Chapter 171 The True Laws of Death
Chu Hang closed his eyes.
His consciousness sank along the contact point between his palm and the trident. He felt as if he was dragged into deep water, surrounded by viscous blackness.
The man appeared in his Vision.
The spirit's outline was trembling, twisting from head to toe. It was as if invisible hands were pulling him in different directions from all sides, every inch of his skin deforming. The expression on his face changed from shock to fear, all within two or three seconds.
"Impossible... How could you..."
The man's voice squeezed out from deep in his throat, intermittent.
"This is my domain... I am the Master of the trident..."
His words caught in his throat before he could finish.
The Law of Death within Chu Hang's body was absorbing the energy inside the trident. The power that originally belonged to the spirit found an outlet, pouring into his body like mad. Every wisp of energy carried the aura of decay and finality.
But Chu Hang's Law system was like a giant net, consuming as much as it received.
The spirit's face began to contort.
"You... What kind of monster are you, exactly...?"
His voice was laced with fear. True fear.
Chu Hang didn't answer. He didn't have time to bother with this fellow right now.
The changes within his body were too intense.
Hela's divine power of Death was merely an appetizer. What Chu Hang copied from her allowed him to touch the threshold of the Law of Death, but that was all. Hela's abilities relied more on Asgard's enhancements; her own understanding of Death was actually quite shallow.
Killing people, resurrecting undead armies, controlling necromantic flames—these were all techniques, not the fundamental Way.
The dark trident was different.
This weapon was forged by the first King of Atlantis, the legendary powerhouse who established a civilization beneath the sea. He was a true individual who had touched the conceptual level. To create this trident, he poured all his understanding of Death into it.
It took hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of years to complete.
Now, all these things were being crammed into Chu Hang's mind.
The amount of information was terrifying.
Any ordinary person would have had their brain explode by now. But Chu Hang was different; he had the Law of Spiritcopied from Vision, and Wanda's Chaos Magic. These two powers had pushed his mental strength to an absurd height.
Enough to withstand this level of impact.
More importantly, he already possessed the basic framework of the Law of Death.
Now, all he had to do was integrate this advanced knowledge into his own system.
It was like pouring Water into a half-filled pool. The volume of Water was indeed large, but the pool was sturdy enough to handle it.
Knowledge reorganized in his mind.
Chu Hang's consciousness gradually became clearer.
He began to understand what true Death was.
Death is not an end, but a transformation. From existence to non-existence, from being to nothingness, from the material plane to the conceptual plane. It is a link in the Universe's operation, the inevitable path for all things in the cycle.
Life dies, everyone knows that.
But not just life.
Planets die, stars die, galaxies die. Even the Universe itself must eventually Heading towards heat Death, a conclusion written into the laws of physics.
This is a rule, and also a Law.
But the advanced application of the Law of Death is not simply making things die.
True Law of Death is defining what "Death" means.
You can kill a person's body, which is the lowest application. You can also kill his soul, making him disappear completely, without even a chance for reincarnation. Further up, you can kill his concept—erasing all traces of his existence in history, making the entire Universe forget this person.
And it can go even further.
Kill a segment of history.
Kill a civilization.
Kill a Law.
As long as your understanding of Death is deep enough, you can kill anything. Including immortal gods, eternal concepts, and even the rules of the Universe itself.
Hela couldn't do these things. She was merely an envoy of Death, not Death itself.
The knowledge in Chu Hang's mind was still growing.
The profound mysteries of Death unfolded layer by layer, like opening a door to an abyss. He saw fragments of the first King's memories—that man stood in the deepest part of the seabed, holding the newly formed trident, surrounded by countless corpses.
Those corpses were not human, nor were they marine creatures.
They were gods.
The old gods that Atlantis once worshipped, one by one, died at the hands of the first King. Their divine power, souls, and concepts were all extracted and melted into the trident. This weapon was imbued with the essence of Death from its very inception.
It was the embodiment of Death itself.
Memory fragments continued to flash.
Chu Hang saw more scenes.
The first King stood on a ruin. This was the era when Atlantis was still on land. The city had not yet sunk to the bottom of the sea, and civilization was at its most glorious moment.
But the gods descended.
The old gods came from the sky, demanding the Atlanteans to submit. They wanted faith, sacrifices, and control over the life and Death of the entire civilization.
The first King refused.
He was a ruthless man. A truly ruthless man.
One man against an entire pantheon.
Those old gods probably didn't expect a mortal to dare resist. They were accustomed to being high and mighty, accustomed to being worshipped and feared. But the first King didn't buy into that.
He killed the first god.
Using the most primitive weapon—a stone spear.
That god died a terrible Death. His divinity was shattered, his divine power scattered, and his soul was forcibly torn from his divine body. The first King collected everything from that god and began forging the trident.
Next came the second, the third, the fourth... With each god killed, the trident gained more power.
The old gods panicked. They began to gang up and attack. But it was too late. The first King grew stronger with each god he killed. He learned the secrets of Death from the gods.
Ultimately, the entire pantheon was annihilated.
The trident was forged.
But the cost was immense. Atlantis sank to the bottom of the sea. The entire continent split apart, and civilization was swallowed by the ocean overnight. The first King led the surviving members of his tribe to establish an underwater kingdom.
The trident was sealed in the deepest trench.
Chu Hang withdrew from the memories, taking a deep breath.
He understood now.
This trident was a trap from the very beginning.
