Chương 80: Chapter 80: Loki, Loki, Loki, Loki, Loki 

Having played his little prank, Luke quietly stepped aside under the Ancient One's exasperated gaze, hiding behind a newly summoned Troll Ninja just in case she decided to smack him. 

The Ancient One sighed heavily. This boy was truly incorrigible. 

Picking up the pruning baton from the floor, she inspected it briefly before figuring out the activation mechanism. The tip began to glow with a dangerous orange light. She turned her serene gaze toward Luke. 

!!! 

Wait, why are you aiming that at ME first?! 

Luke panicked and immediately ordered the Shadow Ninjas to violently shove Judge Ravonna and Mobius forward as human shields. It was always better to let the natives test the waters first! 

Mobius: Thanks a lot, kid. Real brave. 

Compared to Mobius, who instantly broke out in a terrified sweat, Judge Ravonna remained surprisingly calm and stoic. 

"Looking at her reaction, it seems this thing really does just teleport people to the 'Void at the End of Time'," Luke chuckled from the safety behind his massive Troll Ninja. 

"Well, I'm not picky!" Luke peeked out and pointed directly at Mobius. "Let's start with this guy." 

Mobius looked incredibly confused. Luke kept his eyes locked on Ravonna's face. Seeing that her expression didn't change even slightly when he ordered Mobius's execution, Luke nodded in satisfaction. 

Confirmed. Pruning doesn't actually kill them. It just teleports them. 

A Shadow Ninja took the pruning baton from the Ancient One and slowly approached Mobius. 

Mobius was visibly trembling. As the ninja closed the distance, Mobius suddenly lunged to the side, desperately trying to yank a katana from the sheath of a different ninja. 

SLAP! 

The ninja simply backhanded him across the face, sending him sprawling to the floor. 

I gave you a chance to go quietly, and you blew it! 

Luke sighed and ordered the ninja to prune Mobius. 

Zap. Mobius dissolved into glowing orange particles and vanished. 

Without missing a beat, the ninja turned around and pruned Judge Ravonna as well. She didn't put up a fight or do anything unnecessary. 

Scanning the remaining group, Luke decided not to use Variant Loki as the next test subject. He had other plans. 

Instead, he ordered the ninja to prune a fellow Shadow Ninja. Luke focused on his contract link. He confirmed that the pruned ninja's status was exactly the same as the others B-15 had pruned earlier: not dead, but trapped in an inaccessible location, unable to be summoned back. 

Nodding in satisfaction, Luke ordered the ninja to systematically prune the remaining TVA captives, before finally turning the baton on itself. 

Lastly, Luke picked up the baton and pruned himself. 

A blinding flash of orange light filled his vision. When it cleared, Luke found himself standing in a vast, desolate, barren wasteland. There was absolutely no one else around. 

Igniting his flight boots, Luke flew up into the air to get a better vantage point. He deployed a squad of Nightbats to rapidly scout the immediate area. 

A moment later, the Ancient One seamlessly materialized beside him. The Sorcerer Supreme was as reliable as ever. 

The Nightbats quickly returned, reporting that they had successfully mapped the immediate vicinity. They had located two specific individuals nearby. 

Luke immediately dispatched several Shadow Ninjas to retrieve them. 

A few minutes later, Tony Stark (still awkwardly clanking around in his dark energy plate armor) and Sylvie were safely escorted to Luke's side. The others, however, were nowhere to be found. 

Seeing that Tony and Sylvie were safe, Luke breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't really care about the others. 

You're asking about the male Variant Loki? No, no, no! 

Dealing with the original MCU Loki back on Earth was annoying enough. He absolutely did not want to deal with a second one! This wasn't some kind of 'Into the Loki-Verse' crossover! 

Besides, given Loki's unparalleled, innate talent for deceit, manipulation, and spineless survival, he would probably be perfectly fine. He could infiltrate enemy ranks and sweet-talk his way out of any situation. There was no need to worry about him. It was far more important to locate the Shadow Ninjas that had been pruned earlier! 

Luke focused his senses, trying to locate the specific mental signatures of the missing ninjas, but he still couldn't feel them nearby. Deciding to cast a wider net, he pulled out a 'One-Million Point' Dark Energy Crystal. He crushed it, transforming the raw power into a massive, omnidirectional dark energy pulse that swept rapidly across the wasteland. 

