Recaps

Xia Yu used hypnotic songs sent directly into Kaecilius’s mind to drive him and his followers away from the ruined sanctum, allowing Doctor Strange and the others to survive. The Ancient One then appeared with Xia Yu and asked him to protect the Hong Kong Sanctum, telling him to intervene against Dormammu if necessary.

• Kaecilius searched for the unseen voice while Doctor Strange and the others recovered.
• Xia Yu sent a medley of catchy songs into Kaecilius’s mind, leaving him screaming and rolling on the ground.
• Kaecilius’s followers helped him leave the floating landmass, where the voice stopped but the melodies continued to haunt him.
• Doctor Strange, Wong, and the third person returned to Kamar-Taj to seek the Ancient One’s help after the sanctum was destroyed.
• The Ancient One appeared with Xia Yu and asked him to keep the people at the Hong Kong Sanctum alive and intervene against Dormammu if needed.

The Ancient One gave Xia Yu instructions for protecting Earth after her death and explained why she and Odin could not be kept alive. After she left, Xia Yu honored her with a statue, then Captain helped him face his fear of changing events by reminding him that the Avengers would stand united.

• The Ancient One gave Xia Yu foundation stones and instructions to rebuild the Sanctums if they failed to stop Dormammu, and warned him against reckless use of the Time Stone.
• The Ancient One reflected on the life she had missed while guarding the world, but told Xia Yu that she and Odin had to die to prevent a greater catastrophe.
• After the Ancient One left, Xia Yu shaped a statue of her outside the Sanctum and decided the world should learn of her sacrifice.
• Captain found Xia Yu drinking alone and invited him to talk about the choices and consequences weighing on him.
• Captain urged Xia Yu to act against immediate danger rather than let fear of unknown consequences stop him, and they agreed that the Avengers would stand united.

After the Captain helped Xia Yu resolve his doubts, Xia Yu focused on Kamar-Taj as the Ancient One prepared for her death and set a trap for Kaecilius. Kaecilius attacked the Ancient One at the New York Sanctum, and she moved the fight into the Mirror Dimension.

• The Captain helped Xia Yu decide not to compromise when people's lives were at stake, and Xia Yu thanked him by singing until the Captain fled the Sanctum with his hands over his ears.
• The Ancient One returned to Kamar-Taj, gave Doctor Strange full permission to use the Eye of Agamotto's spells, told him about Xia Yu's need to absorb the Time Stone's energy, and ordered repairs to the New York Sanctum.
• The Ancient One sent Mordo and Doctor Strange to repair the New York Sanctum, drawing Kaecilius and his followers out of hiding.
• Kaecilius, tormented by Xia Yu's melodies and unable to concentrate, attacked the Ancient One after she teased him about needing bedtime music.
• The Ancient One swept the surroundings into motion and brought everyone into the Mirror Dimension to protect ordinary people.

The Ancient One, Kaecilius, Doctor Strange, and Mordo fought across a Mirror Dimension that became increasingly distorted as sorcerers folded space and reversed gravity. Kaecilius lured Doctor Strange into danger by exploiting the Ancient One’s deliberate retreat, leaving Strange falling toward his blade.

• The Ancient One sensed Xia Yu watching and began fighting Kaecilius, while Doctor Strange and Mordo faced Kaecilius’s five followers.
• Doctor Strange and Mordo used their magical artifacts to evade their opponents and draw the battle across the Mirror Dimension, where space and gravity grew chaotic.
• The Ancient One and Kaecilius joined the expanding fight, and she repeatedly avoided meeting his attacks head-on while guiding their battle toward Doctor Strange.
• Kaecilius realized the Ancient One was avoiding a direct clash and deliberately moved closer to Doctor Strange.
• Kaecilius feigned a powerful strike, then reversed gravity beneath Doctor Strange and swung his energy blade toward the falling sorcerer.

The Ancient One took Kaecilius's blade while saving Doctor Strange, and Xia Yu intervened when Kaecilius's followers cornered them. After sending the wounded Ancient One and her companions to the Avengers Compound, Xia Yu confronted Kaecilius and began singing.

• Kaecilius stabbed the Ancient One as she appeared between him and Doctor Strange, then tried to strike her again while raging over her devotion to Doctor Strange.
• Doctor Strange escaped with the Ancient One, while Kaecilius ordered his followers to pursue them and Mordo tried to slow the attackers.
• Xia Yu appeared and knocked two of Kaecilius's men aside with a powerful double strike.
• Xia Yu sent Doctor Strange, the Ancient One, and Mordo out of the Mirror Dimension to the Avengers Compound for treatment.
• Kaecilius confronted Xia Yu, who mocked him and his followers before starting to sing.

