Chapter 1350: Interstellar Grand Stage (End) _2

With that, Miss Witch tossed her hair. A flash of red light flashed, and her figure disappeared instantly. In the depths of the cosmos, within the space of utter darkness and chaos, a deafening roar sounded:

"Xeseon!!! Wake up!!! How on Earth can you be sleeping?! Get up now! I need you!!!"

A few minutes later, Wanda reappeared in the office. She shook her head and apologized with a smile, "Xeseon said he hasn't seen Nal lately. However, he just checked the recent flow of Chaos Power. About two days ago, Nal seemed to have indeed exerted some power, but it ceased suddenly. His presence, too, vanished."

"Can he pinpoint where this power was drawn from?" Shiller asked.

Wanda shook her head, "Xeseon just woke up, he's not entirely clear-headed. I asked him for quite a while, but he couldn't articulate his thoughts. All these Demon Gods are like this. Their ways of thinking are different from the human race, as chaotic as their chaotic energy. If you're not in a rush, I could ask again some other day?"

"All right. Thank you for your help. You may go now, Miss."

After Wanda left, Shiller sat in his chair to reflect. The timing of Nal's power disruption, as Wanda mentioned, coincides with the disappearance of Clint Star. This suggests that Nal was aware something was wrong when Clint Star vanished.

Although Nal was drained after several gifting incidents and spent most of his time sleeping, he wouldn't have failed to notice if he were relocated. Since he did notice and had exerted his power to resist, why did his resistance fail?

Who is stronger, Nal or the Iron Demon God?

Theoretically, Nal shouldn't be able to defeat the upgraded Iron Demon God. But Nal's strength lies in his incredibly tough life and the fact that this ancient creature can directly harness the power of the cosmos, unrestricted by energy. To subdue him would likely require great effort.

Their fight couldn't have gone unnoticed. Stark doesn't possess the power to subdue Nal instantly. Therefore, Nal's abrupt halt in power extraction could be due to a sneak attack.

Shiller wouldn't arrive at this hypothesis if it were only Stark involved. But if Batman is also residing within Stark's mind, then it's a different story, as Batman's scheming abilities rank among the top.

Nal, trapped in his own creation and unaware of the outside world, implies that Iron Man and Batman have ample time to set a trap for Nal to walk into.

This would be the modus operandi for the God disappearance case. However, the motive and end goal are of prime importance in this case.

What makes Nal special?

Shiller pondered with a frown. Speaking of power, Nal is indeed powerful, but his entrapment on his own planet suggests that his power is not what's special. The cosmos is full of potent Gods.

As for being ancient, this is indeed one of Nal's most significant features as he is a remnant of the previous cosmos. But as Wanda stated, these ancient Gods, especially those who wield Chaos Power, are not quite lucid in thought. Hoping that they can tell historical tales would be asking too much.

Stripping away those two aspects, there is nothing commendable about Nal. Shiller thought that the most prudent approach is still to wait for multiple victims to emerge and then examine their commonalities.

Just at this moment, an idea struck him; could what makes Nal special be the fact that he is not special at all?

Looking at the entire cosmos, any god deemed special possesses particular strengths. They are either incredibly powerful in a certain aspect or play a vital role in the cosmos's existence.

While Nal is both ancient and potent, he doesn't stand out in a particular area nor does he hold any crucial role. The cosmos wouldn't be affected significantly whether he exists or not. The claim that Nal, a survivor from the previous cosmos, is superfluous to the current cosmos.

Then Shiller realized; it appears the targets of Batman and Iron Man are the gods of the cosmos.

They aim to murder gods without threatening the cosmos, making Nal the first victim.

A serial god murder case? Shiller squinted his eyes.

Originally, he merely treated it as a fun deduction exercise, hoping to uncover their plot and surprise them when the timing was right. This somewhat childish act was merely a way to kill time.

But now, it seems, the two cunning murderers have a grand scheme at play. A detective, their equal, was required to match them.

Shiller slowly closed his eyes. The changing light outside the window played on his face, transitioning from the faint light of the morning to the brilliant sunset.

When Shiller turned around, he found himself in the banquet hall of the King of Asgard's wedding, dressed in his suit and holding a wine glass.

The banquet bustled with the clinking of toasts and the glimmering lights. Guests from various interstellar civilizations, dressed in vibrant costumes, were engaged in lively conversations.

Behind the glittering glamorous illusion of fame and wealth, Shiller saw a familiar figure, Tony Stark.

The colored light from the glass of the Fairy Palace fell in the center of the banquet hall, splitting the busy stage into two halves.

The superhero standing in the light mingled with the darkness, and the backstage puppeteer immersed in shadow stepped forward onto the stage.

In the hurried rhythm of the music, stances were swapped, black and white reversed.

Stark's brown eyes were filled with luminosity, as if overflowing with honey. When he saw Shiller, he didn't walk over as usual, but instead raised his glass to Shiller in toast from afar.

They had never been so distant, yet never so close.

Shiller and Stark were friends. But the hidden puppet master controlling everything is prone to oversee and direct everyone, like an omnipresent wind, at times gentle, at others ferocious.

He loves every fledgling before they leave the nest, preening their feathers and helping them grow stronger. At the same time, he enjoys manipulating them, creating various currents and controlling their flight direction.

Stark is a chess piece held in the player's hand, a secret thread woven into the grand scheme by the grand strategist, the last nestling to leave, and also the most robust bird of prey.

The best way to reciprocate is to raise your glass to the murderer and the detective in the vast expanse of star-studded cosmos and the infinite star ocean which offers an even more extensive sky.

Here's to another who dances greedily alone on this once dull interstellar stage, a contender ensuring he will never feel lonely.