Chapter 264: Shaking the Multiverse!
The history of Universe 9602 wasn't a simple case of two universes on the verge of contact, where the Ghost and the Living Tribunal merely stepped in to force a fusion at the moment the Marvel World and DC World collided.
In reality, it was slightly more complex. Two gods were born in the universe, a "specialty" of Universe 9602. Due to the contact and merging of the universes, they fell into intense opposition and conflict, turning Universe 9602 upside down.
In response, the Ghost and the Living Tribunal simply forced the two gods to fuse into one.
To prevent a similar situation from happening again—to stop scenarios like Batman fighting Iron Man, Thanos battling Darkseid, or Superman versus Thor from reoccurring—the Ghost and the Living Tribunal fused all living beings, turning every single life form in the newborn Universe 9602 into a hybrid.
The Brothers was the name of those two gods, and they continued to use it even after their fusion.
"That fellow has been in a deep slumber the whole time. I've slaughtered countless universes and hunted innumerable people, yet I was never able to find a trace of him."
With his current abilities, Thanoseid could see the signs of The Brothers gradually awakening at a glance.
This was to be expected. When Du Wa first entered Universe 9602 with the Mephisto Xenomorph and the Hyperion Xenomorph, he existed at the single-universe level at most, which was not enough to truly disturb The Brothers, who were in a deep, long slumber.
After all, this fellow had seen his share of major events. He was the product of a joint fusion pushed by the Ghost and the Living Tribunal, two top-tier beings from different super-worlds. After the successful fusion, faced with these two, no matter how hot-tempered He was, He could only lower His head and had no choice but to enter a long slumber.
But this time was different. Du Wa had returned, bringing a mass that a single universe could not bear, which naturally alerted The Brothers.
"They... have returned?"
The colossal figure of The Brothers appeared in the universe, puzzled as He felt the wails of the universe itself, groaning under an unbearable weight.
But His gaze was not qualified to fall upon Du Wa.
Thanoseid appeared before Him first.
"Thanoseid? You thing... wait, what's going on with your strength?" The Brothers cast a cold gaze, initially paying Thanoseid no mind. He knew all too well what kind of character Thanoseid was, but He was soon shocked by the terrifying power emanating from him.
What was going on? He had just taken a nap, and now this sealed hybrid universe was being invaded by a series of incomparably powerful beings. Even a fellow of Thanoseid's level could make Him feel a strong sense of threat?
"What in the world happened while I was asleep? Why is there this unfamiliar, incredibly powerful aura? Why have you become so strong, also radiating the aura of that deity?" The Brothers was stunned. He wasn't even qualified to receive a single glance from Du Wa.
"Thanoseid, this guy is yours. I trust you won't disappoint me a second time." Du Wa had no interest in The Brothers. It was true that this guy was the "Supreme God" of Universe 9602, and it was also true that he was a special god jointly fused by the Ghost and the Living Tribunal.
But in the end, He was a deity on the single-universe level. To put it bluntly, Du Wa could easily go to a few universes and pull out a considerable number of Cosmic Celestials to serve as his subordinates if he so desired.
For Du Wa, a multiversal god, taking action against a large number of ordinary universes was truly a matter of a single thought.
"A second time? I won't." Thanoseid reached out, effortlessly shattering all obstacles before him and appearing in front of The Brothers. With a ferocious expression, he launched an aggressive assault.
Whether in power or scale, Thanoseid was a cut above. Victory was a foregone conclusion. But when he attacked, he was exceptionally brutal and frenzied, clearly provoked by Du Wa's words.
The last time he had disappointed Du Wa was when he launched a rebellion to try and usurp him. In the end, his meticulously prepared coup was effortlessly crushed the moment it began. Throughout the entire process, Thanoseid couldn't even manage to pique Du Wa's interest.
Du Wa was very disappointed by the failure of that rebellion. He felt that Thanoseid should have produced a more spectacular process, a more unexpected method of revolt to please him, but that was not the case.
