Chapter 158: Acquiring the Aether Particle

Although he did not understand the reasoning behind Michael's tactics, Thor followed his lead regardless.

Covering each other, the two scanned for an opportunity to tear Malekith apart limb from limb.

Michael's plan had been carefully calculated.

How had the Collector obtained the Reality Stone? It was quite simple: Malekith was killed by Thor, and the Collector merely picked up the scraps.

At the conclusion of Thor: The Dark World, Thor had used his girlfriend Jane's equipment to teleport Malekith's arms to another location. At the time, Malekith's arms had not regenerated, though the mere loss of his arms was not enough to kill him. Later, the dark elves' spaceship was also teleported to the Dark World, crashing down directly on top of Malekith and pinning him beneath its wreckage. It was highly likely that the weight of the spaceship prevented his body from regenerating, ultimately leading to his natural demise.

Thor unleashed a massive barrage of lightning, forcing Malekith to defend himself.

Taking advantage of the opening, Michael materialized behind him, preparing to cut him in half at the waist.

Noticing Michael's movement, Malekith erupted with a surge of energy, blasting Michael backward.

The next instant, Thor charged at Malekith, driving Mjolnir straight through his body. Yet, in a fraction of a second, Malekith's wounds healed as if nothing had happened.

Pushed onto the defensive and thoroughly infuriated, Malekith lashed out once more, unleashing countless bolts of energy toward the two of them. Michael instantly conjured numerous phantom duplicates, using magical shields to block the assault. However, the magical shields were swiftly shattered by the Aether particles, and his duplicates were destroyed, but Michael had vanished without a trace.

Relying on his previous combat experience, Malekith whipped around abruptly and channeled the Aether particles to counterattack.

Yet, he struck empty air; there was nothing behind him. Michael descended from above, slashing down from his shoulder to his hip, cleaving him into two sections. Then, with a swift kick to the chest, he completely separated the halves of Malekith's body.

Thor hurled his hammer, striking Malekith's upper torso. Bound by Odin's enchantment, Malekith was pinned to the ground, unable to rise.

Seizing the opportunity, Michael used a portal to cast Malekith's lower half into the Bottomless Abyss.

Although the plan had undergone a few minor changes, Malekith had nonetheless been torn apart.

"You cannot kill me."

Malekith howled defiantly.

"No, you are already dead."

Michael looked down at Malekith with cold indifference. As expected, once his severed limbs were exiled to another world, his regenerative abilities failed him entirely.

The Aether was merely a byproduct forged from the Reality Stone, possessing only a fraction of its power. It was an inherently crippled version, and holding its own against Thor in a protracted battle was already its absolute limit.

Malekith, too, realized the truth: his body was not healing.

A desperate roar tore from Malekith's throat as the Aether once again surged with immense energy, blasting Michael away.

A centipede, though severed, remains writhing.

Malekith's consciousness had not yet faded entirely, and he could still manipulate the Aether for a little longer. He gazed up at the sky, feeling the rapid ebb of his life force. By now, the signatures of the other Nine Realms were already manifesting in the heavens. Looking upward, he could see not only his native Dark World but also realms like Asgard.

Knowing his end was near, Malekith resolved to go out in one final, mad blaze of glory.

"Hahahaha—!"

"Let the Nine Realms converge, and let the universe return to chaos and darkness!"

Endless gouts of black and red mist poured forth from Malekith's body, shooting straight into the clouds and probing into the other eight worlds. He intended to use his remaining strength to widen the spatial rifts across the other eight realms, dragging everyone down with him into mutual destruction. Furthermore, returning the world to darkness had always been the ultimate dream of the dark elves.

Thor was the first to snap back to reality, shouting to Michael, "We cannot let him continue! We have to stop him!"

Michael stared at him with an expression of utter speechlessness. Did Thor genuinely believe Malekith could pull off the convergence of the Nine Realms?

"It's impossible. He simply doesn't have the power."

"What about New York? Destroying a city like New York is well within his reach!"

Michael understood Thor's concern. Left unchecked, Malekith might indeed devastate New York—assuming he could hold out long enough. Yet Michael was certain Malekith lacked the stamina to pull it off. The spatial stabilizers developed by the Avengers had already been deployed, and the surrounding spatial fluctuations were gradually subsiding. The colossal spatial rifts above would inevitably vanish before long.

"Perhaps there is a spell that can stop him, but it is rather perilous."

Thor immediately pressed, "What kind of peril?"

"I cannot be disturbed."

"Understood."

Michael and Thor approached Malekith.

At the sight of them, Malekith sneered triumphantly, "You cannot stop this. Neither of you can stop anything."

Blood trickled from the corners of Malekith's mouth. The black and red particles around his severed torso were dissipating; soon, hemorrhaging would set in, and Malekith would perish. Yet he cared not a whit. At this juncture, what could possibly matter more than forging a future belonging to the dark elves?

Michael began to chant, weaving his hands into complex, arcane gestures aimed directly at Malekith.

For reasons unknown, the black and red mist swirling around Malekith abruptly ceased its upward ascent, instead streaming directly toward Michael's body.

In moments, Michael was completely enveloped in the dark crimson particles, while Malekith's face twisted in agony.

Only then did Thor realize that Michael's method was to seize the Aether.

The Aether was, after all, a potent artifact. Originally, it had resided within Jane's mortal vessel, and it would never have been extracted had her constitution not been on the verge of failing under its strain. Yet Thor could tell that Michael's method differed vastly from Malekith's. Malekith's approach was one of delicate control, so refined that even Jane's fragile human body remained unharmed.

By contrast, Michael's method appeared terrifyingly aggressive, as though he were reaping Malekith's very life force along with the artifact.

Watching Malekith's torment, a pang of hesitation flickered through Thor.

Before long, the surrounding Aether particles gradually vanished entirely. Several dark elves, noticing the situation, attempted to rush over and rescue their leader.

Thor summoned Mjolnir back to his hand and hurled it forward. The hammer seemed to possess a mind of its own, carving a deadly arc through the air and instantly crushing multiple dark elves.

Having stripped the Aether entirely from Malekith's body, Michael summoned Malekith's lower half back from the Bottomless Abyss, gathering every last fragment of the Aether into his possession.

"How are you holding up?" Thor asked with genuine concern.

This was, after all, the ultimate weapon of the dark elves; it was not something an ordinary person could easily adapt to.

"I'm fine," Michael replied, struggling to keep his excitement in check.

He had been stressing over his lack of a suitable vessel to contain the Aether, but a sudden flash of inspiration had reminded him that he could use his own body as a temporary container. Once he returned, he would refine the Aether back into the Reality Stone.