Chapter 129: Du Wa's New World
Knull was brutally taken down.
Although Knull was unwilling to admit it, he personally felt his own downfall, like a fluttering moth caught in a spider's web. No matter how he struggled, he could only watch helplessly as the web bound him tighter and tighter.
The scene before him clearly exceeded Knull's comprehension; the evil god's face was a mask of utter disbelief.
"What's going on with that Xenomorph, and what is this bizarre power? Why can she separate me from this Universe to imprison me? That Xenomorph isn't even a god!"
Knull racked his brains but couldn't figure out what Du Wa had done to grant an ordinary Xenomorph the strength to imprison a Cosmic Celestial.
Knull had already raised his assessment of the Xenomorphs time and again, but now, his very worldview was on the verge of shattering.
Did this make any sense?
"Although I don't understand the reason, since it's a trap Du Wa set for Knull in advance, then it all makes sense."
"That's terrifying. That Xenomorph isn't normal at all. It's clearly so weak, yet it possesses a special ability that can handle Knull? If it were to use this ability recklessly and without limit, wouldn't its influence spread across the entire universe?"
"The Xenomorphs are more terrifying than we imagined. That guy Du Wa secretly mastered a powerful force capable of taking down a Cosmic God, yet he never once used it. He's truly insidious."
"Dormammu is lucky. He was defeated too early and too quickly to end up in Knull's predicament."
At this moment, all the top-tier Celestials across the universe wore expressions of horror.
Dormammu, for his part, looked relieved. Thankfully, Du Wa had joined forces with the Ancient One back then instead of dealing with him alone. Otherwise, he might very well have been the one to suffer this fate.
Since Du Wa could handle Knull with such a bizarre method, it meant he could likely do the same to many other Cosmic Gods.
At this moment, even the most arrogant and lofty beings had no choice but to look down toward Du Wa and his Xenomorphs with probing gazes.
With the exception of a few beings, such as the Creator Gods who understood Moira's unique traits and could thus remain indifferent, all the other gods felt a strong sense of dread toward Du Wa.
Only now had Du Wa truly made a name for himself among the universe's elite.
By using Knull as a stepping stone, he paved his path toward the peak of a single universe.
But Du Wa's expression was extremely calm.
"Is this your limit? Knull, you're even more pathetic than I imagined. Perhaps I didn't need to go to such lengths to weaken you... I've barely used any of my tricks, and you've already fallen." Du Wa watched Knull's struggles intently, as if observing a small fish crashing around in a tiny fishbowl, repeatedly hitting the walls.
In his current wretched state, Knull frantically searched for an escape within a tiny region of the universe, only to be repeatedly reset by the bizarre power, forcing him back to his starting point. He was nothing more than a crazed, caged beast.
"Don't get too cocky, you bastard! There's no unbeatable power in this world. The fact that you can't kill me immediately proves you don't possess power that transcends the universe, which is why you have to resort to this clever trick to restrain me. I'll find a vulnerability soon and break out of here!" Knull roared furiously, his pitch-black eyes locked onto Du Wa. It seemed he could grab Du Wa just by reaching out, yet in reality, it felt as if an entire universe lay between them.
"I can't kill you? Perhaps. After all, many gods have exhausted their means only to expel you or force you into an eternal slumber. But I never intended to kill you from the start."
"What did you say?"
Knull stared viciously at the unreachable Du Wa, a sinister premonition rising in his heart.
At this moment, Knull himself probably didn't realize that he, who dared to challenge anyone, now felt an intense dread toward this absurdly young human. This was because Du Wa was completely different from any opponent he had ever encountered.
"Moira, compress Knull's fragments," Du Wa commanded. "The Abyss within his body is a prize. It is the essence of Darkness, an independent dimension, the origin of countless Symbiotes—a world that naturally belongs to us."
That's right. He wanted to capture Knull alive and turn him into the living core of a world.
