Hydra Underground Base
At this moment, Ronnie, the director of the Hydra base, looked at the satellite observation screen in front of him with an expressionless face.
All the monitoring equipment outside the base had been destroyed, leaving the enemy observable only through satellite feeds.
He watched as the missiles were obliterated, and all the weapons outside the base were reduced to scrap.
Ronnie's heart remained eerily calm, as if frozen, devoid of fear, with only one thought dominating his mind:
Kill him. Kill him.
Use any means necessary to kill the Wizard Professor.
"No. 58, release the gas. Wait for the Wizard Professor to enter, and be ready to self-destruct the base at any moment."
"Understood. Gas is being released, and the system is ready for self-destruction," No. 58, the simple artificial intelligence of the base system, replied in a mechanical, cold voice.
Meanwhile, Lockhart was keenly sensing the aura of fear emanating from the life forms below.
Without hesitation, he descended into the base.
He was fully aware that it was probably a trap, but he wasn't foolish.
In an instant, with Lockhart at the center, the surrounding fierce fire expanded rapidly, and the temperature soared, melting all the sand on the ground into glass, which then turned into liquid and gas.
Hundreds of meters of flat land nearby were forcibly scorched, causing the terrain to sink visibly.
It was like a meteorite impact, except the surface was smooth, like glass.
As the fire continued to melt the surrounding soil and sand, the earth and rocks vanished, revealing the steel structure of the underground base.
But in an instant, the steel turned into molten iron, exposing a large number of Hydra agents below.
Lockhart, floating in mid-air, looked down at these agents, sensing their emotions shift from fear to fanaticism.
He gained a deeper understanding of Hydra's methods.
With a mere thought, Protego Diabolica quickly penetrated the base, enveloping the Hydra agents below in a flash. They didn't feel any pain.
Because as the fire swept through them, they were vaporized before they had time to react, leaving not even a bone behind.
Lockhart, still floating in mid-air, closed his eyes slightly, extending his hands to direct the fire deeper into the base.
He destroyed every life he encountered, turning them into gas.
Simultaneously, he commanded Protego Diabolica to avoid burning certain machinery around him—these might be useful later.
Suddenly, Lockhart's heart raced, his instincts frantically warning him.
Reacting swiftly, Lockhart waved his wand, channeling magic power into it.
A pure white ray shot from the tip of the wand toward the ground, creating a pure white frozen landscape that spread rapidly.
Magic—The Frozen World!
Click! Click! Click!
Almost instantly, the fierce fire on the nearby ground vanished, replaced by a thick layer of ice and a cold atmosphere.
The cold air continued to spread into the cave below, enveloping all the surrounding walls, machinery, and objects at a visible speed.
In less than 10 seconds, under the infusion of Lockhart's vast magical power, the entire underground base was frozen.
A large number of people and objects were encased in ice.
Feeling the end of his instinctive warning, Lockhart sighed in relief.
The direct warning just now reminded him of the possibility of the base's self-destruction. After all, such things are not uncommon.
In every movie, there seems to be at least one such scene.
Therefore, he immediately froze everything, and through the guidance of magic, disabled all the machines and technology below.
If the base really did explode, he would have no choice but to escape.
But if he escaped, the effectiveness of this demonstration would obviously decrease.
This time, his actions were primarily intended as a warning to others.
He doesn't want to flee; he never backs down in a head-on fight. He strikes decisively when it's time and never hesitates.
While contemplating, Lockhart glanced at the frozen ground below and the remaining fire, a slight smile curling the corners of his mouth.
Then, looking toward Coulson in the distance, Lockhart waved his wand, sending a pale white ball of information light swiftly toward Coulson.
The information contained in the light ball was some of the data Lockhart had just extracted from the Hydra agents.
Since Hydra had prepared measures in advance to mislead him, he would let things unfold naturally.
With that in mind, Lockhart flicked his wand, opening a portal directly back to his home.
It's time to conclude this matter and attend to his own business. The people at Kamar-Taj had been making quite a few moves recently.
