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"Five stones were taken." As a high-ranking Councilor in the High Council, she had countless experiences. Even with the captured past lives belonging to heroic figures, he had never been as nervous as he was now.
"The four stones made Thanos already comparable to gods. The stone gives him even more room for manipulation. It's really impossible to do anything." Evonne's pupils flickered, and she thought of the scene where Strange had manipulated the original Time Stone.
"Dormammu, I've come to bargain." That sentence still echoed in the ears of everyone present.
Sith said dissatisfiedly, "It's all Quill's fault. Blame Strange? Why don't you think of a way to stop Quill? Isn't it enough to just cut off Thanos' arm?"
Gladwin shook his head and said, "That's not how the logic works. Since Strange has seen the future countless times, he must know what will happen when certain different actions are taken. It is very likely that even if he had done this, the result would still have been failure. That's why he didn't make a move. This may be another, more suitable way."
Hyeon nodded and said, "In the future of possibilities, didn't Strange take action to stop Quill? And you must know that Thor has not yet met Thanos again. The only hope, and the greatest possibility, now seems to be seeing the axe."
Evonne's thoughts changed rapidly. It might really not be far from Thanos snapping his fingers. Now they needed to make the final preparations as perfect as possible.
"Is the global electromagnetic barrier ready?" Gladwin nodded.
"It's ready. It can be activated at any time, but it won't last long." Councilor Evonne said, "If it can't last longer, then it can't. Be sure to turn all the satellites on and capture as many relevant things as possible. There is also the opening of the shelter. Keep it ready at any time."
The atmosphere around the round table immediately solidified, and everyone had entered a state of complete combat readiness. Everyone on Terra became aware of this moment. The world seemed to grow a little nervous.
People began talking from time to time.
"What's the situation? Why is there such a huge lump of iron near our house?"
"You have them too? Shit, I thought they were only here. I didn't even notice them before."
"What are you doing? You didn't say anything."
"I don't know, but there's a feeling that something is about to come."
"Speaking of which, is Thanos going to Earth? The last stone is on Earth."
"That's for sure. Thanos has five stones now. Can the people on Earth really resist him?"
"Don't forget, Thor is still on Earth, and Thor is the key!"
"Do you remember? When Strange was on the spaceship, he told Tony that if he were faced with a choice, he would definitely choose to protect the Time Stone."
"Remember! His duty is to protect the Time Stone. They are its guardians. But in the end, he couldn't bear to watch Tony die."
"Is it possible that Tony is the person of destiny? Is it because he can't be dead that Strange protected him with the Time Stone?"
"Maybe that's what Strange wants to see the most? Only he knows what the only chance is."
"By the way, Tony's nano suit is so awesome!"
As for Strange handing the Time Stone to Thanos, people had different attitudes. But by this point, the current situation had developed to this stage. The citizens of the Terra Federation still recognized Strange's approach, and more people believed that a reversal would definitely happen in the end.
There was a high probability that Thor would kill Thanos with the axe; after all, it was a divine artifact. The Infinity Gauntlet had also been made by the Dwarf King; it was practically a king's artifact. With all these factors combined, there was simply no way not to believe it.
On the screen, when Thanos disappeared from his position, Quill, who had been rushing forward, fell directly to the ground.
Quill struggled to get back up, and he shouted almost madly, "Where is he?"
It was just that no one at the scene answered him. Tony sat on the rock with a lonely expression as he froze his wound. The nano-suit covering his entire body only covered half of him now, while blood stained his face.
Quill asked incredulously, "Did we just lose?"
Tony didn't answer him; instead, he looked at Strange with red eyes. "Why would you do that?"
Strange looked at Tony, and he said, "We're in the endgame now."
The other didn't continue speaking.
"The endgame?" Tonio looked at everyone in surprise. "What does he mean by that?"
Darwin pondered for a moment. "The endgame ... The last of something?"
Suddenly, Darwin raised his head sharply. "Damn! What Strange means is that what is happening now is the only path to victory?"
