People with experience all know this.
There is a dish called "Ants Climbing a Tree."
Its main ingredients are glass noodles and vermicelli.
Glass noodles represent masculinity—firm, upright, and unbending.
Vermicelli represents flexibility—gentle, pliant, and unbreakable despite bending.
The essence of this dish lies in making the glass noodles stand upright, displaying the beauty of masculinity.
Then, wrapping the vermicelli perfectly around the glass noodles to showcase its flexibility.
Together, they achieve the cosmic truth of balancing hardness with softness, yin with yang.
That is why this dish is called "Ants Climbing a Tree."
There is another dish eaten on trains called a "Bento."
The preparation methods for both dishes are similar, and their goal is the same—to pursue the ultimate cosmic harmony.
Being able to eat one's fill is the greatest harmony.
No one can argue with that, right?
When driving on mountain roads, aside from the many turns, the biggest challenge is the bumps.
Due to the destruction caused by the Ten-Tails, the terrain within hundreds of kilometers around Mount Fuji was severely damaged, including the mountain roads of Akina, which were now full of cracks and ravines.
From time to time, springs containing unknown substances would bubble up from the ground, with a white, foamy appearance and an overwhelming sour smell that could be detected from afar.
Su Ye was navigating this treacherous environment while carrying Mature and Vice, constantly spinning and leaping.
Not only did he have to pay attention to the ever-changing terrain beneath him, but he also had to evade the pursuers behind him.
Getting a few lucky moves in was already an achievement—trying to actually drive on this road would be a guaranteed crash!
Just now, under Uchi Dai's command, many withered branches fell from Ten Tails's body like falling leaves. There were so many that even Su Ye, with his sharp eyesight, couldn't count them clearly.
After landing, these withered branches transformed into wooden monsters, grotesque in appearance but possessing immense power.
Each of them was at least on the level of Benimaru Nikaido.
In another direction, two of Su Ye's clones, who had rescued Benimaru Nikaido and Gorou Daimon, were running through the mountains— one grabbing a head of hair, the other grabbing a belt—dodging the attacks of the branch monsters.
These so-called withered branch monsters were actually fragments of Ten Tails itself.
Just like how many large trees can sprout new trunks from their roots to grow into new saplings.
The Ten Tails is the Divine Tree itself, so naturally, it has this ability.
Upon landing, these fragments took on various monstrous forms.
Some took the shape of wolves, leopards, and bears, but most took on humanoid forms.
These humanoid fragments were covered in spikes, and their arms transformed into blade-like shapes, capable of easily slicing through stone with wind-powered slashes.
Most importantly, there were simply too many of these fragments—so many that they covered the entire landscape, swarming like a sea of darkness.
For ordinary fighters like Nikaidou Benimaru and Gorou Daimon, taking on three to five of them would already be their limit.
If outnumbered, their only fate would be being overwhelmed and beaten to death.
Therefore, in principle, they were grateful for Su Ye's rescue.
The problem was… the posture of the rescue was rather unflattering.
"I just want to ask, do you really have to hold me like this? My hair is about to be ripped off! AHHHHH!"
Nikaidou Benimaru, who was being dragged by his hair and fluttering in the air like a ribbon, couldn't help but shout.
Sure, his hair was long, but that didn't mean they could just grab it and run! His dignity as a fighter, his face as the Nikaido family's heir—gone!
In contrast, Gorou Daimon was much more composed.
His eyes remained half-closed as always, his upper body bare, arms crossed—a posture that, even in dire situations, maintained his composure as a judo master.
"Hey hey hey! Daimon, say something!"
On the other side, Nikaidou Benimaru couldn't take it anymore and shouted across the air.
"Stop acting cool, okay? Your belt is about to snap, your underwear is showing—and as a judo master, you're wearing red underwear? Have you no shame?!"
"If you keep ignoring me and pretending to be cool, the whole world is going to find out about your red underwear!"
Upon hearing Nikaidou Benimaru's words, Uchi Dai finally adjusted his stance, spreading his previously crossed arms and shifting into a defensive combat position.
Behind them, the fragmented entities of Ten Tails had already caught up.
"Damn! Why are they so fast? Big bro, run faster! We're about to be surrounded!"
Nikaidou Benimaru shouted once again, but as soon as he did, he realized the fast-retreating scenery had come to a stop, and he was now firmly standing on solid ground again.
"Why did you stop running? Big bro, don't tell me you're tired! Hurry up and run! We're about to be surrounded! We're doomed!"
However, the two clones of Su Ye didn't follow Nikaidou Benimaru's plea and didn't continue running.
Instead, they turned around, faced the charging Ten Tails clones, and took up combat stances.
Their stances were distinctive—one took a Bone Style (Gufa) opening stance, while the other adopted a Bajiquan stance.
"You're right. If we get surrounded, we might be done for," said the Su Ye clone in the Bone Style stance.
The Su Ye clone in the Bajiquan stance then added:
"But if we let fear control us, we don't deserve to be called martial artists!"
On the other side, Sao Uchi, in a judo defensive stance, also sighed with emotion.
"Kyo and the others have just broken their limits and reached a new level. If we want to stand alongside them as martial artists, we must face death and be reborn!"
Seeing the three of them taking combat stances in different directions, Nikaidou Benimaru unconsciously moved forward as well, filling the last gap in their defensive formation.
"You guys took all the cool lines, making it sound like I'm not a real fighter! Come on!"
"Come at me, you damn weaklings! Let Lord Benimaru see just how pathetic you all really are!"
As Nikaidou Benimaru taunted them, the Ten Tails fragments had already encircled them.
Countless Ten Tails fragments swarmed the area, leaving no escape route, and the four fighters inside were in extreme danger.
