amaotonovel Chapter 4703 X Royal Clash (9)
Chapter 4703 X Royal Clash (9)
Chapter 4703 X Royal Family: Fierce Battle (Part 9)
Some mutants chose to leave, seeing Clarkia as yet another failed attempt. Their leader had gone mad, wanting to sacrifice them. The plan to rebuild utopia would never be realized. It was better to go back sooner and prolong their lives a little longer.
The White Queen wasn't so pessimistic, but she also chose to leave. She realized that she and the two existing leaders of Clarkia were not on the same page. They might never understand each other. Continuing to coexist would only lead to Clarkia's disintegration.
But Sebastian chose to stay. Not because he was particularly sentimental, but because Magneto's unwavering choice to protect the vulnerable was in his own interest, as he was currently among the vulnerable. Therefore, he was willing to stand on their side.
Many mutants also chose to stay. Their numbers far exceeded Magneto's expectations, and they weren't all Epsilon-level mutants; many Alpha-level mutants also chose to remain. Although they knew they might be chosen for the next raiding party, to die heroically like the previous ones, they still chose to stay.
Magneto's decision, along with the departing mutants, spread throughout the world. Many said he was crazy, and many laughed at his foolishness. However, governments around the world treated this matter with utmost seriousness. Because it was actually a very frightening signal—mutants were uniting their collective spirit.
In the past, mutants didn't have much of a tribal spirit. Of course, some might think their tribal spirit was "resistance against oppression and independence." That could be considered a spirit. But the problem is that they opposed external oppression, which means that once external oppression disappeared, this spirit couldn't be sustained.
Therefore, humanity's approach to mutants has always been to divide and conquer. They win over one faction while persecuting the other. The persecuted faction is always resisting, but the faction that has been won over feels there's nothing to resist, and may even turn around and help ordinary people suppress mutants to gain greater benefits. That's why they can never unite.
But now, a new ideology is emerging among mutants. Magneto's slogan, "Never abandon a mutant," will soon solidify into a new racial spirit. This will become their faith, their creed for selfless sacrifice, making them warriors who cannot be bought with profit.
Once this mindset takes hold, human governments will no longer be able to so easily instigate internal strife. Mutants, guided by this ideology, will coalesce into a terrifying force.
Just as they had predicted, the White Queen and one group of mutants left, but another group of mutants arrived. They were the group that didn't get along with the Brotherhood of Mutants and the X-Men, and most of them had their own factions. Therefore, they didn't arrive immediately after Clarkia was established, but instead had been observing.
Soon, another unexpected visitor arrived. Magneto tensed up—Apocalypse, the progenitor of mutants, had arrived.
It was a tall, armored giant, his body still bearing traces of Egyptian sand. He was accompanied by his followers. The moment he appeared in the portal, almost every mutant sensed something—a stirring of their primal blood.
Magneto landed in the center of the portal hall. He gazed at the towering figure and saw not contempt and brutality, but a deeper, ancient wisdom.
"What? Are you not happy to see me?" Apocalypse asked Magneto.
Magneto remained vigilant, knowing that Apocalypse was an absolute radical, so radical that even Magneto found his views somewhat unacceptable. The moment he awoke, he used his immense power to conquer all mutants and sought to lead them in the complete destruction of human civilization, leaving only mutants on Earth. His arrival was unlikely to be good news.
“Don’t get me wrong,” Apocalypse said, “you should have already seen Moira, right?”
Magneto narrowed his eyes. Apocalypse said, "Never mind, we can talk about reincarnation later. I didn't expect you to dare make such a bold decision. Magneto, answer me, what kind of mutant nation do you want?"
Magneto didn't know if his ideal answer was "to rule the entire Earth and the universe." But he didn't want to appease Apocalypse with his answer, so he truthfully said, "A true home for mutants. No mutant here will be in danger. We will help each other and swear to protect and save each other forever."
“Very good,” Apocalypse said, walking past him without looking up. “Remember what you said today.”
Magneto turned to look at him and suddenly shouted, "Apocalypse, do you think this is possible?"
“That’s not important,” Apocalypse said, turning back to look at him. “At least you’re not a cowardly weakling who wouldn’t even dare to think about it. That’s enough.”
For some reason, Magneto sensed no hostility from Apocalypse. He had just mentioned reincarnation. As the first mutant on Earth, Apocalypse was ancient enough that he might have experienced Moira's nine reincarnations in their entirety and played a significant role in each. Perhaps everything now was the situation he desired.
The arrival of Apocalypse shocked everyone. His ancient bloodline was proof of his immense power. This inspired every mutant.
Then, another unexpected person arrived—Namor, a mutant who didn't seem like a mutant at all.
