"Can we have a proper conversation now?" Renzo let go of Sif's hand. He wasn't worried that Sif would attack him. The situation was already very clear. If she attacked Renzo now, it would be pointless. What a shame.
Although Asgardians could be naive and easily deceived, they hadn't been bombarded with the overwhelming amount of information that constantly flooded the minds of people on Earth, breaking down their thoughts, reshaping them, and breaking them down again every day.
But their lifespans were extremely long, and thousands of years of experience were enough to make them sensible and teach them how the world worked.
Especially a warrior like Sif, who often spent her time on the battlefield. She knew far more than the average person. Although she wasn't filled with all the popular notions and suggestive rhetoric common on Earth, her intelligence was certainly nowhere near that of a fool like Thor.
"What happened to them...?" Sif slumped to the ground helplessly, like a dog.
Renzo told her what had happened on Earth without going into too much detail. He simply explained the existence of a witch—a terrifying enemy capable of disrupting the universe.
Balder's current condition was also her doing.
Sif listened with tears in her eyes. The king she admired most, the king she cared about most... had been reduced to this tragic state because of a witch who had appeared out of nowhere. He had even lost his human consciousness. What difference was there between him and the beasts begging for food in the streets?
Sif immediately wanted to pick up her weapon and fight the witch, but Renzo stopped her.
The reason was simple. Balder and Volstagg had been in a similar state before, but later, one fool came back with a pig.
The pig was still dead.
Even Mjolnir had been displayed as a trophy in the Witch Palace in New York.
And as far as Renzo knew, Wanda had many superheroes under her control, including Captain Carter, Venom... famous or obscure, powerful or otherwise, quite a few had been gathered under her command.
It was still difficult for Renzo to control Wanda. He definitely couldn't do it alone, but with Reed and Charles... the gap wasn't actually that large. The main difference lay in the lower-tier combat forces—in other words, her ordinary infected followers.
Now that America had fallen and parts of Africa were also under Wanda's control, Asia and Europe fortunately had their own local superhero organizations. They were a considerable force as well. If Wanda didn't come personally, taking those two regions would be quite difficult.
Renzo was now very confident in his own strength. Not to mention the three Infinity Stones, the Black Lantern Ring had absorbed the two gods Osiris and Tephytis, and the power of death had reached an entirely new level. Compared with Apocalypse and Thanos, his strength was even greater.
Now, even if he only used the Black Lantern Ring, his power had surpassed Thor and Hulk, reaching the level of Captain Marvel.
And now he had two more helpers.
Renzo carefully sensed the power of death flowing through his body. He had to admit that the power of Amit and Anubis was more than a little purer than the energy of Osiris.
No wonder Anubis was so famous.
"Is there any way to recover them?" Sif asked calmly, as though she had already accepted reality.
Even while Balder scratched at the glass and roared in her ears, she maintained a composed expression.
"Yes. There is now." Renzo replied softly. "Two Mind Stones are enough to suppress Wanda's power to confuse people's minds. Her black magic isn't powerful enough to surpass a cosmic artifact."
"Charles and I can suppress it, but eradicating it completely..." Renzo shook his head. "These people have been infected with a poison of the mind. Chaos has filled their hearts, growing like wild weeds across a boundless scarlet landscape. The earth is the soil, the organs are the roots, the blood is the water, and the chaos is the flower, rooted in both."
"It can't be eradicated. It can't be completely eradicated..."
"There is a way," Renzo said. "You should have heard of the Aether, Asgardians."
Of course Sif had heard of the massive invasion of Asgard by the Dark Elf Malekith. Taking advantage of Odin's absence, he had broken into Asgard and killed Queen Frigga.
This had not been ordered by Loki. In this universe, Loki was a Frost Giant, the son of Laufey, the current king of Jotunheim, and his status was equivalent to that of Balder. Many other forces had been encouraged to attack Asgard.
Loki was also behind Malekith's assault.
Balder had led the Asgardian soldiers in a counterattack against Svartalfheim, and the battle between the God of Light and the Dark Elves had begun.
