Chapter 123: Du Wa Wants to Take the Divine Power While Standing
"To deal with a Cosmic God without using some special means, it's hard to find an opportunity for a complete victory."
Du Wa stood up, ready to go.
He only needed to briefly extend his perception to feel the endless pressure that seemed to emanate from the entire cosmic expanse.
At this moment, it was as if everything beyond Earth was set against him.
This was the terror of a Cosmic God, existing as part of the very rules of the universe.
But Du Wa's face showed not a single trace of dread, only a silence as profound as a black hole.
"Boss, the company's phones are about to be blown up, and a huge crowd has gathered outside. Everyone wants to know how you plan to deal with this even more exaggerated wave of Symbiotes... A rough estimate puts their number in the hundreds of millions, at the very least, and possibly even more." Gloria Grant walked in, covered in sweat.
For someone like her, who only hosted an ordinary Xenomorph, it was natural to feel the terrifying, immense pressure from beyond Earth.
Gloria Grant felt as if she were being stared at intently by a mysterious, malevolent gaze.
"Same as last time."
"Last time? We were able to defeat the Symbiote legion because their numbers were limited, and you defeated Knull ahead of time. But this time, the situation is unusual..." Meeting Du Wa's gaze, Gloria Grant took a deep breath, her tense body slowly relaxing.
If it were anyone else, they wouldn't be as nervous as Gloria Grant, because they would first wait for Du Wa's command.
Everyone firmly believed that Du Wa, just as he had demonstrated in many past crises, would lead them to find the one correct path amidst the impossible.
But Gloria Grant knew that during this period, Du Wa hadn't made any significant moves, merely sitting in his office, drinking water and reading the newspaper.
Of course, Gloria Grant knew that Du Wa possessed the ability to remotely control Xenomorphs, but was that really alright? Could he really sit in his office and calmly complete a battle plan to snipe a Cosmic God?
"Gloria, as my chief secretary, you've handled a large amount of confidential documents for me. You know more than others, but you're not as pure of heart as Druig... This is your last chance to question me. If there is a next time, you know what the result will be."
Du Wa's tone was extremely casual, as if he were having a daily chat.
But Gloria Grant's body trembled, her face filled with terror. "I'm sorry, Boss, but I've read the materials on the Symbiotes. The one coming this time is the real Knull, isn't it? The complete Knull who has reclaimed his body. I never imagined I would be dealing with a Cosmic God, so I was a little worried about you..."
"Fear is normal, but your fear is worthless. Fear that can make *me* afraid—that is what would have value in Knull's eyes."
Du Wa glanced at Gloria Grant. Normally, as an old acquaintance of Peter Parker, this woman would have been promoted all the way up at the Daily Bugle.
But now, by a twist of fate, she had joined Du Wa's ranks.
To gain power and wealth far beyond that of ordinary people, and to possess a body and lifespan comparable to a superhuman's, Gloria Grant naturally had to face more dangerous situations and powerful enemies unimaginable to ordinary people.
Having a deity as an enemy was simply too much for Gloria Grant, who had been an ordinary person just two years ago, to comprehend.
Du Wa didn't reprimand her excessively, but if it happened again, his patience would be completely exhausted.
He could tolerate any act of betrayal from his subordinates. However, as long as they still identified as his subordinates and had yet to act on their rebellion, they shouldn't waste his time and energy.
Questioning him was the most worthless and foolish of actions.
"From this moment on, you are relieved of your position as chief secretary. Go to the front desk on the first floor. Facing the invasion of countless Symbiotes, you are to hold your post on the first floor. You cannot leave, not for a single step." Du Wa's gaze had long since looked toward the endless distance, with no trace of Gloria Grant within his line of sight.
A pleading look appeared on Gloria Grant's face, but in the end, she said nothing more, lowered her head, and exited the office.
After all, not everyone was a fanatical follower like Druig. Nor was everyone like Mr. Blue, whose large head was filled with all sorts of plans to rebel against Du Wa, yet who still acted with utter loyalty before officially executing them. And certainly not everyone was like Reynolds, who didn't use his brain at all, only wanting to find opportunities to show off, and who simply needed to wait for Du Wa's command when something happened.
