Weak Thaons

If a race they created is deemed unworthy of continued existence, it will be mercilessly wiped out.

However, even such a supreme organization as the Celestials is not without opposition in the vast Marvel universe.

There is another force that stands on par with them—the Watchers!

Yes, that group of self-proclaimed most powerful spectators in the entire Marvel universe, and they all have giant bald heads.

The Watchers are the greatest enemies of the Celestials. The Watchers believe in a principle of non-interference with other races, which directly contradicts the Celestials' beliefs. Both sides detest each other.

And when beings at their level find someone they dislike, there's no negotiation or compromise.

They act on instinct.

What do you do when you don't like someone? You go to war.

That war lasted for countless millennia, with innumerable galaxies and civilizations caught in the crossfire.

Both sides suffered heavy losses, and in the end, the Celestials barely edged out a victory, defeating the Watchers.

However, they didn't annihilate the spectators entirely—just defeated them.

Both sides realized that if the war continued, they would both be so weakened that they might disappear entirely from the flow of history.

So, they agreed to a ceasefire, with neither side bothering the other.

They each went their separate ways, minding their own business.

That's why the Marvel universe is in a relatively peaceful state now.

As for where exactly the Celestials came from, no one knows for sure.

They've existed for far too long.

So long that anyone who might have known either got assimilated by them or simply died of old age.

However, based on his memories from his past life, Zane had two guesses about the Celestials.

One possibility was that they were created by one of the five cosmic entities—Eternity.

Another, more plausible possibility was that the Celestials were creations of the One Above All (OAA), the embodiment of the Marvel universe's cosmic order.

...

Their purpose is to restore balance and fix the universe's flaws.

In a way, they function as cosmic janitors.

Although they act with impunity, they still maintain the overall operation of the universe.

You could say they're a smaller version of the Living Tribunal.

And now, these terrifying beings were standing right in front of Zane!

From the audience, Thanos smirked slightly when he saw the Collector and the Grandmaster don their armor.

His plan was simple: drive wolves to devour tigers!

Since he couldn't defeat Zane, he'd let the even more powerful Celestials deal with him.

The Celestials would never allow anyone to gather all the Infinity Stones, as their purpose was to maintain the balance of the universe.

In the original story, when the Mad Titan collected all the Infinity Stones, he wiped out half the universe's population in an instant.

How could the Celestials allow the birth of such a rule-breaking existence?

In the original, Thanos was just too fast—he gathered all the Stones in less than a day, so the Celestials didn't have time to respond.

As for whether the Celestials could kill Zane, Thanos didn't care at all.

Come on, they weren't even in the same league. Even if Zane could take down one or two members of the Celestials, could he handle 10? 100?

Without a doubt, he absolutely couldn't!

So, in Thanos' eyes, Zane was doomed.

Once Zane was dead and gone, the Infinity Stones would naturally be scattered across the universe again by the Celestials.

And that's when Thanos would get his chance.

Zane looked at the two figures in front of him, both clad in the distinctive armor of the Celestials. A hint of gravity flickered in his eyes.

He had imagined that one day he might cross paths with organizations like the Celestials or the Watchers, but he didn't expect that day to come so soon.

Still, now that he had ascended to the sixth dimension, he wasn't intimidated by the Celestials.

Zane's expression didn't change in the slightest as he calmly stared at the two.

"I'll say it again. How many Infinity Stones I have is none of your damn business!"

"I'm not some ant that your Celestials can trample on as you please," Zane said coldly.

Seeing Zane's attitude, Thanos, sitting in the audience, suddenly brightened up.

He thought to himself: It's working!

But just as Zane was on full alert, ready to fight the Collector and the Grandmaster, something unexpected happened. 

The two of them, these jokers, actually retracted their armor and returned to their strange original outfits. 

However, the smiles on their faces vanished, and the way they looked at Zane was as if they were staring at a dead man.

The Collector awkwardly rubbed his hands together, then lowered his head and said:

"Very well, Mr. Zane. We understand your stance."

"Next, we will report this matter to the Judge. Please patiently await the grand gift the Celestials have prepared for you!"

With that, they turned around and left without a second glance, showing no intention of fighting Zane or forcibly taking the Infinity Stones.

The Grandmaster also gave Zane a smile that was not a smile, shook his head slightly as if disappointed, and then the two of them grabbed the bewildered Thanos, boarded a spaceship, and swiftly departed.

Aboard the ship, after collecting his thoughts, Thanos suddenly turned to the Grandmaster and the Collector, who were resting with their eyes closed.

He abruptly stood up, his voice tinged with anger as he asked:

"Zane clearly has Infinity Stones. Why didn't you take action just now?"

"Isn't it the Celestials' duty to maintain balance in the universe?"

"If Zane gathers all six Infinity Stones, what do you think will—"

Before Thanos could finish, the Collector and the Grandmaster both opened their eyes and coldly stared at him.

They didn't say a word, nor did they release any of their power. They just quietly looked at him.

There wasn't a shred of killing intent in their gaze, but it was as cold as ice.

In an instant, Thanos felt as though he had been doused in cold water. His entire body jolted, and he immediately shut his mouth.

The next moment, he bowed deeply toward the two, his voice trembling with respect as he said:

"I'm sorry, great members of the Celestials. I was out of line just now."

Even after apologizing, he didn't straighten up. Instead, he remained bowed before the Collector and the Grandmaster.

It wasn't until he felt their icy gazes lift off him that Thanos finally let out a long breath, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, and cautiously glanced at them before sitting back in his seat. 

He didn't dare say another word.

In those brief few seconds, Thanos felt as though he had just brushed past death.

He was certain that if he had said even one more word, he would've been dead by now.

It was only now that Thanos fully realized just how terrifying the legendary Celestials were. One mere glance from them was enough to make him feel as though he'd fallen into an icy abyss.

But after the shock wore off, a question resurfaced in Thanos' mind.

Just like the question he had asked in his moment of impulsiveness.

Why didn't these two incredibly powerful beings simply kill Zane and take back the Infinity Stones?

Instead, they hadn't even issued a single threat before leaving so decisively.

*************************************

You can get access to early chapters on patr*on

If you like my work and you want to support me then you can become my patron on patre*n.

My patr*on account is Lord_Immortal_0170

Or you feel like tipping me for my hardwork you can do so on Ko*fi

ko-fi.com/lord_immortal_0170