Chapter 285: The Main Universe's Loki Takes Action
The Phoenix Force was not an inanimate object; it possessed its own distinct consciousness.
As the collective entity of the emotions of all life, it was inherently able to read the complex thoughts of living beings. It was for this very reason that it found Du Wa's words so incomprehensible.
Another power formed from the collective emotions of all life? Logically speaking, a Multiverse-level deity shouldn't stoop to telling such a clumsy lie, but how could this be possible?
Sensing the exasperation and fury coming from the Phoenix Force, Du Wa chuckled. "So you don't believe me, and you even curse me. It seems you've learned quite a lot from Jean Grey. Of the consciousness you're using now, how much of it is the pure Phoenix Force, and how much was added by Jean Grey?"
The Phoenix Force itself probably didn't know, nor would it care.
The Phoenix Force has always needed to find a living being to act as a vessel. If it rejected living beings, how could it exist as a force of emotion?
"You have to choose a host anyway, so why can't it be me? Don't listen to Jean Grey. Now that you've fallen into my hands, you should listen to me. Let me show you something interesting."
Du Wa slightly activated the power of the Emotional Spectrum.
Using the exclusive power of another vast world in this one wasn't some unbelievable feat. The Steel Lantern could arm himself with a Green Lantern Ring, and Thanoseid could use Omega Beams.
Even if Du Wa hadn't invaded Universe 9602, that hybrid world itself existed within the Marvel Multiverse, and many of its hybrid beings were already using powers from the DC Comics side.
Of course, how much of that power could be unleashed was another question entirely.
*Swish!*
For the first time, Du Wa began to personally wield the power of the Emotional Spectrum in the Marvel Universe.
That spectrum, which gathered the emotions of billions of life forms—even though Du Wa intentionally controlled it, using only a sliver—was a world-shattering discovery in the eyes of the Phoenix Force.
It's actually real?!
The Phoenix Force stopped struggling, its thoughts momentarily crashing. It clearly recognized the unique nature of the Emotional Spectrum. It was also a power derived from the emotions of all life, but it was vastly different from itself!
From its method of construction to its form of expression, everything was different.
"See? This thing is very interesting. It's divided into different parts, and each part has its own conscious terminal, called a Lantern Entity... This is different from you. All manifestations of the Phoenix Force that appear in the Multiverse are, in essence, just fragments," Du Wa explained.
The most powerful expressions of the Phoenix Force were none other than the Dark Phoenix and the White Phoenix. Essentially, they were just different manifestations produced through different hosts.
The Phoenix Force fell silent, feeling lost and utterly bewildered.
At the same time, within the White Hot Room, Jean Grey, who was continuously trying to gaze upon the Main Universe, also noticed the Phoenix Force's sudden silence.
"What's going on? What happened? Why did the Phoenix Force fragment I went to such great lengths to send out suddenly have a change of heart?"
Jean Grey couldn't understand; her knowledge of the Phoenix Force was still incomplete.
Then again, it would be a miracle if anyone could understand it completely. The Phoenix Force was far too vast to be born from a single Multiverse. It was a power gathered from the entire Omniverse, and perhaps even from special individuals beyond it.
Where there is life, there is the Phoenix Force.
Although Jean Grey was the being most deeply bound to the Phoenix Force in the Seventh Multiverse, and despite dying in the Main Universe, she hadn't returned to Death but had instead entered the White Hot Room directly—a most incredible achievement.
But Jean Grey was also stuck in the White Hot Room, temporarily unable to move. Influencing the actions of the Phoenix Force fragments was an arduous task.
She had gone to great trouble to send out a fragment, only for it to be intercepted by some guy who popped out of nowhere!
Jean Grey couldn't yet determine who the other party was. The White Hot Room was simply too far from the Multiverse, separated by several layers. With her current power, her vision couldn't penetrate such a vast distance.
But she remembered that there was a being in the Multiverse who had truly intercepted the Phoenix Force. This could be considered Du Wa's name entering the White Hot Room by indirect means.
"Wait, why is the Phoenix Force in agitation?" Jean Grey suddenly looked around. The entire White Hot Room was experiencing a subtle fluctuation, but it quickly subsided. This made Jean Grey hesitate, wondering if her anxiety had caused her to have an illusion.
