The first thing that came into view was an array of various weapons that glowed with a cold light. Golden spears, silver longswords, giant axes, giant hammers... every kind of weapon were displayed, and all of them clearly exuded extraordinary powers.
"These are all high-quality weapons that my father had collected. Do you want one of them?" Thor said to Li Yue.
"It's alright. I forgot to tell you, but your father had promised to ask the dwarves of Nidavellir to forge an exclusive weapon for me!"
The weapons that Li Yue saw were all extraordinary weapons, almost comparable to Thor's own hammer. The rare divine weapons would attract all kinds of conflict anywhere else.
But Li Yue could only pick one artifact from the vault. How could he waste it on something placed so close to the entrance? Of course, he would have to pick one from deeper in the vault.
"What?! An exclusive weapon forged by the dwarves?! What on Earth was my father thinking? Not even I was afforded that kind of treatment."
Thor's jealousy had evolved into full-blown resentment. His Mjolnir was also forged by the dwarves, but it wasn't made exclusively for him. To put it bluntly, he was only the "current master" of the Mjolnir.
Odin had never given his own son such special treatment, but Li Yue had obtained it with only a few words.
"Had father gone senile?" Thor thought insolently to himself. What else could have explained this behavior?
Thor said nothing else and simply led Li Yue deeper into the vault. He didn't want to think about Li Yue anymore; he just wanted Li Yue to finish picking the artifact and get out of his sight as soon as possible. Otherwise, he might not be able to resist smashing Li Yue's head with the Mjolnir.
...
Weapons, armor, and other items passed them as they delved deeper into the vault. Some strange items and rare materials occasionally peeked between the artifacts, but Li Yue wasn't interested in them.
Finally, Thor led Li Yue to the last chamber in Odin's vault. Only several items were displayed in this room, all of them placed on special pedestals.
These were the most precious divine artifacts that Odin had collected. Any one of them could incite a conflict across the nine realms.
"This is the Orb of Agamotto. It can automatically detect and locate powerful magical energy, as well as reveal any major threat. The Orb of Agamotto can also peer into other worlds and dimensions." Thor pointed to one of the items. It looked like a crystal ball that glowed with purple light.
Li Yue carefully inspected the item. He recalled that he had seen it in the movie. Similar to the Eye of Agamotto, the Orb of Agamotto must have been passed down by Earth's legendary sorcerer Agamotto.
But how could it end up here, in Odin's vault? Li Yue couldn't help but be curious.
Thor observed Li Yue curiously as Li Yue stared intently at the Orb of Agamotto, but he didn't say anything. He simply continued to the next item.
"This is the Eternal Flame. It is a powerful force that my father obtained after defeating the flame giant Surtr. He himself stored the flame here. It was said that this is the source of all fire in the universe, and it has the ability to revive anyone even after their bodies have been lost. It contains the ability of destruction and rebirth!"
Thor pointed to a brazier. There was a flame burning within the brazier, which kept burning even without any fuel. The flame wasn't burning particularly fiercely, but it had the impression that it would never be extinguished.
Li Yue already knew about this item. Hela would use it to revive her mount Fenrir and summon her ghost army. Thor would eventually use it to revive and give the flame giant immense power, enough to destroy Asgard and initiate the Twilight of the Gods.
The Eternal Flame had powerful abilities, but Li Yue felt that it wouldn't be very useful for him. He decided against choosing the flame.
...
Seeing that Li Yue was still not interested, Thor continued to introduce the next item.
"The next one is the Warlock's Eye. It dates back to the origin of the universe, and it has the ability to see through everything. When used, a golden third eye would appear on your forehead. Used to its full power, it would emit light that would pierce through any illusion. It is a divine artifact specializing in restraining the evil forces of the Dark Dimension."
"Thor, how did you know the function of these items?" Li Yue asked, his curiosity piqued by Thor's extensive knowledge.
Li Yue's eyes were glued to the Warlock's Eye. It has a glowing white bead in its center, exactly where an iris would be in an eye. It even had a black dot, like a pupil.
A third eye? That's just perfect for the weapon I wanted! Should I take it?
"My father told me personally, of course. When I was young, my father would bring us here and present the items to me and my brother, telling stories about his adventure to the nine realms. But now, Loki was..."
Thor suddenly thought about Loki in the middle of his sentences. Sadness filled his heart; he didn't even know whether his younger brother was alive or dead.
"Alright, alright, I understand. Hurry up and tell me about the next one!" Li Yue facepalmed. Why did he even ask that question?
Li Yue decided against picking the Warlock's Eye for now. He felt that he had to look at the other treasures first.
"The next item comes from your Midgard, from the Atlantis civilization, one of the oldest civilizations. It was engraved with the Lifeline Formula, the equation of biological evolution. Using this Lifeline Formula, one could evolve to the highest level of life, obtaining infinite wisdom and immeasurable strength.
"It is called the Tablet of Life and Time, but unfortunately, not even Odin Allfather could decipher the engravings. Thus, he couldn't use the program himself, but its powerful function was the real deal, so he kept it here!"
Thor sighed with a regretful expression. He then noticed Li Yue's silence and turned to look at Li Yue.
Li Yue was completely immersed as he stared at the item, even though the item didn't look all that remarkable.
Li Yue felt an inexplicable attraction in his body. He had never felt such a strong desire before, and it took him quite a while to snap out of the daze.
"Thor, I want this!" Li Yue said with absolute certainty after waking back up.
"Really? You're not going to look at the others? You're choosing the one item you can't use?"
Despite wanting Li Yue to pick a piece of trash and be done with it, Thor couldn't help but do a double-take when Li Yue actually picked a useless item.
"It's alright; this is the one!" Li Yue replied firmly.
The closer Li Yue approached the item, the stronger his desire was. Li Yue even reached out to the item with his right hand.
Thor watched Li Yue's behavior curiously. This was an item that not even his father could decipher. What could possibly make Li Yue so eager to obtain it? Li Yue didn't even wait to see other artifacts.
Thor held his breath and watched nervously as Li Yue reached out and touched the tablet, but nothing strange happened.
Thor groaned. He thought that something exciting would happen.
And then, a strange phenomenon occurred. Blue energy appeared on Li Yue's finger, right where he touched the tablet. The blue energy poured from his finger to the tablet.
A burst of blue light covered the tablet, illuminating every crook and cranny. The Tablet of Life and Time was filled to its limit, thrumming with power.
Boom!
The loud noise felt like an illusion in Thor's ears. He didn't feel any shockwave, but the Tablet of Life and Time in front of him was already shattered into countless blue lights. The blue lights then rushed into Li Yue's palms, disappearing into his body.
Li Yue's body began to undergo an enormous yet unknown change!