The Cosmos.
In the endless darkness, a small spacecraft cut through the void.
Even without warp speed, the ship was traveling incredibly fast.
"Bill, are you sure your people are this way?"
Looma piloted the ship, her four scarlet eyes scanning the dark space, but finding no trace of them.
Hearing her question, the one who wasn't yet Thor emerged. He spoke with a hint of dejection and anxiety, "This is where I parted ways with them. After that, my squad and I engaged Surtur's Fire Demon Warriors, and then we completely lost contact with them."
However, logically, the Korbin People on the giant battleship should all be frozen in slumber, and the warship should only be proceeding along the route Bill had set.
But as they traveled, there was no sign of it, which made Bill feel a growing sense of unease.
"Could someone have woken up early and changed the course?" Korg asked.
"It's possible."
The possibility was slim, but for now, Bill could only comfort himself with that thought.
He then looked at Looma and said respectfully, "Princess Looma, thank you very much for your help. I'll handle the rest of the search myself."
Initially, Looma hadn't planned to accompany Bill.
She was busy preparing betrothal gifts for her wedding with Ben and didn't have the time for such matters.
But after some thought, she realized that she was now a member of the Galactic Plumbers, and helping each other was something Ben would approve of. So, after finishing the engine, she decided to take Bill to rescue the Korbin People first.
Besides, fighting those devils of Surtur was also part of her plan.
Now, it seemed that fight was completely off the table.
With no battle to be had, Looma lost interest. Although she had agreed to help Bill, there was nothing she could do if they couldn't find anyone.
Just then, the ship's communication system chimed.
Looma pressed a button, and a short-haired green figure was projected onto the screen.
It was Loki.
Looma pouted, showing her disdain for the weakling Loki.
"What is it?"
"I'm here to warn you to be vigilant," Loki said, unfazed by her look. Honestly, most Asgardians looked at him similarly.
"Vigilant?"
"The ship detected residual energy signatures in the vicinity. If I'm not mistaken, it's likely from the Collector," Loki explained.
Loki knew a thing or two about the Collector, one of the Elders of the Universe.
In the movie, after Thor recovered the Aether Particle, also known as the Reality Stone, he specifically entrusted it to the Collector for safekeeping.
This showed that in the eyes of the Asgardians, the Collector's strength and trustworthiness were guaranteed.
"The Collector? Who is that?"
Upon hearing the name, Looma's eyes lit up like rubies.
The name itself suggested someone who possessed many valuable items. Perhaps she could get all the betrothal gifts she wanted from him!
Thinking this, Looma's expression became excited.
Loki clearly noticed this and quickly said, "Don't tell me you're planning to rob the Collector..."
Even Loki was shocked by Looma's audacious idea.
He had intended to emphasize how terrifying and dangerous the Collector was, but he soon realized that if he said that, it would sound like he was describing a very tempting target to Looma.
So, he immediately decided to change the subject. "From what I know, the Collector has a keen interest in endangered species. If those Korbin People were discovered and taken by him, they should be out of immediate danger."
In the comics, the Collector's reason for collecting endangered species was Thanos's universe-wide massacre to sacrifice life to Death.
To preserve the lineage of various species, the Collector housed them in his exhibition halls.
From this perspective, his actions were almost in line with the purpose of the existence of the Little Broken Watch.
However, in different universes, there might be variations.
Perhaps the Collector of this universe was merely interested in biological specimens.
"In that case, we'll go find this Collector," Looma declared, her decision made. "Loki, send me his coordinates."
"The Collector's current location should be in Knowhere, but..."
Loki glanced at Looma, hesitating to speak further.
He remembered that most of the Elders of the Universe possessed formidable powers, with immunity to physical attacks being just the basic requirement. Looma might not fare well against the Collector.
Furthermore, as one of the only two Tetramand individuals in the universe, she herself could potentially become one of the Collector's exhibits.
Although he didn't particularly like Looma's overbearing personality, considering her relationship with Ben, Loki couldn't let her rush into danger.
After a brief moment of thought, he made a decision that went against his usual principles.
"Princess Looma, Your Highness, I've actually recently learned of a planet inhabited by a large number of ice and snow creatures..."
Loki apologized to his father in his heart as he spoke.
Of course, he was completely insincere.
Loki didn't care about Laufey at all.
