Seeing Laufey appear, Loki frowned imperceptibly, but the smile on his face remained unchanged, even carrying a hint of mockery: 'Your Majesty Laufey, it seems you are badly hurt, and your mind isn't very clear either.'
'Didn't our... cooperation end with your failure? As for those little... strategic adjustments, they were just to make this drama more interesting.'
'After all, losers have no right to complain.'
'You're courting death!' Laufey was completely maddened, ignoring his injuries, and brandished his broken ice scepter.
Terrifying, extreme cold magic condensed once again, transforming into a giant frost spear, which he thrust violently toward Loki!
He wanted to tear this despicable villain, who had reneged on his promise, used him, and attempted to frame him for everything, into pieces!
Facing Laufey's furious strike, Loki only smiled contemptuously.
He didn't even make any major defensive moves; he just tilted his body slightly, and the pitch-black dagger in his hand moved forward at a strange angle, looking almost casual—
'Pfft.'
The sound of the blade entering flesh was soft, yet it clearly spread throughout the pin-drop silent Golden Palace.
Time seemed to freeze at this moment.
Laufey's massive, charging body suddenly stiffened.
He looked down, staring in disbelief at his own chest.
There, the pitch-black dagger in Loki's hand had, at some unknown point, precisely and completely plunged into his heart.
The annihilation power attached to the dagger, which specifically targeted divine beings and powerful energy lifeforms, was crazily eroding his life core.
'You... you...'
Laufey's crystal-like eyes widened, staring fixedly at Loki, who was close at hand and still wearing that sickening smile, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, it only turned into a groan filled with endless resentment and unwillingness.
The vast ice magic within his body erupted and dissipated uncontrollably like a broken dam, and his massive body slowly fell backward, crashing onto the ground and splashing up a cloud of ice dust.
The King of Frost Giants Realm, Laufey, was easily ended by his 'ally's' dagger in the Golden Palace of Asgard.
Inside the Golden Palace, there was a deathly silence.
Everyone was shocked by this sudden, clean, and cruel scene of king-slaying.
Loki, however, acted as if he had just casually swatted a fly, elegantly withdrawing the pitch-black dagger and gently flicking off the non-existent bloodstains.
His ice-green eyes swept over Laufey's fallen corpse, then looked at the ashen-faced Thor and Frigga, his smile deepening:
'Look, brother, mother, I've solved a big problem for you.'
'Now, the traitor is executed, and the leader of the invaders is dead.'
'As long as you do as I say, everything can end perfectly.'
'I am still a hero of Asgard, the future king.'
'Isn't this... the best ending?'
His words, like a snake's tongue, coiled coldly around everyone's hearts.
However, he did not wait for a response from Thor or Frigga.
Because, at the very moment Laufey fell, his internal ice magic completely dissipated, and he lost contact with the broken ice scepter in his hand—
'Hum—!!!'
An unprecedented, extremely violent spatial fluctuation suddenly came from outside the Golden Palace, from the direction of the Bifrost!
Immediately following it was a deafening, terrifying roar, as if countless stars were exploding!
The sturdy structure of the Golden Palace trembled violently in this sonic wave!
'What's happening?!' everyone exclaimed.
'It's the Bifrost!' Frigga cried out, sensing that violent, out-of-control, star-piercing energy.
'Someone is forcibly overloading the core of the Bifrost! The target is... Frost Giants Realm! No, not just Frost Giants Realm, this power level... it's meant to completely destroy the entire Frost Giants Realm Planet!'
Completely destroy a World?! Who has this authority and ability? Heimdall is missing, the Bifrost control room is sealed... unless...
Everyone's gaze instantly focused on Loki, whose face was unreadable.
Only he could have controlled Heimdall in advance and mastered part of the authority over the Bifrost!
'Loki! What have you done?!' Thor roared.
Loki did not answer; he just stared fixedly at the direction of the Bifrost, the light in his eyes flashing crazily, as if he were calculating and weighing options.
Then, as if he had made some kind of decision, a sneer mixed with madness and determination reappeared on his face.
'Since you all refuse to follow my script...'
Loki's voice became shrill and twisted,'Since this decaying kingdom, this biased father, this stupid brother, do not recognize me... then none of this needs to exist!'
He suddenly raised his hands, not toward Thor or Frigga, but toward the direction of the Bifrost, and began to rapidly chant ancient and obscure spells!
His divine power surged wildly, creating a violent resonance with the violent energy deep within the Bifrost!
'I will use the power of the Bifrost to completely purify everything! Starting with Frost Giants Realm, and then all the Worlds that do not submit! When the Nine Realms tremble and are reborn under my power, I will be the only, eternal king! And you... along with this stupid kingdom, be the foundation for my new World!'
