Recaps

Li Ge returned to his original form after completing the first two layers of the Nine Heavens, which he declared his divine artifact and divine kingdom. He reappeared before Apocalypse and the others, who crowded around the miniature world to inspect its unfinished layers.

• The Professor alerted Bald Eagle and other countries that Li Ge was about to return to his original form, while Apocalypse and the others waited and drank King Fruit juice.
• Li Ge examined the miniature universe he had created, with two mostly complete heavens and six chaotic, unfinished ones.
• Li Ge named the sphere the Nine Heavens, described himself as the Ninth Heaven, and said the Divinity World would remain his private space.
• Li Ge opened a portal and returned to Apocalypse, where Tony spotted the Nine Heavens and drew the others over to examine it.

Li Ge left his Divinity with Apocalypse and sent him and Tony back through a portal after promising Henryk that people from his world could join the Path to Godhood. At Li Ge’s research base, Peter’s secret visits were discovered by Harry and Gwen Stacy, who learned about Li Ge’s plan.

• Henryk reminded Li Ge of their agreement, and Li Ge confirmed that more people joining the Path to Godhood would benefit him.
• Li Ge vanished into his Divinity, which entered Apocalypse, and Apocalypse explained that Li Ge’s main body was inside the Divinity Space.
• Apocalypse opened a portal and left with Tony after saying goodbye to the Professor, Jimmy, and Henryk.
• Tony teased Jimmy about the footage of his streaking, making the Professor and Henryk laugh.
• Peter, Harry, and Gwen Stacy went fishing at Li Ge’s research base, where Gwen confronted Peter about hiding his visits.
• Peter explained that he had kept Li Ge’s affairs secret, and Gwen acknowledged that she had learned about the Path to Godhood.

Peter brought Gwen Stacy and Harry into Li Ge’s base, where they learned about Li Ge’s powers and Peter’s origins and began treating the place as their secret gathering spot. Li Ge returned with Tony to his seaside villa and entrusted Tony with the portal sphere before heading back to his own base.

• Peter explained Li Ge’s private world, his travels between universes, and how a spider bite gave him supernatural powers to Gwen Stacy and Harry.
• Gwen Stacy accepted Peter’s account after seeing the base and watching him perform aerial gymnastics, and the three began spending time there together.
• Gwen Stacy asked Harry to comfort Mary Jane, but Harry and Peter argued that they should keep Li Ge’s base and secrets from others.
• Li Ge and Tony emerged from a portal into Tony’s laboratory, where Tony greeted Li Ge and JARVIS.
• Li Ge handed Tony the portal sphere to safeguard and left for his own base, telling Tony to visit Jimmy and the others if he had time.

Apocalypse returned to the research base, where Peter, Harry, and Gwen Stacy learned that Li Ge was refining the Nine Heavens and agreed to receive abilities designed by Apocalypse. The reunion ended when Apocalypse sensed someone watching the base and turned toward the distant sky.

• Tony realized Apocalypse had left him responsible for the portal, but he was eager to study it and use it to travel between worlds.
• Apocalypse returned to the base, startled Peter, Harry, and Gwen Stacy with his appearance, and explained that he was Li Ge's clone.
• Apocalypse told them Li Ge was refining the Nine Heavens and that collecting information about Captain America was necessary before completing the First Heaven.
• Harry and Gwen accepted Li Ge's invitation and asked Apocalypse to design abilities for them.
• Apocalypse scanned the expanded base and its surroundings, then sensed someone watching and stared toward a distant spot in the sky.

Grant Ward monitored Li Ge’s base, hoping to exploit Li Ge’s suspected ability to grant power. After Li Ge discovered the drone, Grant decided to flee, but Apocalypse appeared behind him.

• Grant Ward watched Peter and the others at Li Ge’s base from a cloaked drone and planned to use them against Li Ge.
• Grant saw Li Ge appear as a blue figure and recognized him as the person he had been tracking.
• Apocalypse turned toward the drone and destroyed it, making Grant fear he had been discovered.
• Grant decided to leave his mobile base rather than risk confronting Li Ge.
• Apocalypse appeared behind Grant and spoke to him, and Grant spun around with his pistol drawn.

