Chapter 372 On the eve of the battle

 In the afternoon, X Academy.

  A beam of golden red fire fell straight down from the sky, and soon the fire landed on the ground. Xu Yue stepped out from the drifting flames.

  Unlike the grand momentum when he left the academy, he deliberately chose a rather secret place to land when he returned, so this time he did not attract much attention from the teachers and students

  of the academy. Of course, this does not include Professor X, whose spiritual energy can cover the entire academy. The other party had noticed it as soon as he landed.

  "Come to the underground base."

  "Okay, professor."

  Listening to the voice transmission in his mind, Xu Yue nodded and responded, and then walked quickly towards the direction of the castle gate.

  After a while, he took the elevator inside the castle to the underground base on the first floor, and went straight to the medical room with ease.

  Soon as the metal hatch of the medical room opened, a lively scene immediately came into Xu Yue's eyes. The spacious room in front of him accommodated all the current X-Men members.

  In the center of the room were two operating tables standing side by side, on which lay Scott and Mystique, who were also receiving blood and various liquid medicines. Beside them was a monitoring machine displaying a lot of data, which was beeping, indicating that the two people's vital signs were relatively stable. Storm

  and Logan were standing near Scott's bed and whispering something, while the professor looked down at the skinny Mystique on the other bed with a complicated expression. The only silent and motionless person in the field, apart from the two patients, was the Red Prison Armor standing quietly in the corner like a metal statue.

  As the sound of the hatch opening at the door spread, the three people who were still awake in the room almost looked over at the same time, and Storm Ororo's reaction was the most significant. After seeing Xu Yue return safely, she left Logan behind and hurried over to meet him.

  "Xinhuo, how are you? Are you not injured?"

  "Nothing."

  Xu Yue waved his hand casually to calm Storm's anxious mood. As for why she was so enthusiastic, Xu Yue was not surprised.

  Scott was taken away before, and Storm could only guard the academy and could not go out to protect the students, so Xu Yue went to rescue him alone. With her personality, letting her teammates take risks alone would definitely make her feel guilty. Now, after receiving Xu Yue's reply that he was safe, she finally felt at ease.

  During the conversation, the two of them also moved from the door to the inside of the treatment room. After finishing the conversation with Storm, Xu Yue simply greeted Logan, and then looked directly at the professor beside him and said:

  "Jean has been taken away from Alkali Lake by Magneto."

  "Yes, I saw it."

  On the side of the operating table, the professor sitting in a wheelchair looked solemn. After returning to the academy, he hurriedly used the brain wave amplifier to detect the traces of the Brotherhood and naturally saw Jean taken away by Magneto.

  Although the other party was still in a coma, the professor was able to easily identify Jean's current specific state through observing her mental space. The Phoenix personality in her body had completely awakened and occupied an absolute dominant position in the mental space. Now it might be more appropriate to call her the Dark Phoenix than to continue to call her Jean.

  At this point, Jean, who controlled the power of the Phoenix, could no longer be re-sealed by relying solely on his mental energy, so even though he observed the Brotherhood's movements, the professor did not stop them. He just watched Magneto and others return to the secret base stationed in the forest and completely disappeared from his perception range.

  Recalling the intelligence he had gathered from the Brotherhood's base, the professor said in a deep voice with a trace of worry in his eyes:

  "There are about a thousand mutants of varying strength gathered in the Brotherhood's base now. Eric has almost taken in all the radical mutants in the Federation, and within these few days, it should be the time for them to launch a general attack on humans."

  After he finished speaking, Xu Yue, who was facing the professor, had not yet replied, but Logan, who was standing by, came over first. He was not very interested in the specific number of mutants stationed in the Brotherhood. He only cared about Jean's safety.

  In this college, Scott was not the only one who liked Jean. Although Scott was Jean's real boyfriend in name, Logan obviously didn't care much about this.

  "Jean was kidnapped by Magneto, right? Now that we have found the Brotherhood's base, when will we rush in to rescue her?"

  "Kidnapped?"

  Glancing at Logan, who had a hint of murderous intent on his face, Xu Yue shook his head slowly.

  "To be precise, Jean left with Magneto voluntarily, not kidnapped, and now it is another Dark Phoenix personality that controls Jean's body. She is most likely unwilling to return to the academy."

