Chapter 56: The Titan's Battle · The Pinnacle of Might and Skill
A streak of golden light撕裂长空 (sīliè chángkōng -撕裂长空), its尾焰灼灼 (wěiyàn zhuózhuó -尾焰灼灼), as if burning a massive, molten-gold hole through the black cosmic curtain. Sun Wukong, holding Spider-Man Peter Parker, vaulted with a single somersault from the渺茫碧波 (miǎománg bìbō -渺茫碧波) of the Pacific Ocean to the space before Sanctuary II, the庞大狰狞 (pángdà zhēngníng -庞大狰狞) mothership hovering beyond Earth's orbit like a floating island of death. The vessel,足以令星际舰队绝望 (zúyǐ lìng xīngjì jiànduì juéwàng -足以令星际舰队绝望), was no more impressive to his Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils than ordinary mountains and valleys of Huaguo Shan, failing to elicit even a hint of awe."Hey! You purple sweet potato turned fatso inside! Sneakily stealing the fish this old Sun had his eye on, and daring to bully this old Sun's playthings behind my back?! Get out here and take your beating!" Sun Wukong tossed the shaken Peter behind a passing large piece of satellite debris, then drew his golden-hooped staff with a reverse grip, twirling it expertly before pointing it directly at the massive ship. His voice did not travel through air but resonated as a道音 (dàoyīn -道音) that撼动空间本源 (hàndòng kōngjiān běnyuán -撼动空间本源), causing Sanctuary II's energy shields to flicker疯狂闪烁 (fēngkuáng shǎnshuò -疯狂闪烁) with剧烈涟漪 (jùliè liányī -剧烈涟漪)! Even the厚重的舰体装甲 (hòuzhòng de jiàntǐ zhuāngjiǎ -厚重的舰体装甲) groaned under the strain,发出金属呻吟 (fāchū jīnshǔ shēnyín -发出金属呻吟)!The main hatch of Sanctuary II slid open silently. Thanos, flanked by the Black Order, emerged like the moon surrounded by stars. His Titan form stood firm in the void, his icy gaze sweeping over Sun Wukong. He immediately sensed the other's aura—vast and浩瀚如星海 (hàohàn rú xīnghǎi -浩瀚如星海),迥异于此界任何能量体系 (jiǒng yì yú cǐ jiè rènhé néngliàng tǐxì -迥异于此界任何能量体系), yet tinged with a跳脱不羁的玩世不恭 (tiàotuō bùjī de wánshìbùgōng -跳脱不羁的玩世不恭). His brow furrowed slightly. The Power and Mind Stones on the Infinity Gauntlet seemed stirred by this陌生而强大的存在 (mòshēng ér qiángdà de cúnzài -陌生而强大的存在), glowing faintly with a低沉的和鸣 (dīchén de hémíng -低沉的和鸣)—both a warning and a craving."Another being attempting to defy destiny and uphold this twisted order?" Thanos's voice was low, filled with不容置疑的威严 (bùróng zhìyí de wēiyán -不容置疑的威严), vibrating directly through the vacuum. "The nature of your power is peculiar, but obstructing the balance of the universe warrants only... utter annihilation.""Blah blah blah! Eat this old Sun's staff first before you talk!" Sun Wukong had no patience for such speeches. Without another word, his form flickered. He didn't simply charge forward but employed the great supernatural ability of缩地成寸 (suōdì chéngcùn -缩地成寸)! The void beneath his feet seemed infinitely compressed; with a single step, he跨越漫长距离 (kuàyuè màncháng jùlí -跨越漫长距离), instantly closing in on Thanos! The golden-hooped staff in his hand transformed into a golden lightning bolt撕裂黑暗 (sīliè hēi'àn -撕裂黑暗), smashing down on Thanos's head without any fancy技巧 (jìqiǎo -技巧)! The棒风凌厉 (bàng fēng línglì -棒风凌厉); space itself rippled细微地 (xìwēi de -细微地) where it passed!Phase One: Martial Arts Exchange! The Ultimate Collision of Might and Skill!A glint flashed in