Apocalypse confronted Grant Ward, exposed his Hydra identity, and transported him to an isolated desert where he could not escape. After returning to Peter, Gwen Stacy, and Harry, Apocalypse said he had only taught the intruder a lesson and turned to discussing the powers he would give them.

• Apocalypse immobilized Grant, disintegrated his pistol, and warned him after identifying him as a Hydra agent.
• Grant resolved to steal Apocalypse’s power, then discovered he had been abandoned in an unfamiliar desert with no way to contact anyone.
• Peter, Gwen Stacy, and Harry questioned Apocalypse about the watcher, and he said he had taught him a lesson and dumped him somewhere else.
• Apocalypse revealed that he had put Grant in the First Heaven of the Nine Heavens and decided to warn Nick Fury about S.H.I.E.L.D.’s mess.
• Grant found that his mobile base could not move and realized the strange desert felt like Li Ge’s base.
• Apocalypse set aside the incident and began discussing the powers he planned to give Harry and Gwen Stacy.

Apocalypse visited Tony, who told him that a mysterious hammer had appeared in Mexico and that its runes identified it as Mjolnir. Apocalypse agreed to go see Thor and the hammer, hoping to learn from the god of thunder’s powers.

• Apocalypse complained that his clone could not help create the Nine Heavens because that work required his main body’s unique abilities.
• Tony explained that JARVIS had detected strange spacetime fluctuations in Mexico and found a hammer that no one could lift.
• Tony identified the hammer’s runes as spelling Mjolnir and suspected it belonged to Thor.
• Apocalypse said he wanted to see Thor and Mjolnir, then pulled Tony through a portal despite Tony’s protests about his drink.

Coulson, Natasha, and Barton watched over Thor’s hammer and discussed their encounter with Li Ge’s parents, whom Coulson suspected had powerful abilities. Tony and Li Ge’s clone, Apocalypse, arrived at the crater, where Tony approached the hammer and Apocalypse explained his identity and interest in studying its owner.

• Coulson told Natasha and Barton that Li Ge had appeared at his research base alongside Tony, and that Li Ge’s parents had sensed their surveillance.
• Coulson explained that his danger-sensing power had alerted him to a powerful presence near Li Ge’s parents, whom he suspected had discovered the agents.
• Tony and Apocalypse arrived, and Tony hurried toward the hammer while flirting with Natasha.
• Apocalypse told Coulson, Natasha, and Barton that he was Li Ge’s clone and shared a linked mind with him.
• Apocalypse said he wanted to study the hammer’s owner and the things that arrived with him.

Apocalypse identified the hammer as Mjolnir, the weapon of Asgard’s God of Thunder, and scanned its materials while Tony failed to lift it. After discovering that the handle contained only a fragment of the World Tree’s information, Apocalypse planned to trade Mjolnir for Thor’s help in reaching the real World Tree.

• Apocalypse told Coulson, Natasha, and Barton that the hammer was Mjolnir and that its owner, the God of Thunder, might be nearby.
• Apocalypse sat on his golden throne and scanned Mjolnir while Tony tried and failed to lift it with his armor.
• Apocalypse obtained information about the neutron star material and Uru alloy, but found that the World Tree wood revealed only an incomplete fragment.
• Tony teased Apocalypse about his difficulty, while Coulson, Natasha, and Barton watched his armor and throne with interest.
• Apocalypse proposed trading Mjolnir to Thor in exchange for a promise that could help him reach the real World Tree.

Apocalypse offered to help Thor master his thunder powers in exchange for a trip to the World Tree, then prepared to hide with Tony, Coulson, Natasha, and Barton and watch Thor arrive. The group became invisible and rose into the air on a platform as Thor approached.

• Apocalypse said he would help Thor become a true God of Thunder if Thor took him to the World Tree.
• Tony and Coulson doubted that Thor depended on his hammer until Apocalypse revealed he had seen Thor get knocked unconscious by a stun gun.
• Apocalypse noticed dark clouds gathering and sensed Thor charging toward them.
• Apocalypse invited Tony and the others to watch Thor reclaim his hammer, and Natasha sat beside him on his throne.
• Apocalypse used Virtualization Invisibility and Telekinesis to hide the group and carry them aloft on a solid platform.

