in the air, with a thought, the "farmers whip" appeared in his hand.
The most prominent feature of this Universe Devourer was that it was black enough!
It was like a black person meeting a slave owner. Who else would I whip if not you?
"Crack!"
Loya suddenly swung the whip, letting out a crack that echoed through the night!
"Ah! What? What is this? Stop swinging, I'm going to die!"
Before Loya could even whip the Universe Devourer, a low wail came from behind him.
He glanced over. Venom was thrashing in the bottle, its liquid body extending countless tentacles as if it were about to explode.
Right.
Loya forgot that Venom was also black. The "farmers whip" didn't care about friend or foe; as long as it was black, it would be intimidated.
Combined with Venom's weakness to high-frequency sound, the two together almost killed it.
It was also lucky that Cat Goddess hadn't turned into her cat form and Felicia wasn't wearing her black bodysuit, or they would have suffered too.
Helpless, Loya put away the whip. Then, pressing his index and middle fingers together, with a thought, a magnificent card appeared between them.
The pattern on this card was very simple: only a golden Sun that seemed to leap off the surface, surrounded by a ring of pale gold Holy Light.
This was a card he had formed during the strongest point of noon, merging Solar Power and Holy Light. It was perfect for dealing with dark-type creatures.
Just as he was about to end the battle in one go...
The Universe Devourer below shuddered violently, seemingly intimidated by the "farmers whip," plus the solar power in Loya's hand.
A hideous and terrified face appeared on the Universe Devourer's body, and it actually spoke: "Venom daddy, Venom daddy, don't you want me anymore? I'm your child!"
Venom was also stunned by this scene, then remembered that this guy below had swallowed the other five symbiotes it had created. In a sense, it really was its child.
But it ignored it completely and shouted, "You damn coward! To beg for mercy, you'd even resort to calling me daddy!"
"Loya, quick! Destroy it! This monster must not be left alive; it's too dangerous for the Universe!"
Loya no longer hesitated. With a flick of his fingers, the card spun and flew downward.
At the same time, he activated his telekinesis, taking everyone up hundreds of meters in an instant.
The next moment!
They witnessed the most unforgettable scene of their lives.
When the skill sealed in the card was released...
Light!
Light was everywhere, instantly illuminating the dock area and rapidly spreading for several kilometers, turning the place as bright as day in the blink of an eye.
Then came a terrifyingly high temperature that seemed ready to incinerate everything.
In mid-air, a blazing golden Sun suddenly appeared. The will of destruction descended abruptly; nothing could stand in its way!
The Sun slowly descended into the earth!
Boom!
A deafening roar instantly resounded through heaven and earth, as if the entire space were shaking.
That Universe Devourer hatchling lasted less than an instant under the Sun before turning into dust and being completely annihilated!
When the extreme light and heat vanished, the entire dock area was almost completely destroyed.
On the ground, a deep crater appeared, as if struck by a meteorite, with fierce flames still burning.
Felicia and Cat Goddess stared wide-eyed, subconsciously swallowing. At this moment, they finally understood that their man was powerful to such an extent.
Venom, meanwhile, was filled with shock and a deeper longing: "This man is too powerful! I must have him!"
It spoke cautiously, trying to get closer: "What move was that?"
Loya smiled slightly. "This is... Cruel Sun."
[Special Elite Monster "Universe Devourer Hatchling" has been eliminated]
[Rewards: EXP +5000, Precious Item "folding stool," Special Item "eternal wings"]
[folding stool: A seemingly ordinary folding stool, but the first attack made with it cannot be dodged by any form of enemy—a guaranteed hit!]
[eternal wings: Upon use, a pair of pure white wings burning with flames unfolds behind the back. Slaying evil or dark lifeforms will add stacks. When stacks reach a certain level, the wings will evolve and increase in number, and gain new special effects. Current effects: Speed increase, increased damage to dark and evil lifeforms, Justice Aura (increases morale and strength of allies within range), increased favorability with Holy Beings. (Limit of three pairs of wings; wings can be hidden but effects are weakened. Reaching the wing limit will trigger a special reward. Each stack enhances the effects, no upper limit.)]
[Evaluation: Wings that burn eternally, lead me away from the sinking of the mortal world!]
Chapter 109: 108. Venom Possessed Venom
High up in the sky.
