Chapter 138: My Technology is Superior to Yours
Universe 199999, to put it bluntly, is the main universe of the movie-verse. From any perspective, this universe's overall strength simply cannot compete with the 616 Main Universe of the comics.
But this does not mean that Universe 199999 is worthless.
As mentioned before, the Marvel Multiverse concept has always been in a state of rapid expansion, not something immutable.
This system contains far too many chaotic elements. Forget Marvel Comics itself; within the entire multiverse, there are even the Men in Black Universe, the Transformers Universe, and so on.
Aside from the Creator Gods and the Omniscient and Omnipotent Being, it is doubtful that anyone could say for certain what new Concept might emerge in the multiverse in the next second.
If one day, some deity were to explicitly tell Du Wa that the batch of newborn universes centered around Universe 199999 was, in essence, a brand-new conceptual system born from within Marvel Comics, Du Wa would not be surprised. On the contrary, he would find it perfectly logical.
If one were to stand at a higher level and look down upon the entire multiverse, rebirth and destruction are often intertwined. New Concepts that have successfully integrated into the multiverse, recorded and replicated by it, gradually merge with old Concepts, making it impossible for latecomers to distinguish which Concept is younger and which is more ancient.
But Du Wa knew.
At least, he knew a part of it.
But as Du Wa observed this group of intruders from Universe 199999, he was also contemplating a very interesting question.
If Universe 199999 is viewed as a super-neutered version of a main universe, then the universes of Ultron with Six Gems, Black Strange, and the Quantum Zombie Virus are all essentially derivative worlds of Universe 199999. This collection of universes could actually be considered a minor multiverse.
And a minor multiverse is nothing unusual for many powerful beings; they can even manually create minor multiversal worlds.
Even in the DC Multiverse, Perpetua's firstborn, the World Forger, manually created a minor multiverse, intending it as a back-up plan for when Perpetua awakened to destroy the multiverse. However, this minor multiverse was shattered by a single punch from the Main Universe Superman.
Du Wa looked down on the overall level of Universe 199999, and he had the qualification to do so. Having briefly become the God of the World Tree and observing from the perspective of a single-universe-level being, he naturally wouldn't give Universe 199999 a very high evaluation.
But this did not mean that there were no formidable individuals in this minor multiverse.
Ultron with Six Gems, Black Strange, and others were all extremely powerful individuals, enough to make Du Wa take them seriously.
"These guys stumbled into my universe by a strange twist of fate to steal the Infinity Gems... They're unsure what exactly happened on the temporal level and don't have much time or opportunity for repeated trials. So, their best course of action is to secure some gems in this universe as a safety net, and then return to Universe 199999."
"However, even if I go completely easy on them and let them return with the Infinity Gems, can they really use the Infinity Gems from my universe in Universe 199999?"
This raised a very interesting question.
Normally, a set of Infinity Gems can only be used in the universe that birthed them. This is the standard theory.
If this law were broken, the entire multiverse would descend into chaos. After all, the Infinity Gems are arguably the most common divine artifacts across the omniverse. Considering the vast number of universes in the multiverse, it would mean countless ruthless characters, each with their own set of Infinity Gems, rampaging across the entire multiverse as their battlefield.
That scene would be beyond spectacular. Everyone would be starting at a single-entity omnipotent level, some even touching the threshold of multiverse-level combat power, running amok throughout the multiverse. Even the multiversal-level gods would likely be driven to agony by such a sight.
Therefore, every set of Infinity Gems is a bound artifact, useless outside its specific region.
A typical example is in the Justice League vs. The Avengers major event. Darkseid picked up the Infinity Gauntlet, studded with Infinity Gems, sized it up, and tossed it to the ground like garbage. He could tell at a glance that under the rules of the DC Universe, the item had absolutely no value and couldn't exert even a sliver of power.
But within the system of Universe 199999, that was not the case.
Ultron was able to use all the Infinity Gems to wreak havoc across various parallel universes. The fierce battle between Him and the Watcher affected many universes.
