Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 1743

Bayonetta's memories are closely linked to Salomon's time travel. Several nights of dreams revealed a part of the truth to her: truth is knowledge, and knowledge is power.

Prior to this, Bayonetta was completely unaware of her relationship with Lady Butterfly, nor did she know that Lady Butterfly possessed a powerful Noble Phantasm passed down from the Shadow Witch. This legendary Noble Phantasm was the weapon of the first Shadow Witch, capable of summoning a planet to descend upon the world. The earliest descriptions of the Shadow Witch state that this Noble Phantasm could destroy a nation, turning forests into scorched deserts, and nothing else.

There was no description of the Noble Phantasm's appearance, no incantation used; only a few words were used to depict the god's greatness and violence. But after the dream, Bayonetta learned everything about this Noble Phantasm; she understood it as well as she understood the gun in her hand.

"Venus, answer my call."

She stroked the cold metal, rested the starlight-forged spear on the bow, and aimed at the approaching goddess of death, just as she had done hundreds and thousands of times. The witch released her grip, and the light on the bow vanished.

No one in this world can travel faster than the speed of light, and the Asgardians are no exception. However, this doesn't prevent Hela from judging the trajectory of the arrow based on her extensive battlefield experience. The Goddess of Death didn't know if she could block the arrow, so before Bayonetta let go, she decided to use all her magic to counter the Shadow Witch's Noble Phantasm.

The battle on the battlefield was so dazzling that Thor had to raise his hand to shield his eyes from the light.

Countless black swords formed a mountain that burst forth from beneath the ice, the deafening roar of the ice shattering even more deafening than the summoned thunder. Hela's magic was not yet over; a forest of iron spears surged forth alongside the dark mountains, each spear tip piercing a twisted, gaunt figure.

Thor saw the corpse pierced by the nearest iron spear still writhing, asphalt-black blood clinging to the spearhead. What tormented him even more was the faint groans emanating from the body, as if this living corpse had never died and was still suffering. Even after participating in so many military operations, Thor had never seen such a bizarre scene. Even as a self-proclaimed warrior, he was still horrified by the horror before him.

He suddenly understood why Hela was called the Goddess of Death; death was the sweetest gift she could give to her enemies. Thor thought a lot, but faster than thought came light. In that instant, the collision between the black mountain peak and the planetary light occurred. No one knew the specifics, for there was only the light of burning air and the deafening roar of shattering rocks. Dozens of kilometers away, Lake Sevorg, a famous landmark in the Faroe Islands, suspended above the sea, was also shattered by the sound waves, the frozen lake water crashing against the sea with an ear-piercing roar.

The blinding light made it impossible for the Asgardian prince to open his eyes. The deafening roar and vibrations, powerful enough to crush ice into rock, felt like a heavy punch to his internal organs. Then, the negative pressure created by the vacuum sucked in clouds and air, whipping up waves from the icebergs that engulfed the dark clouds and swept in all directions. Even those of Aesir divine blood felt dizzy and nearly fainted. After a while, Thor regained consciousness and felt the stinging in his eyes subside. He blinked his tear-filled eyes and vaguely saw only darkness before him.

He raised his warhammer and summoned lightning, using the fleeting glimpse of its light to see what lay before him. The black iron mountain forged by Hela had vanished, as had the brilliant starlight that pierced the clouds.

The faint moonlight that had once illuminated the vast white ice surface was now obscured; all he could see was the dark sea in the distance and the ever-growing whirlpool. The gray iron spear that had pierced the undead lay askew on the ground, immediately covered by layers of ice and snow, leaving only the towering outer-dimensional deity standing atop the iceberg. But the catastrophe was not over. The runic stones burst into flames out of thin air. Loki cursed as he threw away the red-hot stone and swiftly pulled the stunned Thor back to his senses.

The bone density of the Aesir gods was astonishing. If a human had been standing here, they would likely have been reduced to minced meat from the very beginning of the collision. After all, Bayonetta's Noble Phantasm was far more powerful than a nuclear bomb. Loki watched with lingering fear as the icebergs continued to crash against the rune barrier. Massive amounts of seawater slammed down relentlessly, and even an innocent black and white whale crashed into the barrier, only to be crushed into a blood-red pulp by the ice, rocks, and seawater.

