lin gave Hank a deadpan stare.
"Don't steal a junior's catchphrase! If you use it, what happens to 'Motherfaker Man'?"
Of course, that was lin's inner complaint. On the surface, he quickly returned to normal and calmly sipped his tea.
No one else spoke either. They quietly drank their tea. Hank needed ti to digest this terrifying information.
"Phew—" About an hour later, Hank's restless heart finally settled.
"So what is this? You got bored sitting on your throne and decided to co down and experience the life of a commoner?" Hank asked.
"That's part of it."
"And the other part?"
"Waiting for soone."
"Waiting for soone? Who?"
…
…
"Soone very important to ."
"Right… I'm realizing talking to you is exhausting."
Hank used to find his conversations with lin easy and smooth—maybe because they hadn't touched on secrets like this before. Now, everything was cryptic, vague, and only half-explained, leaving you to guess the rest.
"Can you tell the formula for Pym Particles?" lin asked with a smile.
Hank paused for a second, then finally smiled. "Of course not, bastard!"
"You're the only one who's ever called 'bastard' and lived."
"Well, what an honor."
Hank was starting to feel more like his old self around lin, and the awkwardness in his heart eased, though his attitude toward Howard and the others remained cold.
"Hank, now you believe , right?" Howard asked.
"Shut it, thief. I'm friends with lin, what does that have to do with you?"
"Uh…"
"Actually… we're his subordinates," Peggy cut in to explain.
"Huh?" Hank was taken aback, then rembered Peggy's earlier words: "We're his people."
Noticing Hank's curious gaze, lin smiled and gave Peggy a look, signaling her to explain.
Technically speaking, Peggy's statent was accurate—but not entirely.
Steve was a Saint. Peggy, Howard, and Maria were clerics. So they were indeed lin's subordinates. But that only applied to them. As for the S.H.I.E.L.D. organization they secretly built, it had little to do with lin. He wouldn't interfere with S.H.I.E.L.D.'s managent, but S.H.I.E.L.D. had better not use his na to do things either.
Peggy saw lin's signal but hesitated. After all, S.H.I.E.L.D. was top secret. They trusted Hank's abilities and character, but he still wasn't one of them.
But when lin gave an order, she couldn't just ignore it—truly caught in a dilemma.
"Forget it, I don't want to know your shady business anyway," Hank said, noticing Peggy's hesitation and choosing to drop it.
"…Thank you."
"By the way, lin… they say you're a god… is that true?" Hank suddenly asked.
"Well, that depends on how you define the word 'god,'" lin replied with a shrug.
"Like… like… motherfaker! I'm a scientist, not a theologian!" Hank cursed. Asking him to define "god" was absurd!
You've really gotten into this "Motherfaker Man" role, huh? Fine, you're officially the first generation. That little egghead is second gen!
"Well—just take it as true," lin said. After all, his lifespan was practically endless—he was hundreds of thousands of years old and had the power to destroy planets alone. Calling him a god wasn't inaccurate.
"Alright…" Hank accepted the answer, then hesitantly asked, "Then do you… have a way to… um… bring the dead back to life?"
"Hm?" lin didn't react, but Peggy and the others looked at Hank in surprise.
"I'm sorry, but no, I can't," lin shook his head.
If he truly could revive the dead, the Holy War wouldn't still be ongoing.
At the height of the Sanctuary's power, the first-generation Saints were the strongest in history. The current group had the potential to surpass them, but that still took ti.
If resurrection were possible, lin could simply revive the original twelve Gold Saints, and with them, he could march into outer space and wipe out Hades and Zeus.
"Aren't you a god? Aren't gods supposed to be… omnipotent?" Hank asked, starting to wonder if he'd lost his mind. A man of science, talking about such mystical things.
"Seems like your understanding of 'god' is flawed, Hank. If gods were truly omnipotent, why would so many of them have been killed by ?" lin chuckled.
"Uh…" Hank was speechless.
"Those powerful beings in the universe, I don't know much about them. But the gods of the mythological era were called gods because they held divine authority and dominion. For example, Zeus had dominion over thunder and the sky. Poseidon ruled the ocean. Hades… ruled over death.
Godly powers vary in strength, and no single god possesses a complete set. Earth has many pantheons, and different ones share overlapping powers. Thor from Asgard controls part of the thunder domain. Osiris from the Land of Ra governs a portion of the underworld. It's just a matter of degree.
