However, Malekith was not someone to be trifled with. Although he had been suppressed by the unexpected attack from the Bifrost Bridge, he quickly regained his composure. Then, his body began to expand from the inside out, and a dark red light exploded instantly. The power of the Bifrost Bridge was blasted back in an instant, and he took the opportunity to escape.
After flying out of the sea, he launched an attack on the Dragon King without hesitation. With a wave of his hand, countless streams of dark power roared and surged toward the Dragon King. The Dragon King held his spear horizontally in front of him.
The void behind him shattered instantly, the edges of the surging space portal expanded rapidly, and in an instant, half the sky was occupied by golden light. The Dragon King clenched his left fist, and the Ten Rings on his arm tightened instantly. At the same time, the Dragon Power within the Dragon Dimension surged and condensed like a sea of clouds.
The body of a colossal divine dragon swam and rolled within, and through the thousand-meter-wide Portal of the Dragon Dimension, one could only see glimpses of its scales and claws! A dragon's roar that shook the heavens rang out first, and the dark power surging toward the Dragon King actually paused for a split second! Malekith's dark red pupils shook instantly.
Immediately after, the Dragon King suddenly swung his spear and pointed forward. The golden divine dragon weaving through the Dragon Dimension flew and moved rapidly, and then a dragon head as large as a meteorite from beyond the sky emerged. It suddenly burst through the Portal of the Dragon Dimension, its massive head dragging a body that combined both beauty and power as it rushed out.
Compared to it, Hong Fei, standing below, was not even the size of one of its scales! The divine dragon opened its giant mouth, its dragon whiskers fluttering in the wind!
"Aaaaung!!!"
This dragon's roar directly dispersed the thick, curtain-like black clouds above the sky. In an instant, countless rays of sunlight poured down, and the Earth immediately regained its brightness.
The divine dragon lunged straight forward, swallowing all the dark power into its belly. Then, its body lit up with golden light from the inside out, and cracking sounds echoed back and forth within its abdomen, until it went quiet after a while. Then, it rushed directly toward Malekith. Malekith's expression changed abruptly.
He raised his hands high, and the Aether Particle suddenly burst forth, forming a tight defensive circle around him. Seeing this, the Dragon King transferred the Eternal Spear to his left hand. The Ten Rings on his left arm immediately slid one by one onto the spear shaft and tightened in succession. Then, the Dragon King raised his left hand high, aiming at Malekith.
He threw it with all his might! In an instant, the Eternal Spear seemed to transform into a brilliant meteor that flashed before everyone's eyes. In the blink of an eye, the Eternal Spear struck the surface of the Aether Particle. The spear shaft and the Aether Particle trembled violently, as if both sides were locked in a struggle.
Under the Dragon King's control, the divine dragon turned and rushed into the sky. At this moment, it had only revealed a small part of its body; even the two dragon claws on its forebody had not yet appeared. At this moment, the Dragon King held his hands horizontally in front of him and clenched them tightly. Correspondingly, the Ten Rings fitted onto the Eternal Spear instantly lit up!
Mysterious patterns lit up rapidly, as if injected with golden liquid. They injected energy into the spear body in a layered manner, ring by ring. The Dragon Power erupted first, and the burning golden flames transformed into a dragon shape, charging into the Aether Particle. Following closely, a jade-like white glow also emerged abruptly from the spear body.
The energy coalesced rapidly in the air, solidifying into the towering form of Odin, the All-Father of Asgard.
"Father!"
Thor's voice rang out, brimming with excitement. But Odin paid no heed to his son. His single eye, sharp and unyielding, locked onto Malekith like a predator sighting its prey. With a swift motion, he grasped the Eternal Spear, its presence radiating an overwhelming sense of inevitability.
Malekith's pupils dilated, his arms trembling as he channeled more dark energy into his defenses. The air around him crackled with tension. Odin raised the Eternal Spear high, but instead of striking immediately, he glanced briefly at the Dragon King. Then, with lightning speed, he thrust the spear downward. A deafening crack shattered the silence—the barrier conjured by the Aether Particle collapsed in an instant.
In that fleeting moment, the Dragon King acted. His arms extended, palms clapped together, and then he pushed forward with immense force. The massive divine dragon in the sky twisted with startling agility, its movements fluid and precise. It slammed into the remnants of the Aether Particle, shattering it completely, before engulfing Malekith in a single, voracious gulp.
The Dragon King's hands moved again, and the Portal of the Dragon Dimension surged forward, drawing the divine dragon back into its depths. As the Dragon King crossed his arms, the thousand-meter-wide gate of the Dragon Dimension slammed shut with finality. A low, mournful wail lingered briefly in the air before fading into silence.
"Dragon King! You're amazing!!"
Thor's voice boomed, his enthusiasm unabashed. His cheerleader-like outburst, while genuine, was undeniably awkward. The Dragon King ignored him, turning instead to Odin's projection. The figure was enigmatic—its movements stiff, yet its eyes held a spark of vitality. Was this Odin from the past, or a manifestation of the present? It was hard to say.
The Dragon King stepped forward, and Odin transferred the Eternal Spear into his hand. With an almost imperceptible nod, Odin dissolved into white divine energy, returning to the spear. Meanwhile, the Dark Elves' main warship, hovering ominously to the side, recognized the dire situation. It began to retreat, its form fading into invisibility as it fled.
The Dragon King raised his hand, tracing nine golden circles in the air. Within each portal, a figure emerged simultaneously. Without a word, the Dragon King gestured with his spear, and the nine figures shot toward the retreating warship. Another fierce battle erupted across the sea.
