Facing Thanos

"All right, the question now is, who's going to make this damn snap?"

Hearing that, Lin Xu huddled silently in an empty corner. Right now, he only had Spider-Man's physique. There was no way he could try to be a hero!

Fortunately, he hadn't been part of the group for long, and with the Soul Stone's power at work, no one looked his way.

After some debate, Doc Green ultimately took on the task.

Snap~

As he snapped his fingers, Lin Xu felt a strange ripple spread out from the gauntlet.

With power as its source, the mind as its guide, and the soul as its foundation, it crossed time and space to change existing reality!

As Dr. Banner fell, Lin Xu hurried forward, pried the Time Stone from the gauntlet Hawkeye had kicked away, and slipped it into the Eye of Agamotto.

Everyone's attention was on Doc Green, and Lin Xu moved quickly, so no one noticed.

Once the compound's defenses opened, Lin Xu left. He knew Thanos' Army would soon unleash a fierce bombardment on the place.

Since there would be no casualties, he didn't intend to warn them. They had to understand the price of meddling with time.

Sure enough, less than half a minute later, Lin Xu, now dozens of kilometers away, finally saw this universe's behemoth!

Sanctuary II!

The ship stretched across the sky with a wingspan of dozens of kilometers, blocking the sun over the entire area. The sky... went dark!

Boom~~

In the enormous blaze, the sky... lit up again!

"Holy crap, good thing I got out fast. But how did Hawkeye survive an attack like that?"

The bombardment soon stopped. A beam of light shot from the ship to the ground, and the Thanos of 2014 made his entrance.

Lin Xu touched the Eye of Agamotto on his chest and chuckled. "Fight, go on and fight. Even if you beat the shit out of each other, it'll be useless."

Clang~~

Holding Gungnir, he tapped it lightly. In just five breaths, the gold-and-gray Grani came charging in from the north.

"Good horse, this is our first time fighting side by side. Are you scared?"

"Neigh, neigh~"

"Ah, looks like I'll have to find a chance to visit Asgard. I need to learn Pegasus language, and that Groot language too, and Runes! Come on, let's take our time getting there. Once they're almost done fighting, we'll make our entrance as saviors!"

"Neigh, neigh~"

Meanwhile.

Captain America asked over the comms, "Anyone hurt? Where's the gauntlet?"

Hawkeye, who had been rescued by the good Nebula, replied, "Captain, I've got the gauntlet, but... one of the stones is missing. It might have fallen out somewhere during the impact."

"Look around. We don't have time. He's waiting for us!"

"Who?"

"Thanos..."

The battle was about to erupt!

Thor had grown complacent over the past five years. Although he had been training recently, he still hadn't returned to his peak. Against a furious Thanos, the hammer, the shield, and Iron Man were defeated in mere moments!

Tony was hit by friendly fire, Thor was knocked down, and the Vibranium Shield was shattered!

Their only shining moment came from Captain America and his hammer-and-shield combo, but that was all.

"Everyone, miss me?"

At last, Lin Xu rode onto the battlefield on his warhorse, spear in hand!

"Uncle!" Thor smiled where he lay. It was his second smile since Captain America had picked up Mjolnir. He didn't know how strong this uncle of his was, but he knew how sharp Gungnir was!

At the same time, Thanos finally grew a little wary at Lin Xu's arrival. He sensed several deadly auras emanating from this man.

They were things capable of killing him!

Determined to strike first, Thanos raised the Tyrant's Butcher Blade and slashed at Lin Xu.

Without hesitation, Lin Xu slapped Grani's rump, and the horse immediately carried him into the sky. As a noble mage, only an idiot would fight in close combat!

His strike missed, but Thanos was undeterred. Looking up at Lin Xu, he grabbed the Tyrant's Butcher Blade and hurled it at him.

Lin Xu: ...

At this point, he was too speechless to even complain. He seriously suspected that Marvel's writers had all been javelin throwers. Why did everyone keep throwing things around?

Watching the butcher blade fly toward him, Lin Xu raised a hand and cast Shield of the Seraphim, but he had clearly underestimated the strength of the Titans race.

The Tyrant's Butcher Blade was deflected, but the energy shield shattered completely under the blow. The shockwave from the collision even knocked Grani back dozens of meters!

Lin Xu had no idea whether Thanos' wrist armor used some kind of advanced technology, but with a beckoning gesture, the Tyrant's Butcher Blade returned to his hand. Then he threw it again.

"Again?"

Fine!

This time, Lin Xu went straight for the advanced version, Hoggoth's Hoary Hosts.

An enormous spectral white tiger suddenly appeared above the Avengers Compound, sacred and imperious!

The moment the Tyrant's Butcher Blade flew toward it, the tiger caught it in its jaws.

But Lin Xu had clearly forgotten one thing...

When the energy used Hoggoth's Bone Armor as a medium to cast the mystic art, the Flame of Vengeance he had placed inside the armor was activated!

A ghastly pale flame burst from the spectral tiger's eyes, engulfing its entire body in the blink of an eye.

Lin Xu: ????

Then the tiger spirit looked at Thanos and spoke in a human voice!

"You! Are guilty! Look into my eyes and feel their pain!"

For some reason, Thanos couldn't help looking into its eyes when he heard those words.

In those eyes, he saw the members of his race he had slaughtered, Gamora's people, and Nebula's people!

"I am guilty!"

Lin Xu: ...

But it lasted only a moment before Thanos came to his senses. There wasn't a trace of remorse in his eyes, only unwavering conviction in his lofty ideals!

"I! Am not guilty!"

"Hahaha, how interesting!"

Just then, a strong smell of sulfur spread across the battlefield. At some point, an elegant old man in a tailcoat had appeared among them!

The newcomer was none other than the Hell Lord Mephisto.

Lin Xu looked at Mephisto, then at the giant spirit tiger above him.

"Mephisto, that wasn't fair of you!" Lin Xu had known all along that a cunning old fox like Mephisto would have a backup plan. He had intended to find a way to tame the Flame of Vengeance after going to another universe. How could he have expected to activate it here by accident?

"Boy, have you forgotten who I am? You actually thought a demon would keep his word!" Mephisto tapped the ground with his cane, and a throne appeared out of thin air. He sat down slowly and continued.

"Besides, I have to thank you. Just now, I felt them return. Hell can flourish as it once did again. I didn't expect you to do it so quickly! Boy, I'm starting to appreciate you. How about working for me?"

"No thanks. Are you really going to compete with the Vishanti for me?" Lin Xu pointed at the Eye of Agamotto and Hoggoth's Bone Armor on his chest.

"Hahaha, so what if..." Mephisto, who had been about to spout some tough words, suddenly stopped, because he saw a glint of green in the Eye of Agamotto.

Watching the two of them chat as though no one else were present, Thanos finally lost his patience!

"Fleet! Open fire!"