Xia Yu provoked Kaecilius throughout their fight, dodging his attacks and wearing him down with relentless chatter until Kaecilius accepted a can of Coca-Cola and tried to strike him. Xia Yu reflexively stepped aside and slapped Kaecilius flying, leaving him looking aggrieved.

• Kaecilius remembered Xia Yu's brainwashing song and attacked him in a rage.
• Xia Yu dodged Kaecilius's strikes while taunting him, and casually sent away Kaecilius's underlings.
• Exhausted, Kaecilius demanded that Xia Yu stand still and let him cut him down.
• Xia Yu offered Kaecilius Coca-Cola and promised not to dodge, so Kaecilius drank it and leaped at him with his blade.
• Xia Yu stepped aside at the last moment and slapped Kaecilius across the cheek, sending him spinning through the air.

Xia Yu kept the Ancient One’s body alive while Doctor Strange searched for her soul. Strange found her contemplating the statue Xia Yu had built, but she remained determined to die as she passed her power to him.

• Xia Yu let Kaecilius go and returned to the Avengers Compound, where the Ancient One’s heart had stopped.
• Doctor Strange regretted doubting the Ancient One, and Xia Yu used True Qi to maintain her body while Strange went in search of her soul.
• The Ancient One found Xia Yu’s statue and felt it gave her a lasting mark on the world.
• Doctor Strange urged the Ancient One to return to her body, but she slowed time and chose to rest instead.
• The Ancient One transferred her spiritual and magical power to Doctor Strange, and Xia Yu’s voice interrupted them.

Xia Yu persuaded the Ancient One to abandon her plan to die and let him seal the dark power inside her, while Doctor Strange supported him. Her survival set off unknown changes across the universe, though Xia Yu remained unaware as he began building the seal.

• Xia Yu urged the Ancient One to live, offering to seal the dark power inside her so she could grow old naturally.
• Doctor Strange joined Xia Yu in asking the Ancient One to face the future with them, and she placed her hand on theirs and returned to her body.
• The Ancient One opened her eyes, triggering changes in gravitational and magnetic fields and other forces across the universe.
• Old Master Li awoke on an unknown moon, cursed, and flew toward Earth as three big-headed figures decided to observe the altered river of fate before vanishing.
• Xia Yu began using the Tesseract's energy to build a seal inside the Ancient One, unaware that her survival had created new storms in the universe.

After Xia Yu saved the Ancient One and she left to travel, he decided against immediately repairing the sanctums while considering how to deal with Dormammu. Dormammu ordered Kaecilius to destroy the last Hong Kong Sanctum within three days, where Doctor Strange and Mordo ambushed him.

• The Ancient One gave up her role as Sorcerer Supreme and the Time Stone, then arranged a new identity and took money from Xia Yu to travel the world.
• Xia Yu reflected on his doubts about changing fate, then gained confidence after saving the Ancient One and hearing Captain America's counsel.
• Xia Yu decided not to use the Ancient One's artifact to repair the sanctums immediately, and considered a longer-term plan against Dormammu.
• Dormammu ordered Kaecilius and the Dark Apostles to destroy the Hong Kong Sanctum within three days.
• Doctor Strange and Mordo surprised Kaecilius at the Hong Kong Sanctum, restraining him and several followers with magical armor and shackles before hurling hundreds of explosive artifacts at them.

Doctor Strange and Mordo attacked Kaecilius with hundreds of energy-blade artifacts, but Kaecilius survived and damaged the Hong Kong Sanctum's defenses. As Earth's dimensional defense collapsed, Dormammu's black mist enveloped Kaecilius and began restoring his body.

• Doctor Strange and Mordo unleashed a storm of energy blades that killed Kaecilius's five followers and shredded Kaecilius nearly to his bones.
• Kaecilius revealed that he was still alive, then ran into the damaged Hong Kong Sanctum to carry out Dormammu's orders.
• Doctor Strange and Mordo followed Kaecilius into the sanctum, but he destroyed several formations before they could stop him.
• The dimensional defense protecting Earth collapsed, and a beam of black mist enveloped Kaecilius as flesh and nerves began appearing on his body.