Everyone else looked over in astonishment. They carefully thought about what Strange meant, and this really seemed to be the case. Otherwise, there would be no reason for him to describe it as the "endgame."
The Director was a little excited. "Is there still a chance? Any chance of stopping the snapping of the fingers?"
Everyone unconsciously thought of Thor. Thanos was now heading toward Earth, and only Thor was strong enough to stop Thanos.
Johan's eyes flickered. "No matter what, they must seize this opportunity. As someone who has seen the future, Strange hasn't participated in or interfered too much. It's estimated that he's worried the timeline this time isn't the one he saw."
Hawking opened his mouth and said, "The timeline mentioned by Mr. Johan is very vivid. If parallel worlds really exist... Then any small difference can lead to a new parallel-world timeline. The difference may be thousands of miles apart, much like the power of the butterfly effect."
The expressions on the faces of the other experts came alive. Twists and turns. Hope was finally in sight. The picture they were seeing now... It was the only time when he could resist Thanos' snap of his fingers.
The Director breathed a sigh of relief, and some of the sadness from before eased slightly. He stared at the screen, and he said slowly, "Here we go."
On Earth, the battle for Wakanda was still going on. The warriors of Wakanda turned their weapons and attacked the monsters rushing toward them. But without the threat of Proxima Centauri, only these little monsters remained, so it was easier for everyone to deal with them than before.
Black smoke was everywhere on the battlefield while the Wakandan warriors shouted their slogans. "Wakanda Forever!"
Their momentum was monstrous, and it seemed that the monsters could be completely repelled no matter how many more came.
Thor's body was surrounded by lightning as he traversed the battlefield. He glanced at the huge metal object in front of him, and he gripped Stormbreaker tightly in his hand, then he rushed directly toward them. A dazzling bolt of lightning flashed across Stormbreaker, and he aimed at the giant metal and unleashed a thunderous bombardment.
Bang! In an instant, the entire thing began to explode, and lightning struck everywhere. Boom! Boom! Boom!
From the bottom of the metal cabin, Thor drilled directly through, and the entire metal cabin collapsed completely. Thor hovered in the air as his entire body was still surrounded by thunder.
The direction of Stormbreaker suddenly changed, and it carried him toward another metal giant, where he launched another attack. He wanted to smash every one of these things that carried countless monsters.
The performance of Stormbreaker and Thor made the audience scream once again. On the screen, the metal cabin looked as though it had been forged entirely from steel. Yet with just one blow, it was shattered by Stormbreaker.
"It's still Thor's greatness."
"The rhythm of an axe and a child."
"Stormbreaker is mighty!"
"Go kill Thanos! Thanos must die!"
"I have a hunch that Thanos is coming!"
"You have a hunch that with a hammer, Thanos will definitely come to Earth to get the Soul Stone."
"With Thor here, don't be afraid!"
In the forest, dark-red energy surged within Wanda's hands, and she drove herself down from the sky and landed beside Vision. Seeing Vision sitting on the ground, she immediately rushed over.
At this moment, Vision and the others had joined forces to kill several of Thanos' subordinates. However, Vision had also suffered wounds torn open by the blade, so he could barely move, let alone fight.
"Are you okay?" Wanda supported Vision in her arms and asked anxiously.
Vision looked at Wanda, and he was about to speak when suddenly the Soul Stone embedded in his forehead began to glow. His entire body seemed to be suffering unimaginable pain.
"Ah!" He couldn't help but let out a low grunt.
Wanda's expression immediately changed. "What? What is it?"
A stream of light flickered across Vision's body, as if something was clearly wrong. Vision suddenly raised his head and looked around, and his expression became tense. "He's here."
In the forest, the surroundings suddenly seemed to fall silent. Leaves drifted down from the sky, and the wind slowly swept through the trees. Strange and unsettling scenes appeared everywhere. Wanda was shook as she knew exactly who Vision meant.
Not far away, Rogers also stared at the strange phenomenon. He could clearly sense that something major was about to happen. Pressing his headset, he immediately shouted, "Everyone, on my position. We have incoming."
Black Widow and the others only felt a chill run down their spines. "What the hell?"
