Conversation with the Watcher

Zahao Giant Dome Temporary Command Center

A holographic projection unfolded before Chen Tian, revealing images of Shuri and Banner. "Chen Tian, we succeeded!" Shuri's voice pierced through the electronic noise. "The Mind Stone's resonant frequency has been cracked. The Watcher Platform's satellite array can now synchronously transmit corrective beams, directly covering the Zombie Virus's neural signals!"

Banner's virtual image adjusted his glasses. "Theoretically, this could restore basic cognitive functions in the infected—or at least stop their aggressive behavior."

"Global coverage time?" Chen Tian's fingers flew across the holographic keyboard.

"One hour." Shuri's projection flickered. "But it requires the cooperation of relay stations within the Global Defense System."

"Activate the 'World Purification Protocol'." Chen Tian looked up, and the star projection in the command center suddenly switched to a planetary map. "JARVIS, mobilize all on-orbit satellite resources."

"Command confirmed." JARVIS's voice rang out from all directions. "The Watcher Platform's 12 orbital formations and the Wakanda Vibranium network have completed link synchronization."

Chen Tian looked at the holographic projections of all the Arbitrators. Tony's armor had a severed limb hanging from it, 2B's 'Virtuous Contract' was stained with blood, Dante's Rebellion was leaning against his shoulder, Steve shook the blood off his shield, Deadpool did a backflip and landed on the ground, Bayonetta sat on top of the Giant Dome with her legs crossed...

"Gentlemen," Chen Tian chuckled, "Once the correction beam is activated, the zombie horde will revert to normal, so you can catch your breath."

Tony's laughter rang out. "This nightmare is finally coming to an end."

Suddenly, a blinding alarm blared from the holographic projection, and the red dots on the map began to go out en masse. Shuri's voice came through the speaker. "The beam is working! The infected's neural activity is returning to normal!"

JARVIS's report rang out, "A 99.9% decrease in Zombie Virus activity was detected globally, and the remaining 0.1% of the virus samples are autodegrading."

Chen Tian gazed at the world map gradually returning to calm on the projection, his red robe fluttering slightly in the air currents. "In one hour, all the infected will regain consciousness. We've succeeded."

Shuri's voice came through the speaker, filled with undisguised joy. "Chen Tian! Global purification is 100% complete! All infected individuals have ceased their attacking behavior!"

A cheer erupted from the command center. Chen Tian watched as the last red dot on the holographic projection went out, a slight smile finally appearing on his lips, "Notify all combat units to begin the second phase—the survivor rescue operation."

Before the cheers in the command center had subsided, Deadpool's projection suddenly burst into everyone's communication projections, making a "pause" gesture with two fingers.

"Wait, wait, wait, happy ending lovers," he lifted the Vibranium Suit's visor, revealing his red hood, on which the white eyes had transformed into two crescent moons.

"I have a small, trivial question that could ruin everyone's mood—" he cupped his cheeks in his hands, "Those poor souls who had half their faces bitten off, or those wretches who used their intestines as belts, now that the virus is gone, will they suddenly collapse and die, or will they become walking medical textbooks?"

The command center fell silent instantly. Tony's visor snapped open, revealing a complicated expression. "Damn it, we really hadn't considered this..."

Banner's projection suddenly flickered. "Theoretically... the Mind Stone's corrective beam can only repair nerve damage, not physical trauma..." His voice trailed off.

Shuri pulled up the data panel: "Approximately 23% of those infected in Japan have suffered limb injuries, of which 7% were fatal..."

Deadpool whistled. "Wow, so now we're facing millions of poor souls who suddenly wake up to find themselves missing limbs? This plot twist is even darker than anything DC's writers have ever written!"

Chen Tian gave another order, "JARVIS, immediately activate the third phase of the contingency plan—Global Trauma Medical Assistance. Tony, mobilize all nanomedical Medical Pod; we... save as many as we can."

Bayonetta nimbly leaped down from the height. "Looks like the party's going to be postponed~" She twirled her pistol, "But at least this time we don't have to fire, we'll just use bandages instead?"

Steve gripped his shield tightly. "This is harder than the battle itself—we have to save those who have already died once."

The first rays of the rising sun pierced through the smoke of battle, casting a golden veil over the city of Zahao.

The blue ion engines of the Medical Pod pierced through the morning mist, casting flowing spots of light across the devastated streets.

Steve's shield reflected the sunlight, illuminating a corner where a boy who had lost his right arm was futilely trying to plug a wound in his abdomen with his left hand, pale yellow liquid seeping from between his fingers.

"Sam! Three o'clock!" Before Captain America could finish speaking, Falcon's mechanical wings had already created a gust of air.

