Stark Tower, top-floor living room.
The eerie aftermath of the Antigonus incident had not yet completely dissipated.
The Avengers each had their own thoughts, and the atmosphere was somewhat heavy.
Lin Huai poured himself a glass of whiskey at the bar and downed it in one gulp.
The spicy liquid slid down his throat, easing the sense of emptiness after severing his connection with Sefirah Castle.
He knew now was not the time for confusion; there were still many troubles waiting for him, the director, to handle.
First and foremost was Hela, the Goddess of Death, sitting in the corner of the sofa and radiating an aura that warned others not to approach.
Lin Huai held his wine glass and walked straight over.
Thor and Loki were standing not far away.
They looked at the sister they had just learned existed with complex expressions, the atmosphere extremely awkward.
"Hela."
Lin Huai spoke calmly, breaking the silence.
Hela slowly raised her head, her dark green eyes filled with the humiliation of defeat and murderous intent.
If looks could kill, Lin Huai would have probably been sliced into pieces countless times by now.
"I admit, you are very strong, mortal."
She spoke coldly, a hint of mockery at the corner of her mouth.
"But that doesn't mean you have the right to tell me what to do."
"I'm not here to tell you what to do."
Lin Huai placed his wine glass on the coffee table, pulled out a chair and sat down, looking directly at her.
"I'm here to give you an opportunity."
He ignored Hela's astonishment and continued.
"I know you are Odin's eldest daughter, the first in line to the throne of Asgard."
"But unfortunately, the king Odin chose is Thor."
"Him?!"
Hela laughed, glancing contemptuously at Thor nearby.
"Just because of this idiot who only knows how to use a hammer to crack walnuts?"
Thor was furious upon hearing this.
"Who are you calling an idiot!"
"That's enough, Thor."
Lin Huai stopped him without looking back, his gaze never leaving Hela.
"However, if a king cannot even protect their own people, they are not fit to be that king."
He leaned forward slightly, his voice lowering a bit as if stating a predestined future.
"A Lunatic, a Titan named Thanos."
"His fleet will soon be closing in on Earth, or rather, Midgard."
"His goal is the Infinity Stones and the gauntlet in my hand. I am the primary target, but I cannot guarantee he won't attack Asgard."
"So,"
Lin Huai spread his hands.
"How about I give the three of you siblings a test?"
"Using this resistance against Thanos's invasion as the standard, whoever can protect Asgard will have the right to sit on that throne."
Hela stared intently at Lin Huai.
"On what grounds?!"
Infinite divine power of death gushed out from her body.
The divine power transformed into dozens of pitch-black Necroswords, hovering behind her, their tips pointed directly at Lin Huai.
The temperature in the entire living room seemed to drop by dozens of degrees.
"A mortal! A thief who stole the power of the gods! How dare you come to arrange me, to arrange the succession of the throne of Asgard?!"
"On the grounds of this."
Lin Huai slowly raised his left hand, which wore the Infinity Gauntlet.
The crimson gem embedded on the middle finger, the Reality Stone, bloomed with an eerie light.
Under the shroud of the red light, the dozens of Necroswords seemed to turn into children's toys.
They trembled violently and twisted.
Finally, with a 'poof', they turned into a swarm of black butterflies, circling above Hela's head.
Hela's face instantly turned pale.
"And also because I am the tutor personally appointed by Odin under the World Tree for his two incompetent sons!"
Lin Huai's voice became ethereal and majestic.
"Now, you have three choices."
"One, agree to my proposal. Go back to Asgard with your two younger brothers right now to fight for your throne."
"Two, disagree, and be beaten by me until you agree."
Lin Huai smiled slightly, the light from the gems on the gauntlet growing even brighter.
"Three, be eternally sealed by me in some spatial rift, or somewhere even worse than Helheim."
He looked at Hela, whose expression was shifting uncertainly, and withdrew his pressure.
His tone became calm again, like a mentor giving patient guidance.
"Instead of wasting time losing your temper with me here, you might as well go back early."
"As far as I know, Queen of the Gods Frigga is currently the supreme leader of Asgard."
"Go to her to pull some resources and see if you can rebuild the Valkyrie Legion."
"How can a queen not have her own army?"
The last sentence was like a key, unlocking the shackles in Hela's heart.
The Valkyrie Legion!
That was the invincible army she had led while following Odin to conquer the Nine Realms.
It was the symbol of her glory and power.
Compared to that illusory throne, rebuilding her own invincible army was clearly a more substantial temptation.
The madness and tyranny in Hela's eyes were gradually replaced by the flames of ambition.
She took a deep look at Lin Huai.
Then she swept a contemptuous glance over the out-of-the-loop Thor and the thoughtful Loki.
After a long while, she finally stood up from the sofa.
She straightened her armor, regaining the pride of the Goddess of Death.
