Chapter 207: Thanks for the gift, I'm confiscating it!
A double loss is better than a single win.
This thought occupied all of Loki's thinking.
He no longer hesitated and grabbed the casket of ancient winters emitting a dim blue light beside him.
The moment his fingertips touched the casket, a bone-chilling cold exploded from his palm and raced rapidly up his veins.
His fair skin turned blue visibly, and his pupils shifted from emerald green to scarlet.
That was the color he had spent his whole life running from.
The bloodline of a Frost Giant.
"Heh..."
Watching his changing skin tone, Loki couldn't help but show an incredibly sarcastic smile.
He had previously planned to kill his "biological father."
But now that his biological father was truly dead, he was acting as if he wanted to inherit the other's will and be irreconcilable with his father's killer...
He took a deep breath, suppressing the strange thoughts in his heart.
Loki held gungnir in his left hand and carried the casket of ancient winters in his right, resolutely stepping out of the Asgard Palace.
To make a comeback against the odds, he now only had one last path to take.
Use the casket of ancient winters to freeze Earth, then use the power of the Bifrost Bridge to completely destroy Earth!
Let all his schemes and calculations become nothing but smoke and clouds with the destruction of Earth!
That's right, the Bifrost Bridge is not just a transport device.
In fact, its essence is actually a super weapon of mass destruction!
Once activated, destroying a star in one strike is not a difficult task!
Inserting gungnir into the exclusive "keyhole" of the Bifrost Bridge, Loki did not hesitate and immediately descended to Earth holding the casket of ancient winters.
Before he even landed, the casket of ancient winters was fully activated.
The blinding blue beam of light even dyed the Bifrost Bridge ice blue.
Following that, a terrifying, suffocating cold swept over everything!
The scorched Earth and ashes remaining on the ground were instantly frozen into ice shards.
The water vapor in the air was rapidly condensed into dense ice crystals, refracting an eerie blue light.
"This is... the casket of ancient winters?!"
Thor's expression changed instantly.
"Damn it, Loki has gone mad! He actually activated the casket of ancient winters!"
"Run!" Hogun grabbed Thor's arm without a second thought.
As Asgardian warriors, they wouldn't die even if they were frozen.
But Thor... he had already been stripped of all his power.
If he were touched by this cold, he would surely die!
"No, I cannot leave!" Thor's gaze drifted intentionally or unintentionally toward Jane Foster, who appeared at a loss in the face of this sudden cold, and his conviction instantly hardened.
"This matter started because of me, and as the future king of Asgard, I must take responsibility for it!"
As he spoke, Thor bent down and gritted his teeth to grab Mjolnir again.
Frost surged like a tide, and in the blink of an eye, it spread to Mjolnir.
Watching as half of Thor's arm was already frozen.
But Thor did not retreat at all, only letting out a low roar!
"You won't!"
Accompanied by this shout, a thunderclap suddenly exploded in the air.
Amidst the lightning, the solid ice on Thor's arm shattered, silver armor quickly covered his body, and his scarlet cape fluttered behind him.
Thunder God Thor, returned!
Having regained his power, Thor opened his eyes, which were flashing with lightning, and immediately locked onto the figure slowly descending from the Bifrost Bridge.
Loki.
His brother, currently holding the casket of ancient winters with both hands, his body glowing with an eerie blue, his pupils scarlet as blood.
"Loki!" Thor's voice was mixed with anger, heartache, and disbelief, "How did you become like this?"
"This is how I was originally," Loki said, his lips curling into a twisted arc, speaking with a double meaning.
"If I can't have it, no one else can either."
"You're crazy!"
Thor's figure flashed as he flew rapidly toward Loki.
But the blue light of the casket of ancient winters in Loki's hand suddenly surged.
Every step Thor took closer to Loki, the cold on his body intensified.
At a distance of ten meters, his feet were already completely frozen by frost.
At seven meters, the frost had climbed up his thighs.
At five meters, his lower body was completely frozen.
With only one meter left, the ice had spread to Thor's neck.
"Brother, that's the one thing wrong with you."
Loki looked down at Thor, who was frozen and almost unable to move, his tone carrying complex emotions that were hard to describe,
"You always only know how to charge forward, never using your brain to think about what you can do by charging up."
"Lo...ki..." Thor squeezed these two words through his teeth, his cheeks already turning purple.
His lightning power was desperately fighting against the cold invading his body, but the power of the casket of ancient winters was simply too overbearing.
The divine power Thor had just regained was simply not enough in front of this thing.
If this continued, in less than three seconds, the prince of Asgard would completely become an ice sculpture.
Just at the moment when the frost was about to completely seal Thor's last breath.
A hand quietly rested on Thor's shoulder.
"Really disappointing."
The voice carried a bit of helplessness, a bit of disdain, and a bit of ease that could make one's blood pressure soar.
"Whatever, considering you reminded me earlier, I'll reluctantly help you this once."
Boom~!
As he spoke, golden flames quickly attached to Thor's body, causing the solid ice on him to shatter instantly.
Thor turned his head in disbelief.
He saw Peter standing right behind him, one hand pressing on his shoulder, his expression as plain as if he had just helped a neighbor fix a light bulb.
"Thanks."
After leaving this word of thanks, Thor did not linger and smashed his hammer fiercely toward the twisted-looking Loki.
Thud!
The hammer struck him square in the chest.
Loki flew backward immediately, and the casket of ancient winters in his hand slipped away.
Watching the casket of ancient winters tracing a perfect parabola in the air, Peter's eyes instantly lit up.
He used Moonwalk, his figure flashed in the air, and he steadily caught the casket of ancient winters in his hands.
The moment he touched the casket of ancient winters, a bone-chilling cold surged into his heart, which even Peter's current Human Torch form, fused with Vanir divine power, could not resist.
However, Peter was well prepared for this.
He twisted the little broken watch and instantly switched to the Frost Giant bloodline he had collected from Loki earlier.
Relying on the power of the Frost Giant bloodline, Peter reached out and brushed over the casket of ancient winters.
The next second, the casket of ancient winters' action of spewing cold air came to an abrupt halt.
Not only that, it even began to absorb the cold air that had been released, causing the surrounding frost to rapidly recede.
The moment he saw this scene, Loki, who had fallen to the ground, was completely dumbfounded.
How is this possible?
How can this human... even master the power of a Frost Giant?!
Seeming to notice Loki's surprised gaze.
Peter turned his head, looked at Loki on the ground, and a gentle smile immediately appeared on his face:
"Please allow me to solemnly express my gratitude to you, Mr. Loki."
"I really like this gift you sent!"
The moment his voice fell, the casket of ancient winters in Peter's hand...
Instantly disappeared!
====================
Chapter 208: Sudden Crisis
[Detected sacrificable golden item: casket of ancient winters!]
[A divine artifact worshipped by the Frost Giant race for generations, its contained power can completely freeze an entire Planet!]
[Sacrifice to obtain sacrifice points: 50,000! Sacrifice?]
Another 50,000 sacrifice points.
Peter's mouth curled up wildly.
This trip to New Mexico was truly a huge profit!
On the other side, Loki, who had been knocked to the ground by Thor, saw the casket of ancient winters disappear out of thin air and felt terrible: "No—!"
He wasn't mourning the loss of the casket of ancient winters, but was looking up at the sky in horror.
Everyone instinctively looked up as well.
The originally clear sky was suddenly covered by churning dark clouds.
In the center of the clouds, a huge vortex was spinning wildly, tearing the sky apart!
That wasn't a cloud, but violent spatial energy, with a bottomless pitch-black hole at the center.
In the black hole, faint seven-colored lights could be seen flowing quietly.
"That is... the energy of the Bifrost Bridge?!" Thor's voice trembled, "Why would it..."
"I activated its destruction mode!" Loki slumped on the ground, his face pale, his expression unreadable—half-laughing, half-crying, leaving only pure despair,
"I used the casket of ancient winters to freeze the channel. I intended to return to Asgard via the channel after freezing you all. By then, the accumulated energy would have been just enough to completely erase this Planet along with you...!"