His actions were swift; just seconds later, tens of meters of seawater pushed against the ice and rocks piled up in front of the circle drawn by the runes, completely engulfing them and extinguishing all natural light. If Loki hadn't been so quick, Thor would surely have been knocked unconscious by the falling ice and rocks. After confirming Thor wouldn't suddenly die, Loki helped his mother sit under the rune tree, anxiously watching the small patch of rocky land being squeezed deeper and deeper by the sea and ice.

Bayonetta, perched on Madame Butterfly's palm, looked down and saw the golden, spear-shaped Noble Phantasm deeply embedded in the rock beneath the sea, almost piercing the earth's crust, with scalding lava and thick smoke spreading into the seawater. Perhaps in a few hundred years, a completely new ecosystem will form here. But now, the Faroe Islands' most prized high-quality salmon has become utterly extinct, and Michelin-starred restaurants in France can no longer serve the jelly-like, tender, one-sided pan-fried salmon.

Worse still, ocean currents and monsoons in the North Atlantic and even globally will be affected in the coming days.

Bayonita was even angrier at this thought, because Hela had completely disrupted her vacation plans, and she wouldn't be able to reach the Rose Mansion outside Paris through normal means this weekend. Since Salomon bought it, she had only enjoyed the Rose Mansion's underground swimming pool once!

"She's been teasing me all along?" Thor managed to squeeze out a few words.

Hela's power was so astonishing that he still couldn't quite believe it.

"Of course! Otherwise, how could you have survived until now!" Loki instinctively retorted, then glanced at his pale-faced mother and softened his tone. His attitude had only improved slightly; if anyone (except Frigga) said he'd softened, he would certainly argue again. "She said Odin fears her power, and I don't think that's an exaggeration. After all, she wasn't at your victory celebration, and even I blushed hearing the bards' praise of you..."

The God of Mischief shrugged, showing no concern whatsoever. "Unfortunately, we have to give up here. If you're not going to help, we'll suffocate soon; this is the first time I've ever been buried under such thick ice."

"Why could that woman do it?"

"Don't you understand? She's a god too!" Loki rolled his eyes. The ice and rocks on the barrier piled up thicker and thicker, until the last few rune-engraved pebbles were about to turn into lava. Frigga simply couldn't bear such a burden while keeping Odin alive. "Are you going to help or not?"

Thor took a deep breath and carefully helped Frigga to her feet. Frigga's face grew paler and paler; he felt as if he were holding a piece of paper. He gently let his mother lean against him so that Loki could continue the magic of the runes. "That's enough," Frigga's voice barely louder than a feather falling to the ground. "My sons, that's enough."

"We're about to leave." Thor looked up at the seawater and ice blocks blocked by the barrier, not daring to tell the truth. He threw his hammer under the ancient tree, and Mjolnir burst into bright lightning, providing Loki with magic. "Hela is dead, it's all over, we're taking you back to Asgard."

"She's not that easy to kill." Frigga gasped for breath, watching Loki command the Rune Tree to rise. When they finally saw the surface of the sea, they discovered that the glaciers floating on the water were pressing against each other, forming massive, knife-like mountain ranges. The ice layers squeezed against each other, making a teeth-grinding sound, and the dark seawater at the center of the glaciers was still churning and boiling.

"She's here."

"What?" Loki's eyes widened as he looked around.

Frigga could no longer speak.

The sharp-eyed Thor spotted a barely perceptible black flash streaking across the razor-sharp iceberg. He immediately called for Mjolnir, and Loki, alerted by his brother, also noticed it. The god of mischief instantly drew his ritual dagger, attempting to shield Frigga. Just as Thor gripped his warhammer, the black sword pierced the runic barrier, and the last few pebbles inscribed with ritual runes melted completely, rendering them useless.

