Ultimate Showdown

Thanos had barely opened his mouth when a blasting fist wind struck him head-on. A million-ton shockwave blasted the purple-skinned giant deep into the earth's crust, tearing apart continental plates and instantly turning the battlefield into a crater.

"My lord!" The Obsidian Generals sprang into action as one, only to be intercepted by three figures. Geryuganshoop's psychic barrier sealed off the battlefield. "Why don't you gentlemen play with us instead?"

Amid the smoke and dust, Thanos wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. His cosmic-grade armor had been reduced to powder, yet his ** purple muscles trembled with excitement. He stared at the purple gem embedded in his gauntlet, then suddenly burst into laughter. "Interesting! Then let's settle this with our bodies!"

Boros's regenerative tendrils danced wildly behind him. "Now that's more like it!" The two ultimate lifeforms simultaneously kicked off the ground, shattering it beneath their feet, and fists capable of pulverizing asteroids collided within the vacuum zone.

Boros slowly emerged in the distance. When he saw that Thanos was almost completely unscathed, he showed no anger. Instead, relief and delight filled his expression, along with a hint of jubilant excitement. "At first, I thought the fortune-teller's words were nothing but nonsense. After all, I had traveled through countless universes and never encountered an opponent capable of standing beside me." "But now, it seems those words were no joke. This planet truly has a formidable enemy equal to me." "I once rampaged through the universe without equal, yet no one dared resist me. Those days were unbearably dull."

He spoke plainly of his past, his weary and lonely tone carrying a trace of desolation. Perhaps this was what it meant to be lonely at the top.

Listening to Boros's monologue, Thanos quietly weighed his options. All this battle maniac sought was a satisfying fight. Perhaps Thanos could use that to forge an alliance and speed up the collection of the Infinity Stones. After all, the man before him was evenly matched with him in his normal state, while the three capable subordinates under Boros were no weaker than his own Four Obsidian Generals. If they formed an alliance, their combat power would surely multiply.

"A month ago, I received a prophecy and spent quite some time getting here..." "Though my subordinates all believed it was merely a pretext to drive us away..." Boros's lips curved upward slightly. "But now, I am completely certain! There really is an opponent here worthy of my full strength!" The long-lost thrill made his entire body tremble. The loneliness of standing at the pinnacle had haunted him for far too long.

"If I can arrange a battle that satisfies you, would you be willing to ally with me? The universe is filled with powerful beings. I can find them for you." "Fight me first, then we'll talk!" "As you wish."

Thanos tore the remnants of his armor from his body and casually tossed them aside, loosening his muscles as he prepared for this evenly matched contest. Across the entire universe, only Odin and his daughter Hela had ever been able to match him. Now, he restrained the Power Stone's might as surging energy flowed over his body—against ordinary opponents, his ** alone was enough to crush them. There was no need to draw upon his energy reserves. "Then let's begin."

[

**

The battle had entered its fiercest stage. Thanos, who had gathered all six Infinity Stones, no longer needed any other means. A single snap of his fingers could end everything.

"Stand firm. Don't tell me you can't even take one move!"

The energy gathering in his right arm grew increasingly violent, as though it had compressed all the surrounding air into a single point. Even from a great distance away, Boros could sense the terrifying power about to erupt.

Yet Boros neither dodged nor defended. Instead, he intended to take the attack head-on and test the true strength of this mysterious powerhouse.

In an instant, the extremely compressed air cannon exploded with a deafening blast, surging toward Boros like a flood. "Oh?"

The moment the energy blast struck his body, Boros's pupil contracted sharply. He was clearly taken aback by the sheer intensity of its power.

Driven by the terrifying impact, even though he tried his best to stabilize himself, he was still sent flying tens of thousands of meters before barely coming to a stop. His ornate armor also shattered completely under that strike, fragments peeling away one after another.

But to Boros, such an attack was merely a slightly weighty test. He hardly needed a moment to catch his breath before he was ready to continue fighting.

