Standing in the Void, the Watcher curiously observed everything around him.
Previously, his vision had never reached this place. This was the first time he had encountered such a bizarre situation. If this place weren't under Alex's control, he would have undoubtedly sought to uncover its secrets.
[I've seen many voids before, but this environment of yours—this is the first time I've encountered something like it.]
"Oh? Is there something special about it?" Alex asked casually.
[Since you're using the Ultimate Nullifier, then without pruning, this place should be absolute nothingness. So why is it—]
"You mean this?" Alex smiled calmly. "In truth, everything you're seeing is an illusion. To put it another way, you see what I want you to see."
The Watcher reacted quickly. [You transformed this place into a magical dimension?]
"Something like that." Alex nodded nonchalantly, offering little explanation.
In a strict sense, this place had already become an extension of Alex himself. After taking control of the Wasteland Universe, he discovered and claimed this space. During this time, Miss Minutes had been overseeing it.
Using the power conversion of the Timepad, Alex could continuously transform that endless energy into his own "magic." Through Miss Minutes as the central node, he projected this magic into the space, reshaping it completely.
Since the concepts of time and space barely existed here, the process wasn't difficult. With Miss Minutes' assistance, this space had become Alex's second exclusive domain, aside from the Bottomless Pit.
Moreover, as this space was now entirely saturated with Alex's magical energy, he had complete control over it. Even the Watcher couldn't pierce through the magical barriers to perceive its true nature.
Of course, Alex had no intention of revealing all this. Instead, his attention was focused on the Watcher himself.
"So, tell me—what happened? To get you injured this badly, your opponent must not have been an ordinary being. Don't tell me you ran into Infinity Ultron."
The last time Alex had seen the Watcher in such a miserable state was in What If…?, when he faced Ultron wielding all six Infinity Stones. The Watcher had been completely overwhelmed, nearly having his skull crushed.
Granted, wielding the Infinity Stones granted power at the multiversal level. But the Watchers were an extraordinary cosmic race—injuring one was one thing, but killing one wasn't easy.
Even with Alex's current strength, within the Wasteland Universe, he could only manage to defeat the Watcher, but killing him outright? That was still impossible.
Hearing Alex's words, the Watcher shook his head painfully.
[You don't understand. This incident is far more severe than you think. If we're not careful, it could lead to the destruction of the multiverse.]
"Wait a second." Alex's expression changed instantly. "Didn't you just say everything was under control? How did we jump from that to multiversal annihilation?"
The Watcher didn't answer immediately. Instead, he pointed to his own eyes.
[These eyes are not as simple as you think. Back at the House of Mystery, while it was hidden, it wasn't truly safe. But here—it's different. Their gaze can't reach inside.]
Their gaze.
Alex carefully pondered that phrase before suddenly realizing something.
"You were attacked by one of your own?"
The Watcher tilted his head slightly—a silent confirmation.
Alex's eyes widened in shock as he looked at the weakened being before him.
By all logic, the Watchers were supreme entities. Since the earliest ages of the universe, they had formed their civilization, observing and safeguarding the multiverse.
It was impossible for them to turn on one another.
Yet, the Watcher before him wasn't lying. That meant there was only one explanation—
"The corruption is spreading to the Watchers?" Alex narrowed his eyes, his tone laced with intrigue.
[Yes. And it's spreading even faster than we anticipated.]
The Watcher nodded heavily, his expression grim, as if he still hadn't fully processed the reality of it.
After a brief silence, he looked up, locking eyes with Alex, and began his account.
[After we parted ways, I followed your plan, seeking out the corresponding universes. At the same time, I sought assistance from some of my kin.
At first, everything went smoothly. I located those multiversal anomalies and maintained the balance as planned. Everything was under control. But…
I could not determine the origin of this corruption. I didn't even understand what kind of force it was. By the time I realized something was wrong, it was too late—fallen Watchers had already emerged.]
"Fallen Watchers." Alex frowned at the unfamiliar term.
