Reflecting on his conversation with ancient one, Anton realized that ancient one did not intend to interfere with his plans and breathed a sigh of relief.
He also remembered the future scenes ancient one had projected before him.
Anton understood that the future shown by ancient one didn't necessarily mean it was the exact future he would experience.
ancient one purpose was to make it clear to Anton that his arrival had caused multiple changes in the Marvel universe.
Characters like spawn and Hellboy, who were not supposed to exist on Earth, were among them.
"This means that the future... no, perhaps I will soon encounter them," Anton pondered.
With a thought, he summoned Cyborg.
Using his formidable personal capabilities, Cyborg instantly connected to the Pentagon secret databases in USA to gather information.
Drawing from his memories of a past life, he began searching for a name.
Al Simmons, a lieutenant colonel in the US Army, a member of an elite special forces unit, a brave and skilled soldier, and a trained assassin who had carried out numerous brutal assassination missions for his superiors.
All of this was trivial the critical point was that this was spawn real name.
"Oh?"
Anton raised an eyebrow: "Al Simmons died in the line of duty three months ago."
Seeing the information projected by Cyborg, Anton knew that the creation of spawn was already underway.
What about Hellboy?
If Hellboy really existed in this world, how could Anton have not heard of him until now?
It was completely unscientific.
According to the movies, Hellboy backstory originated during World War II.
The Son of Satan, Anung Un Rama, also known as Hellboy, was summoned by the Nazis during a secret experiment in 1944.
Afterward, to prevent Hellboy from harming the human world, he was adopted in his infancy by Professor Broom.
As Hellboy grew up and began to show his fierce appearance, he was deployed as a special investigator, becoming an unknown superhero responsible for dealing with demons escaping from hell and numerous magical cases on Earth.
This background indicated that the US government was very knowledgeable about the existence of the magical world.
However, in the Marvel universe where Anton resides, the US government was almost entirely ignorant of the existence of the magical world.
If it weren't for Ghost Rider and the Twelve Spell incident, which exposed the existence of the magical world and demons, the US government might still think that magic was a joke.
Thus, it could be said that Hellboy did not exist.
With such doubts, Cyborg, synchronized with Anton thoughts, searched global secret databases and found no information about Hellboy, the Son of Satan, Anung Un Rama, or even Hellboy adoptive father, Professor Broom.
There were many with the same name, but none that matched the figures in his memories.
Clearly, unlike spawn, Hellboy seemed not to exist in this world.
Something was amiss.
The future scenes projected by ancient one could not be wrong.
With the Eye of Agamotto and the Time Stone, ancient one could not predict the future accurately in the altered Marvel universe but could still pinpoint aspects of the future.
So, what was going on?
Where had Hellboy gone?
Why was there no trace of him at all?
Anton pondered for a moment. After a brief consideration, he decided not to dwell too much on seeking answers for now.
"take things one step at a time" he thought,
With Superman at hand, even though Superman resistance to magic was slightly lower compared to his resistance to physical attacks, it was still relatively high compared to normal standards.
Unless he encountered ancient one or the actual Mephisto, magical heavyweights, he could still sweep through most challenges.
With this thought, Anton temporarily abandoned the pursuit of the characters ancient one mentioned, spawn and Hellboy, turning his attention to more pressing matters.
The Men in Black organization was running smoothly without needing his direct involvement anymore.
His subordinates, like Agent Z, were capable of operating independently, only requiring Anton assistance during significant events.
This arrangement was already sufficient.
Moreover, the appearance of the Aqilonian and the Insectoids had, to some extent, provided Earth with channels for extraterrestrial communication.
Through the Aqilonian, Earth could engage in necessary communications with many other civilizations beyond its atmosphere. Perhaps then, Earth could become a transit hub for interstellar travel, much like the Earth in the Men in Black universe.
Setting aside his work with the Men in Black, Anton could allocate this portion of his energy to other endeavors, such as preparing a new movie project, converting the magical superhero Shazam.
After meeting with ancient one, the movie project "Shazam," which had been postponed due to Anton laziness, was immediately put on the agenda.
Speaking of Shazam, it impossible not to mention "Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice," the latest movie directed by Anton in the eyes of the public.
"Dawn of Justice" had been released almost a month ago.
Although it had been a while, the movie still had a strong ongoing performance, ensuring a minimum daily global box office of $20 million.
To date, this film had become Anton most successful, with a global box office total of $1.227 billion.
Many industry experts predicted that "Dawn of Justice" could ultimately achieve at least $1.8 billion globally, potentially entering the top five global box office records and seizing the title of the year highest-grossing film.
Though Anton was only one of the co-directors and had personally shot only a few scenes, most people, including his co-director, regarded him as the deserving "lead man."
Without Anton, there would be no success for this film.
One could imagine the frenzy in Hollywood and the global entertainment industry when Anton new movie project was announced.
But of course, that was not the priority.
Anton had already set things in motion.
He contacted Jim by phone to inquire about the preparations for the cast of "Shazam," which he had previously mentioned.
Due to Anton high demands for the actors, Jim had expended a great deal of effort in searching and had not yet found any candidates he was satisfied with, only selecting a few alternatives.
This was one of the reasons why the production had not yet started, and it wasn't entirely due to Anton laziness.
However, DC top screenwriter, Browning, had joined forces with other writers in the company to brainstorm and finalize the script, which was then submitted for Anton review.
