Chapter 114 Barren Land
The milano's cockpit was quiet.
The old 80s song had stopped. The pressure left by the man earlier still suffocated the air, making it hard to breathe.
Rocket Raccoon was the first to bristle. He hugged his big gun, pacing around the spot where Chu Hang had stood, his nose twitching incessantly.
"What the hell was that? How did he get in? How did he disappear?" he shrieked, "He didn't even leave a fart smell!"
"He's not a 'thing', he's a person." Drax climbed up from the wall, rubbing his dazed head. His tone was confused, "A very strong person. I tried my best to resist his control, but it was useless."
Gamora's expression was grim. She sheathed her knife, her eyes serious: "He can freeze space. I've only heard of this ability in legends. He's no ordinary Earthling."
"Hey, everyone, relax." Peter Quill leaned back in the pilot's seat, whistling, but his trembling fingers betrayed his nervousness, "Didn't he say? He's an Earthling just like me, we won't interfere with each other."
"You call that 'nothing'?" Rocket jumped onto the control panel, pointing at the smooth cut on it, "Reinforced titanium alloy! He cut it with his finger! His finger! Quill, you idiot, we just escaped from under the nose of a God! If he wanted to, we'd be space junk right now!"
"I am Groot." Groot waved his branch-like arm, his expression very serious.
"Exactly, Groot's right!" Rocket excitedly agreed, "We should throw away this damn Orb immediately and get as far away from that monster as possible!"
"No!" Gamora immediately objected, "We must deliver the Cosmic Orb to the buyer. Forty billion. With that money, we can truly be free." She glanced at Quill, "Besides, that person said he's only interested in paid help, which means he doesn't want to just snatch it. He has his own rules."
Quill nodded. Although his mysterious fellow Earthlingwas ridiculously strong, he didn't seem to want to go too far. He was more like a high-and-mighty observer, watching them, a bunch of small-time characters rolling in the mud.
"Gamora's right." Quill cleared his throat, regaining his Captain's demeanor, "The objective hasn't changed. Go to Knowhere, find The Collector, and sell this thing. Once we get the money, we'll split up. As for that Earthling... try not to provoke him again."
He restarted the ship and set the course. The engines roared, and the ship flew towards a desolate starfield deep in the Universe.
Knowhere.
This place wasn't a Planet; it was the skull left behind after a giant God died. Countless mining companies and scavengers clung to it like maggots, extracting priceless organic matter and cerebral fluid.
There was no law here, no order, only money and violence. It was the most chaotic, yet also the freest, place in the entire Milky Way Galaxy.
The milano carefully navigated through dense mining ships and spacecraft, landing on a dirty landing pad.
As the five stepped off the ship, they were stunned by the sight. The air was thick with the stench of oil, alcohol, and various biological odors.
On the streets, strangely shaped aliens crowded together, gambling, brawling, and conducting illicit trades. A three-eyed fellow was stuffing a bag of glowing powder into a scaly lizard-man.
Not far away, two burly men were fighting bloody over a chip, while the crowd around them cheered and placed bets.
"I like this place." Rocket excitedly rubbed his paws.
Led by Gamora, they passed through the chaotic streets and entered a building that looked like a museum.
Inside the building, The Collector, Taneleer Tivan, sat on an ornate chair, stroking a creature that looked like both a dog and a bird.
He wore a white robe and heavy eyeliner, exuding a peculiar aura.
"Ah, my dear guests." He saw Gamora and offered a warm smile, "You've finally arrived, and you've brought... my little treasure."
His gaze fell greedily on the metal Orb in Quill's hand.
Quill placed the Cosmic Orb on the table.
"The item is here. Where's the money?"
"Don't be so hasty, young man." The Collector waved his hand. A red-skinned girl in a maid uniform with vacant eyes, standing beside him, stepped forward and scanned the Orb with an instrument.
"Before payment, one must always inspect the goods." The Collector stood up and circled the Orb, as if admiring a work of art.
He reached out a finger and lightly touched the Orb's surface. The patterns on the Orb lit up, slowly opening to reveal the purple glowing Stone inside.
An ancient and immense power filled the entire room. The air grew heavy.
"Oh, my..." The Collector let out a satisfied sigh.
He waved his hand, and the space behind him projected a vast starry sky.
"Before the Universe was born, there were six singularities." His voice was like poetry, "After the Big Bang, the Universe was born, and the remnants of these six singularities were forged into six concentrated energy bodies... the Infinity Stones."
He pointed at the purple Stone: "This one is Power. Possessing it allows one to easily destroy a Planet. But most mortals cannot withstand its power; merely touching it will tear them to shreds."
On the projected screen, a giant God, holding a scepter, pressed the purple Stone onto a Planet's surface. The next second, the entire Planet erupted in purple light, then shattered into pieces.
Quill, Rocket, and Drax were stunned. They knew this thing was valuable, but they hadn't realized it was the legendary world-destroying weapon.
"I've had enough! I won't be your slave any longer!"
Just then, The Collector's red-skinned maid, Carina, suddenly let out a desperate scream. Her eyes bloodshot, she lunged at the table and grabbed the purple Power Stone.
"No! Carina!" The Collector shrieked in terror.
It was too late.
Purple energy, like a flood, surged from Carina's hand into her body. Her skin began to crack, and she let out agonizing screams. The next second, a destructive purple Impact burst forth from her.
"Boom—!"
The entire collection hall, along with countless precious artifacts inside, was obliterated in the deafening explosion.
At the moment of the explosion, Quill lunged to retrieve the Orb containing the Stone. Gamora, pulling him along with Rocket and Groot, scrambled out of the ruins.
However, as they rushed outside, they saw Drax standing in the center of the plaza, roaring at the sky.
"Ronan! You coward! I am here! Come and kill me!"
Gamora's face changed dramatically: "Drax! You idiot! What have you done?"
Drax turned, a look of vengeful satisfaction on his face: "I called him here! I will personally avenge my wife and daughter!"
No sooner had he spoken than dark clouds gathered above Knowhere.
Several menacing ships, like black blades, tore through the clouds and slowly descended. Leading them was Ronan the Accuser's flagship, the "dark star."
The hatch opened, and Ronan's tall figure appeared on the gangway, accompanied by a blue-skinned, semi-mechanized woman—Nebula.
At the same time, in an asteroid belt above Knowhere's orbit, Chu Hang sat on a huge asteroid, watching everything unfold below.
He used spatial power to conceal his presence and aura, like an audience member in a top-floor theater box.
"A bit interesting." He watched Ronan slowly descend, stroking his chin.
This Ronan was different from the one he had seen in the movie.
That time in the nineties, he had thrown Ronan into a spatial rift. The fact that the guy survived and even thrived suggested he had his own fortuitous encounters.
Currently, the energy around Ronan was more condensed, darker, and carried a deeper aura of Death, not belonging to a Kree.
"Looks like Thanos trained him," Chu Hang thought.
He wasn't in a hurry to act. He wanted to see what kind of sparks this enhanced Ronan and this ragtag group could ignite.
On the ground, Drax was already roaring and charging towards Ronan.
"Ronan!"
Ronan didn't even look at him, merely standing in place with disdain.
Drax's powerful punch was easily caught by Ronan's palm.
"I don't even remember you." Ronan's voice was cold, and with a flick of his wrist, Drax's arm snapped with a crisp sound of bone breaking.
