Chapter 268: Alien Universe VS Cancerverse
The Cancerverse was a notorious world throughout the Omniverse, a well-known concentration camp for lunatics. The life within it had long been corrupted, fallen, and twisted into freaks that had overcome death, yet they possessed an unimaginable desire for infection.
Many sorcerers and scientists who traveled between universes knew a thing or two about the Cancerverse and kept their distance from anything associated with it.
At this moment, the Cancerverse itself had become a ghastly thing resembling a giant eyeball covered in tentacles, which it waved about chaotically. It roamed around, baring its fangs and claws, occasionally stabbing at a nearby unfortunate universe with a massive tentacle to scoop out and devour some scattered matter, energy, rules, and souls.
It was nothing short of a robber within the Multiverse, refusing to let go of anything it saw and always trying to snatch something for itself. It was despised wherever it went.
Now, the Cancerverse seemed to have suddenly gained a clear self-awareness, heading straight for the coordinates of Earth-1543681. It no longer wandered aimlessly for billions of years as it had in the past, latching onto a universe and draining it to death. Countless aberrant monsters would also launch a full-scale invasion, waging endless wars everywhere.
Anyone with a little knowledge of the higher beings in the Multiverse knew that the strange change in the Cancerverse was definitely due to a command from Shuma-Gorath.
Shuma-Gorath, this great eyeball god, was also called the "God of Chaos" by some—though few would actually call him that. After all, what would Chthon, the God of Dark Magic who wields the power of chaos, be called then?
No matter how you looked at it, Chthon's menacing presence was considerably greater than Shuma-Gorath's, and the various turmoils and crises he had caused in the Multiverse were also far more ferocious.
Perhaps the only area where Shuma-Gorath could outshine Chthon was his penchant for creating countless big eyeballs and deploying them into various universes to create chaos?
Under the watchful eyes of countless individuals, the Cancerverse finally drew near the Alien Universe. This distance was incomprehensibly vast for mortals, but for beings who commanded immense power, it was utterly trivial.
A large horde of the Many-Angled Ones were already crawling toward the Alien Universe, waving their chaotic tentacles.
"It's finally starting. Indeed, my decision to stay here was correct. This time, there is more explosive history for me to record. When countless Deities investigate everything that is happening now years later, they will all know that it was recorded by me, Watcher Uatu!"
The big-headed Uatu simply stepped out of subspace and appeared in the Reality Universe, his eyes glowing—literally. He was using his divine power, piercing through innumerable hyperspace currents to observe, not missing a single detail. This was his greatest pleasure.
The Cancerverse appeared menacing and vicious, while the Alien Universe, which was under attack, seemed somewhat unremarkable, no different from an ordinary universe. At first glance, it was just a perfectly normal black sphere.
But everyone knew that anyone who underestimated the Alien Universe would surely suffer a great loss.
Sure enough, the first wave of monsters to attack the Alien Universe was dismembered into countless fragments in a single encounter.
Countless points of light ignited within the Alien Universe, transforming into brilliant meteors that violently crashed into the invading enemies.
"Under Shuma-Gorath's protection, these things have all overcome Death. Conventional means can only continuously dismember and weaken them, but they cannot kill them..."
Uatu glanced at Du Wa, wanting to know what he would arrange.
Then he saw that Du Wa had arranged nothing at all.
A massive swarm of Xenomorphs rushed out. Not only Xenomorphs from the Alien Universe but also those from other universes that followed Du Wa, such as the Universe 199999 system and the Khonshu Era Universe. They all constructed space channels, transporting vast military forces to the Alien Universe to join the battle.
More importantly, after a group of powerful Xenomorphs took action, the scene became extremely brutal.
There was the single-universe-level Rune King Jane; the Mephisto Xenomorph who had returned with Du Wa; Black Strange; Demon Strange; the Ancient One; and the Sentry, who had barely crossed the threshold. They were supported by the Laufey Xenomorph, Attuma Xenomorph, Dracula Xenomorph, Khonshu, and a host of other Skyfather-level and sub-Skyfather-level Xenomorphs as the intermediate power.
