Chapter 289: Shadow Thor VS Loki, God of Stories
The Shadow Gods were not having a good time. In fact, it was utterly dreadful.
The Shadow Gods were incredibly ancient, even older than the third-generation pantheon to which Odin belonged, yet they were nowhere near the standard of the second generation of gods. They were like parasites living off the World Tree, constantly directing the shifting fates of the various worlds and absorbing doomsday energy from those that were destroyed.
Everything should have been perfect. No one should have been able to detect Their existence. They should have hidden in the shadow of the World Tree forever, instigating the Twilight of the Gods time and again, drawing sustenance from Asgard's repeated destruction. That was how the story was supposed to unfold.
But their plan went off the rails. They had bestowed power upon the Thor who hung himself from the World Tree, allowing him to become the incredible Rune King. Yet, Thor used the very power they had granted him to turn around and slaughter Them, completely destroying the predetermined fate of the Twilight of the Gods.
Main Universe Thor had already killed the ancient Shadow Gods himself, forever rewriting the fate of Asgard and the entire World Tree.
But the truth was, Thor had been deceived. The Shadow Gods had not died at all, but had merely hidden themselves even deeper.
"The Main Universe's Thor was taken away by Gaea. He has already left this world, and his fate now heads in an unfamiliar direction."
"A Multiversal God can completely change the established fate of a universe with their will and actions. That is a change that not even we can see through."
"But fortunately, the Main Universe did not lose Thor, because you came."
"After all, you are not the Thor of this universe, and your strength isn't great, but with our help, you can easily gain the recognition of the World Tree and receive the power we bestow upon you."
"You want to catch up to Loki, punch him hard? Want to force him to tell you what happened? With power, you can achieve anything you desire."
One after another, colossal figures whispered like demons, attempting to lure the Thor before them to their side.
Thor's entire body was tense as he watched these beings with alarm. "In the Alien Universe, you were all completely annihilated by Du Wa. I never thought my Main Universe counterpart would make such a huge mistake, failing to wipe you out completely."
"Hmph, we must stress again, do not compare us to the ancient gods you know. We are the gods of the Main Universe! The World Tree of the Main Universe is the absolute core of all World Trees, possessing the most immense divine power and the most perfect rules. Naturally, we are stronger! How could your Main Universe counterpart possibly have the ability to kill us?"
"Besides, if we were truly dead, how would you catch up to Loki and force the truth out of him? Are you going to become a Xenomorph? Even if you did, it's unknown how much power the God of Xenomorphs would be willing to give you! How do you know Loki's transformation isn't the work of the God of Xenomorphs?"
Thor fell silent. He could ignore anything else, but he absolutely could not give up on the matter of Loki.
"Thor Odinson! We know things you don't, and we can help you do things you can't! The opportunity is right in front of you, what are you still hesitating for?"
"Come, pray, and we will give you the power to decipher stories."
A long time later.
Thor opened his eyes once more. The entire World Tree was tilting toward him as countless streams of divine power surged down upon Asgard, and chains of rules materialized in the sky above.
All the Asgardians were stunned, staring blankly at the levitating Thor, their faces etched with disbelief.
This scene was one that many of them had witnessed before. It was…
"Rune King!!"
"It's the Rune King Thor of old!"
Cries of astonishment rose and fell as countless people swarmed madly toward Thor's position. But when they saw that the one who had become the Rune King was the Thor from the Alien Universe, the cheers came to an abrupt halt.
It wasn't that the Thor they knew had returned, but that another Thor had walked a similar path to the Main Universe Thor. But… how was this possible?
"Weren't the Shadow Gods all killed by Thor? Why can this outsider still become the Rune King? Could it be… those beings never actually died, and have now chosen a new spokesperson to do something to reality?" The All-Mother was shocked, her noble and elegant temperament vanishing in an instant.
The Rune King could leverage the power of the entire World Tree. If the Shadow Gods didn't interfere, a true Rune King could actually wield an even more incredible power.
"First Gaea appears, and now the ancient Shadow Gods have returned… I can no longer comprehend this World Tree." The All-Mother closed her eyes.
