Worldmind

Alex was stunned when he heard that. He had not expected Adora to be so decisive; he had just been preparing to keep persuading her.

Just as he was marveling at this, Adora spoke again. "However, I have one condition!" Her resonant voice was filled with determination and left no room for refusal.

"Go ahead." Alex frowned slightly, hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

"The Soul Stone must be placed under the control of the Nova Empire!" Adora glanced at Alex, then turned her gaze toward the others present. Her eyes were like lightning, piercing deep into every heart.

Hearing Adora’s words, Alex could not help laughing. As expected of the ruler of a nation, she had started plotting for the Soul Stone so early. But Alex did not care in the slightest. First, he could not decide the Soul Stone’s ownership; the key depended on what the other empires wanted, even if he defeated Thanos. Second, Alex knew that the Infinity Stones were nothing but harbingers of disaster. Keeping them was useless and would only bring endless calamities. He was better off without them.

Alex did not care, but those who knew the Soul Stone’s power all leaped to their feet. They coveted the Soul Stone as well.

"If you don’t agree, then we’ll all die together!" Seeing nearly everyone rise up in opposition, Adora’s face darkened at once. With a cold snort, she threw out those words and sat back down, completely ignoring the dumbfounded crowd.

It had to be said that Adora’s words were absolutely devastating. Thanos had harassed them for nearly twenty years, yet they had been utterly helpless. If this continued, their nations would cease to be nations. Now that they had finally found a breakthrough, they truly could not bear to give it up.

Alex also sat down quietly at that moment, completely losing his previous urgency. Instead, he calmly watched the group glare at one another, as though they were communicating with their eyes.

In only a short while, the group seemed to have made their choice. One person was selected as their representative and spoke up. "The Soul Stone can go to the Nova Empire, but everything else on Thanos must belong to us." Thanos had dominated the universe not merely through his own strength, but also through his power base. He possessed many cosmic secrets and technologies, all of which held tremendous appeal for the space empires.

Adora clearly understood this as well. After hesitating for a moment, she nodded and agreed.

Seeing that both sides had reached an agreement, Alex cleared his throat and slowly rose to his feet. His gaze swept over the crowd before finally settling on Adora. In a calm voice, he said, "Since everything has been discussed, let’s begin!" Then he turned to the others, his face full of mockery as he continued, "I hope that by the time I finish receiving the Power of Ten Stars, you’ll have Thanos’s whereabouts!"

Without waiting for anyone to respond, Alex strode out first. Adora rose and followed him, leaving the others staring at one another. How could they possibly know Thanos’s whereabouts?

Because of her earlier recklessness, Sawa had been harshly reprimanded by her mother, Adora, and had forced herself not to speak to Alex during the meeting. The moment they left the conference room, she could no longer suppress her worry and asked, "Alex, are you really going to do this?"

Alex stopped his brisk steps and turned to look at Sawa beside him. Seeing how worried she was, his heart tightened. He nodded silently, then turned and walked away.

Sawa stared at Alex’s retreating back in shock, her face full of disbelief. The old Alex might have been a little cold, but he would never have ignored her like this. As she thought of it, sorrow rose uncontrollably within her. Her eyes reddened, and she felt as though something was slipping away from her.

"Sawa, he is no longer the Alex he used to be." Looking at her daughter, Adora gently patted her shoulder and comforted her. "He must have remembered his past. He is no longer right for you."

"Why?!" Hearing her mother’s advice, Sawa finally began to cry. With tears in her eyes, she looked at her mother and asked unwillingly.

Adora shook her head without speaking. She quickly caught up with Alex and vanished around the end of the corridor in an instant.

A few minutes later, Alex followed Adora to the basement beneath Nova Headquarters. After she activated a concealed switch, a narrow elevator appeared within the wall.

"What is this?" Alex hesitantly looked at the cramped, enclosed elevator before him, which could only hold three or four people standing. His heart was filled with confusion.

Adora glanced at Alex and stepped into the elevator first. Only after Alex followed her inside did she explain, "To possess the Power of Ten Stars, one must receive the Worldmind’s personal approval. Even I cannot influence its will. At most, I can only make a suggestion."

Alex’s frown deepened as he said in disappointment, "So whether I can obtain the Power of Ten Stars is still uncertain?" Alex had joined the Nova Corps for barely more than half a year, so there were still many things he did not understand, let alone such a secret matter.

"I think your chances are very high." Adora looked Alex up and down, her expression full of certainty.

Alex curled his lips almost imperceptibly and said nothing. Instead, he secretly mobilized his own energy to continuously strengthen this new body. The Power of Ten Stars was no joke; Alex had no desire to be blown apart by its energy.

The elevator carried Alex and Adora downward. No one knew how long passed, but even after Alex used the last trace of surplus energy in his body to strengthen himself, the elevator was still descending.

"Where exactly are we going?" Alex made a rough estimate. In this short time, the elevator had taken them at least tens of thousands of meters underground.

Adora gave Alex a meaningful look and did not bother hiding it. With a soft laugh, she explained, "The Earth’s core!"

Alex stared at Adora in utter astonishment, unable to speak for a long time.

After an unknown amount of time, the elevator finally stopped. Alex followed Adora out, and what greeted him was not the geothermal magma he had imagined, but a massive spherical chamber. A row of wooden stairs floated in midair, stretching from the elevator exit toward the center of the sphere, where a huge shadow stood.

"That is the super living computer, the Worldmind!" Adora stepped onto the floating stairs first. Her steps were swift, and in the blink of an eye, she arrived before the Worldmind.

Alex followed behind. As he drew closer, he finally saw the super living computer known as the "Worldmind." Though he could not make out its exact structure, the first glimpse of its true form still left Alex deeply shaken.

"Little one, we finally meet!" At that moment, the enormous mass of flesh suddenly wriggled, and a human face emerged from it. Its kindly appearance inspired endless goodwill at first sight. "The last time we met, you were still unconscious!"

Alex instantly came back to himself and smiled awkwardly. He knew the Worldmind was referring to when he had advanced to Three-Star Centurion. Remembering the danger back then, Alex immediately grew serious and sincerely thanked it. "Thank you for saving my life!"

Here’s the second update. Updates have resumed; I hope for your support!