Meanwhile, preparations were underway across the world.
Various materials were being purchased in massive quantities.
At the same time, many countries learned that Tony Stark's daughter would soon celebrate her first birthday.
Naturally, numerous governments began preparing to attend the event.
After all, Tony Stark was not someone they could afford to offend.
And now that Karl's warship had returned to Earth, his influence had only grown even greater.
Even if Karl himself had not returned, they would still have visited.
Stark Industries had already become a colossal corporation spanning multiple nations.
Maintaining a good relationship with Tony Stark was extremely important.
Ironically, Tony had no intention of inviting any political figures.
He only invited a few friends from Earth.
As for Happy Hogan, although he had not been fired, Tony had demoted him.
He was no longer Tony's personal bodyguard and had been reassigned as a security officer.
Tony understood that what had happened earlier wasn't entirely Happy's fault.
But the truth remained—
It was through Happy's actions that Dormammu's curse had reached Tony's child.
Tony couldn't simply pretend nothing had happened.
Not firing Happy outright was already a generous decision.
Meanwhile, the entire valley had turned into a massive industrial production center.
Countless machines operated day and night, manufacturing new element reactors in bulk.
Some of the reactors being produced were extremely large.
Tony had even used most of his wealth to purchase raw materials for reactor production.
At the same time, adamantium was also being synthesized continuously.
Technically, Karl could have used the Vast Knowledge Treasury to create adamantium or vibranium instantly.
But doing so would consume enormous amounts of energy.
Right now—
Karl was practically energy-poor.
He tried to conserve energy in almost everything he did.
If possible, he wished he could double or triple the output of his current stars.
Finding new stellar energy sources had become urgent.
Karl himself needed stellar radiation to evolve.
The Vast Knowledge Treasury also required tremendous energy.
Even the red energy crystals from Red Crystal's home planet had been used as auxiliary power sources.
But those crystals were also Ganata's favorite snacks.
Karl often had to feed her using the energy of the Infinity Stones.
At this point, Karl truly felt poor.
Even though he was growing stronger every day, he constantly worried about energy supply.
The Vast Knowledge Treasury could theoretically run on other energy sources—
But stellar energy remained the most common resource in the universe.
Even dark energy was relatively rare.
Stars were simply easier to obtain.
So Karl continued relying mainly on:
Stellar energyEnergy crystals
Just as Karl was worrying about this—
Something unexpected happened.
Pietro and Peter suddenly disappeared from Earth.
Karl sensed it instantly.
A trace of confusion appeared in his eyes.
They had vanished completely—
No trace remained even in the skies above Earth.
Karl immediately asked the Vast Knowledge Treasury for their location.
The result appeared instantly.
The Moon.
Karl sighed.
Then he disappeared from Tony's doorstep.
The next moment—
Karl appeared on the Moon.
Guided by the Vast Knowledge Treasury, he quickly arrived at a city hidden on the lunar surface.
Karl narrowed his eyes as he observed the city below.
Attilan.
The legendary city of the Inhumans.
Karl suddenly remembered something.
In the comics, Pietro Maximoff once married Crystal of the Inhumans, and the two even had a daughter.
Thinking of that, Karl's lips twitched slightly.
He flashed through the city's protective barrier and summoned his Golden Cloth armor.
However, Attilan was currently in chaos.
Battles were erupting throughout the city.
Soon Karl located Pietro and Peter.
They were standing beside a girl wearing a yellow dress, accompanied by a massive dog.
The girl was Crystal, an Inhuman princess who could control the four classical elements:
EarthAirFireWater
The giant dog beside her was Lockjaw, whose teleportation ability could even transport people between the Moon and Earth.
Peter looked nervous and hesitant.
Meanwhile, Pietro's eyes were practically glued to Crystal.
WHOOSH
Karl suddenly appeared above them.
"Relax, Peter."
"It'll be fine."
"I'm sure Karl and Wanda won't notice if we leave for a while."
"We'll go back after we help Attilan."
"Don't worry—I'll explain everything to Karl."
Karl heard Pietro speaking impatiently, clearly annoyed that Peter kept interrupting him while he was trying to impress Crystal.
Karl slowly descended.
Then he patted Peter lightly on the shoulder.
Afterward, he looked at Crystal.
"Really?"
"You're sure I wouldn't notice?"
Karl smiled faintly.
"It seems you've grown quite bold, Pietro."
"I'd love to hear your explanation."
"If I'm not satisfied…"
"I might freeze you for one hundred years."
Karl's tone was calm.
"After all, your lifespan isn't short anymore."
Pietro and Peter froze instantly when they heard Karl's voice.
They turned around stiffly.
When they saw Karl floating in the air wearing his golden armor, their faces turned pale.
Crystal's pupils shrank sharply as well.
She had once seen footage of Karl's battle with Captain Marvel.
She knew exactly how terrifying he was.
She never expected that the two strangers she had casually brought here were actually his companions.
"Uh… Karl!"
"You're here!"
Pietro laughed awkwardly.
"We were just here for some fun…"
"Really—you have to believe—AHHH!"
Before he could finish speaking—
A portal suddenly opened beneath his feet.
Pietro instantly began falling through the sky.
Karl had sealed all of his abilities.
Even his Kryptonian powers had been temporarily suppressed using the Self Stone.
"Aaaaaah!"
Peter sighed in relief—
Thinking he had escaped punishment.
But the next second—
A portal opened beneath his feet as well.
Peter immediately began falling through the air too.
Karl calmly turned his gaze toward Crystal.
"You're quite bold."
"Who told you to bring my people here to interfere with Inhuman affairs?"
Karl released a portion of his aura.
The pressure of a Single-Universe-level being descended instantly.
Crystal and Lockjaw were forced to the ground.
At the same time, every Inhuman across the city collapsed under the overwhelming pressure.
However, Karl quickly withdrew his aura.
Crystal looked like she was about to say something.
But before she could speak—
A sonic attack struck Karl.
Karl glanced calmly in that direction.
He already knew who it was.
Black Bolt.
The silent king of the Inhumans.
His power had reached roughly Sub-Celestial level.
BOOM—!
Karl merely glanced at him.
The next instant—
Black Bolt was blasted backward, crashing through multiple buildings behind him.
...
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