The memory modification was completed quickly.
Karl then sent George, Gwen, and Helen back to their home.
May did not step forward to stop them.
Perhaps it was because of what Black Phoenix had said earlier.
Or perhaps it was because of Peter.
Karl felt a trace of melancholy.
After all, they had spent a long time together.
But in the end, he only smiled faintly.
Even if he forced them to stay, it would change nothing.
Their relationship could never return to what it had been before.
Gwen would never be able to accept the fact that Karl had destroyed several nations and killed hundreds of millions of people.
And Karl was not the kind of person who would endlessly coax someone to stay.
Naturally, their relationship would only deteriorate.
George and Helen would never accept it either.
The distance between them would only grow larger.
In that case—
It was better to simply let go.
Especially since Karl was already preparing to leave Earth.
They would probably never meet again.
"You still have me."
Black Phoenix sat down on Karl's lap when she saw him staring blankly ahead on the sofa.
Her voice was gentle.
"I will always stay by your side."
Karl kissed her lightly on the forehead and wrapped his arms around her.
"Alright."
"There are still some matters I need to resolve."
"You all wait here until I return."
Karl closed his eyes briefly, resting for a moment before speaking to Black Phoenix and the others.
Then—
He disappeared from the living room.
The moment Karl vanished, everyone present could feel Black Phoenix's killing intent.
However, it was not directed toward them.
It was directed toward George, Gwen, and Helen.
"I think you'd better not do that."
Yan spoke calmly.
She lifted her teacup and took a slow sip.
"You might anger Karl."
"They were only boyfriend and girlfriend."
"Even married couples divorce all the time."
"It's nothing extraordinary."
"Once people separate, they separate."
Yan continued calmly.
"That girl has a strong sense of justice."
"Her father is a police officer."
"Of course she can't accept Karl killing so many people."
"But Karl's future lies beyond Earth."
"Will George and Helen leave the planet with him?"
Yan shook her head slightly.
"My calculations say no."
She placed the teacup back on the table.
"That means the girl will eventually face a choice."
"Karl… or her parents."
Yan's golden eyes flickered faintly with angelic light.
"My calculation shows a 69.43% probability that she would choose her parents."
"And eventually separate from Karl anyway."
"In that case, leaving now may actually be better."
Yan glanced around the room.
"In the thousands of years I have lived, I have seen countless civilizations destroyed."
"In the scale of the universe, Karl's power is already comparable to that of a god or the ruler of a civilization."
"He destroyed only a few countries."
"Even if he destroyed several civilizations, it would not be unusual."
Her gaze turned toward the others.
"You should also stop looking at Karl the way you once did."
"He is no longer simply Karl with extraordinary powers."
What no one noticed was the faint energy spreading through the room.
Yan had quietly used a subtle data-spreading technique.
It resembled psychological suggestion rather than direct mind control.
The method was gradual and non-invasive.
Its purpose was simple:
To prevent this kind of emotional conflict from happening again.
After hearing Yan's explanation, Black Phoenix slowly withdrew her killing intent.
The atmosphere in the room calmed slightly.
Everyone remained seated in the living room.
Outside the manor, Bruce Banner had already learned what Karl had done.
After hearing about the massive death toll, Banner chose to leave.
He could not accept Karl's actions.
But he also understood that he lacked the power to change anything.
So the only thing he could do—
Was walk away.
Juggernaut, on the other hand, did not care at all.
He simply went to the Extreme Speed warehouse and began modifying his super off-road vehicle.
Meanwhile, Tony Stark climbed out of the ruined building where Karl had thrown him.
He immediately returned home.
Tony understood something clearly now.
No one could stop Karl if Karl decided to act.
Karl himself had already left again.
He traveled through the skies above different countries.
Using the Mind Stone and Soul Stone, he located the wealthy families and powerful elites who had conspired against him.
BOOM—!
Karl attacked without hesitation.
He destroyed the mansions of those powerful families directly.
He did not care whether innocent people were present inside.
Once he confirmed that the leaders of those conspiracies were dead—
Karl left for the next location.
One after another, the wealthiest families and corporate tycoons involved in the conspiracy were eliminated.
Many of them had previously obtained Life Essence from Karl.
Some wealthy individuals were even destroyed while traveling in private jets.
Karl simply blew their planes out of the sky.
News outlets across the world went into chaos.
Some condemned Karl's actions.
Others attempted to speculate about his motivations.
But in Eastern countries, the reaction was very different.
When people heard that the Sakura Kingdom had been destroyed, some citizens even celebrated with fireworks.
After eliminating every wealthy individual involved in the conspiracy, Karl returned to the manor.
Inside the living room, Black Phoenix, Yan, Great Wanda, and Ganata were still there.
The others had already returned to their rooms or gone to handle their own affairs.
Meanwhile, the global economy began showing signs of instability.
The country that suffered the most severe damage was the United States.
Karl had nearly destroyed the American government structure and military command system.
Naturally, the economy followed.
It was inevitable that the country's national strength would decline.
The very next day, something strange happened.
No country dared report Karl's actions anymore.
Governments around the world collectively chose to remain silent.
Anyone who posted about the incident online would be quickly arrested by local police.
When Charles Xavier heard about the situation, he was completely stunned.
He had never imagined Karl would go so far.
Two nations destroyed.
And the American government and military system nearly collapsed.
Meanwhile, Tony Stark began using Stark Industries' funds to help survivors across America.
From that moment onward, Tony never returned to Karl's manor.
However, Howard Stark did visit.
He personally came to apologize to Karl.
Howard believed that everything that had happened was ultimately connected to him.
Karl simply listened.
He did not say much.
Howard sighed and left.
At the same time, the Eastern nations seized the opportunity.
Their economies began developing rapidly.
It seemed they intended to surpass the United States during its weakened state.
Although the United States had begun rebuilding, few people were willing to enter government positions.
Many feared that Karl might attack the American government again one day.
Large numbers of New York citizens had also been exposed to radiation.
Some desperate people even traveled to the outskirts of Karl's manor, begging him to save them.
At that moment, Karl was not at the manor.
He was on his private island.
Docked there was an enormous warship.
Skyblade VII.
The exterior hull was already complete.
But the core systems and interior structure were unfinished.
After arriving, Karl and Yan began working together.
Using the Reality Stone, they rapidly constructed the remaining parts of the warship.
The ship's core was designed around the rule-based energy of the six Infinity Stones.
After several days and nights of construction—
The massive warship was finally completed.
Skyblade VII.
...
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