This was very interesting. Perhaps this specific multiversal region had a special set of shared rules.
But even so, Du Wa wouldn't go so far as to expend energy and start scheming just to covet the power of the Infinity Gems.
What Du Wa was thinking was that, looking across the entire multiverse, there was no better springboard than Universe 199999. Once he jumped to a higher level, he would first find a crucial universe where he could reap the greatest rewards and obtain a ticket into the DC Multiverse.
For Du Wa, who wanted to achieve Conceptual Godhood, nothing was more important than expanding his own Conceptual Entity. To achieve this goal quickly, the natural course was to expand his Concept in two multiverses simultaneously.
If he truly succeeded, it wouldn't be a simple advance to the single-universe level, but a direct path toward a multiversal divine authority. As for the higher Mega-tier and Omnipotent-tier, they were still too distant for Du Wa.
"I remember those guys calling my name many times. It's so tempting, I should consider when to unleash Xenomorphs on them."
Du Wa pinched his earlobe, pondering how to make use of these saviors.
...
Tony from Universe 199999 was utterly terrified by this universe. He stared wide-eyed, transfixed by the battle between Strange and Blackheart. It was truly breathtaking; every second contained a wealth of information that was a complete eye-opener for Tony.
Mountains were razed to the ground, and plains were blasted to ashes. The power of Time flowed between the two like a toy.
"Any thoughts?" Tony asked, his voice dry.
Dr. Banner paused for a moment before replying with difficulty, "I think coming here was a mistake. My gut tells me we should probably abandon this mission, escape back to our world immediately, and find a way to erase every trace we've left behind. We can't let the gods or other terrifying beings of this universe discover us and track us back to our world."
Running away wouldn't solve the problem, but perhaps it could prevent the problem from getting worse. They certainly didn't want the remaining half of their home's population to be wiped out as well.
This time, Tony said nothing. He watched the battle, his eyes fixed on the stream of data flashing wildly across the screen. Friday's computing power couldn't even keep up with the pace of their fight, let alone assess the level of power these two were wielding.
Never mind the thing that was a devil, a demon, or some undead creature—perhaps it was a local specialty of this universe. But Strange was someone Tony was somewhat familiar with, yet he couldn't even establish a character model for this demon-like Strange before him.
He could still analyze the use of the Time Stone's power, but as soon as magic from different origins was involved, Tony was lost.
He was right. The artificial intelligence he developed, whether it was Jarvis, Friday, or Veronica, would probably be considered obsolete in this world.
But what about Ultron? If that fast-learning, rapidly evolving intelligent lifeform were to exist in this world, it would probably thrive.
Tony had come to a realization: on this dangerous Earth teeming with strong individuals, a madman might have a better chance of survival.
Unfortunately, he was not a madman, but a genius.
"Tony, what do you think the people on this Earth who are already watching us plan to do with us? To them, are we invaders?" Banner was a little apprehensive. The thought of the out-of-contact Captain America and Scott made him extremely anxious.
"Invaders? I don't think so. The one most likely to have found us is probably Du Wa. Of course, it could also be this world's me. But either way, they're not opponents we can handle. All we can do is adapt to the circumstances."
Adapt to the circumstances. There was a time when Tony hated those words the most, as they meant he was powerless over the current situation.
When was the last time he'd felt this way? Oh, right. It was when Thanos did the Snap. That cosmic butcher had crushed them with overwhelming power and taken all the Infinity Gems.
Just then, the state of the battle changed. Strange launched a ferocious, all-out attack. With the Time Stone and a host of other divine artifacts in hand, he finally defeated Blackheart.
"No, it shouldn't be like this! How could this be my end? To think I'd lose to a half-blood bastard like you, a piece of scum who stole a demon's bloodline! And that old bastard Mephisto, he sent me here on purpose! That old fiend used me again..."
Blackheart cursed furiously. Some things only become truly clear at the very end.