What shocked Thanos even more was that, after Boros's armor shattered, the energy fluctuations erupting from within him rapidly soared. He seemed like an entirely different person.

Thanos's armor existed purely for defense, but Boros's armor had been meant to suppress his own excessive power. "Armor used to seal my strength, shattered in one blow. Well done!" Boros stepped out of the thick smoke, his blue skin and red energy core fully exposed. "What an exhilarating level of power."

Thanos watched Boros's aura rise steadily and realized the situation had reversed. Boros, who had been slightly weaker while restrained by his armor, had now surpassed him. Without the Power Stone, it would likely be difficult to win today.

"Interesting! So interesting! This isn't your limit either, is it? As expected, you're powerful!" Boros stretched his body, battle intent boiling over. That attack had not only shattered his armor, but also made him feel an unfathomable pressure. His blood, dormant for so long, had finally begun to burn once more.

"Then let me see just how far I can go now!" Thanos threw a punch, erupting with all his strength!

A violent shockwave suddenly erupted. Like a tangible giant air cannon, it blasted straight through Boros's body, and even the aftershock could instantly erase an ordinary Dragon-Level calamity. "Is that all?"

"Such a flimsy attack!" Boros crossed his arms to block it as shards of broken armor rustled down through the gaps between his fingers. The one-eyed overlord after removing his limiter was utterly different from his armored form.

"Round two!" The muscles across Thanos's body bulged like coiling dragons. Ever since collecting the Infinity Stones, he had not experienced a battle that demanded his full strength in a long time. The purple figure suddenly tore through the air with a sonic boom.

"You can evolve further?!" Boros's single eye contracted as he faced fist force increasing at a geometric rate. His entire body instantly quantum-shifted and vanished from where he stood.

Boom—!

The instant their fists collided, a ring-shaped shockwave instantly vaporized every building within a thousand meters. The scorching particle stream melted the ground into a glass-like state. This had long surpassed the standards of a Dragon-Level disaster; any creature daring to approach would be reduced to ashes in million-degree heat.

"Keep going! Make it more intense!"

"That's right! This is how a ** should be, with flesh and blood flying everywhere!"

Thud! Thud!

Both their faces took heavy blows at the same time, their facial muscles twisting into bizarre ripples under the shockwaves. Their bodies became crimson meteors and flew backward, carving fiery trails hundreds of thousands of meters long through the atmosphere. Every clash triggered another awakening of power, like an endless race of evolution.

Whoosh—

Two afterimages continuously flashed through the stratosphere, every collision making the crustal plates groan. The three top officers who had been confronting the Four Obsidian Generals had long since fled to the far side of the planet, terrified of being caught in the scattered gamma-ray bursts.

"Is this... the Infinity Gauntlet fully unleashed?"

"Lord Boros hasn't even used Meteor ** yet..."

These powerhouses, renowned across the stars, could only curl up inside their protective barriers like ants watching a war between gods. Whether it was the Titan Tyrant or the Dark Matter Pirates, neither had encountered an opponent capable of making them burn themselves out for far too long. "Don't hold back! Show me true destruction!"

"You are the strongest opponent I have ever faced, even more terrifying than that Odin!" When their fists collided again, countless bloody streaks burst across Thanos's right arm and Boros's left arm as every capillary ruptured.

Such injuries meant nothing to two monsters with absurd regenerative abilities. They could recover completely in the blink of an eye. "If you don't get serious, you're going to lose, Thanos!"

Boros laughed wildly as he smashed meteor-crash force into Thanos's abdomen, driving him straight into the ground. The entire continent shook violently as shockwaves swept across a thousand miles.

A massive pit a thousand meters deep had been blasted into the surface, and the Black Order branch once stationed there had long since been reduced to ashes. But compared to such a rare opponent, a mere base was not worth mentioning. "Cough—"

Lying deep underground, Thanos felt every muscle in his body screaming. It had been a long time since he had experienced such a satisfying battle, and it was as though all the negative emotions he had suppressed for so long had found release.