"Fine, I agree."
Her voice was cold and firm.
"But remember, that throne will ultimately only be mine."
"Then go and get it with your own ability."
Lin Huai shrugged indifferently and looked at Thor.
"Alright, you guys can go home now."
Thor opened his mouth.
He looked at his powerful sister, then at his brother who looked like he was watching a good show.
Finally, he turned a pleading gaze toward Lin Huai.
Lin Huai simply ignored him.
In the end, the future King of Asgard could only dejectedly raise his hammer and sigh to the heavens.
"Heimdall!"
"Heim-my-foot! Go to the roof or outside, this is the damn living room." Lin Huai slapped Thor on the head.
A pillar of rainbow light pierced down, enveloping the three people on the top floor of Stark Tower.
The light dissipated, leaving only a large charred rune on the floor and a group of staring Avengers.
Suddenly, a wolfdog rushed out of the dining room with a chicken leg in its mouth, "Awoo-woo..."
...
After sending off Hela and the Thor brothers, Lin Huai did not rest.
He sat quietly on the sofa all night.
Antigonus's words, his friends' trust, and those heavy wishes replayed constantly in his mind.
He no longer obsessed over whether he was a Marionette or a person.
Steve was right; it didn't matter.
What mattered was that he was Lin Huai, a member of the Avengers, Tony's friend, and their comrade-in-arms.
That was enough.
In the grand deception set by the gods, the only thing he could trust was himself.
So, as himself, what should he do most right now?
The answer was self-evident.
Gather the Infinity Stones and possess the power to overturn the chessboard.
Only then could he have the most basic confidence.
Whether it was protecting the World, waking up Klein, or fulfilling the wishes entrusted to him.
The first rays of morning sunlight spilled into the living room through the large floor-to-ceiling windows.
Lin Huai slowly opened his eyes; the confusion and emptiness had vanished.
Replacing them were an unprecedented clarity and determination.
He stood up and walked to the large curved window.
He looked down at the city, scarred by war but stubbornly reborn.
His left hand rose, and the Infinity Gauntlet, crafted by the Nidavellir Dwarf King himself, shimmered with a dark gold luster in the morning light.
The Space Stone and Reality Stone were quietly embedded within it.
Four more to go.
He turned his gaze toward the east, as if piercing through layers of space.
He saw the holy land located deep in the Himalayas, Kamar-Taj.
The Time Stone, eye of agamotto.
It was time to visit that Sorcerer Supreme of Earth.
With a thought from Lin Huai, the Space Stone on his left gauntlet bloomed with a deep blue light.
A circular portal sparkling with sparks silently unfolded in front of him.
On the other side of the door was a simple courtyard full of Zen meaning.
The towering silhouettes of snow-capped mountains were clearly visible in the distance.
Without the slightest hesitation, Lin Huai stepped into the portal.
As he passed through the space gate, a lady was standing quietly in the courtyard.
She was dressed in yellow monk robes, her face peaceful, as if she had been waiting for a long time.
It was the Sorcerer Supreme, Ancient One.
She held a cup of steaming tea in her hand.
Seeing Lin Huai's arrival, there was no surprise on her face, only a gentle smile.
"Would you like a cup of tea? Freshly brewed Darjeeling Black Tea."
Lin Huai looked at her, and the last bit of tension in his heart dissipated.
He knew that Ancient One's reaction had already explained everything.
"It seems you already know my purpose for coming."
Lin Huai walked to the stone bench opposite her and sat down, getting straight to the point.
"There are countless possibilities in the torrent of time; I just happened to catch a glimpse."
Ancient One pushed a cup of tea in front of Lin Huai.
"However, what truly made me wait for you here was the entrustment of another lady."
"The Evernight Goddess?"
Lin Huai guessed the answer almost immediately.
Ancient One nodded and took a small sip of her tea.
"Just a few hours ago, Lady Arianna left Kamar-Taj. She told me the time has come."
Ancient One's tone was very flat, as if she were talking about a trivial matter.
"It seems I owe more and more favors."
Lin Huai smiled self-deprecatingly and downed the tea in one gulp.
Ancient One watched him, a hint of curiosity and approval in her eyes.
"No, this is not a favor; this is a transaction, an investment."
She slowly set down her teacup.
"The Evernight Goddess chose to invest in you, perhaps seeing the possibility of you changing the future."
"And I also have a humble request that I hope you can agree to."
Lin Huai signaled for her to continue.
"Please, go on."
"I have guarded this World for too long, I am too tired, it is time to find a successor."
Ancient One's gaze became distant and a bit strange.
"I have already found a very excellent candidate, a Doctor with a resilient will and infinite potential."
"But he is currently proud and arrogant, a staunch scientific materialist; the time is not yet right."
"I need someone who can guide him to embrace a broader World."
"To make him understand that not everything can be solved with a scalpel."