When the first King slaughtered the gods, he absorbed too many concepts of Death. The resentment, fear, and unwillingness of those old gods before their demise were all locked inside the trident. Over time, these negative consciousnesses coalesced into an independent entity.
The Abyssal Will.
It was not a spirit, but an amalgamation of countless departed souls. This entity had resided in the trident for thousands of years, and had long developed self-awareness. It fed on souls, and everyone who tried to control the trident ultimately became its nourishment.
The Black-Robed Person was just a disguise.
That fellow was never a Guardian from beginning to end. He was bait, a hook, specifically designed to lure those fools coveting the trident's power.
The routine was simple.
First, make the Black-Robed Person appear very strong, strong enough to make people think they could only get the trident by defeating him. Then, gradually show weakness in battle, making the opponent believe they were about to win. At the last moment, the Black-Robed Person would suddenly reveal his true form, exposing the essence of the Abyssal Will.
By then, the trial-taker would already be deeply entangled.
Their consciousness would be dragged into the trident's interior, their soul devoured little by little. This entire process could last for days, or even decades. To the outside world, that person would merely be standing there in a daze, but their soul would have long been torn apart and consumed.
Chu Hang was an anomaly.
The Abyssal Will never expected to encounter such a monster.
A transmigrator who mastered multiple Laws, possessed absurdly high mental strength, and coincidentally had a foundation in the Law of Death. This was simply its greatest nightmare.
Chapter 172 The Green Lantern Corps' Intervention
Chu Hang gripped the dark trident and rushed out from the underwater ruins.
After the independent space collapsed, the entire trench began to shake. Huge rocks plummeted from above, hitting the seabed with dull thuds.
He paid them no mind, pushing off with his legs, shooting upward like a cannonball.
The Water burst open around him.
The Kryptonian Physiology made his speed ridiculously fast; in less than three seconds, he had surged out of the seven-thousand-meter-deep trench.
His vision cleared. In the distance, the energy shield of the main city of Atlantis glowed with a faint blue light in the dark seabed.
Chu Hang did not head that way. He changed direction, swimming toward the opposite side.
His super hearing detected movement behind him; over a dozen figures rushed out from the direction of the main city, moving very fast.
Leading them was a red-haired woman holding a trident.
Mera, the wife of Aquaman.
Chu Hang accelerated, but his pursuers did too. The woman raised her hand and waved, and the surrounding Water seemed to come alive, condensing into a giant hand that slapped down from above.
He raised the dark trident and thrust it upward.
Black energy erupted from the tip of the trident, instantly tearing apart the Water hand.
The energy continued to surge upward, carving a black rift through the seawater.
Mera's expression changed, and she shouted for him to stop.
Chu Hang ignored her. He just wanted to leave this sea area and had no desire to tangle with the Atlanteans.
These people were only protecting their territory and held no malice, but there was also no need for him to explain himself.
Mera raised her hand again, summoning an even larger current. The seawater within a radius of several hundred meters formed a vortex, pressing in from all directions.
Chu Hang activated the Space Law, constructing a spherical barrier around his body.
The seawater roared as it hit the barrier, but it couldn't get through. He continued swimming forward, the barrier moving with him, blocking all the pressure.
Mera ordered the guard team behind her; a dozen guards immediately spread out to flank him. The tridents in their hands glowed blue as they aimed at Chu Hang, preparing to fire.
Chu Hang stopped and turned around. The dark tridentspun in his hand, its tip pointing forward.
"This is the final warning. Don't force my hand."
The voice was calm, but everyone heard it clearly.
Mera hesitated. She could feel that the opponent was not joking; the aura of Death emanating from the tridentterrified her instinctively.
"You took away a sacred relic belonging to Atlantis. That trident is the legacy left by our ancestors."
Chu Hang looked at her: "It's true that your ancestor forged it. But by sealing the trident at the bottom of the trench, he intended for later generations not to touch it. Now that I have taken it, consider it me helping you resolve a hidden danger."
Mera was speechless.
Chu Hang was about to continue swimming upward when he suddenly stopped. His super hearing picked up an unusual soundnot in the sea, but outside the atmosphere.
A high-frequency energy vibration, the rhythm was regular, sounding like the operation of a thruster.
He looked up, his X-ray vision piercing through the seawater and the clouds, reaching straight into space.
Three spacecraft. Each was about the size of a bus, with streamlined hulls and entirely green bodies.
They bore a uniform symbol: a green ring with a lantern design inside.
The Green Lantern Corps.
Chu Hang narrowed his eyes. The Police of the Universe, self-proclaimed Guardians of order.
Every Green Lantern possesses a ring that can convert willpower into solid constructs.
The common trait of this group was their tendency to be busybodies.
He didn't want to deal with them. Although his strength had increased significantly, there was no need to provoke a multi-galactic organization.
He still needed to hurry back to the Marvel Universe; he had no time to waste here.
Chu Hang accelerated toward the surface. Mera and the guards were confused by his sudden stop, believing he was about to attack, and quickly raised their weapons.
But Chu Hang ignored them completely, rocketing straight toward the surface like a torpedo, the wake behind him forming a White line in the Water.
Boom.
A giant column of Water erupted from the surface. Chu Hang shot out of the Water, his body tracing an arc in the air.
Seawater slid off his body, reflecting light in the sunlight. He hovered in mid-air, the dark trident clutched in his hand.
The three Green Lantern spacecraft had already reached low Earth orbit. The hatches opened, and three figures flew out at high speed, leaving three green contrails in the sky.
