What Death truly looks like is probably something very few can describe. Because it is an eternal proposition, Death is the gate to another World, and what lies beyond that gate no one will ever know. The ones who hold this secret are the most silent group of people in the World—the deceased. And the deceased do not speak.
Zhou Yi now had no idea what was happening to him. His last memory was of being completely engulfed by an endless solar storm. Yet now, he felt himself adrift in a vast Void Realm.
Whether it was sight, hearing, or external perception, all seemed to lose their function in this vast Void Realm. Aside from boundless darkness, there was nothing here, a silence bordering on terror. And in this stillness, Zhou Yi could only drift uncontrollably, like a ghost. Or rather, he was a ghost now.
After an unknown amount of time drifting, Zhou Yi finally felt a faint glimmer of light. It was an extremely weak light, but in this endless darkness, it was exceptionally conspicuous. Drawn by this light, he felt his body uncontrollably drift towards that direction.
The faint light grew closer and closer, and it wasn't until he drifted right beside it that Zhou Yi finally saw clearly what it was.
It was a lamp, an old-fashioned hurricane lamp emitting a faint, soft glow. This lamp radiated a magical light, and under its illumination, Zhou Yi felt all the fear, unease, and irritation in his heart melt away like snow under the Sun. He slowly approached the lamp, until a voice sounded.
"Stop your steps, living one! Do not approach the Lamp of Souls any closer, it will make your Soul completely calm!" It was a gentle voice; simply listening to it brought a sense of spiritual tranquility, as if returning to a mother's embrace in childhood.
A hint of confusion appeared in Zhou Yi's eyes, and he asked, somewhat perplexed: "What?"
"Living one, your life is reviving. It is not yet time for you to enter the World of the deceased."
A dim figure slowly emerged from the faint light. It was a somewhat graceful Lady. A black cloak enveloped her entire body, completely obscuring her true appearance. One could only infer her extreme beauty from the subtly emerging perfect figure beneath the cloak and her gentle voice.
"Excuse me, Lady! I don't understand what you mean. Also, may I ask who you are?" Zhou Yi shook his head slightly; he was somewhat puzzled by this woman's identity and her words.
"I have many, many identities in the Multiverse, but Mortals mostly call me Death!" The woman extended a snow-white wrist from beneath her cloak and gently lifted the lamp. "So you may call me Lady Death!"
The lamplight reflected from her snow-white wrist onto her cloak, and in that light, Zhou Yi could glimpse Lady Death's true face beneath the cloak. It was a face that should not appear on a human, so perfect it was almost beyond reproach; even with the most critical eye, not a single flaw could be found. What was most moving was the aura she exuded, the most extreme gentleness, imbued with tolerance and love for all life.
Almost without any hesitation, Zhou Yi believed the woman's identity. He bowed his head slightly, showing his respect to this great Incarnation.
"Greetings, esteemed Lady Death. However, I am still somewhat confused by what you just said. According to my memory, I should have already died in the Sun's storm!"
Zhou Yi was very certain of his memory. Therefore, he was quite open about his Death. Although it was a very painful reality, there was nothing unacceptable. Death was an inevitable outcome, merely a matter of sooner or later.
"Your attitude is admirable, living one. But there are still some issues with your perception; it seems you do not understand your own existence!" Lady Death gestured slightly, and the surrounding environment immediately underwent a huge change.
The darkness quickly receded, revealing a small, lavishly decorated room, entirely surrounded by exquisite red and black draperies. This small room exuded a luxurious and elegant ambiance, instantly giving one a sense of enjoyment.
"We have plenty of time, living one. So I think we can change our approach and have a good chat." Lady Death sat on a black wooden chair adorned with countless carved flowers. She poured two cups of black tea and pushed one in front of Zhou Yi. "This is my resting place. Here, I always feel the beauty of life. I hope you don't mind. Also, is black tea alright?"
"Of course, thank you!" Sitting opposite Lady Death, Zhou Yi picked up the teacup and took a gentle sip. The mellow taste was admirable. "What a praiseworthy flavor, your skill is excellent! However, I still don't understand what you mean. Is there something wrong with my existence?"
"Thank you for your compliment, Little fellow. As for the problem you mentioned, it's very simple." Lady Death smiled, holding her teacup. "What do you think you are? Human, or something else?"
"Of course, human, Lady. I always firmly believe that!" Without the slightest hesitation, Zhou Yi answered the question.
And to this answer, Lady Death simply smiled.
"Little fellow, that answer is not correct, or rather, not entirely correct."
"I don't understand what you mean, Lady."
