Inviting

Ben's eyes fluttered open, groggy and struggling to focus after a long period of sleep. He lay weakly on a white bed, his gaze drifting around the luxurious bedroom. The professional medical equipment around him indicated that he was in a top-tier intensive care unit.

"Hey, you're up! How's it feel to be the big guy now?" Alex entered the room with a light-hearted tone.

"Where am I?" Ben asked, confused.

"Back on Earth, in the best hospital under Stark Industries," Alex explained.

"What about Susan and Johnny?"

"They're fine. They might have some special abilities now," Alex replied with a slight smile.

"And what's wrong with me?"

"I promise, Ben, they've done their best. They've given you the best plastic surgery hands in the world. They've done everything they can for you," Alex said before Johnny, now dressed in pants, walked in.

"Give me the mirror," Ben demanded.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea. They said it might be a shock," Johnny hesitated, holding up a side mirror.

"Give me that damn mirror!" Ben yelled, his frustration mounting.

"Alright, Ben. Brace yourself," Johnny said reluctantly, handing over the mirror.

Ben looked at his reflection, stunned to see his transformed stone face. He stared at it in disbelief.

"Unfortunately, the doctors couldn't repair your face," Johnny said, already stepping back, annoyed by the situation.

Ben angrily threw the mirror, but Alex controlled it and gently returned it to its place.

Alex said, "Isn't it normal to gain strength and pay a price?"

"I'd rather not have this power. I want to go back to how I was," Ben roared in anguish.

"OK! This is very simple. Let me introduce myself. My name is Alex, the king of Ideal Land," Alex said with a slight smile.

"Ideal Town, that Mutant country?" Ben asked, his voice flat. It was clear he was already aware of it. After all, Charles had announced it to the world, and few people were unaware.

"Yes. You could be considered a type of Mutant as well. I might not have mentioned it before, but I can study your genes, optimize your abilities, and address any defects," Alex explained.

"What do I need to pay? How can I recover?" Ben asked, grabbing Alex's shoulder as if clutching at a lifeline.

"What do you need to pay? You don't need to pay anything. You just need to join Ideal Land. After all, you're now different from others," Alex said lightly.

"I agree," Ben responded without hesitation.

Many ordinary people had some understanding of Ideal Land, a place known for taking in Mutants from all over the world. Given his current appearance, no one would believe he wasn't a Mutant, so joining Ideal Land was a natural choice.

"Great, then we just need a blood sample," Alex said, nodding. He appreciated talking to smart people who didn't need much explanation.

"No problem," Ben replied straightforwardly.

It's just a tube of blood—what's the big deal?

Alex prepared a needle tube and inserted it into Ben's skin. Instantly, the needle bent and the sharp point failed to leave any trace on Ben's skin.

Alex was taken aback; he hadn't expected Ben to have such hard skin. 

"This…" Ben said, equally surprised. "When did I become so... hard?"

"It's okay," Alex reassured him, pulling out a admantium needle and making a small incision in Ben's arm. He inserted the needle and began drawing blood.

Before he could collect much, Ben's self-healing ability pushed the needle out.

"You can continue, don't worry about me," Ben said, observing his skin heal instantly.

"This amount of blood is enough," Alex replied, looking at the ten cc of blood in the needle.

Alex added the genes he collected to the gene bank, now including three new members in addition to the more than 600,000 existing genes.

Regarding power level, Alex was very selective. He only integrated genes that had exceptional qualities. While it was once rare to find Mutants, leading Alex to integrate whatever he could, the situation had changed. With the X gene seemingly increasing daily, Alex could afford to be choosier.

He would only integrate genes with particular abilities or those that combined well, such as Johnny's fire abilities and another's fire control. Some genes could merge to create even greater powers.

(End of this chapter)

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