"What did you say?!" Thor lifted him up, divine power surging, lightning flashing in his eyes, "What about Heimdall? Quickly, tell him to activate the Bifrost Bridge!"
"It's useless!" Loki was almost suffocated by his grip, but a hoarse laugh came from his throat,
"He was also frozen by me! No one can stop it! Three minutes! At most three minutes! We, along with this Planet... everything will be completely annihilated!"
"Fuck!" Thor's eyes were split with rage, and he smashed a spiderweb-like crack into the ground with one punch.
Peter was dumbfounded on the spot.
He never expected that his act of sacrificing the casket of ancient winters would trigger another super-nuke.
What the hell was this!
"What should we do now?" Even Hogun, known for his calmness and wisdom among the Warriors Four of Asgard, was completely panicked.
The Bifrost Bridge couldn't be opened, and gungnir was still charging the Bifrost Bridge.
This was a dead end!
Thor looked at the crazed Loki, really wanting to smash him to death with a hammer.
But considering this was the brother who had grown up with him, he couldn't bring himself to do it.
Finally, he looked at Peter as a last resort:
"Warrior of Midgard, do you have a way to resolve this crisis?"
Peter was so angry he laughed:
"You're asking me? I don't even know where Asgard is!"
Hearing this, the scene fell into chaos.
The Warriors Four of Asgard were chattering and scolding Loki, and the S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents were as anxious as ants on a hot pan because of the sudden crisis.
"Shut up, all of you!"
Peter was annoyed by their noise and couldn't help but shout:
"Noise won't solve the problem, it will only make you die faster."
After everyone quieted down, he forced himself to calm down, his brain racing.
A moment later, he finally thought of a plan—not a great one, but a plan.
Although it might not be in time, it was worth a try!
With this thought, Peter took a deep breath and activated all the modes he could.
Lightning Release Armor, Dual God Resonance, Shave!
He stacked all his acceleration abilities together.
His speed at this moment was almost comparable to Quicksilver.
After reaching his maximum speed, he looked at his system panel and confirmed that Black Widow's avatar was indeed on the list.
"Natasha, don't move from here."
"I'm going to bring someone over immediately!"
After completing this, he activated the spider bracelet on his wrist.
The Universe portal opened instantly.
Peter rushed into the portal amidst a series of crackling afterimages.
Everyone felt a blur before their eyes, and in the next second, Peter and the portal disappeared as if everything before had just been a hallucination.
In the blink of an eye, Peter appeared at the Spider Alliance.
He didn't have time to greet anyone; he rushed to the operation console like a stream of light, and under the shocked gazes of the Little Spiders, he activated the portal to Otto Parker's Universe.
The moment he finished crossing, he turned into a stream of light and headed straight for Avengers Tower.
In the training room, Thor, whose injuries had only recently healed, was doing rehabilitation exercises.
Seeing Peter rush in, he instinctively took half a step back in fear, lightning flashing on the hammer in his hand:
"It's you? What are you here for again?!"
"No time for small talk!" Peter grabbed his wrist and spoke rapidly,
"The Loki on my side activated the Bifrost Bridge's destruction program. In three minutes, Earth will be destroyed by the Bifrost Bridge! I need the Heimdall from your side to come with me, right now, immediately!"
Although Thor had been severely abused by Peter before, he had heard the recounts from other Avengers and had let go of his grudge against Peter.
Now, hearing Peter mention his brother who was already dead in this Universe, his expression was immensely complex.
However, he also knew there was no time for sentimentality, so he shouted to the sky without hesitation:
"Heimdall! Did you hear that? Activate the Bifrost Bridge immediately!"
Boom!
A seven-colored beam of light descended from the sky, instantly swallowing Peter and Thor.
Before long, Peter found himself in a magnificent golden hall.
In the Golden Palace, Heimdall, clad in golden armor and holding a giant sword, had been waiting there for a long time.
His eyes, capable of seeing through all things, looked at Peter with a hint of approval:
"Warrior of Midgard from another Universe, you should be thankful that our Asgard is currently stationed above Earth, otherwise, it wouldn't have been so fast to see me."
"Cut the crap!"
Peter had no mood to talk nonsense with him. He just grabbed Heimdall's arm and activated Stand United.
That's right, this was the only way Peter could think of to save the Earth: borrow a Heimdall from another Universe!
Heimdall was entrusted by Odin with the duty of guarding the Bifrost Bridge.
Therefore, he was the only being in the entire Universe who could remotely activate the Bifrost Bridge, even if he wasn't in Asgard, as long as he could still move!
In Peter's Universe, there was less than a minute left before the destruction beam arrived.
The vortex in the sky had engulfed the entire New Mexico, and the destructive seven-colored energy was visible even to ordinary people!
Just as everyone was falling into despair because Peter had not returned for a long time, in the next second, purple light suddenly shone on Natasha's body!
Amidst the light, two figures slowly condensed in front of Black Widow.
It was Peter and...
"Heimdall?!"
Seeing the black man in golden armor beside Peter, Thor and the others were all stunned!
Chapter 209: Finally Meeting Odin
"Heimdall?!"
Thor, Sif, and the Warriors Four of Asgard all cried out in unison.
Standing before them was clearly the Guardian of Asgard's Bifrost Bridge—Heimdall.
However, the style of his golden armor and the details of his face were subtly different from the man in their memories.
"Strictly speaking, I am the Heimdall of another Universe."
The large man in golden armor nodded slightly to the group, then turned his golden pupils, which could perceive the Nine Realms, toward the expanding vortex in the sky.
His expression instantly became solemn.
"The Bifrost Bridge's destruction mode... has entered its final charging stage."
"Is there still time?" Peter asked.
Heimdall did not answer. Instead, he took the longsword in his hand, Hofund—which was shaped completely differently from gungnir—and thrust it violently into the ground beneath his feet.
Golden light exploded from the blade, spreading a pattern of light across the desert that resonated with the vortex in the sky.
In the next second, a brand new rainbow bridge of light soared into the sky from beneath their feet!
"Fifty seconds."
Heimdall finally spoke, his voice heavy with gravity.
"I hope you can reverse all of this."
Hearing this, Thor didn't say a word; he immediately grabbed Loki and charged onto the bridge of light.
Sif and the others didn't dare to delay either, quickly following in their footsteps.
Peter stood below, watching their retreating backs, his expression becoming increasingly grim.
If possible, he didn't want to go to Asgard.
After all, he had just confiscated two of Asgard's artifacts. If he went up there and ran into Odin, it would be very awkward.
But...
These Asgardians were simply too slow!
According to Peter's estimation, it would take them at least a minute and a half to cover that distance. By then, Earth would have been long gone.
"Shit."
Peter couldn't help but curse.
These useless guys, in the end, it still had to be him.
Although there was a small chance of running into that old geezer Odin, for the sake of Earth, he had to make the trip.
Thinking this, the golden inscriptions and fine lightning snakes on Peter's body surfaced once more.
Boom!
The ground beneath his feet shattered, and his figure instantly vanished from the spot.
On the bridge of light, Thor was gritting his teeth and charging forward when he suddenly felt an afterimage whistle past his side.
This was followed by a gust of wild wind that nearly knocked him over on the spot.
This speed...
Thor's eyes widened.
Sif only felt a blur of gold and red light flash before her eyes, followed by a sonic boom in her ears, and then... nothing but afterimages remained.
In less than forty seconds, Peter had already rushed to the end of the light bridge.
Asgard, the Bifrost Bridge hub.
Gungnir was currently inserted into the central keyhole, vibrating wildly; the entire bridge structure was shaking violently due to the energy it was releasing.
Cracks on the bridge's surface were spreading at a visible rate, and the air was thick with the nauseating smell of burning energy.
The moment Peter landed, he saw the divine spear emitting a blinding golden light.
The energy shield around gungnir was ridiculously thick, with layers upon layers of golden runes constantly flowing across its surface.
