Tony's wedding caused quite a stir, as the magnificent spectacle Ethan created was rather overwhelming.
Ethan did not care what anyone thought, and Tony cared even less. He would only complain if the ceremony was too modest. He would never worry about it being too extravagant.
In short, Tony was very satisfied, and Pepper was equally pleased. As for Nick Fury's dissatisfaction? Who cared?
The grand wedding eventually turned into a gathering for Ethan's entire circle of acquaintances. Tony had decided to gradually distance himself from the Avengers. He would slowly withdraw behind the scenes, planning to leave the Avengers completely within ten years and settle in Ethan's God Country.
Stark Industries would be handed over to Howard and Maria. As for the Avengers?
As official organizations gradually gained influence, Tony knew the Avengers would slowly be pushed aside. Rather than wait for conflict to erupt, it would be better to disband the team voluntarily.
Captain America felt the same way. His frequent stays in Asgard recently were proof enough. Now, he also had another option. When the time was right, he could settle in the God Country as well.
Unfortunately, Thor was not prepared to lead the people of Asgard into the God Country. That was understandable. This world had never experienced Ragnarok, and Asgard remained intact, so there was no reason for its people to live as dependents in someone else's domain.
Ethan also took the opportunity to speak with the others, and everyone had already made their own decisions.
After the wedding, the first thing Ethan did upon returning was transfer the Venus into the God Country.
The Venus was docked on a relatively large floating platform that had been converted into a spaceport. The Artemis and several other types of aircraft were also stationed there.
As for the Endless, Tony could continue building it if he was interested. More and more worlds would eventually become connected to the God Country, and no one knew when a world might have need of it.
Everyone aboard the ship had finished moving, and the floating mountains of the God Country officially became their new home. Ethan also took the time to visit the DC Universe and bring the entire island of Themyscira into the God Country.
The Amazons did not move to the floating mountains. They wished to continue living on Themyscira. At Hippolyta's request, Ethan found a calm and pleasant stretch of ocean in which to place the island.
Many years later, humans began appearing on the lands of the God Country. They were the earliest believers who had been resting in Heaven, most of them souls who had been unable to ascend into angels. They became the first humans of the God Country.
Because no reincarnation system had yet been established, these humans were directly reborn and received new bodies while retaining their original memories. In essence, they had gained new and much longer lives.
These people would multiply and flourish throughout the God Country, gradually bringing prosperity to the world.
As humanity spread across the land, Ethan also began establishing a complete cycle of reincarnation. The moon of the God Country became the location of the Underworld, and Scáthach was called back to become its ruler.
Rin Tohsaka, who had received Scáthach's teachings, became her assistant. Yoruichi returned to her own world and brought back Byakuya and several others who had good relationships with Ethan, helping Scáthach establish the Underworld's initial organization.
Thus, although the ordinary humans of the God Country possessed physiques and lifespans far beyond those of normal humans, they still experienced a complete cycle of birth, aging, illness, and death. Compared to ordinary people in other worlds, however, they had a much greater chance of surpassing their limits and becoming higher forms of life.
Ethan did not need to worry that too many ordinary people would advance and leave the God Country with too few humans. Imhotep was still spreading Ethan's faith across countless worlds. As Ethan's reputation reached more worlds, the God Country would only receive an increasing number of souls.
As for the million-strong army of angels he had once envisioned, its basic structure had also been established. Marvin and Nagini became Archangels who stood among the highest ranks of the angelic army. They were later led by Leah, the army's commander, into battle in the Diablo world.
Goku and the others, who had recently been eager for a fight, also went along.
Besides the angelic army, Ethan also had another group of special warriors under his command.
He had moved the Throne of Heroes out of the Type-Moon Universe. Some heroes chose to remain in seclusion, while others preferred to stay active.
Cú Chulainn, for example, refused his teacher Scáthach's summons and instead chose to remain on the floating mountain as the gatekeeper of the divine mountain.
Ryu, whom Ethan had once trained as a reincarnator, also earned Ethan's approval after several years of effort. He now held his own position in the God Country as the administrator of the Throne of Heroes. If the avatar of a Heroic Spirit caused serious trouble in a lower world, or even refused to return, Ryu would be dispatched to resolve the situation.
With so many people arriving, along with familiar faces like Isendra reporting in from time to time, the God Country became increasingly lively. Even if Ethan did nothing, simply watching the world grow busier each day filled him with immense satisfaction.
