The portal opened up in front of everyone with a whoosh.
A golden, circular crack suddenly tore through reality, revealing a hazy coastline and the fjord landscape unique to Northern Europe.
Kamala the Ms. Marvel opened her mouth into a perfect "O" shape.
"Isn't this... Doctor Strange's magical portal?"
Thor had already started walking forward.
"Yeah, it's pretty easy anyway, anyone can learn it."
Kamala's mouth remained agape for a full three seconds before Kate reached out and lifted her chin.
Red Guardian Alexei was the first to catch up with Thor, the big man taking heavy steps across the edge of the portal.
Yelena and Melina followed closely behind, while the Blade Knight Erik trailed behind in silence.
Wanda walked slightly behind Thor, tilting her head slightly as she passed the portal. This one teleportation spell alone was enough for many seasoned mages to study for a lifetime; at the very least, she still needed Sling Ring to cast teleportations.
America was the last to step in. She left reluctantly, her hands still in her jacket pockets, her chin held high, her whole being exuding an air of "I'm not doing this willingly."
But she still followed.
The portal closed behind everyone, and the golden crack disappeared.
The Norway sea breeze, carrying a salty, fishy smell, swept over me, and the wooden buildings of New Asgard stood silently against the gray sky.
It's unnaturally quiet here.
Thor didn't stop walking, but his mental energy had already spread out.
He locked onto every living being within a two-kilometer radius—or rather, every thing that was once a living being.
Three hundred and seventy-two.
Less than five seconds after the portal closed, the first wave arrived.
They emerge from the shadows between buildings, tumble down from rooftops, and crawl out from behind the rocks by the sea.
They were all clad in Asgardian Warriors armor, but their skin was a bluish-gray that didn't belong to the living; their pupils were cloudy and pale; and there were congealed black bloodstains at the corners of their mouths.
Kamala took a step back, her shoulder bumping into Kate.
"Here we go again..."
Kate's hand had already touched the bow.
But what truly made everyone hold their breath wasn't these ordinary Asgard zombies.
It's the one standing at the very front of them.
His physique was exactly like Thor's —the same blond hair, the same build, the same Asgard king's armor, except his cloak was tattered and his only remaining eye stared straight at the crowd.
The only difference was the lightning that exploded from his body.
It wasn't blue, but scarlet.
The red lightning bolt leaped wildly around the Zombie Thor, distorting and crackling the surrounding air.
Kamala spoke again; this girl actually had the mind to ask questions at a time like this.
" Thor, shouldn't your lightning be blue?" She tugged at Thor's sleeve. "What's with the red?"
Thor glanced sideways at himself, now enveloped in crimson lightning.
I thought about it.
"It might look better, more in line with the zombie style."
There was a two-second silence.
Yelena opened her mouth, then closed it again. The Red Guardian scratched the back of his head, and America rolled her eyes.
Wanda's gaze shifted to Thor's face, paused for a moment, and then looked away.
In that instant, the same thought probably crossed everyone's mind—was this person serious?
But the Zombie Thor didn't give them a chance to remain silent.
A roar that didn't sound human burst from that bluish-gray face, and crimson lightning suddenly surged as more than three hundred Asgard zombies rushed towards them at the same time.
Kate draws her bow.
Yelena drew her gun.
The Red Guardian raised their fists, shielding America and Kamala behind them.
The Blade Knight drew his katana.
Upon seeing this, Thor casually raised his hand.
A burst of seven-colored lightning, imbued with the laws of nature, suddenly erupted.
The Law of Life, the Law of Oblivion, the Law of Hunger, and the Law of Time —four fundamental rules of the universe—weave together in a fraction of a second, forming an invisible net that covers the entire region.
The effect is visible to the naked eye.
The bluish-gray tinge on the faces of the three Asgard zombies charging at the forefront was rapidly fading.
It's like someone peeling away layers of gray paint from skin to reveal the normal skin underneath.
Color returned to his cloudy white pupils, the congealed black blood evaporated, and his muscles were no longer stiff.
This process occurs simultaneously on all the zombies.
Three seconds.
Three hundred and seventy-two Asgard zombies, including the Zombie Thor whose body was crackling with crimson lightning—
Everything has been restored to its original state.
As the crimson lightning dissipated, Thor in this universe stumbled forward as if his strings had been cut, only to be caught by two Asgardian Warriors who had just regained consciousness.
Kate's bow was still drawn.
Yelena's gun was hovering in mid-air; there was no need to fire.
The Red Guardian lowered his fist and glanced back at Kamala and America.
The two little girls shared the same bewilderment—was it... just like that?
Erik the Blade Knight silently sheathed his sword.
"My God..." Kamala murmured.
Wanda did not relax.
Three seconds ago, her mental power detected another force approaching—the fluctuations of Chaos Magic, intense, distorted, and severely corrupted by something dark.
The roof of the throne room at the highest point of New Asgard was blasted open from the inside by a crimson energy, scattering debris everywhere, and a figure flew out from within.