The revised script followed the main storyline set by Anton, where Dr. Sivana, originally in charge of Shazam powers, seeks revenge after losing them, intending to release Black Adam to rule the world, only to be thwarted by Billy, the new bearer of Shazam powers.
Of course, as a family-friendly blockbuster, the film ends with the protagonists achieving a happy ending.
The main storyline was very clear.
Browning and his team had filled in the main story with vivid scenes, avoiding the bland emotional drama of the original storyline.
While not flawless, Anton was not one to nitpick unnecessarily.
"Do what you can with what you have."
He was eager to get Shazam off the ground, the sooner the movie was shot, the better, and the current script was sufficient.
It was already far better than the original "Shazam."
In his previous life, the original "Shazam" had an investment of just under $90 million and a global box office of $364 million, making a modest profit but receiving extremely low critical acclaim, disappointing many.
Anton version of the script, while not outstanding, was definitely an improvement over the original.
This could also be seen as striving for perfection.
As the saying goes, "reverse-engineering the problem to solve the difficult points," this approach would surely yield a more appealing result than the original.
Knock, knock, knock!
Suddenly, there was a knock on Anton office door.
"Come in."
Anton snapped back to reality and looked towards the figure at the door.
"Sir, the World Security Council would like to consult with you regarding our communications with the Aqilonian," said Agent K, a field agent and a familiar face to Anton.
However, K was merely the messenger.
His expression was calm as he met Anton gaze, saying, "They are waiting for you in the conference room."
"Understood."
Anton stood up, "Let go and see what they want."
Soon, in the conference room.
The representatives of the World Security Council were projected next to the round table by a holographic device.
As soon as Anton appeared online, their gaze immediately focused on him.
"Anton, you've done well," began the representatives from various countries, commending his work.
"Truly worthy of a member of the Justice League, you've once again saved New York, and indeed, the world."
Clearly, through communications with the Aqilonian, they had become aware of the threat posed by the Insectoids.
Perhaps, they had also learned about the origins of the Aqilonian.
"The reason we've asked you here is to consult you on a matter," said the American representative.
"In our communications with the Aqilonian, we've learned that Earth existence is no secret in this star system, or even the universe.
In fact, many cosmic civilizations know of Earth location, which is quite unsettling to us."
"Actually, your unease is unwarranted," Anton responded.
"As you all know, in the worldview of Asgard, this star system consists only of the Nine Realms, which have been interacting for thousands, if not tens of thousands of years. So, your concerns are unnecessary."
He paused for a moment, then added, "From what I see, Earth is very safe—safer than you imagine.
On one hand, the Asgardians would not allow Earth to be invaded by outsiders.
On the other hand, I urge you to have confidence in Superman and the Justice League we will not allow alien invasions."
The representatives seemed unmoved by his reassurances, as if they had anticipated such a response.
Anton scanned the room, a thought crossing his mind.
"Speaking of which, what did you want to consult me about?" he suddenly asked. "I'm more than happy to assist with any questions I can answer."
The representatives exchanged glances.
"The Aqilonian has submitted an application for asylum," the American delegate slowly began.
"He wishes to obtain permanent residency on Earth and has requested our protection before his people arrive."
"In exchange," the representative continued, "he is willing to offer some significant technological data."
"Technological data?" Anton raised an eyebrow, realizing that these representatives were tempted.
The Aqilonian, being inherently weak, had developed a technologically advanced civilization, capable of interstellar travel in personal spacecraft, evidently more advanced than Earth civilization.
Like the proton weapons used by the Aqilonian, seen in the Men in Black universe.
Protons are a type of subatomic particle, not fundamental, but composite, belonging to the fermions, and are one of the earliest types of baryons discovered, also a constituent of atomic nuclei.
In simple terms, proton weapons, or particle beam weapons, work by accelerating particles like protons and neutrons to speeds between several tens to 200,000 km/s, using accelerators, and directing these particles through electrodes or magnets to form a very fine stream of particles to bombard targets.
To the Aqilonian, such technology might be as common as gunpowder is to humans.
Yet for modern humans, it akin to humans in the Stone Age, still living primitively, discovering how to create fire from wood, a dawn that lit up the human world.
This represents a qualitative leap and progress.
The advent of proton weapons not only accelerates the development of new weaponry but also promotes growth in other areas, like interstellar battleships and space travel.
Anton had an epiphany.
No wonder these people couldn't resist the temptation and sought his advice.
"You want the men in black, no, or rather, you want the Justice League behind me, to protect the Aqilonian."
Anton spoke slowly.
Clearly, the application of the Aqilonian to enter Earth was not the focus the real issue was the safety of the Aqilonian until his people could come from Earth to retrieve him.
"Correct."
The American representative said, "Although we might not necessarily call on the Justice League, we indeed need the men in black as the first line of defense. Therefore, we must seek your advice."
"That fine, I have no problem."
Anton thought for a moment and then said, "However, I have a small request."
"Please tell us."
The representatives from various countries looked at Anton, curious to know what kind of request he would make.
In fact, given Anton current status and position, as long as the request was not too excessive, they would satisfy it.
"The men in black are short-staffed right now."
Anton said, "I want you to promise me that whoever I choose, you must release them unconditionally."
The implication was that when I reach out to poach your people, not only can you not stop me, but you also have to smile and hand them over willingly.
The representatives from various countries exchanged glances and then nodded in unison.
"No problem."