Resist

Now, everyone understood the consequences of displeasing Zane. Without a doubt, during the five years Zane was away from Earth, he had become an absolutely transcendent existence, far beyond what anyone on Earth could challenge.

Even the internet trolls no longer dared to post any negative comments about Zane online. After all, Skynet had previously infiltrated the global network.

These trolls might be obnoxious, but they weren't foolish. Knowing that the entire internet was transparent to Zane, no one wanted to risk their lives.

What they didn't realize was that even if they did insult Zane online, he wouldn't care in the slightest. Across the vast Milky Way, countless beings had already cursed Zane, calling him names like "Butcher," "Demon," and "Executioner."

Did that mean Zane should go on a killing spree across the entire galaxy? If he actually did that, even if no ancient powerhouse stopped him, Zane would probably exhaust himself to Death.

When your existence reaches a higher level, your perspective naturally changes. To put it simply, if an ant under your foot starts posturing at you, would you get angry? Probably not, even a fool wouldn't. Most people would just ignore the ants and walk on, maybe stepping on them accidentally without a second thought. 

Of course, if someone is bored, they might stoop down to watch the ants squabble or use a stick to crush them one by one, laughing at their panic—just like when Zane designed that game earlier. In reality, Zane had no particular goal at the time; he just thought it was amusing. 

It was pure disdain from a higher-dimensional being toward a lower one—a kind of indifference born from the soul. To put it bluntly, "You lot aren't even worth me lowering my head to look at."

So, for the next two days, Zane's family didn't give a second thought to what Zane had done. They continued their lives as usual, going shopping when they wanted, and visiting amusement parks when they felt like it.

However, everyone else sensed a difference. The powers on Earth, not understanding Zane's intentions, overreacted. Every time Zane and his family went out, it was like a massive military drill was being conducted.

If they went to a mall, the entire place would be cleared out, and actors would be brought in to create the illusion of a normal shopping experience. But the forced and awkward atmosphere was obvious, even to the simple-minded Groot, let alone Zane.

Gradually, even though Zane wasn't angered, he began to find Earth boring. Eventually, they decided to stay at home, waiting for Zane's power to fully recover so he could fuse with the Time Stone and leave this increasingly dull planet.

Nevertheless, Zane's time on Earth wasn't without benefits for the planet. At the very least, every major force on Earth went into hiding. HYDRA stopped causing trouble, supervillains completely disappeared from the news, and even the war between the U.S. and Afghanistan temporarily ceased. There was even a noticeable drop in petty crime worldwide.

Inadvertently, Zane had achieved the peace everyone dreamed of. The superheroes, however, were disheartened to realize that true peace could only be achieved through absolute military deterrence. It was hard not to see the irony in that!

Two days had passed since the battle in New York City, and the government had managed to quell the public's fear through various means. Meanwhile, Zane's death god powers had fully recovered and even advanced further.

Feeling the divine core in his soul rotating along a more profound and mysterious path, Zane's eyes flashed with a sharp light. He called out a quick greeting to Lorna, who was still playfully tussling with Bastis, and then retreated into his study.

From his treasury, he retrieved the Eye of Agamotto, idly toying with the ancient artifact. In the next moment, with a sudden exertion of his hand—without even using his death god powers—he crushed the metallic shell encasing the Time Stone using only his physical strength.

As metal fragments slowly fell from Zane's hand, a green-hued stone emerged, automatically floating in the air. Seeing the Time Stone suspended before him, a slight smile of excitement curled at Zane's lips.

The Time Stone granted its wielder the ability to reach any point in time—whether in the distant past or the far-off future. By harnessing the stone's power, one could watch or experience any era.

With sufficient knowledge, the user could do even more, such as manipulating time and causality. This made the stone a formidable weapon, capable of trapping enemies and the entire world in an infinite time loop.

At that moment, the system, detecting the Time Stone's presence, spoke up.

[Ding, a powerful energy source has been detected. Would you like to integrate it into the [Magic Furnace]?]

"Yes," Zane responded, his tone tinged with excitement.

Among all the Infinity Stones, aside from the mysterious Soul Stone, the Time Stone was the one Zane anticipated the most. On one hand, it was due to his yearning for the power of time; on the other, he didn't want anyone else using the stone's power to peer into his future.

Zane was certain that nearly every possibility in the recent battle in New York had been foreseen by the Ancient One. There had been far too many coincidences for it to be otherwise.

Although this stone didn't allow its bearer to recklessly control time, it did enable one to observe the limitless possibilities of the future and the unchangeable past—an effect that was nothing short of miraculous.

Moreover, Zane believed that despite the Ancient One having wielded the Time Stone for thousands of years, she still couldn't fully control it. This was evident from the backlash she suffered from time itself when she resurrected all the superheroes five years ago. A perfectly controlled weapon wouldn't turn against its master.

As Zane watched, the system's power materialized from the void once more. This time, he didn't foolishly attempt to sense this power. It had only been a few days since he fused with the Mind Stone, and further observation wouldn't yield much insight.

The system's power enveloped the Time Stone like a mother's hand cradling an infant, leaving no room for resistance. When the Time Stone began to struggle, the system had already completely sealed its power.

Then, guided by the system's force, the Time Stone slowly moved toward Zane's chest. Unlike the previous three Infinity Stones, as the system dragged the Time Stone, Zane witnessed an extraordinarily divine spectacle.

Sensing the impending threat, the Time Stone instinctively unleashed an endless flow of temporal energy, trying to overwhelm the system's power. Countless green glows flowed across the surface of the Time Stone, like green ribbons, making the stone appear breathtakingly beautiful.

If Lorna saw this, her eyes would undoubtedly light up with excitement.

Under the relentless surge of temporal energy...

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