The tense and terrifying atmosphere spread throughout the battlefield, and it even caused the viewers to become frightened. Some people couldn't help but get goosebumps. This strange atmosphere made it almost certain that Thanos was coming. But knowing that was one thing; actually witnessing it was another.
Banner suddenly turned his head while inside the Anti-Hulk armor. Not far behind him, A dark-cloud-covered spatial passage gradually emerged. Lightning flashed violently within it, and the next moment, Thanos' enormous body slowly emerged from the passage. Everyone's expressions changed instantly while Wanda immediately manipulated her energy, preparing to attack at any moment.
Inside the Anti-Hulk armor, Banner spoke in a low voice. "Cap. That's him."
Everyone stared at Thanos. He had come alone, yet facing so many people, he displayed not the slightest trace of fear. Rogers stretched out his arm, and the shield mounted on his arm instantly bounced into position. His expression became solemn.
"Eyes up. Stay sharp." With that, he charged directly toward Thanos.
Thanos continued walking toward Vision, and every step produced a thunderous roar. That heavy footstep seemed to stomp directly upon the apex of everyone's hearts. Their blood couldn't help but accelerate.
Banner was the closest. He controlled the Anti-Hulk armor and leaped into the air, smashing down toward Thanos with tremendous force. But Thanos simply raised one hand, and the Infinity Stone's energy activated. In an instant, the Anti-Hulk armor strangely transformed into an illusory state as it passed directly through Thanos' body and continued charging backward.
Thanos turned around. With a single movement of the Infinity Gauntlet, the Anti-Hulk armor was immediately sent tumbling toward the mountain. As half of the Anti-Hulk armor's phantom body crossed through the mountain, Thanos suddenly made it materialize again. The Anti-Hulk armor was directly imprisoned inside the mountain. It was as though the entire suit had been poured into solid concrete.
The audience was completely stunned, and their expressions became extremely ugly.
"Immune to physical attacks?"
"The Infinity Stones are too overwhelming! Where's Thor? Come quickly, Thor!"
"How are we supposed to fight him? We can't even touch him!"
"Once Thanos gets the final stone, just how strong will he become?"
"Is it really possible to kill half of all life in the universe with a snap of his fingers?!"
Everyone watched in horror.
Rogers followed closely behind and charged toward Thanos, but Thanos simply swung his arm and sent him flying.
Black Panther, wearing a suit filled with energy, leaped into the air and punched downward. Thanos reached out and grabbed Black Panther by the neck. Then, with the same hand, he smacked him directly into the ground. The full-powered shockwave didn't even manage to do anything to Thanos.
The difference in their combat power was simply overwhelming. Yet despite that, everyone continued charging toward Thanos one after another. They were fighting for even the slightest possibility of victory.
At this moment, Vision looked at Thanos. Then, with difficulty, he said to Wanda, "Wanda. It's time."
Wanda shook her head. "No."
Vision continued, "They can't stop him, Wanda, but we can."
He grabbed Wanda's arm, and Vision's expression was firm. "Look at me. You have the power to destroy the stone."
Wanda stubbornly shook her head. "Don't."
Vision pleaded, "You must do it. Wanda, please."
Tears began to well up in Wanda's eyes. If the Soul Stone were destroyed, Vision would die on the spot. That was not the outcome she wanted to see.
Wanda looked back at Vision. She slowly raised her hand and gently stroked his face while her lips trembled.
"We are out of time," Vision said.
Wanda still shook her head. "I can't."
How could she kill the person she loved with her own hands?
Vision stared deeply into Wanda's eyes. "Yes, you can."
"You can." Vision gently placed Wanda's hand against the Soul Stone between his eyebrows. "If he gets the stone, half the universe dies."
"It's not fair."
Vision continued softly, "It shouldn't be you, but it is. It's all right. You could never hurt me."
Tears filled Wanda's face, and her entire body was trembling.
Vision even encouraged her with a faint smile. "I just feel you."