[That's what we call those who have been corrupted. In the universes they have destroyed, the heroes there refer to them as the 'Dark Watchers.']
The Watcher paused, taking a deep breath.
[They hide among us. They've already begun interfering with various universes. By the time we became aware of it, it was already too late—countless realities had been altered, histories defiled beyond repair.]
"You Watchers are connected to each other, aren't you? Couldn't you locate these Dark Watchers and stop them?" Alex asked, puzzled.
[That's what we've been trying to do. But somehow, they've severed their link to us.
This cost them most of their power, but it also allowed them to vanish into the darkness. Now, even the Fulcrum cannot perceive them, let alone us.]
The Fulcrum—an omniscient and omnipotent force that maintained the balance of all existence.
It was the supreme entity at the root of all things, supporting the structure of countless multiverses.
The Watchers, the Celestials, and the Horde all worshipped it.
When the Celestials conducted experiments on planets, the resulting energy was absorbed by the Fulcrum. Depending on the nature of the energy, the Fulcrum would distribute it between the Celestials and the Horde.
Within the Marvel Universe, the Fulcrum's power was second only to the One Above All. Both were considered in-universe representations of the comic book's authors, paying tribute to legendary artist Jack Kirby.
By all logic, the Fulcrum held the authority of the authors. It should have been an unrivaled existence within Marvel's multiverse. How could it possibly fail to locate a handful of corrupted Watchers?
Something didn't add up.
Alex shook his head sharply.
No.
No, no, no.
If the Fulcrum and the One Above All were conceptualized as authorial entities, then shouldn't they be the greatest sources of corruption?
[Time Bard, what are you thinking?]
The Watcher looked at Alex, whose brows were deeply furrowed, and couldn't help but ask.
"I'm wondering if meddling in this mess with my current strength is going to be a very bad idea." Alex shot a glance at the Watcher, his tone exasperated.
It seems that the Watcher noticed Alex's concern and spoke in a deep voice.
"You don't have to worry too much. Everything is still within our control. Those Dark Watchers don't dare to confront us head-on. Although we were caught off guard at first, without the power of the Fulcrum, they are now weak as well.
The Watcher race has already begun taking measures to hunt them down and bring them to judgment. The only thing they can do now is hide within different multiverses, waiting for their inevitable verdict."
Alex let out a dry chuckle before quickly returning to his cold demeanor. "That's not what I'm worried about. My concern is, if even the Watchers have been compromised, then what about the other universes?"
The "other universes" Alex referred to obviously weren't just within the Marvel Multiverse. Now that he knew Marvel was interconnected with countless other universes, his biggest fear was that the corruption might extend beyond Marvel.
Whether it was DC, Image, or any other interlinked universe, they were all potentially within the scope of this corruption.
Sure enough, the worries he had since arriving in this world were now becoming a reality. He wasn't sure if this was just some cruel twist of fate, but the bombshell the Watcher had just dropped on him left him momentarily unprepared.
Suppressing the chaotic thoughts in his mind, Alex abruptly raised his head and looked at the Watcher.
"Forget about that for now. What about the task I asked you to handle? Did you find the universes I mentioned?"
"I found them."
The Watcher's voice noticeably gained some energy at the mention of this.
"However..."
Alex frowned. "However, what?"
"The universe you're looking for is currently in a strange state of entanglement. That timeline is intertwined with several other timelines, making it extremely dangerous." The Watcher answered honestly.
Hearing this, Alex stroked his chin. "You mean that timeline is merging with others?"
"Not exactly... Let me think about how to explain it."
After carefully choosing his words, the Watcher looked at Alex.
"You should be familiar with how the multiverse is numbered, correct?"
Seeing Alex nod, the Watcher continued.
"Multiversal designations typically follow the format Earth-xxxxx. However, these timelines are not always fixed. Surrounding them are various Earth-TRNxxx timelines that act as temporary branches."
At these words, Alex's mind clicked.
"TRN... That's the designation for 'Temporary Reality Numbering,' right?"
.....
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