The view inside the projection shifted again, rising through the walls and soaring upward. The image inside the bar quickly dissolved into a shrinking exterior view of Stark Tower and the surrounding buildings.
As the entire tower became miniature in scale, a lone figure floating in the air entered the frame.
Everyone could see only his back.
Clad in a sleek black combat suit, the sunlight glinted off him, highlighting his powerful physique and perfectly sculpted muscles.
"Whoa, that back looks familiar. Is he a villain too? Those muscles make him look like he's been downing protein shakes for years," someone in the crowd muttered in confusion.
Then, a moment later, Wong jabbed him sharply in the ribs.
Wong tightly covered his mouth with his hand, eyes wide as he glared at him.
"Kid, do you want to die? That's Malrick, your direct superior and leader of Kamar‑Taj. You're calling him a protein powder addict?"
Strange's eyes widened as he stared at the projection. Vague memories surfaced in his mind, and he quickly nodded repeatedly to signal he understood.
Not long ago, he had been involved in a car accident and ended up at Kamar‑Taj, where he had met the Sorcerer Supreme once. Even though it was only that one meeting, the stories about the Sorcerer Supreme's severity were well known, especially from the legend of the Ancient One, who had taught all the mystics that no one who angered the Sorcerer Supreme ever escaped unscathed.
According to that legend, the last person to incur the Sorcerer Supreme's wrath was Dormammu, a powerful inter‑dimensional being that even magical masters feared.
At the thought of this, cold sweat broke out on Strange's forehead. He glanced gratefully at Wong, certain that people from the same S‑Universe were truly allies.
Others around him also recognized Malrick. After a few gasps, most people realized that the floating figure was the creator of the Dimension Continent and the Master of the God‑Kingdom Universe, Malrick Stark.
At that moment, the projected image rose even higher. From this perspective, the cluster of buildings on the ground shrank further. Stark Tower, once towering above all, was now as tiny as an ant. Yet Malrick did not shrink. He remained prominent and immense, just as he had appeared at the start.
"Is he chasing the camera?" someone asked.
"No… he's flying out of Earth, and he's getting bigger!" an Ant‑Man variant stammered.
Malrick shot straight into the sky like a sharp arrow. Fierce winds whipped around him, and white clouds split apart before him like blades. While his speed could be measured in only a few hundred Mach by cosmic standards, to the onlookers it seemed impossibly fast.
In an instant, the projection showed a deep blue planet. Malrick was floating outside Earth, sunlight radiating from behind him.
Then, astonishingly, his body began to grow immense—ten meters tall, then a hundred, then ten thousand. At last, his size eclipsed the planet itself, and his massive form blocked out all sunlight.
He looked like a titan among cosmic beings.
Under the horrified gazes of all who watched, Malrick extended his right hand slowly and closed his palm around the blue planet that belonged to White Can.
Then, as calmly as crushing a cookie, he tightened his fingers.
At that moment the camera zoomed in, passing between his enormous fingers and returning to Earth.
Huge knuckles blotting out the sun descended from above, their dark shadows covering the horizon.
From the surface inward, the planet was as fragile as soft clay beneath those five massive fingers. Mountains crumbled, oceans surged into the sky, the crust fractured, molten core rock burst forth, and cities vanished into dust.
Before anyone in the White Can world could even react, Malrick's grip tightened completely.
All life, including the four cosmic villains and the planet itself, turned to dust in an instant.
Finally, the camera showed nothing but emptiness.
When the image flickered back to life, only a tightly clenched giant fist remained silhouetted against the cosmic void.
Absolute silence followed.
Everyone present was too stunned even to question whether Malrick's act was too cruel. The visual impact had stripped their minds of thought.
After what felt like an eternity, Tony from the S‑Universe was the first to speak.
"Wait, Malrick, Malrick he…" Tony grabbed the shoulder of the robot beside him, pointing at the projection, his mouth opening and closing without forming complete words.
Jarvis gave no explanation, instead motioning for Tony to keep watching.
As the longtime Stark family butler, Jarvis still believed in his young Master and his Master's power.
Tony's reaction seemed to pull everyone else out of their stupor. Thor, Captain America, Ant‑Man, Spider‑Man and others gasped as if waking from a dream.
Before any of them could speak, the projection shifted again.
The familiar interior of Stark Tower appeared once more, showing the same bar counter.
But on the four high stools, the villains were gone.
In their places were four mounds of yellow dust, quiet as graves.
On the soil mounds tinted with purple, four Infinity Stones still lay. Then, with a sharp crackling sound, the gems shattered into translucent powder that drifted upward like sparks.
The image froze there.
The crowd of onlookers, along with those who had rushed over at the news, were all motionless. They stared at the projection in silent shock.
"Oh my God! He truly is the Creator God. Unbelievable," someone finally exclaimed in awe.
Immediately, the crowd erupted with reaction.
"That… that… I… I!!" Nick Fury stammered.
"Amazing, so amazing! He truly is the greatest savior. We must invite him to the celebration tonight!" Thor boomed happily.
"My god, if this ability were used to create gold, you could make a fortune," Star‑Lord muttered, eyes wide.
"Groot!" Groot said simply.
"The Infinity Stones were destroyed just like that? So easily?" a reformed Thanos shouted, clutching his head. "What kind of power is this? He destroyed Earth and then reshaped it. He killed everyone and then brought them back, yet those four villains were precisely struck down!"
Strange stared at the projection in disbelief.
"Is this the Sorcerer Supreme's strength? Can magic really reach this level?"
Wong beside him shook his head rapidly.
"What are you talking about? The Sorcerer Supreme is the Sorcerer Supreme, and we are ourselves."
He tapped a thick tome against Strange's chest, its title clear.
"Study hard. If you learn everything in here, you might earn one ten‑thousandth of Malrick's bearing."