Thor, Odin's Bloodline-Master of Thunder

"Help!"

A piercing scream suddenly shattered the silence. The battle-hardened Thor immediately tensed and swiftly slipped into the shadows. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a group of skeleton soldiers wearing Asgardian armor, slaughtering civilians in the streets.

"What the hell are these monsters?!" Thor's hair stood on end as he involuntarily drew a sharp breath.

In the past, such fodder would not even have caught his eye. But now, just four or five skeleton soldiers would be enough to turn him into a pincushion. Though the civilians' cries pained him, Thor, having recognized reality, wisely chose to avoid them. He carefully circled around the chaos and continued toward the divine palace—only by finding his father Odin and his brother Loki could he uncover the truth.

The severed limbs scattered across the ground made Thor curse under his breath. Even the dullest person should have realized that Asgard had suffered a tremendous upheaval. His gaze swept across the wreckage, and his pupils suddenly contracted.

"No... it can't be..."

Slowing his steps, Thor vaguely recognized the familiar patterns on the armor. Holding his breath, he slowly approached, praying frantically in his heart. Unfortunately, fate never heeded pleas—the ones lying on the ground were his comrades-in-arms, the Warriors Three: Volstagg, Fandral, and Hogun, along with the warrior woman who was no less valiant than any man, Sif.

The comrades who had once followed Thor into battle had survived countless brutal fights unscathed.

Yet this time, he had only been gone for a month and a half.

Those companions who had shared life and death with him had all fallen, their cold remains scattered messily across the ground.

It felt as if Thor's heart had been pierced by a sharp blade, violent pain sweeping through his entire body.

"Who did this?!"

Rage erupted in his chest. He grabbed a bloodstained longsword from the ground and strode toward the depths of the divine palace.

The situation was far worse than he had imagined—ordinarily, Odin's power should have been enough to suppress any rebellion. Otherwise, he could never have ruled the Nine Realms for thousands of years.

At that moment, he only wanted to confirm his mother's whereabouts.

"Creak—"

As he pushed open the heavy palace doors, the pungent stench of blood rushed at him. Scarlet liquid snaked across the floor, outlining strange patterns.

Upon the throne sat a woman shrouded in black mist of death.

Three familiar bodies lay beneath the throne: the guardian god Heimdall, the God King Odin, and his brother Loki—their hearts had all been pierced by black demonic swords.

"Well, well. What little bug has wandered in?"

"Who the hell are you?!"

"Hehe, that hypocrite Odin really did erase every trace of my existence."

As the woman of death rose, the black mist writhed like a living thing. Every word she spoke carried bone-deep hatred:

"I am Hela, Goddess of Death! Odin's eldest daughter!"

"Rubbish! I've never heard of you!" Thor clenched Mjolnir. As far as he knew, Odin had only two children.

"You foolish, pitiful creature!" Hela's voice was like a serpent's hiss. "Without my power, how could Odin have conquered the Nine Realms? Yet that coward ambushed and sealed me away, then erased all my achievements from history!"

Every word Hela spoke sounded like indisputable historical fact. Even Thor, filled with hatred, could not help but waver—would his father truly do something so despicable?

"Now, I have returned." Her black mist transformed into the shape of skulls. "All who resist shall die."

"I personally dealt with that stubborn old fool, Odin."

"It was utterly exhilarating."

Hela wore an intoxicated expression, as though she had drunk a thousand-year vintage, and burst into crazed laughter.

There was no greater pleasure in the world than the satisfaction of personally killing one's enemy.

"You—"

"What a pity about those Asgardian warriors," Hela suddenly said in a regretful tone. "They never needed to die such lowly deaths. But they insisted on following that muddleheaded old man and resisting me." She flicked her long hair. "Such loyalty and courage, wasted for nothing."

"Where is my mother?!"

"Mother?" Hela raised a mocking brow. "If you're willing to be my loyal dog, perhaps I can spare that old woman's life."

"She is Queen Frigga."

The air abruptly froze.

Blood churned in Hela's eyes, and killing intent spread almost tangibly through the hall. The identity of the man before her was now obvious—apart from Loki, whom she had just dealt with, only the exiled son of Odin remained.