A few seconds later, the three Green Lanterns stopped in front of Chu Hang, about fifty meters away.
The leader was a human male. He was tall, had a buzz cut, and a rugged jawline.
His uniform was the standard Green Lantern Corps style, black base with the Green Lantern symbol on his chest. A ring was worn on his right hand, and the gems on the ring were glowing.
"Life form originating from Earth."
He spoke, his voice transmitted directly into Chu Hang's ear through some technology.
"I am Hal Jordan of Green Lantern Corps Sector 2814. The weapon in your hand is emitting extremely dangerous energy fluctuations. Pursuant to Cosmic Security Regulation 372, we have the right to inspect you.
Please cooperate with our work, surrender the weapon, and submit to a scan."
Chu Hang remained silent. His gaze swept over the three Green Lanterns.
The leading Earthling's combat strength was not particularly high, roughly at the level of a single planet.
The other two consisted of a blue-skinned alien with four arms, and a creature that appeared to have evolved from some kind of insect.
Their strength was similar; none of them had reached Skyfather level.
The three of them combined were not enough to fight him.
However, Chu Hang did not intend to strike. Behind the Green Lantern Corps were the Guardians; though those little blue men rarely took action, their strength was unfathomable.
Provoking this organization would lead to endless trouble.
"What if I don't cooperate?"
Chu Hang's voice was calm.
Hal Jordan's expression grew serious. "Then we are authorized to use force."
He raised his right hand, and the ring began to glow. Green energy condensed on his hand, forming a massive hammer.
The other two Green Lanterns also raised their hands, constructing different weapons. The blue-skinned alien chose a spear, and the insect-like being conjured a net.
The three formed a triangular formation, surrounding Chu Hang.
Chu Hang tightened his grip on the trident. The Law of Death within his body began to circulate.
The dark trident seemed to sense its Master's intent, and the dark red patterns on its surface lit up.
A pure aura of Death spread out from the shaft of the trident, and the air temperature around them plummeted.
The expressions of the three Green Lanterns changed drastically. Their rings were issuing frantic warnings, the green light flickering as if about to explode.
The rings were telling them that the threat level of the person before them far exceeded expectations.
Hal Jordan gritted his teeth. As a veteran Green Lantern of this sector, he had seen many dangerous entities. But someone like Chu Hang was a first.
The energy fluctuations emanating from the opponent were too chaotic; at least six or seven different types of power were operating simultaneously.
More crucial was the weapon in his hand.
Dark red patterns flowed across the surface of the black trident, and every single pattern emitted the aura of Death.
Just by looking at it, his ring was desperately issuing warnings.
"One last chance. Surrender the weapon and cooperate with the inspection. Otherwise, we will take you back to Oaand hand you over to the Guardians for disposal."
Chu Hang sighed. Just as he expected. People from the Green Lantern Corps always had this issuethey considered themselves the Police of the Universe and treated everyone like a criminal.
He originally didn't want trouble, but this group insisted on walking into the muzzle of a gun.
"I have a suggestion for you."
Chu Hang said.
"Stay far away from me."
Hal Jordan's eyes turned cold. "Attack."
The three attacked simultaneously. The green hammer, spear, and net slammed toward Chu Hang from three directions.
The energy constructs traced three arcs in the air, moving at astonishing speed.
Chu Hang stood still. The dark trident spun in his hand, and he plunged the tip downward.
Invisible ripples spread out from the tip of the trident. It was the pure Law of Death, radiating outward from Chu Hang.
Everything withered wherever the ripples passed. The moisture in the air instantly evaporated, and the mist floating above the sea surface vanished into nothingness.
The energy constructs of the three Green Lanterns hit the ripples, and then they were gone.
The hammer, spear, and net were erased as if by a rubber, transitioning from existence to nothingness. Not even a speck of residue remained.
Hal Jordan's pupils contracted. This was impossible. Green Lantern ring constructs were formed by concentrated willpower; theoretically, only stronger willpower could defeat them.
But the power just now wasn't willpower at allit was something of a higher echelon.
Law.
That word popped into his mind. This Earthling had mastered Law-level power, and more than one kind.
"Retreat."
Hal Jordan immediately gave the order.
The other two Green Lanterns were stunned for a moment but complied. All three simultaneously retreated, increasing the distance between themselves and Chu Hang.
Hal Jordan raised his right hand, and the ring shot a beam of green light toward space. It was a signal, calling for backup.
Chu Hang didn't pursue. He hovered in mid-air, watching the three Green Lanterns fly back to their ships.
The three green spacecraft turned around, starting their engines, preparing to leave.
But just then, space tore open.
A massive rift appeared above the spacecraft, and dazzling green light poured out of it.
Immediately following, a figure stepped out of the rift.
It was a small blue man. He was less than 1.5 meters tall, had blue-purple skin, and a large, round head.
He wore a White robe, kept his hands clasped behind his back, and had an expression so severe it looked like someone owed him money.
A Guardian.
Chu Hang recognized him. The true power behind the Green Lantern Corps, claimed to be one of the oldest races in the Universe.
These little blue men had lived for billions of years, and their power was unfathomable.
Chapter 173 Guardian Ganther
The small blue man hovered in mid-air, his hands still clasped behind his back. His eyes were pure white, pupil-less, and when he stared at Chu Hang, it was as if he was seeing through something.
