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Chapter 177 - Chapter 177: Return

After returning to Earth, Levi landed on the rooftop of an abandoned factory on the outskirts of Metropolis.

He sat cross-legged and took out a fingernail-sized fragment of space from his storage stomach. The fragment shimmered with a faint golden glow, its interior filled with twisted energy patterns that recorded the coordinates between two universes.

Closing his eyes, he sank his consciousness into the fragment.

Guided by his will, the laws of space began to decode the information within. The chaotic energy patterns gradually became clear, forming something like an intricate map—marking countless pathways from the DC Universe to others.

One of those paths emitted a familiar aura.

That was the coordinate of the Marvel Universe.

Levi opened his eyes and took a deep breath. Raising his right hand, he saw the black pattern of void energy had been completely suppressed by the Law of Death. It no longer spread, but it couldn't be erased either. It would remain a permanent scar—a constant reminder not to tamper with powers beyond his understanding.

He took out the Green Lantern ring given to him by Ganthet and slipped it onto his left middle finger. The ring automatically adjusted to fit snugly, then emitted a soft green glow. A vast surge of willpower energy poured into his body, merging with his laws and restoring him to peak condition.

Preparations complete.

Levi stood and slashed his hand through the air in front of him. The Law of Space surged, tearing open a two-meter-high rift. Golden flames burned along its edges, while within lay a deep darkness, faintly speckled with starlight.

But the moment the rift formed, it began to tremble violently. The laws of the universe were automatically repairing the anomaly, trying to forcibly seal it.

Levi extended his right hand and pressed it against the edge. The Law of Death spread out, forming a ring of black runes that temporarily stabilized the structure. Then he raised his left hand—the Green Lantern ring flared brightly, its willpower manifesting as countless threads that extended inward from the edges, weaving a web to hold the passage together.

Still not enough.

He invoked the Law of Force, creating a gravitational well deep within the rift as an anchor. Then he used the Law of Time to synchronize the flow within the passage with the outside world, preventing temporal distortion during transit.

At last, the rift stabilized.

But this was only the first step. The real challenge was precisely locating the Marvel Universe and resisting the multiverse's rejection during the crossing.

Levi pressed the space fragment into the center of the rift. It instantly melted into countless golden threads, weaving into a complex navigation network inside the passage.

The network activated and began searching for the Marvel Universe.

One second.

Two seconds.

Three seconds.

Suddenly, the network shook violently. A powerful repulsive force surged from deep within the rift, nearly tearing the entire passage apart. Levi's expression darkened as he immediately expanded his domain of laws, forcibly suppressing the force.

The multiverse itself was trying to stop him.

Gritting his teeth, Levi mobilized all his laws.

The Law of Space formed three protective barriers along the passage edges. The Law of Force broke the repulsion into countless fragments. The Law of Time slowed their impact. The Law of Reality attempted to distort the very concept of rejection, weakening it.

Still not enough.

The strength of the rejection exceeded his expectations. This wasn't mere physical force—it was the multiverse's instinctive immune response against an intruder. Just as a body attacks invading viruses, the multiverse sought to expel him.

Cracks began forming within the passage. A third of the golden navigation network shattered, and the black death runes started to fade. If nothing changed, the passage would collapse within ten seconds.

Levi took a deep breath and made his decision.

He released his suppression of the void.

The black patterns on his right arm instantly came alive, slithering upward like serpents and spreading across half his chest in moments. Agonizing pain struck, but Levi didn't even flinch.

Guiding the void energy, he directed it into the depths of the rift.

Wherever the void passed, the multiverse's rejection weakened. Void was part of the multiverse's origin—the primordial state before all universes existed. It belonged to none, and thus was rejected by none.

Seizing the moment, Levi stepped forward and plunged into the rift.

The scenery changed instantly.

He entered a narrow spacetime tunnel. Its walls were filled with countless scenes—each one a different universe. Some brimmed with advanced technology, starships traversing the cosmos. Others were dominated by magic, dragons soaring through the skies. Some were dead, reduced to nothing but emptiness.

Levi ignored them all. He locked onto the glowing point at the end of the tunnel—the one that felt familiar—and accelerated.

But the multiverse did not give up.

The tunnel twisted. The scenes on its walls shattered into chaotic streams of energy, crashing violently into him. Each current carried fragments of different universal laws, clashing, canceling, and exploding into a storm of chaos.

Levi's domain wavered under the assault. He clenched his teeth, projecting a willpower shield from the Green Lantern ring to block most of it. Still, some energy broke through and struck him.