The former Sorcerer Supremes from various universes hadn't even made a move yet; they just stared, dumbfounded, at this incredibly luxurious lineup, completely speechless.
This was just the leading contingent, all of whom had spectacular feats in the histories of several universes. The others, a much greater number of Xenomorphs, were bred one by one by special Queens. They were born with advanced genes, capable of granting a mortal host unfathomable power in an instant.
Further down, the densely packed Xenomorphs numbered one hundred thirty trillion. This figure was ten times the total number of Black Lantern Zombies from the unnumbered dark universe in the DC World.
As far as the eye could see, the Alien Universe had completely transformed into an ocean of Xenomorphs, boundless and vast, invading every dimension of space and time.
Such a scale, a legion with no shortcomings in its high, middle, or low-tier combat power, and composed entirely of a single race—anyone who witnessed this scene would feel a shock that came from the bottom of their heart.
Even the non-Xenomorph lifeforms within the Alien Universe who had yet to defect to Du Wa, still living their normal lives, were dumbfounded and utterly terrified.
"Fuck, are the Xenomorphs this terrifying in scale? How come I never knew!"
"Guess what I found? I saw Ego in the Xenomorph ranks! By Du Wa, I saw Ego from afar not long ago and confirmed he was still a free Celestial. Now he's a Xenomorph and has joined the fighting force?"
The Marauders huddled together, watching the scene in the distance with amazement. One end of the universe, the side directly facing the Cancerverse, had completely become a world of Xenomorphs, filled to the brim with them.
Furthermore, there were figures exuding powerful auras, capable of shaking the universe by their very nature. A single casual move from them would cause the advanced energy-detecting instruments on countless planets within the universe to overload and explode.
"An indescribable total number, a... wildness that cannot be accurately described with language. I saw several Cosmic Celestials! And Skyfather-level Deities, who are major figures anywhere in the universe, but over there, even these Deities are merely high-ranking officers."
Star-Lord's heart surged, wishing he could join in immediately. But his mind was clear enough; he knew that with his current strength, entering a true universe-level battlefield would be an overestimation even to call him cannon fodder.
Unless he could obtain the power of a Cosmic Celestial like Ego.
He could restrain himself, but the Marauders had no such inhibitions. Some excitedly shouted Du Wa's name, became Xenomorphs themselves, and then, following Du Wa's will, crossed a spontaneously appearing space-time tunnel to reach the edge of the universe, in essence joining the war.
Yondu and Quill looked at this group of idiots, at a complete loss for words.
"Look, just look at our crew now! In the blink of an eye, two-thirds of our people are gone!" Yondu yelled, practically jumping with frustration.
"You know, the Marauders belong to Du Wa first, and us second. Didn't we grow to this scale so quickly because we targeted the Xenomorphs early on and decisively hired a batch as mercenaries? The payment was also to periodically transport some Xenomorphs to various planets in the universe."
Kruger swished his red tail, a look of reminiscence in his eyes. By his reckoning, that had happened only a few years ago, but why did it feel like such a long time had passed?
It must be because so many changes had occurred these past few years, with universe-level great battles erupting at the drop of a hat, the kind that could easily reshape the layout of countless planets. It was too stimulating, making his perception of reality feel incredibly full.
"Hey, what are you trying to do, are you going to join the battle too? You need to understand, this is a war between one universe and another! Even though I still don't know who the enemies are, for the Xenomorphs to go all out, they must be extremely powerful. Whether you join or not will have no effect on the situation." Yondu's eyelid twitched as he tried to stop Kruger, this sorcerer.
With Kruger around, if nothing else, at least robbing was much more convenient. A portal would open, and they would instantly appear on the target's starship, getting the job done with ease.
Even escaping was incredibly smooth.
"I saw many sorcerers have joined the battle. Kamar-Taj has entered the battlefield, and powerful sorcerers from other universes are also fighting on our universe's side. I must go."
Kruger explained briefly, then also called out Du Wa's name and entered the space-time tunnel.
"...I have to admit, I'm a little tempted, but only a little. I would never join such a crazy battle. There's no money to be made. As for becoming a Xenomorph to extend my life or what not, I'm not that old yet," Yondu muttered.
