Ye Mo stepped into the pile of rubble with his right foot, and cracks appeared in the ground like a spider web. He didn't move, and blood dripped from his fingers onto the ground, each drop creating a small crater. Loki's green light was still pushing forward, but at a slower speed. Ye Mo could feel that the force wasn't as strong as before.
He knew his opportunity had arrived.
The tension in his mind had been building up, and now he could finally relax for half a second. He sent a signal with his thoughts, three words: "Now!"
Tony's armor swooped down from the sky, moving so fast it left afterimages. He didn't crash directly into Loki, but instead glided along the ground, activating an electromagnetic pulse ten meters away from Loki. With a whoosh, the air vibrated. The scepter in Loki's hand flashed twice, the green light momentarily fading.
It was in that very moment.
Thor leaped into the air. Mjolnir spun overhead, crackling low-level lightning crackling, and a ring of lightning exploded from the ground, heading straight for Loki's feet. Loki tried to back away, but Emma Frost had already circled around to his side. She transformed into her Diamond Form, moving so fast that she left three trails in her wake. One of them struck Loki's left shoulder, forcing him to raise his hand to block.
Ye Mo moved.
He charged forward, his fists clenched. Regeneration wasn't over yet; the muscles in his left arm were still growing, but he didn't care. His fist, still carrying the unclogged tissue, slammed into Loki's chest armor. With a crack, the armor split open.
The four people's movements were synchronized.
Tony adjusted his position in mid-air and charged his shoulder cannon; Thor landed, turned around, and swung his hammer; Emma Frost retreated to Ye Mo's side, reverted to human form, and caught her breath; Ye Mo stood there, looking at the newly grown flesh on his arm, which was burning hot.
Loki hovered in mid-air, one hand pressed against his chest. His expression had changed. Just moments ago he had seemed to be in complete control, but now his brows were furrowed tightly. He looked up at the sky, intending to Teleportation away, but Thor's lightning net hadn't dissipated yet. He looked down to retreat, but Tony's scanning beam had already locked onto his feet.
"You're not good enough," Ye Mo said.
Loki sneered, raising his scepter to unleash another attack. This time, the green light coalesced slowly, its edges trembling slightly.
Ye Mo smiled. He didn't rush forward again, but took half a step back and stood still. His wound was still bleeding, but he wasn't in a hurry to heal. He knew Loki was watching, waiting for his next move. But he didn't move.
This is even more painful than fighting back.
Loki's eyes flickered. He suddenly flashed northeast, moving so fast he was almost invisible. But Ye Mo had already memorized that spot. The spatial rift left by the mothership's explosion was there, its energy unstable, and ordinary people dared not approach. Yet Loki had Teleportation three times, all of them veering in that direction.
He was afraid of being locked up.
Ye Mo immediately relayed the information to Tony. Tony received it without showing any emotion, deliberately leaving a large area of the west side empty. He even turned off one of the thrusters, pretending a system malfunction. Loki fell for it as expected, and teleported to the northeast corner a second time.
Thor went around it.
He ran on the ground, his footsteps heavy like thunder. Mjolnir dragged on the ground, sparks flying. By the time Loki appeared for the third time, Thor was already crouching at the edge of the crack. He leaped up suddenly, slashing the hammer horizontally, an arc of lightning blocking his escape route.
Loki was forced to take the hit head-on.
Emma Frost wasn't idle either. She rushed downstairs and slammed her hands on the ground. Crystal arrays rapidly grew from the ground, reflecting the surrounding light like a mirror. Loki turned around and saw seven or eight reflections of himself, unable to distinguish the real from the fake. He swung his staff and smashed one, and another immediately moved. He smashed it again, and two more appeared.
"So annoying," Emma Frost muttered, raising her hand to unleash another Shockwave.
Loki started panting.
His movements weren't as swift as before, and the light on his scepter had dimmed somewhat. The series of breakouts he had just made had taken a lot of effort, and now that he was surrounded again, he couldn't free up any hands to unleash a powerful attack.
Tony hovered in mid-air, his armor scanning continuously. "This guy's energy fluctuations have decreased by thirty-seven percent," he said. "If we suppress him for another two minutes, he won't even be able to Teleportation."
"Don't say too soon." Ye Mo wiped the blood from his face. "He can hold on for a while longer."
As soon as he finished speaking, Loki suddenly raised his hand and threw out a cloud of black mist. The mist spread quickly, instantly obscuring vision. Tony immediately activated thermal imaging and discovered that Loki was no longer in the same spot.
"Scatter!" Ye Mo shouted.