Thanos's eyes. He did not dodge or evade. Instead, he clenched his right fist. The Power Stone flashed purple, and无穷巨力 (wúqióng jùlì -无穷巨力)足以捏碎星辰 (zúyǐ niē suì xīngchén -足以捏碎星辰) instantly coalesced,悍然迎向 (hànrán yíng xiàng -悍然迎向) the seemingly ordinary staff that held the power to shatter heavens!THUUUUUUUUUUD-OOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!!!!!!A恐怖巨响 (kǒngbù jùxiǎng -恐怖巨响), indescribable by words, "exploded" in the vacuum through the vibration of space itself! The point of impact erupted with刺目光芒 (cì mù guāngmáng -刺目光芒) rivaling a supernova! A visible环形冲击波 (huánxíng chōngjíbō -环形冲击波)扩散 (kuòsàn -扩散) with摧枯拉朽之势 (cuīkūlāxiǔ zhī shì -摧枯拉朽之势), sweeping away dozens of patrolling Chitauri护卫舰 (hùwèi jiàn -护卫舰) around Sanctuary II like autumn leaves, crushing and tearing them into cosmic dust!Sun Wukong and Thanos each滑退数步 (huá tuì shù bù -滑退数步),每一步都在虚空踏出无形的涟漪 (měi yī bù dōu zài xūkōng tà chū wúxíng de liányī -每一步都在虚空踏出无形的涟漪). It was a stalemate!"Good! Good strength!" Sun Wukong shook his slightly numb wrist, his eyes blazing not with fear but with如火战意 (rú huǒ zhànyì -如火战意)! "Heavier than Mount Sumeru this old Sun tried to lift at the foot of灵山 (Líng Shān -灵山) back in the day!过瘾 (guòyǐn -过瘾)!"He let out a long laugh, ceasing further试探 (shìtàn -试探). He unleashed the玄妙棍法 (xuánmiào gùnfǎ -玄妙棍法) in its entirety! The golden-hooped staff was no longer a mere rod but transformed into thousands of golden dragon silhouettes! At times, they came like a狂风暴雨 (kuángfēng bàoyǔ -狂风暴雨),密集得令人窒息 (mìjí dé lìng rén zhìxī -密集得令人窒息); at others, they were like灵蛇出洞 (língshé chūdòng -灵蛇出洞),刁钻诡异 (diāozuān guǐyì -刁钻诡异), striking from不可思议的角度 (bùkěsīyì de jiǎodù -不可思议的角度); and yet other times, they descended like泰山压顶 (tàishān yādǐng -泰山压顶) with pure weight and force!虚虚实实 (xū xū shí shí -虚虚实实),真真假假 (zhēn zhēn jiǎ jiǎ -真真假假), each strike蕴含 (yùnhán -蕴含)千锤百炼的无上武艺 (qiān chuí bǎi liàn de wúshàng wǔyì -千锤百炼的无上武艺) and磅礴无边的浩瀚法力 (pángbó wúbiān de hàohàn fǎlì -磅礴无边的浩瀚法力)!Thanos remained沉着冷静 (chénzhuó lěngjìng -沉着冷静), responding to change with constancy. His combat skills were honed through亿万场征服战争 (yì wàn chǎng zhēngfú zhànzhēng -亿万场征服战争) across galaxies, stripped of all华丽虚招 (huálì xū zhāo -华丽虚招), leaving only简洁、高效、致命 (jiǎnjié, gāoxiào, zhìmìng -简洁、高效、致命)! Fist, palm, finger, elbow, knee... every part of his body became a lethal weapon! Coupled with the almost infinite destructive energy provided by the Power Stone, each of his strikes was朴实无华 (pǔshí wúhuá -朴实无华), yet足以崩碎星辰 (zúyǐ bēng suì xīngchén -足以崩碎星辰),撕裂舰队 (sīliè jiànduì -撕裂舰队)! He时而 (shí'ér -时而) met the golden staff head-on with his purple-wreathed iron fist, producing震耳欲聋的爆鸣 (zhèněryùlóng de bàomíng -震耳欲聋的爆鸣);时而格挡卸开 (shí'ér gédǎng xiè kāi -时而格挡卸开) the恐怖力量 (kǒngbù lìliàng -恐怖力量) capable of smashing through continental shelves with millimeter precision;时而又展现出 (shí'ér yòu zhǎnxiàn chū -时而又展现出) an agility鬼魅般 (guǐmèi bān -鬼魅般) that belied his massive frame, evading and launching凌厉的反击 (línglì de fǎnjī -凌厉的反击)!The two combatants fought from the平原般广阔的甲板 (píngyuán bān guǎngkuò de jiǎbǎn -平原般广阔的甲板) of Sanctuary II out into the虚无的太空 (xūwú de tàikōng -虚无的太空)! Their forms flickered不定 (bùdìng -不定), their speed reaching the极致 (jízhì -极致), like two destructive streams of