Du Wa's patience was limited. When it ran out, he wouldn't go so far as to slap Thanoseid to death, but he would certainly stop paying much attention to him.
Thanoseid knew full well that without Du Wa's help, it was questionable whether he would ever have the opportunity or ability to return to the DC World. Even if he did, it would be difficult to truly kill and replace Darkseid with his own strength!
In the Sphere of Gods, Darkseid possessed the largest share of divinity. Even if Thanoseid devoured every Darkseid in the multiverse, his mass of divinity still wouldn't compare to Darkseid's!
This meant he had to rely on Du Wa, using the backing of a multiversal god to confront the multiverse-level Darkseid.
A terrifying explosion erupted, as if it would tear Universe 9602 in two.
The confrontation between the two gods had an immense impact on this universe.
"It's a good thing our universe is a hybrid. It's far more durable than an ordinary universe; otherwise, it would have been torn apart by Thanoseid long ago."
Steel Lantern flew in mid-air, watching the great battle from afar. He personally witnessed The Brothers, who should have been an untouchable supreme god, now being battered and bruised by Thanoseid. It was only a matter of time before He was defeated and killed.
Dark Claw had no interest in any of this. He took out a cigar, took a drag, and with his intelligence, he knew that Du Wa sweeping through everything was an inevitable outcome, just as he had done in many universes within the DC World.
Native gods were continuously being alerted, watching the great battle in utter horror. Natives also rushed over.
"I don't understand. What did you all do in that Otherworld? Why have you become so different? Thanoseid is terrifyingly powerful, and the green light of will from Steel Lantern is surging with unprecedentedly terrifying energy..."
Doctor Strangefate rushed over. Seeing Du Wa and the people who had followed him to the Otherworld again, he was utterly horrified.
The change was simply too dramatic.
"Doctor, you should have come with us. If you had, maybe you'd be the one beating up The Brothers right now." Dark Claw puffed out a cloud of smoke and glanced at Doctor Strangefate, making a clumsy joke because he had no idea how to communicate with his old comrade anymore.
Without going to the DC World, he would have been trapped in Universe 9602 for his entire life, unable to break out of his cage and travel to a vaster world. He would have spent his entire life as a superhero with a foul mouth, adept at solving problems with both his brain and his claws.
After his trip to the DC World, Dark Claw had witnessed too many things that shattered the upper limit of his cognition. He witnessed the battles of multiple multiversal gods and understood more clearly just how narrow-minded his past self, confined to a single universe, had been.
And Doctor Strangefate had never seen any of what he had witnessed.
Du Wa had not brought Doctor Strangefate along at all, instead leaving him in Universe 9602. This was why Doctor Strangefate was completely unable to understand the changes in these people.
"Where is the Super-Soldier? Why haven't I seen him!" Doctor Strangefate looked around, even probing with his perception magic, but found nothing. An ominous premonition had already risen in his heart.
"As you can see, the Otherworld is not a utopia. The enemies we encountered were unimaginably numerous and powerful. Casualties are inevitable... The Super-Soldier has already died in the Reality Dimension, but his soul and consciousness are still in Du Wa's hands. If you want to resurrect the Super-Soldier, you'll have to beg Du Wa, which is probably the most unacceptable course of action for you." Dark Claw threw the cigar to the ground and stomped on it fiercely.
None of them would truly die. They would eventually be revived in another form in Du Wa's Soul World. As long as Du Wa was immortal, all the Xenomorphs would be undying, living on for eternity. As for Du Wa dying... that was highly unrealistic. What kind of enemy could kill a multiversal concept god like Du Wa?
Before long, accompanied by an earth-shattering explosion, Thanoseid killed The Brothers and returned to see Du Wa. "I figured you weren't interested in this guy, so I killed Him and completely erased Him from this universe. He has ruled this universe for too long. It's time for Him to rest forever." Thanoseid still maintained his peak condition.
