In the Heavenly Palace, Audreyf went to find Thor, preparing for him to take over the throne.
"Do you choose to purchase the Willpower Ion Shark template?"
"Yes, No."
Ron looked at the options before him, hesitated slightly, and clicked no.
He looked at the other template.
Fear Parallax Template: 7 million
Both were forms of emotional power, and both cost 7 million power points.
Theoretically, neither was stronger than the other.
It just depended on who could better utilize this power.
"Is my own will stronger, or am I feared more?"
"Will."
Ron softly uttered these two words.
He believed his own will was firm enough.
But during this time, he had tried to unleash the maximum power of the Green Lantern Ring, imagining various situations, hoping to enter a subjective burst state.
"Unfortunately, the power unleashed ultimately didn't exceed my normal strength by much."
It was a bit different from his initial expectations; it seemed his will was still not as compatible with Willpower as a Green Lantern's.
"The will of an ordinary person ultimately has limits."
By 'ordinary person,' Ron didn't mean common people, but rather ordinary people without cheats.
Take Green Lantern Hal Jordan, for example. Before joining the Green Lantern Corps, he was a test pilot for the U.S. Military on Earth, possessing excellent flying skills and a brave heart.
After joining the Green Lantern Corps and doing a series of things, he was hailed as the greatest Green Lantern of all time, said to possess a willpower "deeper and broader than the Green Lantern Central Battery, capable of reshaping the Universe."
He was the only Green Lantern to create his own unique Green Lantern Ring with his will and to recharge the Green Lantern Ring with his willpower, almost akin to the Universe's will itself.
This person sounds so powerful and special; one might imagine he must be incredibly resilient, fearless, and never wavering or retreating?
But in the actual comics and movies, he often felt timid and confused, indecisive, and there were even times when he was easily manipulated, losing his will and unable to use the Green Lantern Ring.
"From a normal person's perspective, Hal Jordan's will doesn't seem to be 'deeper and broader than the Green Lantern Battery' or 'powerful enough to reshape the Universe,' but he just can do it."
Ron's eyes narrowed slightly.
It's just as illogical as Superman. Why can the main Universe's Superman shatter the multiverse with one punch? Because he is Superman.
So, when he has a subjective power surge, he just can do it.
Why does Hal Jordan's will not appear to possess such power, yet he can achieve feats like one-shotting Amazo, who defeated the Justice League, one-shotting a Kryptonian, stopping Earth's rotation, compressing stars, and warping reality in the comics, with a will comparable to the combined will of all beings in the entire Universe?
Because he is Hal Jordan.
In critical moments, when he has a power surge, he just can do it.
It is said that there is a theory that Hal Jordan is the embodiment of the Universe's most primordial will, but it's unknown if it's true or false.
Ron gently shook his head.
He was neither Superman nor Hal Jordan.
He hadn't encountered Hal Jordan in the DC main Universe; otherwise, he guessed that after contact, the system might have included a new template: 'Ordinary Person Hal Jordan Template, whose will is deep and vast enough to reshape the Universe.'
"Still choosing the Fear Parallax template."
Ron sighed, deciding to work hard and improve his strength, such as controlling Asgard to launch a conquest across half the Universe, making the entire Universe tremble under his strong rule.
"Do you want to purchase the Fear Parallax Template?
Yes!"
Ron closed his eyes. After a burst of searing heat, he floated into the air, a dense, terrifying yellow glow appearing around him.
He seemed to transform into a yellow sun, as if it gathered the fear of all beings in the entire Universe. Various horrifying, indescribable disasters and monsters were hidden within the glow, seemingly ready to rush out at any moment to trample and destroy the entire Universe!
"What is that?!"
Suddenly, for no reason, everyone in Asgard felt a pang in their hearts. They stopped in their tracks as if stunned, paused their actions, and turned to look.
When they saw that yellow sun, they couldn't help but clutch their wildly beating hearts, their legs trembling, and their souls quivering madly, instinctively wanting to flee.
"It feels like a huge mountain is pressing on my chest."
"What's happening? I can't breathe!"
"I feel like I've seen the most terrifying monster in the World!"
"Has Ragnarok begun? Are we all going to die?"
The invisible Fear flowed like a trickle into the ocean.
"Ragnarok?"
Ignoring the panic and fear throughout Asgard, Ron felt the surging Fear flowing within him. He clenched his fist, his gaze profound as he looked towards the horizon.
"I hope you arrive soon."
