Thanos reached through the energy prison without hesitation and grabbed Sisythos by the head. His massive hand pierced the containment field directly as he lifted the weakened demon god upward.
"I'm not interested in ancient stories," Thanos said impatiently. "Tell me why the Space Stone can't send me into Earth's core."
The pressure from that enormous hand immediately made Sisythos uncomfortable.
Even though he currently possessed an energy body rather than a physical one, the oppressive force radiating from Thanos still made him feel instinctive fear.
Still, he remained relatively calm and answered weakly, "Because a magical barrier exists within the core of Earth. Nobody can enter it unless they absorb the celestial energy released there once every thousand years."
Thanos frowned slightly.
"What does that mean?"
"Crack… crack…"
Sisythos instinctively tried to laugh, but the terrifying pressure on his skull instantly intensified. Realizing Thanos had no patience for games, he stopped immediately.
"Release me," Sisythos said carefully, "and I'll explain everything. Why ancient gods appeared on Earth. Why the Celestials value this planet so much. All the secrets hidden here."
Thanos lowered his head and thought silently for a few seconds before finally nodding.
"Fine."
As one of Earth's oldest ancient gods, Sisythos was even older than the Collector. More importantly, his strength and knowledge meant he almost certainly understood truths ordinary cosmic beings had never discovered.
Seeing Thanos agree, Sisythos began speaking.
"If the Celestials wish to create more Celestials, they must use planets as incubation vessels. A celestial embryo is planted inside a world and nurtured until birth."
"The strength of the newborn Celestial depends on two things. First, the quality of the embryo itself. Second, the amount of energy it absorbs during incubation."
His expression gradually became more serious.
"But Earth is different."
"The embryo hidden inside this planet is unlike any other. Its potential is terrifying beyond imagination. When the Ten Celestials arrived on Earth long ago, they personally infused the embryo with an enormous quantity of cosmic energy."
Sisythos paused briefly before continuing.
"That level of energy should have created a being at least capable of reaching single-universe level power."
"However, regardless of how extraordinary the embryo was, it still couldn't fully contain such an immense amount of energy. Small portions of that power constantly leaked outward over countless ages."
"And it was by absorbing that leaking energy that ancient beings like myself grew so quickly."
Thanos listened silently while rapidly organizing the information in his mind.
So that was the truth.
Earth's special nature wasn't accidental.
It was because an incomparably powerful Celestial embryo was sleeping inside the planet itself.
Sisythos continued speaking.
"Eventually, rumors about Earth spread throughout the universe. More and more alien civilizations arrived to study the planet. They wanted to understand why Earth continuously produced such powerful ancient beings."
"Countless experiments were conducted here. Wars broke out constantly."
"Those so-called colorful gods humans worshipped in ancient times were merely projections and avatars sent by higher beings into Earth's battlefield."
"Even though most of those avatars only possessed single-universe level strength, the destruction they caused was catastrophic."
"The ancient powerhouses of Earth eventually fought back against the invaders. Some escaped. Some died. Others were sealed away into alternate dimensions where they remained trapped, waiting for the celestial energy cycle that occurs once every thousand years."
His eyes dimmed slightly.
"I was fortunate enough to escape Earth alive."
"Later, however, I learned that the Celestials feared something going wrong with the embryo. To ensure the planet's safety, they assigned a god to secretly monitor Earth and established a powerful magical barrier around the core."
"That barrier only opens once every thousand years, during the period when the Celestials replenish the embryo's energy."
After hearing the explanation, Thanos immediately understood why the Space Stone had failed earlier.
It wasn't a problem with the Infinity Stone itself.
The entire core of Earth had been sealed off by the Celestials.
But another thought suddenly appeared in his mind.
Jamil.
If Jamil had been monitoring Earth this entire time, then he absolutely knew about the barrier.
Could the other party be worried that Thanos' world-destroying power might damage the planet itself?
No…
That explanation didn't fully make sense.
Even if Jamil's true body couldn't descend directly, a projection or clone should still be capable of interfering if necessary.
Unless…
A realization slowly formed in Thanos' mind.
The gods probably couldn't intervene freely.
