Chapter 324: Unscrupulousness to the Fourth Power (Part 2)

When Nick walked in wearing a red reindeer sweater, Strange snapped his fingers and said, "Hey, buddy, you're way more stylish than the last guy."

Nick paused and asked, "Who? Captain?"

"That's right. His red-and-green sweater was truly something else."

"I let him choose between these two, and he picked the red-and-green one." Nick looked down, stretched out the sweater on his body, glanced at the pattern, and said, "Honestly, I actually kind of like the one he's wearing."

"Did you use yourself as the model when you bought these clothes? Did you never think about how disastrous it would be for a white person to wear it?" Schiller stood up, took another cup from the cabinet, and asked while pouring wine for Nick.

Nick walked over and sat on the sofa. He shook his head and said in a relaxed tone, "It doesn't matter. Anyway, besides me and the Captain, no one will wear it. Since no one will wear it, any color will do."

"I think it's because these old-fashioned colors are the cheapest. When you took them off the clothing factory's hands, they probably even had to pay you a cleanup fee."

"Don't say that. This is my winter reimbursement for the Charge of the Light Brigade. If you hadn't called me over, I'd still be busy tallying Christmas gifts of twelve thousand per person..."

After speaking, he turned to look at Loki, who was sitting on the sofa, and asked, "Who is this Young Lady...?"

"She is Loki."

"Oh..." Nick drew out a long sound. He said, "Interesting."

"Aren't you surprised?" Strange asked him.

"A little, but I can't comment. As the Director of S. H. I. E. L. D., I can only remain silent on sensitive issues like gender and transgender people."

"Come on, take the bug you hid in Steve's clothes first before saying that." Schiller glanced at him and said.

Nick waved his hands and said, "Supernatural events on Earth also fall under our jurisdiction. Isn't it normal for special agents on missions to have communication devices to contact headquarters at any time?"

"So you heard everything we said before?"

"I only heard the first version of the story, but I guess there must be a hidden version, right?" Nick tilted his head and nodded at Loki.

Strange briefly introduced the current situation to Nick. Schiller placed his wine glass in front of Nick. Nick took a sip of wine and said, "Alright, I think I mostly understand. The plan and accidents together led to the current situation, but overall, it's still within the plan."

Loki nodded, lit a cigar, put it in her mouth, then looked at Schiller, who had just sat down, and said, "When you gave me the suggestion to cause trouble and test Odin's attitude, I already had a thought."

"Only that guy Thor would cause trouble without using his brain. Or rather, he really causes trouble, whereas I don't."

"If one day I cause trouble, it must be part of some plan of mine. This time is no exception." Loki smiled.

"Moreover, Thor and his stupid friends can only create small messes. No matter how many times they cause trouble, it's harmless. Besides making people laugh at their stupidity, it has no effect whatsoever."

"But I won't do that. If I'm going to cause trouble, I'll make a big scene, the kind that makes the entire universe boil..." Loki's tone carried the evil and madness unique to an evil god. She said, "I won't make the All-Father angry; I will only make him shocked."

"You can just say directly that you also want to beat your brother in causing trouble." Schiller summarized.

"Alright, there is that reason too, but it's not the main one." Loki shook her head and continued, "When I decided to make some noise, I realized this was a perfect opportunity to kill three birds with one stone."

"After Thor was exiled to Earth, he made no progress. He needed an opportunity to awaken."

"When I learned I wasn't Odin's biological child, I suspected a conspiracy within but couldn't prove it. I needed an opportunity to test Odin's attitude."

"After the All-Father fell asleep, some people were stirring, wanting to coerce Thor. Odin also needed an opportunity to suppress them..."

"I combined these three opportunities into one, creating the event of the Destroyer invading Earth."

"Now it seems your goals have all been achieved." Strange thought for a moment and said, "Thor has awakened and even gained a new Light God position. You aren't being blasted to death by Odin now, which means he must still love you quite a bit. And those who wanted to guide Thor should have surfaced..."

"That's right, but there's one more thing. I deliberately sent Thor to Sakaar just to stall him. He would only be a hindrance there. Without him, I can continue my own plans."

"Actually, you didn't originally plan to go to Sakaar, did you?" Schiller asked.

Loki sighed and said, "That's right. But if I didn't give Thor some stimulation, I don't know when he would have awakened."

"Now I understand why you went alone to the Grandmaster's lair even without godly power. You were using a bitter flesh strategy..."

"It wasn't exactly a bitter flesh strategy. I knew the Grandmaster wouldn't dare kill me." Loki rested her elbow on the sofa armrest, then propped her head with her fingers and continued, "I didn't expect Thor to gain a new Light God position, but that's a good thing too. In future plans, Asgard will have more initiative because of this."

"You still haven't said what you plan to do next." Strange looked at him.

"Don't rush. How has the business at the Sanctum Sanctorum been recently?"

"Do you even have the face to bring that up? During the time you disappeared, I was almost driven crazy by work. Do you remember this is actually a joint venture? I did all the work. Is that reasonable?"

"Alright, then it looks like your business skills must be very proficient. Let me ask you a question..." Loki took a puff of the cigar, exhaled the smoke, and continued, "Right now, the Lord of the Underworld is searching the world for me, wanting to kill me, while the God of Light is also searching the world for me, wanting to protect me."

