Chapter 3770: Doomsday (Part 26)

Fortunately, the mages seem to regard Asgard's architecture as more important. As soon as they landed, they began to apply shields to Sky Island and the Fairy Palace. The Ancient One was not overly aggressive, just blocking all fleets charging toward the vanguard at the first frontline.

Although it didn't cause any actual loss to the Three Great Empires, with the mages' defense, those Asgardians could attack heartily again. Thus the situation returned to the beginning, and the loss numbers of the Three Great Empires began to soar again.

This tug-of-war went on for at least four or five rounds, lasting almost the entire three days. The Three Great Empires still hadn't even touched a hair of the Fairy Palace, and interstellar public opinion was out of control.

The main forces of the Three Great Empires were all out, three days had passed, and they hadn't touched the enemy's homeland, while losing over ten billion troops themselves. The Asgardian casualties barely reached triple digits, with most entering the Heroic Spirit Temple.

The strategic goals of attacking the Nine Major Kingdoms by the Three Great Empires have basically declared failure. But now the problem is, they can't even retreat.

It seems Odin is using some characteristics of the World Tree to completely lock the dimensions of the Nine Major Kingdoms. Not only are teleportation engines unusable, but dimension cutting devices are also completely ineffective. Now the main forces of the Three Great Empires are trapped.

Meanwhile, JARVIS is all over the interstellar internet, playing an insider and spreading this news online. Many advanced civilizations are preparing to take a gamble, running to harass the defensive areas of the Three Great Empires, and upon discovering no real response, they begin to act more and more unscrupulously, even blatantly attacking the main mining areas, openly intending to strike while the iron is hot.

Although the frontline within the Nine Major Kingdoms can still be maintained, this war is a real loss. The top commanders of the Three Great Empires are now scratching their heads.

They tried to access Asgard's communications channel to negotiate, but Odin had no intention of talking to them, cursed once, and hung up. They also tried contacting the Human race, who were somewhat easier to talk to, but ultimately it was all diplomatic talk, basically saying that they didn't make the decisions, and advised to talk to Lord Asgard.

Now, the Three Great Empires are a bit on the verge of collapse from top to bottom. They can't win, can't retreat, the new houses are on fire, and the old ones are smoking. They want to do something, but there is nothing they can do, feeling like experiencing a painful and slow death.

"We can't go on like this!" On the fourth day of the war, Lilandra's voice came through the channel, "We must come up with a solution."

"What solution do you have?" The Scrool Emperor initially spoke in a mocking tone, but suddenly remembered that Lilandra had some involvement with the leader of Mutants, then immediately said, "Can't you talk to your consort?"

"Shut up!" Lilandra reprimanded, "What I'm saying is, not everything within the Nine Major Kingdoms is rock-solid. Humans and Asgardians have common interests, but what about other races? Quite a few races have been invaded by Asgard, right?"

The channel fell silent for a moment, and the Supreme Wisdom said, "As far as I know, the Frost Giants were nearly exterminated by Odin. The Dark Elves have always depended on Asgard but are dissatisfied with Thor's rule. The Flame Giant King also has some grudges with Odin."

"You want to defect them?" There was some skepticism in the Scrool Emperor's tone as he said, "We are attacking the Nine Major Kingdoms. Even for their homeland, they must support..."

"Their homeland?" Lilandra said with some sarcasm, "A place so marginal, with a harsh natural environment, and no resources at all? Which defensive area of the Three Great Empires isn't hundreds of times better than their homeland?"

The Scrool Emperor suddenly had some realization. He stood up again and said, "That's right, the resources within the Nine Major Kingdoms are also uneven. Asgard, Vanaheim, and Midgard occupy too many resources, while other places are either deserted or have harsh natural conditions. Will the races there be content?"

"I think we can start with the Frost Giants." Lilandra's fingers tapped on the throne, he said, "First, many years ago, the Father of All Gods Odin and the King of Frost Giants Laufey had a life-and-death duel. Odin chopped off Laufey's head, killing almost all of the Frost Giant warriors. The hatred between them is relentless."

"Secondly, I learned from Mutants that Prince Loki of Asgard is actually a Frost Giant."

This didn't surprise the other two rulers because all Three Great Empires have Life Scanning Devices. They can see the significant difference in Loki's life form compared to Thor, but they don't know his exact race.

"Once, the relationship between the two brothers wasn't good." Lilandra said, "Brother Loki even once conspired against Brother Thor, causing him to drift to a distant alien planet. Do you think such a thing would be easily resolved?"

"But he became a prince after all." The Supreme Wisdom said.

"That's the key. Thor's position isn't as solid as Odin's. He can't recklessly retaliate as soon as he takes office, but I think he somewhat fears Loki. Otherwise, why would Loki have no military power at all?"

Both the Three Great Empires have some understanding of what's happening within Asgard. Generally speaking, Thor holds military power, and anything related to warfare and defense is his decision; Loki manages logistics and internal affairs, everything other than military matters is decided by him.

It's obviously unfair. Everyone knows Asgard is the sharpest sword, if you can't rule Asgardian warriors, then what's the point of ruling? Isn't it just pointless labor?

