Chapter 26: The Chaotic Deluge · The Unraveling of Reality
Professor X's psychic connection was severed violently. He slumped in Cerebro, face pale, his mind reeling from the severe backlash, forced to watch the screen as the deluge of destruction fully erupted."Wanda... no..." he whispered weakly, filled with a sense of powerlessness.Above the Washington ruins, Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch, had completely transformed into an avatar of Chaos! Endless crimson energy surged from her like a breached cosmic river, no longer an attack, but an侵蚀 (qīnshí - erosion)! A覆盖 (fùgài - blanket coverage)! A改写 (gǎixiě - rewriting)!"Disappear! Just DISAPPEAR!!!" she shrieked, her voice distorted, filled with boundless pain and a desire for annihilation.Wherever the scarlet energy passed, reality groaned under the strain!Space cracked like shattered glass, fissures of漆黑 (qīhēi - pitch-black) nothingness spiderwebbing out, spewing chaotic energy storms and indescribable, aberrant light and shadow!Time became hopelessly tangled. Some areas accelerated rapidly, buildings风化腐朽 (fēnghuà fǔxiǔ - weathering and decaying) to dust in an instant; others陷入凝滞 (xiànrù níngzhì - fell into stasis), flying debris frozen mid-air!The very form of matter was forcibly扭曲 (niǔqū - distorted)! Shattered concrete flowed like lava then solidified into twisted metal; scattered weapons melted and重组 (chóngzǔ - reassembled) into screaming stone statues!Even the laws of physics failed locally! Gravity inverted, fire turned to ice, sound solidified into tangible blades flying in all directions!This wasn't a clash of energy; it was the most violent,无序 (wúxù - disorderly) deconstruction and reconstruction of reality's very fabric! The true horror of Chaos Magic was on full display! Her target was no longer to defeat Sun Wukong, but to erase the very concept of "Sun Wukong" from the spacetime he occupied!The scarlet deluge, carrying the power to disintegrate all things, instantly swallowed the area where Sun Wukong stood!All remaining observation equipment in the distance instantly failed, screens turning to crimson snow and garbled code! Everyone felt a soul-deep tremor of fear! This was no longer a battle; it was Armageddon!Nick Fury shut his single eye, unable to bear watching.Steve Rogers gripped his shield, knuckles white, feeling前所未有的渺小 (qiánsuǒwèi yǒu de miǎoxiǎo - an unprecedented insignificance).Tony Stark struggled to rise from his sickbed, but was paralyzed by the horrifying spectacle.Yet, within the core of that chaos-devoured, law-shattering zone—Sun Wukong stood firm at the eye of the scarlet storm, his Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils blazing with前所未有的璀璨金光 (qiánsuǒwèi yǒu de cuǐcàn jīnguāng - unprecedented brilliant golden light)! The space around him twisted and tore, temporal currents washed over him, matter morphed in bizarre and grotesque ways, yet none of it could touch him!He seemed to exist独立于 (dúlì yú - independently of) this collapsing reality! An无形而浩瀚 (wúxíng ér hàohàn - intangible yet vast) power emanated from him, not to对抗 (duìkàng - resist) the chaotic energy, but to稳固 (wěngù - stabilize)! 定义 (dìngyì - define)! 主宰 (zhǔzǎi - dominate)!"Altering reality? Distorting laws?" Sun Wukong's voice rang out calmly, cutting through the roar of the chaotic energy, clearly entering everyone's mind, carrying a faint note of surprise and... understanding. "You've brushed against the皮毛 (pímáo - surface) of 'words becoming law' and 'wishes becoming reality.' A pity, you have the form but not the spirit, and lack the corresponding '道行 (dàohéng - cultivation)' and '法力 (fǎlì - magical power)' to support it. It's an empty shell, and you suffer the backlash yourself!"He saw it now. The nature of this girl's power was极高 (jí gāo - extremely high), even touching the edge of the control over rules wielded by洪荒大能 (hónghuāng dànéng - primordial great powers). But her application was粗糙 (cūcāo - crude),狂暴 (bàokuáng - violent), filled with戾气 (lìqì - malice) and执念 (zhíniàn - obsession), like a child swinging a divine sword, harming herself before harming the enemy!Seeing the scarlet energy about to彻底撕裂 (chèdǐ sīliè - completely tear apart) the fabric of this reality, causing irreversible damage that could波及 (bōjí - spread to) the entire world—Sun Wukong finally got serious.He didn't perform any earth-shattering magic. He simply slowly raised a