The standoff between two Cosmic Beings was undeniably a monumental event in the universe.
Generally, Cosmic Beings fall into two categories. The first are Cosmic Level entities, true Cosmic Beings whose full power can shake an entire universe, or even go further, manipulating universal constants and parameters, twisting the very rules of reality.
The second are lesser, like Ego, an ancient being barely qualifying as a Skyfather. Yet, due to his immense age and size, many call him a "Celestial" Or part of the "Celestials."
But now, both Knull and Adam stood at the Cosmic Being tier, meaning their every action could directly affect the universe's foundational fabric, posing undeniable threats to its stability.
Cosmic Level beings, capable of rivaling an entire universe alone, were destined to become the cosmos' focal point wherever they went, drawing billions of gazes with their every move.
"It's started out there? Even through the magic array, I can feel immense pressure from beyond… Yet you haven't acted, meaning you're not using this universe's Infinity Stones."
Three Mephistos opened their eyes simultaneously. One, stroking his chin with a clawed hand, could almost pass for human if you ignored his sharp talons and blood-red skin.
The demon eyed the magic array, now flickering with faint energy distortions, and addressed the Ancient One standing outside. "With such intense fighting erupting out there, you, Earth's guardian, aren't joining the battle but guarding me instead. Is that really wise?"
"With my current power, I'd struggle to engage in a battle of this magnitude. Besides, an hour ago, I ceased being Earth's guardian. Strange's talent is extraordinary, he's earned Vishanti's favor." The Ancient One replied.
Another Mephisto, sporting a hippie aesthetic, let out a wicked chuckle. "Exactly, exactly! That's Strange for you. In most universes, he's a master at winning Vishanti's affection. Add his magical aptitude, and he can secure fragments of power from other gods…"
"Demon, I know your schemes for Strange persist. After I'm gone, you'll stop at nothing to manipulate him. Adam knows this too."
The Ancient One spoke calmly, the Eye of Agamotto on her chest glowing green, making Mephisto's eyes twitch with wariness.
Infinity Stones were a nuisance, existing across countless universes, a headache for a multiversal wanderer like Mephisto.
Mastering even one Infinity Stone's power meant matching a Cosmic Being.
And the Ancient One before him was precisely such a master.
"So, you used the Time Stone on Strange, giving him vast training time? Bold move. In other universes, Time Stone-wielding Ancient Ones never do this. It's not a sound approach."
"But it benefits you. When Strange uses the Time Stone to save his beloved, that's your chance to deceive him."
In her measured words, the Ancient One laid bare Mephisto's plot, plunging him into brief silence.
"You saw it in the Time Stone? Using it to foresee outcomes of its own manipulation?"
"Adam told me. He calculated 173,600 possible actions you might take, devising multiple countermeasures for each."
"What a wretched foe. Why must the human I favor most possess such a cunning mind? Without that, even as a Cosmic Being, he wouldn't torment me so."
Mephisto seethed with frustration.
Unlike other demons who solved problems with brute force, he preferred schemes, bringing proud humans to their knees before his malevolent will.
Mephisto always struck when his chosen targets were desperate, luring them to trade their souls for his aid.
But against Adam, no matter how intricate his long-term plots, Adam seemed to anticipate them, crafting counterplans in secret.
"Your reaction is correct. Frankly, from your perspective, you never should've come to our world." The Ancient One said.
"What a joke. You understand nothing. Soon, you'll travel to other universes, dealing with countless Ancient Ones. Then you'll see why I'm fixated on Adam. The more you observe, the clearer it becomes what a novel concept like Adam represents."
Despite his foul mood, Mephisto shook his head, maintaining a noble human's elegance. "Perhaps my greatest mistake was summoning Cul from Earth-616. I had a meticulous plan for that serpent. Cul's crisis in Earth-616 was meant to cement my dominance over other great demons."
Mephisto sighed with regret. Now, Cul, a mighty Skyfather, had fallen in this unnumbered universe, defeated and imprisoned by Adam, a nobody in the multiverse's annals.
Mainstream universe denizens were likely reeling, stunned by Cul's and Mephisto's failures.
The magic array flickered violently, teetering on collapse.
Mephisto didn't move. He watched the Ancient One act swiftly, stabilizing the array, maintaining its airtight containment of him.
"The battle rages outside. You're sustaining my seal while shielding Earth with the array… It's Adam fighting out there, isn't it? He didn't even take your Time Stone to face this foe. Overconfidence isn't a virtue." Mephisto sneered.
The demon sensed the extraordinary, terrifying fluctuations from beyond, recognizing a Cosmic Being-level clash, and grew faintly anxious.
Mephisto was stunned by Adam's meteoric rise. He couldn't even fathom how Adam ascended to the Cosmic Being tier. Discounting power dampening from differing universal rules, Adam at this moment could rival Mephisto's true form.
But he was more enraged by the unknown Cosmic Being Adam faced.
What if this foe defeated Adam? That would rob Mephisto of his coveted prey, a target he'd sacrificed countless avatars for, abandoned an invasion of the Khonshu Epoch universe, and lost Cul, a valuable pawn, yet still couldn't claim.
Conversely, if this Cosmic Being lost to Adam, that was even worse. It would mean Adam could undergo another explosive power surge.
