Not only did the heroes relax, the whole world did as well. Watching the Chitauri fleet be completely annihilated, people everywhere cheered in excitement.
"Long live the Lord of Life!"
"Our lord's might is boundless, his divine fire never fades!"
"That disciple of our lord is so powerful. With a flick of her hand she wiped out the whole fleet!"
"Such world-shattering power, it is breathtaking!"
"With a protector like this, who would dare invade us?"
"If the Lord of Life protects us like this, I should become a follower!"
"Old man, let's convert. From today we will worship the Lord of Life!"
"Yes, I agree too!"
Because of the global livestream, countless people became members of the Church of Life, becoming devout followers of the Lord of Life. Roland Phils, the Lord of Life, was naturally pleased to see this. Watching his faith grow many times over, he was satisfied with how things had turned out.
On the roof of Stark Industries, a group of heroes watched the still-glowing Space Stone with grave faces. They had tried many ways to stop it, but none worked.
At that moment, Bismarck descended before them with calm grace.
"Miss Bismarck, thank you for this. You saved the whole world," Coulson said with respect.
"It is my lord who saved the world. If not for him, I would not care about your lives," Bismarck replied coldly, then shifted her gaze to the pillar of light.
Coulson laughed awkwardly. He had hoped to make small talk with Bismarck, but she clearly did not want to be friendly. He stood aside, forcing a polite smile.
"Honored Miss Bismarck, you can close that space gate, right?" Tony Stark asked, stepping forward.
"Yes. My lord said that once the Space Stone is activated, only energy of the same level can close it," Bismarck replied.
"Energy of the same level? Does our world even have that?" Tony asked curiously.
"I do not know if it exists here. My lord told me to bring it," Bismarck said, lifting her hand. Loki's scepter appeared in her palm.
"Loki's scepter?"
"Is that what can close the space gate?"
"I do not know, but my lord told me to bring it. It must have a purpose."
Bismarck drove the scepter deep into the pillar of light. A rumble followed, and the pillar hummed once, then vanished. Without its power source, the space gate shrank and disappeared.
"So it was the scepter. I suspected as much," Tony said.
"Are you always such a backseat theorist?" Bismarck said, holding the Space Stone and giving Tony a cold look.
Everyone stifled a laugh. They had never seen Tony put in his place so completely. It was not that Tony had nothing to say, it was that no one dared argue with Bismarck. After seeing her power, even Tony would not risk provoking her. One wrong word, and she could crush him.
"Miss Bismarck, may I take that with me to Asgard? We need it," Thor asked, sounding unusually humble. Thor was usually wild and proud, so this request was rare. But the woman before them was far stronger than he was.
Bismarck shook her head firmly. "No. Whoever claims it keeps it."
Thor had never been so meek when asking for something. Getting refused stung.
Before Thor could react, Bismarck continued. "This thing is a curse for any of you, including Asgard. You cannot guard it. If you put it in Asgard, it will bring disaster. My lord knows what you want to do. He will help repair the rainbow bridge when the time comes. You do not need to worry about that."
Thor was shocked. He had not expected the Lord of Life to know so much about Asgard. It was frightening. Thankfully, his father had already made peace with this power. To be enemies with such a being would be unthinkable.
"Then thank you. Please convey Asgard's gratitude to your lord," Thor said with respect.
"My lord will come to Asgard in time. Speak to him yourself then," Bismarck replied calmly.
"That is all. I must leave. I entrust the rest to you," she said, then blurred and vanished. She had truly appeared and disappeared without a trace.
Nick Fury watched Bismarck take the Space Stone with a complex expression. Coulson smiled and said, "This may be the best outcome. Possession invites trouble. This thing is like a ticking bomb. Keeping it on Earth a day longer is one day more risk. Better to let someone capable hold it."
Fury nodded and said with meaning, "Yes. We are pawns now, but we will not be pawns forever."
