I've already written some drafts in the last couple of days.
I will update every night at 2 AM from now on.
We apologize for the instability in updates recently, which has caused a bad experience for everyone.
That way, it can be fixed from now on.
hey-hey.
Muspelheim, this scorched earth enveloped in Eternity Flame and crimson lava, is witnessing a fierce battle.
Thor ventured alone into this forbidden zone, his Mjolnir, unleashing a torrent of lightning that repeatedly shattered the giant clones of the Surtur, the Fire Giant.
Scalding lava splashed onto his armor, hissing and splattering, but Thor showed no sign of retreat, his eyes filled with the pride of Asgard crown prince.
With a final, deafening roar, Surtur's massive body began to disintegrate under the thunder.
" Asgard is doomed!" Surtur roared desperately and viciously before vanishing. " Ragnarok has begun! The prophecy cannot be disobeyed!"
Thor, panting heavily, strode forward and snatched the dark gold crown from Surtur's shattered head.
"Once I bring your crown back to Asgard and seal it in the deepest part of the vault, that prophecy will cease to exist."
He turned around, his cloak fluttering in the heat.
Meanwhile, on Earth, off the coast of Norway.
The icy sea breeze, carrying a salty tang, swept across the steep cliffs like Blade. Odin sat silently on the edge, his single eye gazing at the churning grey waves below. His face was older than ever before; the man who once upheld the majesty of the Nine Realms was now nothing but a fading, burning body.
A faint ripple spread through the air, and Lynn appeared silently beside him.
Odin did not turn his head; he seemed to have known who it was all along. After a long while, he slowly spoke.
"I don't have much time left to live."
Lynn stood quietly beside him, his gaze also fixed on the deep sea. He didn't offer any comforting words, but simply listened attentively.
"Neither Thor nor Loki have truly matured yet."
Odin's tone betrayed an undisguised weariness and worry. He slowly raised his withered hand, palm up. An ancient golden runestone appeared in his palm, dark golden light flowing within it, and two intricate true names could be vaguely seen intertwined in a ring, radiating an ancient and chilling pressure.
"This is my keepsake." Odin placed the runestone in Lynn's palm, the stone still warm from his body.
Lynn looked down at the rune stone in his palm, feeling the terrifying power it contained, and raised an eyebrow. "Why don't you deal with this hidden danger yourself?"
Odin turned his head, a bitter glint in his single eye. "Because I am her father. She hates me, and that hatred makes it impossible for her to accept my compromise. But although you are the prince of Asgard, to her you are just a stranger. You can make choices that I have never been able to make."
He reached out his withered hand and gripped Lynn's wrist tightly, his eyes instantly turning sharp as knives. "If you believe she can be a warrior, not a tyrant, then convince her in your own way."
Lynn felt the power of Odin's fingertips and solemnly put away the runestone.
"I understand," Lynn replied softly.
Odin gazed at him for a moment, then released his grip, his gaze returning to the distant horizon where the sea met the sky. His eyes seemed to pierce through the boundaries of space, sensing a familiar presence approaching.
" Thor and the others are here," Odin said softly, his tone regaining the calm befitting the king of the gods. "I need to speak with them about some things. You should go back now, Lynn."
Lynn didn't say much, just nodded slightly. Just before turning to step into the portal, he glanced back at the lonely figure sitting on the cliff.
Before long, Thor and Loki, guided by Doctor Strange, arrived at the edge of the cliff, travel-worn.
When they arrived, Lynn had already left, leaving Odin sitting alone.
Seeing his father's frail and aged appearance, Thor's eyes instantly reddened. He quickly stepped forward and knelt on one knee before Odin. Loki stood to the side, his face still bearing that cynical, fake smile, but his tightly pursed lips betrayed the turmoil within him.
Odin looked at his two sons kneeling before him, his eyes filled with love and reluctance. He reached out and gently stroked Thor's cheek, then looked at Loki, his voice as soft as a breeze.
" Lynn... is my final arrangement," Odin said slowly, his gaze shifting between the two brothers. " Thor, if you have any questions, ask your mother or go find him."
The father and his two sons talked for a long time on the cliff. There was no conflict between the Nine Realms, only the final words of advice from a father who was about to pass away to his children.
As the last rays of the setting sun sank below the horizon, Odin's body began to transform into specks of golden light. He smiled as he looked at his two sons, then turned into countless golden particles, drifting away on the wind and merging into the sea he had protected his entire life.