  "Calm down, Logan. You can't save anyone if you act rashly now. I promise to bring Jean back to the academy within three days at most."

  Xu Yue said firmly. He first temporarily appeased the anxious Logan, and then turned to look at Storm who was hesitant to speak.

  "The number of thousands of people in the Brotherhood is more exaggerated than expected. Coupled with the human camp, the intensity of the war after the war can be imagined. It is difficult for us to play a decisive role. Ororo, how many reserve X-Men are there now?"

  The so-called reserve is the outstanding combat members selected from the students of the academy. Iceman, Colossus and Phantom, who have been trained by Xu Yue before, are the X-Men reserves selected by Storm, but this number is far from enough to participate in a war.

  In Xu Yue's estimation, the next "Antidote Battle" is only the primary battlefield. The subsequent War of Independence will be the real bloody meat grinder. By then, the students who have been protected for a long time in the academy will never be able to stay out of it. Instead of being caught off guard at that time, it is better to start rehearsals in advance now.

  From ancient times to the present, whether it is a nation or a country, the process of independence has been tempered by countless blood and corpses. Regarding this, Xu Yue has never thought of taking on their due responsibilities alone.

  On the other side, although Storm did not know the specific plan for the subsequent independence, she was very clear about the importance of the antidote, so she has been carefully selecting suitable students to join the X-Men Reserve these days. After hearing Xu Yue's question, she replied decisively.

  "The scale has been increased from four to eight. There are many students with strong mutant abilities in the academy, but they are either too young or their psychological quality is not up to standard. We can only gather so many people in a short period of time."

  "If we want to continue to expand the number, we can only contact those students who have graduated, but this takes time."

  "There are only eight people for now..."

  This number is less than Xu Yue expected. During the time he taught at the X Academy, he had witnessed an endless stream of mutant abilities, and many of them even amazed him. After careful counting, there were definitely more than eight senior students whose combat effectiveness could meet the requirements of the X-Men.

  As for the current result, it can only be said that the requirements set by Storm must be quite strict, but it is not difficult to understand. After all, the academy has always cultivated only a group of students. Perhaps they all have good potential, but their age and character are absolutely weak.

  In fact, Xu Yue did not have much expectation for the actual combat effectiveness of those new recruits in the reserve. There was not much difference between eight and eighteen people for him.

  But even if the actual role that the reserve can play is limited, he must let these students who have been accustomed to peace and shelter for a long time participate in the war as much as possible, and get used to the bloody and cruel atmosphere of war as soon as possible. This is the best way to grow their character.

  As for the sacrifices that may be brought about, as he has always believed, the independence of a race must be stepped on the mountains of corpses and seas of blood to stand up straight. There are enemies among the piles of corpses below, but more will only be compatriots.   

  "The scale of less than two digits is far from enough. This battle for the antidote is just the beginning. Continue to expand, and start contacting those suitable graduates, and start strengthening the combat training of all students. Peace will not last too long, and the college will not be immune."

  Listening to Xu Yue's slightly meaningful words, Storm pursed her lips and did not reply immediately. He first lowered his eyes to look at the professor beside him, and after confirming that he had no objection to this, he nodded and agreed.

  "No problem!"

  "By the way, how is Mary in the reserve now? Have you decided whether to inject the antidote?"

  Storm was stunned when she heard the words, and the figure who hurried to the principal's office and asked in surprise not long ago quickly emerged in her mind. At first, she was firmly opposed to Mary, that is, the little naughty's decision to inject the antidote.

  But later, after following Xu Yue to see the true situation of the lower-level mutants, she gradually understood Mary's decision a little more, at least she would no longer clearly dissuade her, but she did not openly encourage her, but just silently paid attention to what she would choose.

  "She is still struggling, but it shouldn't be for too long, so she is not included in the eight reserves I mentioned before."

  After speaking, Xu Yue lowered his eyes and said lightly:

  "If she finally decides to inject the antidote, then tell her that the effect of the antidote is not permanent. In no more than ten years, her abilities will be restored. It all depends on her wishes as to what to do afterwards."

  "Not permanent?!"

  "Well, the antidote only suppresses, but cannot exterminate genes. As you said, we have never been a disease, so how can we talk about a complete cure."

  "I knew it, I knew it..."

