Chapter Summaries

Luke reviewed experiments on Emotional Prime Liquid and its effects, dangers, and potential, then focused on improving its collection devices. He equipped a three-layer armor system powered by the liquid and other materials, while hoping it could eventually serve as a source of mana for mages.

• Gwen warned Quiet to wait until after Peter's checkup, then used the threat of Meal Cutoff to regain control of their body and calm her.
• Luke reviewed the White Queen's report and found that ordinary people's emotional fluctuations produced little Emotional Prime Liquid unless they were intense.
• Luke concluded that accumulated Emotional Prime Liquid developed a chaotic emotional consciousness that could corrupt people, though it could also enhance abilities and fulfill limited wishes.
• Luke noted that the liquid's high consumption rate left him with too little for combat, so he prioritized upgrading the collection devices.
• Luke assembled a three-layer armor system using weaponized meme armor, Symbiote Factor Fusion Material, and Emotional Prime Liquid energy, with Holy Light as another defense against mysterious powers.

Luke examined Peter Parker and kept his blood for research while Quiet demanded to eat his new food and was warned against consuming the unfiltered solution. Nick Fury later told Luke that agents had found sorcerers in Nepal and that the Sorcerer Supreme would meet only Luke, Tony Stark, and Stephen Strange.

• Quiet eagerly asked Luke for his new food while Gwen introduced Peter Parker, whom Luke reassured before beginning a physical examination.
• Quiet explained her food obsession and pressed to eat Luke’s raw solution, but Luke refused because it could trigger a frenzy and threatened her with a ten-year Meal Cutoff if she stole any.
• Gwen and Peter completed the examination after a little over an hour, and Luke kept some of Peter’s blood in the laboratory.
• White Queen told Luke that Nick Fury was calling, and Nick reported that agents in Nepal had found and contacted sorcerers.
• Nick told Luke that the Sorcerer Supreme would meet only Luke, Tony Stark, and Stephen Strange.

Luke agreed to meet the Sorcerer Supreme, Ancient One, with Doctor Strange, hoping to negotiate stronger ties between mages and ordinary society. He planned to prepare for the meeting over the next two days, while leaving Tony Stark the option to join them.

• Nick Fury told Luke that Ancient One would meet with Luke, Tony Stark, or Doctor Strange, either individually or together.
• Luke considered Nick's proposal to keep him and Tony away and send Doctor Strange on a medical trip, then asked about Strange's personality and whether he could be won over.
• Luke decided to accompany Doctor Strange and said Tony could join if he chose to go.
• Luke explained that he wanted to negotiate how mages and ordinary people could coexist through closer ties and mutual interests.
• Nick agreed to arrange Doctor Strange's itinerary, and Luke set the meeting for two days later.

Luke, Stephen Strange, and Mordo traveled through a portal into a frozen landscape and met Ancient One. Luke proposed creating an energy source for Earth’s mages, leaving Ancient One to consider the offer.

• Mordo led Luke and Stephen Strange through a portal into a snowstorm, where Stephen struggled against the cold.
• Luke’s Little Habu merged into Stephen’s skin and warmed him as they crossed the snow.
• Luke, Stephen, and Mordo met Ancient One at the Sanctum, and Little Habu returned to Luke.
• Luke showed Ancient One a tube of magical energy and learned that the Sorcerer Supremes drew power from the Vishanti and other dimensional beings.
• Luke proposed using his technology and the mages’ help to create a magical energy source belonging to Earth’s mages.

Luke, Ancient One, and Mordo negotiated a framework for creating a magical energy source and discussed Luke’s magical resources. Mordo then showed Luke and Stephen their rooms and explained the limits on forbidden books, while Luke encouraged Stephen to keep studying magic alongside his medical career.

• Luke, Ancient One, and Mordo spent an hour discussing cooperation and dividing the benefits of a proposed magical energy source.
• Ancient One examined Luke’s Conversion Ring, Soul Crystals, and Power of the Holy Light, and considered how they could help mages.
• Mordo led Luke and Stephen to their rooms, gave Luke a Spellbook Catalog, and warned them that dangerous forbidden books remained off-limits.
• Stephen complained that staying at Kamar-Taj would cost him work and demanded more payment from Luke.
• Luke told Stephen he could leave in a few days but encouraged him to study magic and promised to handle complaints about his absence.

Stephen Strange began learning magic under Mordo and struggled to gather and control energy, while Luke discussed cooperation with Ancient One. After a difficult first day, Stephen chose to stay at Kamar-Taj and train harder.