Once Ragnarok was resolved, he could, without any worries, set Asgard on a journey to make countless galaxies tremble.
Muspelheim, one of the Nine Realms, was filled with endless heat and flames.
Besides the Fire Demons, Fire Dragons, and Fire Servants born here, no other living creature could endure the constant high temperatures and scorching heat.
In a vast underground lava cave, the Fire Giant, once as tall as a mountain, was now a pitiful three or four meters tall, with one side of his body withered and deformed, sitting on a dilapidated stone throne.
Thousands of years ago, Odin took his Eternal Flame and nearly killed him, leaving him in his current state.
He lingered in this underground cave, harboring a hatred that grew deeper each day, waiting.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, the surrounding lava violently boiled, flames shot up dozens of meters high, and the Fire Demons and Fire Servants in the cave screamed in terror.
"The time I have been waiting for has finally arrived."
Surtur felt something, sharply opened his eyes, radiating terrifying scorching heat. He grabbed his Twilight Sword from beside the throne, shouting excitedly, his voice filled with too much hatred, pointing towards the sky.
"I have waited four thousand years for this day!"
The flames surged as if celebrating the rebirth of the Fire King.
He closed his eyes in enjoyment, roaring passionately: "It's back, it's all back!"
Surtur felt Muspelheim's geothermal power entering his body, and his strength began to recover.
His shriveled, deformed body became full again, and his size rapidly increased: five meters, ten meters, thirty meters.
A massive Fire Dragon resting not far from the throne watched the constantly expanding giant figure with terror and awe.
Ultimately, the Fire Dragon, a colossal beast tens of meters long, looked like a tiny hamster at Surtur's feet in comparison.
He looked down at his three to four hundred-meter body, his gaze fierce as he suddenly looked up at the sky, a deep, majestic voice resounding: "It's not enough!
I will reclaim my Eternal Flame and bring Asgard to its destined fate."
Ragnarok had already begun. With the blessing of destiny, he had regained immensely powerful strength, but his current power was not yet enough to destroy Asgard.
"My people and servants, retrieve our long-sealed warship. We are departing! Our target: Asgard!"
Countless Fire Demons and Fire Servants roared and shrieked.
Earth, Antarctica.
Amidst the swirling snow, in the bitter cold, the howling, mournful wind echoed ceaselessly.
Treading through the snow, a fully armed team, dressed in heavy cold-weather gear, arrived before a mysterious fortress.
"The group of people we are about to meet has been trapped in this building since 1942.
Isolated from the World, without any supplies, they have managed to survive until now, all thanks to Red Skull's technology from studying the Tesseract."
The leader's voice was colder than the Arctic wind.
"And Red Skull, who is my father, left them only one command: to guard the treasure within this Zero Fortress."
"But they are under Military orders; unless the Führer himself opens the fortress door, anyone else will be killed on sight!"
She wore a coat, revealing a red face like a skull, indistinguishable between male and female, only her voice revealed she was a woman, and quite old.
Cynthia Schmidt, Red Skull's daughter, reminded her HYDRA team to prepare for battle.
A minute later, the fortress gate, which had stood in the snow for decades, was violently blown open by explosives.
As bullets, like deadly snakes, shot from gun barrels, the battle began!
The battle began abruptly but ended quickly. Everyone in the fortress was killed, their bodies lying scattered on the ground.
Not a single person surrendered; instead, many shouted 'Long live the Führer!' disregarding their lives, pulling pin grenades in an attempt to die together.
"With weapons nearly a century ahead, how could there be any suspense in a battle with such a vast disparity?
It's just a shame about these people."
Cynthia shook her head.
However, she also knew that these people's desperate loyalty was not to her father, Red Skull, but to the true Master of that party, and thus they could not be used by her.
"We're here. According to Father's notes, the treasure is hidden inside."
Deep within the fortress, under the work of a laser cutter, a heavy iron door was opened.
In the vault-like room, amidst the cold, a divine hammer stood, its head encased in ice.
"I've found you, my war hammer."
A sinister smile appeared on her bald, terrifying face.
Someone nearby couldn't help but remind her: "Madam, no one can lift that hammer. Your father tried, and the Führer himself tried, but neither succeeded."
"It is mine.
I've dreamt of it; in my dreams, I was the Queen of the World, I used it to kill Captain America, no one feared me, I even became a god!"
Cynthia gazed obsessively at the huge, round-headed divine hammer, saying: "I came here to turn that dream into reality!"
