Strangulation was blocking the doorway, going on a bloody rampage, while Su Ming had reshaped Godslayer into a little file and was busy filing away at various objects in the room.
These black rocks might have coexisted with Gravityium for a long time, so they had some characteristics different from other rocks—like being lighter, yet tougher—so he took the chance in the middle of the chaos to collect some samples.
There were also some crude pieces of furniture used by the underground creatures in the room; he took samples of those too. Comparing their varying degrees of alteration could provide useful reference data.
But halfway through the work, he realized the light in the room was dimming.
He turned his head to look at the doorway. Strangulation wasn't letting the corpses pile up to block the entrance; the gunfire hadn't stopped for a second, and every now and then it grabbed a bull head or goat head for a snack, its nerves soaked in its own giddy joy.
Then he walked to the window and looked up at the top of the cave. The glowing moss-like plants there hadn't changed at all.
"Looks like the concentration of Dark Matter in the air is rising. I destroyed a pillar containing Gravityium and that ended up making the Dark Matter inside the cave start acting up?"
Su Ming's gaze shifted downward, toward the Abyss below that had no visible bottom, like it led straight into another world...
But soon his eyes narrowed, because he saw, on the rock wall directly opposite the window, a team moving in, lined up in a single-file Long Snake formation, marching toward him like an Ant column.
The rock wall was riddled with all kinds of tunnels, and underground creatures kept popping out to block them, but their advance Speed was still very fast. The few big bruisers in front gave him a familiar feeling.
"Hydra cyborgs, huh? Strangulation, it's been a while since you had Hydra. Missing the taste?"
Su Ming jumped out the window, and Strangulation immediately flowed back into his body, sending a feeling like a nod. The last Hydra it ate was Du Zun—more than half a month ago now.
Since they had a wall on one side and a sheer drop on the other, with a path so narrow only three could walk abreast, this was the perfect spot to wipe them out.
If he let them reach the spire, that might actually lead to some slipping through the net. Hitting them halfway across was the better tactical choice.
Locking onto the position of their leader, the cloak carried him in close in an instant; his goggles left a long red trail in midair, and before they could react, Su Ming went straight for Hive's head.
Yeah, he recognized this freak halfway through the flight. That endlessly squirming mass of tendrils for a head was way too distinctive.
Man and blade arrived together, that streak of black-and-white sword light sketching out a flat plane that burst into existence in the air.
Su Ming and Hive passed each other in a blur; Hive's severed head spun round and round in the air, smacking into the rock wall on one side, splattering black juice everywhere, the sphere bouncing off toward the Abyss.
"Rebound."
Watching that head up above, Su Ming sent Strangulation a thought. A tendril sprouted from his back and snatched the rebound cleanly.
But just as Strangulation bit down, that intact head instantly collapsed like a Sand Castle, breaking into countless micro-Insects smaller than grains of sand, all pouring out of Strangulation's huge mouth.
Strangulation snapped its jaws shut in a hurry and managed to keep some for a snack, but the majority of the Insects swept through the air like a gust lifting a veil and swarmed back to Hive's neck, reshaping the image of his head all over again.
Hive's back became his chest; without moving his feet he rotated in place, those cold, numb, pitch-black eyes staring at Su Ming, but the X Metal blocked his Psychic Ability.
The monster noticed that too. Hive raised a hand to his throat, using Insects to simulate human vocal cords, and spoke with a voice that sounded like it was mixed with shit in his mouth.
"Deathstroke, so it's you here. This is our first meeting, isn't it?"
Su Ming chuckled. Cutting off its head didn't kill it—so this wasn't the watered-down MCU version of Hive. He gave his blade a little flourish, and a hoarse voice came from under the Mask: "Then let's hope it's also the last."
Hive didn't get angry. He spread his hands, as if showing off his crisp military greatcoat: "There's no Hate between us, and no fundamental conflict of principle. I can speak for Hydra and invite you to join us, seek great things together."
"Hydra's grand cause? 'Compliance breeds order, order breeds prosperity'? Or are we going with the classic routine—worshiping some Nine-headed True God?" In Su Ming's hand, Godslayer shifted into a Golden Scimitar. The space here was a bit cramped, and the cyborg freaks behind Hive were starting to get restless.
Hive shook his head. That face wasn't remotely human, so it couldn't make any rich expressions. He clasped his hands behind his back: "I don't believe in any of that crap either. What's Order worth? What's Prosperity worth? Whatever Earth turns into has nothing to do with me. As for the Nine-headed True God? I am the god."
He didn't care that he was surrounded by a bunch of Hydra members. He spread his arms like he was embracing the sun, frankly admitting everything, showing he had zero interest in the rest.
And the Hydra Soldiers around him, even hearing his words, showed no abnormal reaction at all, like they were already used to it.
In truth, the soldiers under Hive were already controlled by his parasites and could basically be regarded as his avatars. Other than still having their own thoughts and being able to act independently, their worship of Hive was entirely god-tier.