• Ancient One explained magical symbols, Dimensional Worlds, and the source of the Sorcerer Supreme's power to Stephen.
• Mordo began teaching Stephen to gather and control energy before learning how to create portals.
• Luke found Stephen exhausted after his first day of training and told him that most of his cooperation plan with Ancient One had been settled.
• Luke said he was returning the next day, and Stephen chose to stay and continue learning magic.
• Stephen began an intense training routine that night, relying on his memory to learn incantations.

Luke showed Nick Fury that magic was real and explained that Dimensional Demon God representatives posed threats that S.H.I.E.L.D. could not handle alone. Nick agreed to stand with Luke and the mages if he could keep the situation under control, and Luke revealed their proposed Dimensional Demon God Representative Visa Program.

• Nick met Luke at the airport and questioned him about Doctor Strange and the Ancient One Mage.
• Luke received a sentient Red Restraint Band through a magical portal and used his light shields to block its attacks, convincing Nick that magic existed.
• Luke asked Nick where he would stand if the world changed, then showed him images of people serving as representatives of Dimensional Demon Gods.
• Luke explained that the mages were too few to manage every representative, and offered S.H.I.E.L.D. a role as a liaison organization.
• Nick agreed to side with Luke and the mages as long as he could keep the situation under control.
• Luke displayed a proposal called the Dimensional Demon God Representative Visa Program.

Luke explained to Nick how the Sorcerer Supreme regulated Dimensional Demon Gods and their agents, and what cooperation she expected from S.H.I.E.L.D. The discussion left Nick considering the benefits of mage contacts and Luke assuring him that S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Beast Series Gear would no longer be a Black Account if the plan succeeded.

• Luke showed Nick how mages treated visa holders and unregistered visitors, and contrasted illegal supernatural judgment with permitted arrangements involving Demon Gods.
• Luke explained that the Sorcerer Supreme collected power from Dimensional Demon Gods directly and tracked their followers and agents.
• Nick wondered why the Sorcerer Supreme used this system, and Luke said it gave her a justification for using power and for holding the Demon Gods accountable for trouble on her turf.
• Luke told Nick that S.H.I.E.L.D. would handle early cleanup, cover-ups, and misdirection, while receiving information about the mages' agents and establishing a liaison office.
• Nick said S.H.I.E.L.D. could also serve as a service organization and hoped to make deals with the mages, while Luke said their cooperation could legitimize S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Beast Series Gear.

S.H.I.E.L.D., Hebron Industries, and the Sorcerer Supreme’s representatives finished a trial version of the Demon God Follower Visa Act after weeks of revisions. Nick then visited Luke’s hidden facility, where Luke and Ancient One tested a device for collecting energy from the spirits of Demonic Creatures, and Ancient One proposed seeking Odin’s help if the test succeeded.

• S.H.I.E.L.D., Hebron Industries, and the Sorcerer Supreme’s representatives revised the visa act for more than two weeks before accepting its first trial version.
• Nick traveled through a portal with Master Mage Wang, Phil Coulson, and Hill, hoping S.H.I.E.L.D. might learn to use magical transportation.
• Master Mage Wang led Nick’s group to Luke’s concealed facility, which was protected by the Mirror Dimension.
• Ancient One presented Luke with a dead Demonic Creature whose powerful spirit remained after its body died.
• Luke had Ancient One place the corpse in the metal well, where the upgraded Mind Energy collection device began operating.
• Ancient One said she would approach Odin for Undead Souls as an energy source if the device passed verification.

Nick Fury waited while Master Mage Wang explained the danger posed by the dead Dimensional Being and shared what he could about magical threats and the Sorcerer Supreme’s barrier. Luke and Ancient One confirmed that the energy verification had succeeded, and Luke proposed beginning the follow-up plan by building a city.

• Nick Fury asked Master Mage Wang why he could not approach Luke and Ancient One, and Wang warned him that the dead Demonic Creature remained dangerous.
• Master Mage Wang told Nick that the creature could mentally control people who looked at it without protection, and advised him to flee if they encountered one.
• Nick spent five hours questioning Master Mage Wang about magic and Dimensional Worlds, while Wang answered general questions and avoided revealing secrets.
• Ancient One sensed the energy concentration rising and confirmed to Luke that the verification had succeeded.
• Ancient One examined the new energy and said it could accommodate energies of many properties and benefit mages and others.
• Luke asked Ancient One to provide materials and manpower for the follow-up plan, calling the proposed fortress a city.

Luke proposed using Hebron’s New Energy rollout to disguise a worldwide construction project and funding a City of the Heavens by selling access to a Dragon Bone-based Elixir of Longevity. Nick agreed to manage the arrangements in exchange for S.H.I.E.L.D.’s participation in a New Currency for the Nine Realms, while Luke planned to divide company shares among competing investors.

