Those time travelers that year

Unless all the Infinity Stones are gathered together and set into the Infinity Gauntlet, the cosmic gods will be powerless against this. However, with just the power of the Mind Scepter, the Ciel can directly sever their connection. If it is truly a cosmic god in its complete state, like Galactus or Eternity, it is completely meaningless before the Infinity Stones are gathered together.

“Fulfill the contract. Fulfill the contract…” Charles muttered to himself. “I’m an honest and trustworthy person. Besides, if I don’t completely kill those guys, I probably won’t be able to keep quiet. I don’t want to be nagged all the time. The last guy who was nagged went crazy, developed an iron jaw, and was then censored by the World Government…”

……

The Tesseract lit up with a blue light, which then coalesced into a blue doorway in front of Ciel. Ciel stepped inside and found himself in a palace situated before an enormous tree trunk—the palace of the three Fates of Asgard.

Upon emerging from the portal, the first thing Shire saw was a massive spinning machine, with endless bolts of cloth stretching out before him, and Loki standing in front of it, confronting three women shrouded in black robes.

"You're still an illusion this time?!" Raising an eyebrow, Ciel was truly speechless at Loki standing there. That's right, the Loki standing there was still an illusion. What the hell, an illusion? It seems Loki has truly reached a whole new level of skill and artistry when it comes to manipulating illusions and clones. This made Ciel wonder if Loki's true appearance was actually completely different from the illusion before him. Otherwise, why were there so many illusions and clones everywhere, but no Loki himself?

"I'm just doing this for safety's sake!" Loki didn't seem bothered at all by the fact that Shire had directly destroyed one of his clones. He said calmly, "You've already seen those guys, haven't you? How about it?"

"Far more weak than we ever imagined!"

"Then I truly feel it wasn't worth it for me to be trapped in the cycle of reincarnation before!" Loki sighed. "Being manipulated like a puppet, completely unaware, just like the Joker!"

"Loki, son of Laufey, son of Odin, son of Frigga." At this moment, the three goddesses draped in black robes spoke in unison, "And you, you despicable wizard who unexpectedly arrived in Midgard, you are powerless here, you will not change your predetermined fate..."

“I never intended to change anything…” Loki replied. “I just… simply don’t like the way you three frame papers!”

“Oh, right! Let me correct something!” Charles interjected, “The title ‘despicable wizard’ doesn’t suit me, so please call me here—”

"—Father-Shir".

276. The Flaming Sword, Leivatin

The moment the word "Father" was uttered, the atmosphere around them froze instantly, as if an invisible hand had gripped the hearts of everyone present except Ciel.

"...You completely devoured all of Surtr's power?" Loki asked with difficulty and a grim expression.

“One hundred percent! Although this process was beyond my expectations!” Charles shrugged, then reached out and grabbed a blade with a bright silver hilt inlaid with gems. It was Surtr's Twilight Sword, though not as enormous as when Surtr held it. However, it still exuded a terrifying, apocalyptic aura.

"Hmm! This appearance is really...outdated!" Charles completely ignored the atmosphere around him, finding absolutely no aesthetic appeal in the artifact he had just acquired. Indeed, the American style, whether it's characters or weapons, is all cut from the same mold. So what others might consider aesthetically pleasing, Charles found far more crude. "It really needs some modifications!" The blackish-red liquid substance of ether particles spread across the Twilight Sword, and soon, its original appearance and style began to change under the power of the ether particles.

The jewel-encrusted hilt has been changed to a simple black, and is now more exquisitely crafted, with openwork patterns appearing on it. The once bright silver blade has shrunk in size and turned a fiery red, burning with the color of twilight flames.

If the original Twilight's Blade was a two-handed greatsword, then now it has become a more like a one-handed sword. Then, Charles wields the Twilight's Blade in one hand and the Mind Scepter in the other, exuding a strong "dried tofu" (a derogatory term for someone who is poorly equipped but lacks ambition) style. The only difference is that dried tofu wears a gray or white robe and only holds a staff (for hitting heads) and a mage's sword (good heavens, a mage with purple gear for a warrior!). Charles, on the other hand, holds two powerful artifacts with +N upgrades in both hands. From this point of view, Charles has every right to look down on dried tofu's meager equipment.

"...No, you are not the one destined for this fate, you cannot change this cycle of destiny!" With a sword in one hand and a staff in the other, Charles walked directly toward the spinning wheel. The three goddesses of fate, dressed in black robes, immediately shouted loudly and blocked Charles's way.