Apocalypse took Tony, Coulson, Barton, and Natasha to watch Thor try to reclaim Mjolnir, after showing off his King Fruit juice and explaining that Thor could not control his powers. Thor failed to lift the hammer and collapsed in the rain, crying out to his father.

• Apocalypse served King Fruit juice to the group and dismissed Tony’s suggestion that he create other delicacies, though he imagined making a world of food someday.
• Apocalypse carried the group through the base on an invisible telekinetic platform toward the God of Hammers.
• Thor fought past the agents surrounding him and charged deeper into the base without using lightning.
• Thor found Mjolnir and pulled at it, but the hammer did not move.
• Thor knelt in the rain and cried out to his father after failing to lift Mjolnir.

Apocalypse brought Thor and the others to the unfinished Nine Heavens, where he offered to help Thor regain Mjolnir and began explaining the realm. Thor remained fixated on his hammer as Apocalypse revealed that they were only in the First Heaven.

• Apocalypse invited Coulson, Tony, Natasha, and Barton to visit the Nine Heavens and told Heimdall to inform Odin that he was taking Thor.
• Apocalypse transported the group to the Nine Heavens and brought Thor along, then seated him at a table.
• Thor asked Apocalypse to help him lift Mjolnir again, but Apocalypse challenged him to think beyond his hammer.
• When Thor demanded an answer, Apocalypse forced him back into his seat and sealed him inside a Telekinesis barrier.
• Apocalypse showed Tony and the others the unfinished realm, explaining that its illusory trees needed Captain America's information and that it was only the First Heaven.

Odin and the Ancient One discussed Apocalypse, whose true body was Li Ge, and learned that Li Ge planned to create a Path to Godhood with power to transform countless worlds. Apocalypse then told Coulson to retrieve Captain America so he could help perfect the First Heaven.

• Odin sensed Apocalypse take Thor away but trusted that Thor would be safe because the Ancient One had not intervened.
• Odin visited the Ancient One, who told him Apocalypse was a clone of Li Ge and that Li Ge had grown close to their level of power.
• The Ancient One explained that Li Ge intended to create a Path to Godhood that could empower beings across countless worlds, and Odin wondered whether he and the Ancient One could grow stronger through it.
• Odin and the Ancient One agreed to help Thor and Li Ge while they still had time.
• Apocalypse asked Coulson to dig Captain America out and bring back information to help perfect the First Heaven.

Apocalypse brought Thor, Coulson, Tony, Natasha, and Barton to the Thunder Domain in the Second Heaven, where he explained how visitors could gain power by passing trials. Thor confronted his loss of power and Mjolnir’s rejection, while Apocalypse described his plans for ten power-gathering domains and a Central Continent.

• After calming down, Thor asked Apocalypse how he could lift his hammer, and Apocalypse transported the group to the Thunder Domain.
• Tony mocked Thor for acting like he had never seen a world of lightning, and Apocalypse restrained Thor when he tried to attack Tony.
• Apocalypse taunted Thor as a powerless mortal, prompting Thor to admit that his father had stripped his power and Mjolnir no longer acknowledged him.
• Coulson asked Apocalypse to explain the Thunder Domain, and Apocalypse said visitors could obtain its power by passing trials.
• Apocalypse told Coulson and the others that the Second Heaven would contain ten domains and a Central Continent for travel, trade, living, and rest.

Apocalypse explained that the Ten Domains offered many powers through trials and urged Thor to reclaim his identity as the God of Thunder without relying on Mjolnir. Thor accepted the challenge to train in the highest lightning pool, while Apocalypse asked him to arrange contact with the Tree of the World.

• Apocalypse explained the Ten Domains and said people could earn multiple powers by mastering their trials.
• Apocalypse challenged Thor to recognize that his power came from himself, not Mjolnir, and secretly added Thor's thunder power to the Thunder Domain.
• Thor declared that he was the God of Thunder and agreed to prove himself by enduring the lightning pool atop the highest mountain.
• Apocalypse flew the group deeper into the Thunder Domain as Thor chatted with Tony and the others and shared stories about Asgard.
• Apocalypse told Thor he wanted to contact the Tree of the World as payment for helping him regain his power, and Thor accepted the explanation.

