Chương 159: Chapter 159: Happy Goes Missing 

"No!" A sudden burst of dark energy violently erupted, blasting the Earth Demon straight out from underground. Nightmare let out a fiery snort as it carried Carter slowly toward the demon. 

"Please, spare me! I haven't hurt anyone!" Seeing Carter looming over him like the absolute Grim Reaper atop Nightmare, the Earth Demon knelt on the ground, desperately begging for mercy. 

The roar of a motorcycle engine echoed through the street as Johnny pulled up beside him, a flaming chain in hand. "This guy is lying to you. He's killed plenty of people," Johnny said to Carter. Having officially become a Ghost Rider, Johnny could effortlessly perceive the horrific sins the Earth Demon had committed. 

Carter chuckled darkly. "I don't even need to look to know he's murdered his fair share. These demons absolutely don't come to Earth to be five-star model citizens." 

Pitch-black Hellfire violently ignited along the massive scythe in his hand. With a single, devastating swing, Carter cleaved the Earth Demon completely in half! The black flames instantly latched onto the demon's corpse, aggressively burning it into absolute nothingness. 

Carter looked up. Before Luke and the Ancient One had departed, they had explicitly dispatched a specialized squad of Nightbat Ninjas and Shadow Ninjas to assist them. While the two Riders dealt with the three strongest elemental demons, these Shadowkhan had been continuously, ruthlessly executing the lesser rogue spirits in the surrounding perimeter. 

Equipped with heavily enchanted weaponry, the Shadow Ninjas were now highly capable of inflicting catastrophic structural damage on these energy-based entities, massively elevating the Shadowkhan legion's baseline combat effectiveness. 

Watching the Earth Demon's ashes scatter, Carter nodded in profound satisfaction. "Is that the absolute last of the hostiles?" 

"Where to next?" Johnny asked. 

"We head back. We wait for Luke and the Ancient One to return, and see if Mephisto has been permanently dealt with." 

Not long after, Luke's group returned to Earth. Looking out over the calm, peaceful city, Luke smiled warmly. "It appears they successfully purged the remaining rogue spirits. I'd say this entire incident has been completely, permanently resolved." 

Having enjoyed an absolutely massive, highly filling cosmic feast, Galactus was in a spectacularly good mood. Seeing the localized crisis formally concluded, he turned to Luke. "Regarding the AllSpark, my preliminary research has yielded highly promising results. Whenever you are free later, formally visit the laboratory within Stark Tower. We shall actively experiment to determine if we can significantly expand the maximum capacity of your energy crystals." 

Luke nodded eagerly, watching Uncle Galactus depart. 

"Are you heading back to continue formally instructing Stephen?" Luke asked the Ancient One, who stood nearby. 

"Excessive, aggressive intervention will ultimately render him mediocre. I actively choose to allow him to develop organically," the Ancient One replied smoothly, drawing a localized Sling Ring portal. She paused, looking back at Luke. "However, I have recently formulated several highly innovative concepts regarding the planetary defensive grid. I am incredibly eager to return and actively test them." 

Luke nodded. Watching her step through the portal, he decided to check on Carter and Johnny. Utilizing his absolute connection to the dark energy, he easily pinpointed their localized coordinates and flew directly toward them. 

Inside Johnny's modest apartment, Carter and Johnny were casually chatting when Luke silently materialized beside them. 

"Is the mission officially accomplished?" Johnny asked immediately. 

Luke nodded. "Mephisto's Hell Dimension has been completely, functionally obliterated, and Mephisto himself aggressively fled into the void. We weren't able to successfully retrieve your soul contract, but since your soul is permanently fused with the Spirit of Vengeance, Mephisto is fundamentally incapable of directly destroying it." 

Carter was genuinely, profoundly shocked to hear that an entire Hell Dimension had been casually wiped from existence. 

However, Johnny looked highly confused. "But... I explicitly felt the restrictive binding of the contract completely vanish from my soul. I honestly assumed you guys had permanently assassinated Mephisto." It was specifically because he felt the demonic tethers dissolve that he felt safe reverting to his human form. 

Luke was equally bewildered. Mephisto successfully fled, so why in the world did the contract spontaneously void itself? 

Mephisto absolutely wouldn't voluntarily nullify a contract... unless he encountered a catastrophic, highly lethal "accident" while fleeing. 

"We violently shattered his foundational dimension, so his absolute cosmic power must have degraded to incredibly pathetic levels. It is highly probable he was aggressively ambushed and eliminated by a secondary entity in the void," Luke concluded dismissively. "Whatever. Regardless of the specifics, him being permanently dead is an absolute win." 

Johnny nodded in complete agreement. 

The room fell into a comfortable silence. Seeing the two men unsure of what to say next, Luke smiled. "So, what are your immediate, localized plans?" 