The wide "hovering flying carpet" sped forward, clouds constantly flitting past on both sides.
Loya sat cross-legged upon it, staring eye-to-eye with the Venom inside the glass bottle in his hand.
Felicia and the Cat Goddess lay behind him; they were exhausted after being chased by that Universe Devourerthe whole way.
Loya asked casually, "By the way, why did you go to steal a Symbiote? Didn't you say before that you'd scouted out some good treasure? Was it this?"
"This thing..." Felicia kept her eyes closed, her voice lazy as if she were about to fall asleep, "Ask Cat Goddess about that, it was her idea."
The Cat Goddess sat up next to Loya and took over the conversation: "A friend of mine told me that while sensing the moon, he detected something very terrifying entering Earth.
That was the monster you killed. It just happened to land in New York, and since I was nearby, I thought I'd go check it out. As it turned out, after that monster devoured a Symbiote, it became exceptionally powerful. You saw the rest for yourself."
She spread her hands with a helpless look. No one had expected the monster to become so terrifying after devouring a Symbiote; if she had known, she wouldn't have tried to meddle.
Sensing the moon?
Could it be Khonshu the Moon God?
Loya pondered as he listened.
The Cat Goddess continued, "I could only sense that if that monster ate Venom, it would open a portal and bring about a disaster. I don't know the rest, and Venom refuses to talk."
She winked playfully at Loya, a mischievous grin on her lips: "Maybe you can find a way to make it talk."
"Oh~" Loya said thoughtfully, sharing a smile with her, "I understand."
The enchanted "hovering flying carpet" was incredibly fast, arriving at the Villa in no time.
Felicia hopped lightly off the carpet and stretched, her perfect curves fully on display.
"Ah~ finally back. This sticky feeling on my skin is so uncomfortable." She turned to the Cat Goddess with a sly smile, "Cat Goddess, let's go take a bath together, we can find Loya later."
"Sure," the Cat Goddess readily agreed, and the two walked into the bathroom hand-in-hand.
In the empty living room, only Loya and the Venom Symbiote in his hand remained.
He placed Venom on the coffee table, leaned forward, and said with a smile, "Tell me, Venom, what's the deal with that monster?"
Based on the mission description, Loya could roughly guess that the monster was likely created by Knull, the God of Symbiotes.
However, the part about opening a portal after devouring Venom was a bit confusing.
Since the source was right here, he didn't feel like guessing. It was better to ask directly than to speculate wildly.
Loya was certain Venom would talk, because ever since he defeated the Universe Devourer, Venom's emotions toward him had been very extreme.
It was a kind of inscrutable desire and greed.
Like a hungry wolf seeing a fat sheep, or a long-celibate man seeing a sexy woman.
Loya felt a bit creeped out, like he was being eyed by a creep, but because of this, it shouldn't be hard to squeeze out some basic information.
Venom writhed in the glass bottle. Thinking about its future plans, it considered for a moment and quickly gave an answer: "That is a biological super-weapon created by Knull, the God of Symbiotes, using the body of Galactusand his own power as a foundation."
Loya: "???"
Why was Galactus being victimized again?
Truly, whenever something happens, Uncle Galactus has to be brought out to be bullied.
But what exactly happened for Galactus to be taken down by Knull and have his body turned into a biological weapon?
Also, wasn't coming into contact with this kind of existence right now a bit above his pay grade?
Loya was shocked internally, but he didn't show it. After all, in Venom's eyes, he should just be an ordinary Earthling with superpowers.
If he acted like he knew everything, it would actually be harder to get information out.
So he feigned curiosity and pressed further: "Who is Knull, and who is Galactus? What happened between them?"
"Hehehe."
Venom chuckled; it liked this kind of powerful guy with infinite potential who knew nothing.
It only needed to leak a little bit of information to leave the other party stunned, making its future plans easy to execute.
So it explained: "To put it simply, Knull is the incarnation of the void and darkness, exceptionally evil. Galactus is a cosmic deity who exists to maintain the balance of the universe."
"As for the process, it's very complicated. In short, Knull killed Galactus, plunging the entire universe into endless void and darkness, and created that biological weapon that can devour everything."
The entire universe plunged into void and darkness?
Why didn't I feel anything?
Loya was puzzled for a moment, then he suddenly realized.
The Multiverse!
This didn't happen in his own universe.