The Chitauri invasion had caused serious damage in New York. It was not as severe as the previous hell dimension event, but still very bad. Fortunately, the Church of Life had stepped in, greatly reducing destruction. Otherwise losses would have been much worse.
As before, the government and nongovernmental organizations began reconstruction quickly. Stark Industries led many civilian efforts. They repaired buildings while collecting Chitauri craft and energy weapons. Their motives were not limited to rebuilding.
Roland Phils turned a blind eye. He knew Tony Stark's true intentions. As the former head of an arms company, Stark Industries would not miss the chance to study Chitauri technology.
Half a month passed. The world returned to normal. If not for the still-ruined buildings in parts of New York, the world would seem unchanged.
In those two weeks, temples to the Lord of Life sprang up like mushrooms. Almost every country and city built temples, numbering in the thousands. This boom came because followers had surged.
Follower dashboard:
[Saints]: 9
[Apostles]: 100,002
[Fanatics]: 3,921,312
[Devout Followers]: 65,222,186
[True Believers]: 110,000,000
[Causal Believers]: 500,000,000
After the global broadcast of the New York battle, Roland Phils' followers grew exponentially. Casual and true believers reached hundreds of millions. Casual believers did not yet provide faith, but they represented potential. Over time, many would convert into true believers and higher ranks.
Roland Phils now gained about 250 million points of faith per day. One million faith points create one unit of divine power. So 250 million faith points equals 250 units of divine power. That means Roland Phils could form 2.5 units of divine power per day.
He still lacked 8,900 units to ignite a divine fire and step into the rank of High God. At 2.5 units per day, 8,900 divided by 2.5 divided by 365 equals about 9.7 years. Compared to the previous estimate of 61 years, this reduced the time by about sixfold. Still, nearly ten years was a long time. Roland Phils could not wait. He needed a faster route.
His sights turned to the Infinity Stones. As cosmic artifacts that span the Marvel universe, the Infinity Stones had appeared before him and were within reach. Roland Phils had no reason not to seize them. A single Mind Stone already held power comparable to a cosmic-level being. Collect all six, and the outcome could be god-level.
At Roland Manor, a group of shipgirls held a solemn ritual. Normally, rituals required a priest and at least fifty followers. But as saints, the shipgirls did not need to follow those rules. They had a broad and solid faith channel with Roland Phils. They could share faith power, so holding a ritual was easy.
Amid devout chants, the Mind Stone and the Space Stone were offered into Roland Phils' divine domain. The system voice responded as expected.
[Log]: Your saint Bismarck held a devout ritual for you.
[Log]: Your followers offered a cosmic-level Mind Stone.
[Log]: You gained 1,500 units of divine power.
[System]: The offering received a critical bonus, quality increased by 1.5 times.
[System]: You obtained a cosmic-level Mind Stone, gaining 2,250 units of divine power.
"A cosmic-level Infinity Stone grants 1,500 units of divine power. That is more than my current divine power. Incredible. But now this is mine. Once inside my divine domain, no one can take it unless they kill me. But with the Infinity Stones and the bonus, who could kill me?" Roland Phils clenched his fist with confidence. A planet-busting force condensed in his palm. His power was real.
At that moment, something strange happened. The Mind Stone within his domain turned into a seed, falling into a corner of the domain. The seed sprouted and quickly became a towering tree that emitted yellow mental energy.
"This is a divine office!" Roland Phils was stunned. He had not expected the Mind Stone to transform into a divine office. Previously, Infinity Stones were external tools, borrowed by the user. Now the Mind Stone had become his divine office, bound to his soul. The power was no longer borrowed. It had become his own. That made a fundamental difference.
The instant the Mind Tree appeared, information flooded his mind. In a moment, he understood how to use mental power. Mental power could infinitely enhance psychic ability and access the minds of all other beings. It could read, manipulate, alter, create, or protect a being's spirit. It allowed the user to enter others' thoughts. Dreams, ideas, and intentions could be brought into the user's mind, letting them command any mind-bearing entity.
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1577 Words