"Who's Adam fighting? A rules-based god? Do they have a body?" Mephisto pressed the Ancient One, his expression growing grimmer.
"With your intellect, you've likely guessed it's Knull, the God of Symbiotes. This evil god certainly has a body, a fine one, imprisoned by countless symbiotes for over a millennium." The Ancient One said, too straightforward to play coy with Mephisto. Between clever minds, there was no need to waste effort on deduction.
This meant that if Knull fell, even a battered body would suffice for Adam to exploit, birthing a terrifying Xenomorph.
Mephisto pondered. Even relying solely on a broken body, without enslaving Knull's soul to ensure ascension, the resulting Xenomorph might not match a full Knull but could still half-step into the Cosmic Being tier.
A massive problem.
Most Cosmic Beings, the elite of their kind, possessed physical bodies.
Take the Celestials. Judging by Arishem's colored Celestial faction, they split into two types: ancient Celestials, flesh-and-blood beings clad in heavy armor, and the more common mechanical-bodied ones, modifiable by Tony Stark into Celestial armor.
If Knull lost to Adam, and his body fell into Adam's hands… the mere thought made Mephisto restless.
"Don't fret, it's useless. We just wait for the battle's outcome. My task is to watch you, ensuring you don't pull any stunts from Hell that disrupt our world." The Ancient One said, her consoling words devoid of comfort.
Elsewhere, Cul, dismembered and confined by numerous Xenomorphs, felt the clash of two mighty gods with stark clarity.
The Serpent Cul, hair disheveled, body carved into hundreds of pieces, still sought escape.
Sensing the overwhelming Cosmic Being-level might, the serpent was speechless for a long while.
"That bastard Mephisto truly screwed me over. My luck's abysmal, landing in any random universe and facing its native gods."
Cul's face twisted with rage.
Though hailing from the main universe, he looked down on parallel universes, but context mattered. As a strong Skyfather, he scoffed at other universes' Skyfathers. But clashing with a local Cosmic Being? Cul knew he stood no chance.
He didn't mind humbling himself slightly, showing basic respect to other universes' Cosmic Beings.
But now! The human who once defeated him had, by some lightning-fast method, become a Cosmic Being! This unbearable reversal drove Cul near madness.
The surrounding Xenomorphs ignored his fury. Any hint of healing or power recovery prompted them to act, further slicing his body while preserving his head mostly intact.
A terrifying boom erupted, as if the universe itself reverberated.
This wasn't merely an energy clash but a tremor from the strain on the universe's foundational structure, a ripple in reality.
Adam had formally engaged Knull, personally igniting a battle that drew the gaze of the cosmos' top entities.
This was a true high-stakes clash.
Adam raised the Necrosword, wielding the writhing symbiote, and struck first, thrusting at Knull.
All symbiotes guarding Knull showed signs of collapse, shrieking chaotically, their instincts flooded with awe for the Necrosword.
All symbiotes originated from the Necrosword. During its forging, Knull subjected it to intense flames and hammering, embedding weaknesses, fire, sound, that every symbiote born from it inherited.
Now, with their ancestral weapon in Adam's hands, warring against their revered god, the symbiotes descended into instinctual chaos.
"Your control over the symbiotes isn't as absolute as I thought, swayed by the Necrosword." Adam said, thrusting his blade.
Knull didn't dodge. Raising a skeletal hand brimming with endless darkness, he seized the sword fiercely, his face contorted.
Adam didn't pause. Strange runes surged around him, swirling densely across his body. In the next instant, a torrent of divine power erupted, flooding the Necrosword, cleaving through the darkness and wounding Knull's palm.
"I understand this weapon better than you. Don't think stealing it through trickery lets you wield it to defeat me."
Knull glanced at his wounded palm, feeling the divine runes invade, frantically disrupting his body's structure from the injury.
His focus shifted from the Necrosword.
"There's such a method… You've enlisted the entire Yggdrasil's aid. How? The Yggdrasil lacks a unified will, how did you align it to your side?"
"I promised to kill you, sacrifice your soul to the Yggdrasil, and claim your body. Simple as that. Evil god Knull, you may now address me as… Rune God!"
Adam pressed his assault, radiant divine lights naturally entwined with the Yggdrasil's vast branches.
Each use of his divine power drew on the immense domain the Yggdrasil spanned, crushing Knull with the weight of a world.
Rules manifested as divine runes, forming heavy shackles that pressed upon Knull.
The eerie runes, like living entities, relentlessly eroded the darkness Knull embodied.
Knull found Adam's state unfamiliar, yet his method of wielding the Yggdrasil was strikingly recognizable. Knull himself harbored a world, the Abyss, whose power he naturally wielded wherever he went.
Now, Adam commanded an even grander world.
Their figures, in a fleeting moment, seemed to swell infinitely, rivaling galaxies. Their clash spanned time and space, their surging forms reaching the universe's edge, encompassing its interior and beyond.
"I've never seen the Yggdrasil's power manifest as script… You stand before me because of its might. Conversely, if another Yggdrasil native siphoned its power, you'd weaken…"
Knull's gaze sharpened, shedding some of his reckless, frenzied instinct.
He would unleash the races that had secretly pledged allegiance to him.
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