Johnny exchanged a glance with Carter, then affectionately patted his motorcycle helmet. "I'll highly likely continue my career as a stunt rider. Since I'm practically, biologically immortal now, violently crashing from a few dozen meters won't inflict any permanent structural damage." 

Johnny couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of his new reality. "And then... there's Roxanne. I am absolutely, aggressively determined to win her back." He glanced at Luke and added, "If you ever require localized tactical assistance, feel free to contact me. Although, if there's a specific threat that you guys can't effortlessly handle, I probably won't be of much tactical use." 

Luke shook his head firmly. "Do not arbitrarily underestimate your unique cosmic authority. Upon transforming, you possess the absolute capability to physically perceive the wicked deeds of others and violently judge their sins. That specific, localized attack vector is incredibly, lethally effective against highly specific cosmic targets." 

Having confirmed Johnny's trajectory, Luke turned to the silent Carter. "And you? Do you possess any formal plans?" 

Carter hesitantly patted Nightmare's neck, looking thoughtfully out the window. 

"To actively avoid Mephisto's radar, I remained completely isolated in that remote, highly dilapidated graveyard for over a century. You could logically state I was hopelessly chained there by a localized 'mission.' Now that those chains have been permanently severed... I'd genuinely like to travel the globe. I want to actively observe exactly how much the world has changed over the past hundred years." 

Luke nodded in profound understanding. Looking closely at Carter's highly weathered, slightly tattered nineteenth-century cowboy attire, Luke casually snapped his fingers. A Shadow Ninja silently emerged, respectfully handing Luke a checkbook. 

Luke casually scrawled a massive series of digits onto a check and handed it to Carter. "In the modern era, attempting to accomplish virtually anything without significant financial capital is incredibly inefficient. Possessing a localized abundance of currency will make your travels vastly more comfortable." 

Carter stared at the incredibly generous check, hesitating, highly uncertain if he should accept it. 

Seeing the old rider's reluctance, Luke aggressively stuffed the check directly into Carter's breast pocket. "Relax. This localized sum is absolutely statistically insignificant to me. You actively provided critical tactical support in neutralizing Mephisto; this minor financial compensation is the absolute least I could do." 

Having successfully ascertained both of their plans, Luke formally took his leave. 

He was eager to return to the Trade Hub to verify its operational status, and he hadn't seen Galacta all day. After being away on a massive dimensional excursion, he urgently needed to confirm if she had encountered any localized issues or if she had aggressively burned through her entire daily caloric allowance of energy crystals. 

After successfully managing his administrative duties, Luke remembered Uncle Galactus's invitation regarding the AllSpark research. He immediately flew directly to Stark Tower. 

Stepping into Tony's primary R&D laboratory, Luke genuinely couldn't even recognize the massive room he had visited multiple times before. 

Dozens of colossal, highly intricate, completely alien mechanical apparatuses now densely littered the entire floor plan, actively transforming the sleek, modern lab into a highly complex, technological maze. Foregoing J.A.R.V.I.S.'s navigational assistance, Luke simply engaged his flight capability and casually hovered directly over the massive machinery blocking his line of sight. 

"It appears your localized armor research is progressing highly optimally," Luke stated, silently landing directly behind Tony, who was intensely, aggressively focused on fabricating a sleek new armor plating. 1

"WHOA!" Tony violently flinched, jumping out of his skin. He hadn't heard Luke approach at all. 

Luke simply shrugged helplessly at Tony's exaggerated reaction, then casually inspected the various armor components scattered across the workbench. "It looks like you've aggressively upgraded the baseline suits again?" 

Tony looked back at his metallic masterpiece and smiled proudly. "Technological evolution requires constant, relentless, aggressive forward momentum." 

Luke nodded approvingly, patting Tony's shoulder before flying toward the opposite side of the massive lab. He quickly located Dr. Bruce Banner, who was currently meticulously mixing a highly complex, glowing chemical serum. 

"Are you still actively attempting to synthesize a permanent biological cure to eliminate the Hulk?" Luke asked curiously. 

Dr. Banner's psychological resilience was undeniably vastly superior to Tony's—or rather, working closely with the highly chaotic Tony had successfully stress-tested his nerves. Looking up, Banner offered Luke a warm, slightly shy smile. 

"This isn't actually a serum designed to neutralize or eliminate him. It is a highly specialized, localized pharmacological compound engineered to force my consciousness into an incredibly deep, profound REM sleep state. In that specific subconscious realm... I can formally establish direct, localized communication with the Hulk." 

"Wait... you no longer desire to permanently eliminate him? He is the primary reason the US Military constantly aggressively hunts you down," Luke noted. 

