American comics: Starting with Luke the Maker

“Ranged attacks,” the leader commanded once more.

Although they weren't accustomed to fighting with technological weapons, that didn't mean they completely abandoned them. Most of their weaker subordinates were equipped with firearms or the ninja organization's unique ranged attacks, such as throwing stars. Since advancing or retreating was a difficult choice, they would first test if ranged attacks could eliminate the upside-down figure deep in the corridor.

Hearing the leader's order, a row of ninjas stepped forward.

Black, four-pointed throwing stars were held between their fingers, then hurled towards the upside-down figure deep in the corridor.

Dozens of throwing stars whistled sharply through the air, shooting towards the upside-down figure at a speed almost invisible to the naked eye. These throwing stars, imbued with a unique power through special throwing techniques, possessed lethality in short to medium ranges no less than bullets, even surpassing them in threat and stealth.

However, what came in response was the upside-down figure's furious roar from the front of the corridor—a mental storm like a raging wave surged forward with the upside-down figure’s roar. The throwing stars in the air were swept away the instant they touched the mental storm by the almost tangible mental fluctuations.

The ten or so ninjas at the very front of the row of over a dozen who had stepped out had their heads explode instantly, turning into smoke and disappearing like their deceased comrades. The rest screamed miserably and collapsed to the ground, convulsing like epileptics on the floor, foaming at the mouth, their eyes losing focus and vitality, as if they had become idiots.

Even the leader, standing further back, was struck by the aftermath of the mental storm, and his vision went black. His brain felt like it was being stirred by a red-hot poker, and he slowly regained some cognitive ability after several seconds of blank dizziness. After regaining his senses, even though he had experienced greater and more dangerous powers, he couldn't help but feel fear in his eyes when he looked at the upside-down figure deep in the corridor.

The opponent seemed to be a terrifying being naturally capable of influencing and controlling people's emotions. As long as you had a mental vulnerability, the opponent would take the opportunity to sneak in like a devil, then expand it like a snowball, eventually causing you to attack everyone around you indiscriminately under extreme fear or uncontrolled violence. What was even more troublesome was that the opponent's mental storm just now was clearly like a real shockwave, capable of deflecting and affecting the trajectory of physical weapons.

“Infiltrate the laboratory's system and regain control and disable its security system,” the leader retreated again, wiping the two winding streaks of blood flowing from under his nose, and contacted the organization members outside the laboratory who were proficient in hacking via communicator.

Silence filled the communicator.

There was no response.

The leader's heart sank. Their ability to enter this place and come here was all thanks to the hacker team's silent infiltration of Hephaestus's intelligent system, from which they obtained the design of the Hephaestus laboratory. The process didn't take long, and everything went smoothly, but the series of accidents made the leader realize something unusual and a strong sense of crisis!

As the invaders retreated back to the entrance, the leader tentatively entered the password used to enter earlier, but as expected, there was no response.

Suddenly, a mass of black liquid, like sand grains soaked in glue, dragged black threads and dripped silently from the ceiling like an assassin, directly covering the head and face of a ninja who felt something was wrong and looked up at the ceiling.

Seeing this, the invaders scattered, leaving a space with a diameter of two meters, with the ninja enveloped in black liquid at the center. The ninja frantically reached out to tear the black liquid off his body, but even with all his strength, he only managed to pull the liquid into a string-like, intermittently connected mess.

A flash of snow-white light rapidly streaked through the air, cutting the black liquid into several pieces. The leader held his long sword, his eyes coldly watching his subordinate who suddenly screamed, and his heart also faintly trembled. Just a technology company's laboratory, how could there be such mysterious and strange things everywhere? The upside-down figure at the end of the corridor was already unsettling and frightening, and now there was a mass of unknown composition, looking like a living liquid.

The sword light cut the black liquid into several pieces, but in the next moment, as if it had angered the black liquid, its expansion speed suddenly became so fast that it was difficult to react to. A layer of black substance enveloped the screaming ninja, along with his body and screams.

“It hurts so much, let me eat you,” a black monster stood inside the encirclement, its dark mouth wide open, greedily looking at the twenty-odd men in black. As a symbiote, it hadn't been out and about for a long time. Although Hephaestus's treatment was better than S.H.I.E.L.D.'s, Luke's rules and punishments were more numerous.

When it first arrived, it certainly wanted to resist rebelliously, at least to fight for some status and power, but after being educated in turn by Quiet, Venom, and even Little Habb and Mister, it understood its place in the hierarchy.

Undoubtedly the lowest level.

The kind with no human rights.

This time, being allowed to come out for some air, it certainly wanted to perform well and vent its pent-up anger. If it performed well, maybe it would be rewarded with some soul crystal fragments? It wasn't a pure glutton like Quiet, but the fact that soul crystals could increase its power made it very envious. When it first arrived, Venom needed to put in some effort to beat it, but now when Venom beat it, it was like a father beating his son.

What to do when Quiet rides on your face? Beat him up! What to do when Quiet steals food? Beat him up, and steal his rations in the process! What to do when Little Habb sets you on fire again? Beat him up! What to do when Luke cuts off a part of your tissue and you dare not speak out? Still beat him up!

Eating, sleeping, beating up the little brother, this was Venom's daily laboratory routine.

It had already been beaten into submission.

Even in the stage of being beaten to the point of doubting its existence, it actually missed the days when it was being studied at S.H.I.E.L.D. Although those days were painful, at least there were a few unlucky people to accompany it, instead of just it alone bearing the unbearable burden.

“Can I gnaw your head off?” Another mass of viscous liquid dripped down, like milky white milk. After landing, it pounced directly at the closest invader, and almost instantly invaded the other's body.

The leading invader looked at the white monster that had possessed his subordinate and was looking at him with ill intentions, tightly gripped the long sword in his hand, and mobilized the power of a certain being within him.