Wanda's final defenses completely collapsed, and dark-red energy slowly appeared in her palm. Finally, she gritted her teeth as she poured the terrifying energy into the Soul Stone. A powerful beam erupted from her hand and struck directly against the stone between Vision's eyebrows.
The energy continued to surge, causing Vision to slowly fall to his knees. A silent growl escaped his throat, yet he desperately tried to prevent Wanda from seeing his pain, so a forced smile appeared on his face.
Wanda cried, but she continued to stabilize the energy in her palm. She knew that if she stopped now, everything would be too late.
Tragic. It was an unbearably tragic scene. The viewers watching, many of them choking back tears. There were plenty of women in the audience who found scenes like this especially difficult to endure. Life and death were separated by only a moment, and the emotional weight of it was simply too much. One woman kept wiping away her tears with tissues.
"It really brought tears to my eyes."
"It's so touching. If I asked my boyfriend to die to save the world, he would definitely ask why I didn't die instead."
"This is what a real man looks like!"
"How many lives has Thanos sacrificed with his own hands?"
"He still wants to decide the life and death of all life in the universe. He's seriously out of his mind!"
"What does it have to do with him? He's not qualified to decide any of this!"
"Did I ask Thanos to die? And then he comes up with some high-sounding reason for it. Would he actually die himself?"
"Ridiculous! But my tears just won't stop!"
"If it weren't for Quill, that punch wouldn't have woken Thanos!"
In the Administration, many had reddened eyes. Johan even rubbed his eyes several times, and he let out a long sigh.
The Director stared intently at the screen. 'Better than others.'
He knew very well that there were some things that had to be done and there were some things that absolutely should not be done. "The Soul Stone must be destroyed."
The tear-jerking scene was still continuing.
Completely destroying the Soul Stone was not nearly as simple as it sounded. While Wanda was forcibly destroying the stone, more and more people around Thanos had rushed forward to stop him.
Rhodey's War Machine had barely fired a few rounds when Thanos suddenly grabbed him, and the entire suit was crushed into rubble. The overwhelming power of the Infinity Stones was fully revealed, and no one could get close to Thanos.
Massive spikes of rock erupted from the earth, trapping Black Widow in place, and she could not move.
Groot let out a furious roar and slammed his hands against the ground. One vine after another rolled violently across the earth and lashed toward Thanos. But Thanos merely stretched out his hand, and every single vine was pressed firmly into place.
Wanda looked back. Thanos was still coming toward her. She forcibly endured the pain in her heart, and both hands released even more powerful waves of energy. They blasted toward the Soul Stone.
Rogers took advantage of Groot's obstruction. With a sliding maneuver, he rushed beneath Thanos and arrived at his feet. With the new shield strapped to his arm, he launched a frenzied barrage against Thanos.
Bang! A powerful uppercut struck Thanos beneath the jaw.
But Thanos crushed the shields on Rogers' arms. His left hand, covered by the Infinity Stones, reached out and grabbed him.
Rogers gritted his teeth and resisted with both hands to grab Thanos' fingers. Using every ounce of strength in his body, he desperately resisted Thanos' closing palm. He was only flesh and blood, yet he could actually struggle against Thanos for a moment.
Thanos' brows furrowed slightly. It seemed that he had discovered something unexpected. But the final Infinity Stone was right before him; no one could stop him. Thanos clenched his right fist and slammed it into Rogers' head.
Bang! Rogers crashed to the ground, blood covering his face.
Wanda saw Thanos approaching, so she quickly aimed the energy shockwave released from her left hand at Thanos. Her right hand continued desperately trying to destroy the Soul Stone.
Thanos raised the Infinity Gauntlet to resist Wanda's energy blast. At first, he was shocked and forced several steps backward.
Just when the audience thought a miracle might actually happen, Thanos resisted the retreating force of the energy shockwave. It was difficult but steady. Step by step, he continued advancing toward Wanda.
"Wanda is so strong!"
"Wanda's power might also be produced by the Infinity Stones, as she can actually force Thanos backward!"
"Is she the final hope?"
"Ah, this is too painful. Wanda is sacrificing too much."
"But Thanos has five Infinity Stones. He can't just give up!"