"Sir, we've detected a massive amount of heat, and the underground base is about to explode!"
Coulson heard the shouts of his agents through his earpiece, his expression tensing as he glanced at Professor Lockhart not far away.
The base's self-destruction might not have much impact on them, but for Lockhart in the middle of it all, that was another matter.
However, the next moment, the agent shouted loudly, "Sir, the self-destruction has stopped, and there's a lot of cold air above the base."
Even without the agent's reminder, Coulson could already feel the cold air approaching, subconsciously tightening his body.
Yet his eyes were filled with astonishment. It was autumn—how could there be such intense cold?
He didn't need to think hard to realize it was the wizard professor's countermeasure to stop the base's self-destruction.
Upon further reflection, Coulson thought about the implications: if the Wizard Professor were their enemy in the future, missiles would be ineffective, and even a bomb explosion wouldn't help.
This was deeply worrying, although currently, S.H.I.E.L.D. and the professor had a friendly trade relationship.
But Coulson hadn't forgotten that his director had always viewed the professor as a potential adversary, constantly devising various strategies to limit his capabilities.
This left Coulson feeling somewhat helpless.
There was no choice—as a special agent organization, they had to prepare for any scenario.
Even if a nuclear bomb went off, aliens invaded, or zombies from movies started roaming the streets, or robots waged war, the director had asked them to draft corresponding plans.
It could be said that his director, Nick Fury, had a crisis sense ingrained in his bones.
It seemed that without a plan to address every possible crisis, he couldn't feel secure.
After a while, Coulson suddenly noticed a ball of light flying toward him.
Before he could react, the light ball sank into his forehead.
Immediately, a flood of information filled his mind. After processing it, a bitter smile crept across Coulson's face.
What kind of organization is Black Snake?
Why had he never heard of it, and how was it connected to the military?
After a moment's thought, Coulson nodded helplessly and prepared to return and report to the director.
Then, he called his agents to continue collecting data.
This was the first time that the Wizard Professor had taken action in front of him, leaving so many traces. If he didn't gather them properly, the director would definitely reprimand him.
However, as the data continued to be collected and he saw the analysis of the blue flames and cold air, Coulson's expression grew increasingly serious.
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Magic Luggage Space, Spell Training Room
In the spacious training room, Captain America, Steve Rogers, was carrying his shield and instructing Ian, Remy, and Vera in front of him.
"Ian, tell me, what do you think is the most important thing in a fight?"
Ian thought for a moment and then shared his understanding.
"Instructor Steve, I think the most important thing is sufficient magic power and faster spell-casting speed."
Steve neither confirmed nor denied this, and continued to ask Remy next to him: "Remy, tell me your understanding."
"Instructor, I feel that for a wizard, knowing advanced magic spells is the most important thing. With mastery of a powerful spell, you can completely defeat your enemies," Remy replied confidently.
"Vera, what about you?" Steve asked the girl next to him.
"Instructor," Vera hesitated but continued, "I personally feel that what Remy and Ian said is right, but I think for a battle, rich combat experience is the most critical."
"If we can seize the right opportunity and use our experience to defeat the enemy at the minimum cost, that would be a successful battle."
After listening to the answers from the three students, Steve clapped his hands gently, showing satisfaction with their responses.
Then, he said to the three of them, "Ian, Vera, Remy, let's have a battle."
"After the battle, I'll share my answer with you."
Upon hearing Steve's request, the three of them were eager to give it a try. This was the first time they would fight with an instructor hired by their mentor.
They were quite interested, especially since they had heard about Captain America's fame in history.
However, Ian thought for a while and asked, "Instructor, do you mean you'll fight all three of us?"
"Of course, I'll fight all three of you. Don't worry, use all your abilities—you don't have to worry about any accidents," Steve replied with a calm smile.
As for teaching students, this was his first time doing it specifically, and he felt pretty good about it.
The four of them then took a few steps back, creating some distance.
Lockhart's three disciples looked at Instructor Steve, who was carrying a shield, and exchanged serious glances.
Following dueling etiquette, they raised their wands and bowed slightly.
