The scene before them stunned everyone. Strange sat atop a massive rock, suspended in midair. He floated, and his entire body was glowing with green light while his head spun frantically. His entire being seemed to exist between illusion and reality. The Eye of Agamotto was clearly activated, and a mysterious force rippled through the surrounding space.
Tony shouted loudly, "Strange, we all right?"
But Strange seemed trapped in a bizarre state as he gave no response.
Everyone on Terra was equally shocked as another application of the Time Stone was being used by Strange in an incomprehensible way.
"What is he doing?"
"The Time Stone is the most powerful Infinity Stone. Combined with the Space Stone, time and space would be unstoppable."
"Has Strange gone insane?"
"Nothing better go wrong. They're on Titan; if something happens now, how can they fight Thanos?"
Strange's abnormal state didn't last long. Suddenly, he gasped, and the green light surrounding him faded. He dropped from the air, breathing heavily.
Tony hurried over and reached out to support him. "You're back. You're all right."
"Hi."
Parker asked, "Hey, what was that?"
Strange paused before answering, "I went forward in time to view alternate futures. To see all the possible outcomes of the coming conflict."
Everyone froze, and Quill asked, "How many did you see?"
Strange replied, "14,000,605."
Tony stared at him. "How many did we win?"
Strange didn't answer immediately. Instead, he looked at Tony and slowly said, "One."
Tony's expression turned grim. Out of more than fourteen million possible futures, only one ended in victory. The odds were practically the same as certain defeat.
An indescribable sense of dread spread through everyone, especially among the viewers on Terra. Every viewer felt a chill run down their spine.
"The Time Stone can see the future!"
"Incredible! No wonder the Ancient One always said she looked into the future; it was true!"
"Being able to see the future is an unbelievably powerful ability!"
"But... out of more than fourteen million futures, they only win once."
"Doesn't that basically guarantee they'll lose? How can they possibly beat Thanos?"
"So... did Thanos really collect all six Infinity Stones in the end?"
The audience in the livestream erupted in panic.
Inside the High Council.
Evonne stared solemnly at the screen. "The Time Stone's ability to peer into the future has been confirmed once again. I'm less interested in whether Thanos wins. I'm more curious... Did the Ancient One and Strange see our present-day future?"
The Ancient One had often observed the future. If Strange could do it, then perhaps the Ancient One had once seen their era as well. If she had... would she have left behind any hints?
Gladwin shook his head. "Too much time has passed. Even now, we still don't know how far that era is from ours. It isn't possible to look infinitely far into the future."
Hyeon added, "Could the Network have..."
Sith immediately rejected the idea. "Impossible. How could they have arranged something as enormous as the Network? ...Although perhaps they foresaw its eventual appearance."
Kennedy shook his head. "There were more than fourteen million possible outcomes. In the end, only one led to victory. They had no choice but to bet everything on that single chance."
Evonne habitually tapped the table. "One chance in over fourteen million is practically zero. That means Thanos is almost certain to wipe out half the life in the universe. Begin implementing the threat-response plans we discussed. We must find a way to prevent Thanos' snap during the Earth Age."
Everyone nodded. The moment they learned the true purpose behind Thanos' snap, the Councilors had already begun discussing ways to deal with the catastrophe that might one day sweep across Terra, and several contingency plans had already been prepared.
One proposal was to massively increase electromagnetic-wave coverage across the entire planet, turning Terra into one enormous chaotic magnetic field. No one knew whether it would actually work, but it was better than doing nothing. Many other measures were also gradually being put into motion.
Hyeon murmured, "How did they achieve that single victorious future?"
Gladwin suddenly thought of something. "Thor... The weapon forged in Nidavellir! Perhaps that's the weapon capable of killing Thanos."
Evonne's eyes lit up. "Indeed." "Thor is most likely their only hope of victory."
The scene shifted.
Under dim lighting, Eitri walked forward with heavy footsteps. He led Thor and Rocket to an elevated platform. Suspended above it was a massive square block of steel. Machinery rumbled, while steam billowed around it.
Rocket stared at the enormous metal block and said speechlessly, "This is the plan? We're gonna hit him with a brick?"
Eitri replied calmly, "It's a mold. A king's weapon. Meant to be the greatest in Asgard. In theory, it could even summon the Bifrost."
Thor stared at the mold. "Did it have a name?"
Eitri answered, "Stormbreaker."
