But even all of that wasn't enough to rob Heimdall of his ability to think — not until he caught sight of a man so perfect that even he, the ever-watchful sentinel, lost his breath.
It was a beauty that transcended mortal existence. Looking at that figure, Heimdall felt he was seeing something he had long yearned for.
It was like Odin — yet not Odin.
An impossible thought took root in his mind.
Perhaps this man had already reached the realm of the Allfather Odin himself.
No one knew Odin's true strength better than Heimdall, who had stood at his side for millennia. Whether it was the fire giant Surtur or the Frost Giant King Laufey — even pushing their powers to the absolute limit, they had always fallen to Odin. Even the Celestials had never truly defeated Odin; they had merely prompted him to abandon his ambitions for conquest. Odin was Heimdall's god, the All-Father in everyone's eyes.
His highest praise for any being was to compare them to Odin — never to claim they had surpassed him.
But this time, one glance was enough to make him believe this man had reached Odin's level.
It wasn't that he lacked the imagination to think further — he simply refused to allow it.
Which only deepened his confusion: where had Loki found all these people?
"Woof?"
A sudden bark snapped Heimdall from his trance. He stared, bewildered, at the dog before him.
Setting aside whether Asgard even had dogs — this one was strange. The cape… the hammer… why did it all look so familiar?
It was a dog. Why did it increasingly look like—
"Thor."
Heimdall watched, thoroughly bewildered, as a woman appeared out of nowhere. He recalled Loki had called her something like "Group Leader"?
He wasn't sure what that meant — but was she calling for Thor?
Wasn't Thor supposed to have been exiled to Midgard?
Then, under Heimdall's increasingly life-questioning gaze, the woman lifted the Shiba Inu into her arms.
"Come on, show me something."
"Is this the right button?"
Su Yunqing excitedly fumbled with the device around Shiba Inu Thor's neck, eager to witness an iconic anime moment.
"Woof woof woof!"
Shiba Inu Thor wagged his paw at Su Yunqing, then pressed a button with his paw.
"I am Thor, the God of Thunder!"
"For the glory of the Northern God!"
".…"
Thor? A dog?
If this was a dream, please let him wake up.
Before he did, Heimdall felt his very perception shifting.
Some things, once accepted, cannot be unlearned.
Like now — the more he looked at this dog, the more it resembled Thor.
Great Odin, please forgive him.
Setting aside Heimdall's current crisis, Baixuan observed the Bifrost beneath his feet with quiet interest.
Though Thor had shattered part of it in the films, the Bifrost was far more resilient than people believed.
What intrigued Baixuan was the peculiar energy flowing through the rainbow bridge — not spatial energy, but something that clung to the fabric of the cosmos itself. If he had to compare it to something, it was close to the Space Stone.
Though he had never actually experienced an Infinity Stone's power, so perhaps this was simply the magic Odin had woven into the Bifrost.
Interestingly, after Odin's death and Asgard's destruction, the Bifrost remained functional.
He wondered if that was connected.
Beyond transportation, the Bifrost's most striking feature was its devastating area-of-effect attack capability.
Loki had nearly used it to destroy Jotunheim once.
So — beyond teleportation and assault — were there other applications for this energy?
Baixuan didn't dwell on it long. The purpose of this visit was to prepare for the coming war, after all.
Uchiha Madara, Vovin, and the others were also intensely curious about Baixuan's transformation — wondering if he had grown even stronger.
Then they learned he had stepped into the realm of gods.
Verbal descriptions could hardly convey how powerful the god-realm Baixuan had become. After the war, they wanted to spar with him in the Virtual Battle Arena to see for themselves.
Baixuan didn't refuse.
He, too, wanted to know whether the abilities born from his entry into godhood would affect those like Uchiha Madara.
Only gods can harm gods. Mortals cannot wound divinity.
Would that rule apply to beings from other worlds?
Without their noticing, the group had arrived at Asgard's palace.
The golden gates stood open. Beyond them, resplendent halls gleamed under the sunlight — luxurious, beautiful, radiating quiet power.
As Loki's friends, they would receive the highest level of hospitality.
As the group enjoyed the feast, four warriors who had followed a different crown prince slipped away — vanishing in the iridescent light of the Bifrost.
Loki watched them go, a smile curling at his lips.
The plan had begun.
......
Jotunheim.
"Without Odin, Asgard has nothing to fear."
Seated on his throne, Laufey's crimson pupils burned with icy coldness.
The woman had granted them the power to defeat Asgard. All they needed to do was kill Odin.
This posed no real difficulty. Even without the woman's help, he would have said the same. The only threat worth fearing — Thor, God of Thunder — had been exiled to Midgard. What could Asgard possibly mount against them now?
Still, the new king's abrupt arrival and departure had given him pause. Coming without reason, leaving without reason — such strange behavior invited suspicion.
Had he discovered the plan?
Unlikely. He was certain no traitor lurked among his people. Perhaps the new king had simply been overwhelmed, standing before all of Jotunheim, and fled in fear.
A new king. How predictable.
Laufey contemptuously laughed. Even if they had been discovered — could they not simply overwhelm whatever defenses existed?
In his pupils, the eerie green flames burned brighter.
"The Casket of Ancient Winters."
The treasure that rightfully belonged to the Frost Giant clan had spent far too long in Asgard's vault.
All these years, he had been waiting for this chance. Not to prove that Jotunheim was superior to Asgard — but to reclaim what his people had lost.
Just as Laufey was lost in these thoughts, an arm suddenly emerged from the void.
Without giving him any chance to react, it seized his skull in an instant.
A wisp of soft white light was injected into Laufey's brain. His gaze gradually grew hollow, vacant.
Perhaps it was an instant. Perhaps an hour.
The dazed Laufey felt as though he had forgotten something — but try as he might, he couldn't recall what.
Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!
Brothers, today's Mid-Autumn Festival — taking a day off.
Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!
———
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