Chapter 10: Shen Luoji

Luca instinctively looked up.

He suddenly realized that the entire world seemed to have been paused by an invisible hand.

The expressions of the panicked crowd were frozen in place.

Flames that had been flickering moments ago now appeared like crude flat special effects; the water sprayed from the fire truck hung silently in midair, each crystal-clear droplet visible.

Amidst this completely still world, there was only one person—walking slowly toward Luca with a smile on his face.

The sound of his footsteps, “tap tap,” felt strikingly out of place in this frozen moment.

Luca swallowed instinctively, a bead of sweat sliding down his temple.

He wanted to say something, but found his throat strangely unable to produce a sound.

“Hmm~ I suppose you really didn’t need to bring out that little toy, did you?”

The newcomer raised a hand and pointed to the [Little Monkey Bomb] in Luca’s grip, his tone gentle yet tinged with a hint of playful irreverence.

Though he seemed to be expressing goodwill, Luca dared not relax even slightly.

He carefully set down the [Little Monkey Bomb] and rubbed his forehead, feeling a headache coming on.

A name escaped his lips.

“The God of Stories! Loki!”

Indeed, although this Loki wore only the green Asgardian battle armor from the first Avengers film, his hair slightly tousled and his clothes dust-stained—looking rather disheveled—

Judging solely by the fact that he had just stopped time itself, this Loki was undoubtedly the final form, the ‘God of Stories, Loki,’ or simply ‘God Loki,’ who governed all the timelines of the MCU.

It was laughable that Luca had risked everything just to rush to Stark Tower to prevent Loki from taking the Tesseract and entering the Time Variance Authority.

He wanted to ensure that the timeline he inhabited would remain unscathed and unruined.

Yet here before him stood the Loki who had already completed two seasons of his own series—the ultimate incarnation.

This Loki seemed oblivious to the complex emotions swirling within Luca—or perhaps aware but indifferent.

He still smiled and shrugged, a trace of curiosity on his face.

“God of Stories? Not a bad title~ So, is that how you people from your world refer to me?”

At these words, Luca’s pupils dilated once more, his barely settled emotions thrown into turmoil.

“Your world”—those simple words pierced through, exposing Luca’s identity as an outsider.

But then, a thought crossed Luca’s mind: if this was God Loki, he was essentially one of the highest beings in the Marvel universe.

So it made sense that he would know of Luca’s origins. That was hardly surprising.

“Surprised? You’re not the first of your kind,” Loki said.

“Let me see~ In another world, there was a girl named Gwenpool who, like you, came from the real world~”

Luca was left speechless.

Not only did Loki know he came from another world, he even used the term “real world.”

However, the ‘Gwenpool’ Loki mentioned was someone Luca had never heard of.

“Gwen...” That name didn’t sound anything like where Luca was from.

Feeling numb, Luca hesitated briefly but decided not to dwell on Loki’s omniscience. Instead, he asked directly,

“So... you know your world is... is a...”

Luca didn’t quite know how to put it.

Should he say: “You’re just a character in a TV show? Your real name is Tom Hiddleston, nickname ‘Tommy’?”

But what if Loki interpreted it differently? Saying too much might anger this nearly omnipotent being.

Yet Loki seemed utterly unconcerned and said calmly,

“You mean the TV series? Yes, yes, I’m aware.”

Loki pursed his lips and raised an eyebrow, speaking casually.

“Don’t sweat it. The mechanisms of the world aren’t as simple as you imagine.”

“Perhaps you can think of the ‘real world’ I’m talking about as a universe that just happens to dramatize superpowers on screen?”

“Since there are zombie universes, Spider-Man universes, flat 2D universes—having one with no supernatural powers, where these things are just entertainment, shouldn’t be that hard to grasp.”

“Or better yet, how do you know your so-called real world isn’t viewed by other worlds as a movie or a novel?”

Faced with Loki’s nonchalant tone, Luca found himself unable to argue.

This had risen to a philosophical level he couldn’t fathom, let alone debate with a god who commanded countless parallel universes and timelines.

But he caught the essence of Loki’s words and asked promptly.

“Since you know the real world, could you...”

Luca’s words faltered.

He had wanted to ask if Loki could send him back to his original universe.

But halfway through, he realized he no longer had any attachments in that world.

Rather than returning to a forgotten past, embarking on a thrilling adventure here—even if it meant danger or death—seemed more meaningful.

Loki seemed to sense this unspoken meaning and said lightly,

“I can’t.”

“Truth be told, even now I’m far from omniscient or omnipotent. My powers still have limits. What you hope for... is beyond my reach, at least for now.”

Luca nodded calmly.

He couldn’t tell if he was more disappointed or relieved.

But this raised another question in his mind.

“If you’re not here to send me away, then why have you appeared?”

Loki didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he turned his gaze toward the first-floor lobby of Stark Tower.

There, frozen in time, stood another Loki wearing handcuffs—like a statue.

For some reason, Luca caught a faint, almost imperceptible trace of... envy? in God Loki’s eyes.

“Someone asked me to give you a choice~”

“And also, to provide you with... hmm, identification? Something like that.”

God Loki quickly turned back to Luca.

The strange look vanished from his eyes as if it had never been there, replaced once again by that mischievous smile.

But the words he spoke left Luca utterly stunned.

“Wait? Someone sent you? And... what choice? Identification? What are you talking about, big boss?”