Trax could grow stronger the more he fought, making him a thorny enemy that Thor found increasingly difficult to handle.
With every strike, Thor could feel the change in his opponent. Trax's movements were becoming heavier, his punches glowing even brighter with divine red energy. Looking around, Thor saw the invasion was nearly over. Liu A'dou, now wearing the Odin Robe, was displaying incredible strength. In the blink of an eye, he had already destroyed all the remaining Destroyers and was charging once again into the ranks of the Frost Giants.
"Good, good, good." Trax looked at Liu A'dou with great satisfaction. The stronger his opponents were, the more power he could draw from the battle. Right now, he was harnessing the full strength of a demigod and was even faintly suppressing Thor.
Thor, however, was growing more and more tired. The enemy kept getting stronger, while he felt like he was only getting weaker. This fight was turning into a joke.
Liu A'dou unleashed a Rozan Shō Ryū Ha, finally blasting the last Frost Giant off the Bifrost Bridge. The invasion of Asgard had been completely stopped thanks to Liu A'dou, the Four Warriors, and Thor himself. The enemy hadn't even made it past the gate of Asgard. It was an utter failure for them.
Odin let out a satisfied smile. In his eyes, this was all Thor's accomplishment, since everyone fighting on the front lines were Thor's friends. His son had proven himself a true leader by inspiring such allies. Odin felt more confident than ever in Thor as his successor.
Now only one enemy remained—Trax, the son of Ares. Everyone closed in, surrounding him on all sides. Yet Trax showed not even the slightest hint of fear.
With his dangerously charming face, he sneered and taunted, "Come on, all of you at once."
But Thor raised his hand and said, "Hold it. This is the son of the God of War. The more we fight him, the stronger he gets. Don't rush in."
The Four Warriors nodded. But surrounding him without attacking wasn't a solution either.
Trax grinned. "This divine war has already filled me with power surpassing even my father's. You're all no match for me. Why don't you give up now and let me walk away? I have no interest in your precious Asgard."
"You conspired with the Frost Giants to invade Asgard, and you think you can just walk away?" Thor asked sharply.
"Wrong. I didn't conspire with them. Your brother Loki did. At best, I just gave him a little help. This whole thing was your dear brother's plan, not mine," Trax replied, acting like it had nothing to do with him.
Everyone looked at each other, then turned to Thor. With Odin resting, Thor was now the one calling the shots.
"What's your decision, Thor?" Sif asked.
"As long as Asgard has the Einherjar, you don't get to come and go as you please," Thor answered firmly. He wanted to capture Trax right here.
"Like I said, bring everyone if you want. Call out every last Einherjar. It won't change a thing. I grow stronger with every battle. You will only lose. I am the God of War, but I'll leave you your dignity. If you don't want it, come and take your beating," Trax taunted.
A God of War who could grow stronger through combat… what could they do? If they let this drag on, Asgard might fall, and the Nine Realms would descend into chaos. They couldn't afford that risk.
Finally, a more mature Thor lowered his hammer and looked deeply at his enemy. "Fine. I will escort you out of Asgard. You are never allowed to return."
"Of course. On behalf of Olympus, I wish Asgard peace and eternal friendship." With that, Trax turned to leave, already planning to stir up more wars elsewhere to fuel his growing power.
Thor felt powerless but believed he had made the right choice. You couldn't beat the God of War by fighting. Avoiding war was the only way to win.
Trax smirked to himself. So easy to fool. First, I'll head to Earth and claim my father's title. Then, I'll ignite new wars across the cosmos.
"Hold it. If you're going to leave, at least give back the Lasso of Truth. It belongs to a friend of mine." Just as everyone was swallowing their frustration, Liu A'dou stepped forward and called out to Trax.
Trax turned and saw that fierce black-haired warrior looking at him with a half-smile. "Your friend?"
"You know who I'm talking about. Diana," Liu A'dou said, stepping even closer.
Trax's eyes narrowed. He realized this man wasn't from Asgard but was somehow tied to Themyscira. Trax instinctively started to gather his energy.
"What's the matter? Afraid?" Liu A'dou couldn't see Trax's expression clearly, but the way his muscles tensed told him Trax was ready to fight.
"…" Trax didn't answer. He couldn't figure this man out.
"Looks like you don't want to cooperate. Guess I'll have to beat it out of you," Liu A'dou said coldly.
"Be careful, Liu. He's the God of War," Thor warned.
"He gets stronger the more he fights, huh?" Liu A'dou chuckled. "I'll believe that… halfway. I believe you gain power through battle, but I don't believe you're unbeatable. Come on then! If you're not giving it back, you're not leaving!"
Liu A'dou's eyes flashed with golden light. He lunged forward, swinging the Odin Sword.
Clang—
Trax raised his Bracers of Ares, effortlessly blocking the blow. He sneered, "You're asking for death." Red energy flared around his fists as he struck Liu A'dou square in the chest, sending him flying.
Thankfully, the Odin Robe absorbed the impact, leaving Liu A'dou unharmed. "Come on! Again!"
"Come all you want," Trax mocked. If you're too dumb to stop, I'll show you just how strong I really am.
He lunged again, twin fists glowing crimson. Another crushing punch launched Liu A'dou through the air.
Thor wanted to step in, but he remembered he had already agreed to let Trax go. Besides, this fight seemed more like a personal grudge than Asgard's official business. If he interfered, it would make it Asgard's problem again, and that would only complicate things further. So Thor and the Four Warriors could only stand by and watch Liu A'dou get knocked back again and again, anxious but unable to help.