Thor chose to climb a towering, lightning-struck mountain in the Thunder Domain as his trial to regain his status as the God of Thunder. Apocalypse took Tony and the others out of the Nine Heavens, and they returned to the crater with instructions about Thor and Coulson’s future work.

• Apocalypse showed Thor an enormous mountain covered in lightning, and Thor insisted on climbing it himself rather than being taken to the summit.
• Thor thanked Apocalypse for the chance, drained his King Fruit juice, and began his climb while Tony offered him encouragement.
• Apocalypse offered Tony and Coulson a chance to try a mountain, but Tony declined, and Coulson said he would wait until he had mastered the Tyrant ability.
• Apocalypse took Tony and the others out of the Nine Heavens, where they glimpsed Li Ge resting on a white bed before returning to the crater.
• Apocalypse told Tony to head back and reminded Coulson of his task, then instructed them to tell anyone seeking Thor that he had gone to undergo a trial.

Apocalypse met Odin, who asked about Thor and sought his help protecting Thor and Loki. Apocalypse confirmed Thor was training in the Nine Heavens and agreed to help Asgard when needed.

• Odin materialized before Apocalypse and the others, and Apocalypse recognized him as a powerful clone.
• Odin said the Ancient One had told him about Apocalypse’s glorious future, which impressed Tony and the others.
• Tony mocked Odin for raising Thor, but Odin ignored him and asked Apocalypse where Thor was and how he was doing.
• Apocalypse told Odin that Thor was undergoing a trial in the Second Heaven to master the true power of thunder.
• Odin let Thor continue his training and asked Apocalypse to help Thor and Loki if Asgard faced trouble.
• Apocalypse agreed to help Thor and promised to deal with Loki’s misbehavior.

Apocalypse negotiated with Odin for access to the World Tree and Asgard’s treasures, promising not to harm the Nine Realms’ tree and explaining that he wanted to copy its information for his Nine Heavens. Li Ge joined Odin to travel to Asgard while Apocalypse stayed on Earth, and he revealed that he himself was the Ninth Heaven and the endpoint of the Path to Godhood.

• Odin agreed to take Apocalypse to the World Tree and let him gather information on Asgard’s treasures after Apocalypse promised to leave the Nine Realms’ tree unharmed.
• Apocalypse said his main body was ready to go to Asgard, and Li Ge emerged from his Divinity while Apocalypse remained on Earth as his clone.
• Tony, Coulson, and the others examined the Nine Heavens in Li Ge’s hand and noticed that only eight layers were present.
• Li Ge explained that he had designed himself as the Ninth Heaven, beyond the reach of those following the Path to Godhood unless they could grow stronger than him.
• Tony complained that he would never catch up with Li Ge, and Li Ge told him to accept his place as a Subordinate God.
• Odin approved of Li Ge’s plan to gather strength from the wisdom of living beings and agreed to stake Asgard’s future on him.

Li Ge traveled to Asgard with Odin, where he scanned Heimdall’s eyes while Apocalypse prepared to protect Thor’s romantic destiny on Earth. Loki went to the Bifrost intending to visit Thor, then found Odin and Li Ge there and froze in alarm.

• Odin declined Li Ge’s invitation to watch Thor’s trial and took Li Ge to Asgard using Gungnir.
• Apocalypse told Coulson that S.H.I.E.L.D. could leave the crater and asked him to take him to Selvig’s astronomy team.
• Odin permitted Li Ge to scan Heimdall’s eyes, and Heimdall cooperated.
• Loki discovered that Gungnir had vanished and worried that Odin had awakened and learned of his plans.
• Loki went to the Bifrost to travel to Midgard, then saw Odin and Li Ge in the control room and stammered in surprise.

Li Ge asked Odin to let Loki work for him, and Odin agreed, hoping both of his sons would benefit from the Nine Heavens. Loki accepted Li Ge's offer and entered the Nine Heavens to explore its powers, while Odin led Li Ge toward the treasury.

