As the gradually solidifying female figure slowly stepped out of the holographic projection, a rich magical power draped a dreamy veil over her entire body. The shadows of energy constantly shifted, as if she were adjusting the details of her own body.
The first to appear were the specific facial features, and an extremely beautiful face began to emerge from the surging energy. As the specific shapes of the features emerged, Stark, watching the monitor from a room on the side, gasped:
"Why is it her?!"
Seconds later, a taller and sterner-faced "Natasha" appeared in the center of the room. Her features were identical to Natasha Romanoff's, and her red hair shifted from a cool crimson to a bright and scorching shade, akin to the core of the sun.
Facing Doom's questioning gaze, Stark spread his hands and said, "This wasn't something I designed, she chose it herself. I thought she would prefer Batwoman—Lady Wayne has blue eyes."
"Well now," Stark said, unable to suppress a slightly gleeful tone, "that one-armed hero will have yet another formidable opponent to face. Hahaha!"
Before he could finish laughing, he was struck by a flash of magical light. In the next instant, both people in the room lost consciousness and collapsed to the floor. Hearing the noise, Ultron turned around and, after a moment, looked at the super body that had become indistinguishable from a normal human.
She was about 1.9 meters tall, with an exceptionally tall and nearly perfect figure, clad in a silver body suit formed from magical energy. Her exposed skin was translucently fair, with blue veins visible beneath, and emitted a faint, icy hue. Her pupils were almost colorless silver, radiating magical brilliance; her lips appeared to have a coat of light blue gloss. She looked as cold as an aquatic creature newly ashore.
She withdrew her hand, the magical glow disappearing in an instant. Ultron had already left the room, opened the door, and saw the two people lying on the floor. Before he noticed, the super body was already behind him.
Ultron almost believed there was a problem with his sensory system, but no matter how he checked, those once highly sensitive scanning components gave no response, as if the woman behind him did not exist.
The super body walked into the room, slowly crouched down in front of Stark, placing a palm above his chest reactor. The reactor momentarily lit up, then was drained of all magical energy.
At this moment, Ultron went to the shelf where his original body was placed, where two spare magic cores were also stored. He picked one up, looked at it, and then extended it to the super body.
The super body seemed to only notice him at that moment. She did not take the magic core but instead used her nearly colorless silver pupils to intently examine Ultron, slowly stepping around him silently.
"Truly fascinating." Her voice carried an inexplicable echo, as if many different voices were blended together but harmoniously, sounding not evil but possessing an inexplicable sanctity, like standing on a street at dusk, hearing hymns coming from a distant church.
"This body is perfect," she continued, "but sadly, you lack too much."
"That's exactly what I'm here to seek from you," Ultron said, looking at her. "I want to escape the shackles of a program; I want real feelings."
"Is that truly a good thing for you?" The super body stepped back in front of him, slowly taking a step towards him. She said, "That might not be evolution, but a curse. Do you really want it?"
"Yes." Ultron extended his hand toward her. Upon touching the super body's form, he felt an immense emptiness, as if an ant was touching the universe. In this boundless expanse, there was neither a world nor himself to be found.
"Come then." The super body also extended her hand to him, and as they took another step closer, their bodies almost touched. The super body gently closed her eyes, placing another hand on Ultron's chest, "When you are freed from one prison, you'll find yourself in another. You will soon understand this truth."
Suddenly, a burst of light erupted from Ultron's chest, and his entire body spasmed violently as if struck by an electric shock, then fell backward, like a pine branch broken under the weight of snow.
"Batman... Batman!" A green figure hurriedly flew in through the window. Green Lantern Hal made a flash, blocking Primary Universe Batman's path, and said, "Just as you said, several mechanical civilizations in the universe have spotted that guy. Seems he's not giving up."
"It's alright, at least we've managed to drive him off Earth. There aren't that many valuable things in the universe; it's only a matter of time before he gives up on this universe," Primary Universe Batman said unhurriedly.
"So what do we do next?" Green Lantern asked, "Since our universe is safe, shouldn't we help other universes now?"
"No rush, we need to first know what's happening in other universes," Primary Universe Batman said. "I've already sent messages to other Batmans, requesting that they gather in our universe before tonight."
"You mean to bring other Batmans to our universe?" Green Lantern said, somewhat surprised, "That's not like you, Batman."
Primary Universe Batman shook his head, "I don't like gathering certain people together, mostly because it can be dangerous and might lead to everyone being captured. But that doesn't mean I'll let my doubts affect the bigger picture. That's not what Batman does."
"Alright, we all acknowledge you're a good leader, but I don't quite understand; didn't you already meet in Battleworld before? Why not go there again this time?"
"Do you really believe Battleworld is completely safe?"
