With a thunderous roar, the swarming insects disintegrated into a pool of bloody foam beneath Shin's fist. The strange green blood splattered across the ground, its pungent odor spreading through the air, causing Scarlet Witch and Tony Stark to cover their noses in discomfort.
"Wanda, give it a try," Shin said after glancing at her.
Compared to Shin's raw physical might, Scarlet Witch's abilities were more mysterious, and, more importantly, bloodless.
Wanda nodded, extending her hand. A strange mist spread outward, coiling like an otherworldly veil.
Even without drawing on her Chaos Magic, Wanda's current power was overwhelming. The combination of her Devil Fruit abilities, her mutant nature, and the added advantage of her Uchiha bloodline made her an Omega-level mutant without question, one of the strongest of her kind.
The Art-Art Fruit, while already a terrifying force in the One Piece world, was arguably even deadlier here. In Marvel or DC universes, beings like Superman or Wonder Woman could withstand her techniques with sheer resilience or divine defenses. But against ordinary organisms, especially these alien insects, which had no layered energy shields, her power was an unstoppable flood.
Tony Stark and the others stood back as Wanda's mist rolled outward. The battlefield around the Baxter Building warped in eerie silence.
As soon as the strange alien bugs touched the haze, they were transformed into pliable, harmless shapes—rag dolls, plastic toys, grotesque pieces of art. Even the environment itself seemed unstable, as walls, streets, and debris twisted into painted illusions.
The mist advanced, relentless. The insects, fearless in their numbers, still had no resistance. They were like moths drawn to flame, their wings flapping futilely before they collapsed to the ground. Those that burrowed underground fared no better; the mist seeped into every crevice, dragging them into grotesque transformation.
"What kind of power is that? Magic? Some kind of fairy tale magic? Did Mother Goose escape her book?" Tony exclaimed, looking at Wanda with wide eyes.
Even some humans caught in the mist were transformed into rag dolls before Wanda quickly waved her hand, nullifying the fruit's effects on them.
The Baxter Building itself stretched thirty stories high. The lower they went, the fewer insects they encountered. However, the ones that did appear grew stronger and stranger. Some had developed humanoid features, sprouting arms and legs, though their insect heads, extra limbs, or wings betrayed their alien origins.
Their combat effectiveness and intelligence were crude. Plasma-spewing bugs, once terrifying, now served as cannon fodder. Among them were low-tier Zerg commanders, creatures able to manipulate faint layers of energy to shield themselves from Wanda's mist. But their numbers were so few that they were barely noticeable, easily dispatched once Wanda's illusions pierced their defenses.
Her attacks grew more versatile. With her mastery of magic, she conjured storms of ice, fire, and lightning. Each strike created a tiny crack in the Zergs' energy barriers, enough for the mist to seep in and turn them into grotesque statues.
It was not until the team reached the 30th floor that the situation shifted.
"What's going on? Why has the top floor vanished?" Wanda asked, frowning as she looked up.
It wasn't that the rooftop was missing, it had been warped. The spatial structure of the building had been drastically altered. No matter how far they climbed, they couldn't reach the 31st floor. Flying upward only revealed an endless cross-section of the 30th floor, as though the upper structure had been folded away. Meanwhile, the Zerg continued pouring from an infinite spiral staircase. But no matter how much they pushed forward, they found themselves looping endlessly around the 30th floor.
"That looks like a spiral spatial construct," Tony muttered, scratching his head in frustration. "What the hell is that bastard up to now?"
Shin crossed his arms. "It doesn't matter what he's doing. Your Iron Man armor is tuned to the same frequency as the Cosmic Cube's energy. If Reed is using Cube-derived tech, you should be able to crack it. I'll give you half an hour. Any longer, and this whole building might collapse around us."
Tony gave a strained laugh. "Half an hour, huh? Not exactly comforting."
Shin didn't waste more words. With a wave of his hand, the Space Stone appeared, glowing faintly within an icy shell. He shattered the shell, letting the pure spatial energy spill out. Chakra surged from him, intertwining with the stone's brilliance.
Though his chakra was weakened after his earlier fusion with cosmic energy, it was still of incredibly high quality, more refined than ordinary cosmic power. Chakra encompassed all forces, enhancing their potency. With it as the medium, the Space Stone's fractured energy stabilized, glowing with restored brilliance.
Moments later, the warped spatial structure began to ripple, the loop unraveling. The true path above revealed itself, extending upward.
"Let's go," Shin said calmly. "Let's see what kind of mess Mr. Fantastic has gotten himself into this time."
Tony shrugged and took the lead.
Outside the building, the Zerg were still massing in overwhelming numbers. Yet, against this group, they were nothing more than fodder. Wanda's mist alone swept through them like an artist's brush across a blank canvas. Tony had not even needed to lift a hand. Every attempt at resistance was crushed; every defiant insect became another puppet in her expanding gallery of art.
By the time they reached the 35th floor, a strange sound echoed through the halls. It was not merely a chirp, it carried a faint spiritual resonance, allowing them to understand the words.
"Who are they?" a voice hissed.
"Shouldn't you be asking who you are?" Shin replied coldly. He narrowed his eyes at the cluster of Zerg cloaked in shimmering energy. "What kind of Zerg are you? What are you doing here on Earth?"
The largest of the creatures sneered, its mandibles clicking. "I? I am the nightmare born from the Negative Zone. I am the scourge that devours all. I am the Zerg of Annihilation!"
Its words vibrated in the air, thick with venom. "The passage to the Negative Zone has been opened. One day, the lord of the Negative Zone will descend upon this world. This planet will become his next feeding ground!"
Before it could continue, a flash of light cut across the room. A thick laser tore the creature in half, its head tumbling with a gush of green blood. Shin reached out, catching it in his hand.
"Enough rambling," he said, his tone flat. "Your part is over."
The severed head twitched, its vitality surprisingly stubborn. Even without a body, it retained consciousness, though its voice was gone. Its mental energy flickered, still alive but fading.
Shin infused his Yang chakra into it, keeping it conscious for the moment.
"Speak quickly. You've seen our strength. You know how this will end."
The Zerg's compound eyes glimmered faintly with hatred and fear, but no further words came.
Shin's grip tightened. The green blood dripped to the floor as silence filled the chamber.
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