That thin figure swayed unhurriedly in front, while Loki followed patiently behind like a dog chasing carrion.
The village wasn't large, but the Fisherman's movements were quite complex.
He lingered by the sea for a long time, slowly mending a broken fishing net with practiced hands that showed nothing out of the ordinary.
Then, he went to the village's only small grocery store to chat with a few village women, complaining loudly about the dwindling catch and those damned taxes.
By the end of the morning, Loki's patience was nearly exhausted. He began to wonder if this foolish mortal was truly just a terrified fraud and if he was being played for a fool.
On the other side, Lin Huai was strolling around the village with Thor and Kaelan.
"Thor, a king is not born a king," Lin Huai's voice was calm. "In my hometown, there was an emperor whose succession wasn't considered orthodox, and the country was dirt poor. But he governed diligently, abolished many harsh punishments, streamlined the bureaucracy, encouraged agriculture, suppressed the powerful from seizing land, and advocated for frugality. He lived simply himself and forbade extravagance. He never used force; instead, he spent twenty years slowly mending conflicts and pushing for reforms, eventually ushering in a golden age. Many emperors who are called wise rulers look up to him as an idol."
At this point, Lin Huai looked at Thor. "Remember, force is a king's weapon, not his means."
Thor listened quietly; this was the private tutoring Lin Huai had been giving him over the past few days.
Lin Huai looked out at the gray sea in the distance, a mysterious smile suddenly appearing on his face.
"Of course, there's also a fellow named Roselle who is also a legend. I'll tell you more about him when we have the chance."
As he spoke, Lin Huai suddenly stopped. He seemed to sense something and turned his gaze toward the dense forest behind the village.
At the other end of the village, the Fisherman, who had been lingering for most of the day, dropped his honest and simple expression once he was sure no one was watching, replacing it with a cold and wary look. He threw down his tools, turned around, and walked into the forest behind the village without a second thought.
A cold smile curled at the corner of Loki's mouth, and his figure followed silently like a ghost.
Time passed bit by bit, and the sunset dyed the sea orange-red. It grew dark.
Loki had not yet returned.
Lin Huai's brow furrowed. With Loki's skills, following a mortal shouldn't have taken this long.
Something happened.
"Danitz!"
Lin Huai shouted toward the seashore.
Soon, Danitz walked over, grumbling, "Crap! What's the trouble now? What about my vacation time?"
"Loki is missing," Lin Huai said simply.
Although Danitz was still complaining, his voice grew much quieter.
The group wasted no more words and quickly entered the forest, which emanated an eerie aura, following the direction Lin Huai sensed.
"Here! There's a mark!" Thor's sharp eyes quickly spotted a small notch on an unremarkable tree trunk that only the two brothers understood.
Relying on these intermittent marks, Thor led the way, guiding everyone deep into the forest. The light grew dimmer, and the surrounding trees became tall and twisted, creating an oppressive atmosphere that made it hard to breathe.
Finally, Thor stopped in front of a massive rock wall.
It was a dead end.
The last mark Loki left ended here, but there was nothing in front of them except the cold rock wall and tangled vines.
The confidence on Thor's face froze. He stepped forward to carefully feel the mark, then looked around for the next clue, but found nothing.
"Impossible..." His breathing began to grow heavy. "The marks couldn't just end here... He must have gone somewhere else."
He began to pace anxiously near the rock wall, searching inch by inch and muttering to himself, but after a long time, he still found nothing.
"Loki!"
He finally couldn't help but roar at his surroundings, but only a hollow echo replied.
Panic began to take hold of his heart. He slammed his fist against the rock wall with a dull thud.
"Loki!!!"
He lost control completely and raised his arm, intending to summon mjolnir to smash the place to pieces.
"Get back!"
Lin Huai suddenly shouted, violently pulling the emotionally distraught Thor back!
Almost at the same time, the rock wall Thor had just struck rippled violently like water. A thick, nauseating stench seeped out, and then a twisted creature tore through the illusion and lunged out!
