The Crimson Cloak

At six in the evening, Lin Xu arrived at the destination Mephisto had given him.

Strange Rock Salt Lake, Death Valley, California.

According to Mephisto, this was where the dimensional barrier was weakest on Earth. After all, this time he was not contacting another dimension within this universe, but the Crimson Dimension, which existed independently beyond the Multiverse.

Lin Xu had thought it through before coming. If things went smoothly, everything would be fine. If not, he would have no choice but to take Pym's whole family and the equipment into hiding in Hell.

Well, Mephisto probably wouldn't refuse...

Standing on the shore of the dried-up salt lake, Lin Xu saw a strange sight unlike anything he had seen in his previous life.

Several angular rocks sat alone on the lakebed, each with a long groove trailing behind it. Even someone with no experience in the matter could tell they were tracks left by the rocks moving.

Lin Xu guessed that the location was special, and power from other dimensions had leaked out, allowing dimensional power to interfere with reality. But the only individual objects of small mass in this spot were these few rocks.

So they had been moved...

Lin Xu picked a rock at random and sat down on it.

This time was different from before. The Crimson Dimension was too far away for him to contact it directly from reality. He had to enter the dimensional rift.

He silently recited an incantation and formed seals with both hands. Dozens of Mystic Portals appeared at once, all standing upright and overlapping along a central axis to form a sphere.

In an instant, the structure of space where the Mystic Portals stood was disrupted, and a barely perceptible cracking sound rang out.

A rift between dimensions and reality was born!

Through the Mystic Portals, he could see the scenery within the rift. Countless colors intertwined, dazzling, captivating, and dangerous.

In places illuminated by those rays of light, he could also see many bizarre creatures writhing and squirming. They were purely energy life-forms, and only in this dazzling rift could they be seen.

Lin Xu did not dare waste time. He hurriedly imprinted the Coordinate Seed Mephisto had given him onto his Sling Ring, then cast the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak.

Soon, the Coordinate Seed plunged into the rift, carrying the simulated Crimson Power with it.

Without hesitation, Lin Xu followed it straight in!

There was no concept of time or space in the dimensional rift. In the blink of an eye, the scenery before him shifted, and he finally arrived in an incomparably empty place.

The chaotic, dazzling colors were gone, as were the strange, writhing creatures. All that remained was a sea of red!

Lin Xu knew this was not the Crimson Dimension. It was merely a stretch of territory that the Crimson Power had claimed for itself after spilling out. But! It was enough!

This time, he directly drew on the Crimson Power here to open a Dimension Portal.

He felt a resistance unlike anything he had encountered before. Sure enough, power that was not his own was the most troublesome to use!

After what felt to him like ten minutes, the Dimension Portal finally opened!

Through the Dimension Portal, Lin Xu saw a boundless Crimson Desert and a volcano that reached into the sky, its slopes densely covered with red gemstones.

In short, one word: red!

"Ahem... hello, are you there?"

Not a sound...

"Great Crimson Lord, Mr. Mephisto sent me. I have a favor to ask..."

He waited a moment, but still no one answered.

"Mr. Cyttorak, are you home? If you're not, I'm coming in!"

Just as Lin Xu was about to make a move, the surroundings on the other side of the Dimension Portal changed.

The desert and volcano were gone, replaced by an incomparably vast hall, still decorated in red. At the head of the hall stood a throne built from unknown bones, and an indistinct figure sat upon it.

Clearly, control of the Dimension Portal had been taken from him...

"An outsider. Interesting..."

It was neither English nor Chinese, but a manner of speech with an archaic air. Yet Lin Xu understood what it meant.

"Ahem, an accident during a quantum experiment..."

"You know that isn't what I mean."

"..."

Lin Xu quietly swallowed. Of course he knew what Cyttorak meant. As an existence independent of the Multiverse, the Crimson Dimension was itself one with the whole of Marvel.

The outsider he spoke of was... a transmigrator...

Damn it, my strength has increased too quickly lately. I've gotten a little carried away.

"I have tried to cross the barrier beyond the Multiverse, but I failed!"

"..."

Now it was Lin Xu's turn to fall silent. Admitting it outright was out of the question, but denying it would be rude. What if this being hated rude people?

"I already know what you seek. It is not difficult."

Hearing that, Lin Xu stopped playing the coward and looked through the Dimension Portal at the indistinct figure.

Could I really be Stan Lee's illegitimate son?

Cyttorak: ...??

The lord of a dimension, who had felt no emotion for hundreds of thousands of years, showed a puzzled expression for the first time.

What was this outsider, so bold and yet so timid, thinking?

His divine body had been acquired later in life, and there was not a trace of ancient god blood in him. And how did he know about that person?!

Stan Lee—of course he knew who that was: OAA's human incarnation in the Multiverse. He existed in nearly every universe and every timeline, but that secret was known only among the Five Cosmic Entities and a handful of powerful beings.

The more Cyttorak thought about it, the more frightening it became. He sized Lin Xu up once again. Ancient One, Agamotto, Hoggoth, Odin, Mephisto.

There was no sign of anything deliberate. It had all been so natural.

Could a person really be that lucky?

Or was it...

Cyttorak did not dare think any further. What if it was true?

While he was wrestling with himself, Lin Xu spoke. "What's the condition?"

"...It is a trivial matter. There are no conditions."

Lin Xu fell silent. No conditions, helping someone for nothing, and a stranger at that—how could that be possible?

He knew full well that what came free was the most expensive!

"How about you name a condition after all?"

"Very well!" Cyttorak readily agreed.

Lin Xu: ...

"What condition?"

"When you capture him, give me the Reality Stone."

"That thing shouldn't be of much use to you, should it?"

"...I like red."

"All right..."

With the deal struck, Cyttorak waved a hand. The Crimson Power in the dimensional rift instantly gathered around Lin Xu and formed a crimson cloak.

"With it, you can be immune to ninety-nine percent of the Infinity Stones' attacks."

This was the decision Cyttorak had reached after giving it some thought. He was not sure exactly who Lin Xu was. Giving too little would be inappropriate, but giving too much might upset the balance of the Multiverse.

Besides, Lin Xu was still too weak, and the Crimson Power was not suitable for him to turn to his own use. It was better to follow the Vishanti's example and give him a magical artifact. It would not affect his growth, either—three benefits in one stroke!

Feeling the cloak behind him, Lin Xu was momentarily at a loss for words.

After all these years in Marvel, I guess I'm finally cosplaying Doctor Strange...