Tony Stark didn't mind at all.
This had never been much of a secret. Sooner or later, Nolan would have learned about it anyway.
"This time, when we left Earth, we encountered Thanos. We discovered that his strength is far beyond anything we imagined.
Even Thor couldn't gain any advantage against him.
Honestly, I still can't imagine how you managed to fight him to a draw back then."
Tony finished speaking.
Nolan smiled.
"A draw?
Tony, you don't have to flatter me. I know exactly what happened that day. It wasn't a draw at all.
It was a complete one-sided defeat.
Even now, just thinking about Thanos sends chills down my spine.
In all these years, he's the first opponent who's ever made me feel that kind of fear."
Nolan sighed softly.
Long ago, he had encountered Galactus in another universe.
Galactus had also been unimaginably powerful, forcing Nolan to reveal one of his trump cards.
But Galactus had weaknesses.
His tremendous power was unstable, and he was rarely able to unleash it at its absolute peak.
Thanos was different.
While he wasn't quite as overwhelmingly powerful as Galactus, he existed at the peak of his own strength.
He also lacked the enormous body that limited Galactus.
He was the perfect warrior.
Especially after obtaining the Power Stone, his mastery over its power had left even Nolan feeling powerless.
Tony didn't argue.
Deep down, he had already reached the same conclusion.
Earlier, he'd only called it a draw to spare Nolan's pride.
After all, Nolan was his friend.
And in Tony's eyes, surviving a battle against Thanos at all was already an incredible achievement.
The rest of them couldn't even survive Thanos playing around with them.
Steve Rogers finally spoke.
"Our biggest problem now is that Thanos already has the Power Stone, the Space Stone, and the Soul Stone.
The only Infinity Stones he still lacks are the three on Earth.
That means he's definitely coming here.
The only question is when.
And right now...
We have absolutely no confidence that we can stop him."
Steve sighed helplessly.
Although he hadn't gone into space himself, Tony and the others' descriptions were enough for him to understand the terrifying gap between them and Thanos.
Originally, they believed that once they obtained the Thor Armor, they could close that gap.
Maybe they could even crush Thanos when he arrived on Earth.
Even the Black Order and Thanos' army hadn't seemed particularly threatening anymore.
Power had given them confidence.
Perhaps too much confidence.
But everything Tony had brought back from space shattered that illusion.
Even Thor had been helpless before Thanos.
How could they possibly fare any better?
Their confidence had disappeared.
Unfortunately, reality hadn't changed.
Thanos was still coming.
At this point, Steve felt that all of Earth's hopes rested on Nolan.
If even Nolan couldn't stop Thanos...
Then perhaps the only thing left was to welcome him to Earth and watch him snap his fingers.
Steve wasn't the only one whose expression darkened.
Everyone looked equally grim.
Peter Quill finally spoke.
"We're going to kill Thanos.
No matter what it takes, we have to!"
His voice wasn't loud.
But it burned with endless hatred.
Ever since Gamora died, Peter had never recovered.
To him, Thanos wasn't just an enemy.
He was the enemy.
Nolan looked at Peter.
"We meet again.
I just didn't expect our reunion would be here on Earth.
Where's your father?"
Peter froze before answering.
"I don't have a father.
That bastard doesn't deserve the title."
Nolan rolled his eyes.
"Yondu raised you from childhood.
If he doesn't qualify as your father, then who does?
I'm sure he'd be heartbroken if he heard you say that."
Peter fell silent.
After a long moment, he nodded heavily.
"He's gathering forces.
Before Thanos reaches Earth, he should arrive with reinforcements.
This isn't just our battle against Thanos anymore.
It's a crisis that threatens the entire planet."
"Good."
Nolan nodded.
The alliance they had formed against Thanos had always been loose.
But its influence throughout the galaxy was enormous.
Even Nolan had to admit there were things one man simply couldn't accomplish.
For example, stopping Thanos' army.
The Mad Titan's forces weren't just massive in number.
Their overall strength was terrifying.
After spending so much time in space, Nolan understood better than anyone how frightening Thanos' military truly was.
Even if Nolan could fight Thanos himself, it wouldn't matter if his own mechanical army couldn't suppress the enemy forces.
The outcome of the war would still be unacceptable.
Fortunately...
With these new reinforcements joining the battle, things would likely turn out far better than he had originally expected.
That was excellent news.
And it wasn't just Yondu and the Ravagers.
Among the arrivals, Nolan noticed someone he had expected to see all along.
Valkyrie.
She would be another tremendous asset.
The only problem was her relationship with Hela.
It was even worse than Nolan had imagined.
If those two met, a fight was almost guaranteed.
Only by resolving that conflict could they unite both sides' strength.
Hela had already been living on Earth for quite some time.
Surprisingly, she hadn't caused any trouble.
Although Nolan still couldn't determine her true intentions, one thing was certain.
When it came to fighting Thanos...
They were on the same side.
And Hela's strength was extraordinary.
Having her join them would greatly improve their chances.
After all, this wasn't a movie.
Reality didn't follow a script.
In the films, the extra-dimensional entities never intervened during the Infinity War.