"Carbon-based life forms are just like this." Lilandra said, "On the surface, it looks harmonious, but it doesn't mean that's what's inside. I just don't believe, with the right of succession, Loki would have no thoughts about the throne."

"What do you mean?" The Scrool Emperor asked.

"I think we can try to contact him."

"But Odin..."

"Are you all fools? We're not really planning to support anyone coming into power, we're just using him. As long as he's willing to cooperate with us, we can push Asgard into the abyss of destruction. Have you forgotten the prophecy?"

"Are you talking about... Ragnarök?"

"That's right. In the prophecy, when the rooster crows on the World Tree, Loki, the god of schemes and lies, will awaken; the exalted Divine King will be devoured by the Magic Wolf Fenrir; the son of the Divine King will be defeated in battle with the Jormungand of the Dust World; the Dark Demon Dragon Nidhogg will gnaw at the roots of the World Tree, and the Nine Realms will burn with the World Tree until destruction."

"You're right, we can actively trigger Ragnarök." The Scrool Emperor's tone turned a bit excited.

"But how can you be sure that after these events, Ragnarök will definitely come? There's no basis for that, is there?" Supreme Wisdom asked.

"Even if the World Tree is not destroyed, we can still use the power of Fenrir, Ye Meng Jia De, and Nidhogg to take on Asgard. Isn't that so?"

Supreme Wisdom did not speak again. The Scrool Emperor said, "These are creatures within the Nine Realms, and with our power alone, it will be difficult to find them. We do need someone to collaborate with. Do you think Loki can be trusted?"

"The god of lies and schemes is never trustworthy, but we can completely conceal our intentions and make contact with him. Even if he's unwilling, he probably won't notice what we're up to, just thinking it's a routine subversion... I'll go." Lilandra said.

The other two did not object, merely waiting quietly for news. Not long after, Lilandra, somewhat indignantly, said, "He actually refused! That ungrateful bastard!"

"If he agreed, you'd have a problem," the Scrool Emperor said, "Right now, the Nine Realms hold the advantage, and we don't have enough leverage to negotiate with him. Such a fair-weather fellow won't help in a pinch; he's probably busy currying favor with Odin now."

"No worries, we have another option, and that's the Dark Elfs. They don't have small grudges with Odin, and they despise Asgard even more."

"What do you mean?"

"Their territory is the most remote of all the realms, scant in resources, with a sparse population, and their technological culture heavily relies on and imitates Asgard. You must have seen this kind of civilization, right?"

With this, the other two understood. Who does an imitator hate most? Of course, the one they mimic, the true possessor of everything. It's the same among civilizations, there have been countless instances of vassals rebelling against their lords.

"Now the leader of the Dark Elfs is Algrim, the Cursed Warrior, who was under their former leader Malekith. I'll go talk to him," the Scrool Emperor said, "If he can help us accomplish something within the Nine Realms, the current situation can be easily resolved."

The Scrool Emperor left not too long ago but quickly returned with good news, saying, "Just as you thought, Lilandra. They despise Asgard to their very core. In several conflicts erupting in the Nine Realms, Asgard never stood with them, instead, they consistently sided with humans, causing their former leader to disappear without a trace. Now, coming to support isn't really to help, but to see if the Three Great Empires can truly defeat Asgard, and if so, they'll seize the opportunity to strike."

"Truly despicable and shameless," Lilandra said, "However, it's a good thing for us. Did you tell them about Ragnarök?"

"I wouldn't dare. That muscle-brained fool might leak the information. We have to find a way to control him first. I've already set up the brainwave modification device; give me a few hours, and I'll make sure he obediently works for us."

"The Cursed Warrior has already been taken away by them," Loki said, "Next, it's my turn to take the stage. Thor, the upcoming scene is critical, whatever you do, don't act impulsively..."

Thor sat beside Sif, sulking, rolling his eyes and said, "In order to fulfill some shitty prophecy, you have to get yourself caught. If they dare lay a finger on you, I'll hammer them into mince!"

Loki, somewhat helpless, said, "This is our plan. To ensure the success of Ragnarök, every detail must be in place. You mustn't act foolishly at this moment. Sif, do make sure to keep an eye on him..."

Sif dug at her ears and said, "You've already said it eight times."

As Loki left, he turned back thrice every step, worried that Thor would charge out when he wasn't paying attention. Fortunately, until his figure vanished, Thor didn't move. Loki breathed a sigh of relief, flew out from the Fairy Palace, and arrived at Frigga's side.

"Alright, Mother. Here's the plan: I'll go with my uncle and the others to the side to maintain the Magical Shield. The human superheroes will deliberately open a gap on the front line there, and then the Dark Elf's Cursed Warrior will come to capture me. Whatever you do, don't interfere with them, just let them take me away. I'll protect myself as much as I can and won't actually get hurt. Alright?"

Although Frigga's expression seemed less than agreeable, Loki still went ahead. He only hoped the Cursed Warrior would act quickly, grab him as soon as possible, and run away. Otherwise, it would be over if those angry brawlers rushed out.