Recaps

Lin Xu uncovered a disguised White Magic user on Hong Kong Island, while the conflict over the Sanctums drew Ancient One and several demon gods into Death Valley. Ancient One confronted Set and Chthon and called on the still-hidden Dormammu to join them.

• Lin Xu recognized the sanitation worker as a powerful mage, revealed the Eye of Agamotto, and watched the old man kneel and call him his Lord.
• Mephisto left the gathering of demon gods, deciding to pursue a fragment of Hell in the Underworld after Odin's time ran short.
• Strange rescued Daniel at the New York Sanctum, learned London had fallen, and told him to stay on guard while the other mages supported the Sanctums.
• Ancient One discarded Kaecilius's corpse and went to Death Valley, where she sent Mage Haring and the other mages away to face Set and Chthon alone.
• Ancient One tempted Set and Chthon with the prospect of Gaia's body, then called out to Dormammu as the demon gods prepared to leave.

The Ancient One turned on Set and Chthon during a clash with Dormammu, while Lin Xu learned that the amnesiac sorcerer Genghis had once been attacked by Victor von Doom. After discovering Doom’s connection to Mephisto, Lin Xu left to make a deal with the demon.

• Dormammu demanded the Book of the Vishanti from the Ancient One, then attacked Chthon over the Darkhold as Set proposed an alliance against him.
• The Ancient One pretended to ally with Set and Chthon, then struck all three demon gods with red lightning and mocked them.
• At the Hong Kong Sanctum, Lin Xu questioned the amnesiac old man and learned he was Genghis, a guide who had helped find successors to White Magic.
• Genghis remembered that Victor von Doom had beaten him, killed his servants, and thrown him out of his cave.
• Lin Xu learned that Doom’s mother, Cynthia von Doom, had died and that Mephisto had taken her soul.
• Lin Xu asked Hamir to care for Genghis and set off to make a deal with Mephisto.

Lin Xu traded the date of Hela’s death to Mephisto for Cynthia von Doom’s soul and learned that Odin’s return to Valhalla would coincide with Hela’s death in twenty-five Earth days. After Cynthia asked about her son Victor, Ancient One summoned Lin Xu to Death Valley.

• Lin Xu opened a portal to Hell and told Mephisto he wanted to trade for a soul.
• Lin Xu offered the exact date of Hela’s death, and Mephisto gave him Cynthia von Doom’s soul in exchange.
• Mephisto told Lin Xu that Hela would die in twenty-five Earth days, when Odin’s soul returned to Valhalla.
• Lin Xu told Cynthia that Victor had become king before the American air force destroyed his territory, and Cynthia said she only wanted to see her son.
• Ancient One summoned Lin Xu to Death Valley, and he left Cynthia to decide what to do.

Lin Xu and Strange found the Ancient One dying after she had restrained Dormammu, Set, and Chthon, then faced the two demons who remained. Lin Xu battled Chthon until Chthon trapped him in an illusion of his parents urging him to marry.

• The Ancient One died after telling Strange he would become the next Sorcerer Supreme and warning him to heed Lin Xu's advice.
• Set fled when the seals broke, while Strange confronted Dormammu and Lin Xu prepared to fight Chthon.
• Chthon cast his Black Magic Domain, but Lin Xu used the Three-Pointed Double-Edged Blade and mystic arts to pierce Chthon's neck.
• Chthon vanished to evade Lin Xu's attacks, then enveloped him in a shadow that created an illusion of Lin Xu's parents nagging him about marriage.
• Lin Xu recognized the illusion and called out Chthon for failing to imitate his mother convincingly.

Lin Xu and Strange drove Chthon and Dormammu away, then returned to Kamar-Taj to mourn Ancient One and prepare for his successor. Tony investigated the battle site and called Lin, who asked him to order funeral wreaths and a sound system while hinting that Odin would soon die.