"It's simple. I am the Death Incarnation of the Multiverse; all endings fall under my jurisdiction. In human terms, I am the God of Death of all things. Do you think that for an Incarnation like me, I would make a special trip for the Death of a human?" Her crimson lips curved slightly, and without waiting for Zhou Yi to answer, she gave the answer.
"No, after humans die, they will be led into my realm by the God of Death of this Planet, with no need for me to intervene. The reason I came here is because of you!"
"Me?" Zhou Yi pointed to himself, self-mockingly. "Is my existence so special that it has alarmed an Incarnation like you?"
"I came to witness the end of a star, or rather, I thought a star was about to end. But I found I was wrong, because it wasn't a star, but an even more peculiar and incredible Incarnation."
"star, me! You haven't made a mistake, have you? I don't think I resemble a celestial body." Lady Death's words made Zhou Yi increasingly confused; he hoped for a more specific explanation.
"You are certainly not a star, but you are also not human." A slender finger poked Zhou Yi's chest. Lady Death had already stood up, bending at the waist, almost pressing against his face. "Little fellow, you still don't know how miraculous your existence is. A small part of you belonged to humanity, and that part has turned to ashes with the past. And only now are you truly born, the birth of an Incarnation that is half divine and half star."
"The ashes of humanity performed the final sublimation for your Soul, divinity began to flow from your Soul, and your life gained a new beginning. And the will of the star also descended into your body. You are no longer a Mortal, but an Incarnation like a God, or even greater than a God. How astonishing this is; in countless years, I have only encountered this one instance of you."
Lady Death's words were no different from a fantasy for Zhou Yi. He still hadn't fully processed them and was still asking hesitantly.
"Lady, are you sure you're not deceiving me? You know, someone like me doesn't seem as miraculous as you say at all."
"Don't rush, it hasn't even begun yet, Little fellow!" Lady Death smiled, gently kissing Zhou Yi's forehead. "It's almost time. With my blessing, return to the World of the living. I believe you will discover everything I've said. Time will prove everything, and Death never lies."
A low murmur lingered in Zhou Yi's ears, and his mind began to drift. And when he came to, everything was different.
At this moment, aboard the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division's Helicarrier, everything seemed exceptionally eerie. Their satellites faithfully carried out their monitoring tasks, and naturally, Zhou Yi's appearance, burned to ashes by the endless solar storm when his position collapsed, was also captured by their eyes. Because of this, it was completely silent here.
Just as the citizens of Paris didn't believe their hero had simply vanished, they also refused to believe this fact. But the cruel reality left them no choice but to believe. There was no other Incarnation in the pure, flawless golden fluid, even though a hero had just been in it.
"Tell me the situation, has the solar storm been contained?" Fury broke the eerie silence. As a man accustomed to Death, he reacted quickest to the demise of the Dawn Knight.
The technical personnel, still in a daze below, immediately became busy, and soon someone answered his question.
"Officer, the solar storm has completely dissipated beyond the Earth's geomagnetic field. Although there are extremely dense storms gathered outside Earth, there should be no impact. They cannot Breakthrough the magnetic field."
"Those solar storms haven't dissipated yet; I can see them with my one eye from here. Why is that?" Staring intently at the images transmitted by the satellite, Fury appeared far less calm and optimistic. A massive solar storm cloud was directly above Earth, and the recent massive explosion even caused the surface temperature to rise directly. God knows what would happen if these things entered Earth. He had zero trust in these so-called Scientists.
"Perhaps it's due to residual gravity; they will dissipate soon." Those called here to handle emergency situations were basically Advanced Scientific personnel within the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division, and as Advanced Scientists, they always firmly believed in their own views.
"I hope it's as you say, otherwise, prepare to be launched into that storm." After cursing twice, Fury started walking towards the conference room; he had other matters to deal with. This was a huge mess, enough to drive him crazy.
"Officer, what about Magneto? Are we just going to let him leave?" Commander Hill, who had been silent since the demise of the Dawn Knight, spoke up at this moment. Attentive individuals, such as Coulson, noticed that her mental state was very unstable, almost like a volcano surging beneath a glacier.
"Shouldn't we try our best to capture Magneto, so we have an explanation for the Council!" Fearing that his companion would be reprimanded, he quickly spoke up, using this method to divert Fury's attention so that he wouldn't discover Commander Hill's inner turmoil.
"Are you two collectively out of your minds? That's Magneto. He's not some stray cat or dog that anyone can catch. You've seen his power. I can tell you clearly, no one dares to touch him; he still holds hundreds of nuclear bombs!"
His subordinates' stupidity made him utterly incomprehensible. He was about to reprimand them more severely, but was immediately interrupted by the on-duty personnel.
"Officer, we have a situation!"