High above Asgard, a figure wielding a hammer was fiercely striking another, who stood unmoved.
Below, many Asgardians watched with great interest, eagerly discussing the "battle" between the two.
Thud!
Thor swung Mjolnir heavily, landing a direct hit on Lynch.
But to everyone's shock, Lynch seemed to only be brushed by a light breeze, with his clothes fluttering slightly. He remained smiling, without moving an inch.
Instead, Thor, the one attacking, was sent flying backward like a cannonball, propelled by the powerful recoil from Mjolnir.
"Oh! What happened? Why did Thor get thrown back?"
An astonished Asgardian girl exclaimed, covering her mouth.
"That's normal," said Volstagg, with an air of authority as he stepped into the crowd, pointing and commenting like a seasoned expert.
"Lynch is a powerful and mysterious god from Midgard. His strength far surpasses Thor's, so Thor can't hurt him at all!"
The crowd immediately started chattering, as they had only heard of this young-looking Midgard god's power, but had never witnessed it firsthand.
Now, seeing that even Thor, arguably the strongest warrior in Asgard, couldn't shake Lynch, it was hard for them to believe.
"This Midgard god must be a priest-like figure back in his world, right?" an older man mused with a sigh.
"I think so too. To be this much stronger than Thor... only a great priest could match that!" agreed a burly man, firmly convinced.
"Volstagg, do you know which pantheon this Midgard god comes from?"
The older man's eyes sparkled with wisdom as he asked Volstagg, who had been boasting about his adventures alongside Lynch.
He had lived for thousands of years and, though his status was ordinary, his long life had given him vast knowledge of the Nine Realms and its many stories.
"Well..."
Volstagg was stumped by the question and found himself at a loss.
He didn't actually know Lynch's true origins, and after inquiring with Thor, he had been warned not to pry.
From Lynch's appearance, he looked just like any random person one might encounter on Midgard.
His abilities, however, were beyond comprehension—an incredibly strong body, the power to fly quickly, eyes that emitted intense heat rays, and even the ability to breathe freezing cold air. None of these abilities fit into any known divine category.
And his name only added to the confusion.
Typically, a god's name would come from a particular culture or civilization, with many gods even inspiring new words in their languages.
But "Lynch" didn't seem to correlate with any known word or meaning in the languages of the Nine Realms, which implied that Lynch might not belong to any familiar pantheon—perhaps even an entirely unknown one...
"I don't know. He hasn't shared much about his background," Volstagg admitted truthfully, knowing he couldn't deceive the experienced elder.
"But neither Thor nor the king has questioned his origins."
"Is that so?"
The elder nodded and didn't press further.
After all, if both the current and future kings of Asgard had no doubts about him, what right did he have to question it?
"Look! Thor's getting serious!"
A voice full of excitement pulled everyone's attention back to the battle in the sky.
Having failed with several physical attacks, Thor began using his ultimate move.
Raising Mjolnir high, he summoned his godly powers. His golden hair and red cape fluttered dramatically as storm clouds began to gather in the previously clear sky.
Lightning crackled and flashed within the dark clouds.
Thor's eyes and face were soon flickering with blue-white electric arcs, his body rising higher with Mjolnir's pull.
Within moments, he hovered in the heart of the storm, pointing Mjolnir at Lynch.
"I'm coming! Be ready!" Thor's voice boomed like thunder, echoing across the sky.
"Bring it on, full force!" Lynch laughed, eagerly anticipating the attack.
Thor's lightning, being magical in nature, should count as a magic attack, right?
A few days earlier, Lynch might have felt a bit concerned about such a grand magical assault.
But now...
Lynch only hoped Thor would hit harder!
Boom!
Bolts of lightning followed Thor's Mjolnir, surging toward Lynch. For a moment, Thor appeared to be commanding a host of serpentine lightning, an awe-inspiring sight!
"Isn't he going to dodge? That's Thor's lightning!"
"He's about to get hit! Even if he survives, won't he be seriously injured?"
"Doesn't Thor care? Isn't Lynch his mentor?"
…
People below cried out in alarm.
Thor's summoned lightning was truly terrifying, blanketing nearly all of Asgard. The lightning surging from Mjolnir was so bright, it was hard to look directly at it!
As everyone watched in shock and concern, Mjolnir struck Lynch square in the chest!
The wild lightning poured out like a flood, engulfing the figure in midair in an instant!
A deafening boom echoed across the sky!
A bright flash, as intense as a small sun, exploded in the air!
Many people screamed, covering their ears, squeezing their eyes shut, and crouching down, mouths agape.
A single question arose in everyone's minds:
Was Lynch still alive?
The answer was a definite yes.
He was very much alive—and quite happy.
As the explosion faded and the light dimmed, revealing Lynch still floating in the sky, many Asgardians stood frozen, their expressions blank.
"Ahh—"
With his eyes closed, Lynch let out an involuntary sigh of pleasure.
Feeling the electricity coursing through his body, he stretched lazily, completely unharmed, not even a hair out of place.
Thor's magical lightning strike hadn't hurt Lynch at all—instead, it gave him an unexpected sense of comfort.
Lynch had to admit, Thor's electric therapy was quite refreshing!
Getting shocked like that left his whole body feeling relaxed and rejuvenated!
"Are you okay?" Thor, still wielding Mjolnir, asked with a frown.
Though he was disappointed that his full-power attack hadn't harmed Lynch, he was more concerned that he might have electrocuted his friend.
After all, Lynch was close to him, and the stronger Lynch was, the happier Thor felt.
But what was up with that expression on Lynch's face?
Thor secretly wondered if Lynch had some... peculiar preferences.
Disturbing!
"I'm fine!"
As he spoke, a screen visible only to Lynch appeared before him:
Superman System
Current templates: Juvenile Superman 100%, Youth Superman 100%, Superman template 0%.
Template Exchange List: Superman, Silver age Superman, Golden Superman, Superboy prime...
Justice Points: 30,201.
On the screen, the Youth Superman template had reached 100% completion!
This was precisely why Lynch had been so confident in taking Thor's ultimate attack head-on!
Throughout his journey, Lynch had thwarted Loki, mentored Thor, defeated the Destroyer, and killed the Frost Giant King Laufey...
These events had earned him enough points to fully unlock the Youth Superman template!
After the feast, Lynch had completed the exchange.
From that moment, he had taken a big step closer to becoming the full-fledged Superman, greatly increasing his overall power!
At this moment, Lynch could now be referred to as the Youth Version of Superman!