If it wasn't an illusion, what power could cause a stir in both the Phoenix Force and the White Hot Room itself?
...
Main Universe.
Du Wa accepted the Phoenix Force with a clear conscience.
Don't misunderstand, he wouldn't use the Phoenix Force on himself just yet. A Phoenix fragment of this level had far too mediocre power.
But he would use it in the future.
"When I get the Emotional Spectrum under my control, it will be like directly wielding the collective emotions of an entire Multiverse's life forms. That will be the time for the Phoenix Force to show its true value."
Du Wa was very satisfied with his harvest.
He was also pleased with the Xenomorphs' performance. He watched as the Main Universe fell back, step by step, under the Xenomorphs' assault.
When the scale of the Xenomorphs reached a certain point, just before the Gods' patience was completely exhausted, Du Wa promptly stopped. He didn't actually transform the Main Universe into an Alien Universe.
"This... The Xenomorphs have stopped their attack."
"Why did they stop attacking? What's the point of stopping now?! We have too many friends and family who were turned into Xenomorphs and have been fighting us for so long. What good does it do for these bastards to stop now?!"
"It's probably a truce. This is the Main Universe, after all. Du Wa doesn't have the strength to fight all the Multiversal Gods at once..."
Some of the people who had been fighting a bloody battle just a second ago now looked at the familiar, guilt-filled faces before them. For a moment, they didn't know whether to feel fortunate or sad.
It seemed they had avoided the fate of becoming Xenomorphs, but it was impossible to ever change these people back.
Everything seemed to have returned to how it was before the Xenomorph invasion. People who knew each other could still drink, brag, and go on adventures as before, but everyone knew things could never go back.
As long as the master of the Xenomorphs made a certain decision one day, with a single command, these seemingly normal people would instantly erupt without question, killing their targets without the slightest hesitation.
"Heh, hehehe, I don't accept this! What was all our past effort for? Just a game for that deity to play? This is too absurd! It's not fair at all!" Magneto was burning with rage, completely unable to accept this outcome.
"It's useless even if you don't accept it. Didn't you see even Stark stopped fighting? He's completely powerless against that guy wearing similar armor. Look, even Charles is suffering a cerebral hemorrhage and needs medical attention," the White Queen said, her face grim. She also felt like she was seeing stars.
It was too ridiculous. The entire process was like some lofty being arrogantly looking down on a stage play performed by a group of puppets, without even having the interest to personally manipulate the puppets.
But the great stage of the Main Universe was already filled with Du Wa's puppets. Xenomorphs were everywhere; Du Wa's fanatical followers were everywhere.
Every person who had fought a bloody battle stood amidst a field of severed limbs and broken bodies, numbly looking around at the familiar faces of the past who were now approaching with words of concern, feeling a profound exhaustion.
The Gods, who had been restless and ready to act, had now all quieted down.
"Very good. The God of Xenomorphs has chosen to back down on his own accord and didn't truly cross the critical point."
"But the Xenomorphs have indeed spread to every corner of the Main Universe. It's like a delicious dish has been evenly sprinkled with a seasoning that should never have been there. Just looking at it makes me uncomfortable."
"Ha, Gaea, you weren't talking this tough when you were running away with the Main Universe's Thor Odinson."
Mocking gazes were constantly directed at Gaea. Every deity found her both familiar and strange. No one had expected this ancient god to come out for a mere Thor.
As for offspring... hadn't Gaea given birth to enough of them? There was a sea of them! Atum the Demogorge was born from Gaea and the Demiurge. Odin, Zeus, and the other gods of the third generation pantheon could also be considered Gaea's indirect offspring.
But no one questioned why Gaea chose to save Thor from Du Wa's clutches, because they themselves had champions they wanted to protect and could not accept the outcome of them being converted into Xenomorphs.
"Accept reality. From now on, the history of the Main Universe will forever bear the mark of the Xenomorphs. The Xenomorphs will become an inseparable part of the Main Universe, more tightly bound than most of us Gods."
One by one, the figures vanished. Through repeated observation of Du Wa's actions, they had thoroughly figured out his abilities, though they didn't know what the point of it all was. Why did he have to invade the Main Universe?
