ushernet Chapter 359 Six Infinity Stones
Chapter 359 Six Infinity Stones
Chapter 359 Six Infinity Stones
Just like the Clark Kent he had encountered in the past, who was outwardly sunny and warm but inwardly cold and cruel, the other man's change of heart left Batman with a wound that is still difficult to heal.
Upon encountering Joey Joseph Kent, a man outwardly melancholic and gloomy but inwardly compassionate, in his new life, Batman felt a chill run down his spine and a general unease whenever the other man showed that smile.
"Of course I'll always help you, but can you stop smiling like that? Your smile is terrifying."
"Is it really that scary?"
Joey used her frozen breath to conjure a mirror made of ice crystals, carefully examining her smile: "Even though it's a fake smile, it usually works—"
The happiest time of Joey's life was probably when he was carrying an airsoft gun, aiming at the gophers that peeked out on the farm, and taking them down one by one with his precise intuition, which he probably had in the Kryptonian bloodline. Unfortunately, that kind of life is now very far away from him.
"No, it's not your fault. Fake smiles are fine; they can be uplifting, but there's no need to use them on me."
Batman knew perfectly well what Superman's mental state was like; the other's nerves were probably even more stretched than his own. If he could actually laugh from the bottom of his heart, he'd have to be insane.
I will always support you.
At this point, Batman has no choice but to support Superman.
On the other hand, the relationship between the two Tony Starks was not so harmonious.
Their two universes are about to collide. Only by destroying one of them can the rest of the two universes be temporarily preserved. So what should they choose?
"Can you please stop nagging and backing down, my wicked version?"
Tony rolled his eyes at the half-mechanical Iron Man; the other man's words were leaning towards a pessimistic direction, which was making him feel uneasy.
"You're interfering with my thinking! I still need to figure out how to resolve the collision crisis—"
There's always a solution.
The words that came out of the cyborg Tony's mouth were as sinister as his usual expression, sending chills down Tony's spine: "You and I both know that in the end it's a choice between two options: your world, or my world."
"There's always a way—." Tony's rebuttal began to falter. The situation was indeed beyond his control. The other person was another version of himself, and he would probably come to the same conclusion.
"You may not realize this now, but your future self seems to have already understood it."
Two universes are about to collide, and the cyborg Iron Man finally understands why Doctor Doom has come knocking on his door: "Besides, he's already tried it, hasn't he? He just didn't succeed."
"Shut your stinking mouth!!"
When the topic of Doctor Doom came up, Tony, under immense pressure, finally snapped and completely broke down, even uttering the swear word "stfu" in his "shut up."
He probably will never be able to accept that his future will be like that. The original intention of Iron Man and all "superheroes" should be to do things that benefit everyone, based on moral conscience, rather than just serving one's own people.
If he doesn't hesitate to destroy others for the sake of his so-called own people's interests, then wouldn't he just be back to his previous identity as a blood-stained arms dealer?
As expected of another Tony Stark, the cyborg Iron Man easily discerned the psychological issues facing this "other version of himself in the world."
"Oh, so those shadows of the past are still chasing you?"
Looking at his own youthful and energetic self, the cyborg Iron Man, whose body had almost no flesh left but his brain, felt a pang of unease.
Why don't you tell me? As someone who's been through it all, maybe I can offer you some life experience.
Tony remained silent. The person in front of him was just someone with the same face as him; he really didn't think this person could offer him any advice.
"Don't want to talk about it? Okay, I can start by telling you about the accident that initially led me to become Iron Man."
Unlike Tony Stark in this universe, who was trapped in Central Asia, the accident involving the cyborg Iron Man took place in Southeast Asia:
"It happened in Annam—I saw your expression; clearly, it wasn't in your story, but that doesn't matter. In the end, they all lead to the same conclusion."
"Did your story also include an instance of being kidnapped by terrorists?"
Tony finally couldn't hold back and started talking: "Did your company also produce weapons that were used to bomb third-world countries, causing countless deaths?"
"I wasn't captured by terrorist groups. In Annam, I was dealing with Kang—"
"Alright, we can reminisce later!" Just as the two Iron Men were about to reminisce about the past, Joey and Batman arrived, stopping their conversation.
"The most urgent task is to resolve the crisis between our two universes."
He opened his hand, revealing two gems that shimmered with different colors of light; they were the Mind Stone and the Time Stone.
"We have to collect all six Infinity Stones before it's too late, even if it only gives us one chance."
Joey's progress in collecting the Infinity Stones is currently far behind schedule. He thought he had the Space Stone in the bag, but it turned out to be a complete miss, not to mention the Soul Stone and Reality Stone, whose whereabouts are still unknown.
Now, they have eight to twelve hours to collect the complete set of Infinity Stones in order to push away the universes that are about to collide with them overhead.
When this plan was proposed, the three men's spirits immediately sank, because everyone knew that it was almost an impossible task.
But one person—"Hmm?"—suddenly sat up abruptly at the mention of the Infinity Stones. The cyborg Tony, who had been leaning against the wall with a nonchalant expression, had just straightened up with a jolt.
"Are the Infinity Stones useful?"
The three nodded: "We haven't tried it, but this is a message from another universe; they've succeeded once before."
"Damn it, why didn't you say so sooner! I have the whole set of originals!"
Upon hearing this, the cyborg Iron Man, his words laced with the exasperation of someone who had just escaped death, exclaimed: "I just urgently increased the production of my war machine units by more than tenfold!"
Tony was overjoyed: "You have limited-edition items?"
Then, belatedly, it dawned on him: "Wait a minute! What did you mean by multiplying the production of war mechs?!"
"It means he will never sit idly by and wait to die." Batman greatly approved of this behavior and could even deduce the logic behind the other party's actions after arriving on this side:
"He's been standing here chatting with you all this time, maybe just to get your attention. On the other end, he's prepared to do everything in his power, at any cost, to protect his planet."
"How could you do this?!" Tony, who had only recently debuted, discovered that even in his social circle, which was considered to be full of talented people, this cyborg Tony was also one of the more extreme types:
"Didn't we just save your universe a while ago? And you had absolutely no chance of winning. We have Superman, plus Doctor Doom caused—" Tony's voice trailed off as he spoke.
When he mentioned how Doctor Doom had caused immense damage to Tony's universe, almost rendering the other party incapable of resistance, he finally realized—where did that "Doctor Doom" come from?
"I know, but no circumstance can be a reason for us to give up our fight to the death."
The cyborg Iron Man's heart is as hard as steel, just like his title suggests. To protect his world, he has already given up most of what he has, and he wouldn't hesitate to give up his life now.
"If my sacrifice alone can temporarily save both universes, I guarantee I won't hesitate for a second!"
But at this moment, what the two sides were discussing was not personal life or death, victory or defeat, but all living beings between the two worlds—
"But the rest of the planet? Sorry, we can't do that!"
To let the people of one's own world die so that people in other worlds can live?
No one could make that decision.
The cyborg Iron Man's words were deafening, stimulating Tony's nerves. In a daze, he seemed to see himself cutting the Iron Man in half!
"Alright, now's not the time for empty talk."
Joey's words stopped the verbal conflict and shouting match. Tony, still in a daze, shook his head, banishing those destructive illusions from his mind.
This imminent crisis can at least be temporarily averted. All that's needed now is for someone to use these six treasures to separate the two universes that are about to collide.
And this person, naturally, had no other choice but to step forward, as Joey was absolutely capable of withstanding the cost of using the Infinity Stones:
"Take me to see the limits of your universe."