Chapter 272: Cthulhu, You Cannot Die Within the Multiverse!
Looking across the Multiverse, no individual had ever gathered 18 Infinity Stones.
Lesser mortals lacked the ability to wield such a number of Infinity Stones, while beings who had reached a multiversal level had no need to waste time on such cheap and limited artifacts. It was beneath them.
But Du Wa's choice to create a Thanoseid wielding 18 Infinity Stones truly stunned many Deities.
"So this is the power of this side. I like it very much... I was just worrying that the Omega Effect was severely weakened here and couldn't exert much of its power. Now, I don't have to worry."
Thanoseid looked at the many glittering stones on both of his hands, then at the six stones on the Infinity Sword. He gripped the hilt with both hands, erupting in a brilliant light within the deep universe.
He was not a God who enjoyed showing off, but at this moment, he didn't mind displaying his strength to the world in such a magnificent manner.
As for using a pile of artifacts to forcibly amass extraordinary strength, Thanoseid had no psychological burden. As long as it was power that could be used and unleashed, he didn't care if it came from energy clusters, manifestations of rules, artifacts, or high-tech weapons.
In the DC Universe, Darkseid's great power was largely reliant on the Omega Effect to reach such heights. If the Omega Effect were stripped from Darkseid, it was hard to say how much strength the Tyrant of Apokolips would have left.
Thanoseid pointed the tip of his sword at Shuma-Gorath. "Then I will kill this creature and establish my position in this world. Speaking of which, I am also a native Deity of this world."
"That's right. If Universe 9602 weren't so special and isolated by the Living Tribunal, your existence would have alarmed many universes long ago. But it's not too late now."
Du Wa communicated with Thanoseid, looking with admiration at this weapon he had personally unearthed and forged.
Yes, a weapon. That was how Du Wa defined Thanoseid.
BOOM!
With the great convergence of universes, countless planets collided with one another, heading for destruction. But under Du Wa's great power, they were quickly restored to their original state.
The rules of the universe, which should have erupted in violent conflict, had now miraculously stabilized.
After the collision of Universe 199999 and Earth-1543681, they should have shattered and mixed on a massive scale, but Du Wa forcibly terminated this process.
Du Wa only needed these universes to be nearby so that Thanoseid's power could be effectively unleashed; he didn't actually care whether the universes underwent fusion.
Mere contact was sufficient.
"Shuma-Gorath, I don't care what kind of Deity you are, just die!!"
Thanoseid brandished his longsword and slashed, as if to shatter a star, intending to cleave the giant eye before him in two.
Any being familiar with Du Wa's history might feel a sense of déjà vu at this scene, because the Thanos from Earth-1543681 had once wielded the Infinity Sword and tried to slash Du Wa in the very same way.
But while the beginning was similar, the process and outcome would be completely different.
Shuma-Gorath's eye—or rather, its body—suddenly swelled. The terrifying giant eye, which seemed to pierce through the Multiverse, was instantly filled with dense, bloodshot veins, as if it would drag countless worlds down with it in a tide of rage.
"You went through all this trouble to deal with me, pulling in allies, modifying universe coordinates, just to be a bystander and have this piece of trash kill me??"
Shuma-Gorath lashed out at Thanoseid with one of its tentacles.
The tentacle and the Infinity Sword had their first clash. Terrifying ripples burst forth, one after another, continuously stacking upon each other with horrifying effect. They created a death zone that annihilated everything, transcending all conventional domains, and began to expand across the entire Multiverse.
"This world still has great value; it cannot be destroyed just like this."
Before the Creator Gods could act, Du Wa had already shattered the dreadful aftershock with a single slap. He looked at the furious and maddened Shuma-Gorath. "What do you know? To deal with you, Thanoseid is enough. It's not yet worthy of me using my true power."
Quantum Batman had a greater purpose; there was no need to waste him on Shuma-Gorath.
Shuma-Gorath grew even more furious. It could ignore Du Wa's insults and the provocations of the irritable Thanoseid, but what it could not accept was that Du Wa refused to give it the coordinates beyond the Multiverse, and even sent Thanoseid to provoke and humiliate it!
No one had ever insulted it like this, not even the Vishanti!