  After looking at Storm who was so excited that she was muttering in a low voice beside him, Xu Yue retracted his gaze and turned to look at the professor in the wheelchair who had been quietly watching him give orders.

  "Professor, what about the Hellfire Club?"

  "Don't worry, we have reached a cooperation with Emma, ​​and she will secretly take action when the time comes."

  "Hank..."

  ...

  The discussion echoed in the room, and it was not until more than ten minutes later that Xu Yue finished discussing the various preparations before the antidote campaign with the professor. After making sure that there were no omissions, he decisively said goodbye.

  "Professor, then I will leave first. There are still some preparations I need to arrange in advance."

  Hearing this, the professor, who looked a little tired, smiled and nodded, but when Xu Yue was about to leave, he suddenly said:

  "Xinhuo, thank you!"

  The professor did not specify what he was thanking for, perhaps for Scott who was rescued on the operating table and Mystique who was not killed, or perhaps for the various matters that Xu Yue had been running for during this period of time.

  In short, no matter what the specific reason was, the sincerity of his words was truly revealed, and Xu Yue did not ask too many questions after listening. He just hooked the corners of his lips at the professor, and then he turned directly to Storm and Logan on the other side of the room and nodded slightly.

  Finally, he reached out and summoned the Red Prison Armor that had been standing still in the corner

  . After doing all this, he quickly walked away. Behind him, the Red Prison turned into a beam of red light and merged directly into his body, and the people in the room were also isolated by the closed hatch. Before Scott and Mystique fully recovered, they would probably not leave the medical room so soon.

  Outside the treatment room, the crisp footsteps gradually moved away in the metal corridor and soon disappeared. A few minutes later, Xu Yue walked out of the elevator on the third floor of the castle and went straight to his lounge. The

  open door was closed lightly. After returning to the room, Xu Yue did not rush to rest, but took out the only scarlet card he had obtained in this battle. At the same time, he also took out the sleeping manta ray in the space in the form of a gem to wake him up.

  "Bing~"

  A lazy chirping sound came from the blue gem in his hand, and then small crystal wings stretched out from both sides of the gem. In the blink of an eye, the gem that was originally a dead object turned into a vivid and magnificent flying fish.

  The warm sea-blue eyes opened, and after seeing a blood-red vortex floating in the air not far away, the sleepiness in Wen Yu's eyes quickly dissipated. It cried excitedly, flapped its wings and dived into the vortex.

  Wen Yu was not excited about drawing cards. What really excited her was the soul crystal (small) and green gem it obtained after drawing the scarlet card last time.

  In its simple cognition, drawing cards and feeding have been equated.

  Glancing at Wen Yu's back disappearing in the vortex, Xu Yue did not choose to stand there and wait, but pulled out the armchair beside him and sat down, and began to study his still somewhat shriveled arm.

  As his mind turned, the Red Prison Armor in his body trembled slightly, and then a scarlet blood light slowly appeared on his arm, and a faint sore and itchy feeling rose. The flesh and blood in his arm that had become shriveled due to the erosion of evil energy began to regain vitality under the nourishment of this blood light, and it was completely restored in a short while.

  "Chiyu's recovery ability seems to have become significantly stronger."

  After sighing slightly about the changes after Chiyu's return, he dispelled the blood on his arm and looked up at the three items neatly placed on the desk in front of him. The

  luster of the two green and one white equipment bloomed in his eyes. Although it was not as good as the last time, Xu Yue did not feel disappointed.

  Getting nothing is often the norm when drawing scarlet cards. Now that he can get three pieces of equipment in a row, it can already reflect Wen Yu's luck. Anyway, it is foreseeable that he will have many opportunities to get scarlet cards in this world, so he is not in a hurry.

  After simply scanning the specific attributes of the three pieces of equipment and determining that they are not very useful, Xu Yue threw them directly into the space. The greatest value of these low-level equipment to him is to use them to decompose and refine magic dust. In short, they will not be useless.

  After opening the scarlet card, Xu Yue handed a green gem to Wen Yu, who was staring at him eagerly, as usual, and then summoned the magic mirror to open a portal to Cairo.

  Soon the figures in the room disappeared, leaving only the manta ray who was happily chewing the gem.

  Xu Yue told the professor that some preparations needed to be made, which was not a lie. However, these preparations were not in the academy, but in faraway Cairo, Egypt.

  (End of this chapter)