Chapter 118: Scheming to Seize the Dominion of Shadow
All life that bathes in sunlight, even a Skyfather raised among the God Race, holds the World Tree in the deepest reverence.
The World Tree generously bestows its radiance, providing divine power that allows the God Race to easily tread a path of power far beyond the reach of ordinary species. Their starting point is simply too high.
But after the light, there is always the portion belonging to darkness, covetously waiting to make those who enjoy the sun pay the price.
As countless planets from the various worlds of the World Tree sent emissaries to Asgard to mourn Odin...
...in the shadows cast by the great branches, tall, dark figures watched everything with cold indifference.
They stood in the darkness, coldly observing all that transpired in the endless light, much like the Watchers who traverse the Multiverse.
These Shadow Gods witnessed the conflicts of many worlds, the birth and destruction of countless planets, and the endless races of gods drawing power from the World Tree.
They even saw the arrival of Cul and were invigorated by it, once planning to use him to trigger Ragnarok.
When was the last Ragnarok? It had been too long, so long that these Shadow Gods had forgotten what a wonderful taste it was.
You see, the Shadow Gods derive the immense energy needed to sustain their existence and increase their strength from Ragnarok. It is their only source of sustenance.
Unfortunately, it seemed their plan to use Cul to trigger Ragnarok would have to be shelved for the time being.
"How vexing. We thought Cul could be a useful tool to destroy Asgard. Judging by his attitude toward Odin, he was clearly full of conflict with another Odin in his own universe."
"That Great Serpent was the most suitable first choice, but unfortunately, he was defeated by our second choice."
"What now? We can't reveal ourselves at this time. The Shadow Gods can only become masters of the World Tree, feared even by other gods, by remaining in mysterious obscurity."
Several Shadow Gods, their forms indistinct in the darkness, conversed in an ancient language.
If someone proficient in the linguistics of the ancient gods were present, they would recognize that the language spoken by these Shadow Gods was remarkably similar to the ancient divine tongue used by Knull—abstruse and difficult to comprehend, with each syllable resonating with divine power and carrying an immense amount of information.
At the Skyfather level, the amount of information a single, tiny life form can carry is already terrifying, let alone these Shadow Gods, who could directly manipulate the World Tree and moderately interfere with the distribution of divine power.
"I have a feeling that the human named Du Wa has sensed our presence."
"It doesn't matter if he's sensed us or not. It's our own fault for being too hasty. In our eagerness to feast upon Ragnarok, we were too impatient to act, and even the dying Odin noticed us."
One cold voice after another rang out. They were deliberately restraining themselves; otherwise, these syllables would have long since spread throughout the entire World Tree, heard by every being who commanded its system of divine power.
The Shadow Gods observed Asgard with cold eyes.
Odin was dead, which meant one less trouble for them. What's more, they were fortunate that Du Wa had risen. He was an incredibly aggressive human whose parasitic species was fanatically warlike. If used properly, they were the perfect weapon to bring about the destruction of Asgard.
Yes, they weren't worried by Du Wa's powerful performance and rapid expansion; on the contrary, they were happy to see it happen.
Because the world destined to bear the brunt of Ragnarok was Asgard. The most urgent task was to eliminate this, the strongest of the worlds that had once nearly ruled the Nine Realms.
As for having to face an even more powerful Du Wa and his species after destroying Asgard... to be honest, the Shadow Gods didn't see that as a problem at all.
Setting aside whether they would choose Midgard as the world for the next Ragnarok—they generally wouldn't. Even if Asgard was destroyed, a new Asgard would be rebuilt after a long time, and a new generation of Asgardian gods would be born. When that time came, they would likely still choose Asgard as the site for Ragnarok.
Even if they did, that would be millions of years in the future. Devouring the energy released by the destruction of Asgard would be enough to sustain them for a very long time.
At worst, after obtaining that power, they could use their vastly increased strength to easily crush Du Wa and the entire Alien Species.
The arrogance of the Shadow Gods was built upon their formidable strength and their powerful manipulation of the World Tree.
"So, Du Wa has always been the de facto first choice. The current king of Asgard, Thor, already possesses the Odin-Force, Stormbreaker, and Gungnir, as well as the Destroyer Armor blessed by the All-Father. With a guy like that guarding Asgard..."
"Neither Surtur, Loki, Hela, nor the Fenris Wolf possess the absolute power needed to suppress Thor and destroy Asgard. If not Du Wa, who else can we choose? Du Wa has already used his Xenomorphs to steal a portion of the World Tree's divine power, and it won't be long before he takes more. Not to mention, he holds Cul, a Skyfather from another world, in his hands."