As they landed beside the boy, the medical robot was spraying hemostatic Utakata onto his wound with its robotic arm. Suddenly, the boy grabbed Steve's wristband, a long-lost clarity returning to his cloudy eyes. "I... remember I bit my mother to death..."

On the other side of the city, the Iceman knelt before a pile of frozen corpses. His power had frozen more than twenty infected people who were about to commit suicide into ice sculptures, which were now weeping in the sunlight.

"You clearly saved them..." His gloves were covered in frost, "But the first thing they did upon regaining consciousness was commit suicide."

Cyclops silently rubbed his temples, melting the ice on a woman's neck with his Heat Vision —she immediately used the shards of ice to slit her own artery.

(Falcon, Iceman, and Cyclops hadn't participated in the operation before. After the war, Falcon Captain America brought Falcon in to make him stand out in front of others. As for Iceman and Cyclops, although they joined the Arbitrators, they still listened to Professor X's advice. Professor X said it was to show ordinary people in the world that Mutants were friendly, so they also went to Zahao.)

At the Deathwing, Tony's reflection overlapped with the city ruins. A holographic screen scrolled real-time data: 42,751 people rescued, 189,204 confirmed beyond medical help, and the suicide rate continued to rise.

(Don't worry about the numbers, I just randomly pressed the numeric keypad.)

"Boss," F.R.I.D.A.Y. suddenly broke the silence, "Mr. Wade has hijacked the kitchen drone and is distributing burritos to the seriously wounded."

The atmosphere inside the cabin was so heavy it was almost palpable. Tony leaned against the bulkhead, his visor open, his eyes wearily fixed on the constantly changing casualty figures on the holographic projection. Natasha crossed her arms, her brows furrowed, her eyes filled with unbearable sorrow.

Only Chen Tian remained calmly standing by the porthole, his gaze indifferently overlooking Zahao City. His expression showed no pity, no anger, not even a flicker of emotion, as if everything below had nothing to do with him.

Deadpool suddenly hangs upside down from the top of the cabin.

"Hey, Commander Chen—" He waved the burrito in his hand, "I just gave a burrito to an old man who only had his upper body left, and he asked me, 'Can I have another one? Because he really only has half left now'—pretty funny, right?"

No one laughed.

Tony rubbed his temples. "Wade, now is really not the time."

"Oh, sorry, I forgot we're still in 'silence is golden' mode." Deadpool landed with a somersault. "But seriously, you all look so gloomy, it's like we lost. We won! The Zombie Virus is gone! The world is saved! It's just... uh, the price was a bit high."

"The price?" Natasha chuckled. "This city is like a rotten apple now, and we've only picked out the worms; the rest... is inedible."

Steve's voice came through the communicator, heavy with breaths. "Tony, we need more medical support. The survivors here... they won't last much longer."

Tony took a deep breath and looked at Chen Tian. "Chen Tian, can we get another batch of Medical Pod from Wakanda?"

Chen Tian didn't turn around, but simply replied, "It's already on its way."

"What about Vibranium repair technology? Didn't Shuri say before—" Tony asked, tapping on the holographic screen.

Chen Tian turned around. "I don't recommend using Vibranium technology, but..." He paused for a moment, "We can provide mechanical prosthetics first."

Tony's eyes lit up. "I happen to have designed a batch of basic styles."

"The power needs to be adjusted." Chen Tian looked at Tony, "You know about Japanese politicians and gangsters."

Tony nodded knowingly. "Understood, just a regular medical prosthesis will do, enough to ensure basic living functions."

At that moment, 2B suddenly spoke softly, "More than prosthetics... their Mind Stone need healing." Her voice was soft, but it silenced the cabin.

Chen Tian turned to look at her, and 2B immediately lowered her head, her artificial eyelashes casting small shadows on her face. Chen Tian didn't respond, but simply looked away—he knew that 2B had said those words because her emotional module was influencing her.

Even after following her for many years, the burning emotional program for humanity within her was still at work, even though she knew her Master hated Japanese people.

Chen Tian didn't say anything, but walked to 2B's side, put his arm around her shoulder, and used a bit of force to make 2B lean on his shoulder.

Kiana, standing to the side, gently stroked 2B's hair with her small hand, comforting her.

Deadpool suddenly poked his head out from behind his seat. "Wow, 2B is even more kind-hearted than us~ How about a comforting hug?"

Tony slapped his mask. "Shut up, Wade."

Arbitrator Tower, Malibu Base

After the group returned to the Arbitrator Tower, Tony pulled Yinsen into the medical equipment research lab.

In the research lab, holographic design drawings spun in the air. Yinsen adjusted his glasses, his fingers tracing the neural connection module of the prosthetic limb. "Power limited to 5%, can't even open a Coke bottle cap. Isn't the power too low?"

