"Time Resetter!?"
The moment Alex saw the mercenary get erased, he immediately recognized the hourglass device's name.
Calling it a "Time Resetter" wasn't entirely accurate.
Strictly speaking, it was a cutting device known as a "Time Bomb."
Within the Time Variance Authority, this device's primary function was to prune timeline branches born from temporal crimes within the Sacred Timeline.
It was similar to the Ultimate Eraser used in the Wasteland Universe, but unlike a causality weapon, this device directly used immensely powerful temporal stealth force to erase all organic matter along that timeline.
In other words, once the Time Bomb detonated, all life on that timeline would be corrected and pruned, sent to the void at the end of time, ultimately becoming sustenance for Alioth.
Because all organic matter would be lost, the timeline would rapidly shrink and weaken, eventually fading into nothingness, absorbed into the energy conversion replenishing the main timeline.
At this moment, Alex had no time to ponder why such a device appeared here. Without hesitation, he pulled Petra behind him and stepped forward.
"Everyone, fall back!"
With a loud shout, Alex thrust his hands out, claws formed by his palms moving up and down as if to clamp something firmly. Because of this action, the spreading starlight energy gradually slowed and stopped.
A terrifying hurricane suddenly whipped up, catching everyone present completely off guard.
Some tried to escape, but under the hurricane's force, they couldn't even stay on their feet, screaming as they clutched nearby objects to avoid being blown away.
Even Pierce crouched low, his eyes unsettled as he watched the unforgettable and awe-inspiring scene unfold.
No one except Alex could understand the immense difficulty he was enduring right now.
Amid the shouts of alarm, Petra widened her eyes in horror, staring at the two terrifying forces tearing at each other.
The space around the Time Resetter was undergoing an unprecedented transformation. The purple, silk-like mist continuously turned into star rivers, trying to decompose and prune all surrounding organic matter.
Alex, meanwhile, stirred a wave of twisted matter, forcibly suppressing that energy.
The objects being pruned continuously flickered with crystal-clear glimmers, shifting back and forth between virtual and physical forms, creating a breathtaking spectacle. The surrounding space condensed into hexagons that constantly contracted and collapsed.
At this moment, everyone present felt as if they were struggling to breathe, as though the oxygen in the air had been sucked away. Some even had their eyes bulging out from the pressure.
The purple mist spreading and floating out kept spewing forth, seemingly trying to break through Alex's blockade, putting immense pressure on him.
"Master, this energy is from beyond time. While active, you can't contain it for long," the voice of Miss Minutes urgently echoed in Alex's mind, warning him how dangerous the situation was.
"This thing is a TVA product. Don't you have a way to deal with it?" Alex shouted while struggling to suppress the Time Bomb. At this point, besides Miss Minutes, no one else could hear him.
Most of the people around had already lost consciousness, except for Pierce, Petra—the two superhumans—and a few others who remained awake.
But even they, amid this massive upheaval, couldn't focus their attention on much else. They could barely stay conscious, and that was all they could manage.
"This thing was developed to prune timeline branches. Before now, no one has tried to reverse its energy, nor could anyone do it," Miss Minutes said.
"That's because they never met me!" Alex snorted coldly.
"No matter what, this is just a TVA weapon. Its actual effect isn't much different from the time-limited containment devices made by Tony Stark and the others."
As the ruler of the Wasteland Universe and founder of the Overseers, Alex had long transcended timeline restrictions. The energy he wielded was on par with that of the Time Resetter.
In the end, this Time Resetter was only a technological product. Since Tony Stark could brew alcohol using time, there was no reason Alex couldn't control this energy.
"Behave yourself!" Alex roared.
Suddenly, massive shadows appeared behind him. A terrifying, monstrous silhouette gradually took shape, and the color of the storm shifted to a ghostly green.
Not far away, Petra and Pierce stood with their mouths agape, silently watching the unimaginable scene before them.
After the starlight and flames had been tugging and stalling for a while, the eerie green flames gradually swallowed the space, slowly suppressing the wildly spreading energy and forcing it back along its original path.