Then, he kicked Drax in the chest, and Drax flew backward like a broken sack, hitting the wall, his fate unknown.
"Give me the Orb." Ronan's gaze turned to Quill and Gamora, who were preparing to escape in a mining spacecraft.
Nebula sneered and piloted her craft in pursuit.
A chaotic chase unfolded in the mining tunnels of Knowhere.
Eventually, Quill's spacecraft was destroyed. Gamorarushed out first, suspended in space. But Nebula pursued relentlessly, destroying her life support with a blast.
Gamora's body rapidly stiffened in the cold vacuum, losing consciousness.
And the Cosmic Orb, containing the Power Stone, slipped from her hand, slowly falling towards the dark starbelow.
Ronan stood on his ship, extending his hand, ready to claim his victory.
Seeing this, Chu Hang knew he couldn't wait any longer.
He stood up, brushing dust from his clothes.
"Warm-up's over. It's my turn."
His figure vanished from the asteroid.
The next second, he appeared between the dark star and the falling Orb, calmly suspended in the air.
Ronan's outstretched hand froze. He looked at the man who had suddenly appeared before him, his pupils contracting sharply.
That figure, that face... Although many years had passed, the despair and fear from being thrown into a spatial rift instantly surged into his heart.
"It's you!" Ronan's voice, for the first time, carried terror and a barely perceptible tremor.
Chu Hang ignored him. He simply extended his hand, and the Cosmic Orb, about to fall into Ronan's grasp, was held by an invisible hand, stopping steadily before him.
Chapter 115 The Law of Power
Ronan's body stiffened.
This face, this man, was his deepest fear in his midnight dreams for decades.
Back then, in the spatial rift, he was torn apart by the endless void, every inch of his flesh peeling away.
It was Thanos who pulled him out, granted him stronger power, and taught him how to wield darkness.
He thought he was no longer the Kree who could be toyed with at will.
But now, this man stood before him again.
Still with that calm, indifferent look, as if his decades of struggle and growth meant nothing in his eyes.
Fear, like a cold viper, crawled up his spine.
But the power and dignity granted by Thanos forced him to suppress the urge to flee.
"Do you think it's still the same as back then? Do you think I'm still the same me?" Ronan's voice was a little dry.
He forced himself to straighten his back, and the dark energy within him began to surge, black mist coiling around his warhammer.
"The Universe has changed, and so have I! Hand over the Cosmic Orb, and I can let you die a quick Death!"
Chu Hang looked as if he had heard something amusing, and a slight smile played on his lips.
"Oh?"
He only said one word.
The next second, a golden light erupted from within him.
It wasn't a warm light, but like a star detonating in front of him, violent, scorching, carrying the might to destroy everything.
His hair stood on end, turning into pure golden Fire, and his eyes were two burning Suns.
Twin Star Form.
A terrifying pressure instantly enveloped the entire fleet.
On the dark star's bridge, the energy shield alarm shrieked, and all Kree officers felt a mountain pressing on their chests, making even breathing difficult.
Many had already collapsed to the ground, trembling.
Ronan's face turned completely White.
This power... Chu Hang's energy was purer and more terrifying than before!
"Impossible…" His lips trembled, the little confidence Thanos had given him was completely washed away by this power.
Chu Hang didn't look at him, he just casually raised his hand and gently waved it at a frigate on the flank of Ronan's fleet.
Spatial Cutting.
There was no sound, no explosion.
That several-hundred-meter-long Kree warship was as if cut by an invisible blade, neatly broken in half from the middle.
The cut was smooth as a mirror, even reflecting the light of the surrounding stars.
Two seconds later, the interior of the severed warship finally exploded with a roar, a huge fireball blooming in the silent space, silently devouring the wreckage.
One wave of the hand, and a warship was gone.
On the dark star's bridge, there was a deathly silence.
Everyone stared at that Deathly fireworks, their hearts even stopped beating.
Ronan's body began to tremble uncontrollably.
His proud power was a joke in front of this.
He knew that if that wave had been directed at the dark star, the outcome would have been no different.
"This thing, I'm a little interested." Chu Hang withdrew his hand, the golden light on him slowly receded, and he returned to his usual appearance.
He weighed the Cosmic Orb in his hand, looked at Ronan, and said in a flat tone, "Now, take your fleet and get out.
Don't make me say it a second time."
Ronan's face turned a pig-liver color.
Humiliation, anger, and uncontrollable fear churned in his heart.
But he knew he had no choice.
To stay was to die.
"You will regret this." He squeezed out a few words through gritted teeth, bringing out his last backing, "This Stone will eventually belong to me, and my great Master!"
With that, he suddenly turned and roared at the stunned crew on the bridge: "Retreat! All retreat!"
The dark star and the remaining few ships, as if seeing a ghost, frantically activated their engines, tore through space, and disappeared in a jump.
Chu Hang looked at the direction they disappeared in and pouted.
"He's even learned to call for his parents."
He didn't pursue them.
He turned around and looked at the nearby Gamora.
Her body was already stiff in the vacuum, her life force almost cut off.
Chu Hang's figure flickered, appearing beside her.
A soft golden energy enveloped her, pulling her back from the brink of Death.
Then, carrying Gamora and the Cosmic Orb, his figure disappeared again… On the landing pad of Knowhere, it was a mess.
"It's over, it's over, Gamora is dead, the Orb has been stolen, we're doomed!" Rocket jumped up and down in the ruins, frantically pulling at the fur on his face.
Quill stared blankly at the sky, clutching the Walkman his mother had left him.
Just as they were despairing, a figure appeared out of thin air.
It was Chu Hang.
He was holding the Cosmic Orb in one hand and the unconscious Gamora in the other, like a chicken.
"Yours?" He threw Gamora onto the ground, then tossed the Orb to Quill.
Quill instinctively caught it, feeling the metal sphere in his hand was extremely heavy.
"She… she's still alive?" He looked at Gamora on the ground, unable to believe his eyes.
"She won't die." Chu Hang said.
He wasn't interested in watching these people perform a reunion after disaster.
His attention was entirely on his mind.
The moment he got the Orb, he chose to replicate it, and a purple, violent stream of information poured into his mind.
Law of Force.
This was not a simple increase in power, but a conceptual understanding.
Gravity, repulsion, strong nuclear force, weak nuclear force… The four fundamental forces that maintain the existence and movement of all things in the Universewere no longer abstract formulas in his mind, but became tools that could be touched and called upon.
He instantly understood the essence of these things.
The Power Stone was the concretization of these physical rules.
To Master it was to Master the physical rules themselves.
"So that's how it is…" Chu Hang closed his eyes, experiencing this feeling.
Before, when he punched someone, it was kinetic energy.
Now, he could directly command the particles in the opponent's body to stop interacting, causing it to disintegrate from within.
Before, if he wanted to move a stone, he needed to push it with force.
Now, he could change the gravitational constant between the stone and the Planet, making it float on its own.
These were the methods a god should possess.
He opened his eyes and saw Quill, Rocket, and Grootfrantically giving Gamora first aid.
Drax was also dragged out of the ruins, with a broken arm, but still alive.
"Alright, everyone." Chu Hang spoke, interrupting their hustle and bustle, "Let's talk about the reward."
Quill paused, then stood up: "What do you want? We don't have money, we just got blown up."
"I saved all your lives and retrieved this hot potato." Chu Hang pointed at the Orb in Quill's hand, "I don't lack money.