• Luke told Nick he planned to build a city with supporting facilities and use Hebron’s New Energy rollout as cover for moving equipment around the world.
• Luke proposed telling new customers that Dragon Bone could improve the Elixir of Longevity, and Nick accused him of trying to take S.H.I.E.L.D.’s recovered bones.
• Luke explained that the Dragon Bone supply was limited but that Hebron had found a way to replenish some of its power.
• Luke offered S.H.I.E.L.D. a role in a New Currency for the Nine Realms, and Nick accepted and promised to handle the related matters.
• Luke suggested selling half the company’s shares in exchange for funding, company shares, or political resources, with limited slots to keep investors occupied competing for entry.

Phil Coulson visited Peter Parker to register him as a Demon God Agent, explaining that Peter’s powers were linked to a Demon God and that he would owe Visa Fees in a new settlement currency. Peter learned that Miss Quiet and Gwen Stacy were also involved, and received a bracelet that could extract power in exchange for currency.

• Peter left his house with Phil Coulson to keep Aunt May from discovering S.H.I.E.L.D.'s visit.
• Phil gave Peter a registration document and explained that he had been identified as a Demon God Agent who would owe recurring Visa Fees.
• Peter insisted that his powers came from a genetically modified spider bite, but Phil maintained that the identification was correct.
• Phil told Peter that Miss Quiet was a Demon God's creation and that Gwen Stacy shared responsibility as her guardian, while Hebron covered their fees.
• Phil gave Peter a bracelet that extracted power for settlement currency and offered S.H.I.E.L.D. as a buyer for any excess energy.

Peter learned he could earn New Currency by letting S.H.I.E.L.D. siphon some of his power, though unauthorized crime-fighting would bring extra fees. Nick Fury pressed ahead with the currency plan despite S.H.I.E.L.D.'s limited influence, while Luke began examining the Sorcerer Supreme's vast materials vault.

• Phil explained the Bracelet Device's exchange rate and power-siphoning settings, and Peter eagerly asked how much he could earn.
• Phil told Peter that full-power siphoning could earn him fifteen units of New Currency a month after fees, but warned that using his power to fight crime would cost extra.
• Nick Fury told Agent Hill to continue the plan, explaining that S.H.I.E.L.D. needed to gather resources and feared becoming an insignificant organization.
• Nick explained that most collected fees supported the Sorcerer Supreme's mages, while S.H.I.E.L.D.'s main profit came from buying New Currency with real-world money.
• Mage Mordo took Luke to the Sorcerer Supreme's materials vault, where Luke asked for information on the materials and welcomed the chance to study them.

Luke showed Mordo the Energy Original Fluid in the Sanctum Sanctorum and warned him that its unfiltered form was dangerous. After Mordo experienced its emotional corruption and lost control of his power, Luke restrained him and had his bracelet put back on.

• Luke explained that the energy in the Metal Well had been filtered and transformed before the mages absorbed it.
• Mordo removed his bracelet and touched the Original Fluid with his Mental Consciousness.
• Mordo was overwhelmed by rage, fear, brutality, jealousy, arrogance, ambition, and desire as his power surged out of control.
• Three mages began forming a defensive spell formation, but Luke bound Mordo with a red sash.
• Luke had a mage fasten Mordo's bracelet back onto his wrist, and Mordo's struggles weakened.

Luke explained to Mordo the dangers of the new energy and how bracelets let mages use it safely, while discussing the Sorcerer Supreme’s partnership with Hebron. The chapter left Mordo considering the network’s reach and the controls Luke and the Sorcerer Supreme had built into access to it.

• Mordo described how the unfamiliar consciousnesses in the energy had threatened to overwhelm and erode his mind, and Luke explained that it needed to be filtered and converted.
• Luke told Mordo that Hebron would supply the safety bracelets and that the Sorcerer Supreme’s mages would place orders through Hebron rather than license the technology.
• Luke argued that Hebron and the Sorcerer Supreme’s lineage depended on one another for technology and Dimensional Materials, while Mordo supported the effort to establish a safe power source controlled by the mages.
• Mordo asked about Luke’s Silent City and its Energy Veins, and Luke said construction preparations had begun and the network could eventually reach across the universe.
• Luke explained that meditation and Hebron’s bracelets granted authorized network access, while he and the Sorcerer Supreme could block unauthorized users.

Master Mage Wang observed that the New Energy gave mages different power marks and attributes, while Kaecilius appeared close to losing control. At Luke’s laboratory, Nick Fury asked for a version of the energy for S.H.I.E.L.D. and raised concerns about Beast Series Gear, prompting Luke to suspect an agent had secretly overclocked his equipment.

