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Watching Apocalypse's condition visibly improve was alarming.
A sense of despair spread rapidly through everyone's hearts like a plague.
They were facing a monster that was recovering at an unbelievable speed and possessed maxed-out defenses.
Yet their only hope, the man who could cleave a god in two with a single slash, was currently hanging in mid-air like a puppet with severed strings, his life or death unknown.
"Ha... Hahahaha!"
Apocalypse's laughter came from his writhing half-body; it was raspy, yet filled with the manic joy and spite of one who had narrowly escaped death.
His lower body, which had been hanging on the tree, had turned into quicksand and flowed over, merging completely with his upper body.
"mortals, your greatest mistake was thinking that physical strength represents everything!"
While repairing himself, Apocalypse used telepathy to force his malicious voice directly into the minds of everyone present.
"The mental realm is the true coliseum of gods! Now, this perfect shell, along with those unknown powers, shall all belong to me!"
His words struck everyone's hearts like heavy hammers.
Professor Charles's face was as pale as paper.
What would it mean if Apocalypse succeeded in possessing Peter's body?
An unsolvable monster possessing Peter's terrifying power, while also having Apocalypse's cunning mind and mental abilities...
Without a doubt, he would become the World's nightmare, and no one would be able to stop him again!
"Jean!"
In this desperate situation, Charles used almost all his strength to roar at the red-haired girl who was slumped on the ground, her face full of terror.
"Release it! Jean! Release that power deep within your heart, the one that even I fear! Now, only you can stop him!"
Jean Grey shuddered, her azure eyes filled with confusion and fear.
She knew what the Professor was talking about.
That power was her lifelong nightmare.
It was powerful and scorching, yet also filled with the desire for destruction.
Every time she lost control, it brought about irreversible disasters.
"I... I can't... I will destroy this place..."
Jean's voice trembled, and tears fell uncontrollably.
"No! Trust me, and trust yourself!" Charles's voice carried an unquestionable resolve.
"You must also trust Peter! He shielded you from the World's malice, and now, it is your turn to light the way home for him!"
Light the way home... for him?
In Jean's mind, she uncontrollably flashed back to that man pinning her against the wall, his handsome face wearing that slightly annoying grin, and his words, "What are you expecting?"
That's right, even though that guy was a terrible person.
He had protected them all in their most critical moment.
Now that he was trapped in a desperate situation, only she could possibly save him!
Thinking of this, the confusion and fear in Jean's eyes gradually faded, replaced by an unprecedented determination.
Boom!!!
In an instant, a burst of immense energy, impossible to describe in words, erupted from her petite body!
Jean Grey's fair face flushed red, and the veins on her forehead bulged as if she were enduring unimaginable pain.
An aura, so scorching that it seemed capable of igniting the air, slowly spilled out from within her.
"Ah!!!"
Finally, a scream erupted from the depths of Jean Grey's throat.
It was a cry mixed with endless majesty and ancient vicissitudes, as if a cosmic divine bird that had slumbered for billions of years was awakening at this moment!
Boom!
Golden-red flames soared into the sky!
That was not ordinary fire, but the primordial power of the Universe composed of the purest life and emotion!
Amidst the rising flames, a colossal phantom of a firebird was vaguely outlined. It spread wings that could cover the firmament, using eyes composed of stars to coldly overlook the entire World.
Phoenix Force!
In the face of this power, all things in heaven and Earth appeared insignificant.
The air was burning, and space was twisting.
The entire Xavier Institute was now shrouded in a golden-red apocalyptic scene.
"What... what is this power?"
Apocalypse, who was fully focused on maintaining his shield to block the X-Men's attacks and attempting to completely format Peter's consciousness, suddenly turned his head.
When he saw that cosmic firebird spanning the sky, a look of fear could not help but appear on his rapidly healing blue face.
As the most ancient Mutant on Earth, he had witnessed the rise and fall of countless civilizations and had plundered the abilities of countless Mutants; he considered himself a god, the ultimate point of evolution.
But the power before him completely exceeded his cognitive scope.
It was even more exaggerated than the power Peter had displayed earlier!
It was a higher-dimensional existence that transcended genes, transcended matter, and transcended all the laws he could understand!
Under the gaze of that firebird, he felt as small as a speck of dust.
The next second, the Phoenix's cry turned into a tangible shockwave that struck Apocalypse.
Apocalypse's energy shield, which he was so proud of—the barrier that had blocked all the X-Men's firepower—was as fragile as thin paper in the face of this power, instantly torn to shreds.
The golden-red flames then swept over him.
"No—!"
Apocalypse let out the most terrified roar of his life.
He frantically drove his self-healing ability, attempting to resist the erosion of the flames.
However, his regeneration speed seemed so ridiculous in the face of the Phoenix flames, which could erase existence at the root.
His flesh, his bones, and his proud, near-immortal self-healing genes were rapidly decomposed in the flames, turning into the most primitive particles and returning to nothingness.
He was not being killed.
He was being "deleted."
Seeing this shocking scene, everyone at the Xavier Institute couldn't help but open their mouths wide.
When their attention was focused on the Phoenix Force, no one noticed.
Peter, who was suspended in mid-air and should have been under mental control, had an unprecedented, blazing light blooming in his eyes.
Apocalypse's meager mental power had been eliminated the moment he invaded by the Horse Talisman hidden deep within Peter's soul.
That previous sluggish performance was merely acting.
It was performed both for Apocalypse and for the "little red bird" inside Jean Grey.
After all, if you want the fish to take the bait voluntarily, you have to use some decent bait, right?
Now it seems, the effect was outstanding.
And look at that, just when everyone thought Apocalypse would be reduced to ashes in the Phoenix flames, a sudden change occurred!
A figure, at a speed completely impossible for the naked eye to capture, instantly appeared between the Phoenix's stream of light and Apocalypse.
It was Peter!
While still in mid-air, he had already reached out to grab Apocalypse, allowing the scorching flames on Apocalypse's body to be guided onto his own body without reservation!