This was the insurance Loki had set—even if someone could catch up, it would be impossible to pull it out easily.
But these protections were no problem at all for Peter.
Without any hesitation, he stacked his fists one above the other directly against the protective light shield.
Six Powers Esoteric: Rokushiki. King of the Six Powers: Largest Wheel!
"Shatter for me!"
Accompanied by this terrifying impact, the shimmering protective shield shattered as easily as an eggshell.
Immediately following, Peter gave a violent shout and firmly grabbed gungnir with both hands.
The muscles on his arms bulged, and golden inscriptions surged like a tide onto the shaft of gungnir, rapidly breaking through the layers of restrictions Odin had placed upon it.
At this moment, directly above the Bifrost Bridge, a pillar of light emitting an aura of destruction had visibly condensed at the tip of the satellite-like device.
In no more than three to five seconds, this pillar of light would erupt and completely pierce through the Earth.
However, at the very instant this was about to happen, Peter had completely broken through Odin's restrictions and pulled it out entirely without hesitation.
The moment the shaft left the keyhole, the vibrations across the entire Bifrost Bridge came to a dead stop.
The expanding destruction vortex in the sky also stopped rotating at that moment and began to slowly shrink.
On Earth, everyone saw the terrifying vortex above their heads dissipating.
"Success?" Phil looked up in disbelief.
"Success." Heimdall pulled out Hofund, the scene from the Asgard end reflected in his golden pupils as the corners of his mouth curled up slightly:
"Besides, my ice sculpture is quite graceful~"
Phil:...
I mean, who asked you?
...
gungnir hummed incessantly in Peter's hands.
Holding this legendary weapon of the All-Father, Peter could clearly feel the terrifying power contained within it.
Of course, more importantly, the system prompts were echoing wildly in his mind:
[Detected Legendary-grade sacrificeable item: 'Eternal Spear' gungnir]
[A top-tier artifact crafted by Odin using the branches of the World Tree. It is not only a top-tier magic wand but also a legendary divine spear, possessing the conceptual ability of 'being unstoppable when thrust, and guaranteed to hit once thrown.']
[Sacrificing this item will yield points: 150,000!]
Holy crap, a full 150,000 sacrifice points!
If he sacrificed this... he could practically buy out the entire mall for the next year without any problem!
Just as the thought of immediately sacrificing it couldn't help but spring up in Peter's heart, an aged voice came from the distance:
"This aura... Midgard, when did a figure like you appear?"
The moment he heard this voice, Peter jolted and looked up abruptly.
He saw a figure slowly walking from the direction of the Asgard's great hall.
It was a one-eyed old man.
He was clad in golden battle armor, his hair was white, and his steps were steady yet revealed an unmaskable fatigue.
Although Peter had never met this person, the moment that single eye looked at him, the hair all over his body stood on end.
That was his Observation Haki screaming a warning in his mind!
The person before him was extremely dangerous. Even though he didn't have gungnir in his hand, he could still inflict damage that would cause Peter to die on the spot!
"Odin."
Peter blurted out.
The old man nodded slightly, his gaze first falling on the gungnir in Peter's hand, then looking at Peter's Dual God Resonance state:
"Fire, thunder, ice, divine power..."
Odin counted them off one by one, his tone as flat as if he were taking inventory of items on a shelf.
"Such a complex system of powers, yet able to coexist harmoniously in one person. I have never seen a Midgardian as interesting as you."
Had it been any ordinary person being stared down and questioned by the All-Father like this, they would have likely knelt long ago.
But Peter only responded with silence, maintaining a posture of having nothing to say.
Seeing him as if facing a great enemy, Odin suddenly smiled:
"Don't be nervous, child. I no longer have the spare energy to investigate the source of your power..."
====================
Chapter 210: Making Another Big Profit
Odin's voice was very calm.
So calm that Peter even wondered if he had misheard.
But the exhaustion in that single eye and the aura of twilight emanating from him did not lie.
Furthermore, the warning from Observation Haki in Peter's mind had also vanished.
This indicated that Odin had indeed withdrawn his hostility.
Seeing him look like an ordinary old man, Peter hesitated for a moment before choosing to hand gungnir back.
Odin smiled at him and then reached out to take gungnir.
"Having this certainly makes things much easier."
Odin leaned on gungnir, as if it could provide him with significant relief.
Peter did not speak, simply waiting for Odin to initiate the conversation himself.
Odin walked slowly to the edge of the Bifrost Bridge, looking down at the starry sky so deep its bottom was invisible, yet what surfaced in his single eye were hideous and ferocious phantoms.
"I shouldn't have woken up at this time."
"The Odinsleep is my means of extending my life, but every time I wake up early, it causes severe backlash to my body."
After a moment of silence, Peter asked a very sharp question:
"So... how much longer can you live?"
Hearing this, Odin was not annoyed but instead laughed:
"You Midgardian are quite bold."
"Maybe a year, maybe two, who knows?"
At this point, his tone suddenly shifted:
"Do you know why I punished Thor so severely, even banishing him to Midgard?"
Peter glanced at Thor, who was approaching in the distance, and then spoke:
"He is still too naive; he doesn't even know where his power truly originates from."
Hearing this, Odin first nodded, then shook his head:
"That is only a secondary reason..."
"When I was young, I was as impulsive as him, fighting across the Nine Realms with the idea of spreading my fame everywhere, sealing away one powerful being after another."
"Now that I am old and frail, I feel those seals I once applied loosening day by day, and I've realized what a great mistake I made back then."
"After I die... many entities will awaken."
Hearing this, Peter's pupils contracted slightly.
In his past life, he could never understand Odin's actions while watching the movies; he even thought Marvel had simply vilified the All-Father for the sake of commercial plot considerations.
But now it seemed that was not the case.
Laufey, Hela, Fenrir, Surtur, Jormungandr...
These terrifying beings were sealed one by one by Odin, serving as proof of his journey of fighting monsters and leveling up.
But when he died, the seals on these guys wouldn't be released one by one in order.
It was like how singers have strong vocal ranges when they are young and write songs without restraint, but as they age, they can't hit those high notes even if they strain themselves.
If Thor didn't grow to surpass him within a limited time, the moment Odin died and those terrifying seals were all released at once, Asgard's fate was almost certainly sealed.
"So, you want me to be his babysitter?" Peter asked bluntly.
Odin was clearly choked up again, and only after a moment did he laugh helplessly:
"I think describing it as an 'ally' would be more appropriate... I know what you're thinking; I won't let you work for nothing."
As Odin spoke, he tapped his gungnir, and immediately following that, two items floated in front of Peter.
They were a tree branch and an iron ingot.
Peter could more or less guess what these two things were.
A branch of the World Tree and uru metal!
Both were the raw materials for gungnir; theoretically, as long as he found a suitable blacksmith, he could forge a divine artifact comparable to gungnir!
Well, although he lost one hundred and fifty thousand, what he gained wasn't much worse...
With that thought, Peter didn't hesitate and directly put these two rewards into his storage ring:
"Deal!"
...
"Father!"
Just as Peter had finished putting away his rewards, Thor rushed over with Loki, his face a mix of apprehension and excitement:
"It's my fault. I failed your expectations and didn't manage my brother well..."
Hearing that Thor didn't blame him but instead took all the responsibility upon himself, Loki's body couldn't help but tremble, and he lowered his head, not daring to look into their eyes.
"Rise."
Odin first helped Thor up, then looked at Loki and spoke:
"Child, lift your head."
Loki's eyes were red, but he gritted his teeth and stared fixedly at the tips of his toes.
"I said, look up."
This time, Loki finally raised his head.
His eyes, still tinged with a faint red, were filled with complex emotions: guilt, fear, resentment, grievance, anger... all tangled together.
"Punish me," Loki's voice was raspy. "Throw me in the dungeon or exile me, I'll accept it."
Odin did not speak.
He just looked at Loki in silence, and after a long time, he finally spoke slowly:
"I was wrong."
A few light words, yet they left everyone present stunned.