"I had planned to go to Earth myself and clean up the remnants," she said, her fingertips tracing the carvings on the throne's armrest. "But you've saved me quite a bit of trouble."

"Arrogant madwoman! If you dare set foot on Earth, the president will make you regret ever being born!"

"Though I don't understand your mad ravings," Hela said, suddenly clapping her hands, "you have succeeded in angering me."

Two skeletal warriors escorted the haggard Frigga into the hall. When Hela saw the flash of hope in Thor's eyes, the Goddess of Death narrowed her eyes in delight. What she enjoyed most was snuffing out the flame of hope.

"Mother!"

"Run... my child..." Frigga's tears had not yet dried, and her voice was hoarse, as though scraped raw by sandpaper. The grief of losing her husband and adopted son one after another had nearly crushed the former mother of the Nine Realms.

Thor quickly activated the bracelet around his wrist, but the blue light flickered twice before falling silent.

—The League of Heroes communication channel had been completely blocked!

"What a touching mother-son bond." Hela casually threw out two swords, their black blades carving arcs of death through the air. "Let's see how many rounds you can endure."

Amid an explosive clash of metal, Thor was blasted to the ground by the shockwave. Meanwhile, the woman on the throne rested her chin on one hand, enjoying her prey's futile struggle.

The Thunder Blade blocked the first wave of attacks, but the recoil split Thor's palm. His mortal body crashed to the ground like a kite with its string cut.

A black blade immediately plunged into his thigh.

"Pathetically weak." Hela tilted her head, looking puzzled. "Trash weaker than an Asgardian recruit dares call himself blood of the Son of the Gods?"

"I am Thor, Odin's bloodline—the Master of Thunder!"

"Heh." The Goddess of Death wound a lock of hair around her fingertip. "Then let me see the glory of Mjolnir."

"I don't need Mjolnir to kill you!"

Thor violently pulled the black blade from his leg, the nerves in his face twitching from the excruciating pain. He picked up a twisted piece of scrap metal from the ground and pointed it at Hela—not because he did not want to summon Mjolnir, but because he knew full well that in Hela's hands, that war hammer would be nothing more than a fragile toy.

"Interesting." Hela suddenly curled her scarlet lips. "I'll give you sixty breaths to crawl to my feet." She casually dragged Frigga over from the skeleton soldiers holding her captive. "Otherwise, the queen's blood will stain this divine palace."

"I'll tear you into a thousand pieces!"

The God of Thunder dragged his mangled body forward, each step leaving a bloody mark across the golden tiles. Hela snapped her fingers impatiently, and countless black swords poured down like a torrential rain. Though Thor desperately rolled and dodged, he was still nailed to the ground, kneeling there like a blood-soaked gourd.

"So this is all the God of Thunder amounts to." Hela waved a hand impatiently. "Execute her."

"Stop—!"

The crisp sound of a bone blade piercing Frigga's breastplate exploded at the same moment as Thor's heart-wrenching roar. The queen fell from the divine platform like a silver bird with broken wings, her magnificent royal gown spreading dark red patterns across the pool of blood.

"Mother... Mother!"

Thor slammed his bone-exposed fists against the ground. What spilled from his tear ducts was not only tears, but blood mixed with despair. His comrades, his father, his brother—and now even his last remaining loved one had been taken from him. The cascading destruction utterly crushed the pride of a god.

"How nauseating." Hela stepped through the pool of blood, her black boots stopping before Thor's eyes. "I've suddenly decided... it might be more interesting to let a homeless dog live in nightmares forever."

She turned and walked toward the Bifrost, her cloak brushing over Thor's bloodstained face. To her, the God of Thunder reduced to a mortal body was nothing more than roadside refuse.

"Hela—!!" Thor's roar shattered the broken glass in the palace dome. "I swear I will devour your flesh and drink your blood!!"

A bloodied hand suddenly clamped around Hela's ankle. Thor's blood-covered face twisted viciously as a beastlike howl burst from his throat.

Sword light flashed, and blood droplets blossomed in midair. Where the blade passed, his left eye burst into sticky pulp, a savage scar splitting the God of Thunder's face in two.

"Interesting. Now you look even more like that old fool Odin." Hela's tongue swept across her lips. "What, can't you squeeze out even a tiny spark?"