I need you to do something for me."
"What is it?" Gamora also woke up, leaning against a container, asking weakly.
Chu Hang's gaze fell on Quill, smiling a little strangely.
"After you're done, and deal with this Stone, you, Peter Quill, will come back to Earth with me."
"Back to Earth?" Quill looked bewildered, "Why? I haven't wanted to go back for a long time."
"To see your grandfather."
"My grandfather?" Quill was even more confused, "My grandfather died a long time ago!"
"I'm not talking about that one." Chu Hang shook his head.
He remembered during World War II, Steve was on a national tour, always surrounded by a group of scantily clad cheerleaders.
One of them looked exactly like Quill's mother in her photo.
Steve, that old-fashioned guy, would surely have a very interesting expression if he knew he had a grandson who was a thief in the Universe.
"An old senior of yours, also a veteran." Chu Hang didn't say it directly, "He misses his family very much.
I'll take you to see him to fulfill a wish."
Quill looked at him with half-belief, feeling something strange about this matter.
"Is that all?"
"That's all." Chu Hang nodded, "Before that, I won't interfere with you.
Just right, I also want to wander around the Universe."
Of course, he wasn't looking at the scenery.
He had just obtained the Law of Force, and had new insights into the Law of Space.
In the Universe, far from the constraints of Planetary gravity, it was more conducive for him to practice these god-like abilities.
Quill and Gamora exchanged glances.
This deal was strange, but they had no choice.
This man in front of them, who could scare Ronan away with a single sentence, and pull people back from space, no one could stop him from doing what he wanted.
"Okay." Quill finally nodded, "Deal.
Once we deal with this thing, I'll go with you."
Chapter 116 The Death of Ronan
No one spoke in the milano's lounge.
The Cosmic Orb lay on the table, purple light seeping from the cracks in its metal casing, looking ominous.
"We have to give it to the Nova Corps," Quill said first. "This thing is too dangerous; only they can keep it safe."
Gamora nodded, "Ronan is just the beginning; more people will come to steal it later. The Nova Corps are the enforcers of the Milky Way Galaxy; they have a responsibility to handle it."
"Ha! The Nova Corps?" Rocket shrieked, "They can't even catch us, and they want to guard an Infinity Stone? Quill, are you out of your mind? We should find a black market, sell it, and run!"
"I am Groot."
"Exactly, Groot thinks so too!"
Chu Hang had been leaning against the wall, watching the group argue.
"The Nova Corps won't do," he said, and everyone fell silent.
"Why?" Quill asked.
"Because the person behind Ronan is called Thanos," Chu Hang's gaze swept over everyone. "A madman who wants to collect six Stones and wipe out half the living beings in the Universe. Do you think the Nova Corps can stop him?"
Gamora's face paled. As Thanos's adopted daughter, she knew the weight of that name better than anyone.
"He's right," her voice was dry. "If Father comes personally, the Nova Corps... won't last a day."
"Then what do we do?" Quill was annoyed. "We can't just carry it around forever, can we? This is a ticking time bomb!"
He still didn't believe it, shaking his head stubbornly, "The Nova Corps has protected the Milky Way Galaxy for thousands of years; they're not that weak. I'm going to Xandar and let them assess it themselves."
Chu Hang was a little impatient. Trying to reason with this group was too much effort.
"Fine, if you want to go, I'll take you."
As soon as he finished speaking, he snapped his fingers.
The surrounding scenery instantly distorted; the spaceship's metal walls turned into flowing light and shadow. A sensation of weightlessness came, and everyone stumbled.
The next second, the light and shadow solidified.
They were no longer in the spaceship but stood in the center of a massive white hall. At the end of the hall, Nova Prime Irani Rael stood up in shock from her throne, and the surrounding Nova Corps officers all drew their weapons.
The milano, along with everyone on board, had been directly teleported by Chu Hang to the Nova Corps' command center.
"You..." Quill's mouth hung open; he couldn't speak.
"Now, you can ask," Chu Hang ignored the tense atmosphere around them and said to Quill.
Irani Rael recognized Chu Hang; she waved her hand, telling her subordinates to lower their weapons, and walked down the steps with a solemn expression.
"Your Excellency, this is..."
"He wants you to guard this," Chu Hang tossed the Cosmic Orb to Irani. "But I said you couldn't. To prove it, I'll show you its power."
With that, he lightly tapped the Orb.
The Orb's shell opened, and the purple Power Stoneglowed brightly. A pure, destructive energy wave instantly swept across the entire Xandar and spread into the depths of the Universe... In a corner of the Universe, the Shadow on the throne stirred.
He felt that familiar power.
"Power..." he whispered, a smile playing on his lips.
He saw Xandar, he saw Chu Hang, and he also saw Ronan, who had just escaped.
"Useless."
He extended a finger, and a deep purple dark light, crossing endless space, instantly injected into Ronan's flagship.
Ronan, who was fuming on the bridge, was hit by this energy. He let out a roar, his body enveloped by dark energy, muscles bulging, veins throbbing. His power was increasing wildly.
"My Master..." Ronan knelt on the ground, feeling an unprecedented power within him, his face filled with fanaticism, "Thank you for your grace!"
"Go, retrieve what belongs to me, and destroy that Planet," a cold voice echoed in his mind.
"Yes, Master!"
The dark star turned its bow, tore through space, and warped towards Xandar again... At the Xandar command center, alarms blared across the sky.
"Large-scale fleet warp detected! It's Ronan!"
Outside the window, the dark star, leading an even larger fleet than before, obscured the sky.
"All Nova fighters scramble! Activate planetary defense matrix!" Irani Rael ordered decisively.
Tens of thousands of golden star-shaped fighters swarmed into the sky like bees, engaging the Kree fleet. Energy beams and explosions dyed the sky red.
But the battle was completely one-sided.
The shields of the Nova fighters were as fragile as paper under the Kree's bombardment. Fighter after fighter exploded in mid-air, turning into fireworks.
"His power... has increased more than tenfold!" Irani looked at the battle report, her face pale.
"Do you believe it now?" Chu Hang asked calmly.
Quill and Gamora looked at the apocalyptic scene outside the window, unable to speak.
Just then, the dark star's main cannon began to charge. A dark purple beam, several times thicker than before, shot directly towards the command center on the ground.
The Nova Corps fighters formed a human wall, attempting to block it with their bodies, but instantly evaporated in front of the beam.
Chu Hang sighed.
He took a step, appearing above the command center.
Facing the energy beam capable of destroying a city, he merely extended one hand.
The beam shot forth.
The moment it touched his palm, it vanished into thin air, as if it had never existed.
[Law of Force · Zero]
All the energy and particles that composed it, and the strong interactions between them, were forcibly severed, returning to their most primitive state of nothingness.
On the dark star, Ronan's pupils contracted to pinpricks as he witnessed this scene.
Chu Hang looked up, his gaze piercing tens of thousands of meters to meet Ronan's.
"I gave you a chance, but you're useless."
He slowly clenched his fist in the direction of the dark star.
On the dark star's bridge, tens of thousands of meters high, Ronan suddenly felt a pang in his heart. He found he couldn't move.
He looked down, horrified to discover that his body, starting from his fingertips, was turning into the smallest particles, silently dissipating.
The strong nuclear force that composed his body had been forcibly shut down.