Look, Reynolds was still flying around carefreely, his entire body glittering with golden light. He had even deliberately expanded the coverage of his golden energy to make himself shine even brighter, cocking his ear to listen attentively to the various words of praise from the ant-like mortals below.
At this moment, many people thought that Du Wa would probably still adopt the same tactic he used against Dormammu.
The Sentry trinity.
If they disregarded the burden on Reynolds' body and forcefully stacked the power of a million exploding suns repeatedly, they could probably face the complete Knull head-on.
Du Wa had also evaluated this plan. Thinking it over, if there were truly no other way, unleashing all of Sentry's potential regardless of the cost should allow him to clash with Knull.
After all, the current Knull did not have All-Black the Necrosword.
But this was ultimately not a foolproof plan.
So Du Wa mobilized personally.
He left Weyland Tower one step ahead, before Knull could personally enter the solar system.
Du Wa slowly raised his head and looked at the deep sky. In his vision, this world was no longer just simple stars and planets, but also a world structure invisible to ordinary people—the World Tree.
This was a magnificent, giant tree that could only be seen by those who had come into contact with the power of the World Tree and mastered it to a profound level. A single branch casually extending from it supported countless stars.
Du Wa's gaze swept over this giant tree, searching for what he needed.
Thor had made a special trip to Earth.
"Du Wa, my brother, it seems we must fight side-by-side once again." Thor looked at Du Wa with a grave expression, hoping to hear a solution for dealing with Knull from his good friend. "Knull has come again. He has become a complete deity... This guy is different from any enemy we've faced in the past."
"I do have a method, and it is currently being implemented," Du Wa said calmly.
Though he hadn't heard the specific plan, Thor was immediately relieved, the gloom on his face completely dispersing. "Then what do I need to do? Don't worry, I now have enough strength to assist you in battle."
With Stormbreaker, the power of Odin, and the Destroyer Armor, this deluxe configuration gave Thor more confidence than ever before.
Even if the opponent was a dangerous, evil god, the thought of defeating Knull to save his brother Loki made Thor wish he could find Knull immediately and kill him on the spot.
"What are you looking at? Or have you already transferred your soul into another Xenomorph?" Thor asked.
If it were anyone else here, they would have long suspected that Du Wa had taken the opportunity to flee.
Because Du Wa was truly capable of it.
Transferring his consciousness, abandoning any body at will—this ability was practically cheating. As long as a Xenomorph existed in some remote corner of the universe, Du Wa had achieved a conceptual form of immortality.
There was only one way to completely deal with Du Wa: kill every single Xenomorph in the entire universe first.
Even Knull would find this extremely difficult. Recklessly overturning the universe and launching a large-scale attack would easily trigger chaos across all of creation, eventually leading other gods to intervene and stop his actions.
"I am merely observing the World Tree... I'm afraid you can't understand it right now," Du Wa replied.
Thor looked blank, genuinely not understanding what Du Wa was talking about.
The World Tree? What was there to see about the World Tree? Wasn't that thing just standing there?
And what did this have to do with the approaching Knull? Could Du Wa possibly lift the World Tree and smash it into Knull?
Du Wa found nothing of value from Thor, but he wasn't disappointed; he hadn't held any such hope from the beginning.
He was staring at the ones he couldn't see yet, believing they definitely knew what he was looking for.
Those Who Sit Above In Shadow truly saw Du Wa's actions.
One by one, black figures appeared at the top of the World Tree. Each one of them was immense, the result of hundreds of millions of years of accumulation.
"As expected, he has discovered us."
"Not exactly discovered. He doesn't even know what we are. At most, he has guessed at our existence."
"How pitiful. Faced with the pressure of a Cosmic God, even the proudest of humans must bow their arrogant heads, eager to beg for power from true gods to avert the crisis."
"But speaking of which, if Knull is allowed to truly occupy Midgard, this mad god will definitely discover our existence. The entire World Tree will descend into chaos. Once we are exposed to the sight of the gods outside, we will no longer be able to periodically trigger Ragnarok as we do now."
"Knull is strong and very dangerous, but there's no need for us to act personally. We can cultivate a proxy to fight for us. We just need to wait patiently and reap the fruits of victory."