Marvel was like this; all possible parallel universes, timelines, and dimensions together formed the Multiverse.
The Multiverse also represented infinite possibilities, with countless counterparts and variants.
Sometimes a single different choice would create a completely different story.
For example, in some universe, Steve isn't Captain Americabut Captain Hydra, or it wasn't him who became Captain America at all, but Carter.
Or, for instance, in some universe, Tony didn't escape and died directly in Afghanistan.
Or Peter didn't become Spider-Man, but Gwen became Spider-Woman, and so on.
As far as Loya knew, there were even Zombie Universes, Cancerverses, and dark future universes where superheroes were nearly extinct.
In short, there were all kinds of variations.
Knull killing Galactus wasn't that strange; after all, a starving Galactus was practically a power-scaling unit, and there wasn't just one Galactus in the Multiverse.
Since the story of Knull killing Galactus happened in another universe, then this Venom in front of him—
Loya said with certainty: "It seems this happened in another universe. And you, you're from another universe too?"
"Hahaha, exactly!" Venom laughed, its voice slimy, "You're quite clever. I am indeed a Venom from another universe. And, I am the most powerful Venom in the entire Multiverse!"
Loya rubbed his chin, a look of doubt in his eyes: "Then does my universe have a Venom? Or did you travel here?"
"Of course there is," Venom said, "Otherwise, how could I have come here?"
"What do you mean?" This really left Loya a bit confused.
Venom flicked its tongue over its sharp teeth, showing a smug smile: "Symbiotes share a Hive Mind. All knowledge, experience, and secrets learned by any Symbiote can be uploaded to this Hive network.
You could say that a Symbiote never fights as an individual, but as an incredibly massive collective."
It paused, a trace of resentment appearing on its face: "But Symbiotes have a supreme creator, Knull.
He rules over the Symbiotes. When he wakes, he can instantly control all Symbiotes through the Hive Mind."
At this point, Venom became smug again, chuckling: "But yours truly, the Great Venom, not only broke free from the Hive Mind's shackles but also mastered a portion of the Hive Mind's authority. I can transfer myself to different counterparts or variants through the Hive Mind. Impressive, right?"
"Hiss—"
Loya sucked in a breath of cold air.
This Venom was truly not simple. With this ability, it was practically impossible to die, and it could travel to various universes.
But if it came here, what about the original Venom?
"So what you transferred was... your unique memories and consciousness?"
"Hahaha, smart! Not only that, I can also browse all the information within the entire Hive Mind," Venom laughed loudly.
Having been through so many universes, aside from those few old men and women, this was the first time someone else had seen through the key point at a glance.
"Then isn't this just possession? And you're basically a refugee," Loya said.
"Hey!" Venom laughed even more smugly, completely ignoring the latter sentence, "What do you mean possession? This is the Venom of another universe gaining my memories and consciousness. The price is just losing its own.
I am the greatest Venom; they're practically making a profit!"
Loya:...
Isn't that still possession? He put it so nicely.
But he didn't care about that; his main concern was whether it would endanger him.
He was still developing; if he encountered a powerhouse far beyond his level, there'd be no point in playing.
So Loya narrowed his eyes and asked: "Then you coming here won't bring danger to this universe, will it?"
If Venom could perceive counterparts in other universes and transfer its consciousness through the Hive Mind, there was no reason Knull couldn't.
That guy had killed Galactus, so he clearly wasn't in a sealed state—or even if he was, he could still use his power.
If Venom's presence threatened him, Loya could only send it to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the Sun. Go victimize someone else, don't come here.
"No! No!"
Venom's voice was clearly panicked.
It could feel that Loya wanted to kill it. Even if it found a Captain America to possess, it wouldn't be a match, let alone now.
"Knull has been sealed by some other powerful beings. And I am special. If I die, it will cause Him to break the seal, triggering a disaster that will sweep the universe."
Feeling the threat grow stronger, it said urgently: "That's why that monster kept trying to eat me. If I die, it will open a portal, allowing Knull to return and bring disaster to the universe."
Venom was very confused. When a normal person encountered an existence that was practically a treasure trove of knowledge, shouldn't their first thought be how to use it?
Why was this guy thinking about killing it directly? Too extreme.
Loya raised an eyebrow. Under the perception of "Minds Eye," this guy really wasn't lying.
