Lin Feng had noticed the grim reaper-like figure during his previous soul extractions from the Death Realm.
However, the figure always remained in the shadows, watching Lin Feng take souls without daring to appear. Lin Feng had paid him no mind.
This time, however, he could no longer restrain himself. Was he here to demand an explanation?
"The third time!" the newcomer said in a hoarse voice.
"The third time what?" Lin Feng blinked in surprise.
"Toying with the souls of the dead will disrupt the cosmic order!" the grim reaper-like figure said, ignoring Lin Feng's question and addressing Christine.
His face, hidden beneath the hood, was revealed to be a skull, bearing a slight resemblance to the Red Skull.
His empty eye sockets stared intently at the soul Lin Feng had pulled from the Death Realm.
Christine, startled by his appearance, instinctively shrank behind Lin Feng.
Lin Feng then understood. The "third time" he spoke of must refer to Lin Feng's third time taking a soul from the Death Realm.
The Howard couple twice, Tony and Pepper from the zombie universe once, and now Christine.
There seemed to be another instance... what was it? Lin Feng couldn't recall clearly, but even the ones he remembered seemed like too many.
"Are you sure you're not mistaken? Shouldn't it be more than three times..."
The skull turned its head stiffly.
Lin Feng could somehow perceive a sense of speechlessness emanating from its empty eye sockets.
The skull probably hadn't expected the person before him to be so fixated on such peculiar details.
"In any case, I'm here to take her back..." the grim reaper pointed at Christine.
"I can overlook the previous times, but you cannot continue to toy with the souls of the dead!"
"What do you mean by toying with souls?" Lin Feng asked indignantly.
"And ask her if she's willing to go back with you."
The skull glared menacingly at Christine. Chilled by his icy gaze, her mind began to blur, and she instinctively started to say "yes."
However, Lin Feng quickly added, "Even if she were willing, I wouldn't agree!"
Lin Feng smiled, crossing his arms, as if haggling with a market vendor.
The skull: "..."
If it needed to breathe, it probably wouldn't be able to catch its breath.
The skull was astute in its judgments.
If anyone else had spoken to him like that, he would have brought down his scythe long ago.
But facing Lin Feng, simply summoning the courage to confront him was an achievement.
The main reason was Lin Feng's audacity. He had repeatedly snatched souls from the Death Realm, showing no regard for this favorite of the Goddess of Death.
"The Death Realm cannot be treated so casually..."
The unspoken implication was: Do you consider this your backyard? Just casually pulling out souls whenever you feel like it?
"You are right," Lin Feng said, feigning contemplation. He took a deep breath.
"So, can you ask Hela to come out and talk to me?"
"!!!"
"How dare you utter that name!" the skull exclaimed in shock.
"Oh, you don't know that I have a grudge against your 'her'?" Lin Feng said with amusement.
"..." The skull was speechless, regretting his decision to come.
So, this person was even more formidable than he had imagined.
"But speaking of which, I have another question." Seeing the skull's silence, Lin Feng narrowed his eyes, his gaze becoming dangerous.
"Why are all the souls in the Death Realm so dazed and confused?"
"Are you, or rather Hela, using some unspeakable methods to enhance your power with souls?"
The skull's entire skeletal frame tensed up at that moment.
If it still had flesh and blood, Lin Feng would have surely seen beads of cold sweat on its brow.
The skull raised its scythe and slammed it down heavily, causing the very space around them to ripple.
"Oh? Did I hit the mark?" Lin Feng's muscles tensed.
Was it angered by being exposed and preparing to fight?
Truth be told, Lin Feng had begun to suspect this possibility when he extracted Tony's soul from the zombie universe.
However, the skull's next action made Lin Feng pause again.
It clanged its scythe through the air, creating a ripple that then enveloped the skull, and it vanished!
Yes, it vanished.
Lin Feng was left with a thousand unanswered questions, feeling as if he had punched a bag of cotton.
Had it run away?
Damn it, this was utterly ridiculous.
Why so cowardly? He had expected a fight after their verbal spar, but such a dramatic action was merely a prelude to its escape.
This was truly... eye-opening.
Lin Feng chuckled and shook his head, pulling Christine along as they continued towards Blue Star.
Lin Feng paid no mind to the grim reaper's words.
What did he mean by "toying with souls"?
If he didn't respect the departed souls, Lin Feng would have long ago stormed the Death Realm.
He didn't believe Hela could sit idly by if her own domain was in chaos.
But those souls were innocent, and Lin Feng would not use such methods.
His act of extracting souls might be somewhat inappropriate; departed souls should remain in the Death Realm.
But rules are always made by the strong.
When you become unimaginably powerful, you become the rule-maker.
And judging by the Death Goddess's evident desire for Lin Feng's soul, it was clear that her Death Realm lacked any semblance of fairness or reason.
It clearly had the flavor of an autocratic rule.
Naturally, Lin Feng felt no moral pressure in drawing two souls.
Furthermore, regarding his earlier probing question about whether special soul methods were used to enhance power,
The skull's hasty retreat strongly suggested it was true.
And yet, it had the audacity to accuse others of toying with souls?
It seemed like you were the ones treating the Death Realm as a backyard and exploiting souls at will!
Lin Feng hadn't expected his suspicions to be confirmed so quickly, assuming it wasn't a misinterpretation.
He had merely used a basic attack and managed to force out the opponent's ultimate move. That skull was truly brainless.
It was likely that its return to the Death Realm wouldn't be smooth either; if Hela found out, it would be obliterated.
Lin Feng moved swiftly. Before his thoughts could wander too far, he had arrived at the New York Sanctum.
It was nighttime. Lin Feng, still holding Christine's hand, knocked directly on the Sanctum's door.
"Strange, open up!"
"Quick, see who I've brought you!"
After a prolonged knocking, the door finally opened.
The one who opened it was the Dark Doctor Strange.
Strange and Wong of this universe had already gone to bed. Only he, a night owl, was sitting by the window, contemplating the words Strange had spoken earlier that day.
Upon seeing the familiar yet strange figure beside Lin Feng, the Dark Doctor Strange let out a resounding "Holy shit!" that echoed down the entire street.