Chapter 496

Although Strange was using a massive portal to block the wormhole, stopping both fireballs and the Chitauri reinforcements from coming through, the terrifying heat radiating from the Solar Parasite was becoming too much. Strange wouldn't be able to hold out forever—once he faltered, the wormhole would open again and the enemy reinforcements would arrive!

Thus, the key to this battle was twofold: shut the wormhole and destroy the Chitauri mothership.

"I better let them know."

With that in mind, Ryner looked into the distance and saw that Rhodey had finally located Wong and Mordo.

"You two! I've been looking all over—your wizard buddy told me to bring you up there!"

Rhodey pointed toward the sky.

"Strange needs our help. Let's go!"

Wong immediately opened a portal connecting to Strange's location.

Without another word, he and Mordo gave Rhodey a glance. No need for words—the message was clear.

"Alright, alright, I'll be your magic flying carpet."

Rhodey rolled his eyes and crouched down so the two sorcerers could ride on his back.

Just as Rhodey was flying through the portal, a crumpled ball of paper flew from afar and hit Wong in the face.

"What the hell?"

Wong grabbed the paper, puzzled. But before he could open it, Rhodey zipped them through the portal and they arrived at Strange's side.

"Hey, welcome back!"

Tony Stark greeted them with his usual sarcasm as he blasted away incoming Chitauri with his lasers.

"Wong! Mordo! Help me stabilize the portal—I'm going on the offensive!"

Strange shouted.

"No problem. Appreciate it, brother," Mordo said to Rhodey.

"You're thanking me now? What choice do I have…" Rhodey muttered, serving as their temporary platform.

"Wait, this note says something crucial!"

Wong had finally unfolded the paper and exclaimed in shock.

"What does it say?" Mordo asked curiously.

"It says to use the Space Stone to close the wormhole and destroy the Chitauri mothership. That will take out the entire army."

Wong relayed the message that Ryner had written and thrown to him.

"Who gave that to you?" Tony asked, intrigued by the importance of the intel.

"No idea. It just hit my face out of nowhere."

Wong was just as confused.

"Maybe it was the Ancient One," Mordo suggested.

"Can we trust it?" Rhodey asked.

"If it's from the Ancient One, it's definitely trustworthy," Mordo replied firmly.

"Alright, I'll go after the Space Stone!"

Tony volunteered without hesitation.

"Hey, can you even control the Space Stone?" Mordo asked urgently.

"Hmph. Don't underestimate the world's smartest scientist."

Tony smirked, then shot off toward the ground.

"So… do we take care of the mothership then?" Wong asked, still a bit lost.

"Leave it to me. My Explosion Magic will get the job done."

Strange responded with full confidence.

Hearing that, Mordo immediately helped Strange stabilize the portal.

Only after feeling the heat from the Solar Parasite on the other side did he realize how immense the pressure here was.

Strange summoned the Apocalyptic Revelation Staff and tossed it into the air, using magic to suspend it above him.

"Darker than black, darker than darkness itself… bind with my crimson will. The time for awakening has come! Fall into the abyss of truth! Distort reality itself—manifest!!"

Strange began chanting the incantation for Explosion Magic.

Immense magical energy surged from his body and channeled into the staff.

This was a new method Strange had discovered by chance—combining the Apocalyptic Revelation Staff with Explosion Magic.

Using the staff as a medium amplified the spell's destructive power exponentially, far greater than using either one alone!

And that wasn't all—Strange wasn't just using his own mana.

He tapped into the collective magic of Kamar-Taj to ensure this would be the most powerful spell he'd ever unleashed!

Beside him, both Mordo and Wong were stunned, visibly intimidated by the overwhelming power radiating from Strange.

"Hey, Wong! If you've got time, a little help would be nice!"

Rhodey's voice cut in.

He was firing nonstop with his machine gun at the swarming Chitauri soldiers. Those were manageable—but the real threat was the Leviathan beast heading straight for them.

That thing was way too big for him to handle alone.

"Got it!"

Wong responded quickly, conjuring a magic circle between his hands. A blinding beam of light blasted from the array and pierced straight through the Leviathan's abdomen—completely destroying it with devastating energy!

Meanwhile, Tony had landed back on the ground.

He flew into the S.H.I.E.L.D. laboratory, where Nick Fury was in the middle of a heated phone call.

"What?! Launching a nuke?! Absolutely not! We've got this handled! Are you all insane?! Do you even understand what launching a nuclear weapon would do?!"

Fury was shouting into the receiver.

"Wait—who's launching a nuke?!"

Tony's jaw dropped as he overheard the conversation.

"That damn council! They think New York's too dangerous. They want to flatten it before things get worse!"

Fury growled.

"Oh great… those morons. Do they have any idea how to use their brains?"

Tony ran a hand down his face in frustration.

"I'll try to talk them down. I've got dirt on them I can use for leverage."

Fury began dialing again.

"No need. I'll have JARVIS hack the nuclear launch system and override the codes."

Tony said something terrifying in the most casual way possible.

Fury just stared at him in exasperated silence.

"Hey, it's for New York's sake! What, you think I'm gonna actually do something shady?"

Tony protested.

"Whatever. So why'd you come back? Need to recharge?"

Fury asked, still trying to keep up.

"I'm going to use the Space Stone to close the wormhole."

Tony said, heading for the lab.

The Space Stone was still there, untouched. He approached it immediately.

"You sure you can handle it?" Fury asked.

"Trust me."

Tony replied without hesitation.

He then stood before the Space Stone and declared:

"Void Engine—begin analysis of the Space Stone. Commence synchronization."

Tony was ready to use the power of the Void Engine to take control of the Space Stone.

(End of Chapter)

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