The thing had massive bat wings but the ugly face of a dog, with a long, hairless rat-like tail trailing behind it. It let out a roar that made no sound, but in an instant, a Mental Shock mixed with despair and madness swept over them, causing Danitz and Kaelan to groan. Their minds felt as if they were being pricked by needles, and their movements instantly froze.
The Monster lunged toward where Thor had been! It was clearly aiming for the target making the most noise.
"You're asking for death!" Thor's anger and panic found an outlet, his rage over his brother being taken overriding the discomfort of the Mental Shock. He roared, and the mjolnir in his hand drew a silver arc of lightning as he swung it at the Monster!
However, the Monster's movements were much more agile than its ugly appearance suggested! With a sudden flap of its fleshy wings, its body twisted in mid-air at an incredible angle, narrowly dodging Thor's heavy strike!
mjolnir hit nothing, its terrifying power blasting a large crater into the ground and sending debris flying.
After dodging the attack, the Monster opened its fanged dog mouth and let out a Silent Screech. Thor felt his head grow heavy, and he seemed to see an illusion of Loki being torn apart by countless tentacles, causing his movements to pause for a split second.
In a battle between experts, a momentary mistake is fatal! The Monster seized this opportunity, its bat wings creating a foul wind as it charged like a black lightning bolt, its sharp claws aiming straight for Thor's heart!
"Frost!" Kaelan finally recovered from the Mental Shock. She gave a sharp cry, and as her fair fingers pointed forward, a layer of fine ice crystals instantly condensed out of thin air in the Monster's path. The Monster slammed into the ice crystals, its speed noticeably slowing, and the trajectory of its claws was slightly diverted.
"Bang!" Before the Monster could adjust its posture, an invisible Air Bullet accurately struck its knee joint. The massive impact caused its dog-like hind limb to buckle, and it lost its balance. Lin Huai had made his move!
"Its Mental Shock can create illusions, everyone be careful!" Lin Huai's calm voice rang out, and he fired another Air Bullet, aiming straight for the base of the Monster's flapping wings!
The successive attacks completely enraged the beast. It abandoned its attack on Thor and turned its pure black eyes to stare fixedly at Lin Huai and Kaelan.
"That's it, Thor!" Lin Huai shouted again, having already used Flame Leap to flash to the other side, drawing the Monster's attention.
Having gained a precious breathing moment from his teammates' continuous attacks, Thor had already shaken off the effects of the illusion.
"Roar—!!!" He let out a roar like a wounded lion, pouring all his divine power into mjolnir! The runes on the hammer lit up completely, and lightning snakes even more violent than before crackled wildly across the hammerhead.
This time, with the Monster pinned down by Lin Huai and Kaelan, it could no longer dodge.
"Boom—!!!"
The silver war hammer slammed solidly onto the Monster's head. There was no scream, no struggle. Under absolute power and the divine punishment of lightning, this eerie creature that could easily use illusions and Mental Shocks to capture Loki was instantly blasted into flying charcoal.
Once the Monster died, the scene before them changed completely.
The green of the forest faded frantically, the towering trees melted into puddles of foul-smelling mud, and the beautiful scenery was stripped away like a painted skin, revealing its true face underneath.
A vast, endless swamp emitting a rotting stench appeared beneath everyone's feet.
Not far away, in the center of the swamp.
Loki and the Fisherman who had led the way were hanging upside down from a dead giant tree, their bodies constantly oozing dark green slime. Their eyes were tightly shut, and it was impossible to tell if they were dead or alive.
Below them, the murky swamp was already densely packed with countless disgusting creatures. Some looked like rotten fish, others like deformed frogs, but without exception, their bodies were covered in oozing tumors and pustules.
These Monsters seemed not to notice Lin Huai and the others. They held up their deformed forelimbs and, with their countless emotionless eyes, looked up in unison and with fanaticism at the two hanging upside down, as if waiting for something.