The two red laser beams that destroyed the fleeing Skrull spaceship were Karl's Cyclops ability.
Karl had already noticed that one Skrull was missing. Using the Mind Stone and Soul Stone, he had been monitoring the entire planet.
He never expected the last Skrull to reveal himself so quickly by escaping in a spaceship.
Naturally, Karl simply used his Cyclops optic blast to destroy the ship before it could leave Earth's orbit.
As for whether the remaining Skrull Empire might retaliate for the deaths of their agents—
Karl didn't care in the slightest.
If they chose to ignore the matter, then so be it.
But if they dared to come to Earth seeking revenge—
Then the Skrull race might very well disappear from the universe.
News of the incident quickly spread.
The public learned that Tony Stark's close friend had been impersonated by an alien during Tony's wedding.
Fortunately, Karl discovered the deception and destroyed the remaining infiltrators hiding on Earth.
But this was not the most shocking news.
The real bombshell was something else entirely.
Howard Stark had returned from the dead.
Not only had Tony Stark's father appeared alive again—
He had even personally officiated Tony and Pepper Potts' wedding.
Many people on the internet immediately began speculating that the resurrection had been performed by the Gold Saint — Karl.
However, within only a few hours, the topic was forcibly suppressed.
Official authorities intervened to shut down the discussions.
After all, if anyone provoked Karl because of this matter—
It could potentially bring disaster to the entire nation.
At the same time, something else began happening across the world.
More and more people started believing in Karl.
To many of them, Karl appeared far more convincing than any traditional deity.
After all, he had saved Earth countless times.
And now—
He seemed capable of granting life and resurrecting the dead.
To many ordinary people, that was the power of a god.
As a result, various places around the world began forming beliefs centered around Karl.
Back at the manor, Karl soon noticed something unusual.
Streams of golden energy were flowing toward him.
At first glance, it looked like ordinary energy.
But upon closer examination, Karl realized it was something else entirely.
The power of faith.
In certain cosmic systems, if enough beings placed their faith in someone, that person could ascend and become a faith-based deity.
However, such power came with severe drawbacks.
If the believers disappeared or their faith weakened—
The god would lose their power and even fall from godhood entirely.
Karl had no interest in relying on such unstable power.
Instead, he simply redirected all of the faith energy into the Heavenly Army Commander Divine Token he had previously obtained.
Since he had no use for it anyway, storing it there was the simplest solution.
Karl enjoyed several peaceful days afterward.
However—
Tony Stark was not nearly as fortunate.
Ever since Howard Stark's resurrection became public knowledge, countless people had approached Tony.
Many of them asked the same question.
Could Karl truly resurrect the dead?
And if so—
What price would it cost?
Some wealthy tycoons and billionaires even declared they were willing to spend their entire fortunes just to revive a single loved one.
Tony refused all of them.
He simply told them that Karl currently could not resurrect anyone.
Then he sent them away.
Tony still remembered the conversation he had with Karl when Karl resurrected Howard and Maria Stark.
He had no intention of causing trouble for Karl.
More importantly—
Tony was not Karl.
He had no right to make promises on Karl's behalf.
Naturally, many powerful people were displeased.
But no one dared take action against Karl or Tony.
Not a single person on Earth possessed the courage to provoke someone with Karl's strength.
When Karl heard about this situation, he simply narrowed his eyes slightly.
He said nothing.
But if anyone truly lost their sense of reason and tried to force the issue—
Karl would not hesitate to unleash a massacre.
At this point, no one on Earth could stop him.
Meanwhile—
Far away in Egypt.
Beneath an ancient pyramid.
A pair of eyes suddenly opened.
The being who awakened possessed blue skin and immense power.
At the same moment, Charles Xavier sensed the disturbance.
Inside the Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters, Charles immediately gathered the X-Men.
Soon, the team boarded their jet and headed directly toward Egypt.
Charles also contacted Karl.
Karl agreed to intervene if necessary.
Suddenly—
An Egyptian pyramid exploded from within.
A towering blue-skinned figure emerged.
Apocalypse.
The first mutant in recorded history.
The progenitor of mutantkind.
Before Apocalypse could leave the ruins—
The X-Men arrived.
The moment Magneto appeared, he launched an attack.
Charles had already warned them that Apocalypse possessed overwhelming ambition and a desire for domination.
Negotiation was impossible.
Originally, the X-Men had hoped to avoid involvement.
However, Apocalypse was a mutant.
If he started a war against humanity, it would undoubtedly worsen the already fragile relationship between mutants and humans.
Apocalypse intended to dominate the world.
That would inevitably lead to global conflict.
And if Karl chose to support humanity—
Countless mutants would die.
Therefore, the X-Men could not allow Apocalypse to ignite such a war.
Their goal was simple.
Prevent mass casualties among mutants.
There was also another terrifying development.
A laboratory had reportedly developed a serum capable of suppressing mutant genes.
If large-scale conflict erupted between mutants and humans—
Mutants might completely disappear from history.
Even if Karl did not intervene—
Once that serum entered mass production, mutants would stand no chance.
BOOM—!
Magneto manipulated nearby metal and hurled it toward Apocalypse like a massive projectile.
The impact sent Apocalypse flying.
Although he was injured, his wounds healed instantly—
Faster even than Wolverine's healing factor.
Not a single drop of blood fell.
Cyclops and Storm attacked simultaneously.
Cyclops unleashed powerful optic blasts.
Storm summoned violent lightning.
But in front of Apocalypse, a transparent energy barrier appeared.
Every attack was blocked.
No matter how much power Cyclops used—
No matter how much lightning Storm summoned—
They could not break through Apocalypse's shield.
Then Colossus charged forward.
He intended to engage Apocalypse in close combat.
But the moment he approached—
The ground beneath him suddenly turned fluid.
His body began sinking downward as if swallowed by quicksand.
This was one of Apocalypse's abilities.
Sand manipulation.
He could control the desert environment itself.
No matter how hard Colossus struggled, he could not escape.
The soft, shifting sand perfectly neutralized Colossus's immense strength.
At the same time, Iceman, Shadowcat, and Wolverine rushed forward.
Iceman attacked with waves of freezing energy.
Shadowcat moved toward Colossus to rescue him.
Wolverine extended his adamantium claws and lunged at Apocalypse.
BANG—!
BOOM—!
Apocalypse's shield blocked Iceman's attacks effortlessly.
At the same time, he used telekinesis to lift Wolverine into the air.
Apocalypse even attempted to dominate Wolverine's mind with his immense psychic power.
However—
His attempt was blocked.
Charles Xavier was already resisting him mentally.
Apocalypse then casually hurled Wolverine aside.
Now he had discovered a new target.
A psychic mutant.
If he could transfer his consciousness into that body—
He would gain the mutant's telepathic power.
Combined with his own immense psychic strength, he could dominate the entire world.
Every nation.
Every human.
Every mutant.
All would kneel before him.
And these mutants standing before him—
Were clearly connected to that psychic.
So he decided to find the telepath through them.
...
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