He brought Venom close to his eyes and smiled: "But staying here, if it attracts that monster again, I don't have that much energy to deal with it. Why don't I—"
"No, don't!" Venom screamed in terror, "That monster is only born from the Hive Mind when I transfer my consciousness. You've already destroyed it. As long as I don't transfer my consciousness, it won't be born again."
I see.
Now it was clear why Venom could transfer its consciousness but was still so afraid of death.
Every transfer birthed a monster that completely countered it, so naturally, it would avoid transferring unless necessary.
Otherwise, there was no guarantee it would survive the next time.
It had to be said, Knull had his ways, using this method to greatly curb Venom's movements.
But Loya was still curious about one point, so he asked: "But why are you special?"
Venom fell into a rare silence.
After a long while, it finally spoke slowly: "This concerns Knull, I cannot say. Once certain secrets are leaked, it means disaster..."
.
Loya's eyes flickered, but he didn't press further.
In fact, language was a form of power, especially for certain powerful beings.
But right now, Venom indeed didn't pose a threat. If it were involved in some event, the system would have prompted him.
Keeping it around wasn't bad; it could serve as a cosmic encyclopedia.
Moreover, Venom should be considered a dark creature, and it could split and reproduce.
Hehe, Loya felt a surge of joy as he suddenly thought of a great idea.
Feeling the killing intent vanish, Venom finally breathed a sigh of relief and said cautiously: "I possess experiences from various universes and countless knowledge. I can help you become stronger. My request is simple: I just want to live comfortably."
If it weren't for the fact that Loya's power was indeed great and could help it get revenge, it would have looked for a chance to run long ago.
This guy was more difficult to deal with than imagined; he wasn't intimidated by its words at all and seemed to have some understanding of the universe.
As expected of a new hero it had never seen before, he was hard to handle in every aspect.
Loya smiled knowingly. He finally understood why Venom was answering every question: it was lusting after his body.
He remembered that Symbiotes could copy a host's abilities; what Venom wanted to do was obvious.
This guy definitely had some ulterior motive.
But—
Loya smiled, took Gulu out of the system space, and placed it right next to Venom: "Alright then, now use your body to help me get stronger."
Venom: "???"
Chapter 110: 109. Loya: Venom, I want you to help me with my cultivation!
Venom's entire face was pressed against the glass, staring intently at the pitch-black, still-beating... ball outside.
It turned its head, looked at Loya, and cautiously threw out a few questions: "What is this thing? What do you want to do? What do you mean by using my body to help you get stronger?"
After saying this, it felt a sudden pang of desolation in its heart.
When had it ever been so humble in the past?
But for power, for revenge, everything was worth it.
I must endure!
As long as Loya let it out, it could strike in an instant, possess him, and gain his abilities!
At that point, this guy would know what the greatest Venom truly was!
Loya didn't explain immediately. Instead, he slowly twisted the cap of the special glass bottle, his voice flat: "You'll know once you're out."
Venom was ecstatic at the sight. It really was coming to him without any effort. If it had known he was going to let it out, why waste all that breath earlier? It was a pure waste of time.
The moment the bottle cap was unscrewed.
Venom mustered all its strength and suddenly squeezed out from the gap. Its liquid-like body instantly turned into a streak of black light, crashing towards Loya at a speed invisible to the naked eye.
At this moment, it was overjoyed: "Sweetheart! Here I come!"
Loya remained expressionless at the sight.
Venom's self-proclaimed extreme speed was no different from a snail's crawl under his "Death's Eye."
He even said at a very high speed: "Good grief, you actually dare to attempt to parasitize a walking Sun!"
Before his voice faded, golden light surged around Loyalike flickering flames, emitting a terrifyingly high temperature.
If Venom crashed into it, it would instantly go to keep the Universe Devourer company.
Venom's figure came to a sudden halt, with almost no hesitation.
It extended a tentacle from its main body and stuck it to the edge of the table. Then, using the momentum of its forward charge to stretch the tentacle, it suddenly snapped back, instantly changing direction and reflecting away at a speed even faster than before.
It had to be said that Venom's reaction truly took Loya by surprise.
Such a quick response and decisive operation showed just how rich Venom's experience was.
However—
Splat!
After flying only a few meters, Venom seemed to hit an invisible barrier. Its liquid body was instantly flattened, smeared in mid-air like a puddle of mud.
