Wanda stepped on Renzo's head, pressing the heel of her hard high heels into the man's face. The vibranium body beneath her did not change at all under the force of her kick.
"You damn bastard!" Wanda obviously resented Renzo's indifferent behavior toward her just now. How heartless did someone have to be to do such a thing to the face of the lover he had spent day and night with?
Wanda stared at the man beneath her feet with deep disgust. Hidden deep in her eyes was an extremely obscure fear. That dark figure... seemed to be engraved into the woman's heart. The fear Renzo had left Wanda with over the past few days, months, and years might never truly disappear.
This damn man, wielding a butcher's knife behind a mask of false kindness, could kill the person he loved without hesitation. It showed just how dark his heart could be.
In a confused black fog, the woman was wrapped in fear. She saw her parents being killed by missiles. She hid beneath the ruins of a wall as dirty gray stones fell onto her body and face. Tears washed away the dust, only for blood and grime to cover her again. Not far away lay her parents' bodies, their voices screaming for her to run. Run!
Wanda was terrified, as if she had truly become that little girl again—not the arrogant Scarlet Witch who could get whatever she wanted with a few words, nor the woman who could make anyone she disliked disappear forever with the same ease.
She was too weak, as fragile as a small yellow flower growing through a crack in the rocks on the edge of a cliff. After years of wind and rain, she had still struggled to survive, forced to watch her parents die over and over again, like a videotape endlessly rewound and replayed.
Her parents' bodies were blown apart before her eyes, flesh and blood scattered everywhere. Fragments of their organs covered the girl's vision, while a pair of invisible hands seemed to hold her eyelids open, refusing to let them close. Wanda was forced to watch her parents die, return, and die again, over and over.
Sadness filled the girl's mind, which had been forcibly pried open and stuffed with it.
She couldn't even scream.
Her body seemed to be tearing apart.
The girl sank for a long time, trapped in a dark world. The storm swept through the ruins, and the girl's face gradually faded away, disappearing into the wind, sand, blood, and tears.
Wanda seemed to be remembering something, and the pressure of her foot gradually became lighter.
Renzo dragged his broken body and opened his mouth several times. Part of the computer inside his brain had been damaged, and only his body-temperature regulation system remained functional.
But his soul was still thinking at high speed. It was a separate thought system, completely isolated from his body. It was also the one thing he had brought with him to the Marvel Universe, and therefore the most precious thing he possessed.
Why was she still alive? He had obviously killed Wanda in the most indifferent way possible. There had been not a trace of emotion in it, only reason and indifference cooled to their absolute limit. He had considered the problem from the perspective of a god, abandoning the human way of thinking.
He was absolutely certain that he had killed Wanda with his own hands. Her head had been severed by the Black Death Sword, and the blood had sprayed nearly ten feet into the air.
Her heart had stopped, and he had seen her body with his own eyes. He was familiar with everything about the woman's body—her pulse, her heartbeat, her breathing... Even from a distance, Renzo could determine her condition instantly.
Yet the person he had judged to be dead was now standing before him alive, even stepping on his face.
"I'll bury you on the top of Mount Everest, above everything else, just like you always placed yourself above everyone else in this world." Wanda increased the pressure of her foot. Realizing that simple physical strength was useless against this man, a crimson aura wrapped around her high heel, seemingly transforming it into a sharp blade that stabbed toward his head.
Wanda had to admit that this man had indeed killed her. No, to be precise... he had killed her.
An extremely evil, pitch-black long sword stained with the turbid blood of gods. Even an ordinary person who merely glanced at it would have their soul devoured by the Black Death Sword.
The woman stared at the ring on the man's finger in amazement. It was like a black hole capable of sucking even a person's gaze into its depths.
Wanda suddenly came to her senses. She raised her hand slightly, and the Black Lantern Ring was instantly pulled by an inexplicable force.
It was useless. The ring had already recognized its owner, and it was impossible to separate it from him until the host was completely dead.