Kaecilius used Dormammu’s power to overpower Doctor Strange and Mordo, but Hulk burst in and sent him flying. Hulk told the sorcerers that Xia was waiting for Kaecilius.

• Dormammu strengthened Kaecilius, who absorbed the black mist and declared that Earth would soon belong to the darkness.
• Kaecilius charged Doctor Strange and Mordo, smashed through their shield, and knocked them through a wall.
• Kaecilius pinned the injured sorcerers beneath a plank and taunted them while boasting about his power.
• Hulk broke through the wall, struck Kaecilius through several buildings, and told Doctor Strange and Mordo that Xia was waiting for him.

Xia Yu let Doctor Strange decide how to stop Dormammu and went to check on Hulk’s fight with Kaecilius. He destroyed Kaecilius’s corrupted soul and remains, while Dormammu continued drawing closer to Earth.

• Xia Yu gave Doctor Strange the Ancient One’s sanctum-repair artifacts, and Doctor Strange asked for time to consider how to face Dormammu.
• Mordo held on to the artifacts as a last resort, and Xia Yu sent him and Doctor Strange to the Sky Temple.
• Xia Yu found Hulk exhausted beside Kaecilius, who kept recovering from Hulk’s repeated attacks.
• Xia Yu discovered that Kaecilius’s bones and their black aura sustained his regeneration, then chopped his body apart until the aura dispersed.
• Kaecilius’s corrupted soul emerged and drifted toward Hulk, but Xia Yu destroyed it and shattered Kaecilius’s bones.
• Xia Yu sensed Dormammu drawing closer to Earth.

Dormammu traveled through the void toward Earth, intending to devour it, when Doctor Strange appeared and tried to stop him. Dormammu killed Doctor Strange, but the Time Stone rewound events and brought him back, leaving Doctor Strange to face another fatal attack.

• Dormammu accelerated through the void toward Earth after learning Kaecilius had been killed.
• Dormammu sensed Doctor Strange in the Dark Dimension and killed him with a dark-matter stalagmite before resuming his journey.
• The Time Stone rewound the previous ten minutes, restoring Doctor Strange and bringing Dormammu back to the encounter with his memories intact.
• Doctor Strange asked Dormammu to give up devouring Earth, but Dormammu laughed and tore him in two with a dark-matter whip.

Doctor Strange drove Dormammu from Earth by trapping him in a time loop, then slept in the New York Sanctum. Xia Yu decided to confront Dormammu while he was outside the Dark Dimension and appeared in his path to rob him.

• Doctor Strange forced Dormammu to abandon his designs on Earth with a repeating ten-minute time loop, then fell asleep after telling the absent Ancient One he had succeeded.
• Xia Yu met Ancient One on a Manhattan Ferris wheel and argued that Dormammu should be dealt with while he was vulnerable outside the Dark Dimension.
• Xia Yu vanished from the Ferris wheel after telling Ancient One that Dormammu was no longer in the Dark Dimension.
• Dormammu raced back toward his dimension, frustrated by his failed invasion and the energy he had spent crossing over.
• Xia Yu appeared in the void holding a multi-barreled gun and shouted at Dormammu to stop because he was robbing him.

Xia Yu tricked Dormammu into lowering his guard, then struck him with a huge fist of mental energy and unleashed a stream of golden dragons against his Dark Dimension. He continued pouring out energy with music playing beside him, leaving Dormammu's dark space under relentless attack.

• Dormammu laughed at Xia Yu's Gatling gun and invited him to perform in the Dark Dimension.
• Xia Yu pretended to accept the invitation and persuaded Dormammu to present his chin for another punch.
• Xia Yu's concealed mental-energy fist shattered Dormammu's conjured head and consumed some of his power.
• Xia Yu sent an energy dragon into Dormammu's dark space, disrupting Dormammu's attempt to reform his body.
• Xia Yu unleashed golden dragons continuously against Dormammu's dark space while playing Qiao Feng's theme music.

Xia Yu relentlessly attacked Dormammu in the Dark Dimension, interrupting his attempts to reform until Dormammu finally fought back with dark matter. Xia Yu withstood Dormammu’s attacks and damaged his manifested body, but the chapter ended as Dormammu swung a colossal sword at Xia Yu and Xia Yu leapt to meet it.

