American comic book: I, with my abundant martial virtue, love to do good to others.

Chapter 159 Mantis's Choice

Rocket Raccoon looked at the Ancient One in surprise.

Why are we able to breathe in the universe?

"It's just a little magic, don't worry about it."

Upon hearing what the Ancient One said, a glimmer of hope appeared in Rocket Raccoon's eyes.

"Magic? Can I learn magic too?"

"Never mind—"

After saying that, Rocket Raccoon suddenly realized that he was just an experiment.

How could someone like him, an experimental subject, possibly have such a precious opportunity to learn magic?

However, the Rocket Raccoons' low spirits did not last long.

Because he heard an answer from Gu Yi that he found unbelievable.

"You do have some talent, but whether you can learn magic or not depends on yourself."

Gu Yi glanced at Lynn.

"Hmm—but I think you might not be too interested in learning the magic I use."

"Magic is not what you imagine."

"Can I learn magic too?"

Rocket Raccoon was shocked by this unexpected answer.

"You mean I can be like you and him in the future?"

Seeing Rocket Raccoon's somewhat enthusiastic attitude, the Ancient One ultimately did not dampen his enthusiasm.

"That depends on how well you learn."

"Don't worry, with my intelligence, that'll be a piece of cake."

Not only was Rocket Raccoon very happy, but everyone else also looked at the Ancient One with great anticipation.

"If you'd like, you can come here to learn some magic."

Lynn was a little surprised to hear the Ancient One's enthusiastic words.

"You don't seem like the kind of person who would be so kind."

Lynn leaned close to the Ancient One and whispered something.

"Since I have nothing else to do, it wouldn't hurt to teach them a little."

Gu Yi looked at everyone with a hint of envy.

Just as Lynn was wondering what was going on, Gu Yi blurted out what was on her mind.

"A long time ago, I wanted to put down my burdens and travel."

"It's just a pity—"

"Now that I have you and Strange, I think I can slack off a little."

"you-----"

Lynn shook his head, but ultimately said nothing.

"Fine, whatever makes you happy."

Once inside the spaceship, Lynn suddenly remembered something.

"Speaking of which, half of the divine power within this bead belongs to you."

Star-Lord's Celestial power comes entirely from his Celestial father.

Normally, having inherited his father's Celestial genes, Star-Lord should possess his own Celestial power even after the Celestial's death.

But Star-Lord's god father is definitely not a good person.

To ensure he wouldn't be betrayed by his own offspring, he did so as early as when Star-Lord awakened his Celestial powers.

Ego planted a seed inside Star-Lord.

This seed can ensure that Star-Lord has complete control over all the power within him.

Simply put, while Star-Lord can use the Celestial powers within him, if Ego dies,

The Celestial power within Star-Lord will also naturally disappear.

However, because Star-Lord always has half Celestial genes in his body, his physical abilities are far superior to those of a normal Earthling.

"So although this power is currently in my hands, I can still give you half if you want it."

Star-Lord looked at the beads in Lynn's hand without the slightest hint of reluctance.

"No, I have absolutely no need for the power of that kind of person."

Lynn wasn't too surprised by Star-Lord's straightforward refusal.

"This is half the power of the gods. Having it will not allow you to roam freely in the universe, but at least you won't need to live a life of extreme caution."

Are you sure you really don't want it?

Lynn stared at Star-Lord with great interest as he spoke.

"No regrets?"

"I will never regret it!"

Star-Lord was very decisive.

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Let me make this clear: if you insist on refusing, you won't be able to ask me for it again."

"I said I wouldn't regret it, and I mean I won't."

Star-Lord was getting impatient.

Lynn smiled contentedly and didn't say anything more.

Although the others were equally envious of the bead, they fully respected Star-Lord's opinion.

No matter what Star-Lord says or what decisions he makes, they will not interfere.

After all, this is Star-Lord's business.

After hearing Star-Lord's decisive refusal, everyone else looked at him with some surprise.

"That's half the power of a god!"

Rocket Raccoon was deeply moved.

Even Gamora and Nebula, standing to the side, looked at Star-Lord with a strange expression.

Amidst the astonished gazes of the crowd, Star-Lord felt his vanity surge to its peak.

"How was it? Did I look cool when I refused?"

Rocket Raccoon mercilessly mocked Star-Lord from the sidelines.

"Don't overthink it. They just think you're a little slow on the uptake, that you can actually refuse such a good offer."

Star-Lord's smile froze on his face.

Even Nebula, who usually has a calm demeanor, couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Incidentally, due to some unexpected events, Nebula was unable to escape and continued to follow the group.

Although it's unclear what happened between her and Gamora, judging from the sisters' attitudes, it seems they've resolved some of their differences.

"What a waste!"

Rocket Raccoon patted Star-Lord.

