The Sun, the star that birthed life on Earth, was now the focus of the entire Multiverse.
After more than half a month of silence, unusual fluctuations finally emerged from the center of that boiling sea of energy.
Inside the Alliance's monitoring center, the piercing alarm sounded again, but this time, it brought not despair, but ecstasy!
"Energy readings are soaring! Abnormal focusing of the solar core radiation stream has occurred!"
The technician's voice was distorted with excitement.
"It's Mark! He's about to awaken!"
Rui Jia sprang from the command chair, her hands gripping the edge of the control panel so tightly her knuckles turned white.
After more than half a month of agonizing waiting, and countless times waking up from nightmares, she finally saw a glimmer of hope.
White Lion let out a low, excited roar, its mane bristling without wind, and the entire headquarters was filled with an uncontrollable anticipation and tension.
At the same time, deep within the Sun's unimaginable heat, a silent transformation was nearing its end.
Mark Grayson hovered at the edge of the solar core, surrounded by tangible golden energy; his body seemed to be composed of light, every inch of his skin flowing with the power of a star.
All the scars left by Old Mark had vanished, and his new body contained even more terrifying energy than before.
In the depths of his consciousness, the long darkness was receding, and a powerful, new sensation surged through his entire body like a tide.
His fingers were the first to twitch slightly, causing subtle ripples in the surrounding plasma.
Then, his eyelids fluttered, and slowly opened.
From his molten-gold pupils, a light even more dazzling than the Sun's core erupted, piercing through layers of plasma and even instantly overloading observation satellites orbiting Earth!
Boom!!!!
An invisible, indescribably vast aura suddenly exploded from him, spreading outwards in a spherical, supernova-like energy pulse!
The entire Sun seemed to tremble.
Giant solar prominences were violently pushed up by this force, forming spectacular fountains of fire millions of kilometers across, sunspot activity suddenly intensified, followed by intense solar flares and coronal mass ejections, and the entire Solar System's electromagnetic environment instantly became extremely chaotic.
Amidst this earth-shattering awakening, a faint yet resilient energy shield struggled to withstand the terrifying aftershocks of the explosion.
Beneath the shield was the sole remaining Titan Avatar.
Its already dim light now flickered precariously, like a candle in the wind.
It had used the most advanced stealth technology to infiltrate the Sun's depths, intending to find Mark, but it had arrived just in time for his awakening.
This cosmic-creation-like power nearly blew its Avatar apart, annihilating it!
"Truly... astonishing power..."
The Titan Avatar's core processing unit was almost overloaded; it recorded the terrifying data, its core filled with an indescribable shock and a hint of fear.
It had no doubt that the current Mark possessed the power to instantly destroy its Avatar.
The energy explosion gradually subsided, and Mark fully awakened; he looked around and instantly locked onto the familiar energy body drifting in the energy storm.
"Titan?"
Mark's voice vibrated directly through the vacuum, carrying a trace of post-awakening hoarseness and deep confusion.
His molten-gold pupils looked at the Avatar struggling to maintain its shield, his brows slightly furrowed.
"Why are you here, and where are your other two companions?"
The Titan Avatar stabilized itself and quickly flew in front of Mark, its light flickering, revealing an unprecedented weakness and urgency.
"Mark Grayson, it is good to see you recovered, and even stronger."
The Titan's thought waves were no longer as cold and arrogant as before, but carried a hint of undeniable haste.
"We have suffered an unprecedented attack... almost... extinction."
Mark's pupils constricted slightly.
Although he never fully trusted the Titan Clan, hearing that an ancient civilization calling itself the New Gods was almost annihilated still shocked him.
"Who did it?"
"An existence... we could not contend with."
The Titan Avatar's fluctuations carried deep lingering fear.
"The oldest, most powerful Great Old Ones... even just an Avatar, its power far exceeded imagination; it suddenly appeared in our hiding place and launched an attack... we were defenseless, and the other two Avatars sacrificed themselves to cover me... they have fallen."
It concealed the truth that they had brought disaster upon themselves by trying to control Old Mark, packaging a self-inflicted catastrophe as an innocent victim suffering undeserved misfortune.
