"Son of Thanos, from this moment on, you will be consumed by the vortex of regret."
Under the boundless darkness, black tentacles mixed with lightning stretched out from the mist, lashing everyone, including Beckett and Hela.
The scent of Dreamflowers wafted across the plains of Svartalfheim. The Chitauri soldiers, having inhaled the hallucinogenic gas, raised their weapons again and began slaughtering each other. In less than two minutes, blood flowed freely, and mechanical parts lay shattered on the ground.
"Do you regret it?"
"I never regret." Beckett crudely tore off the giant tentacles attempting to wrap around his arm, ignoring the black blood splashing onto his lips.
"Is that so?"
Malekith's figure was completely invisible in the boundless darkness. Beckett could only rely on the life-force sensors on Woz's light screen and his own combat instincts to deal with the attacks of this Dark Elf King.
As the seal weakened, Malekith's power, connected to the Aether, grew increasingly formidable. The most direct manifestation was that as time passed, Beckett, who was on the defensive, began to feel the pressure.
Pressure so heavy it could cost him his life.
"His Highness Beckett, please disengage from combat and leave this area as soon as possible!"
"His Highness Beckett, please disengage from combat and leave this area as soon as possible!"
"His Highness Beckett, please as soon as possible..."
Woz's alarm sounds repeatedly echoed in Beckett's ears, showing rare and intense emotional fluctuations.
"Woz has detected a large convergence of Mind Stone isotopes. According to the analysis, it is the same energy used by Elrod in the Asgardian outpost. If you do not disengage from combat now, you may be in mortal danger."
"It's just Infinity Stones."
Beckett's heart rate gradually quickened, his eyes filled with eager excitement. On the U40 Planet, he had already fought Shafrin, who controlled some of the Mind Stone's power. Beckett was not flustered by the invisible Malekith before him; at most, it was the power of the Reality Stone.
"His Highness Beckett, please do not act on your own. Malekith's power has exceeded Woz's detection limit. The situation is very dangerous now."
As Beckett's dedicated combat support intelligent life form, Woz directly presented the fact that Malekith's energy was still surging to Beckett, even comparing it with the data from Shafrin on the U40 Planet, highlighting Malekith's strength after being empowered by the Aether.
"Trying to leave?"
"It's too late."
Malekith's figure suddenly appeared beside Beckett, his hoarse voice like a demon's whisper, accompanied by the cascading gem energy that all blasted towards Beckett's chest!
"In fact, I should thank you." Malekith, intoxicated by the power of the Aether, opened his arms, embracing the air of Svartalfheim.
"If it weren't for you, I might have had to wait until I fought Odin on Midgard to absorb the life energy of those soldiers."
"Now, to thank you, I will let you truly experience the terrifying power of the Aether that you so desperately seek."
As soon as he finished speaking, Malekith clenched his right fist. Beckett, who had been blasted into the ground by the gem energy, felt the terrain around him instantly change.
With the unique fragrance of the soil, the plains of Svartalfheim buried Beckett in an instant!
"His Highness Beckett!!!"
The Other, who had finally broken free from the dark tentacles, was kicked by the shifting terrain to Malekith's side. Witnessing the moment Beckett was submerged by the prairie soil, he screamed in shock.
"Meow~"
The orange cat, which had automatically jumped down from The Other's arms, tilted its head and carefully observed Malekith, twitching its nose as if sniffing something interesting.
"Beckett!"
A similarly astonished voice descended with a silver warhammer. Hela, facing Malekith, picked up the divine artifact bestowed by her father, Odin—Mjolnir.
*BOOM!!!*
A silvery energy wave erupted from within, instantly shattering the ground covered in black mist. Beckett, with a trickle of blood at the corner of his mouth, roared, his surging aura and an unstoppable body charging towards Malekith!
*CRACK!*
A punch filled with rage was easily blocked by the dark energy condensed in front of Malekith.
"Is this all the power you have?"
"This doesn't match the grand claims you made earlier."
Malekith stood with his hands behind his back, smiling. Reality changed again according to his will. Black tentacles emerged from the hazy black mist, coiling around Beckett's body.
Sharp objects, like teeth, pierced Beckett's skin, continuously draining his life force. An unprecedented sense of dread suddenly surged in his heart!