• Lin Xu dispelled Chthon’s illusion, sent him back to the Black Magic Dimension, and heard Chthon declare that he was leaving Earth.
• Strange told Lin Xu that he had trapped Dormammu in repeated time loops until Dormammu gave up and left, and they returned to Kamar-Taj with Ancient One’s body.
• Tony and Rhodey investigated Death Valley, connected its traces of lightning to the vanished weapon, and Tony asked F.R.I.D.A.Y. where Lin Xu was.
• At Kamar-Taj, Lin Xu explained to Lao Chengjisi that Ancient One had already chosen the next Sorcerer Supreme, leaving Lao Chengjisi to mourn the loss of the mages’ assembly.
• Tony called Lin Xu, who denied that Odin had died but predicted that he would soon, then asked Tony to order forty-four funeral wreaths and a sound system.

Lin Xu interrupted the Ancient One’s funeral with extravagant wreaths and music, while Tony in another universe faced pressure to release a Super Soldier Serum and decided to test it on himself. The chapter left Tony entering a medical radiation chamber with the serum.

• Tony told Rhodey that Odin was dying and had asked him to prepare funeral wreaths.
• Lin Xu arrived at the Ancient One’s funeral and set out wreaths from Tony, Pepper, Steve, Rhodey, and Odin, making Strange kneel to give thanks.
• Lin Xu set up speakers to play funeral music, prompting the Ancient One to protest when the music began.
• In Earth-120703, Tony and Dr. Maya Hansen disagreed over whether to sell their new Super Soldier Serum for use against Wakanda.
• Rhodey warned Tony that the military might force his hand and urged him to protect himself.
• Tony took the serum to the medical radiation chamber to conduct the clinical trial on himself.

Tony gained superhuman strength, refused Nick Fury’s invitation to join the Avengers Initiative, and accidentally vanished when his Time Watch activated. At Kamar-Taj, Lin Xu made Strange begin observing possible futures millions of times, then went to dinner with Lao Wang, who reported a problem with the restaurant’s manager and cashier.

• Tony emerged from the radiation chamber transformed, and Nick Fury confronted him about the Super Soldier Serum and the Avengers Initiative.
• Tony refused Fury’s offer, burned the file with his newly discovered power, and accidentally triggered the Time Watch, disappearing.
• Lin Xu burned the wreaths at Kamar-Taj and told Strange to observe possible futures a few million times before reporting back.
• Lin Xu and Lao Wang went to Nine Sun Restaurant, where Lin Xu ordered fermented mung bean drink and West Lake vinegar fish to tease Lao Wang.
• After they entered a private room, Lao Wang apologized and told Lin Xu that the restaurant manager, Xiao Wang, and the cashier were causing trouble.

Lin Xu used a newly discovered Telepathy mystic art to send Wong a mental message, leading Wong to mistakenly identify Wang Haotian as a Hydra agent. Meanwhile, Tony Stark arrived in an unfamiliar universe and caused a high-energy reaction in Central Park, which Charles left to Howard and Steve to investigate.

• Lin Xu showed Wong the Telepathy mystic art he had taken from Ancient One's bedroom and learned that Wong had never seen it before.
• Lin Xu sent Wong mental instructions while Wang Haotian served them food, then Wong pulled Wang Haotian aside and said, "Hail Hydra!"
• Wang Haotian accepted Wong as a high-ranking Hydra colleague, but Lin Xu and Wong exposed the misunderstanding by declaring, "Avengers, assemble!"
• Tony Stark, stranded in a universe without Stark Industries or S.H.I.E.L.D., confronted armed robbers in Central Park and used red-glowing powers that made them think he was a Mutant.
• Beast reported the high-energy reaction to Charles, who said Tony lacked the X-Gene and asked him to notify Howard, his wife, Steve, and his wife.

Tony met Steve and Howard in Hell’s Kitchen, while Lin Xu uncovered Wang Pite’s intelligence assignments and handed him over to Tom Liu. Lin Xu then brought douzhi and West Lake vinegar fish to Banner, whose reaction began to trigger Hulk’s transformation.