Even though Malekith possessed the Aether, under Balder's leadership, powerful warriors such as Volstagg and Sif had successfully defeated the Dark Elves of Svartalfheim, killing all of them.
That battle had lasted for ten days.
Sif had been involved herself, so she naturally knew about the Aether.
Renzo knew clearly that if the power of the Reality Stone were fully unleashed, Asgard could suffer catastrophic losses. Its ability to alter reality was not something Wanda could easily compare with. Only Scarlet Witch, who had wiped out millions of mutants with a single sentence in the comics, possessed reality-altering power comparable to the Reality Stone.
"It can change the status quo, and only it... can change the status quo."
Of course, Sif knew what the "it" in Renzo's words referred to, and she could also understand the meaning behind his words.
In fact, Renzo had long sensed the unusual and powerful energy surrounding Sif. Even though the three gems on his body showed no warning or signs of activation, Renzo knew that the Reality Stone was on Sif.
Balder had told everyone at the Baxter Building that Sif was searching for the Reality Stone, and apparently, she had found it.
But it was unfortunate that Balder had ended up like this.
Renzo smiled slightly.
Seeing this, Sif stopped hiding it and directly handed over the red gem in her arms.
"Save him."
Her tone was extremely cold, as though she were stating an insignificant matter, but anyone with eyes could see how much Sif cared for Balder. She could easily hand over one of the most powerful treasures in the universe just to save an idiot who had lost his mind. The Reality Stone was worth more than an entire Asgard.
Yet she still handed it over as casually as if she were throwing away a piece of scrap paper, her expression completely indifferent, as though the treasure meant nothing to her.
Renzo found it difficult to understand the complicated emotions between other people, especially when it came to relationships. They were far more complicated than anything a television series or movie could fully explain.
Renzo was still very young, only in his twenties. Although he was incredibly powerful now, there were many things that even the powerful couldn't completely understand.
In his more than twenty years of life, Wanda was the first and only girl who had entered his heart. She was like a delicate and alluring flower, and Renzo had been the first person to discover her. He admired that flower and used the most beautiful words in the world to describe her.
That was how he had won her heart.
But what if it were someone else? There would be other people who saw that flower, and other people who praised her with beautiful words. If that happened, would Wanda still willingly stay by Renzo's side?
No one knew.
Because of the Soul Stone, the hearts of the two had become so closely connected that they could even sense what the other was thinking. It was simple and beautiful.
Renzo was like a silly puppy. Once someone picked him up, he decided that she was his owner. He wagged his little tail and followed behind her. In his eyes, his owner was wonderful and exceptional. There was no one better than her in the world.
He had never understood the ups and downs of relationships or the emotions involved in silently waiting for someone. Some touching novels could easily resonate with readers, but what happened after that resonance? After all, it wasn't their own experience. Even imagining such feelings was difficult, let alone experiencing them personally.
Both he and Wanda were simple in this regard. They believed that once they chose someone, they could stay together for the rest of their lives. But reality was often not what people wished for.
There were many couples who loved each other but were ultimately separated, and there were also many people who stayed together despite no longer being in love. Perhaps their experiences had left them numb, making them unable to love others or even themselves. They withdrew into a shell and allowed themselves to be manipulated by others, refusing to expose their fragile hearts.
They armed themselves from head to toe and covered themselves in spikes, trying to prevent anyone from embracing them. Perhaps hurting others felt more comfortable than allowing themselves to be hurt.
Renzo didn't know exactly what kind of feelings Sif had for Balder, but it was obvious that she was willing to hand over the most precious treasure she possessed to him.
Renzo asked Charles to come down, along with Reed, Mordo, Wong, and the others, and let them witness this moment of changing the future.
Buzz! Buzz!
The two Mind Stones shone with golden light simultaneously, as warm as the sun, gently illuminating the many infected people inside the cell.
Several people who had been roaring madly just a second earlier suddenly collapsed to their knees, clutching their heads and begging for mercy.
It hurt so much!
It hurt so much!
It felt as though someone had driven nails into their heads, poured cement inside, stirred it violently with a mixer, and then added mustard, chili, chopped green onions, star anise, lemon juice...