Her long black robes fluttered in the wind, her hands were surrounded by deep red chaotic energy, and a heavy ancient book floated in front of her, its pages turning on their own and emitting an unsettling dark red light.
Zombie Wanda
Her face was also that bluish-gray color that didn't belong to the living, but unlike other zombies, her pupils were a complete scarlet red, without any cloudiness.
The power of the Darkhold kept her sanity intact, allowing her to retain all the consciousness and fighting abilities she possessed in life.
Even stronger.
The Zombie Wanda hovered in mid-air, looking down at the group of people below.
Her attention fell on Thor first, then paused for a moment.
He then scanned the crowd behind him and finally spotted America.
A glint of greed flashed in his scarlet pupils.
" Thor from another universe," Zombie Wanda's voice was hoarse and cracked, "You shouldn't have come here. And you definitely shouldn't have touched me—"
Before she could finish speaking, she was interrupted by the sharp sound of shattering glass.
Wanda raised her hand, and crimson energy poured out from her fingertips, dragging the Zombie Wanda and the surrounding fifty meters of space into the Mirror Dimension before she could react.
The movements were clean and efficient.
Wanda stepped directly into the rift in the Mirror Dimension, leaving a message before disappearing completely.
" Thor, leave this to me."
Within the Mirror Dimension.
Reality is folded, distorted, and reversed.
Building debris floated in the air, and the ground reflected countless distorted images like a shattered mirror.
The Zombie Wanda hovered in mid-air, looking down at Wanda standing on the shattered ground. For the first time, a look of confusion appeared on that bluish-gray face.
alert.
She sensed that this version of herself was on the same level as her, and there was even something vaguely pressing down on her.
Wanda stood below, head raised, crimson energy gently swirling around her.
She looked at the face that was exactly like her own, yet completely different, and spoke.
Stop.
Wanda's voice is very steady.
"I know the pain you've been through. Losing Vision, losing everything... I understand that feeling. But you shouldn't use that as an excuse to harm one innocent life after another."
Zombie Wanda tilted her head.
She laughed, a laugh that was completely inhuman.
Heh heh heh, squeezed out from a rotting throat, dry and broken, each syllable carrying the stench of death.
You don't understand.
The Zombie Wanda leaned forward, its scarlet pupils fixed on Wanda's face.
"You haven't experienced anything. How could you understand my pain?"
Before the words were even finished, the pages of the Darkhold flipped wildly, and a deep red pillar of chaotic energy slashed down.
Wanda moved.
A scarlet crown materialized from her hair, its deep red light spreading along her hair to her forehead, forming the crown that belonged to the Scarlet Witch.
Her original black coat was instantly engulfed by scarlet energy, transforming into a long, dark red robe that trailed on the ground.
The Shield of the Seraphim unfolded before her.
The pure gold and red shield stood like an indestructible wall, firmly withstanding the first wave of attacks unleashed by the Zombie Wanda.
The shockwave from the energy collision shattered the surrounding mirror fragments into even finer powder.
Wanda's foot slid back half a step on the ground.
That's all.
The next second, she unleashed a Winds of Watoomb —a crimson hurricane erupted from her palm, carrying a compressed wave of magic power at the level of Sorcerer Supreme, heading straight for the Zombie Wanda's face.
Zombie Wanda dodged to the side, the wind blade grazing her shoulder and slicing off a piece of her black robe.
Wanda gave her no chance to catch her breath.
Crimson Bands of Cyttorak emerged from the void, six rune-infused energy chains simultaneously wrapping around the limbs, neck, and waist of the Zombie Wanda.
Bolts of Balthakk followed closely behind.
The Sword of Vishanti flanked them.
Binding Circle of Ikonn took shape beneath the feet of the Zombie Wanda.
A series of high-level spells poured out from Wanda's hands in quick succession, so fast and so tightly linked that it was nothing like a young girl who had been the Sorcerer Supreme for less than a year—it was more like a sophisticated War Machine.
The Zombie Wanda was caught off guard by this intense attack.
Chains bound her left arm and waist, Bolts of Balthakk struck the edges of her shield, and a magic circle beneath her feet restricted her movement.
However, it only lasted for three seconds.
The Darkhold trembled violently before the Zombie Wanda, the words on its pages transforming into tangible dark red runes that scattered outwards, each rune carrying a nauseating, corrosive power.
The chain broke.
The magic circle shattered.
The Zombie Wanda broke free from her restraints, her scarlet eyes burning with pure killing intent.
She pushed forward with both hands simultaneously, and two Chaos Magic beams, condensed to almost black, blasted towards Wanda.
A blinding crimson light emanated from the cracks in the Mirror Dimension, and the shattered buildings were reduced to dust under the combined attack of two opposing forces of the same origin.
Outside of Mirror Dimension.
Thor leaned against a surviving wooden pillar, arms crossed, looking at the spatial rift that kept flashing crimson light.
Kamala tugged at Kate's sleeve and took two steps back.
"Um... I hope nothing bad happens inside."
Thor didn't answer, his gaze fixed on the crack.
Another booming sound echoed from within the Mirror Dimension, and the crimson light doubled in intensity.