• Master Mage Wang saw mages display at least six different power marks as they contacted the New Energy’s essence.
• Mordo pointed out Kaecilius’s unusually powerful orange-yellow mark, and Master Mage Wang ordered the supervising mages to stop him from losing control.
• Nick Fury and Tony Stark visited Luke’s laboratory, where Nick asked whether Luke could develop New Energy for S.H.I.E.L.D.
• Nick Fury reported that an agent using Beast Series Gear had begun praying to an unknown existence, and Luke offered to investigate the agent and his bracer.
• Luke suspected the agent had secretly overclocked the gear and been detected by Beast Sub-entity, leaving Nick worried about a hidden threat within S.H.I.E.L.D.

Luke discovered that modified Beast Series Gear could expose S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to a Demon God's corruption, prompting Nick to investigate and seek safer equipment. In Asgard, Odin agreed to cooperate with Ancient One but demanded that Luke prove himself by facing a dangerous fused entity made from Undead Souls.

• Tony returned Venom to Luke, and Luke dismissed Tony and Nick from the laboratory.
• Luke determined that a suspect's Beast Series wristband had been crudely modified, warning Nick that repeated use could invite corruption from the beast.
• Nick agreed to investigate the modified gear, consider sending S.H.I.E.L.D.'s equipment to Hebron for inspection, and ask Master Mage Wang about treating corrupted agents.
• Luke returned to his books and prepared for construction of the new city, while postponing Nick's request for new equipment.
• Odin told Ancient One that he would cooperate with her but wanted to test Luke before accepting him as a partner.
• Odin explained that a race he had imprisoned had fused into an immortal Avatar of hundreds of millions of Undead Souls, and said he would send it to Luke to see whether his technology could destroy it.

Luke agreed to investigate and take ownership of Asgard’s dangerous composite entity, Mangog, if his technology could contain it, and began preparing to move it to Dark City. He accelerated construction of the city’s energy power chamber and finished modifying a new energy ring for S.H.I.E.L.D., leaving the ring ready for Nick’s agents.

• Ancient One told Luke that Odin had offered him ownership of Mangog if he could successfully restrain it, and Luke proposed using it as Dark City’s Energy Core.
• Luke asked Mordo and Master Mage Wang to move construction of the energy power chamber forward, and they agreed to prioritize the difficult materials.
• Luke pressed Nick to speed up construction, and Nick assigned Agent Phil Coulson to organize a dedicated team and secure more funding.
• Luke explained to Venom that he would adapt mage wristbands into cheaper equipment for S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, then worked through the night to complete a distinct new ring.

Luke presented S.H.I.E.L.D. with prototype and mass-produced Mind Rings, then had Steve Rogers test the unique prototype. Steve’s ring transformed into a golden Ring of Leadership that granted him power and inspired trust and courage in those around him.

• Luke explained that Mind Rings absorbed energy linked to their wearer’s strongest emotions and could become bound to a single master.
• Nick Fury arrived with Steve Rogers and Agent Natasha to inspect the rings Luke had developed for S.H.I.E.L.D.
• Luke gave Steve the prototype ring, and Steve put it on, awakening a surge of energy that briefly lifted him off the ground.
• The ring transformed into translucent gold and gained a sun-like imprint, while Nick and Natasha felt trust and courage around Steve.
• Steve described feeling cleansed and stronger, and Luke explained that the ring could enhance weapons, form protective energy, and empower people who believed in Steve.
• Luke warned Nick that the mass-produced rings were weaker and more accessible, while Steve’s unique ring had stricter requirements and greater abilities.

Luke pressed Nick Fury to bring S.H.I.E.L.D. into a trading partnership with Hebron and the Sorcerer Supreme, exchanging sealed artifacts for resources and New Currency. Nick agreed to a pilot program and requested a Mind Ring for himself, while Steve Rogers demonstrated his skill with his ring.

• Nick rejected Luke’s twenty-billion price for Steve’s ring, so Luke proposed payment in New Currency and urged him to trade S.H.I.E.L.D.’s sealed artifacts.
• Luke warned Nick that S.H.I.E.L.D. risked losing its place among future partners unless it strengthened itself and shared its resources.
• Luke guided Steve through tests of the Mind Ring, and Steve used its energy to devastate a training target and demonstrate his aptitude.
• Nick asked whether Luke had been maneuvering S.H.I.E.L.D. into dependence, and Luke advised him to strengthen his trusted agents and secure recognition from the other partners.
• Nick agreed to select sealed artifacts for a pilot exchange, provided they would not circulate freely, and asked Luke for a ring like Steve’s.
• Luke agreed to provide Nick a ring for an item of equivalent value and quoted one billion each for the other rings, prompting Nick to mock his morals.