Screams erupted throughout the laboratory, echoing off the steel walls in a chaotic chorus of panic. The scientific team had expected a routine containment procedure, but the situation had spiraled into something completely beyond their imagination. Every researcher in the room froze for a split second as the impossible unfolded right before their eyes.
With a sudden metallic snap, something burst out of the glowing blue cube.
A thick arm forced its way out of the Space Stone's shell, twisting violently as it grabbed the nearest scientist. The poor man didn't even have time to react before the arm jerked sharply, and his neck snapped with a sickening crack.
"What the hell?!"
The remaining scientists screamed in horror as they stumbled backward. None of them had expected the Space Stone to suddenly produce a physical limb. Panic swept through the room as the team scattered in every direction, desperately wishing they had been born with twice as many legs so they could escape faster.
A low hum began to vibrate through the air.
Ripples spread outward like waves across water, and the space in front of the cube began to distort. Slowly, a circular portal formed in midair, its edges flickering with unstable cosmic energy. A massive figure emerged from the gate step by step, one armored arm already reaching through.
"Thanos!"
Loki's voice rang out, filled with shock and recognition. His eyes widened as the towering silhouette became clearer with every passing second.
A deep voice echoed through the rippling portal, calm yet filled with terrifying authority.
"Foolish Asgardian," Thanos said slowly. "I gave you the opportunity to destroy Earth and return my Infinity Stones. And yet you failed so miserably."
The portal expanded further as the massive figure stepped through.
Golden armor glinted under the laboratory lights as the Titan emerged fully into view. His enormous frame radiated oppressive power, and every step he took felt heavy enough to shake the ground beneath him.
"You and the leader of the Chitauri have disappointed me," Thanos continued, his tone cold and disdainful. "Must I personally intervene for something so trivial?"
The Mad Titan had arrived.
"It was my failure," Loki said quietly, lowering his head in apparent submission. "I am willing to accept whatever punishment you deem appropriate."
Inside, however, Loki was nearly laughing with relief.
If Thanos hadn't shown up, he would have ended up locked away by the humans. The memory of being slammed into the ground by the Hulk flashed through his mind again, and the humiliation still made his stomach twist.
At least now the situation had changed.
With Thanos present, those pathetic humans would never dare imprison him again.
"Fire!"
Agent Phil Coulson's shout cut through the tension.
Gunfire erupted instantly.
S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who had already formed a defensive line opened fire together. Dozens of bullets tore through the air and slammed into Thanos's armor with a rapid series of metallic pings.
Ding. Ding. Ding.
The sound echoed sharply through the room.
Thanos didn't even flinch.
"Are you serious?" he said with a faint smile. "Or do you simply not understand what you're dealing with?"
The bullets struck his armor and skin like harmless raindrops. Not a single round managed to penetrate his defenses.
Coulson's expression stiffened in disbelief.
"Oh my God… this guy…"
Before he could finish speaking, a powerful gust of wind swept across the entire room.
It wasn't natural wind.
It was the pressure wave created by something moving at unimaginable speed.
Thanos's eyes suddenly narrowed.
"You—"
BOOM.
A thunderous impact exploded in the center of the chamber.
The enormous Titan staggered backward three steps, the force of the blow pushing him directly back toward the unstable space portal behind him. For a brief moment his massive frame disappeared halfway through the gateway again.
"Thanos," Yun Chen said calmly, a faint smile on his face. "Consider this my greeting."
His fist was still raised.
Thanos roared in anger and swung an arm to block the next strike. Even so, the collision sent him stumbling several more steps backward.
"You insolent—"
"Trying to collect the Infinity Stones?" Yun Chen interrupted casually. "Then you'll have to get past me first."
Before Thanos could respond, Yun Chen's fist shot forward again.
BOOM.
The punch landed at point-blank range.
The shockwave tore through the ground beneath them, cracking the reinforced floor tile by tile. The impact was so violent that several nearby buildings outside the facility trembled and partially collapsed under the residual force.