Steve, familiar with the customs of wizards from Lockhart's previous messages, returned the bow slightly.
Then, he shouted, "3, 2, 1."
"Stupefy!"
"Stupefy!"
"Stupefy!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Ian, Remy, and Vera quickly cast the spell according to their previous training.
In an instant, three red rays of light shot from their wands toward Steve.
When Steve saw this, he didn't dodge but instead ran directly toward the spells. Just as he was about to make contact with them, he leaped high into the air, jumping over the three magic spells.
After evading the charms, he charged toward the three of them. In just a second or two, Steve had closed the distance and was right in front of them.
The three students, who had just reacted, immediately raised their wands, preparing to cast another spell.
But...
Boom!
Steve raised his left hand, shield in front of his chest, and used his left shoulder to knock Ian and Remy to the ground.
While doing so, he reached out and grabbed Vera's wrist, squeezed it hard, and gave it a sharp twist.
"Ah!" Vera cried out in pain.
Unable to control herself, she opened her right hand and dropped her wand. With quick reflexes, Steve caught the falling wand.
The next moment, seeing that Ian and Remy were lying on the ground but looked like they were about to get up and raise their wands, Steve quickly dashed in front of them. He turned his palm into a chop and struck at their wrists.
In an instant, the wands they had just raised fell to the ground.
Steve swiftly picked up the two wands, then stepped back, looking at the three students while holding their wands in his hand, gently waving them in front of them.
Ian and Remy stood up, rubbing their wrists, still feeling some pain. Vera, standing next to them, did the same; Steve's strength had not been weak, and their wrists were still sore.
The three of them then stood together, looking at Instructor Steve with a hint of resentment.
It was as if they were silently blaming him for using too much force, causing them unnecessary pain.
Seeing this, Steve smiled, as if comforted by their reaction, and asked, "Does it hurt?"
The three nodded in unison.
Steve continued, "It seems you'll need to do some pain tolerance training in the future. Losing your combat ability and dropping your weapons because of some pain is a bit embarrassing. Look at the soldiers and agents out there—do they lose their firearms or weapons because of a little pain in their wrists?"
Hearing this, the three students hung their heads, realizing that they had just inadvertently added another kind of pain training to their regimen.
Noticing their expressions, Steve coughed lightly and spoke seriously, "Your weaknesses are obvious, and I believe you know them too."
"Your melee combat capabilities are weak. Once enemies close the distance, your reaction time drops significantly, and you can't even cast spells. Even after losing your wand, you have no ability to fight."
"This is your biggest weakness. Even ordinary people can find ways to steal the wand from your hand, rendering you unable to cast spells."
Upon hearing this, the three students' expressions became serious, and they nodded in agreement.
Seeing this, Steve continued, "To address this weakness, Professor Lockhart specifically asked me to train you. You must not lose your focus just because the enemy closes in."
"I'm not asking you to defeat the enemy in close combat, but you must have at least a certain degree of resistance so that you can create distance and use your magic."
After hearing what Steve said, the three nodded firmly to express their understanding.
Seeing that they were listening attentively, Steve slowly said, "The question I asked you earlier—what is the most important thing in a battle?"
"Actually, there are many answers, and everyone might have a different one, but they all share one common goal: to defeat the enemy."
"No matter the battle, we go in with the goal of defeating the enemy."
"The magic spells, magic power, spell-casting speed, and combat experience you mentioned are all just means to that end."
After pausing to let them absorb his words, Steve said in a deep voice, "What I want to do is help you find a fighting style that suits you."
At that moment, suddenly...
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Steve heard the sound of applause.
Looking sideways, he saw that it was Professor Lockhart.
Then, Steve heard Lockhart praise, "Ian, Remy, Vera, listen carefully. This is the experience of a hero who has been through countless battles."
"I wholeheartedly agree with what Instructor Steve said. Everyone has a fighting style that suits them. You must train hard and, with Instructor Steve's help, find your own way of fighting."
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[Read up to 90+ chapter ahead and more Weakly Chapter Update at p@treon.com/goldengaruda]
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