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"Alright..."
Thor hung his head like a deflated ball.
"Then... I guess I'll go move the equipment first."
Jane looked at his aggrieved expression, the corner of her mouth curling up slightly.
"Good boy!"
She raised her hand and patted Thor's golden hair.
"When this set of experiments is finished, I'll treat you to... the fried chicken on the corner! Plus two orders of fries!"
"Deal." Thor's eyes lit up.
Watching Thor happily trot off to move the heavy equipment, Jane shook her head helplessly.
"This guy... sometimes he really is like a kid."
Up there, above Manhattan, the golden energy storm continued to rage.
"Go for it, Homelander."
Jane said softly.
"Take care of that guy."
...In Manhattan, the battle continued.
Bruce Banner.
He did not transform into the Hulk, because he was afraid of losing control among the crowds.
But he still rushed into the ruins.
"Hold on! I'm coming!"
Banner used his not-so-strong shoulders to lift a collapsed thin beam.
"Ah—!"
His face was flushed red, veins bulging, as he forcefully held up a passage, allowing the mother and daughter inside to escape.
"Thank you... thank you!"
"Hurry! Run that way!" Banner pointed toward the safe zone.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
"Swoosh! Swoosh!"
Pietro turned into silver lightning, rescuing over a dozen passengers the moment a bus lost control.
"You're welcome, remember to like my tweet!"
Jessica Jones punched away a giant light box that had been blown down by the strong winds.
The heroes from Vought became the only safe haven on this chaotic battlefield.
All of this was faithfully recorded.
And with the help of the Vought heroes, Homelander finally "freed up his hands."
"Haven't you made enough trouble!!"
Homelander roared, charging toward Ultron again.
Using Super Speed, during the brief interval when Ultron was still bombarding the ground,
he instantly appeared in front of her and pulled out a small device—a blue glowing LED magnetic sticker.
"Clack!"
He accurately stuck the device onto Ultron's chest.
"This is a Molecular Stabilizer! Your phasing ability is useless!!" Homelander loudly shouted the device's function.
Then he suddenly extended both arms, gripping Ultron's neck tightly like iron pincers!
The Naked Choke was applied!
"Let go of me! You low-level organism!"
As Homelander's arm muscles tightened, Ultron began to struggle wildly.
She slammed backward frantically, dragging Homelander through one building after another.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Rubble flew and steel bars twisted.
But Homelander clung to her as if he were part of her body, refusing to let go.
"I won't allow... you to hurt anyone else!!"
Homelander's voice was clearly transmitted across every lit screen via the ubiquitous Hummingbird Drones.
"Homelander... well done!"
"Lock her down! Finish her!"
Ultron seemed to sense despair.
"Since you won't let me live..."
Her voice became frantic.
"...Then let's all be destroyed together!!"
"Wooooosh————!!"
The Mind Stone on her forehead suddenly erupted with a dazzling light never seen before.
The air around her body began to twist violently, and destructive energy fluctuations rapidly expanded outward from this center.
"Oh no!!"
Homelander's expression changed drastically.
"She's going to self-destruct!!"
This loud shout caused everyone on the ground to feel their hearts leap into their throats.
"Run!!"
"No... it's too late!"
Despair spread.
Just then.
Homelander made a move that stunned the entire World.
He did not let go and flee.
Instead, he tightened his grip.
He raised his head and looked at the pitch-black night sky.
"You want to destroy my city?"
"Dream on!!"
Boom——!!!
Dragging the soon-to-explode "super bomb," Homelander, with a fearless posture, shot straight toward the heavens!
People only saw a column of red and blue light, pushing the golden destructive radiance, instantly piercing the clouds.
Ten thousand meters.
Twenty thousand meters.
Thirty thousand meters.
He was moving away from the city, away from the crowds.
He was taking death to a place where only he existed.
"My God..."
All the reporters put down their microphones and gazed up at the sky.
All the spectators covered their mouths, tears streaming down their faces uncontrollably.
What kind of spirit was that?
What kind of sacrifice was that?
Finally.
The golden radiance completely erupted.
"Rumble——————!!!"
Even tens of thousands of meters away, the enormous explosion sound still reached the ground.
The night sky was illuminated in that instant.
The golden brilliance shone like a second Sun, lighting up the darkness across the entire Western Hemisphere.
"No!!!"
Wanda knelt on the ground, looking at the sky, letting out a heart-wrenching cry.
"No... impossible! You won't be hurt!" Jessica clenched her fists, her nails piercing her palms.
The whole World fell into dead silence.
It's over?
Homelander... sacrificed himself... to save us?
One second, two seconds, one minute, two minutes... In the sky, there were only scattered clouds and the lingering glow of energy that had not yet dissipated.
That figure was gone.
"Is he... is he not coming back?" A little girl holding a teddy bear cried as she asked her mother.
"That is..."
The sharp-eyed Pietro pointed at a black dot in the sky.
"Look! That's him!!"
The black dot grew larger and larger.
Slowly, people saw clearly.
That figure was slowly descending.
His cape was shredded, with only half a piece hanging from his shoulder.
The blue battle suit, which was originally bright and flawless, was now covered in scorch marks and cracks, exposing the bleeding skin underneath.
His golden hair was messy, and his face was covered in blood and dust.
But he still stood tall.
And in his hand, he dragged a body that had turned an ash-gray color.
"Thud."
Homelander landed on the ruins of the plaza.
He gently placed Ultron's "corpse" at his feet.
Then, he stumbled slightly as he took two steps forward.
He looked exhausted, in pain, and utterly battered.
But in everyone's eyes, he was greater now than ever before.
"Huu..."
Homelander let out a long breath, raised his head, and looked at the stunned crowd around him.
He "laboriously" managed a smile and whispered:
"It's over..."
This single sentence seemed to lift a spell.
"Whoosh—!!!"
The crowd erupted.
Wild applause, cheers, roars, and shouts.
People surged toward Homelander like a tide.
They cried, laughed, and reached out, wanting to touch this living legend.
"Homelander! Homelander!"
"You are a god! You were sent by God!"
"Thank you! Thank you for saving us!"
Homelander was surrounded by the crowd; he did not push them away, but allowed these mortals to toss him up and catch him.
After a moment, he floated into the air, signaling for silence.
The citizens immediately quieted down, everyone holding their breath and gazing intently, waiting for the hero's speech.