"Quick! Quick! Destroy the Soul Stone! That's the only way to win!"
Countless people stared at the stone in Vision's head; only by destroying the stone could Thanos be prevented from gathering all six Infinity Stones!
The Infinity Gauntlet formed a barrier, and Thanos placed both hands against it. Step by step, he forced his way toward Wanda's position.
Within the violent energy waves, Vision smiled and said to Wanda: "It's all right. I love you."
Wanda burst into tears. Amid her cries of anguish, the energy level was pushed to its absolute limit, and a crack gradually appeared across the surface of the stone. Then, it shattered completely in the blink of an eye.
Boom! The terrifying shockwave generated by the destruction of the stone swept across Wakanda, and the entire forest shook violently. And Vision, standing at the very center of the explosion, disappeared without leaving a trace while everyone else was blasted away.
The entire Terran Federation erupted in cheers.
In the Administration, the Director suddenly clenched his fists, and he shouted excitedly: "Success! The Stone is gone!"
The others were equally delighted.
"Finally! There's no way for him to gather all six Infinity Stones anymore!"
"This is fantastic news!"
"Haha! Thor, Thor, hurry up and get on stage and kill Thanos! Then everything will be over!"
The Director looked at the six Infinity Stones displayed on the blackboard. Behind the Mind Stone, he wrote: BROKEN
The shadow of Thanos had haunted Tony for years. But this time, it had tormented everyone as well. Now that the Mind Stone had finally been destroyed, Thanos' greatest objective, and his greatest means of achieving it, had been forcibly dismantled. Everyone was naturally overjoyed.
In the High Council, Evonne finally let out a long breath. The situation she had been worrying about had not occurred. For the Federation, this was a guarantee of safety.
Several Councilors had smiles on their faces.
"Although the scene was heartbreaking, the result is good."
"Wanda has done so much for the history of the universe. She is also a hero."
Councilor Evonne waved her hand. "Let's not celebrate too soon. Thanos' failure to succeed is equivalent to the existence of an even more terrifying reason behind the historical fault. I don't know when this mystery will finally be solved."
Hyeon looked at the tablet in his hand, and he frowned slightly. "The space telescope still hasn't detected anything else. It seems it might be hidden."
Gladwin said: "There are too many secrets hidden within unknown space. It is entirely possible that the cause of our historical fault is hidden there. Fully developing our capabilities in space is a necessary step for us."
Everyone nodded. There was no doubt about that. The memory had an enormous impact on everyone. They also provided a tremendous boost to the overall future planning of the Terran Federation.
In Apollo Research Center, Eliott stared at the fusion progress bar in surprise. Just when the Mind Stone was shattered by Wanda, the entire progress suddenly jumped from 81% to 99%. Only the final 1% remained before the last link could be completed.
"Could something have gone wrong?" Eliott frowned, and a trace of uneasiness suddenly emerged. Fortunately, the backup system was already prepared. It was ready to deal with any emergency at any moment.
Within the captured image, Wanda and the others were blasted away by the shockwave while Thanos slowly got up and walked toward the place where Vision had died. As he passed by Wanda, he said quietly: "I understand, my child. Better than anyone."
Wanda angrily replied: "You could never."
Thanos closed his eyes. Immediately afterward, he reached out and gently touched Wanda's head. "Today, I lost more than you can know. But now is no time to mourn."
Thanos' expression showed none of the dissatisfaction or anger one would expect from losing the Mind Stone. Instead, it was filled with indifference. Even toward Vision's death.
He spoke lightly: "Now is no time at all."
Everyone watching was dumbfounded.
"What is Thanos going to do?"
"Isn't the Mind Stone already broken?"
"Did that punch to his head make him lose his mind?"
"Well, I don't understand what he's trying to do either."
"Time has no meaning? He's completely lost it!"
"Hey! Damn it! He has the Time Stone! He can reverse time!"
"This... damn!"
Viewers completely jumped, especially when they saw Thanos slowly raise his hand and a green magical array appeared around his wrist and palm. Countless desperate condemnations resounded across Terra.