• Odin introduced Li Ge to Loki and called Li Ge his equal in power, leaving Loki stunned.
• Li Ge asked Odin if Loki could work for him, and Odin agreed after considering Asgard's future.
• Odin urged Loki to follow Li Ge and said he hoped Loki would surpass him, moving Loki deeply.
• Loki accepted the offer and agreed to work for Li Ge, who said he could also be called Immortal.
• Li Ge sent information into Loki's mind and drew him into the Nine Heavens to explore and seek power.
• Odin invited Li Ge to see the treasury and led the way across the Bifrost.

Li Ge toured Asgard with Odin and explored the treasures in its treasury, deciding which ones could help his Nine Heavens. Odin agreed to let him take the Tablet of Life and the Eternal Flame while he gathered information on the other artifacts.

• Li Ge followed Odin through Asgard, observing its splendor and magical creations on their way to the treasury.
• Odin opened the treasury and invited Li Ge to examine its treasures and take anything that interested him, as long as he did not empty the place.
• Odin showed Li Ge treasures including the Casket of Ancient Winters, the Tablet of Life, the Eternal Flame, the Infinity Gauntlet, and the Destroyer Armor.
• Li Ge chose the Tablet of Life and the Eternal Flame and asked to stay to gather information from the other treasures.
• Odin agreed to let Li Ge take both artifacts, reasoning that keeping the Eternal Flame from Surtur would help protect Asgard from Ragnarok.

Li Ge placed Loki in the Thunder Domain, where Loki set out to see Thor’s trial and considered gaining lightning power himself. After witnessing the deadly lightning covering the highest peak, Loki abandoned the climb and accepted that he could not match Thor through this trial.

• Li Ge collected the Tablet of Life and the Eternal Flame into his Divinity World while Odin returned to his Odinsleep.
• Loki arrived in the Nine Heavens, recognized the Thunder Domain, and decided to find Thor at the highest peak.
• Loki crossed the Thunder Domain, observing its lightning-covered mountains and the steps winding up their slopes.
• Loki reached the foot of the highest peak and saw lightning covering the entire mountain, realizing that climbers had to endure its strikes all the way to the summit.
• Loki tried climbing a few steps but quit because the needle-like pain convinced him he could not endure the trial or gain power comparable to Thor’s.

Loki abandoned his attempt to match Thor on the lightning mountain and left the Thunder Domain. In a desolate place in the First Heaven, Grant Ward struggled to understand his surroundings and began relying on cactus for food, uncertain whether he could ever escape.

• Loki endured the lightning on the mountain but gave up climbing, then left the Thunder Domain despite hearing a roar behind him.
• Grant Ward, stranded in an unfamiliar land after Apocalypse brought him there, failed to contact anyone or find signs of human life.
• Grant concluded that the place might be an independent world created by Li Ge and focused on surviving there.
• With his food gone and his water running low, Grant cut edible cactus into pieces and ate it.

Coulson gained Nick Fury’s approval to lead an excavation and went to the Arctic to find Captain America. He uncovered the frozen plane and found Captain America still trapped in the ice.

• Nick Fury assigned Coulson to lead the search for Captain America and ordered Natasha and Barton to stay in contact with Apocalypse.
• Coulson quickly assembled an excavation team and traveled to the Arctic location provided by Apocalypse.
• The team detected a faint biological signal beneath the ice, and Coulson transformed into his Tyrant Form to descend into the cavern.
• Coulson found a World War II-era plane sealed in the ice and cut an opening into it.
• Coulson and the agents found Captain America frozen beneath the cockpit beside his shield, and Coulson welcomed him back.

After S.H.I.E.L.D. revived Steve Rogers, he learned that he had been frozen for seventy years. Apocalypse told him Peggy Carter was still alive, leaving Steve struggling to face a world that had moved on without him.

• Coulson freed Captain America from the ice, placed him in a special container, and brought him to a prepared location.
• Steve woke in a staged hospital room and cautiously questioned Nick Fury, Coulson, and Apocalypse.
• Nick Fury explained that Steve had been frozen in the Arctic for seventy years after his plane crashed with Red Skull.
• Steve grieved that he had missed his promised dance with Peggy Carter.
• Apocalypse told Steve that Peggy was alive and living in a nursing home, deepening Steve’s uncertainty about his place in the changed world.