She swept her foot lightly, sending Thor crashing into the wall like a rag doll. Spiderweb cracks exploded across the snow-white surface, and the winding blood trail resembled a dying snake.

"I..." Thor forced out a breathy sound through his shattered throat.

"I can't hear you." Hela bent down close to him, blood dripping from the ends of her hair.

"I!" Sparks flew from his bloodied teeth.

"Trash." Her high heel crushed the floor tiles.

His dying body suddenly erupted with blue light, lightning serpents slithering through flesh and blood. Brilliant blue lightning plasma boiled within Thor's ruined eye socket.

"God of Thunder—"

Boom! A thunderstorm from the highest heavens exploded from within him, and a wild dragon of violet lightning tore apart the illusion. The Goddess of Death shattered within the lightning, and the entire space began to collapse...

Outside the illusion, the blood-red color faded from Li Chen's Sharingan.

Thunderstorms raged across the plains as the awakened God of Thunder vented his fury. Li Chen casually waved a hand, and a dark violet pillar of lightning erupted from his palm, instantly swallowing Thor's body.

"I am the true God of Thunder." He crushed the dancing arcs of electricity beneath his foot.

Thor controlled the power of lightning, but Li Chen also possessed divine power—divine power even a level stronger than Thor's.

The deliberately suppressed Lightning Bolt charred Thor black. He suddenly awoke from the illusion and staggered to his feet.

"Awake now?"

"No! President, please save Asgard!"

The illusion created earlier had been far too real. Thor still could not distinguish reality from falsehood.

His first reaction after waking was actually to beg Li Chen for help, hoping he could defeat the powerful enemy who called herself the Goddess of Death.

Otherwise, all of Asgard would eventually become ruins.

"She was so powerful it was despairing. Even after I unleashed the strongest lightning of my life, I couldn't hurt her in the slightest."

Thor pressed a hand to his temple, his voice filled with frustration.

Even his father Odin had been defeated. To Hela, Goddess of Death, the lightning power he had awakened at the cost of his life was nothing more than a tickle.

An enemy of that level could probably only be handled by the president.

"Calm down. What you experienced was only an illusion."

"An illusion? But it felt too real..."

The God of Thunder let out a long breath, as though a tremendous weight had been lifted from him.

If it had been an illusion, that meant his father, mother, brother, and comrades were all safe and sound.

Compared to that, his own suffering meant nothing at all.

"But Hela, Goddess of Death, really will descend upon Asgard in the future. And she truly is your sister."

"What?!"

"Steady yourself. You are the God of Thunder who has awakened divine power now."

"How am I supposed to stay calm?! Even if I go all out, I still can't beat that woman!"

Thor said this with his facial muscles twitching.

He would rather shave his head bald again than fight the Goddess of Death—that crushing sense of despair was suffocating.

"President, could you please seal her away?"

"No interest. I'm busy."

Li Chen refused cleanly and decisively.

Though Hela was strong, she was not worth mentioning before a holder of divine power at Li Chen's vice-president level.

Thor's lightning could not harm her, but a casual strike from Li Chen would be enough to reduce her to ashes.

Combined with the vast energy reserves within his body, he could beat the Goddess of Death to her knees and make her beg for mercy with one hand.

"But..."

"Clean up your own mess."

"..."

"I understand your concerns, but strength has never been fixed and unchanging."

"You expect me to catch up to that woman in just a few years? I don't even believe that myself."

"Activate the Battle Ring enhancement system."

"Uh... okay..."

The blond God of Thunder scratched his head and clumsily operated the device on his wrist.

After fumbling with it for quite a while, a light screen slowly unfolded:

[Enhance 'Divine Hammer' (A): 100000 points]

[Enhance 'Divine Body' (A): 150000 points]

[Enhance 'Lightning Energy' (A): 300000 points]

[...]

The data for every ability was clearly displayed.

To raise divine power to S-rank required energy comparable to directly summoning an S-rank Heroic Spirit. After handing over ninety percent to the association, the energy points ordinary members could use were pitifully few.

Therefore, this system was usually only used by D- and C-rank members. The cost of enhancing high-level heroes was terrifying—even after the Deep-Sea Clan campaign, only a handful of people met the requirements.

For Thor, who had contributed nothing to that battle, those numbers were as unattainable as the stars.