The death referred to here was not merely physical death, nor did it mean the decline of bodily functions. It meant the complete destruction of both the spiritual and material levels. Even if only the body remained, the Black Lantern Ring could reside within the corpse of the deceased, control its resurrection, and turn it into a servant under the Black Death Emperor.
But there was something slightly different about this Black Lantern Ring, and neither of them could identify exactly what that difference was.
Renzo didn't know, and Wanda knew even less.
But why should the woman care? She never gave up on something she wanted. Even if it was only a passing whim, she would always find a way to obtain it.
Chap!
A crimson blade flashed, and one of Renzo's fingers was cleanly severed.
Wanda playfully picked up the finger. The ring was as black as a black hole, seemingly capable of swallowing even sunlight. It was like a bottomless abyss that could never be filled.
The woman studied the ring carefully as the severed finger turned to dust and fell to the ground like sand.
There was no pain at all.
Renzo no longer knew what pain was, but watching Wanda casually cut off his fingers still made him uncomfortable.
He remembered a form of torture that involved cutting a wound into a person's wrist and letting them listen to the blood drip, drop by drop. Then their eyes would be covered, their body tied to a chair, and they would be left unable to move, forced to listen to their own blood continuously falling to the ground while seeing nothing but darkness.
Lonely, quiet, dark, and deserted.
It was like being in the deep sea, darkness surrounding him as the water continuously squeezed his internal organs, his nerves remaining painfully tense and refusing to relax for even a moment.
With the eyes blindfolded, the other senses would be amplified to a terrifying degree, especially hearing.
Quietly listening to one's own blood drip onto the ground—the panic and terror in the heart were impossible to describe.
Death was knocking on the door!
Waiting for death to come.
Renzo felt as though his skull had shattered. Although he technically had no skull, his body had been constructed according to the human form and still possessed a basic framework. It supported the various components inside him and intertwined with them, like a skeleton surrounding internal organs.
None of the Avengers dared to move forward. The woman's terrifying presence was deeply imprinted in everyone's minds, and their leader—the man who had claimed to be a guardian of gems from other universes—had been stepped on like a dead dog. That made them even more afraid to act rashly.
Reed held his wife, Susan, in his arms. Her body had reached its limit, and she didn't even have the strength to stand. In order to protect his wife, Mr. Fantastic had stretched his limbs to their limits, leaving his own body severely damaged.
They couldn't remember how many hours they had been fighting, but almost everyone present had exhausted their strength. Aside from a few people with exceptional physical abilities, most could barely remain standing.
Sif was stunned. She had still not recovered from seeing Balder eaten. Charles was surrounded by the remaining X-Men, who were determined to defend the professor with their lives. Among the Avengers who could still stand and fight, only Frank, the Ghost Rider, and Eric remained in the air.
"Be prepared to activate the nuclear weapons. If necessary, activate the Baxter space movement, transfer Wanda to the Sahara Desert, and then drop a nuclear bomb. It will wipe her from this world!"
Nick Fury clasped his hands behind his back and stared solemnly at the scene displayed on the large screen before him, his brows tightly furrowed.
This was an unexpected situation. Most of Earth's superheroes had joined forces against one person, yet they had been defeated. Even when Thanos attacked, they had only sent six members of the Illuminati, and in the end, they had lost Strange before overcoming him.
Although there were occasional reports of heroes dying in battle, there had never been a situation in which nearly half of Earth's superheroes had died at once.
Nick Fury had prepared for the worst. Even when supervillains joined forces against the Avengers, or when nuclear codes were stolen and the world was threatened with destruction, the one-eyed man had considered the possibilities and formulated sufficient countermeasures.
Plans never kept up with change!
"Director, do you really want to do this?" Philco said in a deep voice. "This means you've given up on everyone here and the entire United States. There won't be anyone left to protect the Earth afterward."
"I'll find a way," Nick Fury said quietly. "This is the most effective method, and also the one I least want to use."
"Philco, you've been with me for twenty years and served as my deputy for twenty years. You know S.H.I.E.L.D. as well as I do. You know those politicians no less than I do."
"If we don't do it, they will. Anyone can come up with such a desperate solution."
