At this moment, Luka was completely stunned, while Loki, across from him, still wore a smile.
"Let me authenticate your identity first."
Saying that, God Loki gently pointed a finger, and a emerald green stream of light shot directly towards Luka, continuously swirling around him until the green light band had encircled Luka's entire body before completely dissipating.
All of this happened in an instant, so quickly that Luka himself didn't even react.
But when Luka came to his senses, he vaguely felt that the sense of detachment he had subtly felt with this World for the past two months was rapidly disappearing.
Luka was very sure that this feeling was not an illusion, but when he looked back at God Loki, the other party merely waved his hand casually.
"Well, you know, sitting in that position alone, with no one to talk to, it always gets a bit boring."
"Since someone asked me, I certainly don't mind giving you a chance to choose again~ After all, your presence here now is precisely because you misjudged due to knowing of my existence, isn't it~"
Luka fell silent again upon hearing this.
Yes, the reason he risked so much to appear here, besides the adventurous spirit in his heart, was primarily his fear that the timeline would be destroyed, and he would vanish along with it.
If he had known earlier that God Loki had already ascended to power and there was no longer a so-called Sacred Timeline, Luka might have just stayed at home obediently, waiting for the Battle of New York to end.
Now that God Loki had appeared before him and confirmed that the World would not be destroyed, it seemed he didn't need to risk stopping Loki anymore.
However, Luka immediately shifted his attention to another matter.
"So, can you tell me who exactly asked you to come?"
Evidently, compared to God Loki's actions at the moment, the person capable of inviting such a being was equally noteworthy.
After all, this person had just said that beings like himself were not uncommon, so what virtue or ability did he possess to attract the attention of the big shot who could summon God Loki?
However, in response to Luka's question, God Loki showed a mysterious smile, then somewhat theatrically placed one hand on his chest and bowed slightly.
"I have said all that needs to be said. How you choose next is for you to decide~"
"Crisis and opportunity coexist. Thank you for coming to this World~"
As his words faded, God Loki's figure transformed into countless pale green specks of light, vanishing like a dream bubble.
The originally static World also began to gradually become vibrant with his disappearance.
Feeling that time seemed to resume its flow, Luka, standing rooted to the spot, still frowned deeply.
"Damn it! I hate these riddle-tellers the most!"
However, after saying this, Luka's expression froze.
Because the static World, which had seemingly resumed, had strangely stopped once again.
Even the movements of the pedestrians on the street hadn't changed at all.
Luka's face fell, and he quickly muttered softly.
"Not annoying, not annoying at all... I spoke out of turn! Please go back quickly..."
However, the static World before him did not end; instead, a crackling sound of sparks came from behind Luka.
Immediately after, a woman's voice entered Luka's ears.
"Has that Lord left already?"
Luka's heart tightened, and he immediately turned around, adopting a defensive posture.
However, upon seeing who it was, he instinctively blurted out.
"Gabriel!"
As soon as he said this, even the person behind him was momentarily stunned.
"???"
However, noticing the simple yellow monastic robe and the golden portal ring behind her, Luka immediately realized he had said the wrong thing and awkwardly cleared his throat.
"Sorcerer Ancient One?"
Yes, the person who had arrived was the Sorcerer Supreme, the Guardian of Earth, the strongest Sorcerer, Ancient One.
It's just...
'No! This... why does this Ancient One have hair?!'
Although Luka tried his best to control his gaze, he still instinctively glanced at the short, light golden hair of the person who had arrived.
Sorcerer Ancient One evidently also noticed Luka's gaze.
"You've seen me in other Worlds?"
Saying that, she raised her hand and gently twirled her curly hair, responding with a smile.
"One must make some distinctions from oneself in other Worlds, mustn't one?"
Looking at this Sorcerer Ancient One, who not only had a different hairstyle but also seemed much younger in mindset than he remembered, Luka couldn't help but inwardly complain.
'If you had appeared earlier, how could I have possibly mistaken this World!!!'
Luka then looked at the portal behind Ancient One.
He saw that time there was also frozen, and he could even see Bruce Banner, the Hulk from downstairs in his building, quietly lying on the rooftop behind the portal.
The Ancient One, who had hair, saw Luka's gaze start to wander again, so she simply brought the topic back, continuing to ask.
"Has that Lord left already?"
Luka quickly retracted his gaze, but unsure of this World's Ancient One's temperament, he chose to be a bit more reserved and honestly answered her question.
"Lord Loki should have left. Are you looking for him?"
To his surprise, Ancient One shook her head slightly.
"I cannot come into contact with that Lord's existence. I came for you!"
Luka frowned slightly upon hearing this.
'Cannot come into contact?'
'Is it unable to contact, or not allowed to contact?'
Thinking back to what God Loki had told him earlier, there was indeed something strange about this.
However, now Ancient One said she came for him...
He had experienced enough excitement for one day, and now another big shot was looking for him...
'Am I really some kind of popular target?'
Luka, feeling a slight headache, didn't bother playing guessing games with the other party and simply asked directly.
"What do you want from me, Sorcerer Ancient One?"
'Surely, God Loki was too lazy to expel me, but Ancient One, the Guardian of Earth, is going to expel me instead, right?'
Looking at the young man in front of her, who was frowning and seemed a bit hesitant, Ancient One's lips curved slightly, and she directly gave the answer.
"I'm here to make a deal with you."
Luka shivered immediately upon hearing this.
'That sounds a bit familiar.'
However, he didn't rush to speak, just quietly waited for Ancient One to continue.
Ancient One subtly crooked her finger, and a hex crystal, which Luka had carefully wrapped, immediately floated out of his bag, swaying gently.
Luka looked closely; it was indeed the 'core component' capable of synthesizing a Hex Core.
However, since the big shot needed it, Luka, being a small fry, wouldn't be so ignorant as to refuse. Of course, he chose to offer it with both hands.
"Sorcerer Ancient One, you jest. If you want it, don't talk about deals; I'll just give it to you."
However, Ancient One shook her head again, gently took the hex crystal, and placed it back in Luka's hand.
"No need to give it. What I need is not this crystal, but the finished product once you complete it. At that time, I will give you a reward that will satisfy you. Yes, a very satisfying reward~"
Looking at the 'heavy' hex crystal in his hand, Luka felt a wave of speechlessness.
'Alright... How did my little ability become common knowledge?'
"Then..."
Luka looked up again, just about to speak, when Ancient One in front of him silently disappeared.
Along with that, time resumed its flow, and the noisy sounds once again rushed into his ears.