"Driving that Great Serpent to devour Asgard should have been the best script for this cycle of Ragnarok, but since Cul has fallen into Du Wa's hands, then we should choose Du Wa."
"Malekith is also an option. Those Dark Elves have been plotting to return to the World Tree and reclaim their position."
"The Dark Elves... only if there are no other options. But we can observe them. If necessary, we can act from the shadows."
The Shadow Gods quickly reached a consensus. The lot of them were already impatient to acquire their food and enjoy a feast they had awaited for far too long.
The wails of the gods, the fall of divine races, the shattering of worlds... just thinking about it made the Shadow Gods drool.
They all turned their gazes to Asgard, staring intently at Thor and Du Wa.
...
"I never like dealing with those who have an overly large appetite," Du Wa said, almost to himself. "These types spend too much energy on acquiring food. The only ways to deal with them are to either kill them or satisfy them. The problem is, their appetites can never be sated."
Du Wa spoke casually, and Thor listened with partial understanding. He subconsciously mulled over every word Du Wa said, trying to discern any deeper meaning.
Thor was now the king of Asgard. His every word and action had to be considered for the sake of the entire God Race, as well as for the many planets ruled by the Asgardians.
"Is this related to the shadow my father mentioned? He must have spoken to you about this before he died. What plan did you two have? You can tell me," Thor said, lowering his voice, though it was of little use.
"That depends on when those rats in the shadows decide to make their move. I'm not sure what they think of Cul, but it's foreseeable that their patience is running thin and will soon be exhausted... But don't worry. They are scheming, and I am scheming against them."
Du Wa and Thor spoke as they walked across the continent of Asgard.
Everyone who saw the two of them stopped in their tracks and nodded in greeting, their faces showing respect.
This was especially true for those from the various planets of other worlds seeing a Xenomorph for the first time; along with their curiosity, they also felt an instinctive fear.
Thor was one thing. Although he had likely received the Odin-Force and grown stronger, his path of growth was clear and understandable.
But Du Wa was somewhat terrifying. He commanded the powerful Alien Species, had forged a great name for himself throughout the World Tree, and had personally built a fearsome reputation.
One powerful enemy after another had fallen before him, as helpless and pitiful as stalks of wheat.
Jotunheim, one of the Nine Realms, had become the Xenomorphs' hunting ground. The various tribes of Giants who lived there were either passively turned into Xenomorphs or actively joined them, living in miserable straits.
It was foreseeable that even if Jotunheim got lucky in the future and a remarkable Skyfather rose among them, they would not be able to shake Du Wa's powerful rule. The best possible outcome would be to become the next Laufey.
Du Wa had carved out his position under the World Tree through his own formidable strength and endless array of means.
"Thor, as a friend, I must remind you: you don't need to worry about the matter of the shadow for now. If anything changes, I will act before you do. Your real trouble is about to arrive," said Du Wa.
"What trouble? Valhalla, which you just mentioned?"
"You'll find out soon enough."
At the same time, in Helheim, Hela, the Goddess of Death, successfully broke free from Odin's seal. A sinister sneer gradually formed on her face.
"So Odin is finally dead? A pity. That old fool won't be able to personally witness me taking back the throne of Asgard."
Hela's mind was now consumed with revenge. She would go on a killing spree, bring death to Asgard, and conquer more worlds—especially Jotunheim and Muspelheim.
The more Odin forbade her from doing something, the more determined she was to do it, just to prove the hypocritical Odin wrong.
Two thousand years of sunless imprisonment had left Hela's heart extremely twisted and filled with resentment.
"Two thousand years is too short a time. Who is the new king? That old fool deliberately imprisoned me in the deepest part of Helheim, preventing me from seeing him one last time before he died. Now I have to find out the news myself."
Hela began to wander through Helheim, indiscriminately capturing the souls of the dead.
But after some interrogation, Hela was suddenly stunned.
"What? Jotunheim was conquered by a race that isn't even divine? And Laufey died in battle... Dead, but not completely dead? What kind of bullshit description is that? You lowly soul, you brainless thing, you can't even speak clearly."
Hela cleaved the soul in two with her sword. Soon, she figured it out: what the soul had said was correct.
A parasitic fighting race? Repelled Knull, the God of the Symbiotes, and Dormammu, the Lord of the Dark Dimension? Actually occupies Jotunheim?
A friend of Asgard acknowledged by Odin, Thor's good brother, the most generous world lord of the World Tree, the Supreme King of a fighting race, an intelligent person, as Mephisto himself had discovered?
