Who Said I Can’t Stop You?

The familiar divine power of frost spread from the temple pedestal and Gungnir, transforming into ice that grew upward, soon becoming a small tree carved from ice and jade.

A tree that Asgardians and Norse Mythology experts knew all too well:

The World Tree.

Of course, there was no true World Tree in this world. The so-called World Tree was actually a passage connecting the Nine Realms. All the passages linked together, forming the shape of a tree, with the Nine Realms positioned at its nine points.

Earth was at the center of the World Tree, in the middle of its trunk.

Hel lay among its roots.

Asgard lay in its crown.

Muspelheim of the Fire Giants and Jotunheim of the Frost Giants lay at either end of Earth.

At this moment.

The power of the Bifrost continuously poured into Jotunheim, while Jotunheim’s divine power of frost spread through the World Tree, eventually creating the scene before them.

The effects were not limited to Asgard and Jotunheim, but extended across the entire Nine Realms.

Hel.

Hela, the Goddess of Death sealed by Odin’s divine power, suddenly awoke from her eternal slumber.

Her slender fingers brushed across the spreading ice. Feeling the bone-piercing cold that differed from Hel’s chill, a hint of a smile and confusion appeared at the corners of her lips.

"Jotunheim’s power of frost… Has Asgard gone to war with Jotunheim?"

"Hadn’t Odin already abandoned conquest, wanting to rule the Nine Realms with mercy rather than power? Why would he wage war against Jotunheim again, and in such a mutually destructive way, directly using the power of the Bifrost?"

"Could it be…"

"This war wasn’t started by Odin, but by his sons—my dear brothers… Thor or Loki?"

Muspelheim.

Surtur sat upon the Throne of Fire. His once mountain-like body had become frail and weak after Odin took the Eternal Fire, leaving him only slightly larger than an ordinary human.

Fire was ice’s natural enemy.

This was a world of flames.

Jotunheim’s divine power of frost had no way to invade Muspelheim. It could only battle the flames in midair, forming a clear boundary between the two and bringing rainfall to Muspelheim for the first time ever…

Yet before the raindrops could reach the ground, they were evaporated by temperatures of several hundred degrees.

"The power of the Bifrost… Has Asgard gone to war with Jotunheim?"

"The stability of the World Tree has been damaged. Odin’s slumber will last longer than ever before. Ragnarok… is not far away!"

Nidavellir.

Eitri, the king of the Dwarves, paused slightly as he hammered metal.

Looking at the ice spreading through the vacuum beyond the outer perimeter, he tossed aside his blacksmith’s hammer and plopped down on the ground, his face filled with worry.

"The Nine Realms are becoming more and more unstable."

"If Odin really dies, who will protect the Dwarves…"

"Don’t be fooled by our size. We actually can’t fight…"

Earth.

Looking at the dark clouds filling the sky and sensing the divine power of frost blocked by the barrier of the Three Sanctums, Baron Mordo muttered to himself, "What happened in Jotunheim? The divine power of frost is spreading throughout the entire World Tree. Could it be… the power of the Bifrost?"

"The World Tree’s spacetime system is being damaged. The thousand years of peace in the Nine Realms are about to end."

The newly appointed librarian, Wang, walked over to Mordo’s side, his brow tightly furrowed.

"The turmoil of the World Tree has destabilized the barrier of the Three Sanctums. The rulers of the multiverse are stirring, and countless weak dark creatures have slipped in through cracks in the barrier."

"The Sorcerer Supreme has gone to the Dark Dimension to intimidate Dormammu. Those dark creatures can only be left to us!"

Asgard.

"How beautiful!"

Loki’s eyes glimmered as he watched the World Tree grow taller and taller.

"It is beautiful. Unfortunately, beautiful things often represent absolute danger."

A voice rang out, and Old Wang emerged from the void.

"Immortal Iron Fist!"

Loki spun around sharply. Gungnir appeared in his left hand, while the Casket of Ancient Winters appeared in his right, continuously absorbing the divine power of frost.

Feeling the surging energy endlessly flowing from the two high-tier divine artifacts, he steadied himself.

Loki stared at Old Wang, his face vicious. "It seems I underestimated you. You actually survived being frozen by the Casket of Ancient Winters. But it doesn’t matter. You may have escaped the first time, but you won’t escape the second!"

He looked proud. "Jotunheim’s power has seeped into Asgard! With the Casket of Ancient Winters, I can command the power of all Jotunheim! I possess the power of two of the Nine Realms. How can you compare? If I want to, I can even destroy the other eight worlds beyond Asgard!"

Old Wang smiled faintly.

Great power often made people arrogant and conceited, causing them to overlook everything else.

Even with the nuclear launch codes, a brat who knew nothing was still just a brat. Dealing with one could not be easier.

The combined powers of Jotunheim and Asgard surged through this small temple, to the point that even Soul Split: Transfer could only be used outside. It could not enter.

But even if Loki possessed such power, he would not know how to use it. He understood nothing.

External power would always remain external power. True strength came from oneself.

A blacksmith needed strong arms to forge iron.