• Xia Yu repeatedly scattered Dormammu’s consciousness, preventing him from reforming for nearly twenty minutes.
• Dormammu retreated within the Dark Dimension, reformed his enormous body, and raised a shield to block Xia Yu’s attacks.
• Dormammu sent a vast swarm of dark matter spears at Xia Yu, who used the Aether to shield himself and countered with a massive spiritual fist.
• Xia Yu struck Dormammu’s chin and followed with tens of thousands of energy swords that riddled his body with holes.
• Dormammu repaired his wounds and summoned a mountain-sized sword, and Xia Yu jumped toward the incoming strike.

Xia Yu destroyed Dormammu’s giant body and deployed mechanical soldiers armed with nuclear weapons to consume the Dark Dimension’s energy. As explosions shrank the dimension, Dormammu hid his soul and feared for his survival, while Xia Yu searched for him and Dormammu began to move.

• Xia Yu dodged Dormammu’s enormous greatsword, climbed onto his chin, and blasted his head apart, leaving Dormammu’s soul to escape into the Dark Dimension’s energy.
• Xia Yu summoned tens of thousands of modified mechanical soldiers and ordered them to fire their weapons and self-destruct throughout the Dark Dimension.
• A mechanical soldier found Dormammu as he formed a smaller body, damaged him with missiles, and detonated a nuclear weapon, consuming a vast amount of dark energy.
• Nuclear blasts spread across the Dark Dimension, creating energy tornadoes and rapidly shrinking the realm as Dormammu hid and trembled.
• Xia Yu searched for Dormammu’s soul while continuing to expend energy, and Dormammu began to move as his power dwindled.

Xia Yu hunted Dormammu through the shrinking Dark Energy, repeatedly destroying his bodies and damaging his soul’s Source while Dormammu tried to hide and escape. After nearly two days of hiding under relentless pressure, Dormammu finally lost control when Xia Yu’s attack landed close to him.

• Dormammu compressed himself into a small humanoid body and tried to flee, but Xia Yu found him, destroyed his body, and grazed his soul with a palm strike.
• Dormammu repeatedly changed hiding places and tried to condense new bodies, while Xia Yu destroyed them and struck his soul several more times.
• A robot self-destructed near Dormammu, damaging roughly one-thousandth of his Source and forcing him to hide again.
• Xia Yu’s robots used up two-thirds of Dormammu’s energy, and Xia Yu set up surveillance around the space to catch him if he escaped.
• Dormammu hid without moving for nearly two days as Xia Yu flew around the space and attacked at random.
• When Xia Yu’s attack landed less than five meters from him, Dormammu completely lost control.

Xia Yu fought Dormammu with energy beams, then used a missile and robot explosions to shatter Dormammu’s manifested head and block his escape. Dormammu split his soul to flee, but more than ten fragments escaped toward the Dark Dimension and encountered a bald woman holding a blue-glowing square object.

• Dormammu and Xia Yu locked their energy beams in a stalemate, and Dormammu created a second mouth to attack Xia Yu.
• Xia Yu fired a miniature missile into Dormammu’s energy-filled mouth, triggering an explosion that shattered his head.
• Four robots self-destructed to block Dormammu’s escape, forcing him to split his soul into hundreds of fragments.
• Xia Yu ordered three remaining robots to self-destruct, destroying most of Dormammu’s fragments while more than ten escaped.
• A bald woman in yellow monk’s robes appeared before the fleeing fragments with a blue-glowing square object and greeted Dormammu.

After the Ancient One captured Dormammu in tiny soul fragments, Xia Yu showed one to the Avengers and bragged about his role in the victory. Old Master Li appeared disguised as a deliveryman, drew Xia Yu into a luxurious villa, and ended the chapter teasing him about his romantic life.

• The Ancient One confined Dormammu’s surviving soul fragments in sealed cylinders, and Xia Yu stored them away.
• Xia Yu explained Dormammu’s capture to the Avengers, while Natasha scolded him for acting without telling her and he apologized with a kiss.
• Hawkeye examined Dormammu’s tiny prison, Ant-Man joked about drowning him, and Tony Stark suggested studying Dark Energy before Captain America objected.
• Old Master Li arrived at the Avengers Compound disguised as a deliveryman and called Tony Stark by the wrong surname.
• Old Master Li transported Xia Yu to a villa pool, then bragged about his sexual prowess and mocked Xia Yu for staying faithful to Natasha.

