" damn, shit, fucking monster—it's energy absorption!"
Other Xiao's expression darkened, finally recognizing Sebastian Xiao's ability.
It was Energy Absorption—the same power wielded by Sebastian Shaw, the Black King, a peak Level-4 mutant from the Marvel Universe.
Black King Sebastian Shaw can absorb all types of energy—not just punches, bullets, and other physical projectiles, but every form of energy, from weaker nuclear output to focused impact beams. He can strengthen his physical power, speed, and endurance through absorbed energy, release it at will, and convert it into explosive force. By relying on that energy, he can extend his life indefinitely, repair his body, and even resurrect himself, so long as the accumulated energy is sufficient.
In other words, every attack Other Xiao had just thrown wasn't merely useless—they had only continued to fuel Sebastian Xiao's power.
"It's troublesome… As expected, every golden finger granted by the Da Luo fragment is never simple."
Other Xiao lay sprawled across the stone platform, twisting for quite a while before finally dragging himself back to his feet. Yet even then, he couldn't think of a single method to counter Sebastian Xiao.
Facing this kind of physical immunity—and nearly complete immunity to energy attacks—was like facing a nightmare. A superpower like this was strong enough to make anyone fall into despair.
Based on current information, there are only two ways to defeat Sebastian Shaw—one confirmed in the comics, the other in the mutant series movies.
The first is to overload him with energy. Yes, [Energy Absorption] does have an upper limit.
If he absorbs too much energy and cannot release it in time, the Black King will be crushed to death by the sheer force contained inside his own body.
The second method exploits the fatal weakness of [Energy Absorption]: it is not immune to psychic powers.
If your mental strength surpasses his, you can invade Shaw's mind and force him to shut off his abilities.
However, with the abilities Other Xiao currently possesses, the only viable option is the first—bursting Sebastian Xiao with overwhelming, explosive force.
"Jealous. He's definitely jealous."
But the moment he stood up, Other Xiao felt the entire left half of his body go numb, a wave of weakness flooding through him. His kidneys might have actually burst from tOthermpact just now.
This made Other Xiao, who always considered himself something of a romantic playboy, feel absolutely furious.
Sebastian Xiao must have been jealous because of how smug he'd been during their chat earlier—so he specifically aimed for his "weak spot."
After Other Xiao settled on a plan, ripples spread open behind him. Emerging through them were the barrels of various large-scale anti-personnel and heavy weapons.
A downpour of shells swept across the battlefield, every single one locking onto Sebastian Xiao as they rained down in an indiscriminate barrage.
Besides, at this age, even the real Sebastian Shaw isn't at his peak…
Watching Sebastian Xiao's clothes shredded to rags under the machine-gun fire, Other Xiao realized clearly that this Sebastian Xiao was nowhere near the Black King from his memories. His ability had awakened only recently.
After all, the Black King's [Energy Absorption] allows him to drain energy through even a layer of clothing with just contact.
Yet Sebastian Xiao's absorption was limited to direct skin contact and seemed to convert energy randomly and inefficiently—evident from the way his clothes were torn apart instead of being drained cleanly.
"King's Arsenal? Now that's a great ability."
Sebastian Xiao glanced at the shells flying toward him. Rather than dodge, he even found time to make a joke.
Boom—boom—boom—
He let the shells pound into him freely. Orange-red flames and steel fragments erupted around his body in a violent storm.
The massive energy unleashed by the bombardment surged into Sebastian Xiao through every pore.
He stood at the center of the explosion, unmoving. The blazing flames roared for several minutes, and the heat—reaching thousands of degrees—fused the surface of the stone platform into glossy glass.
Huuu—huuu—huuu—
Wind echoed across the silent arena as a flame tornado slowly took shape at the center of the blast.
It wasn't truly a tornado—just a visual distortion, caused by the flames being sucked into Sebastian Xiao's body before they could fully erupt.
He remained still, eyes closed, enjoying what felt like a free flame sauna as he continuously absorbed energy to empower himself.
Feeling that power flooding into him, Sebastian Xiao's heart swelled with exhilaration, craving to absorb even more.
The massive energy continued to strengthen his body, and the previously delicate figure shrouded in flames began to grow sturdier and more powerful—changing at a speed visible to the naked eye.
However, even after several minutes of nonstop absorption, Other Xiao still didn't stop attacking.
Sebastian Xiao finally realized something was wrong, and in the next moment understood exactly what The other him intended.
Since both sides were technically the same person—sharing memories, instincts, and thought processes—it wasn't difficult to grasp one another's intentions.
Naturally, Sebastian Xiao knew his ability had likely been exposed after the earlier test, and he also understood perfectly what Other Xiao was trying to do.
Now it was a battle of upper limits—who would run out of ammunition first, or who would reach their superpower's capacity first.
Other Xiao continued firing relentlessly, pouring out shells like a man possessed, yet the flame tornado still showed no signs of stopping.
"Die for me—die already~~!"
Other ·Xiao grew more frantic, his voice cracking under the mix of curses and madness.
He was panting heavily. Maintaining the spatial gate continuously while controlling the weapons inside was a massive strain, and it had drained almost all his stamina.
His strength was nearly depleted, and this was his strongest offensive method. If even this couldn't kill the other guy, then he genuinely had nothing left.
After an unknown amount of time, the bombardment from Other·Xiao finally ceased. His physical strength had reached its limit, and even the ammunition stores were completely empty.
"Beautiful… this feeling is wonderful."
Sebastian Xiao opened his palm, his entire body glowing with golden light. Countless golden currents pulsed beneath his skin—his body was clearly at its threshold.
"Fuck, he's still not dead!"
Other·Xiao fell into complete despair, but he didn't even have time to process it.
Sebastian Xiao took one step forward—and his entire figure blurred, disappearing from Other·Xiao's sight as if he'd teleported.
"Whoa~~!"
But instead of attacking directly, Sebastian Xiao sprinted along the edge of the stone platform. He needed to release energy first.
He could feel that his body was close to overload. If Other·Xiao still had some hidden trump card left and struck him with another heavy blow, and he couldn't absorb it in time, he might actually explode. So he didn't dare launch an attack recklessly.