He had just disguised himself as a believer and a guide, successfully obtaining a large amount of dark power from Dormammu, then decisively cut off contact and ran back.
Due to Qingshui's presence in this universe, Dormammu couldn't invade. Left with no choice, he could only rage impotently outside the dimension for a while before returning to the Dark Dimension.
With such a massive amount of high-quality energy, Loki only needed to learn a few powerful spells, coupled with some techniques Qingshui had taught him from the Mind Stone during this period, and Loki truly turned his fortunes around.
He already had a very good foundation; his speed in learning magic wouldn't be slow, nor would his potential be low.
If it were him now, relying solely on those few spells and the Casket of Ancient Winters, his strength would even surpass Thor, the "Hammer God."
A Sub-Skyfather Level combatant, without a doubt.
And Thor was also about to undergo a transformation, from the Hammer God to the Hammer God with an additional axe.
"The runes have been carved into the mold, High Priest. I'll need you to reinforce the Uru ingot, and then we'll cast it at the Forge Throne."
Eitri called out to Qingshui.
Beside him stood a tall, dark steel Puppet.
Under his guidance, the Destroyer armor had been reforged at the Forge Throne, and further upgraded in design through the collaboration of Qingshui and Borg.
Nanofabrication was complete. Qingshui's production line for manufacturing metal into nano-units had been moved to Nidavellir and modified by the old dwarf Borg. After more than forty months, this armor, made from Uru Metal, was successfully nanonized and transformed into a Magic Tool in Qingshui's hands.
It's no exaggeration to say this was absolutely the strongest Puppet Qingshui had ever possessed.
[Puppet Name]: Destroyer
[Overall Parameters]:
Height: ??? (Adaptive)
Weight: 298.55 kg
Material: Uru Metal, Hydrogen-filled Palladium, Hydrogen-filled Ruthenium...
Energy: Arc Reactor, Magical Energy
Operation Method: Object Manipulation, Intelligent AI Drive, Magic Drive
[Puppet Rating]: S+
[Overall Evaluation]: A super-strong Puppet that highly integrates Puppetry, technology, and Asgardian magic. Its power is astonishing, capable of being driven by Infinity Stones to further enhance its strength, with an unpredictable upper limit.
An S+ rating!
This was the first time Qingshui had ever seen one, and the first time one had been created by him.
However, this was also reasonable. After all, Qingshui could now consistently create S-level Puppets using only technology, Puppetry, and divine mechanics, even without special materials.
The addition of Uru Metal alone was enough to significantly boost a Puppet's rating.
More importantly, the Destroyer itself was already of a high caliber.
Although it was smashed by Thor back then, that Destroyer wasn't being manipulated by anyone. Loki could only mechanically use the Destroyer temporarily through Odin's royal authority represented by the Scepter.
But the Destroyer was armor Odin originally used to fight the Celestials, and only when worn by Odin could it unleash its maximum power.
In other words, the Destroyer itself had a very good foundation. The current Destroyer, a synthesis of Qingshui's and the dwarf race's craftsmanship, could achieve an S+ rating.
Most importantly, this thing could also adapt to Infinity Stones.
Under the effect of the Time Stone, the reinforced Uru ingot didn't take much time.
Once this step was completed, Qingshui voluntarily shut down the time acceleration array.
The next steps required guiding stellar energy. A massive amount of energy combined with abnormal time flow imbalance could lead to accidents, which Qingshui had stopped once before when reforging the Destroyer.
However, after stopping this time, there was no need to keep it running.
During this period, the necessary tasks were essentially completed, with only the final step of casting Stormbreaker remaining.
The reinforced Uru Metal ingot was tossed into the Forge Throne. Eitri pulled the lever with his large hand, opening a mechanism on the innermost steel star ring, drawing out the light and heat released by the star.
With the power maxed out, a thick, incredibly powerful energy beam shone onto the Forge Throne, melting the Uru Metal.
The molten metal flowed into the mold. The axe head quickly formed. After a brief cooling, Eitri hurriedly smashed the mold and retrieved the pre-prepared handle to attach it.
