Looking at the floating throne Luo Bai had summoned, Thanos was momentarily stunned.
He glanced between the throne and Luo Bai before suddenly coming to a realization.
So that's why his throne had mysteriously disappeared—Luo Bai had stolen it!
Which meant…
The last time he had a meeting with his subordinates… Luo Bai had been listening the entire time?!
Had Luo Bai taken the throne as a warning?
Of course, that wasn't the real issue here.
The real issue was—
"You stole my throne?!" Thanos growled, pointing at the floating throne, his expression dark with anger.
Luo Bai frowned slightly, looking dissatisfied. "How can you call it stealing? I just borrowed it."
"Borrowed it?"
Me?
Fine.
Thanos took a deep breath, forcing himself to stay calm. "You've had it for a while now. Don't you think it's time to return it?"
Luo Bai responded casually, "Maybe in a few days. I find it quite comfortable."
"......!!!"
At that moment, Thanos finally understood.
Calling it 'borrowing' was just sugarcoating it!
Luo Bai had outright stolen it!
This was a loan with no intention of repayment!
Thinking of this, Thanos couldn't help but mutter, "The previous Sorcerer Supreme had far more principles than you."
"Oh?" Luo Bai raised an eyebrow. "Are you talking about the Ancient One?"
Thanos nodded firmly. "Yes!"
Luo Bai chuckled. "Before leaving Earth, the Ancient One told me that sometimes, you have to be flexible. I've kept those words in mind ever since."
"..."
Deep down, Thanos knew the truth.
The Ancient One wasn't exactly as righteous as they appeared.
If the Ancient One truly had unshakable principles, they wouldn't have secretly drawn power from Dormammu's Dark Dimension to extend their life.
They even used Dormammu's energy to fight Dormammu himself.
The Sorcerer Supreme only looked noble on the surface. In reality, their actions were far from honorable.
But at the very least…
"At least the Ancient One never had their eyes on my throne," Thanos muttered.
Luo Bai smirked and replied lightly, "That's only because you never tried to steal an Infinity Stone while they were around. If you had, I doubt the throne would be the only thing taken from you."
Thanos fell silent.
Because Luo Bai was right.
If the Ancient One had known about his quest for the Infinity Stones, as their guardian, they would have done much worse to him.
Taking a deep breath, Thanos clenched his fists and said, "It's just a throne. I won't dwell on it. What truly matters is the fate of the entire universe."
The moment he finished speaking, Luo Bai said, "I heard you're planning universal population control. Using the power of all six Infinity Stones to wipe out half of all life in the universe."
Hearing this, Thanos' eyes lit up.
He immediately stopped worrying about the throne and began discussing his grand vision.
"You know my plan, but you probably don't fully understand my reasoning," Thanos said passionately. "Life in the universe is unbalanced. Some civilizations thrive, while others suffer in poverty and misery."
"This imbalance is caused by an uncontrolled population consuming limited resources. The universe does not have infinite supplies to sustain infinite life."
"By wiping out half of all living beings, we can restore balance."
"If we reduce the population, the remaining people will have access to abundant resources, accelerating their civilizations' development. Isn't that a good thing?"
Thanos spoke with conviction, his eyes gleaming with fervor. He looked at Luo Bai expectantly, as if waiting for him to acknowledge the brilliance of his plan.
But instead, Luo Bai frowned.
Noticing Luo Bai's reaction, Thanos asked, "Don't you think my plan is just and noble?"
Luo Bai shook his head and sighed. "You're the first person I've ever seen who can make genocide sound noble."
"Genocide?" Thanos frowned, quickly shaking his head. "No, this is not genocide. I am merely ensuring the universe's survival."
Luo Bai chuckled.
Thanos' plan…
At first glance, there were certainly people who would agree with him.
Sacrificing half the population to allow the remaining half to thrive. Fewer people, more resources, better living conditions.
Many impoverished individuals might even see it as a blessing—after all, with fewer people, they would receive more.
But let's flip the perspective.
What if you were the one being sacrificed?
What if you were erased, just so someone you didn't even know could live comfortably?
And then, the one responsible for your death tells you—
"Your sacrifice was necessary. I'm not killing you; I'm saving the universe."
If you were the victim, how would you see Thanos' so-called 'salvation'?
Isn't he just killing people?
Even if you weren't one of the victims—if you were lucky enough to survive—what would you find?
Your relatives, friends, lovers, even your children… all gone.
Vanished because of Thanos' actions.
And you're the only one left.
Would you still think Thanos was doing you a favor?
No.
You would see him as nothing more than a murderer—the one who wiped out your entire family.
Yet Thanos, despite holding such a cruel and inhumane ideology, actually expects all living beings in the universe to praise him for his so-called 'greatness.'
To be honest, Luo Bai just couldn't understand it.
As the Sorcerer Supreme, Luo Bai wasn't exactly a saint—he had made questionable decisions before, bending the rules when necessary.
But when it came to mass slaughter…
That was something he could never agree with.
Still, Luo Bai understood one thing very clearly—Thanos wasn't human.
He was an alien, born on another planet, raised with an entirely different set of values.
It was impossible to reason with him using human logic.
After thinking for a moment, Luo Bai spoke seriously:
"I know I can't change your mind.
After all, you're not from Earth.
But as the guardian of Earth, I need to warn you—
You can do whatever you want on other planets.
Even if you've already massacred the people of Xandar, I won't intervene."
Luo Bai's expression darkened.
"But if you ever set your sights on Earth—
I will judge you myself.
Because Earth is my domain."
Hearing Luo Bai's words, Thanos fell silent.
His brows furrowed deeply as he stood there, lost in thought.
No one knew what was going through his mind.
After a long pause, he finally exhaled and said,
"If I promise that I'll cut the universe's population in half—but leave Earth untouched—will you agree to cooperate with me?
And hand over the Infinity Stones?"
Luo Bai shook his head.
"No.
You can do whatever you want using your own methods, but I won't give you the Infinity Stones."
Thanos' face darkened instantly. His voice grew sharp.
"Why?!"
Luo Bai simply shrugged.
"The stones belong to no one. If you want them, take them from me by force."
Thanos: "......"
Too much.
This was just too much!
At that moment, Thanos hated Luo Bai so much that he could practically feel his teeth grinding to dust.
Did Thanos not want to take the stones by force?
Of course, he did!
But there was one huge problem—
Luo Bai already possessed all six Infinity Stones.
Fighting him head-on right now?
That was nothing short of suicidal.
Realizing he couldn't convince Luo Bai with words…
And realizing that he wasn't strong enough to defeat him in battle…
Thanos decided to step back—for now.
After all…
Somewhere in the vast universe, there were artifacts even more powerful than the Infinity Stones.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thanks to [Keenan Davis], [Buddyschlym] and [Ghabriel Blackwell] for joining my Patreon page!🎉 Your support means the world to me. 🙏
You can visit my Patreon page:
Patreon.com/PhoeniXcel
There are 30+ advanced chapters available for you to read.
Your support would be greatly appreciated.
Check out my new Naruto fanfic!
[One piece: Starting as a Mythical Beast]