Now that it has been confirmed that the power gem is in the hands of the New Star Legion, and the other party is also interested in transferring it, then things are much simpler. Michael promised the Nova that he would be able to follow them to the Nova Legion today to talk to their commander.

Then all that's left is the last primordial stone, the soul primordial.

It was something he had thought about a long time ago, and it was something he knew he was going to have to deal with. The Soul Primordial is set to be the highest status of the Infinite Primordial in the MCU. Due to the peculiarities of its status and nature, it is necessary to pay a corresponding price in order to obtain a rough stone.

One soul is exchanged for another, and there is no other way to take this rough stone and sacrifice a life.

And this life must come from the people you care about the most.

That's why Michael hasn't tried to collect all six primordial stones, because the soul primordial is the hardest threshold to cross. He always thought that he already had four rough stones in his hands, and even if Thanos got the remaining two, it would be useless, so he didn't bother to find them.

But things are different now. The appearance of the Cosmic Cube changed the situation again, and now Thanos doesn't need two primordial stones left, and he can't resist it, and collecting six primordial stones suddenly becomes necessary.

So now the question is – is he willing to pay the price?

"Let's go." Michael said to the nova, "I'll go back to Xandar with you right now." We'd better hurry, maybe a day, maybe two days, and Thanos could come back at any time. ”

"Okay." Nova nodded, got up, and geared up to go.

"Wait," Wanda grabbed his arm, "I'll go too." ”

Michael shook his head: "No, you stay." ”

Wanda said stubbornly: "No. You promised me that I would be with you to the end—and now that's the time. I know this fight is different, and I know you've made the same old mistake of trying to carry it on your own. But that's not going to happen. I won't allow you to ......"

Michael smiled and touched her head, interrupting her.

"Maybe you haven't realized it yet, Wanda." He said slowly, "You have already accompanied me to the end, thank you." But this time is different...... This time I'll have to go on my own. ”

Wanda wanted to insist, but somehow, the moment she saw his eyes, she suddenly closed her mouth.

Since he's said so, it should ...... There won't be any problems, right?

Michael beckoned to everyone and turned to the nova: "Alright, let's go." ”

Yes, he can't bring Wanda with him, because then things will be too easy. If he did, he knew what choice Wanda would willingly make. She would have no hesitation in trading her soul for the last rough stone, and that was something that Michael would never allow to happen.

It wasn't like he hadn't thought about it before. Use the people you care about the most to exchange for endless power and save the universe. If one day he is not faced with such a proposition, how will he choose?

And it took him almost a few seconds to come up with the answer.

There's nothing to dwell on, at least for Michael. Unlike most American superheroes who have a compassionate heart and always want to save everyone, Michael never took this as his own task.

All his efforts are for the sake of people and the planet, just because he is a part of it. He never branded himself as a hero who saved the suffering, just because he knew what kind of weight the word had. If you want to be a hero, you can never avoid a multiple-choice question of "who to save", as if you have to have a balance in your heart, and as a hero, sooner or later you have to choose between lives on both sides of the scale.

And now is that moment. Exchanging a life for the lives of hundreds of billions of living beings in the universe may seem like a multiple-choice question, but it is also a choice that Michael will never make.

Maybe you can say that he is selfish, but he is such a person that he will not compromise with reality and will not give in.

What's the point of saving as many people as you save if you can't protect the only one you want to protect?

***

It was only a matter of a moment that the Nova came to Xandar Star. Entering the atmosphere, the capital of Sandar Star soon came into view. The city looks similar to what it looks like in the movies, a futuristic city full of sci-fi atmosphere, but it looks a little dilapidated and embarrassed when you look at it.

The scattered streets were blown to pieces, and large swaths of buildings seemed to have been smashed to pieces by a giant hand. The ground was littered with debris and shipwreckage, and many workers were busy cleaning and rebuilding the city, looking like they had just experienced a major disaster.

"It's Thanos."

Seeing Michael staring down at the miserable scene below, the nova who accompanied him said in a low voice, "We fought, but we lost." He's too strong for any of us to deal with, we can only do our best......"

He glanced at Michael, as if he wanted to say something, but shook his head and didn't say anything.

Michael arrives at Nova Legion's headquarters, where their leader, Adora, an older woman with gray hair, is already waiting.

"I've wanted to meet you for a long time." She put her hands behind her back as Michael walked through the door and said leisurely, "I've heard a lot of rumors about you, and quite a few of them are really impressive. ”

"You'd better not believe all the rumors." Michael walked up, "People like to add fuel to it. ”

"We have our own channels of information, and we know what's true and what's not." "It helps us to judge what kind of person we are dealing with." ”

Michael tilted his head: "So what kind of person am I through your channels?" ”

She looked at Michael for a moment, as if to see through his unwavering eyes.

"A man to be trusted." It was a moment before she spoke, "At least I hope so." ”

She stood up, walked slowly to the middle of the room, and raised her hand to press a translucent virtual button in the air. A complex pattern appeared in the space, like some kind of gesture password. She unlocked the code, and a table quickly rose from the ground with a silver metal orb on it.

"Cosmic Spirit Orb, I believe this is what you're looking for." She picked up the orb and turned to Michael, "Or maybe you prefer to call it ...... 'Rough Stone of Strength.'" ”