[Law of Force · Disintegration]
"No—!"
He tried to shout but couldn't make a sound. Then, along with his armor and the war hammer in his hand, he completely disintegrated, turning into a handful of cosmic dust.
He died. He died silently, without even leaving a single intact cell.
With Ronan's Death, the entire Kree fleet seemed to lose control, plunging into chaos.
Chu Hang did not make another move. The rest was enough for the Nova Corps to handle.
He returned to the command center, where Irani Rael and everyone from the Guardians of the Galaxy looked at him with eyes as if he were a god.
"Now, let's discuss the issue of guarding this Stone again," Chu Hang retrieved the Power Stone into the Orb and said to Irani.
Irani took a deep breath and bowed deeply to Chu Hang.
"Your Excellency, Xandar thanks you for your salvation. We... are not capable of guarding it," she said bitterly. "But we request that you temporarily leave it here. We need to study its power, enhance our technology, and prepare for Thanos's next attack. In exchange, all of Xandar's technological databases and all the cosmic star maps we have explored will be open to you."
Chu Hang thought for a moment. Thanos's next attempt to seize the Power Stone would be many years later. Letting them study it wouldn't hurt.
"Alright," he nodded. "Three years. I will return for it in three years."
"Thank you, Your Excellency!"
The deal was struck.
A few days later, the milano was repaired and set sail again.
Chu Hang sat in the cabin, eyes closed, absorbing the vast amount of technological knowledge from Xandar and contemplating the fusion of the Law of Space and the Law of Force within him.
The spaceship traveled steadily through the star sea, undergoing one space jump after another.
Just after another jump, a strange object appeared in front of the spaceship.
It wasn't a spaceship; it looked like a living, gigantic Planet with eyes.
A gentle voice came through the spaceship's communication system.
"Peter Quill, my child, I have been looking for you for a long time."
Chapter 117 Planetary Life • Celestial God Ego
In the milano's communication channel, a gentle yet magnetic voice suddenly rang out without warning.
"Peter Quill, my child, I have been looking for you for a very long time."
The cockpit instantly fell silent.
Rocket's ears twitched, his face filled with disbelief. Gamora frowned, her eyes full of vigilance. Drax stroked his bald head, seemingly pondering the meaning of the words.
As for Peter Quill, he froze, staring blankly at the enormous, incredible sight outside the porthole.
It was a Planet.
A... Living Planet.
It had a Wei blue surface, like a flowing ocean, but a giant human face clearly emerged on it. That face wore a gentle smile, and soft light twinkled in the eyes, watching their small spaceship.
"What... What the hell is this?" Rocket was the first to break the silence, jumping onto the control panel, pointing outside, "A talking Planet? The latest Universe scam?"
"I am Groot." Groot waved his small twig.
"Exactly, this is too ridiculous!"
Quill ignored Rocket's fussing. He stared intently at that face, his lips trembling slightly. That voice, that feeling, touched the deepest chord in his heart.
"You... Who are you?" He asked into the communicator, his voice dry.
"I am Ego, Peter. I am your father."
Father.
The word exploded like a bomb in Quill's mind. He had never had a father since he was a child. Before his mother passed away, she always told him that his father was a man of light from the stars. He always thought it was just a fairy tale his mother told to comfort him.
But now, a Living Planet claimed to be his father.
This was even more outrageous than a fairy tale.
Just then, in front of that Planet, an elegantly shaped spaceship, like a White petal, slowly approached and stopped beside the milano.
"Come aboard, my child. Let us have a good talk." Ego's voice rang out again.
Quill seemed to be enchanted, instinctively wanting to pilot the spaceship closer.
"Wait!" Gamora grabbed his hand, "Don't you think this is too strange? A father who suddenly appeared? And a Planet?"
"But he... he knows my name." Quill's eyes were very complex, with suspicion, vigilance, but more of a longing he didn't even want to admit.
Chu Hang had remained silent.
He leaned against the bulkhead, watching the Planetoutside with great interest. His energy perception told him that the life energy contained in this Planet was as vast as the sea and frighteningly ancient. This was not an ordinary life form at all.
Celestials.
It was indeed him.
For Chu Hang, this was simply a top-tier experience package delivered right to his doorstep. A living Celestial, a perfect replication target. If he could replicate his life form, his own life level would definitely take a huge leap forward.
"It wouldn't hurt to go and see." Chu Hang finally spoke.
His words were like a reassurance, making the indecisive Quill make up his mind.
"Exactly, let's go see!"
The milano followed the White spaceship and slowly landed on Ego's Planet surface.
As soon as they stepped out of the hatch, everyone was stunned by the sight before them.
This place didn't look like a Planet, but more like a garden from a myth. Golden palaces rose from the ground, exotic plants emitted soft light, and the air was filled with a refreshing fragrance. Everything was perfectly unreal.
A handsome middle-aged man in a brown leather jacket, with slightly curly long hair and a beard, was standing not far away, smiling. He looked like a 1970s rock star, his eyes full of vicissitudes and tenderness.
Beside him stood a girl with antennae and large, insect-like eyes, looking somewhat timid. It was Mantis.
"Welcome to my World, Peter." The man opened his arms.
Quill looked at him, then looked back at the giant face in the sky, feeling his mind unable to process it.
"You... Aren't you a Planet?"
"That's just a part of me, my true form." Ego explained with a smile, "To travel through the Universe, I created this avatar. Isn't it much more handsome than you imagined?"
He stepped forward and gave Quill a hug.
Quill's body was stiff, but when he was embraced, a long-lost feeling of kinship surged through him. His eyes were a little red.
Chu Hang watched quietly from the side. He could feel that this avatar was just the tip of the iceberg of Ego's vast energy, like a single strand of human hair. As for Mantis beside him, her emotional fluctuations were strange, full of sympathy and fear.
"Let's go inside and talk." Ego warmly invited everyone.
In the magnificent palace, Ego told a long story. He was a God, traveling alone in the Universe for millions of years, sowing the seeds of life on countless Planets, searching for his own kind. On Earth, he met Quill's mother, fell in love, but his identity as a God prevented him from staying long.
After he left, he always wanted to go back for them, mother and son, but was delayed for various reasons. By the time he returned, she had already passed away from illness. For this, he hired Yondu to go to Earth and bring Quill, but Yondu betrayed him and kept Quill by his side.
The story was told with great emotion, and Quill listened with reddened eyes, completely immersed in the emotion of father and son reuniting.
But Gamora and Rocket felt more and more uneasy the more they listened.
"So, you've been looking for us for over twenty years, and you're only finding us now?" Rocket asked, crossing his arms, his face full of suspicion.
"The Universe is too big, child." Ego sighed, "But I never gave up."
Chu Hang found an opportunity to pull Gamora and Rocket aside.
"What do you think of this story?" he asked.
"Full of holes." Gamora said bluntly, "He's too perfect, perfectly like a liar."
"Exactly, I smell a lie." Rocket's nose twitched.
"Your feelings are right." Chu Hang lowered his voice, "This guy is very dangerous, more dangerous than any enemy you can imagine. His power is not for creation, but for devouring."
He didn't elaborate too much; they wouldn't understand if he said more.
"Then what do we do? That idiot Quill has completely believed him!" Rocket said anxiously.
