In stark contrast to the Dark Lord's frustration, Earth's dimensional consciousness seemed quite satisfied with the current state of affairs. As time passed, Clark, Robert, and the others had killed a considerable number of Dark Dimension warriors. The energy dissipated upon their deaths filled the Earth's dimension with an abundant surplus of power.
In fact, when the Earth's dimensional consciousness realized that killing these warriors in their peak state would yield even more energy, it began to contemplate whether it should remove the dimensional restrictions altogether.
Currently, Earth's dimensional rules limited the strength that beings from other dimensions could wield without paying a steep "fee" to Earth. While this fee was significant, it paled in comparison to the entire life force of a fully-powered dimensional warrior.
Collecting fees was like skimming the surface, but now, Earth was taking the entire essence—their lives and everything they had. The profit from harvesting all their energy was incomparable. The amount of energy the Earth dimension had gained from this invasion far surpassed the fees collected from all previous invasions combined. How could the energy-hungry Earth consciousness not be tempted?
Fortunately, a small part of its rationality remained. The Earth consciousness knew that without Clark and Robert wielding powers that specifically countered the Dark Dimension, it would have been nearly impossible for them to survive, let alone stop the invaders.
Realistically, Robert's strength was terrifying but not the best within the Dark Dimension itself. Clark's power was equivalent to the first tier of Dark Dimension warriors, but even he would have struggled to survive against so many enemies without his light-based abilities.
Moreover, the Dark Dimension wasn't a top-tier dimension. Despite the Dark Lord's dominance over Earth, compared to other dimensions like Hell, or even the similarly dark-themed Shadow Dimension, the Dark Dimension was lacking.
Thus, any dimension capable of invading Earth must at least be as powerful as the Dark Dimension. Without Earth's dimensional restrictions, any warrior from these dimensions could easily obliterate the Earth.
After carefully analyzing the situation, Earth's dimensional consciousness calmed down and resumed absorbing the energy of the fallen Dark Dimension warriors—a supply that would last it for a long time.
The Earth consciousness also realized that even if it wanted to lift the restrictions, it wouldn't be an easy task. The consciousness didn't have full control over Earth or its rules, which predated the consciousness itself. This might explain why the Earth consciousness was so eager to devour more power—it sought to gain more control.
Meanwhile, back on Earth, Steve Rogers, clad in his battle armor, let out a long, exhausted breath. His fatigue was visible in his eyes.
To be honest, the number of enemies invading from the Dark Dimension was far smaller than the Chitauri invasion. It wasn't that the Dark Dimension had fewer numbers—if the Dark Dimension had the same scale of forces, it could overwhelm countless Chitauri. But the Dark Lord knew that sending weaker forces to Earth would accomplish nothing but getting them killed.
The first wave of weaker Dark Dimension warriors hadn't even lasted long enough to face Robert's light-based attacks. They were obliterated by his Kamehameha-style energy waves before Robert had even transformed his energy into its light form.
Later, when Robert's energy had fully converted to light-based attacks, the weaker Dark Dimension warriors couldn't even approach him. The moment they were exposed to his light energy, they disintegrated like vampires under the sun.
As a result, the number of Dark Dimension warriors wasn't overwhelming, but Steve and the other Avengers were feeling more exhausted than ever.
Despite having equipment designed to counter the Dark Dimension, this battle wasn't as grueling as fighting the Kryptonians, but the Dark Dimension warriors were still powerful and tenacious, creating significant problems for the weaker Avengers, like Steve.
The battle had also taken its toll on the apprentices from Kamar-Taj. Many were utterly exhausted, saved only by Constantine's quick reactions, pulling them to safety and freezing their injuries. Without his intervention, some of the apprentices would have likely perished.
Constantine, of course, wasn't without his own rewards. He gained the friendship of Kamar-Taj's apprentices, something he hadn't had under the Ancient One's leadership. Back then, Constantine wasn't welcome at Kamar-Taj. Even trying to learn magic from them would have been impossible.
Now, with the Ancient One gone and even Doom having learned Kamar-Taj's magic through his own means, Constantine was being allowed to study their magic. After all, Baron Mordo had heard of Constantine's reputation and acknowledged his magical prowess. For him to have survived on his own despite his half-baked beginnings was impressive. Mordo believed Constantine's magical talent might even surpass his own.
As for whether Constantine's talent could rival Doom's, Mordo and the others weren't sure. Doom's magical aptitude was so extraordinary that it defied their expectations, easily the most gifted they had ever encountered.