There had to be restrictions placed upon them, likely connected to entities such as Death or Annihilation.
Perhaps certain abilities existed that could directly kill the true body through destroying a clone. Or maybe their opponents possessed methods capable of absorbing the power and consciousness of divine avatars.
Otherwise, why wouldn't the Celestials simply send their own projections to fight against cosmic threats personally?
Why spend countless ages cultivating superheroes and manipulating civilizations into acting as their pawns?
Because they were afraid.
Afraid of something capable of harming them permanently.
And if that was true…
Then why was Death acting so strangely?
Was her goal to remain hidden on Earth and wait for Galactus to arrive before assisting him against the Celestials?
Or was she worried that Thanos obtaining the Reality Stone would interfere with some greater plan?
But why would the Reality Stone matter so much?
The Reality Stone possessed the power to alter physical existence itself.
Besides Thanos…
Who needed it the most?
Suddenly, another name surfaced in his memory.
Galactus.
More specifically…
The Lifebringer form of Galactus.
If Thanos remembered correctly, Galactus possessed another state entirely. In that form, he no longer devoured planets but instead restored life to dead worlds.
And the Lifebringer version of Galactus possessed extraordinarily terrifying combat power.
However, achieving that transformation required a very special kind of energy.
Something capable of rewriting physical reality itself.
The Reality Stone fit those conditions perfectly.
Just as Thanos was sinking deeper into thought, Deep Blue's voice suddenly echoed throughout the chamber.
"Master, a terrifying lifeform has appeared outside the Milky Way. The Cosmic Coalition has already been defeated."
Thanos immediately snapped out of his thoughts and released Sisythos.
"Activate the projection."
This…
This must have been what Death meant when she claimed she would help solve his troubles.
The next second, a massive projection appeared in front of him.
The moment Thanos saw the figure on-screen, his eyes narrowed slightly.
Just as expected.
The creature was a gigantic humanoid entity more than ten times larger than Earth itself. Purple armor covered its body while a horned helmet rested atop its head like a cosmic crown.
Galactus.
One of the so-called Five Cosmic Gods.
Although technically speaking, calling Galactus a "creator god" wasn't entirely accurate.
The other cosmic entities represented universal laws themselves. Eternity, Infinity, Death, Oblivion—they embodied concepts that governed existence.
Galactus was different.
He wasn't a law.
He was a mechanism.
A cosmic function created to maintain universal balance through destruction and consumption.
That was why Galactus possessed manifestations throughout countless universes simultaneously. Killing one incarnation meant almost nothing because another always existed elsewhere.
Which was also why Galactus was frequently used as a benchmark for measuring combat power.
At this moment, the gigantic cosmic being was slowly advancing toward the Milky Way.
Meanwhile, the vast Cosmic Coalition fleet had completely collapsed into panic and retreat.
But then Galactus opened his mouth.
Even within the vacuum of space, terrifying gravitational force erupted outward instantly.
Countless warships were pulled helplessly toward him.
Then—
Crunch.
The enormous cosmic entity swallowed most of the coalition fleet in a single bite.
Billions of warships disappeared instantly.
At minimum, that level of power already stood firmly at single-universe level strength.
No wonder Galactus was treated as a standard unit for measuring cosmic threats.
At that moment, Sisythos suddenly spoke from inside the prison.
"Hurry! Release me! Let me leave now!"
Thanos turned toward the terrified ancient demon god with visible curiosity.
"You're afraid of him?"
As he spoke, he pointed toward the projected image of Galactus.
The moment Sisythos looked at the Devourer of Worlds, his entire body trembled slightly.
"He is the natural enemy of all existence," Sisythos said with visible fear. "Galactus possesses the cosmic law of devouring itself."
His voice became increasingly unstable.
"He can even devour a being's true body through destroying its clone manifestations."
"Tell me… who in this universe wouldn't fear him?"
.....
Can't wait to read more exciting chapters then what are you waiting for Join my p*atreon right now.
Get 60+ Premium chapters.
Link: p*atreon.com/Earthly_Writer (Remove the *)
2 Chapters for all free members.