145. Natasha boarded the carriage, and the Frost Giant yielded.

The Guardians of the Great Wall had been commissioned by Thor to help quell the rebellion across the Nine Realms. There were many ways to restore order; wiping out an entire race was merely the most direct—and cruel—method.

Aside from Loki, the frost giant who refused to accept his heritage, true Asgardians generally did not consider extermination the best solution. After all, Asgard’s population was already sparse. If all other beings across the Nine Realms were wiped out, leaving only the Aesir gods, it would be unbearably lonely.

Loki’s mindset was understandable. It was similar to the situation on Earth—those who most resented the prosperity of the Dragon Nation weren’t the Americans themselves, but rather the descendants of the Dragon Nation who had joined America. Their disdain stemmed from a need to justify their choice of allegiance.

To affirm their correctness, the Dragon Nation had to remain backward and ignorant, a caricature depicted by directors winning awards at European film festivals. These individuals even willingly became the spearhead of anti-Dragon forces abroad.

As the protagonist in the film “Shang-Chi” remarked, their movies were made for the global Chinese diaspora. The underlying message was clear: the Dragon Nation, like Tarlo, despite its millennia-old history and powerful treasures of dragon scales, was trapped in a small, insular world, living a primitive existence of men farming and women weaving, wielding swords and spears.

Meanwhile, America, though only a little over two centuries old and founded by bandits and fugitives, was the strongest nation in the world and the only one capable of saving the world.

Therefore, having been born and grown in America, the best choice was to live there peacefully. Those with powerful relatives or parents still in the Dragon Nation were urged to return, inherit their technology and resources, and bring them back to America. Together with American-born scientists and builders, they would contribute to America’s global hegemony.

This was essentially the true mindset and behavior of these so-called “bananas”—yellow on the outside, white on the inside. Loki was no different. Only by eradicating the frost giants could he erase his origins and be accepted as a true Asgardian.

As for most genuine Asgardians, what they hoped to see was the submission of the frost giants—not their annihilation—but their allegiance to Odin, ruler of the Nine Realms, and to Asgard.

Now, the frost giants had submitted—albeit to a human from Earth, Su Ye. Although this outcome differed somewhat from their expectations, it was close enough. Thus, Sif found herself unable to reproach him.

Instead, she turned away, her expression a mixture of shame and coyness, silently glaring at him.

“How can I go out looking like this?”

Su Ye was speechless. He had overestimated the elasticity and puncture resistance of the fabric, resulting in an unfortunate wardrobe malfunction. It was like a dragon plunging into the sea or a flood overwhelming Golden Mountain.

Now, Sif’s clothes were torn, stained with a large patch of blood. How could she walk out like this without inviting judgment?

“How about I add more blood and say you were injured fighting the frost giants? Then you can cover the rest with your armor. That should work,” Su Ye suggested after some thought.

“You don’t want to say something to me?” Sif did not reject the idea, but her face carried an indescribable expression.

Su Ye hesitated. “Uh, well... it’s a misunderstanding. We had a bit of a scuffle earlier, and I apologize for that!”

Neither proactive nor dismissive, neither promising nor responsible—this was the extent of what Su Ye, a modern man standing alone, could offer.

Sif’s expression darkened briefly, but then softened. This was an era where friendship was applauded; a little friction was meaningless, especially as nothing lasting remained.

Once outside the cockpit, she could still be the warrior Sif, still striving to become the next queen of the gods. Everything could remain as before.

But would it really?

Soon, the surrender ceremony commenced in the shattered royal court of the frost giants.

Although the frost giants dressed casually, they still had a court. Compared to the grand celestial palace of Asgard, it was but a humble natural platform, surrounded by roughly constructed pillars, designated as the royal court by default.

By now, the court was nearly destroyed from repeated destructive assaults.

“Fabuti, how many frost giants do you have left?” Su Ye asked sternly as Fabuti knelt, representing his people’s surrender.