Seeing his energy was having an effect, Alex let out a relieved breath and began to manipulate his magical energy with more precision.
He didn't dare recklessly increase his magical energy or unleash his full power, because doing so might break this hard-earned balance and possibly trigger a backlash from the energy inside the Time Resetter.
So after a second of thought, Alex decided to continue gradually increasing the magical energy he transmitted, slowly suppressing the opposing energy. This might waste some time and cost more mental energy.
But this was the safest and most effective method.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity to everyone, the energy gradually weakened and was pushed back into the Time Resetter.
"Well done, Master! Quick, reverse the switch on the Time Resetter now to stabilize the energy!" Miss Minutes's excited voice rang in Alex's mind as she witnessed this.
Alex wanted to do just that, but his entire focus was on controlling his magical energy. If he made any sudden moves, the energy could leak out again.
Thinking this, Alex quickly looked toward Pierce.
"Hey, you!" The voice was transmitted directly into Pierce's mind through Alex's mental power. Otherwise, with all the chaos around, he wouldn't have heard anything clearly.
Pierce, startled by the voice, looked up blankly and instinctively pointed at his own nose.
"That's right. You," Alex gritted his teeth and continued transmitting the words into Pierce's mind.
"Hurry, while I'm suppressing that bomb, you get up there and flip its switch to reverse the energy into a stable state and seal it off!"
Pierce listened in stunned silence, eyes wide open. He hadn't forgotten how his subordinate had just turned to nothingness the moment he touched that energy.
Now asking him to actively touch that strange thing? That was basically a suicide mission!
"If you don't want to die, hurry up!"
But soon, Pierce's mind was pulled back to reality by Alex's voice. He nervously blinked and remembered that this monster in front of him was far more terrifying than the bomb.
Unlike those reckless guys, Pierce was not brainless. On the contrary, he was very smart. This wasn't only evident from his mechanical genius but also from his past experiences.
After all, someone without intelligence wouldn't be able to hunt down and kill so many mutants—especially without the help of Sentinel robots!
Because of this, Pierce quickly made the right choice—since he was going to die anyway, rather than being erased by this strange bomb, it was better to help this monster. Maybe there was still a chance for survival.
With that thought, Pierce's face hardened. Using his gun as a crutch, he pushed off the ground and struggled to stand.
Seeing his action, Alex didn't say a word but simply nodded slightly.
Straining his body, Pierce took step after step toward the Time Resetter. It helped that he was a biochemically enhanced human—otherwise, no ordinary person could even get close.
Although Alex had fully suppressed the temporal energy, chaotic energy currents still lingered here. Any normal person approaching would be crushed to pieces or stretched into noodle-like matter.
Fortunately, Pierce was obedient. Seeing his movement, Alex quickly diverted some energy to carve out a relatively safe path for him.
Though the distance was only a little over ten meters, Pierce took a full ten minutes to cover it. His face was pale, lips colorless, and sweat evaporated instantly upon hitting the air.
Finally, in front of the Time Resetter, Pierce gritted his teeth and reached out to touch the switch on the edge.
At that moment, Alex's voice returned in his mind.
"Hold down the button below and don't move. Then twist the switch on top counterclockwise. Next, tighten the metal device at the very top and flip the Time Resetter over. Finally, you can release the button."
Hearing this, Pierce immediately acted. He had no strength left even to nod, focusing entirely on following Alex's instructions.
The moment he pressed the button, the Time Resetter reacted. The raging purple energy started contracting, pulling back into the device.
It was working!
A flash of joy appeared in Pierce's eyes, but he knew it wasn't time to relax yet. He quickly reached out with his other hand to twist the switch.
With his movement, the purple energy trembled violently and visibly transformed back into the orange energy it had been before.
At that moment, the intense pressure suddenly eased. Everyone felt as if a heavy burden had been lifted. Even Petra collapsed to the ground, exhausted.
..............
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