Stark Tower.
"Sir, good news!"
Tony Stark, who was busy, immediately became excited when he heard Jarvis's voice and stopped his work.
He walked over to the Scepter on the lab table.
The Scepter was surrounded by a layer of blue light, which looked like digital projections constantly changing.
"Jarvis, tell me you've quantified the Scepter completely!" Tony Stark said to Jarvis with boundless anticipation.
"Yes, sir, the Scepter has been completely quantified! This means I can decode it one hundred percent!"
Jarvis immediately said to Tony Stark.
"Yes!" Tony Stark slapped his thigh heavily, "Eight months, that wasn't easy!"
Tony Stark had never imagined that quantifying the Scepter alone would take him a whole eight months!
This was even after Tony Stark had upgraded Jarvis's hardware multiple times, greatly improving Jarvis's computing power.
It could only be said that an Infinity Stone was indeed extraordinary.
And that other version of himself from another time and space, actually attempted to complete this task in just three days, which seemed a bit laughable now.
This was an eight-month workload!
How much could be accomplished in three days?
It was not surprising that Ultron-like errors occurred.
"Jarvis, initiate a full decode of the Scepter!" Tony Stark immediately commanded Jarvis.
"Decoding has begun, however, the Scepter's computational matrix is extremely powerful. This will take some time, approximately one month."
"What are you waiting for? Get started!" Tony Stark said, his eyes gleaming.
During the time Jarvis was trying to quantify the Scepter, Tony Stark hadn't been idle. He had already thoroughly absorbed related knowledge about the Cradle of Rebirth, organic biology, and more.
Now, all that was missing was the Vision program.
Once Jarvis completed a full decode, the program wouldn't be a problem! Tony Stark was very much looking forward to that moment.
"Sir, Nick Fury is requesting a video call."
Jarvis's voice then interrupted Tony Stark's thoughts.
Tony Stark hesitated slightly, then agreed, "Bring it up!"
A projection of a bald head appeared before Tony Stark.
"Stark, I need some good news," Nick Fury asked directly, without any preamble.
Tony Stark then informed Nick Fury about the current progress of the Scepter research. Nick Fury was also very excited to hear this.
"You're saying a month? Stark, we can't delay any longer. I need to take the Scepter in a month," Nick Fury then made this request to Tony Stark. "Any later and we'll be exposed. Captain is already starting to suspect things."
Tony Stark didn't pay any attention to Nick Fury's words; he didn't believe that nonsense at all.
A mere head of a special agency couldn't handle this little thing? Nick Fury must also want to conduct some other research.
"How are the Scarlet Witch siblings doing?"
Tony Stark immediately asked another question that greatly interested him.
"They're doing well; they were adopted half a year ago..."
Nick Fury replied, "But after six months, they haven't shown any superpowers. Stark, our intervention might make the siblings ordinary people forever."
In the image displayed by the answering system, Scarlet Witch gained her superpowers through human experimentation conducted by Baron Strucker.
Although Nick Fury didn't adhere to many rules, he wasn't Hydra. He had a certain bottom line.
He definitely couldn't bring himself to experiment on minors.
So, after everyone discussed it, they arranged the Scarlet Witch siblings into a foster family to give them a complete home.
They didn't do anything else to them.
"Isn't this a good thing?" Tony Stark shrugged. "They're completely away from the world of monsters."
However, neither Tony Stark nor Nick Fury could have imagined that Scarlet Witch's magic didn't originate from Hydra's human experiments at all.
The Scepter merely awakened the magic within Scarlet Witch, nothing more.
Scarlet Witch's magic didn't come from the Scepter, but from herself! Even without Strucker's experiments, Scarlet Witch would have awakened her magic sooner or later.
"Sir."
While he was talking to Nick Fury, Jarvis suddenly gave another alert, "A gravitational anomaly has begun to appear in the abandoned building in New Mexico."
"The Nine Realms are beginning to converge, the Aether is about to appear!"
