Mirror Dimension

"I didn't intend to do anything. Of course I'd keep something good if I came across it, especially a cosmic-level treasure like the Infinity Stones. Isn't it right for me to keep it?" Xia Yu said matter-of-factly.

"Do you even know what the Infinity Stones will bring to Earth? So many people in the universe want Infinity Stones. If you put so many of Infinity Stones on Earth, how many people will covet them?"

Ancient One was deeply worried.

Ancient One had already said this the first time they met, so Xia Yu couldn't be bothered to listen anymore.

"According to your theory, I should hand over the Infinity Stones to someone else? Are you sure that someone who gets the Infinity Stones won't covet Earth later? If that's the case, I'll give you all the stones, and you'll give me your Time Stone too. Earth will be safe and sound from now on, and you can retire sooner."

"Agamotto is an essential force for Earth to resist the corruption of dark forces; I must rely on it to protect the Earth."

Ancient One's idea remained the same as before: Xia Yu hadn't been able to explain things clearly to her last time, and this time he had to make sure she understood.

"It's not just you protecting the Earth, my aunt. We're doing the same thing, even if the enemies are different. You need to use the gems to fight off the enemy, while we have to hand over our weapons and wait to Carnage. What kind of bullshit theory is that?"

"Then I'll have to see if you have the strength to protect the gem." Ancient One didn't waste any more words and directly slapped Xia Yu in the chest.

Ancient One's move far exceeded Xia Yu's expectations.

Indeed, some things cannot be judged solely based on movies; the speed of this palm strike far exceeded Xia Yu's understanding of the Ancient One.

He originally thought that the most troublesome thing about fighting the Ancient One was her otherworldly magic, but after Xia Yu gained the ability to break through space, he was not too afraid of the Ancient One's move.

However, Xia Yu's consciousness caught Ancient One's movement just Ancient One, but his body didn't react at all. He could only watch helplessly as Ancient One's palm struck his chest.

Looks like I'll have to experience what it's like to have an Astral Projection experience myself.

Xia Yu thought pessimistically.

'Bang!'

Ancient One's palm landed on Xia Yu's chest.

Compared to the special properties of this palm strike, the force exerted by the hand is negligible.

The force was so weak that Xia Yu's True Qi didn't react at all.

And then... that was it.

Xia Yu didn't move at all, and his soul didn't leave his body.

Not only Ancient One, but Xia Yu was also very surprised.

Ancient One was still standing in a horse stance, with one hand pressed against her chest.

Xia Yu scratched his head and said, "How about you try again?"

'Bang!'

Ancient One readily agreed, but still wouldn't give up and delivered another slap.

Nothing happened.

What Xia Yu didn't know was that his soul, having absorbed the three Infinity Stones, had acquired Cosmic Origin. Although not as substantial as the entire universe, it was still something that the Ancient One couldn't easily destroy.

Both attempts failed; the two remained in the same position. Ancient One, perhaps a little disoriented, stood motionless, her face filled with disbelief.

Xia Yu felt this was a bit awkward and needed to ease the tension.

"Auntie, don't be sad. It's normal to decline in strength as you get older. Why don't we sit down, have a drink, and chat?"

"Shut up! Damn it, don't mention my age to me again."

Enraged, Ancient One withdrew her hand and, with a wave of her hand, directly transported Xia Yu into the Mirror Dimension.

This went very smoothly, making Ancient One less embarrassed. Regardless of how their conversation went, she was determined to teach Xia Yu, that bastard, a good lesson in the Mirror Dimension.

Of course, the Ancient One did not intend to kill Xia Yu, or to make him a complete enemy. After all, Odin had confirmed that Xia Yu was on the side protecting Earth. The main issue was how the two of them would handle the Infinity Stones.

This was Xia Yu's first time entering the Mirror Dimension. This virtual reality world, similar to a mirror, filled Xia Yu with curiosity. The feeling of being both real and awkward was quite fun.

However, Xia Yu had a feeling that although he didn't know how to enter this space, he could leave at any time, or rather, he could directly send Ancient One and the other person back to the real world.

This may stem from the absolute authority of the Space Stone's energy over this universe.

Xia Yu may not be able to unleash the full power of the gems yet, but Xia Yu level is already different from that of the Ancient One and other sorcerers who borrow the power of the universe.

So Xia Yu wasn't in a hurry at all. He looked at Ancient One lazily and said, "Auntie, are you sure you want to fight me? It looks like you still have some injuries that haven't healed."

Xia Yu's biggest fear was the spatial abilities of the Ancient One's lineage of sorcerers. He wasn't particularly concerned about anything else; the things they condensed with magic seemed to have decent attack and defense capabilities.

But now that Xia Yu has the Aether as his Armor, he is truly not afraid of any form of attack.

"Enough with the nonsense!" Ancient One conjured a whip and lashed it viciously at Xia Yu.

Xia Yu wanted to test the power of the Aether, so he didn't retaliate. Instead, he followed Tony's example and used the Aether to create a huge shield in front of his body.

'Bang!'

A whip lashed against the shield, but apart from sparks flying, there was no sensation whatsoever.

As expected, aside from their spatial abilities, these mages' main offensive power came from the various things they conjured with magical power. Although their physical strength was also quite good, they were, after all, magical warriors who had undergone professional training.

However, for Xia Yu, the force of these forces was almost negligible.

When her first strike failed, Ancient One changed her angle and lashed out with her whip again.

Xia Yu didn't move; he simply changed the angle of his shield and blocked the attack.

After Xia Yu effortlessly deflected several attacks in succession, Ancient One probably realized that her close-range attacks might not be able to break through Xia Yu's defenses.

So they started to increase the distance, and the magical energy in their hands transformed into small flying rings, which flew continuously and rapidly toward Xia Yu.

They were fast, numerous, and crucially, the Ancient One even used spatial powers. Some of the flying rings disappeared as soon as they were released, appearing directly behind Xia Yu, above him, and from various other angles.

From a distance, countless flying rings appeared to be attacking Xia Yu from all angles.

"This is the right way to play a mage," Xia Yu thought to himself, secretly criticizing their melee mage abilities.

With so many consecutive attacks, Xia Yu was too lazy to dodge them all. The Aether directly transformed into a protective shield, enveloping Xia Yu's entire body inside.

Sparks flew outside, Xia Yu remained motionless inside the protective shield.

The Ancient One is still continuously generating output.

Xia Yu simply plopped down on the ground, took out a cigar he'd swiped from Tony from his ring, and put it in his mouth.

It's a pity there wasn't a big gold chain in the ring, otherwise Xia Yu could have added background music from his past life's short videos.