Loki groaned, slowly regaining consciousness. He found himself lying face-up in a patch of coarse, dead grass. Before he could even properly assess his surroundings, several bizarre faces leaned over him. 

"Who are you?" Loki asked nervously, staring at the incredibly strange group. There was a young boy, a massive brute wielding a hammer, an older, cynical-looking man in a classic Loki costume, and a... uh... an alligator wearing a horned helmet?! 

"We need to move, now! Alioth is approaching!" Classic Loki (the older man) suddenly looked up toward the horizon, an expression of sheer, primal terror on his face. He quickly hauled Loki to his feet and started running. 

As they sprinted across the wasteland, Loki glanced over his shoulder. In the distance, a colossal, terrifying monster composed entirely of dark, swirling storm clouds was roaring furiously. And currently engaged in a completely futile battle against the storm-monster were several Shadow Ninjas! 

Shadow Ninjas?! 

Loki's eyes widened. Those are definitely my Uncle's ninjas! 

"Hold on! Stop!" Loki yelled, halting the bizarre group's retreat. He pointed frantically toward the distant battle. "Where did those ninjas come from?!" 

Classic Loki glanced back. "Those weird shadow creatures? They literally just popped out of thin air a while ago and immediately started fighting Alioth. Honestly, it's a good thing those creatures seem to possess some kind of rapid regeneration or immortality, otherwise Alioth would have devoured them hours ago." 

"We have to go help them! Those ninjas are my Uncle's subordinates! If we stick with them, I can use them to find my Uncle! He is incredibly powerful; he can easily—" 

"Wait, back up. What did you just say?" Classic Loki interrupted, looking at him as if he had grown a second head. 

"Uh... I said my Uncle can guarantee our safety?" 

"Since when do we have an Uncle?" Classic Loki asked, looking at the others in profound confusion. 

"I don't have an Uncle," Boastful Loki (the brute) declared proudly. 

"Uh, doesn't ring a bell," Kid Loki shook his head. 

"What are you talking about?" Loki was getting frustrated. "Why do you keep saying 'we'?" 

"Because we are also Loki," Classic Loki replied flatly. 

"What the hell?!" Loki stared at them in absolute disbelief. 

"We are all Loki," the three humanoid Variants said in unison. 

The Alligator Loki snapped its jaws twice in agreement. 

"Uh... alright." Having already met a female version of himself earlier today, Loki surprisingly accepted this revelation rather quickly. 

"Fine. Regardless of who you are, the fact remains: my Uncle is also trapped in this place! He is terrifyingly powerful, and he can absolutely protect us from that cloud-monster! And those ninjas belong to him!" 

"Even if your so-called 'Uncle' is here, it means he got pruned by the TVA. Clearly, he can't be that powerful if he got caught," Boastful Loki scoffed arrogantly. 

"NO!" Loki yelled defensively. "He single-handedly completely suppressed the entire TVA! He literally forced them to surrender! He only came here voluntarily to hunt down the Time-Keepers! He pruned himself!" 

"Hmm. That actually sounds incredibly interesting," Classic Loki mused, turning to look at Kid Loki for confirmation. 

Kid Loki thought for a moment. "Alright. We'll go get those ninjas and let them lead us to this so-called 'Uncle'." 

"As you command, my King," Classic Loki bowed slightly, before turning to look at the distant battle. 

"Wait... why did you just call him 'King'?" Loki asked, utterly bewildered. He knew himself better than anyone; a Loki would never willingly submit to another's authority, especially not a child! 

"Let him tell you himself." Classic Loki turned and began walking purposefully toward the raging Alioth. 

Kid Loki walked up to the original Loki. With an expression that was chillingly devoid of emotion, he stated, "Because... I killed Thor." 

Loki's eyes widened to the size of saucers. He stared at the child in absolute, horrified shock. 

Meanwhile, Classic Loki stopped a short distance away from the raging Alioth. He took a deep, centering breath. 

Brilliant, emerald-green magical energy violently erupted from his hands, washing over the desolate landscape. 

As Loki watched in sheer, unadulterated awe, a colossal, impossibly detailed, perfectly scaled replica of the golden royal palace of Asgard majestically rose from the barren dirt! 

"Asgard..." Loki murmured blankly. This older variant possessed illusion magic so unimaginably powerful that he could casually conjure an entire, fully detailed city?! 

"Stop daydreaming and go get those ninjas!" 