As everyone's work in their respective worlds gradually came to an end, they spent significantly more time in the God Country. They only left occasionally, either to visit familiar worlds or randomly travel to unknown ones in search of adventure.
Although Ethan no longer brought newcomers into the God Country himself, he gave his companions considerable freedom, allowing them to invite their friends and loved ones to live there.
For example, Mordred not only brought Sheryl Nome and Galahad, but also Krauser, Duke, Ozma, and others she had recruited from various worlds. They came to the God Country to continue serving under Mordred and might eventually become her subordinate deities.
The mountain became increasingly lively. Ethan developed the habit of wandering around every day, watching people live happily in this world or train diligently in pursuit of greater strength.
He would occasionally speak with the newcomers and offer guidance on the direction of their training. He felt that living this way every day would never bore him.
Every so often, he would also travel alone or embark on an adventure with one of his girlfriends, experiencing the scenery of different worlds and observing their stories up close.
Just as he had expected, after traveling through so many worlds, he had never brought anyone back.
Except this time.
"Ethan! Shouldn't you explain what's going on?"
After so many years, Diana rarely lived in the DC world anymore. She now spent most of her time in the God Country, dividing it equally between the floating mountains and Themyscira.
Occasionally, she would invite a few close friends to travel and hunt across the lands of the God Country.
Because she had plenty to occupy her time, it was only recently that she and Ethan finally visited the Saint Seiya world.
With Ethan's strength, he could essentially do whatever he wanted there. Their original plan had been to watch events unfold from a distance without interfering in the story.
Unfortunately, neither Diana nor Ethan was truly patient, so the plot inevitably fell apart once again.
Not only did the two of them completely disrupt the Holy War between Athena and Hades, but they also ended up traveling to Mount Olympus to confront Athena's true body.
As for the fact that Athena could technically be considered Diana's older sister, it meant nothing to Diana. They had never met, and they came from different universes.
Because their stay had been too brief, Diana felt unsatisfied, so the two of them also visited the Lost Canvas and Legend of Sanctuary worlds for a while.
In the end, the gods of those worlds were completely wiped out by the two of them. Out of admiration for several Saints, Diana suggested bringing the souls of some of them back to the God Country.
Ethan agreed and carried out her request faithfully.
Up to that point, there had been nothing wrong with what he had done. However, Diana soon discovered that Ethan had also conveniently brought back Sasha, Saori from Legend of Sanctuary, Shaina, and several others.
Shaina could be considered a warrior, while Scorpio Milo from Legend of Sanctuary was also a woman. Diana could hardly discriminate against female warriors when her homeland, Themyscira, was famous for producing them.
But Athena's true body had already been killed by the two of them, so what purpose was there in bringing back two reincarnations of Athena who had lost their divine power? No matter how Diana thought about it, the most likely explanation was that Ethan had ulterior motives.
Ethan explained, "Their bodies still retain Athena's divine power, and there are subtle differences between them. I'm curious whether those differences come from the separate worlds or from the different reincarnated bodies."
After saying this, he emphasized it several times. Whether Diana believed him or not, Ethan certainly believed himself.
Diana clenched her fists. Although her knuckles made no sound, the lightning-like divine power radiating from them released an even more terrifying pressure.
"Ahem, how about I give you a different explanation?"
"No need. I accept your previous explanation."
Diana suddenly revealed an especially charming smile.
"Didn't you say earlier that my strength has recently reached a bottleneck and that I need to enter the Tower of Babel to comprehend different rule powers and integrate them further into myself?"
"Yes!"
Ethan did not know why Diana had suddenly brought this up, but he had a bad feeling.
"Since you have nothing else to do, why don't you come with me?"
"Alright, no problem!"
At a time like this, he absolutely could not refuse. Only a fool would say no.
"Oh, right. Before that, I have a new technique I want to show you."
"Hmm? What kind of technique?"
Diana continued smiling sweetly. Ethan suddenly felt someone tap him from behind. When he turned slightly, he saw another Diana standing there.
"Hmm?"
He immediately recognized it as an energy clone, essentially the same kind of technique he could use himself.
That was only the beginning. More and more Diana clones appeared around Ethan until ten of them had completely surrounded him.
Ethan watched as every Diana revealed the same unsettling smile.
Without the slightest hesitation, he ran.
(The End.)
PS: The story may be complete, but Ethan's adventures are far from over. He will live happily in God Country with his companions, occasionally traveling to different worlds to have fun; he truly can't feel at peace without disrupting plots.