The Frost Giants and Asgardians were evaluating the combat prowess and adaptability of the Xenomorphs, and they were astonished by what they observed.
Duncan was doing the same, though he had already anticipated the results. Now, he could "see with his own eyes" how the Xenomorphs performed under extreme conditions.
"Five thousand Xenomorphs holding out this long is already impressive. If they were on a planet with more suitable temperatures and harsher environments, their performance would be even better."
Most planets along the border between the two realms were far from being ideal life-bearing worlds, with natural environments that were increasingly hostile.
To some extent, this limited the Xenomorphs' potential—after all, they lacked advanced technology, magic, or divine power.
"Hmm, the Frost Giants have already noticed the Xenomorphs' extreme resistance to harsh environments. Are they considering making them a vassal species?"
Through the Xenomorphs' vision, Duncan was aware of what was happening on the front lines, and the thought made him chuckle.
How strong was a Xenomorph's resistance? The answer was terrifying when measured by the standards of a carbon-based lifeform without extraordinary powers.
Among the Xenomorph hierarchy, the second-lowest tier—Drone Xenomorphs, born from parasitizing ordinary humans—could withstand temperatures as high as molten lead, around 1,700 degrees Celsius.
In the Prometheus timeline, the first batch of Xenomorphs ever hatched and parasitized humans were even capable of surviving the flames of a controlled nuclear fusion engine from a spaceship.
Their resistance to extreme environments was beyond horrifying. And this was without supernatural powers—just ordinary Earth-based human hosts.
The Xenomorphs Duncan had sent to the battlefield included many that had parasitized vampires and bioengineered creatures, making them even more resilient.
If there was one thing that still dissatisfied Duncan, it was the Xenomorphs' inability to function in space. The moment they fell into the void, they would freeze instantly, slowly starving to death in the endless cold and vacuum.
That was the very reason for the Ascension Project.
Duncan slowly stood up, cracking his neck with a series of sharp pops. He walked to the window and gazed at the vast expanse beyond.
"Ordinary Xenomorph eggs, as long as they don't 'bloom,' can survive for over a century purely on their stored nutrients. If they still haven't found a suitable host by then, they will grow tendrils to extract nutrients from their surroundings to stay alive."
"But for fully grown Xenomorphs, their energy consumption is far greater. They can only drift in space for a few decades before dying completely."
The Xenomorph Ascension Project was a daunting challenge, even though Duncan had already set his sights on Yggdrasil, aiming to siphon its divine power and create a branch of Xenomorphs with a godlike hierarchy.
Creating a divine race from his own species was undeniably difficult. But considering that the Skrulls had built their own pantheon and Thanos' grandfather had become the God of Time, Duncan's plan was not entirely impossible.
The real insanity was that he set his sights on the core of an established divine system—Yggdrasil—from the very beginning.
As for the actual execution… Should he just send a swarm of Xenomorphs to gnaw on the World Tree? That seemed like a good idea. He was tempted to try.
"I've captured around two hundred Frost Giants, meaning I now have over two hundred Xenomorphs with Frost Giant bloodlines. This should allow me to tap into the divine power Yggdrasil grants them."
Duncan toyed with Mjolnir in his hand. Studying the hammer had given him a preliminary understanding of divine power as an energy system.
From his past-life knowledge, he recalled that once Thor grew powerful enough, he could bless weapons like Odin did, transferring his divine power to those he deemed worthy.
So, Duncan would send Xenomorphs capable of extracting the strongest bloodlines from their hosts to replace the original Frost Giants, filling their positions and hijacking the divine power system of Yggdrasil.
"Right now, I can't share Mjolnir's power with others, mainly because my position in the divine hierarchy is too low. Technically speaking, I'm just an interloper who barged in halfway."
"The solution? More hosts. More occupied positions. Once I have thousands, even tens of thousands of Xenomorphs wielding Yggdrasil's power, at that point…"
Duncan didn't need any sophisticated strategies—sheer numbers would do the trick.
If enough Xenomorphs were present, Yggdrasil would have no choice but to take notice and respond.
Just as Duncan was refining his plan, a communication request came through.
"Tony Stark? I'm pretty sure I've already settled my debt with you," Duncan said casually.
"Oh, so you consider a one-dollar transaction as payment for renting a helicopter and hiring a doctor?"
"Your doctors also got their hands on Thor's genetic samples from me. Don't think I don't know. Even if biology isn't your main interest, I know you're curious about divine physiology. I haven't even charged you for that yet."
"Exactly! The richest man in the world never leaves debts unpaid! Jarvis, wire this guy a dollar!"
Tony's voice was unusually excited as he continued, "You know, I've developed a new suit of armor. It's a revolutionary design! Still working on the name, but trust me, you're going to be blown away."
"Oh? That's great. So, does this one still pull people's hair?"
"…What?"
Tony was momentarily stunned.
"I just told you this armor is groundbreaking, and you're asking me if it pulls hair?"
"For the record, none of my suits pull hair!"
Tony felt his pride take a massive hit. This was an affront to his genius.
"Duncan, to be honest, I really hope I never have to use this suit. What you're doing is starting to make certain people very unhappy." Tony's tone turned serious. He took a sip from a strange-looking drink.
"Why? What have I done that's so unforgivable? Did I harm ordinary humans? Unless you count the people who sided with vampires as 'ordinary humans,' in which case, I have nothing to say."
Duncan was unfazed. If even Tony was personally warning him, then the external situation had escalated significantly.
Clearly, when Duncan had assembled five thousand troops and sent them to Asgard, the world had assumed he would lay low for a while.
Instead, he had escalated things further, aggressively expanding his forces and seizing more hosts.
This rate of expansion was making people uneasy.
"I heard you joined the gods' war?"
