Before Tony could finish, a cold, chilling voice intruded into the arena.
"What a touching reunion." Mephisto's laughter was full of mockery.
"But I must remind you, little Stark. I hold more than just your father's soul."
"I also have your mother... Maria. She is currently being held in the Soul Incinerator of the Burning Hell."
"What!" Tony was shocked and furious.
"I mercifully signed a contract with your father," Mephisto continued. "As long as Howard wins, your mother will be spared from torture. But if Howard loses..."
"Both his soul and Maria's soul will serve as fuel for the incinerator, suffering the agony of the eternal karmic fire! Forever!"
"Now, make your choice, genius of Earth. You consider..."
"Ah—!"
Before Mephisto could finish, his words suddenly turned into a shrill, piercing scream.
Grandmaster's angry voice rang out: "Daring to break the rules in the arena is simply courting death."
Mephisto was forcibly expelled from the Gladiator Realm by the Spirit of the Arena. The exact punishment he received was unclear to everyone, but judging by those screams, it sounded as if he had been flayed alive.
The devil's voice vanished, but his purpose had been achieved.
On one side was the future of Earth, the survival of all humanity.
On the other side were the souls of his parents; if he won, his parents would fall into eternal hell, suffering endless torture.
This was a soul-crushing dilemma designed to kill the spirit.
"Kill me! Tony! Fire!" Howard roared, his body already more than half engulfed in flames.
How to choose?
There was no way to choose.
Tony knelt on the shimmering ground.
This super-genius, who had always considered himself a playboy and was known for his cynical attitude.
This billionaire who always used a sharp tongue and arrogance to disguise himself.
At this moment, he collapsed like a helpless child.
This soul-tearing dilemma was displayed without reservation to the audience across the entire Universe through the camera lens.
People's emotions were torn, and the live stream chat exploded.
The absolutely rational audience was anxious and angry.
"Fire, Iron Man! Don't be fooled by the devil! Kill him!"
"What happens to Earth if you lose? You are fighting on our behalf!"
"The lives of all humanity are in your hands; are you really going to lose the match for a dead man?"
The emotionally resonant audience could not accept such cold-blooded remarks and fought back.
"Are you crazy? That's his biological father!"
"Who could kill their own father with their own hands? Keyboard warriors find it easy to talk!"
"I want to cry just watching this. Iron Man has already lost his parents once; do you really want him to lose them again by his own hand?"
The comments refreshed crazily. Countless people covered their mouths, unable to bear watching the father and son kill each other.
"Tony..." Steve was anxious and burning with rage.
He knew Tony too well.
On the surface, he was a cynical playboy, but deep down, he craved the warmth of family more than anyone.
Making him kill Howard with his own hands was ten thousand times more painful than killing himself.
"Tony... do it!" Howard let out an inhuman roar from his throat. "Kill me!"
"I... I can't do it!" Tony's eyes were red, and he shouted in pain, but his hand slowly raised.
Just at the moment when the human tragedy was about to happen.
"Beep—!!!"
A special notification sound suddenly rang through the arena.
In mid-air, Grandmaster's massive holographic projection popped up.
He looked a bit dazed, holding a bottle of vought functional drink in his hand.
"Wait! What happened? The Gladiator System notification... the Captain of the Earth faction, Homelander, has voluntarily pressed the forfeit button?!"
The entire Universe was in an uproar.
Grandmaster put down his drink, then grabbed the microphone and shouted: "Unbelievable! Shocking! Let us congratulate the Black Order! They take the victory in the third round! The current score is 1:2!"
The people on Earth were plunged into collective bewilderment.
The match ended, and the arena restrictions were lifted.
The energy barrier shrouding the edge of the arena slowly descended.
Tony lay on the ground, blankly turning his head back.
With bloodshot eyes, he looked in disbelief toward the direction of the staging platform.
Just as Tony's mind went blank.
Swoosh!
Homelander, in his classic stars and stripes suit, flew over and hovered in the air.
Like a god with compassion for all living beings, looking down on the world.
He descended from the sky, slowly landing between Tony and Howard.
Tony looked at Homelander with eyes full of confusion and remorse: "Anthony... why did you forfeit? If you had just given me some time, I could have..."
"You could have what? Killed your father with your own hands?" Homelander interrupted him.
Then, Homelander slowly turned around, facing the millions of alien spectators in the arena, as well as the broadcast cameras in the sky transmitting the footage back to Earth in real-time.
He raised his head slightly, the expression on his face perfectly blending compassion, anger, and determination.
This was version 2.0 of his "Savior Saint" standard expression, which he had improved several times in front of the mirror.
"Listen up, everyone, including my fellow Earthlings," Homelander said slowly.
"Perhaps some people think that Tony Stark should have cut down the enemy in front of him without hesitation for the sake of victory, even if that enemy was his own father enslaved by a demon!"
"But I tell you, absolutely not!" Homelander's voice rose sharply.
"The future of Earth will never be built on a despicable deal that sacrifices the souls of our parents and family!"
"We stand here to protect our families, not to sever our bonds just to stay alive!"
"If, in order to survive, we have to force a son to kill his own father and discard the love in our hearts... then such an Earth is not worth saving!"
Homelander raised his hand, pointing directly at the high platform where Thanos was, his eyes filled with cold murderous intent.
"Listen, you demons hiding in the gutter! You think you can break us with these methods? You think love is humanity's weakness?"
"You are wrong! Love—that is humanity's greatest strength!"
Homelander turned around, pulled Tony up, and firmly patted his damaged shoulder armor.
Then, facing the camera, he said resoundingly: "I promise all of you, we will win the subsequent matches fair and square!"
These words were resounding, without any superfluous embellishment, only the fanatical power that struck the soul.
Homelander perfectly displayed the image of a "perfect Guardian" who never compromised and protected his own to the end.
Even the Raiders and cosmic villains who had been clamoring crazily just a moment ago were now stunned by this momentum and obediently shut their mouths.
And on Earth, after a brief silence, a thunderous applause erupted!
"God of Mankind! This is our Homelander!"
"He is right! We don't need to survive by forcing a hero to kill his father!"
"This is a true leader! Never abandon, never give up!"
"I was actually blaming Stark just now; I'm awful. I'm sorry, Homelander's lesson is right!"
"So what if we lost one round? As long as Homelander is still here, we absolutely cannot lose!"
"I can't stop my tears; thank God for giving us such a hero!"
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