Ch 35- Wonder Woman
I thought Gwen's "do whatever you want" would lead to some intense fight.
Marcus was already halfway to taking his pentss off...
Instead...
Gwen jumped up, grabbed Marcus, and dragged him outside.
"There's no curfew tonight!"
"I want to stay out all night!"
"I want to rebel for once!"
She grinned at Marcus excitedly.
Like a kid finally escaping strict parents for the first time.
Just staying beside Gwen and acting reckless together felt surprisingly fun.
Watching Gwen run through the streets, shouting freely and laughing without holding back...
It was pretty entertaining.
But...
"What are you yelling for?"
"What time do you think it is?"
"People are trying to sleep!"
Hearing the annoyed shouting from nearby apartments, Gwen immediately shrank back and covered her mouth.
Maybe she had gone too far?
Too far?
No.
Not nearly far enough.
Marcus directly created a gold nugget with the Phoenix Force.
He snapped off a piece and handed it to Gwen.
"Take this and smash their windows."
"Huh?" Gwen hesitated. "Isn't that... kind of bad?"
After being a good girl for eighteen years, suddenly turning into a delinquent felt a little scary.
Marcus didn't explain. Instead, he shouted toward the surrounding buildings.
"Anyone who wants a 500 gram gold nugget in exchange for a broken window, turn your lights on!"
The next second...
Click!
Click!
Click!
Lights instantly turned on all around them.
Gwen stared in shock.
You could actually do that?
Then she looked down at the gold in her hand and suddenly felt reluctant.
This was real gold!
Marcus noticed her concern.
"I can make as much of this gold as I want."
Gwen's eyes lit up immediately.
Well, if that's the case...
She weighed the nugget in her hand, tested the feel, then casually tossed it.
Crash!
A nearby window shattered, followed by excited yelling inside.
Real gold?!
Who would complain?
They were practically thanking the generous goddess above.
Once Gwen realized nobody was angry, she completely let loose.
Crash!
Crash!
Crash!
Gwen smashed windows left and right.
The people getting free gold were happy.
Gwen was happy.
Marcus was happy watching Gwen have fun.
Tomorrow, even the glass repair shops in the area would probably be happy.
What a harmonious atmosphere.
...
S.H.I.E.L.D.'s global monitoring system quickly picked up the disturbance.
"Small scale energy fluctuations detected!"
"Possible battle situation!"
Maria Hill immediately pulled up satellite surveillance.
Then she froze.
Marcus?
What the hell was he doing?
Accompanying a girl while throwing gold bars through random windows?
Meanwhile, everyone at S.H.I.E.L.D. was working overtime.
This was ridiculous.
But...
Even Hill had to admit it looked strangely romantic.
The whole childish freedom of it all.
Right then, Nick Fury walked over and glanced at the screen.
His face immediately darkened.
He silently pulled out his phone and dialed Marcus.
"The number you are trying to reach is busy."
Fury looked at the phone, then back at Marcus casually handing out gold bars.
This guy was unbelievable.
Suddenly, loud alarms blared through the room.
"Massive energy fluctuations detected!"
"Energy signature matches the Mother Box!"
"Location, North Sea..."
"The energy beam has disappeared!"
"Unable to locate source of fluctuations!"
"Repeat!"
"Unable to locate source of fluctuations!"
Fury immediately realized something was wrong.
"JOE..."
"Don't bother," Marcus's voice suddenly interrupted from behind him. "You won't find it."
Fury turned and saw Marcus appear beside Gwen.
"Why not?"
"There's a protective barrier there," Marcus explained. "It interferes with all advanced technology. Ordinary people can't even enter without a special method."
At the same time, Marcus was already thinking.
Paradise Island.
The home of Wonder Woman, Diana Prince.
As for the energy beam...
There was a high chance the Mother Box had activated.
"I'll go check it out." Marcus looked at Gwen. "Want to come with me?"
"Huh? I can?" Gwen looked surprised. "Wouldn't I just get in the way?"
"Not with me around."
Marcus grabbed Gwen and prepared to teleport away.
"Wait!" Fury shouted. "Take me too!"
Marcus glanced at him.
"Don't blame me if you die."
Using the Phoenix Force, Marcus grabbed Fury and teleported.
The next moment, they appeared above the North Sea.
Marcus scanned the area with his enhanced vision.
Nothing.
Then...
"Darkness!"
The bright daytime sky suddenly turned pitch black.
Even the stars overhead were hidden behind strange energy.
Within the darkness, a faint glowing light stood out clearly.
Marcus teleported again and arrived directly on the island.
Dense forests surrounded them.
On a nearby plain, Amazon warriors were fiercely battling Parademons. Corpses covered the battlefield on both sides.
Steppenwolf himself was nowhere to be seen.
"Tiga, mark allies and enemies."
[Targets marked.]
Phoenix Force erupted outward.
Countless blazing arrows shot across the battlefield, instantly erasing every Parademon into ash.
But Marcus wasn't finished.
He raised a glowing sphere of light and tossed it into the sky.
It exploded into a shower of healing light that rained down across the Amazons.
Light of Recovery.
Minor wounds, severe injuries, missing limbs...
Everything healed instantly without leaving a scar.
Watching all this, Fury was completely stunned.
This bastard could fight and heal?
Even Superman wasn't this ridiculous.
"Wow!" Gwen stared in amazement. "I thought we'd need an actual battle, but you solved everything in like two moves?"
"It's nothing serious."
"If it were me, I'd probably spend forever fighting them," Gwen admitted.
"You can't compare yourself to me." Marcus pointed at Fury. "Throw him into the battlefield and he'd get ripped apart in thirty seconds."
Fury: "..."
Gwen covered her mouth while laughing and lightly smacked Marcus.
"You don't need to use him as an example!"
As they talked, Queen Hippolyta arrived with Amazon cavalry.
Marcus landed calmly on the grass and waited.
Once Hippolyta approached, she dismounted and gave a respectful Amazon salute.
"Thank you for helping us, alien."
"But outsiders are forbidden from entering Amazon territory. Especially men."
"I ask that you leave."
She thanked him first, then immediately asked him to go.
Very direct.
But Marcus hadn't come just to show off.
"Steppenwolf attacked and took the Mother Box, right?" Marcus asked directly. "Combined with the one already taken from humanity, only Atlantis still remains. If all three unite, Earth is finished."
Hippolyta's expression changed instantly.
"You came because of Steppenwolf?"
Fury stepped forward, ready to introduce himself...
Marcus casually shoved him aside with the Phoenix Force.
No chance this guy was ruining his future relationship with his future mother in law.
"In addition to the Mother Boxes, an Asgardian also stole the Space Stone. He's likely planning to invade Earth with alien forces."
"If both threats erupt at the same time..."
"The planet is doomed."
Hippolyta quickly noticed something.
"Our planet? You're not from Earth?"
"I am Marcus from the M78 Nebula beyond the Milky Way."
That answer made Hippolyta visibly embarrassed.
An alien was trying harder to protect Earth than humanity itself.
She quickly explained the ancient history.
When Darkseid invaded Earth long ago, humans, Green Lanterns, Amazons, and Atlanteans fought together and drove him back.
The three Mother Boxes were then separated among humans, Amazons, and Atlantis.
"We lost contact with Atlantis long ago."
"My daughter has lived in the outside world for decades. She may know something."
"I'll light the sacred fire. Wait there, and she'll come."
Marcus nodded.
"What is your daughter's name?"
"Diana Prince."
Marcus looked toward Fury.
"She's lived among humans for decades. Can you find her?"
"One hour."
Marcus nodded, then looked at Gwen.
"I need to keep working. Want to go home, or come to the Helicarrier?"
"I want to find my dad," Gwen said nervously. "I don't want what happened last time happening again. I can protect him now."
"Alright."
Marcus raised his hand.
"Space Door."
Space tore open, revealing the New York Police Department on the other side.
Gwen waved goodbye and stepped through.
Marcus waved again, replacing the portal with the S.H.I.E.L.D. command center.
Fury quickly walked through.