Thor swung his warhammer at the black sword, but before he could make a further move, a dark figure appeared less than a meter away from him and Loki. "Long time no see," Hela grinned, her sword crown shattered, her long, messy black hair soaked by seawater and clinging to her face. "Are you surprised?"

Before Thor could react, Frigga broke free from his grasp and threw a glowing pebble at Hela. A blinding white light struck them, and Frigga vanished like a bubble in the sunlight.

Bayonetta's arrow had a wider area of ​​effect than expected, forcing even the duel under the distant leaden clouds to halt until the sea calmed. A long time passed, and the suspended duel did not resume. Both duelists gasped for breath, the hot air expelled from their lungs quickly condensing into white mist, billowing out like a depressurized steam engine.

A golden spear pierced Salomon's abdominal armor, pinning him to a massive rock, pale golden blood dripping onto the broken ice. His opponent fared no better. The One-Eyed Allfather bled even more, his spear-wielding right hand severed at the elbow, and a deep gash across his neck nearly severing his throat. Pegasus had vanished, leaving only the reins wrapped around the Emperor's left hand. Sleipnir had ceased functioning entirely, its bronze-colored, muscular body utterly destroyed, like a burning industrial machine.

Here, the veil between reality and illusion is so thin that it can be pierced with a finger.

Even dull-witted people who lack a second vision can sense the information of the outer dimension falling and collapsing in reality due to their increasingly sensitive sixth sense, hear strange sounds that are enough to make their souls boil, see strange topological structures mapped in three-dimensional space, and gradually accumulate more knowledge in their skull than could be contained in millions of years of evolution.

But it was very quiet here. Both the physical universe and the sea of ​​souls were unusually quiet, and the extradimensional beings that should have been attracted by spiritual energy did not approach. The physical universe and the extradimensional worlds were like stacked sheets of paper, with the physical universe being the top sheet. Any trace left by a being living in the physical universe was like writing on the paper with force, leaving gradually fading marks.

From the shallow etheric plane indistinguishable from reality, to the deep etheric plane shrouded in mist, and then to the deepest outer dimension where the laws of physics have utterly lost their meaning, the blood of the Emperor and Odin dripping onto the ice, like molten metal, gradually burned through reality, leaving scorch marks in the Sea of ​​Souls. Only utterly foolish outer-dimensional worms would approach this place, only to be burned into pure psionic energy and returned to the Sea of ​​Souls. After this duel, these scorch marks would remain, like layers upon layers of repulsive skin scars, until the end of the universe, when the physical universe and the illusory dimension completely collapsed and fused together.

The emperor used his hands to brace himself and Gangnir and pulled himself off the rock.

He drew his spear, and the wound in his abdomen healed in the blink of an eye. If it weren't for the marks still visible on his armor and the constant alarm of a breached airtightness, he would have looked no different from before the battle. He tossed Gungnir to the one-eyed, one-armed Odin, whose beard, burning with iridescent flames, was matted with dried blood, and whose once radiant eye had dimmed.

Even so, the emperor still saw cunning in it.

For the past eight thousand years, driven by a certain hostility and intuition, Salomon has been investigating Odin's preparations for Ragnarok. However, he is now uncertain whether Odin's treatment of Hela is more of a punishment or a protection.

"She was blessed." The emperor tore open his blood-stained lips. "And then you chose to exploit this curse."

"I am greedy; even a trap will find a way to devour the bait." The Asgardian lord undoubtedly possesses the talent of a bard, the eloquence of a debater, and the charisma of a politician. Even his mead is said to inspire poets.

"I have established the Kingdom of the Dead. Now, the gods in the shadows cannot control the Goddess of Death. Every blessing they bestow upon Hela will become the power of Asgard. The Nine Realms belong to Asgard, and both Thor and Hela will be worthy rulers. If the living cannot rule Asgard, then let the dead, whose souls remain, sit on the throne and use the life of the entire universe to launch an attack on the enemy behind the veil."

This aligns with the findings of the investigation, indicating that the emperor knew Odin's plan was very likely to succeed.

The cunning Grimnir presented the gods behind the veil with a difficult problem.

