Chapter 202: Guardians of the Galaxy, show up!
She has been investigating her past, and in the process has battled with Nebula.
After a fierce battle, her sisterhood with Nebula became even stronger.
However, even Nebula couldn't accept the fact that her father was invading everywhere.
Thanos looked at the familiar figure in front of him, sadness in his eyes.
He smiled bitterly, but still explained patiently: "This is actually a simple arithmetic problem, my daughter. The space in the universe is limited, the resources are limited, but the population is constantly growing. Excessive population growth will exhaust the limited resources. Once the resources are lost, what will happen to mankind? Isn't it death? This is how my home planet Titan perished."
He fell into deep thought, recalling the past. "At the beginning, Titan was in crisis because the population grew too fast and there was no new resource replacement. I proposed an idea to randomly eliminate half of the population, regardless of rich or poor, old or young, male or female, noble or humble, in a fair and merciful way. But they thought I was too extreme, called me a butcher, and expelled me. The result is predictable. They did not listen to my advice, and Titan was destroyed. And I, who gave advice but was exiled, became a survivor."
Thanos's eyes gradually became firm. "It's the same in the universe. The population is growing too fast. What's wrong with what I did? If I had done it according to my idea earlier, would Titan still have perished? In order to save the universe from crisis, I made the bodies of the dead Titans into vanguards to remind me all the time to be firm in my belief - randomly slaughter half of the population to give the universe a breather."
Thanos' eyes became gentle again, "I call this mercy."
"You actually slaughter people in the name of mercy in an attempt to protect justice?" Gamora's voice was full of sarcasm. Thanos's words made her feel both ridiculous and absurd. However, for a moment, she couldn't find the right words to refute him.
What Thanos said does not seem to be entirely unreasonable. Whether it is her home planet, Thanos' home planet Titan, or the Xandar star where they are now, or even the blue star she has visited, they all face the same problem: the population has increased dramatically, but the resources are far from keeping up with this growth.
She couldn't help but feel a little shaken in her heart, as if something was urging her to betray her sympathy for life.
Jason Quill couldn't help cursing, and then he refuted bluntly: "After you slaughtered half of the population, won't the population grow anymore? The saved resources may make the remaining population grow faster. By then, the population may be even larger than it is now. What can you do?"
Quill's words made Gamora suddenly realize. Indeed, resources are limited, but the population is growing. Thanos's method may temporarily alleviate the contradiction between supply and demand, but it is only a temporary solution and the hidden dangers still exist. Population is eternal, and the problem of population growth will never stop.
She was determined to stop Thanos, so she stepped back and stood beside Quill, supporting him with a firm look.
Thanos even caught a hint of admiration and emotion in her eyes.
At this time, Groot and Rocket Raccoon also came to them, ready to fight alongside these new partners.
They were both released from the same prison, and gradually built up trust and dependence in the process of fighting together. Not long ago, they joined forces to defeat Ronan.
Drax stood with them, weapon in hand.
Quill looked at the people gathered together, and his heart was moved. He looked at Thanos and said loudly: "See? This is us, the Guardians of the Galaxy!"
Thanos looked at them, each of them was wounded and slightly tired. He was not in a hurry to start a battle, but sat down to give them a chance to recover their strength.
He said to himself, "For justice, I can take any means. Even if I have to kill half of the population of the universe, so what? Just like this kid said, I still can't stop the crazy growth of the population."
"Hey, my name is Quill, not kid." Jason Quill couldn't help but retort.
Thanos ignored his protests, "But it doesn't matter. My actions left a spark of hope for the human beings of the entire universe. I gave them the right to choose a better life again, gave them the opportunity to reflect on their actions, and gave them enough time to find alternative resources. Isn't this a good thing? I call it kindness, what's wrong with that?"
"You lunatic! You killed innocent lives and then told them that you gave them the freedom to choose?" Rocket Raccoon couldn't help but complain.
Thanos' eyes turned cold, "With sacrifice, there are choices. The right to choose is based on sacrifice, not a gift without reason. If no one is willing to sacrifice, then I will have to harden my heart and make the choice for them."
Gamora heard this and retorted: "You are hard-hearted enough to force others to die. Why don't you sacrifice yourself for the universe in your eyes?"
Thanos looked solemn, "When I achieve this goal, I will choose to end my life without regrets."
Gamora was silent. Thanos even thought of martyrdom for his paranoid ideals. But his ideals were too extreme, and she was at a loss.
Thanos began to fall into deep thought. "Whenever it's late at night, the souls I slaughtered seem to be howling and shouting in my ears, telling of their grievances and unwillingness. I feel guilty about them, but I will not atone for my sins until my ideal is realized."
Gamora's eyes became moist, and she recalled the scene when her unarmed compatriots were slaughtered when she was a child.
Thanos laughed at himself. "Indeed, after slaughtering half of the population, I will watch the sun rise as usual in a manor, shining on this grateful universe. Then I will choose to end my life. As for what happens after my death, I can't control it. Even if the population expands again at that time, it doesn't seem to have much to do with me."
But he immediately changed the subject, "But this does not mean that no one will come forward to stop it. After me, there may be thousands of idealists who will embark on this bloody road for the sake of all living beings in the universe. The most benevolent wisdom often requires the bloodiest means to achieve it; the most difficult choice requires the strongest will to support it."
Thanos' words made the members of the Guardians of the Galaxy look solemn.
It is true that population growth will never end, but there will also be people like Thanos who hope to use the most direct and violent means to exchange for temporary safety of the universe.
Even if Thanos dies, there will be thousands of successors who will continue this cruel and crazy behavior. This is the reality they are most reluctant to face.
