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"Where did that guy go?"

Seeing Loki suddenly vanish, Coulson couldn't help asking Fang Mo, "Did he turn invisible again?"

"No."

Fang Mo shook his head. "He went back."

"Back? Back to Asgard?"

Coulson froze.

But before he could get a clear answer, several technicians suddenly rushed over, carrying a pile of documents as they began reporting the situation to him.

Fang Mo listened for a moment. Their instruments had apparently detected astonishing energy fluctuations. Judging by the waveforms and field state, it seemed like a brief passage formed from pure energy. It was very similar to the Rosen Bridge theory Einstein had once proposed—using immense energy to temporarily link two different spaces together.

Simply put, these technicians suspected that a spacetime tunnel had appeared nearby.

After hearing their report, combined with Loki's earlier display, Coulson had begun to believe that Asgard truly existed.

But the more he believed it, the heavier the unease in his heart became.

After all, he had dealt with aliens in his younger days. If this went wrong, it could become a crisis for the entire Earth. He had to report this to the director immediately.

"Since Loki's already gone, there's nothing left for me to do here, right?"

As Fang Mo spoke, he headed straight for the interrogation room's exit. "Anyway, you can deal with this mess yourselves. I'll be taking my leave..."

"Wait!"

Just as Fang Mo was about to leave, Thor, who was sitting in the interrogation chair, suddenly spoke up.

"What?"

Fang Mo stopped and turned back to look at Thor curiously.

"Who... exactly are you?" Thor hesitated, then tried to make his tone as sincere as possible. "Sorry, I mean no offense. I'm simply curious about your identity. After all... on Midgard, mortals shouldn't possibly know so much about Asgard."

"Mr. Fang Mo is S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Technical Consultant."

Seeing that Thor was finally willing to speak, Coulson quickly chimed in. "He is a powerful wizard from the ancient country of the East. Together, we work to protect this world from harm."

"..."

Fang Mo silently glanced at Coulson.

Unexpectedly, Coulson looked back at him at the same time, his eyes full of pleading.

"...Fine."

Fang Mo shrugged. He didn't really care about titles like that, and Coulson had a mild temperament and was easy to get along with. It had been the same both here and in the original story. Giving him this little favor wasn't a problem.

"You're a mage?"

Hearing this, Thor suddenly seemed to remember something. "My father once told me that although Midgard's mortals are weak, a few have mastered profound magic. For generations, they have protected Earth from the threats of creatures from the Alternate Dimension. The strongest among them is supposedly called the Sorcerer Supreme and possesses the power to foresee the future... So are you the Sorcerer Supreme?"

"?"

Coulson turned to Fang Mo with a completely bewildered expression.

He had never expected Fang Mo to be so formidable that even the gods of Norse mythology held him in such high regard.

But before Coulson could be happy for long, Fang Mo's words threw him into confusion once again.

"What? The Sorcerer Supreme?"

Fang Mo spread his hands. "Isn't the Sorcerer Supreme Ancient One? What does that have to do with me?"

Hearing that, both Coulson and Thor were stunned.

Thor's reason was simple. In his eyes, Fang Mo clearly knew a great deal about Asgard.

And although Thor had lost his divine power, he could still tell that Loki was somewhat afraid of Fang Mo. That proved Fang Mo's strength was definitely not weak. Perhaps he was the strongest among these mortals—the Sorcerer Supreme Thor had heard about.

But Coulson, on the other hand, truly had a headache now.

After hearing Thor's explanation, Coulson had thought Fang Mo was the Sorcerer Supreme. But now it seemed that he wasn't.

That made things troublesome. He had never expected Earth to be hiding another mage this powerful.

Of course, according to Thor, this Sorcerer Supreme was benevolent and protected the world and all that. But if the Sorcerer Supreme could hide himself, then couldn't evil beings hide themselves as well?

And those Alternate Dimension creatures the Sorcerer Supreme fought against—S.H.I.E.L.D. had absolutely no idea what they were. What if the Sorcerer Supreme slipped up one day?

Thinking about it that way, perhaps Earth was nowhere near as safe as he had imagined.

Unlike Coulson, Thor didn't think that much about it. He simply said, "Even if you aren't the Sorcerer Supreme, you must still be a powerful mage."

"Your temper's gotten a lot better than before."

Fang Mo smiled at Thor's words. "Seems being demoted to a mortal wasn't entirely without gain. At least you learned what manners are."

"Unfortunately, I understood too late."

Thor lowered his head sorrowfully. "I failed my father's expectations. Perhaps I truly am unfit to become Asgard's wise king..."

"Well... there are many kinds of kings."

Fang Mo thought for a moment, then said, "Some kings are brave and skilled in battle, bringing territory and wealth to their people. Some kings love peace, and their kingdoms enjoy song and dance every day. Kings aren't made from the same mold. Everyone has their own personality and ideas...

"In my view, as long as a king is loved and respected by his people, and has no shame before his subjects, he can already be called a wise king."

"You're right."

Thor nodded. "I've thought about it. Once war begins, Asgard's warriors are bound to suffer terrible losses. Like me, they have families and friends of their own."

"Asgard's warriors can die fighting to protect their homeland. We do not fear sacrifice, because it is full of glory."

"But starting a war is shameful... My people would fight for my personal desires and die meaningless deaths. Their families would surely be devastated. What I did was unworthy of my subjects. My father was right. What a greedy and selfish act that was."

"...It seems you really have changed a great deal."

Fang Mo looked at him with some surprise.

Honestly, he even suspected that if Thor tried lifting the Hammer now, he might actually be able to lift it.

It seemed Loki had truly messed up. His lies to Thor had only been meant to kick him while he was down, yet Thor had unexpectedly begun reflecting on his own mistakes. He was not far from regaining his divine power now.

"Unfortunately, I changed too late."

Thor sighed, then lowered his head dejectedly. "My father is already dead. I have no chance to prove my change to him..."

"At least you can still uncover the truth."

Fang Mo smiled.

"The truth?"

Thor suddenly raised his head in astonishment. "What do you mean?"

"Do you really think Odin, the Allfather, would die so easily?" Fang Mo said. "Or, to put it another way... don't you think Odin's death was suspicious?"

"This..."

With things spelled out this clearly, Thor would have been an idiot not to understand. "You mean there's something wrong with my father's death? But... I've already been exiled. What am I supposed to do?"

"You should ask yourself that."

Fang Mo smiled. "If your friend had made the same mistake as you and been exiled here, what would you do?"

"Those who make mistakes should pay for them, but I would secretly visit my friend..."

Thor answered almost without thinking. Only after he finished did he suddenly realize something, raising his head to stare at Fang Mo in disbelief.

But Fang Mo had already turned and left, leaving behind only a faint silhouette from the back.