- In Marvel: I Start by Marrying Scarlett Witch [Complete]
- MWM Chapter 261
Normally, after a cultivator undergoes the process of rebirth, their body returns to its youngest and most optimal state.
Take Li Yingqi, for example—though he’s over 200 years old, he still appears to be around 18 or 19.
Of course, this isn’t a fixed rule.
Once cultivators reach the Golden Core stage, they can adjust their physical appearance based on their own preferences.
Most female cultivators maintain the appearance of their youngest self, while most male cultivators choose to appear in their early thirties, a more mature age.
There are also those with special preferences, some who like to take on the appearance of a child, a teenager, or even a middle-aged person.
Meanwhile, the heads of most sects often choose an elderly appearance to project more authority. Examples include Daoist Qingzhu, Master Baimei of Emei, and Master Zunsheng of Mount Wutai.
Compared to Asian women, Western women tend to mature earlier. By the time European women are 15 or 16, they are comparable to Asian women at 18 or 19.
However, after 20, their looks begin to decline. By 30, they age rapidly, and by 40, the signs of aging become very pronounced.
Wanda is 21 this year, and although she’s still in her prime, she still harbors worries about aging and her appearance.
Like many wives, she sometimes fears that if she loses her beauty, her husband might stop loving her or might start preferring younger, prettier women.
After all, Leo is rich, handsome, talented, and incredibly powerful—he could have any woman he wanted.
So, when Wanda saw herself transformed back into her vibrant 16-year-old self, it was no wonder she was so overjoyed.
“Thank goodness, at least this didn’t change,”
After reveling in her excitement for a moment, Wanda suddenly thought of something and glanced down, letting out a big sigh of relief.
Throwing the mirror back onto the vanity, Wanda leaped into Leo’s arms.
“I feel amazing! Let’s do it again!”
“No, we’ve just started. Too much and too often could harm your body.”
Leo caught Wanda mid-leap, gently holding her by the nightgown and placing her to the side.
Wanda wasn’t a cultivator, and her body was still that of an ordinary person. Even with the dual cultivation method, they couldn’t overdo it.
For now, they could only practice once a day—any more, and it would overload her body, causing harm instead of good.
And so, life returned to normal for the time being.
Since Leo’s shadow clones could now last a full day as long as they didn’t run out of chakra, he divided his 2,000 clones efficiently.
Some stayed in the wardrobe space refining small flying swords, some focused on learning and practicing spells, magic, and ninjutsu, while others scattered to complete simple side quests to earn time in the small world.
As for his main body, aside from meditating and cultivating true energy, his focus was on spending time with Wanda and maintaining a peaceful daily routine.
This continued for about two months, until an event broke the tranquility.
“Boss, we’ve spotted a suspicious person near the neighborhood. Should we apprehend them for questioning?”
Leo, who was in the living room watching sitcoms with Wanda, heard Li San’s report over the communicator and casually asked:
“What’s suspicious about them?”
“We noticed a van parked near the neighborhood for two days straight. Every time Madam leaves the neighborhood, the van flashes as if they’re taking pictures.”
Li San explained what they had observed over the past few days.
After thinking for a moment, Leo replied:
“Capture the people in the van discreetly and find out who they are.”
Leo and Wanda’s identities were known only to S.H.I.E.L.D., Hydra, and certain government agencies. Ordinary people had no idea where they lived, so it was unlikely that the photographers were regular journalists.
Could it be another strange organization targeting him?
There were countless organizations in the Marvel universe, beyond the well-known S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra—there were also groups like the Hand, the Defenders, and the Rising Tide.
But none of these posed a real threat to him now. Once he figured out who they were, he could either issue a warning, and if they didn’t heed it, eliminate them entirely.
“Yes, boss.”
About ten minutes later, Li San called again with an update:
“The van’s owner is a woman in her twenties, named Skye. She’s a hacker who broke into S.H.I.E.L.D.’s system and discovered your address. She claims to be a fan of yours and just wanted to meet you.”
The name “Skye” sounded familiar—she was a hacker who could breach S.H.I.E.L.D.’s system.
Leo thought for a moment and recalled a person.
If he wasn’t mistaken, there was an Inhuman named Quake, whose real name was Daisy. Before she changed her name, she went by Skye, and she was indeed a hacker.
“Alright, I’ll be right over.”
After saying goodbye to Wanda, Leo was about to apparate to the location when his panel suddenly displayed a new side quest.
“Side Quest: Prevent the Inhumans from waging war on humanity.
Reward: One year of small world time.”
Seeing the side quest pop up, his eyes lit up.
After two months of using shadow clones to farm side quests, he had accumulated six months of small world time. This new quest, which offered an entire year as a reward, was a pleasant surprise.
The Inhumans were a race created 1,400 years ago when the Kree came to Earth to experiment on humans.
The Kree, one of the most powerful civilizations in the universe, sought to create super-soldiers to gain an advantage in interstellar wars.
One group of Kree arrived on Earth 1,400 years ago and experimented on a Mayan human, creating the first Inhuman: Hive, who also became the origin of Hydra.
Later, the Kree halted these experiments, and Hive led the altered Inhumans in rebellion. The Kree scientists fled Earth, leaving behind the Inhumans.
Fearing Hive’s ability to control other Inhumans, they used leftover Kree technology to exile him to a distant planet.
Humans who worshipped Hive founded the original Hydra, which, for the past millennium, has had a singular goal: to bring Hive back and unite the Earth under his rule.
After Hive’s exile, the remaining Inhumans hid their identities and mingled with ordinary humans, eventually fading from public view.
However, according to the story, Skye’s mother, Jiaying, had recently begun using Kree’s Terrigen Crystals to awaken the powers of Inhuman descendants, with plans to wipe out humanity and leave only Inhumans on Earth.