After sending them away, Marcus looked back at Hippolyta.
"What now?"
Hippolyta pursed her lips.
"How about you open a portal directly to the sacred fire location?"
"Sure."
Following her directions, Marcus opened another portal and launched a fire blast through it.
The sacred flames instantly spread across the ancient structure, glowing brightly within the darkness.
Marcus stepped through the portal and looked at Hippolyta.
"Want to come see your daughter?"
"No." Hippolyta shook her head. "Amazon needs me more."
"Alright. Goodbye then."
The portal closed.
...
Marcus then had Fury broadcast news of the sacred fire around the world.
Afterward, he casually pulled out Lays packet and started snacking while waiting.
Wonder Woman.
She wasn't the type to waste words, and she definitely didn't hesitate in fights.
If he could win her over...
That would be one hell of a reward.
That was also why Marcus sent Gwen away first.
Half an hour later, Marcus spotted Diana approaching with his enhanced vision.
He immediately cleaned up his hands with the Phoenix Force and straightened his clothes.
Soon, Diana arrived near the burning ruins and looked at Marcus suspiciously.
Then her eyes widened.
"The alien savior?" Diana said in surprise. "Why are you here?"
"I've been waiting for you," Marcus replied. "Queen Hippolyta asked me to meet you. You'll understand once you see the underground chamber."
"Destroy."
The flames instantly vanished.
"Come on."
Holding the recovered arrow, Marcus walked inside the ruins.
Diana hesitated briefly before following him.
They moved through a hidden passageway into the underground chamber. Marcus inserted the arrow into a groove beside the stone door, causing it to open.
Marcus gestured politely.
"You're the owner here. You first."
"You've been here before?" Diana asked suspiciously.
Marcus shook his head.
"I figured it out while waiting for you. The mechanism wasn't complicated."
Diana nodded and entered first.
Marcus followed behind her.
The chamber contained only murals depicting the ancient war.
After Diana finished examining them, Marcus spoke quietly.
"When I arrived, Steppenwolf had already taken the Amazon Mother Box. I saved who I could, but the people who died before that..."
"I couldn't help them."
Diana looked at him gratefully.
Tony Stark had already spread stories about Marcus's healing abilities. Regenerating limbs was supposedly easy for him.
Clearly, many Amazons had survived thanks to Marcus.
"So what do you need?" Diana asked.
"The human Mother Box was already stolen," Marcus said seriously. "If Atlantis loses theirs too, the Unity will happen."
Diana's expression sharpened.
"You want Atlantis's location?"
"Exactly."
Her eyes stopped on one of the murals.
"Here."
"The capital of Atlantis has never been found. The only way to contact them is with a conch shell."
Diana paused.
A conch shell?
Where were they supposed to find one now?
Marcus suddenly pressed lightly against part of the mural.
A hidden compartment opened, revealing a wooden box.
Marcus didn't touch it and simply gestured toward Diana.
Your stuff, your turn.
Diana opened the box and found a sky blue conch shell inside.
The two exchanged smiles.
"Let's go," Marcus said. "We'll try it at the beach."
"Okay."
They restored everything except the opened chamber and headed to the shore.
Diana took a deep breath and blew into the shell.
Crack.
She looked down at the broken conch pieces in disbelief.
"It was probably too old," Marcus comforted her.
He cast Light of Recovery on the shell, restoring it completely.
After thanking him, Diana blew into it more carefully.
Woooo...
Woooo...
Woooo...
The low sound spread across the sea with strange penetrating force.
Diana continued blowing for nearly half an hour.
Marcus was honestly impressed by her lung capacity.
Finally, she lowered the shell.
"Think that's enough?" Diana asked uncertainly.
"We'll see."
She nodded, then looked at Marcus curiously.
"I'm curious. Why choose Earth?" Diana asked. "Compared to the rest of the universe, Earth doesn't seem special."
Marcus answered honestly.
"The mission of my people is to expand our race."
"There are powerful women on Earth who attracted me here."
"For example..."
"You."
Marcus stared directly into Diana's eyes.
She held his gaze for nearly ten seconds before finally looking away first.
Because of everything that happened earlier, she didn't feel disgusted by his blunt honesty.
"On Earth, we'd call someone like you Aquaman," Diana joked.
Marcus laughed.
"Your planet is interesting too. Over two hundred countries sharing one world. Some still allow polygamy."
Diana smiled faintly but didn't continue the topic.
She neither agreed nor rejected him.
Note: some things are different from usual setting, like the shell thing and the author will also add small new thing, but only small changes. Main plot would be accurate as followed in comics or movies.
Ch 36- Rizzz
Diana didn't answer, and Marcus wisely changed the subject.
"I heard from Queen Hippolyta that you've lived in the human world for decades?"
"Almost seventy years." Diana looked toward the sea. "How long have you wandered through the universe?"
"Well... our race has no lifespan limit. We basically don't die naturally." Marcus answered vaguely. "If you calculate it by human standards, I'm around twenty years old."
He definitely couldn't let Diana know he was actually in his twenties. What if she didn't like younger men?
As for immortality...
The Dog Talisman already granted eternal life anyway.
Diana looked at Marcus differently after hearing that.
Her expression became complicated.
"Then how does your race deal with the death of loved ones?" Diana asked.
Marcus shook his head.
"It's almost impossible for our partners to die before us," Marcus said calmly. "Either we live together, or we die together."
Not to mention, the Dog Talisman alone was enough to keep hundreds of people immortal.
Diana was surprised.
So...
If she married him, she could also live forever?
Then she suddenly thought of something and stared at Marcus seriously.
"Since your race lives forever, you must know many powerful beings in the universe, right?"
"Well... I know most of them." Marcus answered modestly.
Whether they knew him back was another issue.
"Then do you know Zeus?" Diana asked expectantly.
Marcus immediately understood.
Diana was the daughter of Hippolyta and Zeus, but she had never met him herself. Hippolyta also refused to talk about him.
Probably because the bastard disappeared after sleeping around.
The disdain in Marcus's eyes was instantly noticed by Diana.
"What? Zeus has a bad reputation in the universe?" Diana asked.
Marcus laughed.
"Oh, definitely among our race."
"Our race may have multiple wives, but we treat every one of them sincerely."
"But Zeus is basically a walking breeding machine. He flirts everywhere, gets women pregnant, then disappears afterward."
"And the worst part is, he doesn't even acknowledge his children."
"Absolute trash. A complete scumbag."
Every sentence Marcus said made Diana's expression worse.
...
That was her father.
Marcus noticed it, but he didn't stop.
Because he was gambling.
He was betting that Diana remaining single for seventy years meant she valued loyalty and relationships deeply.
So...
Instead of getting angry at him insulting Zeus, she would actually agree with him.
Suddenly, Diana smiled.
When she looked at Marcus again, her eyes had become more serious.
"I thought you were a playboy before," Diana said honestly. "Looks like I was wrong."
Marcus smiled quietly while celebrating internally.
He won the bet.
Otherwise, if he failed to change Diana's opinion during their first real meeting, it would become much harder later.
"Can you tell me more about yourself?" Diana asked curiously.
And once a woman started getting curious about you, that was usually the beginning.
Marcus looked into the distance as if remembering the past.
"Our civilization is like dandelions. Everyone is scattered throughout the universe. Right now, I'm the only one in this galaxy."
"I wandered through several galaxies before finally arriving on Earth."
"Actually..."
"It was your presence that attracted me here in the first place."
Marcus looked directly at Diana with burning eyes.
It was basically a confession.
This time, Diana couldn't hold eye contact and looked away awkwardly.
"Then how do your race members communicate with each other?"
Marcus didn't keep staring either. He casually opened the Gate of Babylon.
"This dimensional storage space is shared among our civilization. We store information inside it."
Then he showed the Phoenix Force.
"Power fragments like this were spoils collected by our elders after defeating beings who crossed universal boundaries."
Diana stared at the Phoenix Force and could clearly feel the terrifying destructive power inside it.
And this was only a fragment?
Then how terrifying must the original enemy have been?
For a moment, a mysterious but overwhelmingly powerful interstellar race formed in Diana's mind.