"What is all this nonsense? In such a short time, such a powerful new species emerged from a place like Midgard?"
Hela was completely baffled.
She certainly knew of Midgard. Although it was called the world of mortals, it was actually home to many dangerous individuals. Midgard's core planet—Earth—had even drawn the attention of the Celestials. Those Celestials had deployed many experiments on Earth.
But that was entirely different from a super-species that had risen to power in just a few short years.
In terms of the sheer number of Skyfather-level combatants, the Xenomorph race led by the human named Du Wa could even rival Asgard, which had developed for countless years.
This was too exaggerated, even defying common sense.
Hela looked at the vast number of dead souls lying before her, fell silent for a long time, and decided to return to Asgard first to see for herself.
At the very least, she had to kill Thor first and take back her throne.
In Hela's judgment, this brother she had never met had no noteworthy feats to his name. He was always defeated in major confrontations, especially serving as a backdrop for Du Wa, often mentioned to demonstrate Du Wa's greatness.
"Even if the old man gave the Odin-Force to Thor before he died, such a short amount of time isn't enough for that idiot Thor to master much of it."
Hela gripped the Night-Sky Sword, pondering how to get to Asgard.
...
Du Wa opened his eyes, no longer paying attention to the affairs of Asgard.
His relationship with both of Asgard's kings, Odin and Thor, was primarily one of mutual benefit. Having done this much, Du Wa felt he had done more than enough.
"If I'm not mistaken, Hela should be on her way to Asgard. I just don't know when she'll arrive without the Rainbow Bridge to use."
The mere thought of a divine Skyfather having to trudge sullenly through the dark cosmos made Du Wa shake his head.
Rather than caring about the deadly struggle between the siblings Hela and Thor, Du Wa shifted his attention to his own affairs. He planned how to provoke the ancient Shadow Gods into personally taking the field, so that once they revealed a weakness, he could deliver a fatal blow to the Shadow Gods, seize their authority, and supplement the divine power branches under his command.
He contemplated his two most important trophies: the great serpent, Cul, who was in his hands, and Mephisto, who was in the hands of the Ancient One.
The Ancient One arrived to meet him, bringing a pile of Mephistos with her.
"I thought you would go directly to Asgard to mourn Odin," Du Wa said, looking at her.
The Ancient One shook her head calmly. "There's no need. I didn't know him well."
"Hardly any of the people who went to Asgard from other planets to mourn Odin actually knew him well. Even I only spoke a few words to him. To put it bluntly, you just don't think it's necessary. It seems you've made up your mind?"
"Yes, it is time for me to step down. There is no longer a place for me here."
"But you haven't finished training Strange. With the threat of the Black Magicians gone and Dormammu's offensive temporarily repelled, this should be the best time for you to train him."
Du Wa looked strangely at the serene Ancient One before him. "Let me guess, you don't plan on teaching Strange at all? You're just going to let him grow wild?"
"You could say that. Mordo and Wong are qualified introductory teachers. As for what heights Strange can reach, that all depends on himself; Mordo and Wong can't teach him everything."
Du Wa studied the Ancient One thoughtfully and suddenly asked, "Have you encountered some difficulty?"
"When Mephisto opened the barrier to this universe, my counterpart from a parallel universe also sent a message. It's time for me to depart and go where I'm supposed to go."
After speaking, the Ancient One pointed to the Mephistos on the ground. "I captured nine Mephistos. I'll give you six. I'm keeping the remaining three, imprisoned in Kamar-Taj."
Mephisto watched as the humans before him divided him up like they were sorting cargo.
No, perhaps being treated as cargo was the best possible outcome. The humans in this universe were all more abnormal than the last, and their methods of solving problems were more demonic than a demon's.
"You shouldn't be a human. You should have been born with your Xenomorphs in some hell. If so, you would have become a remarkable hell demon," Mephisto said with genuine sincerity.
But Du Wa treated all of Mephisto's words as nonsense. Don't think you can bypass his traps by simply taking the opposite of his words; Mephisto would anticipate such a trick, leading only to more troublesome outcomes.
"A Hell Lord? That's a good suggestion. I'll send a promising demon Xenomorph to your Hell to replace you. The biggest problem is, I don't have a demon Xenomorph yet. How about we start with you?"
Du Wa looked down, observing the Great Demon who was infamous across many universes.
"Mephisto, hurry up and offer me your precious body."
Hearing this, Mephisto's expression turned ugly. Because in Kamar-Taj, there was another human saying similar words.
Strange stared with bloodshot eyes at a Mephisto trapped within a magic circle.
(end of chapter)