Rocket tilted his head. "That's a bit much."
Thor asked solemnly, "So how do we make it?"
Eitri replied, "You'll have to restart the forge. Awaken the heart of a dying star."
He looked toward a massive metal sphere nearby; it was the core of the neutron star forge.
Thor looked at the metal core before saying to Rocket, "Rabbit, fire up the pod."
Norland Base.
Guerino stared intently at the screen. The true form of the neutron-star forge was finally about to be revealed. "I wonder what it really looks like. If I ever get the chance... I have to build one myself!"
Although Norland Base had failed to create new elements, the duration of their artificial sun had increased dramatically from one second to a full one hundred seconds. It was an enormous breakthrough. A neutron-star forge required unimaginably high temperatures; at least now, that goal no longer seemed impossible.
Guerino thought to himself, "If we could obtain Vibranium... Wouldn't that perfectly complement this technology? Build the forge with Vibranium, and power it with the artificial sun."
The idea made his eyes shine. What kind of weapon could that create? Much of Terra's metal resources had yet to be mined. There would be more than enough materials for years of testing and experimentation.
"Stormbreaker... What an imposing name. Asgard's greatest weapon. A true king's weapon." McKenzie Lorrin, who was responsible for researching the reactor framework, leaned back in his chair while the cigarette between his fingers glowed faintly.
Behind him, his colleagues had already burst into excited discussion. Everything the Dwarf King described was irresistibly attractive to them. This was exactly the kind of technology that every engineer dreamed about.
"Sir, why don't we get the old guy out and try?" Lorrin raised his eyebrows.
In the captured memory, he was also a master of casting. He had created a peculiar piece of equipment by hand; it was called the Eternal Forge. When they used to have free time, they built it once, but it was never used. After all, there was no need for such a thing.
Lorrin smiled and said, "Alright, let's see what this neutron star furnace looks like. Maybe later I'll go to Guerino and borrow his sun."
The crowd immediately became interested, and the footage continued to play.
After the raccoon launched the spaceship, it shuttled through the star rings. "I don't think you get the scientifics here. These rings are gigantic. You wanna get them moving... you're gonna need something a lot bigger to yank 'em loose."
Thor grabbed a rope. He jumped out of the spaceship, landing on one of the star rings. Thor looked back at the ship, gripping the rope tightly with both hands. "Leave that to me."
The raccoon was dumbfounded. "Leave it to you? Buddy, you're in space. All you got is a rope and a..."
Before he could finish speaking, a tremendous force surged through the cable, and the spaceship was directly dragged away by Thor. Thor stood upon the star ring as he held the cable tightly in his hand.
The taut rope pulled the spaceship from one end, sending it spinning wildly in circles. Once enough centrifugal force had built up, Thor abruptly changed direction, launching the ship upward. At the same time, he shouted, "Fire the engines!"
Under the immense centrifugal force, the raccoon gritted his teeth and ignited the engines. The thrusters beneath the spacecraft roared to life, and the ship accelerated to its absolute limit. Combined with the momentum Thor had already given it, it shot into the sky like a comet.
Thor gripped the cable, his eyes fixed on the outermost star ring ahead.
"What is Thor trying to do?"
"He has to open the star ring. Only then can the furnace be activated."
"Holy crap! Is he really using the spaceship itself to smash open the star ring?"
"This was probably supposed to be done with a button."
"Stormbreaker... now that's a name worthy of an ultimate weapon."
"Look! Thor is incredible!"
The spaceship charged forward at terrifying speed, pulling Thor behind it. Just before reaching the outermost star ring, Thor planted both feet against the inside of the ring. His right hand held the cable while his left hand slammed onto the star ring. The tremendous impact shattered the internal structures, and a deep trench was carved into the metal.
Thor gritted his teeth. Finally, he grabbed the rope with both hands and his feet crashed repeatedly into the star ring's framework.
After several brutal impacts, he finally reached the edge of the ring, and Thor braced himself against the strongest support structure. The tremendous force from the spaceship traveled through the cable, transferring directly into Thor's feet. At last, the star ring began to move.
Thor's reckless determination left the audience cheering. Then someone exclaimed,
"It's the ice! The frozen ice inside the star ring is cracking!"
"It's moving! The star ring is moving!"
"That's incredible!"
"He actually forced it to start!"
"That's just like Thor, simple and brutally effective!"
On the screen.