Not only could she not understand it, but the most terrifying part was that with her and Asgard's current strength, she had no ability to stop the Thor from the Alien Universe.
If this Thor declared he wanted to be the king of Asgard, would they have the ability to resist? Not at all. Even if they could barely contend with Thor, those ancient Shadow Gods would surely find an opportunity to increase Thor's power.
But, why Thor?
"Why choose me, an outsider? You clearly had many natives to choose from. Even if you didn't pick an Asgardian, you could have chosen someone from another world."
Thor asked this very question himself.
An ancient Shadow God stated indifferently, "Because you originate from the Alien Universe. Although you carry fragmented information about Xenomorphs, you are ultimately not a Xenomorph. In our eyes, this is nothing short of a miracle. It shows that you have a decent relationship with the God of Xenomorphs, and that is your greatest value."
If not for this, They wouldn't have even given Thor a second glance. There were hundreds of millions of Thors in the Multiverse, as many as one could want. Why would They have chosen the one from the Alien Universe? Wasn't it precisely because of Du Wa?
Hailing from the Alien Universe yet not being a Xenomorph, Thor walking through the Main Universe's Asgard, which was full of Xenomorphs, was as conspicuous as a firefly in the dead of night. The Shadow Gods couldn't help but take a closer look.
Investing in Thor would, at the very least, not provoke Du Wa, nor would it allow Them to be easily attacked by Du Wa. This point alone was exceptionally important. Who didn't know that the Main Universe was currently territory being digested by Du Wa?
Faced with the notoriously ferocious God of Xenomorphs, the ancient Shadow Gods, who had been in hiding for so long, were naturally filled with dread.
Of course, this was only one of the reasons.
"We want you to go rescue the Loki you know. Rescue him from the hands of the evil Loki of the Main Universe," an ancient Shadow God said.
This was the other important reason. The God of Stories was a threat to the ancient Shadow Gods that was far, far too great—unimaginably so!
Loki, who was already on the path of the God of Stories, only needed to improve step by step, and the story he controlled would naturally allow him to arbitrarily modify the "fate" upon which the ancient Shadow Gods depended for their survival.
The Twilight of the Gods? An infinite loop? As long as Loki wished it, he could easily alter the story and change this established fate.
In fact, had it not been for Du Wa's interference, the real reason these ancient Shadow Gods gave up control of the World Tree was because they faced a direct threat from Loki, God of Stories. If they didn't withdraw, Loki, God of Stories would have completely erased them.
Now, the ancient Shadow Gods felt they could still salvage the situation. They chose the Thor from the Alien Universe to be their spokesperson, using Their power to attack Loki, God of Stories, and dismantle the God of Stories as early as possible.
Wielding his axe, Thor transformed into endless lightning, as if about to pierce through the entire continent of Asgard, and chased after Loki.
The endlessly distant cosmos could now be crossed by Thor with a single step.
Countless pairs of eyes watched Thor in utter terror, completely unable to understand what had happened. What had this outsider Thor encountered to suddenly become the Rune King?
If the ancient Shadow Gods hadn't died, why would they reappear at this moment and choose the Thor from the Alien Universe? Did they have some kind of special predilection for "Thor"?
Never mind the Asgardians being confused; the Main Universe Thor couldn't understand it either.
He learned of the matter from Gaea and was deeply shaken. "Those gods in the shadows weren't dead? I clearly killed them all! I searched every shadow of the World Tree and confirmed it!"
"They hid in another dimension, a place you cannot find," Gaea replied.
"But why have they appeared again, and why did they choose my counterpart from the Alien Universe? What kind of conspiracy is this?"
"I'm telling you this so you can improve your strength quickly to deal with Du Wa's next move, not for you to waste time thinking about why those guys are doing this. Those fellows hiding in the shadows are not worth your time. You know, Asgard is already Du Wa's territory, no longer a place you can interfere with," Gaea said bluntly.
She had high hopes for the Main Universe Thor, wanting to turn him into an individual like Scarlet Witch, Juggernaut, or Doctor Strange, and she was already close to finishing.
...
Loki stopped in his tracks, gazing expressionlessly at the Thor before him.