The four quickly spread out. Emma Frost retreated to the platform, Thor leaped onto the broken wall, Tony ascended five hundred meters into the air, and Ye Mo remained stationary. He closed his eyes and scanned the area with his Telepathy.
Found it.
In the northeast corner, five meters away from the spatial rift, there was a slight energy fluctuation. Loki was hiding there, regrouping his magic.
Ye Mo opened his eyes and made a hand gesture towards the air. Tony understood and slowly descended, deliberately making noise with his armor. Thor cooperated, banging his hammer twice. Emma Frost stood still, pretending not to notice.
Loki believed him.
He emerged from his hiding place, his scepter aimed at Tony's back, ready to strike. But as soon as he showed his face, Ye Mo rushed forward. This time, he didn't use his fist, but instead pressed his newly healed right hand to the ground. Regeneration spread along the ground, coursing through it like electricity.
Loki sensed something was wrong and tried to retreat, but it was too late.
Ye Mo's palm struck Loki's calf, and the Regeneration tissue instantly wrapped around his magical shield. The green light began to distort, as if being corroded from the inside. Loki's expression changed, and he violently tried to break free, but the Regeneration tissue tightened its grip.
"What the hell is this?" he roared.
"You typed it yourself," Ye Mo said.
He yanked hard, and Loki fell to one knee. Before he could react, Thor's Mjolnir, descended from the sky and slammed into him. Arcs of electricity exploded, knocking him back three steps. Tony seized the opportunity to swoop down and deliver a powerful palm strike to Loki's shoulder.
Emma Frost charged forward, her Diamond Form colliding head-on with her.
With a bang, Loki was sent flying, crashing into a wall. He lay sprawled on the ground, his scepter lying beside him. The green light flickered, like a light bulb about to run out of power.
Four people surrounded them.
Tony hovered low in the air, scanning continuously; Thor stood on the high platform to the right, his hammer vibrating slightly; Emma Frost retreated three steps to Ye Mo's left, panting as she regrouped her energy; Ye Mo stood in the center, his right arm hanging halfway down, his left leg slightly bent, blood still dripping.
No one spoke.
The wind whipped up dust across the ruins, the only sound the crackling of electricity amidst the broken walls and pillars. Loki slowly stood up and picked up his scepter. He looked disheveled; his Cloak was torn, his face was covered in dust, and his eyes were no longer steady.
"You think you can win like this?" he asked, his voice a little hoarse.
Ye Mo didn't answer. He just stood there, watching the blood drip from his fingertips, pooling on the ground. Then he raised his hand, letting the wound slowly heal.
This action is more ruthless than anything else.
Loki's fingers twitched, and the light on his scepter brightened slightly. He wanted to attack again, but his body was noticeably sluggish. The previous barrage of attacks had taken too much to handle, and now he could barely stand.
Tony said, "I suggest you stop struggling. Your success rate for casting spells is less than 20% now."
"Shut up," Loki gritted his teeth.
Thor sneered, "My brother never learns to admit defeat."
Emma Frost leaned against the wall and whispered, "Then your brother will teach you today."
Ye Mo took a step forward.
He didn't speed up, nor did he strike a pose; he simply walked forward step by step. With each step, the ground cracked a little. His wounds were still healing; the newly grown skin was reddish and steaming.
Loki took half a step back.
This action was seen by everyone.
He actually withdrew.
The man who could withstand the attack of four people just now was now retreating after Ye Mo took a few steps. His scepter was still glowing, but the light was getting weaker and weaker, like a battery that was about to run out of power.
Ye Mo stopped.
He was still ten meters away from Loki, enough time to launch a surprise attack. But he wasn't in a hurry. He knew the issue wasn't whether he could win, but that his opponent had lost his rhythm.
Explosions were heard in the distance from the city.
That was the remnants of the Chitauri army retreating. Their command ship had lost signal, their aircraft were flying erratically, and their ground troops were beginning to scatter. Some threw down their weapons and ran, while others surrendered on the spot. The battle wasn't over, but the overall situation was already decided.
Loki looked up at the sky.
The mothership was still there, but it wasn't moving. He knew there was no one on board who would obey his commands. He looked down at his hands; the light from his scepter flashed twice, almost going out.
"You can't win," he said, his voice barely audible. "This is just the beginning."
Ye Mo smiled.
You've said it many times.
He raised his right hand, fingers spread, palm facing up. Blood flowed down his fingertips and dripped onto the ground.
Loki stared at the hand, but didn't move.
The wind picked up again, sweeping across the space between the two.