It added another layer of mystery to Marcus.
And made her want to know more.
Marcus suddenly looked toward the ocean.
"They're here."
Diana looked over in confusion.
A few seconds later, she frowned.
Then she glanced at Marcus with surprise.
After all these years...
This was the first man whose strength had genuinely impressed her.
A few seconds later, a figure emerged from the sea.
Marcus's expression immediately became strange.
The woman had long fiery red hair and wore scale armour that outlined her curvy figure perfectly.
Mera.
The seductive mermaid.
...
Marcus first knew her, not from Aquaman...
But from the real life court case between her and Johnny Depp.
Domestic violence, pooping on the bed, blaming the dog...
The problem was that the dog was a tiny teacup breed.
There was no way that poop came from it.
It was ridiculous.
Even though this version of Mera had nothing to do with that...
Marcus still couldn't separate the image in his mind.
Like eating chocolate after hearing about a restaurant selling human meat buns.
Even unrelated food started feeling suspicious.
So now, in Marcus's eyes, Mera looked like "chocolate flavoured poop." Attractive on the outside, but mentally impossible to enjoy.
He quietly stepped back and motioned for Diana to handle the conversation.
Diana looked at Marcus strangely, but stepped forward anyway and explained everything.
Three minutes later, Mera still looked completely unconvinced.
"Since Amazon already lost its Mother Box, you've already failed," Mera said coldly. "Atlantis will protect the final Mother Box just like we have for thousands of years."
So...
She was refusing outside help?
Diana frowned. She couldn't understand Mera's arrogance and isolationist attitude.
The Amazons had already lost.
Did Atlantis seriously think they could handle this alone?
As they were about to argue further...
A hand rested on Diana's shoulder.
"Forget it. I'll handle it," Marcus said.
He didn't waste words.
The Time Stop Domain instantly froze Mera in place.
Phoenix Force flowed into her mind.
A few seconds later, Marcus released the effect.
Mera shot them a warning glare before turning around and diving back into the sea.
"What did you do?" Diana asked quickly. "You're just letting her leave?"
"I hypnotized her," Marcus explained. "She's heading straight back to the Mother Box. Follow her."
The two immediately dove into the ocean, only to discover Mera had already swum far ahead.
"Diana, excuse me."
Marcus grabbed Diana's hand and pulled her forward at incredible speed while chasing Mera.
They continued descending into the deep sea darkness.
Then they suddenly passed through some kind of barrier.
Their surroundings instantly brightened.
It felt like entering another world.
Even though they were underwater, everything looked bright and clear, like floating through the sky itself.
The entire place had a fantasy-like beauty.
But neither of them stopped to admire it.
They continued following Mera.
After traveling for more than half an hour, they finally reached a massive structure.
The area was heavily guarded with tight patrols everywhere.
No wonder Mera had been so confident earlier.
But...
One soldier said something to her, causing her expression to become ugly.
"The other underwater kingdoms refused to send reinforcements," Marcus said casually. "They're busy fighting over territory instead."
"And you're still insisting you can protect the Mother Box?"
Diana didn't answer.
Marcus looked back strangely and noticed Diana's face had turned slightly blue.
She looked uncomfortable.
Then he realized.
Diana couldn't breathe underwater.
Marcus quickly looked around.
There was water everywhere. She had nowhere to get oxygen.
So...
"Sorry."
Marcus leaned closer.
Under Diana's shocked gaze, he kissed her and passed oxygen directly into her mouth.
After holding her breath for nearly an hour, Diana suddenly felt the oxygen tasted strangely sweet.
Marcus didn't take advantage and pulled away once she recovered.
Diana could only hold her breath again while forcing herself to look away.
A few seconds later...
Buzz!
A giant beam of energy blasted through the roof of the structure and shot upward.
The Mother Box had activated again.
At the same time, the guards outside were already being overwhelmed by Parademons.
Only Mera and a small squad remained to fight Steppenwolf.
...
The confident Mera from earlier was slammed into a wall after only one exchange.
Although she counterattacked quickly by manipulating the surrounding water and trying to drain the liquid from Steppenwolf's body...
It was too slow.
Steppenwolf threw her aside, knocking her unconscious instantly.
He only shook his head slightly before returning to normal.
Without even glancing at Mera again, he swam straight toward the central stone pillar.
The third Mother Box was sealed inside.
Seeing this, Diana immediately charged forward like a cannonball.
She smashed through several Parademons blocking her path and slammed directly into Steppenwolf.
Caught off guard, Steppenwolf was sent flying and even dropped his electro axe.
Diana had also arrived in a hurry without bringing weapons.
The two immediately started fighting hand to hand.
Punches landed hard enough to shake the surroundings.
But after only a few exchanges, Diana started losing ground.
The intense combat rapidly increased her oxygen consumption.
Soon, lack of oxygen made her dizzy and weakened her movements.
Realizing something was wrong, Diana crossed her arms, preparing to unleash a full power attack.
But Steppenwolf grabbed her first and threw a heavy punch toward her.
Smack!
A hand suddenly blocked the attack in front of Diana effortlessly.
Not even moving an inch.
Steppenwolf was kicked backward instantly.
Marcus pulled Diana into his arms and kissed her again to pass over oxygen.
Diana slowly recovered.
"Sorry," Marcus apologized. "Cleaning up those Parademons took a little time."
Diana subconsciously looked behind him.
All the flying Parademons from earlier were gone.
How long had that taken?
And he called that slow?
Diana's pupils suddenly shrank.
"Careful!"
Without even turning around, Marcus casually caught Steppenwolf's incoming axe between two fingers.
The weapon couldn't move another inch.
Steppenwolf was shocked.
What the hell was this monster?
He tried pulling the axe back, but it wouldn't budge at all.
Phoenix Force surged from Marcus's body and wrapped around Steppenwolf.
Just then, Steppenwolf suddenly roared upward.
"Now!"
Buzz!
The beam of light responded instantly and teleported Steppenwolf away.
Marcus's Time Stop Domain activated a fraction too late.
"That guy was lucky," Marcus muttered. "One second slower and he would've been finished."
Still lacking combat experience.
Next time, he'd activate Time Stop immediately against bosses.
At that moment, a white figure rapidly approached from the distance.
It headed straight toward them.
As it got closer, the newcomer revealed himself to be a tall man with rough features.
Arthur Curry.
The future Aquaman.
"How long are you planning to hold me?" Diana asked from Marcus's arms.
Marcus shrugged and immediately raised his hands in surrender.
That made Diana laugh.
Only after she stopped smiling did Marcus check the system notification.
[Congratulations Host for obtaining the Electro Axe, adding a new weapon to the family arsenal and strengthening the family. Reward obtained: Space Ring.]
Name: Space Ring
Rank: C
Description: An independent storage space created through spatial magic. Only dead objects can be stored because the internal laws are incomplete.
Slogan: Whatever goes in comes out dead.
...
Steppenwolf's weapon reward really wasn't impressive.
Compared to Odin's Destroyer Armor rewarding the A Rank Gate of Babylon...
This was pretty average.
Marcus opened the Gate of Babylon and retrieved the Space Ring.
All system rewards were automatically stored there.
With a thought, Marcus sensed the ten meter storage cube inside the ring.
Honestly, he didn't care much about it.
The ring itself had a ruby embedded in it, which wasn't his style at all.
So...
Marcus looked at Diana.
"You didn't bring your weapons?"
"In modern society, armor and the Lasso of Truth are already hard enough to explain," Diana replied helplessly. "How am I supposed to walk around carrying a sword through airport security?"
"Fair point... then take this."
Marcus handed over the Space Ring.
Diana looked confused.
Giving a ring during their first meeting?
Marcus didn't explain and simply placed the Space Ring in her palm.
Low level magic items like this automatically recognized their owner upon contact.
Diana froze in surprise.
He was really giving it to her?
Marcus smiled and nodded.
Logically speaking, Diana shouldn't accept such a valuable item.
Especially from a man clearly interested in her.
But...
Diana smiled openly and placed the Space Ring onto her right index finger.
