Chapter 72: If I Strike, You May Not Survive

When Luke's mech started spewing fire from between its legs, it wasn't just Tony and Rhodey who were stunned—Black Widow was, too.

Far away at Hammer Tower, Black Widow witnessed the entire bizarre scene through remote surveillance. Her face was etched with helplessness as she pressed a hand to her forehead and sighed, "That kid."

She thought to herself: He's still got a child's temperament. In the middle of a battle, he starts playing around. And who is Pikachu, anyway?

Since Luke kept mentioning Pikachu, and it sounded like a name, Black Widow decided she'd have to report this to the Hard-Boiled Egg later, so S.H.I.E.L.D. could look into it.

Rhodey's eyes were wide as saucers; he'd never seen anyone install a flamethrower in that particular spot before. Sure, the mech was big enough, but did it really need to be so dramatic? There were plenty of other places to mount it—arms, waist—but those areas were completely bare.

Was this a designer's eccentricity? Rhodey was baffled.

Tony, on the other hand, realized he wasn't surprised at all. "Classic Apostle style..." he thought, feeling oddly unsettled.

Ordinarily, such antics would have earned a sharp tongue and a round of mocking from him, but now he found himself speechless. There was only one reason: the guy was an Apostle.

If it was the Apostle, nothing he did would seem strange to Tony anymore. He was almost used to it.

"Phantom Blade Dance!"

After Luke knocked down another Iron Soldier with a roasted Pikachu, he raised his mech's giant sword high and unleashed a masterful technique, slicing through the enemy like chopping vegetables.

That phrase was no exaggeration. Phantom Blade Dance wasn't just a set of twenty-four complex sword strikes woven together; each blow carried with it a burst of blade energy.

Though the sword energy of Phantom Blade Dance wasn't as extravagant as the Asura Evil Light Slash, the sweeping force was still formidable. Coupled with the giant mech sword coated in pure Adamantium alloy, this move, at this stage, could be called unstoppable.

In the early days of the Marvel universe, when Vibranium was far from common, to possess a sword coated in pure Adamantium was to wield a legendary weapon. And this sword was wielded by a giant mech.

Its power was multiplied by the machine's capabilities.

Luke estimated that this sword would be useful at least until the end of Avengers 1, maybe until the era of Thor 2 before he'd need a replacement.

The reward for this mission was also a sword. If the system produced it, it was bound to be impressive.

He was already planning to switch to a dual-wielding Berserk class.

The stage became Luke's solo performance.

The War Lord's massive, two-story-tall body moved with extraordinary agility—heavy steps, yet astonishingly swift.

Each time the War Lord's sword came down, one or two Iron Soldiers fell, rendered inert and left behind. Moments later, they exploded one after another.

Even those grazed by the edge of the sword energy weren't spared.

The War Lord pressed forward at speed, giant sword tracing dazzling arcs of light around him, slicing, severing, and felling the Iron Soldiers along his path without resistance.

His movements grew ever more nimble, his footwork like a dance of death.

Within seconds, not a single Iron Soldier remained.

Only wreckage.

"Kill them all, kill them all!" Lotus was fired up.

It seemed to recall the days when it wielded ten thousand swords and rampaged through the demonic seas...

In high spirits, Lotus urged Luke, "Luke! There are two more over there, let's take them out together! What do you say?"

Luke glanced over—Lotus was referring to Tony and Rhodey.

"These two can't be killed," Luke replied, rolling his eyes.

"Why not? That Stark guy always rubs me the wrong way whenever he shows up! Hmph, one day I'll take him down!" Lotus declared with conviction.

Luke couldn't help but silently mourn for Tony for three seconds.

Tony wasn't too shocked by the flamethrower placement—it was just typical Apostle style.

But the slaughter in those last few seconds left him truly dumbfounded.

Such exquisite and powerful swordsmanship—even Tony, an outsider, could see it was something extraordinary. It was a masterful display! Not just anyone could pull that off.

Even Tony had to admit, privately, that the scene was pretty spectacular.

"How does this guy know everything? Martial arts, swordplay... Who is he, really?" Tony's expression inside his suit was grave. "Fury seems to have recruited him, hoping he'll join that project..."

He thought he should have Jarvis hack S.H.I.E.L.D.'s database and dig up some information on the Apostle.

Rhodey, after gaping for a long moment, finally managed, "Tony, you'd better tell me this guy is a friendly."

Tony shrugged, "For now, yes."

"Then I'm relieved," Rhodey said.

No sooner had Rhodey finished speaking than Tony suddenly raised his hand, palm glowing with arc light, aiming at Luke.

The Mark VI had seen many improvements—its palm-shaped pulse cannon and the chest-mounted reactor beam were among them.

And thanks to the explosive magical energy in the arc reactor this time, both weapons seemed to pack more punch than usual in the recent battle.

At least Luke thought they hit harder than in the movies.

Tony fired from over ten meters away, blasting Luke's shoulder.

The War Lord didn't budge; Luke looked at Tony with a puzzled expression.

Tony shrugged and said, "Sorry, you're a big target. Friendly fire."

Friendly fire, my foot!

Luke knew perfectly well Tony was just being petty, finding a flimsy excuse to get back at him.

Yes, Tony was retaliating for the times Luke had gotten the better of him.

Tony remembered them all.

The first time was in Monaco, when Luke had embarrassed him about his orientation before a global audience.

The second was when Luke promised him a cure for research, then sent it by courier—Tony nearly died waiting.

The third, Luke had hacked Jarvis. Tony couldn't prove it, but he was sure it was the Apostle's doing.

"You can strike back," Tony said nonchalantly.

"This one's got guts! Good for him!" Lotus laughed from Luke's shoulder, forgetting it had just been urging Luke to take Tony out a minute ago.

Luke strode up to Tony.

The G-0 War Lord towered over Iron Man, looking down imperiously.

Luke controlled the mech, raised his massive fist, and said, "You know, if I hit you with this, you might die."

Tony looked up at the giant fist, nearly as big as a truck's front end.

He hesitated, then backed down.

Tony quietly changed the subject, "You actually let a mech use a sword? Planning to take us back to the Middle Ages? That's a step backwards in technology."

He dismissed Luke's retrograde approach.

"How about we find time for a bout, what do you say?" Luke lowered his fist and retorted bluntly. He thought, if things don't get dramatic, how will he earn more points?

He was ready for a rematch with Tony, following up on their last encounter in France.

Whatever Fury had said about keeping things under control, he'd forgotten.

Black Widow coughed on the channel, indicating she'd heard Luke's words. She reminded Tony, "I'm picking up another Iron Soldier headed your way. This one... seems different."

Luke instantly realized—finally, the electric Pikachu was coming.

Silently, he activated the Light of Vengeance in his heart...