Thunder.
Endless, boundless thunder.
The God of Thunder from Asgard proved with his actions why he was called just that.
The lightning, shifting from blue to purple, filled the space around Sakaar in a flash.
The middle-aged Thor now fully embodied the most terrifying trait of the Asgardians: the older they get, the more powerful they become.
Unlike his encounter from two thousand years ago, the transformed Thor was no longer the novice he once was.
At this moment, he was the true King of Asgard!
"This power..."
"Interesting."
Lothar wove effortlessly through the sea of lightning, feeling the pressure the middle-aged Thor was putting on him.
He was finally intrigued.
Ever since he had absorbed Hela's dimensional power, he'd found it difficult to get excited about ordinary fights. Since he had developed his current magenta-hued dimensional form, Lothar hadn't encountered a single opponent who could force him to use his full strength.
Sometimes, Lothar himself wondered if he should seek out the ancient gods his father, Thanos, spoke of. He felt that if he wanted a real challenge, those mysterious ancient gods were the only ones who would suffice. Otherwise, no one could make him feel the thrill of battle again, and his power would stagnate.
For Lothar, who was determined to become the strongest being in the universe and return for revenge, that was a terrifying prospect.
But now, Lothar, who had planned on getting two "reports of misconduct" from Hela in case of future need, was shocked to discover that the man he had casually subdued and thrown into the Sakaar junkyard two thousand years ago could make him feel a sense of danger.
But...
"You're burning your life force?"
Lothar, who was extremely sensitive to energy, clearly sensed the oddity after the middle-aged Thor unleashed his sea of thunder.
"No, this is just the universe's self-correction. I can't stop it," the grizzled Thor said, his face visibly aging. And the more energy he released, the faster the aging accelerated. "The same will happen to you."
The middle-aged Thor, who was burning his life force for one last battle, instantly became white-haired.
"I told you, you will never, ever break the cosmic rules, Lothar."
When his power reached the limits of what his body could bear, the middle-aged Thor threw a punch. Just one punch. The energy vortex it created instantly tore apart parts of the cosmic pathways around Sakaar!
Lothar didn't say a word. He crossed his arms over his chest, unleashing a wave of malevolent purple energy straight at Thor's aged face.
BOOM!
In the twisted "vacuum" of space, the energy of the collision exploded violently.
As their fists met, Lothar was surprised to find that Thor, despite his visibly aging face, was not at a disadvantage in their physical confrontation. In fact, Lothar felt like he had taken a slight loss.
The two separated instantly.
Lothar frowned, the sharp wind of the punch tearing his battle suit.
"You see? This is the power this universe has given me. Even though I've traveled through time and done wrong." The ancient Thor held his hands out, teleporting behind Lothar in the next second. Bending low to dodge the instinctive turn and strike from Lothar, he landed a punch directly on Lothar's waist!
BAM!
The dull, heavy sound of a fist hitting flesh was oddly crisp.
In pain and about to lose his balance, Lothar wrapped his tail around Thor's neck and spun around, instantly gaining a position above Thor's head. Then, he stomped down with both feet.
A lethal sense of suffocation instantly came over him. Thor immediately stopped his attack on Lothar and raised his right arm, ready to chop at Lothar's tail. Sensing the danger, Lothar pulled back his tail at the last second and shot two energy blasts at Thor.
BOOM!
A golden energy shield, suddenly materializing between two planets, blocked all of Lothar's attacks. Mysterious and ancient runes moved across the shield as if they were alive. The white-haired Thor stood behind it, gasping for air. He was clearly using an immense amount of energy to maintain the shield.
"The World Tree?" Lothar, who had previously sensed the aura of the World Tree from Hela, narrowed his eyes. He smelled the same scent on this energy shield.
"Just a small part of it," the white-haired Thor said with a smile, his labored breathing subsiding.
This was the reason he was so willing to die and be "corrected." As long as his younger self wasn't a fool, he would already know what power was needed to defeat Lothar.
The combination of the World Tree's power and Odin's magic was the path to evolution that he had created for his younger self—the path to one day contend with Lothar!
And in the Sakaar arena, the newly crowned Thor stared blankly at the battle projected on the big screen by the Grandmaster, remaining silent for a long time.
"What an incredible man... It's a shame..." In his private viewing box, the Grandmaster sighed sincerely as he ate some fruit. He truly felt sorry for this man. He had found his way, but by the time he did, he had lost everyone he loved.
"Interesting."
"Does that useless brother have it too?"
Snap!
Lothar raised his hand and snapped his fingers. The box on the Lothar ship opened, and the golden armor crafted by Thanos himself re-formed around his body. On his right gauntlet, two Infinity Stones shone brightly.
"In time, he will be stronger than me," the white-haired Thor said, his belief unwavering. He had faith in both his younger self and himself. He no longer had time to study the abstruse mysteries of rune magic, but this version of Thor was different. He was still young, hadn't lost everything, and still had things worth fighting for.
"So, Lothar..." A fierce flame erupted from the white-haired Thor's body. The searing inferno swept toward Sakaar.
"In my timeline, Hela died."
"She was killed by an alien from another universe, led by Mera, after her connection to Asgard was severed." The white-haired Thor laughed, revealing a fact that instantly stunned Lothar.
Why had he rushed out to fight Lothar before he even arrived on Sakaar? Why would he even burn his life force?
"I'm sorry to tell you, but the time of Hela's death is most likely happening right now."
The white-haired Thor laughed. He had successfully stalled Lothar. Now, even if Lothar wanted to go back, it was too late.
Hela would die, and so would he, leaving all the power of the World Tree to this timeline's Thor.
This was the white-haired Thor's true purpose!
Even Lothar, who hadn't shown any emotion despite the constant escalation of Thor's power, was horrified.
"I am the son of Odin..."
Engulfed in flames, the white-haired Thor charged at Lothar. "Thor Odinson!"
BOOM!
The moment their two bodies collided, the white-haired Thor's body detonated!
Watching from Sakaar, the Grandmaster's face froze.
"Damn it! My Sakaar!"
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This fanfic has been fully translated!