Ultron’s reckless, all-or-nothing behavior didn’t faze Sebastian much. Instead, it was Victor’s earlier words and evidence that subtly aided him, clearly not by accident.

Sebastian looked up at Victor, floating in midair. Victor casually dispatched the Ultron soldiers charging at him and gave Sebastian a slight nod. Though Sebastian could only see Victor’s mask, he caught the glint of a smile in Victor’s eyes, confirming his suspicion: Victor’s actions were deliberate.

Sebastian opened his mouth, but no sound came out. Instead, using a spell he sent his voice directly to Victor’s ear. “Victor, thanks.”

Victor, hearing Sebastian’s words, responded with the same magical technique, his voice resonating in Sebastian’s ear alone. “I’m not just doing this for you. The Shadow Council was part of my plan to revive Latveria, but now too many voices in the Council rival mine, which hinders my goals. With Mordo dead, only the Mandarin and Ultron remain. I can’t let them keep competing for control. Plus, Ultron genuinely plans to move against us. Taking him down is necessary for my strategy—helping you is just a bonus.”

Sebastian chuckled. “Say what you want, but you helped me, and that’s a fact. I owe you one. Next time we cross paths, I’ll repay it.”

“I won’t give you an easy chance to settle that debt!” Victor shot back.

With that, Victor moved swiftly, approaching the Mandarin, who was dangerously close to two mimic black holes that were nearly fully merged, devouring each other. Resisting the black holes’ immense gravity, Victor spoke to the Mandarin. “Abandon your hands and rings. You’ll have a chance to rise again. Otherwise, with that overwhelming gravitational pull, even I can’t get you out!”

The Mandarin, decisive by nature, understood Victor’s words. Though he knew Victor’s offer wasn’t purely altruistic, he also recognized it as his only option. The alternative was to vanish with his rings into the fully fused mimic black holes. Taking a deep breath, the Mandarin nodded. “Cut off my wrists and get me out. From now on, in the Shadow Council, I’ll follow your lead!”

A faint smirk curved beneath Victor’s mask—Doctor Doom at this moment. He nodded slightly, and a sharp blade sprang from his right wrist. With two swift cuts, he severed the Mandarin’s hands at the wrists, then cast a sealing spell, inspired by mystic arts, to close the wounds on the Mandarin’s arms. Transforming into a streak of white light, Victor carried the Mandarin away, vanishing from the scene.

At that moment, the Mandarin’s severed hands, along with the nine rings they bore, plunged into the now-merged mimic black hole. The black hole began to fluctuate wildly, expanding and contracting, flickering unstably as if on the verge of exploding.

With the Mandarin’s hands and rings absorbed, the mimic black hole’s pull on the Space Gem in Sebastian’s possession ceased, freeing him. He waved his wand, casting Reducto, blasting the approaching Ultron soldiers into fragments, and prepared to distance himself from the mimic black hole.

But then, Sebastian felt a sudden pull. The Ring of Harnessing Power on his left hand seemed to resonate, drawn irresistibly toward the mimic black hole. The attraction grew stronger, almost limitless, as if summoned by an unseen force. Decisive as ever, Sebastian didn’t hesitate. He removed the Ring of Harnessing Power and hurled it into the black hole. The moment it entered, a deafening boom echoed from within. The mimic black hole rapidly shrank to the size of a fist, then stabilized, becoming calm.

The mimic black hole vanished entirely, replaced by a spherical, black gem-like energy mass that gently settled onto the ground, pressing a massive crater into the earth.

This was… an Authority?

The mimic black hole, infused with the Space Gem’s power and the Mandarin’s ten rings, had crystallized a fragment of the Authority’s power into this tangible form. Sebastian, closest to the manifested Authority and the most knowledgeable about such forces, had no doubts. He waved his wand, casting Accio, drawing the Authority’s power toward him with an invisible force emanating from the wand’s tip.

Sebastian didn’t dare touch it directly. The Authority’s landing had created a massive crater—only a fool would ignore its immense power and weight. He waved his wand repeatedly, using Wingardium Leviosa to carefully channel his magic, slowly infusing it into the Authority’s energy.

But at that moment, Ultron recognized the significance of the black gem-like Authority. Breaking free from Vision and Tony, he charged toward Sebastian at full speed.

Seeing Ultron’s approach, Sebastian raised his left hand, conjuring a surge of hellfire and launched it at Ultron. The flames struck Ultron’s body, halting his advance. Though Ultron’s vibranium frame was formidable, prolonged exposure to hellfire began to take its toll.

As Ultron pressed forward, his body showed signs of melting at the joints. Seeing this, the others sprang into action, eager to capitalize on the moment. Vision landed beside Sebastian, the Mind Stone in his forehead emitting a brilliant yellow beam that struck Ultron. Tony and Thor followed, Tony firing a chest-mounted repulsor blast and Thor unleashing a bolt of lightning.

Simultaneously, Wanda acted, her hands glowing as she fired two crimson energy beams at Ultron. If Ultron could still withstand this onslaught, Jonathan’s arrival in midair was the final blow. His body erupted in blinding, near-white light, and he unleashed two searing flames from his hands, aimed directly at Ultron.

