Chapter 96: The Repaired Celestials
Another reason for Thor's visit to Earth was to see the Female Thor, who had lifted the Hammer of Thor, with his own eyes.
He was still hung up about it.
Thor wasn't a petty person, nor did he have some kind of obsessive mental puritanism. But no matter what, his good old partner of a thousand years had once again run off into someone else's arms, becoming their weapon. It was all a bit...
What? Before the Female Thor, there was also Du Wa and Reynolds? Alright, thinking about it that way, it didn't seem so bad. Once something happens once, by the second or third time, a creature like a human will adapt and get used to it with astonishing speed. Asgardians were no exception.
Thor seemed to sense something and suddenly turned his head to see the Female Thor walking in, step by step.
He watched as his former beloved, Mjolnir, was held in this woman's hand, twirled around, and used so casually.
"So it's you, the fourth-generation Thunder God Du Wa mentioned? To be able to walk my path means you are worthy of Mjolnir's recognition."
Thor sized up Foster. He didn't know this woman at all, and he certainly didn't feel any sense of immediate kinship. He just wanted to knock her out with one punch and take his precious hammer back.
Subconsciously, Thor's fingers twitched, wanting to summon Mjolnir back into his hand to prove his own worthiness—at his current level, he believed he was worthy.
Foster said, "I should remind you, I lifted Mjolnir first, and then I became the Thunder God, not the other way around... Also, your axe seems to have an opinion of you."
"Oh?"
Thor hurriedly turned his head and saw that Stormbreaker, in his other hand, had imperceptibly rotated, its blade now aimed at his own head.
This side toward enemy—Thor certainly understood Stormbreaker's meaning.
"This is just a senior giving some guidance to a junior who has accepted the legacy. But I still want to confirm with you, you don't have my bloodline in you, do you? The xenomorph larva in your chest has nothing to do with me? You really lifted this hammer all by yourself?"
Thor calmly extended a finger and pressed it against Stormbreaker's blade, gently pushing it to point in another direction.
"Mhm, I picked it up with a light touch. Mjolnir likes me a lot; it's just the right weight in my hands."
Thor was utterly frustrated. He stopped talking, simply grabbed his axe, and smashed through the wall, charging into the battlefield outside.
"You really got to him," Du Wa said with a laugh.
Foster laughed as well, revealing a cunning smile. "I didn't say anything, just stating the facts. But seeing the God of Thunder so flustered was worth it."
"For him, the truth is an extremely cruel thing... Go on, this will be the most suitable battlefield for you. You are destined to be the natural enemy of all Symbiotes. Didn't you see Thor has already gone on a rampage? A single swing of his axe can wipe out countless Symbiotes."
Du Wa was also examining Thor's current power. He had long since seen that this axe was made entirely of Uru, with no powerful wooden materials used for the handle.
One had to know, in other universes, all powerful weapons for a Thunder God, whether it was the new Mjolnir, the double-bladed Thunder God battle hammer, or the Thunder God's battle-axe, were of such high specifications that their handles were made from branches of the World Tree.
Du Wa stood on the shattered wall, looking down at the war outside through the gaping hole.
If one were to gradually zoom out from his position, they would see the entire surface of the Weyland Tower crawling with a dense mass of Xenomorphs. These ruthless warriors were engaged in brutal combat with the falling, viscous Symbiotes. Every moment, large numbers of Xenomorphs fell, but an equally large number of Symbiotes were slaughtered on the spot.
The Xenomorphs' losses weren't actually that great, because those stationed at Weyland Tower were basically the elite of the elite. The hosts they hatched from were, at the very least, Atlanteans, and above them were Frost Giant hosts.
The Xenomorphs' own strongly corrosive blood was also a wide-area weapon that heavily damaged the Symbiotes.
Furthermore, at Weyland Tower, numerous Giants and Asgardians were also participating in the battle. These two races, who should have been mortal enemies, now rallied around Du Wa, roaring furiously as they slaughtered their way outward, expanding their space.
At this moment, with Weyland Tower as the center, every inch of land was filled with warring figures. Whoever fell was quickly trampled into a pulp by both sides.
New Symbiotes continuously descended from Outer Space, while countless Xenomorphs charged out of the Ocean, moving at high speed.
A group of powerhouses led by Reynolds also entered the fray, displaying incredible killing efficiency.
Of course, the most eye-catching among them were undoubtedly the two Thunder Gods.
