Hearing Grandpa Max's words, Benjamin remained silent.
Grandpa Max looked at Benjamin, silently reached for the remote control nearby, and gently pressed a button.
Accompanied by the sound of machinery, the window on one side of the garage slowly opened.
Outside the window, a bustling city came into view, with skyscrapers standing tall and streets filled with traffic.
And in the direction directly facing the city, a huge statue stood in the center of the square, emitting a golden glow under the setting sun.
"Ben Tennyson, the savior of the entire Universe," Grandpa Max murmured the words below the statue, a hint of emotion in his voice, "But I just wish you were still the Ben who loved drinking slushies, eating chili fries, and playing Sumo Slammers. How long has it been since you last played Sumo Slammers?"
Benjamin looked at the square, where several children were laughing and playing around the statue, vying to pose for photos beneath it.
"It's been a long time."
"Ben!"
Benjamin looked up, his eyes no longer confused, replaced by an unprecedented determination. He looked directly at Grandpa Max, his tone steady: "I understand, Grandpa."
He had originally planned to forcibly keep Gwen.
Gwen's memory not being restored was equivalent to a failure.
He wanted to try to restore Gwen's memory, even if the cost was overwriting all her previous memories.
He just wanted his cousin back.
However, Grandpa's words made him realize something.
This was unfair to Gwen's current family, and unfair to Gwen herself.
So, he had thought it through.
"What do you understand?" Just then, an old and angry voice suddenly rang out, "Are you still expecting me to help you send her back?"
Obviously, the owner of this voice had a lot of complaints about Benjamin.
Benjamin was startled and quickly turned his head to find the source of the voice.
When he saw the short, old-frog-like Galvan, his eyes instantly lit up with surprise: "Azmuth?"
Azmuth walked forward angrily, his tentacle-like whiskers trembling slightly with irritation: "Of course it's me, otherwise who did you think it was? Albedo? Always causing trouble!"
Hearing Azmuth's words, Benjamin felt a bit awkward.
Not long after Ben Tennyson furiously killed Vilgax, Albedo escaped from Galvan.
At that time, Benjamin was fully engrossed in making Gwen's broken watch, and countless failures combined with his longing for Gwen had filled him with pent-up anger.
Albedo's appearance at this time to cause trouble became an outlet for his frustration.
That battle made Albedo truly realize how terrifying Ben Tennyson could be when he was angry.
When he proudly transformed into Ultimate Humungousaur, he found that Ben Tennyson on the opposite side had transformed into Four Arms Way Big.
And then... audacious villain.mp4.
Ultimate Humungousaur, completely overwhelmed in both size and strength, fell into despair.
Then Albedo frantically transformed into Ultimate Gravattack.
As a result, the other side stopped pretending.
What is Alien X? He couldn't even defeat Atomix!
Finally, under Azmuth's bewildered gaze, Albedo ran back to Galvan, crying and promising never to cause trouble again.
This series of actions even made Azmuth a bit bewildered, and he uncharacteristically instinctively comforted Albedo twice.
But Azmuth was Azmuth after all, and it wasn't long before he reverted to his usual attitude, dismissively pushing Albedo onto Benjamin.
However, it must be said that after Albedo was pushed over, although he and Benjamin argued every now and then, as the chief assistant in developing the Omnitrix and the perfecter of the Ultimatrix, he still offered many sound suggestions.
Of course, after every high-intensity taunt of Benjamin, being dragged to the training room for a solo session was Albedo's own fault.
But ultimately, this villain could be considered reformed.
Azmuth stood with his hands on his hips, continuing to scold incessantly, his tentacles twitching with excitement: "I have so many things to deal with every day, constantly busy, and now I even have to specially come over to clean up your mess, kid!"
Benjamin was scolded, his face full of embarrassment, and he awkwardly scratched his head.
Azmuth glared at him, his gaze falling on the Ultimatrix on Benjamin's wrist and the watch next to it.
He leaned in closer, squinting to examine it carefully. After a long while, he snorted: "It's not entirely useless; the idea is quite creative."
Benjamin knew in his heart Azmuth's evaluation of the other party in the merged Ben 10 Universe, and he gave a wry smile, saying, "Azmuth, you can tell the truth."
"Garbage."
"That's... a bit much."
...In the lab, Gwen stood with her arms crossed, looking helplessly at Benjamin by the workbench, then at the cheerful Grandpa Max next to him, and finally settled on Azmuth, who was standing on the table, intently fiddling with his Omnitrix, her mouth twitching involuntarily.
"So, you've just given up on keeping me in this Universe and plan to send me back?" Gwen said, her arms crossed, her tone full of helplessness and confusion, "What plot did I miss? I just had a meal, and suddenly you decided to send me away?"
Azmuth didn't even lift his head, his hands, somewhat thick for his size, were adjusting the Omnitrix, and he mumbled, "You can go back, and you're still being picky?"
Gwen raised an eyebrow, took a few steps forward, and stood by the workbench: "This feels like being frantically called over, only to be told it's nothing, and then being sent away. Would you be happy if that happened to you?"
Hearing this, Azmuth irritably stopped what he was doing and looked at Gwen: "Or would you rather stay?"
Gwen instantly broke into a sweet smile: "I'm sorry, I was being ungrateful."
Azmuth snorted coldly and handed the adjusted Omnitrix to Gwen: "Take this. I've added some new programs. After activating timeline synchronization, no matter which Universe you're in, you can communicate with me, Ben Tennyson, and Mark through this watch."
Gwen was about to ask why she needed to communicate, but then her peripheral vision caught Benjamin staring intently at her, a hint of barely concealed sorrow in his eyes, while Grandpa Max smiled gently, his gaze soft and full of anticipation like a parent looking at his child. The words on her lips were swallowed back.
She could only purse her lips helplessly and nod gently.
Azmuth watched her put the watch back on before continuing: "Your Omnitrix is now directly connected to Primus's gene code river. Ben Tennyson didn't have the authority before, so he couldn't directly connect his self-made Omnitrix, but you managed to bridge it by using his Omnitrix as a springboard."
"So what's the difference now?" Gwen touched the familiar broken watch, feeling especially at ease.
Azmuth smiled: "Difference? From now on, you can store DNA in the Primus River."
Gwen hadn't yet realized what use this would be when Azmuth continued, "Aren't you in another Universe? That Universe should have different aliens than ours. If you encounter any, remember to collect their DNA."
Gwen's eyes widened, and she looked at Azmuth blankly. After a long moment, she finally managed to blurt out, "So you're treating me like a DNA collector for other Universes, right?"
"Yes. Get ready to go. You contact me when you're ready." With that, Azmuth shimmered with light and disappeared.