Lyon, wanting to showcase the power system of the Swallowed Star universe, took Tony on a tour inside his internal world.
The vast landscapes—mountains, rivers, and even the atmosphere—looked almost identical to reality.
Tony was completely amazed, exclaiming in awe over and over, even begging Lyon to teach him.
Unfortunately, even with Lyon personally guiding him on how to sense cosmic energy, Tony was completely unable to cultivate genetic primal energy.
The Swallowed Star system was fundamentally only suited for people from that universe.
After all, where else would something like "gene multiplication" even exist?
Without the right biological foundation, cultivating genetic primal energy was simply impossible.
"So, what if I go with you to that world, tell the Origin Will I can help out too—do you think it'll modify me as well?" Tony was still refusing to give up.
There probably wasn't a single hard science-based physicist who wouldn't want the ability to house an entire galaxy, black hole, or even a world within themselves.
Lyon shrugged. "Forget it. I can't even go back right now. By the time I break through to Lord of Laws and return, who knows how long it'll be?"
Tony ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "Damn it. I never should've listened to you talk about this insane power system."
Tony clutched his head and paced around the office desk twice.
"A fascinating, mysterious power system is right in front of me… and I can't even touch it."
"This has got to be the cruelest thing in the world!"
"Even worse than failing to take the most beautiful woman home after a party!"
Lyon tilted his head. "Hearing you say that… I suddenly understand your pain. Yeah, that really would be frustrating."
Just then, a notification sound came from the computer at the office entrance—an agent was requesting access.
"Come in!" Tony quickly composed himself, adjusting his messy hair as his expression turned serious.
Even in front of his subordinates, he still cared about maintaining his image.
The door automatically slid open, and Coulson stepped inside.
"Apologies, Director. I tried to schedule an appointment through the system, but it seems to be having some issues," Coulson said with an apologetic smile at the doorway.
Ever since taking over as Director, Tony had been too busy to breathe.
Between his personal research and managing the Avengers, his schedule was packed.
As a result, any agent who wanted to meet with him had to book an appointment through the system.
Urgent appointment requests were typically filtered and forwarded by Jarvis for immediate notification.
But right now, Jarvis was in no condition to handle anything.
After all, everyone knows that during a high-X moment, the brain goes blank—and apparently, the same applied to an AI in the middle of evolution.
"It's not your fault. The system is undergoing maintenance and will be down for about a week. So, what's up?" Tony adjusted his collar.
"Dr. Banner has woken up, Director," Coulson reported. "He wants to leave—and he's being very forceful about it."
...
"You don't want to see the other guy—so let me leave!"
When the three of them arrived, they found Banner standing protectively in front of Betty, confronting several agents.
"Dr. Banner, please remain calm," one of the agents said. "We're an international defense organization, not the military. We brought you here for your protection, and we have no intention of conducting human experiments on you!"
The agent leading the team was none other than Hawkeye.
He looked tense, his hand already resting on the grip of his longbow.
The fact that Banner could turn into a monster at any moment made him extremely uneasy.
"Protection? No—you're afraid of me!" Banner snapped. "I won't stay here—let me go!"
His emotions flared, and beneath his skin, green-tinged veins began to surface.
Immediately, all the agents tensed up, their guns raised in perfect synchronization. Safeties clicked off, ready to fire at any moment.
Faced with so many gun barrels pointed at him, Banner didn't rage—he took a few deep breaths and calmed himself down instead.
His expression turned bitter. "See? You're not ready for this either. I should be somewhere far away from people—because no one can control the other guy."
"That's not necessarily true," Lyon stepped past Tony. "Science isn't the only way—there's also magic. You should try it, Dr. Banner."
"Magic?" Banner looked at Lyon in his uniform, stunned. "That outfit… You're Superman? You—you look exactly as strong as you do in the videos!"
For the first time, the suffering carved into his features lifted, and his expression brightened with excitement. "I was just thinking about how to find you—I wanted to say thank you for stoping ...that guy."
"No need to be so formal," Lyon chuckled. "Besides, this was technically Tony's fault."
But Banner shook his head. "I don't remember much from that moment…
But Betty told me that if you hadn't knocked me out in time, I would have continued rampaging through the city.
Who knows how many people would have died tonight if that had happened?"
"And wait—you mean Superman is also part of the Avengers? That's… amazing! That means from now on, I can.."
His sentence trailed off as his eyebrows drooped, forming two twisted caterpillars on his face.
"No, I mean, you might not always be there every time something happens. This time was fine, but eventually, one day, it's going to end in disaster."
Lyon placed a hand on Banner's shoulder. "Banner, you're misunderstanding something. It's true that I can't always watch over you—but you can."
"I can? Watch over myself? What do you mean?" Banner asked, confused.
"Something like this."
Lyon gently tapped Banner's chest with his palm.
Immediately, Banner felt his entire body tremble internally, his organs shifting as if dislodged. He stumbled backward uncontrollably.
Then—a translucent figure suddenly separated from his body, floating in midair.
It was Banner's soul.
Meanwhile, his physical body collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut.
Every single person present stared wide-eyed in shock.
Betty screamed, covering her mouth as she rushed toward Banner's body.
Banner's soul, completely disoriented, stammered, "What… what is this? Did Superman just kill me?!"
He looked at his semi-transparent hands, then back down at his "corpse" lying on the ground.
Decades of scientific beliefs shattered instantly.
"Hahah~ No 'Superman' didn't. This is magic," Lyon explained. "Astral Projection—it allows your soul to leave your body."
To everyone else in the room, Lyon appeared to be talking to thin air, making the scene look incredibly eerie.
Tony stepped forward, arms crossed, his eyes filled with curiosity.
"So, you're saying you pulled Dr. Banner's soul out of his body? That's neither science nor Superman-like at all!"
He reached out and waved his hand through the air in front of Lyon, his fingers passing right through Banner's soul.
"There's nothing here—where exactly is he? Another dimension?"
"He's in the astral plane, a realm that belongs solely to the soul."
Lyon snapped his fingers. "Might as well let all of you experience it too."
Woom!
The moment his words fell, everyone's souls left their bodies.
"Ohhhhhh!" Their physical bodies collapsed to the floor, while their souls floated midair, screaming in confusion as they exchanged looks.
Tony, of course, immediately began experimenting, repeatedly trying to interact with objects in his new ghostly form.
Lyon ignored the flailing group of disembodied spirits and instead turned his attention back to Banner.
"So? In this state, you should be able to sense the big guy inside you more clearly now, right?"
Lyon tapped Banner's forehead with his finger, and immediately, his ethereal soul split apart, revealing a massive green figure beside him.
"ROoooooaaaaAR! HULK!!"
The moment Hulk appeared, he let out a deafening roar.
Upon spotting Lyon, he instinctively tried to attack the man who had beaten him before.
However, the giant fist passed straight through Lyon's chest as if he weren't even there.
"Grr..?"
Hulk stared at his fist in confusion, then threw another punch—with the same result.
His huge eyes filled with small doubts.
Tilting his head, he squatted down, much like a curious elementary school kid examining an ant on the sidewalk.
Then, he began poking Lyon's face repeatedly with his finger, as if trying to figure out why his attacks weren't working.
___________
Read 15 Chapters ahead:
Patreon: LiveLifeLove