This Deity was thoroughly enraged. It roared, its terrifying bellow covering countless universes, causing the most subtle transformations in the constants and parameters of many worlds. Some life forms even began to distort in Shuma-Gorath's direction.
But this change quickly dissipated. The many affected worlds ultimately remained unharmed because several Creator Gods from the Inner World finally chose to act, stabilizing the framework and order of the Multiverse.
The Lords of Order and other beings also began to stir, moving throughout the Multiverse.
They could choose not to participate in the battle between Multiversal Gods, but they absolutely could not sit by and watch the Multiverse be shattered. This was because their very existence at their current level was due to their deep fusion and connection to the Multiverse. If something major happened to the Multiverse, they too would suffer a grievous blow.
But beings like Shuma-Gorath and Du Wa had no such concerns. To put it bluntly, even if the Multiverse exploded right now, they could survive entirely on their own strength, and their power wouldn't be significantly affected.
SWISH!
Thanoseid swung his sword fiercely. All the Infinity Stones erupted at full power with their maximum might, causing the Infinity Sword to rapidly stretch. Surrounded by countless rules and energies, it grew immense, even letting out faint wails, clearly unable to bear the load.
He brandished this powerful weapon, wielding strength that reached a multiversal level, and slashed at Shuma-Gorath.
The tentacles, which should have been able to easily shatter universe after universe, were severed one by one under this level of attack. Filthy blood spread toward the neighboring universes.
The first to suffer was the Cancerverse. These beings, already products of corruption, were now faced with a sudden escalation in the intensity of that corruption and were completely unable to withstand it. Thrashing their tentacles and blinking madly, they began to undergo corruption amidst screams. Their bodies festered with pus, their organs dissolved, and their tissues proliferated, turning them into true monstrosities for whom life was worse than death.
They couldn't even maintain their most basic consciousness, leaving behind only a lump of meaningless body tissue filled with organs.
"Those of the Cthulhu-kind who overcame death must return to the fold, doomed to live on forever in a muddled state." Du Wa, of course, witnessed this scene. The fate of these lesser Cthulhus would soon become even more miserable than it was now.
Because Du Wa would be victorious.
"Du Wa!!! Give me the coordinates! I ask for nothing else, I just need you to give me the coordinates! As soon as I have them, I'll turn and leave. I'll never attack you again, and our feud will be settled!"
Shuma-Gorath was injured. This was a major event that shook the Multiverse. The corruption caused by its wounds was immediately contained and blocked by Du Wa, but Shuma-Gorath only looked with fury at the relentless Thanoseid. Its heart filled with extreme hatred, it still refused to give up on the possibility of negotiating with Du Wa.
As long as it could obtain the coordinates, discover its own origin, and become complete with a self-consistent past and future, Shuma-Gorath had a premonition that it would become even more perfect and powerful than Du Wa.
"Or are you afraid? Afraid that I will become a complete God just like you and, in turn, kill you?"
While battling Thanoseid, dealing with this foe who was willing to suffer mutual destruction or even perish together, Shuma-Gorath attempted to negotiate.
Du Wa's figure appeared wherever he wished, and he said slowly, "So what if you obtain the coordinates? The completeness you perceive is, from a higher perspective, nothing more than a form of imperfection."
The origin of Cthulhu was definitely not in the Marvel Universe; this was beyond doubt. And yet, the powerful Cthulhu known as Shuma-Gorath truly existed within the Marvel Multiverse.
As for worrying that Shuma-Gorath's strength might surpass his, the God of Xenomorphs... Don't be ridiculous. Would Du Wa be afraid of that?
"Shuma-Gorath might have forgotten one thing. Du Wa wasn't born a terrifying Deity like it was. In the very beginning, Du Wa was just an ordinary human from Earth. A single bullet could have taken his life..."
The Ancient One used a powerful magic spell to force back Mar-Vell—the first Captain Marvel from the Cancerverse—and couldn't help but look toward the terrifying battlefield. Under the protection of the Xenomorphs, she could hear Shuma-Gorath's undisguised roars without suffering irreversible corruption.
"Those who were once high and mighty had no choice but to raise their heads, look up at Du Wa, and pray that he would generously grant them a chance to survive. Perhaps, the currently mad and powerful Shuma-Gorath will one day..."
The Ancient One's thoughts drifted away, and it was only when the more severely decayed Mar-Vell charged at her again that she refocused some of her attention.
