Red Genius Youth Academy, H-Men

Su Ye's decision to establish a headquarters could be seen as a whim or as seizing an opportune moment.

It just so happened that the Great Wall Guardians were planning to build their headquarters here, the environment at Marbury Beach was quite pleasant, and conveniently, this place was geographically close to Dragon Country, making it feel a bit more like home.

The reason for building a castle was to prepare for establishing a school later.

Since Su Ye had inherited Professor X's abilities, not opening a school would be unreasonable, right?

Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters was housed in a castle; it wouldn't be fitting if Su Ye's school wasn't just as grand.

Professor X had decent family wealth, and the castle he used for his school was his own property.

Now, Su Ye's financial situation was leagues ahead of Professor X's, so he certainly couldn't appear less impressive.

However, if this new castle were to be built, Su Ye hoped it would be in traditional Chinese style, resembling a Dragon Country Taoist temple with classical architecture.

On the far side of the ocean in Los Angeles, he wanted to introduce a wave of Dragon Country aesthetics, initiating a cultural infiltration for the mutant children about to enroll.

Later on, whether Su Ye handled it himself or enlisted Zheng Xian's help, he intended to incorporate ideological education, delivering a blend of "Red education" and cultural enrichment.

At that point, Su Ye's school would be called the Red Genius Youth Academy, and his own codename would be Red Professor, abbreviated as Professor H.

Likewise, the X-Men could be directly renamed the Red Men, abbreviated as H-Men.

Professor H, H-Men—just ask, is that red enough?

Who doesn't love H?

When it came to naming things, Su Ye thought he had a knack for it—after all, Old Su was once a master of quirky name creation.

As Su Ye was preparing to build, more and more random explosions began occurring throughout Los Angeles, leaving everyone in a state of panic.

A man appeared on television.

The Mandarin.

Let's talk about Mandarin, or "Man Da Ren"—different translations, same term. It originated as a derogatory Western label for Eastern officials, accompanied by caricatured depictions, embodying the "Yellow Peril" ideology.

These offensive stereotypes originated in that era and, even to this day, have not been completely erased.

Therefore, even though the Shang-Chi movie featured over 50% Chinese dialogue, it was never going to be released, just as Iron Man 3 didn't change anything. Nowadays, it's practically scrubbed from the internet.

These are matters of principle.

The Mandarin appearing on TV was the same one from Iron Man 3, a third-rate Hollywood hack actor, manipulated behind the scenes by Aldrich Killian.

He was a fabricated character created by scripts and capital to serve as the scapegoat for recent explosions and attacks on U.S. overseas military bases, meant to incite fear.

Aldrich Killian's tech capabilities were impressive; he managed to hijack the entire U.S. television network, replacing broadcasts with images of the Mandarin.

"Some call me a terrorist. I see myself a teacher!"

"America. Ready for another lesson?"

"In 1864, at Sand Creek, Colorado, the U.S. military waited until the friendly Cheyenne braves had all gone to hunting. Waited to attack and slaughter the families left behind and claim their land."

On the TV screen, the short man performed his act, condemning America's historical atrocities against Native Americans to justify his attacks on U.S. military bases.

Such excuses were easy to find, as America's conquest of North America was a bloody history.

"39 hours ago, the Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait was attacked. I… I… I did that."

"A quaint military church filled with wives and children, of course. The soldiers were out on maneuvers."

"The braves were away."

"President Ellis."

"You continue to resist my attempts to educate you, sir. And now you've missed me again."

"You know who I am, you don't know where I am."

"And you'll never see me comming!"

With that, the signal returned, and major TV networks resumed their emergency broadcasts.

Reports streamed in: an airport attacked, a base assaulted, a facility bombed—chaos in every form.

With the Mandarin's appearance, S.H.I.E.L.D. reached out to the Guardians.

"Uncle Su, we need your help. We must locate this Mandarin. He's not only tied to the terrorist attacks but is likely connected to the recent spontaneous explosions across Los Angeles."

When Su Ye received Nick Fury's call, he was in a massive underground space. This facility, newly completed under the supervision of Dr. Fox, had been constructed at Su Ye's suggestion.

The space was a vast sphere, with a diameter spanning dozens of meters.

In the center, a broken bridge led to the core of the spherical space, where a collection of equipment and a high-tech helmet were placed.

That's right—this was modeled after Professor X's Cerebro, designed to amplify Su Ye's telepathic abilities.

By wearing the helmet, Su Ye could project his telepathy into the minds of everyone on the planet, monitoring their actions, conversations, and even thoughts.

If he wished, Su Ye could freely enter the minds of one or more individuals, controlling them to do whatever he desired.

Due to the mental link, he could truly see, hear, and feel everything the controlled individuals experienced.

Honestly, when the Cerebro-like device was first built, Su Ye had considered some less-than-noble applications for it.

For instance, experiencing the sensation of a twelve-cylinder engine in action, or the thrill of multi-engine synchronization and ultimate speed.

Of course, as a pure, noble person who had transcended base interests, Su Ye wouldn't settle for secondhand thrills when he could drive the real thing himself.

Incidentally, in theory, Su Ye could use the Cerebro to access the consciousness of everyone on Earth. But when he put it on, he discovered one area he couldn't penetrate.

Dragon Country, on the other side of the Earth.

There seemed to be an unknown force there, blocking Su Ye's telepathic abilities.

When he tried to force his way in to see what was happening, he was met with a familiar scolding voice.

"Go back and play with your toys! What are you snooping around for? Keep this up, and I'll come over there and turn you into an orphan!"

Fine. Upon hearing that familiar tone and self-deprecating phrase, Su Ye understood that not only did Dragon Country not need his protection, but it was also beyond his reach.

