Chapter Forty-Six: Mordo, Have You Ever Heard of Nine Years of Compulsory Education?

The Supreme Sorcerer Ancient One raised her hand and pointed, instantly sealing Mordo's magical powers. Although Baron Mordo was the chief disciple of the Supreme Sorcerer, his strength was worlds apart from hers. Yang Xin couldn’t comprehend where Baron Mordo found the courage to openly challenge the Supreme Sorcerer—some basic respect for the powerful should be a given.

“Supreme One, what are you trying to do? Have you truly fallen into darkness?” Baron Mordo shouted in anger, veins bulging in his neck, as if the next moment blood might burst forth.

“Don’t be angry, Brother Mordo. Master and I are doing this for your own good,” Yang Xin said cheerfully.

Seeing Yang Xin’s “all for your own good” expression, Master Mordo grew even more furious. “You! You tempted the Supreme One into the darkness!”

“Brother Mordo, a brain is a wonderful thing. Too bad you don’t have one. If you want to understand why Master acts this way, answer me a question first,” Yang Xin said calmly, ignoring Mordo’s rage.

“Well… Natasha and I both come from S.H.I.E.L.D., and we’re familiar with interrogation methods. Don’t worry, I won’t torture you, Brother Mordo. But if you keep insisting you’re innocent and the world is wrong, don’t blame your junior for being ruthless.”

“So, you’re going to torture me?” Baron Mordo sneered.

“Of course not. This is just a difference in ideology. Torture you? Never. But if you refuse to cooperate, keep up this attitude, I’ll strip you naked and parade you around, let the world witness this face of yours! Decades of selfless teaching from Master, and instead of gratitude, you nitpick her flaws, always ready to attack or kill! We’re all just humans, no one owes you anything, so why indulge such a heartless ingrate?” Yang Xin’s tone turned sharp.

“Will you cooperate, or not?” Yang Xin asked coldly, staring at Mordo’s stubborn face.

Mordo responded with a glare.

“Good! I like tough guys. Natasha, go gather some excrement, let’s give Baron Mordo a dung bath,” Yang Xin said, determined to disgust him as much as possible.

“You! Kill me if you must, but don’t humiliate me!” Baron Mordo’s rage erupted like a volcano.

“Then answer my question properly.” Yang Xin stared him down fiercely.

“Ask!” Baron Mordo finally compromised, though inwardly he promised not to cooperate, “You want secrets from Baron Mordo? Never!”

“What’s your educational background?”

“What?” Baron Mordo was utterly confused. After all the threats and insults, Yang Xin just wanted to know his education?

“Answer me!” Yang Xin slammed his hand on the table.

“I am a noble of Varf Mandra. I had private tutors since childhood, and later studied magic under the Supreme Sorcerer,” Baron Mordo replied instinctively.

“Oh, so you’re illiterate. No wonder your worldview, values, and perspective are so wrong. In modern terms, Brother Mordo, your three outlooks are crooked,” Yang Xin mocked.

“How am I illiterate? I can read! I’m a member of the intellectual elite! I’m fluent in English, German, and Russian—I’m a language genius!” Baron Mordo retorted angrily.

“Have you heard of the International Mathematical Olympiad? Did you go to high school? Which school? Who was your homeroom teacher? What was your college entrance exam score? Which university did you attend? Was it a top-tier one? What was your major?” Yang Xin fired off questions rapidly.

“I…” Baron Mordo opened his mouth, unable to answer any of Yang Xin’s questions.

“Seriously? You never even took the college entrance exam, yet you dare call yourself an intellectual? Wait, if you didn’t take the college entrance exam, surely you took the middle school one? Where did you attend junior high? Wow, you didn’t even go to junior high, did you? Judging by your expression, maybe you never attended elementary school either?”

“How did you survive this long? Can you do basic arithmetic within ten? What, you need to count on your fingers? How have you survived?” Yang Xin shouted in an exaggerated tone.

“Damn!” Baron Mordo cursed fiercely, turning away in frustration. He realized Yang Xin was infuriating, and if he kept listening, his blood pressure would surely rise.

“I understand your situation now. The dangers of ignorance! You want to protect the world? If you don’t destroy it, we’d be grateful!” Yang Xin mocked mercilessly.

“Does education guarantee you can protect the world?” Perhaps out of exasperation, Baron Mordo unconsciously accepted his ignorance and asked unwillingly.

“Absolutely! What is education? It’s cultivation rooted in the heart, awareness without reminders; freedom premised on self-restraint; kindness based on consideration for others! Which of these do you possess?”

“For example, in S.H.I.E.L.D., everyone who guards the peace is a university graduate, with countless master’s and doctorates. Take Dr. Bruce Banner—not only is he a world-renowned physicist, he holds seven doctorates. Even so, his cultural foundation isn’t the absolute pinnacle…”

“Summer insects cannot discuss ice! Ignorant, uncultured waste!” Yang Xin looked at Baron Mordo with utter contempt.

Yang Xin truly despised people like Baron Mordo—arrogant, self-centered, never admitting fault, always blaming others, never considering anyone else, and worst of all, having a formidable teacher like the Supreme Sorcerer.

Such a person never listens to reason, dismisses anything he disagrees with as heresy; you can’t beat him, and if you try, he’ll only feel more justified, plus with a powerful teacher, outsiders can’t touch him.

“Director,” Yang Xin dialed Nick Fury.

“Speak quickly,” Nick Fury answered, clearly busy. He was juggling the Security Council, the Pentagon, post-war affairs, and reorganizing S.H.I.E.L.D. Fortunately, Nick Fury mastered the art of shadow clones and could function as multiple people at once, yet he was still swamped.

“I have good news. Interested in learning ninjutsu?”

“Ninjutsu can be widely taught?” Nick Fury was surprised.

“Of course! But it must go through me.”

“What do you mean?” Nick Fury asked again.

“Heaven’s Jade Capital, twelve towers and five cities; immortals touch my crown, binding me to longevity,” Yang Xin recited poetry.

“You mean, people have to let you touch their heads to learn ninjutsu?”

“Essentially, yes.”

“Can the Sharingan be mass-produced?” Nick Fury cut straight to the key point.

“Of course not. Only the Five Elements Escape Technique. You know that chakra can greatly enhance physical abilities. Once someone reaches the level of a genin, they’ll have the physique of Captain America before his transformation. Places are limited, send people quickly to learn.”

“How many spots?”

“I’ll give you three for now.” Yang Xin didn’t want to turn the Marvel universe into the world of ninjas, so he limited the teaching.

“Conditions!” Nick Fury was always concise.

“There’s a child here whose values are warped and whose mind is troubled. I hope you can use your network to send him to school.”

“That’s easy. He can choose any school in America,” Nick Fury replied.

“No, not an American school. Send him to the East.”

“The East? Understood. Have Natasha bring him over, I’ll arrange for him to go East tomorrow,” Nick Fury said, then hung up.

“Master, could you use the power of the Time Stone to revert Brother Mordo’s body to when he was six?” Yang Xin suddenly asked.

“In the past, it wasn’t possible. Now, it is,” the Supreme Sorcerer replied, manipulating the Time Stone. Under its power, Baron Mordo became a six-year-old child.

“Brother Mordo, learn about nine years of compulsory education. I believe you’ll find a splendid youth in the East. Cherish the journey ahead, Brother Mordo…”