In short, what they were experiencing now was an unbearable mixture of pain and agony.
But the effect was also obvious.
Red mist rose from the bodies of more than a dozen infected people. The evil aura was enough to make Mordo immediately reveal his magical shield. Even Wong frowned, and the protective spell covering his skin flickered into view.
Good grief! Were all mages this afraid of dying?
Renzo had no time to pay attention to them now. He was desperately controlling the energy released by the Mind Stones, doing everything he could to prevent their power from overwhelming the infected people's minds.
Now that he finally had a way to save them, turning them into fools would defeat the entire purpose.
This wasn't a problem involving one or two people. If even a few irreversible mistakes occurred during the operation, all of the dozen or so people connected by the Mind Stones could be reduced to mindless shells by the terrifying mental shock, never to recover for the rest of their lives.
This kind of work required astonishing computational power and physical strength. Even Charles and Reed would be unable to handle it. Among everyone present, only Renzo could complete this most difficult task.
The red mist rose slowly, giving the scene the appearance of a rising sun, but it carried no warmth. Instead, it was filled with blood and violence...
These chaos-infested parasites clinging to their victims seemed to have been doused in boiling oil. They immediately gave off a charred, blackened smell before falling to the ground. The infected people's bodies also began to crack, scarlet blood continuously flowing from their skin. Within just ten seconds, everyone in the cell was covered in blood.
The same was true of Rogan and Blonsky, and the pain only intensified the ferocity of the two. Adamantium claws violently tore through flesh, leaving long scratches across the glass. Blonsky was no different. After transforming into Abomination, he repeatedly punched the transparent barrier, each blow powerful enough to destroy a tank.
The others also experienced varying degrees of violent reactions.
"This is..." Balder's eyes suddenly cleared, and his fierce expression froze for a moment, as though he still didn't understand what had just happened.
As expected of the God of Light. Even without overwhelming strength, he was the first to regain his sanity with the blessing of his divine power. Light was one of the forces most capable of restraining chaos, but chaos could also absorb light, like a black hole swallowing everything around it.
"Balder!"
"Sif?!"
The two pressed themselves against opposite sides of the glass, staring at each other. As comrades who had fought together for more than a thousand years, they often didn't need words. A single movement or glance could tell them what the other intended to do, and one expression was enough to understand what the other was thinking.
"I..."
"Get out of the way!"
Renzo had no interest in indulging their reunion. His main task was to pull them out of Wanda's web!
The Reality Stone suddenly floated into the air.
Renzo was doing two things at once: clearing the corruption from everyone's minds while simultaneously activating the power of the Reality Stone.
This wasn't the first time he had activated the Reality Stone. Three years ago, when he had fought Infinite Ultron, the Reality Stone had already been embedded in his body. But at that time, he hadn't known how to use the power of the Infinity Stones. The gems on his body had only provided him with a steady stream of kinetic energy. He had never actually used their ability to alter reality.
But he had possessed the stone before, after all.
Renzo easily modified the red mist surrounding several people, including the roots of chaos occupying their hearts. The roots were intertwined and deeply embedded, completely fused with their bodies.
A touch of even deeper red power clung to the roots of Chaos. It was redder than Chaos Magic, yet it wasn't the color of blood. It was more like the blazing sun.
The moment the two came into contact, the roots seemed to be made of ice melting instantly. A second later, they turned into water vapor and were expelled through the skin of everyone present. Several people were surrounded by white mist, giving them an almost otherworldly appearance.
The people's wailing also stopped. Not a single sound came from them except for the hiss of water vapor, like water boiling in a pot.
The three Infinity Stones gradually dimmed and finally returned to silence.
"Open it. It's okay."
Renzo sounded slightly exhausted. This kind of delicate work was truly draining. Even a supercomputer would struggle with the speed of the calculations required. Renzo could feel his brain heating up.
Pfft!
The glass slowly opened, and white mist immediately poured through the gap, hot air striking everyone's faces. Charles was almost overwhelmed by the heat, and his suit clung to his back.
Thump, thump, stare.
Chaotic footsteps suddenly sounded, and their figures finally emerged through the white mist.
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