Chapter 334: Chapter 334: The Logic Virus
Void Fortress — Command Center
The glow of countless holographic projections illuminated Tony Stark’s face.
Seventeen hours.
He had been working at maximum intensity for seventeen straight hours.
His iconic armor had long since been removed. The black tank top he wore was soaked with sweat and machine oil.
His eyes were bloodshot.
Yet the fire burning deep within them had never been brighter.
Across from him, Reed Richards’ fingers flew across the controls.
Though his body was still weak, the afterimages left by his hands on the holographic keyboard were almost impossible to follow.
Two of the greatest geniuses alive were engaged in a near-insane collision of intellects.
"Sir, progress has reached ninety-eight percent."
J.A.R.V.I.S.’s voice fired off updates like a machine gun.
Data streams cascaded across the room like waterfalls of light.
Every second, tens of thousands of lines of code were generated, tested, discarded, and rebuilt.
Levi stood before the observation window, silently watching the transformation of the fortress.
The lifeless planetary remnants that made up the structure had begun sprouting dense networks of metallic vines.
They intertwined and fused together, binding hundreds of fragments into a single unified whole.
More strangely still, beneath those vines flowed pale golden liquid.
Blood vessels.
Pulsing blood.
The dead fortress was becoming something else entirely—
A living warship.
Part biological.
Part mechanical.
And the transformation was proceeding at an astonishing speed.
---
A sharp rushing sound echoed through the chamber.
Clark Kent flew back inside.
Silver metallic dust clung to his gold-red cape.
He had just finished assisting with the installation of the outer defense nodes. Every weapon forged from the remains of the Beyonder Cartographers required his heat vision for final energy calibration.
He walked to Levi’s side and spoke quietly.
Levi merely shook his head.
His attention remained fixed on the enormous engine prototype floating in the distance.
The Cross-Dimensional Engine.
Forged from spatial law fragments refined from the remnants of 3,700 universes.
Once activated, the fortress would be capable of traversing the layers between multiverses—and perhaps even touching the edge of the Beyonder Realm itself.
---
The atmosphere in one corner of the room was noticeably tense.
Wanda held the sleeping Adam tightly against her chest.
Her eyes carried the vigilance of a mother wolf guarding her cub.
Ever since Levi returned with the golden sphere of resources, she had not relaxed for a single moment.
Anyone approaching Adam caused her body to tense instinctively.
Doctor Strange stood beside the projection platform with his arms crossed.
The golden Third Eye on his forehead glowed brilliantly.
Using the power of the Vishanti, he monitored the integration of technologies from countless universes, ensuring that incompatible systems wouldn’t trigger catastrophic failures.
Thor leaned crookedly against a wall.
Stormbreaker rested beside him.
The six Infinity Stones embedded within its blade emitted faint glimmers of light.
He had only recently returned from patrol.
Scorch marks and dried blood covered his armor.
Somewhere deep within the Void, he had clearly dealt with uninvited visitors.
---
The atmosphere inside the command center felt frozen.
Everyone knew that the decision about to be made would alter the course of the war.
Suddenly, Tony stopped typing.
Turning around, a complicated expression appeared on his exhausted face.
He glanced at Levi.
Then at Wanda and Adam.
After taking a deep breath, he spoke.
"The virus framework... is complete."
His voice was hoarse.
Heavy.
"Theoretically, it works."
With a wave of his hand, a massive holographic model expanded before everyone.
It was an incredibly complex logical construct.
Layer upon layer of glowing runes overlapped each other.
Their arrangement seemed to openly mock the laws of physics.
"The core of the Logic Virus," Tony explained, "is an attack against the existence logic of the Beyonders themselves."
Reed immediately picked up the explanation.
"They are invincible because they are the rules."
"They are the laws."
"But every rule contains flaws."
He pointed toward the rotating golden core at the center of the model.
"This virus rewrites the definition of a Beyonder’s existence into a self-contradictory paradox."
"When they attempt to prove their existence, the virus proves they do not exist."
"When they attempt to deny their existence, the virus forces them to exist."
"It creates a deadlock."
"A perfect trap."
"One that tears apart their very origin at the conceptual level."
---
Strange frowned.
His Third Eye shimmered.
"It sounds perfect," he said.
"But what’s the price?"
Tony and Reed exchanged a glance.
Both looked extremely grim.
"The carrier."
Tony spoke only two words.
"This level of conceptual weapon requires a vessel capable of bringing it into the Beyonder Realm."
Reed raised three fingers.
His voice became cold and analytical.
"The carrier must meet three requirements."
"First: it must possess Beyonder energy signatures. Otherwise the defensive systems will erase it instantly."
"Second: it must possess independent consciousness. Remote control is impossible there."
"Third—and most importantly—"
He paused.
"The carrier must endure the tearing force of conceptual collapse."
"A torment born from the conflict between existence and nonexistence."
"The absolute void that denies everything at its source."
---
Silence.
