40

Chapter 40: Steve Rogers

The screen faded, leaving Thor stunned.

The Villanized Hero was ten times stronger than he had anticipated—netizens weren't lying! He was an honest person, but could Blacken really be this formidable?

With a smug grin, Thor turned to the Ancient One and asked, "Alright, the movie was well made. But if you didn't intend to embarrass me, why did you bring me here? Was it just to chat?"

The Ancient One shook his head and replied slowly, "A long time ago, I noticed anomalies in this timeline, with certain gaps that couldn't be closed properly. Your mutation twelve years ago made these anomalies even more pronounced. For a long time, I couldn't pinpoint the cause. Recently, I realized that the key to these issues lies with you."

"You are the only one who can mend these timeline gaps. If the problem with the timeline becomes too severe, the consequences will be far worse than simply altering the future. When the timeline of this world cannot connect into a complete thread, the entire system might collapse."

"So, I found you and asked for your help in restoring the timeline. I don't think you want to lose everything you have, do you?"

Thor nodded. Although he didn't fully understand the technical details, he grasped the importance of the situation.

"Alright, how can I help?"

"Relax and accept the power of the Eye of Agamotto."

A brilliant green light emanated from the Ancient One's chest.

"Wait—" Thor suddenly remembered that he hadn't explained his absence at home. Before he could finish his thought, he lost consciousness.

…

"Congratulations to the host for triggering the Ancient One's exclusive mission: Eternal Secret - With Dormammu's dark power aiding the Ancient One, immortality has been achieved. Assist the Ancient One, and you may uncover the mystery."

"Mission Objective: Complete the repair of the time anomaly. Mission Reward: Active Skill - Immortality."

"Immortality: Grants eternal lifespan, prevents aging, and can be bestowed upon other targets with lower strength levels. Cannot be used on targets stronger than the host. The skill consumes massive amount of divine energy "

As soon as Thor regained consciousness, he was greeted by a system prompt. Seeing the word "immortality," he was overwhelmed with excitement and nearly cried out.

Eternal life—an aspiration of many races through the ages! Even beings as powerful as Odin and the Ancient One couldn't achieve it, but now he had the chance? Eternal life like Eternals made by celestials.

Unfortunately, the task seemed daunting at first glance. Fixing bugs? Did the Ancient One view himself as antivirus software, merely requiring a click to repair?

Thor was bewildered.

Then—

Where was he? One moment he was in the Kamar-Taj hall, and the next, he was on a street in the blink of an eye. Where had the Ancient One gone?

And this street seemed antiquated, like something from an old era...

In a nearby alley, a commotion of fighting could be heard.

This place appeared lawless; people were fighting in broad daylight.

Thor was not inclined to intervene, but after being tricked by the Ancient One, he felt frustrated and wanted to take his anger out on someone.

In the alley, the scene resembled more of a bullying than a fight. A tall man was overpowering a shorter man.

The shorter man, having gotten up from the ground, grabbed a round trash can lid to defend himself but was quickly overpowered and thrown aside. He was then punched again and knocked down.

The tall man was about to step on him when he was suddenly pulled back. Looking over, he saw a blonde man smiling at him.

"Stop the beating, and show some restraint! Don't make me slap you," Thor said, trying to defuse the situation.

"None of your business!" the tall man retorted, but as he looked away, he found Thor had vanished. Before he could react, a powerful force struck his face.

With a "bang," the tall man was thrown into the air, and another punch landed on his other cheek.

"Bang bang bang"—the sound of fists landing repeatedly.

At the alley entrance, a young man in an army uniform watched in amazement as a 170-pound man was pummeled into submission.

With the final punch, the strong man lay motionless on the side like a dead dog.

The slender young man on the ground got up and muttered, "I almost took him down myself."

Then he turned to Thor and said, "Thanks anyway."

"My name is Steve Rogers. What's yours?"