"Don't worry." Chu Hang smiled, "I'm also very curious about what a Living Planet is all about. You guys just treat it as a vacation. Quill needs time to accept reality, and he also needs time to discover the truth. Don't worry, with me here, he won't be able to cause any trouble."
Chu Hang's assurance somewhat calmed Gamora and Rocket. They had all witnessed Chu Hang's power and knew he wasn't boasting.
"I want to see what he's up to." Chu Hang looked at Quill, who was playing catch with Ego, a hint of anticipation flashing in his eyes.
This was a Celestial, a treasure trove from head to toe.
After two days on Ego's Planet, Ego took Quill and showed him how to use the Godly Physique power within him, and the father and son had a great time.
Meanwhile, Chu Hang had been doing one thing.
He sat cross-legged on the palace balcony, eyes closed, his energy perception, like an invisible net, enveloped the entire Planet.
He was analyzing Ego's life frequency, locking onto his most core energy fluctuations.
"System, lock on target 'Ego' main body. Begin replication."
[Warning: Target is a Celestial life form, energy level immeasurable. Replication will cause irreversible life form changes to the host. Success rate: 12%. Continue?]
"12%?" Chu Hang frowned. This success rate was ridiculously low.
But he had no choice. This was a crucial step for him to move to a higher level. His Godly Physique, coupled with his understanding of the Law of Force, should be able to withstand this impact.
"Continue."
Boom!
An indescribable torrent of information rushed into his consciousness.
That was not energy, but pure "existence" itself.
He saw a lonely consciousness born in the void, saw how it spent millions of years slowly aggregating the dust of the Universe to create its own body—a Planet. He saw how it learned to create life, and how it became mad due to loneliness, beginning a grand plan to devour the Universe.
Chu Hang felt his body being decomposed, every cell, every atom, being rewritten by a higher-dimensional rule.
Under his skin, faint golden light began to flow. His bones were transforming into something more solid, more Eternal.
[Replication successful. Acquired SSS-Rank ability: Celestial Life Form.]
[Warning: Host life form is undergoing a Skyfather levelleap. This process will last for a certain period and is irreversible.]
Chu Hang suddenly opened his eyes and exhaled a long breath. That breath condensed into golden ice crystals in the air, then slowly dissipated.
He felt... different.
His life level was undergoing an unpredictable leap, and he roughly felt it would take ten years.
This was obviously too long.
"There should be a way to speed it up," Chu Hangthought to himself.
Just then, Ego's avatar suddenly appeared before him, the smile on his face gone, replaced by a look of surprise and uncertainty.
"You... What did you do?" Ego stared intently at Chu Hang, "I feel... the same aura on you as me."
While he was teaching Quill just now, he suddenly felt a tremor in his core consciousness, as if something was prying into his deepest secrets.
Chu Hang stood up, patted the dust off himself, and smiled.
"Nothing, perhaps it's an intuition between strong individuals."
He held out his hand, and a ball of golden energy appeared in his palm.
The energy constantly changed, eventually forming a miniature, Living Planet.
"Perhaps I am just like you."
Ego's expression completely changed.
Chapter 118 The War of the Gods
Ego's smile froze.
For the first time, the smile on his handsome, charming face solidified.
He looked at the miniature version of himself in Chu Hang's hand, and a hint of undisguised horror flashed deep in his eyes, followed by an unmistakable killing intent.
He could feel that the other party wasn't imitating, but creating.
The fundamental manipulation of matter and energy was identical to his own.
This meant that the seemingly ordinary human before him had already reached the same level as him in terms of life-form hierarchy.
"Interesting." Ego quickly composed himself and put on a smile again, though it seemed a little forced.
"It seems I'm not the only lonely traveler in the universe, friend. Are you a Celestial too?"
"Something like that." Chu Hang dispersed the energy in his hand, answering casually.
He could sense Ego's killing intent, but the other party hid it well.
Clearly, before he figured out Chu Hang's true strength and while he still needed Quill as a battery, he wasn't planning on showing his true colors.
"That's wonderful!" Ego feigned ecstasy.
He stepped forward, wanting to pat Chu Hang's shoulder, but Chu Hang subtly avoided him.
"Peter, did you hear that? We're not the only ones!" Ego turned to Quill, his voice excited.
"We are the supreme life forms in the universe, and we share a common mission!"
He took Quill aside and began to paint a grand vision.
He spoke of his expansion plan, to bring order and light to the cold universe, to integrate all life into his eternal consciousness, to become one.
Quill was completely captivated by these words.
Becoming a god, possessing eternal life, and reshaping the universe with a Celestial father – this was an irresistible temptation for him.
His face flushed with excitement, as if he could already see his future as ruler of the universe.
Chu Hang observed from the sidelines, his expression cold.
Through Mantis's almost overflowing fear and sadness, and his newly acquired Celestial senses, he had completely seen through Ego's scheme.
What expansion, what light?
To put it simply, it was about consumption.
Ego planted seeds across the universe, and once he found another offspring who could inherit his power, he would activate all the seeds, devouring all living planets in the entire universe and making them part of himself.
Those he described as having eternal life would end up as his nourishment.
Chu Hang walked to the front of the group, interrupting Ego's eloquent speech.
"Alright, stop the act." He looked at Ego and said faintly, "Isn't your plan just to turn the entire universe into your own buffet? Quill is just a battery."
Ego's face darkened.
"Friend, I don't understand what you mean."
"You don't understand?" Chu Hang turned to Quill, pointing to the ground beneath their feet.
"Aren't you curious how many bones are buried on this planet beneath your feet? Those are all your brothers and sisters, failures who couldn't inherit his power, all disposed of by him like trash."
"You're lying!" Quill retorted excitedly, taking a step forward to stand between Ego and Chu Hang.
"You're just jealous that I found my family! Who are you, an outsider, to meddle in our family affairs!"
Quill, his mind clouded by paternal love, was completely deaf to reason.
His eyes were filled with anger and the humiliation of being offended.
Chu Hang sighed. Arguing with someone who had been brainwashed was pointless.
"Fine." He ignored Quill and looked at Gamora and Rocket, "Do you two trust me?"
Gamora and Rocket exchanged glances and nodded without hesitation.
They had witnessed Chu Hang's methods and had been suspicious of the perfect Ego from the start.
"Then come with me, I'll show you something good."
With that, Chu Hang waved his hand in the air, and a spatial rift appeared out of nowhere.
He stepped in first.
Gamora, Rocket, Drax, and Groot followed closely.
Quill stood rooted to the spot, watching them disappear, then looked at the grim-faced Ego beside him, momentarily at a loss... Passing through the spatial rift, they arrived in a massive underground cavern.
In the center of the cavern was a colossal, brain-like glowing mass emitting a soft white light.
Countless glowing nerve bundles extended from the "brain," connecting to every corner of the planet.
This was Ego's core.
And around the brain, mountains and seas of skeletons were piled up.
Countless skeletons of various intelligent beings were densely packed, covering the entire cavern floor.
Some skeletons were as massive as small mountains, while others were as delicate as a child's.
They were layered upon layer, like a white ocean.
"My god..." Rocket looked at the scene before him, too stunned to speak.
He had seen countless bloody scenes, but never such a quiet and terrifying graveyard.
Gamora's face was pale.
She bent down and picked up a skull from the pile of bones; it had unique markings.
"This is a Xandarian's... I've seen it."
Drax silently watched it all, his fists clenching audibly.
He seemed to see the shadows of his wife and daughter in this mountain of bones.