• Tony borrowed money from sugar dealers in Hell’s Kitchen to buy materials for an energy source, then encountered Steve, who introduced Howard and identified himself as Steve Rogers.
• Tony recognized Howard and became emotional, then suspected that Steve and Howard were psychic Mutants.
• Lin Xu learned that Wang Pite was a S.H.I.E.L.D., Hydra, and CIA agent, and that his assignments involved monitoring Lin Xu, protecting him, and investigating his secrets.
• Tom Liu reported that he had joined the Extraterrestrial Joint Defense Agency, and Lin Xu appointed him restaurant manager and left Wang Pite in his custody.
• Lin Xu brought douzhi and West Lake vinegar fish to Banner at the Avengers Compound, and Banner’s disgusted reaction began turning him into Hulk.

Lin Xu explained that Christine’s death was an absolute point in time, but revealed he had preserved her body and planned to use a time-loop loophole to bring her back. As five days remained before Dark Strange’s attack, Lin Xu went to the Avengers Compound to help prepare Steve’s armor and gave Steve Mjolnir to test.

• Strange told Lin Xu that he had seen 23,070,000 futures, all ending with another version of himself falling into darkness.
• Lin Xu explained that Christine’s death was an absolute point in time, then revealed he had preserved her body and intended to retrieve her from the future after Strange became Sorcerer Supreme.
• Lin Xu explained that delaying his trip into the past would keep him alive until then, and Strange worried about dying during the coming incident.
• Lin Xu visited the Avengers Compound, where Tony said the team had gone to California to test equipment after Thaddeus Ross accused him of harboring wanted criminals.
• Tony said Steve’s armor frame could not hold together because the bones Lin Xu supplied repelled surrounding materials, so Lin Xu gave Steve Mjolnir to hold.
• Steve caught Mjolnir and then handed it to Tony, who dropped it and realized it was real.

Lin Xu tested whether Captain America could wield Mjolnir, then left the Avengers debating Thor’s fate and his cryptic remarks. He traveled to a branch universe and found a gravestone bearing his own name, where Strange confronted him about crossing universes without permission.

• Lin Xu confirmed that Captain America could lift Mjolnir and told Tony to prepare bone armor for him within four days.
• Banner asked Lin Xu to share the food he had brought, and Lin Xu agreed to let the whole Avengers team try it.
• After Lin Xu left, Steve questioned Tony about Thor and Lin Xu’s remarks, while Banner urged them to focus on contacting Thor.
• Lin Xu considered the limits of time magic and decided to visit the branch timeline the Ancient One had foretold.
• Lin Xu used the Orb of Agamotto to travel to a neighboring white universe and found a gravestone with his own name in Green Shade Cemetery.
• Strange opened a Mystic Portal and challenged Lin Xu for crossing between universes without Kamar-Taj’s permission.

Lin Xu told Strange that he was incomplete and offered to save him from the other Strange who might devour him. In the Agamotto Universe, Tony discussed his abilities and time travel with Howard and Steve, then began writing down details of the Super Soldier Serum from before he traveled.

• Strange recognized Lin Xu as the man whose crash had killed Christine and confronted him, but lowered his hands after Lin Xu explained that they were different people.
• Lin Xu told Strange he had come to save him and described how Strange had become incomplete because of Christine.
• Lin Xu offered Strange two options: wait for the other Strange to kill him or go somewhere far away to avoid being devoured.
• Steve told Howard that Tony was stronger and faster than him, could turn into lava, and healed rapidly.
• Tony explained that he had developed his regenerative abilities using cell tissue, Howard's Super Soldier Serum research, and a botanist's work, and Howard identified him as a time stowaway.
• After returning to his room, Tony could not sleep and began writing down information about the Super Soldier Serum from before he traveled.