He had finally completely torn off all disguises, revealing the ultimate madness and desire for destruction within his heart!
He didn't just want the throne; he wanted destruction and reconstruction, to prove himself and take revenge on all the injustice he perceived in the most extreme way!
'You're crazy! Loki! Stop!' Thor's eyes were splitting, and he no longer held back, wielding mjolnir, lightning exploding all over his body, as he lunged at Loki!
He had to stop him! Otherwise, countless lives would be devastated by the destruction beam of the Bifrost!
'Stop him!' Frigga also attacked simultaneously, her silver moon magic transforming into countless binding light ropes that coiled toward Loki.
The guards and generals in the hall also roared and charged up.
However, Loki's figure became illusory at this moment.
He laughed loudly, his body melting into the Shadow of the ground, avoiding Thor's thunderous strike and Frigga's binding, leaving behind only a series of crazy laughter and words echoing in the hall:
'It's too late, brother! The core of the Bifrost is overloaded and locked! Find me at the end of the Bifrost! If you can make it! There, I will let you watch with your own eyes how everything you cherish turns into cosmic dust! Hahaha!'
Before the laughter faded, his aura had completely disappeared from the Golden Palace, clearly having used a pre-arranged teleportation method to go directly to the control center of the Bifrost!
'Chase!' Thor didn't hesitate, turning into a bolt of lightning and rushing out of the hall.
Frigga immediately ordered the captain of the guards to assemble the elite and follow.
She herself looked worriedly at the Gate of Sleep (Loki's Shadow threat seemed to have lifted with his departure, but Odin's condition remained unknown), and then looked at Artoria and Minerva, hurriedly saying: 'Two guests, this place is dangerous, please follow me to a safe...'
'We're going too.' Artoria stood up, although her face was still a bit pale, her eyes were firm.
She looked at Minerva, and Minerva nodded silently.
Frigga looked at them and did not try to persuade them further, just nodded: 'Please be careful.'
She needed to stay behind to guard Odin and stabilize the Golden Palace.
Artoria and Minerva no longer delayed, following closely behind Thor and the elite of the Asgard, rushing out of the Golden Palace and speeding toward the direction of the Bifrost, where the energy fluctuations were becoming increasingly terrifying and the beam of light increasingly blinding.
Along the way, one could see the crystal-clear bridge body of the Bifrost, which originally flowed with seven colors, now having its internal flowing energy turn into an ominous, scorching white color, and its brightness was rising sharply, as if it would explode at any moment!
The bridge body itself was trembling slightly, emitting groans of being unable to bear the burden.
At the end of the bridge, that spherical control room was currently shining with destructive light like a small sun!
Thor increased his speed to the limit and was the first to rush to the end of the Bifrost.
The doors of the control room were wide open, and most of the complex control runes and energy conduits inside had been overloaded and burned out, with blinding light and violent energy turbulence filling the space.
And in the center of the control room, in front of that huge crystal lens used for positioning and emitting energy, Loki was spreading his arms, laughing wildly, recklessly injecting his own divine power into the out-of-control core, guiding, aiming, and amplifying that destructive energy capable of piercing through stars!
His target was clearly that frozen Planet visible through the lens — Frost Giants Realm!
'Loki! Stop!' Thor rushed into the control room and roared, lightning condensing on mjolnir, but he dared not attack easily, fearing it would trigger a more violent energy explosion.
'You're late, Thor!' Loki turned back, his face wearing a twisted expression mixed with madness, pleasure, and tears.
'Look! This is power! True power that dominates everything!'
'Father would rather sleep than give it to me, and you were exiled because of it! Now, I have it! I will use it to create my own order!'
The vibrations in the control room became even more violent, the light of the crystal lens was already too blinding to look at directly, and the destructive energy was about to reach the critical point and erupt!
'No! You're wrong, Loki!' Thor stared at him, his eyes filled with pain and an unprecedented clarity.
He remembered what he had learned on Earth, under Artoria's guidance, and from those ordinary yet brave people.
'Power is not for destruction and conquest! The throne is not taken by blood and fear!'
'Father didn't give it to you not because you weren't strong enough, but because you never understood what responsibility, what protection, and what... benevolence are!'
'Benevolence? Hahaha!' Loki seemed to have heard the most ridiculous joke, laughing until he could barely breathe.
'What is that? Is it Odin's mercy when he conquered the Nine Realms? Is it your pity when you wield mjolnir? Don't be hypocritical, Thor!'
'This World only recognizes power! Only by possessing the power to destroy everything can you gain everything!'
'It seems you will never understand.'
The last trace of hesitation in Thor's eyes vanished, replaced by a deep sadness and determination.
He no longer tried to persuade Loki, nor did he try to attack the control core — that would only accelerate the firing of the destruction beam.
He made a move that took everyone by surprise.
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