Banner shook his head slowly. "During the localized engagement at the Battle of New York, I profoundly realized that the Hulk is absolutely not a mindless monster; he is a fully sentient entity capable of highly complex communication. After developing this serum, I successfully established a direct dialogue within our shared mental space." 

Banner's expression softened as he recalled the profound experience. "In that shared subconscious space, our fundamental memories perfectly intertwine. I physically, emotionally perceived the world entirely through his memories." 

"I could feel his genuine, childlike curiosity regarding the world... his fundamental, desperate desire to simply peacefully exist within it. Yet, the absolute entirety of his external interactions consisted of being violently shelled by heavy tanks and aggressively bombarded by military missiles. To ensure his basic biological survival... his absolute only viable option was violent retaliation." 

Banner paused, a look of profound regret on his face. "Perhaps that highly traumatic, continuous physical abuse is precisely what actively forged the incredibly enraged, highly volatile Hulk we currently know. Experiencing his memories forced me to completely recognize the catastrophic error in my previous methodology." 

"The Hulk is essentially a newly born, highly confused infant. I shouldn't be aggressively screaming at him or actively attempting to murder him; I should be patiently, proactively educating him, helping him organically develop in a highly positive, stable direction." 

Luke nodded in absolute, profound respect for Banner's emotional breakthrough. "If you can successfully ensure the Hulk no longer resorts to random, highly destructive tantrums... I could actively attempt to utilize my resources to biologically synthesize a completely separate, flawless physical vessel for him. That would theoretically allow both you and the Hulk to formally exist simultaneously, as entirely independent entities." 

Banner's eyes lit up with absolute hope. "That would be absolutely, incredibly wonderful." 1

Having concluded his encouraging chat with Banner, Luke flew directly toward the deepest, most secure sector of the lab, where Galactus was actively conducting his cosmic research. 

As Luke approached, Galactus calmly held up the glowing, metallic AllSpark. 

"I have largely concluded my primary analytical research regarding this specific cubic artifact. Fundamentally, it serves as a highly advanced, localized cosmic engine capable of exponentially sublimating ambient energy and aggressively transmuting baseline matter." 

Galactus looked intently at Luke. "However... I am absolutely certain its current, compact physical dimensions do not represent its true, ultimate cosmic state, correct?" 

Luke nodded eagerly. "Absolutely correct. Originally, it was a colossal, massive cube measuring several hundred meters along every single edge." 

Galactus chuckled, a deep, resonant cosmic sound. "Several hundred meters is still fundamentally, pathetically insufficient. At its absolute, unmitigated maximum potential, this specific artifact should physically rival the sheer mass and volume of an entire planet." 

"A planet?!" Luke stared at the tiny, twenty-centimeter cube resting in Galactus's massive palm, completely, utterly incapable of mentally visualizing something that absurdly massive. 

"So... do we need to aggressively, completely unbind it?" Luke asked, slowly realizing the implication. 

"Precisely," Galactus nodded. "However, the absolute primary logistical dilemma is selecting the specific, localized spatial coordinates to safely execute the unbinding protocol. Based on my calculations, once it is completely, violently liberated, its physical volume and gravitational mass will exactly match a planetary body. If we simply unbind it within this solar system, its sudden, massive gravitational pull will catastrophically disrupt the highly stable orbital mechanics of the surrounding planets." 

Luke pondered the catastrophic logistical issue for a moment. "How incredibly massive are we talking, exactly?" 

"Roughly equivalent to the localized mass of Earth." 

Luke nodded slowly, his tactical mind formulating a solution. "Excellent. Once my localized 'Shadow World' organically expands a bit further, it will easily possess sufficient internal volume to safely house it." 

Currently, Luke possessed an absolutely staggering, highly accessible reserve of four trillion Dark Energy Points of 'dimensional foundation'. The total physical volume of Earth was roughly over one trillion cubic kilometers. If Luke simply actively 'mined' and expended one trillion points of his foundational energy, he could aggressively expand his Dark Dimension to a scale massive enough to effortlessly swallow a planet. 

Galactus gently placed the AllSpark back onto the advanced diagnostic table. "Very well. Formally seek me out the absolute microsecond your dimension achieves the requisite localized scale." 

Seeing Galactus seamlessly return his absolute focus to his complex research, Luke chose not to interrupt him further and quietly flew back toward Tony's workstation. 

"I genuinely assumed you were aggressively constructing an entirely new, fully integrated suit of armor," Luke noted, curiously picking up a highly specialized, isolated piece of gauntlet plating that Tony had just finished fabricating. 

Tony didn't look up from his blowtorch, casually chatting with Luke as he worked. 

"Well, now that I possess S.A.T.U.R.D.A.Y., I highly doubt I'll ever formally construct another standalone, independent suit of armor from scratch again. At the absolute most, I'll actively fabricate a dedicated, physical humanoid chassis for J.A.R.V.I.S." 

