Tony was not actually interested in Gamora.
Although he had once been a playboy, he had since reformed and returned to the straight and narrow.
Recently, upon learning of Thanos impending invasion of Earth and the unprecedented challenge facing humanity, he took over one of the leadership positions at the lunar base from Anton.
His own warrant for arrest was also rescinded, and it seemed like a fresh start for him.
At that moment, Tony mindset changed.
He went to the CEO office at Stark Industries and proposed to Pepper.
Pepper cried and accepted his proposal.
It was just the two of them at the scene, and aside from them, no one else knew about the proposal.
None of that mattered anymore.
The thing Tony feared the most upon learning of Thanos army invading Earth was not the destruction of the planet or the extinction of humanity, but the fear that when all humanity was wiped out, he still hadn't found his own place in the world.
At the critical moment, Tony finally saw clearly what was in his heart.
After satisfying his curiosity with a brief look at Gamora, Tony smiled and said, "Welcome to the lunar base."
"This is a great place."
Carol nodded, her tone invigorated, "With this base, our chances of winning have greatly increased."
"But we still shouldn't underestimate Thanos."
She paused, then added, "The soldiers under Thanos command are all battle-hardened. Over the years, they have invaded countless life-bearing planets and killed half of their populations…"
"Soldiers?"
Hearing Carol words, Tony made a strange face and turned to Coulson, "Didn't you tell her that besides the lunar base, our soldiers are what we're most confident in?"
Coulson couldn't help but smile wryly, "I just got here, I haven't even finished introducing the base yet."
"Well then, let go see our warriors now," Tony said with a smile.
Moments later.
Carol and others were shown soldiers who, after receiving injections of an enhanced virus, had transformed to the human limit and reached superhuman levels. The shock on their faces was indescribable.
These individuals weren't high-tier among superhumans, even quite ordinary.
But according to Tony, there were nearly a hundred thousand of them.
These hundred thousand were distributed among the member countries of the World Security Council, with the P5 and a few major countries making up ninety-five percent, the rest were from other countries...
They could simply be seen as a diluted version of Captain America.
A hundred thousand Captain Americas...
Even in a weakened state, this was an astonishing force.
Such a team,
Was no less formidable than Thanos.
Carol and Gamora exchanged glances, including Nick Fury who had been with them, all of them suddenly doubting their own life choices.
Is this really Earth?
How long have I been away from Earth?
Carol and Nick Fury both started to doubt their lives.
Especially Nick Fury.
All things considered, it had been less than two years since he left Earth and returned, and what exactly had happened to Earth in this period?
Earth.
Anton stepped out of the New York Sanctum in Manhattan and returned home.
At this time, the old man and J. Jonah Jameson were still working overtime at Wayne Enterprises, strictly overseeing production.
Currently, eighty percent of Wayne Enterprises production capacity was devoted to manufacturing weapons, while the remaining twenty percent was mainly in collaboration with Stark Industries and OsCorp, producing the extremis virus in hopes of creating more super-soldiers before Thanos arrival in the galaxy.
Global powers, when facing great pressure, had come together as one.
Although everyone knew this cooperation was temporary, the power and cohesion Earth displayed under such circumstances still shocked every informed person.
Anton was quite calm.
Thanos forces would arrive in the galaxy in a little over half a month, no more than twenty days, and from the galaxy to Earth, their arrival would be astonishingly quick…
But he had already arranged everything, just waiting for Thanos to arrive.
"A rare grand spectacle…"
Anton prepared to rest, lying on his bed looking at the ceiling, lost in thought.
Since his arrival, years had passed, and Marvel had undergone earth-shaking changes.
And Thanos forces, which had brought unprecedented pressure to the original Avengers, now seemed somewhat less significant in Anton view.
"After Thanos, Earth will enter a new chapter, as will Marvel..."
Anton fell into deep thought.
After dealing with Thanos, the future of this world would completely venture into the unknown.
In the original post-Endgame world, after Iron Man death, Spider-Man became the protagonist of Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase Four.
But now, Spider-Man fate had changed since meeting him.
In other words, the Endgame was the final battle of the original storyline.
After this battle, Anton foresight about the future would largely become a thing of the past.
Like the current Sorcerer Supreme, the Ancient One.
After the timeline chaos, the Ancient One, even with the Time Stone, could not accurately predict the future and fell into a state of contradiction.
Anton, however, was not conflicted.
He was already prepared.
Foreknowledge and understanding of the original plot had let him know that he would eventually face this day.
No one can be omniscient forever.
Those so-called all-knowing, all-powerful figures of the Marvel universe had not yet shown themselves.
Moreover, even if these great figures really appeared, Anton did not believe they could truly predict the future.
The future is always unknown.
The so-called predicted, intervened future is just a reasonable progression of the timeline.
"Loki… Kang the Conqueror…"
Anton thought of the culprits behind the timeline chaos, feeling a vague anticipation.
Days later.
In the universe, in a galaxy still quite far from the Milky Way.
A star fleet, traveling faster than the speed of light, was making an interstellar jump towards the coordinates of Earth.
Thanos sat in the command center, meditating with his eyes closed.
Beside him.
Ebony Maw stood firm like a tree root, silent, his gaze deep into the starry space ahead, his calm face hiding a hint of indescribable complexity.
Superman…
During the battle on Sakaar, Superman had brought him an unprecedented sense of oppression.
This feeling was very similar to what he now felt facing Thanos.
Even stronger than facing Thanos.
"How much longer…"
Thanos suddenly opened his eyes, looking indifferently at Ebony Maw beside him.
"Soon!"
Ebony Maw respectfully said, "With our current progress, by the next interstellar jump, we will arrive in the Milky Way…"
"How are the soldiers prepared?" Thanos asked again.
"They are in good condition."
Ebony Maw responded, "Please rest assured, master. Although Earth has characters like Superman, no one will be a match for Thanos forces once the master intervenes."
Meanwhile, on Earth.
Anton met with the people from S.H.I.E.L.D., introducing himself in his true identity and meeting Carol for the first time.
"Thanos is coming soon."
Without any pleasantries, Carol, upon meeting Anton, spoke with a heavy tone, bluntly asking:
"Where is Batman, the leader of the Justice League?"
"Why hasn't Superman appeared yet?"