Chapter 142: Stripping Apocalypse of His Abilities

Apocalypse launched all the nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destruction around the world into outer space.

What he destroyed were not only those weapons, but also countless radar satellites in orbit.

Although Apocalypse looked down on ordinary people who relied on technology, he still understood which things posed a threat to his rule. All of those things had therefore been destroyed.

At least for the short term, unless they were manufactured again, ordinary people had no chance of resisting him.

All they could do now was use the two surviving satellites and quietly watch from the sidelines.

Inside the inverted pyramid, Apocalypse’s body was forcibly pressed by Orion Cross onto the platform where he had originally intended to transfer his consciousness and abilities.

As the core of the ritual, the runes that had originally been engraved at the top of the pyramid were now carved at the bottom by Orion Cross in the opposite manner.

The entire circuit of the pyramid was reversed, and a terrifying force of separation gathered throughout Apocalypse’s body.

"No! You can’t do this!!!"

Apocalypse raised his trembling right hand, desperately trying to stop Orion Cross.

At this moment, Apocalypse no longer looked complete. Every part of his body had a different color, making him look as though he had been pieced together.

Just as Orion Cross had previously guessed, mutant abilities were hidden within the X-gene.

When Apocalypse transferred himself, he had transferred not only his consciousness, but those X-genes as well.

The pyramid’s function was not merely to transfer consciousness. More importantly, it allowed those X-genes to fuse into Apocalypse’s new body without causing any conflict.

But once Orion Cross reversed all of the pyramid’s circuits, the original process of fusion became separation.

Apocalypse’s body was instantly divided into multiple sections, each composed of different X-genes.

"Let me find it..."

Orion Cross’s voice came from Apocalypse’s mouth. His previously trembling hand stopped and slid slowly from his face all the way down to his abdomen.

Rip!

"Apocalypse" plunged one hand directly into his own abdomen and tore out a chunk of flesh.

"The regenerative mutant ability is all here."

Orion Cross’s voice rang out as "Apocalypse" tossed the chunk of flesh into the air.

That piece of flesh, which contained the regenerative mutant ability Apocalypse had stolen, fell toward the pointed base of the pyramid and was directly reduced to ash by the concentrated solar energy there.

"Ahhhh!!!"

Apocalypse let out a pained howl.

But Orion Cross did not stop.

"Fire control?"

"Shield?"

"Electrical information acquisition?"

"Super learning ability?"

"Extreme dynamic vision?"

"Enhancement?"

"Insight?"

Under Orion Cross’s control, "Apocalypse" stripped away his abilities one piece of flesh at a time.

Five minutes later, Apocalypse was covered in blood and mangled flesh. Even his bones could be clearly seen.

Because regeneration had been the first ability stripped away, he had no chance to recover at all.

"No!! My talents!!! My abilities!!! Give them back to me!!!"

Apocalypse desperately stretched his hand toward the bottom of the pyramid.

"He has to be enduring the same kind of pain as having himself torn apart, right?"

Charles, who was being carried by Hank, looked at Apocalypse’s miserable state with some concern. He turned toward Raven, who was holding Orion Cross’s body in the distance, and asked her.

"That’s right. But don’t worry. His tolerance is a hundred times greater than you imagine."

Raven glanced at Orion Cross, who was pressed against her chest, and spoke to Charles.

Another five minutes passed.

After accomplishing the same feat as Nezha, Apocalypse was already on the verge of death.

Only a single intact piece of flesh remained on his body, representing his original mutant ability.

As for what that ability was, it no longer mattered.

After all these years, even Apocalypse himself had already forgotten what his original ability had been.

"It’s over. Get ready to leave."

Orion Cross’s main consciousness returned to his own body. Looking at Raven’s face from such close range, he spoke.

"How are we supposed to leave?"

Raven looked around.

Because the entire pyramid had been turned upside down, the original passages were gone, and everything beneath them was hollow.

"Apocalypse is finished. Naturally, this pyramid is useless now."

Orion Cross waved his hand. One of the walls turned into flowing sand, which gathered in the air and directly formed a path.

As Orion Cross destroyed the pyramid’s circuits, the entire interior of the pyramid instantly became pitch-black.

On the other side, Apocalypse was already on his last breath.

As an ancient Egyptian god, his ultimate fate was still to be buried inside a pyramid.

"We should go!"

Orion Cross patted Raven, who was still tightly hugging him, and frowned slightly.

"Got it."

Raven curled her lips, flipped over, and leaped onto the sand path.

"This ability is really convenient."

After they exited the pyramid and saw the path extending all the way to the ground, Psylocke could not help commenting.

Only after coming outside did everyone realize that the pyramid had not merely been turned upside down. It had also risen high into the air, becoming a fortress in the sky.

It was hard to say what would happen if Raven, after her Ascension Ceremony, and Diana, with her demigod body, fell from such a height. But Psylocke, Hank, and Charles would definitely be reduced to nothing but corpses.

"All right, stop staring and get down there. Holding something this huge up is a hassle."

Seeing everyone standing there motionless and admiring the scenery instead of moving, Orion Cross urged them impatiently.

The group returned to the ground.

Looking at the ruins around them and the countless civilians buried beneath the rubble, Charles could not help letting out a deep sigh.

"Orion, can you keep holding it up for a little longer? I want to search for survivors."

Charles turned to Orion Cross and looked at him pleadingly.

"This is an entire city. Without Apocalypse’s enhancement, how long will you need?"

Orion Cross met Charles’s gaze and asked.

"Give me ten minutes."

Charles gritted his teeth and turned to Hank. "Carry me and run east. Don’t stop until I tell you to!"

"There’s no need to make it so complicated."

Orion Cross stopped Hank with one hand as he was about to rush off with Charles on his back, then slowly raised his right hand.

All the ruins on the ground turned into sand and slowly floated into the air, forming a gigantic flat surface.

This enormous layer covered the entire sky above the ruins of Cairo, instantly plunging the city into darkness.

"At this distance, the sound shouldn’t hurt anyone either."

After Orion Cross raised the sand layer to a sufficient height, he released his control over the pyramid.

Boom!

A thunderous tremor echoed through the sky.

Charles knew that the pyramid had fallen onto the sand layer above them.

Wouldn’t that mean this enormous surface would still fall to the ground?

"Take your time searching for survivors. Or wait until the authorities arrive and search together with them."

Orion Cross casually waved his hand.

Countless pillars rose from the ground, supporting the enormous layer of sand in the sky that was blocking the falling pyramid.