Thanos couldn't hold his ground.
There was nowhere for him to retreat.
His enormous body was driven backward through the unstable portal behind him, thrown entirely back onto the distant planet he had come from.
Titan.
Just moments earlier, Thanos had been forcing his way through space to seize the Space Stone for himself. He hadn't even finished stepping through the portal before Yun Chen's brutal attack forced him back out.
"I will remember you!"
Thanos's furious roar echoed through the collapsing gateway.
He tried to step forward again, preparing to reenter the portal and crush the arrogant human who had dared strike him. But just as he began to move, an overwhelming force exploded outward.
Space itself shattered.
BOOM.
Cracks spread across the portal like fractured glass. The spatial gateway collapsed instantly under the violent distortion, the unstable energy surging outward in every direction.
Thanos, standing closest to the rupture, took the full impact.
He let out a muffled roar as the blast hurled him backward dozens of meters across the rocky surface of Titan.
"Damn it!"
Thanos forced himself upright, fury burning across his face.
The portal had completely collapsed.
Now that he was stranded on Titan, there was no longer any path back to Earth. The opportunity to crush that arrogant youth had vanished in an instant.
His jaw tightened as he tried to reconnect with the Space Stone through the faint cosmic resonance he had once sensed.
Thanos had received a revelation in the Well of Eternity long ago. Through that knowledge, he had learned how to sense and wield the Infinity Stones.
But this time something was wrong.
"Damn…"
His fists slowly clenched.
He could no longer feel the presence of the Space Stone.
The connection had been completely severed.
"Whoever you are," Thanos growled, his face dark with rage, "you'd better pray I never find you."
Back on Earth, Yun Chen stood calmly beside the cube that had once contained the Stone.
The shattered remains of the space portal faded into nothingness behind him. Without hesitation, he reached down and picked up the glowing artifact.
With a simple squeeze of his hand, the entire cube cracked apart.
The legendary container known as the Tesseract crumbled instantly under his grip.
"Wait—!"
A S.H.I.E.L.D. scientist who had witnessed everything shouted in panic.
"That thing can't be touched!"
Several researchers exchanged terrified glances. In earlier experiments, anyone who had come into direct contact with the cube had vanished instantly, disappearing without leaving even a trace behind.
There were even rumors about HYDRA's former leader.
Red Skull himself had supposedly vanished from the world after touching the cube.
"It really shouldn't be touched…"
But Yun Chen paid them no attention.
He already knew the truth behind the Red Skull's disappearance. The man hadn't been destroyed at all. Instead, the Space Stone had transported him across the universe and turned him into the unwilling guardian of the Soul Stone.
When Yun Chen crushed the outer shell of the Tesseract, however, nothing strange happened.
Because the cube itself had already been destroyed.
Crack.
A brilliant blue gem fell into his palm.
The oval stone gleamed with dazzling cosmic light as it reflected in Yun Chen's eyes.
"So this is the true form of the Space Stone," he said quietly.
The cube had only been a container, a protective shell designed to hold the raw power of the gem.
As soon as Yun Chen grasped the stone directly, waves of spatial energy surged across his palm. The power attempted to erode his flesh, dissolving everything it touched.
But Yun Chen deliberately relaxed his body's natural defenses.
He allowed the energy to flow into him.
Even so, his Kryptonian body of steel easily resisted the corrosive power of the stone.
Ding.
A familiar mechanical voice suddenly echoed inside his mind.
The long-silent system had finally activated again.
"System interface: Oracle."
A new message appeared instantly within Yun Chen's internal status panel.
Space Stone — Level 1.
In an instant, you can teleport yourself or any object to any location in space. You can also distort, bend, or rearrange space freely according to your will.
The Infinity Stones truly lived up to their legendary reputation.
Even the lowest level of its ability already displayed terrifying power.
With this in hand, interstellar travel had just become far more convenient.
....
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