The power of thunder and flames wildly tugged inside Thor. In an indescribable intense pain, Thor's will escalated more as the conflict intensified, leading to a rapid ascension.
Just as he was about to penetrate the barrier of the individual universe, the fusion of thunder and fire was completed, and a new light power emerged inside Thor.
Combining the power of cosmic thunder and the flame of civilization, Thor, the God of Light, was born.
The primordial flash of the cosmos fell into his hand, merging with his long spear. The flames of civilization landed on his shoulders, forming a fluttering cloak.
Thor floated in the cosmos, with a dazzling halo behind him. He held thunder in one hand and flames in another. Just like the oath of ascension of all gods in Asgard, Thor's voice echoed in the universe:
"I will wield the first thunder in the cosmos, and ignite the flame for all civilizations. I am the pioneer in the dark, the protector in prosperity. I will take charge of everything light, thunder, flames, and light vested upon me, bringing together the past, the present, and the future."
"As long as there is light... I will always be."
In the Nine Major Kingdoms, in Asgard, all Asgardians looked up. They heard the oath and with it, a new branch of the World Tree sprouted.
Then, leaves fluttered, flames soared, and all Asgardians knelt halfway down. They heard from the sleeping chamber of Odin, the low voice of the Father of All Gods: "The new king."
"The new king?"
"The new king..."
"The new king!"
In the dark and destructive underworld, a female figure cloaked with the Styx muttered with an almost undetectable sigh: "...The new king."
In this land filled with the aroma of death, a lonely, cold vapor slowly rises. The white smoke became more and more concentrated, from where the incense ascended, the ashes fell. The sound of fallen chess pieces echoed in the room. The Ancient One sighed: "It seems that Asgard will have a powerful new king."
Sitting across from her, Strange asked, "So is this why Loki came looking for you, asking you to take him to Sakaar?"
"Not just Loki, this was also the wish of Odin. If Odin did not agree, I could not have allowed his two sons to run off to such a distant place to create a mess."
Strange makes his move on the chessboard and asks: "So, did you know in advance?"
The Ancient One shook her head: "It was Odin who knew in advance the truth of the Twilight of the Gods."
"What is that?"
"Asgard has taken too much from the universe. One day, they have to give back, and the Twilight of the Gods is their way of repaying the debts they owe to the universe."
The Ancient One shook her head gently again: "The strength of the God Clan has a reason, they have borrowed from even more powerful lenders."
"I remember you once mentioned that the Twilight of the Gods is inevitable. Is that true?"
The Ancient One sighed: "It has nothing to do with the human race, it is the fate of the gods, inevitable."
"But now, Thor has a new divine position..."
The Ancient One shook her head again: "The God of Light is not a new divine position. Odin's true first son, Baldur, was once the God of Light."
The Ancient One's tone revealed some confusion, she said: "The divine position of God of Light that Thor inherited is a bit strange. Baldur's position represented spring and joy, he was also the God of fertility and rebirth, but Thor is not related to this divine position at all."
"Moreover, even if he ascended to the true gods, he should have inherited the divine position of Thor, not the God of Light."
The Ancient One picked up a chess piece and continued: "In Asgard, compared to Thor, God of Light is an inferior position, and compared to God of Light's position, the divine power of Thor that Odin had given him earlier, would have been easier to obtain, wouldn't it?"
The High Lord, full of the same doubts, although he had some understanding of Asgard's godly position system, was too far from Asgard. He didn't know the difference between the God of Light and Thor, he just knew that Odin was Thor. Therefore, his son should also be Thor. Now, it seems like there's a change in the divine position?
When Thor landed, he seemed ordinary, showing no trace of the near creation-era might that had just erupted from him. Only the flicker of electricity on the long spear in his hand showed that his strength had resumed.
"Have you ascended?" the High Lord asked Thor.
"Almost." Thor shrugged: "I hit that barrier."
"Then you're far from it." High Lord retorted dismissively: "In that case, I don't want to bother you, and you shouldn't bother me either. After all, you can't kill me."