Chu Hang gripped the trident tightly, and the power of Law within him began to circulate. The opponent's energy fluctuation was stable, with no leakage, but the sense of oppression was genuinely present. This small blue man's strength was at least Mid-Tier Heavenly Father Level, and possibly even higher.
"A traveler from a parallel Universe."
The small blue man spoke, his voice sounding directly in Chu Hang's mind. It wasn't transmitted through the air, but was a form of mental communication.
"I am Ganthet, a Guardian. One of the founders of the Green Lantern Corps and a maintainer of Universal order. The weapon in your hand contains the Law of Death, which is enough to threaten an entire galaxy. According to Article 103 of the Universal Security Act, I have the right to demand that you surrender it."
Chu Hang remained silent. He was assessing the situation.
Ganthet's strength was formidable, but not insurmountable. If they truly fought, Chu Hang was sixty percent sure he could win. But the problem was that there wasn't just one Guardian. Behind the Green Lantern Corpswas the entire Planet Oa, where thousands of Green Lanterns were stationed, along with several other Guardians.
Offending such an organization was not worth the trouble.
"I refuse."
Chu Hang said. His voice was calm, as if stating a fact.
"I retrieved this trident from the bottom of the trench near Atlantis. It was sealed there for thousands of years, having devoured thirteen powerhouses who tried to control it. If I hadn't taken it, sooner or later, the next unlucky person would have gone to their death. By taking it now, I have resolved a hidden danger."
Ganthet's expression remained unchanged. "Your logic holds some merit. But this does not change the fact that you currently possess a weapon capable of destroying a Planet, and your origins and motives are unknown. I cannot confirm that you will not use this weapon to threaten Universal security."
Chu Hang looked at him. "So what are you going to do? Take it by force?"
"If necessary, yes."
Ganthet raised his right hand. A Green Lantern ring appeared out of thin air, settling on his finger. The ring shone with a blinding green light, its brilliance ten times stronger than that of Hal Jordan and the others.
The surrounding space began to warp. Green energy surged from the ring, coalescing behind Ganthet into a gigantic phantom image. It was a hand, a hundred meters tall, every finger clearly visible.
Hal Jordan and the other two Green Lanterns had retreated to the side of the spaceship. They watched the scene, their expressions grim. A Guardian personally intervening was something that happened only once every few millennia. The last time was during the confrontation with Parallax.
Chu Hang didn't move. He stood his ground, the dark trident held in his hand. Six Laws simultaneously circulated within his body—Space, Strength, Body, Spirit, Time, and Reality—forming a complete loop inside him.
The Law Domain unfolded.
A transparent sphere one hundred meters in diameter expanded from Chu Hang, instantly encompassing both him and Ganthet. Pale golden light flowed across the sphere's surface; these were the patterns formed by the intertwining of the six Laws.
Ganthet's huge hand slammed down, colliding with the edge of the Law Domain.
There was no explosion, no roar. The hand seemed to hit an invisible wall, stopping in mid-air. The green energy construct began to disintegrate, dissolving into specks of light inch by inch, starting from the fingertips.
Ganthet narrowed his eyes. He increased the output, and the ring's light intensified. A second hand coalesced, striking the Law Domain from another angle. Simultaneously, more constructs appeared behind him—swords, spears, hammers, and shields—dozens of weapons forming at once.
All the weapons smashed into the Law Domain together.
Boom.
This time there was sound. A massive impact exploded in the air, causing ripples across the surface of the sea. But the Law Domain remained completely still; the golden patterns on its surface didn't even flicker.
Chu Hang stood in the center of the Domain, looking at Ganthet. "You cannot break it. In this Domain, I define the rules. No matter how strong your willpower constructs are, they are merely a manifestation of energy. What I control is the Law itself."
Ganthet stopped. He withdrew the ring's power, and the weapons and hands gradually dissolved. He hovered in mid-air, staring at Chu Hang for a few seconds.
"You are right. Willpower indeed cannot oppose the Law. But that doesn't mean I have no solution."
He raised both hands and began chanting an ancient language. The syllables were complex, and every word carried a strange rhythm. Chu Hang couldn't understand the specific meaning, but he could feel the surrounding space vibrating.
This was not the power of the Green Lantern ring. This was the inherent ability of the Guardian race.
Ganthet's body began to glow. It wasn't green, but pure white light. The light grew brighter and brighter, eventually becoming blinding. Even Chu Hang's Kryptonian vision struggled, forcing him to squint.
After the light faded, Ganthet had changed.
He still had the appearance of the small blue man, but he was covered in a layer of ethereal armor. The armor was transparent, and faint, galaxy-like patterns could be seen flowing within it. That was the power of the Universal Origin, the accumulated heritage of the Guardian race, who had lived for billions of years.
Chu Hang's expression finally changed. He felt threatened. A genuine threat.
Ganthet's current state was no longer Mid-Tier Heavenly Father Level, but infinitely close to Skyfather level peak. This small blue man had burned his life essence, forcefully elevating himself to a level capable of threatening Chu Hang.
"I do not wish to be your enemy," Ganthet said. "But if you insist on not surrendering that weapon, I can only use this method to stop you. You should be able to tell that my current state cannot be maintained for long. About five minutes, after which my life force will be completely exhausted. But during these five minutes, I am confident I can defeat you."
Chu Hang didn't speak. He was calculating.