"Ah~~~"
"This is the feeling~"
Malekith, with his eyes closed, spoke with enjoyment. The unique life force characteristics within Beckett, different from this universe, brought Malekith immense surprise.
"You fellow..."
As one of the parties involved, Beckett could naturally sense the changes in his body. Woz's alarm screen on his right eye flashed frantically, but Beckett was firmly locked by the substance formed by the Aether, unable to move, allowing the giant tentacles to continuously drain his life force.
*SQUELCH!*
The sound of a blade piercing flesh!
Beckett felt his body lighten and then quickly reacted, shattering the black tentacles wrapped around his body.
"Hela?"
"Don't misunderstand. In fact, I wish you were dead, but if you die here now, it will be very troublesome for me."
Hela, wielding Mjolnir, retracted the magic golden sword from her left hand and stood in front of Beckett, her face cold.
It was too difficult for her alone to handle Malekith, whose body was infused with Aether.
"Tsk." Beckett pouted unhappily, remaining silent. Malekith's power was indeed beyond his expectations, nowhere near comparable to Shafrin on the U40 Planet.
However, only then would the battle be interesting!
Beckett's eyes, far from showing fear, were instead filled with boundless fighting spirit.
Thanks to the Nutrient Fluid he'd been immersed in since childhood, Beckett, despite having some of his life force siphoned, was still lively and appeared completely unaffected.
"Daughter of Odin?" Malekith frowned, then made all his tendrils avoid Hela and attack Beckett. Knowing that Asgardians grew stronger with age, he had no intention of creating trouble for himself.
However, "Just the two of you?" Malekith's terrifying face was full of disdain. As soon as he spoke, the entire dark world trembled.
Lightning, like dancing demons, struck down one after another, the thunder deafening;
Mountains resembling ancient beasts became magical in reality, their wildly swaying branches continuously lashing at everyone's hearts!
"His Highness Beckett! Please retreat quickly along the route Woz has planned for you!"
"His Highness Beckett! Please retreat quickly along the route Woz has planned for you!"
Beckett's chest heaved like a bellows, sweat mixed with crimson blood dripping onto the ground. His face showed a visible sign of aging, and his physical functions were gradually declining as his life force was siphoned by the lightning and tendrils.
With this decline, Malekith, who was steadily breaking through the last seal of the Aether by absorbing life force, unhurriedly enjoyed Beckett and Hela's dying struggle.
"His Highness Beckett! Please—"
"Shut up, Woz." Panting, Beckett immediately deactivated Woz. With a wave of his hand, two bottles of green Nutrient Fluid appeared. He drank one and threw the other to Hela, who had fallen beside him.
Although Hela wasn't losing life force, her wounds were very real.
"Hey, are you going to die or not?"
Hela, having received the Nutrient Fluid, smashed the various materialized monsters in front of her with her hammer. Leaning against Beckett, she asked in a deep voice.
"I won't die even if you do." His weakened bodily functions quickly recovered with the help of the Nutrient Fluid. Beckett's answer was the same as when they first met on the border plains of Jotunheim.
"I can fight like this all day."
"What a coincidence, me too."
...
Centaurus Galaxy, Dark Order, inside the base.
Thanos' loyal subordinate, Ebony Maw, stood at the foot of the stairs, reporting the anomaly of Beckett's fluctuating physical functions to the man on the throne.
"Loss of life force?"
"Yes, Lord Thanos. Beckett is very likely in danger this time." Ebony Maw, below the stairs, was respectful and also mentioned the loss of contact with Woz.
"I understand. You may go."
To Ebony Maw's confusion, Thanos did not make a swift decision this time, unlike during the previous incident on the U40 Planet.
"Yes, Lord Thanos."
After Ebony Maw left, Thanos, who had been silently contemplating on the throne for a long time, finally stood up. His gaze fixed on the desolate scenery outside the base, as if he could see Beckett's current state across several galaxies.
"This is a path you must walk, Beckett."
"Years of smooth sailing have caused your body to stagnate..."
"Only by being infinitely close to death can one truly understand the meaning of life."
"Beckett, what will you do?"
I stayed up late watching a movie, so the double update is a bit late. I'll make up the third chapter tomorrow~
By the way, Nezha is awesome! Highly recommend it!!!
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