Restart, Spider-Man! [49]

As a series of moving stone tablets formed an ancient palace, the group followed the purple figure into its depths. Along the way, the torches on the stone walls of the palace ignited with golden flames.

Xia Luo couldn't help but sigh, "So this is the real sanctuary."

He then looked ahead at Thanos, or rather, the younger Thanos. At this moment, Thanos still had a full head of black hair—who knows when he started shaving it off.

Sensing Xia Luo's gaze, Thanos suddenly paused. He glanced down at his purple and gold armor and turned around to ask, "Is there something on me?"

"No," Xia Luo shook his head. "But can you tell us the truth now?"

"No problem." Thanos raised his hand and snapped his fingers, immediately causing Infinite Tony and Old Steve to jump in alarm.

"What are you doing?"

Infinite Tony's arm cannons charged up, ready to fire at any moment. Old Steve also raised his shield, staring warily at Thanos.

Thanos: "???"

"I was just calling for chairs. You're all too tense," he explained, pointing at the stone chairs that were slowly rising beneath them.

Infinite Tony glanced down, embarrassed, and quickly retracted his weapons.

Old Steve, on the other hand, casually blew on his shield and wiped it with his sleeve, pretending nothing had happened.

"Stark, you really overreacted," Old Steve muttered.

"Cap, don't think I didn't notice how your legs went weak," Tony retorted.

"They did not."

"They did."

Old Steve sat in his chair, straightening his back as he looked at Thanos. "Just, don't snap your fingers next time," he said seriously.

Thanos looked puzzled. "Why?"

"I'm scared."

"Oh, that's an unusual fear," Thanos laughed. He sat down and was about to snap his fingers again to summon refreshments but paused when he saw Tony's wary eyes.

"Sorry, force of habit," Thanos chuckled as he tapped his wrist device, remotely notifying his servants to bring food for his guests.

"We don't have much time, so ask what you want to know," Thanos offered.

"I'll start." Xia Luo spoke up, "I've heard that you're a traitor to Titan, but what I've seen here doesn't match what I've been told."

Carter raised an eyebrow. "When did you hear that?" she whispered.

"Last time," Xia Luo replied.

"Last time?"

"What last time?"

"The last time."

Carter was confused, and so were Lizard Parker and the others, their faces full of questions.

Thanos, however, grew serious and began to explain, "The leader of Titan has never been just one person—it's a group, and I'm one of them. Here, because our use of the network is strictly limited, a lot of information gets spread through word of mouth and eventually gets twisted. So it's normal that the truth gets lost."

"You've killed a lot of people?" Xia Luo continued.

Thanos nodded. "Yes, 300 villages, nine cities, countless lives."

"What?"

Infinite Tony clenched his teeth as he stared at Thanos, who already reminded him too much of the tyrant he once knew.

"You really are a demon," Tony's body trembled with anger.

Unfazed, Thanos replied, "I killed only Titans. I didn't harm anyone from other worlds."

"What difference does that make?" Old Steve said coldly.

"The people I killed carried Titan blood."

At that, Xia Luo instantly thought of the altar's groove.

"Did you kill them to gain the power of the Titans?"

Thanos calmly glanced at Lizard Parker and Xia Luo. "You've already tried it. The altar in the sanctuary absorbs the power of those with the same bloodline."

"Why did you choose such a brutal method?" Carter asked, frowning.

"Because I'm out of time," Thanos sighed deeply. "Titan is about to face a catastrophic disaster. I needed to obtain the purest Titan form and become the legendary Eternal Titan to find a way to save this world. But saving Titan isn't my responsibility alone—every Titan has a duty to bear. That's why I always spared half the population, choosing at random. It was the fairest approach I could manage."

As he said this, his fingers trembled slightly, showing he wasn't as calm as he appeared.

Facing Thanos, whose hands were stained with the blood of his own people, Xia Luo couldn't decide whether to label him a hero or a villain.

"Tell us about the Exile Journey," he urged.

Thanos nodded. "You've heard of it, right? To outsiders, it's seen as the greatest punishment for criminals. But in reality, while it's terrifying, it's also Titan's only chance for salvation."

"What kind of disaster is coming that's so dire you would resort to such slaughter?" Lizard Parker asked.

Thanos answered calmly, "An unimaginable enemy. No one can defeat him. He's about to awaken from within our planet."

"Then there's even more reason not to turn against each other," Carter protested.

Thanos smiled bitterly. "You have no idea what kind of enemy this is."

He turned to Xia Luo. "I know your people. Today, they caused quite a commotion. Their goal was to join the Exile Journey, but I don't mind letting them participate."

"Does that mean we can join the Exile Journey too?" Lizard Parker asked eagerly.

"Yes and no," Thanos clarified. "Before I met you, I wasn't confident I could initiate the Exile Journey on my own—I hadn't yet become a true Eternal Titan. But now, with your help, I'm confident."

He looked at Xia Luo. "You triggered the altar's power. That means you possess a similar divine strength, enough to help me start the Exile Journey."

"Divine strength?" Xia Luo considered it. Was Thanos referring to the power of the spider totem?

"But I don't know how to use it," Xia Luo admitted honestly.

"That doesn't matter."

Thanos raised his hand again but stopped himself from snapping his fingers, instead glancing at Tony and the others.

"Starting the Exile Journey and joining it are two different things. Your comrades don't have the necessary power, so no matter what they do, they won't qualify to participate. But all of you..."

Thanos smiled, satisfied.

"After entering the sanctuary, I sensed the mysterious energy inside you all. You're all qualified to join the Exile Journey."

"Mysterious energy?"

Everyone was puzzled, but Xia Luo had some guesses.

Perhaps Infinite Tony still carried traces of the power from the Infinity Stones.

But Lizard Parker's broken totem had already disappeared.

Old Steve was just a regular super soldier.

And Carter's abilities were still unknown.

What kind of power did they have inside them?

Xia Luo didn't understand, and frankly, he didn't need to.

"When do we start?" he asked.

"Tomorrow."

"Understood," Xia Luo nodded.

So far, he had only used one restart opportunity, and the game was progressing smoothly.

Haha, I'm getting better and better.

At that moment, Carter stood up abruptly. "I need a weapon. Do you have any more shields like his?" she asked, pointing at Old Steve's shield.

Thanos nodded. "Of course, we have plenty of them—from those twins—no, triplets—no, wait... however many there are."

He had clearly misunderstood something.

Then, he looked closely at Old Steve.

"You know, you look a lot like them."

Without skipping a beat, Old Steve replied, "I'm their father."

Thanos, wide-eyed, nodded in understanding. "Your family genes are impressive. Your wife must have had a hard time. Take good care of her."

Old Steve: "..."