Gathering

After collecting the five Infinity Stones, Wang Bert did not immediately head to the arena to find Tony and the others. He tore open space and traveled to Dragon World.

"Who goes there?"

Because Wang Bert made no effort to conceal himself, the two Dragon Gods immediately noticed the intrusion. They traversed the void and appeared before him at once, watching him warily.

"You are guilty."

Wang Bert grinned and clapped his palms together through the air. Void Shatter! The two Dragon Gods were immediately assaulted by a Space Storm, and the light protecting their bodies rapidly dimmed.

The two Dragon Gods were shocked and hurriedly drew upon Dragon World’s power. Seeing this, Wang Bert raised his right hand and used the Space Stone’s power to sever their connection to Dragon World.

When Dragon World failed to respond, the two Dragon Gods grew even more panicked. They went all out in an attempt to flee, but Wang Bert sneered, opened his mouth, and swallowed both Dragon Gods like a black hole.

With Wang Bert’s current strength, devouring two Dragon Gods was effortless. Half an hour later, the two Dragon Gods had completely become history.

Next, Wang Bert spread his hands and began devouring Dragon World’s origin. Dragon World was the birthplace of dragons, and its origin power could strengthen the Dragon Soul.

As for the dragons within Dragon World, evil dragons would die, while good dragons would live. It was that simple. Besides, Wang Bert would only devour the origin; he would not swallow the entire world.

"My strength still isn’t enough… Death, Galactus!"

Wang Bert’s eyes flickered. Then he closed them and focused on absorbing the power.

Celestial Head. Phoenix stood coldly where the Collector’s museum had once stood. The museum, everyone on Celestial Head, and the Robot Army had all been destroyed by her Phoenix Force.

That was right, Collector was dead too. It had nothing to do with Wang Bert; he had simply been unlucky enough to run into Phoenix.

"Damn it, why hasn’t he come back yet?"

Phoenix cursed in dissatisfaction. Fortunately, there were some divine materials within Celestial Head that she could absorb to strengthen herself, so she would not be too bored.

Phoenix did not know that a spaceship had been watching her the entire time. Iron Man, who had used advanced technology to heal himself, swallowed and said, "This woman is way too terrifying, isn’t she? She killed more than ten thousand people in less than ten minutes."

The others also looked grim. With such murderous intent and such tremendous power, if she returned to Earth, every person on the planet would die.

"I looked into some information over the past two days. The thing inside her should be Phoenix. Phoenix is a peculiar lifeform born alongside the universe itself, possessing unimaginable power."

Dr. Strange explained, "Fortunately, the Phoenix Force within her is incomplete. Otherwise, we would not even be qualified to fight her."

"She’s this strong even incomplete?"

Iron Man sucked in a breath, then shook his head. "How do we deal with her? In a direct fight, we’re no match for her."

"You restrain her. Emma and I will enter her mental world and help Jean seal her."

Professor X said, "This is the only way."

"Just seal her? What if the seal breaks again someday?"

Iron Man asked.

"Are you saying you want to kill her?"

Wolverine said unhappily. Cyclops added, "If you want to kill her, I’ll kill you first."

"Tony, not every threat needs to be eliminated."

Captain America said, "Let’s seal this second personality first."

"You make the call."

Iron Man shrugged, but inwardly, he was already considering how to build an anti-Phoenix armor. Leaving such a threat on Earth was simply too unsettling.

"Then let’s begin."

Dr. Strange said. Everyone nodded and prepared to attack. As Super Heroes, they were confident they could deal with Phoenix.

Ten minutes later, Dr. Strange, covered in wounds, vomited blood as he used the Banishment Spell to exile Phoenix. Phoenix, her red hair floating in the void, roared, "I won’t let you off! I’ll return to Earth and destroy every last one of you!"

After roaring those words, Phoenix vanished into the Space Vortex. The battered survivors breathed sighs of relief and collapsed to the ground.

The Avengers and the mutants had suffered a crushing defeat.

Professor X kept coughing up blood, his face so pale that he looked as though he could die at any moment. Wolverine looked like a skeleton. In fact, if not for the Adamantium, he would have died long ago.

Iron Man had one leg broken. White Queen was unconscious, Captain America was seriously injured, Hawkeye had lost a hand, and Hulk, one of their main fighters, had lost half his body. He was regenerating slowly—he had been beaten so badly that his regenerative ability had nearly vanished.

Still, they were not the worst off. Cyclops had it worst of all. Phoenix had killed him outright, and that was why they had been so thoroughly defeated—Jean could not accept Cyclops’s death. Her consciousness collapsed, and Phoenix’s personality completely took control.