After admiring it for a moment, she nodded in satisfaction.
She clearly liked it.
Marcus smiled too.
The goodwill he'd built earlier, plus the two oxygen kisses, had already started opening this goddess's heart.
Next...
He just needed to continue building affection steadily and win her over completely.
No need to rush.
Arthur and the awakened Mera finally arrived beside them.
"Sorry," Mera admitted awkwardly. "I was too arrogant before. I thought those people were ruthless, but now I realize they're just short sighted. They'd rather fight over power and territory than protect the Mother Box."
Marcus simply smiled without commenting.
He had no interest in Atlantis politics.
Instead, he looked toward the stone pillar containing the Mother Box.
Phoenix Force surged forward and shattered the pillar, revealing the mechanical cube inside.
The Mother Box.
Right in front of Mera, Marcus stored it inside the Gate of Babylon.
"Since you can't protect it, I'll take it," Marcus said casually. "Hopefully we won't meet again."
Mera looked unhappy, but couldn't argue.
Meanwhile, Arthur stared at Marcus with obvious interest.
"You're strong," Arthur said excitedly. "We should fight sometime."
Ch 37- Back Again
Facing Arthur's invitation to fight...
Marcus had absolutely no interest.
Using the Phoenix Force, he wrote down some numbers.
"Call this number. He'll arrange a suitable opponent for you."
Arthur misunderstood immediately.
"After I beat them, I'll come challenge you!"
Marcus just smiled and didn't bother correcting him.
Then he looked at Diana.
Before he could even ask, Diana generously stretched out her hand and let Marcus hold it as they teleported away from Atlantis.
They appeared inside the battle hall.
Splash!
Seawater sprayed everywhere and completely soaked Fury nearby.
Fury: (▼皿▼#)
He wiped his face expressionlessly and stared at Marcus without saying a word.
Marcus calmly released Diana's hand.
"Good news and bad news. Which do you want first?"
"The good news."
"Alright. The bad news is that Steppenwolf escaped after I ran into him."
"...Then what's the good news?"
"He didn't get the Mother Box. I have it."
Marcus opened the Gate of Babylon, briefly took out the Mother Box to show everyone, then stored it again.
Fury's dark expression finally relaxed slightly.
What?
Getting splashed with seawater?
Anyone capable of recovering the Mother Box could throw him into the ocean if they wanted.
The surrounding agents also collectively sighed in relief.
Finally.
Some actual good news.
Fury looked toward Diana.
"The daughter of Queen Hippolyta, Diana Prince?"
"You've been to Paradise Island?" Diana asked.
"I was fortunate enough to visit once. The Amazons are among the finest warriors in the world." Fury's eyes lit up.
If S.H.I.E.L.D. could recruit them...
"Stop dreaming," Marcus interrupted mercilessly. "The reason Amazon stays isolated is because of people like you."
Fury: "..."
Diana had lived among humans long enough to understand exactly what Fury was thinking.
She simply ignored him.
"Marcus, can you take me to London?" Diana asked. "My equipment is there."
"Of course. Always happy to help a beautiful woman."
Beep! Beep! Beep!
The rapid alarms interrupted Marcus.
"Gamma ray signature detected!"
"Coordinates confirmed, London!"
"Target found! Displaying visual feed!"
On the giant screen, Loki appeared holding the Mind Scepter while wearing his ridiculous horned outfit.
He stood among terrified civilians while laughing arrogantly.
Marcus twitched at the sight.
Even knowing Loki intentionally caused trouble to attract attention while Barton stole iridium...
That outfit still deserved a beating.
Before Fury could even give orders...
Marcus suddenly appeared on screen and slapped Loki directly across the face.
Boom!
Loki was smashed straight into the pavement.
Fury silently closed his mouth.
No need to issue commands anymore.
By the time Rogers and the others arrived after hearing the news...
Marcus had already returned with a completely stunned Loki.
Loki was handed over to Clark for safekeeping.
As for the Mind Scepter...
Marcus casually tossed it into the Gate of Babylon without hesitation.
Without even checking the system notification, Marcus stretched out his hand toward Diana.
Diana smiled and placed her hand into his.
The two disappeared again.
Jean, who arrived moments later, missed them completely.
...
Since he still hadn't fully won Diana over, Marcus naturally tried reducing the chances of his wives meeting each other.
Still in London, inside Diana's home.
Marcus looked around the cozy house filled with antiques.
Every item looked incredibly valuable.
Interestingly...
Most of the collections came from across the world, and clearly weren't obtained through legal channels.
Diana stored her weapons and equipment inside the Space Ring while Marcus looked around with interest.
"If you like anything, you can take it."
"Oh?" Marcus stood up with a grin. "Anything?"
Diana smiled elegantly.
"Except me."
Marcus sighed dramatically in fake disappointment before picking up a photo frame from the table.
The frame itself was cheap, but the photo inside was Diana's picture.
"Then I'll have to settle for second best and take this."
Diana didn't object.
After Marcus stored the frame away, Diana spoke again.
"I know a good French restaurant nearby. Since we're already here, want to go together?"
"How could I reject an invitation from a beautiful woman?"
Inside an abandoned factory.
Steppenwolf knelt before a projection.
"DeSaad, that alien is too strong!" Steppenwolf lowered his head. "He took my electro axe. I'm no match for him!"
DeSaad looked down at Steppenwolf with obvious disdain.
"I already told the great Darkseid you would fail," DeSaad said bluntly.
As he spoke, he prepared to end the communication.
"Wait!" Steppenwolf shouted hurriedly. "I found the Anti Life Equation! It's on this planet!"
DeSaad paused and turned back around.
"The Mother Boxes have not achieved Unity yet. The Boom Tube can't fully activate."
"Still, I'll give you the method to draw power from the Mother Boxes. Absorb as much energy as possible and try again."
"If you can offer the Anti Life Equation to the great Darkseid, I will plead for your forgiveness and allow you to return home."
Steppenwolf trembled with excitement.
"For Darkseid! I will absolutely obtain the Anti Life Equation!"
DeSaad nodded in satisfaction, transmitted the method, then cut off communication.
Steppenwolf slowly stood up, madness filling his eyes.
"Bring me the big green one we captured. I'll give him new life."
Inside the Helicarrier prison cell.
Tony Stark and the others stared at Loki with complicated expressions.
Honestly...
In only two days, Marcus had accomplished more than all of them combined.
"Loki got captured, the Mother Box was recovered, and Steppenwolf can't even beat Marcus," Homelander said while spreading his hands. "So can we finally get off work?"
"What, planning to run away again?" Logan mocked.
Homelander's face darkened as his eyes glowed red.
But Clark only glanced at him once.
Homelander immediately shut the laser vision off and stayed silent with an ugly expression.
Classic bully behavior.
Nobody defended him, not even his own teammates.
His cowardly retreat during the previous battle wasn't public knowledge, but everyone here knew.
Because of his retreat, Deep, A Train, and Black Noir from the Seven had died.
If not for his strength, he would've already been kicked off the Helicarrier.
"Hahaha..."
Loki laughed quietly inside the glass prison.
"Pathetic."
"And you people want to protect Midgard?"
"I really overestimated all of you."
Everyone stared coldly at Loki.
"Who's locked in a cage right now?" Stark mocked dramatically. "Wow, looks like it's the mighty Lord Loki."
Loki's smile stiffened.
He narrowed his eyes at Stark before turning toward Banner.
"Want to guess who this reinforced cage was originally built for?"
Several people immediately looked toward Banner nervously.
They were terrified he'd transform on the spot.
But Banner only smiled awkwardly.
"If I couldn't handle that much, I wouldn't have come here."
Even so...
Facing so many suspicious looks still felt unpleasant.
"Alright, everyone," Fury interrupted. "You've all worked hard. For now, return and wait for further orders."
Powerful superheroes also came with dangerous personalities.
After only two days, there had already been countless conflicts.
Without Clark keeping everyone under control, Fury would've already lost his mind.
Soon, almost everyone left except Xavier.
