Chapter 152: Explosion

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Early in the morning, Mike opened his eyes and grabbed his phone to check the time. 

It was just past seven. 

There were two unread messages. 

One was spam, while the other was from Fire Fox, Fox. 

Mike raised an eyebrow and opened the message. 

"Mr. Kent, I hope you have a great day." 

Turning his head, Mike glanced at little Gwen, who was curled up beside him, hugging her stuffed bear like a sleeping kitten. A rare smile appeared on his face as he did something unusual—he replied. 

"Hope you have a great day too." 

After sending the message, Mike got out of bed, set his phone aside, and walked out of the bedroom. 

Ever since he had given Fire Fox his number that day, she had occasionally sent him these little greeting messages. Until now, he had never responded. This was the first time. 

Glancing back at Gwen and seeing that she was still sound asleep, he smiled. 

Even though she had been living with him for half a month now, she still lacked a sense of security. Every night, she would stand at his bedroom door with her pillow in hand, waiting silently for his invitation to sleep with him. 

Only when she slept beside Mike did she truly rest peacefully. 

By the time Mike had finished washing up and preparing breakfast, Gwen groggily stumbled out of the bedroom. 

Her sleepy expression was downright adorable. 

Unlike those three boys he had raised before... 

A mental image flashed through his mind—Clark, Eric, and Charles, charging down the stairs like a pack of huskies, wolfing down their food, then bolting out the door. 

Mike's face darkened. No comparison. Absolutely no comparison. 

Gwen sniffed the air, the scent of breakfast waking her up instantly. She flashed a sweet smile at Mike before shuffling into the bathroom in her fluffy slippers to wash up. 

Mike watched her go, a warm smile tugging at his lips. 

She was slowly stepping out of the shadows. 

Even though she still hadn't called him "Dad," the increasingly radiant smile on her face was more than enough for now. 

Ah… this is what having a daughter feels like. 

Mike chuckled happily as he picked up a piece of bread and carefully spread jam on it. When Gwen came back, he handed it to her. 

Gwen took it and started eating eagerly. 

After finishing breakfast together, Mike took her to school. Only when he saw her enter the building did he turn to leave. 

Meanwhile, just as Mike was settling into his new routine of raising another child... 

Eric was locked in a fierce battle against the Hellfire Club's mutants at a military base. 

This was a retaliatory operation—payback for the recent capture of several Hellfire Club members. 

Rumor had it that during the joint operation between the military and S.H.I.E.L.D., a mysterious mutant had appeared and helped take down several of their own. 

"Magneto!" 

Suddenly, a mutant shouted, pointing toward the sky. "It's coming!" 

Eric nodded, his body slowly lifting into the air. 

From above, fighter jets launched a barrage of missiles toward them. Without a flicker of hesitation, he raised his hand. 

In an instant, every missile froze mid-air. 

Then, with a clenched fist— 

Boom! Boom! 

All the missiles detonated harmlessly, nothing more than dazzling fireworks. 

For a brief moment, the battlefield fell silent. 

"Beautifully done!" 

One of the mutants roared before rallying the others. "Take them down!" 

Abilities flared across the battlefield as mutants and soldiers clashed in a ferocious fight. 

Eric, however, remained hovering above, his deep gaze sweeping over the chaos below. 

He had no intention of participating in this meaningless slaughter. 

His task was simple: neutralize large-scale attacks. 

Since joining the Hellfire Club, he had never fully unleashed his power. But even while holding back, he was still ranked among the club's top ten strongest. 

Based on what he had displayed so far, he could stop incoming missiles with ease. However, taking it a step further—such as pulling fighter jets from the sky or redirecting missiles to strike enemy forces—was beyond his current reach.

One reason he held back his strength was to save it for a surprise against the Black Queen. The other was that the stronger his abilities appeared, the harder it would be to avoid unnecessary bloodshed in battle. 

Right now, his power was just enough to neutralize the incoming missiles. As for everything else... 

Sorry, my hands are tied. Not strong enough. 

Among the mutants attacking the base, there were a few with particularly powerful abilities. In just a short time, they had gained the upper hand. 

At that moment, while hovering in the air, Erik noticed something strange—one of the fighter jets that had been circling overhead suddenly vanished, and the soldiers fighting against the mutants began retreating in an eerily coordinated manner. 

His brow furrowed. Something felt off. Pressing the communicator in his ear, he spoke. 

"Pyro, something's wrong. The enemy is retreating." 

"Ha! They can't handle us. Of course, they're retreating!" 

"No! That's not it!" 

Erik's frown deepened. "Their retreat is too orderly!" 

If they were being pushed back, it wouldn't look this controlled. 

"Get out of here! Now!" 

He barked the order. 

The mutant called Pyro scoffed. "Who do you think you are?" 

Sure, Erik was strong, but he was still just a newcomer. Did he really think he could give orders? 

Erik's expression darkened. He gritted his teeth. "Idiot!" 

Boom! 

A massive explosion suddenly erupted in the distance. 

It came from the direction the soldiers had been retreating. The blast tore through the battlefield, cutting off the pursuing mutants from their fleeing enemies. 

Erik's eyes narrowed sharply. 

Then, he saw it—wave after wave of fiery explosions surged forward, roaring like a wild beast with outstretched claws. From all sides of the base, a chain reaction of detonations was closing in fast. 

Boom! Boom! 

The explosions rippled toward them in a terrifying cascade. 

They're trying to herd us into one place… and blow us all to hell! 

"Damn it!" 

He cursed under his breath, then shouted down to the others. 

"Get to me! The whole base is about to go up!" 

The Hellfire mutants' faces twisted in shock. They too could now see the walls of fire and explosions racing toward them. 

Those with defensive abilities immediately activated them to save themselves, but such individuals were rare. Most had no way to resist the incoming inferno, and they sprinted desperately toward Erik. 

Erik let out a sharp breath and stretched his hand toward them. As he flew higher, he manipulated the metal on their bodies, lifting them into the air along with him. At the same time, he summoned massive chunks of metal from around the base, shaping them into a thick wall beneath the mutants. 

In mere seconds, the metal shifted again—forming a massive, airtight sphere, sealing them inside as if they were dumplings in a steel wrapper. 

The moment he finished— 

BOOM! 

A colossal explosion erupted beneath them. 

A fiery shockwave, hotter than molten steel, engulfed the battlefield, forming a towering mushroom cloud that pierced the sky. 

The blast wave struck the metal sphere with devastating force, flames licking hungrily at its surface. But the explosion wasn't done yet—its sheer momentum continued surging upward, racing toward Erik himself. 

His eyes flashed. 

A forcefield materialized around him, an invisible barrier that severed energy and matter alike, shielding him from the destruction. 

With the metal sphere in tow, Erik shot through the inferno, breaking free from the chaos, flying toward safety.

(End of Chapter)