Chapter 320

Shi Ler heard Peter swallow hard over the phone, the young spider's panicked voice crackling through: "Mr. Shi Ler, you'd better come over… now…"

Strange immediately opened a portal; Shi Ler hadn't even hung up before Strange stepped through, and then Shi Ler heard Strange curse.

Shi Ler, curious, glanced toward the portal on the bed—but saw nothing. Strange's voice came from the other side: "Shi Ler, come over now!"

Neither Peter nor Strange were the type to curse. For both of them to explode at once, Shi Ler was genuinely curious about who—or what—was on the other side.

After stepping through the portal, he froze. Staring at the girl across from him, Shi Ler drew a deep breath and said: "... oki?!"

Yes, the black-robed girl standing before him was Loki—or rather, Luo Yi.

If it were merely a gender-swapped Loki, it wouldn't have shocked Shi Ler so much, because he knew from the comics that Loki had transformed into a woman multiple times—or rather, his gender was inherently fluid, an official canon detail. So if he one day decided to become female, it wouldn't be surprising.

What shocked Shi Ler was the many layers of halos hovering behind this girl-version of Luo Yi. This wasn't a metaphor—it was a literal description.

The instant she pulled back her hood, a series of radiant, ethereal halos—each shimmering with rainbow light—appeared behind her back, like scenes from medieval religious oil paintings, making her appear profoundly holy and beautiful.

Loki was beautiful, which didn't surprise Shi Ler—after all, the Ma Lei Loki had always been strikingly handsome, so becoming a goddess naturally made her beautiful. But this girl-version of Luo Yi carried a unique charm, an aura of sanctity that made everyone unable to look away.

Luo Yi's first words were: "I am Luo Yi."

Her second words were: "I've caused a colossal disaster—help me think of a solution!"

Thanks to her innate sanctity and charm, this plea didn't sound like a cry for help—it sounded more like a divine maiden issuing a heavenly decree.

Peter swallowed again. When Luo Yi turned to look at him, Peter turned bright red, flustered and helpless.

Of everyone present, Shi Ler had the highest resistance to Luo Yi's allure. He shoved Strange and said: "Let's move somewhere else to talk."

Strange was still reeling from overwhelming shock. After all, among everyone here, he was the one who knew Loki best—and their bond was the closest. Now his best friend had suddenly become a breathtakingly beautiful, holy goddess. Strange couldn't process it.

"I'll do it," Luo Yi said, extending her hand and drawing a circle in the air, opening a portal. Shi Ler stepped through first, Luo Yi followed behind him, and the remaining three stood frozen for a long moment before finally entering.

The portal opened into the visitor's room of Arkham Sanatorium. The group sat down as usual. Luo Yi occupied the sofa by the window alone. Shi Ler sat on a single armchair to the side. The other three squeezed onto the opposite sofa, staring fixedly at Luo Yi.

"Tell us what happened," Shi Ler said to the girl Luo Yi.

Admittedly, just staring at her face for a few seconds felt like an invisible vortex pulling one's soul inward. Shi Ler stared at Luo Yi for a long time, then said: "You're on the verge of ascension. What exactly did you do?"

Luo Yi sighed softly—and even that sigh sounded like a divine maiden mourning for the suffering of mortals.

"It all starts with Sakaar…"

As previously recounted, after Thor was exiled to Sakaar, he ascended into a new god of light.

You might ask: Was Loki satisfied with this outcome? He himself couldn't say. But the fact undeniably shook his soul, leaving his tangled emotions without any outlet.

So when Thor said he intended to stay on Sakaar to free the slaves, Loki neither agreed nor refused—only followed him numbly.

Thor felt guilty toward Loki, but didn't know how to change his state. So he channeled a large portion of his divine light power into Loki's body.

But just like the previously broken Thor, Loki had no intention of using this power.

They left the Sakaar arena and began heading toward the mine where Thor had once worked.

Across Sakaar's wild wasteland, scorching winds howled; sandstorms were the only constant rhythm. Yet Thor didn't use his immense light power to teleport—he walked step by step with Loki.

Along the way, a flash of light appeared. Sif descended from the rainbow bridge's glow. Thor was stunned to see her. "Sif, what are you doing here? Are you healed?"

Sif's complexion was still pale. She walked up to Thor and said: "I recovered faster than the others, so I came to find you."

"When the power of the God of Light descended, all of Asgard's people shouted for their new king. Thor, congratulations…"

Thor showed no joy. In the past, hearing all of Asgard celebrate him would have sent him into ecstatic frenzy. Now he merely replied dryly: "Is that so? Seems this time the commotion was quite loud…"

Sif sensed Thor's change. The immense power and solemn aura radiating from him now made people instinctively respect him. She reached out and touched his face. "You've changed a lot…"

"Why don't you return to Asgard? A grand victory celebration awaits you—you know that…"

Thor shook his head. "I've lost interest in such events. I'm staying here—I have something more important to do."

As Thor recounted his experiences on Sakaar, Venom's voice echoed inside Loki: "How did the Phantasm end up inside that goddess?"