Loki's expression froze instantly: "What did you say?"
"I said, I was wrong," Odin repeated, his voice even lower this time.
"I shouldn't have hidden your true heritage from you."
"Perhaps telling you the whole truth from the very beginning would have been the better approach."
Loki wanted to say something, but his throat felt as if it were blocked by something, and he couldn't utter a single word.
Seeing him like this, Odin continued:
"Perhaps you may no longer acknowledge me as your father in your heart, but I still must say..."
"Enough!"
Loki suddenly let out a low growl.
On his face was not anger or resentment, but a complete and utter breakdown.
"What right do you have to apologize to me? What right?!"
"I nearly destroyed all of Midgard! I betrayed Asgard!"
"I've done so many despicable things, and you actually... you actually say you were wrong?!"
Odin did not answer.
He just stood there, quietly bearing Loki's outburst.
Thor wanted to step forward, but Odin stopped him with a glance.
"You should curse me," Loki's voice was trembling. "You should punish me, lock me up, exile me to the most remote corner of the Universe..."
Loki backed away as he spoke, and soon he had reached the edge of the Bifrost Bridge.
"I'm not qualified to accept your apology, and I'm not qualified to stay in Asgard..."
After saying this, he leaned back and fell into the endless void beneath the Bifrost Bridge.
"Loki!!!"
Thor lunged forward in an attempt to stop it, but he was still a step too slow, only able to watch as a corner of Loki's dark green cape brushed past his fingers.
"You fool, why do you always..."
At this point, he spun around, looking at Odin as if grasping for a final lifeline:
"Father, Loki..."
Odin let out a long sigh, and his entire being seemed to age another ten years.
Chapter 211: A Peculiar Train of Thought
With these words from Odin, the heavy atmosphere on the scene relaxed slightly.
Seeing that the soap opera drama seemed to be over, Peter also spoke up:
"Since everything is settled, I'll be heading back now."
Odin nodded to him, his lips twitching into a forced smile.
Seeing this, Peter was about to turn and leave when a slightly shy female voice came from behind him:
"Wait a moment!"
Everyone subconsciously turned to look.
They found that Sif had taken the initiative to step out of the crowd, her face flushed as she walked up to Peter.
"I want to go to Midgard with you."
As soon as these words were spoken, The Warriors Three and Thor were all stunned.
Fandral was the first to react, his eyes darting suggestively between Sif and Peter.
Volstagg almost spat out the jerky in his mouth.
Hogun's mouth twitched uncontrollably, a look of speechlessness on his face.
Thor was even more bewildered: "Sif? You—"
"I've thought it through," Sif interrupted him, her eyes burning as she looked at Peter. "I'm going to Midgard!"
"What are you going to Midgard for?" Thor still hadn't processed it.
Sif looked at the bewildered Thor, then at the equally confused Peter, and after taking a deep breath, she spoke:
"I'm going to pursue him!"
"You're going to pursue him?!" Thor pointed at Peter, his voice immediately jumping an octave.
Sif nodded frankly, her eyes showing not the slightest hint of evasion.
She didn't continue looking at Thor, but instead fixed her gaze on Peter, speaking with a shy but firm expression:
"Warrior of Midgard, although I do not yet know your name, I am certain you are a true warrior!"
"Your courage, your strength, and your heroic bearing on the battlefield have all made my heart flutter."
"I want to understand you, to get closer to you."
"Even if you already have a loved one..."
At this point, she paused for a moment, but she didn't show any cowardice. Instead, she spoke even louder:
"Then I don't care. A warrior of Asgard never fears competition."
After saying this, Sif turned to look at Odin, placed her hand over her heart, and knelt on one knee:
"All-Father, please allow me to leave Asgard with this Warrior of Midgard."
Odin looked at Peter, then at Sif, and this time the smile on his face was much more cheerful.
After a moment, he nodded, exceeding everyone's expectations:
"Go."
Sif was slightly stunned, then with a look of joy, she came before Peter and reached out her hand to him.
The meaning was more than obvious—hold my hand!
Although Sif had harbored a secret crush on Thor for many years, there had never been any progress between them.
Therefore, her romantic experience was basically zero; she was simply following what she had heard from other maidens about letting Peter lead her.
Seeing her acting like such a naive girl, Peter was completely stunned.
No, wait, are you female warriors of Asgard all this direct?
I haven't even said whether I accept or not, so why are you reaching out your hand?
He looked at the hand Sif offered and subconsciously scrutinized her face.
As a well-known goddess in the original works, Sif's beauty was undoubtedly top-tier.
At least much more beautiful than in the movies.
Although her features were somewhat heroic, just like the actress in the movie version, they were clearly more refined, and the aura she exuded was even more captivating.
That mix of martial prowess and a young girl's unique innocence created a sense of contrast that made one's eyes drift toward her involuntarily.
Seeing everyone around staring at him, and Sif maintaining a stance of "if you don't take my hand, I'll keep holding it out,"
Peter finally gave in, sighing softly before taking Sif's hand.
Seeing Peter finally take her hand, a winner's smile couldn't help but appear on Sif's face.
She took the opportunity to lean in close to him, not forgetting to turn back and wave triumphantly at The Warriors Three.
Just like that, the two stepped onto the Bifrost Bridge and walked away.
After watching Peter and Sif depart, Odin withdrew his gaze and suddenly spoke:
"You are actually not even as good as Sif."
Thor was stunned for a moment, then looked at Odin with a look of surprise and asked:
"Father, does that mean in the future I can also..."
Odin glanced at him, then snorted coldly and walked past him, leaning on gungnir.
Only after a long while did he say without looking back:
"If you have time, go and walk around Midgard more often."
"A King of the Nine Realms should not only know the Nine Realms. You need more experience; Midgard... is a good starting point."
Clearly, Odin was giving his tacit approval for Thor to contact Jane Foster.
This was obviously another butterfly effect caused by Peter.
If it had been before today, with Odin's prideful character, a mortal female scientist would never have caught his eye.
But everything that happened today, especially Peter's appearance and Loki's extreme actions, had completely changed some of his views.
His own self-righteousness might have truly hindered his children's growth.
Rather than having Thor immediately become a powerful and wise ruler, it was better to let him first learn to be a person of flesh and blood.
And mortal emotions were precisely the best teacher.
Besides, a mortal's lifespan was only a hundred years.
While Thor, he had at least three thousand years of life ahead of him.
That Midgardian woman was destined to be just a passerby in his life!
No matter how much they loved each other, in the end, Thor would still return to Asgard, inherit the throne, and shoulder the burden of the Nine Realms.
...
Back to Peter's side.
After confirming with his Byakugan that Odin and the others had entered Asgard, Peter decisively let go of Sif's hand.
This sudden withdrawal momentarily left the daydreaming Sif a bit bewildered.
Seeing her confused look, Peter couldn't help but feel a bit helpless. He carefully organized his words before speaking:
"Lady Sif..."
"Just call me Sif. Or do you people in Midgard have some other pet name for wives?" Sif looked like a curious child.
Seeing her trying to take an inch when given a mile again, Peter quickly stopped her:
"Sif, I admit you are a beauty, and I am very happy to have your affection."
"But I think we still lack an understanding of each other. You can't even distinguish between admiration and love."
"So, to avoid causing harm to your reputation and heart, I think we should first give each other some time to get to know one another."
Seeing Peter like this, Sif's expression suddenly became a bit dangerous:
"You want to back out?"
"It's not backing out," Peter felt a bit of a headache, but he still spoke patiently:
"It's that I think you should first establish a deeper understanding of me. For example, whether I have bad habits you can't stand, whether you can coexist peacefully with my two existing girlfriends,"
"Whether you can adapt to life on Earth, whether you have truly developed feelings for me..."
"At least wait until you have answers to these questions before we formally consider whether to be together."
Sif pondered this for a while, and a moment later, her eyes suddenly lit up:
"I understand! From today on, I will stay by your side and observe the answers to these questions closely!"
Peter's vision went dark.
