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"I am Groot." The little tree-man nodded nearby, adding a finishing blow.
"Shut up! Groot! Whose side are you on anyway?!" Rocket jumped up and down in exasperation.
"That old bastard is just a busybody!"
"Seriously! I have a hundred ways to deal with those gold-plated idiots!"
Rocket jumped onto a rock, pulled out an energy gun from behind his back, and struck an incredibly arrogant pose toward the sky.
"As long as those glittering sissies dare to show up in front of me again..."
"...I'll show them the meaning of the wrath of the Milky Way Galaxy's number one bounty hunter!"
"I am Groot." Baby Groot suddenly looked up and pointed toward the sky.
"What's wrong, Groot?" Rocket looked in the direction he was pointing.
"Zzz— Zzz—"
The communicator on Jessica's body suddenly rang. It was an emergency call from the artificial intelligence Friday on Homelander One.
"Detected a large number of unidentified interstellar fighters dropping out of warp, entering Ego the Living Planet's atmosphere at full speed."
Homelander raised an eyebrow, stepped forward, and said, "Switch the feed over."
"Vroom—"
A holographic screen unfolded in front of everyone.
The image was captured by the deep-space radar of the Homelander One starship.
Outside Ego the Living Planet's atmosphere, countless golden points of light lit up.
They were densely packed, like falling stars.
The camera zoomed in.
It was thousands of golden drone fighters, diving toward Ego the Living Planet's atmosphere in an attack formation like a swarm of bees.
"Oh, shit..."
Rocket was still holding his gun, maintaining that arrogant pose, but his expression had frozen.
"Are these the 'petty gold-plated bastards' you mentioned, Mr. Rocket?" Jessica shoved the camera into Rocket's face.
"It looks like they really miss you... This number, there must be at least three thousand of them, right?"
"Maybe... maybe four thousand..." Rocket gave a dry laugh, his ears drooping, "Are they that bored? Is it really worth it for a few batteries?"
...At the same time, inside Ego's Celestial Temple.
Above the dome was a flowing Nebula map, as if the entire Universe were rotating within this room.
Ego's human avatar—a bearded, elegant-looking old man—lightly tapped a finger on Star-Lord Peter Quill's forehead.
"Do you feel it, Peter?"
To Ego, this was a father teaching his son, and a God enlightening a mortal.
"This power... it flows in your veins."
"This is the Light."
"This is the essence of life."
"And you are the only one of my children who inherited my genes and can connect to that 'Light'."
Quill was currently in a state of extreme excitement and disorientation.
His eyes had turned pure black, with countless starlike points of light flickering within them.
He felt his body expanding and his consciousness extending infinitely, as if he were becoming a part of this vast Universe.
"I see it..."
Quill murmured to himself, his voice so ethereal it didn't sound like his own.
"Eternity..."
"Yes, Eternity. We will be everywhere."
"Those friends and family of yours... they will all die and turn to dust."
"But we will still exist."
"This is the difference between Gods and mortals; we are more noble."
Quill's expression struggled as Gamora's face flashed through his mind, along with Yondu, who had raised him.
"But..." Quill whispered softly, "...you said you loved my mother."
"Oh, my little lily..."
Ego sighed, a look of reminiscence appearing on his face.
"Yes, Peter. I did love her."
"Her singing, her smile..."
"I even returned to Earth three times for her."
"I knew that if I returned a fourth time... I would never be able to leave her again."
"I would have abandoned my mission, so... I did what I had to do."
"But... when I put the tumor in her brain, I was truly sad... I knew it wasn't a good way..."
"You killed my mom?!"
The disorientation in Quill's eyes shattered completely the moment he heard about the tumor.
His pupils returned to their original color, and then an overwhelming rage ignited in his eyes.
"I know it sounds cruel, Peter." Ego was still immersed in his own logic, "But it was for—"
"Bang bang bang bang—!!!"
Answering him was a series of violent gunshots.
Quill suddenly drew his Twin Blasters from his waist and pulled the trigger frantically at that "loving father's" face.
No hesitation, no nonsense.
That was the vengeance for his mother's death!
That was the greatest pain of his life!
"You killed her!!!!" Quill roared.
The energy bolts instantly riddled Ego's human body with holes.
But those wounds did not bleed; instead, they turned into blue points of light.
The shattered body quickly reassembled amidst the light.
Ego stood up again, his face filled with towering rage.
"What a pity, Peter!"
"I wanted to complete this grand goal with you."
"Since you're unwilling to cooperate..."
Ego gave a sharp wave of his hand.
"Whoosh—!"
A blue energy tentacle burst out from the floor of the hall.
Like living things, they instantly pierced through Quill's chest, pinning him firmly in mid-air.
"For the next thousand years... just be a battery to provide me with divine power!"
"Aaaaaagh—!!!"
Quill let out a shrill scream.
"Let it begin! The Expansion!!"
Ego opened his arms and shouted fanatically.
As divine power was injected, the temple shone with a blinding light, and then the entire Planet began to vibrate violently... Outside the temple.
"What's happening?!"
Gamora steadied herself and shouted loudly.
"An earthquake?" Rocket asked in confusion.
"No! That old bastard has made his move!"
Homelander looked up at the temple emitting a dazzling blue light.
"Beep beep beep—!"
The communicator on Jessica's wrist rang again. This time it was an emergency communication from Skynet.
"Sir, the seed in Missouri has erupted."
A holographic projection unfolded.
In the image, a blue jelly-like energy substance was surging frantically from underground.
Like a bursting flood, it instantly swallowed the surrounding trees, houses, and cars... Meanwhile on Earth, Wanda, who had been guarding the town, was forming seals with both hands. Crimson Chaos Energy poured out like a surging tide, desperately suppressing that blue torrent.
"All mages! Reinforce the barrier!!"
Dozens of surrounding Kamar-Taj mages chanted in unison. Golden Vishanti Magic Circles layered upon each other like a giant lid, attempting to seal that destructive power underground.
But the power of a God was not so easily suppressed.
"Crack—"
As divine power continued to be injected, the golden magic circles began to falter.
On the perimeter of the sealing circle.
The heroes of Vought were already prepared.
"But now the jam is going to eat people..." Steve Rogers raised his shield, his expression solemn. "Everyone! Establish a defensive line! If anything leaks out, no matter what it is, open fire immediately!"