Onboard a spaceship.
"Planet C-53?"
"Hey, isn't that your home planet?"
A burly man with a full beard, Glen, asked in surprise.
Star-Lord, dressed in his red leather jacket and black pants, was momentarily stunned. He had heard of Earth before; it was often referred to as Terra or Earth by the aliens.
"C-53, you mean Earth?"
The name Terra wasn't unfamiliar to him. If nothing else, this C-53 should indeed be Earth.
Glen continued with curiosity, "Recently, there's been a rumor going around that two incredibly powerful beings have appeared on your home planet?"
"Wait, let me check," Glen said as he read the details.
"Yes, here's how they're described…"
"A Messiah and a White Knight. One is said to be able to destroy a city instantly, and the other can effortlessly erase other people's lives…"
As Glen read, his voice grew softer and his eyes widened in disbelief.
Even he found these claims hard to swallow. Considering the reports, the so-called messengers of power on Earth seemed highly exaggerated.
Given what Star-Lord had shared, he knew Earth's civilization was quite primitive, lacking the ability for interstellar travel.
Yet, rumors now claimed that such powerful beings capable of city-level destruction and life erasure were emerging on such a weak planet?
Despite the lack of specifics on how these feats were achieved or the nature of their powers, it was hard to believe.
Not just Glen, but Star-Lord himself was also stunned. How could this be possible?
After the initial shock, Star-Lord quickly recovered.
Hearing Glen's words, the other aliens on the ship turned to look at Star-Lord with astonished expressions.
Realizing their focus, Star-Lord shrugged and casually said, "It must be fake…"
"You all know that my home planet, C-53, is just a minor world. Such powerful beings are impossible there. This is probably just an absurd rumor."
Star-Lord was skeptical that such strong beings could exist on Earth, given his memories from before he left and the information he had gathered over the years.
Moreover, the descriptions of beings who could instantly destroy cities and erase lives seemed ludicrous.
He doubted whether the originators of these rumors were in their right minds, suggesting they might need a mental health check.
Star-Lord considered it the most ridiculous claim he had ever heard.
The other crew members laughed heartily, clearly finding the rumors amusing and unbelievable.
Glen then asked Star-Lord, "It's been many years since you last visited your home planet, hasn't it?"
"When are we going to go back and see if there's any truth to these rumors?"
Though Glen's words carried a teasing tone, Star-Lord detected the hint of jest. The others chuckled in agreement.
Star-Lord could only shrug in resignation.
As for the suggestion…
Returning to Earth to see the rumored beings might be possible after all.
Meanwhile, the Kree and the Supreme Intelligence, major galactic powers, had also caught wind of these rumors.
"How interesting."
"Who started this rumor?"
The Supreme Intelligence, appearing as a middle-aged woman, mused.
As the life computer created by the Kree, the Supreme Intelligence embodied their highest wisdom, encompassing all knowledge of science, philosophy, and thought. It governed the Kree Empire.
Planet C-53 was well known to her; it was the home planet of Carol Danvers, also known as Captain Marvel. The Supreme Intelligence still remembered Carol's defection years ago.
Now, rumors about two incredibly powerful beings on C-53 were circulating. The Supreme Intelligence found it hard to believe.
Whether true or not, she thought it necessary to send someone to Earth to investigate. If the rumors were false, there would be no issue. But if they were true, she was curious about these beings' powers and origins.
Besides the Kree and the Supreme Intelligence, other major powers and ordinary aliens were also intrigued by the outlandish rumors about Earth.
"Is this true?"
"Can life possess such power?"
Many were shocked and then chose not to believe.
"Impossible!"
"False. How could such a weak civilization have such powerful beings…"
"This is an exaggeration; I almost believed it…"
"Who spread this ridiculous news?"
Reason told them that the rumor was mostly false, and many chose to disbelieve. However, their curiosity about Earth was piqued.
The curiosity gnawed at them like a cat scratching, making them want to visit Earth and see for themselves.
This was precisely what Thanos hoped for: that the Messiah and the White Knight would attract the attention of major powers and prompt them to act against him.
Meanwhile, Thanos would sit back and reap the rewards of his scheme.
While Thanos was scheming, and alien rumors spread, Syd stood in the sunlight, basking in the rays and curiously watching his energy points.
[Energy Points: 22,665]
"I wonder if these energy points will unlock new abilities for Badar?"
Curiosity piqued, Syd began investing the energy points into unlocking progress.
Soon, the unlocking progress increased steadily to 56%, 58%, 60%.
Seeing the progress at 60%, Syd's anticipation grew, eager for the new ability to be revealed.
Fortunately, a prompt appeared.
[Unlock Progress: 60%]
[Ability: Divine Word (Unlocked)]
[Ability: Divine Word (0/100) Level 1]
Syd was momentarily stunned.
Divine Word?
What kind of ability was this?
He felt puzzled.
Aside from the prompt, even though he seemed to have gained the ability, he felt no noticeable change.
Intrigued, he decided to test it.
The name "Divine Word" suggested that the ability might be related to speech…
(End of Chapter)