Marvel: Umbrella Corporation

Back when S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Sam led Logan and Victor to the Middle East in search of Baro Village, Adam had already anticipated their arrival.

He brought along a group of Lickers to intercept them and simultaneously divert S.H.I.E.L.D.'s attention.

What he hadn't expected, however, was for one of the Lickers to evolve after consuming a piece of Logan's flesh. Its regenerative capabilities and strength increased significantly. This breakthrough led to the creation of the Licker 2.0.

After extensive research, Adam finally succeeded in mass-producing Licker 2.0. He had been waiting for an opportunity to test them in real combat when Ivan's rampage presented itself. Adam saw this as the perfect chance to profit from the chaos.

"I wonder just how effective the Lickers are in real combat."

......

At the press conference, Ivan stood with a dark expression.

The Lickers moved with astonishing speed, dodging bullets and missiles with ease. Even when struck, their regenerative abilities allowed them to recover almost instantly.

As they closed in on the robots, they extended razor-sharp claws or tongues to tear the machines apart with brute force. The robots, devoid of any regenerative capability, were reduced to scrap once destroyed.

*Boom…*

The battle escalated, and soon, over thirty robots were annihilated. The Lickers, feeding off the remains of the destroyed machines and fallen foes, showed no signs of death, regenerating continuously.

Seeing this, Ivan finally couldn't hold back anymore.

He descended swiftly, wielding a plasma whip, and sliced a Licker cleanly in half.

"Howl!"

The bisected Licker let out a blood-curdling scream. Its upper body struggled to rise, while the lower half remained motionless.

"Interesting," Ivan mused. "The core must be in the upper body."

Without hesitation, he swung his plasma whip again, severing the creature's head. Yet, to his surprise, the headless body continued to writhe, and the severed head snapped its jaws as if trying to bite.

"What is this monster's true core?" Ivan muttered, puzzled.

Just as he prepared to conduct further tests, Tony Stark, who had been submerged in water, finally made his move.

*Boom!*

Two palm beams struck Ivan, sending him flying.

"Ivan, if you have any real skills, come at me!"

Ivan rose again, his eyes blazing with rage, "Stark, you thief's descendant, you've finally shown yourself!"

"Ivan, I deeply regret what happened to your father, but involving innocent people is not the answer."

Since learning of his father's actions, Tony had wrestled with guilt. His sense of justice compelled him to try and help Ivan find redemption.

Even now, as Ivan stood before him, Tony hoped to turn him back from the brink.

But Ivan's eyes burned with even deeper hatred.

"Innocent? When my father was framed, not one of these so-called innocents spoke up for him. Instead, they conspired with your robber father to ruin him. These people—none of them are innocent!"

Ivan's rampage during the conference was meticulously planned to gather these capitalists in one place and annihilate them.

Before Tony could reply, a streak of green appeared in the distance, hurtling toward them.

*Boom!*

With a deafening crash, Hulk re-entered the fray, tackling Ivan with immense force. Ivan was sent tumbling hundreds of meters, rolling through rubble before rising once more.

Dusting off his adamantium armor, he sneered, "Stark, I should thank you. If not for your designs, I wouldn't have perfected my arc reactor or forged this adamantium armor."

With that, he charged forward, plasma whip in hand.

*Whoosh! Whoosh!*

Tony dodged nimbly, but Hulk wasn't as fortunate. The plasma whip coiled around him, sending powerful electric shocks through his body.

*Zzzz…*

The intense voltage rendered Hulk temporarily immobile, his green skin charred and emitting a burnt smell.

"Hulk!" Tony shouted.

Hulk roared in pain and fury, straining to break free. But the plasma whip, made of adamantium, didn't budge.

Ivan smirked. "This is adamantium, you green brute. Just give up and die."

Before he could finish, a missile struck him squarely, sending both him and Hulk flying.

*Boom!*

As the smoke cleared, Tony lowered his left arm, a sheepish expression on his face.

"Uh, that wasn't intentional…"

Switching to his palm repulsors, Tony unleashed a barrage of attacks on Ivan, but the energy blasts had no effect on the adamantium armor.

"Stark, is that all you've got? I'm disappointed. Time to send you to join your parents."

Ivan lashed out again with his plasma whip, but this time, Tony didn't move.

*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!*

After a few strikes, Ivan looked down at his plasma whip, confused, then back at Tony.

Finally, Tony spoke. "Sorry to break it to you, but my armor is made of adamantium too."

Ivan froze in disbelief. He had tested his plasma whip on his own armor and found it impervious. Now, he was faced with the same unyielding material.

"H-Hulk…"

As Ivan struggled to comprehend the situation, he increased the voltage to the plasma whip.

"Stark, if you want to save your friend, take off your armor. Otherwise, I'll electrocute him."

Tony shrugged. "If you think you can kill him, go ahead."

Ivan growled, upping the voltage. Hulk writhed and roared, but his immense durability and regenerative ability kept him alive, albeit in visible agony.

Meanwhile, the battle around them was reaching its climax. Most of the robots were destroyed, leaving only a few sentinel replicas.

However, as the Lickers consumed the remaining corpses, their energy reserves dwindled, leading to inevitable losses. Without fresh meat or nutrient solutions, even their extraordinary regenerative powers had limits.

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