Just what kind of peculiar train of thought does this Asgardian woman have!"
====================
Chapter 212: Why Bother Distinguishing?
The process of returning to Earth went smoothly; the only thing that didn't go so well was Sif, who was acting like a curious child.
Previously, when she descended to the mortal realm, her attention was entirely on Thor, so she hadn't noticed Earth's situation at all.
Now that she had decided to stay on Earth for Peter's sake, everything she saw felt fresh and new.
For a time, she clung to Peter so much that it gave him a headache, making the S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents stare at him with envious eyes.
The Director is truly the Director; while dealing with a hammer, he actually managed to bring a goddess home.
He is truly a role model for us all.
Finally, Peter was so pestered by Sif that he had no choice but to come up with a desperate solution.
He assigned Sif a task: to go and comfort Jane Foster, who was feeling extremely dejected because Thor hadn't descended to Earth with them.
Sif's heart was now entirely on Peter, and she didn't care about Thor at all anymore.
Naturally, she had no issues with Jane Foster, her "love rival" from the original story.
So, for the sake of her "good brother's" future happiness, the silly girl patted her chest and accepted this "arduous" task without hesitation, turning her attention to pestering Jane Foster instead.
Peter, finally breathing a sigh of relief, had just gotten a chance to take a shower and relax when there was another knock at the door.
Peter used his Byakugan to take a look and saw Natasha standing outside, so he said casually:
"The door's unlocked."
Natasha then pushed the door open and entered.
She had changed out of her usual black bodysuit and was wearing some loose loungewear.
Moreover, she had clearly just finished bathing; her damp red curls draped casually over her shoulders, making her look both languid and enchanting.
"Need something?" Peter had actually already guessed what Natasha wanted to say, but he took the initiative to start the conversation.
Natasha closed the door behind her, sat in the chair opposite Peter, and spoke after a moment of silence:
"I saw that woman named Sif holding your hand."
She was indeed here for that.
"She said she admires my bravery. Having lived for over a thousand years, she surprisingly can't distinguish between admiration and love."
Peter said somewhat casually.
But Natasha's emotions suddenly became a bit agitated:
"Who can really tell the difference!"
"I once thought my feelings for you were just admiration too, until you fell from the sky like a lump of charcoal."
At this point, her voice became very soft, as if she were just talking to herself:
"She's very brave." Natasha lowered her head, her gaze falling on the reflection of the light in her cup. "Much braver than me."
Peter looked at her and didn't speak immediately; he knew that at this moment, listening was enough.
"You know, from the day I returned to Russia at age eleven and was sent back to the Red Room once more, I told myself—Natasha Romanoff doesn't need anyone."
Her voice was steady, as if she were narrating someone else's story.
"I am a spy, an assassin, a tool. Tools aren't worthy of having feelings."
"The Red Room taught us that emotions are weaknesses. Once a spy exposes a weakness, they die."
"But I didn't want to just be a tool. The three years I spent in Ohio undercover as part of a fake family were the happiest times of my life."
"To find that feeling again, I escaped the Red Room and joined S.H.I.E.L.D. at Nick's invitation. But I always knew I wouldn't gain anything here—until I was assigned to make contact with you."
She looked up, meeting Peter's eyes.
In those green eyes, a burning flame flickered.
"It was you who turned me from a monster back into a human."
"I'm not Sif. I can't be like her, recklessly announcing to everyone that you are my prey."
"I also know I can't compare to Gwen or Felicia. I carry a filth that can never be washed away."
"I once tried to suppress myself, tried to maintain the status quo."
"But I can't control myself; it's like a moth to a flame."
"Perhaps the ending is destined to be a crushing defeat, but at least this process won't make me feel lonely."
Her final sentence was very soft, so soft that even the noise of a passing car outside could easily drown it out.
But Peter heard it anyway.
He let out an imperceptible sigh and then gave a self-deprecating smile.
He had just been laughing at Sif for not being able to distinguish between admiration and love.
But now, wasn't he the same?
Sympathy, love, desire... had he really distinguished between them?
This thought caused a trace of confusion to unconsciously surface in Peter's heart.
But soon, this confusion was drowned out by another, more resolute voice.
Why bother distinguishing so clearly?
Anyway, there are no rules in this World that can bind you anymore!
With that thought, Peter suddenly felt a sense of clarity.
He stood up, took Natasha's hand, and took the initiative to pull her into his arms.
"Actually, after you left my office that day, I saw everything."
Hearing this, Natasha's body couldn't help but tremble.
She looked up at Peter with a gaze that was both resentful and apprehensive—
She was afraid of hearing cruel words.
"It's just that at the time, I also couldn't quite tell—was my feeling for you sympathy, or love?"
"But today, Sif truly taught me a lesson."
"Why bother distinguishing so clearly? Anyway, I've always had a certain flaw—once I get my hands on something, I won't let anyone else touch it."
Hearing this, Natasha was suddenly stunned.
At first, she didn't quite understand the meaning behind those words, but immediately after, a wave of intense joy exploded in her heart.
Just as she was feeling dizzy from this happiness, Peter gently lowered his head and stole a kiss.
The night in New Mexico was deep.
The city's neon lights continued to flicker.
But in this temporary residence, the World grew quiet.
Tonight, the World didn't need saving.
Tonight belonged only to the two of them.
...
As dawn approached, Natasha rested her head on Peter's chest, wearing a rare expression of languor and relaxation.
Peter held her, but his face showed a somewhat distracted look.
"What are you thinking about?" Natasha couldn't help but ask.
"I'm thinking about what kind of gift would be best to give you."
"...What?"
Peter didn't explain much because he had already made his decision.
[Zoan Type · Mythical Beast Species · Okuchi no Makami Model]
[Price: 5,000 sacrifice points]
"Buy it!"
As Peter muttered to himself, an icy blue, peculiar Apple appeared in his hand the next second.
Peter hadn't originally planned to buy this thing.
But now that Natasha was his woman, how could he let her remain just an ordinary Superhero?
Natasha stared at the Apple that had appeared out of thin air, looking somewhat dazed.
"What kind of Apple is this? I've never seen it before?"
"A Devil Fruit." Peter stuffed the Apple directly into her hand. "After eating this, you'll gain a special ability, though the taste might not be very good."
Black Widow looked at Peter skeptically, then tentatively took the Apple and took a bite.
And then...
Blegh!
Chapter 213: Is This Guy Allergic to Romance?
"Blegh!!"
Natasha, who had been full of happiness just a moment ago, couldn't help but question her life choices.
Her beautiful face instantly crumpled into a ball.
"What on Earth is that?!"
She had never eaten anything so bizarre in her entire life.
"Endure it; it'll be fine once you swallow it."
It was only because Natasha had undergone professional training that she was able to eat the entire Apple.
Um... actually, Peter had originally intended to tell her that she only needed to take one bite.
But by the time he remembered, Natasha had already eaten more than half of it, so he swallowed those words back down.
When Natasha finished the entire Devil Fruit, she couldn't help but gasp for air as if she had just survived a disaster.
With reddened eyes, she looked at Peter resentfully while struggling to wipe the saliva from the corner of her mouth.
If someone didn't know better, they might have thought Peter had fed her something else entirely...
"Are you sure this is something humans are supposed to eat?"
Just as Natasha was asking Peter with lingering fear, wondering if she should take some anti-diarrhea medicine later, her body suddenly underwent a change.
First, her hands.
A layer of silvery-white, fluffy fur emerged on the backs of her originally fair hands, and her nails became sharp and long, glinting with a cold metallic luster.
Next were her ears.
Two furry wolf ears pricked up from amidst her red curls, twitching nimbly the moment they appeared as if capturing surrounding sounds.
Then came a larger, fluffier tail.
"This..." Natasha looked down at her hands, then turned to look at the tail wagging uncontrollably behind her, completely stunned.
So cute~
Peter admired Natasha's beast-eared girl form, feeling a bit excited for a moment.