Approaching the divine hammer, she examined it carefully, looking at the patterns engraved on the handle: "These characters are the same as in Father's notes."
Cynthia recited it in a solemn tone.
"Only the worthy can wield this hammer and become Skadi."
Skadi, the Norse goddess of ice.
"Skadi? Excellent!"
Her eyes gleamed with fanaticism as she reached out to touch the divine hammer encased in ice.
Sizzle!
The moment her hand grasped the divine hammer, dazzling blue light burst forth, radiating astonishing cold.
When the HYDRA team lowered their hands from covering their eyes, they saw a transformed Cynthia.
She wore ancient-looking armor, holding the divine hammer, radiating a powerful aura that instilled fear, as if she were a god!
"I have been reborn.
Father, now it's your turn!"
A coldness appeared in Cynthia's eyes.
But at this moment, the 'Father' she spoke of was no longer Red Skull, but the God of Fear, Serpent!
She raised the divine hammer. The divine power emanating from the hammer lifted her, easily breaking through the thick fortress roof as if it were paper, and she flew towards the Pacific Ocean at hundreds of times the speed of sound.
Soon after, above the Mariana Trench.
Terrifying waves were stirred up, huge ripples spreading for miles.
A figure plunged into the sea, rapidly diving towards the seabed.
"I am Cynthia, I am Red Skull's daughter, but I am also Skadi. Now I will free my father."
Cynthia was in a strange state; she clearly knew what she was doing, yet it didn't feel like her own will.
But she didn't want to resist.
She felt she was a mortal vessel for some god, an instrument waiting her whole life to be played.
And someone was waiting for her and her liberation in the dark abyss.
"Father, I am here.
To fulfill an oath passed down through the ages, I only hope it's not too late."
In the deep, dark, tens of thousands of meters deep seabed, several monstrous sea dragon-like creatures lived, as if guarding something.
"Wielding this war hammer, I am a god; nothing can stop me!"
Cynthia coldly raised her hammer and charged, displaying terrifying strength and speed. Sea dragon monsters, tens of meters long, roared and attacked her, but she defeated and killed them with overwhelming force.
Their bodies sank, and blood drifted in the deep-sea currents.
She swung the hammer, stirring up a current of water that cleared the seabed sediment, revealing a massive sealed pedestal.
Cynthia swam down, broke through the pedestal, and entered the seal, landing on cold, hard ground.
In the darkness, an old, hoarse voice echoed.
"My daughter, you have finally come."
An old figure in armor, leaning on a cane, walked out of the darkness. Though ancient, he carried an unbearable majesty.
"My Father, and also the Father of Gods, I pay my respects to you."
Cynthia knelt on one knee, leaning on her hammer, and said.
The former King of Asgard, Serpent, smiled sinisterly, looking up at the broken seal.
"I am now just an old man imprisoned by a usurper.
I will reclaim what is mine."
"However, before that, I need to regain my strength."
He lowered his head and clenched his fist.
"Although I am already powerful enough, something has blessed me."
"Destiny? Heh heh..."
Serpent scoffed mockingly: "I will only do what I want; nothing can control me."
He raised his hand, closed his eyes, as if summoning something.
In the dark, boundless space, seven streaks of light, like meteors, rushed towards Earth. At the center of each light was a unique divine hammer. After entering the atmosphere, they rapidly flew to different locations.
"Fear is the source of my power. Once my Worthy of the Hammer make the entire Earth shrouded in fear, once I reach a power I've never achieved before!
I will return to Asgard.
No matter who controls Asgard now, I will reclaim my throne!"
Serpent Kuurth, Odin's older brother, was the former God King of Asgard, and his divine duty was the God of Fear!
Before becoming God King, Serpent's personality was quite normal, but after becoming God King, he gradually became extremely tyrannical.
Odin wanted Serpent to return to his personality before becoming God King. He sacrificed his right eye to the World Tree, hoping to find a solution, but received a bad answer: for Serpent to return to his old personality, Thor had to die.
He weighed his options and decided his son was more important than his brother, and in his opinion, Serpent was no longer suitable to be God King.
So Odin defeated Serpent and ascended the throne himself, but he could not kill Serpent because destiny dictated that only Thor could kill Serpent, but Thor himself would also have to die.
Odin did not want Thor and Serpent to perish together, so he sealed Serpent on Earth.
Now, Serpent was free.
But he was still unaware that the current situation in Asgard might be a bit different from what he expected!