Ganthet was telling the truth. In this state, he certainly had the potential to defeat Chu Hang, or at least stall him for five minutes. And five minutes was enough time for the Green Lantern Corps reinforcements to arrive. If dozens of Green Lanterns attacked together, plus the other Guardians, Chu Hang would have to pay a huge price even if he could fight them off.
More critically, he didn't have time to waste here. He didn't know how much time had passed in the Marvel Universe, what the World would look like after Thanos snapped his fingers, or whether Wanda and the others could hold out—these were all unknowns. He had to return as soon as possible.
Chu Hang loosened his grip on the trident.
The dark trident hovered in front of him, its tip pointing down, the dark red patterns on its surface still glowing. Chu Hang hadn't fully let go; he was merely supporting it with the Space Law, keeping it in an ambiguous state.
Seeing this action, the white light surrounding Ganthet dimmed slightly. He was waiting for Chu Hang's next move.
"I can agree not to take this weapon with me," Chu Hangsaid. "But I won't hand it over to you. I will send it back to Atlantis. Let them handle it themselves."
Ganthet shook his head. "The Atlanteans do not have the ability to seal it. This trident has already developed a self-awareness, and ordinary sealing techniques are ineffective against it. Unless someone can completely master it, it will eventually lose control again."
"Then I will master it," Chu Hang said. "I have already suppressed the abyssal will inside the trident; now it only obeys my commands. As long as I do not die, it will not lose control."
Ganthet stared at him for a few seconds. "How long is your lifespan?"
Chu Hang was stunned for a moment. He hadn't considered this question. He had now integrated the Kryptonian Physiology, Godly Physique, super soldier serum, Healing Factor, and the life form of the Celestials. Combined, his lifespan should theoretically be very long, starting at least in the thousands of years.
But a few thousand years is merely an instant in the Universe. The trident has existed for tens of thousands of years and can exist for tens of thousands more, or even longer. Once Chu Hang dies, who will take over this weapon?
"I understand what you mean," Chu Hang said. "You are worried that after I die, the trident will lose control again and become a new threat."
Ganthet nodded. "Exactly. This is why I demand you hand it over. The Green Lantern Corps has specialized facilities that can permanently seal such weapons, ensuring they never fall into the wrong hands."
Chu Hang smiled. It wasn't a mocking smile, but he genuinely found it slightly amusing.
"You Guardians have lived for billions of years and witnessed countless civilizations rise and fall. You should understand one principle: nothing is Eternity. No matter how strong your seal is, there will come a day when it is broken. Instead of pinning your hopes on a seal, why not let me take it out of this Universe? I don't belong here anyway, and my goal is to return to my own Universe. Once I leave, this trident will no longer pose a threat to you."
Ganthet fell silent. He was considering the feasibility of this proposal.
Chu Hang seized the opportunity to continue: "Furthermore, you should be able to sense that the energy on my body does not belong to this Universe. I came from another Universe, having been accidentally drawn here. What I need now is enough energy to tear open a spatial rift and return to my original World. Once I leave, you can manage this Universe however you like; I will not interfere."
Ganthet's white light completely dimmed. The armor vanished, and he reverted to his ordinary small blue man form. His face was somewhat pale; the previous move had clearly taken a significant toll.
"Your proposal has some merit," he said. "But I need to confirm one thing."
Chu Hang waited for him to continue.
"You just mentioned needing enough energy to tear open a spatial rift. This means you cannot do it yet. So how do you plan to acquire this energy? If you extensively plunder energy within this Universe, the resulting damage might be more severe than the trident itself."
Chu Hang thought for a moment. This was indeed a problem. Although his current state had recovered to Mid-Tier Heavenly Father Level, tearing open a spatial rift connecting two Universes required significantly more energy. His original plan was to absorb Solar energy or find energy-rich locations. But these methods all required time.
And time was precisely what he lacked most.
"I can offer you assistance," Ganthet said. "Oa has a Central Power Battery, which stores the collective willpower energy accumulated by the entire Green Lantern Corps. If you are willing to accept one condition, I can allow you to draw a portion of the energy from the Central Battery. This energy will be enough for you to tear open a spatial rift and return to your Universe."
Chu Hang raised an eyebrow. He never believed in things falling from the sky. "What condition?"
"Before you leave, help us resolve a problem," Ganthet said. "Recently, an unknown force has been active on the edge of the Universe, and it has already destroyed three living star systems. The Green Lantern squad we sent out was completely annihilated, unable to even send out a distress signal. I suspect that force has reached the Law level, which ordinary Green Lanterns cannot contend with. If you are willing to intervene, I can offer you sufficient compensation."
Chu Hang looked at him. The small blue man's expression was serious; he didn't seem to be lying. But Chu Hangdidn't want to get involved. Right now, he only wanted to return to the Marvel Universe and disregard everything else.
"I refuse," Chu Hang said. "I have no interest in being your hired muscle. I will find the energy myself; I don't need your help."
Ganthet sighed. "I knew you would say that. Then I'll change my proposal. You don't have to fight for us; you only need to accompany me to the location and use your sensory abilities to investigate the source of that power. This shouldn't be difficult for you, and it won't take up much time. In exchange, I can give you a Green Lanternring."
Chu Hang was stunned. A Green Lantern ring?
"Not an ordinary Green Lantern ring," Ganthet seemed to notice his confusion. "It is the one I personally used, storing thousands of years of my accumulated willpower energy. This ring does not require an oath, nor does it need to connect to the Central Battery. You can directly draw the energy inside to reinforce your Law Domain or use it as fuel to tear open a spatial rift."