Thor and Loki stood frozen in place, overwhelmed with grief and loss.
Just then, a deafening clap of thunder suddenly echoed in the sky.
A dark green bolt of lightning tore through the clouds and crashed heavily onto the cliff. As the dust settled, a tall figure emerged from the light.
Hela.
She was clad in dark green spiked armor, her long, ink-black hair whipping wildly in the wind. Her gaze swept over everyone present, finally settling on the fading golden light, a cold and cruel sneer curling at the corner of her lips.
"Father, you are finally dead." Her voice was like a poisoned blade. "I have waited for this moment for thousands of years."
Thor awoke from his grief, his rage instantly consuming his reason. He roared and swung Mjolnir, bringing it crashing down on Hela with the force of a thunderbolt.
However, a chilling scene unfolded.
Hela didn't even adopt a defensive stance; she simply raised one hand casually. Mjolnir was caught firmly in her palm.
No... that's impossible.
Hela looked at him, her eyes full of mockery. She slowly closed her fingers, and with a tooth-grinding cracking sound, Mjolnir shattered into countless pieces before everyone's eyes, like fragile glass, and fell down in a rustling sound.
Loki instinctively took a step back, his face turning deathly pale.
"Go!" Seeing that they were outmatched, Loki called upon the Bifrost Bifrost, attempting to open it and take Thor away first.
But Hela was faster. She transformed into a blur and chased after Thor into the teleportation array of the Bifrost, delivering a powerful blow to Thor back. Thor coughed up blood and, severely injured, was forcibly ejected from the teleportation portal, plummeting from a height of ten thousand meters and disappearing without a trace. Loki was also caught in the blast of Hela's attack and was knocked out of the teleportation portal as well. The two of them vanished together into an unknown spatial rift.
After an unknown amount of time, Thor awoke in the Sanctum in New York. Doctor Strange had already given him some basic treatment for his arm wound; the bleeding had stopped, but the light in his eyes had completely dimmed. Loki lay beside him.
When Lynn pushed the door open and walked in, Thor was staring blankly at his right hand.
Lynn walked up to him and, without offering any words of comfort, told him the truth about Hela, the prophecy of Ragnarok, and Odin's dying words, word for word.
Thor remained silent for a long time. Finally, he spoke in a low voice, "So... Father knew this would happen?"
"He knows."
Thor looked up, his once confident eyes now filled with confusion and despair. " Lynn, I know you're strong. Can you help me?"
Lynn didn't answer his question directly. He simply turned and walked towards the door, leaving behind a low murmur:
"First, find someone who can actually help."
On Earth, in a secluded and filthy tavern.
The air reeked of cheap alcohol and vomit. Using magical location tracking, Lynn and his companions found the woman slumped over the bar, completely drunk, in a corner.
Valkyrie.
Hearing footsteps, she shakily raised her head, and when her cloudy eyes saw Thor's face, they immediately revealed an undisguised mockery.
" Odin's son?" She hiccuped, her tone dripping with sarcasm. "You and your son are alike, bringing only disaster."
Thor clenched his fists, but Lynn stepped forward first.
He ignored Valkyrie's taunts and instead pulled out the ancient Asgard medal from his pocket.
He slammed the medal down on the bar, the metallic clanging sound ringing out clearly in the noisy pub.
" Hela is back." Lynn stared at her, his voice not loud, but every word was like a hammer blow. "Your comrades were slaughtered by her back then, and you've been drowning your sorrows on Earth for so long. Isn't it time to get moving?"
Valkyrie's gaze was fixed on the medal. Her breathing became rapid, and her fingers, gripping the glass tightly, turned white. She stared at the medal for a long time, then suddenly grabbed the glass on the table and gulped down the last mouthful of liquor.
She slammed her wine glass down on the table, her previously clouded eyes replaced by a long-lost, sharp fighting spirit.
"... I hate that you're right," she said through gritted teeth.
Loki, standing to the side, watched this scene in silence for a moment, then a familiar fake smile returned to his lips. He leaned close to Lynn's ear and whispered, "... You're much better at talking Thor."
The four stood before the portal. Lynn said, "Remember, the situation in Asgard is dire. Once we get there, don't linger in battle."
Thor took a deep breath and clenched his fist; Valkyrie drew his longsword, his eyes sharp; Loki, on the other hand, habitually straightened his collar, a cryptic smile playing on his lips. The four of them stepped into the portal one by one.