"I told you your brain isn't suited to be a team leader, let me do it."

Star-Lord, consumed by rage, roared, "Get lost!"

Everyone burst into laughter.

Seeing this scene, Lynn smiled slightly.

Despite his words, everyone could tell that Rocket Raccoon didn't really mean to blame Star-Lord.

They were just trying to ease Star-Lord's sadness in this way.

As they were talking, Lynn inadvertently noticed Mantis standing to the side.

Mantis, also known as the Mantis Woman.

When Mandis noticed Lynn's gaze fixed on him, he couldn't help but feel nervous.

"interesting·-"

Hearing Lynn say that, Mantis's heart jumped.

There's a reason she can hang out with Star-Lord and his gang.

The Guardians of the Galaxy have all lost a lot.

Or rather, they all have one thing in common: they are all pitiful little things that nobody wants.

Gamora betrayed her father, Thanos utterly destroyed Destroyer's planet, and Rocket Raccoon was merely an experiment...

So the reason this group of people were able to come together is entirely because they share common characteristics.

As a tool of the gods, Mantis was also pitifully unwanted, and naturally she wanted to join this big family.

But Mantis knew what her identity was, so she was worried that it would prevent him from fitting into the family.

If no one had brought it up, perhaps she could have pretended not to know anything and acted with these people without any hindrance.

But now...

The thought of the possibilities that would arise if his identity were exposed left Mantis at a loss for what to do.

She could only look at Lynn with pleading eyes, begging him not to tell anyone.

Meanwhile, Rocket Raccoon, who was cursing and starting his spaceship, noticed Mantis standing to the side.

"Speaking of which—"

Rocket Raccoon looked at Mantis with some confusion. "Just who are you? How come you're able to follow a god?"

Lynn had no intention of revealing Mantis's identity, but Rocket Raccoon asked about it.

Seeing this, he shut up and left the matter to them to handle.

Lynn's plan is quite clever.

If these people are unwilling to accept Mandis, Lynn can take Mandis back to Earth and nurture him properly.

Of course, don't get me wrong, Lynn wasn't interested in Mantis at all; he just wanted Mantis's unique abilities.

Lynn felt that if he could get his hands on Mantisna's mind-controlling abilities, they would be very useful.

"I—I—."

Mantis hesitated, conflicted and dared not utter a sound.

"She doesn't seem like a bad person to me, so perhaps—"

Although the group hadn't spent much time together, Star-Lord still had a considerable fondness for this gentle and delicate woman.

Moreover, Star-Lord could sense that Mendis wasn't a particularly evil creature.

Moreover, Star-Lord also felt a strange sense of closeness to Mandis.

This is also why he spoke up for Mantis.

However, Rocket Raccoon had never spent time with Mantis, so he was quite wary of him.

Before Star-Lord could speak up for him, Mandis decided to confess himself.

"Peter—may I call you that?"

Upon hearing Mandis's words, Gamora's eyes immediately sharpened.

What's going on? Someone's trying to steal my house?

Gamora's expression turned tense as she looked at Mantis.

Although she and Star-Lord had already been through many things together and had even developed feelings for each other, the delicate barrier between them had not yet been broken.

Gamora didn't know how Star-Lord, with his idiot brain, would react if Mantis really showed affection for him.

Gamora had no doubt that Star-Lord's barren mind would not have any contingency plans for this kind of thing.

That damned idiot will definitely be swayed by Mandis.

However, before Camora could continue to indulge in her wild thoughts, Mandis's next words shocked everyone present.

"Peter—I mean, maybe, perhaps—I am also your father's child."

"My father's child?"

Star-Lord's slightly anthropomorphic intelligence spun for a moment in that instant.

"Wha-what do you mean?"

"etc?"

"You mean—you're also Igor's child?"

"Doesn't that mean you're my sister?"

Mantis nodded with difficulty.

Then he began to tell his own story.

Mantis has never seen her mother since she can remember.

Perhaps having discovered Mantis's unique talent, Ego took Mantis under his wing from a young age, using Mantis's abilities to help alleviate his insomnia.

But apart from that, Mandis was never taught anything else.

For Igor, Mantis was merely a useful tool.

Therefore, Igor doesn't care at all what Mantis is thinking or what he cares about.

Unless Mantis was needed, Igor didn't even bother to glance at him.

This is why Mendis appeared so clueless and ignorant when he first met Star-Lord and the others.

Because from childhood to adulthood, Igor had never taught Mantis anything other than helping her alleviate her insomnia.

"I know he did many bad things to you —"

Although he had been by Igor's side for a long time, Igor did not interfere too much with Mantis's growth, which resulted in Mantis, who had always been with Igor, surprisingly not going astray.

Through his long period of interacting with people, Mandis also vaguely began to have some understanding of the world.