Tony took another sip, deliberately emphasizing the word gods with obvious skepticism.
"They think you've lost your mind. This is going to attract the attention of some very dangerous entities, and Earth is nowhere near ready for cosmic involvement."
"Earth has more than enough power to handle it."
"Ha! Are you saying there are beings on Earth who can rival Odin or Zeus?"
"Tony, why don't you take a guess? I know this is insane and dangerous, yet I insist on doing it anyway. Why do you think that is? If I were really reckless, wouldn't I be on the front lines myself? At the very least, staying in Asgard should be safer than staying on Earth, right?"
Tony immediately got the hint. He put his cup down, his expression shifting into deep contemplation.
Was there really someone on Earth strong enough to make even the gods hesitate to invade?
"Jarvis, create a new classified file. Codename: Earth's Gods. Also, monitor all related online activity."
Tony realized he had barely scratched the surface of his own planet's secrets.
"Tony, there aren't many people I can talk to on equal footing. Let me be clear with you: I will never stop gathering forces, no matter who tries to interfere, until this war is over. The price? More vampires will die, and Earth will be watched by many worlds. Sooner or later, they'll all realize that the Xenomorphs came from Earth—came from me." Duncan's voice was calm.
Tony understood. "An impressive war declaration. Well, I've done my duty in warning you. As long as you can handle the pressure, that's all that matters. I'm guessing some of those people will try to stop you from fighting, but they're also afraid that cutting off support might provoke Asgard. They can't quite figure out Asgard's stance, nor do they know how far the war has progressed."
"To put it bluntly, they don't even know who Asgard is fighting. But that makes sense—the war just started. Maybe after some time, those with alien contacts will get a clearer picture."
Duncan ended the call.
Stark Tower
Tony impatiently set down his glass. "I did what you wanted. If you're smart, you'll leave now. I have no idea why your so-called Strategic Defense Organization made me do such a pointless and stupid task."
Coulson, ever composed, remained unmoved, his gaze shifting to Tony's glass.
Having prepared for encounters like this, in some customs multitasking meant end of the conversation. But with Tony, it was the opposite—if he could multitask while talking, it meant he was actually interested.
"Mr. Stark, we provided you with a new element that repaired your body and enhanced the energy output of your arc reactor. Now, all we're asking is for you to make a simple call. I don't think that's unreasonable."
"That element was my father's legacy!"
"And your father was part of S.H.I.E.L.D. Given your investigative skills, you must have figured out by now that S.H.I.E.L.D. didn't originate in the last century. Your father joined us—that is an indisputable fact." Coulson's voice was calm, but his eyes held firm.
Tony stared coldly at him. For the first time, he felt genuine annoyance toward someone. Even with Duncan, his feelings were complicated—dislike, admiration, and the desire to show off. But with Coulson, it was pure irritation.
"I know. Your so-called 'Sacred Shield Brotherhood'—S.H.I.E.L.D. is just one of its branches…"
"You're about to see another branch. SPEAR is coming to New York."
Coulson's expression grew meaningful. "The Global Summit is about to take place. Both SPEAR and S.H.I.E.L.D. will be attending. And—Xavier and Magneto have jointly recommended Duncan's participation."
Tony nearly choked. "Are you joking? Letting Duncan into the United Nations Summit? Wait—does this mean everyone suddenly figured out that Duncan is a mutant? That he created the Xenomorphs using the X-Gene?"
The idea horrified him. These people had lost their minds.
"It's not just about that. He joined the Asgardian war as a representative of Earth. The world is waiting for his statement, trying to understand his motives. This is an unprecedented global event—no one has ever done this before."
This raised huge questions. What was Duncan after? Asgardian DNA? What did Asgard offer him in return? And what about other war-hungry factions? They would be watching closely, wondering if the reward was worth it.
Even astronomers and historians would be interested, curious about the state of the cosmos and the role of mythological beings.
"And the mutants—"
"The Eternals and the Deviants," Coulson corrected.
Yes. The truth was out.
Magneto had remained silent for years, only to strike in rapid succession. Even an idiot could tell something was up. The stakes were high—high enough to force Magneto into action.
And then there was Ikaris and his people, drawing even more attention. Thor himself was momentarily overshadowed because the Eternals and Deviants were tied to the history of humanity.
And to the origin of mutants.
What puzzled Coulson was why Xavier, normally reserved, had also gotten involved. As far as he knew, Xavier and Duncan had no prior relationship.
"It feels like they've uncovered something—something big enough to change their usual ways of doing things… Is this really just about the Eternals and Deviants?"
Coulson wasn't the only one caught off guard.
Even Duncan was taken aback when he saw the invitation in his hands.
"They want a war profiteer like me to give a speech at the UN Summit?"
He hadn't even completed his PhD, only holding a master's degree in biology. But then again, powerful people always received special treatment.
...
"They're being cautious. They don't fully understand Asgard's situation. They fear Odin and his pantheon's relationship with me, so they won't resort to direct military action. Instead, they're trying a more subtle approach." Duncan immediately saw through their strategy.
Hmm, the mutant involvement should be more straightforward. They clearly want to make a statement.
The first thing he did was call for Mystique. His eyes briefly flicked to her tall, prominent chest.
Seeing his gaze, Mystique thought Duncan was finally catching on. She subtly straightened up, teasing, "From my observations, you don't seem particularly interested in human women. So, I studied how to shift into an alien form—"
"Shut up. Patch me through to Erik. I need to talk to him. And don't think you two can team up to fool me—I can sense your condition through the younglings."
Duncan suspected that the old man was planning something for the summit—maybe even turning everyone into mutants.
But considering that both S.H.I.E.L.D. and SPEAR's top brass would be attending, even Magneto wouldn't be reckless enough to challenge the two most powerful organizations on Earth simultaneously.
...
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