The two flew high into the sky, one wielding Stormbreaker, the other Mjolnir. Their every movement crackled with sparks and electricity as they summoned endless thunder and lightning, cleansing the skies without restraint and turning every free-floating particle in the air into the ultimate weapon for killing Symbiotes.
Symbiotes wailed and died horribly, yet even more descended upon Earth.
In this ocean-like clash, two vast torrents constantly collided and intertwined. No one could be sure where the end of this confrontation lay; it depended on which side's forces would dwindle first, eventually collapsing under the pressure.
But at least on the surface, with many powerful individuals taking action, the area around Weyland Tower and its surroundings was quickly cleansed in a large-scale bloodbath, ultimately creating an iron-clad defense that kept all Symbiotes out.
"This is great! Choosing to move here back then was definitely the right decision."
Some of Du Wa's fanatical followers and quick-witted people had long ago relocated their residences to the vicinity of Weyland Tower. To be honest, this area was once very desolate, but as the population grew, although it was for a short period of time, it had just barely become a respectable neighborhood. It had all the necessary facilities, albeit rudimentary.
When the crisis erupted, everyone would be thankful for their choice. They only needed to cautiously peek their heads out, look through the thickened tempered glass windows at the outside world, and see those high-speed Xenomorphs to feel an unprecedented sense of security.
They had long figured out the pattern: as long as they didn't do something stupid like actively interfering with or touching the Xenomorphs, they wouldn't be attacked. The Xenomorphs would treat them like air and ignore them.
It was this very act of being ignored that, in this disaster-like war, was the greatest safety.
They just had to keep their doors and windows shut, stock up on some food and water at home, and then obediently stay put. Even though staying cooped up at home inevitably brought anxiety, their safety was guaranteed to the greatest extent. All they had to do was wait for the war to end.
What's more, everyone knew that Du Wa had many extremely capable Xenomorph heroes under his command. Those were fierce beings who could leave Earth and wrestle with powerful life forms. Dealing with a large number of Symbiotes, they were more than capable of a quick cleanup.
"The internet is getting spotty... Those who don't know how to make Molotov cocktails or don't have weapons on hand had better stay home and not go out."
"My neighbor has already been parasitized by those black things. He was forcibly controlled to attack Weyland Tower. Now he's probably dead, along with the parasite."
"Damn it, what am I seeing? My distant relative who moved to Weyland Tower sent me a video. He's actually in his room eating a sandwich and playing a game! I hate him!!"
"What's that? I'm hiding in a house over here recording the whole thing. With a little editing, I'll upload it and it's sure to be a hit. This is precious, first-hand war footage. I've even thought of a name for it. How about 'The Battle to Defend Du Wa'? These Xenomorphs and Xenomorph heroes are so disciplined in their actions, and these Giants and ancient people coming out of the Rainbow Bridge are wiping out those damn things on a massive scale. Aren't they all protecting Du Wa?"
Only when the tide goes out do you discover who's been swimming naked. By the same logic, only when a global event erupts do you find out where the safest place is.
People in most regions were in dire straits, living in misery and hiding in terror, afraid of being accidentally parasitized by a Symbiote and forced to join the war.
After being parasitized by a Symbiote, their fate was to be torn to shreds by a Xenomorph.
"If I run to Weyland Tower now, is there still a chance?"
"Idiot, the streets are full of those things now. I read online that people are calling them Symbiotes. If you hide in your closet at home, you might survive for a while and hope the Xenomorphs slowly kill off all the Symbiotes. If you go out on your own, you're just asking for death. You'll become part of the Symbiote horde and then be killed by the Xenomorphs."
"Is there a possibility that the Xenomorphs could deliver some alien eggs to us ordinary people for parasitism? I'd rather become a Xenomorph than be parasitized by those disgusting things. Then I could gain power and kill these Symbiotes."
"Brilliant idea. You think the Xenomorphs are food delivery boys? Everyone around Weyland Tower, every single one of them, wants a Xenomorph inside them. How many do you think succeeded? Even if they needed more soldiers, they wouldn't need you."
Looking at the surfaces of almost every distant building, they could see sticky Symbiotes crawling all over, along with unlucky souls who had been parasitized by them, also crawling on the walls.
Countless people were regretting it to their core. They should have been decisive, sold their properties, and moved right next to Du Wa.
Even if it meant manually building a temporary shelter?
And it wouldn't be long before the area around Weyland Tower would surely flourish, with skyscrapers shooting up from the ground.
