The shadow of Sanctuary II, blotting out the sun, had not yet fully enveloped New York.
Tens of thousands of landing ships, like a disturbed hornet's nest, trailed long tails of fire and shrieked as they tore through the atmosphere, plunging toward Manhattan Island.
War erupted instantly in the most primitive and savage manner.
"All personnel, take note! Prepare to engage the enemy!"
Lin Huai's voice, channeled through Jarvis, reached the ears of every Avenger clearly.
"Steve!"
"Copy that!"
On the ground, Captain America Steve Rogers held his vibranium shield, facing the falling rain of fire without a hint of fear.
He calmly surveyed his surroundings and quickly issued orders through the battlefield communication system.
"Natasha, Clint, 3rd and 4th blocks, organize an evacuation immediately!"
"Pietro, you're the fastest. Help them establish a defensive line and lead the civilians to the underground shelters!"
"Tony! Hulk! Straight ahead, the guests of honor have arrived!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Three fortress-like landing ships smashed through several high-rise buildings and landed heavily on the plaza in front of Avengers Tower, kicking up a massive cloud of dust.
The hatches opened, and four figures radiating an ominous aura slowly stepped out.
The Black Order—Ebony Maw, Supergiant, Corvus Glaive, and Black Dwarf, who carried a massive war hammer and had a physique like a mountain of flesh.
The battle instantly reached a fever pitch.
"Hulk, smash!"
Dr. Banner roared as he transformed into the green giant, being the first to engage the massive Black Dwarf.
Every collision between the two behemoths made the entire street tremble.
However, the situation was not optimistic.
Hulk's pure strength was actually being suppressed by Black Dwarf's war hammer, which was made of a strange metal.
Every time the energy patterns on the war hammer lit up, it sent Hulk stumbling back several steps, plowing deep furrows into the hard ground.
On the other side, Tony Stark's situation was equally grim.
"Jarvis, give him a New York welcome!"
The launch ports on the iron man armor's shoulders opened, and dozens of micro-missiles trailed fire, swarming like bees toward the slender Ebony Maw.
Yet, Ebony Maw only contemptuously lifted a finger.
Those missiles abruptly stopped less than ten meters away from him, then fell to the ground with a clatter like scrap metal that had lost its kinetic energy.
"The wisdom of mortals is like summer insects—noisy and fragile."
Ebony Maw smiled and gave a gentle wave of his hand.
Dozens of tons of concrete fragments and car wreckage on the ground soared into the sky, raining down on Tony like a meteor shower.
"Damn it!"
Tony cursed, dodging clumsily in the air.
The scales of the battle tilted heavily toward the invaders from the very beginning.
...
New York Sanctum, top floor.
Outside the ancient circular rose window was New York City, looking as if the apocalypse had arrived.
Inside the window, however, was a scene of tranquility.
Lin Huai sat calmly in an armchair.
In front of him, the Space Stone worked in tandem with the Reality Stone to create a bootleg version of the Telescope Technique. It outlined dozens of real-time changing battlefield scenes before him, like a multi-screen control room.
He wasn't at all surprised by the unfavorable start of the battle.
Only by letting the enemy feel that victory was within their grasp would they let down their guard and walk into the real trap step by step.
"Alright, warm-up is over."
Lin Huai murmured to himself, slowly raising his left hand, which wore the Infinity Gauntlet.
"Now, it's the director's cut."
He looked at the screen showing Ebony Maw.
The alien sorcerer was floating in mid-air, manipulating countless stones like a conductor, playing with Tony in the palm of his hand.
"Let's start with you, Mr. Octopus."
Lin Huai smiled slightly. The Reality Stone on his middle finger—that crimson gem—lit up with an eerie glow.
On the battlefield, Ebony Maw was enjoying the thrill of a cat-and-mouse game when the asphalt road beneath him suddenly became soft and viscous.
"Hmm?"
He had just let out a sound of surprise when the solid ground turned into a bottomless black swamp.
A powerful suction force pulled at him, instantly breaking his levitation, and he began sinking uncontrollably!
"What?!"
Ebony Maw was shocked and hurriedly mobilized his telekinesis to try and pull himself out.
But that moment of distraction was enough.
"Did you get your gift, Chin-boy?"