The massive bearings inside the star ring were completely covered in thick ice. Under Thor's relentless effort, the ice began breaking apart little by little.
Thor's face twisted with strain, and he roared, "More power, rabbit!"
The raccoon immediately pushed the controls, and the spacecraft's engines erupted with even greater power. A stronger force surged through the cable, causing Thor's arms to tremble violently. One blood vessel after another burst beneath his skin.
Finally, the multiple nested star rings let out a loud metallic groan. The thick ice surrounding the massive bearings was crushed apart under the terrifying twisting force. When the ice exploded completely, the bearings were finally freed, and the gigantic star rings began rotating slowly.
Viewers watched the magnificent sight. It was truly spectacular. The enormous stellar core stood at the center, surrounded by concentric star rings linked together by the same massive bearings. As the ice shattered, the many star rings gradually unfolded. Although the universe remained pitch black, everyone was deeply shaken by the breathtaking sight.
As the rings continued rotating, the steel core at the center gradually released a blazing light. It resembled a miniature sun suspended in space. When all the rings finally aligned on the same plane, the openings at both ends formed a perfectly straight line, and the entire core erupted into brilliant flames. Blue, purple, and crimson fire intertwined.
The dazzling light illuminated the faces of viewers, and everyone watching felt their hearts tremble. Lorrin and his companions stared at the miraculous core and its incredible structure as they became even more excited.
Eitri watched the scene and praised, "Well done, boy!"
Thor lay outside the spaceship, having finally let go of the cable. Pointing toward the enormous core, he excitedly said to the raccoon, "That's Nidavellir."
The next moment, within the blazing core, layer after layer of mechanical structures emerged. From a small launch port, an orange beam suddenly burst forth. The light pierced through the aligned star rings, forming a perfectly focused channel, before striking the neutron star furnace. The entire world trembled, and the momentum was overwhelming.
The magnificent spectacle caused the audience to erupt.
"It worked! It really fired!"
"Holy crap! This is a true forging artifact!"
"My God! I used to think forging swords was already amazing, but I never imagined weapons could be forged like this in the universe!"
"Amazing! This equipment is unbelievable!"
"A neutron star furnace! The ultimate forge!"
"Haha! Stormbreaker is definitely going to be completed!"
"Can someone copy this? I'd pay any amount to buy one!"
"So cool! A true cosmic forge!"
"No! Something went wrong!"
"Holy crap! It must be Thanos!"
"It's over! Something's happened!"
Everything was engulfed in dazzling light as people celebrated; even the Dwarf King was visibly excited. But the joy lasted only a few seconds as the next moment, an explosion echoed from within the core. The beam of hope, the blazing flame inside the core, instantly dimmed. The star rings, which had almost aligned perfectly, seemed to lose all support as they slowly drifted apart.
The hearts of everyone sank to the bottom.
"Stormbreaker... failed?"
"Out of more than ten million possible futures, only one leads to victory. This weapon has to be Thor's Stormbreaker!"
"If Stormbreaker can't be completed, doesn't that mean there's no one-in-ten-million chance left?"
"This is unbearable! How could this happen?"
"Thanos has gone too far."
"Damn it! If the Ancient One were still alive, if Odin were still alive, why would Thanos have been allowed to do this?"
"Thor was smiling so happily just now... now he must be devastated."
"Is there really no hope left?"
Hope had appeared, then it vanished in an instant. The emotional whiplash left many viewers feeling completely hopeless.
Eitri cursed under his breath. "Damn it."
The raccoon asked in confusion, " Damn it? What's 'damn it'?"
Eitri replied, "The mechanism is crippled."
Thor frowned. "What?"
Eitri explained, "With the iris closed, I can't heat the metal."
Thor asked firmly, "How long will it take to heat it?"
Eitri answered in surprise, "A few minutes, maybe more. Why?"
Thor stood atop the ship, looking toward the extinguished core. Then he said with unwavering determination, "I'm gonna hold it open."
Eitri stared at him in shock. "That's suicide."
Thor replied without hesitation, "So is facing Thanos without that axe."
The next moment, amid the audience's horrified cries, Thor leaped directly from the spaceship, heading straight toward the broken core.
Countless viewers felt their hearts stop. They watched in stunned silence as Thor plunged into the gigantic mechanism surrounding the extinguished core.
"Thor..."
"What is he going to do?"
"Don't tell me..."
"He intends to sacrifice himself..."