The internal rebellion was finally quelled; it was time to settle accounts with the mastermind.

With a fist wreathed in energy, Jason walked toward Loki with a stone-cold expression.

How the hell should he handle this guy? According to his usual temperament, he'd chop him into eight pieces and feed him to the dogs. But Loki was Odin's son. Jason had the guts to steal the Scepter and the Cube, but robbery and murder were two entirely different beasts.

Slapping Loki's face was one thing—Odin might not bother coming down to settle the score for a bruised ego. But killing Loki? That was a blood feud with Asgard. If the All-Father led an army to Earth for vengeance, Jason knew he didn't have the power to win that war.

But simply giving him a beating felt too cheap. The resentment in Jason's chest was hard to swallow. Dammit, he thought, no matter what world you're in, you can't mess with these kids when you don't have a background.

Seeing Jason approach with murder in his eyes, Loki's legs turned to jelly. With zero dignity, he fell to his knees with a heavy thud, respectfully raising both hands to present the Scepter.

Loki's sudden kneeling caught Jason off guard. Are you even real? You don't have a lick of that aristocratic pride. Normally, at this point, a brat like him should be arrogantly barking about his father, mother, and brother to intimidate everyone.

Jason's brow furrowed. Loki's surrender left him at a loss for how to proceed.

"Don't kill me!" Loki said, his eyes pleading and sincere.

"Give me a reason," Jason replied. Since he hadn't decided how to dispose of him, he figured he'd see what the god had to say.

"I... I can give you the Scepter... and the Tesseract as well," Loki said hurriedly, sensing an opening for negotiations.

Jason sneered. "Those two items were already in my pocket. Gifting me what already belongs to me? You really have a talent for bad deals."

Loki looked troubled. Besides those two artifacts, he really didn't have any other goods on him. "Then what do you want? If it's within my power, I won't hesitate."

Jason: "You controlled my core member, incited a high-level coup, and nearly succeeded. You caused me a massive headache—it wouldn't be overkill for me to take your life for that, would it?"

"No... no..." Loki's face paled as he shuffled back on his knees. "Anything but my life. I am the son of Odin! My family has countless treasures; I can give them to you."

Loki was truly terrified of dying, finally forced to hide behind his father's name.

Jason: "Heh, you're quite generous with your father's property. Too bad even if you're willing to give it, I doubt your old man is willing to let go."

Loki went silent, unable to retort. In Asgard, he—the adopted son—wasn't exactly the favorite. To take something from Odin's vault, the only way was to steal it. And he knew he didn't have the strength to pull that off under Odin's nose.

Jason stepped forward, took the Scepter, and examined it closely. "How does this thing work? The energy blasts and the mind control—is that the power of this gem?"

"Yes." Loki's mind suddenly lit up. He realized what he could offer Jason.

Knowledge. Esoteric cosmic knowledge.

As the adopted son of Odin and the son of a Frost Giant, Loki's head was a library. He was an old monster who had lived for over a thousand years; his combat prowess might be debatable, but he had plenty of ink in his gut. This knowledge was the most precious treasure for an Earthling like Jason. Jason was an ambitious warlord aiming for global rule—he surely understood the value of a brilliant strategist.

"The gem embedded in the Scepter is called the Mind Stone," Loki began, his eyes gleaming. "As the name suggests, its power is to control the minds of all existing beings."

Mind Stone? Jason searched his memories but found nothing, not even a fragment. The last Marvel movie he'd seen before crossing over was the first Avengers, and back then, Infinity Stones weren't a common term yet.

Jason's interest piqued. "Tell me more. In detail."

Loki nodded and tried to stand up, but a sharp glare from Jason made his knees drop back down instinctively.

"At the dawn of the universe, the world was a void of chaos. The Big Bang forged six Infinity Stones. They drifted through the nascent cosmos, each possessing a specific attribute: Time, Space, Reality, Soul, Power, and Mind!"

"After billions of years, the stones have changed their forms. Ordinary mortals have no idea of their true nature. For instance, the Mind Stone was crafted into this Scepter, and the Space Stone became the Tesseract."

"My purpose in coming to Earth, besides ruling it, was to seize the second Infinity Stone hidden here: the Time Stone—the Eye of Agamotto!"

Jason listened to the history and power of the Infinity Stones like a man watching a fascinating play.

"Space Stone, Mind Stone..." He murmured. "And this Eye of Agamotto—who has it?"

Loki: "The Sorcerer Supreme!"

Jason's head filled with question marks. "Earth has someone like that?"

Loki was speechless. How has this guy survived this long without knowing about the Sorcerer Supreme?

"Of course. Without the Sorcerer Supreme's protection, Earth would have been conquered by other cosmic civilizations long ago."

Jason's eyes lit up. "They're that powerful? The rest of the universe is afraid of them?"

Loki nodded. "The Sorcerer Supreme has lived for centuries. Her power is a bottomless abyss. The major players in the universe have all heard the legends."

Her? So it's a woman.

Interesting, Jason thought. There's a god-tier guardian on Earth and I had no idea. If I hadn't run into Loki, I'd have stayed a frog at the bottom of a well for the rest of my life.

Jason: "If the Sorcerer Supreme is that powerful, why did you dare invade Earth and plan to rule it?"

Loki said somewhat sheepishly, "I'm merely a vanguard scout. The Sorcerer Supreme has been missing for years; rumors say she is no longer on Earth. If the rumors are true, I proceed as planned to find the Time Stone."

Jason: "And if she is here?"

Loki: "If she is here, I would be unable to rule. In that case, the one behind me would have to step in personally."

Jason's curiosity was piqued. "One? Odin? Or the Chitauri?"

Loki shook his head, his expression dead serious. "No. My father has no interest in the Stones; he's the one who left the Tesseract on Earth. And the Chitauri are the weakest of the high-tier civilizations; they don't have the strength to covet the Time Stone."

"The man who instructed me to invade Earth is a man named Thanos."

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