The ancient shadow gods conversed, quickly reaching a consensus.
Under any circumstances, hiding themselves was the priority.
As for cultivating a servant to be their fighter... at first glance, Thor was more suitable, as he was of the orthodox God Race of the World Tree.
As for Du Wa, even if he wasn't considered a human but a Xenomorph, his connection to the World Tree was only indirect, established by using Xenomorphs to parasitize the God Race and thereby create a link.
However, since Du Wa was the first to discover their existence and was willing to step forward and confront Knull, the shadow gods weren't opposed to bestowing a boon upon him.
Boom!
Heaven and earth were swallowed by darkness, and all light was severed.
The Shadow Gods manifested. In a way only Du Wa could perceive, several immensely large black shadows appeared in his field of vision.
"Finally willing to come out," Du Wa said faintly.
"Human, or perhaps Xenomorph, you wish to borrow our power to fight the invading god."
"You do not yet possess this qualification."
"Sacrifice your eyes, offer your soul, and hang yourself upon a branch of the World Tree. We will grant you the divine power to defeat the evil god Knull."
A series of ancient and esoteric divine words resounded, brewing with a primeval and weighty aura.
Perhaps, if Thor were standing here, he would have agreed without hesitation, making the fight against Knull his top priority.
But for Du Wa, it was impossible.
"You're mistaken about one thing. It's not me begging you, but you fools begging me."
Du Wa revealed a somewhat chilling smile. "Rats hiding in the shadows never dare to face the harsh light of day. It makes them panic, instinctively scrambling for survival, yet they still resort to what they do best—squeaking chaotically."
"What did you say?"
"Insolence! Arrogance!"
"You are asking us for help, yet you adopt such a high-and-mighty posture. Do you have any idea what you are facing?"
Those Who Sit Above In Shadow were probably being humiliated for the first time in their lives, caught completely off guard, because this was likely the first time they had conversed with a life form from outside the shadow since their birth.
And it began with such a terrible opening.
The Shadow Gods looked down, shocked by Du Wa's aura.
So defiant? He was unwilling to sacrifice his body and soul, unwilling to hang on a branch and pray to them; he wanted to do nothing and take the divine power while standing?
Yes, the Shadow Gods could leverage the power of the World Tree and distribute divine power, but they wouldn't just hand it out for no reason.
Du Wa sneered repeatedly.
Sacrifice? Don't be ridiculous. Sacrificing one's eyes here meant losing them forever. Even on a soul level, that part of you would be gone, and no healing ability, no matter how powerful, could restore it.
It was somewhat similar to a Xenomorph. After bursting from a host's chest, it takes the host's genetic material as part of itself, which prevents the host, even one with powerful self-healing, from repairing the lost internal organs.
For example, the Main Universe's Odin sacrificed an eye to the World Tree to obtain the method to defeat Cul, becoming one-eyed from then on.
Du Wa would never do that.
As for hanging himself on a branch of the World Tree... that's right, that was Rune King Thor's path. Rune King Thor hung himself for seven days and seven nights and ascended to godhood.
But Du Wa would never do that.
These Shadow Gods were strong, and they had indeed eroded the World Tree deeply, storing immense divine power, but they were also a bunch of creatures that couldn't see the light of day. They could only hide in the shadows of the World Tree, periodically triggering Ragnarok to secretly harvest doomsday energy.
"Right now, within the entire World Tree, I am the only one willing to be the first to step forward and face Knull, to defeat Him just like the previous two times. No, this time is different. I will eliminate Him completely, leaving Him no fourth chance. For you lot, your best option is me, the one who found you out so early."
"We refuse. We will kill you before Knull arrives."
"Defiant, are we? Then I'll just kill myself, abandon this human body, and tell Knull your whereabouts. Let him tear apart the entire World Tree to find and kill you one by one! What do you think? Will Knull, who is addicted to slaughter and loves to challenge and kill all kinds of gods, be interested in you?"
Du Wa threatened, "Either I sacrifice a batch of Xenomorphs to leave the World Tree in a less-than-dignified manner and head for other parts of the universe, and you all wait to be finished off by Knull; or, you give me your power, and let me go face Knull."
(end of chapter)