Chapter 75: The Arrival of the Obsidian Four!

One Day Earlier

Somewhere in the vast expanse of space at the edge of the solar system's heliosphere...

Ripples suddenly emerged in the void.

Moments later, a circular spaceship tore through the emptiness and arrived in this isolated region of the cosmos.

Without hesitation, it sped toward Earth.

In just one day, the ship traversed 4.5 billion kilometers and came to rest outside Earth's atmosphere!

Meanwhile, on Earth

Several factions, closely monitoring the shifts in the nearby cosmic space, quickly heightened their vigilance.

Wakanda

In the grand operations hall, every seat was filled.

Among those present were Black Widow, Falcon, and Hawkeye—brought here only yesterday—alongside members of various Wakandan tribes.

Wakanda's internal structure was remarkably complex.

The nation operated as a confederation of tribes, primarily composed of five key groups: the Black Panther royal family, the White Ape Tribe (Jabari Tribe), the Border Tribe, the River Tribe, and the Merchant Tribe.

However, in reality, three of these tribes remained in a relatively underdeveloped state, their outward appearance one of apparent poverty.

This was deliberate; they served as a "genuine barrier" to mislead outsiders into believing Wakanda was a poor, struggling nation.

The White Ape Tribe was the exception.

Devotees of Hanuman, the White Ape God, they revered a totem entirely opposite to the Black Panther. This divergence led to their exclusion from Wakandan society.

Even so, their leader, M'Baku, was Wakanda's second-strongest warrior after T'Challa, earning the title "Man-Ape."

Years earlier, M'Baku challenged T'Challa during the latter's ascension to the throne but was ultimately defeated.

Later, when T'Challa was overthrown by his cousin Killmonger and cast off a cliff, it was M'Baku who found and saved him.

With M'Baku's help, T'Challa reclaimed the throne and resumed his role as the Black Panther.

This act of allegiance strengthened ties between the royal family and the White Ape Tribe, granting them rights to vibranium technology.

Although this aspect wasn't explicitly highlighted in the original Black Panther movie, a closer look at Avengers: Infinity War reveals that only the White Ape Tribe members had vibranium weapons alongside the Wakandan Royal Guard, while the other tribes were noticeably absent.

This indicated a negotiated arrangement where the White Ape Tribe retained a degree of autonomy, including vibranium-equipped armies, while remaining subordinate to the Black Panther royal family.

Now, the warriors deployed to respond to the looming threat were primarily from the White Ape Tribe.

Alongside Wakanda's own forces, they gathered an army of 12,000 warriors.

In contrast, even though the other tribes received vibranium weapons, their lack of military training couldn't be remedied overnight.

This precarious, almost dysfunctional structure of Wakanda laid bare its vulnerabilities to the assembled superheroes.

Some, harboring their own agendas, quietly took note of this weakness.

"An alien spaceship has breached the atmosphere—it's Thanos's forces!"

A voice from the monitoring station broke the tension in the hall.

Wakanda had deployed advanced monitors across multiple locations in Earth's atmosphere to detect extraterrestrial intruders. Almost the instant the alien spaceship appeared, the monitors locked onto it.

Black Panther watched the screen calmly.

The display revealed the image of the alien craft.

It was a spacecraft shaped like a tire, with a beam of light rapidly flashing within its "inner core," forming its gravitational ring.

Defying conventional technological understanding, it tore through the atmosphere without creating significant disturbances. It broke through multiple sound barriers effortlessly, descending at tremendous speed over the Avengers' new headquarters outside New York City.

Swish!

A beam of light descended, hitting the ground. From it emerged two figures—one towering and robust, the other lean and wiry.

The wiry figure had a build comparable to an average human but with gray, stone-like skin marred by alabaster blotches, giving him an exceptionally grotesque appearance.

Despite his appearance, this figure was among the most powerful sorcerers in the universe. Even Doctor Strange, at his current level, had been no match for him, having been captured during a direct confrontation.

As for Wanda Maximoff, the chaos sorceress, she was still an inexperienced novice at this point, relying purely on the raw strength of her chaos magic to hold her own.

Compared to them, Ebony Maw—a sorcerer who had lived countless years—possessed far greater mastery over the mystical arts.

In the original storyline, he was the only "Child of Thanos" who almost succeeded in retrieving an Infinity Stone for Thanos. Unfortunately, his efforts were thwarted by the combined trickery of Iron Man and Spider-Man.

Beside him stood the massive figure of Black Dwarf.

Standing three meters tall, his body was covered in rippling muscles. He wore a suit of fitted armor and carried an enormous scythe that looked as heavy as it was menacing.

However, compared to Ebony Maw, Black Dwarf's reputation was far less impressive—plagued by constant failures and humiliation.

The two stood side by side.

Ebony Maw clasped his hands together in front of him like an old-fashioned gentleman, exuding an air of sophistication.

Black Dwarf, in stark contrast, planted his feet wide apart and slammed his massive scythe into the soft grass, leaving a deep pit in the lawn.

On the other side, Peter, Iron Man, and Captain America had already stepped forward. They stood about seven or eight meters away, facing the duo in a tense standoff.

Noticing Black Dwarf's destructive actions, Iron Man spoke up, "Hey, big guy, it's already rude enough to show up uninvited. Now you're ruining someone else's lawn? Do intergalactic citizens have no concept of manners?"

Ebony Maw gave Iron Man a fleeting glance before shifting his focus to Peter.

To be precise, he fixated on Peter's chest.

Peter was already suited up in his combat gear. To avoid the Eye of Agamotto swinging around and hindering his movements, he had tucked it inside his suit, creating a noticeable bulge at his chest.

It gave him an oddly striking resemblance to Ultraman.

"As far as I know, the Time Stone is supposed to be in the hands of a sorcerer named Stephen Strange or the Ancient One. Who are you?" Ebony Maw inquired.

"Oh, I'm the Stephen Strange you're talking about," Peter replied nonchalantly.

Before Ebony Maw could respond, Peter continued, "I've answered your question. Now, how about you answer one of mine? Surely, a distinguished Child of Thanos wouldn't lack such basic courtesy."

Ebony Maw replied, "While I know you're lying, as a gesture of gratitude for bringing me the Time Stone, I will answer one question. Go ahead."

"Where are Proxima Midnight and Corvus Glaive?" Peter asked. "Surely, as a Child of Thanos, you wouldn't stoop to lying like us lowly Earthlings, would you?"

(End of Chapter)

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