Just then, the Vishanti appeared beside Gaea. "Among these beings, even those who reject the God of Xenomorphs won't act rashly, especially now that he has taken the initiative to stop. Perhaps he has already achieved his goal, but I really can't figure out what value such a small fragment of the Phoenix Force holds. Does he intend to cultivate a Phoenix to counter Chthon?"
He would be better off spending more effort on Shuma-Gorath. Wasting energy on the Phoenix Force was an unrealistic choice.
Because the Phoenix Force is alive and has its own preferences; it could never truly become a weapon Du Wa could wield at will.
Even now, no one knew Du Wa's ultimate goal. They could only wishfully think that Du Wa wanted to further establish his position, and thus wanted to leave his permanent mark on the Main Universe.
A major event thus subsided. All people and Gods would remember this Xenomorph invasion event in their hearts because the entire process was simply too intense.
It began with Chthon, erupted with the mass demise of the Black Magicians and the widespread rampages of the Scarlet Witch, and ended with Du Wa seizing the Phoenix Force.
The situation in the Main Universe was already utterly transformed, and there was no possibility of it being shaken in the short term.
Perhaps only the Creator Gods, who knew of Universe 9602's existence, held some faint suspicions, but they still maintained restraint and did not personally intervene.
Death also just silently collected the souls of Odin and the others, ensuring these souls wouldn't fall into Du Wa's hands permanently.
The Main Universe was at peace, entering a new era.
The cities returned to their former prosperity, and Earth once again became stable.
No one walking down the street could, without X-rays or other equipment, determine if a random passerby was a Xenomorph, but it no longer mattered.
Even if the heroes and villains of Earth still harbored thoughts of changing everything, they didn't dare to make any moves out in the open, because the power of the Xenomorphs was simply too immense.
Du Wa never once personally entered the fray. It was merely that the Xenomorphs from the parallel universe put immense pressure on the natives of the Main Universe in both quantity and quality.
Asgard was the same.
Odin was gone, but Frigga, the mother of the gods, and the others were still there. As Xenomorphs, they were in the process of rebuilding. The Asgardians were Xenomorphs first, and Asgardians second.
Under these circumstances, Loki finally had a chance to appear in a dark, secluded corner, cautiously observing the new world.
He had just escaped from the Underworld. This was very fortunate, as Loki had been worried that Hela, that damned god, might have had the thought of offering him to Du Wa.
He was the youth form of Loki, a being forcibly cobbled together. He was the product of a reluctant reconciliation between Old Loki, who was killed by the Void Sentry, and Kid Loki, the reincarnation of Old Loki's primary soul—a truce forced by the cruel reality of the Xenomorph invasion and the likely destruction of the Main Universe.
In other words, Young Loki was imperfect. His physical structure, soul structure, and even his level of strength were all flawed, but at least he had been successfully born.
"Should I go find Frigga? No, that won't work. She's very likely a Xenomorph already, no longer the mother of the gods we knew."
"Should I go find Thor? That's a good idea, but we have no idea how to pinpoint his location."
Loki curled up in a corner, muttering to himself.
The power of lies was completely unable to help him change any of this, except to deceive himself.
But lies could not overwrite reality, at least not for the current Loki. He just sat there, pained and lost.
A long time later, just as some Asgardians were about to discover him, he stood up, concealed his figure, and left.
After much hard thought, Loki knew what to do. He had to find a suitable power, and not necessarily one that was absolutely powerful. Otherwise, even if he defeated Du Wa, he wouldn't be able to change anything in the Main Universe.
He needed a power that could warp reality, like Chaos Magic.
"I need help. I need someone to help me get on the right path... I already have an idea of what to do."
Loki was Loki, after all; he would never be short of wily schemes. He had long realized that the power of lies he relied upon for survival might be a breakthrough, but he couldn't be sure yet. He needed to confirm it.
Thus, Loki expended a large amount of magic power to open a space-time channel.
"One of the few benefits of that guy's invasion of the Main Universe is that he opened up the coordinates to several other universes... The Alien Universe is this way..."
Loki muttered as he stepped into the channel. When he reappeared, he had arrived in... Universe 199999.
(end of chapter)