Chaos filled the battlefield. Rainbows of light streaked through the sky while armored warriors clashed on the ground.
The superheroes' strength wasn't just for show. If not for the Black Lantern Corps constantly reviving like cheaters, they would've been wiped out already. But because the Black Lanterns were revived corpses, they didn't need rest and could fight endlessly. The heroes, on the other hand, were human. They needed rest. That meant the Black Lanterns were pushing them to their very limits.
The longer the fight dragged on, the worse it became for the heroes.
By late night, the team began suffering casualties. Fatigue had become their greatest enemy besides the Black Lanterns. Any small lapse was enough for the Black Lanterns to swarm in and kill. Then the Nekron would place a ring on the fallen and turn them into members of the Corps.
With each death, the balance tilted further. Evil once again gained the upper hand in this endless war.
"This is bad. This is really, really bad." Hal looked around as more of his comrades fell. Yet the enemy numbers never seemed to decrease. He truly didn't know what else to do. "Guardians, how can we win this?"
The three Guardians who had led the army here sighed. "Unless the Black Lanterns or the Nekron are destroyed, there is no victory."
But both the Black Lanterns and the Nekron were tightly encircled. Every attempt by the heroes to break through had failed. Earlier, they at least had strength to push forward. Now, with exhaustion setting in, launching another attack was even more dangerous.
Hal stared at the dark mass ahead and thought, 'Superman, Kid—where the hell are you right now?'
With no sunlight, Superman could only burn through energy without replenishing it. Surrounded by countless Black Lanterns, he was trapped. As for Kid, he was meditating. Yes—at the very moment when his five senses seemed stripped away, Kaitou Kid entered deep meditation.
Kid had already awakened the Ultimate Microcosmos, but it wasn't perfect because his realm hadn't yet reached that height. But now he understood. Flowers bloom and fall, fall and bloom again—it's all just a cycle. Life into death, death into life—also a cycle.
The Nekron said death was an eternal ending. But he was wrong. Liu A'dou slowly opened his eyes. What the Eighth Sense of the Microcosmos should have revealed all along, he had only just realized.
Death is only a part of reincarnation, not the conclusion. Existence itself includes death. Liu A'dou had grasped this truth, and suddenly the Black Lantern demons around him all froze. They saw him as one of their own. He radiated the same aura as them. Liu A'dou had long been capable of walking freely between life and death without any restriction. He had simply never noticed, because until now he had never faced enemies from the underworld.
The fierce battle outside no longer touched him. Hal, meanwhile, shouted as he led several Lanterns in another charge—but again, they failed.
Watching the heroes' final desperate struggle, the Nekron smiled. "Darker than the darkest night, you're wasting your strength." It was time to hunt the Guardians. With their hearts, he would end this age and usher in a new era where death ruled as emperor.
"Your lives are mine!"
One Guardian, fighting side by side with his warriors, was shocked when the Black Lantern beside him suddenly twisted and transformed into the Nekron himself.
Every Black Lantern ring was a fragment of the Nekron. That meant he couldn't truly be killed. Even if someone shattered the ring on his hand, he could just possess another Black Lantern. As long as the Corps existed, he had infinite avatars.
The ambush left the Guardian stunned. The Nekron's scythe had already swung down, about to cleave him apart.
"Leave it to me!" It was the Flash. Summoning the last of his strength, he wrapped his entire body in the Speed Force. His feet became wind, his body lightning, as he rushed toward the Guardian.
"Faster… faster… I have to save the Guardian."
The Flash clenched his teeth, and with a boom his figure vanished.
"Your life is mine!" The Nekron swung his scythe to reap the Guardian's life—only to find the Guardian gone.
In just two seconds, the Flash had already grabbed hold of the Guardian, dragging him through time itself. He saved the Guardian, but it cost him every last ounce of strength.
The Guardian was still shaken. "Thank you."
"We need a way to defeat the Black Lantern Corps. We need you." The Flash said that, then collapsed to the ground with a heavy thud, smoke rising from his suit.
The Guardian looked at the speedster who had risked everything to save him. His eyes hardened. "Now we need more warriors." With a wave of his hand, Hal's ring flew straight into his palm.
"What?" Hal was startled but didn't get angry. "Guardian, what are you doing?"
The Guardian's body burst into a brilliant green glow. "When willpower is fully focused, Green Lantern rings can be duplicated. What we need now is more rings, more warriors, and victory." He pushed his power to the limit. In his hand, one ring split apart, dividing like cells—one ring became two.
The other Lantern Corps members saw this. Except for the Orange Lantern, the rest followed suit, duplicating their own rings. "Go, find new warriors." In an instant, countless colored rings shot out from the battlefield like dazzling fireworks.
Suddenly, a sharp and tragic roar echoed across the field. Even an Orange Lantern ring had split off and flown away. "No—I won't share with anyone!!" The greedy Orange Lantern was in agony. Sharing was worse than death for him. But he couldn't stop the ring's own will. The orange light disappeared into the mass of the Black Corps, leaving its master weeping in despair as if mourning his very soul.
The new rings found their owners among the superheroes. Each color represented one of the seven emotions: rage, greed, fear, willpower, hope, compassion, and love.
Rage, the Red Lantern, went to the Hulk. His green skin was suddenly wrapped in a red aura like molten blood and magma. "HULK—!" he roared, clenching his fists. Red energy burst outward like qi, scattering into countless blades that shredded his enemies.
Thor received the Violet Ring of Love. The prince who always valued beauty over kingdom wielded lightning in one hand and violet radiance in the other, slaughtering foes with fury.
Hope, the Blue Lantern, chose Captain America. Truly the beacon of the nation of hope.
Compassion, the Indigo Ring, surprisingly landed on Black Widow. Her body was enveloped in indigo light, transforming her presence.
Wolverine wore the Green Ring of Willpower. His claws extended into long green blades, sharper and more lethal than ever.
Finally, the Yellow Ring of Fear bonded with Batman. The iron-willed judge, merciless toward criminals, now became the very embodiment of terror for villains everywhere.
But Greed vanished.
Of course, the rest of the superheroes all received Green Lantern rings. Their willpower was beyond doubt.
With rings on their fingers, the heroes regained their strength. Those who couldn't fly could now soar. Those once limited in firepower were now unshackled. Endless ammunition, boosted defense, and speed—the superheroes rose again, their morale reignited.
"Guys, give it everything you've got. Show the Nekron that Earth isn't his to command!" As the veteran Lantern, Hal charged forward first. In the sky, he conjured a Vulcan cannon and unleashed a storm of fire to clear a path.
"Warriors of Asgard, with me!" Thor rallied his Einherjar, charging straight at the Nekron.
Focus everything, break through the Black Corps' defenses, strike at the Nekron, and destroy the Black Lanterns.
"For Earth! For the universe! For life!!"