Black Widow's already amazing figure, paired with these wolf ears and tail—the sense of contrast was maxed out.
"Don't panic; this is the hybrid form of the Devil Fruit."
Peter reached out to pet the wolf ears on her head. "What you obtained is the Mythical Zoan type, Okuchi no Makami form. Simply put, it's a type of ice-attribute divine beast."
Hearing Peter say this, Natasha indeed felt as if a new kind of energy had appeared in her body.
She subconsciously opened her mouth and exhaled, releasing a frost breath.
The breath hit the nightstand, instantly freezing a thick layer of ice onto its surface.
Natasha tried aiming her claws at the nightstand and swiped; it was immediately sliced into pieces.
This cold, this power...
Natasha couldn't help but gape in shock.
This was too exaggerated!
"Can I... can I still change back in the future?"
Natasha suddenly thought of something and couldn't help but ask stutteringly.
"Of course you can!"
Peter stroked Natasha's wolf tail, reluctant to let go.
"You just need to focus and visualize your form. You can switch freely between human, beast, and hybrid forms."
Natasha closed her eyes skeptically.
After a few seconds, the wolf ears and tail slowly vanished, and the fur on the back of her hands gradually receded, returning her to her previous appearance.
However, perhaps due to the influence of the cold energy, the tips of her originally fiery red hair had turned a gradient ice-blue, looking as if she had specifically gotten a professional dye job.
Peter couldn't help but reach out to brush the stray hairs from her forehead.
"It looks quite good."
Natasha rolled her eyes at him, but the corners of her mouth couldn't help but quirk upward...
Over the next hour or so, Peter spent his time teaching Natasha how to control her Devil Fruit abilities.
Natasha quickly adapted to the changes in her body and couldn't help but marvel.
"It really is powerful, but it's much harder to control than I imagined."
"Take it slow; developing a power is a major project that takes time.
In the future, if you can develop it to the point of Fruit Awakening, it will be even more incredible. By then, your physical stats will probably be even more formidable than those Asgardians."
As Peter spoke, he turned the little broken watch on his wrist, switching it to the Symbiote form he hadn't used in a long time.
"Next is the standard-issue suit that everyone in the family has."
As Peter spoke, he controlled his body to forcibly split off a small portion, which merged into Natasha's body. Before long, a symbiote suit condensed onto her.
Perhaps influenced by the Okuchi no Makami within her, Natasha's suit was also white and blue.
Feeling the power within her surge by an unknown number of times, Natasha's expression became incredibly complex for a moment.
"Aren't you... giving me too much?"
For Natasha, who had always lived with loneliness and knew nothing of what it meant to be cared for, Peter had directly filled the part of her that was most lacking.
"It's not much."
Peter's tone was casual, but his words made Natasha's nose sting.
"Since you are already my woman, I naturally won't let my woman face any threats."
He paused there and added another sentence:
"By the way, there's one more thing."
"What is it?"
"The Red Room."
At those three words, Natasha's body instantly tensed up.
Noticing her reaction, Peter couldn't help but pull her trembling body into his arms, comforting her softly.
"Don't worry, I'll help you take care of it."
"From now on, I won't let anyone threaten you."
Speaking of which, Peter had been planning to take action against the Red Room for quite a while.
It was just that things had piled up, and since the Red Room people couldn't come looking for trouble because Peter had destroyed Natasha's chip, he had gradually pushed the matter to the back of his mind.
It wasn't until today, after solidifying his relationship with Black Widow, that he remembered it again.
To be fair, the female Agents of the Red Room were definitely top-tier bodyguards, if nothing else.
Additionally, they were very suitable for monitoring the high-level officials of America, preventing that group from secretly trying any more tricks against him or his family and friends in the future.
He might be able to take them all under his wing and give them a new organizational name.
Like the Black Rose or something...
On the other side, hearing Peter's words, Natasha remained silent for a long time.
The Red Room was the deepest thorn in her heart.
That place had ruined her childhood, taken away her right to be a mother, and trained her into a heartless killing machine.
It wasn't that she hadn't thought about going back for a reckoning.
But the forces involved behind the Red Room were too many and too deep; she couldn't shake them with her strength alone.
Now, Peter was saying he would help her.
Not that he would try, or do his best, but that he would directly handle it for her!
"Do you know how much trouble the Red Room is?" Natasha's voice was a bit tight.
"Can it be more troublesome than Laufey, or more troublesome than the Bifrost Bridge that almost blasted through Earth?"
Natasha was instantly speechless.
Only now did she truly realize what a powerful support she had found.
"Thank you."
Natasha couldn't help but speak.
"Don't say such silly things~"
Peter rubbed her head, then used the horse talisman on her.
"Instead of saying silly things like that, why don't you let me experience that hybrid form properly again?"
Natasha:...
Is this guy allergic to romance!
====================
Chapter 214: The Curious Little Brat
On the way back to New York, Peter had been pondering a question in his mind.
How should he arrange things for this girl, Sif?
He couldn't just let her follow him around every day, could he? Not to mention what Gwen and Felicia would think; just her relentless curiosity alone was enough to give him a headache.
Throughout the flight from New Mexico back to New York, Sif's mouth had hardly stopped moving.
For this curious Little Brat, the more she began to understand Earth, the more she discovered that there were simply too many interesting things on it.
It got to the point where a BGM was looping in Peter's head:
"I am Sif, the little rascal, so curious about the World; I have countless questions, bubbling up non-stop~"
"This iron bird can fly? How does it do that? Do you Midgardians also use magic?"
"This isn't magic; it's science."
"Science? What is that?"
"It's using Earth's existing resources to achieve phenomena similar to magic without actually using magic."
"Midgardians are so pitiful. Something that can be easily solved with magic takes you thousands of years of research."
Peter:...
"What is this again? I like this; it's delicious."
"A cheeseburger."
"Midgardians are amazing, to be able to pair bread and meat so perfectly."
Looking at Sif with a burger in her left hand and a chicken drumstick in her right, eating so heartily she didn't even bother to wipe the ketchup from the corner of her mouth.
Peter felt both helpless and amused, thinking to himself, *Buddy, once we land, I'll get you some Famous food, some milk tea, and some other snacks; won't you just take off on the spot?*
...
After landing in New York, the first thing Peter did was use his authority as the S.H.I.E.L.D. Director to arrange a complete Earth identity for Sif.
Name: Sif Odinsdottir.
Nationality: Norway.
Occupation: S.H.I.E.L.D. Special Advisor.
When Sif received the ID card that still smelled of fresh ink, her face was full of confusion.
"This... what is it for?"
"A pass to live on Earth." Peter expressionlessly stuffed a stack of documents into her hands. "Without this, you won't even be able to find a place to stay."
Sif: "Wouldn't it be fine if I just lived at your house?"
"Great idea, don't think it again!"
To avoid scaring Uncle Ben and Aunt May, and to prevent Sif from following him around like a curious Little Brat asking about everything,
Peter stuffed Sif into S.H.I.E.L.D. as soon as they landed, dumping the trouble directly onto Hill.
His reasoning sounded high-minded—
"You said you wanted to understand me, then you must first understand the World I live in. Earth's culture, rules, and social graces—you have to learn all of these from scratch."
"And S.H.I.E.L.D. missions will allow you to come into contact with all aspects of Earth most quickly."
Sif thought about it and felt that these words made a lot of sense.
"What about you?"
"I am the Director; I have my own work to handle. Besides, I have to go to school."
"Go to school? I want to go too!"
It took Peter ten minutes to explain clearly to Sif that if she wanted to go to school, she could only go to elementary school and sit at a desk with Little Brats under the age of 12.
He finally managed to get her to drop the idea of going to university with him.
"Then... when can I see you again? Remember? I still have to observe you closely to see if you can be a marriage partner."
Hill, who appeared to be working but was actually eavesdropping on the gossip, couldn't help but look up and give Peter a look as if he were a scumbag. Her expression clearly said:
Deceiving even a girl with such immature mental development... tui~ scumbag!