Back in the mythological era, holy wars were frequent—not just for territory and faith, but also for control over these powers," lin explained.
It wasn't so hidden secret—in that era, everyone knew this. It's just that modern people had no idea what that period of history was really like.
"I see…"
Thanks to lin's explanation, everyone present gained a much clearer understanding of the terms "god" and "holy war."
"So what about you, lin? What's your divine authority?" Hank asked curiously.
"Hank!" Peggy scolded in a low voice. She was curious too, but such things were probably deeply classified. Asking so bluntly wasn't appropriate.
"My authority…" lin murmured, unsure how to answer—because in the truest sense, he wasn't actually a god. He was still human—just a powerful one.
"Maybe… the song of humanity?" lin said.
"The song of humanity? What's that?" everyone asked in confusion.
"The song of humanity… is the song of courage," lin said with a smile, but his tone was firm. It stirred sothing within the listeners, like a surge of power rising in their chests.
Everyone smiled.
Yes—what else could the song of humanity be, if not courage?
Saints, as mortals, stood against gods without retreat, all to protect the land beneath their feet—to protect their ho. Humans were inherently weak, dying from hunger, disease, aging, or man-made disasters. Early humans couldn't even resist natural disasters and could only survive by begging for rcy from the heavens.
Yet they never gave up. They seized every chance to survive, grew stronger over ti, overca hunger, conquered most diseases and man-made crises—even many natural disasters could no longer threaten them.
Wasn't that a miracle of humanity? Wasn't it a song of courage?
And as far as divine authority went, it truly suited lin.
"Well, looks like I should go have a chat with Hades. Do you know where he is?" Hank asked half-jokingly.
"Then you'll be disappointed, Hank. I don't know where he is—and even if I did, I wouldn't tell you."
"Why not?"
"I slept for hundreds of thousands of years, and in that ti, he's been bullying Athena. If I knew where he was, I'd go kill him and his Underworld army first thing!"
lin's expression was half-joking, but the certainty in his tone and the flash of murderous intent in his eyes made it clear he wasn't just joking.
Peggy and the others felt it even more deeply. A few years ago, Athena's reincarnation failed. The Buddhist faction behind it suffered devastating losses, and lin had been hunting them down ever since—vowing not to rest until they were destroyed.
Peggy had nearly fallen out with lin and the Sanctuary over it. If not for Howard's warning and Steve's persuasion, she might've been reporting to the Underworld by now—or rather, she might not have even had a chance at reincarnation.
And as one of the culprits, Hades? There was no way lin would ever spare him. Not to ntion the Sanctuary and the Underworld army had been locked in war for millennia, with deep grudges on both sides.
"Heh, that's a real sha." Hank gave a bitter smile and shook his head.
When he heard that Hades held dominion over death, he did feel a mont of temptation—to see if Hades could bring his wife back. But after hearing lin's words, he gave up. So many years had passed. Maybe it was ti to let go.
Besides, could a god who had been at war with lin and the Sanctuary for hundreds of thousands of years really be a kind or helpful one? And could Hank really make him do anything?
"There's no need for you to seek out Hades, Hank," lin said. He clearly knew who Hank wanted to resurrect.
But the problem was…
Janet wasn't even dead. So what was there to resurrect?
"What do you an?" Hank looked up sharply at lin, the fire in his heart flaring up again.
"Follow your path—and you'll et again one day."
lin played the riddle ga again. He didn't say it directly—because if he told Hank everything now, would Scott Lang still have a chance to inherit the Ant-Man legacy?
lin was quite interested in Scott Lang. Sure, the guy had made mistakes, but he turned back. He was kind, brave, loved his daughter—and most importantly… he was funny!
lin wouldn't go out of his way to seek out Scott Lang, but he also didn't want him to miss his fate.
"So you an! Can't you just say it clearly—ugh, forget it, I should've never co here. You're really annoying right now!" Hank grumbled, though he was grateful that lin had given him hope.
"Congratulations, Hank." Peggy and the others all offered their well wishes. Janet was their friend too, and knowing she might still be alive made them genuinely happy.
"Thank you." Without realizing it, the atmosphere between the two sides had softened a lot.
"Alright, now that you've finished talking… it's our turn, Mr. lin…"
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