Nick chuckled again, saying, "Why not let you go back and continue our previous topic, the biggest flaw, is in their intentions."
"Skrulls certainly wouldn't want to save Earthlings, at least these aliens trying to divide the Avengers, surely have no good intentions towards us. However, the issue is the superheroes' benevolent hearts and their actions to help others. This too is a part of their behavior."
"Let's say now, on the top of a building, several cameras are pointing at Spider Man, and a monster that wants to eat people's brains appears on the street. If this Spider Man follows the Skrulls' code of conduct and ignores the impending tragedy below, and the scene is caught by the cameras, do you think Spider Man's reputation will still hold up?"
Peter twitched his lips and said, "Let alone ignore it, even if I go down two seconds late, those reporters will make a big fuss about it, accusing me of reacting slowly or hesitating, not being brave enough…"
Peter sighed, "On those forums, commentators will find all sorts of faults, saying that I should have dropped down from the sun's direction to blind the enemy, or I should have jumped facing the sun so that I could have a better view…"
"In short, no matter what Spider Man does, it's wrong." Peter shrugged his shoulders and said, "I'm used to it."
"If he does what you said, ignoring everything, just swinging away, Spider Man's reputation would be ruined. Just the people on the forums alone would start cursing. I can already imagine what they would say."
Nick nodded and said, "That's right. If superheroes want to have influence, they must maintain a good image. Think about it, a Spider Man who ignores a life in danger, a Captain America who smokes and drinks, a frugal Iron Man. Do you think your original fans would like these images?"
"Indeed, you don't care about influence because you are doing the real work, helping wherever you can, regardless of others' opinions. But these aliens can't. Their goal is to use your identities to start a war."
"There's not much use for a superhero excluded from society. They don't want to destroy the world, but to control it. If they wanted to blow up the entire Earth with superpowers, they would have directly impersonated Magneto."
"Now that they didn't, it means that they don't want a powerful figure sidelined by society, but rather someone close to the power center with privileges. And the fact that they didn't start a war the moment they started impersonating you shows that they want your social identities."
"So, they must maintain those social statuses and good superhero images."
"Then, if their image and abilities align with yours, and even their actions in punishing the wicked and helping others align due to certain reasons, aren't they just superheroes?"
The three people on the sofa gasped in unison. Stark touched his chin and said, "I've read about this kind of ethical issue in psychology related books, like, if you copy a person's memory and personality into another person, who is he then?"
"If there's a person with Stark's abilities and image, doing the same things as Stark, is he Stark?"
"Of course, you're the least likely person to consider this." Nick shrugged his shoulders, looking at Stark and said, "I'm very sure, the impersonator cannot upgrade abilities the way you do, even if he can upgrade, it won't be like the Iron Demon God."
"Moreover, as far as I know, when Skrulls imitate your abilities, there are some flaws. The specific data hasn't undergone detailed testing, but the imitated abilities' upper limit is somewhat lower than yours."
"For example, Spider Man's maximum strength may be able to lift a mountain, while the imposter can only lift three-quarters of a mountain."
"But, because the power used in daily life doesn't reach the limit, Spider Man doesn't normally need to lift mountains. He only needs to deal with ordinary human criminals. In this situation, the differences in strength limits aren't easily noticeable, making the impersonation seem perfect."
Nick leaned on the back of the chair and said, "This is also why they didn't duplicate the abilities of Professor X."
"If they imitate Professor X, the 20% power difference is not noticeable in daily life, but it's fatal when confronting the real one. The weakened, counterfeit Professor X certainly can't beat the real one."
"However, they may not have ruled out this possibility." Nick furrowed his eyebrows, "Although openly replacing psychic ability users wouldn't work, as long as they don't get found out it's fine. Having a person in secret with psychic control abilities would make their plans much easier."
"So what if they really try to imitate Professor X? Even if they can't brainwash the entire human race, it would still be dangerous if they brainwash all of America," Stark said, deeply furrowing his brows. "This plan is too risky, no, I need to get back to New York first…"
"Haven't you noticed? These Skrulls revolving around Shiller, what's that about?" Nick directed at the screen. "Why bother seeking so far when they could have just stuck with Professor X?"
Steve gradually opened his mouth and said, "You mean, they're planning to clone Shiller???"
Stark froze in place, "Oh God! Isn't one Shiller enough? Now we need another one precisely like him?!"
"You've seen more Shillers before." Nick casually shrugged, "Have you all forgotten? Remember the time at the S.H.I.E.L.D. consultation when about a dozen Shillers showed up?"
Stark held his forehead, Steve covered his eyes, and Peter heaved a deep sigh. Clearly, the three of them were deeply affected by that period.
"The problem is, if there really is a Shiller they can control, then wouldn't that be..." Stark's eyebrows furrowed. He seemed very worried, he said, "If Shiller genuinely sides with the Skrulls, then how would we..."
Nick revealed a dazzling smile, "Just keep watching, you'll understand soon."
"Doctor Shiller, you haven't been back to Arkham Sanatorium in a while, have you? You can return and take care of recent tasks before we reconvene," the Nick on the screen suggested to Shiller.
Shiller nodded without uttering anything and left. As he watched Shiller's retreating figure, Nick's expression gradually went cold. After Shiller completely left the base, Nick took the elevator down to the secret lab deeper inside the base.
In the lab, a green alien, fresh from the life-support chamber, paid Nick an unfamiliar salute. Nick nodded in reply and asked him, "Have you been around Shiller long enough to complete the disguise?"
"His memories are a bit complicated; I can't duplicate them all." The alien showed a visible sign of struggle. "I'm not sure if I've copied all his memories, but his life trajectory and the logic inherent in his memories don't pose any significant problems so far…"
"That's how it is then, the situation is more complex than we thought, with emergencies everywhere. We need more manpower, get ready for the disguise."
The green-skinned Skrull nodded, walked back into the life-support chamber, closed his eyes, and then the changes began, turning him into an exact replica of Shiller.
All sorts of memories swirled in his mind, slowly merging with his own.
Just then, certain details in Shiller's memories were magnified, with hordes of text pouring directly into the Skrull's mind.
In the copied files, a very specific "virus" was included, infiltrating all corners of his system in an instant.
The infectious strength of the words and examples shattered the Skrull's worldview like a raging wave of the Red Sea.
A deep understanding, realization, and implementation of profound theories were ingrained into the Skrull's mind.
When he slowly opened his eyes, all other sounds became blurry and only the fading tide remained, bringing with it a long, distant sigh.
"A ghost is wandering around Europe…" he mumbled.