"I'll come to the S.H.I.E.L.D. office from time to time; you'll naturally see me then."
"Oh right, one more thing."
"What is it?"
"What about my competitors? I should meet them and see if they are qualified to compete with me, right?"
"Whether they are qualified or not, you won't be able to beat them. I won't give them up because of you. Besides..."
Peter originally wanted to say, "If it really comes down to a fight, you might not even be a match for Gwen and Felicia!"
But he decisively swallowed the words before they left his mouth.
Sif was a battle maniac by nature. If he said Gwen and Felicia were no weaker than her, this girl would surely go wild on the spot.
She wouldn't stop until she had fought three hundred rounds with the two girls.
Thinking of this, he decisively changed his tune:
"Now is not the time for you to meet them. You should at least let me give them a heads-up first."
"What is a heads-u..."
Before she could finish her question, Peter had already made his escape, leaving the Triskelion Building on his flying skateboard.
...
After returning home and having dinner with Uncle Ben and Aunt May, Peter then went to the Hardy family Villa.
This was the meeting place Peter had agreed upon with Gwen and Felicia. He intended to explain the situation regarding Sif to the two girls all at once here.
Just as he pushed open the door, a golden figure lunged at him.
"You're finally back!"
Gwen hung from his neck, her legs wrapped around his waist, clinging to him like a koala.
Felicia had also subconsciously stood up, but in her heart, she had already accepted Gwen's position as the eldest sister. Therefore, she didn't come up to compete for affection, but just stood in place, quietly waiting for Peter to come over.
Because of choosing a university these past few days, Gwen seemed to have communicated quite a bit with Felicia; the two had clearly returned to their previous state of being best friends.
So, after a bit of intimacy with Peter, she got off him and then made an excuse to go to the bathroom, giving Peter and Felicia some private space.
After all, she still couldn't bear to watch Peter be intimate with another girl, even if that person was her best friend.
So, it seemed that Peter's plan to play "match-three" was still a long way off...
Just as Gwen entered the bathroom, Felicia lunged forward, rubbing against Peter like a clingy black cat.
As she rubbed, she sniffed lightly and then frowned, asking:
"Why is there a strange scent? Do you have another cat outside?"
Hearing her say this, Peter subconsciously thought of Natasha's snowy-white and fluffy wolf tail.
Speaking of which, the two of them were now exactly one black and one white, one cat and one wolf... he wondered if they would end up fighting in the future.
It probably wouldn't come to that, right?
Natasha was very mature and rational, and she had no intention of getting involved. It was estimated that she wouldn't even have the chance to be alone with Felicia in private in the future.
Thinking this, Peter nodded secretly to himself and then said:
"I asked Gwen to wait for me at your house just to tell you both about this. It's a long story; let me explain it to you slowly..."
About five minutes later, the two girls finished listening to Peter's experience in New Mexico.
"So," after a long silence, Gwen spoke first, her voice very calm but carrying a hint of low pressure:
"You met another goddess in Asgard, and just because she said she wanted to pursue you, you brought her back to Earth?"
Chapter 215: The Iron Lumps Aren't So Appealing Anymore
"It's not that I agreed just because she said she wanted to pursue me; it's that even if I didn't agree, she could still come to Earth to find me. I simply had no choice."
"Besides, Felicia, you should understand. That Odin clearly intends to take the political marriage route."
"That old geezer is quite crafty. He probably planned all along to tie Sif to my side as a link between Asgard and Earth."
Seeing signs that Gwen was about to get angry, Peter hurriedly tried to get Felicia to put in a good word for him.
Seeing Peter repeatedly winking at her, Felicia couldn't help but give him a massive eye-roll.
Although her face showed great disdain, Felicia's body was very honest:
"This is indeed a very common occurrence. Not to mention those gods, even the elites in our Earth's business and political circles love to use this method to secure their interests."
Seeing that Felicia was helping him out, Peter immediately took the opportunity to push his luck, and as soon as he opened his mouth, he started talking nonsense:
"Exactly! You have no idea how outrageous that old man was at first. He practically said I had to spend the rest of my life only with that Sif from now on."
"But who am I? I pulled out my blade right then and there, pointed it at the old man's nose, and said:"
"'Don't even think about it. I already have two girlfriends who are more outstanding than all the goddesses of Asgard put together."
"'If you dare say such a thing again, Earth and Asgard are destined to be enemies from now on!'"
At first, Gwen was wondering if Peter was just saying these things to make them happy.
But then she remembered that Peter had previously made a general kneel to him and had even threatened the President...
Thinking of Peter's glorious track record, Gwen was actually bluffed by him, believing he had truly said those things.
She couldn't help but nervously grab Peter's hand and complain:
"Saying that was far too impulsive. Even if that All-Father doesn't have much time left, who knows what kind of trump cards he's still hiding?"
"What if you actually made him so angry that something went wrong, and he insisted on activating that Bifrost Bridge to destroy Earth? Wouldn't we all become sinners responsible for the destruction of the world?"
Peter knew very well that at this moment, he couldn't tell the truth even if it killed him. He took the opportunity to grab Gwen and Felicia's hands, putting on an act of being 'the most devoted man on Earth' and said:
"As long as I have you two by my side, what does it matter even if the World is truly destroyed?"
Hearing this, Gwen couldn't stay angry. She couldn't help but hug Peter, wishing she could melt into his embrace.
Ultimately, the underlying tone of Gwen's personality was still too gentle.
So despite feeling a bit wronged in her heart, when it came down to it, she would ultimately choose to take the loss herself.
However, this quality of hers—putting the big picture first—was precisely what Peter loved most about her.
So no matter who else came later, Gwen would always be number one in his heart.
On the side, Felicia wasn't as easily fooled as Gwen. She just crossed her arms and looked at Peter with a cold smirk, her expression saying, 'Go on, keep bluffing.'
Fortunately, she was a latecomer herself, and her upbringing meant she had seen plenty of wealthy people living decadent lives and abandoning their partners.
Therefore, her level of acceptance for such things was very high, and she could well understand Peter's situation.
Thus, she wasn't particularly repulsed by Sif's arrival.
Anyway, as long as she and Gwen remained united as sisters, they would be the undisputed main wives. As for anyone who came later, no matter what kind of monsters they were, they'd have to obediently follow the rules they set!
After giving Felicia a look, Peter gently stroked Gwen's back and said softly:
"But regardless, I shouldn't have taken it upon myself to decide without communicating with you both first. This is my fault. I'm sorry."
After this series of maneuvers, the slight dissatisfaction Gwen had felt earlier had long since vanished.
At the same time, she also realized that Peter really didn't have much choice in this matter.
He couldn't really let Earth lose a powerful ally just because of her temporary jealousy, could he?
She quickly forgave Peter. Although she didn't say anything explicitly, her meaning was clear: as long as Sif didn't cause trouble in her face, she would turn a blind eye to the matter from now on.
Seeing Gwen being so gentle and understanding, Peter was incredibly moved.
He decisively picked Gwen up, gave Felicia an apologetic smile, and headed straight for the guest room upstairs.
Seeing this, Felicia was helpless. She could only give him another big eye-roll and then mouthed to him:
"Don't make me wait too long!"
A short while later, listening to the faint sounds coming from upstairs, Felicia couldn't help but cover her ears in frustration—if she had known, she wouldn't have chosen the Black Cat gene!
After finishing with Gwen's side, he then had to attend to Felicia. It was only because Peter was physically robust and had the horse talisman for support.
If it were anyone else, they would probably have 'died a happy death' sooner or later...
...
After being busy all night and finally smoothing things over with Gwen and Felicia, Peter was woken up early the next morning by his phone ringing.
Drowsily, he reached for his phone and saw that the caller was Tony Stark.
As soon as he picked up, Tony's excited voice came from the other end:
"I did it! I did it!"
Suppressing the urge to complain about the author reusing tired memes, Peter quickly figured out what Tony meant by 'I did it':
"The Vibranium suit is finished?"
It had to be said, Tony's intellect and practical skills were truly no joke.