“Originally, there were over a hundred thousand, but now, more than half are dead or wounded. Perhaps only tens of thousands remain,” Fabuti replied gloomily. He dared not blame Su Ye or the Guardians of the Great Wall for the heavy casualties, instead directing all his hatred toward Asgard.

Such hatred was nearly impossible to erase.

Only if Asgard suffered a catastrophe like Jotunheim—Odin’s death, half the population perishing, or better yet, total annihilation—might the frost giants find relief from their bitterness.

Though the frost giants outnumbered Asgardians, their elite combat power was vastly inferior, forcing them to endure defeat.

Su Ye nodded thoughtfully.

“Tens of thousands should be enough. Have you considered relocating?”

At his words, Fabuti’s head lifted sharply.

Of course they wanted to move. Jotunheim was a miserable place, constantly battered by wind and snow, with scarce and expensive food. They didn’t choose to dress like this; they had no choice.

If given the opportunity, who wouldn’t want a better life?

But after losing to Odin a millennium ago, they lost the means to leave this realm and were trapped here for a thousand years.

“We want to move, King Su. Can you help us?” Fabuti asked.

Su Ye smiled and nodded. He had already thought of a place for them.

Earlier, while gathering mutants, Su Ye conceived the idea of sending them all to the Dragon Nation to contribute to its modernization.

Frost giants like these could serve as firefighters.

Not to compete with “blue friends” for jobs, but to quickly control fires during major disasters, easing the burden on firefighters and minimizing casualties.

After all, such tragedies were the last thing anyone wanted to witness.

With tens of thousands of frost giants, it was like having tens of thousands of lesser “ice beings.” Though weaker individually, their sheer numbers offered an advantage.

Sending them back to the Dragon Nation to the frontlines of fire control would be a chance to redeem themselves.

Finding them a place to live was easy.

The Dragon Nation was vast; housing tens of thousands was a mere trifle.

If they liked the cold, they could live on snowy mountains, perhaps even take on the role of mountain guides for climbers attempting Everest, transforming its north face into a safe ascent.

Every climber from there could be escorted down within half an hour, with supplies like bottled oxygen, military coats, snacks, drinks, and even ice cream provided.

Why not open a small shop—or better yet, a themed hotel atop Everest?

If this venture took off, tens of thousands of frost giants might still not suffice.

But even if not, with enough food, fertility rates would rise.

Their descendants would multiply, building a thriving industry around Everest.

A natural barrier would become a thoroughfare.

With frost giants’ help, one could only imagine the infrastructure marvels the Dragon Nation’s builders would construct on snow.

Perhaps winding mountain roads or even railways up Everest—Su Ye wouldn’t find it surprising.

His imagination was limited, but the Dragon Nation’s creativity was boundless.

This plan was essentially settled.

As for whether tens of thousands of frost giants settling in the Dragon Nation might cause security issues—setting aside the Dragon Nation’s strict security measures—Su Ye felt confident that with Old Su present, no chaos would erupt.

With that, the frost giants’ resettlement was decided. The remaining problem was how to transport tens of thousands of frost giants to Earth.

Logically, since Su Ye and the Guardians of the Great Wall had resolved such a major problem for Asgard, they should be able to use the Rainbow Bridge, with Unchanging helping transport them.

But issues arose.

First, the frost giants refused to use Asgard’s Rainbow Bridge, seeing it as an insult. They could tolerate Su Ye’s disdain but not Asgard’s.

Second, on the Dragon Nation’s side, if the Rainbow Bridge appeared without prior notice, Su Ye feared unwanted repercussions.

If it displeased Old Su and involved Asgard, trouble would follow.

Thus, Su Ye decisively accepted Fabuti’s proposal to leave Jotunheim using the frost giants’ own method.

The so-called frost giant method involved using their treasured ancient Winter Coffin to open a passage from Jotunheim to Earth.