"Sorry to trouble you," Fury said seriously. "First, locate the Space Stone. Second, find out Loki's actual plan."
Xavier nodded and pressed a hand to his temple before using telepathy on Loki.
Loki smiled mockingly.
Before coming here, he had already used the Mind Scepter to place mental defenses around himself.
There was no way these mortals could break through it.
Just as expected...
Even with full effort, Xavier was blocked by a mental barrier.
Completely unable to penetrate it.
So Xavier made another choice.
He called for backup.
Jean quickly arrived and looked surprised.
"Charles, even you can't break through?"
"There's an extremely strange mental energy protecting him," Xavier admitted helplessly. "My attacks just get swallowed."
"Oh? Let me try."
Jean released the Phoenix Force and poured it directly into Loki's mind.
At first, Loki remained completely confident.
But soon his expression changed dramatically.
Because this orange red energy could actually neutralize the Mind Stone's power.
It was practically using mutual destruction to trade one for one against the Mind Stone energy.
That meant...
"Impossible!" Loki shouted. "That's the power of an Infinity Stone! How can another energy match it?!"
Fury and Xavier both smiled.
This was the first time Loki had truly lost composure since arriving onboard.
Clearly, Jean's attack was working.
It was only a matter of time before they learned the truth.
Boom!
Thunder exploded across the clear sky.
The Helicarrier tilted violently.
Boom!
Lightning blasted through a steel wall as Thor walked through the opening covered in electricity.
Loki, who had been completely fine moments ago, suddenly collapsed to his knees while clutching his head in pain.
Seeing this, Thor immediately assumed Jean was attacking him.
Without hesitation, he hurled Mjolnir toward her.
But Jean was busy fighting against the Mind Stone energy and couldn't react.
Just before Mjolnir hit her...
A green barrier suddenly appeared.
Although Mjolnir shattered it instantly, the attack angle changed slightly and narrowly missed Jean.
Thor recalled Mjolnir and frowned at Sharon, who had suddenly appeared.
Lightning crackled around him as if a battle was about to start.
"Thor!" Fury shouted angrily. "That's Marcus's wife!"
Thor froze.
He looked at Sharon, then at Jean.
"Which one?"
"Both!" Fury hurriedly answered. "Marcus helped you plenty of times already. Are you seriously attacking his wives?"
Thor scratched his head awkwardly.
Xavier quickly noticed the problem.
"Jean's Phoenix Force isn't hurting Loki. He's lying to you."
"Huh?"
Thor looked back at Loki.
Loki slowly stood up and dusted himself off casually.
"It's Marcus again," Loki complained angrily. "Everything would've gone perfectly if he wasn't involved."
"Loki! You lied to me again!" Thor roared. "I thought you really..."
"Dead?" Loki interrupted coldly. "Did you mourn for me?"
"Of course!" Thor answered sadly. "Father, Mother, and I all..."
"That's your family!" Loki shouted furiously. "Your father! Your mother! I'm just the adopted son!"
Thor clearly disagreed.
He slammed Mjolnir against the floor, shaking the Helicarrier again.
"We grew up together! We fought together!" Thor said sincerely. "That matters more than blood! Loki, you'll always be my brother!"
"Oh?" Loki laughed mockingly. "So that's why you threw me into a cosmic storm?"
"You let go yourself!"
"You stole the throne that belonged to me!" Loki snapped. "Mine! If you never existed, I would be king of Asgard!"
Thor was breathing heavily now too.
He raised Mjolnir and pointed it toward Loki.
"Listen, brother. I..."
Whoosh!
A blur suddenly flashed past.
Clark smashed Thor straight out of the Helicarrier.
Loki tilted his head calmly.
"I'm listening. Continue."
Everyone: "..."
So Loki came to Earth because of a family argument in Asgard, and now everyone else got dragged into it too?
"It's breaking!" Jean suddenly shouted. "His mental defenses are weakening! Charles, help me!"
Xavier immediately joined forces with her again.
Loki no longer had time to talk and focused completely on resisting them.
But against the world's strongest telepath plus the Phoenix Force, his resistance was useless.
His mental defenses were rapidly collapsing.
Boom!
An explosion suddenly interrupted everything.
The Helicarrier tilted sharply again.
Jean and Xavier almost lost balance, causing the mental battle to stop temporarily.
Fortunately, Sharon reacted quickly and created a green platform beneath them.
Boom!
That sound came from Fury smashing into a wall.
He silently climbed back up and opened the communication channel.
"Hill, what's happening?"
"Engine One has stopped responding! Repeat, Engine One is down!" Hill shouted urgently. "Stark! Did you hear that?"
"I heard you! I'm on my..."
Boom!
Another explosion interrupted Stark, followed by angry shouting.
"Fck! Why are the arrows exploding?! I'm gonna kill you!"
Fury instantly realized Barton was responsible.
"Stark! Don't kill him!" Fury shouted quickly. "That's Agent Barton! Loki's controlling him!"
Stark didn't respond.
Gunfire and explosions echoed everywhere throughout the Helicarrier.
Battles had broken out all over the ship.
"Roar!"
"Damn it! Hulk's loose!" Homelander shouted angrily. "Get over here! I can't hold him alone!"
Normally, with this many superheroes onboard, restraining Hulk together would've been manageable.
But now...
"Everyone's busy fighting and I'm the only one dealing with this?!"
"Why are there so many enemies?!"
"Ah! That bullet actually hurt!"
Homelander was about to completely lose it when...
Buzz!
A familiar yet unfamiliar energy beam descended.
A giant green figure stepped out.
The creature stood nearly five meters tall, covered in bone spikes, with glowing red eyes.
Kara stared in disbelief.
"Doomsday...?"
Another tall figure slowly emerged behind him.
Silver energy covered his body while two Mother Boxes floated behind him, constantly feeding him power.
His face was vaguely recognizable.
Steppenwolf.
"Hand over the Mother Box!" Steppenwolf roared. "Or die!"
At his command, countless Parademons swarmed out and attacked the Helicarrier from every direction.
Doomsday locked onto Kara immediately.
The deck shattered beneath his feet as he charged forward with terrifying force.
Whoosh!
Clark arrived instantly, crashing directly into Doomsday and sending both of them flying out of the Helicarrier.
Now only Steppenwolf remained.
Silver energy wrapped around his right arm as he punched the deck.
Cracks spread across the Helicarrier instantly.
Crack!
Crash!
The Helicarrier shattered apart.
Ch 38- Easy Victory
Time rewound to a minute earlier.
Chaos had already broken out across the Helicarrier, but Fury remained calm.
These were just the "dead soldiers" Barton had brought in, and most of them were enemies S.H.I.E.L.D had accumulated over the years.
Nothing too serious.
But when Hulk appeared, Fury's expression changed slightly.
Although Homelander could temporarily draw Hulk's attention, it definitely was not a long term solution.
Superman and Thor were fighting, and Fury hesitated...
But he still didn't contact Marcus. Instead, he opened the combat channel.
"go stop Hulk. Don't let the damage spread!"
The response he got was...
"Doo... Doomsday?"
"That's impossible!!"
At the same time,
The energy monitors started going crazy!
"High energy reaction detected!"
After checking the readings, Hill's face changed drastically!
"Director! It exceeded every limit in the database! Including the previous DFX004 file!"
Fury's face turned green!
The [DFX004 file] was the fight between Marcus and Dark Phoenix!
"Call Superman! Bring him back!"
Fury still felt that was not enough, so he called Marcus again.
The moment the call connected, before he could even speak...
Dense silver cracks spread across the entire combat hall. Everything shattered like glass, and they could vaguely see the land below their feet!
"Motherfker!!!"
The entire Helicarrier instantly turned into powder, but nobody was injured.
But how many of them could fly?
Everyone fell like dumplings from the sky!
At that moment...
Fury remembered Marcus saying before, "This thing is just a giant target. It will definitely get shot down!"
Then he shouted into the communicator: "Come back! The Helicarrier is gone! Come back!"
The next second,
Marcus appeared beside Fury, holding Diana, who was wearing a white dress.