Streaks of lightning surged, and Stormbreaker automatically lifted into the air, flying into Thor's hand.
Loki watched Thor, who held Mjolnir in one hand and Stormbreaker in the other, with a touch of envy, then thought of his own two small metal daggers.
Oh well, I was adopted after all.
Just then, old Borg and one of Qingshui's Shadow Clones arrived simultaneously.
The former held a large staff, about two meters long, with a thick, blue cube embedded at its tip.
"The Casket of Ancient Winters has been installed on it. I must say, the High Priest's mastery of cryogenic weapons is unexpectedly high. This weapon will definitely suit you! I call it the Icebound Staff, but the High Priest thinks Frostmourne is a more fitting name."
Borg chuckled as he handed the staff to Loki.
"Frostmourne?"
Loki took the Scepter, realizing he wasn't affected by the Casket of Ancient Winters' power, nor did he transform into a Frost Giant. Yet, he could still sense and control its power through the Scepter.
"Exactly. Too bad it's not a sword, otherwise the name would be even more fitting."
The Shadow Clone nodded, arms crossed.
Borg shrugged.
"Well, it seems he prefers the name you gave him."
Loki weighed the Scepter in his hands a few times, then said, "Is this thing... a bit too big for a staff?"
"No, it's a normal size. Proper mages are quite formidable in close combat. When an enemy gets close, you can just swing this staff like a hammer."
Qingshui believed Loki would make good use of the staff, even if he wielded it like a hammer.
In terms of brawling, Loki was clearly weaker than Thor, but in Asgard, a place abundant in martial prowess, Loki was only weaker than a few individuals.
After the weapons were forged in Nidavellir and Thor and Loki's training was complete, they used several Devouring Pouches made by Qingshui to equip themselves with a large quantity of high-quality dwarven weapons, then split into two groups and departed.
The two brothers were heading back to Asgard to see Odin off one last time, while Qingshui was returning to Earth to distribute the weapons he brought and make final arrangements.
But no sooner had he finished these tasks than Fury arrived with a blonde woman.
"You're Clearwater? A wizard? Or the current director of S.H.I.E.L.D.?"
The blonde woman stared with wide eyes, her gaze scrutinizing him without reservation.
"Carol Danvers, I don't like that look in your eyes. You've got some power, spent a few years out in the cosmos, and you think you've seen it all, that you're powerful. But that's no reason to look down on your fellow Earthlings."
In the bright, clean office, Qingshui sat cross-legged in his office chair, brewed some coffee with hot water, and took a sip before speaking.
"I've never looked down on anyone."
"No, you have. You just don't realize it. I know you. Someone who accidentally gained immense power, lost her memory, and instinctively chose to use an assertive facade to hide her inner confusion."
Carol Danvers fell silent.
She felt like what he said was quite accurate.
Fury looked at the assertive Qingshui, then at Carol, who was lost in thought, and said, "I thought you two would get along well. At least I thought you both understood that when facing a threat, you must first set aside all potential conflicts and work together for any chance of victory."
"We are currently resolving our differences. The prerequisite for unifying our strength is that there isn't an overly opinionated person in the team disrupting the command," Qingshui replied, shifting his gaze from Carol to Fury.
Carol spoke up, "I can understand you wanting to command me. I've also seen the armies on Earth, as well as those mages and special individuals. As long as the command is effective, and Asgard bears most of the pressure, there's still a chance to get through this.
But the premise is, have your people truly participated in interstellar warfare? Do they have the ability to command a war of that scale?
Just before I left, Xandar was destroyed by a cosmic tyrant named Thanos. He has an Infinity Stone, a Soul Stone, from who knows where. He defeated the Nova Corps and stole the Power Stone sealed there.
I learned from the Collector that there are six Infinity Stones in this universe. Once all six are gathered, he will have the power to dominate the entire universe.
His next move is very likely to be to take advantage of Odin's death and seize Asgard's Tesseract. Inside the Tesseract is the Space Stone."