But then again, he estimated that when he did get that old, even if he prayed to Du Wa, he probably wouldn't get any response. How could a being who can respond to thoughts in real-time not know his mental state while he was praying?
Quill's brow was tightly furrowed; he had no mind to care about Kruger anymore. He pointed to the buildings in the distance. "Why did the time in those distant places suddenly become chaotic? Is the time of this entire universe starting to collapse? The situation shouldn't be this bad..."
Soon, Quill and the others watched in astonishment as a tall, purple man, his entire body intertwined with time, easily rewrote the time in a large surrounding region. But under the interference of an even higher power, this individual was forced to reveal himself.
"No, spare me! You are already a Multiversal God, comparable to a Creator God! Why are you still targeting me?" He screamed as a new life-force erupted from within him. Clearly, he too had been parasitized.
The pleas for mercy stopped abruptly. He uncontrollably walked into the space-time tunnel, arriving directly at the forefront of the battle, engaging in a fierce melee with countless Many-Angled Ones. Fearless of death, he single-mindedly charged at the massive Cthulhu-like monsters.
Yondu thought for a moment, then slapped his head. "That guy, isn't he the God of Time who disappeared for a while? Same skin as Thanos. It must be him, Kronos, the most powerful Eternal in the entire universe! I heard he attacked Du Wa with Thanos, and his whereabouts were unknown after his defeat. Now he's finally been dragged out by Du Wa."
The God of Time also couldn't escape the cruel reality.
If a single-universe-level Du Wa would have needed a bit of time and means to find Kronos among all the timelines of the entire universe—to the point where it wasn't worth wasting the energy—then for the multiversal Du Wa, a single glance was all it took, leaving Kronos with absolutely no room to resist.
This God of Time, who had hidden for a long time, instantly became Du Wa's most loyal warrior under the gazes of countless onlookers. He resolutely charged wherever the danger was greatest and the enemies were strongest, giving every appearance of one who was willingly going to his death.
Although everyone knew that Kronos was certainly being forced, that he definitely did not want to die, but who told him to attack Du Wa in the first place?
It was too late for regrets now. His mission was to lay down his life for Du Wa, to destroy as many enemies as possible, until death.
Of course, Death would have no opportunity to collect Kronos's soul, because after becoming a Xenomorph, one's soul and consciousness belonged to Du Wa.
Perhaps one day, Du Wa would resurrect Kronos and then deploy him onto another battlefield where death was certain? No one could say for sure.
Once the two universes made complete contact, an unprecedentedly grand battle erupted in full. Countless tides of forces crashed towards each other, yet they failed to stir up even the slightest ripple, as if a giant black hole at the center of the battlefield was cruelly devouring all change.
"Things are starting to get interesting. But at this point, that guy Shuma-Gorath shouldn't be able to hold back and should be preparing to act personally."
Du Wa glanced at the two universes locked in continuous battle.
What he needed was never a group of subordinates who just idled around waiting to die. The Xenomorphs under his command should, more importantly, be die-hard loyalists devoted to him.
"You're acting too calmly," Uatu said, looking at Du Wa in surprise. "You've never witnessed a war of this scale before, have you?"
"In a way, yes," Du Wa replied casually.
Back in the DC World, after he had advanced to the multiversal level, he had participated in several multiverse-level battles. The number of universes that had been caught in the crossfire and suffered heavy damage at his hands was more than just one or two.
When it came to the battles of multiversal gods, Du Wa was all too familiar.
"Do you really think you can win against Shuma-Gorath? You are not a Deity who excels at battle, and your foundation is too poor! If it's just you alone..."
"Who said I'm alone? Watch carefully, that guy is already here. I'll blow his big eyeball out. Even if I can't kill him, I'll gouge that eye blind."
Du Wa raised his head, looking at the shadow being emerging from the depths of the Multiverse. Even just by looking, he could feel an intense corruption attempting to erode his very sight, and from there invade his thoughts, his body, and even the very concept of the Xenomorph.
(end of chapter)