Three Paths

"He’s a scientist?"

"Could he be Dr. Bruce Banner, the one who supposedly died when an experiment went wrong?"

Hearing Tony’s words, Jane thought for a moment, then looked at Thor in disbelief and asked.

"I don’t know whether that’s true, but Banner is indeed a doctor."

Thor did not know much about Banner’s disappearance either, but he could confirm Banner’s identity.

"The world really is full of wonders. Someone rumored to have gone missing and died has actually come back to life."

After receiving confirmation, Jane studied Banner and spoke in amazement.

Bruce Banner was also a genius scientist in the scientific community, with few capable of rivaling him.

As an astronomer, Jane had naturally heard Bruce Banner’s name before.

However, according to the rumors, Dr. Bruce Banner had died in an accident during his research several years ago.

Yet Bruce Banner was now standing here, looking even younger. Clearly, he had gone through quite a lot over the past few years.

"Sorry, I didn’t mean that I wanted you dead. I was just surprised."

Realizing her offense, Jane immediately apologized to Banner.

"Don’t worry about it. A lot of people react similarly when they learn I’m not dead."

Banner did not mind Jane’s offense at all and answered with a smile.

"Let’s go inside and talk. To be honest, I’m quite curious about Aether too."

"It can warp all the laws of physical reality. How exactly can such power exist?"

Tony spoke up at that moment.

Then the group entered Thor’s hall.

"I also want to study the Aether inside my body, but it is in an unstable state."

"I can’t control it either, so it’s difficult to study exactly what powers it possesses."

"However, when I first found it, the Aether appeared as a mass of red energy."

"The physical laws around the Aether had completely changed."

"It completely altered spatial positions and the laws of gravity."

"When the laws of space changed, it could connect different worlds."

"Within the area where the laws of gravity had changed, even an ordinary person like me could easily lift a large car."

"I couldn’t even feel the car’s weight, as if I were lifting a feather."

Under the gazes of Tony Stark and Bruce Banner, Jane spoke.

Aether was a mysterious energy that science could not explain, and it also represented enormous potential.

If humanity could fully understand and control it, human technology would undergo earth-shaking changes.

"Thor, how was Aether created?"

After hearing Jane’s explanation, Tony’s eyes flickered as he looked at Thor.

Thor was rendered somewhat speechless by the question, unsure how to answer.

"The books don’t clearly record the origin of Aether either."

"However, Tony Stark, you should know of something similar that possesses such terrifying energy."

Seeing his brother at a complete loss, Loki took the initiative to speak.

"The Tesseract?"

Hearing Loki mention a similar treasure, Tony and Banner’s eyes flashed as they spoke in unison.

The Tesseract not only possessed the ability to connect to anywhere in the universe, but also contained infinite energy.

The new element Tony had synthesized through his father’s notes had come from studying the Tesseract.

"Yes, Aether and the Tesseract should belong to the same category."

"Father gave us some books to give us a general understanding, but everyone knows that what books record is often only the surface people are meant to see."

"So there is no need to pursue its true origin too deeply."

"What matters is that this Aether has now broken its seal and appeared in the world."

"It will definitely arouse the desires of certain top-tier powerhouses."

Loki nodded slightly and spoke.

As someone who had obtained and used the Tesseract, Loki naturally knew its terrifying power.

Although they still did not know what power Aether contained, there was no doubt that what it had displayed was also monstrous.

That made Loki think of why Thanos had sent him to Earth to seize the Tesseract.

If Aether truly was a treasure similar to the Tesseract, then it should also tempt Thanos.

The information had not spread yet, but once Thanos learned that Aether had emerged, there was an eighty percent chance that he would be tempted and want to obtain it.

However, these were only Loki’s guesses, so he did not say them aloud.

For now, the most important thing was to repel Malekith’s invasion and prevent Malekith’s plan from succeeding.

Loki’s mention of arousing the desires of top-tier powerhouses made Tony and Banner exchange a glance. Would Harvey want it too?

However, Tony recalled that Harvey had anticipated Aether’s emergence long ago.

That meant it was possible Harvey had known the location where Aether was sealed from the very beginning.

If Harvey wanted it, obtaining it should not have been difficult. However, considering that Aether was an Asgardian treasure—

God King Odin was still alive, so it was not impossible that Harvey had refrained from taking it by force.

Tony himself also desired this Aether.

If he studied Aether and discovered something from it, it could bring a qualitative leap to his technology, one that others would find difficult to replicate.

That would benefit not only him, but also the Void Cult and Earth. It was killing three birds with one stone.

However, Aether was currently inside Jane Foster’s body, so Tony could not simply seize it. For now, protecting Jane Foster and finding an opportunity to study it later were the most important matters.

"Asgard has other entrances and exits besides the Bifrost, right?"

"Loki, where do you think Malekith will enter from?"

With that in mind, Tony looked at Loki and asked.

The moment he said that, Banner, Thor, and Jane all turned to look at Loki.

Faced with their gazes, Loki wore an innocent expression.

"Don’t tell me you don’t know. When you came to Void Island last time, there was no way you took the proper route."

Seeing Loki’s innocent look, Tony spoke.

"There are three ways to enter and leave Asgard."

"One is to travel through the Bifrost, one is to use a star map and fly a Cosmic Battleship here directly, and the third is to use secret passages."

"The first option, the Bifrost, requires Heimdall’s approval or the authority granted by my Father, so we can rule that one out immediately."

"The second option means entering through the main gate, which is under Heimdall’s surveillance."

"The third option involves secret passages. Few people in all of Asgard know of them, and logically speaking, Malekith should not know the correct locations of those passages."

"So the most likely possibility is that Malekith will enter through the main gate, which gives us ample time to prepare."

Loki analyzed the likelihood of which route Malekith would choose.