Lin Xu and Strange planned to trap Dark Strange in a miniature isolation array using artifacts tied to their shared origin. After Strange agreed to the plan, Lin Xu went to Kamar-Taj to recruit Lao Wang and prepare the array, leaving Strange to explain the crisis to him.

• Lin Xu asked Strange if he had decided to face Dark Strange, and Strange resolved to stay because he could not escape their shared origin.
• Lin Xu proposed restricting time and space to weaken Dark Strange, then returned to Kamar-Taj to gather what he needed.
• At Kamar-Taj, Lin Xu discovered Lao Wang had given him the title Grand Elder and found Lao Wang and Strange in the library.
• Lin Xu proposed a miniature version of Earth's dimensional-sealing array, using the Orb of Agamotto and three Eyes of Agamotto as its core and foundations.
• Strange agreed to take the array core, and Lin Xu went to study the array in the secret chamber while Strange was left to explain the plan to Lao Wang.

Strange defeated Shuma the Eye Demon with a time-and-space trap, severed one of his tentacles, and absorbed its power. Aoben revealed he was near death and warned Strange that energy was not what he lacked; Strange was still incomplete.

• After two days, Lin Xu left Kamar-Taj with Strange and Wong to collect Captain America and prepare for the coming battle.
• At the Avengers Compound, Lin Xu learned Tony had taken everyone to his restaurant, and the Avengers laughed at Captain America's bone-equipped uniform.
• Dark Strange summoned Shuma the Eye Demon and attacked him with duplicates and Crimson Bands of Cyttorak, but Shuma dispelled them and immobilized Strange.
• Strange used a time-and-space trap to sever Shuma's tentacle, then forced the demon back through the Ancient One's seal.
• Strange swallowed the severed tentacle and gained tentacles and a horizontal eye, while Aoben revealed he had reached the end of his life.
• Aoben told Strange that he was not complete, leaving Strange questioning what he still lacked.

Lin Xu and the others prepared a sealing formation at the New York Sanctum for Dark Strange’s arrival, but Steve and Lin Xu attacked before he could explain himself. Lin Xu’s powerful strike shattered Dark Strange’s shield and collapsed the Sanctum, yet Dark Strange remained unharmed.

• Lin Xu assigned Steve, Xiao Wang, Lao Wang, Stephen, and Strange roles in a formation to trap Dark Strange at the New York Sanctum.
• Stephen and Strange discussed Christine and whether Stephen blamed Lin Xu for the accident in his timeline.
• Dark Strange arrived through a dark portal, but Steve struck it with lightning and collapsed it as the four sorcerers completed their formation.
• Dark Strange revealed his Eye Demon powers and began taunting Strange, but Steve hit him in the face with Mjolnir.
• Lin Xu blocked Dark Strange’s black magic blast, then struck him with the Three-Pointed Double-Edged Blade and shattered his shield, but Dark Strange remained unharmed as the Sanctum collapsed.

Lin Xu fought Dark Strange, who transformed into a powerful Chicken-Cow Monster, and froze it with the Casket of Ancient Winters. After Dark Strange unleashed overwhelming fear and magic, Lin Xu spent his remaining Odinforce on a suicide attack that destroyed Dark Strange and collapsed space, leaving the battle’s survivors’ fates uncertain.

• Dark Strange transformed into a Chicken-Cow Monster, and Lao Wang identified it as a creature afraid of the cold that Agamotto had sealed beneath Mount Vinson.
• Lin Xu froze the monster with the Casket of Ancient Winters, but Dark Strange broke free and recognized Lin Xu as the one he blamed for Christine’s death.
• Dark Strange unleashed fear and Black Magic, destabilizing the Dimension-Sealing Great Formation, while Captain America began dancing under the fear’s influence.
• Lin Xu drew Ego’s Power from Stephen’s Sub-Dimension to create an enhanced Seal of Vishanti, then warned Stephen that his attack might destroy New York.
• Lin Xu summoned the Spirit of Vengeance and poured his remaining Odinforce into the Three-Pointed Double-Edged Blade, destroying Dark Strange with the resulting explosion.
• The blast killed Steve, Xiao Wang, Lao Wang, and the other Strange, while Stephen survived but fell unconscious; collapsing space then swallowed the unconscious Lin Xu.