"Let's improve it a bit more. Not being able to open a bottle cap is too much. It won't even be able to lift heavy objects. I'll add a remote circuit breaker protocol inside." Tony typed on the keyboard, a red light flashing on the prosthetic design diagram. "If anyone tries to modify it, it'll turn into a brick."

In the Arbitrator Tower, in the conference hall, Natasha's holographic image moved through the United Harmony Congress hall, while the faces of representatives from various countries flickered in the blue light.

"Ladies and gentlemen," she said, her voice tinged with anger and reproach, "This is not a request for assistance, but a declaration of responsibility."

The projection switched to a live Zahao video: a little girl who had lost both legs was feeding water to an even smaller injured person with her arms. "Every hour you delay, more people will choose to jump from the hospital roof."

Before the representative from the Black Rooster Country could speak, Natasha had already pulled up the data stream. "By the way, global social media is live-streaming everyone's response speed. The hashtag # Human Civilization Test # has been viewed two billion times."

Arbitrator Tower - War Room

In the war room, Chen Tian sat in front of the holographic sand table, his fingers rhythmically tapping the tabletop. 2B and Kiana sat on the leather sofa, Kiana softly comforting 2B.

"So—" Deadpool did a somersault on the conference table, "Commander Chen, why aren't we having fun? What are we doing here???" His hood turned towards Chen Tian, his white eyepatch widening exaggeratedly, "Don't tell me you suddenly feel sad, dear Commander~"

Bayonetta, legs crossed, twirled a glass of red wine between her fingers. "Maybe it's because..." she took a sip of wine, "That she's thinking about how to stuff a chatterbox into Rocket and shoot him up to the sun?"

Suddenly, Dante pulled a Vibranium gag from his inner trench coat pocket and slammed it onto Deadpool's mouth. The gag immediately tightened, sealing the incessantly chattering mouth shut.

"Finally." Dante put his feet up on the table, Rebellion beside him hummed with satisfaction.

Deadpool frantically made protest gestures, but Chen Tian suddenly stood up.

"They've arrived."

Chen Tian walked to the platform outside the operations room and looked up at the sky.

On a clear afternoon, ripples suddenly appeared in the sky, as if someone had gently ripped the canvas of the world with their fingertips.

Chen Tian looked up at the empty blue expanse, his brows gradually furrowing.

"Uatu," his voice was cold, "If you continue to be so mysterious—I'll storm into your space and drag you out."

As soon as he finished speaking, countless stars lit up eerily under the blazing sun, the air began to distort, and the light bent as if being sucked into a black hole.

Starlight materialized before Chen Tian, and Uatu's silver-blue cloak moved without wind.

The Watchers's eyes reflected countless fragmented cosmic images, and his voice echoed like a thousand parallel worlds, "Chen Tian, do you know why I've come?"

Chen Tian sneered, "All I know is that Ultron and the Zombie Virus shouldn't exist in this universe." He stared intently at Uatu, "Your double standards as Watchers are truly well-deserved. You only observe, but don't interfere?"

Chen Tian pointed behind him, where Deadpool was being tightly bound by chains by Dante. "This guy is the one you threw here."

"Also, the coordinates of our universe were discovered by Ultron because of your interference, right?" Chen Tian narrowed his eyes, his gaze filled with killing intent.

"You know everything." The Watchers sighed. "Ultron, who collected all the Infinity Stones ... his destructive speed has exceeded predictions across all timelines."

"If left unchecked, the war of destruction will sooner or later spread to your universe."

Chen Tian crossed his arms. Although he disliked Uatu's unilateral decision-making, he was right. Ultron wanted to destroy the entire universe, so a battle was inevitable sooner or later.

"Now he doesn't even dare to show his face, he only dares to throw some zombies into our universe to test our bottom line, so how am I supposed to find him?" Chen Tian raised his chin slightly and looked down at Uatu.

"Ultron isn't absolutely certain he can defeat you," Uatu, looking at the group behind Chen Tian and his companions, "So you need to go find him."

"I don't trust you. I don't know if you just threw me into another dimension and then closed the dimensional portal." Chen Tian didn't trust this Watchers claimed to 'only observe and not interfere' at all.

"If you destroy Ultron, you will obtain all the Infinity Stones. Even if the dimensional portal closes, you can return."

"Ha, that's true, but," Chen Tian stared intently into Uatu's eyes, "How am I supposed to trust you?"

"The Celestials are planning to use the 'Celestial Hammer' on you, a weapon powerful enough to destroy a star system. I will help you stop it. The weapon will not be launched until you return, and the Celestials will not bother you."