Marvel: Starting with the forced creation of villainous characters

Chapter 72 The Crocodile Beneath the Surface - Mr. Terrifying Evil.

Upon seeing the child who had suddenly appeared before them, Eric and his two companions' expressions changed. Eric, in particular, even pulled out a coin and demanded with a dark expression, "Kid, didn't your parents teach you that eavesdropping is impolite?"

"No, we don't have that," Mark replied, spreading his hands with an innocent look on his face.

Mark wasn't afraid of Magneto suddenly attacking, for a simple reason: it was just a clone.

What if things really fall apart?

With the power he currently has, he can completely force the White House to take the initiative to attack Magneto and his team, instead of waiting for them to attack the White House.

Charles looked at Mark in front of him with suspicion. In his mind's eye, the child in front of him seemed not to exist. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he would have doubted whether there was really someone there.

"Eric, calm down, he's just a kid," Charles said, holding Magneto's hand to comfort him.

Upon hearing this, Eric put away the coin in his hand, but he still looked at Mark with a cold face.

"This timeline is a bit strange."

Mark looked at the four people opposite him with a puzzled expression. Caliban was so old that he could hardly walk, but Magneto and Professor X were still incredibly young.

Professor X, in particular, looks like he's not even 30 years old.

"Is he the superhuman you were talking about in this building?" Eric asked, looking annoyed.

Caliban nodded: "But this kid's superpowers seem a bit unusual."

Caliban didn't expose Mark in front of him. Although he had made up his mind to join Professor X and help them find mutants, he wasn't prepared to offend Mark to the death.

Although Mark looked like just a child, he knew that the kid named Mark in front of him was different from ordinary kids.

Because the opponent has already gathered a group of superpowered individuals, if a real fight breaks out, Magneto's side may not necessarily be able to win completely.

Since telepathy didn't work, Charles could only ask, "Son, are you a mutant?"

"I'm not a mutant," Mark shook his head.

There are no mutants around him, at least not yet.

Although Jessica Jones gained her superpowers because of the X chemical, the X gene in her body has disappeared. If we were to categorize her, she would be classified as a superhuman, not a mutant.

Upon hearing this, Charles's face visibly fell into disappointment.

Mark then added, "The other three aren't mutants either, so you don't need to look for them."

Charles looked at Mark with great interest upon hearing this, finding the child in front of him more interesting than he had imagined.

"How did you know?" Charles asked curiously.

Mark's lips curled into a slight smile as he said smugly, "Because they're my people."

Charles exclaimed sincerely, "You don't look like a child at all."

Eric, who was standing to the side, also snorted, but did not refute it.

He discovered that Mark was very skilled in his abilities but had not undergone systematic training, and that he was hiding his abilities in the bustling city.

Under these two conditions, Mark's ability to skillfully utilize his abilities is already exceptionally strong.

At Mark's age, he could only unleash his superpowers by losing control of his emotions.

"Do you want mutants to return?" Mark asked, tilting his head.

Upon hearing this, Eric and Charles exchanged a glance and then nodded in unison.

They wanted to hear the opinion of the young man in front of them.

Mark's eyes flashed as he looked at the two young mutants opposite him.

Since the Touch of Shadows began to exert its power, he has gathered a lot of information and realized that this world is not as simple as it seems on the surface.

This world is not simply a hybrid world of Marvel movies or TV series.

Instead, it's a world that seems similar but isn't, a world that even has things that only exist in comics, and a world that's extremely dangerous, like the Essex Corporation.

Essex Corporation is a massive organization that aims to control and commercialize mutant powers. Most importantly, the true mastermind and owner behind the company is a terrifying figure who has only appeared in comics—Mr. Sinister.

When Mark first learned about this company, he even abandoned his ambitious expansion plans and instead focused on secretly developing his own power base.

The world is too deep. He only explored the tip of the iceberg, and then the existence of someone like Mr. Terrifying appeared. Heaven knows how many big crocodiles are hiding under this calm water.

Charles nodded and countered, "That's right, do you know the mystery of the mutants' disappearance?"

Mark shook his head and then corrected the other person's mistake.

"Actually, mutants haven't disappeared, they just appear less frequently, and some forces are deliberately suppressing reports about mutants, which is why you think they've disappeared."

Upon hearing this, a look of joy flashed across the faces of the four people. They thought that mutants on Earth had all disappeared, since these days only people in isolated places probably never drank beverages.

