Su Ming reunited with the mage and Gin, and the two were a little surprised at why he had returned from the sky.
Just now, the teleportation gate was closed by Mephisto using the power of Hell, and Monac was a bit panicked, almost contacting The Ancient One for a solution.
But Gin believed that her boss had long known this would happen, and he should have been prepared. Besides, he had disappeared in front of her more than once or twice, so she signaled the mage to wait with peace of mind.
Things were just as she said. When Su Ming landed, even his armor was repaired, and the wounds he received in the battle with the Destruction Maidens had already self-healed.
Gin's eyes were on him, waiting for the next move, while Monac sighed with relief and put the rabbit back into his chest pocket:
"I thought you got into a fight with Mephisto."
Su Ming glanced at him, feeling a bit baffled. Did the mage see him as brainless?
"In his Hell?"
A Lord of Hell in his own Plane is like a god. If he doesn't want it, no one can lay a finger on him, and hitting him would be like hitting air...
Previously, he had experimented with a Centaur, and Mephisto indeed had this ability; the future Horse-faced Thunder God was repelled by the Destruction Maidens after only a brief demolition in Hell, while Mephisto himself was unharmed.
Lords of Hell have various bonuses in their dimensions, but there is one commonality: they all possess the ability to constantly resurrect.
The same is true for Surtur. In his Hell, he is invincible. Back in those days, Odin and his two brothers, Phil and Wei, went to deal with the Fire Giant but found they simply couldn't kill him.
Regardless of how many times he was knocked down, Surtur would resurrect from the lava the next second to continue battling, as if he intended to fight the three brothers for tens of thousands of years.
Phil and Wei died in this battle. To let their brother escape, they proactively stayed behind, allowing Odin to flee back to Asgard.
Before dying, they transferred their divine power to their brother. The combined strength of the Odinson brothers, three Celestial Father Level powers, is the true nature of what is now known as the Power of Odin.
Afterward, Odin went through a series of events, becoming the Divine King, losing an eye, drinking from the fountain, and gaining Rune Power. It was only at the peak of his might, with full power, that he defeated Surtur.
By infusing a massive amount of the Power of Odin into the Flame Hell, temporarily altering the entire Plane's attribute, he was able to temporarily delay the rebirth of the Fire Giant.
But even Odin couldn't kill a Lord of Hell in Hell. He had to settle for sealing the Fire Giant in a volcano, stealing the Eternal Fire, and negotiating a deal with him—"Unless someone invites you, you can never set foot in Asgard."
Surtur agreed, patiently waiting for the Twilight of the Gods, knowing that eventually someone would invite him.
At present, the only ones capable of dealing with a Lord of Hell are other Lords of Hell, by mutually annexing and devouring each other between Hell Planes. However, neither Earth nor Asgard possesses the attribute of Hell.
Of course, there are other methods, such as luring the lord out of his own Hell, which might present a slim chance.
In the cinematic universe, Dormammu suffered because of this. Wanting to devour Earth, he opened a gap in his Hell, leading to Strange entering.
As everyone knows, Dormammu's true form was thoroughly entangled by Strange with the Time Gem, endlessly negotiating terms. Strange was wise and clearly understood that even with the Time Gem, Dormammu couldn't be killed and could only negotiate.
Ultimately, the story concluded with Dormammu temporarily retreating, but that was not the end, as he is bound to return in the future...
Mephisto isn't as strong as Dormammu, but he's much more cunning than the Lord of the Dark Dimension. Whenever he goes to Earth or somewhere else for business, he never uses his true form.
He usually sends a talking phantom, which functions like a communicator, bearing only a tiny bit of Hell Power to handle minor dangers like a robber or street thug. When encountering a formidable opponent, he wouldn't hesitate to abandon his avatar, dispersing as a black smoke.
"I just thought you might not know, and I forgot to remind you before you went in."
Monac rubbed his eyes, which were a bit swollen, looking like peaches.
Su Ming smiled a bit; he knew Monac meant well. Even though he knew nothing of magic, he was aware of some secrets of the Magic Realm.
Most Lords of Hell are working for 'Death.' They are part of the world's soul cycle system, and without Death's nod, none of them could truly die.
Dealing with Hell is not worthwhile; demons are disgusting in this regard.
This is exactly why Su Ming chose to fight the Destruction Maidens and demonstrate his strength, because he knew he couldn't even touch Mephisto in Hell, and perhaps the one he spoke with was just an avatar or illusion.
Su Ming saw through Mephisto's plan, understanding what he was after.
If Deathstroke avoids battle, he would propagate the future weakness of Earth's Main Dimension, causing trouble for The Ancient One and Earth.
But if Deathstroke attacks the Hell Demon King himself, Mephisto would definitely stage a realistic illusion of a 'tragic death.' Once Deathstroke leaves, he would use vivid imagery to persuade other Lords of Hell to form an alliance.