"Rune King… you're not the first Rune King I've seen, but the fourth," Loki said.
"Based on my understanding of the Main Universe's history, I guess the first three Rune Kings were my Main Universe counterpart, Du Wa, and Jane Foster. Something is definitely wrong with you." Thor's body crackled with lightning. "What did you do to the Loki I know?"
"Simple. He's inside my body. He has the honor of becoming a part of me, completing the story I needed… So, Rune King Thor, or should I say, Shadow-God Thor, do you intend to follow the command of those few rats and challenge me, the God of Stories? I am very busy. I don't have time to waste on you." Loki's expression was extremely grim.
He already knew what would happen next. This was truly a terrible story.
"When I tear you apart, you'll know this is no waste of time! No matter where you run, I will find you and bring the Loki I know back!! I promised my father that I would look after him!"
Thor swung his axe in a furious charge, sparks and electricity trailing in its wake. Brewing with a power more majestic than a star, the all-cleaving blade was about to split Loki in two.
Even now, he still hadn't figured out what kind of god the God of Stories was, or how one came to be, but he no longer cared.
"Idiot. The Thor from every universe is the same kind of idiot!"
Infuriated, Loki stood his ground and did nothing. All the divine power crashing toward him vanished into thin air, as if it had never existed. The earth-shattering destruction dissipated like smoke.
"What did you do?"
"Story. I modified the story of the Main Universe." Loki opened his hand, revealing an eraser in his palm. He made a wiping motion toward Thor from across the space.
Each gesture weakened the power Thor unleashed, but in the next instant, Thor would always manage to draw more power from the World Tree.
Loki could see it at a glance. A group of shadows that didn't even dare to show their faces were frantically scurrying across the World Tree, continuously siphoning its divine power and pouring it into Thor.
"Like a pack of loyal old servants," Loki cursed under his breath. If he had enough power, he would have long since erased these damn Shadow Gods, but unfortunately, he didn't.
This was also why he had fallen into such a passive situation.
"Give me back Loki!!" Thor roared, charging forward once more. Billions of bolts of lightning erupted from his body, their brightness more terrifying than a supernova. "You should have foreseen what would happen today when you laid a hand on Loki!"
"I couldn't have foreseen this at all! Nor could I have predicted Gaea would voluntarily leave the Main Universe, suddenly giving this group of damned rats a boost of courage!"
Loki continuously brandished the eraser, easily wiping away Thor's attacks. At the same time, a marker appeared in his other hand. He casually doodled in the vacuum, creating from nothing a variety of completely invisible methods that dismantled Thor's power time and again, and he began to try to modify the connection between Thor and the World Tree.
Every time he revised a section of the story, explosions would spontaneously erupt on Thor's body, and large amounts of divine power would dissipate into thin air. But this was clearly not enough to completely sever Thor's connection with the World Tree; he wasn't fighting alone.
Loki then tried to break away from reality and enter another dimension, but whenever he did, the Shadow Gods would intervene to stop him. When it came to dimensions, at least those within the scope of the World Tree, the perennially hiding Shadow Gods were all too familiar with them. They only needed to interfere with Loki to create an opportunity for Thor to drag him back into reality.
For a time, the battle between Shadow Thor and Loki, God of Stories, could not be decided. They could only remain locked in this stalemate, fighting in a manner that seemed utterly bizarre to outsiders.
At first glance, it looked as if Loki wielded Chaos Magic or the Phoenix Force, madly engaging in reality-warping and overwriting the old reality with a new one. But it wasn't that simple, because the opponent he faced was not some weakling who could be so easily modified.
Loki, God of Stories, was now forced to display himself in this manner before the natives of the Main Universe, unable to advance or retreat.
After nullifying Thor's power once more, Loki took advantage of the moment Thor was replenishing his losses and chose to flee, rewriting his own coordinates.
"Still too passive! My level is still too low! If I were at Du Wa's level, I wouldn't need to waste time on trash like Thor!"
Loki was seething with rage. This was not the godhood he pursued. He needed to improve further, to become much stronger.
And… he absolutely had to do it before Du Wa truly used him!
(end of chapter)