Marvel's Shendu: Dominating the Multiverse

Chapter 89 Thor's Provocation

The Holy Lord stepped out from the crowd with steady steps, walked to Saul's side and stood beside him.

"The Dark Elves excel at ambushes and trickery, not direct combat," the Holy Lord's voice echoed in the hall. "They won't be foolish enough to attack Asgard directly. If we don't reveal any weaknesses, they will remain inactive."

Odin asked with a hint of probing, "What suggestions do you have?"

After pretending to think for a while, the Holy Lord said, "Let me participate in the defense design."

A commotion erupted in the hall again as an outsider demanded to participate in the design of Asgard's defenses.

The Holy Lord's voice continued to echo in the hall: "I know you may not be able to accept this, but you need me. I can sense the location of those dark elves."

"You can sense the location of the dark elves?" Odin repeated the Lord's reasoning.

The Holy Lord raised his right hand, and the power of the Dragon Talisman condensed in his palm. A crimson light emerged from his palm, and the surrounding temperature immediately rose. Flames outlined intricate patterns on the dome.

"This is my secret technique."

The Holy Lord said without changing his expression, "It allows me to do many things that Asgardian magic cannot."

Looking at the stunned crowd, Shendu, who was familiar with the Marvel storyline, did not need any special reason. He just needed to make a big commotion to get the attention of the natives of Asgard.

A profound silence fell over the hall. Odin stared at the Holy Lord for a long time; the power the Holy Lord was now displaying was a system he had never seen before.

Odin sighed, his voice tinged with weariness: "Yes, you can attend the core meeting, but there are two conditions."

"Speak." The Holy Lord knew that Odin would not allow him to get involved so easily.

"First, all your actions must be reported to me through Saul."

"second……"

Odin paused, then stood up and called out to the door, "Loki!"

The side door of the main hall opened, and a man dressed in a green robe walked in.

"Yes, Father," Loki said, bowing before Odin.

Odin nodded: "You are responsible for accompanying these two and ensuring that all their actions in Asgard are traceable."

Loki raised his head, his gaze passing over Thor and landing on Shendu and Wanda, a meaningful smile playing on his lips: "As you command, Father, I will take good care of them."

After the meeting, the three Holy Lords walked out of the main hall, with Loki following at the very back, his pace neither hurried nor slow, like a snake eyeing its prey.

Wanda whispered to the Holy Lord, "Master, I don't like him. There's something fake about him."

The voice of the Lord echoed in Wanda's heart: "He is the god of deception, and falsehood is his nature."

"Master, I have a feeling he will sabotage our plans," Wanda continued.

The Holy Lord smiled: "Worried? There's no need to worry. Loki is just a pawn; he just doesn't know whose chessboard he's on."

Wanda lowered her head and said nothing more.

Thor walked at the front, his steps heavy, his fists clenching and unclenching.

"Sol," the Holy Lord called out to him.

Thor stopped and turned around.

The Holy Lord asked, "Has Loki always been like this?"

Thor was silent for a moment before saying, "Loki is complicated. Sometimes I think he hates all of us, and sometimes I think he just wants to prove himself. I'm not sure if he will betray us."

Thorn paused, gripping Thor's hammer tightly. "But if he dares to harm you, I'll personally throw him into the void."

The Holy Lord did not speak again, and continued walking past Saul, with Wanda following behind him like a shadow, her head bowed.

Loki, watching from the shadows in the distance, muttered, "Interesting."

The next morning, the Holy Lord stood by the window, playing with a crystal ball from Asgard.

The crystal ball twirled between the Lord's fingers, refracting a mesmerizing light.

"The Holy Lord?"

Loki's voice came from behind him, with a hint of laziness in his tone.

The Holy Lord turned around and saw Loki leaning lazily against the door frame, toying with a dagger in his hand. The smile on Loki's face was reflected in the cold glint of the dagger.

Looking at Loki's ill-intentioned expression, Shendu said mockingly, "Loki? What brings you here so early? Do you need something?"

Loki entered the room lightly, his footsteps making no sound. He sat down in the chair before the Lord, crossed his legs, and placed the dagger on his knee. "I just wanted to talk to you. My father entrusted me with taking care of you, and I should do my best, shouldn't I?"

"What do you want to talk about?"

Loki tilted his head and stared at the Holy Lord. He could sense that the man before him didn't take him seriously at all: "Your origins, your purpose, your power, that's all. It's very simple, isn't it?"

The Holy Lord did not answer, but looked at Loki as if he were watching amusement, which made Loki very uncomfortable.

Loki continued, "I have seen many powerful beings—giants, dwarves, Vanir gods, and even some beings from other universes—but your power is unlike any of them."

"Oh?" The Holy Lord raised an eyebrow. "Tell me about it."

Loki used his dagger to cut off the excess nails: "I can sense that your power does not belong to this world. To be more precise, your power comes from beyond the World Tree, from a place that even the Allfathers cannot reach."

The Holy Lord looked at Loki, his eyes devoid of any emotion: "You've observed very carefully."

Loki smiled. "You flatter me. It's just my talent—to see through lies and pretense, to see things others can't, like..."

Loki paused and lowered his voice: "For example, your true relationship with Thor."

Loki continued, "Thor is a good man, brave, honest, and loyal, but he's too trusting. Give him a reasonable reason and he'll easily believe you."

"What do you want to say?" the Holy Lord asked with a smile.

"What did you do to Thor?" Loki's voice lowered even further, and his whole demeanor turned grim.

Loki got up and walked to Shendu. The distance between the two was less than a meter, but Loki was half a head shorter than Shendu, which looked a bit funny.

"The Mind Stone," Loki murmured, a playful smile playing on his lips. "You used the Mind Stone's power on Thor, didn't you?"

The Holy Lord remained silent for a moment, then couldn't help but laugh.

Loki felt a chill run down his spine when he saw the smile that suddenly appeared on Shendu's face.

"You're very clever, but you seem to have forgotten one thing," Shendu chuckled. "If I can use the Mind Stone on Thor, I can do the same to you."

Loki's face suddenly darkened, and he took a half step back to maintain a safe distance from the Holy Lord: "You'd better think this through. This is Asgard. If you do anything to me, Father will find out, and it won't do you any good."

The Holy Lord looked out the window at the scenery of Asgard and casually unleashed the power of the Serpent Spell. With the blessing of the Mind Stone, the power of the Serpent Spell had undergone a tremendous change.

Loki looked at the Holy Lord before him and realized that he could no longer sense any of the Holy Lord's presence. The Holy Lord could disappear from his sight at any time if he wanted to, and no one in all of Asgard could find him.

"And now?"

These three words exploded in Thor's ears like a muffled thunderclap.