Tony Stark and the bald head on the projection exchanged glances, and both saw the seriousness in each other's eyes.
This was a big deal for Thor.
"Stark, keep an eye on things there. I'll contact Thor right away!" Nick Fury said to Tony Stark immediately, then disconnected.
There was no doubt what he was going to do.
The Nine Realms were starting to converge, and this news was quickly relayed to every quiz taker.
The quiz takers didn't dare to delay and immediately began heading towards the quiz taker base.
Through the exchange of information and intelligence after the quizzes, everyone already knew that this matter wasn't just about Asgard; it also concerned the entire Nine Realms.
After all, the Dark Elves' goal was to plunge the entire universe back into darkness!
In other words, the Dark Elves weren't just Thor's enemies; they were also enemies of Earth.
Given everyone's relationship with Thor, they couldn't just stand by and watch now that an entrance had appeared on Earth.
Half an hour later, Tony Stark, Captain America, Hawkeye Barton, Black Widow, and others set aside their current tasks and gathered at the Answerer's base.
Doctor Banner was also notified.
However, his location was quite far, so S.H.I.E.L.D. had already dispatched a fighter jet. It would still take several hours.
After a discussion, they decided to have Doctor Banner head to New Mexico and wait.
They would meet Doctor Banner there.
"We've secretly taken over three Hydra secret bases, thwarted eleven assassination missions, and replaced four important positions within the Triskelion with our own people..."
"Although this is just a small step towards dismantling Hydra's operations, it's a good start."
In the conference room, Thor hadn't arrived yet, and the participants were exchanging some basic information.
Nick Fury began to brief everyone on the progress made over the past year in combating Hydra. He reported that the results had been quite good.
After all, Hydra and S.H.I.E.L.D. had different structures. S.H.I.E.L.D. was somewhat like China, with the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. in unified leadership and governance.
Hydra was more like America; although there was a president in name, their influence on the various states was actually very small.
This was why Hydra could grow two heads after being cut off from one.
S.H.I.E.L.D. had secretly taken over three of Hydra's secret bases within a year, which was essentially like cutting off three of Hydra's heads. Such progress within a year was already quite good.
At this rate, it was only a matter of time before all of Hydra's heads were completely eradicated.
Everyone else was also talking about the recent progress, and the atmosphere was still great.
Whoosh!
While they were enthusiastically chatting, a dazzling, colorful light flashed outside the base, seeping in through the blinds.
Everyone knew, Thor had arrived.
Sure enough, the next moment, the meeting room door was pushed open, and a burly man in armor and a large red cape appeared before everyone.
It was Thor.
However, besides holding his hammer, Thor was also holding a seemingly simple and deep, square box, and they didn't know what it was for.
"Looks like I'm a bit late." Thor glanced at everyone present, and without being polite, he found an empty seat and sat down.
He placed the box he was holding on the table.
"Thor, what is that?"
Tony Stark immediately pointed at the Treasure Box, asking curiously.
"This is our Asgardian Treasure Box."
Thor introduced it to everyone. "After I returned to Asgard, I consulted all the ancient books and records about the Dark Elves and the Aether particle, and found that the Aether particle cannot be destroyed."
"My grandfather didn't actually have a way to destroy the Aether particle back then, he just buried it deep, so... I prepared this."
Saying this, Thor patted the Treasure Box. "When we get to the Dark World, I can use it to trap the Aether particle first, lure out Malekith, and eliminate him in one fell swoop!"
"And then?" Black Widow raised an eyebrow and asked.
"Then... then I'll use this Treasure Box to put the Aether particle in and take it back to Asgard." Thor said matter-of-factly.
"Sounds like a decent plan, but Thor…" Captain America questioned, seeking confirmation, "This Treasure Box of yours, can it really contain the Aether?"
"Of course!" Thor nodded without hesitation. "It's a rare artifact even in Asgard's vaults!"
