Chapter 187: Chapter 182
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"Wait a minute! The Quantum Realm!"
Tony Stark's eyes suddenly widened as he finally reacted. The old diary had mentioned that the Ant-Man family was researching the Quantum Realm, even entering it and defeating Kang within it. Back then, Tony was curious about what methods they used to come into contact with and even enter the Quantum Realm. After all, the Quantum Realm seemed like another dimension, intangible and invisible.
But now, it seemed so clear — it's just about shrinking oneself. Shrinking to the molecular, atomic, or even subatomic level. Theoretically, when you shrink to such a level, wouldn't you naturally reach the quantum level and enter the Quantum Realm?
"Dammit!"
Tony Stark couldn't help but be astounded. Could Ant-Man indeed shrink himself to such an extent? If he truly could achieve all of this, then the danger was much greater than Tony had imagined. Just as the diary had stated, it touches the microscopic level and isn't the same thing at all.
Even without shrinking to that extreme level, Ant-Man's scale alone could be a huge threat. For example, Deadpool from Universe 12101 who shrank a bomb into coffee for the Avengers to drink.
"Hiss!" Tony couldn't help but feel a chill down his spine. Although he didn't understand why Deadpool targeted the Avengers in that universe, those Avengers died horrifically. Weren't they all blown to pieces?
The diary had also mentioned that Ant-Man once wiped out the entire original Avengers. Tony had found it unbelievable at the time. Now, understanding Ant-Man's true skills, Tony realized it wasn't exaggerated at all. In a situation where he could shrink himself, there were so many ways he could silently take them all out. Even for Tony Stark, it would be impossible to guard against.
After all, if Ant-Man shrinks himself to a certain extent, even the Iron Man suit would be useless, completely defenseless. In an instant, Tony's previous disregard for Ant-Man turned into extreme caution. Even so, Tony never imagined that Pym Particles could also affect Thor's hammer! That was an artifact! It contained divine power or the magic of gods! Could Pym Particles really overrule that?
That was mind-blowing. If divine artifacts couldn't resist Pym Particles, what about the gods themselves? Although the diary didn't give a definitive answer, Tony thought it was possible.
"Pym Particles! Ah, I get it now! I should have thought of this sooner! So foolish of me!"
"I've found the method to deal with the Celestial buried inside Earth!"
"Ha! Probably no one else knows that there's actually a Celestial hidden within Earth!"
"Earth, used as a womb to nurture a Celestial. What a grand scheme by the Celestials."
"Marvel's people are so pitiful."
"Even if they survived all sorts of major events and Thanos's snap, Earth would still be destroyed."
"After all, a Celestial has to break out of its shell!"
"Besides the Eternals, who else could stop this?"
"What!"
"So, that embryonic Celestial has been hidden inside the Earth?"
Tony was completely taken aback by this heavy revelation. The diary had previously mentioned that an embryonic Celestial was hidden on Earth and would be born after Odin's death. In other words, another Celestial would appear on Earth in the future!
This tidbit of information was taken seriously by Tony, Nick Fury, and the others, but they were powerless. They had no knowledge about the Celestials. What did the embryonic Celestial look like? How was it nurtured on Earth, through eggs or birth? There was no information at all. In such circumstances, trying to find out anything seemed impossible.
Now, the diary finally provided some answers. But Tony could never have imagined that the Celestial's nurturing was so shocking and cruel that he found it hard to accept. The Celestials used the entire Earth as a womb for rearing their young? This meant the embryonic Celestial would need to absorb Earth's "nutrients" as it grew. Though Tony didn't understand the exact process, one thing was certain: The transformation had to follow the law of conservation of energy. The massive energy required to transform from an embryonic Celestial to a young Celestial had to come from Earth somehow.
Such circumstances spelled disaster. The Earth would likely be destroyed, definitely destroyed. The diary stated clearly that the Celestial's birth involved "breaking out of its shell." What an eloquent and vivid metaphor. Tony could even picture the scene. Inside the Earth, the mature Celestial opening its eyes and then extending its hand to shatter the entire planet!
And then, amid Earth's ruins, the Celestial would stride out into this world.
"Gulp!"
Just imagining it made Tony feel breathless, as if a heavy stone pressed on his chest. This was Earth's future? So grim!
"Celestial!"
With eyes wide open, Tony whispered the name. He had always believed Thanos was the Avengers' greatest enemy, Earth's greatest threat. But now, it seemed the Celestials were the true threat! After all, Thanos only wanted to kill half of Earth's population, but the Celestials would destroy the Earth altogether.
Tony silently decided in his heart that he must stop the Celestials. But how? The Celestials were super-beings even Odin couldn't defeat!