He clearly realized that he would likely find it difficult to defeat this monster through ** strength alone. It seemed... he could only borrow a little external power.

The Power Stone on the Infinity Gauntlet around his left hand suddenly bloomed with a dazzling red glow. Even by drawing upon just a trace of its energy, Thanos could feel his strength surge dramatically. "Again, Boros!"

The power of this punch was incomparable to the last. The violent fist wind blasted Boros all the way to the other side of the planet, while his blocking arms vaporized the instant they came into contact. "Whew... He's not dead, right?"

Breathing heavily, Thanos muttered to himself. He intended to ally with Boros; killing him had never been his goal. "Wonderful! Now this is what I call a battle!"

Boros's wild laughter came from high above as he returned from the other side of the planet at an inconceivable speed. His regenerated arms gleamed with a metallic luster, his once pale-blue skin turning black, while the red glow at his core transformed into white patterns that spread across his entire body.

His aura was undergoing a qualitative transformation. "!!! Energy Release!"

"This... How is that possible?!"

Thanos's pupils shook violently. He had never expected Boros to be able to break through his limits again. In this state, it would be child's play for Boros to instantly kill him in his normal state.

Ultimate Showdown

This guy was completely insane!

"How terrifying, this guy!"

"Again! Let's decide this with those fist winds from before, Thanos!!"

"Then shatter for me, Boros!!!"

Two afterimages flickered through the vast space, moving so fast that not even their afterimages could be seen clearly.

They fought from deep within the planet's core to the ocean floor, then shot into the sky and began a fierce melee in midair.

In terms of strength, Boros with his Energy Release was slightly inferior to Thanos using the Power Stone.

But in speed, Boros completely overwhelmed his opponent.

"Haha! To think you can fight me in my Energy Release state to this extent!"

"I had never even heard of a powerhouse like you."

"Then remember this name forever—the universe's supreme ruler, Boros!"

<"Hah!"

"Ha!"

The two humanoid calamities battled above the planet, circling the entire world before returning to their starting point.

The skies along their path bore permanent scars, and the entire planet had long since become a scene of utter devastation.

Fortunately, there were no native inhabitants. Otherwise, the battle's aftershocks alone would have reduced everyone to ashes.

"It has been a long time since anyone fought me to this extent."

"I return those words exactly."

Both men panted heavily, clearly having expended a tremendous amount of energy.

Though both possessed extraordinary regenerative abilities, the intensity of this battle had made their recovery speed unable to keep up with their expenditure.

"Thanos! You are the first opponent who has fought me, Boros, this far!"

"Out of respect, I'll get a little more serious—"

"Ha!!"

Boros's pupil abruptly contracted as all the energy in his body gathered into a destructive beam that erupted from his chest.

Boom—!!!

The entire planet trembled beneath the torrent of energy, and countless new fissures tore across its surface.

At this rate, the planet would sooner or later be completely destroyed by the two of them.

"Any fodder would have been reduced to ashes by that move already." Boros's breathing grew heavier and heavier. "But you won't go down that easily, will you?"

Sensing the life force surging ahead of him, Boros bared his bloodstained teeth in a grin.

As expected of the opponent I personally chose, how could he be so easily defeated?

But after taking Boros's energy cannon head-on, Thanos's entire body was now charred black and covered in wounds. He had clearly suffered serious injuries as well.

"You still dare lose focus on the battlefield!"

Using the smoke and dust as cover, Boros suddenly flashed behind Thanos. His hand blade, carrying immense force, chopped straight toward the back of Thanos's neck.

"Hmph, he really is tough... But the victor has been decided."

As the dark-purple giant staggered, the one-eyed warrior had already leaped ten paces away. The sensation of Thanos's skull still lingered on his fingertips—its hardness had actually left the edge of his hand faintly numb.