Tony pointed at the scattered, highly modular armor plating. "Moving forward, my primary R&D focus will strictly consist of manufacturing highly specialized, localized modular components—like these—to aggressively equip and upgrade S.A.T.U.R.D.A.Y. and the other active drones with basic hardware enhancements." 

"Wait... you completely abandoned your aggressive ambition to develop nano-tech armor?" Luke raised an eyebrow, highly surprised. 

Tony sighed heavily, an expression of profound, absolute exasperation washing over his face. 

"S.A.T.U.R.D.A.Y. and the other drones actively possess highly developed, completely independent artificial sentience. Every single drone currently harbors its own highly specific, incredibly demanding individual requirements. Actively managing the complex, localized interpersonal dynamics between the existing suits is already an absolute, unrelenting nightmare! If I arbitrarily construct several more sentient suits, the resulting administrative headache will literally kill me!" 

Glancing nervously around the lab, Tony leaned in close to Luke and whispered conspiratorially, "I'm not even kidding. The active armor roster has formally, aggressively fractured into two highly distinct, bitterly opposed political factions! S.A.T.U.R.D.A.Y. and S.U.N.D.A.Y. formally lead one specific clique, while the remaining drones actively unified into a rival faction! Both sides absolutely, unequivocally despise each other!" 

Luke violently sucked in a breath of air. Now he completely understood why Tony absolutely refused to build new suits. 

"Are you serious?! Your highly advanced combat armors are literally forming high-school cliques and aggressively engaging in localized political warfare?! You're literally starring in a corporate palace drama!" 

Tony sighed, sounding utterly defeated. "Tell me about it. Group dynamics are inevitable; you only need a handful of individuals to instantly form competing social circles. Since these armors are now formally classified as sentient lifeforms, forming highly exclusive cliques is mathematically, perfectly normal behavior." 

Seeing Tony's incredibly miserable, highly stressed expression, Luke sympathetically patted his shoulder. "That is an incredibly rough localized situation, buddy. I highly recommend you immediately binge-watch a few dozen seasons of ancient Chinese palace intrigue dramas. Otherwise, you'll absolutely never possess the necessary manipulative skills to successfully suppress an armored rebellion." 

Tony accepted the highly bizarre advice with a bitter, defeated laugh, and the two continued to chat casually. 

A few minutes later, the lab doors slid open. Pepper Potts strode efficiently into the room, carrying a thick stack of complex logistical manifests for Tony to formally authorize. 

After Tony rapidly signed off on the paperwork, Pepper frowned slightly, looking at him. "Have you received any localized updates regarding Happy's status?" 

"What's wrong? Did Happy actually aggressively skip work?!" Tony grumbled, highly annoyed. "I am absolutely docking his salary! As the formal CEO, I am currently slaving away in the lab, while he's out aggressively partying somewhere!" 

Pepper looked slightly puzzled and highly concerned. "A few days ago, Happy casually mentioned he was taking T.H.U.R.S.D.A.Y. out to handle a specific, localized errand. I naturally assumed you had explicitly deployed him on a highly classified mission, so I didn't question it. However, Happy hasn't physically reported to the company for the past forty-eight hours, and several department heads have formally submitted complaints regarding his absence." 

"Wait... T.H.U.R.S.D.A.Y. is missing too?!" 

Tony instantly froze, realizing something was catastrophically wrong. He hadn't seen the Thursday drone in the lab for days either. 

"J.A.R.V.I.S.! Immediately aggressively ping T.H.U.R.S.D.A.Y.'s localized GPS signature!" Tony commanded urgently. 

"Sir, I am currently entirely incapable of detecting T.H.U.R.S.D.A.Y.'s transmission signal," J.A.R.V.I.S. replied immediately. 

"Where exactly was the absolute final ping located?" 

"The final recorded transmission originated from a highly dilapidated, abandoned iron foundry located in the outer suburbs." 

Tony's brow furrowed deeply. He stared intensely at the highly detailed, localized trajectory map J.A.R.V.I.S. projected onto the holographic display. "What the hell happened to them?" 

Pepper gasped, her hands flying to her chest in absolute, profound panic. "Oh my god, did Happy and the drone run into a lethal trap?!" 

"Absolutely do not panic. With us currently available, Happy will absolutely be fine," Luke stated firmly, quickly stepping over to gently comfort the terrified Pepper. 

Luke stared at the specific, isolated coordinates glowing on the holographic map. He exchanged a highly serious, instantly synchronized glance with Tony. 

"Shall we aggressively investigate the coordinates?" Luke asked. 

Tony looked back at Luke, his eyes radiating absolute, unyielding, lethal determination. 

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