Sanity Plummeting! (Spare Some Votes, Folks)

The Magic Dimension referred to those dimensions that did not obey the physical laws of the real world. They were fantastical worlds bound by endless magical energy.

They were closely connected to the real world, yet impossibly distant from it. Ordinary people could spend their entire lives without ever uncovering their mysteries. Even powerful sorcerers could not comprehend the existence of these dimensions without extraordinary luck.

The Hell Dimension ruled by Mephisto was one such dimensional space. There were many similar "hells." For instance, Hela, the "Goddess of Death," also ruled a so-called Hell Dimension. Beyond that, some powerful beings could use their own divine power to carve out entirely new planes.

Avalon, the Gods’ Realm, the Astral Plane, and the dimensions created by the Ancient Gods at the dawn of creation were all examples. These worlds revolved around reality, operating independently according to their own laws. From their birth until now, every dimension had experienced grand cross-dimensional wars, but they had never become disconnected from one another.

Yet now, the separation of the Hell Dimension and the Chaos Dimension filled Zhang Ye with unease, like the stillness before a storm.

Beneath the sea, in places humanity could not see, countless living creatures had long sensed the coming storm. They frantically swam deeper, trying to escape the devastating disaster.

And above the sea, the real world was like a lone boat. What awaited her would be utter destruction!

"Tell me, Moon Knight, how long has it been since you last saw Khonshu?" Zhang Ye pulled himself from his thoughts and turned his gaze back to the two superheroes before him.

"Khonshu?" Moon Knight frowned at the question. As the source of his superhuman power, all of his abilities came from Khonshu, the moon god of Egyptian legend.

As one of the ancient Egyptian gods, Khonshu possessed terrifying strength. Not only could he travel freely between dimensions, but he could also grant Moon Knight extraordinary divine power and the ability to resurrect. Beyond that, he even held authority over heaven and earth and possessed a Divine Relic capable of controlling time.

As the Moon Knight of this generation, Marc maintained peace while frequently receiving orders from Khonshu to take part in major events involving the struggles between gods.

But when he heard Zhang Ye’s question, Marc suddenly froze. Right… Khonshu.

Who was Khonshu?

Moon Knight’s mind went blank.

A chill suddenly crawled up from the soles of his feet to his back. The warped sensation of his memories threw Moon Knight into a state of self-doubt.

Still, as a superhero, Moon Knight quickly steadied his trembling heart. He had multiple personalities and often suffered from dissociative identity disorder. Perhaps because of that, he was able to adjust so quickly in the face of this incomprehensible situation.

"Ah, it seems you don’t need to answer." Seeing Moon Knight’s reaction, Zhang Ye’s lips curled slightly. He already had his answer, though it was far from good news.

"What the hell is going on?" Moon Knight asked the question he most wanted answered.

He knew this was far more than simply losing part of his memory. If it were only amnesia, he would soon notice the inconsistencies through the knowledge of his other personalities and his past experiences, then quickly recover his memories.

But what he faced now was an indescribable "self-confirmation bias."

Marc—or the other personalities within his body—had all been affected by it. They were excessively inclined to seek out and accept information that aligned with their beliefs and expectations, causing "him" to ignore and reject every piece of contradictory information, plunging him into an extremely dangerous cognitive bias.

He had never noticed Khonshu’s existence. Even the god who had granted him all his superpowers had been erased from his perception, yet he had not noticed anything wrong. Instead, he had followed Deadpool’s trail to investigate the massacre of superheroes.

Moon Knight’s abnormality quickly caught Punisher’s attention. Frank, the Punisher, might look like a brute, but he was absolutely no fool. Anyone who underestimated him would pay a painful price. Now, even Punisher faintly sensed a hint of unease.

"I can’t answer your question, because I’m also searching for the source of all this," Zhang Ye said slowly. "What I can tell you is that Mephisto has severed all ties between himself and Earth. Whether that was voluntary or not, it at least proves something."

As he spoke, Zhang Ye gave Moon Knight another deep look and said each word distinctly.

"I’m afraid Ghost Rider has lost his immortality. And you, Marc—if you die in this catastrophe, then you may truly be dead."

Perhaps that explained why Deadpool had been able to kill Ghost Rider while he was under Mephisto’s protection. With the Hell Dimension detached from the real world, the contract could no longer remain in effect. Having lost those great powers, heroes like Moon Knight were no longer immortal.

Listening to Zhang Ye calmly speak such chilling words, both Moon Knight and Punisher felt somewhat panicked. Though reason told them that everything was normal, they could still sense an unsettling wrongness in Zhang Ye’s words that they dared not think too deeply about.

"…Something has affected my cognition. I can’t remember anything about Khonshu right now. I can’t even recall what he looks like. And my rational mind won’t let me think about it at all. Something is stopping me from continuing!" Moon Knight pounded his head hard.

"I’m probably affected too, Marc. I don’t know much about your situation, but I’ve lost my memories of ‘Mephisto.’ I remember Ghost Rider exists, but I can’t recall anything else about him. Or rather, the words are right on the tip of my tongue, but I just can’t say them."

With a sigh, Punisher lowered the gun in his hand. By now, they could be sure that the man before them was one of their own. Just as this Witch Raven had said, something unreasonable was affecting everyone’s cognition.

"The thing I feared most has happened," Moon Knight said quietly.

"I should have realized it sooner. Deadpool’s mind is wildly unconstrained. Red Skull and the others could never control him. If they can manipulate Deadpool, then they must possess something even more terrifying. That thing can even alter Deadpool’s cognition, so naturally it can affect us too."

"Wait, you said earlier that Deadpool tampered with this laser gun. What did you mean by that?" Punisher suddenly raised his head and looked at Zhang Ye.

"Exactly what it sounds like. Deadpool deliberately left it here. He ‘knew’ you would pick it up, and he ‘knew’ you would use it!"

Zhang Ye watched Punisher calmly, allowing that chaotic cognition to tear apart their sanity.

"It hasn’t just corrupted your minds. It has even corrupted the timeline."