Although she didn't have any basic concepts of good and evil, she was able to keenly perceive what was good and what was bad.

This is also inseparable from Mandis's outstanding talent.

But now, she is very worried that people will be unwilling to accept her because of this.

"If you think I have dirty blood flowing in my veins, then I—then I can leave."

Mantis lowered his head.

He exuded a sense of helplessness.

If she could, she wouldn't want to play the victim in front of these people, but the truth is, if the Guardians of the Galaxy don't accept her, Mantis will have nowhere to go.

"Cough cough—"

Lynn coughed lightly and spoke slowly.

"If you have nowhere to go in the future, perhaps you could consider coming back to Earth with me."

"Although your appearance is somewhat conspicuous on Earth, don't worry, there are still many people on Earth who look like you."

"I believe that you will find your family there."

"Instead of a god-father who lies all the time and only treats you as a tool."

Mantis's eyes were still filled with tears.

She looked up blankly, gazing expectantly at Lynn.

"Really...really?"

Lynn gave Mantis an affirmative reply without hesitation.

[Mantis's favorability rating: 6!1]

Lynn raised an eyebrow, not expecting such a surprise.

"Hehehe, even if you want to poach my employees, you should at least get my permission first!"

Star-Lord said with great dissatisfaction.

"After all, theoretically speaking, I am his closest relative."

Star-Lord stood in front of Mendis.

"With me, your own brother, around, you absolutely mustn't even think about making a move on my sister!"

"Sister—Little sister?"

Mantis looked up, somewhat bewildered.

"So, you're saying you're willing to accept me?"

Star-Lord turned around unhappily and stared intently into Mantis's dark eyes.

"No, it's not that I'm willing to accept you, it's that we were originally siblings."

"Although we both have that man's blood in our veins, isn't that man already dead? You see,"

"The divine power within me is gone too."

"If we're talking about inheriting his dirty genes, it should be me, since you don't even qualify to be born that way."

Star-Lord is from the underworld.

"So come with me. I am your real family. I promise I will make up for all the love you've missed from your family all these years."

Lynn looked at Star-Lord and shook his head slightly.

Despite saying that, the person who actually craves the most love from his family is himself.

Rather than saying he wanted to give Mantis a home, it would be more accurate to say he wanted to give himself a home.

However, there's not much difference between the two.

Lynn looked at Mantis.

"I respect your choice, but no matter what choice you make, the doors of the world will always be open to you."

"If you really have nowhere else to go, you can come to Earth to find me."

Lynn made his promise.

Judging from the subsequent plot developments, Mandis has extremely strong growth potential.

Whether it's simply out of sympathy for Mandis, Lynn has reasons to want to bring Mandis under his control.

However, Lynn respected Mantis's opinion and left the choice to Mantis himself.

"I—I still want to go with my brother."

Compared to the unfamiliar yet powerful Lynn, Mantis trusted her brother, whom she had only known for less than three days, more.

Especially since the two of them are connected by blood.

Seeing this, Star-Lord finally revealed a satisfied smile.

Welcome to our family!

Star-Lord said seriously.

"Hey, don't be so mushy. I'm not your family, I'm your captain! Captain, understand?"

Upon hearing Rocket Raccoon's words, Star-Lord couldn't help but retort, "I'm the captain!"

The two of them argued for a while.

Looking at this scene, Lynn's lips curled into a barely perceptible smile.

Strictly speaking, there wasn't a single normal person on this spaceship.

Needless to say, Star-Lord was separated from his mother at a young age, and his father was a bastard.

Yondu, the adoptive father, is not only an absolute gem, but also quite outrageous—a principled space pirate!

Haha, these words together have a strange sense of humor.

Although Drax was married with children, he experienced the most tragic things in the world and was still all alone.

Not to mention that he's not very bright; he's really a big, simple-minded fool.

Rocket Raccoon and Groot are quite similar; one lost all his experimental subjects, and the other is a tree-man.

I apologize, it's not that I'm discriminating against the Tree People race, but rather that this plant-like life form and animal-like life form have fundamental genetic differences.

Gamora and Nebula, these two sisters who love and hate each other, are the epitome of this relationship.

Looking at the jubilant crowd, Lynn couldn't help but recall a hilariously bad joke.

There were seven people on this boat, but they couldn't even find a pair of parents!

"Cough cough."

Lynn choked on his own thoughts.

However, it seems that Mantis, who has never experienced normal interpersonal relationships since childhood, is actually very suitable for this group of people who lack love.

"In that case, forget it."

Lynn, however, didn't seem to care at all.

As long as the favorability rating is high enough, and it helps Lynn gain experience and skills, she'll be content.

Aside from Mandis's telepathic abilities, which Lynn found somewhat interesting, the abilities of the others were dispensable to him.