"Get out of the way, you paper-mounting thing!" A golden light flashed, and the three Fates were sent flying. Loki, who had just cast a spell to send the Fates flying, walked over, and then his figure split into three, each holding a long sword to the necks of the three Fates.

"For the sake of the fate of all things, Odin's son, you shouldn't do this," the three goddesses, with swords pressed against their necks, pleaded with Loki. "...If you do this, you will have no future and no immortality!"

“No! I will have freedom…” Loki, now split into three, coldly replied, “Besides, if my so-called future and immortality are nothing more than being someone else’s puppet or even food, then why should I obediently accept it? So, let it all end!”

the other side.

Charles walked directly to the spinning machine, where the cloth embroidered with countless patterns and designs stretched upwards all the way to the seemingly unseen end of the tree trunk.

That was a predetermined destiny, or rather, the past. In this light, this loom is a genuine divine artifact, surpassing even the Twilight Sword or a single Infinity Stone. After all, destiny and karma, invisible and intangible yet impossible to guard against, are enough to disgust anyone. Consider the Investiture of the Gods: the Three Pure Ones knew that once the great calamity began, their disciples would suffer, yet they were powerless to stop it. The Jie Sect was the most unfortunate; even though the Tongtian Sect Leader had warned his disciples from the beginning, they were still killed by that single phrase, "Fellow Daoist, please wait."

Behind this loom is a ball of yarn, one end connected to the loom, the other extending to the top. These purple-glowing threads are being drawn into the loom; the source of everything is a revolving thread, an endless cycle that symbolizes the Aesir gods' perpetual Ragnarok fate.

Ciel raised the Twilight Sword, or rather, the Flaming Sword Levadin.

"Stop, no, stop!" Just as Charles raised Leivadin, darkness enveloped them as the shadowy space rolled in. The five enormous figures reappeared before Charles. "We understand what you want to do. We acknowledge your power and wisdom..."

"We acknowledge your abilities; you have the potential to join our game..."

"Put down the sword of doom, come to us, join us, and sit with us to become the god of gods."

“I’m telling you guys!” Charles sighed. “Didn’t I tell you? I’m completely uninterested in this! And compared to playing a repetitive RPG game…”

"What interests me more are your fears and screams before you die!" With excitement, Charles smiled as he swung down the flaming sword, Leivatin.

Flames engulfed everything, igniting the entire loom, and then burning upwards along the fabric woven from it. It burned away the future, consumed the present, and swallowed the past. The entire loom and the Threads of Fate were engulfed in the twilight's glow. Then, the tree trunk began to tremble, and the ground shook violently. The Temple of Fate, which had stood in Asgard for thousands of years, crumbled in the earthquake. The violent tremor reverberated throughout Asgard and then spread to other worlds. Except for Earth, which represented Midgard and remained unscathed, all other kingdoms, except for the utterly destroyed wasteland, felt the powerful earthquake.

——————————Divider Line——————————

"It's all over!" Loki sighed, his expression complex, as he watched the spinning wheel slowly turn to ash in the flames. All the destinies already woven—past, present, and yet to be woven—were consumed by the fire and destroyed. Beside him lay the three Fates, reduced to ashes and vanished into nothingness. Their lives and power were intertwined with the spinning wheel of fate; in Asgard, they were detached from it. Whether it was the previous God-King, Bauer, or the current God-Father, Odin, they could have disregarded them. But in the instant the spinning wheel burned, they too lost their lives, their souls turning to nothingness.

"It's over?! I don't think so!" Having ignited the spinning wheel, Charles showed no interest in watching the artifact turn to ashes. Instead, he was overjoyed to hear the five giants' angry, desperate, and terrified roars echoing through the void—they were finished. Incidentally, he also managed to harvest some soul fragments at the last moment. These fragments were enough for him to reassemble and create a boss-level subordinate. Although he had completely seized Surtr's power, Charles now looked down on these demigod-level subordinates, but they would still be very useful in other worlds. After all, not every world could be like Marvel, where supporting a planetary god grants the power to destroy stars, or a single Heavenly Father can annihilate a galaxy.

277. Odin

“But for me, it’s over!” Loki looked up at the tree trunk, now engulfed in flames. “…The World Tree is burning, but this time, there is no Ragnarok, and I will not face the fate I’ve repeated countless times. Because the Fates are all dead, along with their masters…”

“In a sense, you have become a ‘hero’!” Shire spread his hands and said to Loki, “Thanks to your efforts, the Aesir and several other kingdoms have escaped that repetitive fate. From today onward, death is truly death, unlike before. Death is merely the beginning of a new cycle.”