"But you hurt Loki."
"I hurt him???" High Lord raised his voice, "He conspired with Mephisto to trick me out of a huge sum of money, and he even dared to come to my face. I didn't kill him, I was already giving face to your father!!"
Thor scoffed, "As if you could defeat the Father of All Gods."
"Humph." High Lord snorted coldly, "You underestimate me, and overestimate Odin. I didn't bother arguing with him simply because one day, you Asgardians are doomed…"
He paused here, didn't finish speaking, then opened a portal to leave, obviously admitting defeat.
Thor's long spear turned into lightning and disappeared. He walked to Loki's side.
Loki had already awakened. He was lying on the ground, his eyes blankly staring at the sky. Seeing Thor coming over, Loki moved his gaze to him.
Thor, looking condescendingly at Loki, cast a shadow over him. Loki moved his gaze away from Thor, saying, "What are you going to do? Beat me up? Just like after I tricked you before?"
"No." Thor's expression was very calm. Loki frowned, struggling in pain on the spot, but he couldn't move at all. After losing his divine power and godly position, his severe injury left him with no room to move.
He saw Thor crouch down, untied the chain from his wrist, then tore off the iron chain, and put the iron ring, which had been fixed on his wrist, on his own.
Then, with that hand, Thor held the long spear that had turned into lightning and stabbed it into his own shoulder.
Blood splattered on Loki's face, he widened his eyes, looking at Thor.
Thor frowned slightly, a flash of pain crossed his face. He propped up his body with his knee, looked at Loki and said, "I apologize to you for once overlooking your situation, and to every person in Asgard who has been ignored because they are not strong enough or unable to fight."
"Our civilization should not be about violence and destruction, the world is not wrong, we are."
"In my eyes, there should not just be military exploits and honors, it is not the only honor for Asgardians to be wounded in battle."
"If the rotten dogma has deeply penetrated the bones of everyone in Asgard..." Thor dropped the long spear in his hand, used that hand to touch the wound on his shoulder, blood oozed out from between his fingers, he said, "...then this wound and chain, will always remind me of the price to pay for shortsightedness."
Loki closed his eyes tightly, turned his head to the side, a look of unwillingness on his face, one of his hands grabbed the dirt on the ground, squeezed it hard, but didn't grasp anything.
Thor looked straight at Loki, he said: "I don't believe the twilight of the gods is inevitable, I must lead Asgard out of this fate, so I need your help, I ask you, Loki..."
Loki pursed his lips, his chest rising and falling dramatically, obviously in deep pain.
He found that whenever he got the answers he wanted, or thought he wanted, his heart was filled with not joy, but more resentment.
Thor lowered his head to him, apologized to him, even asked his help, but Loki didn't feel a bit of happiness.
Because with all this, Thor had really become the rightful heir to Asgard.
Loki never thought that the blindly arrogant Thor from the past was worthy of his status, he mocked, scorned, and despised him.
But when Thor really became worthy of his position, a strong sense of unwillingness surged in Loki's heart. If Thor was good enough, then he would remain a villain in the shadows, watching others, always scheming.
Thor's unworthiness was the best excuse Loki had found for his ugly pranks. But when Thor was finally deemed worthy, Loki found that he was not as magnanimous as Thor, he was not willing to sincerely repent.
He found that he was much more despicable than Thor, he had tried everything, thought of every possible method, but unfortunately, he still lost. Whether it was bloodline, affection, abilities, or generosity, he lost completely.
Seeing Loki remained silent, Thor said: "I swear to you, past, present, future, I'll always forgive you..."
And Thor's last words, like a sharp sword, pierced into Loki's heart.
"If the twilight of the gods is indeed inevitable, at least I can guarantee that I will die before you, my brother."
After the storm subsided, the clouds in the sky of Sakaar vanished, the atmosphere that had been cracked open by lightning let in even more intense sunlight, the intense light made Loki uncertain whether he was crying for it.
But in the end, on the desolated and decaying land, the young prince's voice drifted away with the wind, becoming fainter and fainter.
"... New king."