The Avengers Base was still billowing with smoke, shattered wreckage casting twisted shadows beneath the setting sun.
Levi stood atop the ruins, his gaze sweeping past the busy rescue teams. Tony was directing his Iron Legion to clear debris, while Steve comforted the civilians who had narrowly survived, his steady voice giving them strength.
Everything seemed to be moving in a better direction.
But Levi's thoughts were already elsewhere.
He could feel a tremor crossing dimensions. The Dark Trident hanging at his waist emitted a low hum, as though responding to the cries of its home universe. At the same time, the Green Lantern Ring on his left middle finger—silent for so long—had become scorching hot like burning iron.
Two divine artifacts from the DC Universe were issuing their strongest warning at the exact same moment.
Levi closed his eyes and sent a thread of consciousness into the ring.
In an instant, a vast and despair-filled torrent of images flooded his mind.
An endless black tide was devouring galaxy after galaxy with unstoppable momentum.
The light of stars vanished the instant it touched the darkness, as though it had never existed at all.
The mighty Green Lantern Corps struggled desperately within the void, their emerald light of will appearing weak and tragic against the overwhelming dark.
He saw Oa, the sacred world of the Lantern Corps. The Central Power Battery trembled at an unprecedented frequency, and for the first time ever, despair appeared on the faces of the normally emotionless Guardians.
Then the vision shifted to Earth.
That blue planet where he had once stayed briefly.
The Justice League Watchtower, the steel fortress orbiting beyond the atmosphere, was completely surrounded by dense black shadows.
Those shadows had no faces, no fixed forms. They were destruction and nothingness incarnate.
Shadow Demons.
The Anti-Monitor's vanguard army.
Levi slowly opened his eyes, cold light flashing within them.
He still clearly remembered the edge of the multiverse, where merely a single projected aura from that giant hand had forced him to exhaust himself just to drive it away.
And now, the true body was about to descend.
He knew exactly how terrifying the Anti-Monitor would become if allowed to devour the entire DC Universe.
By then, the Marvel Universe would inevitably share the same fate.
And besides… he had made a promise.
Before leaving the DC Universe, he had personally told Guardian Ganthet that if disaster struck, he would return.
But the problem now was the Council of Kangs, hanging overhead like the Sword of Damocles.
That arrogant young Kang would never let things rest. The next attack would only be more vicious and more deadly.
Levi could not leave.
At the very least, his true body absolutely could not leave the Marvel Universe.
Looking down at his hands, Levi suddenly smiled.
After advancing to the Single-Universe Level, many things once unimaginable had become effortless.
For example… creating a Universe Overlord–level clone.
He closed his eyes once more, consciousness sinking into the vast energy core within his body.
"In my name, let stars form the bones and laws forge the soul."
He murmured softly as the power within him began to boil.
A dazzling golden-red radiance slowly floated out from his chest. It was not mere energy, but the manifested form of thirteen cosmic laws. Like master weavers, they rapidly intertwined and shaped themselves in midair.
The surrounding air trembled. Physical constants briefly fell into chaos.
The light gradually condensed—first forming a skeleton, then veins and flesh, until finally becoming a human figure identical to Levi himself.
The clone opened its eyes. Galaxies seemed to rise and perish within those pupils, universes revolving endlessly.
Though slightly weaker than the original body, the clone's aura was still powerful enough to freeze the air itself. The shattered stones beneath its feet silently crumbled into dust.
Mid-stage Universe Overlord level.
Enough.
Levi said nothing further. The clone was him, sharing all memories, emotions, and will.
"Go," the original body said calmly.
"Try not to get yourself killed," the clone replied with a playful grin. "I value my life more than you do."
As the words fell, the clone raised a hand and lightly tapped the void before him.
Shrrrk—
Space split apart like fabric precisely sliced open, revealing a passage leading to another universe.
On the other side lay deep chaos and darkness, with occasional flashes of green and gold light and exploding sparks—the proof of the Green Lantern Corps fighting a bloody battle.
At the edges of the passage, the fundamentally different laws of the two universes violently collided and annihilated one another in silence.
Without hesitation, the clone stepped through.
The spatial crack slowly closed behind him until it vanished completely.
Levi remained where he was, turning his gaze back into the distance, his expression once more calm and unreadable.
The threat of the Council of Kangs still remained. He had to stay here and await the inevitable war.
---
DC Universe — Earth Orbit
The Justice League Watchtower was burning.