Tony traveled through a quantum black hole and arrived in Smallville in 1992, where the Kents had taken him in. After Clark accidentally woke him, Tony recognized the family and realized he had landed in a universe where Clark was a child.

• Tony said goodbye to Maria, Howard, Steve, and Carter before activating the Time Watch and traveling through the Quantum Realm.
• A black hole tore at Tony and pulled him inside along with another figure, damaging the Time Watch.
• Nine-year-old Clark returned home and found Martha guarding two unconscious strangers while Joseph was away with a lightning-charged hammer.
• Clark picked up the hammer, triggering a thunderclap that woke Tony.
• Tony learned it was 1992, introduced himself as Howard Potts, and recognized Joseph, Martha, and Clark Kent.

Tony realized his world and the comic-book world existed as stories in each other, and he decided Stan Lee might hold the key to getting home. Meanwhile, Clark’s attempt to lift the spear sent it flying toward Joseph’s house, where Lin Xu awoke after a strange dream.

• Tony searched for his name online, found him listed in a Timely Comics issue, and theorized that quantum information connected the two worlds through their authors.
• Tony discovered Lin Xu lying motionless on Joseph’s sofa and learned that Joseph had found Mjolnir and a spear after their arrival.
• Tony failed to lift Mjolnir and the spear, then joined Joseph and Clark to inspect the crater and the spear hidden under straw.
• Clark grabbed the spear, which shook violently before shooting out of the ground toward Joseph’s house.
• Lin Xu dreamed of barriers stopping a red figure from crossing between images, felt himself being pulled away, and woke on the sofa wondering if he had won.

Lin Xu discovered he had landed in a universe with Tony and a young Clark, then learned Tony had a time watch that might help them return. In a split timeline, Stephen restored New York after it was submerged, but collapsed and wondered about Lin Xu.

• Lin Xu woke in Joseph's home, recognized Tony, and realized the child with them was Clark.
• Lin Xu took Tony away from Clark and learned he had traveled through time with Wade Wilson's time watch.
• Lin Xu asked Tony how to return, and Tony hinted that he had a solution.
• Stephen woke in the ocean, found New York submerged, and used the Eye of Agamotto to reverse time and restore the city and its people.
• Stephen collapsed after restoring New York, and Strange caught him as he wondered what had happened to Lin Xu.

Tony planned to capture quantum information from Stan Lee and recruited Clark as his assistant, while Lin Xu also offered to teach Clark martial arts. Jonathan and Martha worried that the visitors might be gods who would eventually take Clark away, and Clark overheard their fears about him not being their biological child.

• Tony explained that he needed a quantum detector, signal camouflage prototype, ripple amplifier, and an assistant to capture quantum information across the Multiverse barrier.
• Tony chose Clark for his memory and processing power, and Lin Xu volunteered to teach him martial arts.
• Clark agreed to study physics with Tony and martial arts with Lin Xu after Jonathan gave permission.
• Lin Xu gave Clark a gold bar as a welcome gift, while Tony claimed that knowledge mattered more than money.
• Jonathan and Martha discussed whether Lin Xu and Tony were gods seeking to teach Clark, and Jonathan feared Clark might someday leave them.
• Lin Xu and Clark overheard the conversation, and Clark realized that Jonathan and Martha believed he was not their biological child.

Lin Xu left the Kent family to seek Constantine and find a way to speak with God, while Tony pursued a technological solution. Back in Lin Xu’s main universe, Steve returned to the Avengers Compound and told everyone that Lin had sacrificed himself.