Complete silence.
This wasn’t a weapon.
It was a living bomb.
One that required someone to endure unimaginable suffering—and likely complete annihilation.
Clark’s fists tightened.
Thor straightened, Stormbreaker scraping heavily against the floor.
And Wanda slowly raised her head.
Her eyes swept across Tony and Reed.
Then locked onto Levi.
She was too intelligent.
Intelligent enough to realize the answer immediately.
After a few seconds of silence, Reed finally spoke.
"Based on our analysis... there is only one individual aboard the fortress who perfectly meets all requirements."
His gaze slowly shifted toward the corner of the room.
Toward the sleeping infant.
"Adam."
---
BOOM!
The moment the name left his mouth, the temperature in the command center plummeted.
Wanda shot to her feet.
Chaos Magic erupted like a detonated powder keg.
Dark crimson energy exploded outward.
A terrifying storm swept through the room.
The holographic displays shattered instantly.
The metal flooring twisted and warped.
Cracks spread across the walls.
Her eyes became pure scarlet.
Rage capable of burning worlds blazed within them.
"You—will—not—touch—him!"
Her scream cut through the room like a poisoned blade.
Countless crimson spears materialized in midair.
Every one of them pointed toward the people present.
Chaos flames burned along their tips.
Space itself began collapsing and reconstructing.
The walls melted into liquid.
Grotesque eyeball-covered vines descended from the ceiling.
Reed staggered backward under the pressure.
Tony’s nanotech armor instantly covered his body—only to be ripped apart by scarlet light a heartbeat later.
"Wanda, calm down!" Tony shouted.
Clark stepped forward—
Only for Strange to stop him.
The Sorcerer Supreme unleashed dimensional barriers at full strength, shielding the fortress’s core systems.
Thor tightened his grip on Stormbreaker.
Lightning spread into a defensive net.
Yet he made no move to attack.
"No one touches my child!"
Wanda completely lost control.
The floor split open into an abyss.
Whispers from forbidden dimensions echoed from the crimson mist rising below.
The situation was seconds away from total collapse.
---
Then a hand gently rested upon her shoulder.
Levi.
He walked through the raging storm of energy.
Step after step.
Each footfall landed upon the most violent convergence points.
The dimensional-shredding power parted before him like receding tides.
He released no pressure.
Displayed no overwhelming force.
Yet the moment he appeared, the suffocating tension vanished.
His hand remained on Wanda’s shoulder.
A warm but irresistible power flowed into her.
It was not suppression.
It was comfort.
The furious Chaos Magic collided with that power and instantly lost all hostility.
Wanda trembled.
Turning toward him, tears filled her eyes.
Levi said nothing.
He simply pulled both her and Adam into his arms.
The energy storm subsided.
The crimson spears dissolved.
The warped walls and floor gradually returned to normal.
Tony collapsed into a chair, breathing heavily.
Reed rubbed his throat, still shaken.
Levi finally looked toward them.
His voice was calm.
But absolutely unquestionable.
"Adam will not become the carrier."
"There is no room for discussion."
---
Reed attempted to argue.
"But from a rational perspective—"
"I know exactly what you’re going to say."
Levi cut him off.
"The sacrifice of the few to save the many."
"But some lines cannot be crossed."
"Once you cross them, there’s no going back."
Then he turned toward Tony.
"The Cartographers’ liquid metal."
"We still have it, right?"
Tony blinked.
Then immediately understood.
"In the laboratory. Three samples. Preliminary purification completed."
Levi nodded.
"Then we’ll use those materials to create an artificial carrier."
"The energy signature is already present."
"As for Void Origin... I’ll forcibly extract it from the structure of my Inner Universe and inject it into the vessel."
Reed frowned.
"But it won’t have a soul."
"Without independent consciousness, it won’t be able to function inside the Beyonder Realm."
A golden-red light flashed across Levi’s eyes.
"I’ll solve the soul problem."
The certainty in his voice silenced everyone.
---
At that moment—
A shrill alarm suddenly echoed throughout the command center.
Not an enemy attack warning.
A completely unfamiliar signal.
Nathaniel burst into the room, pale-faced.
"The dimensional monitoring system picked up a transmission!"
"It’s coming from deep within the multiverse!"
"The coordinates point to—"
"Battleworld."
Strange immediately expanded a star map.
At the deepest edge of the projection, a point of eerie green light flashed wildly.
Tony intercepted the signal.
A line of cold text appeared on the screen.
> [I hear you’re building a toy. Why don’t you let me see what it’s capable of?]
Beneath the message, a mass of green energy was shown piercing through dimensional barriers and racing toward the Void Fortress at incredible speed.
"That’s not an attack," Clark said, his super-vision locking onto the object’s trajectory.
"It looks more like... a gift."
Thor tightened his grip on Stormbreaker.
His arm trembled slightly.
Levi stared at the green light.
His eyes turned cold as ice.
He knew exactly who had sent it.