"What are we waiting for, then? Let's go!" Tony Stark immediately stood up.
Captain America felt this was a bit hasty and wanted to formulate a more detailed plan.
However, considering his limited knowledge of the Aether, the Treasure Box, and related matters, he didn't have much information and decided not to say anything for the time being.
Nick Fury had already prepared the Quinjet. Without much ado, everyone boarded the aircraft and headed for New Mexico.
Not long after arriving, Doctor Banner joined them.
The group then began driving, arriving at the abandoned building.
"Sir!"
The abandoned building had long been taken over by S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. The S.H.I.E.L.D. special agent guarding the entrance immediately went forward to report the current situation when he saw Nick Fury leading people.
"Guard this place well. Don't let anyone in!"
Nick Fury casually instructed, then led his group across the blockade and into the abandoned building.
He began to search for the two-realm critical point where Jane Foster had accidentally entered.
Because he had watched the video beforehand and had sent people to mark this building immediately after the quiz ended, the search was very smooth.
The group soon appeared outside that room.
"This is the place."
Black Widow identified the markings on the wall and warned everyone present.
Without further ado, everyone steeled themselves and cautiously proceeded forward, step by step.
"Thor, if we get lost in the Dark World, Heimdall will send us back, right?"
Tony Stark asked, confirming.
"Of course," Thor replied without turning around, "As long as we can get past the critical point."
"Then I have no problem," Tony Stark said, and the Iron Man helmet slammed shut, encasing his head.
Whoosh!
After taking a few more steps forward, a powerful suction force suddenly appeared, acting upon Thor.
But Thor wasn't sucked in like Jane Foster. Only his cape and hair fluttered in the wind, as if he was unaffected.
"Alright, everyone, we're going in!"
Thor greeted the others, quickening his pace and "bumping" into the door.
He vanished instantly.
The others followed suit, "bumping" in one after another.
In the next moment.
Everyone felt their vision blur, and the surrounding scenery changed drastically, bringing them to a place of complete darkness, incredibly oppressive.
Undoubtedly, it was the Dark World, Svartalfheim.
"Living in this godforsaken place, you'd probably break down eventually, wouldn't you?" Tony Stark couldn't help but complain.
"Okay, everyone, split up and search for the Aether," Captain America said in a serious tone. "But don't go too far. If you find it, don't get close. Alert Thor immediately!"
The others didn't waste any time and dispersed to search in different directions.
Soon, Hawkeye Barton made a discovery: "Guys, I found it!"
You have to give it to Hawkeye.
Everyone's spirits lifted, and they gathered around him. Sure enough, they saw a mass of red, wriggling matter in a crevice.
It was exactly like the images they had seen – the Aether.
"Everyone, step back!"
Thor immediately called out to them and then walked over, carrying the Asgardian Treasure Box.
I don't know what Thor did, but the Treasure Box suddenly flashed, and the light projected onto the Aether.
A massive suction force erupted instantly.
Squeak, squeak, squeak!
The Aether began to churn frantically, as if struggling, but ultimately, it couldn't escape the suction of the light and was forcibly sucked into the Treasure Box.
"Yes!" Thor shouted excitedly upon seeing this.
Everyone walked over at this point, craning their necks to look. They saw the Aether surging within the Treasure Box, but it couldn't break free from the box's confinement.
"The first step is complete, Thor. How do you plan to lure Malekith and his forces?" Captain America asked in a low voice, looking at Thor.
"You'll see," Thor said mysteriously.
Following that, with a thought, electricity began to crackle around him. Then, Thor pointed his hand towards the Treasure Box.
From his fingertips, a bolt of lightning shot towards the Treasure Box.
The Treasure Box could surprisingly accommodate Thor's lightning, which passed through it and struck the Aether.
Zzzt! Zzzt! Zzzt!
The Aether began to writhe even more frantically.
"According to the information I've gathered, Malekith and the Aether..."
...
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