With these words, the public, who had just been celebrating the victory over the dimensional demon god, instantly began a new round of wailing.
"Two and a half years? Awesome. I finally have an excuse not to lose weight. Everyone is going to turn into void particles anyway."
"Haha! I just signed a thirty-year mortgage with zero down payment! I don't have to pay the remaining twenty-seven years!"
"Fk! Did the Mayans say 2012 was the end of the World? It turns out what they meant was that after 2012, every year is the end of the World!"
"Everyone calm down! Think about it carefully, we don't need to worry about this so-called Sunspot Effect at all!"
"To the person above, have you lost your mind?"
"Listen, idiots. There are two and a half years until the Sunspot Effect. According to our current frequency of Earth being destroyed three times a year, we will experience at least seven more doomsdays before the Dark Dimension consumes us! So, this thing probably won't even make the list!"
"God, this guy makes so much sense, I'm actually speechless."
"Damn, I actually feel relieved. Habit is a truly terrifying thing."
"Look! Homelander isn't done yet! He raised his hand!"
At the press conference.
Homelander raised his hand to press it down, and the rowdy reporters immediately shut their mouths.
He stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping across the lens, calm and confident.
"Don't be nervous, fellow citizens! There is more good news, and that is that I have already found a solution!"
Sure enough!
Homelander never lets people down.
This sentence was like a shot of adrenaline, injected directly into the veins of all mankind.
The public, who were still wailing online just a moment ago, instantly had a 180-degree turn in their mindset.
It was as if the doomsday crisis had ended early.
Earthlings, tempered by various doomsdays, had nerves forged to be incredibly resilient.
Everyone had trained a heart of steel that could switch states at any time.
A reporter in the front row flushed red and excitedly asked loudly: "What is the solution? Please tell us!"
"In the vast Universe, there exists a magical item called the 'Space Stone'."
"It possesses the absolute power to control and repair all spatial rules. As long as we obtain it, we can completely rid ourselves of the erosion of the Dark Dimension."
A low gasp of astonishment erupted from the crowd.
"But getting it back is not easy." Homelander continued.
"This gem is currently in the hands of an ancient being who has lived for millions of years."
"What's even trickier," Homelander's expression tightened, and his tone became heavy. "This item is also being targeted by a guy named Thanos."
"This person is a hegemon who traverses the Universe and a World-renowned Super Butcher."
"He firmly believes that the Universe's resources are limited, so every time he conquers a Planet, he randomly slaughters half of its life."
"If he gets the Space Stone, he will destroy countless lives in the Universe. Of course, that includes Earth."
A sound of "Oh my god" suddenly erupted from the audience.
"And to get the stone and save our home," Homelander suddenly looked up and stared directly into the lens. "We must go to the Grandmaster's arena and have a seven-on-seven life-and-death duel with this cosmic butcher!"
"The winner takes the stone. The loser... loses everything."
"We must defeat him and his minions in the arena to truly save Earth!"
The reporters gasped.
A cosmic hegemon? A Super Butcher? The name didn't sound like a simple character.
"This journey will surely be full of danger, perhaps even a one-way trip."
"But!" Homelander's voice suddenly rose, deafening. "Vought's heroes never fear danger!"
"I will personally lead Vought's most powerful heroes to cross the sea of stars and fight for a future for all mankind!"
"At that time, the entire gladiatorial match will be broadcast live to Earth in its entirety!"
Homelander spread his arms, raised his head, and declared loudly.
"Fellow citizens!"
"This is no longer a battle for me alone; this is the first step of our entire civilization's counterattack against the Universe!"
"We want to show those high-and-mighty cosmic hegemons how tough the bones of Earthlings are! We want the whole Universe to hear our roar!"
"In front of the screen, in your homes, on the streets. When I throw a punch, I need your strength! When I bleed, I need your shouts!"
"Tell them, Earth is unconquerable!"
The press conference hall instantly boiled over.
The reporters abandoned their professional etiquette, stood up, applauded wildly, and cheered loudly with flushed faces.
And this fanaticism swept across the entire Earth at the speed of light.
The public's emotions were also ignited!
At this moment, they only felt their scalps tingling and their blood rushing to their heads.
A cosmic duel! An arena! Earth vs. a cosmic hegemon!
This was even more adrenaline-inducing than the craziest sci-fi blockbuster from Hollywood.
Human civilization hadn't even left the Solar System, and now they were going to cross the sea of stars and go head-to-head with the top bully in the Universe in an arena?
This was fucking crazy! This was fucking cool!
There might be some people in the crowd who had developed a numb, desensitized reaction to the end of the World, but for an epic, blood-pumping spectacle like a "cosmic duel" and "live broadcast challenging a cosmic hegemon," they couldn't help but erupt with unparalleled fanatical passion.
"Fuck Thanos! Crush him!" In Times Square, tens of thousands of citizens erupted in a thunderous roar.
"As long as Homelander needs it, I am willing to lend him my life!"
"Earth will win! Homelander is invincible!"
Out of absolute blind faith in Homelander, the vast majority of people did not believe that Earth would lose.
They didn't care how strong Thanos was; they only cared about how exciting this duel would be.
Fear and despair had long been thrown to the nine heavens.
People only cared about which heroes Vought would send to fight? And what kind of opponents they would face.
Less than half an hour after the press conference ended, hashtags like #CosmicGladiatorTournament, #SevenStrongestHeroes, and #EarthExpeditionaryForce directly occupied the top trending lists on global social media.
On street corners, in offices, and at schools, everyone was heatedly discussing the candidates for the competition.
"God, seven-on-seven! Besides Homelander, who else will go?"
"It must be Captain America! Rogers' performance in Hong Kong was incredibly tough!"
"Bullshit! It must be Iron Man! Stark's armor will open the eyes of those alien bumpkins!"
"Thor must take a spot! He is a true god! The strongest Avengers who wields the power of thunder!"
"To the person above, please use your main account to speak!"
Fan groups of various Superheroes entered the fray, cheering wildly for their idols.
The war of words on Twitter was intense, with fans listing various battle records and data, trying to prove that their idol was the most suitable hero to fight.
In response to this unprecedented enthusiasm from the public, Ashley, the head of Vought's public relations department, keenly seized this excellent opportunity to harvest traffic.
That same evening, Vought International officially announced: The global online voting channel is now open!
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