Although the Winter Coffin was a frost artifact, it possessed the power to open spatial portals across the Nine Realms.

Back when the frost giants chose Earth as their battlefield against Asgard, they had opened the pathway themselves.

The problem was that the Winter Coffin was kept in Odin’s treasure vault in Asgard, inaccessible to the frost giants, and perhaps even to Su Ye.

“Actually, there are many unused treasures in Odin’s vault. The Allfather might not object to giving you the Winter Coffin,” Sif suddenly said as they discussed how to obtain it.

“Besides, since you helped Asgard so much this time, requesting the Winter Coffin as a reward isn’t unreasonable.”

“If you want, I can speak with Thor. He certainly wouldn’t oppose.”

At Sif’s words, everyone suddenly brightened. Using the frost giants’ own treasure as payment for settling their troubles was a fair deal for Asgard.

Yet Sif’s change in attitude puzzled them. They all remembered how wary and unfriendly she had been when she first arrived.

What had changed? Was there something unknown that softened her?

“Don’t overthink it. I simply want to thank you for solving the frost giant problem for Asgard.”

“You’re not Asgardians—you’ll never understand what frost giants meant during our childhoods.”

Sif’s face bore a lingering sadness. Clearly, frost giants weren’t just childhood memories to her—they were childhood shadows.

Their contribution to resolving the frost giant issue was far greater than imagined. Otherwise, Thor wouldn’t have chosen them to prove himself.

The Guardians accepted her explanation. Some, like the kind-hearted and simple Gwen, immediately took the clear-cut Sif as a kindred spirit.

“Such a person isn’t just a comrade, but a friend, even a sister!” Gwen thought.

However, agents Sharon and Natasha, trained in espionage, instinctively remained suspicious of Sif’s words and behavior.

They had seen her being led into the cockpit by Su Ye and knew the limited space inside. Subconsciously, they sensed something was amiss.

Sif’s gratitude might be genuine, but there had to be other reasons—hidden within the cockpit.

With this matter settled, the Guardians prepared to disband and return to Asgard for a celebration, immediately requesting the Winter Coffin from Odin and Thor as their reward.

Before that, Su Ye planned to accompany Fabuti to survey the frost giant population, assess Jotunheim’s size, environment, monster presence, and suitability for development—perhaps even tourism.

Cooperation could be mutual.

If people sought to conquer Everest’s harsh environment, why wouldn’t anyone want to visit Jotunheim—a whole world, a complete planet?

Tourism was just a pretext, a way to appease the American teammates in the Guardians.

Su Ye’s real goal was to roughly assess Jotunheim’s resources. With the frost giants gone, the mines and other wealth left behind were wasted if untouched. Extracting them to support construction in the Dragon Nation was their best option.

The two set off together—Su Ye piloting a Gundam, Fabuti riding a frost giant beast—moving without issue.

By the way, some questioned how Su Ye’s Gundam could perform such complex marksmanship maneuvers.

Apologies—Su Ye possessed magnetic field manipulation. To others, the Gundam was an ordinary robot; in his hands, it was an unstoppable mowing machine.

As they prepared to depart, Natasha suddenly approached.

“Uncle Su, I know a bit about maps and resource exploration. Could I join you? Maybe I could help.”

Gwen, meanwhile, ignored the situation, busy befriending Sif.

Sharon, seeing Natasha’s initiative, quietly circled to Gwen’s side to assist her in making friends, ensuring she wouldn’t worry about the others.

Thus, Su Ye, Natasha, and Fabuti set out together.

Natasha’s posture in the cockpit mirrored Sif’s exactly, though Natasha was slightly shorter, so her position and posture fit perfectly, without hindering Su Ye.

The driving experience was far better than when Sif was aboard.

They hadn’t gone far when Natasha suddenly leaned back, exhaling softly into Su Ye’s ear.

“Uncle Su, my battle suit has a zipper…”

Su Ye raised a brow. A zipped suit? Like a secret agent’s?