As for Viper's subordinates, they were even more about reality. They were basically following Viper for money or other benefits. They'd known the Truth for a long time.
Every Hydra leader thinks differently, and their subordinates aren't the same either. Roughly only Red Skull and Kraken's people still believe in that Nine-headed True God nonsense.
"Oh? So that means you've got your own grand design?"
Su Ming asked Hive, then turned his head to glance behind him. Just over ten meters away was Viper. Right now she was tightly guarded by a group of mechanical soldiers, holding a cigarette between her long fingers, leisurely puffing smoke and watching the show.
"Yes." Hive raised his hand, and countless tiny insects floated up from his palm. He shaped them into a Russian nesting doll, demonstrating as he explained to Su Ming: "Our Cosmos doesn't exist independently. Outside of it, I suspect there are more Advanced Cosmoses, like the toy in my hand—one nested in another..."
Su Ming couldn't help but look at him with a bit more respect. Hive might just be an aggregation of an Insect swarm's thoughts, but his understanding of the Cosmos was pretty solid.
It's only 1956, and he's already groped his way to evidence of the Multiverse's existence. That's not something an Ordinary person can manage.
"So you're looking for a way to go beyond the Cosmos." Su Ming cut him off, planting his scimitar in the ground. "So that means you're looking for the monolith?"
"Right. Looks like you've heard that prophecy circulating among those Slavic Descendants—that today, an iron bird will carry a monolith and bring a staircase leading beyond the Cosmos. Well? I sincerely invite you to join me. Powerhouses like us deserve a broader stage."
Hive paused slightly, then drew the insects back into his body. The tendrils on his face writhed as he picked the topic back up.
He clearly had heard of Deathstroke's infamous name, and might even have ties to the Supreme Leader, so he was not acting rashly at this moment.
"I appreciate the sentiment. If you hand over the Gravityium and pull out now, I can spare your lives." The other side's attitude was decent enough, and Su Ming had no desire to get entangled with something like Hive that's annoyingly hard to kill.
A strange stench wafted up from below the pit, like leftovers gone moldy and rotten, accompanied by a mass of black particles. They rolled around everyone like lava about to erupt.
Su Ming and Hive both noticed the change and glanced down into the deep hole. But whatever each of them saw, neither would say.
"So that liquid metal is called Gravityium. Interesting. Hydra has formidable research capacity. Join us, and you can share the fruits." Hive clasped his hands behind his back, trying once more to entice him.
Su Ming shook his head. He had hoped to negotiate some terms, but since they were so eager to die, he'd send them on their way.
He split the scimitar into two. The Golden Weapons flickering with Electric Light suddenly flared, the blades seeming to let out a bloodthirsty screech as the urge for a Deathblow surged into his Soul.
"I'm just an Ordinary guy. And an Ordinary guy who doesn't like Insects."
Su Ming turned down Hive's invitation in a flat tone. Time was tight; the Zero Material down in the Abyss had clearly changed—he needed to go check it fast.
Hive shook his head in disappointment. The two raised arms suddenly burst into smoke; those brown Little Worms spread through the surrounding air like dust. "Looks like I'll have to show off my strength. If you won't cooperate, then die."
"Strangulation."
Su Ming formed a thought, and the Mind God of Strangulation instantly reached out from the Host's Armor chest, plucked off a Flash Bomb, and tossed it over everyone's heads. A soft pop later, everything went blinding white.
"Hand over your life, Hive!"
He growled low, springing up into the glare. The Dual Blades in his hands spread like wings, as if to slice Hive clean in half at the waist.
Hive simply turned his whole body into Insects, retreating like Flowing Water to open up distance. He wasn't that afraid of the Golden Weapons themselves; the main issue was the current crackling around them—very troublesome.
Insects are tiny; that kind of intense current was a serious hazard to them.
The blades roared with the wind, and Deathstroke moved so fast he left only an afterimage where he'd been. Hive looked up, seeing that under the colorful glowing moss, a patch of Darkness covered him. It felt like the next instant, the Weapon would cleave down on his head.
But suddenly, Deathstroke broke physics and Flashed backward. He had clearly leapt toward Hive, yet in midair he changed direction, retreating even faster.
One Backward Jump Slash chopped down directly on Viper, who had been behind him. In a single instant he split Hydra's top biochemist in two, and the guards protecting her were, in the very next second, shredded by dense blade-light into mangled corpses, collapsing beside her.
Blood and torn organs sprayed everywhere, and the narrow cliffside path turned into Human Purgatory in an instant.
Deathstroke, suddenly appearing behind Viper, flicked his Weapon, slowly straightening up as he splattered the blood and machine oil off onto the rock wall. Godslayer was once again spotless, gleaming brilliantly.
"All right, cleanup's done. Now we can officially begin."
As he spoke, he crooked a finger at Hive.