It wasn't that he hadn't considered this possibility beforehand. Even if he had, he wouldn't have cared, because he never believed he would fail so spectacularly in an ordinary universe without even a designation.
But he had failed, and he couldn't even escape. What was even more intolerable to Blackheart was that His corpse and soul would become nutrients to nourish this insane human, to be eaten and absorbed by him.
This human's actions were even more insane than a demon's. Even demons wouldn't recklessly absorb the bloodline of a higher-level demon, as it could easily cause their own bodies to collapse.
"You've misunderstood. Both you and Mephisto, I will deal with you one by one. It's only a matter of time. And now, I have Time in the palm of my hand."
Strange absorbed Blackheart bit by bit, just as he had absorbed the three Mephistos before.
From his appearance, he looked just like a true demon, and a high-born, noble one at that.
"You Outsiders had best leave this world at once." Strange gritted his teeth, suppressing the instinctual desire for slaughter welling up from within him. His entire face was twitching, ferocious and terrifying enough to startle a demon from Hell.
"We can't leave anymore. Stephen... no, Strange. That's your name in this universe too, right? Two of my comrades have lost contact. They've been captured by someone, unable to send out any message at all."
"Most likely the Master of the Xenomorphs' people. In this world, he is omnipresent. It won't be long before the number of Xenomorphs reaches a certain point, and he will become omniscient and omnipotent." Strange was getting impatient, his temper worsening by the second. "Leave this place. Although I don't need to protect Earth, I am still the Sorcerer Supreme. It is my duty to carry out the expulsion of you Outsiders."
*You look like the goddamn Sorcerer Supreme? What was the previous Sorcerer Supreme on to have chosen you?*
Tony really wanted to roast him. If it weren't for the Time Stone and the numerous spells, he would have had no idea who this guy was.
"The Master of the Xenomorphs, you mean Du Wa? He's that strong? According to some of the intelligence I just bypassed, he even defeated a Serpent from an otherworld? For him, a visitor from an otherworld shouldn't be anything strange, right? We haven't done anything to threaten him. I think, at the very least, he won't treat us as enemies," Tony said, pained.
But Strange's expression was even more pained. "The intelligence you bypassed is all semi-public stuff. The truly classified information is all stored in Du Wa's head. Besides, you shouldn't have said Du Wa's name directly. That is a disaster for you."
"You said it too."
"I don't care if I live or die. Do you?"
Tony fell silent. He finally knew what he had overlooked.
It seemed that while the name "Du Wa" was seeing a sharp rise in frequency online and among the public, in some classified data, it was always referred to by other terms.
Saying the name... what would happen?
"Assimilation?" Tony tried hard to think from Du Wa's perspective. He thought about the characteristics of a creature like the Xenomorph, and then about that special group known to the world as the Xenomorph Heroes... His face instantly turned deathly pale.
But unfortunately, as if sensing his realization, a power descended from the heavens in an instant, easily bypassing his armor's defense and entering his body.
"Looks like you're very lucky to get this opportunity. It also means he gave you a second glance, that he has a slight, insignificant interest in you." Strange's face twitched, and it was unclear if he was congratulating or mocking him. Perhaps even he didn't know.
"Tony, what's wrong? My intuition tells me something is wrong with your body." Banner, now possessing some of the Hulk's abilities, had a grave expression. He had keenly sensed that something was amiss with Tony, that a living thing had appeared inside him out of thin air.
"This suit of armor would have been world-class technology three years ago. But now, it's too outdated. It doesn't even have basic magic defense, nor is it equipped with any powerful divine artifacts. It's completely subpar."
Strange watched with a cold gaze as Tony's face, once pale, quickly became ruddy from the gene of the Xenomorph larva. Then, he turned and left.
Du Wa had taken over these Outsiders, so Strange would no longer get involved. He didn't know what Du Wa was planning. To dispatch the Alien Army for a large-scale invasion of a parallel universe?
(end of chapter)