Chapter 174 Anomalies at the Edge of the DC Universe
Chu Hang stared at the green lantern ring in Ganthet's hand.
It floated, dark green light flowing over it, unlike the blinding glare of a typical Green Lantern's.
This light carried the weight of millennia.
Chu Hang could clearly perceive the energy contained within—a pure condensation of willpower.
Its mass far exceeded the rings of Hal Jordan and his peers.
This object was useful to him.
It wasn't just fuel for a one-time tear through a spatial rift. More importantly, it could help Chu Hang understand another facet of the Law of Reality.
The essence of the green lantern ring was to materialize will, turning abstract concepts into physical forms. This was similar to the Reality Warping he mastered, yet approached from a different angle.
If he could absorb the ring's energy and analyze its structural principles, it would be of immense help for his breakthrough to the conceptual level.
"I am only going to investigate," Chu Hang said.
Ganthet nodded. "You may. You only need to tell me the nature and origin of that power."
Chu Hang reached out, and the trident flew back into his hand. "When do we leave?"
"Now." Ganthet turned. His right hand drew a circle in the air, and green energy instantly condensed into a portal.
Behind the door was the boundless starry sky.
"That area is on the edge of Sector Zero, about twenty thousand light-years away."
Chu Hang stepped forward, walking into the portal.
Hal Jordan wanted to say something, but ultimately just clenched his fist. Three Green Lantern starships started their engines and followed close behind.
The teleportation was smooth.
Chu Hang felt his body enveloped by gentle power, and the surrounding scenery transformed into flowing light and Shadow.
In less than ten seconds, he had traveled from Earth's atmosphere to the depths of the Universe.
The portal opened in a dark void. Chu Hang stepped out, and the first thing he saw was dense Nebula.
The Nebula here was not a beautiful purple or blue. It was dark red, as if soaked in blood. The edges of the Nebulawere irregular, seemingly torn apart by some enormous force.
Ganthet stopped beside him and pointed ahead. "The locations where three star systems were destroyed are in that direction. The most recent was seven days ago, the furthest thirty days ago."
Chu Hang activated his super sight, looking at a dead, silent star several light-years away.
There was no light or heat on its surface, only a gray-black shell. All surrounding planets had vanished, leaving no fragments behind.
"It doesn't look like a natural disaster," Chu Hang said. "This level of energy extraction can only be achieved by intelligent life."
Ganthet's expression grew more serious. "I agree. But the twelve-person Green Lantern squad we sent to investigate has completely lost contact."
Chu Hang closed his eyes and deployed the Law of Spirit.
His consciousness spread, covering a radius of a thousand kilometers. He could sense every floating meteor, every wisp of sparse interstellar dust, and even the distribution of dark matter in the void.
But there were no signs of life.
This area was dead. Not simply silent, but utterly drained of vitality. Even basic energy fluctuations didn't exist, like a completely wrung-out sponge.
He increased his output, extending the detection range to fifty thousand kilometers. He swept over every Nebula, every dead star.
One hundred and twenty thousand kilometers away, he sensed an anomaly—a patch of distorted spatial texture. It had tied itself into a knot there, forming a vortex less than ten meters wide.
The vortex rotated slowly. With every turn, a faint wisp of energy leaked out. Its nature was strange; it was unlike material energy, nor was it like the power of any familiar Law.
It was more like, a certain concept.
Chu Hang opened his eyes. "I found it."
Without waiting for Ganthet's response, he immediately activated the Space Law. Transforming into a golden light, he vanished from his spot. The next second, he appeared a hundred meters in front of the vortex.
Ganthet followed closely. A flash of green light, and the small blue man appeared beside him.
He stared at the vortex and asked, "What is this?"
"I don't know," Chu Hang said. "But those Green Lanterns were likely swallowed by this thing."
He tried to see through the vortex using X-ray vision, but his sight was instantly distorted, seeing nothing. He switched to the Law of Spirit, constructing a consciousness clone to enter the vortex.
As soon as the consciousness clone touched the edge of the vortex, it was pulled in by a huge suction force.
Chu Hang's main body felt dizzy; a massive amount of chaotic information flooded his brain, lacking any logical structure, like countless voices screaming simultaneously.
He stabilized his consciousness and began sorting the information. Three seconds later, a scene appeared—a pitch-black space, without light or matter, only endless nothingness. In the center floated a colossal Shadow, its shape constantly shifting.
Sometimes human, sometimes beast, sometimes a tentacled monster.
The Shadow was breathing; with every inhale, the surrounding void was sucked into its body, turning into pure nothingness.
Just as the consciousness clone tried to approach, it was discovered by the Shadow. Countless black tentacles stabbed towards it. Chu Hang severed the connection, pulling his main consciousness back to reality.
The vortex in front of him suddenly stopped spinning.
Green light flared on Ganthet's body: "What happened?"
Chu Hang didn't answer. He stared at the vortex, six Laws operating simultaneously within his body.
The Space Law sensed the internal structure collapsing, the Law of Time noticed the flow rate accelerating, and the Law of Strength, Law of Spirit, Law of Reality, and Law of Death were all transmitting the same message.
Something was about to come out.
The vortex began to swell. Expanding from ten meters to a hundred meters, the speed of expansion grew faster and faster.
In the blink of an eye, it turned into a massive rift over a thousand meters in diameter. Its edges were burning with black Fire; that was Space itself combusting.
