socalfunplaces Chapter 436 Doing the Necessary Things
Chapter 436 Doing the Necessary Things
Chapter 436 Doing the Necessary Things
Before the Ancient One gave it to Tony, the Time Stone had been sealed within the powerful artifact of the Sorcerer Supreme for thousands of years. In terms of understanding the Time Stone, apart from Thanos, no one should have a deeper understanding than the Sorcerer Supreme.
Meanwhile, staring at the Time Stone floating before him, the Sorcerer Supreme Mordo frowned, unsure of what to do: "My teacher really entrusted the stone to you?"
"I guess so?"
Joey couldn't understand what the Ancient One was thinking back then. She said she was going to save the day, and she did indeed trade one life for one with Doctor Doom.
The problem now is that Doctor Doom is still alive, while she has vanished without a trace.
As for the Time Stone, wasn't it just left over?
Could this be considered a favor, or perhaps Joey and his friends just happened to find it?
"Could you please use the Time Stone to turn back time in New York City?"
With many things left to figure out, Joey could only deal with the immediate problem: "But let me make this clear first, there's no way I can return this gem to you right now!"
Mordo shook his head: "I'm sorry, I can't."
"What you're asking me to do isn't just about time; it's about cause and effect."
The conditions Superman demanded were extremely stringent, requiring him to recreate the lives of millions of people in New York City while ensuring that no mishaps occurred in the details—it was practically impossible.
Moreover, Mordo wasn't even sure if they could afford the consequences of using the Time Stone.
Many people take it for granted that magic is a magical trick that doesn't require equivalent exchange, as if anything can be created out of thin air without regard to science.
But magic in the real world is not like that. The higher one goes in the path of magic, the more perfectly it fits together with science.
To gain something, you must first be prepared to lose something. This applies to science as well as magic.
After listening for a while, all Joey could hear was the word "no".
He didn't want to listen to Mordo's grand theories about time and cause and effect anymore, so he skipped over the other's overview of magic and asked his final question: "Is it that you can't, or that you don't want to?"
"Both." Mordo could not, nor did he want to, go back in time and cause and effect throughout New York: "Forcibly rewriting time and causing the spacetime structure to become disordered may only bring us greater disasters. Earth is not only coveted by enemies from the material universe."
From a magical perspective, Earth, and even the entire material universe, only occupies a small part of the real world.
Beyond the material universe, all sorts of dangerous evil gods and demons are lurking, and Mordo cannot leave any loopholes that these extraterrestrial demons can exploit just to solve the problems Superman is currently facing.
Although he knew he'd most likely made a wasted trip, Joey, who was mentally prepared, was still somewhat disappointed to see how uncooperative the Sorcerer Supreme was: "So, you're saying you can't solve the New York problem?"
"There has always been a way to solve New York's problems."
Mordo returned the Time Stone to Superman, pointing to the area between his chest where the Power Stone was located: "It just takes a certain amount of courage."
"What you're talking about requires more than just courage." Joey naturally understood the implication: "I have that courage, but I won't accept that outcome."
"Who isn't?" The Sorcerer Supreme Mordo sighed. "I used to think that my teacher often overstepped his bounds in the path of magic, but it wasn't until I shouldered this burden myself that I realized how difficult it was for him."
Tony and Reed used a scanning device to select a lucky citizen, and after a great deal of effort, they used a high-energy cutting laser beam to cut him out of the frozen ice.
Carrying the cube-shaped block of ice before him, Tony looked at the patient inside and had a sense of déjà vu, like a mammoth frozen in thick ice during the Ice Age, as seen in movies.
Those mammoths all ended up extinct, so Tony could only pray that Superman could handle it, or that he and Reed could come up with something useful.
As Tony was flying at increased power toward Stark Tower, deep in thought, he suddenly felt a lightness on his shoulder. A scanner scanned him and he discovered that Superman had helped him lift the ice layer containing the frozen patient.
Tony originally wanted to ask how the talks went, but seeing Joey's dark complexion and expressionless face, he immediately swallowed those words.
Clearly, the Time Stone path is out of the question for now.
They need to consider more scientific methods, such as traditional vaccine development strategies, and there will likely be no room for trial and error, with no Phase I, II, or III clinical trials, since time is of the essence.
Upon arriving at Stark Tower, Batman brought in another Green Lantern to designate a new quarantine zone to support Tony and his partner's research.
Before entering the isolation room, Tony tapped Joey on the shoulder: "Superman!"
"What if we crash?"
Having just taken over the body from Doctor Doom, Tony never expected to be in such a mess. The pressure was so great that he lost confidence: "Promise me you will do what you are supposed to do."
Joey shook his head: "I don't know what you're talking about."
"
"There's no need to be so pessimistic."
Reed waved his hand, pushing Tony out the door: "Don't put all your eggs in one basket. Let me handle the close contact with patients myself."
This is the most basic safety strategy. There is no need for both of them to be exposed to such a dangerous pathogen at the same time. Iron Man can help him do some data analysis work off the field.
For someone like Reed, he wasn't afraid of the current situation. Although the zombie virus was rampant in New York, they had at least begun to study the virus itself.
In Mr. Fantastic's eyes, as long as a problem objectively exists, there will always be a suitable answer.
Just as Joey was preparing to become a human supercomputer, purely calculating data, to help Tony and Reed fill in the gaps in their knowledge, Batman sent him a message: "Superman, two minutes of your time."
"What?" Joey's extremely displeased expression contrasted sharply with Batman's sour face, creating a striking visual effect. "I haven't even settled accounts with you for that yet!"
Batman is now completely marginalized among everyone. He was already out of place before, and now that this has happened, no one wants to say another word to him.
To be honest, if Joey hadn't been thinking that Doctor Doom was more urgent at the time, and had chosen to protect Batman and deal with Doctor Doom after weighing the pros and cons, then at least the Batman should be locked up now so that the others could calm down.
As for Batman himself?
He remained calm throughout, even when he was going crazy.
Even now, the answer remains the same: "Have you considered the possibility that we might not be able to solve this virus?"
"What do you mean?" Joey retorted.
Batman replied, "That's exactly what I meant."
"In the worst-case scenario, we will have to make a difficult decision."
Batman knew that since his reputation was already ruined and he was disliked by everyone, he could continue to act recklessly: "I'm just telling you that at that time, I will do what's necessary for Tony and the others."