Tony's voice descended from the sky as a thick chest Repulsor Cannon blast slammed into Ebony Maw's chest without any hindrance!
...
On the other side, the battle between Hulk and Black Dwarf was entering its most difficult stage.
"Is this all you've got, green Monster?"
Black Dwarf grinned, swinging his massive hammer again toward Hulk's head.
Inside the Sanctum, Lin Huai flicked his left index finger.
The faint blue light of the Space Stone flashed and vanished.
On the battlefield, Black Dwarf's sure-fire strike swung out, but he felt his hands go empty; that heavy war hammer had vanished into thin air.
Before he could react, a sharp whistling sound came from behind him.
A blue portal opened behind his back, and the missing war hammer whistled out from it, slamming squarely into the back of his own head!
"Clang!!!"
A loud bang echoed, as if an ancient bell had been struck.
Black Dwarf saw stars, his massive body stumbled, and he nearly fell to his knees.
"Hulk... now!"
Hulk's super-intelligence didn't understand what had happened, but his keen battle instincts told him it was time to use his super strength.
The green giant let out a roar, bringing his fists together like a green meteorite, and smashed them hard into Black Dwarf's face!
Lin Huai's gaze continued to move.
On his ring finger, the green gem representing time lit up slightly.
At the edge of the battlefield, Natasha and Clint were leading S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents, struggling to cover the civilians' retreat.
Around them, dozens of Chitauri Outriders lunged forward fearlessly.
Suddenly, Natasha and Clint felt their senses become incredibly sharp, and their movements became a fraction faster.
In their eyes, the enemies' movements seemed as if a slow-motion button had been pressed.
Clint could always fire his arrows half a second early, hitting the enemies' vital points.
Natasha could always avoid lethal energy blasts at incredible angles and pierce the enemies' joints with her Widows Bite.
The two moved through the hail of bullets like synchronized dancers, efficiently harvesting lives and guiding the desperate crowd to safety.
They didn't know that in the area they were in, the flow of time had been imperceptibly accelerated by five percent.
Finally, on Lin Huai's pinky finger, the orange-yellow Soul Stone emitted a warm yet eerie halo.
An invisible soul shockwave, centered on the New York Sanctum, instantly swept across the entire New York battlefield.
The Chitauri Outriders, acting as cannon fodder, suddenly stalled in their fearless assault.
The red light in their eyes began to flicker, and some even turned their weapons to attack their own companions.
Although this chaos only lasted for a few seconds before being forcibly corrected by the mothership's Hive mind, it had already bought a precious moment of respite for the crumbling defensive line.
The entire New York battlefield was like a stringed Puppet show in Lin Huai's hands.
Under his editing and control, the originally one-sided battle began to develop toward a delicate balance.
"Alright, the supporting characters' parts are almost done."
Lin Huai stretched and stood up.
"It's time to invite the real protagonist onto the stage."
He raised his hand, and the Reality Stone activated once again.
A hundred-meter-tall projection of Lin Huai, made of light and shadow, appeared over Manhattan, looking down on the entire battlefield.
His voice, amplified by magic, rang out through the skies.
"Thanos!"
"This bunch of misfits you sent isn't even enough for a warm-up."
"Is your universal balance plan built on such a group of losers?"
"I have four stones in my hand, and I'm standing right here."
"Do you dare to come down and take them?"
This blatant provocation was like a spark thrown into boiling oil, instantly igniting the wrath of the Titan sitting on the throne of Sanctuary II.
In the center of the New York battlefield, a purple "Big Sweet Potato" descended from the sky.
A burly and domineering figure slowly stepped out from the smoke.
He ignored the Avengers on the ground, who were like ants.
He didn't even look at his adopted children who were caught in a bitter struggle.
He just slowly raised both hands.
In his left palm, the purple Power Stone bloomed with a halo of destruction.
In his right palm, the yellow Mind Stone radiated a will that controlled everything.
A terrifying pressure instantly swept through the entire war zone, and both sides engaged in combat instinctively stopped their movements.
Thanos looked up, his Abyss-like gaze piercing through layers of obstacles, pointing directly toward the New York Sanctum.
There, he felt four other equally vast primordial powers.
The two chess players finally faced each other from across the board.