Eric asked excitedly, "Then do you know where there are mutants?"

Mark answered irrelevantly, "Let's make a deal."

"What deal?" Charles asked cautiously.

Mark: "I want you to join an organization."

Upon hearing this, Eric and Charles instantly calmed down. Eric was about to refuse when Charles asked, "What organization?"

"The Illuminati is an organization dedicated to guiding humanity forward and pursuing greater interests," Mark explained.

Eric said in a low voice, "I don't want to be someone else's executioner again."

In contrast to Eric's undisguised disgust, Charles asked instead, "What are we supposed to do after we join this organization?"

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"Members within the organization need to help each other, and you will have a mandatory task every year that you cannot refuse, and these mandatory tasks will accumulate."

Charles pressed further, "Could you elaborate? We can't possibly agree to kill our own people, can we?"

Mark reassured him, "If the mandatory missions involve your bottom line, you just need to participate. You can take advantage of the situation, and the organization will not force you to do any missions that violate your bottom line."

Whether Professor X joins the Illuminati or not is irrelevant; his real target is Magneto.

His villainous aura can't affect heroes like Professor X, but it can affect villains like Magneto. If Magneto joins the Illuminati, it means that the villainous aura will continue to affect this king of mutants.

That was Mark's main objective.

Of course, another reason is that the mutant poles are fully qualified to represent mutants in the Illuminati.

"If that's the case, it's not that we can't join, but we'd like to know how much you have to offer," Charles said cautiously.

Eric, who had initially wanted to object, turned cold upon hearing this. His thinking was simple: no one in the world could command him.

As for that Illuminati?

What's wrong with temporarily joining for the sake of our compatriots? Do you think those people can force us to complete a mission? As for morality?

People who try to reason with Jews usually don't end up well.

Mark didn't speak, but smiled at Eric.

After all, his main target was Magneto, and Professor X was at most just an extra.

Eric said coldly, "Charles can speak for me."

Mark nodded, then held up one finger.

"First and foremost, Arklay Genetics Corporation. This is the company that developed genetically modified foods to eliminate the X gene, attempting to fundamentally 'purify' mutants. They also secretly created a batch of cloned mutants."

Upon hearing this, Eric's face turned red at a visible speed.

"Great! We've finally found the culprit!" Eric gritted his teeth, and even the usually mild-mannered Charles next to him had tears in his eyes.

"Arkley Genetics? I'll remember that name," Charles said softly.

"By the way, they mainly cloned the guy next to you." Mark pointed to Logan.

Logan, who had an inextricable connection with the laboratory, was used to it. He knew his body was very attractive, and there were quite a few people who wanted his healing genes.

Logan took a deep drag on his cigar and then quipped, "These guys haven't changed at all. They resist mutants while simultaneously coveting their power."

Once the person on the other end had processed the information, Mark extended a second finger.

"Then there's the second point: the Essex Mutant Rehabilitation Center, which is ostensibly a foster care center to help troubled mutant teenagers, is actually a dark institution that tortures, brainwashes, and weaponizes young mutants."

Eric, who had just calmed down, was flushed again. Mark's words reminded him of his days in the concentration camp. The things done at the Essex Mutant Rehabilitation Center were no different from what Sean did, and even more ruthless.

After all, Sean only killed his mother and did not abuse him. Although they tried to brainwash him, they only did so through language and did not use technology or brutal methods on him.

Charles sighed upon hearing this. He had tried his best to think of humanity as wicked, but he still underestimated the evil in human nature.

Both Eric and Charles were now convinced; these two pieces of information alone were enough to persuade them to join the Illuminati.

"Thank you! Your information is very useful to us," Charles said with utmost sincerity.

Eric also said, "I'll remember this favor."

Mark smiled noncommittally. "So, are you two willing to join the Illuminati?"

Charles glanced at Eric, and seeing that the other did not object, he nodded: "We are willing to join the Illuminati."

Mark breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing this. He had actually been concealing an important piece of information: the Essex Corporation also owned a hospital called Milbury.

It was a secret institution that was ostensibly a hospital but in reality a prison, a highly guarded and isolated asylum.

Most importantly, it houses underage mutants, and Mark likes children, especially capable ones.

If Magneto and his crew can attract most of Essex Corporation's attention, then he can take the opportunity to steal Milbury Hospital.