The moment the portal tore open, the light from Frost City 'Times Square flooded in.
Thor stepped onto the white floor tiles and casually swung his hand.
A gentle breeze.
More than thirty people were dumped out of his personal space.
It looked like a bag of potatoes had been dumped on the ground.
Superman landed steadily, Batman rolled over and stood up, and the Flash instinctively took two steps before stopping.
Constantine tripped and fell on his backside, muttering something under his breath, but the sound was carried away by the wind in the square.
Thor looked around; Times Square was big enough to accommodate this group of people.
"I..."
The first to speak was Superman. He stood there, opened his mouth, but the sound caught in his throat.
It's not because I can't say what I want to say.
It was because he saw the Frost City.
In the very center of the square stands a ten-meter-high ice diamond sculpture, Emma Frost's symbol.
As the streets stretched outwards, the maglev train glided silently overhead, its silver-white streamlined body reflecting warm light.
Someone flew over from the second floor on a hoverboard, followed by two others.
A strangely shaped motorcycle made a turn in mid-air, its tail emitting a pale blue glow.
Looking further up--
At the very top of the sky, Asgard hangs there.
The golden palace complex was quiet and majestic, exuding a divine aura that made one's legs weak; it simply floated there.
"This is... the future?"
The speaker was Captain Boomerang; he tilted his head back, his glasses almost slipping off his nose.
Thor understood this reaction. The Knowhere started as a wasteland, and its current state is half due to Magneto's tireless construction and half due to Valeria's research.
"Guys!" Shazam pointed across the street, "Is that guy riding a dinosaur?!"
Everyone turned their heads at the same time.
A man in blue overalls leisurely rode a medium-sized velociraptor out of the street corner, a paper bag dangling from the dragon's mouth.
A little girl followed behind, holding a rope that led to a unicorn whose pure white fur shimmered like pearls in the sunlight.
The unicorn flicked its tail and snorted.
The Flash Barry, froze on the spot, his hand unconsciously rising to point in that direction, his lips moving twice, but no sound came out.
Thor, seeing the group collectively freeze up, mentally gave them a perfect score. "Look at you guys, so naive and unsophisticated."
Just then--
" Puddin'!!"
A heavy weight slammed into his back.
Thor stumbled.
Her legs were wrapped around his waist, her arms were around his neck, and there was a distinctive cotton candy scent that belonged to Harley Quinn.
Harley Quinn.
"I love it here!" She clung to Thor's back, her head peeking out from beside his shoulder, her legs swinging excitedly. "There are dinosaurs! There are unicorns! And flying motorcycles! This is like Disney plus plus!"
Thor ignored her; this woman was like a clingy pest, the more you pushed her, the more excited she became.
"Let go."
"No~"
Okay.
Thor took two steps forward with the person on his back, his gaze sweeping across the other side of the square.
Magneto Erik, walked over from that direction.
He always wore the same deep purple-red suit, had some gray hair, and walked with a steady gait.
Behind him followed a young woman with green hair, none other than Polaris Lorna Dane, the North Star Magneto's daughter.
Interestingly, a blue, semi-transparent bubble floated next to Lorna, containing a small shark.
It's about the size of a palm, round and plump, with its tail swishing back and forth, swimming around in the bubbles.
It's almost too cute.
Thor looked at it for two seconds before he remembered.
This is a pet from the Terraria Continent. He added it casually when he created the continent; what was it called again...?
Forget it, I'm too lazy to think about it.
" Lorna," Thor raised his chin, "You've entered Terraria?"
Lorna reached out and touched the head of the little shark inside the bubble, poking it with her finger through the bubble wrap. The shark wriggled and rubbed against her.
"It wasn't easy." She rolled her eyes. "There's a limited number of spots available each day, and you have to wait in line. I waited a whole week before I got a turn."
"Then what?"
"Then—" Lorna's expression became subtle, "I don't know which idiot angered the Dungeon Guardian and wiped us all out."
Thor: "..."
Goodness!
"So I brought out some gold coins, and this little guy too." Lorna patted her bubble, "So it wasn't a wasted trip."
Thor turned to look at Magneto, who was already sizing up the group of survivors. Magneto's gaze lingered on Superman for a moment, then swept over the others.
" Erik," Thor pointed in Superman's direction, "these guys are all top-notch. Especially that one—"
He poked it with his finger, "A natural-born bricklayer's physique, use it as you please."
Superman and his wife Lois stood to one side, while Clark's face was filled with confusion.
He wasn't sure if he understood "brick-moving holy body" correctly, but it didn't sound like a good term.
Magneto smiled.
"Great, Emma Frost is expanding the West Wing and she's short-staffed."