"Ha." Nick Fury gave a bitter smile. "I don't want to either... but look." He pointed at the crimson figure. "Who do you think can stop her? The man who swore so confidently is now scrap metal beneath our feet, and the others... have no fight left in them."
A trace of sadness flashed across Fury's face. Was the end of humanity going to begin on this day?
"We're choosing to become executioners for the sake of a better tomorrow for humanity. We can't allow ourselves to hesitate. Death is inevitable."
Philco was silent. He knew that what Nick Fury said was right. The enemy had to be killed to ensure the safety of all humanity.
But was it really worth it?
Everyone knew the cost and destructive power of nuclear weapons. They could permanently alter an ecosystem, leaving an area barren and lifeless for decades or even centuries.
Even in an uninhabited desert, where they believed the damage could be minimized, the consequences would still be irreversible. Reed had no way to restore land contaminated by nuclear radiation.
"I understand." Philco nodded. "Aim the weapon at Wanda Maximoff and move her away at the right opportunity. I'll notify the ground special-service troops to drop the nuclear bomb and ensure that it detonates the moment she moves. Tear her apart."
"Also... aim another nuclear bomb at New York."
Silence descended throughout the air and space carrier.
On the battlefield, Wanda walked lightly and gracefully, killing the Avengers around her.
"Eye of Judgment!"
Frank and the woman stared at each other. Raging flames suddenly erupted from his empty eye sockets. Golden-red fire mixed with black flames, surging outward and exploding into brilliant sparks.
Wanda felt a stabbing pain in her mind. The scenery before her seemed to change. Countless shriveled skeletons chattered at the woman, their bones knocking together and producing unpleasant sounds.
"Interesting."
This was the first time Wanda had seen such an ability. She remembered that the power of the Ghost Rider seemed to originate from demons of another dimension, much like her own. Among the fragmented memories she had plundered from Sithorne, there had been a vague figure of the Hell Lord Mephisto, whose aura was highly similar to Frank's.
She wanted to see how many tricks this man had. Yet after waiting for a long time, she allowed the skeletons to bite at her body without even trembling.
Still, nothing happened.
Wanda waved her hand impatiently, and the illusion was instantly torn apart.
Frank roared and let out a sharp wail. His most powerful technique had actually been broken at this moment! It was a move that could even affect Thanos, yet it was so insignificant in the woman's eyes.
Her hand clamped around his fleshless neck. Although there was no flesh, he could still feel pain that penetrated deep into his bones.
Frank returned to his human form, and the flames of Hell dissipated into the air.
The woman threw him aside like garbage. In her opinion, this man still had some use. She would not kill him for now; perhaps she could make use of him later.
Her gaze was so intense that no one dared meet her eyes.
"You can't... stop her..." Charles raised a trembling hand. His pale, withered arm had not a trace of blood in it. Veins stood out across his bald head, his chest heaving violently. He might lose consciousness and die at any moment.
This body was too weak. After this battle... Charles was unlikely to have much life left.
Eric couldn't bear to watch his friend's stubbornness. He looked as miserable as a candle flickering in the wind, the flame of his life threatening to go out at any moment.
"Come at me, bastard!"
Eric raised his hand and overturned dozens of vehicles, sending them toward the woman.
He had sensed what his old friend intended to do.
It was time to use that trump card!
What Eric had to do was risk his life to stop the woman, even if it only bought them a few seconds.
Boom!
Wanda stopped, and an old man wearing crimson armor and a cape blocked her path.
"I won't let you get any closer!"
Eric stared at the woman with hatred. He had watched the members of his Brotherhood become the witch's playthings, some of them dying without even leaving intact corpses behind.
Eric was not someone who cherished his subordinates. He had been different when he was young, but as he grew older, he became increasingly indifferent to relationships. Even Raven, who had once saved him, could be abandoned as casually as discarded trash.
The deaths of the remaining members brought him regret, but he still hated this woman. She had hindered the development of mutants and destroyed the achievements he had spent decades building.
But most importantly...
She had tried to attack Charles!
Eric would never tolerate that. Charles was his bottom line. Once someone crossed it, they had to be prepared to die.
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