Ganthet's face changed drastically. He raised his right hand, and his ring emitted a blinding green light, condensing into a five-hundred-meter-wide shield in front of him. Defensive runes, passed down by the Guardian race for billions of years, appeared on the surface.
But, it was useless—
A hand reached out from the rift. Its fingers were over a hundred meters long.
The palm was pitch black, with no skin on its surface, only constantly flowing nothingness. Every finger was twisting, like countless worms wriggling.
The hand grabbed the edge of the shield, and the runes began to disintegrate, not shattered, but directly transformed from existence into nothingness.
The shield's material structure vanished the instant it was touched; not even energy remained.
Ganthet gritted his teeth, increasing his output until the ring's light was blinding.
Behind him, a second, third, and fourth shield condensed, stacked layer upon layer.
Each one had an independent runic system.
The hand paused for a moment, then squeezed hard, and the four shields shattered simultaneously, the fragments scattering as green specks of light.
The arm continued to extend outward until the entire limb emerged. Its end was connected to a much larger figure, which was slowly crawling out of the rift.
Chu Hang moved.
He did not retreat; instead, he charged toward the hand.
The dark trident was gripped in his hand, its tip burning with dark red Fire; that was the pure Law of Death, the strongest killing move he had learned from the trident.
The trident stabbed the wrist, and the Law of Deathinvaded the arm's interior, beginning to dismantle its existence.
The trident trembled with excitement; this weapon was born for slaughter, and upon encountering an opponent of this caliber, its abyssal will nearly went berserk.
But the hand did not disappear. The Law of Death was indeed working; the pierced area began to decay.
Black material dripped down like melting wax, but the speed of decay could not keep up with regeneration; every piece that dropped was immediately replaced by new nothingness surging from the depths.
That thing laughed.
The sound echoed directly inside Chu Hang's mind, deep and low, as if coming from a bottomless abyss; every syllable shook his soul.
"Interesting... another... Law-wielding... ant..."
Chu Hang ignored it. He pulled back the trident and retreated fifty meters.
Six Laws erupted simultaneously within him. A golden sphere unfolded, enveloping him and the arm, the runes on the Law Domain's surface shining to the extreme.
"Here, you do not exist."
He used the power of Reality Warping, attempting to erase the hand on a conceptual level, rewriting the rules within the Domain so that Space, Time, matter, energy—all foundations of existence—told it: You are false and do not belong here.
The hand stopped, and the nothingness on its surface became unstable, flickering like a television screen with signal interference.
But that was all.
Three seconds later, it stabilized again, ignoring the Law Domain and continuing to crawl out. Its entire upper body had emerged.
A blurry face could be seen, featureless except for a constantly opening and closing massive mouth, within which was endless darkness.
Ganthet retreated a thousand meters away, his face pale. His life force was rapidly diminishing; the previous consumption was too great, and now he struggled even to maintain flight.
"That is the Anti-Monitor..." Ganthet's voice sounded in Chu Hang's mind, trembling, "No... not entirely... it's just a wisp of its consciousness projection... But even a projection... is not something we can handle... Get out of here..."
Chu Hang didn't move. He stared at the monster crawling out, his mind racing.
The Anti-Monitor, one of the ultimate villains of the DC Universe, sustains itself by devouring the Universe.
An enemy of this caliber, let alone him being suppressed in the DC Universe now, even in his peak state back in the Marvel Universe, he couldn't defeat it.
But if it was only a wisp of consciousness projection, there was still room to maneuver.
He retracted the Law Domain and turned to look at the rift.
The rift was still expanding, and the black Fire at the edges burned brighter and brighter.
This was the monster's passage into the Universe; if he could close it, he could trap it outside.
He activated the Space Law, attempting to forcibly cut and close the rift, but the moment he touched the edge, he was repelled by an even greater power.
That power did not belong to this Universe, nor did it belong to any single Universe. It came from the gaps between the Multiverse.
His arm went numb, and Chu Hang retreated over ten meters.
He looked at his right palm; black markings had appeared on the surface and were slowly spreading. The power of nothingness he had contaminated himself with during the rebound was eroding his body.
He immediately mobilized the Law of Death, using a counter-poison method to suppress the power of nothingness.
The spread of the black markings stopped, but they did not recede.
This thing, like a persistent illness, was stubbornly stuck to his hand.
Chapter 175 The Power of Nothingness
Chu Hang stared at the palm of his right hand.
The black Texture was like a living worm, wriggling under his skin.
The power of the Law of Death could only suppress it, preventing it from spreading, but couldn't eradicate it. The essence of this thing was too profound, exceeding his current comprehension.
Ahead, from the void rift, the Anti-Monitor's Shadow had already emerged for more than half of its body.
It was a colossal figure, thousands of meters tall, without a fixed outline, just a constantly rolling and changing mass of black mist.
With every breath it took, large swathes of the surrounding Space would be sucked into its body, completely turning into nothingness.
Three Green Lantern spaceships had already retreated to a safe distance of fifty thousand kilometers.
Hal Jordan and the others dared not approach, only able to watch this world-destroying scene from afar through their screens, not even daring to breathe.
Ganthet floated about a thousand meters behind Chu Hang, his face almost transparently pale.
Just now, to counter the Hand of Nothingness, he had forcibly activated his own power, expending a large amount of his life essence, and was now at the end of his strength.
"Don't think about closing the rift," Ganthet's voice was very weak, but transmitted clearly into Chu Hang's ears via energy conduction. "That rift doesn't connect to a specific Space, but to the Multiverse's void layer. As long as the Anti-Monitor's will is locked onto here, it will never close."