Stan Lee warned Xia Yu that fate had begun interfering and urged him to grow stronger, while refusing to explain more until Xia Yu freed the world from its control. After absorbing the Time Stone’s power and waiting for Odin’s signal, Xia Yu met Odin at the old battlefield, where Loki, Ancient One, and Thor arrived through portals.

• Stan Lee told Xia Yu that fate had strayed from its original course and warned him to strengthen himself, but said he could not fight or explain further yet.
• Xia Yu absorbed the Time Stone’s Source power from Doctor Strange and learned to manipulate time in a limited area, then stopped experimenting after warnings from Doctor Strange and Ancient One.
• Xia Yu asked Odin about absorbing Asgard, but Odin told him to wait until he was summoned.
• As Thanos remained missing despite searches by Xia Yu and the Guardians of the Galaxy, Xia Yu grew uneasy.
• One year after their meeting, Odin summoned Xia Yu and took him to the cliff where he had defeated the Frost Giants.
• Two golden portals opened behind Xia Yu and Odin, bringing Loki through one and Ancient One with Thor through the other.

Xia Yu reunited Thor with Odin and revealed that Loki had faked his death and impersonated their father, prompting Thor to beat Loki. Odin reflected on Asgard’s future and warned his sons that Hela, the goddess of death, threatened Asgard’s survival.

• Loki feared Xia Yu, but Odin urged Xia Yu to beat Loki for deceiving them.
• Xia Yu told Thor that Loki had faked his death and impersonated Odin for years.
• Thor attacked Loki, while Odin, Xia Yu, and the Ancient One left them to settle things between themselves.
• After fighting and speaking privately, Thor and Loki joined Odin, Xia Yu, and the Ancient One at the cabin.
• Odin told Thor and Loki that neither was suited to be king and said Asgard’s future ruler should serve its people.
• Odin warned Thor and Loki that they had to deal with their sister, Hela, the goddess of death.

Odin revealed that Hela was his imprisoned first child and died after warning everyone to stop her. Hela emerged moments later and attacked Xia Yu, who drew the fight away from the others and met her first strike over the sea.

• Odin explained that Hela had led Asgard’s armies before turning to conquest and that he had sealed her in Hell to stop her rebellion.
• Odin warned Thor, Loki, and the others that Hela would seize the Nine Realms, then vanished in a burst of golden light.
• Hela appeared through a tear in space, recognized Xia Yu, and hurled a sword at him before charging.
• Xia Yu pushed Thor, Loki, and the Ancient One out of danger and let Hela’s attack send him toward the sea.
• Xia Yu struck Hela’s descending sword at its hilt, and their clash ended in a draw that sent enormous waves across the sea.

Xia Yu fought Hela on the Norwegian coast, where their battle endangered the people on shore. Thor chose to bring Hela and the others to Asgard, intending to let Asgard be reborn elsewhere, and the Bifrost transported them away.

• Xia Yu and Hela traded powerful blows at sea, each astonished by the other's strength.
• The fighters' shockwaves sent towering waves toward the shore, and Ancient One forced them back but was injured.
• Thor warned Xia Yu about the danger to nearby people, so Xia Yu drew Hela north toward the Arctic.
• Loki urged Thor to return to Asgard and prepare for Hela, but Ancient One reminded Thor of his father's words about Asgard and its people.
• Thor decided to bring Hela to Asgard and summon the Bifrost, while Ancient One sent Loki into it through a portal.
• The Bifrost transported Xia Yu, Hela, Thor, and Loki away.

Heimdall returned to the Bifrost hall as Xia Yu and Hela fought their way into Asgard, while Thor learned that Loki had survived falling from the Bifrost. Heimdall led Thor to the Golden Palace vault and revealed a hidden place beneath the Death Legion’s dungeon where Asgard’s Source lay.

• Heimdall reclaimed the Sword of the Guardian and warned Skurge that Odin was dead and Hela had returned, urging him to take the two girls to safety.
• Heimdall opened the Bifrost, and Thor emerged before Xia Yu and Hela burst into the hall fighting and smashed through its wall toward the Endless Sea.
• Heimdall told Thor that Asgard’s people were safe, then confirmed that Loki was alive far away after Thor asked him to locate his brother.
• Heimdall explained that Odin had once given Hela the power of the Source and command of Asgard’s strongest army, then led Thor to the Golden Palace vault.
• Heimdall identified a spot beneath the Eternal Flame and told Thor to smash the floor, revealing that Asgard’s Source lay beneath the dungeon where the Death Legion was sealed.