"What he said... it's all true." Gamora's voice trembled.
Just then, Ego's consciousness descended.
"Outsiders, you have crossed the line!"
The entire cavern began to shake violently, and the bone mountains on the ground started to collapse.
Countless rock tentacles shot out from all directions towards Chu Hang and the others, filled with a furious intent to crush them into pulp.
"Stand behind me."
Chu Hang raised his hand, and an invisible barrier protected everyone.
The rock tentacles crashed against the barrier, shattering into dust.
"Since you're unwilling to be decent, I'll help you be decent."
Chu Hang clenched his hand in the air towards Ego's core.
[Law of Force · Distortion]
Ego's core instantly let out a sharp wail.
The gravitational, electromagnetic, strong, and weak forces that constituted it began to become chaotic at this moment.
The planet's surface began to crack, the sky changed color with swirling clouds, as if it were the end of the world.
"Ah—!"
Ego's painful roar echoed throughout the entire planet.
His handsome avatar instantly dissipated, and on the surface, an incredibly angry giant face, formed by mountains and oceans, emerged.
"I'll kill you!"
A massive energy ball, condensed from a portion of the planet's essence, shot out from the giant face's mouth, aimed directly at Chu Hang deep within the core.
Chu Hang looked up.
"Finally stopped pretending?"
He used spatial power to send Gamora and the others back to the Milano, then faced the energy ball alone.
He didn't dodge, allowing the energy ball, powerful enough to destroy a moon, to engulf him.
The light of the explosion illuminated the entire core.
Ego's giant face revealed a sinister grin.
But the next second, his smile froze.
As the light dissipated, Chu Hang floated in the air, completely unharmed, covered in a shimmering, adaptive armor.
The armor's surface was mimicking the energy impact it had just received, undergoing rapid analysis and evolution.
"Is that all you've got?" Chu Hang stretched his neck.
"Is this what they call Celestial-level? A bit weaker than I thought."
In Chu Hang's understanding, the power hierarchy in the universe was clear.
Someone like Thor, wielding a hammer, at most counted as moon-level.
Carol, in her peak state, could withstand a fleet, making her planet-level.
And someone like Ego, who was a planet himself and could manipulate matter and energy, was truly Celestial-level.
Above that were those like Odin and the Ancient One, who wielded the power of laws and dimensions, the Skyfather-level.
As for multi-universal overlords like Dormammu and the five abstract entities of the Living Tribunal, they were beyond conventional understanding.
The Ego before him, though Celestial-level, had a very singular attack style, purely energy and physical impact, not even touching the edge of true laws.
"You have truly angered me!"
Ego completely lost control.
The entire planet came alive.
Countless mountains transformed into giant hands, descending from the sky, striking at Chu Hang.
The earth cracked open into abysses, attempting to devour him.
The air grew viscous, filled with poisonous spores.
Chu Hang's figure weaved between the giant hands and abysses, like a ghost.
[Spatial Severance]!
Invisible cracks flashed, and the incoming giant hands were cleanly severed, their cuts as smooth as mirrors.
[Law of Force · Singularity]!
He pointed at the ground, and a microscopic black hole, invisible to the naked eye, appeared.
The surrounding matter and energy were frantically devoured, causing Ego's control over the planet to experience a momentary pause and chaos.
"It's over."
Chu Hang seized the opportunity.
He concentrated all his power—the life energy of the Celestials, the Law of Force, the Law of Space—into his fingertips.
He wasn't creating a weapon; he was weaving rules.
Space was folded, power was compressed, and life energy became the driving core.
A spear of pure law, shimmering with golden light, formed in his hand.
[Spear of Laws]!
He threw the spear.
The spear made no sound, nor did it tear through the sky.
It ignored all physical distance and material obstacles, appearing before Ego's core the instant it was thrown, and then... it pierced through it.
"No—!"
Ego let out one last unwilling roar.
His massive brain core, from the point of penetration, became covered in spiderweb-like cracks, and then shattered with a crash.
The entire planet began to disintegrate.
Chu Hang hovered in the collapsing core, looking at the shattered core fragments.
He felt a strong pull.
His newly formed Celestial body craved these homologous energies.
It was a hunger from the very source of life.
He spread his arms, and all the core fragments transformed into golden points of light, surging into his body like birds returning to their nest.
[Absorbing Celestial core fragments...]
[Life form transitioning...]
[Skyfather-level conversion progress: +33%]
Chu Hang closed his eyes, feeling the earth-shattering changes within his body.
He felt he was a significant step closer to Odin's level.
If before he had only touched the threshold, now, he had stepped in by one-third.
With this strength, coupled with the Star Path provided by Xandar, he could now pinpoint Earth's location!
When he opened his eyes again, Ego's planet had completely turned into cosmic dust.
The Milano was quietly parked not far away.
He took a step and appeared inside the spaceship.
Everyone looked at him with awe.
Quill's eyes were the most complex; he had lost the father he had just found, and he had also lost his so-called Celestial power, but he looked much more relaxed.
"Thank you," Quill said softly.
"No problem." Chu Hang waved his hand, "Without that power, you'll live longer."
He glanced at the crew, each with their distinct personalities, and smiled.
"Alright, my business is done, it's time to go home. Star-Lord, come with me!"
Chapter 119 Odin's Deal
On the milano, Quill was playing music. Seventies rock music, with the volume turned up high.
He had just lost his father, a God father who wanted to use him as a battery. But he didn't look sad at all; instead, he seemed to have shed some burden, feeling completely relaxed.
Chu Hang ignored him.
He sat cross-legged in the cargo hold, eyes closed, his consciousness sinking into his body.
Ego's core fragment was a good thing, elevating the energy within his body to another level. The Celestials' life form made him feel like he could manipulate matter as easily as breathing.
But he wasn't satisfied.
He wanted to try something deeper.
The Law of Force, a purple aura raged, carrying immense Heavenly might, domineering, direct, destroying everything.
The Law of Space, a serene blue like ice, calm, complex, constructing everything.
He wanted to twist them together.
The moment this thought arose, even he himself felt it was crazy. Not even Odin had tried this. But fortune favors the bold; how would he know if it wouldn't work without trying?
He mobilized a trace of the crimson Law of Force and drew in a wisp of the serene blue Law of Space.
Two threads of law, thinner than hair, slowly approached each other under his conscious control.
Then, they gently touched.
It exploded.
Not a sound, but a collapse at the rule level.
In the milano's cargo hold, space suddenly crumpled like a piece of paper, tearing open a rift out of nowhere.
It was black, non-reflective, like the deepest void of the Universe.
A tremendous suction force erupted, and the spare parts and energy canisters stacked in the cargo hold were instantly pulled in, turning into elementary particles without even a sound.
"Hey! What the hell are you doing!"
Quill, in the cockpit, jumped up, startled by the alarm and violent shaking. He looked back and saw the black hole, and Chu Hang being sucked in, swaying precariously.
"A small accident."
Chu Hang frowned, his face a little pale. He wanted to seal the rift with the Law of Space, but the conflict between the two laws inside was like a meat grinder, crushing his own power into fragments.
This rift was the gate of hell he had opened with his own hands.
Quill's startled cry was cut short halfway. He, along with his pilot's seat, was sucked into the black hole.
Immediately after, Chu Hang also lost control... The World spun.