"Hahaha…"
Laughter suddenly rang out from the battlefield. Thor snapped out of his thoughts and looked over. It was Liu A'dou, laughing loudly despite taking all those hits.
"Did he lose his mind from all the beating?" Sif asked, concerned.
Of course not. Liu A'dou slowly propped himself up on his sword and shouted confidently, "Trax, I've figured out your weakness."
"Ridiculous!" Trax snapped back, though his heart skipped a beat.
Liu A'dou continued, "Defeating you is simple. Not just you—even your father fell to my fists. The reason I've been taking your hits all this time was to expose your so-called invincibility for the lie that it is."
That confident smile on Liu A'dou's face made Trax flinch ever so slightly. His right foot unconsciously slid back an inch.
"You do draw power from battle, but it's not limitless. If your energy output exceeds what you absorb, you don't grow stronger—you weaken, bit by bit." Liu A'dou pointed straight at the silver-haired man. "Trax, you're clever enough to spin a half-truth, but I'm here to shatter that lie."
"Open your eyes and witness my true strength. Burn, Microcosmos!"
Behind Liu A'dou, stars formed into a galaxy, stretching out as if a new universe had appeared.
"Genrouken!"
He simply raised his right hand toward the God of War's son. No charge, no punch, not even a step forward. Yet, Trax stood frozen, overwhelmed by the starry cosmos that swallowed him whole. With a thud, he collapsed to his knees on the Bifrost.
The move looked effortless, but its impact was beyond expectation.
Liu A'dou let out a long breath, smiled, and casually retrieved the Lasso of Truth. "Thor, help me check if there's an Amazon warrior locked up somewhere in Asgard. Her name is Diana. She's the reason I met you in the first place."
"Leave it to me." But Thor looked around. "Has anyone seen Loki?"
Sif awkwardly replied, "During the fight, the Frost Giants threw him off the Bifrost."
Asgard was a floating celestial realm surrounded by endless space. Falling off the Bifrost meant drifting into the void, with no telling where Loki might end up.
Thor sighed. "Let's find Miss Diana first."
"What about the God of War's son?" Sif asked.
Before Thor could answer, Odin stepped forward, having already made up his mind. "We will send both our guest and this prisoner back to where they belong."
"Lord Odin!" everyone saluted.
Odin walked up to Liu A'dou, wanting to take a good look at the mortal who had managed to wear the Odin Robe.
Liu A'dou couldn't help but feel a little nervous. Don't tell me this old man is going to take the armor back. I kinda like it… and more importantly, I'm still naked under here.
"You've actually managed to resonate with the Odin Robe." Odin nodded. "Mortal, what is your name?"
"My name is Liu A'dou."
"Liu A'dou, since you've proven worthy of the Odin Robe, let it be a gift to honor the friendship between you and Asgard," Odin declared.
Liu A'dou didn't hesitate. "Thor and I are friends for life."
He knew Odin valued Thor above all else, so saying this was sure to win the All-Father's favor.
Sure enough, Odin's eye lit up with approval. Compared to Loki, Odin clearly favored his true-born son.
Finally, Diana was found.
"Diana, we finally found you. You sure went a long way this time," Liu A'dou said when he met her in the prison. She looked in good spirits despite being locked up.
"Liu," Diana sighed in relief upon seeing a familiar face. As soon as she stepped out, she immediately asked, "Did you see Trax?"
"You mean your brother? Yeah, I've got him locked up already." Liu A'dou held up the Lasso of Truth. "Took this back from him too."
"Thank you!" Diana was visibly moved. This lasso was a gift from her mother, and losing it would have been unbearable.
"No need to thank me. We're allies and friends." Liu A'dou smiled. "If there's nothing else, we should head out. This isn't a place we should linger."
"No problem. Let's go."
With the sealed-up Trax in tow, they headed to the Bifrost.
"Liu, my friend, I'll miss you," Thor said.
"Thor, same here. Next time we meet, let's drink until we drop."
Thor laughed, remembering how Liu A'dou had outdrunk him before. "Deal! We'll drink till we drop!"
Heimdall opened the Bifrost, and the three of them stepped into the beam of light, returning to just outside Themyscira.
Queen Hippolyta let out a breath of relief when she saw her daughter had captured her brother. "So Ares really gave him the Bracers of Ares."
"Mother, what now?" Diana asked.
"I will imprison him in the mountain cell. He will never leave it again," Hippolyta declared coldly, showing no mercy toward her own son.
Liu A'dou watched the complicated family drama unfold, thinking to himself that men really had no place on Themyscira. But this wasn't his business. He'd just watch from the sidelines.
"I am the God of War… the God of War…" Trax kept muttering to himself, still lost in his delusions. Maybe that was its own kind of happiness.
With the prison door sealed shut, Liu A'dou could finally focus on getting to New York.
Back at the training grounds, Liu A'dou placed the Odin Robe in the center. Whether it was the Cloth or the Odin Robe, if the wearer truly resonated with it, it would come flying to protect them when needed. There was no need to carry it around.
"A'dou, I knew I wasn't wrong about you. You even earned Odin's recognition. I can't help but wonder what you'll become in the future."
"Whatever happens, I'll always be an ally of the Amazons."
Liu A'dou was making friends wherever he went, gathering allies from all corners. No one knew what was really going on in that head of his.