Tao Yu looked around the bustling Asgard, feeling a twinge of emotion in his heart.
To be honest, right now, the number of people he could truly trust with absolute certainty was pitifully small.
There were only the little rich woman and her group, plus some legitimate line members of the Suns. Even among the Suns, not everyone could be trusted without question.
In some sense, characters from these various worlds, due to their established personas, were much more reliable than the Pioneers.
This was why, in the Old Development Area, both the Chosen Ones and the Fortune Thieves could be utilized so effectively.
As long as they weren’t the type with a penchant for world destruction, it was fine...
In Asgard, Tao Yu had gone through a considerable amount of ancient texts and records, ultimately verifying what Odin had shared.
This left him feeling a bit regretful. It seemed that locating the Ethereum Particle at this moment was still quite difficult.
"But judging by the timeline, it should only be a matter of one or two years. As things loosen up further, we’ll find the flaw eventually. Alternatively, I could collect the other gemstones first and use their interconnected properties to capture the last one."
The flow of time in this world was different from the outside, so Tao Yu didn’t mind waiting.
Now that the Ancient One and Odin had both joined their side, the perfect setup had already been achieved.
Under such circumstances, it was worth trying to collect the other gemstones in advance.
At this point, Thanos without the Infinite Gems was hardly a real threat to him.
Leveraging the Space Gem, Tao Yu flickered across the cosmos and returned to Earth, landing on the top floor of Stark Tower.
Although Stark Tower was still in New York—where a large number of Ziritans swarmed the sky at the time—the building’s defenses were exceptionally strong. Compared to the destruction nearby, it had suffered almost no damage.
Tony was currently working with Dr. Pym and a revived Banner, studying the Life Stele.
Seeing Tao Yu return, Tony immediately grumbled.
"So you finally decided to come back? You’re just going to leave this thing for us? And what about that big-headed freak? Still busy working on your pet project?"
"Hmm, when it comes to the Quantum Domain, Dr. Pym has more expertise. I’ll bring him in."
As Tao Yu browsed through their experimental records, he combined [Truth Analysis] with his own enlightenment bonus.
While his research ability couldn’t quite match these similarly overpowered individuals, absorbing and processing their completed findings was no problem for him.
While speaking, Tao Yu casually swiped his hand, conjuring a portal to the mining laboratory. He called out to the Big Boss inside,
"Dr. Pym and Banner are here. If it’s not a critical moment over there, come over and introduce yourself."
The Big Boss put down his work and stepped through.
When Banner saw the Big Boss, although the latter’s appearance had become distorted, he still recognized him as the online acquaintance who had once helped him resolve certain issues.
"It’s been a while, Dr. Banner."
The Big Boss regarded Banner as if studying a rare treasure.
Afterward, he turned to Dr. Pym and began to exchange pleasantries.
While the newcomers were getting to know one another, Tao Yu continued flipping through the results and casually asked Tony,
"How are things lately? This time, all the issues should be mostly resolved, right?"
"You’ve turned into that kind of monster, and you think things wouldn’t get resolved? The Earth Unified Government is practically about to be established."
Tony responded with a wearied tone of exasperation.
"Do you have any idea how much damage you caused during that strike from the heavens?"
"You practically blew up the entire planet..."
"That Black bastard really knows what he’s doing."
When Tao Yu heard Tony recount the recent events, he found himself a little surprised.
Nick Fury had actually succeeded in becoming Secretary-General of the UN.
Moreover, he had seized the opportunity to launch a thunderous assault on the remnants of Hydra and Anbrella.
He had also taken decisive action against organizations like Kingpin and the Hand-to-hand Combat Association, dismantling and eliminating them.
The memory of Baron Strucker’s conversation with the Ziritans was still fresh in everyone’s mind.
While there were plenty of covert traitors, there was no future left for such openly treacherous entities selling out Earth.
First, he had kidnapped the Crown Prince of Asgard, and now he was colluding with extraterrestrials.
Baron Strucker’s fortress had been located, obliterated by the Avengers, and the Baron himself had committed suicide on the spot.
"But his last words bother me a bit. He said that Earth was doomed to destruction, and a world without him wasn’t worth existing in."
Tony brought this up with Tao Yu, sharing his unease.
This caused Tao Yu to frown slightly. He then casually began performing a divination.
Fragments of images emerged, forming in his vision.
The Red Queen’s holographic projection appeared coldly and emotionlessly,
’All humans on Earth will perish. The Doomsday Plan has already been initiated...’
But soon after, the images dissolved into countless snowy static points. The divination using Agamotto’s Orb had been interrupted!
"Such interference... it’s the Abyss."
Tao Yu frowned deeply. The Abyss was indeed obsessed with ending worlds, but there must have been some additional factor at play.
He then turned to the Big Boss, who had just finished introductions, and asked,
"Did you mess with the Red Queen in some way?"
The Big Boss, who had been eyeing Banner’s arms as though contemplating drawing some of his blood, turned back at Tao Yu’s question.
"What? Did your divination detect interference from her?"
The Big Boss’s reaction was exceedingly sharp, and Tao Yu immediately realized that this guy had definitely tampered with the Red Queen.