In the space outside, the area where Zane had just been, had indeed turned into a chaotic, roaring flow of spacetime turbulence.
Zane's hand, wearing the gauntlet, radiated a dazzling light, forming a protective shield around him, resisting the erosion of the turbulent spacetime.
"The Infinity Gauntlet?"
"So Destruction, that kid, really did steal the design blueprint from his sleeping brother."
"Back then, Tiamut used the 'Infinity Gauntlet' he created to show his might in the battle against the Watcher…"
"Unfortunately, when this weapon gathered all six Infinity Stones, it seriously impacted the balance of the universe, which was still in its early stages of life development."
"Though that impact only affected life below the sixth dimension."
"But the Infinity Gauntlet was still destroyed, and afterward, it was forbidden in the universe for anyone to collect all six Infinity Stones."
Arishem, clad in crimson armor, looked at Zane, who had suddenly appeared with the 'Infinity Gauntlet,' and sighed in remembrance.
He had been puzzled by Zane's brief disappearance and reappearance, but the sight of the gauntlet immediately captured his attention.
At that moment, a sharp cracking sound filled the air.
The 'Infinity Gauntlet' on Zane's hand, after holding out against the turbulent spacetime for so long, could no longer withstand the strain and finally shattered.
With a crisp breaking sound, it was instantly ground into dust by the force of spacetime.
At the same time, using the gauntlet's assistance, Zane managed to reach the edge of the chaotic spacetime and, in an instant, flashed to Arishem's side.
Arishem, still reminiscing about that long-lost era, saw Zane suddenly appear beside him and murmured, "So, it was just a defective product."
"The outside must have turned into a spacetime turbulence by now. If you go out, you might end up exiled to another dimensional world, or even be obliterated…"
Zane possessed his own dimensional world, the 'Divine Realm.'
Thus, he knew well that without a spacetime anchor from a dimensional world, forcing his way through could lead to endless spacetime loops, or even annihilation by the overwhelming power of spacetime.
Just then, Zane sensed a faint glow from the emerald sphere inside his 'Divine Realm.'
He suddenly remembered the 'Infinity Gauntlet' he had stored in the 'King's Treasury.'
Previously, Lorna had insisted on giving it to Zane when she entered the 'Divine Realm.'
When Zane returned to the 'Divine Realm,' he found that Lorna had transformed into a sphere, making the gauntlet temporarily unusable.
Furthermore, the energy of the Infinity Stones might even interfere with her progression.
So, Zane had placed the 'Infinity Gauntlet' into the 'King's Treasury.'
Zane knew that although the stones' energy on the gauntlet came from a second forging in the 'Magic Furnace,' this legendary artifact, while perhaps not as powerful as the 'Magic Furnace,' still possessed unique abilities.
For instance, Lorna had once used the 'Infinity Gauntlet' to withstand an attack from the Destruction, who was of a far higher dimension, even as he unleashed his full power.
'Let's give it a try… At worst, if it fails, I'll just retreat.'
With that thought, Zane decisively put on the 'Infinity Gauntlet' and leaped forward in a flash.
Actually, Arishem wasn't wrong. After the 'Infinity Gauntlet' was placed into the 'King's Treasury' and then repaired and modified by the 'Magic Furnace,' it did regain the properties of the six Infinity Stones.
However, because of its original "snap to indiscriminately destroy half of all life in the universe" feature, the 'King's Treasury' treated it as a program error and corrected it. After all, if half of all life were wiped out without discrimination, what if it killed the user or someone close to them?
So, compared to the original, the version of the 'Infinity Gauntlet' created by Zane was indeed a modified product with incomplete functionality.
Similarly, Zane wasn't bothered by the destruction of the 'Infinity Gauntlet' either. Unlike the movie, here, the entire dwarven race hadn't been wiped out, and King Eitri's hands were intact.
Moreover, the dwarven race had sworn loyalty to Zane. As long as he wished, he could have one made for each of his team members.
As for the attribute boosts, well, that depended on whether they showed him enough respect.
Swish!
With a gleam of red in his eyes, Zane darted close to Arishem, decisively drawing a long, black scythe in midair.
He could tell that Arishem, having used his ultimate power, was now very weak.
In that case… strike while he's down.
In a flash, Zane flew to the massive neck of Arishem.
The black scythe, symbolizing death, loomed huge, enhanced by the shadows around its blade.
In just an instant, he could cut off the head encased in that crimson armor below.
Swish!
The blade swung down.
But it sliced through empty air!
Where Arishem once stood, only a shattered afterimage remained, cut by the scythe.
Immediately after, Arishem's huge form reappeared in an empty area nearby. He looked at Zane with a cold expression and said, "Did you really think that I, Arishem, a Judge of the Cosmos, would be that easy to handle?"
Swish!
Zane launched another attack.
Arishem was now extremely weakened.
If he could just get a brief moment to divide Arishem's attention…
Then he could end him with a single blow.
Alright, let's try this!
"[Grand Prophecy]: I declare, you must die!"
Charging toward Arishem with the black scythe, Zane yelled at the top of his lungs as he got close.
"Little bug, you're almost amusing…"
The crimson-armored giant Arishem watched Zane charging through the air, shouting, with a bemused expression. He extended two fingers, pinching Zane tightly as one would an ant.
Zane's scythe managed to leave a shallow mark on the long back of Arishem's fingers.
"I thought you'd figured out that we Primordial Celestials have no souls," Arishem said.
"Didn't you know that the Grand Prophecy only works on beings with souls?"
Before he could finish, the mark Zane had carved into his fingers disappeared, and a tiny black sphere appeared behind Arishem.
Just as Arishem was about to squeeze his fingers and crush Zane, the space around Zane distorted, and he vanished instantly.
Unfazed, Arishem looked at Zane reappearing a distance away and spoke in a calm tone:
"I've said before, energy that is friendly to the universe, I shall let return."
"And energy harmful to the universe, I shall let it be expelled."
"All of this is by the power granted to me by the [Judgment Scroll]."
"The Life Tribunal granted me this cosmic artifact, which is distilled into a simple formula in my hand."
"With this formula, I can judge the fall of a planet, the extinction of a species."
"Likewise, I can determine the validity of any single energy being's existence."
Looking at his left palm, where the golden scroll had merged, Arishem saw symbols flickering in the void.
He looked over at Zane and pronounced each word with clarity:
"Zane Sy, now feel the true power of judgment."
"Judgment!"
*************************************
You can get access to early chapters on patr*on
If you like my work and you want to support me then you can become my patron on patre*n.
My patr*on account is Lord_Immortal_0170