Realizing this method wouldn't work, Venom immediately did the opposite.
It kicked off with force and charged towards Noah again, but the moment it neared the glass bottle, it extended a tentacle to wrap around the bottle, swung itself back inside, and even thoughtfully tightened the cap with its tentacle.
Venom poked out a head, looking at Loya flatteringly with a dry laugh: "Hahaha, Master Loya, look at this mess. I was just joking, haha."
The whole process looked extremely absurd. From wanting to possess him, to wanting to escape, and finally returning to the bottle on its own, the entire process took only a few short seconds.
The corners of Loya's mouth curled up in a mirthless smile: "Venom, didn't you want to possess me? Why aren't you coming?"
As he spoke, he extended a hand, and a cluster of blazing Sun Fire suddenly ignited in his palm.
"Hehe~" Venom smiled awkwardly, its body shrinking back, its expression becoming more and more flattering. "Gosh, it's all a misunderstanding. There was a mosquito; I was helping you clear it out."
It was flattering on the surface, but inwardly it was incredibly angry and shocked.
This Loya, who wasn't even recorded in the entire Hive Mind, clearly possessed abilities and schemes far more complex than what it had seen before.
This guy is a total schemer!
And he was so well-prepared; it seemed he had known what it wanted to do all along.
Then why ask those questions earlier?
And why pretend to understand nothing?
To bait it into talking?
Or just to toy with it?
Like walking a dog?!
Damn it!
New superheroes are just too ridiculous.
Venom felt played, constantly being toyed with like a clown.
When had it ever suffered such humiliation?
Though it thought this, the smile on Venom's face remained flattering, though under this appearance, it looked a bit terrifying.
It waited eagerly for Loya's next move.
If the other party really wanted it dead, then it could only risk transferring its consciousness again.
At least if it encountered that monster that was born with it, there would be a glimmer of hope.
Loya retracted the Power of the Sun and smiled as he unscrewed the bottle cap again: "Didn't I say? I'm just letting you use your body to help me get stronger."
He hadn't expected Venom to be so sensible. It seemed it must have had many similar experiences before, but letting it go was impossible.
Venom must still have some ulterior motive. If he let it go, there was no telling what kind of mess it would cause.
If it did something weird, that would be troublesome.
Minor skirmishes wouldn't matter; he'd just treat them as grinding quests.
But Venom's arrival in this universe was related to Knull. If it caused a major incident, it clearly wasn't something he could handle right now.
Loya was very clear about his own limits.
For now, Venom would stay with him as an encyclopedia. He'd worry about other things once he was powerful enough.
Venom flowed out of the bottle and slumped limply on the table.
It looked weak, pitiful, and helpless.
Venom still hadn't given up, saying aggrievedly: "To let me use my body to help you get stronger, I have to possess you. Otherwise, there's nothing I can do."
Loya waved his hand, smiling exceptionally wickedly: "Venom, oh Venom, you underestimate yourself. Your potential doesn't stop there."
Venom: "???"
What are you talking about?
How come I don't know I have other potential?
Are you Venom, or am I Venom?
Loya didn't beat around the bush anymore and said directly: "Split off a part of yourself. It doesn't need to be big, just a little bit will do."
Venom was stunned upon hearing this. Its body trembled slightly, then it curled into a ball and wailed: "I can't, Master Loya, I can't do it!"
Loya didn't say anything, but silently placed the "farmers whip" to the side. An invisible aura began to permeate the air.
Seeing the whip, Venom's liquid body subconsciously exploded into countless tentacles. It would never forget this thing as long as it lived.
It swore this was the most terrifying sound it had ever heard, bar none. Just the sound of the whip earlier had almost sent it packing.
Under pressure, no matter how much Venom resisted, it could only compromise.
It obediently split off a small clump of black, viscous body from its edge. After splitting, it was noticeably weaker, and its mental state was much more lethargic.
"Gulu, go ahead," Loya said.
With the command, Gulu rolled over and swallowed the part of the body Venom had split off.
That part of the body dissolved and disappeared at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Venom watched this scene blankly, feeling greatly insulted.
After all that, it was just to feed this ball? Was there any point?
But soon, it knew what the point was.
Loya smiled slightly and commanded: "Gulu, Mimicry."