"The oldest... most powerful Great Old Ones?"
Mark repeated the title, an alarm ringing in his heart.
Old Mark alone had already plunged him into a bitter struggle; how terrifying must an even more powerful entity, or even its Avatar, be.
"Its goal is to destroy everything, to devour all Universes."
The Titan Avatar continued its performance, its tone heavy and sincere.
"We must stop it, but with my current power, I cannot even contend with a faint projection of it; we need your help, Mark Grayson."
Mark's gaze sharply fixed on the other party.
"If your Titan Clan cannot deal with such an existence, what can I do?"
"You have potential, Mark."
The Titan Avatar's tone became highly seductive.
"You are one of the most special individuals we have ever seen; your growth rate defies all logical deductions, and more importantly, you are currently the only one who can directly resist the Great Old Ones' corruption and survive."
It paused, then revealed its true purpose.
"I need you to use the equipment we previously provided to traverse the Multiverse and search for information about this oldest Great Old Ones: its true name, its weaknesses, its sealed location, anything that might restrain it!"
"Only by understanding it can we hope to find a way to defeat it!"
"In return."
The Titan Avatar's light became solemn.
"Within my capabilities, I will unconditionally provide you and your Universe with the Titan Clan's advanced technological support, assist you in building defenses, and, during your absence, I will personally guard Universe 9; as long as that oldest entity does not personally descend, I am confident in handling other threats."
Mark was silent, his molten-gold pupils as deep as the Multiverse.
He quickly processed the explosive information brought by the Titan Clan and a nearly impossible request.
The vast difference in the Titan Clan's attitude made him instinctively suspicious; this was not their usual high-and-mighty, calculating-profit style.
But the threat of the oldest Great Old Ones was simply too immense to dismiss.
And... he glanced at the Titan Avatar's obviously weakened state, a cold sneer in his heart.
If only they had known this would happen, they wouldn't have been so secretive in the first place.
"Alright."
Mark finally nodded, his voice steady and strong.
"I will go, but remember your promise, Titan. If I return to find any problems with my Universe, or if you have concealed anything..."
He didn't finish, but the cold killing intent was clearly conveyed.
The Titan Avatar's light flickered slightly.
"By the continued existence of the Titan Clan, I swear."
After reaching an agreement, the two transformed into two streaks of light, instantly shooting out from the Sun's surface and speeding towards Earth.
Mark's return caused a huge sensation in the Alliance and GDA; seeing that he had not only fully recovered from his injuries but also possessed an unfathomably deep aura, everyone breathed a sigh of relief and erupted in enthusiastic cheers.
However, after a brief celebration, Mark immediately called a high-level meeting, succinctly explaining the situation and his decision to travel to the Multiverse to find answers.
The conference room fell silent.
Having just welcomed hope, they were now faced with separation and greater uncertainty again, and everyone's mood was heavy.
Especially Rui Jia, her face instantly turned pale, her lips trembled slightly, but she ultimately did not utter words of protest.
She simply walked forward, hugged Mark tightly, buried her head deep in his chest, her voice choked.
"You must come back... I'll wait for you."
Mark hugged her back tightly, whispering, "Wait for me to return."
This scene was witnessed by Eve, who had rushed over; she paused, her eyes complex as she watched the embracing pair, finally just silently lowering her head, leaning against the door, her fists quietly clenching.
There was no more time for lingering goodbyes.
Mark took the device, already prepared by the technical staff and given its final adjustments by the Titan Clan, and looked deeply at everyone present, especially Rui Jia, who was bravely holding back tears.
"Guard our home," he said finally.
The next moment, he activated the shuttle.
A powerful spatial force enveloped him, tearing open a passage to an unknown Universe before everyone's eyes.
Mark stepped into it without hesitation.
The passage quickly closed, as if it had never appeared.
Only the people in the conference room, with their varied emotions, and the Titan Avatar, whose light was dim and uncertain, remained, having promised to stand guard.
The journey through the Multiverse had officially begun.
And both hope and crisis lay hidden in that endless unknown.
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