“You guys really picked a good spot,” Namor said sarcastically. “Do you know that Nemo Point is not only far from the mainland, but also far from Atlantis?”
Magneto walked over and patted his arm, saying, "I didn't expect you to come. You turned down our invitation before."
Namor paused slightly, looked into Magneto's eyes, and said, "You said you would accept and help all mutants, is that true?"
Magneto nodded and said, "Yes, I assure you. But why do you ask? Don't you still have Atlantis?"
“It’s precisely because of Atlantis,” Namor said, looking at him seriously, “that humanity will never accept us. That damned mustachioed man killed so many of our people. And those submarines are always lurking around us. I fear that one day Atlantis will…”
Namor stopped talking and said no more. He gripped his weapon tightly, and after a long while, he spoke again: "I don't ask you to protect the sea people. I only hope that my joining will make some people wary, at least let them know what mutants can do to protect their own kind. That's enough."
Watching his departing figure, Magneto was overwhelmed with mixed feelings. For a long time, he had been unwilling to acknowledge that mutants like Namor, who leaned towards "outsiders," were his fellow mutants, because they never did anything for mutants and only cared about their own little world.
However, in the time since establishing Clarke, Magneto has had to admit that when a person develops a sense of belonging to a place and a group, they are willing to give everything for it. Mutants don't easily leave the place that gave them birth and nurtured them, just as Magneto is unwilling to give up Clarke.
Namor's reasons for coming this time may be complex. He might want to form an alliance with Clarkia to provide Atlantis with a way out, or, as he said, he might want to demonstrate to humanity that mutant-ruled nations are not to be trifled with. But whatever the reason, his arrival at this time is a strong endorsement of Magneto's ideals.
Then came another powerful reinforcement: General Chaser, a powerful Omega-level mutant with telepathy and well-rounded psychic abilities. He was also one of the older mutants, having been dormant for some time before recently awakening. However, his arrival wasn't out of support for Magneto's ideals; he had simply heard of Clarkia. He believed mutants should indeed have their own country, and so he came.
Magneto was having a bit of a headache with him. This guy was an extremely fanatical Christian, obsessed with the Crusades. He was determined to preach on Clarkia. Fortunately, Clarkia wasn't lacking in powerful mutants who should be able to keep him in check.
Storm then returned; she hadn't actually left Clarkia, but had gone to Wakanda for various reasons. It was precisely because of her that Wakanda, which had the greatest conflict of interest with Clarkia, did not speak out at the United Nations General Assembly.
“Good job on diplomacy, Ororo.” Magneto walked over and patted her on the shoulder. Storm couldn’t help but roll her eyes and said, “Don’t make me do this job again, I’m so tired of it.”
She paused for a moment before saying, "I heard you're also planning to rescue the raiding party. I have no objection to your decision, but what are you planning to do? Humanity will definitely be more vigilant."
“I’m thinking about that too,” Magneto said. “I’m prepared to go myself, so I won’t act rashly and risk my life.”
"You're going there yourself?!" Storm raised her voice. "Absolutely not. You're the leader of the mutants. If you die there, wouldn't humanity be ecstatic?!"
“I told you, I’ll think about this carefully,” Magneto said.
"Seriously, no one can argue with you!" Storm yelled at him irritably before flying away.
When they reunited in the central royal court conference room, Magneto was surprised to find that their Omega-class and Alpha-class mutants had not decreased but had actually increased.
“Because you are tough enough,” Schiller said in a low voice, standing next to him. “Many people are not afraid of making mistakes, but they are afraid of wavering. It turns out that a tough temperament that is at odds with the whole world can attract more good people.”
Magneto frowned slightly. Wasn't he tough enough?
Schiller seemed to read his mind, and he shook his head, saying, "Your temper is far better than Magneto's in other universes. Both of you are."
Magneto couldn't help but glance at Professor X. As someone who knew the professor inside and out, Magneto was well aware that Professor X's temperament was far from as mild as he appeared, and might even be worse than his own. Were professors from other universes really worse?
It was only then that Magneto realized that these people might not have come because of his ideals, but simply because of his indomitable and relentless fighting spirit.
Previously, the Clarkia leadership had consistently favored a peaceful resolution, employing methods such as drug development and participation in the United Nations General Assembly. These approaches were far too civilized and would undoubtedly be met with disdain by the outlaws among the mutants.
In their view, cooperating with humans was nothing short of appeasement, or even betraying the interests of mutants. These hardliners naturally wouldn't choose to join them. But Magneto's attitude of fighting Redgate Orlando to the death, regardless of the losses, actually suited their tastes, prompting them to rush over without delay.
Magneto placed his hands on the table and said, "Now that everyone is here, let's discuss how to deal with the Red Gate Orchid Factory and rescue the Raid Team's consciousness from the factory system."