Chapter 275: Rampaging Chaos
To be honest, ever since a Multiversal God emerged from Earth-1543681, the status of this universe had been rapidly rising throughout the Omniverse.
Following the defeat of Shuma-Gorath, the glory of the God of Xenomorphs shone across the Multiverse. The number of visitors who had already entered this universe grew, and they now explored this world in greater detail. They suspected that there might be something special about this place; otherwise, how could it have nurtured a bizarre creature like the Xenomorph, let alone the God of Xenomorphs who ruled over them?
But after searching high and low, they were astonished to find that, if one were to exclude the factor of the Xenomorphs, this universe was utterly unremarkable, far too mediocre.
Even after scouring its history, they couldn't find anything that could remotely be considered a highlight.
Gradually, everyone came to a conclusion: the only special thing was Du Wa.
Therefore, by extension, all other people and things in this universe were equally unremarkable and not worthy of excessive attention.
Scarlet Witch, of course, was no different. No one would care about this Mutant, even if she was the offspring of Magneto.
Krakoa, the Living Island.
Mutants were continuously returning to this "Utopia"—although it was no longer a particularly special place. The era had long since changed. The precarious days of the Mutants were a thing of the past, something that would only appear in history textbooks.
Racial conflict? Sorry, but such ploys were simply not worth mentioning in the age of the Xenomorphs. The moment Du Wa naturally extended his new order to the Entire Universe, the only group distinction that remained was between Xenomorph and non-Xenomorph. There was nothing else.
Thus, Krakoa, which was originally established to create a Utopia for Mutants, had now lost its initial value. However, out of habit, many Mutants would still periodically visit the Living Island to see old friends.
"In this battle, we lost many of our kindred, but they have all been resurrected."
Mystique tossed the report in her hand onto the table. Her gaze shifted to the other side of the conference table, toward a very quiet, ordinary-looking Mutant. "Moira, why didn't you participate in the war?"
Moira closed the book in her hands and said gently, "That's a good question. Du Wa did not give me a command."
"No command means you have tacit permission to do nothing? This was a universe-level war. You can't just rest on your laurels forever."
"My apologies. What I need to do is remain quiet when I am not needed. After all, I can do far more than you can imagine, and with your status, you aren't qualified to know what I have done." Moira maintained a stable emotional state throughout.
"That's enough, Raven. I know you died once, so your nerves are on edge, but you were resurrected, weren't you?" Magneto chided.
Raven pressed her lips together. This Mutant, who would be considered an old woman among ordinary humans, was also a Xenomorph. Although she hadn't fought in the cosmos, she had been responsible for cleaning up the infiltrating Cthulhu monsters, coming into close contact with that eerie corruption.
Without the protection she had as a Xenomorph, her mind would have long since been twisted, and she would have gone completely insane.
But then again, even if the corruption could be prevented, the experience of it was real, and the fact that she had nearly been reclaimed by Death was also real, despite being forcefully pulled back from the brink by Du Wa's power.
The harder one had fought, the more inexplicably displeasing it was to see someone like Moira living a life of peace and quiet. Raven truly didn't know much about Moira's past, only that this person had appeared out of thin air and could easily command a large number of Xenomorphs, even mobilizing the elite ones at will.
She had thought Moira was some incredible powerhouse, but it turned out she would hide whenever things got tough and disappear whenever trouble arose. And now, with the great battle against the Cancerverse erupting and all Xenomorphs joining the fray, contributing their strength in different zones, Moira was still on Krakoa, not moving an inch!
The proud and arrogant Raven, having fought to the death and returned to see Moira, felt her composure instantly shatter.
"Even Thor led Asgard into battle! Queen Sindr led Muspelheim's Fire Giants and Lava Giants out in full force! And then there are people like Hela and Black Bolt, also active on the battlefield. Many of them aren't even Xenomorphs; if they die, they might really be dead forever!"
"I see... Perhaps your brain has been severely corroded by those Many-Angled Ones. A Xenomorph can only protect your core thought processes; it can't guarantee that you won't undergo superficial changes in your surface perception. Ms. Mystique, your current mental state is highly abnormal."
