The Ancient One drew her conclusion as soon as she left the Cosmic Anchor.
The consequences of the dimensional barrier's rupture were even more serious than she had expected.
Atreza had made it clear.
If it were only about the collisions of parallel Marvel universes, it would have been possible to call upon the cosmic anchors of other worlds and try to resolve the crisis together.
But now…
Lucifer Morningstar, Skynet, Cthulhu…
A whole horde of chaotic invaders from who-knows-where had entered this universe one after another.
Atreza had observed for a long time and had failed to discover from which universe these intruders came.
So furious was she that she stamped her foot on the spot, shouting:
"If only I knew who summoned these creatures!"
"I must find out! Aaa!!!"
At that moment, the Ancient One quietly left the Cosmic Anchor.
"Fend for yourselves," she thought.
A spoiled child.
The Ancient One felt that she had not betrayed Aron and had already done enough, more than anyone could have expected.
Atreza, after all, was the physical embodiment of the Cosmic Anchor; although she looked like an innocent little girl, she was in essence a dangerous and powerful force.
Nevertheless, the Ancient One had obtained precise information from her: there had recently been another cosmic collision.
But this time…
The object of the collision was not any of the parallel Marvel universes.
"Oh, wonderful… truly special," the Ancient One thought bitterly.
She often regretted the decisions she had made.
Sometimes she wondered if she should ever have involved Aron in all of this; perhaps it would have been better to send him to some other parallel Marvel universe, among other versions of the Ancient One.
"A heap of trouble… better that it all just burns and disappears," she muttered discontentedly.
Nevertheless, following the coordinates given to her by Atreza, she opened a portal and arrived at the point where the collision had occurred.
And when she passed through the portal, even the Ancient One, who had witnessed many incredible sights in her life, was momentarily stunned.
Before her loomed a gigantic space fortress, a massive warship resembling a mobile interstellar citadel.
And what was worse…
The Ancient One immediately recognized that ship.
"It can't be… the center of this cosmic collision is Thanos' spaceship!?"
Even she was shocked by the sight.
The coordinates Atreza had indicated as the point of the collision were located right inside that colossal ship.
At the same moment the Ancient One spotted the ship, those aboard the ship noticed her, an uninvited guest who had suddenly appeared in space.
Alarms blared throughout the ship.
The defense system immediately responded, and in the command room, after the scanner confirmed the identity of the newcomer, the alert level was raised to the highest degree.
"What!? The Ancient One is here!?"
Under Thanos' command, Ebony Maw — one of the members of the Black Order, almost ran to the command bridge the moment he heard the news.
When he arrived, on the holographic screen he saw the figure of the Ancient One floating in space.
All her movements were displayed in real time, magnified and transmitted to every corner of the command room.
Gulp~
Ebony Maw swallowed nervously.
Although he was known as the "Space Sorcerer," compared to true sorcerers, especially compared to the Ancient One, there was still an enormous gap.
"What threat level did the scan show?" asked Ebony Maw, not daring to relax.
According to earlier intelligence, after the Ancient One had clashed with Dormammu, her power had significantly weakened, and she had even passed the title of Sorcerer Supreme to another.
Nevertheless, Ebony Maw did not dare to be careless…
For their target was none other than Earth!
After the destruction of the planet Xandar and the conquest of the Power Stone, Thanos had given the order:
the army would march on Earth.
Thanos' words had been clear: Odin had vanished, the Ancient One's power had waned, and no one on Earth would be able to stop them.
But who would have thought…
Not long after the warship had set out, the guardian of Earth, the Ancient One, appeared before them.
"Could there be a mistake in the intelligence…? Her strength hasn't weakened?" thought Ebony Maw, his heart pounding.
"Threat level, level three."
At last, the warship's scanner finished analyzing the actual combat power of the Ancient One.
Level three threat.
Ebony Maw breathed a sigh of relief.
"So, she still hasn't regained the power of the Heavenly Father level…" he thought.
"Then why is she here?"
"Keep monitoring her! I'm going to report this," said Ebony Maw, leaving the command room and heading straight to Thanos' cabin.
However, it wasn't long before a startled cry escaped his lips:
"Where is Thanos!?"
…
That's right — Thanos had disappeared!
Just like the invaders from other parallel universes who had suddenly appeared in the 19999-FL universe, Thanos had vanished at the moment when the universes had collided.
When two universes collide and a temporary rift is created, entities from the 19999-FL universe can enter other universes, the passage is two-way.
"Ebony Maw, why have you gathered us?"
"Yeah!"
"Didn't you say the Ancient One was here? What about her?"
Soon the other members of the Black Order received an urgent message from Ebony Maw.
They teleported to the main ship.
Among them, Corvus Glaive and his wife Proxima Midnight teleported using the ultra-long-distance transfer device, crossing distances of hundreds of light years.
At that moment, the entire Black Order was assembled.
Corvus Glaive, Proxima Midnight, Ebony Maw, Cull Obsidian, and Supergiant.
"What about the Ancient One?" asked Proxima as she approached the console and activated the scanner.
But the results came up empty.
No threats.
Not even a shadow of the Ancient One.
"The Ancient One left earlier," replied Ebony Maw.
"Then why did you call us here? I almost found traces of the Soul Stone! And you ruined it all!"
Supergiant, the specialist in mind control, telepathy, and memory theft, was visibly displeased.
She was the best scout among Thanos' five generals and had been praised many times by Thanos for her abilities.
"Ebony Maw, I hope you have a reasonable explanation," said Corvus Glaive darkly and threateningly, as the leader of the Black Order's generals.
"Thanos has disappeared."
"He vanished together with the Power Stone."
Ebony Maw finally spoke the reason.
"???"
"???"
"???"
At that moment, the faces of the other generals of the Black Order were filled with disbelief.
…
Meanwhile…
The DC Universe.
Above Gotham City.
A huge, purple-skinned body fell from the sky and crashed to the ground.
–––
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