The moment his words fell, his figure had already vanished from the spot.
When he reappeared, he had already flashed in front of Jean Grey.
The speed was so fast that even Quicksilver would call it professional.
Before Jean, controlled by the Phoenix Force, could even react, his finger had already tapped her smooth forehead.
"Staying in her body will only cause her suffering anyway. It might as well come to me, and let me show you what true combat satisfaction feels like."
Hum!
As his finger tapped, a completely different power surged from his fingertip.
One part was the Phoenix Force he had already absorbed and assimilated within his body, and the other part was the gray light of the Tiger Talisman, representing "balance."
The former communicated with the Phoenix Force inside Jean, sending a party invitation to this power.
The latter was responsible for strengthening Jean's own spirit, allowing Jean, the landlord, to actively drive the Phoenix Force out of her body.
Sensing the changes occurring within Jean, the Phoenix Force initially resisted violently, attempting to make this mortal who dared to "capture" it, as well as Jean who refused to obediently act as its tool, suffer.
But before it could start rampaging, streams of peculiar information were transmitted back into its core will, following Peter's power.
These were scenes of Peter clashing with various powerful enemies to protect Earth.
In this process, the Phoenix Force saw destruction, and it also saw rebirth.
It saw the heavy responsibilities Peter shouldered beneath his seemingly cynical exterior, as well as his firm determination to protect everything.
As the embodiment of the balance between good and evil in the Universe, its mission was to create rebirth within destruction and to find beginnings within endings.
Jean Grey was an excellent host; she was kind and compassionate, which is why she was chosen as a host by the Phoenix Force.
The Phoenix Force had thought it would never encounter a more suitable host than Jean.
But now, it had met Peter.
The more it read Peter's memories, the more it realized that this man was practically born to execute the mission of the Phoenix Force!
He self-proclaimed as The Arbiter, yet he never actively infringed upon anyone, while simultaneously delivering heavy blows to those who intended to disrupt the balance at critical moments.
It could be said that he himself had always been playing the role of a "balancer."
Furthermore, he was powerful enough—powerful enough to perfectly control his own strength, so that he would not lose himself just because its power was attached to him.
This host seemed... more "qualified" than Jean Grey!
Once this thought arose, it could no longer be suppressed.
That will, which had originally been resisting wildly, gradually calmed down.
It stopped struggling and instead actively released its control over Jean Grey's body, beginning to "migrate" its essence from within Jean's body into Peter's body, bit by bit, along the "conduit" Peter had built using the Tiger Talisman and the Phoenix Force.
However, before leaving, it still left something behind.
A wisp of the purest spark of life and spirit remained deeply buried within the depths of Jean Grey's genes.
The balance of this Universe also needed to be maintained.
After it finished helping Peter with the work in that Universe, one day, it would return to Jean's body.
...
About two minutes later, the last wisp of golden-red light submerged from Jean Grey's forehead into Peter's fingertip.
With this, the World became completely quiet.
The massive phantom of the firebird suspended in mid-air gradually faded into Peter's body.
The oppressive feeling that made everyone feel palpitations also vanished.
Jean Grey fell downward like a puppet with cut strings, her previously blank eyes gently closing at some unknown moment.
Peter waved his hand casually, and a gentle telekinetic force caught Jean, placing her steadily on the lawn.
After settling Jean, he subconsciously clenched his fist.
During the process, he could clearly feel an unprecedented, massive power flowing through his limbs and bones.
It was a sense of omnipotence, as if he could control everything.
He even had an illusion that with just a single thought, he could return this Planet to chaos, or restore this land, ravaged by battle and left in ruins, to its original state instantly.
This was the complete Phoenix Force.
Although this power was currently just residing in his body and required the Tiger Talisman to "translate" and "balance" it for perfect use, there was no doubt that he had become the new Master of this power.
So... it was time to leave!
With this thought, Peter activated Stand United, and a strange purple magic circle appeared on his body.
"Everyone, some unexpected situations have arisen in the Universe I am from, so I can't stay here to continue my vacation."
"But perhaps after things over there are finished, I will come back to play with you all... so, goodbye~"
"Oh, right, I almost forgot one thing."
As he spoke, Peter's figure flashed within the magic circle, appearing instantly on the messy lawn.
During this process, his fingers quickly brushed over Magneto, Wolverine, and Beast Hank, who had a broken arm, and finally pressed lightly onto the chaotic ruins.
"Consider this the rent for my stay at the academy during this time!"
The moment his words fell, the light of the magic circle grew increasingly intense, stinging everyone into subconsciously covering their eyes.
When the light dissipated, Peter's figure had also vanished into the air.
Replacing him were Magneto, Wolverine, Beast, and others, their injuries restored to their original state.
The academy, which had previously been left with only broken walls and ruins, was now presented before everyone, completely undamaged.
The scene was so quiet... as if everything that had happened before was just a dream for everyone.
...
So, during the time Peter was collecting the Phoenix Force in the X-Men Universe, what exactly happened on his Earth?
The story must begin with Ebony Maw returning calmly to Titan with the Reality Stone.
When Thanos embedded that gem emitting a scarlet glow onto his golden Infinity Gauntlet, he felt an unprecedented power.
Reality, Mind, Power.
Three Infinity Stones in hand.
He only needed to find the remaining three stones—in fact, he didn't even need to expend effort searching for them.
According to known intelligence, the Space Stone and the Power Stone were both inextricably linked to that Earthling named Peter Parker.
And the Time Stone had been in the hands of a certain magician on Earth from the very beginning.
In other words, as long as he conquered Earth, he could collect all six Infinity Stones and snap his fingers as he had dreamed of!
Originally, he had planned to endure for a while longer, at least until he outlived that one-eyed old man from Asgard, before considering an invasion of Earth.
But just as he was waiting for this opportunity, his Planet welcomed two strange guests.
One of them had a withered figure, skin as pale as a mummified corpse, yet his eyes burned with paranoid and insane golden flames.
He called himself the God Butcher, intending to kill all the gods in the Universe.
And the other, wearing a proper red suit, leaning on a cane, with a gentle and refined smile, was a gentleman whose eyes seemed capable of seeing through all desires.
He handed Thanos a glass of red wine and introduced himself:
"The Lord of Hell, Mephisto, very pleased to meet you, Mr. Thanos."
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