But in reality...
Even without speaking to Doctor Strange, Nolan could already predict what would happen.
Once Thanos invaded Earth...
The enormous surge of energy generated by the war would inevitably attract the attention of the extra-dimensional gods.
Sooner or later, they would join the conflict.
This was never going to be a simple war against Thanos.
It would become a two-front battle.
One against Thanos.
The other against the greatest enemies of the sorcerers, the extra-dimensional gods.
And Nolan would stand at the center of both battlefields.
He had no confidence that the remaining sorcerers could stop those beings after Doctor Strange left to fight Thanos.
Thankfully...
Hela stood on their side.
Still...
Nolan needed something new.
"This all sounds troublesome.
But before worrying about that, I'd rather do some business.
You all know I'm a businessman."
Everyone stared at him speechlessly.
Tony couldn't help complaining.
"Seriously?
At a time like this, you're still thinking about making money?
I'd think stopping Thanos should be your priority."
Nolan laughed.
"Of course I know Thanos is a huge problem.
But even if he arrives on Earth...
Life goes on.
If I can't make money, what kind of businessman am I?
Besides...
Thanos isn't our greatest problem.
The real threat is the extra-dimensional gods.
I'm sure Doctor Strange has already explained the situation.
Once this war begins, there's a very high chance they'll be drawn into the battle.
That's our true nightmare.
Even now, I still don't know how to fight two wars at once.
Every production line at Locke Technologies is already running at full capacity.
Even so...
It's still not enough."
Nolan's words immediately darkened everyone's expressions.
Doctor Strange silently nodded.
He understood their predicament better than anyone.
Unfortunately...
He had no solution.
At this point, all he could do was hope Nolan had one.
Even though he had confidently told Tony that the remaining sorcerers could hold back the extra-dimensional gods without him...
Logic...
And the countless futures he had witnessed...
Both told him the same truth.
There was no path to victory.
No...
Perhaps there was one.
Doctor Strange fell silent.
For all this time, he had been carefully guiding events toward that single possibility.
But that future came at an unbearable cost.
The Avengers would cease to exist.
More than half of Earth's population would perish.
And nothing could ever restore what had been lost.
The weight of that future filled him with despair.
If only reality had remained as it once was.
Back then, the future he had foreseen, though tragic, still offered hope.
Yes, the battle would be devastating.
But by using the Infinity Gauntlet, they could restore everyone who had died.
The only price was traveling to another universe to borrow another Infinity Gauntlet.
But everything had changed.
That future had vanished.
In its place stood one far crueler.
There would no longer be any chance to leave this universe and rewrite history.
Only a handful of people would survive.
Almost everyone who entered the war would disappear forever.
Yet Strange had no choice.
He had to continue guiding events toward that future.
Because every alternative was even worse.
Otherwise...
Half the universe would be erased forever.
It was a cruel decision.
But after becoming the Sorcerer Supreme, he had witnessed countless futures.
After experiencing them over and over again...
He knew what he had to do.
Nolan suddenly looked at Doctor Strange thoughtfully.
"Stephen...
What does the future you saw actually look like?"
Doctor Strange remained silent.
He had no intention of answering.
Instead, he said quietly,
"The future changes constantly.
Among countless possibilities, I found only one that gives us a chance.
But if I tell you what that future is...
Even that single possibility may disappear.
So...
I'm sorry.
I can't tell you."
Nolan shrugged.
"Fair enough.
That's your choice.
I just hope the future you saw isn't one where everyone dies.
Because if it is...
Then let me tell you something.
I don't care what future the Time Stone showed you.
The Time Stone has limits.
It can only observe this universe.
But...
I'm stronger than you think."
Nolan had never doubted that the Time Stone could never fully predict him.
Its vision was limited to this universe.
Yet he had crossed beyond this universe more than once.
He had traveled to entirely different worlds.
Those experiences existed outside the Time Stone's reach.
More importantly...
He still possessed his System.
The Time Stone couldn't perceive its existence.
Otherwise, events would never have unfolded the way they had.
And if the Time Stone truly understood everything about him...
Doctor Strange wouldn't be wearing such a troubled expression.
Because if Strange knew the full extent of Nolan's power...
He wouldn't be worried at all.
Nolan had already accumulated an enormous fortune.
A fortune great enough to unlock the next stage of his evolution.
The Third-Generation Super Soldier.
A level of power that completely surpassed humanity's limits.
The realm of Skyfather-level divinity.
Only a handful of beings had ever reached that level.
Among them were Odin, the Ancient One, and Hela.
At the Second-Generation level, Nolan had always struggled against opponents of that caliber.
He could fight them with everything he had.
But defeating them outright was nearly impossible.
His battle against Hela was proof enough.
At her full strength, she had completely overwhelmed him.
If that battle had continued, Nolan would have died.
Only after Hela had been significantly weakened was he able to fight on equal footing.
But once he stepped into the Third Generation...
Even without relying on his hidden trump cards...
He was confident he could stand against them.
This time...
He had truly reached the same starting line as Thanos.
No.
Perhaps...
He had already surpassed him.
...
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