Carol gazed at Qingshui.
Qingshui knew this was the temporal backlash caused by Odin forcibly delaying certain inevitable events.
"It's not necessarily just the Space Stone, though," Qingshui said, yawning.
"Don't be complacent."
"I'm never complacent. I always prepare for the worst. Maybe Thanos is interested in more than just the Space Stone; he might also be after the two I have here."
Qingshui waved his hand, and the Eye of Watt and Eye of Agamotto hanging on his chest opened, revealing the glimmer of the Mind Stone and Time Stone.
Fury slapped his forehead.
You've had two treasures that can rival the Tesseract all this time?
Carol's eyes, meanwhile, widened.
"Your two stones represent..."
"Mind and Time," Qingshui said, looking into Carol's eyes.
"Alright, I'll listen to you. I just have one question: do we have a chance to win?"
"Yes."
...
...
The end of Odin's life drew ever closer.
In his final moments, Odin chose a grassy plain on the coast of Norway as the place where he would meet his end.
"This is where I defeated Laufey and adopted you," Odin said, dressed in plain clothes, sitting on the grass and looking at Loki, who stood beside Thor.
Loki pursed his lips, saying nothing.
"If I were in Asgard, then Hela would also break free there, and in that case, she would possess infinite power. As long as Asgard exists, she wouldn't die.
Outside of Asgard, while she still wouldn't die, her power would be somewhat diminished."
Odin turned his head and looked behind him.
A Teleportation Halo opened.
Mordo led Carol Danvers out of it.
"It's about time, my dear sons. You should return to Asgard; they still need you there."
"All-Father…"
Thor called out softly.
"Perhaps we could switch places. We'll stay here."
Loki glanced at Carol and said.
But Odin simply shook his head.
"You are my sons, Thor, remember, you are the King of Asgard. When Asgard is in danger, you must protect your people. Loki, you too, remember, you must protect your mother, absolutely!
Heimdall! Hurry!"
Odin looked up at the sky and said softly.
A rainbow beam of light descended from the sky, enveloping Thor and Loki, and sending them away.
At the same time, Odin's body began to dissipate into points of light. The power belonging to the All-Father, through bloodlines and something even more mysterious, silently transferred to Thor, lying dormant within him, unseen.
Carol and Mordo did not disturb the father and sons' interaction but waited quietly until Odin's light points completely vanished.
A black mist surged from the void, forming a dark green spatial portal. A slender woman, dressed in a dark green leather suit, stepped out.
"Hmm? So that old man is dead already? What a pity, I wanted to see him die with my own eyes."
Hela looked regretful, addressing Carol and Mordo.
"You're Hela?"
Carol curiously sized up the opponent assigned to her.
"Who are you? Another daughter he had later?"
"He had two sons; they just left."
"In Asgard? Did the old man send you to deal with me?"
"He didn't send me, but if you want to go to Asgard, you'll certainly have to get past me first."
Carol flexed her wrists, golden energy erupting from her body as she entered Binary mode, and lunged at Hela.
Mordo knew he couldn't intervene in this battle. He turned and left through a Teleportation Halo.
At the same time, in Asgard.
Thor and Loki, who had just returned, stood at the very front of the Asgardian Palace, watching an approaching Dark Elves warship in the distance.
Behind them were Asgardian guards, armored and armed.
The next second, accompanied by the charge of an ancient battle cry, thunder roared and ice surged forth.
Greenwich, high above.
The massive Sanctuary I battleship appeared alongside the enormous spatial wormhole created by the celestial convergence.
Mid-air, Qingshui wore the Destroyer armor, with the Eye of Watt and the Eye of Agamotto embedded in its chest.
On the throne of Sanctuary I, Thanos caressed the Power Stone and Soul Stone embedded in the gauntlet on his right hand, then kicked a cosmic adventurer, who had been shouting about avenging Gamora, to his death.
He knew his enemies had deliberately chosen this battlefield.
But for the two Infinity Stones, for his goal, he had no choice but to come.
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