“'Hero'!” Loki’s face showed a mocking expression. “...Like someone in that mortal kingdom of Midgar, running around in a laughable bodysuit and vandalizing public property!?”

“Hmm…it’s all the same. No matter the starting point, the result is the same!” Ciel nodded, then raised the Levadin in his hand and placed it against Loki’s neck.

"Hey! Isn't that a bit much?" Seeing this, Loki raised his hands with a wry smile, making a gesture of surrender. "Didn't you already kill me once? Why are you doing it again!"

“One time won’t be enough!” Charles said seriously. “...Besides, didn’t you notice that old man who’s come here now? I bet you don’t want to see him either. I might as well send you on your way. It’s just a clone dying anyway.”

Loki turned his head, looked behind him, then turned back to the Ciel and said, "Alright! You win. Remember to be quick with your sword. It won't hurt, but watching yourself get beheaded is no fun at all."

"Don't worry, although I'm not a professional, but..." Charles smiled, then withdrew Levadin. "I can still stop time and cut you into seventeen or eighteen pieces."

"So you're ruthless enough!" Loki exclaimed, then his entire body was torn into pieces, exactly eighteen pieces, no more, no less. The illusionary clone then turned to ashes and disappeared.

After Loki's illusionary clones completely disappeared, an old man with white hair appeared behind him in the Temple of Fate, which had been completely destroyed and turned into a dangerous building.

He was tall and imposing, clad in dark gold armor, draped in a dark blue cloak like the night sky, and wearing a golden helmet. He had only one eye. Two black crows perched on his shoulders, one named "Thought" and the other "Memory," while two greyish-white wolves crouched at his feet.

The old man, leaning on his spear called 'Gungnir,' watched with a complex expression as Ciel cleaved Loki's illusionary clone into seventeen or eighteen pieces before it dissipated. Then he let out a deep sigh.

"Greetings! Odin, the Father, ruler of Asgard!" Charles nodded in greeting to the old man. He respected his power and status as the Father God, even though the Father was old and frail, his body failing him and showing no trace of his former vigor. Yet, standing opposite him, Charles could clearly sense the immense power contained within his aging body. While far weaker than Surtr at his peak, let alone Charles now who had absorbed all of Surtr's power, status, and authority, and wielded three Infinity Stones, Charles could still sense a faint danger emanating from him.

One can imagine that if his body had not aged for some unknown reason, and he had not even had to enter the Odin's Sleep to slumber, this God the Father would have shown far more power than he does now.

Therefore, in Shire's eyes, his status as the ruler of Asgard was dispensable. Even without the status of the Asgardian God-King, he could still gain the respect of most of the universe's civilizations simply by the power he could display.

"Greetings! Newly born Heavenly Father." Odin returned the greeting to the Shire. "Last time I sensed you, you had just taken your first step. But I never imagined that you would reach the end so soon. It seems I truly am getting old..."

"Hehe, I was just lucky! In fact, it can only be said that Soult himself was very unlucky."

“No! Not everyone has the courage to challenge the ruler of that desolate realm, not even me…” Odin said, “But you and my worrisome adopted son accomplished the impossible, a task that broke the shackles of fate…”

"On behalf of Asgard, my father, my grandfather, and all the gods and beings of several other realms, I express my gratitude. You saved countless lives, at least giving them a chance to choose their future again."

As he spoke, Odin pounded his chest and bowed to the Shire standing before him.

"...Actually, you don't need to thank me." Charles didn't step aside. From Odin's serious expression and tone, Charles knew the old man before him was earnest. After the goddess of fate vanished, after the loom weaving the destiny of Ragnarok, and after the deaths of those behind the scenes who lurked in the shadows, clinging to life through the mass deaths of Ragnarok, the previously bound memories and past were revealed anew before the Aesir gods. Anyone who reached the demigod or planetary god level could directly access this information, let alone Odin, the Father God.

At least in Odin's view, the opportunity to choose again, to avoid reliving those endlessly repeating wars, and the death of Surtur, Asgard's greatest enemy and one of the culprits who repeatedly brought Ragnarok to the gods, were enough to make him and all of Asgard bow down in gratitude.

“Actually, you should thank Loki.” Looking at Odin, who had straightened up again, the Shire said, “I was just doing it for my own benefit and power. Only Loki truly wanted to end this cycle.”

“But he didn’t want to see me, his incompetent father, if he had…” Odin said bitterly, “Then he wouldn’t have turned back just now.”