Moira stood up, and her form began to change. She transformed from a human appearance into a Xenomorph—this was her true form.
Moira, who possessed the ability of Reincarnation, had been transmigrated as a Xenomorph in this life and was immediately discovered and protected by Du Wa. When Du Wa fought the Evil God Knull, he activated Moira at the final moment, successfully defeating Knull and transforming both him and the Abyss into the Consciousness World.
In a sense, Moira was a link intimately connected to Du Wa at all times, existing within Du Wa's conceptual core through her special mechanism of infinite reboots.
This was why Moira didn't need to go to the battlefield. She was also not worried about the deaths of these people, as she was always one with Du Wa. As long as she lived well, she was a very useful card for Du Wa to play. Moreover, she could use her reboot ability at any time to save deceased non-Xenomorph individuals, completely obviating the need for a Multiversal God like Du Wa to act personally.
Provided, of course, that Du Wa deemed it necessary.
"A Xenomorph? Is that a transformation ability? Or mental deception?" Raven was taken aback, but she quickly sneered, "I was one of the first Xenomorphs to follow Du Wa, far earlier than you."
"But our value to Du Wa is fundamentally different. The hierarchy of Xenomorph Society doesn't need to be subdivided in most cases, but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist. Besides, you're not a Queen."
Moira snapped her fingers. Amidst the persuasion and surprise of the other Mutants, she rebooted Raven's personal history, attempting to completely erase the residual influence of Cthulhu.
"You should feel honored. It's possible Shuma-Gorath will become a member of our society. Having had intimate contact with His power so early is a rare experience, but..." A look of surprise appeared on Moira's face.
"Charles, as the rotating chairman this time, you should mediate this little conflict after Raven recovers," Magneto said, looking at his old friend with confusion. He wasn't worried that Moira would kill Raven; that was impossible. The omnipresent Du Wa would never allow such a thing to happen.
Professor X stared thoughtfully at Raven. Although he was not a Deity, he was still a formidable expert in the domain of mind control and had also realized something was amiss.
"As a top-tier agent, all of Raven's emotional expressions are aimed at achieving a purpose. Even if she was influenced by the natives of the Cancerverse, causing a mental mutation, this kind of abnormal mental change..."
Professor X thought for a moment, then suddenly expanded his psionic power, quickly locating the student he was most worried about, Jean Grey. Seeing that she was extremely stable, he breathed a sigh of relief.
Speaking of which, in the years that the Xenomorphs had rapidly expanded and Du Wa's total mass had swelled, perhaps it had placed increasingly immense pressure on the universe, indiscriminately squeezing all powers that originally had sufficient mass. When this pressure broke a critical point, it had, in fact, made Jean Grey's state much more stable.
At the very least, the frequency of her rampages and loss of control had significantly decreased. At first, Professor X had suspected that her dark persona was consciously hiding itself, waiting for a better opportunity. But as time went on, Du Wa's control over the Entire Universe was strengthening to an unprecedented degree. The dark persona would only have fewer and fewer opportunities. In principle, it should have tried to escape sooner rather than later.
"If it's not Jean Grey, then there are only a few people who could have caused Raven's mental changes. The overall strength of the Mutants in this universe is far inferior to those of other well-known universes. Many of the fierce and troublesome Mutants from other universes simply don't exist here. In that case, the most likely person would be..."
Professor X quickly thought of someone.
Moira also looked at Professor X with great interest.
At that moment, a violent fluctuation erupted. Red energy, visible to the naked eye, exploded like beautiful, transparent dust, resembling a nuclear bomb. It instantly kicked up thousand-meter-high waves. Its destructive power reached down to the Earth's Core and shot up into the cosmos, as endless red light scattered across reality like a goddess scattering flowers.
Even more startling than the visual splendor was the fluctuation of this energy. It started at a level comparable to a Skyfather and was crazily stacking to higher levels every second.
"How can it be Wanda?!" Professor X exclaimed in shock, hurriedly looking at Moira.