Most likely, he was just a pawn deployed by an unnamed big shot, sent to America to stir things up.

Perhaps the big shot was getting old, bored, or simply tired of the "troublemaker" label, which was why Su Ye was sent instead.

What could Su Ye do? Naturally, he had to behave and keep a low profile.

The person on the other end likely wasn't threatening to orphan Su Ye but was considering having another child themselves—after all, they were just in their early forties, still in their prime.

In short, Su Ye knew he couldn't afford to mess with them.

After hanging up Nick Fury's call, Su Ye immediately put on the Cerebro-like device.

He wanted to locate that third-rate actor—not because of Nick Fury's urging, but simply because he felt like finding the guy.

In his view, the name "Mandarin" was off-limits.

If you want to commit terrorist attacks, target U.S. bases, attack airports, or hijack airlines, that's your business. But why drag the name "Mandarin" into it?

That's like lighting a lamp in a restroom—asking for trouble.

After putting on the Cerebro-like device, Su Ye's vision changed instantly. The scene vanished, replaced by a misty world filled with countless black-and-white figures. As he scanned through them, he eventually located the short, third-rate actor playing the Mandarin.

Surrounding the short actor were several cameras being set up. Some were applying makeup, others directing the scene, and more coordinating the positions of cameras and extras.

On the periphery, Su Ye spotted Aldrich Killian, a middle-aged man dressed like a successful entrepreneur.

At that moment, the crew was discussing the next scene. The script was already written, and the short actor just had to follow it verbatim.

Just then, the television signal across the U.S. was hacked again, and the broadcast switched to a live feed of the film set.

However, no one in the studio was aware of this.

"Hey, Director, why do I have to use the name 'Mandarin'? I don't even look Asian," the short actor complained.

In the live broadcast, the once-arrogant Mandarin, who had acted so tough, now looked obsequiously off-camera.

Soon, an off-screen voice, presumably the director, was heard.

"That's how the script is written! You're a third-rate actor; just do as you're told. Why all the questions?"

"I just feel like my looks are more suited to playing roles like Old Ben or Old Zack," the short actor muttered under his breath.

"Shut up!" the director barked. "There's a reason for this persona. Trashing the old dragon is part of our righteous narrative. If you keep complaining, I'll kill off your character and let your son take over!"

"I have a son?" the short actor asked, surprised.

"If I say you have one, you do. We'll use... Bruce Lee's image. Imagine, Dragon Country's pride as the Mandarin's son. Isn't that ironic? Hahaha."

As the director spoke, he seriously began discussing the feasibility of this idea with the screenwriter.

The screenwriter pondered seriously. "I think we should use Jackie Chan's image. Bruce Lee's era is too far in the past. For many younger audiences, Jackie Chan is more recognizable."

Others joined the discussion. "Come on, we're trying to caricature them. Why use such positive figures? Just pick someone with a flat face and squinty eyes."

"Good point. Let's see if we can find an Asian actor—no, it has to be someone of Dragon Country descent—to self-parody. Now that's true irony."

"Let's cast the female lead, too. Get someone with squinty eyes, a big mouth, and protruding lips—slouched posture, of course. That fits the stereotypical image of Dragon Country women."

Across from them, the short actor sighed helplessly. "I could actually play the Mandarin role well. There's no need to change the character."

"No, you're being replaced!"

Aldrich Killian entered the frame, drew a gun, and shot the short actor right in the forehead.

Just like that, the short actor's role came to an abrupt and permanent end.

Killian then sat down in the actor's former seat, facing the camera.

"Alright, that was just a joke. Now let's get serious."

Across the U.S., viewers watching the live broadcast, though baffled by this unexpected turn, all stopped what they were doing and fixed their eyes on the screen.

On TV, Aldrich Killian chuckled lightly and took a cigar from an assistant, puffing on it.

"To the politicians and high-ranking officials watching, I hadn't planned on revealing myself so soon. But as you saw, a small dispute forced me to drop my disguise and step into the spotlight."

"Though the Mandarin was a facade, his words were not lies. Our objective is clear: America!"

"Don't think about running or hiding. I'm going to teach you a lesson and show you who the true masters of this land are!"

At this point, Killian's expression flickered with struggle, as if he were experiencing a mental breakdown. It was as if another personality had taken over, forcing him to say and do things he didn't fully comprehend.

"I will make you feel pain, believe me!"

His fierce expression flashed briefly before Killian suddenly rushed toward the camera, his fist glowing red. With a punch at the camera, the screen went dark.

Viewers were left utterly bewildered by what they had just seen.

What was going on? Was this a live broadcast or an officially produced farce? Was the so-called Mandarin really dead?

And who was this last man? What was he planning? Was he... a supervillain?

Before the screen went dark, everyone saw the fiery red glow on the man's hand, like a branding iron.

Clearly, this was not something a normal person should be capable of.

Public debate erupted immediately, while the authorities traced the broadcast signal to its source.

"The signal originated from Pakistan, sir!"

The region had long been a hub of terrorist activity, so it wasn't surprising that the signal came from Pakistan.

Without delay, War Machine James Rhodes was deployed, traveling across half the globe to carry out a targeted strike on the source.

Meanwhile, in the recording studio, Aldrich Killian was utterly stunned.

It felt like he had just experienced a nightmare—like being trapped in bed, fully conscious but completely unable to move.

His mind had been clear, yet he was controlled by another consciousness, causing him to commit irrational acts, such as shooting the short actor and appearing on camera himself.

While he was being controlled, the director, screenwriter, and crew in the studio also experienced various degrees of interference. This included their discussions about Dragon Country casting, the live broadcast connection established from the start, and the cameras that kept rolling.

What had just happened? Had they all been possessed by ghosts?