"Although I feel it's inappropriate to say it this way, to be honest, when it comes to education methods, Your Excellency does... have some problems." Charles suggested sincerely, "I personally recommend that you take a look at how the next generation is educated on Earth, and you should especially look at China's nine-year compulsory education and moral education courses..."

“…Ahem, that won’t be necessary. I don’t think Loki will ever forgive me for being a biased father.” Odin shook his head with a wry smile, then said to the Shire, “Well then, as the host, I won’t mind treating you to a meal!”

"Of course, I'm tired after all this time, so I'll take a good rest before heading home!"

It's dawn! Tickets are being distributed!

278. Nick Fury was very unhappy.

Nick Fury is really unhappy lately, extremely unhappy. Before the aftermath of the Battle of New York was even properly cleaned up, all sorts of clowns have sprung up from nowhere like a bustling market. Now, the whole world is in chaos, with superheroes and supervillains fighting tooth and nail around the globe. In fact, aside from the territory of that unforgivable communist successor in the eyes of the 'free' nation, that guy who always wears a white rabbit costume with a harmless expression but actually enjoys stabbing people in the back more than anyone else, everywhere else is basically a mess.

Especially in Africa, apart from a few countries with extraordinary individual repression, explosions are already rampant, not to mention the even more chaotic Middle East. In addition, the refugee problem in Europe has completely erupted, with heretics openly demanding that countries that take in refugees abide by their religious laws and treat them unconditionally.

Those leftists, as if they were on stimulants, kept advocating this point all day long, loudly calling on the world to give more love. But we never saw them give their own houses to those refugees, sell their cars to buy things for the refugees, or even send their wives and daughters up to serve those "masters"!

Conversely, these guys, whom Nick Fury seemed to have been brainwashed, were constantly requesting that the US accept more refugees instead of providing a limited number of places and poaching all the highly skilled refugees. Regarding this, some high-ranking US military officials, such as General Ross, who had a long-standing feud with the Hulk (though he was unlucky, the Hulk's outstanding performance after the Battle of New York led the US government to reinstate him to research how to 'mass-produce' the Hulk), repeatedly told him that if those refugees dared to set foot on the American continent, he and some of his 'colleagues' wouldn't mind carrying out an operation codenamed "concentration camp."

Although I personally think that General Ross and his bunch of idiots were meddling in other people's business, Nick Fury ultimately had to send his agents to Europe to investigate whether those leftists had really been brainwashed into being malicious guys trying to use refugees to overthrow the 'free' world (Hydra remained silent behind the scenes).

After hastily dealing with the situation, the dark-skinned Wu Ke couldn't help but sigh. The ruler of that country, who outwardly presented one thing while secretly plotting against everyone else, was far superior to the bunch of power-hungry idiots on this side of the Americas. If none of those power-hungry idiots knew that every matter, big or small, required democracy, that a large group of people and representatives of interest groups would be brought together for meetings, and that a whole team of analysts would be used to solve every problem…

However, speaking of which, the battle for the remnants of the Battle of New York has recently come to an end. While S.H.I.E.L.D. took the lion's share, they were also forced to relinquish a significant portion of their gains. Meanwhile, the ongoing power struggle between the military and politicians was further complicated by a large group of ill-intentioned individuals from around the world. Just considering those whose origins can be traced, there are the Russian bear, the Chinese rabbit, the French rooster, the Hanscat, the John Bull, and so on… The first four are one thing, but why is the John Bull so disobedient?!

Well, speaking of Niu Niu, recently a space portal, almost the same size as the one over New York, unfortunately appeared over London. While no large group of aliens made a 'friendly' visit, a torrential downpour soon followed – unfortunately, the rain was actually deadly flames. Even if Thor, who was on Earth chasing girls and searching for family (no doubt), arrived just in time and manipulated the weather to create strong winds and torrential rain, intercepting most of the flames, then London would have been doomed. I bet many people around the world celebrated with firecrackers and fireworks – including those shameless bastards on Wall Street.

Despite this, some of the flames that weren't intercepted still transported London back to the era of World War II air warfare, allowing Londoners to relive the passion of those wartime years amidst the piercing sirens of air raid sirens. It's truly fortunate that, if the fiery tunnel hadn't suddenly shut down during a burst of intense, blinding light, then London and the British Isles might have been consigned to history forever.

Okay, let's get back to the topic. After the battle for the ruins of New York concluded, the US leadership discovered that, aside from S.H.I.E.L.D., the biggest beneficiary was actually that rabbit—something they absolutely couldn't tolerate! However, at this moment, the US suddenly realized that that rabbit had deceived the world again. Despite the fact that the US should be leading the world in superhuman abilities, just like in technology, the superhuman abilities that the rabbit revealed were simply incredible.