In the Marvel Multiverse, many gods are not the self-contained powerhouses people imagine them to be. Aside from groups like mages, who rely on magical debt to maintain their transcendent system, even many gods depend on external forces.
The vast majority of gods are essentially dimension gods. The immense power they display is achieved by mobilizing the strength of an entire dimensional world.
For example, Dormammu relies on the Dark Dimension, and Mephisto on his Hell Dimension.
Once they leave their respective dimensional worlds, the longer they battle a powerful enemy, the weaker they become, making them more vulnerable to being killed.
In Du Wa's eyes, Knull was also a unique kind of dimension god. However, while conventional dimension gods exist within their dimensions, Knull was the opposite—the dimension known as the Abyss existed within his body.
Capturing Knull alive was the same as seizing the Abyss.
"This way, I can forge my own dimensional world, using the living Abyss as a container for my vast sea of consciousness and completing my takeover of Knull."
Watching the struggling Knull, Du Wa was eager to try. He had long considered creating something akin to Asgard's Valhalla, turning his sea of consciousness into a world that existed independently of reality.
At Du Wa's command, Moira obeyed with all her might. Straining her ability, she dragged the ancient evil god bit by bit, as if slowly putting a chain on a puppy, and delivered him to Du Wa.
Du Wa immediately launched a full-scale invasion of the Abyss.
If it were only Du Wa's own consciousness, it might not have been enough to shake Knull. But when Knull saw the vast, endless points of conscious light, the god was left utterly stunned.
The sheer number was absurd. Knull had never imagined that Du Wa had already bred such a staggering number of Xenomorphs across the universe. If it were merely a matter of quantity, he could have easily annihilated them all. But the problem was that each Xenomorph, represented by a point of conscious light, could naturally and perfectly merge with Du Wa's consciousness, serving as his guards and his source of energy, all under his command.
Du Wa didn't hold back his divine power in the slightest, unleashing it all upon Knull's Abyss. There was no finesse to his attack; it was a deliberate war of attrition.
As Knull grew weaker, everything he owned was gradually taken over, eroded by Du Wa's influence.
Before countless shocked onlookers, Knull slowly became a part of Du Wa.
Although it was unlikely that the current Du Wa could completely destroy Knull, Knull would live forever, forced to watch as Du Wa forcefully wielded him. For a proud Cosmic God, this fate was too cruel.
Once again, Du Wa stunned every being who witnessed this scene.
Seeing this, Malekith fled in a panic with his fleet, only to be met with an endless pursuit.
Although a Skyfather was no longer an indispensable source of power for Du Wa, he wouldn't refuse the opportunity to turn Malekith into a Xenomorph.
However, the ones most affected by this were the Shadow Gods.
These beings had already prepared for the worst, ready to use their limited power to face Knull within the shadows.
But in an unexpected turn of events, Du Wa proved to be vicious beyond measure. All their previous engagements had merely been a prelude to exhaust Knull as much as possible, all for the ultimate goal of devouring him completely.
The Shadow Gods watched as a cosmic deity far superior to them was taken down just like that. They didn't understand how, but they were deeply shaken.
"What happened? That Xenomorph's ability seems to be related to time and fate."
"If we had known about this ability in advance, it wouldn't have been impossible to deal with. We would just need to hide in a world with a clear separation from the reality universe."
"Easier said than done. How many Cosmic Gods are already bound to the reality universe? Who could have known that the Xenomorph possessed such a bizarre ability and fled the universe to hide beforehand?"
"According to our observations, Du Wa can use the abilities of all his Xenomorphs. That means he also possesses that strange Xenomorph's special ability, which is why he was able to devour Knull so easily."
"If Du Wa were to use this ability against us, how long could we hold out in the shadows?"
The Shadow Gods were filled with anxiety. They realized that their good old days of comfortably hiding in the shadows, looking down upon the changes of the World Tree from on high, were gone forever.