The dizzying sensation of spatial distortion vanished in an instant. When they stepped back onto solid ground, they were not greeted by the familiar breeze of Asgard, but by the intense stench of blood and scorched earth.
They landed directly at the end of the Bifrost.
The once gleaming Bifrost is now riddled with cracks, its surface soaked in dark red blood. Heimdall, leaning on his Guardian Sword, kneels at the bridgehead, his golden armor shattered, blood dripping from his lips, yet he remains fixed on the direction of Asgard's capital.
"You've finally arrived..."
Lynn quickly stepped forward, supported him, and injected a gentle divine power into his body, temporarily stabilizing his vital signs.
Following Heimdall's despairing gaze, the entire Asgard had become a living hell.
Hela's power is resurfacing at a terrifying pace. The more she is in this land, the stronger she becomes. The earth cracks open into bottomless abysses beneath her feet, and countless undead warriors, sealed for millennia, crawl out from the ground, their eyes burning with eerie green flames, surging towards the city like a tidal wave. In the very center of the city, Fenris, a giant wolf as large as a mountain, is rampaging through the land, each of its roars accompanied by collapsing buildings and desperate screams.
At the highest point of the palace, Hela, clad in dark green armor, her long, ink-black hair whipping wildly in the wind, looked down at the group on the Bifrost, a cruel and mocking smirk playing on her lips.
"Coming here to die?" Her voice pierced the entire battlefield, clearly reaching everyone's ears. "I thought Father would leave behind a more substantial legacy. I never imagined they'd just be a few overconfident ants."
"Go!" Lynn didn't waste any words and immediately gave the order.
" Thor, you go and hold Hela back! Valkyrie, go and stop that giant wolf to buy time for the civilians to evacuate! Loki..." Lynn turned to Loki, his eyes sharp, "You go and hold back the undead army. Remember, my second task for you: sneak into Odin's Vault amidst the chaos and take everything you can!"
"Yes, Your Highness." Loki smirked, his figure instantly transforming into a wisp of green smoke and disappearing into the chaotic battlefield.
"For Asgard!" Valkyrie roared, grabbing a frightened Asgard warhorse from the roadside, leaping onto its back, and charging straight at the giant wolf Fenris like a black lightning bolt, sword in hand.
Thor had no weapon, but the fury in his eyes burned hotter than thunder. He roared, his legs buckling as he launched himself like a cannonball toward Hela atop the palace.
Hela!
Hela didn't even lift an eyelid; with a casual wave of her hand, a terrifying burst of death energy sent Thor flying. But Thor managed to regain his footing in mid-air. Having lost Mjolnir, in his extreme rage, the lightning power within him broke free from the weapon's restraints for the first time, erupting spontaneously.
His eyes flashed with blinding blue arcs of electricity, and violent lightning coiled around his fists as he slammed them down towards Hela.
"Boom!"
The two forces collided violently in mid-air, creating a terrifying shockwave.
But Lynn did something that surprised everyone.
He didn't rush forward, nor did he unleash any offensive magic. He simply stood quietly in the center of the battlefield, sensing the fighting around him, occasionally intervening to save civilians. The undead around him scurried past. His gaze remained fixed on Hela, who was engaged in fierce combat high above.
He was observing.
He was waiting for a window of opportunity for negotiation.
However, the difference in strength was brutal. Hela's power was almost inexhaustible in this land. Thor's lightning, though violent, was like a stone thrown into the sea before Hela.
"Bang!"
Hela punched Thor in the chest, Thor flying backward like a kite with a broken string, crashing into a massive stone pillar of the palace. Blood spurted from his mouth, and the arcs of electricity in his eyes instantly extinguished, never to be rekindled.
Hela slowly walked up to him, raised her iron-booted foot, and stomped heavily on his chest.
"You think your father passed the throne to you?"
Hela's voice was icy, filled with endless mockery, "Wrong! He gave me war, and he gave you only lies."
Thor lay amidst the rubble, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. He looked at the unfamiliar woman before him, and for the first time, he did not refute her.
Just then, a calm footstep came from the shadows.
Lynn emerged from the ruins, walking step by step until he was ten paces away from Hela, where he stopped.
He didn't look at Thor on the ground, but instead raised his head and stared directly into Hela's murderous eyes.
He simply stood there quietly, his hands hanging naturally at his sides.
But at that moment, Hela's movements stopped.
Her hand, which was about to strike, hovered in mid-air, the energy at her fingertips, enough to Oblivion everything, trembling slightly.
She stared intently at Lynn.