Kaecilius

Piney Point, Memorial District, Houston.

Because Lin Xu had donated to the Memorial District police precinct for years, the police presence nearby was much stronger than in other places.

After six months away, there was already a lot of dust in the house. He went to the entryway, left the door open, and called a cleaning service.

He returned to the bedroom, took a shower, and spent another three hours converting divine power. By the time he opened the bedroom door again, two cleaners had been waiting in the living room for quite a while.

Apart from the master bedroom, the rest of the house was spotless. Cleaners working in the wealthy neighborhood of Piney Point had to pass an assessment by the property manager, and the penalty for breach of contract was as high as eight figures. Lin Xu wasn't worried in the slightest about his personal belongings being lost or damaged.

The cleaners soon finished the master bedroom, said goodbye, and left. With nothing else to do, Lin Xu watched the news in the living room.

Gradually, a sense of anxiety and restlessness welled up in him for no apparent reason. He didn't know where the feeling came from or why he felt that way.

But Lin Xu, who had long lived in a constant state of alert, reacted quickly. He gripped Gungnir in one hand and reached out with the other, ready to draw a circle and flee at any moment.

Before he could react, however, the world spun around him, and his whole body slammed heavily against the ceiling!

The Mirror Dimension!!

The door opened, and a man who looked remarkably like Uncle Mads walked in. Without a word, he cast the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak.

Kamar-Taj's traitor, Kaecilius!

Seeing that Lin Xu was bound, Kaecilius narrowed his eyes, ringed in black and red. "Come with me. Him wants to see you!"

Lin Xu noticed that the word Kaecilius used wasn't "he" or "she," but "Him," a word that usually appeared at the beginning of a sentence and could only be used as an object.

So either his grammar was wrong, or... he was referring to God, or a god...!!

Although Lin Xu couldn't rule out the possibility that Kaecilius was illiterate, he still leaned toward the latter.

And the god Kaecilius worshipped could be none other than Dormammu.

"Is that so? Then let's see if you've got what it takes!"

Lin Xu flicked his foot lightly, sending Gungnir spinning through the air and instantly shredding the bands. Without hesitation or another word, he hurled Gungnir straight at him.

He had to admit, this move really was useful. Sometimes Lin Xu even suspected Thor had learned to throw his hammer from Odin...

The spear came at Kaecilius, leaving him nowhere to dodge. He hurriedly raised the Shield of the Seraphim.

The shield broke, and he was wounded!

An utterly dark power suddenly appeared, stopping Gungnir before it could reach Kaecilius's internal organs, but the spear wound in his chest still left him extremely weak.

"Well, look at you. Then try this move of mine!"

Lin Xu recalled the spear, formed seals with both hands, silently recited an incantation, and then slammed his palms against the ground beneath his feet.

A bolt of red lightning sprang from his palm, bounced across the floor several times, and struck Kaecilius's wound directly.

The Bolts of Balthakk! Also known as god-slaying lightning, its advantage was its great power, while its drawback was that it was too slow and easy to dodge. Thanos had seen that, which was why he had chosen not to take it head-on.

But the wounded Kaecilius wasn't so lucky!

His fruitless fishing trips over the past few days had made him miserable, so he had learned this move specifically to fish with new energy... He hadn't expected it to come in handy now.

Looking at Kaecilius, who had nearly been charred to a crisp, Lin Xu prepared to finish him off. But a flash of multicolored black swept past, and Kaecilius vanished from sight.

At the same time, another mist, white tinged with black, appeared, and a person appeared in the room—the Ancient One!!

Presumably, when Dormammu had personally intervened to retrieve him, this old woman had noticed.

Although Dormammu could temporarily block the Ancient One from sensing Kaecilius, he couldn't hide his own presence. His energy was too powerful, too recognizable.

"Are you all right?"

The Ancient One wasn't in a hurry to dispel the Mirror Dimension.

"I'm fine. Kaecilius is no match for me, but..."

"What did you do? Why did Dormammu go after you?"

"How the hell should I know...? I'm baffled too. I was minding my own business at home, and suddenly he ambushed me. Aren't you knowledgeable and experienced? Help me figure it out."

The Ancient One pondered for a moment. "There are only five things you have that are worth coveting: the Eye of Agamotto, Hoggoth's rib, Gungnir, the Odinforce, and that page from the Book of the Vishanti.

"But the first three are all external powers. For the Dark Dimension, where matter is inexhaustible, what weapon could he not have, as long as he wanted it and was willing to spend the time?

"And the Odinforce, to put it plainly, is simply a quantifiable amount of energy. It likewise isn't worth going to such lengths for."

"The Book of the Vishanti?"

"The Book of the Vishanti!"

"But why?"

The Ancient One clasped her hands behind her back and walked to the doorway, sensing the lingering dark aura in the air.

"Do you know where Dormammu came from?"

"Not much. I heard from Agamotto that he became a lord of a dimension later in life?"

"That's right. Eternity told me that Dormammu was originally just a member of the Faltine race, a life-form made of energy. Because of his greed, he and his sister devoured physical matter, violating their ancestral teachings, and were exiled to the Dark Dimension by their people.

"Unreconciled to that fate, he began acting as a Devourer in the Dark Dimension. The Dark Lord at the time paid it no mind, believing that this was his domain and that even the most powerful beings were his servants. That arrogance was his undoing. Dormammu succeeded and became the new Dark Lord!"

Gradually, Lin Xu understood.

"So neither he nor his predecessor had complete control over the Dark Dimension? Or rather, there are still drawbacks to becoming its lord later on?"

"That's right. A domain he took over ultimately isn't his own. He can draw on dark energy, but he has no authority over it." As she spoke, the dark mark on the Ancient One's forehead flashed briefly.

"If he wants complete control, there are two shortcuts: Chthon's Black Magic and the Vishanti's White Magic. Both are closely connected to Earth, which is why he has wanted to be a Devourer of Earth for so many years."

"But now it seems he's noticed that you've come into contact with White Magic, so..."

Lin Xu: ...

This is a hell of a lot more than contact. The power fusion section of the White Magic divine book that Dormammu needs most is right in my head.

"Then what do we do now? For the moment, he only knows I've come into contact with the White Magic divine book, but that bastard will find out sooner or later. When he does, I'm afraid he'll stop at nothing to take me away!"

The Ancient One turned to look at Lin Xu, feeling somewhat helpless. He hadn't expected Lin Xu's luck to be so good either. Half a year ago, he had been nothing but a useless rich man whiling away his days, yet in just six months he had acquired Odin's divine power, weapon and mount, the White Magic Book, the Eye of Agamotto, and Hoggoth's bone armor.

He truly was someone Eternity had said could create infinite possibilities!

"There are two options at present!"

"Come on, tell me!"

"First: leave Earth. At present, Dormammu has only opened a dimensional passage near Earth, but I can't guarantee he won't pursue you into the universe.

"Second: I can send you to a universe where Strange has already negotiated with him. But my abilities are limited. I can send you there, but I can't bring you back. You'll have to find your own way home."