hand,五指张开 (wǔzhǐ zhāngkāi - five fingers spread), and towards the endless chaotic crimson, softly commanded:It wasn't to immobilize a body, but to halt this沸腾的时空 (fèiténg de shíkōng - boiling spacetime)!The word spoken was like the descent of a supreme law!The疯狂扭曲 (fēngkuáng niǔqū - madly twisting),撕裂 (sīliè - tearing),崩坏 (bēnghuài - collapsing) spatial cracks were forcibly smoothed over and凝固 (nínggù - solidified) by an invisible hand!The混乱无序 (hǔnluàn wúxù - chaotic and disordered) temporal currents,加速或倒流 (jiāsù huò dàoliú - accelerating or reversing), were强行捋顺 (qiángxíng lǚ shùn - forcibly straightened) and归位 (guīwèi - returned to their proper place)!The constantly变幻形态 (biànhuàn xíngtài - shifting forms),失去本质 (shīqù běnzhì - losing their essence) matter was强行锚定 (qiángxíng máo dìng - forcibly anchored) back to its original state!It wasn't about violently destroying the chaotic energy, but using a更高维 (gèng gāo wéi - higher-dimensional), more fundamental rule-based power to强行规定 (qiángxíng guīdìng - forcibly dictate) the order of this land! The狂暴的混沌魔法 (bàokuáng de hùndùn mófǎ - violent Chaos Magic), crashing against this cosmic barrier, instantly lost its "modification" authority!The boiling scarlet energy seemed thrown into an absolute zero ice prison. Its reality-destroying "activity" was instantly stripped away. Though still vast and磅礴 (pángbó - immense), it became "harmless," like a tamed flood, uselessly冲刷 (chōngshuā -冲刷) against the unshakable "domain of order" around Sun Wukong!"NO—!!!" Wanda screamed in绝望 (juéwàng - despair) and不甘 (bùgān - unwillingness). She felt her connection to the Chaos Magic being强行覆盖 (qiángxíng fùgài - forcibly overwritten) and剥离 (bōlí - stripped away) by a will more宏大 (hóngdà - grand) and不可抗拒 (bùkě kàngjù - irresistible)!Sun Wukong looked at her, a flicker of怜悯 (liánmǐn - pity) in his eyes. "The power is good power, but your心性 (xīnxìng - heart and nature) is差之千里 (chà zhī qiānlǐ - far from adequate). You possess a treasure mountain but don't know how to use it well, instead becoming enslaved by the power. Enough, enough. Today, this old Sun will take this supernatural ability back for you, lest you harm others and yourself!"He opened his mouth and took a gentle suck—The crimson energy that filled heaven and earth, capable of destroying the world, converged like百川归海 (bǎi chuān guī hǎi - all rivers flowing to the sea) into a massive energy vortex, being continuously drawn into his stomach!This wasn't吞噬 (tūnshì - devouring); it was炼化 (liànhuà - refining)! It was归元 (guī yuán - returning to the origin)!The chaotic energy足以让任何神明陨落 (zúyǐ ràng rènhé shénmíng yǔnluò - sufficient to make any god fall), upon entering his body, was easily镇压 (zhènyā - suppressed),分解 (fēnjiě -分解), and吸收 (xīshōu - absorbed) by his金刚不坏之躯 (jīngāng bù huài zhī qū - Indestructible Diamond Body) tempered in the Eight-Trigram Furnace and his混元如一的大罗道果 (hùnyuán rúyī de dàluó dàoguǒ - Great Monad Unity of the Golden Immortal Dao Fruit), which was impervious to all phenomena. It was transformed into the purest vital energy,反而补充 (fǎn'ér bǔchōng - instead replenishing) his consumption!In just a short while, the world-ending scarlet deluge had been吸得一干二净 (xī dé yīgān'èrjìng - sucked completely dry)!The sky returned to its original color. The崩坏的空间和时间 (bēnghuài de kōngjiān hé shíjiān - collapsed space and time) returned to normal. Only the scarred earth remained, testifying to the near-apocalyptic disaster that had just occurred.Wanda Maximoff's energy completely vanished. As if emptied of all strength, her eyes vacant, she plummeted from the sky, landing unconscious on the scorched earth.Sun Wukong patted his stomach and let out a burp, a wisp of faint red smoke curling from his lips."Hmm... taste is a bit strong, but the energy's quite nourishing."The globe fell into a deathly silence.Everyone, including Charles Xavier far away at the X-Mansion, stared dumbfounded at the figure on the screen who seemed as if nothing had happened.Altering reality? Unraveling the laws of physics? Chaos Magic capable of destroying the world?He... ate it... in one gulp?!This had surpassed the limits of their understanding, reaching a level of mythos and absurdity.Fury's lips trembled. Finally, mustering all his strength, he roared hoarsely into the comms:"Assemble... all... everyone!!!"After true despair comes the final, desperate madness of those with their backs against the wall.