"They hate each other. With new grudges added to old hatreds, as soon as I appear, they will definitely start fighting."

"So here's the question. We now know for certain that a war between cosmic evil gods is about to happen. The scale of the conflict between the Death Realm and the life force of the World Tree must be huge. What should the Sanctum Sanctorum do?"

Strange stroked his chin and said, "Hmm... mediate in the middle?"

Nick shook his head. He answered first, "We need to give a warning. We need to tell the other cosmic evil gods that we are about to start fighting."

"Is it to deter them? To announce to the universe that Asgard still possesses immense power. Even Hela and Baldr, who were hidden, could cause such a huge scene. Then no one would dare question Odin's authority..." Strange understood very quickly.

"That's right." Nick continued, "Sometimes, internal competition not only consumes strength but also serves as a deterrent to the outside. The strength displayed in a civil war can make certain factions dare not act rashly."

"And this will also shake up the situation within Asgard. Thor has obtained new Light power and is destined to become the new King of Asgard. But at this moment, Baldr, the former heir to the God King, makes a high-profile appearance. Appearing with him is also Hela, the Princess of Asgard..."

"The previously unshakeable position of the heir suddenly has the possibility of being shaken. This will trigger a major reshuffle within Asgard. I can use this turmoil to reorganize the internal factions of Asgard, and even pave the way for future social structure reforms." Loki summarized.

Strange clapped lightly and said to Loki, "The God of Mischief, indeed lives up to its name."

"In this chain of plans, you have achieved all your goals, including awakening Thor, testing Odin, and disrupting the existing order of Asgard..."

"The only question is, how will Baldr and Hela fight? Hela made terms with you, but Baldr didn't. Do you want Hela to throw the match?"

"Why not? Anyway, even if she beats Baldr, she can't beat Odin. She will have to return to the Death Realm sooner or later. A script where both sides suffer heavy losses, she loses slightly, temporarily retreats, and returns to the Death Realm to recuperate, isn't that a very good script?"

"Actually, I think this plan could be perfected a bit more." At this moment, Schiller suddenly spoke up. The other three focused their gaze on him.

"What if we fight for real?"

"What do you mean?" Nick stared at Schiller and asked. He was the first to sniff out a different vibe.

Schiller looked at Strange and said, "Earlier you mentioned that your Sanctum Sanctorum created a magical broadcast that can send messages to all cosmic evil gods. Can it send messages to only a portion of the evil gods?"

"Of course it can. Even without the broadcast, we can just use customer service."

"Good. Then the distinguished clients who previously joined our premium membership should receive the latest cosmic news..."

"What do you mean?" Strange frowned and looked at Schiller.

"What I mean is, since Baldr and Hela are going to fight anyway, why not pick a place with many cosmic evil gods and truly start a war?"

"Before starting this war, we use the broadcast to send a message to those evil gods who have topped up for premium membership at the Sanctum Sanctorum, informing them that the war is about to begin so they can take shelter. After that, we start fighting. Those who survive are Sanctum Sanctorum members; those who die are member gifts. How about that?"

The other three exchanged glances, and before they could speak, Shiler added: "Of course, I know what you are worried about—nothing more than the scope not being wide enough, the manpower not being sufficient, the destructive power not being great enough, and whether we can even secure enough member gifts to break even..."

"But it doesn't matter; do we not have the most, most noble Platinum Members? Call them, and together we will unleash war. With so many powerful Cosmic Demon Gods fighting simultaneously, from the Centaurus Constellation to the Purgatory Nebula, from the Eternal Realm to the Edge of Hell, is that not quite normal?"

"At the same time, the Holy Sanctuary, possessing a strong sense of cosmic responsibility and upholding humanitarian spirit, will open rapid evacuation channels. Those willing to join as members may evacuate; those who do not join are nature's gift."

"The First Evolution"

"When the fighting begins, how much you can snatch depends entirely on your ability. Once the war ends and we return, the protection fees collected will be distributed downward according to member levels..."

"Of course, distributing it this way might be a bit chaotic; after all, how much effort was exerted during the war is difficult to measure with numbers."

"Then, it would be better to retain this portion of funds within the Holy Sanctuary as their joint investment. We will distribute dividends to them on schedule. If they wish to receive more dividends, they must increase their investment; the more they invest, the more they share..."

"Then, integrate the equity structure, establish a Board of Directors, have shareholders vote to hire professional managers, divide the cosmic regions into sectors such as the Great Galaxy Sector, the Great Nebula Sector, and so on, then establish branches, hire managers, and adapt to local conditions..."

"... Ahem, I have said a bit too much. It doesn't matter; let us proceed with the Ten-Thousand-Year Plan for now... Oh, wait, I forgot..."

Shiler glanced around at the three of them and said: "All three of you are capable of immortality, right? However, it is a pity; I am an ordinary human, so I am afraid..."

"Stop talking. Ten sets of Infinite Serum; that is the highest price I can offer."

"One hundred sets, or there is no deal."

Nick stared at Shiler with that single eye and said: "Deal."

Shiler smiled, raised his wine glass, and said: "To the Universe."

The expressions of the other three varied, but they all raised their wine glasses and, understanding each other without words, said: "... To the Universe."