Kid Loki jumped up and slapped Loki hard on the back of the head. 

The kid hit surprisingly hard, but Loki didn't argue. He immediately sprinted toward the Shadow Ninjas. 

Alioth—who had been incredibly frustrated by its inability to permanently consume the regenerating Shadow Ninjas—suddenly noticed the massive, glowing golden palace that had just appeared nearby. 

A massive feast! 

Alioth instantly abandoned the annoying ninjas and eagerly surged toward the illusionary Asgard. 

"Hey! Your Master is my Uncle, Luke! Right?! Follow me! We need to get out of here!" Loki yelled frantically at the three Shadow Ninjas. 

"What is this guy rambling about?" Ninja A asked, tilting his head. 

"I think he's claiming that if we follow him, he can help us return to the Dark Dimension and find the Master?" Ninja B translated uncertainly, glancing at Ninja C. Both A and B were relatively new summons, while Ninja C was a veteran who had served by Luke's side for a long time. 

"I recognize him. That is indeed the Master's nephew. I believe we can trust him," Ninja C stated calmly, nodding at the others. 

They had been trapped in this barren wasteland for hours. They had even attempted ritual suicide (seppuku) several times, hoping to trigger their automatic recall mechanism, but they simply respawned in the exact same spot in the Void. 

Then, that terrifying, massive cloud-monster had appeared and tried to eat them. Because the ninjas were essentially conceptual entities composed of pure dark energy, they possessed pseudo-immortality and couldn't be permanently destroyed by the beast. However, because Alioth lacked a physical, corporeal form, the ninjas' physical weapons were completely useless against it. 

They had been locked in a completely pointless, agonizing stalemate. 

Rather than continuing to fight a giant cloud forever, it was far better to follow the Master's nephew. Perhaps he truly did have a way to reunite them with the Master. 

Having reached a consensus, the three Shadow Ninjas immediately melted into shadows and began rapidly slithering across the ground toward Loki. 

"Yes! Hurry up!" Loki cheered, waving his arms. 

But halfway toward Loki, a bizarre, incredibly familiar pulse of dark energy suddenly swept across the wasteland. 

Instantly, the three Shadow Ninjas popped out of the shadows, drew their katanas, and simultaneously impaled themselves through the heart! 

??? 

Loki stared in absolute, jaw-dropping confusion as the three ninjas dissolved into dark mist and vanished completely! 

Meanwhile, a short distance away, Alioth happily plunged into the golden towers of Asgard, only to realize there was absolutely no sustenance to be found. 

Its joy instantly turned into blinding rage. It violently shredded the massive illusion, revealing Classic Loki standing beneath it, his hands glowing with green magic. 

Classic Loki glanced over at the original Loki, who was currently standing alone and empty-handed. He sighed heavily. The next second, Alioth's massive, roaring maw completely engulfed him. 

"Uh... I apologize. It seems there was an unforeseen complication," Loki stammered as he rejoined Kid Loki and Boastful Loki. He looked sadly at the spot where Classic Loki had stood; only a battered, horned golden helmet remained in the dirt. 

"You should probably explain that to him," Kid Loki said flatly, pointing behind Loki. 

Loki turned around. Standing there, looking incredibly exasperated, was Classic Loki! 

"You explicitly promised those ninjas would lead us to your Uncle," Classic Loki panted heavily, leaning against a rock. His illusion magic was so profoundly powerful that he had once successfully faked his own death to fool Thanos when he had three Infinity Stones! Tricking a giant, mindless cloud-dog was child's play. 

"I am truly sorry. But it appears my Uncle actively summoned them back just as they were approaching," Loki apologized profusely. 

"Well... that's just fantastic," Classic Loki shook his head in sheer disappointment. 

"We need to move. Now. Alioth looks extremely angry," Boastful Loki warned, gripping his makeshift hammer tightly. 

Loki glanced back at the roaring, furious Alioth, which was currently tearing up the landscape in a blind rage. Just as Loki looked, Alioth's glowing, malevolent eyes locked directly onto him. 

"Uh... shouldn't we start running?" Loki asked nervously. 

Receiving no response, Loki turned around... only to see the other three Variants (and the alligator) already sprinting away at top speed, leaving him in the dust! 

"DAMN IT! I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN! YOU CAN NEVER TRUST A LOKI!" Loki screamed, desperately sprinting after them. 

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