Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Ultimate Black Panther #5! Vibranium is and has always been a staple in Black Panther lore, as it’s not only the nearly unbreakable metal that his suit is made of, but it’s also the primary power source for all of Wakanda, as it has the ability to absorb and store large amounts of kinetic energy and then convert that energy into any number of forms. And now, vibranium just got even cooler, with a permanent upgrade that T’Challa himself called “the power of God”.

In Ultimate Black Panther #5 by Bryan Hill and Carlos Nieto, T’Challa, Shuri, Killmonger, and Storm are in a Wakandan facility with a giant green orb that none of them fully understand. Killmonger and Storm found the orb and showed it to T’Challa in a previous issue, and now they’re all working together to figure out what it is, and what it does.

During their experiments, vibranium was introduced to the orb, along with a sudden release of kinetic energy. When they did that, the orb began producing organic life, seemingly from nothing. And once the process of creation started, it wouldn’t stop on its own, prompting Shuri to incinerate the plant life before it grew out of control. Alone, the orb is powerless, but when merged with a charged piece of vibranium, it quite literally has “the power of God”.

Black Panther Now Wields God-Tier Power, But Perhaps Not for Long

In the new Ultimate Universe, Wakanda operates outside the control of the Maker’s Council, which is a society that secretly rules the world. The Maker’s Council has divided the planet up into territories that are run by its members, and the entire continent of Africa is ruled by Khonshu and Ra – except for Wakanda. That’s why Khonshu and Ra have been trying to topple Wakanda and claim that country as a part of their kingdom in the name of the Maker, and they hoped to use this mysterious orb to do so.

The orb has the power to create life, and the fact that it’s under Black Panther’s control (who figured out that vibranium activates it) means T’Challa – and, by extension, all of Wakanda – have access to god-like power. However, two literal Egyptian Gods are after this thing, and this preview already showed how potentially destructive the orb can be. Black Panther may wield god-tier power now, but perhaps not for much longer.

Black Panther’s New Power Could Benefit More than Just Wakanda, but also Mutants

The energy used to spark the vibranium which activated the orb was delivered through a bolt of lightning conjured by Storm, who is famously one of the most prominent members of the X-Men in Earth-616. While this universe is Earth-6160, and Storm is an African freedom-fighter as opposed to X-Men leader, she is still a mutant. Perhaps Storm will somehow claim this orb, and use it to create a safe haven for mutants akin to Earth-616’s Krakoa. It does have the power to create life, and maybe Storm will end up using it to create a better one for mutantkind.

While the idea that this orb could eventually usher in a new age for mutants in the Ultimate Universe the same way Krakoa did in Earth-616, it’s safe to say that something like that will not be happening anytime soon. However, what is happening right now – right before fans’ very eyes – is the upgrade of vibranium in a way that no Black Panther fan saw coming, as this versatile metal is the key to unlocking the full potential of this orb, allowing it to exhibit “the power of God”.