"We can't predict what will happen after we die, but at least now, what we can do is to stop you. Everyone has the right to choose their own way of life. You can't sacrifice the lives of others for your so-called justice." Quill was rarely serious and rebuked Thanos. Everyone's face was firm and their hearts were full of determination. Indeed, they couldn't predict the future, but they could grasp the present.
Quill regained his usual ease, "Come on, Big Purple Potato, show us your strength."
Thanos didn't care about Quill's provocation. He looked at these people who were tired but excited, especially Gamora beside Quill, and felt a little bit of pity in his heart. However, seeing their determined eyes, he stood up and decided to respect their choice and let them move on.
Feeling Thanos' seriousness, everyone smiled at each other, as if they were ready to die.
Thanos had just snatched the Power Stone from them. The terrifying power that was enough to destroy Xandar was now lying quietly in a glove, which forced them to be vigilant.
The tree man Groot stepped forward and rushed towards Thanos without fear, completely disregarding his own safety.
However, Thanos easily neutralized all the attacks. He had the Collector's Aether, the Cosmic Cube provided by the Kree, the Mind Stone, and the Power Stone he had just seized. With the four stones in hand, he was more than enough to deal with the exhausted Guardians of the Galaxy.
He waved his hand lightly, and Rocket Raccoon was knocked to the ground. He couldn't help but sneer: "You have so many people and it's so difficult to deal with Ronan holding the power stone. Now I have four stones in my hand. Your efforts are in vain."
Although Quill could barely stand, he still said stubbornly: "Even if it's in vain, it's better than doing nothing!"
Gamora stood up shakily. "Yes, there is a difference between actively going to die and waiting to die. We firmly believe that our actions are meaningful."
Thanos shook his head and said, "Then I will send you off." Then he waved his hand, and the tree man Groot fell down.
"I am Groot!" Groot left only these words and gave his life.
The few who were still alive had no time to grieve. This was a cruel war that did not allow them to hesitate or stop. They could miss Groot, but only after the war was over. They made a final effort to attack Thanos and stop him from advancing.
Thanos frowned, surprised by the sudden sword attack from behind. He didn't turn around, "Nebula, aren't you looking for the Soul Stone?"
Before Xingyun could answer, he was slapped and sent flying.
Thanos did not go to see Nebula. His two most beloved daughters betrayed him, which made him heartbroken. Fortunately, his five generals of destruction were still loyal to him, which made him feel a little comforted.
However, he then heard a voice he didn't want to hear.
"Purple Potato Head, take my axe!" Thor's voice came first, and then he appeared in mid-air, swinging the Stormbreaker in his hand. The thunderous thunder rushed towards Thanos with the power of heaven and earth. Thanos did not choose to resist. He saw that the power of Stormbreaker was even stronger than Odin he faced at the beginning, and it was not wise to fight head-on. He moved his palm and used the space gem to hide in the virtual space.
Thor was stunned when Stormragen pierced through Thanos' body without causing any damage.
In mid-air, countless magic chains bound Thanos. That was Strange's move. He attacked Thanos from countless planes at the same time, binding Thanos' hands. The powerful magic power put Thanos in a difficult situation for a while, but he flexibly used the gem in his hand to break free from the bondage.
A series of missiles bombarded Thanos like a string of cannonballs. They were technological products created by Stark using nanotechnology and had enormous destructive power.
However, Thanos blocked the attack with his bare hands, without even using the power of the gems. This amazing defense left Stark dumbfounded.
"Is this your strength? I'm really disappointed. How can you stop me like this?" Thanos ignored the siege from the people around him and stared greedily at the Time Stone on Strange's neck. The fierce look made Strange's heart palpitate.
"Their strength is not enough, what about mine?" A sacred and solemn voice sounded.
Thanos slowly turned around and saw Di Jun bathed in a sacred light.
"Your Excellency the Demon King!" Strange was overjoyed. Thanos's powerful attack and defense as well as the blessing of the four Infinity Stones left them helpless. Now a person with absolute strength appeared to deal with Thanos, which was really great.
Stark was also overjoyed, and felt relieved when he saw Di Jun appearing in front of everyone.
Only the Guardians of the Galaxy were somewhat puzzled. Gamora looked at this person whom she had focused on while collecting information on Earth, and she was still a little uneasy, wondering if he had the strength to defeat Thanos.
Di Jun stared at Thanos in front of him, and his heart was filled with a bit of solemnity. Thanos, Odin, Hela, and the newly promoted Thor, they have all climbed to the pinnacle of intelligent life and are moving towards the realm of the third type of creatures. They have touched the mystery of the rules and mastered the power of using the rules. Ordinary intelligent life can pose no threat to them at all.
It is particularly noteworthy that Thanos still holds four Infinity Stones at this moment. These stones are the embodiment of the rules of the universe. With these four gems, Thanos is like a god helping him to reach the deeper realm of the rules. At this moment, he even surpassed Dormammu, who has half a foot in the realm of rules. Dormammu gave up his body for the dark dimension, but Thanos can easily penetrate the dark dimension with just a thought. Lin Feng could not imagine what it would be like if he collected all six Infinity Stones.
Thanos looked at Dijun who appeared on Xandar and sneered, "God, why do you stand by and watch when creatures perish because of themselves, but intervene when they perish because of me?"
Di Jun knew that he was blaming himself for not saving the lives of Titan, but it was an unprovoked disaster. He had not yet obtained the system at that time, and he never interfered in human affairs easily. Therefore, facing Thanos' accusations, he chose to remain silent.
Thanos, however, mistakenly thought that Di Jun was guilty, and continued to accuse him: "You are a god. Are gods so great that they can watch living beings suffer and die of famine, but cannot see them encounter misfortune? If you are so great, why did you create life in the first place?"
(End of this chapter)