But Moira watched the scene calmly. "Scarlet Witch, Chaos Magic... The source of Chaos Magic must be having problems, right? That should also be a Multiversal God. How could such a being have problems so easily? Perhaps it's intentional?"
Chaos Magic could be called an Omni-Purpose Magic, capable of Reality Warping, traversing Space-Time, Creation from Nothing, and Mind Control—it could do anything.
Of course, an ordinary person certainly couldn't perfectly unleash the power of Chaos Magic. Most of the time, they would just use it for simple and crude magical bombardments. As long as the enemy was dead, the magic was a success.
The members of the Krakoan Council were all shocked and bewildered by Scarlet Witch's rampage.
But they were elites, after all. They reacted instantly, immediately deploying while sending messages across the world, attempting to stop Scarlet Witch's frenzy and minimize the negative impact.
"Could it be... I was..." Raven clutched her head in disbelief.
"Yes, you must have had a deep communication with Scarlet Witch recently. Your mind has already been eroded by Chaos Magic. That's why I'm here. Otherwise, why would I attend a meeting of this level? Du Wa isn't interested in dealing with such small problems, so of course, I must resolve them for him within my capabilities." Moira opened her mouth, her inner jaw extending.
"Then why aren't you doing anything? Erik and the others have already charged in!"
"It's too late. The power of Chaos Magic has already reached a level comparable to a Cosmic Celestial. That is not a power Magneto can handle." Moira was still in no hurry, speaking in a slow, deliberate manner.
Sure enough, the terrifying Chaos Magic constructed an insurmountable red barrier. Both Magnetic Field Manipulation and Mind Invasion were ineffective. Conventional Physical Attacks were instantly annihilated by the Chaos Magic.
If this wasn't contained soon, the entire Earth would be destroyed by Chaos Magic before long.
No one had expected Scarlet Witch to suddenly erupt with magic of this level. It was extremely sudden!
After all, Scarlet Witch was merely a somewhat notable Mutant. Her strength was just so-so, not really worth mentioning, and completely incomparable to the Scarlet Witches from other universes who could obliterate anything in an instant.
But it was this quiet, unassuming woman who had caused repercussions that reached not only across Earth but also to distant galaxies. All over the Entire Universe, this powerful magic power erupting from Earth was detected.
"This is not the level Wanda should have. I know my child!" Magneto failed in another assault. He had used all his power to unleash his Electromagnetic Force to no effect, and was instead pushed back by a wave of agitated Chaos Magic, his magnetic field easily destroyed.
"Hmph, that's because you're too weak! Now it's the Sentry's turn to act!"
Reynolds appeared, dazzling in gold, and slammed into the barrier, carrying a golden curtain of light. Gold and red clashed. The astonishing energy impact created terrifying cracks in the Earth's crust, which threatened to spread rapidly, making one wonder if Earth itself would split in two.
Soon, Reynolds returned in defeat, a look of someone who had seen a ghost on his face. "How can this be? I'm already so strong, and I even participated in the cosmic war to test my strength! Why was I... by a Mutant I've never even heard of..."
One powerful individual after another made their move. Even Thor charged in with Gungnir, only to be sent reeling by a blast of Chaos Magic.
"You idiot! Haven't you realized yet? This power has already surpassed our understanding and is heading for a higher level! This is not a level we can participate in!" Hela rushed over, furiously scolding her foolish brother.
"Perhaps I can try, but I can't guarantee that Earth will remain unscathed after I go all out."
Tony, piloting the Celestial Armor, seemed tiny despite his massive form in the face of the endlessly surging Chaos Magic.
Right now, this energy fluctuation had already reached the Single Universe Level. Even for the likes of Tony and Reynolds, it would be easy to be overturned. The most terrifying thing was, this wasn't even Wanda's limit.
This terrifying and bizarre change left countless people baffled. This was like a slow-moving snail suddenly showing the entire world its controllable nuclear fusion supercharged turbine, circling the Earth several times in a matter of minutes.
At this time, on the Multiversal plane.
Du Wa was also observing the rampaging Scarlet Witch. "Sometimes, I really detest the games you types play, making a fuss through your chosen spokesperson."
(end of chapter)