His skin tore open. Blood sprayed out, forming floating red droplets in the weightless space.

A shard of space sliced across his left shoulder, leaving a bone-deep wound. A surge of force struck his right leg, dislocating the knee with a sickening crack.

But he did not stop.

Because the tunnel itself was collapsing.

From the entrance, it crumbled forward like a line of dominoes—faster than he could travel.

Levi turned and saw the destruction rapidly catching up, devouring everything like a gaping maw. It was less than a hundred meters away—and closing fast.

There was no choice.

He gathered every ounce of power into his legs. Kryptonian physiology, divine physiology, the Super Soldier Serum, and the healing factor—all erupted at once. His muscles swelled to their limits, veins bulging like steel cables beneath his skin.

He stomped into the void.

Space itself dented under the force, launching him forward. His speed instantly exceeded ten times the speed of light. The surroundings blurred into streaks as the glowing endpoint rapidly expanded.

But the collapse accelerated as well.

He could feel the destructive force pulling at his back. First his clothes were shredded, then his skin, then his flesh peeled away layer by layer, exposing bone.

The healing factor worked frantically—new flesh formed, only to be torn away again. The endless cycle blurred his consciousness.

He couldn't stop.

Stopping meant death.

Levi bit down on his tongue, using the pain to stay awake. He raised his right hand, summoning the Dark Trident into his grasp. With his last strength, he hurled it forward.

The trident became a streak of black light, reaching the tunnel's end before him. Carrying the Law of Death, its tip tore open a gap in the glowing point.

Seizing the fleeting opportunity, Levi stomped again and shot forward like a cannonball into the opening.

The world spun.

Then came a violent impact.

He felt himself smash through something solid, continuing forward through layer after layer of resistance before finally slamming into a cold, hard surface.

Crack.

Three vertebrae shattered.

His left arm was completely crushed.

His right leg dislocated at the hip.

A long fracture split his skull, blood quickly pooling beneath him.

But he was alive.

Levi lay there, gasping. The healing factor kicked in—bones creaking as they rejoined, organs writhing back into place. The process was excruciating, but he was used to it.

With his enhanced physique, the regeneration was slower than before. It took a full minute before he could move again.

Levi pushed himself up with the Dark Trident and surveyed his surroundings.

Ruins.

No—more precisely, an abandoned city.

Most skyscrapers had collapsed. Steel and concrete debris formed mountains. The streets were overgrown with weeds, some over a meter tall. Rusted cars lined the roads, some completely swallowed by vines.

The sky was overcast, heavy with the threat of rain that never came. The air carried a mix of rot and mildew.

Most unsettling of all—there was no one.

Levi activated his super hearing, scanning a hundred-kilometer radius.

There were heartbeats—but only half as many as before.

Frowning, he expanded the range to scan all of North America.

The result made his heart sink.

Life signals were nearly halved. Not just humans—animals, plants, everything living had been reduced by half.

Thanos had succeeded.

He had snapped his fingers.

Levi took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil inside him. He looked up at the sky.

The sun's position was further west than he remembered—indicating a different season. The overgrowth of vegetation suggested years had passed.

Three years? Five?

He needed confirmation.

Using the Law of Space, Levi teleported into the nearest intact building—a convenience store. The glass doors were shattered, shelves looted clean, leaving only scattered wrappers and empty bottles.

Behind the counter, he found a dust-covered computer. Pressing the power button did nothing.

A blackout.

Levi extended a finger, sending a faint electric current into it. The screen flickered, then lit up. He checked the system date.

October 15, 2023.

He had left in 2018.

Five years.

Levi shut down the computer and stepped outside. In the distance, the Manhattan skyline—once the heart of New York—was now mostly ruins, with only a few lonely skyscrapers still standing.

Closing his eyes, he used the Law of Mind to scan the globe.

The Avengers facility still existed, but its energy signatures were weak. Asgard's presence was gone, replaced by a faint divine aura from a small fishing village in Norway. Wakanda's energy shield still stood, but dimmer than before.

Tony Stark was at a lakeside cabin outside New York.

Steve Rogers was in a community center in Washington.

Natasha Romanoff was at the Avengers facility.

Clint Barton was in Tokyo, surrounded by corpses—apparently carrying out a personal vendetta.

Wanda's signal…

Levi froze.

He couldn't find her.

It wasn't interference. Not distance.

She simply wasn't there.

As if she had been erased from existence.

Levi's grip tightened around the Dark Trident, his knuckles turning white.

He thought of Thanos's snap.

Half of all life in the universe—gone at random.

Wanda… was among them.

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