It had been less than half a month since he handed over that full ton of Vibranium to Tony, and he hadn't expected Tony to have already completed the production of the suits and the iteration of the technology.
"Of course,"
Tony's tone carried a rare hint of pride. "Can you really doubt my technical prowess! Get over here quickly, and bring me two cheeseburgers on the way. To get these suits done for you, I haven't had a proper meal in a long time."
Fine, considering his good buddy had put in so much effort for his suits.
Peter decided to give Tony a chance to taste some truly delicious food.
He simply used the kitchen at Felicia's house to make several handmade burgers. Although there wasn't much technical skill involved, so they weren't miles apart from ordinary burgers,
They were still absolutely leagues ahead of what ordinary chefs could produce.
Gwen and Felicia were full of praise for Peter after eating the burgers, feeling even more satisfied in their hearts.
Where else could they find another all-around boyfriend who was handsome, powerful, and willing to cook for them?
Thinking about it this way, even though Peter was a bit of a playboy, it wasn't unacceptable.
After breakfast, Peter packed three handmade burgers and headed to Stark's luxury Villa with Gwen and Felicia.
Tony originally wanted to show off his scientific research results to Peter.
But seeing Peter walking towards him with Gwen on one side and Felicia on the other, he suddenly felt that his warehouse full of iron lumps wasn't so appealing anymore...
====================
Chapter 216: Nanotech Vibranium Suits
Watching Peter with a girl on each arm, Tony felt a bit like a Joker for a moment.
"Are you doing this on purpose?" Tony made an exaggerated expression of anger, glaring at Peter with huffed indignation.
"I'm just here to pick up the suits, and brought them along to take a look while I was at it." Peter shrugged with an annoyingly smug look.
In reality, Tony was already planning in his mind whether to bring three or four dates the next time he met Peter.
But thinking of the phrase "Your kidneys and my kidneys don't seem to be the same," and then thinking of Pepper, who had been helping him manage the company all this time, he finally sighed.
Maybe he really was getting old; this playboy was actually starting to think about settling down...
"Here~ your burger."
Peter's voice interrupted Tony's train of thought.
Tony had intended to say, "I'm already stuffed from your cringe, how could I possibly eat this thing?" but just as the words reached his lips, his nose twitched uncontrollably.
He swallowed his saliva and instinctively took out the burger Peter had wrapped up.
Because Peter had the genes of the Human Torch and could adjust his body temperature at will, the burger was still piping hot, even though it had been sitting there for quite a while.
The aroma of the meat patty and the bun intertwined, making Tony's mouth water uncontrollably.
Appetite finally overcame Tony's resentment, and he took the burger and took a casual bite.
And then... he froze completely.
"This burger... where did you buy this?"
If it were any other food, Tony might not know much about it, but when it came to cheeseburgers, Tony was an absolute connoisseur.
As a fanatical burger lover, he had eaten at least eight hundred, if not a thousand, burgers in his life.
But never had any of them tasted as special as the one in his hand.
Even though the ingredients were more or less the same, every step of the process and every combination was simply perfect.
"I made this myself."
"You made it?"
"Otherwise?"
Tony was silent for three seconds, then suddenly cursed:
"Shit! Peter, how am I supposed to live from now on!"
Tony suddenly felt very pained, because after eating this burger, he felt that any other burger he ate in the future would inevitably be impossible to swallow.
If Peter had bought this burger, he could have acquired the burger shop in a minute and had the owner make burgers for him exclusively from then on.
But the fact that Peter had made it... he was completely out of options.
He couldn't exactly ask Peter, the strongest being on Earth, to make him burgers every day!
After finishing the burger with a resentful look and pestering Peter to bring him at least two burgers every time he came to visit, Tony finally led Peter and the two girls to his underground laboratory.
As soon as the laboratory door opened, four suits of armor came into view, each shimmering with a different luster under the spotlights.
The one on the far left was recognizable at a glance—a standard red and gold color scheme, obviously built by Tony for himself.
And the three suits next to it featured black and gold, blue, silver and red, and blue and gold color schemes, respectively.
Gwen's gaze fell on the blue and silver armor, and her eyes lit up for a moment.
Felicia stared at the blue and gold armor, raising an eyebrow slightly.
Peter walked to the very front, looking at the black and gold armor, saying nothing, but the curve of his lips betrayed him.
Without a doubt, these three suits were custom-made by Tony specifically according to their preferences.
"So, how is your buddy's craftsmanship?"
"Cut the crap." Peter impatiently interrupted his stalling, "Just tell me what features they have."
"Thanks to you and the Vibranium you brought, I've skipped at least thirty generations of technological iteration."
Tony spoke quickly, his voice filled with irrepressible excitement.
"These suits are all equipped with the highest grade of nanotechnology, and the armor plates can complete a full reconfiguration into any shape within 0.3 seconds."
Felicia, the one with the worst physics grades among them, couldn't help but ask: "Can you say something that a soon-to-be college student can understand?"
Considering she was Peter's girlfriend and a beautiful woman at that, Tony finally gave her a pass:
"Simply put, it can change into any shape according to your requirements and satisfy the needs of any combat scenario."
As Tony spoke, he operated the holographic projection to open the outer glass of Peter's black and gold suit.
"Reach out and try it."
Peter did as he was told, and the next second, the suit surged up along his fingers like a living Symbiote, immediately wrapping Peter within it.
Tony said triumphantly:
"I put the most effort into your suit."
"It has the largest overall build of the four suits because I based it on your combat style, positioning the suit's fighting style for close-quarters combat."
"Therefore, I have specially thickened the armor on the arms."
In the projection, the arm areas of the black and gold armor lit up, and the dense molecular structure of the Vibranium nanotech was magnified and displayed.
"The most critical function of this suit is this—combat mode switching. Try saying 'Activate Overclock Mode' to your AI assistant."
Peter then tentatively said:
"Activate Overclock Mode."
The next second, the Vibranium nanoparticles on the outer layer of the suit began to flow at high speed, all converging on his arms within a fraction of a second.
His left arm expanded rapidly in the blink of an eye, forming a shield-blade half the size of a person.
His right arm transformed into an exaggerated gauntlet, covered from elbow to fingertip in layers of overlapping Vibranium armor plates, looking exactly like the claws of a giant dragon.
"The left hand is for defense, the right hand is for offense. With the kinetic energy absorption properties of Vibranium combined with your own monstrous strength—theoretically, there is nothing you can't punch through."
Peter raised an eyebrow.
"Also," Tony added, "I've reserved energy output channels in the palms and soles of the suit. Don't you know all those messy types of magic? Like lightning or fire? You can just release them through these channels without needing to deactivate the hand armor while using them."
"And thanks to the Vibranium, theoretically, no matter how exaggerated your energy output is, this suit can handle it."
Peter thought to himself, "Can it really handle any output?" but outwardly, he smiled and affirmed Tony's work.
"Next is yours, Gwen."
As Tony spoke, he activated the protective shield for the second suit, which then fit perfectly onto Gwen's body:
"Because Peter said you don't want to kill anyone and only like to control the situation with webs, your suit is positioned for—flanking and disruption."
In the projection, a pair of translucent flight wings unfolded from the back of the blue and silver armor, and at the same time, four slender spider-legs extended from both sides of the spine.
"The spider-leg mechanical arms and the wings are the signature weapons of this suit, but the main event is this."
Tony opened the weapon menu, and rows of web-shooter icons instantly filled the screen.
"Electric webs, sticky webs, shrinking webs, explosive webs... a combination of over twenty types of web-shooters, suitable for various combat scenarios, supporting voice switching. Additionally, there are micro-missile bays on the chest and wrists, enough to continuously spray web fluid for over twenty minutes."
Hearing this, Gwen's eyes lit up, and she couldn't help but look at Peter with a sweet and tender expression.
Although this suit was made by Tony, there was no doubt that these suggestions, which perfectly matched her fighting style, were all proposed by Peter himself.
It went to show just how much Peter valued her.