Loki looked up at Sif. Sif turned to meet his gaze as if reading his thoughts—her eyes flickered with purple light. The Phantasm spoke through Sif's mouth: "Isn't it your fault? You controlled that giant robot and nearly killed Sif. When Hill tried to save her, I slipped into her body to repair her…"

"Later, I realized we worked well together, so I stayed. Now I have a divine host too, Venom. Ready for a duel?"

"You don't want a divine host to duel me—you just couldn't bear to let her die, Phantasm. You cosmic agents are still the same: boundlessly merciful, endlessly helpful…"

"At least I'm better than you, you madman! When you return to your homeworld, Phantasm and Lei Ting will teach you a lesson!"

Watching Sif and Loki converse more smoothly than he himself could, Thor scratched his head and didn't mind. He knew it was simply because of the two alien symbiotes inside them.

Or rather, Thor was quietly pleased. Previously, Loki and Sif had been mortal enemies—every meeting turned into a brawl. Thor had nearly gone mad trying to mediate. Now, with the two symbiotes coordinating, things were actually calmer.

But to Loki, this situation felt strange. Venom constantly emitted impulses, making him unable to stop staring at Sif. During their journey to the Red Ring Mine, Loki had repeatedly slapped his own head in secluded spots.

"Venom! What's wrong with you? What are you thinking? Sif is Odin's chosen bride for Thor! They both know this!"

"So what? I'm not attracted to Sif."

"You—" Loki was speechless. Then he asked, bewildered: "Don't symbiotes reproduce without mating?"

"True. But does that stop me from wanting to fall in love?"

Loki opened his mouth, clenched his teeth, and spoke to the air: "Listen, Venom. You can't do this. Even if you're drawn to Phantasm, her host is Sif—she'll be my future sister-in-law, the Queen of Asgard. If you even think about her, Odin will strike us dead!"

"So what? You and Thor aren't blood-related. Neither of you are Odin's sons."

"And who says Odin actually betrothed them? Was there a ceremony? A ring? Any deeper connection? If none of that happened, why can't the first one to arrive—"

In the visitor's room, the group exchanged glances, casting slightly disgusted looks at Luo Yi. Strange spoke first: "You didn't actually… This violates ethics. Even if they're not married, it's still immoral…"

"Then you really did cause a massive disaster," Steve said diplomatically. "Your father will be furious."

Luo Yi's expression remained blank. "I didn't do anything with her."

"Then what do you mean by 'massive disaster'…?"

"It's worse than that."

In a Sakaar outpost, Loki took a deep breath—he nearly suffocated. "I don't like Sif! That annoying woman has always harassed me. We're enemies, understand?"

"I'm also at odds with Phantasm—they've hunted me relentlessly. But it doesn't matter—sex is the best way to turn enemies into friends..."

Loki realized he couldn't reason with this suddenly lustful symbiote.

While he wrestled with Venom, they reached the Red Ring Mine and entered the dangerous mine shaft where Thor had once mined.

There, the three erupted into violent conflict—or rather, Sif finally snapped.

Loki struggled with Venom; Sif struggled with Phantasm. Everyone knew Venom now carried fragments of Bruce and Stark's personalities—two notorious playboys whose charm needed no explanation. Phantasm, too, was a sentient, emotional symbiote. Along the journey, her perception of Venom had softened considerably—and she'd even developed some feelings.

Sif sensed Phantasm's emotions. She didn't believe symbiotes couldn't love. To her, any being with an independent soul deserved the freedom to love.

Phantasm falling for Venom was fine. But she couldn't fall for Loki. They were enemies. Sif hated Loki with a vengeance.

She also knew she was Odin's chosen queen for Thor—and Thor and Loki were brothers. If she and Loki became involved, Asgard's royal name would be ruined.

But earlier, when the Destroyer nearly killed her, it was Phantasm who saved her, swiftly repairing her body. Phantasm had saved Sif's life. Sif had no moral ground to stop her. Thus, the atmosphere between her and Loki grew subtly tense.

But Sif couldn't endure this tension. She hated Loki more than she disliked him—she harbored a deep, bitter grudge.

As the three explored the mine shaft, Sif and Loki finally exploded. They screamed at each other, dredging up every past grievance—and ultimately, they couldn't hold back. They began fighting.

You might ask: What was Thor doing? He was trying to mediate. Though his power had returned and upgraded, his emotional intelligence hadn't improved overnight. Thor had grown wiser in many ways, but in interpersonal matters, he was still the same Thor. His mediation was mostly useless.

When Sif and Loki started fighting, Thor tried to stop them. But Loki wasn't using his own divine power—he was still an ordinary mortal. He was using the divine light power Thor had infused into him. But this power didn't belong to Loki, and he couldn't control it well.

As he used this unfamiliar power to block Sif's attacks, the unstable energy erupted violently, collapsing the entire underground mine shaft of the Red Ring Mine—and hurling Loki into the endless void beneath Sakaar's bedrock.

Amid Thor's shouts and the thunderous explosion, Loki's vision shattered into countless fragments of void, swirling into a storm. After an endless barrage of spatial turbulence, Loki was flung into an alien dimension…