"What if I step in to stop Hela and preserve Asgard?"
Odin looked at the arrogant God Among Men before him and slowly shook his head.
"You do not understand, Homelander. Asgard is no ordinary Planet in the Universe. Where it resides is a complete pocket dimension."
"As long as Asgard remains, the entire dimension can provide her with inexhaustible power."
"You are powerful, I admit that. But no matter how strong you are, you cannot stand against a dimension."
"Without destroying Asgard first, no one can kill Hela."
Homelander laughed even more happily upon hearing this.
"Since you're so confident... what if I pull it off?"
"If I defeat her and preserve Asgard... can Asgard be mine?"
Odin stared at Homelander for a long while, then suddenly laughed.
"If this is a bet, then what is your stake?" Odin asked.
Homelander replied without hesitation, "If I lose, then the entire Earth will be the new Asgard."
Odin understood Homelander's meaning; it wasn't just about carving out a small area as a temporary Shelter anymore, but handing over control of the entire Earth.
But he could also see Homelander's absolute desire for control and his heart for protecting Earth.
"Are you truly willing to part with it?" Odin asked.
"Of course not," Homelander smirked. "But I have enough confidence."
At the same time, he added silently in his heart: If things really go south, the worst-case scenario is a collective migration to another Planet; I just happen to have a spare one ready.
Odin nodded after hearing this. "Fine, I accept this wager."
"Words are not enough," Homelander immediately pushed his luck. "Let's sign a contract. If I defeat Hela and preserve the land of Asgard, then I shall be the King of Asgard."
Odin gave a cold snort. "My word is my bond."
With that, he flicked his wrist, and the golden Eternal Spear appeared in his hand out of thin air.
He chanted in a low voice; his words carried the weight of law, and his speech formed a covenant.
He didn't care that Homelander had sneakily swapped "killing Hela" for "defeating Hela."
To him, as long as Asgard was not destroyed, Hela would neither die nor be defeated.
Ragnarok was the destined end; no one could change it.
Then, a dazzling light shone upon the Eternal Spear as a series of ancient runes surfaced on the shaft before fading into it.
Odin handed the spear to Homelander and said, "If you win in the end, this spear will be the proof of your kingship. If you lose, use this spear to protect the people of Asgard."
Homelander's eyes lit up, and he happily reached out to take the long spear.
Feeling the vast divine power contained within the spear, he was overjoyed; this was a guaranteed win.
Seeing Homelander take the spear, Odin also showed a smile.
Homelander toyed with the long spear in his hand and looked up at Odin.
"You old man, why do you look even happier than I do? Do you really think you've already won?"
Odin shook his head.
"Winning or losing was never important."
Having said that, Odin turned to walk away.
"Since you're already here, why go back to that crummy nursing home?" Homelander called out to him.
Odin stopped and looked back at Homelander.
"Stay at my academy and be a teacher; the benefits are excellent." Homelander pointed to the school building behind him.
"I can even set you up with an Excellent chef. I'll definitely show an alien hillbilly like you what 'A Bite of Earth' really means."
Odin looked around at the vibrant campus and then at the young students moving through the corridors.
"Teacher..." Odin muttered the word softly.
He had lived for thousands of years, having been a conqueror and a Guardian, but he had never been a teacher in a mortal school.
"Very well," Odin nodded.
...
Deep in the distant starry sky.
An indescribably massive red figure floated quietly between galaxies.
The surrounding Planets looked like toys before him.
With six massive eyes as bright as stars, he was gazing into the endless void.
He was monitoring the incubation progress of a Celestial hatchling in the Universe.
Suddenly, his consciousness paused as he detected an anomaly.
The anomaly came from the blue Planet at the edge of the Milky Way Galaxy where Tiamut had been seeded.
Arishem the Judge immediately released a consciousness link across space.
Earth, South Dakota, a remote farm.
Ajak was standing in front of a wooden cabin, watering several potted plants.
Suddenly, her body stiffened, and the surrounding scenery receded like a water curtain.
In the next second, she found herself within a mental space.
Boundless darkness surrounded her, and directly in front of her stood that massive six-eyed deity.
"Great Arishem the Judge." Ajak immediately knelt on one knee and lowered her head, her voice filled with reverence.
"Ajak, report to me the current state of Earth."
Ajak did not dare to hide anything and immediately reported the recent events on Earth truthfully.
"Great Arishem the Judge, the reproduction of Earth's population is normal, and the energy of intelligent life is steadily accumulating."
"A while ago, Earth faced a large-scale crisis. A group of alien exiles known as Skrulls attempted to rule the Planet, nearly causing a massive reduction in the human population."
"But the crisis has been resolved. A superhuman named Homelander appeared on Earth, possessing extremely powerful strength. He crushed the alien race and protected the human reproductive process."
Arishem the Judge showed no reaction. To him, whether it was Skrulls or Homelander, they were nothing more than cosmic dust.
"I sensed an anomaly in Tiamut's developmental state," Arishem the Judge's voice vibrated through Ajak's consciousness.
"Something is interfering with his awakening."
"I will go and investigate the cause immediately," Ajak stated at once.
"There is no need."
Arishem the Judge extended a massive finger, and a beam of golden cosmic energy shot from the fingertip, sinking into Ajak's forehead.
"I grant you the ability to directly observe the Earth's core. Now, confirm it with your own eyes."
Ajak felt a swelling pain in her brain.
When she opened her eyes again, the mental space had vanished, and she was back in front of the small cabin in South Dakota.
Ajak looked down at her feet.
With the enhancement of that cosmic energy, her vision pierced through the crust and mantle, looking directly at the scorching core of the Earth.
In the next second, Ajak's eyes snapped wide, her face filled with disbelief.
What was she seeing?!
According to the plan, there was supposed to be only one Celestial hatchling, Tiamut, in slumber.
But now, there was actually a pair of twin Celestials there?!
This was something that had never happened in the seeding history of the Celestials!
The intelligent energy of a single Planet was simply not enough to nurture two Celestials simultaneously!
This sight left her absolutely terrified.