Ultron’s body melted visibly, especially his face, which became grotesquely distorted and terrifying. As the barrage of energy and flames ceased, Ultron’s outer shell flowed down his body like molten metal, and his internal structure, damaged by the intense heat, hindered his movement. He could only stagger toward Sebastian and the others.

Wanda raised her hand again, the Frost Ring on her right hand glowing. She unleashed an icy blue beam that struck Ultron, instantly lowering his temperature.

The extreme heat followed by intense cold took its toll, even on vibranium. The Hulk charged forward, his massive fist smashing into the now-frozen Ultron. With a single blow, Ultron shattered into countless fragments, scattering across the battlefield.

Tony immediately addressed the others. “Don’t let a single Ultron soldier escape! If any get away, Ultron can transfer itself through their local network to another body and flee. Once it breaks our network lockdown and re-enters Earth’s systems, we’ll never be able to destroy it completely!”

“When I blocked Ultron’s connection to the global network, I linked to their local network,” Vision added. “I can track the location of every Ultron soldier. Beyond these soldiers, there’s a massive Ultron soldier manufacturing facility beneath Sokovia. We must destroy it completely.”

Tony nodded, preparing to pursue the fleeing Ultron soldiers. But at that moment, a massive Helicarrier decloaked above, descending from the clouds. Scores of fighter jets, accompanied by War Machine and Falcon, surged out, launching attacks on the Ultron soldiers.

Simultaneously, under Fury’s command, the Helicarrier’s weapons unleashed a torrent of bullets, obliterating many Ultron soldiers before they could approach. The arrival of S.H.I.E.L.D. brought a collective sigh of relief to the group.

Thor, eyeing the unconscious Absorbing Man and Leader, asked, “The rest of the Shadow Council escaped. What do we do with these two?”

“Hand them over to S.H.I.E.L.D. after the battle,” Tony replied. “They should build a prison specifically for superhuman threats like these.”

Sebastian waved his hand, casting Stupefy with a flick of his wand, deepening the unconsciousness of Absorbing Man and Leader. They wouldn’t wake for three or four days.

Seeing Sebastian’s action, Wanda turned to him. “Sebastian, did you deal with that thing?”

Sebastian knew she meant the newly formed Authority. He nodded. “It’s handled. I gained something from it. Got lucky.”

Lucky was an understatement. Sebastian felt like he’d struck gold. The Authority was tied to the mimic black hole, a fragment of gravitational power. Gravity could extend to weight, but it was a higher-order force, like the relationship between a water Authority and a rainwater Authority—superior to subordinate. Though this gravitational Authority was only a small portion, it was immensely valuable. It had fully integrated with Sebastian, joining the hellfire Authority as his second fully fused power. Developing gravity or weight-based magic would now be far easier, and his overall strength had surged, enabling him to dispatch Ultron soldiers more swiftly.

Holding his wand between his thumb, index, and middle fingers, with the wand’s end pressed against his palm and his ring and pinky fingers tucked in, Sebastian moved like a conductor following an unseen rhythm. With a gentle wave of his wand, casting Gravitum he unleashed a burst of gravitational force. The Ultron soldiers in midair plummeted, crashing into the ground and exploding on impact.

As Sebastian waved his wand, a circular black mark appeared on his forehead, pulsing with power. The ground trembled, and the craters left by the Ultron soldiers’ impacts cracked and connected. The earth shattered, forming countless platforms of stone and soil that rose into the air. Sokovia itself transformed, its buildings lifting as if the city had become a floating fortress suspended in the sky.

Sebastian hovered above Sokovia, his body radiating translucent threads of a gravitational field. Each wave of his wand altered the field, causing the entire city to shift and float under his command.

From the Helicarrier, Fury watched Sebastian’s display of power, muttering, “Motherf— This guy just keeps getting stronger.”

Amid his awe, Fury’s mind churned with concern. If Sebastian ever turned against them or pursued a different agenda, who could stop him? Stark? Thor? Banner? Their close bonds—especially with Tony and Thor—made it unlikely they’d oppose him, and even if they did, they might not match his power.

Fury knew the danger of an unchecked individual all too well. Sebastian’s involvement with the Avengers stemmed from his pursuit of the Space Gem and his friendships with Tony, Thor, and others. But if those friendships no longer restrained him, or if new alliances pulled him to an opposing side, what then?

Fury reached into his pocket, pulling out a modified pager. He stared at it, his expression unreadable, wrestling with whether to press the button. His concerns were rooted in his instincts as a spymaster, but if Sebastian truly turned, would activating the pager even matter in time?

As Fury pondered, Agent Hill spoke from behind him. “Director, I think as long as Alisha is around, Sebastian won’t be a problem. He loves his mother and cares deeply for his friends. He’s not without compassion. That should be enough for us to trust him, don’t you think?”

Fury took a deep breath and nodded. “You’re right, Hill. The world’s changing too fast to guard against everything and everyone.”

He slipped the pager back into his coat pocket. But as he did, his right hand trembled subtly, and with a discreet motion, he pressed the pager’s button. The device activated, displaying a pattern of stars and lines.

No one can convince a suspicious mind.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep