Six More

"Though I don’t know what you’re up to, it won’t change the outcome."

A dense Cosmic Might rose from Red Skull’s body. It was not merely the power of Xandar’s Nova Corps; something else was clearly mixed within it, something far darker.

"Look at me now. The finest existence in the world, the very best of every field gathered within one person. I have ascended to godhood, Superman, while you are nothing more than an ant about to fall at my feet!"

"I don’t know how you cracked the Nova Corps’ legacy, nor how you bypassed the curse to control the Ebony Sword and Doctor Strange’s cloak. But honestly, Red Skull, how much power can you truly draw from those things after falling into darkness?"

Clark—or rather, Zhang Ye—formed a hand seal. In the next instant, Superman’s classic suit rapidly transformed amid ghostly green flames into a black robe, and a third eye opened on Zhang Ye’s forehead.

"I can sense the surging power within you. You’re like some grotesque creation stitched together from several different things. Your current state cannot be called ‘normal’ at all. You’re just a madman controlled by power and desire."

"Is that so?" Red Skull paused, then broke into a grin. He raised the Ebony Blade and pointed its tip straight at Zhang Ye. "You’ve said enough nonsense. Let me test whether you’re really as formidable as your mouth claims."

Pitch-black energy of death suddenly erupted from the Ebony Blade. It was Black Magic from the oldest reaches among the stars, strange energy that only the great Merlin could barely master.

In an instant, an energy black hole erupted from the sword in Red Skull’s hand, swallowing the surrounding light. Terrifying pressure poured forth, drastically changing the environment around them.

Seeing this, Zhang Ye crossed his hands. The eerie green flames abruptly transformed into sacred white light, meeting the incoming dark matter head-on.

"Seraphim Shield!"

Holy white feathers drifted down, and a terrifying white radiance illuminated half of New Times Square. Spectators farther away even seemed to hear the faint tolling of morning bells.

The terrifying energies collided, and the surrounding Hydra soldiers scattered in panic. They were only ordinary humans; forget joining such a battle—even getting too close could leave them caught in the destructive energy.

The temperature throughout New Times Square began to spiral out of control. It was still supposed to be the cold of deep winter, yet it had become scorching hot. Wave after wave of Heat Wave struck them head-on, forcing everyone to try to move farther away.

"Magic? Laughable! Do you think you can defeat me? I was the one who severed the entanglement between magic and reality. You cannot shake me in the slightest! I am a god!"

Red Skull laughed maniacally, his eyes long consumed by madness. After so many years of silence, Red Skull had already gone insane. Before this, his madness had remained rational, but now, filled with countless multiversal powers, his deepest madness finally erupted beyond control.

Just as no Black Knight ever met a good end, the Ebony Blade carried far more than great power. This sword also brought the deepest curse, one rooted in the soul itself.

At this very moment, Red Skull possessed at least four or five cursed objects. All kinds of complicated energies filled his body, and even Zhang Ye’s Wizard’s Eye could not tell whether he was still a ‘human.’

If every person were a blank sheet of paper, then Red Skull was one completely covered in spilled paint. And it was not just paint—his sheet was crawling with filth and maggots, making one shudder.

"Magic was born in the balanced space between fantasy and reality. Severing this world’s connection to the Magic Dimension is no good thing. It proves only one thing, Red Skull—you’re afraid!"

Zhang Ye smiled as he resisted the terrifying energy unleashed by Red Skull.

"Admit it. You’re just a pathetic wretch living in the past. You want this world to produce heroes, yet you also fear this world producing heroes. You destroyed magic, destroyed mutants and the Inhumans, destroyed everything in this world. There is only one reason: you are afraid."

"Shut up!" Red Skull let out a piercing roar. Strange energy dyed the Nova helmet on his head black, while black veins gradually emerged across his skin.

"You don’t understand me at all, outsider from another world!

No, that’s not right. You aren’t."

As though he had discovered something, a flicker of surprise appeared in Red Skull’s darkness-filled pupils.

In Red Skull’s vision, Superman’s body across from him slowly began to turn transparent. Within that translucent body, there was an eerie figure wearing a Bird-Beak Mask.

"Only figuring it out now, Skull?"

In an underground wine cellar on the outskirts of New Babylon, Zhang Ye floated in midair as the shadow beneath him continuously twisted and writhed. His lips moved slightly, and Superman before Red Skull slowly spoke as well.

"Blinded by a single leaf. As the one who destroyed this universe’s magical legacy, you were ultimately fooled by magic. Even if you stole so much power, even if you are so enraged and insane, you are still so insignificant. You have no idea what you are wielding."

Red Skull was not stirred in the slightest by Zhang Ye’s mockery, because he had already fallen into endless madness.

"Really? Then why are you still struggling to hold on? I am flawless. All your magic and sorcery are useless before me. No mental destruction, soul annihilation, or elemental attack can pierce my shield!"

"Tell me, wizard!" Red Skull unleashed an even stronger torrent of energy, pushing Zhang Ye’s Seraphim Shield to the brink of collapse.

"Tell me, what can you do now with only this incomplete phantom!?"

Empowered by his energy, Red Skull’s voice spread throughout New Babylon. Everyone looked up in horror, staring from afar at the terrifying sight, something they had never seen before in their lives.

No one could have expected Red Skull to possess such terrifying power. Even viewers watching television all over the world had not anticipated it.

Kate Bishop gripped her bow tightly, her face filled with worry and anxiety. Wolverine simply turned off the television. He did not want to witness an old friend’s sacrifice again, much less let his child see this.

However, Zhang Ye, standing before Red Skull, wore a cold smile.

A black shadow suddenly streaked forward, weaving through the raging energy at astonishing speed.

The destructive energy was enough to pulverize anything that came near, yet before that figure, it was like walking a tightrope. With superb skill and precise movement, it raced toward the battlefield between Zhang Ye and Red Skull as though treading on thin ice.

Red Skull turned back with a dark expression, only to see a massive bat-like figure circling behind him. That swift, light-footed silhouette could be none other than Batman.

Then Zhang Ye’s calm voice drifted lightly into Red Skull’s ears.

"Sorry, but I have six more ‘incomplete’ phantoms like this."