The space fortress once known as Earth's strongest line of defense had been reduced to ruins. Countless Shadow Demons surged through massive breaches like a flood, consuming and annihilating everything in their path—whether ultra-alloy walls or energy conduits.
Inside the control room, Batman leaned against a dead console. His armor had been torn open across the chest, blood continuously seeping from the wound, yet the eyes hidden beneath his cowl remained sharp as blades.
"Diana, status?" he asked hoarsely through the communicator.
"Terrible!" Wonder Woman's urgent voice came through amid the clash of divine power and energy explosions. "These things are endless! Every one we kill, two more come out of the darkness!"
"What about Superman?"
"He's holding back the main force outside the Watchtower," Diana replied, concern evident in her voice. "But… they have kryptonite weapons. Clark's power has been severely weakened."
Batman's brow tightened further.
Kryptonite. Somehow, the Anti-Monitor had acquired the deadly substance and converted it into energy weapons, shackling Earth's greatest protector.
"And the Green Lantern Corps?"
Several seconds of silence followed before Hal Jordan's exhausted, grief-filled voice came through.
"We've… lost thirty-seven Lanterns. The line… is close to collapsing."
Batman slowly closed his eyes.
Thirty-seven warriors dead—and the battle had only just begun.
He opened them again and looked at the only functioning tactical screen left.
Red enemy alerts nearly covered every sector.
They were losing.
And they were losing badly.
Suddenly, the control room wall was ripped open by an invisible force.
Three Shadow Demons shrieked as they rushed in, thick black mist pouring from their bodies. Wherever the mist passed, the metal floor rapidly corroded with sizzling sounds.
Batman silently drew three batarangs from his belt.
He knew they might be useless—but he had never been the type to wait helplessly for death.
The Shadow Demons lunged toward him.
Batman did not retreat.
He had already prepared for the worst.
But then—
The space before him folded.
Not violently torn apart, but as though an invisible hand had gently pinched reality itself and elegantly pulled open a crease.
Golden-red light poured from the fold, warm and majestic, instantly dispelling the biting cold and darkness brought by the Shadow Demons.
Batman instinctively raised an arm to shield his eyes from the brilliance.
A figure slowly stepped out.
Black hair. Simple gray T-shirt. Jeans.
He looked like nothing more than an ordinary young man from Earth.
Yet the terrifying energy fluctuations surrounding him instantly overloaded and burned out the few remaining sensors in Batman's armor.
The three charging Shadow Demons froze midair.
As though sensing an irresistible terror engraved into their very instincts, they let out panicked screeches and turned to flee back through the breach.
The newcomer didn't even look at them.
He casually lifted a hand and flicked a finger.
Three tiny streaks of golden light flashed by, striking the Shadow Demons precisely.
No explosion. No sound.
The monsters that even veteran heroes found troublesome simply vanished—as though erased from a painting by an invisible eraser, completely wiped from existence itself.
Batman's pupils contracted sharply.
He had seen Superman's heat vision melt steel, Wonder Woman split mountains with divine strength, and the Flash reverse time with speed.
But he had never seen anything this bizarre and overbearing.
That wasn't destruction.
It was erasure.
The newcomer lowered his gaze toward Batman, a familiar smile curling at the corner of his lips.
"Bruce Wayne. Long time no see."
Batman's body instantly tensed.
That voice. That face…
He remembered.
Years ago, during another Anti-Monitor crisis, a mysterious black-haired man had helped the Green Lantern Corps repel the creature's projection.
Before leaving, he had said one sentence:
"I'll come back."
"It's you…" Batman's voice was dry as waves of shock crashed through his mind. Who is he? Where did he come from? What exactly is the nature of his power?
Levi gave no explanation.
He walked forward and placed a hand lightly against Batman's chest wound.
Warm and immense life energy surged into Batman's body. Tissue corrupted by Shadow Demon energy was instantly purified. Broken ribs healed visibly, and the internal bleeding ceased immediately.
In less than three seconds, the injuries were completely gone.
Batman looked down at his restored chest, feeling strength flood back into his body.
Silence.
This healing method was neither magic nor technology.
It was more like… direct rewriting of the laws of life itself.
"The situation outside," Levi said calmly, though his tone carried unquestionable authority.
Batman took a deep breath, forcing himself back into command mode.
No matter who this man was or what his goals were, for now—he was an ally.
"It's bad," Batman said rapidly. "Superman is intercepting the enemy outside, but kryptonite weaponry has reduced his combat effectiveness by at least seventy percent. Diana is supporting the flanks, but the Shadow Demon numbers are overwhelming. The Green Lantern defense line has already been breached in multiple places. Casualties are severe."