Mordo and the others were now keen to bring Constantine into the fold. If Constantine could grow strong enough to challenge Doom, it would restore balance to Kamar-Taj after the Ancient One's departure, preventing Doom from becoming the de facto Supreme Sorcerer.
For his part, Constantine wasn't about to turn down the opportunity. He had long coveted Kamar-Taj's magic, and now that the opportunity to learn even more powerful spells had presented itself, why not take it?
Moreover, Constantine had recently learned about the Earth Dimension's consciousness, which he saw as a significant threat. He needed to be prepared. If Earth became too dangerous to live on, he would need to escape to another dimension or the universe. In that case, mastering more powerful magic was his best chance for survival.
On the other hand, Doom was unaware of what was happening between Mordo, Constantine, and the others. Having only recently stepped into the world of the supernatural and joined Kamar-Taj, Doom hadn't heard of Constantine. But even if he had, it wouldn't have mattered to him—Doom had enough confidence in his own strength. While he wasn't yet at Clark or Robert's level, dealing with the apprentices of Kamar-Taj was easy for him.
"Fortunately, we were prepared," Tony Stark muttered as he surveyed the increasingly stable battlefield. "The Saiyans and Superman have managed to hold off the strongest warriors. Otherwise, even with all our equipment, it would've been hard to kill them."
Despite feeling relieved, a nagging worry remained in Tony's heart.
This time, they had been prepared, with methods to counter the Dark Dimension. But what about next time? What if the next invasion came from another dimension? How would Earth defend itself then?
If the Dark Dimension could send warriors to Earth without suffering any restrictions, what would happen when the forces of Hell arrived?
Tony was also aware of the Earth's dimensional consciousness. He didn't know how it had come into being, but he was certain that its existence wasn't a good sign for Earth. The problem was that neither Robert nor Clark had a solution for dealing with this looming threat, so Tony didn't either.
"Interstellar migration isn't a realistic option either," Tony sighed. "Not everyone is willing to leave their home, especially with so many people here…"
Tony's thoughts were starting to align with the secret organizations that opposed the Avengers. These groups viewed Clark and Robert as threats to Earth itself. While they had the ability to leave the planet, they didn't want to be forced into it. It seemed Tony was beginning to share some of their concerns.
"What are we going to do? If this continues, we're all going to die here, and we won't be able to complete our mission!" The Dark Dimension warriors trapped in Clark's light field were becoming desperate. As they watched their comrades, equal in strength, die one after another, they couldn't stay calm.
The problem was, if there had been a way to overcome their weaknesses and resist light-based powers, the Dark Dimension warriors wouldn't have come to Earth seeking Morbius and others in the first place.
Thus, the Dark Dimension warriors could only rage in frustration and impotence. There was no way out of Clark's light-based domain, and the longer they remained, the weaker they became as the light energy accumulated on them. Death was drawing closer.
The situation was the same for the warriors around Robert. They too were being systematically killed, unable to inflict any harm on him.
Despite the seemingly positive outlook for Earth's defenders, neither Clark nor Robert allowed themselves to relax like Tony. They both knew that beyond Earth's dimension, a far larger threat was watching them closely.
While Clark and Robert could severely suppress the Dark Dimension forces, their powers weren't enough to affect the entire dimension. Even though the Dark Dimension forces would be weakened by their presence, if the power gap was too large, the suppression wouldn't be enough to even the playing field.
It was like a regular person wielding a silver weapon. They might be able to fend off a weaker vampire, but expecting Steve or Blade to single-handedly defeat one of the Dark Dimension's top warriors—even with specialized gear—was unrealistic.
Neither Clark nor Robert fully understood just how powerful a dimension's strength could be. They weren't even on the same level. This wasn't just a difference in power or realm—it was a fundamentally different class of existence.
While Robert and Clark remained cautious, the Dark Lord outside the Earth's dimension was beginning to lose his patience.
Originally, the Dark Lord's plan was simple: sacrifice some of his warriors to capture Morbius and a few others, and if that failed, retreat and find a quiet place to rebuild the Dark Dimension.
However, as more and more of his warriors fell, the Dark Lord realized his patience was wearing thin.
The situation worsened as the Dark Lord noticed the Earth's dimension growing stronger, devouring the power of his fallen warriors. Even though these were
rules he himself had set, it felt like the Earth dimension was leeching off him—draining his strength, drinking his blood. How could a dimension that gave birth to vampires tolerate such a thing?
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