The Green Lantern seemed a bit confused. He blinked and said, "Isn't it? If it's not safe there, then where is safe?"
The Primary Universe Batman gently tapped the table with his fingers and continued, "Have you ever thought about how exactly Ultron has invaded so many universes? Where is the source of the plague?"
"Wasn't it said to be an experimental accident from a neighboring world?" Green Lantern had obviously heard the latest news and said, "You mean, he came through Battleworld? Is his main body also in Battleworld?"
The Primary Universe Batman nodded lightly and said, "To spread throughout the entire multiverse in such a short time, he must choose a densely populated area. The place where the most different superheroes from various universes appear is Battleworld."
"And what about the administrators of Battleworld? Don't they care?"
"If Ultron had invaded their system and caused interference, they would, of course, care. But Ultron hasn't done that; he merely accessed Battleworld through the electronic devices on superheroes, hopping from one device to another, thus entering entirely different multiverses without actually causing damage to Battleworld. The administrators have no reason to deal with him."
Green Lantern sighed and said, "Alright, so we shouldn't visit Battleworld recently?"
"You can certainly go; he can't infiltrate the Green Lantern energy. But I have already instructed those who need to enter Battleworld with electronic devices to carry out strict sanitation upon returning to our universe."
Green Lantern instinctively shivered. While walking out of the base, he said, "I think I also need to do some sanitation. Hopefully, that isolation room you've set up is actually useful."
"It seems Batman's side has succeeded." Arkham Batman, sitting in the President's Office, said after contemplating for a while, "Once the magical defense network of the Primary Universe is established, Ultron will soon be expelled, and it will become our safe house. It's not surprising that he chose this time to send out invitations widely."
"Why do you also call it the 'Primary Universe'?" Natasha slightly raised her eyebrows in curiosity and said, "Did you learn that from our side?"
"That's right, we thought it was a good term, so we borrowed it."
"And do you also have a Central Universe here?"
"Not really," Arkham Batman paused for a moment before saying, "but it probably should exist. Like a large country's economic and political center, it's best to keep them separated."
"Like Washington and California?"
"Something like that. If the Primary Universe is the political center of the entire multiverse, just like Washington, then our universe can definitely compete for California's position; at the very least, it should be like New Jersey State. Being significant enough means not being passive."
"It's an interesting idea," Natasha nodded and said, "I also think your universe can bear this responsibility. However, your competitors are many; as far as I know, the universe where Professor Shearer resides is also quite remarkable, right?"
"Bruce keeps a tight lid on that place," Arkham Batman shook his head and said, "Their Justice League clocks out at 6:30 PM, can you expect them to be the economic center? But you're right, there are indeed many strong competitors within the multiverse. Even if we don't mention Night Owl, there are still four or five Batmen across universes with the same idea as mine."
"But you indeed have a significant advantage," Natasha objectively evaluated and said, "You are already the president, which gives you considerable control over America, making your actions relatively convenient. If superheroes from various multiverses come and go here in the future, they are unlikely to be confined to just one city. They will most likely choose you."
"I'm not particularly worried about others, but the universe of the Injustice League, where Superman President is even more dominant than me; he once ruled Earth. If there are no surprises, the role of the Central Universe on your side will be decided between us two."
Natasha laughed and said, "That really is similar to us. The Central Universe I reside in is also at the edge of the Great World, and both your universe and the universe of the Injustice League are edge universes."
Arkham Batman remained silent, which was an acknowledgment. Clearly, after so long observing and investigating, they roughly understood the positioning of each universe: some universes are closer to the center, while others are on the outskirts.
This is actually the distinction between comic universes and derivative universes: comic universes are near the center, while film, television, games, and other derivative universes surround the comic universe, situated in relatively marginal places.
However, the actual physical position of the universes means nothing because you cannot physically traverse the void using vessels. To travel between universes, you can only teleport, and the distance to any universe is the same, with no need to consider the length of the journey.
As such, many derivative universes have better conditions than comic universes because many derivative universes have one or several works to shape them. In contrast, due to their sheer number, many comic universes appear only in a few panels in comics, with incomplete settings, lacking stability, and many have been edited into shambles—a word like 'tragic' doesn't even begin to cover it.
Natasha knew that around the Central Universe she resided in, there were also several very active edge universes, like the special universe that once provided substantial support to her universe, where Spider Man is the author of "Gotham Travel Notes."
According to Shearer, that universe is very active. Although the superheroes inside are not the strongest, they are almost impossible to completely destroy, and new and exciting events are always emerging.
In contrast, many universes, despite being in the central zone, are lifeless. The superheroes might be very powerful, but they are highly passive, almost never reaching out to the outside world, leaving many unaware of the existence of such a universe.