"So, Captain, are you coming to the wedding this weekend?" Tony asked over a video call.
Steve nodded with a faint smile. "I'll be there. Luke personally invited me, and judging by the way he asked, I don't think skipping it would be a very good idea."
Tony chuckled before leaning back in his chair.
"True. Besides, aren't you at least a little excited? This is probably a once-in-a-lifetime event. One groom, nine brides... I don't think anyone's ever going to see another wedding like this."
Steve couldn't help smiling.
"I'll admit, I'm curious."
After a brief pause, he looked back at Tony.
"By the way, when's your wedding?"
"Soon," Tony replied with a shrug. "We've already started making the arrangements. Now we're just waiting for the right day."
"I hope it goes well."
Tony smirked.
"Coming from the guy who spent most of his life putting duty before everything else, that's surprisingly heartfelt."
Steve let out a weary sigh.
"You're never going to let that go, are you?"
"Not a chance," Tony replied with a grin. "You're basically the perfect bachelor. If S.H.I.E.L.D. ever needed a recruitment poster, they'd just use your picture with the slogan: 'Sacrifice your personal life for your country.'"
Steve gave him a thoroughly unimpressed look.
"You done?"
Tony innocently raised both hands.
"You even sacrificed getting married for the country."
Steve simply shook his head.
"Goodbye, Tony."
Without giving Tony another chance to continue, he ended the call.
Tony stared at the blank screen for a moment before shaking his head with a laugh.
"Still can't take a joke."
***
In India, Bruce Banner was quietly reading in his room when a sealed letter suddenly appeared on the table in front of him.
His brows furrowed.
He was certain it hadn't been there a moment ago.
Curious, Bruce picked it up and immediately recognized Luke's name on the envelope. Opening it, he unfolded the letter and began reading.
«Bruce,
Long time no see.
It's been almost a year since we last met.
The reason you're getting this letter is simple—I'm getting married this weekend.
So get both your green and human selves over here.
Just touch this letter and it'll teleport you directly to the wedding venue.
As for your anger issues, don't worry. Hulk won't suddenly come out because of the teleportation.
—Luke»
Bruce couldn't help smiling.
"Getting married, huh..."
He read the letter once again before folding it carefully.
"I guess I can't miss something like this."
***
At the same time, on the Mutant Island in the X-Men universe, Professor Charles Xavier was reading an identical letter.
A warm smile spread across his face as he finished reading.
"So Luke is finally getting married."
He folded the letter neatly and rested it on his lap.
"A wedding..."
His expression gradually turned thoughtful.
"But who exactly is Luke marrying?"
After considering it for a moment, the first name that came to mind was Jean.
Then another possibility occurred to him.
"Or perhaps Clarice?"
Those were the two women he had seen around Luke the most, making them the obvious choices in his mind.
Smiling to himself, Charles reached out and touched the letter.
"I suppose I'll find out soon enough."
***
"Finally, the wedding dress selection is over," Luke said as he stood inside the wedding venue beside Jake.
He had to admit the past few days had been more exhausting than some of the battles he'd fought.
Jake smiled.
"I never thought I'd hear someone compare shopping for wedding dresses to surviving a war."
Luke looked at him with complete seriousness.
"You weren't there."
Jake wisely decided not to challenge that statement.
"This is the current stage design."
Luke studied the central platform where the ceremony would take place before slowly shaking his head.
"Don't you think it's a little too small?"
Jake followed his gaze.
"Well, it was designed for a normal wedding," he explained before smiling helplessly. "One groom and one bride."
Luke nodded.
"That explains it."
He casually snapped his fingers.
Without a sound, the central platform expanded several times over. The marble floor stretched outward, supporting pillars adjusted themselves, and every surrounding decoration shifted into perfect alignment as though the venue had always been built that way.
Luke examined the result before nodding with satisfaction.
"Now it's fine."
Jake stared at the enlarged platform for several long seconds, silently reminding himself never to question Luke's methods again.
Adding another mental note to always agree first and ask questions later, he returned his attention to the tablet.
"May I have the guest list? I'd like to finalize the seating arrangements."
Luke shook his head.
"There won't be a conventional guest list. The invitations are already on their way, but I'd advise everyone working here not to panic if some of the guests aren't exactly... ordinary."
Jake blinked.
"What do you mean by that?"
Luke smiled faintly.
"Let's just say they'll come in all shapes and sizes, so make sure the staff doesn't get frightened by anything they see."
Jake slowly nodded while writing another reminder.
"I'll let everyone know."
With that, he walked away to continue supervising the preparations.
Luke remained where he was, his gaze settling on his right hand as he slowly closed it into a fist.
The overwhelming aura that had once surrounded him was gone. Every ounce of his strength was now perfectly contained within his body, making him appear no different from an ordinary person to anyone who looked at him.
Only Luke understood how much had changed.
Sixteen Manifestation Powers now resided within him, allowing him to stand confidently among the strongest beings in the current cosmic hierarchy.
The Manifestation Game still continued throughout the omniverse, but after everything that had happened, none of the remaining Manifestations dared to choose another host so carelessly again.
As a result, the game had effectively reached a permanent standstill, leaving Luke as its unquestionable victor. With sixteen Manifestation Powers under his control, he was now the strongest Manifestation in the entire omniverse.
*****
A/N: If you'd like to read ahead of the Webnovel release schedule, you can join my Patreon!
The Patreon version is 50 chapters ahead.
👉 patreon.com/Universal_Peace