But... to make Shuma-Gorath look up to him, a level above the Multiverse? Wouldn't that be even more powerful than the Vishanti? Did a Deity of that level truly exist? And even if one did, and there was more than one, on what basis could Du Wa take that step and stand in a higher position?
The Ancient One couldn't comprehend it. She also knew it wasn't a path she could walk. A path like her current one, accumulating magical debt from all corners to grow stronger, was already becoming more and more strenuous for her. She didn't know how much further she could go before it all came crashing down. Even touching the multiversal level was an extravagant hope for her.
Another terrifying clash erupted. The Multiverse shuddered more violently, as if it were about to crack apart completely.
After obtaining a pile of artifacts and Du Wa's support, Thanoseid became increasingly adept at wielding his own wildly surging power. Gradually, he began to display a level of strength capable of suppressing Shuma-Gorath.
Just as Shuma-Gorath had suppressed Du Wa before.
"Not bad. Thanoseid is simply the most suitable weapon for combat. Whether it's Thanos or Darkseid, they are essentially projections and replicas of each other in the Marvel and DC worlds. After their fusion, the Darkseid part once held the overwhelming advantage, but now, the Thanos part has begun to completely turn the tables."
Du Wa found this very interesting.
As for the similarities between Thanos and Darkseid, in terms of both appearance and their roles in their respective worlds, there's no need to elaborate. Those who know, know.
Darkseid never had the chance to use the Infinity Stones and their associated artifacts. The only time he did was in JLA/Avengers, where Darkseid picked up the Infinity Gauntlet, studded with Infinity Stones, tried it out, muttered that it was useless in this world, and then disdainfully tossed it aside, much to the astonishment of the Avengers.
But now, under Du Wa's influence, this being, Thanoseid, had begun to come into contact with and master the power of Infinity.
In the DC Universe, Thanoseid had devoured many Darkseids and was incredibly close to the multiversal level. But upon arriving in the Marvel Universe, the Omega Effect was mostly nullified. The power he could exert was poor, and his strength inevitably declined.
Relying on the Infinity Stones and the Infinity Sword, not only did he surpass his peak in the DC Universe, but he also took a step further, erupting with a power that could shake the Multiverse.
Du Wa was quite satisfied with this performance.
But killing Shuma-Gorath was not possible. Even if it were, Du Wa would consider stopping it from happening. He had something extremely important that he needed to compel Shuma-Gorath to do.
Du Wa entered the fray. Again.
This time, Shuma-Gorath could no longer maintain the situation. Besieged by two enemies, its massive eyeball was long since covered in blackened-red bloodshot veins. Numerous wounds inevitably appeared, leaving it covered in scars.
"Damn it, damn it!! Why won't you give me the coordinates? Why?! I don't intend to destroy your origin, nor do I have the ability to do so!" Shuma-Gorath let out a piercing shriek. Although to other beings, it was just meaningless noise, its corrupting nature had only grown stronger.
"Shuma-Gorath will definitely flee, right? If it really died within the Multiverse, its corpse would naturally become a 'multiverse' comparable to the Cancerverse, posing an immense corrupting threat to the entire Multiverse."
Infinity watched Shuma-Gorath's decline and couldn't help but speak. She was on the verge of intervening, manipulating the space of the entire Multiverse in an attempt to sever and expel Shuma-Gorath.
It was better to throw such a dangerous thing out of the Multiverse as soon as possible. The Omniverse was so vast; there were plenty of places to contain a source of corruption.
Eternity and other beings also tacitly prepared to make their move.
More Deities noticed. Shuma-Gorath sensed the changes in the Multiverse itself and knew what preparations those Deities, who were a part of the Multiverse, had made.
"You can choose to reject death and flee to the Omniverse, but I have a better idea."
A strange smile appeared on Du Wa's face. With one strike, he nearly pierced through the giant eyeball, draining Shuma-Gorath of its divine power. "You want to know your origin? Before I've squeezed every last drop of value out of you, I won't let you die in the Multiverse..."
Du Wa's gaze had already turned beyond the Multiverse.
This Multiverse would also die sooner or later; this was undeniable. A great battle that would destroy everything was bound to erupt between the Multiverse and the Beyonders. There were many things Du Wa needed to prepare in advance.
(end of chapter)