Turning his attention elsewhere, the Dragon King flew toward the White Dragon. He landed gracefully on its head, releasing the Eternal Spear, which floated beside him. With his palm facing downward, Dragon Power surged outward in rolling waves, enveloping the front end of the massive water curtain that stretched for dozens of kilometers. Slowly, the White Dragon began to swim forward.
The deadly tsunami began to recede, its destructive force ebbing away along the path it had carved. The crowd, who had narrowly escaped catastrophe, erupted into cheers once more. Steve Rogers gazed up at the Dragon King atop the White Dragon, discreetly wiping away tears of relief. Moments later, the seawater withdrew entirely.
The city lay in stark contrast—one half drenched as if by a century's worth of rain, the other scorched by merciless flames. Having fulfilled his tasks, the Dragon King paid no further attention to the ongoing battle between the nine figures and the warship. Instead, he ascended into the sky, disappearing from view.
After stepping out of the iron armor, Hong Fei first sent the armor back to its original place through a Portal. He then looked down at the scarred city below, his expression unreadable.
The Dark Elves' main warship still clung to its final shreds of resistance, which meant this battle wasn't over yet. For Hong Fei, that was a relief. He didn't have to worry about an overwhelming surge of power threatening to tear him apart—not yet, at least.
Still, he could feel it coming. This time, the physical and energy enhancements would far surpass anything he'd experienced before. They might even propel him into an entirely new realm of strength. Especially the energy—his control over it had been slipping lately. He'd pushed himself too far, and now the consequences were catching up to him. So much so that when he heard the cheers of the crowd and saw their faces, he felt something he shouldn't have.
Something he didn't want to feel.
It disgusted him. At its core, it was a desire to run away, to escape. Xu Wenwu had been right about him—he was a calm person, too calm. That clarity of thought forced him to confront the tangled web of cause and effect. And when he looked at those people, their gratitude and relief only made the absurdity of it all hit harder.
Even though this had been his goal from the start.
"Are you confused?"
The Ancient One's voice broke through his thoughts, sudden and sharp.
Hong Fei didn't turn around.
"No."
"There's little difference between the death of one person and the death of many," she continued, her tone unnervingly calm. "You should feel glad. This proves you're still human."
Hong Fei's expression darkened.
"If I'm not human, what else would I be?"
"What defines a human?" she countered.
He frowned, but she didn't wait for an answer. Her gaze shifted to the ruins of the city below.
"This is the price of your trial and error."
Hong Fei scoffed, refusing to acknowledge her words.
"You want to do something for them, don't you?" she pressed.
"No. Not at all."
"Really?"
"Yes."
"That's fine too," she said, her voice indifferent. "This was their destiny. They were meant to die for you. Their lives were the price paid for your contemplation. That was their purpose."
Hong Fei's frown deepened.
"I don't believe in destiny. No one is born to serve someone else. No one's life exists just to die for another."
The Ancient One smiled faintly. "Do you want to fight for justice on their behalf?"
"Absurd. Why would I?"
"They died because of you."
"That's their bad luck."
"Bad luck you brought them."
"So what?"
She shook her head, feigning surprise.
"I didn't say 'so what.' You asked me first. I was merely following your lead, pointing out two directions."
"When did I ask you?"
"Three hours from now."
Hong Fei fell silent, his eyes flickering with conflicting emotions. The Ancient One stood beside him, patient and unmoving.
"It's better if they're dead," he muttered finally. "No one would be annoyed then."
The Ancient One let out a sharp laugh.
"Is the Dragon King trying to run away?"
He ignored her jab.
"Why didn't you stop me?"
"Why should I?"
"Does that need a reason? Aren't you the righteous sorcerer who protects Earth?"
"I do protect Earth," she said calmly. "And I've done my duty well. But 'righteous'? I wouldn't dare claim that title."
Her bluntness caught him off guard, leaving him momentarily at a loss. She continued, "I could have stopped you today, but in the future, you might do far worse things."
"You think everything you caused today is terrible, but don't forget—there are far more terrifying things in this world than this."
"How much do you really know about me?" Hong Fei asked, his voice low.
The Ancient One smiled but said nothing. A long silence stretched between them before Hong Fei sighed.
"I'm not the soft-hearted type."
"I know," she replied. "What you're feeling now isn't soft-heartedness. It's pity."
"Pity?"
"Yes. You're sympathetic, but you don't regret it."
"Mm."
"If someone did what you did, you'd kill them without hesitation."
"True."
"But when it comes to your own actions, you realize there's no fixing them."
"Exactly."
"Why dwell on your worries now? Why not try a different approach moving forward?"
"Like what?"
"That's your problem to figure out."
Hong Fei chuckled at the response. By the end of the conversation, he felt lighter, as if a weight had lifted.
"Honestly, at first, I thought you'd stop me—maybe even kill me," he admitted.
The Ancient One fanned herself lazily.
"You're more useful alive than dead."
Her bluntness didn't bother him. If anything, it was a relief. Survival hinges on having value. Hong Fei's gaze hardened as he declared, "I won't pick either extreme. I'll carve my own path—right down the middle!"
"Those are directions, not paths," came the reply.
He frowned and turned, only to find the Ancient One gone. The last traces of her presence flickered and vanished beside him. At that moment, Hong Fei felt certain he was still human. But what about the Ancient One? Was she still human? Did she fit his definition of humanity? The thought sparked another question: Does it even matter whether someone is human or not?
"Boss, should we still launch the nuke?"
Big Head's voice crackled in his ear. Hong Fei stayed silent for a long while. Finally, he laughed—a sudden, sharp sound.
"No," he said, his tone as casual as ever. "I don't want to scare these people to death."
His gaze drifted to the crowd below, survivors weeping with relief. When he looked away, a sneer tugged at his lips. He wasn't sure if he was mocking them—or himself.