Chapter 333

Attention! Attention! This is the Nine Realms Sacred Sanctuary Cosmic Broadcast Channel, bringing you an urgent breaking news update!

Dear members, what you are about to hear is a live battlefield report from the Nine Realms Sacred Sanctuary: it has been confirmed that three cosmic hours ago, chaos erupted in the Realm of Death within the Nine Realms; Hela, the Lord of the Underworld, left her domain and launched a war against another mysterious entity located at the core of the World Tree...

Currently, the forces of Death and Life have spread beyond the Nine Realms, affecting six satellite dimensions between R23 and R29; we will later broadcast the names of these affected regions in a form understandable to cosmic life energy...

The so-called satellite dimensions R23 through R29 are names assigned by the Sacred Sanctuary after reorganizing the dimensions surrounding the Nine Realms.

Generally, dimension names within the Nine Realms are based on Asgardian terminology, but Asgardians rarely systematically catalog information about these dimensions and realms; their knowledge of surrounding dimensions relies on oral tradition and lacks structure.

After the Sacred Sanctuary began operations, the lack of standardized dimension names and territorial divisions caused major complications; recently, the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj traveled to every dimension around the Nine Realms, assigned each a number, and compiled a map.

Of course, since these are dimensional realms, they do not exist within three-dimensional space; the map must be encoded to be readable by humans, a three-dimensional species, and so far, most of those managing the cosmic broadcasts are Kamar-Taj sorcerers.

The dimensions R23 through R29 mentioned in the broadcast are the two closest fragmented dimensions to the Realm of Death; no life inhabits them, and this broadcast has not yet drawn attention from cosmic beings, for such events are common in the cosmos—cosmic demons frequently clash, and hundreds or even thousands of wars can erupt in a single day.

In the empty, dark center of the cosmos near the Realm of Death, Hela, clad in jet-green armor, stood at the heart of the void; swirling around him were jet-green necrotic energies, from which countless grotesque monsters emerged, forming a circular domain around him.

At the center of the domain, flanking the Lord of the Underworld, were two colossal bone dragons, followed by the skeletal remains of a great wolf and a giant serpent; beyond them, endless ghosts surged like crashing waves, shrieking with piercing cries.

The Descent of Tian'a

The banner fluttered with Hela's hair, while opposite him blazed an equally powerful white life energy; a god-clad figure in silver armor stood within the dense white radiance, behind him faintly emerging the silhouette of a colossal tree—the new life force of the World Tree.

Black and white energies clashed violently in the cosmos; Hela's energy surged like sharp swords, while Balder's energy stood firm like an unyielding shield; as soon as both sides probed, violent energy storms erupted along the frontline.

The initial conflict point was small, so these energy storms destroyed only some asteroid belts, causing no major damage; but soon, the battle intensified dramatically.

Hela's aggression was overwhelming; Balder, just awakened from slumber, held no advantage; despite drawing upon the near-infinite energy of the World Tree, he struggled to withstand Hela's assault.

At that moment, from the dark edge of the cosmos, a blinding flash of lightning arrived in an instant; the majestic voice of the Allfather echoed across the cosmos, audible to every cosmic being.

"Cease."

Odin's tone brooked no argument; as thunder roared, the energy storms at the clash point were torn apart, golden lightning spreading faster, piercing toward the heart of both light and dark forces.

Balder saw Odin's figure appear above him, placed a hand on his shoulder, and bowed his head: "Allfather."

Hearing Balder's voice, Odin sighed, then turned to Hela; but Hela ignored him entirely, focusing solely on directing his energy against Balder.

Odin stood motionless above the cosmos, for he was deeply troubled; the feud between Hela and Balder could not be explained in a few words, yet the truth was, Odin had no moral ground to intervene—both Balder's downfall and Hela's betrayal were his own failures.

Balder returned to the World Tree, Hela was sealed by him; later, Thor resembled him greatly, and Odin believed all was improving; now, Thor was arrogant and reckless, exiled to Earth; once-obedient Loki had caused chaos; it seemed nothing had changed.

Yet he still clenched the lightning in his hand; just as he prepared to act, a familiar voice spoke: "This is quite lively. What are you all doing here? A family reunion?"

Instantly, a denser darkness erupted behind Hela, accompanied by roaring hellfire; Mephisto appeared on the battlefield.

