Chapter 101: Preparing for the Battle of New York

As the exceptionally massive, golden radiant sphere of energy merged with the other twelve clusters, an unprecedented brilliance burst forth from the blueprint!

From a cosmic perspective, it was as if a supernova had exploded here—an overwhelming shockwave of boundless might spreading instantly, causing the surrounding void to tremble incessantly.

The blueprint underwent an astonishing transformation.

When the powers of the thirteen apostles united, the primordial darkness from the universe’s genesis abruptly manifested before vanishing in the blink of an eye.

An indescribable entity, once only existing in fantasy, was gradually brought into being.

This process spanned ten days and ten nights.

For the apostles, however, time held no meaning.

The thirteen apostles fixed their gaze intently upon the object that would soon bear a fragment of each of their powers, carry their names and glory, and ultimately be entrusted to a mortal.

That mortal was their envoy in another world.

He or she would pave the way for them, devoutly welcoming the ultimate arrival of the thirteen great apostles!

The long ten days and nights passed.

The object had now absorbed all remaining resources within the universe.

During its formation, each apostle contributed their lifetime’s treasures.

Lotus offered his lifelong spoils of war; Helder imparted all her arcane knowledge; the aging Creator poured in the full Hebron technological schematics...

This object, regarded by the apostles as a weapon, was finally complete.

“Besides the vessel, we need a guide,” Lotus suddenly said. “As a safeguard, and for the sake of all apostles, we should dispatch an avatar to lead the chosen one.”

“I will!” Cassilius declared without hesitation.

As an Aiken—born of the Phantom Clan and instinctively a warrior—Cassilius was eager to venture into the other world and face its formidable champions.

“Your strength is insufficient for this responsibility,” Bakal teased, snorting with a hint of provocation.

“Have you forgotten your defeat? Fine, I can easily topple you again!” Cassilius said sternly.

“That was your scheming against me together. Do you truly think you ever beat me?” Bakal laughed wildly.

“No time for squabbling.”

Helder’s clear voice interrupted them. “The dimensional barrier grows harder to traverse the stronger we are. I was originally the best candidate, being familiar with interdimensional structures. But I must stay to oversee the grand design. So, Lotus...”

“I understand,” the giant octopus responded calmly. “Let me send out an avatar as the guide.”

Helder said, “But remember, your mental power is too immense to penetrate the dimensional barrier. Your avatar will be isolated in the other world, severed from communication once sent.”

“So you mean, once we send this weapon, we lose control over everything?” Bakal asked, displeased.

“The worst case is losing the avatar as well,” Helder said with concern. “The Great Will will not let us leave easily.”

“I will find a way,” Lotus said slowly. “If we are to deceive the Great Will, first, I must deceive myself.”

“Luke, what do you think?” Helder suddenly turned to the short old man.

He simply nodded.

Helder nodded resolutely. “Then I will find a suitable host.”

In the vast circular platform's center, the indescribable object gradually became ethereal and shrank, then suddenly vanished.

This item, which had gathered a portion of each apostle’s power along with all the universe’s remaining resources, now carried the fate of the thirteen apostles. It would cross the barriers of time and space to reach a world beyond their observation.

All that remained was to wait.

...

When Luke returned from school, he found the short-legged Lotus still fast asleep in the fish tank, blowing bubbles.

The warehouse was now under the Shield Agency's care and beginning reconstruction. The Warlord had been taken away and hidden in a small forest, cloaked in invisibility. As for the old equipment in the warehouse, Luke had long intended to replace them.

He had Christina make a list of all the lost instruments and devices, then handed it to the Shield Agency, demanding full compensation from Egghead—all brand new.

“What? Some agent claims those warehouse devices were all secondhand?”

Agent, are you a Heavenly Emperor player? They were brand new and state-of-the-art before, now smashed to pieces. If you want to prove they were secondhand, please repair them.

Under the Warlord’s iron heel, no equipment could remain intact.

The Shield Agency had no choice but to swallow this unfair loss.

Who asked them to send Agent May over? On the first day, she caused such destruction. If not for fear of Egghead going berserk and spoiling everything, Luke might have demanded compensation for mental anguish.

As for Egghead’s repeated inquiries about the crystal’s identity, Luke insisted he didn’t know and would investigate himself.

After dinner.

Luke went to his room, lay on his bed, propped his head on his arm, and stared up at the ceiling.

The room was very quiet. Without Lotus’s usual chatter, Luke felt somewhat unaccustomed.

Outside, the night was quieter than usual. It was an exceptionally still evening. Luke felt as if this was the calm before the storm.

He calculated the time in his mind.

Since his crossing, one year and five months had passed.

Day by day, the date when New York would face the Chitauri invasion drew nearer.

He often felt the pressure of time.

Unlike other cross-world travelers who arrived before their superheroes appeared, giving them ample time to prepare—

Upon Luke’s arrival in the Marvel world, Iron Man was already present. Soon after, Hulk appeared.

By now, all Phase One Marvel heroes had shown up—only the assembly remained.

In other words, the Avengers’ story was about to unfold.

Luke estimated that in at most a month or two, Egghead would contact him.

With his current strength, surviving the Chitauri invasion was no problem. Protecting his foster parents through the ordeal was also manageable.

The issue was, he believed he needed to plan for the long term.

Avengers 1 was just a beginning. The Chitauri invasion opened the eyes of the humans long living in rural isolation. Since then, superheroes had sprung up like bamboo shoots after rain.

But Luke thought of it as merely his preliminary test.

Only by passing this relatively easy trial could he qualify to face the increasingly difficult and dangerous major events ahead.

Enemies would grow stronger year by year, culminating in Thanos’s arrival.

Most crucially, before he crossed over, Thanos snapped his fingers, and the movie ended.

He didn’t know what happened afterward!

He didn’t know how the Avengers eventually defeated Thanos.

Given that, his sense of urgency would never fade. It would only intensify as time drew closer.

For a cross-world traveler, the greatest fear is losing foresight.

His shelf life was less than ten years.

Within those years, he must either grow powerful enough to rival the gods and crush Thanos—or quietly await fate’s judgment.

He hoped the resurrection coins in his pocket weren’t counterfeit.

Luke chose the former.

“Thanos and the like? Just face them head-on! With the system backing me, what’s there to fear? A true man must be flexible—sometimes soft, sometimes hard! Cowardice when necessary, confrontation when needed!”

How to pass the New York battle as a preliminary test while maximizing his power growth—that was what Luke truly needed to plan now.

He swung his legs off the bed.

Taking up pen and paper, he carefully reviewed the Avengers storyline in his mind and began writing it down.

He had seen the movie early on and forgotten many details. But as Marvel’s most iconic film, he had watched it at least three times. The main plot was still vivid in his memory.