"Holy shit!" Marcus said in surprise. "How did it get blown apart like this?"
With his Super Vision, he could see steel debris scattered across the sky.
"Forget that!" Fury shouted. "Save people! Save as many as you can!"
Everyone qualified to participate in this battle was an absolute elite of S.H.I.E.L.D!
If this group died, S.H.I.E.L.D would collapse on the spot!
Compared to Fury's panic, Marcus remained calm.
He scanned the area and immediately locked onto the transformed Steppenwolf.
Well then.
Found the culprit.
"Snap!"
With a snap of his fingers,
The "Time Stop Field" expanded instantly, covering a two kilometer radius.
Everyone froze midair, though they could still move their heads.
Everyone stared at the scene in shock, their brains unable to process what was happening!
Even Fury, who already knew Marcus could stop time, stared with wide eyes!
He knew Marcus could stop time, but not on this scale!
"Whoa..." Diana said in shock. "Space? Telekinesis? Time?"
"Time," Marcus answered casually.
His eyes stayed locked on Steppenwolf, his brows tightly furrowed!
Learning from last time, he went all out immediately.
The two Mother Boxes on Steppenwolf's back poured out massive energy and forcefully created a tiny "safe zone" through brute force.
Although it only protected Steppenwolf, that was enough.
Diana followed Marcus' gaze, and her expression changed too!
Compared to the Steppenwolf from Atlantis, the current one was on an entirely different level.
"Marcus, are you sure?" Diana asked worriedly.
"I can't lose," Marcus replied calmly. "I'll send you all to the ground first."
"Snap!"
Another snap of his fingers.
Space portals opened beneath everyone, and they all fell through.
Only Steppenwolf and the Parademons remained in the sky.
"Go fight below," Steppenwolf roared. "He's mine!"
The Parademons dived toward the ground, but Marcus did not stop them.
He looked calmly at Steppenwolf as the [Phoenix Force] surrounded him protectively.
"I didn't expect the Mother Box could be used like a power bank," Marcus said with interest. "I have one too. Why don't you tell me how it works?"
Pure provocation.
Steppenwolf roared furiously!
Blood red beams shot from his eyes!
The attack that could destroy an entire city hit the [Phoenix Force] and reflected away like ordinary light.
[Vector Control]!
The blood red beam exploded across the sky, painting everything red!
The air trembled from the impact.
Even Clark would struggle against an attack like that.
Too bad...
He was fighting Marcus, who had mastered [Vector Control]. No matter how strong the attack was, it would just bounce away.
Marcus returned the favor.
"Whoosh!"
Heat vision shot out and struck the energy barrier, creating ripples across it.
Still unable to break through.
"Flash!"
Steppenwolf moved almost like teleportation and appeared beside Marcus. Energy wrapped around his fist.
He threw the punch!
The entire sky...
Exploded with blinding white light!
Even the sun itself seemed dim in comparison. The whole world turned white, forcing everyone on the ground to shield their eyes.
Everyone was stunned!
This was supposed to be a fight?
The scale was insane!
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
Explosions echoed continuously!
Clark and Doomsday fought hand to hand. Every punch shattered the ground, and flying debris shot out like cannonballs!
Homelander's eyelids twitched watching this.
Every punch looked like it could crush him instantly!
But the terrifying part was...
Doomsday gradually gained the upper hand and started overpowering Clark!
Holy shit!
No way...
Superman was actually losing?!
Kara rushed in to help.
But she could not even block one punch from Doomsday before being blasted away!
From the X-Men side,
Cyclops, Scott, removed his visor and unleashed a full power optic blast!
"Roar!"
The attack actually worked. Doomsday raised one arm to block the laser beam.
Seeing this, Homelander quickly fired his own heat vision.
"Hulk smash!!!"
Hulk took advantage of the distraction and tackled Doomsday!
Just as Hulk tried to continue attacking...
A green safe suddenly appeared above him and trapped him inside with a loud clang.
Sharon wiped sweat from her forehead. She had finally caught the right timing.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Dense fist marks appeared across the safe as Sharon desperately repaired it. The two sides reached a temporary stalemate.
At that moment,
The Parademons finally arrived, and all the agents and heroes stopped staring in shock and started fighting.
Scott was heavily protected since he was now the main damage dealer!
Half a minute later,
Kara crawled out of the crater she had been punched into.
Then her expression changed immediately!
"Stop! Close your eyes!" Kara shouted. "That's Doomsday! It absorbs energy and evolves! Energy attacks only make it stronger!"
Scott immediately shut his eyes and put his visor back on.
Looking at Doomsday again,
The arm that blocked Scott's laser had become much larger than the other one, and it punched Clark back for the first time!
Damn!
That backfired badly!
Doomsday roared excitedly and kept swinging its enlarged arm, forcing Clark backward again and again.
Finally, Doomsday caught an opening and grabbed Clark!
"Roar!"
Doomsday opened its mouth and fired a massive destruction beam. Clark had no choice but to counter with his heat vision.
"Raaah!"
But Doomsday squeezed harder with both arms!
Everyone's expressions changed!
This was the first time they realized Superman could actually get hurt!
Kara hurriedly prepared to charge in again...
"Whoosh!"
Silver lightning flashed past and struck Doomsday in the forehead, making it stagger. The destruction beam veered off and carved a massive trench into the ground.
Clark seized the opportunity and broke free.
"Clang!"
Using the returning [Mjolnir], Thor landed beside Clark.
Clark looked surprised. Wasn't this guy supposed to be the enemy?
"After we deal with this thing, we'll continue our fight!" Thor said excitedly.
Clark nodded silently.
At that moment,
Diana, now fully equipped, rushed past the two with her sword raised.
"Can you stop talking and fight already?"
Clark and Thor exchanged a glance.
The tacit understanding between men kicked in instantly.
The two took off and attacked from opposite sides, pinning down Doomsday's arms and forcing it to face Diana!
Diana understood immediately. She kicked off the ground and shot forward like an arrow, driving the God Killer Sword straight toward Doomsday's neck!
"Slash!"
Doomsday's head fell to the ground, and yellow green blood erupted like a volcano!
Clark and Thor released it immediately and avoided the blood, smiling at each other across the corpse.
"Your friend is pretty good too," Thor praised.
Clark froze.
"I thought... she was your friend?"
Thor scratched his head awkwardly.
Well...
"Stop talking!" Diana shouted with an ugly expression. "It's not dead yet!"
The two looked down...
Flesh wriggled across Doomsday's neck. Before its head even fully regrew, it stood back up!
Thor went numb.
Even decapitation could not kill it?
"BOOM!"
A deafening explosion echoed through the sky. The three looked up instinctively and were nearly blinded by the intense light.
Clark narrowed his eyes.
"It's in outer space!"
"What terrifying energy..."
"Hey!" Thor shouted excitedly. "We can't lose! I don't believe this thing can revive forever!"
Diana said nothing and charged again.
Soon...
The three noticed something was wrong.
Doomsday had become at least twenty percent stronger!
This thing...
Came back stronger after reviving?
How were they supposed to fight that?
"Kryptonite! Use Kryptonite!" Kara shouted from a distance. "Kryptonite suppresses its abilities too! Only Kryptonite can kill it!"
Neither Thor nor Diana knew what Kryptonite was.
And Clark was terrified of the stuff, so of course he did not carry any.
Luckily, Kara shouted loud enough.
On the battlefield,
Wayne shot down a Parademon and shouted, "I have a Kryptonite spear at home in Gotham! Who can help me get it?"
Gotham City?
Everyone who could fly and everyone who could not fly all went silent.
Because...
They were currently in the Southern Hemisphere!
That distance was ridiculous!
"I'll go!" Sharon shouted. "I can fly at sub light speed! Three minutes round trip at most! But..."
She looked at the safe trapping Hulk.
What about this?
"I'll handle it!" Kara stepped forward.
Sharon released Hulk, and Kara immediately accelerated and slammed into him, carrying Hulk far away from the battlefield.
Sharon did not hesitate and transformed into green light before flying away.
Everything seemed to be going in the right direction.
