Loki swung his dagger, parrying Valkyrie's attack.
Hela watched Loki, who stood before her, her gaze shifting from complex to mocking.
"Bah, hypocrite!"
While Valkyrie and Loki fought, Wan Lei suddenly felt a heavy sword strike his back. The power of that blow was terrifying. Even with his armor, his back felt as if it had been split in two.
Wan Lei's body, like a cannonball, slammed heavily onto the ground, creating a large crater.
Suppressing the intense pain, Wan Lei stood up and looked behind him.
He saw a grotesque, gaunt man, deathly pale, clad in rags and holding a slender sword, his gaze fixed on Wan Lei with sinister intent.
Attracted by the commotion, Valkyrie and Loki ceased their fight.
Upon seeing the man, Loki's face paled in alarm. He quickly shouted at Wan Lei,
"Be careful, this is Gorr the God Butcher. He wields the Godslayer, a sword specifically made for killing gods. It is extremely powerful."
He didn't recognize Gorr, but he knew what the Godslayer looked like.
Wan Lei ignored him, picking up his Source Lightning Hammer. He unleashed his cultivation, his body crackling with lightning, and charged towards Gorr.
He had been careless earlier, unprepared, which allowed Gorr to ambush him.
God Butcher, huh? He wasn't a god, so why should he fear him?
Seizing the opportunity while Valkyrie's attention was diverted, Loki immediately produced the shackles that could suppress divine power, locking Hela's wrists. He then picked her up and fled.
Seeing this, Valkyrie moved to stop him.
"You still have the heart to stop me? Hurry and save the people of the Divine Realm! Don't waste an entire legion here!"
Valkyrie gritted her teeth at this and led the Valkyrie legion towards the giant army.
Loki, with Hela, streaked back to the temple and placed her before their mother.
Hela, severely injured, could not stand and sat on the ground, leaning against the wall.
Frigga knelt down, took out a handkerchief, and wiped the blood and dirt from Hela's face.
"Child..."
"Bah, get lost! Who wants your feigned pity!"
Hela spat heavily, glaring hatefully at Frigga.
Loki, seeing this, became enraged. In his eyes, neither his father nor his brothers mattered as much as his mother, who was the most important person. Anyone who dared to insult Frigga had touched his unpardonable sin.
He raised his foot to kick Hela, but Frigga quickly stopped him.
"Child, I know you hate me. Back then, I couldn't persuade your father, and you hate this family.
But now, you have returned. Let the past be the past. You are, after all, my eldest daughter, my most outstanding child.
After the war is over, I will definitely plead with your father. If he still wants to kill you, he'll have to kill me first."
Hearing this, Hela fell silent. The hatred in her eyes dissipated, replaced by a look of indignation.
Her mother had done nothing wrong to her. Her hatred stemmed more from her lingering resentment towards Odin.
"Mother, is Gorr the God Butcher very strong?"
Loki asked.
"I don't know about any Gorr, but I know about God Butchers. Anyone who wields the Godslayer can be called a God Butcher.
Their power comes from the Godslayer, not from themselves. With that sword, one can possess power that surpasses all gods, even your father is no match for it."
"Then... can that person defeat Gorr?"
Loki was naturally referring to Wan Lei.
"I don't know. That person is very strong, incredibly strong. I can sense it. He is much stronger than your father. Even Odin, wielding the Gungnir, might not be this person's opponent.
He is a powerhouse, and should be able to defeat Gorr. Even if he can't defeat him, doesn't he have companions?"
Frigga comforted Loki.
On the distant battlefield, lightning had already spread across half the sky. The fight between Wan Lei and Gorr was earth-shattering, and others could not intervene.
Gorr's strength was immense. With every swing of his sword, the space around it would be torn apart.
Even the lightning would recede.
Wan Lei, wielding the Source Lightning Hammer, launched a series of fierce attacks. Gorr could calmly parry them, even counter-attacking Wan Lei.
By now, Wan Lei's defenses had reached their peak. The Haotian War Body and the Thunder Radiance Armor were beyond question, and the Vajra Dharma Body permeated his entire being. Although not externally manifested, it was contained within, allowing for a more concentrated defensive power.
Yet, even so, Wan Lei, with his Infinite Realm cultivation, could only barely fight Gorr to a draw.
He was even faintly at a disadvantage.
His domain could not affect Gorr at all. Wherever the Godslayer sword passed, all rules and domains had to retreat.
They fought like this for a full day.
By this time, the battle on the ground below had concluded.
With the arrival of a million reinforcements, the demon race lost its advantage. They were divided, surrounded, and annihilated by the reinforcements.
The Thunder Rain squad specifically targeted strong opponents, and soon there were no strong fighters left on the battlefield.
Laufey was killed, Hela was captured alive, and Surtr was brought back with his head in Ao Lie's jaws, thoroughly dead. Odin could not revive him with the Eternal Fire.
The Frost Giants were all annihilated under the onslaught of the armies.
On the battlefield, only Wan Lei and Gorr remained locked in combat.
Odin, with the gods, returned to the temple. The Thunder Rain squad, General Shang Liu, and the legion commanders of the reinforcements also arrived outside the temple to watch.
"Let's go help Wan Lei. I feel like he can't beat that God Butcher."
Xia Yubing, holding her twin sabers, was eager to fight.
"The one who even Wan Lei can't defeat, can you?"
Wan Qianxin scoffed.
"What do you mean? Are you looking down on me?"
"Oh, you noticed."
Fang Xiaoyu stopped the two who were about to fight and said,
"Don't worry about Wan Lei. Just watch quietly. It's rare for him to encounter an opponent who can make him go all out and have a hearty battle.
Wan Lei hasn't fought with such full effort in a long time. His past opponents were either too strong or too weak. This time, let him have a good fight."
Hearing this, Frigga walked up to Fang Xiaoyu and asked with a kind and gentle smile,
"Young lady, you said just now that the warrior's name is Wan Lei, is that correct?"
Fang Xiaoyu nodded.
"And is he your commander for this expedition?"
"Yes, he is also the captain of our squad, and my husband."
Fang Xiaoyu's expression was somewhat peculiar. This goddess, in a sense, was also her... mother-in-law?
"As expected, a true prodigy. At such a young age, possessing such combat power, he is even more formidable than Odin, who has lived for twenty thousand years."
As she said this, Frigga's emotions became somewhat lost, and her tone was filled with a sense of wistful melancholy.
"Are... are you alright?"
Fang Xiaoyu asked.
"I'm fine. I was just reminded of my deceased son. If he were still alive, he would probably be as strong as your husband."