With Knull defeated, they should have been ecstatic. But seeing him subjected to eternal torment by Du Wa shook them to the core. They felt no joy, only a deep and endless unease, terrified that Du Wa would turn around and come for them next.
Naturally, the Shadow Gods attempted to negotiate with Du Wa, hoping to reclaim a portion of the divine power they had entrusted to him.
Yes, a portion.
They wouldn't dare hope for Du Wa to generously relinquish all of the divine power. He was, after all, a deity at the single-universe level. As long as he remained within the domain of the World Tree, he could wield its immense divine power to fight any powerful foe.
The World Tree itself was an immeasurably vast super-dimension.
Du Wa saw the hesitant movements of the Shadow Gods clearly.
To him, everything within the World Tree, whether of light or shadow, was laid bare before his eyes.
"Du Wa, we have fulfilled our promise by providing the divine power for you to defeat Knull."
"Indeed. Your performance exceeded our expectations. We never imagined you could utilize the divine power we gave you to such an extent."
"Even other Skyfathers bearing this power could not have wielded it so effortlessly, yet you used it without any hindrance."
"Accepting the power of the World Tree means shouldering its corresponding fate and driving the inevitable events within it. This is your mission. In return, you will receive a portion—no, most—of the energy as feedback."
Listening to them, Du Wa cut them off.
"Gods? Gods who can only advance by relying on the power of the World Tree? You've all misunderstood something. I never cared for the World Tree's gift. To become a Cosmic God in this way, only to stagnate, would be the greatest waste of my potential."
Du Wa's voice surged along his divine power, plunging straight into the shadows, causing the entire realm to twist wildly and stir up raging waves.
"What? Do you even hear yourself?"
"Still so arrogant. You became a god and defeated Knull with our help. You have to at least admit that you could absorb Knull mainly because you used our power to weaken him."
"And now that it's all over, you're telling us you look down on the very power we gave you?!"
The group was truly stunned. Perhaps they should have been overjoyed; if Du Wa were to voluntarily renounce this divine power, they might have a chance to reclaim a portion of the World Tree's authority.
Du Wa shook his head again and again.
The World Tree?
Follow the path of a World Tree deity? Becoming a single-universe god is simple enough, but advancing further to the multiversal level is out of the question. Barring the way are four multiverse-level, second-generation World Tree deities.
Oshtur, the God of White Magic and one of the Vishanti; Chthon, the God of Dark Magic and God of Chaos; the Serpent God Set; and Gaea, Mother Earth.
These four are an insurmountable mountain blocking the path of anyone who tries to ascend through the World Tree's system.
Using the power of the World Tree from a single universe to challenge four multiverse-level World Tree deities? What a joke!
If one merely wished to obtain a stable source of power and then coast, choosing to advance within the World Tree's system might be a decent option.
But for Du Wa, that was absolutely unacceptable. He would rather abandon the path of a World Tree god and instead, as the God of Xenomorphs, continuously elevate the very concept of the Xenomorph until he ultimately became a new concept god.
After all, the Marvel Multiverse was constantly integrating various concepts and absorbing external concept gods like the Original Beyonder to expand its own scale.
Following Knull's demise, the shockwave that had swept across the World Tree slowly dissipated.
As for the countless Symbiotes, the moment they lost Knull's control, they all ceased their frenzied actions, staring blankly at their surroundings in restless agitation.
"Either surrender and become a part of me, or die!" Du Wa proclaimed to the Symbiotes. "You have no choice. You will serve me just as you served Knull. Your god, your progenitor Symbiote, and the very world that birthed you—all of it is in my hands now."
Du Wa brandished All-Black the Necrosword, looking down upon the black tide.
He couldn't possibly let these creatures scatter. When it came to Symbiotes, the more, the better. The universe was vast, and the number of Xenomorphs would only continue to grow. In time, every one of them could be fitted with a Symbiote as equipment.
(end of chapter)