435. The Truth Behind the Contamination!

435. The Truth Behind the Contamination!

(T/N): Since it's Christmas there is mass release.

????????Merry Christmas????????

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"What did you say!?"

Alex's pupils contracted, and his heartbeat quickened slightly.

Although Alex had speculated about the origin of these numbers before, he was still somewhat surprised when Stark finally deciphered their meaning.

"What's going on?" The Watcher curiously shifted his gaze over. There weren't many individuals in the world difficult for the Watcher to track, and Stark was one of them. As a peculiar echo of the original timeline's fracture, Stark wasn't on the Watcher's radar.

Hearing the question, Alex explained without turning his head. "When I encountered the Zombie Sentry earlier, I received a string of numerical data. I didn't know what it represented, so I asked Stark and his team to investigate it."

"Zombie Sentry..."

The Watcher frowned, immediately understanding Alex's reference. This Sentry wasn't the one battling Clark but the Zombie Sentry carrying immense sources of contamination and repeatedly assaulting the fabric of reality.

At the thought of that creature, the Watcher's expression grew more serious. Contamination was an anomalous energy the Watchers had never encountered—powerful and threatening in equal measure.

This string of numerical data might hold the key to securing a victory in this not-quite-a-war.

"Because the power of contamination is so strange, I wasn't sure whether the numbers themselves carried it. So, I didn't share this with you. Stark and his team were under my protection, and as far as I know, I have decent resistance to contamination, so..."

"Oh, don't misunderstand. I'm not blaming you for keeping it to yourself. Contamination poses a significant threat to Watchers as well—there's no doubt about that. Your caution was wise." The Watcher waved dismissively and turned his curious gaze toward Stark in the projection.

Nodding slightly, Alex raised his hand and conjured a golden, circular portal. Some matters, especially ones as significant as contamination, were better discussed in person.

Stepping through the portal, Alex quickly arrived before Stark. By now, the battle in this area was nearing its conclusion. White Raven and Ashley had gone off to follow Pietro, while Mister Fantastic had left for Xandar to catalog their spoils.

The only one left here was Tony Stark, clad in his Sorcerer Supreme Iron Man armor, surrounded by wreckage and the gruesome remains of several zombie corpses.

"I just got the signal from J.A.R.V.I.S. I'd set him to work on decoding the data in the background, running various computations to filter out the most likely results," Stark said enthusiastically as he approached Alex.

"The string of numbers itself has a pattern, you know. Its meaning is incredibly diverse. Just by glancing at it, I came up with at least a hundred interpretations. But to determine its actual significance, I had to rely on J.A.R.V.I.S.' computational power."

"Stop teasing, Tony. Get to the point, will you?" Alex asked impatiently.

"Alright, alright. You're really impatient today," Stark replied with a chuckle. Seeing the seriousness on Alex's face, however, he quickly straightened up and adopted a more solemn tone.

"Actually, it's pretty much what I initially suspected. During the initial phase of decoding, J.A.R.V.I.S. came up with tens of thousands of possibilities. These were based on various human civilizations' interpretations of numbers—binary, Mohist mechanical theory, Arabic statistics, even biblical numerology. There were just too many permutations..."

Seeing Alex's expression darken further, Stark quickly raised his hands in mock surrender.

"Alright, alright! I'll cut to the chase!"

"They're damned IP addresses."

"Bingo!"

Tony Stark's face broke into a grin, though his expression carried a heavy undertone.

"Surprising, isn't it? I was shocked too—angry, even. If the data you received is accurate and complete, then yes, these IP addresses are what the so-called 'contamination' was hiding. In fact, it wasn't even trying to hide them..."

Alex stopped hearing Stark's words at this point. He had plunged into a mental storm.

Now he understood the source of those emotions. Joy, sorrow, rage, and malice surged back into him, relentlessly battering his mind and making it impossible to focus.

Lost in confusion, Alex felt as if everything before him was turning unreal.

Darkness closed in from all directions, enveloping his entire field of vision.

Stark's voice grew fainter, more distant, as if the whole space around Alex had expanded into a vast emptiness.

Meanwhile, his thoughts thickened, like honey unable to flow freely. Everything felt heavy and sluggish, even his breathing became labored.

In the murky void, a pair of hands emerged. Their fingers danced lightly across a keyboard, playing an elegant melody like a pianist on stage.

Letters and words appeared on an unseen system, each keystroke heavy yet clear, like water droplets falling into a bathtub.

It was a silent conversation—a dialogue with the machine, yet also a peculiar self-indulgence.

Gradually, the scene grew brighter.

Pages of comics began flipping rapidly, their plots unfolding at a dizzying speed before Alex's eyes. Dialogues, expressions, and emotions of every kind rushed past him, leaving him feeling nauseous and disoriented.

Suddenly!

A hand landed on Alex's shoulder.

Startled, Alex snapped out of his trance and returned to reality.

"Hey, are you okay?" Before him stood Tony Stark, his face showing a trace of concern.

"I... uh, I'm fine."

Alex forced a smile, rubbing his temples.

"I just need a drink."

.....

????30 advanced chapters on p@treaon????

For advance chapters: /Uchiha_Itachi007 (replace @ with a)

436. A New Direction for the Investigation!

437. Vought+!!

438. Deep Undercover!

439. The True Hell!

440. The Upper Narrative!