"Of course, the most important thing is that it allows me to get off work."
Ancient One's gaze returned to Lin Huai, her expression serious.
"I hope you can become his mentor."
"You possess both the wisdom of a mortal and carry the will of the gods. You are the most suitable candidate."
Looking at the trusting gaze of Ancient One, he finally nodded solemnly.
"I promise you."
"Very good."
A gratified smile appeared on Ancient One's face.
She unfastened the uniquely shaped metal pendant hanging around her neck.
The eye of agamotto.
"Then, according to our agreement, it now belongs to you."
Lin Huai took the cold pendant, feeling the majestic power within it that seemed capable of twisting time and space.
He raised his left hand, and the shell of the eye of agamotto automatically unfolded, revealing the emerald green glowing gem within.
The Time Stone.
Just as Lin Huai prepared to take the gem and embed it into the Infinity Gauntlet.
A wonderful throb originating from the depths of his soul suddenly surged up.
The time for advancement had arrived.
This feeling came so suddenly, yet so naturally.
He, as a historical projection that did not belong to this World.
At this very moment, he truly completed the severance from his own past.
Without any hesitation.
Lin Huai took two things from his pocket.
The eyeball belonging to a Hound of Fulgur obtained in Asgard.
Plus the Flocculated Heart of a Mist Demon Wolf that Antigonus had taken from Fenrir's body.
The main ingredients for the Scholar of Yore advancement were complete.
He placed the eyeball burning with dark red flames and the heart surrounded by white mist together on the stone table.
Then, he slowly and firmly pressed the Time Stone in his hand toward the socket of the Infinity Gauntlet.
Click.
A soft sound.
The Time Stone was perfectly embedded into the gauntlet.
The emerald green light instantly spread along the patterns on the gauntlet.
At this very moment, the two main ingredients on the stone table underwent an incredible change.
Time seemed to be accelerated billions of times upon them.
That burning eyeball's light turned from brilliant to dim, eventually turning into a handful of grayish-white embers.
The mist surrounding that beating Demonic Wolf heart quickly dissipated.
The heart itself rapidly shriveled and weathered, turning into a pinch of fine white powder.
It was as if in this single instant, they had crossed thousands of years of time, completing the entire process from birth to decay.
Then, these two distinct handfuls of ash, drawn by the green light of the Time Stone, slowly floated up.
They blended and swirled in the air, transforming into a grayish-white airflow.
This airflow, as if possessed of life, gently and naturally bored into Lin Huai's forehead.
Boom!
At this moment, Lin Huai's consciousness seemed to be thrown into a vast and boundless river of history.
---
Endless memory fragments surged over.
This time, they no longer belonged to the Earthling Lin Huai's memories.
No, they belonged to another existence.
He saw it.
He saw himself sitting at the bottom of the bronze long table, with the Hanged Man Alger on his right, Justice Audrey on his left, and grayish-white fog above his head.
He heard it.
He heard Mr. Fool using his familiar voice, asking him to speak on His behalf.
He felt it.
He felt that every time he acted, he was controlled by an invisible Spirit Thread.
His thoughts, words, and every movement came from that existence at the head of the long table.
He was the World.
He was The Fool's Marionette.
He saw it again.
He saw the silent Sefirah Castle after the final battle.
He felt the frantic tearing of two wills, one belonging to Klein and one belonging to the Celestial Worthy.
He felt the prayers of the Tarot Club members across the Cosmos.
Those powers of faith were like sweet rain, watering his empty shell.
Then, he went mad.
An incurable madness originating from the violent conflict between humanity and divinity.
He tore at his own spirit body, attacking everything in Sefirah Castle.
He even wanted to replace those two figures Above the Gray Fog.
Finally, he saw a pair of tired yet gentle eyes.
Eyes belonging to Klein Moretti.
That figure used the last of his strength to wrap him up and throw him into a spacetime rift leading to who knows where.
By his ear came His final whisper.
"Live on... as yourself."
All the memory fragments, at this moment, were perfectly spliced together.
Lin Huai.
World.
Klein Moretti.
Lin Huai slowly opened his eyes.
The Sorcerer Ancient One opposite him was still quietly drinking tea, as if everything that had just happened was merely an illusion.
But Lin Huai knew that something was completely different.
He had become a Sequence 3, Scholar of Yore.
He could feel that he could summon those images belonging to the past from the gaps of history.
He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, the Reality Stone on his hand beginning to flicker.
When he opened them again, before him was no longer the courtyard of Kamar-Taj.
But that familiar, grayish-white fog.
That mottled bronze long table.
Those familiar yet blurry figures sitting on high-backed chairs.
Hanged Man, Justice, Judgement, Sun, Magician, The Star, Moon...
Lin Huai's lips trembled slightly.
He knew.
He could finally see them again.
Even if it was only a historical projection.