Chu Hang turned to look at him. "How do I expel it?"
Ganthet was silent for two seconds, seemingly organizing his words, but in the end, he only uttered a desperate answer. "You can't do it. Even we Guardians, facing the complete Anti-Monitor Ontology, would need to gather the strength of the entire Multiverse to barely contend. Although the Shadow before us is only the descent of a very small part of its consciousness, for us, it is still an unconquerable existence."
"Then why did you call me here?" Chu Hang's tone was calm.
A bitter look appeared on Ganthet's face. "I thought it was just an ordinary Law-level threat, at most a hegemon of a single Universe causing destruction. I didn't expect… it would be it."
He paused, then added, "The only way now is to contact the other Guardians, gather all top-tier combat power, and use the power of the Universe's origin to forcibly expel it. But this will take Time, a lot of Time, at least three days."
Chu Hang's gaze returned to the black mist. It had completely emerged from the rift and was stretching its body in the void.
Every tiny movement caused the surrounding Space to shatter like glass.
Three days? This monstrous thing probably wouldn't even need three hours to completely erase this galaxy from the physical plane.
"Is there no other way?" Chu Hang pressed.
Ganthet shook his head. "No. Unless…" His gaze fell on the black Texture on Chu Hang's right hand, "You can withstand the erosion of the power of Nothingness, actively enter its body, and dismantle its consciousness core from within. But this… this is no different from suicide. The power of Nothingness will erase everything about you, from matter to soul, from the present to the past, making you completely disappear from this Universe, leaving no trace."
Chu Hang didn't speak.
He stared intently at the constantly expanding black mist, his brain working at an unprecedented speed.
Dismantle from within.
Theoretically, this was the only viable path. The Anti-Monitor's true body was indeed almost invincible, but this was ultimately just a wisp of a Shadow.
No matter how strong the Shadow, it must have a consciousness core that sustains its existence.
As long as that core could be found and destroyed with sufficiently powerful Law power, the Shadow would naturally collapse.
There were two problems.
First, how to get in.
Second, how to survive inside.
He slowly lowered his head, looking at his right hand. The black Texture was still wriggling, as if mocking his overestimation of himself.
This was the imprint left by the power of Nothingness, a poison, but also… a key.
Chu Hang took a deep breath, extended his right hand, and voluntarily released the suppression on the black Texture.
The power of the Law of Death receded like a tide.
The next second, the power of Nothingness instantly erupted. The tiny black Texture seemed to be injected with life, spreading wildly from his palm to his entire arm like thick ink dropped into clear Water.
His skin began to disappear.
Followed by muscles, blood vessels, bones… layer by layer, orderly turning into nothingness.
Excruciating pain shot to his brain, but Chu Hang gritted his teeth, not even letting out a muffled groan.
He mobilized all the Law power within his body, this Time not to resist, but to guide and imitate.
Under his will, the Space Law forcibly constructed an invisible passage within his body, constraining the power of Nothingness to flow along the path he set.
The Law of Body stubbornly tried to resist this power.
The Law of Strength tightly compressed its energy density, preventing it from completely losing control and instantly devouring him.
The Law of Time acted upon himself, trying its best to slow down the speed of erosion, buying himself that one in ten thousand of a second of reaction Time.
The Law of Spirit, the Law of Reality, the Law of Death… seven already mastered powers operated with unprecedented efficiency, forming a precise yet fragile circulatory system within his body.
He used his Law Domain as the walls of the container, and his will as the core of the container, attempting to temporarily house this highly poisonous power from beyond the Universe within his own body.
The pain of this process was indescribable. Every second, a part of his body was completely erased. His right arm had disappeared up to his shoulder, and faint black lines had begun to appear on the skin of his left arm.
But he didn't stop.
Because he felt a faint resonance. While the power of Nothingness was erasing his existence, it also seemed to be producing a peculiar resonance with the six distinct Law powers within his body.
This resonance was extremely faint, like two Qin strings of completely different scales being plucked simultaneously. But it did exist.
Chu Hang immediately seized this fleeting resonance, amplifying it with his Law of Spirit. He wanted this power of Nothingness to believe that he and it were the same thing.
Ahead, the Anti-Monitor's Shadow suddenly stopped moving. The rolling black mist seemed to have been paused, solidifying in place, and then, the massive figure slowly turned towards Chu Hang's direction.
It had no eyes, no facial features, but Chu Hang could clearly feel that it was looking at him.
"Interesting…" The vast and cold voice echoed in his mind again, "You are… imitating me…"
The black mist began to contract, its volume rapidly compressing from thousands of meters tall to five hundred meters, but its density increased severalfold. A new arm extended from the black mist, this Time only fifty meters long, but the power of Nothingness flowing on its surface was more than ten times more concentrated than before.
The arm slowly reached out to Chu Hang, with no intention of attacking, more like an examination and a touch.
The cold fingertip gently touched Chu Hang's chest.
In an instant, a tsunami-like wave of Nothingness power surged into his body.
Chu Hang's body trembled violently, the Law Domain he had painstakingly constructed within his body almost collapsing on the spot. He forcibly steadied his mind, incorporating this external power of Nothingness into the pre-set channel, allowing it to merge with the existing power within his body.
Two streams of Nothingness power, originating from the same source but with different masters, met without repulsion, instead beginning to merge naturally.
Now is the Time!