...
Clark looked suspiciously at Wayne.
Why did this guy have a Kryptonite spear in his house?
Kryptonite only affected Kryptonians.
There were only three Kryptonians on Earth, Kara, Faora, and Clark!
So...
Who exactly was Wayne planning to use it on?
Sensing Clark's gaze, Wayne silently turned around and continued fighting.
Compared to Doomsday,
The Parademons were actually manageable. They were physically stronger than normal humans, but S.H.I.E.L.D agents could still kill them with close range headshots.
The real problem was their numbers.
But...
Nobody noticed that Loki and Barton had both disappeared!
Meanwhile, in outer space.
Steppenwolf kept creating spheres of light and hurling them at Marcus in a continuous barrage, each explosion forming miniature suns.
The Earth below lit up brightly.
As for the damage...
Marcus yawned in boredom.
If he had not deliberately dragged Steppenwolf into outer space, the shockwaves alone would have wiped out everyone below.
Otherwise, he would have finished this fight long ago.
"Impossible! How is this possible?" Steppenwolf shouted in disbelief. "The Mother Box power should surpass a single Infinity Stone! Why are you completely unharmed?"
Marcus had no habit of explaining things to enemies.
"Teleport!"
He instantly appeared beside Steppenwolf.
Realizing the danger, Steppenwolf immediately tried to escape with his near teleportation speed.
But...
Marcus followed right behind him!
A low level version of the Speed Force!
[Dragon Language ] still could not fully replicate the real [Speed Force], but a weaker version was enough.
The [Phoenix Force] surged out and swallowed Steppenwolf.
Steppenwolf panicked at first,
But relaxed slightly after realizing the [Phoenix Force] could not immediately penetrate the Mother Box energy barrier.
Then...
Marcus slowly pushed one hand through the barrier as easily as moving through water!
The [Phoenix Force] flooded in through the gap and surrounded Steppenwolf. Its annihilation power erupted, breaking down everything about him!
"No!"
"Impossible!"
"I can't die like this!"
"At the very least..."
"For Lord Darkseid, I'll remove you as an obstacle!"
The silver light around Steppenwolf intensified wildly, clearly preparing to self destruct.
"Slap!"
Marcus casually slapped Steppenwolf across the face, interrupting the self destruction.
Even the two connected Mother Boxes were forcibly shut down and restarted.
Instantly,
Steppenwolf reverted to his normal state and stared at Marcus with wide eyes.
"Impossible!"
"Absolutely impossible!"
"There's an ability that can interrupt the Mother Box?"
"I don't believe it!!!"
Steppenwolf suddenly lunged toward the two Mother Boxes.
Still trying to make a final desperate move?
Marcus grabbed him from a distance!
The [Phoenix Force] erupted and instantly reduced Steppenwolf to molecules.
Then he beckoned the two Mother Boxes over, and the system prompt appeared right on schedule!
Ch 39- Evil Marcus
[Congratulations to the host for obtaining "Mother Boxes" x3!]
[Detected that there are other items available for collection. It is recommended to collect them together before settlement!]
Oh?
That should mean the Space Gem.
But...
Would it stack?
After all...
When he obtained the Mind Gem, the system had also allowed him to continue stacking rewards.
Two Infinity Gems, plus three Mother Boxes.
If they stacked together, who knew what kind of ridiculous reward he would get?
Marcus was looking forward to it.
He dived straight toward the ground, enjoying the feeling of freefall.
When he got close enough, he saw Thor and Clark repeating the same strategy, pinning Doomsday down from both sides.
Diana held the Kryptonite spear and stabbed it directly into Doomsday's heart.
Doomsday let out a furious howl. In its violent struggle, Clark, weakened by the Kryptonite, was thrown away.
Seeing the situation turning bad, Thor immediately rushed behind Doomsday and pinned it down with Mjolnir.
...
Doomsday suddenly grabbed Diana's wrist.
For a split second, Diana hesitated between advancing and retreating.
Then a hand reached out from behind her and firmly grabbed Doomsday's arm.
Diana smiled immediately. She knew who it was.
Without any more hesitation, she gritted her teeth and shoved the Kryptonite spear forward with all her strength.
The spear pierced completely through Doomsday's chest.
Its arm fell limp.
As soon as Diana and Marcus let go, Doomsday collapsed to the ground.
Bang!
"Argh!" Thor shouted angrily. "Why'd you let go? I was still behind it!"
Thor shoved Doomsday's corpse aside while cursing, but when he saw Marcus, he froze for a second before bursting into laughter.
"Hahaha! Marcus! I told you I'd be back!"
Thor opened his arms for a hug.
Marcus immediately pushed him away with the Phoenix Force.
Snap!
With a snap of his fingers, clear water poured down like a waterfall, washing all the disgusting yellow-green blood off Thor's body.
Then he looked at Diana.
She was already smiling at him.
"You saved me again," Diana said softly.
"Of course," Marcus replied with a grin. "No way I'd let anyone bully you. Besides, only I get that privilege."
Diana smiled brightly and didn't deny it.
Even Thor noticed the atmosphere.
He quietly walked away instead of interrupting them.
Unfortunately...
Someone completely lacked tact.
"Marcus!" Stark shouted. "These Parademons are going crazy! Do something!"
Marcus narrowed his eyes.
After Steppenwolf's death, the Parademons had lost control. Their eyes glowed scarlet as they burned their own life force for power.
Rogers had been able to fight ten at once earlier, but now even handling one was difficult.
And...
There were simply too many Parademons.
S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were being slaughtered everywhere.
Buzz!
A Time Stop Domain expanded outward, instantly covering a radius of ten thousand meters and protecting most of the humans inside.
No matter how violent the Parademons became, they couldn't break through the restraints of time like Steppenwolf had.
Everyone had barely relaxed when the berserk Parademons suddenly scattered in every direction.
"Stop them!" Fury shouted anxiously. "China is right behind us. They cannot be allowed through!"
China?
Marcus, who had originally planned to leave, silently stopped.
No special reason.
He simply didn't feel like helping and also he could get more benefits out of this situation.
Thor, on the other hand, was incredibly enthusiastic. Swinging Mjolnir, he chased after the Parademons while unleashing thunder across the sky.
With the army spread out, the threat level dropped significantly.
The other heroes also moved out one after another. Barry became a transporter, constantly carrying people ahead of the Parademon army to intercept them.
The situation quickly stabilized.
Then...
Buzz!
A massive beam of energy shot into the sky, opening a gigantic space portal.
Hundreds of giant Leviathans emerged from it, surrounded by countless Chitauri assault crafts.
Their target was directly below.
Marcus raised an eyebrow in surprise and delight.
The delight was obvious.
The surprising part was...
Why had Loki changed locations?
But after thinking about it, it made sense.
Most of Earth's superheroes were gathered here, and Steppenwolf had just been here too.
If Loki wanted to conquer Earth, then Steppenwolf was naturally his biggest obstacle.
He probably planned to let Earth weaken Steppenwolf first before making his move.
Too bad Loki hadn't expected Marcus to wipe Steppenwolf out so quickly.
Now there was no Steppenwolf left.
Instead, Loki had become the weaker side and was forced to summon the Chitauri army early before the Parademons were completely eliminated.
Compared to the Parademons, the Chitauri army posed a far greater threat to Earth.
After all...
Superheroes were still a minority.
How many enemies could they really kill in a war this massive?
Now Fury and the others stared blankly at the enormous Chitauri army.
A single Leviathan was only slightly smaller than a Helicarrier.
And now there were hundreds of them flying in the sky.
Not to mention the countless assault crafts.
"F*ck!" Fury cursed. "Thor! Is this your Asgardian army?!"
Thor stared blankly and slowly shook his head.
Where had Loki gotten an army like this?
Was he really trying to conquer Earth?
The Leviathans suddenly opened their mouths.
Massive cannons extended outward, each charging with terrifying energy.
Everyone's faces changed instantly.
"Take cover!"
"Cover my ass! Hundreds of cannons firing at once? We'd all die together!"
"Barry! Get us out of here!"