As soon as he spoke, Gulu immediately mimicked the Symbiote form.
Its originally tight body instantly became fluid like liquid, its surface fluctuating and taking on a smooth, dark luster.
"What the f—?!"
Seeing this scene, Venom was completely dumbfounded.
By virtue of its ability to transfer consciousness through the Hive network, it had been to countless universes and seen countless life forms. But it was the first time it had seen this ball called Gulu.
Devouring a part of a Symbiote and then becoming a Symbiote? What was going on? It had never seen such a creature.
Furthermore, Venom didn't feel an extra Symbiote in the Hive Mind.
This guy in front of it could not only turn into a Symbiotebut also wasn't affected by the Hive Mind. How was that possible!?
Enjoying the abilities of a Symbiote without being affected—you've got the best of both worlds.
However, soon, something even more unacceptable to Venom happened.
Loya spoke again: "Gulu, come and possess me."
Gulu immediately extended tentacles to attach to Loya, then spread over him like liquid, slowly covering him.
"Hmm? Not bad!"
Loya could feel that after Gulu possessed him, his physical attributes were enhanced.
"Gulu, Gulu," Gulu made a sound.
Loya understood Gulu's meaning.
Having all the abilities of a Symbiote, Gulu naturally also had the ability to copy others' powers.
But it couldn't copy Loya's abilities.
This was normal. Whether it was abilities or items rewarded by the system, they were unique and only recognized Loya.
Abilities simply couldn't be copied. Even if he gave someone a drop of blood, no matter how it was tested, it would just be ordinary genes, eliminating all future troubles.
The same went for items; he had absolute control over them.
Even if someone really could snatch them away, he only needed a single thought, and the item would disappear and return to the system space. The core feature was Loya's absolute control.
Gulu receded from his body, and Loya spoke again: "Gulu, mimic Fire."
The next moment, Gulu's fluid body extended two tentacles, which then transformed into raging flames. The scorching temperature caused the air to distort slightly.
"THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!!!"
Venom's body suddenly expanded, and it let out a giant roar.
The scene before it was completely beyond its understanding.
This ordinary-looking ball could not only turn into a Symbiote and have its abilities without being bound by the Hive Mind, but it could also transform into Fire!
Fire was one of the Symbiotes' weaknesses!
How the hell is this possible?
How could such a creature exist in the universe? It has everything!
This was practically violating Venom's worldview as a pure Symbiote.
In its memories as vast as the sea, there was no such creature, and no such thing had ever happened.
Loya ignored the shocked Venom, feeling very satisfied.
It was indeed as he had expected. After absorbing a part of Venom, Gulu possessed the abilities of a Symbiote while also being able to mimic other substances and energies.
Now it had truly become a super biological combat suit.
In the future, if he let Gulu possess other superpowered individuals and copy their abilities, wouldn't that be wonderful?
Sure enough, Gulu's potential hadn't been fully developed yet; its upper limit was terrifyingly high.
Loya looked smilingly at the dumbfounded Venom: "My pet has grown. Now it's your turn to help me get stronger."
"Huh? Wh—what?" Venom was completely confused.
Everything that had just happened was violently assaulting its worldview, and it hadn't finished processing it yet.
With a thought from Loya, a pair of pure White wings burning with flames unfolded behind him, slowly stretching out.
Soft firelight danced in the room, and pure white brilliance flowed freely, as a holy aura permeated the air.
Under the pure white brilliance, Loya was set off as holy and noble, like a deity descending to the mortal world.
"An... Angel?" Venom stared blankly at the noble Loya. This human was refreshing its cognition time and time again.
How could one person obtain so many powers?
Is this universe's new superhero's power level a bit over the top?
Of course, that wasn't what shocked it the most.
It was that in its impression, Angels should be kind, holy, and bright.
How could such a devious schemer like Loya qualify?
Loya didn't know what Venom was thinking. He felt quite good right now. After using the "eternal wings," his eyes could see some different things.
He could directly see darkness and evil. It was a very wonderful feeling.
For example, the Venom before him right now was an embodiment of darkness and evil in his eyes, and he felt a strong urge to purge it.
Loya suppressed the impulse to strike Venom down and spoke slowly, his voice deep and possessed of an unusual charm: "Venom!
I want you to help me with my cultivation!"
Venom: "???"
You want to eat me too?