"Don't worry about His fate. Death is the final destination for a deity like Him. From the very beginning, we were not on the same path," Du Wa said casually, even though he could pull The Brothers out of Death's domain and incorporate him into the xenomorph sequence at any time if he wished.
The God of Xenomorphs was no longer a powerful Cosmic Celestial limited to a few universes; he was a true multiversal god on par with the Creator Gods!
What was snatching a batch of souls from Death? It would be abnormal not to. From now on, Death could no longer speak loudly in his presence. Her previous attempt to recruit him as a subordinate god for her faction was even more impossible. Death was not qualified to recruit a multiversal god as a vassal.
"It seems you succeeded. You really did become stronger in that vast world. This is truly... perhaps not entirely a bad thing."
Doctor Strangefate could no longer see any trace of the Xenomorphs. The magic he once used had long since become ineffective. However, since the Super-Soldier and the others could still live on in another form, this was one of the few consolations.
"Even if you don't belong to me, you will belong to Death and those other gods. There is no essential difference. If there's any distinction, it's that I am someone you have the opportunity to get close to. Through the medium of the xenomorph, you are always with me. This is your honor," Du Wa said with a smile.
Given his current status, saying even a word to an insignificant little thing like Doctor Strangefate already showed he was in an excellent mood.
Doctor Strangefate was, after all, still in Universe 9602. The magic he used, to put it bluntly, was the power of a few magical entities from the Marvel Comics side. His helmet was completely unable to communicate with the magical entities from the DC Comics side.
However, Du Wa had plenty of Xenomorphs on his side that could use the power of Marvel's magical entities. Dark Strange and Demon Strange both possessed power on the single-universe level, completely beyond comparison for the likes of Doctor Strangefate.
Perhaps, when Du Wa carried out that matter in the future, Doctor Strangefate would have the chance to wield the top-tier magic from two worlds simultaneously. Only then would he be somewhat interesting to watch.
"Universe 9602 cannot be lost. Before I advance that project, this will be the most important world. But that doesn't mean I will linger in this world for too long."
Du Wa looked at all the Xenomorphs. "The Creator Gods have the 'Inner World' as their headquarters. For now, I will choose this place as my core territory... Now, it's time to announce my return to those old friends of the past. No, I should say I was here all along, just quiet for a while."
This period of time, from the perspective of a multiversal god, was ridiculously brief, like the length of a nap. It was as if Du Wa had just gone silent for "a little while" before re-emerging in the sight of the gods.
But this time, the waves he created were destined to permanently shake the multiverse, guiding the course of this vast world in a completely new direction.
With a casual point of his finger, Du Wa created a huge void out of thin air. In the Endless Void beyond the cosmic barrier, the hyperspace current, similar to the DC Comics' The Bleed, seemed so docile before him.
When Du Wa moved his mass out of Universe 9602 and truly deployed it into the multiverse, the sudden increase in multiversal mass instantly created a massive inertial impact on the entire multiverse.
Countless hyperspace currents began to turn violent at this moment, like an endless tsunami triggered by a leviathan suddenly surfacing from the ocean, surging in all directions in successive waves, causing countless universes to tremble violently.
So much so that the very constants and parameters of the multiverse itself underwent all sorts of distortion and mutation as they bore Du Wa's weight, only stabilizing after the Creator Gods immediately took action to correct them.
But this level of turmoil was absolutely impossible to hide. Du Wa's being was like a star with a diameter of billions of kilometers in the dark night, its scorching light spreading endlessly, stunning countless ancient existences.
"A multiversal god has suddenly appeared, and he's not a newborn god. This imposing presence is astonishing! But where did this fellow pop out from? Why have we never detected his existence before?"
"No, perceive it again more carefully. If you have observed the changes in the multiverse before, you would probably find this aura very familiar. But it is precisely because you recognize it that it feels even more incredible!"
"This kind of aura... is it that God of Xenomorphs who was causing such a ruckus before?? What the hell is going on!!!"
(end of chapter)