Levi nodded and walked toward the breach, looking out at the battlefield beyond.
Outside the Watchtower lay a starry hellscape.
The black army of Shadow Demons swarmed like locusts, surrounding the entire station. Green lights stubbornly flashed and fought within the darkness, but each flicker often marked the fall of another Lantern.
Farther away, a red-and-blue figure battled over a dozen uniquely shaped Shadow Demons.
Superman.
Levi immediately saw through his condition.
Power at the peak of the Skyfather level was being heavily suppressed by cold radiation energy. Superman's movements had slowed significantly—even his flight had become unstable.
Not far away, Wonder Woman swung the Lasso of Truth, each sweep of golden divine light annihilating clusters of Shadow Demons. Yet exhaustion had begun to show on her face.
Levi only watched for a few seconds before stepping out of the Watchtower directly into the freezing vacuum of space.
To him, the vacuum and radiation of the cosmos were no different from Earth's atmosphere.
His appearance instantly drew the attention of nearby Shadow Demons.
Dozens of them changed direction and rushed toward him with soul-rending silent shrieks.
Levi simply floated there motionless.
Only when the first Shadow Demon came within ten meters did he slowly speak a single word.
"Disappear."
The word was not carried through sound waves.
It was a command, imbued with thirteen cosmic laws and the will of a Single-Universe existence, directly engraved into reality itself.
An invisible shockwave exploded outward from him.
The dozens of Shadow Demons at the forefront froze instantly.
Then golden cracks spread across their black bodies like spiderwebs before they shattered apart like sand sculptures caught in a hurricane, erased completely from the most fundamental level of existence.
The shockwave continued outward.
Within several hundred meters around the Watchtower, every Shadow Demon vanished in an instant.
A bizarre vacuum zone appeared across the battlefield.
Superman and Wonder Woman, locked in desperate combat moments before, both stopped and stared at the figure floating in space, their eyes filled with shock.
Levi turned his head and met Superman's gaze.
"Clark. I'm here to fulfill my promise."
Complex emotions flashed through Superman's blue eyes—surprise, caution, but above all, hope.
He recognized that face too.
"You… really came back," Superman said hoarsely.
Levi nodded and swept his gaze across the battlefield.
The number of Shadow Demons far exceeded his expectations. The endless darkness nearly covered all visible space. The Green Lantern line was on the verge of collapse, emerald light visibly dimming by the second.
"This is worse than I expected."
Wonder Woman flew over, sword and shield in hand, her expression wary.
"Who are you?"
"Someone here to help," Levi replied simply, his attention already fixed beyond the Shadow Demon army.
There, an unimaginably enormous black rift was slowly expanding, as though the universe itself had been torn open with a wound that could never heal.
Purple radiance shimmered along the edges of the crack as the horrifying power of the Anti-Monitor's true body continuously seeped through.
Levi could clearly sense its terrifying might.
Even with this clone at peak Universe Overlord level, he had no confidence in defeating the Anti-Monitor's true body head-on.
But retreat was not an option.
"Diana. Clark." Levi spoke calmly, yet with unquestionable authority. "From this point onward, follow my command."
Superman and Wonder Woman exchanged glances.
Normally, neither would ever hand command authority to an unknown outsider.
But what they had just witnessed had already proven that this man possessed power beyond their imagination.
"What's your plan?" Superman asked gravely.
Levi's gaze locked onto the black rift.
"The Anti-Monitor hasn't fully descended yet, so we still have time. But it isn't merely consuming matter—it's searching for something. Something that will let it completely win this war."
"What is it searching for?" Diana asked.
Batman's voice suddenly came through the communicator, heavy with unprecedented seriousness.
"According to the final deep-space data intercepted before the Watchtower systems failed, the enemy's energy trajectory points toward a theoretically existing… conceptual weapon. One tied to the total enslavement of free will…"
Levi finished the sentence for him.
"The Anti-Life Equation."
The words hit like thunder.
Superman and Wonder Woman's expressions changed instantly.
Even Darkseid had spent his life searching for that ultimate power. If the Anti-Monitor obtained it…
The consequences would be unimaginable.
"So before that happens," Levi said, slowly raising his right hand as the brilliance of thirteen laws gathered into a radiant sphere capable of illuminating the battlefield—
"we send him back."
His voice spread through energy vibrations, reaching every hero still fighting.
"Gather everyone who can still fight."
"This war ends today."
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