Before the righteous sides could speak, Hela spoke first: "Mephisto, you finally crawled out of your hellhole?"

Hela gripped his sword: "... ut you'd better stay out of my affairs."

As he spoke, his energy surged toward Mephisto's hellfire; Balder's eyes widened—in his days as Asgard's crown prince, the Lord of Hell's name had echoed across the cosmos; he tightened his spear: "Is Hela insane???"

"He is blinded by hatred." A calm female voice spoke; the robed sorceress Wong descended slowly, her body encircled by shimmering magical energy; Odin narrowed his eyes at Wong: "It's been a while—you've grown stronger, Wong."

"It's been a while—you still have such a lively household, Odin." Wong gazed at the distant, still-clashing energies; Odin paused, then said: "Help me stop them. Their fighting here harms both of us."

He then looked toward the distance, puzzled: "Why is Mephisto here?"

"Indeed, if they fight near the Nine Realms, Earth and Asgard may be endangered—but..."

Wong turned to Odin, meeting his gaze: "Let's find a place to discuss this properly."

Odin stared at her, puzzled—was this the time for a chat? Odin had no doubt that if he left for even a second, chaos would erupt completely.

At that moment, a deep rumbling echoed as a massive black figure descended into this region of space; Balder looked up, the presence filled him with revulsion: "Dormammu..."

Odin noticed too—something was wrong. Hela and Balder were fighting, yet, aside from himself, their battle should not have drawn so many observers.

Coupled with Wong's persistent glances, Odin hesitated, recalled his flying lightning weapon, and left behind a raven before following Wong away.

As soon as Odin left, Balder froze; before he could react, the other side had already erupted—Mephisto, enraged by Hela's provocation, unleashed endless hellfire across the cosmic void.

Soon after, several dimensional demons Wong had frequently battled appeared on the battlefield; their intent was clear: to fight. Within minutes, the entire field descended into utter chaos.

Inside the Sacred Sanctuary, chaos reigned; a female sorcerer extended her hand, and a phone flew into it; she walked while speaking rapidly: "Yes, we haven't fully understood the situation yet, but they've definitely started fighting... Really? I can't confirm that—here's what I'll do: if the fighting spreads there, I'll notify you immediately..."

A man in a suit and tie rose from his workstation and asked his neighbor: "Have you contacted those in the fragmented dimensions?"

His colleague replied: "Forget them. We have higher-priority clients. Let them fend for themselves—I've got a stack of premium member lines to handle. Fragmented dimensions? Those beggars are better off dead..."

"Next, a new update: the battlefield has now spread to regions beyond R40, approaching the inhabited R50 dimension. Repeat: the battlefield has shifted. All members in dimensions R50 and beyond must evacuate immediately..."

"... ait! Our field reporter has sent a communication! The situation has changed again—let's connect to frontline reporter Eddie Brock and hear his assessment of the current battlefield..."

After a burst of static, a magical screen appeared on the Sacred Sanctuary's wall; Venom's form materialized on it, seemingly standing on a small moon-like satellite, the backdrop a starry cosmos.

Though his appearance was Venom, the voice was Eddie's, delivered in pure reporter cadence: "Hello, this is Eddie Brock with your latest update from R43."

No sooner had he finished than a violent explosion erupted behind him; Venom had to form a shield of black symbiote slime to block the shockwave; then another meteor streaked past—someone had just blown up a planet.

"As you can see, the battle is extremely intense; the epicenter continues to shift, and the number of combatants grows... Oh my god—a star..."

Far behind him, a tiny point expanded rapidly, swelling into a colossal fireball.

"That's all for this live report—the star just exploded. I'm getting out of here. Goodbye."

The final words came in Venom's deep, gravelly voice; Strange stared at the growing light on the screen, hesitating: "Is the reporter okay?"

"Don't worry—he's not alone," a field agent replied.

"Not alone? Who's with him?"

"His kind."

Meanwhile, on a desolate small satellite, Venom shook his head, bared his teeth at the blue-skinned being beside him: "That's all you've got? Your magic barrier's as fragile as paper."

Several other symbiotes looked battered; the immense thermal shockwave from the star's explosion had nearly overwhelmed them—if not for Blue Spirit's magic, they'd already be charred.