No Way Out

Kino's attitude, the unprecedented solemnity in his words, and his description of an enemy that would destroy all forms of existence, were like a bucket of ice water poured over everyone's hearts.

This is not a crisis like any other before, nor is it caused by a powerful enemy or force; it is an attempt to annihilate the world itself!

Even the usually carefree Tony had completely lost his smile at this moment, his eyes filled with solemnity and... a hint of barely perceptible fear, not for himself, but for the people he cherished.

"Leader.

Tony's voice rang out, devoid of its usual teasing tone, replaced by an almost pleading seriousness. He even refrained from calling him "Kino" and instead used the most formal form of address.

"I will not run away. My life, my wisdom, my armor are all on this ship. I will fight them to the bitter end!"

His voice trembled slightly, almost imperceptibly.

"But Morgan and Pepper didn't choose this war. Could we send them to another universe? At least give them a chance?"

His gaze toward Kino was filled with the pleading of a father and husband.

This is the only way out he wants to protect at this moment.

All eyes in the conference room instantly focused on Tony, then immediately turned to the head of the table.

General Zod frowned, Loki's eyes flickered, Professor Charles sighed, Magneto remained silent...

No one laughed at Tony's request. In the face of absolute destruction, seeking a glimmer of hope for loved ones is the most instinctive human reaction.

Or perhaps they share this idea.

Send their families to another universe for refuge; if they lose, their families can survive.

Kino's gaze fell on Tony, and he remained silent for a moment.

This brief silence felt like an eternity to Tony, and a very bad premonition crept into his heart.

Then, Kino slowly shook his head.

"Tony."

His voice remained calm, yet carried a despairing heaviness.

"I understand your request. But..."

His gaze swept over everyone present.

There is no other universe.

"Outside the universe?"

Tony repeated it subconsciously, his face turning deathly pale as a terrifying thought took shape in his mind.

"That's right."

Kino's voice was like a final verdict.

Their goal is everyone.

They are not trying to erase a single planet, a single dimension, or a single bubble of the universe, but the entirety of the concept of 'universe'!

"We have no way out, we have no other choice."

"Either win, or... perish with everything!"

There is no turning back.

Everyone felt unprecedented pressure and despair at that moment.

But soon, a flame reignited in their eyes.

A mad flame fueled by anger and determination, born from being driven to the brink of Extremis.

"Now, return to your positions! Give it your all! Become stronger! Prepare for battle! And then... achieve victory!"

The doors to the conference hall burst open with a roar, and war beasts, like arrows released from a bow, rushed toward their respective home turf.

Kino stood alone in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, his golden eyes piercing through the city, through the atmosphere, and through the endless sea of stars, as if he could see the terrifying shadow that intended to destroy everything.

"Come on, Thanos!"

"This time I will kill you completely."

Kino then arrived at a villa in the Himalayas.

Kino naturally pushed open the door and went inside. It wasn't a spacious living room, but a study filled with books.

A blonde woman in a white robe is writing something at a desk.

Kino walked over and took a look, then his lips twitched.

Magic Homework?

"Hey Yao, at a time like this, you still have the mind to write this?"

"Master, you said this is necessary learning."

Yao finished writing the last word, closed the homework, and handed it to Kino with a smile in her eyes.

"Necessary learning..."

Kino sighed and tapped the magic notebook he had left behind with his finger.

"Yao, do you know what time it is? Even Tony Stark has forgotten about his banter; everyone is preparing to fight for their lives."

And I should be desperately gathering fighting forces to prepare for the war to come, even you..."

Yao interrupted Kino.

"Even I have to go to the battlefield, but Master, you have some anxiety right now, and this kind of emotion is not conducive to solving problems."

"Especially in times like these, you need to calm down, and correcting homework is a great way to do that."

Kino looked at Yao, whose young face already possessed wisdom beyond his years. The flickering firelight from the fireplace in the study was reflected in his clear blue eyes, as if the cataclysmic disaster sweeping across the entire multiverse outside was just an insignificant snowstorm.

"I didn't expect to get lectured by you in the end."

Kino walked to the desk, pulled out a chair, sat down, and began to carefully peruse the book.

"Those who are accomplished are teachers."

Yao's voice was calm. She stood up and placed a cup of hot tea next to Kino.

Yao sat back down in her seat, picked up another book, and began reading quietly.

Kino's fingertips traced a rune chain with a clearly miscalculated energy node, his brow furrowing slightly.

He picked up the quill pen dipped in magical ink from the table, drew a simple cross over the mistake, and added a note next to it.

"Energy overflow at node three, see... If you repeat this mistake, you will be punished by copying the <Space Stabilization Spell> one hundred times."

He himself was stunned for a moment when he put pen to paper.

Such criticism, at this moment, was so absurd it made him want to laugh.

However, as he finished annotating the page, his gaze inadvertently swept over the flawed model that Yao had just derived, and a faint flash of inspiration suddenly appeared in his mind.

That erroneous energy dissipation path... although completely contrary to fundamental theory and causing the model to collapse, its direction of dissipation and the resulting spatial ripple pattern... bore an extremely vague, almost opposite, resemblance to a certain incomprehensible, chaotic energy turbulence he had recently observed when watching Thanos?

He suddenly raised his head and looked at Yao.

Yao seemed to sense his gaze and looked up from her book with a questioning look in her eyes.

"Master?"

Kino did not answer immediately.

He lowered his head again, staring intently at the erroneous deduction he had sentenced to "death." Deep within his golden pupils, countless complex magical runes and cosmic star maps began to swirl, deduce, and compare wildly.

An indescribable feeling gripped him—not that he had found an answer, but rather... a possibility?

A tiny, perhaps even illusory, breakthrough?