That guy, Zong Chao King, whose file never existed, was incredibly strong. His superpowers, completely inexplicable, allowed him to single-handedly annihilate all the official superpowered individuals in the US. Yes, you heard right, he single-handedly obliterated all the superpowered individuals in the US who were already under the control of the White House. Although there are countless superpowered organizations in the US these days, only a handful possess truly formidable individual combat abilities. And those few are either politically connected groups like the X-Men, or affiliated with S.H.I.E.L.D. like the Avengers. The others who cause trouble are generally dealt with by others.

If the US hadn't also organized its own military, it really wouldn't have been able to control the increasingly unrest within the country. Unfortunately, the US's official "superpowered" team was wiped out, and by a single individual who achieved godlike status. This has left many people feeling utterly disgusted, and the UN meeting is in an uproar over this, with the US leading a group demanding that China increase military transparency and make the registration of "superpowered" individuals transparent.

Then, the rabbit looked at the fledgling eagle, 'mdzz,' who had been pushed to speak out with a look of pity for a fool. Incidentally, although the bear was tricked, the subsequent economic aid package from the rabbit's vodka-flavored family made the bear shamelessly stand on the rabbit's side. How gratifying!

Therefore, the already busy Director Wu, who spent his days showing off, drinking coffee, and incidentally sabotaging his subordinates, was forced to take on this task. This gave Nick Fury an urge to shoot all those bureaucrats.

According to unreliable sources, S.H.I.E.L.D. experts studied the battlefield of the official Rabbit-Eagle superpower conflict and came to a very bad conclusion. That so-called crimson glow... is completely inexplicable by science. Basically, any superpowered person who came before it was rendered useless, regardless of whether it was due to X-gene mutation or being bitten by a spider.

Furthermore, some of the 'pictures and papers' recovered from the conflict site, based on even more unreliable speculation, suggest that this Chinese super-individual, Zongchao King, may possess abilities related to dimensions. Theoretically speaking, even if Earth or the entire solar system exploded, he might be completely unharmed.

This made Wu Ke, who was dark-skinned, wonder: was the other side of the sea a developing country? Or a cluster of super-individual alien civilizations? Otherwise, why was it that although there were quite a few superhumans there, they didn't fight like they did in the US, but instead remained strangely calm and quietly carrying out large-scale construction projects?

279. Nick Fury chickened out.

Anyway, Nick Fury thinks this world is doomed! Heaven knows how many deadly things are lurking in the shadows of this world. What's more, after accepting wizards, magic, gods and other things that defy common sense and science, who knows if there are devils and demons in some corner of this world who are not good in mythology and are probably even worse in reality.

Some reports have described a flaming skull in a leather jacket speeding down a highway on a flaming Harley-Davidson. Nick Fury used to think these were either pranks or the work of superhumans. But now it seems these unfounded rumors might just be unscientific nonsense.

But thinking about it, the world is already chaotic enough; it wouldn't be surprising if something even more troublesome and chaotic emerged, would it? With that in mind, the dark-skinned Wu Ke casually made up an excuse—well, he said he'd discovered traces of Hydra's resurgence—to deflect orders from those who wanted him to send people to the 'dictatorial' country across the sea, in the eyes of capitalists, to explore the super-individuals there. However, Nick Fury was unaware of the strange and gloomy expression on former S.H.I.E.L.D. head Pierce's face after hearing his explanation.

"Sir! I'm back to report!" Just as Blackie Wu was thinking about how to get rid of those bureaucrats, especially those in the White House, as far away as possible, his best, most hardworking agent, Coulson, who didn't need vacations or overtime pay, returned to report.

“Alright! Tell me, is there some kind of weird stuff going on in London?” Nick Fury said casually without even looking up.

"...Uh, sir, just like you think...there really are some weird things appearing." Coulson looked at Nick Fury with surprise, as if he were looking at a prophet or a jinx. "A lot of them have appeared in London, and they're obviously not Earth creatures running around in the streets."

'Holy crap, it really exists! ヾ(?｀Д′?)'

With a deadpan expression, Nick Fury stared intently at Coulson, his arms crossed. "Is it related to the portal that opened in London earlier?"

“Yes, sir!” Coulson replied. “According to Dr. Sevik, and our esteemed Thor, the portal that opened in London was due to the convergence of the Nine Realms, which occurs once every five thousand years. At least that was the case on that day…”

After a moment of silence, Wu Ke, who was dark-skinned, said, "...It wasn't some random artifact or machine that opened it."