But only when people are pushed to the brink do they unleash their greatest power.
Just like Mai Shiranui and the others before.
For martial artists to grow stronger, they must withstand immense pressure and grasp the concept of the Absolute Domain.
And beyond the Absolute Domain, lies the ultimate power—the Grand Cosmos Power and all those legendary forces that sound so exaggerated even their wielders have trouble justifying them.
Su Ye was the same.
These two clones of his had very different power from the main body.
They only retained the power level of Andy and Terry Bogard.
One could even say these clones were merely at the level of ordinary martial artists—ones who had yet to grasp the Absolute Domain.
They stopped here for a reason—to create distance between themselves and Ten Tail's main body while using the overwhelming pressure from the Ten Tails fragments to help them comprehend the Absolute Domain.
But the Ten Tails fragments cared nothing for their personal growth.
Their mission was simple: kill, capture, destroy—whatever brought them the most destruction and satisfaction.
Since these four dared block the way, don't blame them for being ruthless.
In an instant, the Ten Tails fragments surged forward, and the battle instantly reached its climax.
On the other side, the Great Wall Guardians finally arrived at the battlefield, joining the fight against the Ten Tails.
However, due to the sheer number of Ten Tails fragments, the Great Wall Guardians were delayed in advancing.
At that moment, inside the Quinjet, Tony and Banner exchanged glances and shared a subtle smile—one that only men would understand.
"It's our turn to step in!"
"Are you ready to blow the world's mind?"
No one else knew what kind of trick the two of them had up their sleeves.
At that moment, the two of them pressed a button on their seats, then leaned back as a hatch beneath them opened, swallowing them into the aircraft's lower compartment.
Everyone watching was dumbfounded.
"So, this so-called 'mind-blowing' moment is just the two of them lying down in a coffin? Are they joking?"
Before anyone could figure out what was happening, two armored warriors suddenly shot out from beneath the Quinjet.
One was sleek and well-proportioned, but its flashy color scheme screamed Tony Stark's signature style—Iron Man.
The other was massive, looking bulky and heavy—the Hulkbuster armor.
But these were nothing new—everyone had seen them before. They weren't impressive enough to make people laugh like two men driving off together to "rescue lost women."
Just then, Hawkeye, the Quinjet's pilot, furrowed his brows.
"Something is coming down from the sky!"
Everyone looked up to see a massive meteor hurtling toward the Quinjet.
"That is…"
Before they could get a clear look, Black Widow simply smiled.
"Well then, I'll be off first."
As she spoke, her seat transformed into a simple Iron Man-style armor, enveloping her before launching her into the sky toward the meteor.
Moments later, everyone realized that the "meteor" wasn't a space rock—it was a giant steel warrior, a Gundam—the very one Su Ye had piloted before.
Back during the Jotunheim mission, Black Widow had entered the Gundam and learned how to pilot it.
Since then, this Gundam had become her exclusive battle gear, turning her, a mere human spy, into a powerhouse.
However, there was something different about this Gundam compared to when Su Ye piloted it—on its back was a massive container, several times larger than the Gundam itself.
As everyone wondered about it, the container suddenly opened, releasing countless iron soldiers that flew down towards the Ten Tails fragments on the ground.
"What the hell is this now?"
The Great Wall Guardians had never seen these iron soldiers before—this was their first time witnessing them.
Tony and Banner's voices chimed in over the communication channel at the perfect moment.
"Don't panic, everyone. This is something we've been working on during our time away."
"That's right! Under Uncle Su's philosophy of 'expanding our team while ensuring absolute obedience and efficiency in execution,' we created this first-class mechanical army."
"With these guys, our combat power will skyrocket. One day, we might just sit at home sipping coffee, chatting away, while they handle every crisis for us!"
Hearing their explanation, people still had doubts, but the mechanical army had already launched their fearless assault against the Ten Tails fragments on the battlefield.
From the momentum of their charge alone, the mechanical army was undoubtedly top-tier.
Human soldiers rely on morale. As the ancients said, "Strike once with vigor, weaken on the second, and collapse on the third." Modern military studies also suggest that when casualties exceed a certain number, morale crumbles, potentially leading to a total collapse.
But the mechanical army had no such concerns. Their morale was always at its peak and never wavered, no matter how many losses they suffered. They would continue their relentless charge, even if all that remained was a single robotic hand or a lone mechanical head.
"With so many iron soldiers, can you even control them all?"
Finally, someone voiced their doubt over the communication channel.
But Tony and Banner dismissed the concern nonchalantly.
"No problem. We've got J.A.R.V.I.S., and we've already planned for this. In fact, we've been working on the next phase, and soon, we'll have a fully optimized control system!"
The so-called "fully optimized control system" referred to Ultron.
Although this world had already diverged greatly from the original Marvel Cinematic Universe, with drastic changes...
...certain events still seemed to unfold as if guided by an inevitable force.
Just like Ultron.
After traveling beyond Earth with the Great Wall Guardians and witnessing the strength of extraterrestrial civilizations, Tony's desire to create an iron army had grown even stronger.
At the same time, the idea of developing Ultron to manage this iron army had taken deep root in his mind.
The iron army would be an unparalleled military force for Earth's civilization. If it fell into the wrong hands, it could become a destructive power capable of annihilating the entire planet.
To prevent such a catastrophe, Tony and Banner decided to create a specialized version of Ultron to handle these scenarios.
A truly neutral Ultron—one that couldn't be controlled by anyone, that always stood on the side of humanity, striving for global peace and Earth's development—was seen as the ultimate safeguard for long-term stability.
As for whether this vision would spiral out of control like in the original storyline...
Su Ye felt that, whether he intervened or not, the likelihood of things going wrong remained quite high.