The Creator watched the scene before him without any expression. He simply turned around calmly and began his work on Jonathan Stone.
As long as he could complete the modification of Jonathan Stone's body, he would be able to retrieve the Infinity Stones for himself.
"Quicksilver, it's your turn now."
The Creator stepped aside, allowing Quicksilver to approach Human Torch.
After glancing at Conqueror Kang beside him, Quicksilver silently walked over to Human Torch and lifted him up.
"I'll send you the exact coordinates. Remember to place him inside," the Creator said, turning away and beginning his calculations and scheming for the next phase.
Quicksilver nodded. After receiving the coordinates sent by the Creator, he immediately dashed toward the designated location.
"So, do you still trust him?" the Creator asked, turning back to look at Conqueror Kang, who had previously comforted Quicksilver, curious about her current opinion of him.
"He's still useful for now."
When Conqueror Kang spoke, her tone had completely lost the gentleness she previously showed Quicksilver. Instead, she was calm — like a butcher who had spent ten years slaughtering fish.
Her heart had long grown as cold as the blade in her hand.
"How's the previous calculation coming along?"
Susan changed the topic, asking about Reed's progress. After all, what they were working on concerned the future safety of Earth.
Meanwhile, Quicksilver, carrying Human Torch, was racing toward the target destination, deeply pondering Bruce's words.
He knew he wasn't a smart guy, but he understood his own strengths. He began quickly replaying every encounter he had with Conqueror Kang.
Whether it was their first meeting or everything that came after, he started reassessing it all.
Especially the things that bat had warned him about — he paid close attention to the Creator's and the others' attitudes toward him.
Once, Quicksilver had placed complete trust in Conqueror Kang, believing she was the person he missed so dearly — his sister, Wanda.
But now, with everything laid bare before him, Quicksilver finally realized that Conqueror Kang had merely borrowed Wanda's identity to get close to him.
Conqueror Kang had done everything perfectly.
Whether it was Wanda's subtle gestures or the way she treated him.
But in the end, she wasn't Wanda — not the woman who wielded scarlet magic.
Some things simply couldn't be imitated.
For instance, Wanda would never force him to do anything.
Of course, there were special exceptions.
Thinking of Wanda, even though Quicksilver had long since stopped showing his sadness easily, his eyes now brimmed with longing and love for her.
Once, even though many knew the truth about them, they still lived freely and happily.
But why was it that now, with only himself left, everything felt so wrong?
As Quicksilver pondered, he arrived at the coordinates the Creator had sent him.
It was a massive pit — a hole dug when the Creator commanded the Herbitron robots to drill toward the Earth's core, although the robots couldn't withstand the core's intense heat.
That was why the Creator needed Human Torch. Even though his powers required oxygen, he could indeed endure high temperatures.
And that alone made him worth the Creator's efforts.
"I'm approaching the excavation site," Quicksilver reported, clearing his mind. Right now, he wanted to see what exactly these people were planning — especially Reed Richards.
"Good. Quicksilver, take Human Torch as deep as you can. Once you do, I'll begin remote operations."
Following the Creator's instructions, Quicksilver plunged into the pit, carrying Human Torch.
"Done."
Quicksilver had reached the deepest point he could — any further and he would be diving into the churning magma, where remnants of melted Herbitron robots were still faintly visible.
It was clear how much effort the Creator had invested to obtain the Infinity Stones.
Receiving Quicksilver's response, the Creator spoke to him with an excited tone.
"Thank you. Now, what happens next will be unforgettable. Quicksilver, I suggest you run for your life — the faster, the better. Human Torch is about to turn into a supernova."
Frankly, the Creator didn't even need to warn him. The moment Quicksilver saw Human Torch beginning to glow, he immediately dashed upward at full speed.
Yet, even so, the energy erupting from Human Torch's body blasted chunks of rock outward — far faster than even Quicksilver's speed.
Had he not fled quickly enough, he would have been riddled with stones like a sieve.
Meanwhile, in Midtown Manhattan—
The Howling Commandos, led by Nick Fury, had fully mobilized. Hercules, the demigod, had no intention of obeying Nick Fury's orders. He charged ahead without hesitation.
In his eyes, no one had the authority to command him.
Everyone had to answer to his fists first.
"Hercules, calm down!" Nick Fury tried to persuade the Greek powerhouse to act according to their current battle plan. But Hercules couldn't care less.
"I can finally feel the thrill of crushing steel into scrap with my own hands!"
What Hercules savored was the raw pleasure of overwhelming force — not the cautious, methodical style typical of special operatives.
"Enemy attack!"
Frank Castle, the Punisher — one of those Fury had pulled out of prison — immediately raised the alarm to the others.
"Howling Commandos—"
"You're serious, Nick?"
Before Fury could finish shouting, Monica interrupted him. She had thought Fury named their squad "Howling Commandos" just to honor the heroic legacy of Captain America's original team.
She hadn't expected Fury to actually adopt it as their current task force's codename.
"Ladies and gentlemen, my ex-wife Monica Zhang is still criticizing my sense of style."
"And you're still a sexist bastard, so I guess we're even?"
Listening to Monica's words, Nick Fury could only sigh helplessly. Still, he shouted the final command:
"—Attack!!!"
Cassie Lang, daughter of Ant-Man, had joined S.H.I.E.L.D. long ago when her father was still part of the Ultimates, becoming the leader of the reserve Giant-Man squad.
Now, her codename was "Statue."
Cassie was the first to transform, growing into a giantess as she punched an incoming Herbitron robot.
Meanwhile, Nick Fury fired at the Herbitron robots while shouting orders to others.