• Lin Xu tested his powers, discovered the Spirit of Vengeance had grown stronger, and decided to seek God through Constantine.
• Lin Xu told Tony and Clark he was leaving, then gave Tony seven gold bars as startup capital and departed after saying goodbye to the Kent family.
• Stephen brought Lao Wang and Captain America back to Lin Xu’s main universe, where Steve asked to be taken to New York.
• The Avengers discussed ways to get back at Lin Xu, but Steve returned and told them that Lin had sacrificed himself.
• Tony reacted to Steve’s news with an anguished outburst.

Lin Xu arrived in Los Angeles looking for John Constantine and fought off two half-breed angels sent to kill him. He met John and proposed becoming friends so John could sacrifice himself for the greater good, then advised him to quit smoking and get a dog.

• Lin Xu reached Los Angeles and noticed the city was crowded with demons and angels.
• Two police officers confronted Lin Xu, but he identified them as half-breed angels; after they opened fire, he killed them and learned they had been sent under orders from their father.
• Lin Xu burned the officers' bodies in their police car and considered the threat posed by Gabriel and the angels.
• John Constantine emerged from hiding and warned Lin Xu that people who claimed they could handle danger often died, but Lin Xu said they should become friends.
• Lin Xu told John he wanted a chance for him to sacrifice himself for the greater good, and John accepted his offered handshake.
• Lin Xu advised John to replace cigarettes with a dog and warned him to watch out for car thieves.

Gabriel imprisoned an angel who had tried to stop his plan, while Lin Xu and Constantine encountered a seemingly impartial angel and two girls who could see Lin Xu’s unusual form. In Kansas, Tony finished stabilizing his workbench with Mjolnir and learned that Clark had lost a math point for writing too many digits of pi.

• Gabriel learned that an angel had provoked the fighting to stop him, then imprisoned the angel and said he would wait for the Spear of Longinus.
• Lin Xu and Constantine visited a convenience store, where Lin Xu recognized the clerk as an angel on rotation who warned John about smoking.
• After the twins passed them, Isabelle told her sister that Lin Xu had been glowing and had three eyes, and Lin Xu called her a psychic.
• Tony used Mjolnir in place of bricks to level his workbench while Jonathan helped him in the warehouse.
• Clark came home with an A in math, and he explained that he had lost a point after writing about 158 digits of pi in a fill-in-the-blank answer.

Lin Xu hired John as an exorcist and joined him and Father Hennessy to investigate an actor suspected of being an ogre at Ravenscar Asylum. When Lin Xu saw the suspect, Anthony, he recognized him and wondered why his “bro” had come to DC instead of staying in Marvel.

• Lin Xu hired John at his exorcism agency and demonstrated that he could separate John’s soul from his body without sending it to Heaven or Hell.
• Father Hennessy asked John for help with Anthony, an Oscar-winning actor suspected of killing two people after playing an ogre.
• Lin Xu insisted on joining the job as John’s boss, and the three decided to investigate Anthony at Ravenscar Asylum.
• Lin Xu used his Heavenly Eye to locate the asylum and opened a Mystic Portal that took them there.
• Hennessy gained the police officer’s permission to enter Anthony’s room, where Lin Xu recognized the man and wondered why his “bro” had come to DC.

Tony began trying to find a way to bring Lin Xu back after learning that Strange had killed him, while Victor von Doom offered to help search for Lin. In another universe, Lin watched John Constantine identify the demon possessing Anthony, who was affiliated with Beelzebub, just as someone demanded entry.

• Tony learned that Lin Xu had left no body behind and began using the Quantum Tunnel to attempt to locate him.
• Victor von Doom contacted Tony, saying he wanted to find Lin and would share technology or magic in return.
• At a psychiatric hospital, Lin saw the ordinary demon possessing Anthony and let John Constantine handle the exorcism.
• John provoked the demon into revealing itself, then tested it with crosses and an ultraviolet flashlight.
• John identified the demon's power as coming from Beelzebub, and someone knocked on the hospital room door.