light—one gold, one purple—constantly colliding, separating, and colliding again! Each clash between the golden-hooped staff and the Infinity Gauntlet erupted with璀璨光芒 (cuǐcàn guāngmáng -璀璨光芒)足以照亮星域 (zúyǐ zhàoliàng xīngyù -足以照亮星域) and毁灭性能量风暴 (huǐmièxìng néngliàng fēngbào -毁灭性能量风暴) that席卷四方 (xíjuǎn sìfāng -席卷四方), clearing a vast空白区域 (kòngbái qūyù -空白区域) in the distant asteroid belt!The sound of staff and fist meeting was like continuous peals of九天雷鸣 (jiǔtiān léimíng -九天雷鸣)!Sparks and耀眼能量碎屑 (yàoyǎn néngliàng suìxiè -耀眼能量碎屑) flew with each collision!Sun Wukong thrust his staff towards Thanos's face; Thanos dodged sideways, simultaneously delivering a heavy punch infused with purple light straight for the heart!Thanos threw a punch, a purple energy torrent撕裂空间 (sīliè kōngjiān -撕裂空间); Sun Wukong滑开 (huá kāi -滑开) like a fish in water using his Somersault Cloud agility, countering with a sweeping staff strike aimed at Thanos's legs!They fought fast against fast, force against force, skill against skill! Their martial arts, strength, speed, and combat intuition were all pushed to the淋漓尽致 (línlí jìnzhì -淋漓尽致) pinnacle! For a time,星月无光 (xīng yuè wú guāng -星月无光),寰宇震颤 (huányǔ zhènchàn -寰宇震颤), and the outcome hung in the balance!The members of the Black Order had long since retreated to a safe distance, their faces filled with骇然 (hàirán -骇然). Corvus Glaive gripped his glaive tightly; Proxima Midnight's spear hung low; Ebony Maw's fingertips trembled slightly; Cull Obsidian let out an uneasy growl... They could not介入 (jièrù -介入) this level of battle; even approaching would see them torn to shreds by the逸散的余波 (yìsàn de yúbō -逸散的余波)!Hidden behind the large debris, Peter Parker stared through his mask, his eyes wide,眼花缭乱 (yǎnhuāliáoluàn -眼花缭乱),心惊胆战 (xīnjīngdǎnzhàn -心惊胆战), his breath almost stopping. Only now did he truly understand that Sun Wukong's previous "battle royale" with their entire alliance had likely been nothing but... play. He probably hadn't used even one ten-thousandth of his true power."痛快! 痛快! HA HA HA HA HA!" Sun Wukong grew more excited the longer they fought, his狂放的笑声 (kuángfàng de xiàoshēng -狂放的笑声) shaking the starfield. "Haven't had a good scrap with someone who can last this many rounds in a long time! Purple Fatso, your brute strength and skill aren't a disgrace to that bulk of yours!"Thanos's expression, however, grew increasingly凝重 (níngzhòng -凝重). He realized that even with the Power Stone's augmentation, relying solely on martial arts and raw power against this opponent yielded no advantage! The other's staff technique was玄妙莫测 (xuánmiào mòcè -玄妙莫测),蕴含天地至理 (yùnhán tiāndì zhìlǐ -蕴含天地至理); his strength seemed bottomless, as if永无止境 (yǒng wú zhǐjìng -永无止境); and his physical durability was坚固到不可思议 (jiāngù dào bùkěsīyì -坚固到不可思议) (the Indestructible Diamond Body)—his own attacks could hardly破防 (pò fáng -破防) effectively."It seems I must employ more of the Stones' power," Thanos thought暗道 (àn dào -暗道). On the Infinity Gauntlet, the Reality Stone's妖艳的赤红色光芒 (yāoyàn de chìhóngsè guāngmáng -妖艳的赤红色光芒) began to glow悄然 (qiǎorán -悄然), like the awakening eyes of a venomous snake.The scales of battle were about to tip! A more perilous second phase,超越物理层面 (chāoyuè wùlǐ céngmiàn -超越物理层面), was imminent!