He was just a giant who had abandoned him, not worthy of being called a father.
He never wanted to admit his identity as a Frost Giant either.
"Ice and Snow Creature!"
Looma became completely excited, her whole body buzzing with energy.
"I've sent you the location. On Asgard, that dimension is called Jotunheim. Besides Frost Giants, other kinds of giants live there too. Similarly, if you can conquer that planet, it's equivalent to obtaining the blue object."
"Forget it."
Looma shook her head, rejecting Loki's suggestion.
This made Loki feel relieved. It seemed that at least she hadn't lost her reason due to excitement and thought she could take on the entire planet by herself.
But he soon knew he was wrong.
Looma said disdainfully, "Fighting is fine, but what's the value in conquering an ice and snow planet? I want more valuable treasures, so that I can be worthy of my incredibly brave husband!"
She clenched her four fists and shouted.
"Alright, Bill, I'll see you off here." Looma turned around decisively and strode out of the control room.
"I'll give you this ship. I'll take a small spacecraft."
Seeing Looma turn to conquer Jotunheim, Loki breathed a sigh of relief.
He calculated that Looma's combat power was even stronger than Thor's before he lost Mjolnir. Even if something happened, she could hold out until reinforcements arrived.
In fact, as long as the truly powerful figures in the universe didn't personally intervene, Looma could move unimpeded.
Honestly, the combined strength of the Galactic Plumbers now was a behemoth in the entire universe.
A moment later, Looma piloted the small spacecraft away according to Loki's instructions.
Inside the spacecraft, Loki's projection was still inputting Knowhere's coordinates for Bill.
He reminded them, "Although I haven't been to Knowhere, it's a mixed bag there, so you'd best be careful. The reason I sent Looma away is because she tends to clash with others too easily. If it escalates into a free-for-all, it'll be troublesome."
Hearing this, Bill nodded.
Unlike Looma, he was much more composed.
Thus, the small team split into two, heading in different directions.
Before cutting off communication, Loki seemed to remember something and said, "Oh, right. When you get to Knowhere, remember to bring back some soil."
After saying that, he didn't explain and directly cut off the communication.
Sakaar.
Caiera also found Loki's last words strange.
Loki explained, "Legend has it that it's the head of a Celestial. After its death, its body transformed into that Knowhere."
Hearing this, Caiera roughly understood his meaning.
"Last time, when the King of Sakaar fought me, he transformed into the appearance of a Sakaaran. Do you think he has the power to transform into other races?"
Loki nodded.
Ben hadn't told them about the secret of the Little Broken Watch, but Loki and Caiera had analyzed some of its mysteries themselves.
However, they didn't think it was just the effect of a watch, but rather Ben's superpowers.
"Is the power of a Celestial very strong?"
Caiera asked.
Loki leaned against the wall.
"I'm not sure about that, but no matter what, such a huge creature, even if its actual combat power isn't strong, its sheer size is enough to be intimidating."
However, although Loki's plan was well thought out, and he was indeed considering Ben's interests, the soil of Knowhere might not necessarily contain Celestial genes.
Knowhere was as large as a planet and had resided there since ancient times. Over a long period, countless cosmic dust particles were captured by its gravity, forming soil on its surface.
That soil was merely cosmic dust. The only place that might truly contain Celestial genes was Knowhere's ore.
After all, another name for Knowhere was "Mine."
Those mineral veins were the true skeletons of the Gods.
Regardless of the actions of the Galactic Plumbers in the universe, on Earth, an attack was quietly unfolding.
"Boom!!"
With a loud crash, the wall of the Daily Bugle newspaper office was shattered by a massive impact.
Kraven the Hunter, clad in beastly manes, leaped through the opening, grabbed Jameson by the collar, lifted the old man who constantly bashed Spider-Man in the newspaper, and dragged him to the edge of the building.
Jameson's feet dangled in the air, his old face flushed with fear.
But he didn't appear cowardly; instead, he shouted, "What do you want?"
Outside the office, all the employees watched the scene in terror. Robbie hesitated for a moment before rushing in.
"Jameson, tell me, who takes pictures for Spider-Man?"
"Who knows Spider-Man's identity?"
Thanks to Fire Fish for the 100-point reward.
Also, today is my birthday, wish me a happy birthday!
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