The battlefield instantly descended into chaos.
Fury, however, stayed calm and looked directly at Marcus.
Kara, Sharon, and Jean also flew over, clearly wanting Marcus to step in.
Diana lowered her voice.
"Everyone's waiting for you. Are you going to do it?"
Marcus smiled helplessly.
"How could I say no?"
With a flash, he appeared directly in front of the Chitauri fleet.
At this point, he really couldn't stay out of it anymore.
He spread his arms.
The Phoenix Force formed a gigantic shield that extended behind him, covering the entire city.
Then...
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Hundreds of main cannons fired simultaneously.
But...
Every beam that struck the Phoenix Shield was reflected straight back.
They returned directly into the Leviathans cannon barrels.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Every Leviathan exploded into massive fireworks across the sky.
The scene shocked everyone speechless.
They had all thought they were dead.
Instead, not only had they survived, but the enemy's main force had been wiped out instantly.
But that only enraged the Chitauri even more.
An army capable of conquering planets obviously wasn't limited to this much strength.
More Leviathans poured through the portal.
This time, instead of attacking Marcus, they began bombarding China and the neighbouring countries directly.
Chitauri soldiers riding assault crafts flew through the city, launching attacks everywhere.
Explosions bloomed across the city nonstop.
Marcus blinked.
Then he silently dimmed the light around himself to make his face look pale, withdrew the Phoenix Force, and slowly descended.
He looked like he had overexerted himself.
Sharon, Kara, and Jean immediately rushed over nervously.
"Marcus! Are you okay?!"
"Marcus! Say something!"
"What should we do?!"
Diana also stepped closer, looking worried.
No one suspected Marcus was acting.
After all...
They all preferred believing that Marcus had limits.
"I just used too much energy. I'll recover after resting a bit," Marcus said weakly. "Don't worry about me. Go help people.
"You're weakened right now. I'd rather stay and protect you," Jean said decisively.
She wasn't some selfless hero who wanted to save the world. The reason she joined this battle in the first place was because of the X-Men.
But now...
Marcus mattered more to her.
"I'll stay too," Sharon quickly added.
Compared to saving civilians...
Protecting Marcus mattered far more.
Kara hesitated briefly before speaking.
"Jean and Sharon are weaker than me. Since they're staying with you, I'll go save people first."
"I'm fine. Go ahead," Marcus said generously.
Then he suddenly started coughing violently.
The three girls immediately panicked.
"Take me into space," Marcus said weakly. "I need to absorb some solar energy."
Without another word, Kara picked him up and shot into space.
Nothing was more important than Marcus.
Sharon followed closely behind.
Jean couldn't survive in space, so she could only remain behind.
Diana hesitated for a moment, then chose to stay as well.
It wasn't easy for her to finally meet someone who genuinely interested her.
She didn't want to miss this chance.
As for saving the world?
With so many superheroes already fighting, one less wouldn't matter much.
In outer space, Marcus immediately activated his super cells and began absorbing solar energy.
Kara naturally sensed what he was doing and watched him worriedly.
Sharon couldn't help much and simply stayed alert.
Marcus looked down at Earth from above.
The VIP viewing seat had an excellent view.
Times had changed.
Marcus wouldn't personally massacre people, but he could choose not to interfere.
Watching explosions everywhere honestly made him feel pretty good.
Especially when the Leviathans blasted massive craters into the ground.
Marcus was enjoying himself.
He even summoned a French fries and started snacking while watching.
He had completely lost any intention of helping.
Kara and Sharon exchanged strange looks.
Why did it feel like...
Marcus was actually happy?
Back on Earth, although the heroes lacked large-scale firepower, they still had heavy hitters like Clark and Xavier.
Clark directly grabbed Leviathans and smashed them around like weapons.
Meanwhile Xavier controlled Chitauri soldiers across huge distances and forced them to shoot each other in the head.
One cleared the skies.
The other cleared the ground.
The progress was slow, but effective.
Loki noticed this too, but there wasn't much he could do.
He didn't even dare show himself.
All he could do was urge the Chitauri army to attack harder.
More troops flooded out of the portal and began indiscriminate bombardment.
The once prosperous city was rapidly turning into ruins.
Interestingly...
Whenever a superhero got injured, a beam of light descended from the sky and healed them completely.
Light of Recovery.
Marcus still had a clear sense of favors and grudges. These heroes were doing things he wanted to do but couldn't openly do himself, so naturally he would keep them alive.
With Marcus constantly healing them, the superheroes became even more fearless.
Once again, the Chitauri offensive was pushed back.
At this rate...
It was going to become a long war.
Marcus happily continued spectating from space.
But Loki misunderstood the situation. Thinking Marcus was weakened, he sent a huge force to attack him directly.
Just as Sharon and Kara prepared to fight to protect Marcus...
Marcus suddenly looked toward the moon.
A gigantic ark was rapidly approaching.
Before it even arrived, countless cannons extended from the ship and fired volleys of energy blasts, instantly wiping out huge sections of the Chitauri army.
The ark stopped in front of Marcus.
Optimus Prime flew out in a hurry.
As a Transformer, he could equip flight modules.
Optimus Prime knelt before Marcus and projected a passageway.
"My king! The Ark is fully armed. Should we join the battle?"
Join the battle?
Marcus was about to refuse when he suddenly froze.
On the other side of the portal, another massive fleet slowly emerged.
It was the Chitauri Command center.
Even its secondary cannons were larger than the Leviathans' main cannons.
As for the primary cannon...
Its diameter alone exceeded one kilometer.
If that thing fired...
Who could survive it?
Optimus Prime glanced at the Chitauri Command Center, then looked back at the Ark.
He wisely stopped mentioning support.
Marcus suddenly noticed something strange.
The Chitauri Command Center was simply too massive. The ten-thousand-meter portal couldn't fully contain it.
At first, Marcus thought it was only extending its cannons through the portal to support the battlefield.
But it kept forcing its way through even while parts of its hull were being sliced apart by the portal itself.
This didn't look like reinforcement.
It looked more like...
It was fleeing.
Then black mist began pouring out through the cracks.
The mist condensed into an ugly giant face that stared greedily at Earth.
Then it inhaled sharply.
On the ground, frightened humans released streams of yellow energy that flowed upward into the giant face.
"Holy sh*t..." Marcus cursed. "Parallax?"
No wonder the Chitauri Command Center was running.
Even the Green Lantern Corps couldn't kill this thing.
Seeing Parallax targeting Earth, Marcus instantly understood that he could no longer just watch the show.
If that thing entered Earth...
Getting rid of it would become a nightmare.
His body flashed.
He brought Sharon and Kara directly to the Space Gem stabilizer.
Opening the Gate of Babylon, he pulled out the Mind Scepter and stabbed it straight into the stabilizer.
Fast and decisive.
Loki had just appeared, but he didn't even have time to stop him.
Woooooom!
Without the stabilizer, the Space Gem immediately became unstable. After flickering violently for a moment, it dimmed.
Marcus grabbed it using the Phoenix Force and tossed it into the Gate of Babylon.
Without the Space Gem supplying energy, the giant portal in the sky slowly began closing.
It was no longer large enough for Parallax to squeeze through.
Marcus thought Parallax would give up.
But unexpectedly...
The creature extended giant tendrils and grabbed the edges of the portal, forcibly holding it open.
No wonder the Green Lantern Corps struggled against it.
Its strength was absurd.
And worse...
Its appearance terrified even more people.
Fear was food and power to Parallax.
The more frightened people became, the stronger it got.
It accelerated again, eager to devour even more fear.
But...
Did Marcus really plan to let it through?
He sighed.
Then he flew over to Fury.
"This next attack is going to cost me a lot of energy. You're compensating me afterward."
"No problem!" Fury answered instantly. "As long as you kill that thing, any condition is fine! Just hurry!"
Marcus raised both hands.
The Gate of Babylon expanded behind him.
Six enormous cannon barrels extended outward.
Even the smallest one was over a kilometer wide.
This was the S-rank reward Marcus had received earlier after collecting the AllSpark and the Transformers.