As soon as he finished speaking, a series of tiny flashes of light appeared in the air.
White, dazzlingly bright diamond particles coalesced and recombined in the center of the square, forming a human shape within three seconds.
Emma Frost Frost.
A white suit, long golden curly hair, and icy blue eyes swept over everyone.
Thor just sent her a message via telepathy; she arrived faster than expected.
Harley, still clinging to Thor's back, tilted her head to look at Emma Frost and whispered, "Wow, that's a hot lady!"
Emma Frost wasn't looking at Harley; she was looking at the group of survivors.
Having spent so much time in the DC Universe, she knows most of these people.
She turned and met Thor's gaze; the information exchanged in that glance was equivalent to ten minutes of conversation for most people.
She turned around and began making arrangements.
" Superman, Martian Manhunter, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Shazam— " she called out names, her tone as if she were addressing subordinates, "You five, work with Erik, the city construction team."
Superman opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, Emma Frost's finger was already pointing at Batman.
"You will be responsible for assisting Hill in managing the entire city, and Barbara will work with you."
Bruce pursed his lips beneath his mask. City management was at least better than manual labor.
Emma Frost's fingers continued moving, landing on the Flash.
"You'll be in charge of transporting supplies." She thought for a moment, then added, "If you want to earn more, you can deliver food."
Barry blinked. "... Takeout?"
"We have a delivery system here," Emma Frost said matter-of-factly. "It's pay-per-order, the faster you run, the more you earn. The Flash the perfect delivery guy; nobody's more suitable than you."
Thor, listening from behind, almost burst out laughing. The Flash delivering takeout, the fastest rider in town—the image was too much to bear.
" Aquaman, Mera," Emma Frost pointed in a direction, "Ocean Park needs you."
A hard-to-describe expression appeared on Arthur's face.
He is the King of the Seas, the wielder of the trident, and the ruler of the seven seas.
And now I've been assigned to be the manager of an ocean park?!
" Poison Ivy," Emma Frost looked over, "The botanical garden is under construction; you'll be its manager."
Pamela nodded; she had no objection to this arrangement.
Finally Emma Frost's gaze fell on Constantine, Zatanna, and Raven.
"They've built a museum in the West District. You bunch of magicians can run it. You can put on magic shows, or you can set up a circus, it's up to you."
Constantine nearly dropped his cigarette. "A circus?"
"The rest of you who weren't called by name," Emma Frost said, looking around. "Go find work yourselves. In this city, if you have some skills, you won't starve."
After making the arrangements, she turned to look at Thor.
The Contribution Points system you mentioned?
Harley finally jumped off Thor's back and ran off to play with Lorna's little shark.
Thor stretched his shoulders and walked over to Emma Frost.
"Yes, Contribution Points are a level higher than Frost Coin. Ordinary jobs only earn Frost Coin, while Contribution Points can only be earned by making significant contributions to the city."
What about the highest tier?
"To resurrect a loved one, or to fulfill a wish."
Emma Frost raised an eyebrow.
"Next tier: Enhance capabilities. Next, technology, equipment, and resources."
Thor shrugged. "It's like a staircase, out of reach but not so hopeless as to lead to utter despair."
Emma Frost didn't speak, but looked at him with a very complicated expression.
"You've resurrected so many people."
Thor sensed something.
What about my students?
Hellions Squad... Thor suddenly remembered them. The group of young Mutants Emma Frost had led were all dead.
Thor offered no explanation; he simply flicked his wrist in the air, and a pale golden light emanated from his fingertips.
"Your office," he said. "Go ahead, have a good chat with them today."
Emma Frost didn't move.
She stood there and stared at Thor for three seconds.
In those three seconds, the city lord of Frost City, the Omega-level Mutant, and the queen with eight hundred minds, had tears welling up in her eyes.
She stepped forward, lifted Thor's chin with her fingertips, and kissed him.
Decisive, forceful, with a slight tremor.
Before Thor could respond, she transformed into a star-diamond particle and vanished from the spot.
Thor stood there, touching his lips.
Everyone around him was staring at him. Superman turned his face away, the Flash looked up at the sky, and Magneto stroked his non-existent beard with great interest.
"... Not bad," Thor muttered to himself.
" Thor."
A soft voice came from behind him on the right, carrying the relaxed feeling unique to an observer.
Thor turned his head to look at death.
"Just now, the death of your universe came looking for trouble." She tilted her head, the movement casual, as if she were talking about what she had for lunch, "But I managed to dissuade it."
Thor's brow twitched.
"So—" Tetiyu took a step forward, getting a little closer, her gaze looking up at Thor, the corners of her lips curving into a smile of curiosity and mischief.
"How do you plan to repay this kindness?"