Iron Man struggled to his feet and shouted, "We have to return to Earth immediately. Earth is in danger."

Hawkeye gave a bitter laugh. "What good would going back do? We’re no match for her at all."

"There must be a way. If all else fails, we can banish her again."

Iron Man said.

"It won’t be that simple."

Dr. Strange sighed. "Phoenix will soon recover to her peak state. By then, I won’t be able to banish her."

Everyone’s expressions turned incomparably grim. If even banishment failed, Earth would truly be in danger.

"We still have one option."

Professor X said weakly. "Ask the visitors from another universe for help. I heard Spider-Man mention that Blood God is very powerful. He should be able to deal with Phoenix."

Iron Man’s face darkened slightly. After hesitating for a moment, he asked, "Will they help us?"

"They will, because they are Super Heroes."

Professor X said. "If they were not Super Heroes, they would never have left so easily before."

Thinking of something, Captain America said with some self-mockery, "Good people always get bullied."

"As Super Heroes, we naturally have to bear more."

Professor X said. "Spider-Man has a way to contact them. Strange, send us back. We have to hurry. Phoenix could arrive at any moment."

"Alright."

Dr. Strange sighed. This time, the Avengers had truly lost all face.

In Dragon World, Wang Bert slowly opened his eyes. Feeling the immense Blood God Power and Dragon Soul power within his body, he nodded in satisfaction.

Although the Blood God Power and Dragon Soul power were still inferior to the Space Stone, when combined, they could barely maintain a balance. He no longer needed to worry about being assimilated by Space Power.

Using external power to strengthen himself would inevitably come at a price.

Thinking of something, Wang Bert sensed Dragon World and discovered that its magical power had greatly diminished. Many powerful dragons had fallen into weakness.

"This world will soon enter an age of dwindling magic."

Wang Bert pondered. Just then, he sensed someone watching him. He abruptly turned his head and met that gaze head-on.

The owner of that gaze said nothing. After leaving behind a warning look, they withdrew their gaze.

"Not allowed to devour too many dimensions?"

Wang Bert understood what the other party meant and snorted coldly. If he had not been in a hurry to gather the Infinity Stones, he would definitely have had some fun in this world—for example, paying Serpent God Set a visit for a little chat.

"No rush. I’ll deal with Avengers: Endgame first. One day, I will become the strongest person and possess absolute freedom."

At the arena, Tony received Spider-Man’s plea for help and said, "Spider-Man, it’s not that we don’t want to help you. The problem is, we’re collecting the Infinity Stones right now. We really don’t have the time."

"Mr. Stark, if you don’t come, Earth will be in danger."

Spider-Man pleaded. Tony hesitated before saying, "I’ll tell Bert about it. Damn it, that Iron Man from your world is completely useless."

"I don’t think he’s much good either."

Spider-Man shook his head. "Please make sure Mr. Wang helps us. Billions of people on Earth are waiting for him to save them."

"I’ll try to convince him."

Tony sighed and ended the communication. Then, he turned to Future Tony and the others to apologize. "Sorry, I made that decision on my own, but there are billions of people. I really can’t just stand by."

"You did nothing wrong. Our answer would have been the same."

Future Tony and Future Steve smiled at the same time. Even Fat Thor said nothing, while Hulk said carelessly, "It’s no big deal. Since Bert dared to release Phoenix, he definitely has a way to deal with her."

"The problem is, he’s collecting the Infinity Stones."

Tony shook his head and took out his communicator, preparing to contact Wang Bert. At that moment, a portal rapidly expanded beside them. Then Wang Bert emerged, looking refreshed and energized, and asked, "Are you done?"

Everyone asked in surprise, "Bert, don’t tell us you’ve already done it?"

"Of course I have."

Wang Bert chuckled and raised his right hand. Five Infinity Stones gleamed brightly.

"Great!"

Everyone beamed with joy. Future Tony and the others nearly cried. Wang Bert asked, "What about the Mind Stone? Have you gotten it?"

"We’ll have it soon."

Tony explained their plan. Wang Bert was speechless and gave Tony the middle finger. This guy was really crafty.

"That’s because I believe in you."

Tony laughed. "Oh, and we found Future Ant-Man in the arena too. He’s fighting in there right now."

"He’s pretty lucky."

Wang Bert smiled. Compared to the unlucky Dr. Pym, Future Ant-Man clearly had much better luck. "Let’s get the Mind Stone first, then find him and go home together."

"Uh, there’s one more thing."

Tony awkwardly explained what had happened with Phoenix. Wang Bert waved a hand. "It’s a small matter. But we can’t let Iron Man off that easily. Everyone, come up with some ways to mess with him. Make him dress as a woman or wear a bikini, for example."