"Abigail! Shoot those things down!"
Abigail Brand, codename Outsider, could generate and release an unknown type of energy for attack.
She had been the first recruit Nick Fury brought into the Howling Commandos.
The energy blasts she unleashed could easily tear through the Herbitron robots' armor, inflicting heavy damage.
"Hahaha! This feels amazing!" a man in a specialized combat suit laughed loudly as he tore a Herbitron robot apart with his bare hands.
Emil Blonsky, codename Abomination, had risked everything by injecting himself with experimental serum to become a soldier capable of rivaling the Hulk.
However, likewise, for the rest of his life, he could only live beneath that specially-made battle suit.
"Stop laughing! Your laugh is unbearable!"
As the only relatively normal person here, Dum-Dum Dugan was currently tearing through the damned armor of the robots with shot after shot from his firearm.
But all this only created an opportunity for others.
Suddenly, a man spewed flames from his mouth, and in an instant, the blazing fire reduced the group of Herbitron robots in front of him to a field of scrap.
"Hey! Watch it!"
This attack nearly affected Falcon—Sam Wilson—who was conducting reconnaissance in the sky.
Danny Ketch, codenamed Ghost Rider, although his fire-breathing attack looked a bit like a circus trick, had to admit that his ability was extremely effective against these robots that couldn't withstand high temperatures.
"Sorry."
Danny Ketch muttered an insincere apology and then immediately continued his assault.
"Looks like Nick Fury's newly recruited crazies are doing pretty well too!"
Stark laughed heartily when he saw this scene. His suit had long since been summoned to his side under his control, though at the moment, he was still unable to physically enter the armor.
The pain of having his head split open was indeed miserable.
Yet, this situation helped Stark discover an entirely new combat method, especially when paired with his now fully reconfigurable armor. No one could cause him any harm.
Meanwhile, Gwen and Jessica displayed excellent teamwork. With almost no injuries, they managed to completely dismantle the Herbitron robots.
Among all this, the most eye-catching figure was the one constantly flickering with golden light.
Extreme speed brought with it extreme power.
Every punch Bruce threw smashed the Herbitron robots in front of him into tiny fragments.
It was pure domination.
At the same time, the Herbitron robot that Bruce had earlier taken control of in the Negative Zone also began to move.
It headed towards the cell where Captain America and the others were held, easily walking right in.
Thor and Hawkeye didn't think much of it—after all, it wasn't like someone could just break them out.
But Captain America understood very well what the figure now standing before him truly represented.
"Since this is based on previously stored information, my control over this unit may be revoked very soon. Therefore, you must remember every word I'm about to say."
The voice coming from the Herbitron robot was indeed the voice of Batman, which calmed Captain America down.
He flexed his limbs—though there were no real restraints here, it was still necessary to warm up before a fight.
At that moment, the energy gate opened.
"I'll open a portal to Alpha One in five minutes. I'll meet you there."
Captain America wasn't surprised by the bat's words at all. He was already preparing to go out and smash those guys' faces in.
Meanwhile, in Midtown Manhattan, a figure was speeding toward the direction of the Roaring Commandos.
It was Quicksilver.
Just moments ago, the Creator had controlled the Human Torch to extract the last Infinity Stone from the Earth's core.
However, after obtaining the Infinity Stone, Quicksilver didn't proceed to Alpha One as originally planned. Instead, he sprinted toward Bruce and the others.
When Conqueror Kang first convinced him to retrieve the Infinity Stone from the city for the Creator, Quicksilver thought Wanda had returned. Even later, when the Creator asked him to do other things, he still had no doubts.
Because the Creator had said just one thing to Quicksilver:
"Wanda asked you to do this."
That was enough for Quicksilver to fully trust the Creator.
But now, he realized he had only helped another madman bring about the complete destruction of this planet.
And he had become the madman's blade.
Now, he no longer wished to be that blade.
"Bat!"
Quicksilver shouted as he hurled the Infinity Stone toward Bruce.
Quicksilver could feel that Conqueror Kang had already noticed something was wrong and was rushing this way.
When Kang saw that Quicksilver was no longer heading for Alpha One, she realized he had learned the truth.
Now, her only choice was to intercept him halfway.
She hoped to reclaim the Infinity Stone.
Conqueror Kang appeared in the sky. She had long since mastered the ability to manipulate light to tear through matter, and now she instantly condensed a dagger and hurled it at Quicksilver.
At the same time, Bruce's entire body began to flash with golden lightning.
Now Bruce faced a decision: save Quicksilver or save the Infinity Stone.
However, not everyone shared this dilemma.
The Infinity Stone was far too close to Conqueror Kang, and so was the dagger she had thrown at Quicksilver.
Conqueror Kang eagerly reached out to grab the Infinity Stone, but just then, a flash of golden lightning shot past her.
The Infinity Stone was no longer before her.
And her dagger missed its target.
Bruce's body was still crackling with golden lightning, but now both the Infinity Stone and Quicksilver were safe under his protection.
"This is impossible!"
Conqueror Kang couldn't believe what had just happened. In her mind, this was utterly inconceivable.
She had once calculated Quicksilver's speed—no matter how fast he ran, there was no way he could dodge her attacks.
By that logic, Bruce should have been no different.
After all, the laws of physics should still pose some obstacles to speedsters.
"Hey! You're a Speed Force user now, Bat!" Barry shouted in Bruce's mind. "Don't think about stupid trolley problems, don't think about the laws of physics! Just run!"
"Run, Bruce!! Run!!!"
(End of Chapter)
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