Loki’s "frail" body could not possibly command the full power of two high-tier divine artifacts. Besides, Gungnir’s energy fluctuations were clearly much weaker than before. Odin had withdrawn its authority.

Other than the ability to "activate the Bifrost," which required no authority, Gungnir was now merely an ordinary spear harder than Thor’s Hammer and the Vibranium Shield. It meant little to Loki, who was not skilled at close combat.

His true reliance was still the Casket of Ancient Winters.

No matter how clever and scheming Loki was, he had ultimately never set foot on a battlefield.

He did not understand combat at all.

Then…

What was there to fear?

"First, I never intended to compete with you in power. Only those who know nothing about power can see only how much power there is, without seeing its essence."

"Second, you underestimate the Nine Realms too much. Earth alone is not something the Bifrost can contend with. Don’t forget that Earth is the center of the Nine Realms. In the eyes of many people, what you’re doing is nothing more than childish horseplay."

"Third…"

Before Old Wang could finish saying "third," he suddenly retreated several hundred meters. Sulfuras, Hand of Ragnaros appeared in midair once more and smashed viciously toward the Bifrost.

Boom!

This was a strike from the Molten Core, containing a portion of Ragnaros the Firelord’s power.

Though it was far less than one-tenth of his peak strength, it was already difficult for the Bifrost, which was not actually all that sturdy, to endure.

Crack!

A fissure appeared.

Odin’s heart jolted violently.

The Demonfire Hammer came down once more, and several more cracks appeared.

Odin’s heart trembled again and again.

The Demonfire Hammer continued falling like a blacksmith’s hammer.

Loki, if you don’t make a move soon, I’m fucking going to have to open my eyes.

"No!"

Seeing Old Wang’s actions, Loki truly panicked.

Destroying the Bifrost could stop everything, but the final result would also be a burden Asgard could not bear.

Once the Bifrost was lost, Asgard would lose its passage for freely traveling through the Nine Realms, lose the advantage of taking the initiative in war, and even Asgard itself would suffer damage.

And as the person responsible for all this, he would completely lose his father’s trust and any chance of becoming King of Asgard.

Damn it!

Where had that hammer come from? And where did the hand holding it get such immense power?

"Go to hell!"

Loki put away Gungnir and gripped the Casket of Ancient Winters with both hands.

An even more terrifying divine power of frost locked onto Old Wang and struck him in less than one microsecond.

The Demonfire Hammer vanished, and so did the Time-Space Channel.

Old Wang was frozen once again, encased in an eternal ice coffin even harder than before.

Still uneasy, Loki continued driving the Casket of Ancient Winters, reinforcing the ice coffin.

Suddenly, a smiling voice sounded beside his ear.

"Did you really think I would risk being killed by Odin just to destroy the Bifrost?"

Loki’s heart tightened.

Fuck…

Why was it that guy’s voice again?

Wasn’t he frozen?

Who the hell did I freeze?

Old Wang suddenly vanished from within the ice coffin, and a hand struck Loki in the back.

Loki cried out in pain, and the Casket of Ancient Winters flew from his grasp.

Another hand suddenly caught the Casket of Ancient Winters.

The next moment, the Casket of Ancient Winters vanished.

Pfft!

Having been sent flying a hundred meters away, Loki climbed to his feet and stared at Old Wang with a dark expression. "An illusion?"

I, Loki, God of Mischief, one of the top five mages in the Nine Realms, an illusion master second only to my mother Frigga!

I had actually been toyed with by illusions cast by an idiot who knew nothing about magic?

"Medivh’s Afterimage, Aegwynn’s Invisibility. That mother and son surpassed even the Sorcerer Supreme as mages. Not even Odin noticed, did he?"

Sensing Odin’s deeply displeased mental fluctuations, Old Wang did not regret spending a full gram of Azeroth Blood in the slightest.

Being able to piss Odin off feels fucking great!

"Impressive. Truly impressive!"

Loki sneered. "But you can’t stop me. You can’t stop Jotunheim’s destruction! And… you’re about to die! The power of the Casket of Ancient Winters is not something you can withstand!"

He understood the Casket of Ancient Winters better than anyone.

This high-tier divine artifact from Jotunheim could only be wielded without restraint by Frost Giants or beings like Odin, who could resist the endless erosion of divine power of frost.

Though Old Wang had held it for only an instant, a massive amount of divine power of frost had still invaded that bastard’s body.

He was dead for sure!

"Third, I was never afraid of divine power of frost. I was just messing with you before."

A large amount of water element separated from his body, transforming into another Old Wang.

Old Wang’s water elemental clone, the Water Elemental Spirit.

The Water Elemental Spirit raised a hand, and all the divine power of frost entered its body, freezing the flowing water and turning it into an Ancient Apparition that controlled frost.

Toying with the Casket of Ancient Winters in his hand, the Ancient Apparition gave a cold smile.

"Fourth, who said I can’t stop you?"

A man wearing golden armor suddenly appeared in the temple.

He drew a divine sword from the void and thrust it into the pedestal.