But now, they had no right to look forward to that future. All they could do was pray that the Xenomorphs worked a little harder and that their own luck was a little better, striving to survive until the disaster ended.
The entire world had descended into utter chaos. If it weren't for the ceaseless emergence of Xenomorphs frantically slaughtering the Symbiotes—some Xenomorphs even going so far as to tear their own bodies apart to kill many Symbiotes at once with the resulting spray of blood—who knew what this world would have become.
In Outer Space, Loki was observing the battle situations across Earth through the Symbiotes.
The war had only just begun; a large number of Symbiotes had not yet been fully deployed.
But even so, it was enough to cause Loki pain.
It wasn't that he was dissatisfied with the progress of the war; it was purely because his brain was incapable of handling such a chaotic flood of information.
"This is too painful. Every moment, a massive number of Symbiotes are trying to send me signals, trying to establish simple communication with me. My brain is not sufficient to monitor and communicate with tens of millions of Symbiotes at the same time."
Loki's face was somewhat pale. He had only slightly opened his reception, and the terrifyingly vast amount of information made him wish for death, his head feeling like it was about to explode.
This filled Loki's heart with endless terror.
Knull, the God of Symbiotes, could simultaneously control all Symbiotes and issue precise commands. Loki was not surprised by this, as Knull was, after all, a powerful Celestial in the Universe.
But Du Wa? How was he able to do it?
Loki had merely tried to command these Symbiotes as Du Wa did, using the countless Symbiotes as his eyes to monitor and control everything, only to find he was completely incapable of it.
"If even a god like me, who is over 1,000 years old, can't do this, why can he?"
Loki's face was filled with disbelief. In the past, he had simply thought this was perhaps Du Wa's innate ability, achieved through a mental link, and hadn't thought deeply about it. But when he tried to do it himself, he realized just how terrifyingly difficult it was.
Loki personally realized that perhaps Du Wa's inner talent far exceeded his imagination.
"Is this your true ability... Do you have a special brain? But you haven't produced any astonishing scientific research results. So perhaps it's purely in the mental or spiritual realm, a special ability far beyond ordinary imagination."
Loki frowned deeply, but his attention was soon drawn to another person.
"Thor... that guy has actually gotten this strong. Father has taught him too much."
Loki's expression was complicated. The current Thor was far beyond what he could handle. A casual swing of that Stormbreaker could slaughter massive numbers of Symbiotes, leaving bodies strewn everywhere.
Odin had already taught Thor his best. Loki felt that before long, even the Odin-Force would belong to Thor.
"At that time, I'm afraid you will surpass Father to become the strongest Skyfather in history, perhaps even a true Cosmic God."
The complexity in Loki's eyes vanished in a flash, and his gaze quickly turned icy. His path and Thor's were now completely different; there was no turning back.
Just then.
Loki suddenly received an unusual signal from a group of Symbiotes and immediately shifted his gaze.
It wasn't just Loki; anyone on Earth with some real power had a vague premonition and looked up in astonishment.
A machine giant hundreds of meters tall suddenly appeared on the surface. It was a strange robot covered in huge light bulbs.
Although its design was odd, the energy it unleashed was world-shaking. It simply raised a hand and waved it forward, as lightly as if wiping dust from glass, and a large number of Symbiotes were erased from existence on the spot, as if they had vanished from this world.
In reality, they had been disintegrated into the most microscopic of particles.
The moment this robot appeared, it was as if the entire landmass suddenly sank a fraction, and the Ocean froze for an instant.
"The Celestials... Hmm, it seems this Universe's S.H.I.E.L.D. also got a decommissioned Celestial and has repaired it?"
Du Wa had, of course, noticed it too. He observed it with great interest through the eyes of a Xenomorph.
The colorful Celestials came in two types: one was machine life, and a very small number were humanoid flesh and blood life forms clad in heavy armor.
The ones that appeared and were decommissioned in countless universes were basically the mechanical Celestials. Only in some ancient universes had the armored, flesh-and-blood Celestials briefly appeared.
"A bit interesting. But bringing this thing out now carries the risk of being controlled by the Symbiotes. Knull must be watching everything here."
Du Wa stroked his chin. In Universe 616, Knull had attacked Earth with three Celestials. In this Universe, a half-crippled Knull would be eager to use Symbiotes to parasitize more powerful hosts to bolster his own strength.
(end of chapter)