The catastrophe of Ragnarok will affect many lives, but if Hela, who has the faith in Asgard, keeps the souls of the dead, she will grow stronger.

If the gods behind the veil do not interfere, then after all intelligent life in the universe disappears, the outer dimensions, as mirrors of the physical universe, will return to complete tranquility, and they will also weaken or even disappear. If the gods behind the veil, through the power of Ragnarok, choose to directly interfere with the physical universe, and then command corrupted intelligent life or outer-dimensional spiritual entities to descend into reality to attack, the tireless, protected souls of the dead will be able to resist the temptations from the outer dimensions, launch a counterattack, and create more dead.

The souls of the dead will be plundered by Asgard, making the Asgardian King of the Dead even more powerful. This war could continue until all life in the universe is annihilated, unless they spare no expense to channel their power into an individual capable of defeating Hela.

Who can become this individual? Only Thor, who is an enemy of Hela!

Even if Asgard falls into the abyss, it is still the victor.

"You're even crazier than I imagined, Odin! You actually thought the gods behind the veil could be traded!" The Emperor struggled to his feet. "The moment you thought that, you failed; you fell into their trap. Even if Thor triumphs, he will only be their vessel!"

"Atum, you are not the only one in this world with special powers, nor are you the only one capable of purifying source matter. My research shows that I can do it too." Odin coughed twice, then burst into laughter. The aging king, supporting himself with his remaining hand on his spear, shakily stood up. "Great runes, my wisdom is equally powerful. I believe in Thor, I believe in his wisdom."

The first Atem devoured corrupted extradimensional entities, casting himself upon a star and releasing pure primordial matter, from which the gods were born. As a tool of Mother Earth, the second Atem also possessed pure power, which is why the Emperor could use extradimensional power without restraint, even using himself as a node after devouring the Vishanti to continue supplying magic to the arcane mages of Kamar-Taj.

Odin was very familiar with Atum's abilities. After all, the Aesir were the origin of the great giants, who were born from Atum's essence. Even a small remnant of the giants was enough for the Aesir to defeat the Vanir and the Elves and become the rulers of the Nine Realms.

The emperor closed his eyes and observed Thor, the Rune King.

This happened in a certain timeline, which shows that Odin's plan has a certain feasibility, provided that Thor can reject the gods in the shadows and end the cycle of Ragnarok. "According to our agreement, you must help him and prevent him from falling into the abyss." Even with his severed arm still bleeding, the Allfather tried his best to straighten his back. "As long as Thor succeeds, as long as Asgard continues, I will give you everything you want. You know this is for your own good; if Asgard fails, you will get nothing! Both the Bifrost and Hliskjálf are technologies you desire. Do you really think that sorceress Lorelei can help you obtain these things?"

The Emperor, dragging his holy sword, slowly approached Odin. "Eight thousand years ago, we made a pact to deceive you before your time travel. I won't lie about this, because I was no match for you, and I still am. If I utter a lie, it's only because of our pact." Odin blinked his single eye, the sly smile vanishing from his face. "Now I just find it all laughable. My grandfather, my father, and Asgard, which I founded, were merely toys for the shadow gods! Yes, this is the end… You must make a pact with Asgard, and one day, you will bring war upon them!"

"I swear, I will annihilate our great enemy." The emperor nodded, "just as we promised."

"This is a civilization of five hundred thousand years! I refuse to accept this! My sons and daughters will go first, and they will taste the wrath of Asgard!" The king who had ruled the nine realms for millennia now resembled an aging lion about to be driven from its pride, even his roar was filled with rage. "I am a king, I do not need others to carry out my execution! Leave this place, this is my time!"

The Emperor turned and left. "Victor," he dialed the satellite phone through his armored helmet, "order the Royal Guard and the Martian Foundry to move together, order the First Legion knights to board the ships, and secretly contact Lorelei. We're going to Asgard."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "Contact Stark and let him experience interstellar warfare. He'll know that cooperating with us is the right thing to do. I want him to move the production line to Yugoslavia."

Viktor von Doom breathed a sigh of relief. "Is it all over?"

"Yes, the history of Asgard has come to an end."