Normally, there is constant strife among the Hell Planes, with Lords of Hell rivaling and annexing each other, but when a real external threat arises, they can unite and face it together.
With the Supreme Mage's inheritor actively attacking a Lord of Hell?
It would be the perfect reason...
When the lords unite, whoever they target is doomed, even a powerhouse like Tianjin Weng Star was calculated to death by them in the original comics.
It seemed that Su Ming had just a simple chat with Mephisto, but he put in considerable effort, leaving no handle for Mephisto, gathered the intel he wanted, and retreated unscathed.
What Mephisto wants to gauge is not Deathstroke's personal strength; he doesn't care about that.
He merely wants to see how much the Supreme Mage's inheritor knows about the Magic Realm, and whether he would recklessly fall into traps. If the successor of the Ancient One is as reckless as the successor of Odin, then he'd have it good in the future...
What Su Ming shattered was Old Mo's fantasy. He used his actions to tell the Lord of Hell that his understanding of matters in the Magic Realm is no less than any mage.
Showing some strength and revealing some cards can sometimes be a deterrent, especially to smart people.
Just like on the DC side, why would Su Ming openly flaunt the Ten Rings? If he merely wanted to save someone, wouldn't it be simpler to just attack the Giant Octopus from outer space?
Did he mean for Batman to see it? Not at all, Batman has never been an obstacle.
Su Ming displayed his strength for Luthor and the Mad Laugh to see, knowing that those two were always monitoring the entire battlefield, as Black Manta's situation at that time at least indicated Luthor's surveillance.
This way, these two smart people won't act rashly until they are completely sure they can counter Deathstroke's Lantern Ring.
This time is the preparation Su Ming reserved for his next action.
When the enemies appear again, thinking they're fully prepared, that's when Su Ming will reveal his true cards against them, the contract of the Inverted Man, a magic concept he personally created.
The enemies think they're dealing with a Lantern Hero, only to find themselves up against a Supreme Mage...
.......
The Hell journey saw Su Ming enter as Odin and emerge as Deathstroke, temporarily shedding that identity, like a cicada casting off its shell.
Let Heimdall gaze longingly at Hell, Su Ming previously used Odin's identity to absolve Gin of blame, allowing Valkyrie to now move freely between the Nine Realms with Deathstroke.
However, the original suspects have all been absolved, complicating matters once more.
How did the Great Serpent come out? Where is it currently? What is it planning to do? Until these three key questions are solved, finding the mastermind remains difficult.
If predictions are correct, the Hammer of Winter should be in the hands of the Serpent's follower, but who this follower is remains a question.
Still, it's never wrong to prepare for how to deal with the Great Serpent, and this method involves the prophecy of the Son of Odin.
Odin, in fact, has more than just Thor as a son; although one was thought dead, he is indeed still alive.
God of Light Balder, Su Ming may try to find him now, wherever he may be.
In the comic stories, after being cast down by Loki's Mistletoe Spear, Balder's soul fell into the hands of Hel.
The Goddess of the Netherworld knew this was a hot potato; Odin would surely come looking for his soul. Not wanting Balder's resurrection, she almost immediately tossed her brother's soul out of the Netherworld.
Odin found nothing; Balder wasn't in the Netherworld and his whereabouts remain unknown.
Hel, being one of the Lords of Hell, is unkillable in the Netherworld, so Odin had little recourse. Having lost one son, he was unwilling to lose a daughter as well, and thus left in frustration.
Tossed out of the Netherworld, Balder's soul could only find a home in another Hell.
He was passed around the major Hells as a unique and valuable commodity, used by the Lords of Hell as currency or entertainment. The soul of the Son of the Divine King was treated like an amusing toy.
Balder has been to almost every Hell Plane Su Ming could think of, enduring all kinds of tortures. Just a few days ago, he was a human-shaped instrument with Old Mo; soon he'd find himself being torn apart by tentacles with the Eye Demon, only to be transferred again after a few days.
Though Odin has always been searching, he remains elusive, as the Lords of Hell tacitly play their game of hide and seek.
Sadly, there's always someone who slips up, as the Lords of Hell are not omniscient or omnipotent.
Amid the endless tortures, Balder not only retained his sanity instead of becoming a blank soul, but he also regained his memories and secretly reformed his body.
Then he escaped, out of Demon King Belasco's grasp.
Having fled the Demon King's prison, he still couldn't leave that Hell, and thus engaged in guerrilla warfare with the Demon King's armies, hiding and fighting in the desolate lands.
Hasn't it been over three hundred years by now?
The Hell Balder resides in is called Limbo, which, in the DC universe, is also known as the Spirit Thin Prison, albeit with a completely different concept.
Currently, the Lord of Limbo is Belasco, but in a few decades, Limbo will see a change of leadership to a young girl once captured by Belasco and brought to Hell. Her name is Lianna Rasputin, known by the codename Secret Guest.