It felt like being thrown into a tumble dryer, a superluminal one at that. His body was repeatedly pulled, torn, and reassembled by different forces.
If not for his Healing Factor and Godly Physique, he would now be a molecular cloud.
After an unknown period, the tearing force finally vanished.
Chu Hang felt himself crash heavily onto a hard, smooth surface.
He shook his head, got up, and found himself lying on a long bridge made of colorful glazed tiles. Below the bridge was a flowing river of stars, and in the distance were magnificent, golden palaces, unbelievably grand.
The air was filled with an ancient and pure energy.
This was Asgard.
He dusted himself off; Quill lay beside him, foaming at the mouth, already unconscious.
Chu Hang looked towards the end of the bridge, where Heimdall stood silently like a statue, holding his greatsword. His gaze traversed the vast distance, landing on Chu Hang, filled with scrutiny and vigilance.
And at the other end of the bridge, an old man was walking towards him.
One-eyed, dressed in golden royal robes, holding a spear named Gungnir.
The All-Father, Odin.
His steps were slow, each one revealing a weariness of approaching demise. But his single eye was brighter than the starry sky, as if it could pierce through the mists of time and discern the essence of all things.
"We finally meet, traveler from Midgard." Odin's voice was ancient, but steady.
"You knew I would come?" Chu Hang was a little surprised.
"Heimdall can see everything in the Nine Realms. But you are an exception." Odin walked up to him, a hint of admiration flashing in his single eye. "I could only see the space around you collapsing, but not your existence. Only when you stepped onto the land of Asgard did I truly see you."
Odin's gaze swept over Chu Hang's body, as if reading a very thick book.
"The Celestials' life form, the Law of Space and Force... You have embarked on a very difficult, yet very promising path."
Chu Hang's heart stirred; this old God King had seen through him at a glance.
"I imagine you have many confusions now." Odin turned and stood beside him, looking out at the distant starry sky. "About what your next step should be."
"I'd like to hear it." Chu Hang was straightforward.
This was a private tutorial from a top Universe big shot; it would be foolish not to listen.
"Skyfather level is a leap in life form, and also mastery over the laws," Odin began slowly, like a patient teacher. "As far as I know, there are several ways to reach this realm."
"The first, and weakest, is borrowing. Like the Sorcerer Supreme of Midgard, they borrow power from dimensional demon Gods to protect their own dimension. They are powerful, but the power is not truly their own. Once they lose the demon God's trust, they will revert to their original form."
Chu Hang nodded; this referred to the Ancient One.
"The second is accumulation. Relying on one's powerful bloodline, accumulating over a long period of time. For example, ordinary Celestials; they are born powerful and only need to eat and sleep to naturally grow to Skyfather level. But this path has a low ceiling, just like that Egoyou killed; he could have become Skyfather level, but unfortunately, he blindly pursued power."
"The third is specializing in one path. Comprehending a certain law to its extreme, using this law to reshape one's divine body, making oneself an embodiment of the law. I walk the Law of Thunder, and that Titan you might have heard of, Thanos, he has a natural divine body and walks the pure Law of Body. This path is very strong, but also very dogmatic, and it's easy to reach its limit."
Odin paused, his single eye turning to Chu Hang, his gaze becoming exceptionally serious.
"And you, you are on the fourth path, and the most difficult one—the path of multiple laws."
"You just tried to fuse the power of multiple laws." Odinspoke directly. "This idea is very good; once successful, your strength will far exceed any Skyfather of the same level. However, the difficulty also increases exponentially."
"Why?" Chu Hang asked the crucial question.
"Because of repulsion." Odin answered even more directly. "Laws repel each other. Once you ascend to Skyfather through a certain law, your body and soul will be completely assimilated by that law, making it very difficult to accommodate other laws. This is also why Thanos, wanting to become strong quickly, could only rely on external objects like the Infinity Stones."
Odin stretched out his hand, and in the void before him, countless boundless oceans, shimmering with different lights, appeared.
"To ascend, your spiritual will must cross this sea of laws. For every additional law you comprehend, you need to cross another sea. And each sea requires you to have a sufficiently profound understanding of that law. Otherwise, your will will be assimilated by the law, forever lost within it, becoming part of the rules."
Chu Hang looked at the illusory ocean, and his mind suddenly cleared.
Odin's words were like a key, opening a brand new door before him. Behind the door was a grand road to heaven, but it could also be an abyss of ten thousand fathoms.
"Thank you for your guidance." Chu Hang bowed sincerely.
"My time is short, and Asgard needs a guarantee." Odinlooked at him, his gaze frank. "These words were not spoken in vain. I need a promise from you."
"Tell me."
"After my Death, when my two unworthy sons cannot resolve the crisis, I need you to act for Asgard three times."
"Agreed." Chu Hang accepted without hesitation.
Three interventions for Skyfather level cultivation guidance; this was a hugely profitable deal.
Odin nodded with satisfaction.
He raised his finger and pointed it at Chu Hang's glabella.
"You have absorbed the energy of the Celestials, but you do not know how to utilize it. Asgard's ten thousand years of magic knowledge and understanding of the Nine Realms might help you stabilize it."
There was no torrent, no sharp pain.
It was like a seed falling into Chu Hang's mind.
The structure of the World Tree, the spatial connections of the Nine Realms, the energy Veins of ancient runes... countless profound knowledge took root and sprouted in his mind, instantly constructing a complete framework.
The Celestial energy within him, under the guidance of this knowledge, was no longer a runaway wild horse, but a tamed warhorse, beginning to operate orderly along specific trajectories.
He could feel that a core part of his body had completed half of its reconstruction.
He was only half a step away from Odin's level.
Chu Hang opened his eyes, feeling stronger and clearer than ever before.
"Beware of Hela." Odin withdrew his finger, his voice even more weary. "My first child, the Goddess of Death. She is stronger than both my sons combined, and even more... ambitious. This old life of mine can no longer suppress her."
Chu Hang nodded, indicating he understood.
"Alright, you may leave." Odin waved his hand, as if dismissing a passerby who had asked for directions. "Heimdall, open the gate, see our guest out."
Heimdall, standing at the end of the Bifrost Bridge, inserted his greatsword into the control panel.
A pillar of rainbow light shot into the sky.
Chu Hang carried the still unconscious Quill. For him, this unexpected journey to Asgard had yielded immense gains.
Chapter 120 The Ancient One's Gift
The Bifrost Bridge's light, like a rubber band forcibly snapped, flung him out.
One second he was tumbling among the stars, the next, his feet landed on soft grass. Chu Hang stood steadily, not a single wrinkle on his clothes.
Quill next to him was in a much worse state, landing face down like a broken sack, plowing a shallow furrow in the ground, rolling twice before stopping, lying there constantly retching.
"Ugh... where the hell is this? Where's my ship?" Quillpropped up his upper body, looking at the quiet forest around him and the city skyline faintly visible in the distance, his mind still a mess.
"Earth, New York suburbs." Chu Hang's tone was as flat as if he were stating the day's weather, "As for your spaceship, it's probably still floating in the Universe, lucky if some scavenger picks it up."
He pulled out an old Nokia phone that looked like it was from the last century and dialed Director Fury's encrypted line.
The phone rang only once before it was answered.
"It's me."
There was a moment of silence on the other end, then Fury's hoarse, slightly weary voice came through: "You've been gone for almost a year."