"Eternals?" Seeing the diary's answer, Tony raised an eyebrow.
"Aren't the Eternals created by the Celestials? How can they be this powerful? Tony even once asked Thor about them. According to Thor, the Eternals are strong, but they're supposed to be on the same level as Thor. They can handle the Celestials?
But regardless, if the diary says so clearly, then the Eternals must be capable of such things. So Tony now has another important task: to find the Eternals!
And aside from the Eternals, Zhou Cheng mentioned another method: Pym Particles. Are they planning to use Pym Particles to shrink the embryonic Celestial?
From an operational standpoint, it seems quite convincing. But the key question is, can Pym Particles work on the Celestials? That loops back to the earlier question: can Pym Particles work on artifacts, and therefore gods? Or even beings above gods?
'But now, I think maybe we could try using Pym Particles! If we shrink Tiamut at the moment it is about to break free, wouldn't that save the Earth? We wouldn't have to kill Tiamut, and Earth would be saved—a win-win situation. I don't believe Arishem would judge Earth for that! The only question is whether Pym Particles can affect the Celestials. I think it's highly possible. In Universe TRN666, Cable used Pym Particles to shrink Galactus! Although Galactus is often hungry and has become more of a fighting unit, he's still one of the five cosmic entities! If Pym Particles can shrink Galactus, why can't they shrink the Celestials?'
'Tiamut!' Tony's eyes narrowed, engraving that name deeply into his mind. So this is the Celestial hidden inside Earth that would one day destroy the planet? From now on, this name would become a primary focus for Iron Man.
Another name also came up: Arishem. Judging from the diary's context, this is undoubtedly another Celestial. Moreover, based on the tone of the diary, it seems like Arishem is some kind of overseer or caretaker of Tiamut. If Tiamut is harmed while protecting Earth in any way other than the 'harmless' Pym Particles method, Arishem might judge Earth!
On second thought, that shouldn't be surprising. The birth of new life and the continuation of a species are extremely important to any race, even the Celestials. It's logical for them to protect Tiamut during its embryonic stage and until its birth.
So, is Arishem also watching Earth right now? Tony's brow furrowed slightly. This isn't good news for Iron Man. Thus, he hopes Zhou Cheng's Pym Particle method is reliable!
The plan to shrink Tiamut with Pym Particles didn't surprise Tony—it was exactly what he had guessed. But still, the key question remains: can Pym Particles deal with the Celestials?
With this question in mind, Tony continued to read the diary. 'Galactus!' Very soon, this name intensely stimulated Tony. From its literal meaning, this is a being capable of devouring planets? Not just any planet-devouring being, but one exclusively consuming planets. It must have devoured countless planets, like a god slayer. Tony was truly shocked. A being that consumes numerous planets is on an entirely different level.
But Tony quickly realized he was wrong, very wrong. Galactus is one of the five cosmic entities, on the same level as Eternity, previously mentioned in the diary. Over time, Tony had encountered countless extraordinary beings from both sides of the moral spectrum through the diary. Some could manipulate time and space, some could slaughter across multiverses, and some could observe multiverses—each one more powerful than the last.
Even Tony couldn't easily determine which of these existences was the most powerful. But the creation entities should be the mightiest based on their name alone. Although the diary doesn't detail the abilities and strengths of these cosmic entities, the term 'cosmic entity' speaks for itself.
Iron Man never expected Galactus to be of such a high caliber. He also never anticipated that Pym Particles would be powerful enough to affect a cosmic entity! Are cosmic entities weaker than he imagined? The filter Tony had built in his mind about cosmic entities was now severely cracked.
Of course, this wasn't the main point. The main point is that if Pym Particles can affect a cosmic entity, they should also impact the Celestials! Zhou Cheng's method seems feasible.
'This way, the Eternals wouldn't need to split because of the "Emergence" and have a civil war, right? Even the loyal Ikaris wouldn't oppose such a plan. After all, Tiamut's birth wouldn't be affected by the 'Emergence.' He wouldn't have to fly into the sun to suicide.'
'Arishem really failed—to be betrayed by almost all Eternals on Earth except Ikaris and Sersi.'
'Emergence?' Tony frowned slightly. This unexpected term confused Iron Man. However, the later reference that Tiamut's birth wouldn't affect the Emergence made it clear that Emergence refers to Tiamut's birth. So, the Eternals had a civil war over Tiamut's birth? Why? Is there a deeper connection between the Eternals and Tiamut's birth?
Soon, Tony understood. Not only were the Eternals created by the Celestials, but they also serve them!
What about the Deviants, Kree, and Skrulls, who were also supposedly created by the Celestials?"
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