"Wouldn’t that be a little much?"

They said that, but their eyes lit up. Even the two Tonys were no exception. After all, the Iron Man from that world did not look like them.

"Just say it was my demand. It’s a shame Professor X got injured. Otherwise, I’d definitely make him dance in his wheelchair."

Wang Bert laughed and led everyone to find that old bastard Grandmaster.

Inside the arena, Grandmaster looked at the five Infinity Stones on Wang Bert’s right hand and said coldly, "Blood God, you truly are impressive. You gathered five Infinity Stones in only a few days."

Seeing Grandmaster’s poor attitude, Wang Bert could not be bothered with nonsense. He said directly, "Of course I’m impressive. Grandmaster, hand over the Mind Stone."

Grandmaster snorted. "I’ll give you the Mind Stone, but I will not let the matter of you killing Collector go so easily."

"When did I kill Collector? That’s slander, you know. I merely froze him for seven days."

Wang Bert said, "I’m not making excuses. In my eyes, you and he are no different from ants. If I crushed an ant, I wouldn’t deny it."

Even Grandmaster nearly coughed up blood in rage. "Fine. Very good, Blood God. The Council of Elders of the Universe will not let this go."

"The Mind Stone."

Wang Bert said impatiently. If Grandmaster intended to renege on the deal, he would simply take it by force. With his current strength, no one could stop him unless a Creator God personally appeared.

To be honest, with five Stones in hand, Wang Bert might not necessarily be unable to fight even a Creator God.

"A bet is a bet. I still have that much integrity."

Grandmaster raised his hand, and the pale yellow Mind Stone appeared in the air. Wang Bert was about to take it when Grandmaster pulled out a scepter and slammed it hard against the ground. Layer upon layer of space appeared around the Mind Stone, shielding it within.

As Wang Bert destroyed the spaces, he shouted, "Grandmaster, you’re courting death!"

"I’ve already handed over the Mind Stone. If you can’t take it yourself, that’s not my fault."

Grandmaster used his scepter to continuously create spaces to obstruct Wang Bert, while laughing loudly. "You actually dare to gather all Six Infinity Stones, Blood God? You’re truly courting death."

"Just you Elders of the Universe?"

Wang Bert sneered disdainfully. "In my world, I killed half the Elders of the Universe. If you don’t know what’s good for you, I won’t mind killing every last one of you."

"Do you think we’re the only ones who don’t want the Infinity Stones gathered?"

Grandmaster sneered. "Once the Infinity Stones are assembled, they can destroy even the universe. How could those powerful figures possibly remain indifferent? As long as I delay you for a moment, they’ll descend and blast you to death."

Tony and the others were shocked and hurriedly prepared for battle.

"Boring."

Wang Bert smiled disdainfully. The Space Stone flashed, and all the space surrounding the Mind Stone shattered.

Then Wang Bert raised his left hand, grabbed the Mind Stone, and placed it on the back of the Infinity Gauntlet. Mental energy immediately surged into his body. He shouted and forcibly endured it.

"They’re complete."

Future Tony and the others were incomparably excited. At last, they could make up for the regret from five years ago.

Wang Bert sensed the Stones and thought to himself, There’s no Nemesis. Maybe it’s because I devoured the Space Stone, or maybe this world simply doesn’t have her.

Grandmaster shouted in disbelief, "Impossible! Why aren’t those powerful figures making a move?"

"Because I’m one of those powerful figures too."

Wang Bert sneered. If those powerful figures wanted to act, they would have done so when he devoured Dragon World. Why would they wait until now?

Besides, Wang Bert was not truly afraid of them making a move.

Grandmaster said resentfully, "Blood God, you win. Leave. The arena does not welcome you."

"Grandmaster, do you know something? In my world, I hated you, so after coming to this world, I kept hesitating over whether to kill you. Fortunately, you gave me a reason to do so."

Wang Bert raised his right hand toward Grandmaster and said with a smile. Grandmaster’s expression changed drastically as he shouted, "You dare kill me? The Council of Elders of the Universe will never let you go!"

"Same old line. Try something new."

Wang Bert sneered. The Space Stone flashed, and the space around Grandmaster shattered, completely erasing him.

Grandmaster was dead.

"I’ve hated the sight of that guy for a long time."

Tony and the others snorted. Hulk felt the same way. Grandmaster had dared to "molest" him. If not for the bigger picture, he would have attacked long ago.

Wang Bert said, "Get Scott. Once we deal with Phoenix, we’ll head home immediately."