"Just got back from Asgard, dealt with some Universetrash on the way." Chu Hang's tone was as if he had just gone out to take out the garbage, "Brought back someone named Peter Quill, he's the grandson of an old friend of yours."
The other end of the phone fell silent again. This time, it lasted for a full ten seconds. Fury's breathing was clearly audible, heavy like a broken bellows.
"...Where are you?" Fury's voice was extremely dry, squeezing out each word.
"New York suburbs, I've sent you the coordinates, send someone to pick him up. Oh, and find a good Doctor, his father just died, he's a bit unstable emotionally." Chu Hang finished speaking and hung up directly.
He put the indestructible phone back in his pocket, looking at Quill who was still on the ground doubting his existence, finding him a bit of an eyesore.
About ten minutes later, several black SUVs sped silently, kicking up a cloud of dust. The car doors opened, and Maria Hill stepped out with a team of fully armed Agents.
When Hill saw Chu Hang, the expression on her perpetually icy face visibly stiffened. She still bit the bullet and stepped forward, maintaining a professional distance: "Mr. Chen, Director Fury sent us to..."
"He's yours." Chu Hang pointed at Quill, who was like a pile of mud on the ground, and turned to leave.
"S.H.I.E.L.D. wants to know about your whereabouts during your time away from Earth..."
Chu Hang looked back at her.
That look was very calm, without killing intent or pressure, yet it made the battle-hardened Hill feel a deep tremor from the depths of her soul. She felt as if she wasn't facing a person, but a bottomless, cold Universe.
"Tell Fury, my whereabouts are not part of the deal. The report is four words: Chen is back."
With that, his figure subtly distorted in the air, like a bad television signal, then vanished into thin air.
Chu Hang did not return to Stark Tower.
Ego's energy and Odin's knowledge surged within him, like two torrents that could burst a dam at any moment. He needed a finer scalpel to sculpt these wild forces, to carve out riverbeds for them.
Odin pointed the way, but didn't provide the tools.
He appeared directly in Kathmandu, Nepal. The air was a mix of spices, dust, and the scent of faith.
He reined in all his aura, like the most ordinary tourist, passing through crowded streets, and in the depths of an inconspicuous alley, found an ancient wooden door that looked weathered.
Pushing the door open.
In the courtyard, a bald woman in a yellow monk's robe stood with her back to him, quietly beneath a dead tree.
"You've come, bringing trouble that doesn't belong to this dimension." The Ancient One's voice didn't travel through the air, but directly in his mind.
"You knew I would come." Chu Hang walked behind her, getting straight to the point.
The Ancient One slowly turned, a knowing smile on her face. Her eyes were like two bottomless ancient wells, reflecting not Chu Hang's appearance, but the interwoven, conflicting threads of law deep within his soul.
"Odin's entrustment, I see it. The countless possibilities of your future, I also see it." The Ancient One's gaze seemed to pierce through time, "The life form of the Celestials, the laws of Space and Power, and that raw energy from the Tesseract... You are like a glass filled with different strong liquors; one more drop, and it will shatter."
"I need tools." Chu Hang said directly, "Asgard's knowledge is the blueprint, Kamar-Taj's magic is the method."
The Ancient One raised her hand, and a golden halo, composed of countless complex runes, flickered and spun at her fingertips.
"You've come hoping I'll help you cross the sea of laws. But this path you're on is even crazier than Odinimagined." The Ancient One's tone held a rare hint of admiration, "You're attempting to engrave the marks of multiple Gods onto a mortal body. This is taboo in any Universe."
She didn't immediately agree, but looked at him with those deep eyes.
"What did you see in my future?" Chu Hang asked.
The Ancient One's gaze became distant, as if she was flipping through an incredibly thick book of time.
"I saw you torn apart by laws, your soul wailing in dimensional storms for tens of thousands of years. I saw you completely erased from the river of time, clean, as if you had never existed. I saw you crushed by that mad Titan, and I also saw you become a dimensional devourer more terrifying than Dormammu..."
She paused, her gaze refocusing on Chu Hang.
"But I also saw the most impossible future. There, you stood atop a ruin, wearing that gem-encrusted gauntlet, and snapped the finger that decided everything."
The Ancient One sighed softly: "You are an unknown, an unknown existence that even time itself cannot fully constrain. I cannot change your destiny, nor do I intend to. But I can help you walk more steadily."
She extended her hand, the halo at her fingertips becoming even more brilliant and solid.
"The magic of Kamar-Taj, I can give it to you. My lifespan is short; I hope you will look after Kamar-Taj in the future."
"Deal." Chu Hang didn't hesitate.
The Ancient One touched the light from her fingertip to his forehead.
Chu Hang stayed at Kamar-Taj for a month.
He was like a greedy sponge dropped into the ocean, frantically absorbing knowledge about dimensions and mental power. During the day, the Ancient Onepersonally guided him on how to perceive, borrow, and even distort dimensional energy.
At night, he would go into the Mirror Dimension alone, unleashing the power within him without restraint.
Unlike the Ancient One, he didn't need to borrow magicfrom the Vishanti; like Loki and Odin, he cast magic using his own power, which was also why Loki complained in the original work that Doctor Strange was a second-rate mage.
He carved Asgardian lightning runes onto a magic shield, creating the "Thunderstorm Holy Shield" that could absorb and reflect energy attacks.
He integrated the law of Spatial Cutting into portals; what opened were no longer doors, but "Dimensional Blades" that could instantly cleave mountains in the Mirror Dimension.
In the first week, he tried to fuse power, blowing up half of Mirror New York.
In the second week, he was already able to stably compress the Twin Star Form's energy into a fine needle, carving on Big Ben in Mirror London.
A month later, he could individually separate Water molecules from a cup of Water and recombine them into a crystal-clear piece of ice.
His Skyfather level transformation progress steadily increased to 75%.
The day before leaving, Chu Hang saw the Ancient Oneagain in the library.
She sat quietly by the window, drinking tea, the ancient Eye of Agamotto suspended at her chest.
The Time Stone.
Chu Hang proposed that he wanted to feel the power of the Time Stone, and the Ancient One did not hesitate, because Chu Hang was not her opponent at the current stage.
"Copy," Chu Hang silently chanted in his mind.
An indescribable torrent of information from a higher dimension almost overwhelmed his conscious defenses. But with his nearly Skyfather level will, he desperately held on to the last shred of clarity.
"Detected the embodiment of the supreme law of the Universe -- the Time Stone."
"Forcibly confirming... Copying..."
"Copy complete."
"Ability acquired: Time Law. Core abilities such as time reversal and time stop cannot be used before reaching Skyfather level."
"Ability acquired: Time Stone Energy Source (SSS-Rank). Can be used as the strongest energy source and dimensional springboard."
Something new was in his mind, not complete knowledge, but more like a book's table of contents, telling him what was in the book, but not letting him read the main text.
But at the same time, a pure, seemingly inexhaustible green energy settled within him, like a newborn, gentle star.
He looked up, meeting the Ancient One's knowing eyes, which held a faint smile. She already knew.
It was done.
"Thank you." Chu Hang's gratitude this time was sincere.
"Go." The Ancient One put down her teacup, walked to him, and uncharacteristically straightened his collar, like an elder seeing off a child on a long journey, "Your journey has only just begun. Remember, do not easily use the time energy you have gained; you are gazing into the abyss, and the abyss is also gazing into you."
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