Kamar-Taj (Part 2)

The Himalayas, Nepal, Kathmandu.

Using his false identity, Shen Fei made his way to this country without any trouble. Located near the Himalayas and surrounded by a thriving Buddhist culture, Kathmandu was an exceptionally lively place.

Every year, countless climbing enthusiasts came hoping to conquer the Himalayas. Peaks that ordinary people might risk their lives to climb were, to some, merely a round trip with the wave of a hand.

It had to be said that those who climbed the Himalayas in this world were fortunate. With Ancient One's disciples stationed here, rescue efforts were always swift.

"So where exactly is Kamar-Taj?" Shen Fei's memories of Kamar-Taj went no further than that. He remembered there was a magnificent temple opposite it, but with Buddhist culture flourishing throughout Kathmandu, there were simply too many temples like that.

"Excuse me, where is Kamar-Taj?" Shen Fei asked a shop owner in the local language. He had put in considerable effort to find Kamar-Taj, learning both hacking and the local language.

Back in the day, learning a new language would have been torture for him. Even his English, which he had studied all along, was nothing more than mute English.

But after crossing into this world, perhaps due to the effects of the Op-Op Fruit and the T-Virus, even learning the obscure Nepalese language had not posed much difficulty. Of course, that might also have been because Shen Fei had been fully focused on it.

When he had studied English before, it had only been for exams. Learning Nepalese, however, was directly tied to finding Kamar-Taj.

The Marvel world was extremely dangerous. Even with the abilities of the Op-Op Fruit, he was not safe. The same would hold true even if he later got his hands on Iron Man's armor and Ant-Man's suit. If he wanted to stand among the strongest in this world, only Ancient One's magic could possibly make that happen.

Because even if he could not win, he could always open a Portal and run.

Actually, there was another way to reach the top: obtain an Infinity Stone and awaken the power within it. The strongest superheroes in Marvel were all connected to the Infinity Stones.

The Scarlet Witch gained Chaos Magic through the Mind Stone, which had also created Vision. Captain Marvel's abilities came from the light-speed engine created using the Space Stone.

Why could Captain Marvel fly freely through space and even pass through wormholes? Come to think of it, those abilities really did resemble a light-speed engine.

Even the Gamma Rays that gave birth to the Hulk had some connection to the Space Stone.

As for Odin, Thor, and Thanos, their strength came from racial advantages. There was no room for maneuver there at all.

Under those circumstances, the only way to avoid Thanos's snap was to become strong enough himself. Relying on the Avengers to reverse the future was too risky. Marvel had an infinite universe—who knew whether the Avengers of this universe could reverse the future?

Moreover, learning Ancient One's magic would provide a tremendous advantage for the things he planned to do in the future.

"They all say they don't know. So I really don't have Strange's destiny." When Strange arrived here, someone had quickly come to receive him. But he had been the chosen next Sorcerer Supreme, so naturally Shen Fei would not receive the same treatment.

"I refuse to believe I won't find it eventually." That night, Shen Fei checked into a hotel. He would not go back until he found Kamar-Taj.

"Sorcerer Supreme." When Shen Fei checked into the hotel, someone at Kamar-Taj informed Ancient One that he had been asking about Kamar-Taj.

"Mm." Ancient One merely nodded calmly and said nothing further.

"Could Ancient One be deliberately avoiding me?" After searching for an entire week without finding any news of Kamar-Taj, Shen Fei could not help but grow suspicious.

With the Time Stone in her possession, it would be all too easy for Ancient One to know what would happen in the future.

Shen Fei considered himself highly familiar with Marvel, but Ancient One knew just as much. And she never spoiled anything, just as Doctor Strange had seen over fourteen million outcomes of the battle against Thanos without revealing a thing. As expected of Sorcerer Supremes from the same lineage.

Since Ancient One could foresee the future, Shen Fei naturally had his reasons for persisting. After all, he was a transmigrator and possessed the Op-Op Fruit. No matter what, he ought to be somewhat special.

Besides, Ancient One was not a cruel person. Even after she had found Strange as her successor through the Time Stone, she had silently waited for Strange's accident and allowed him to come to her himself.

Otherwise, with Ancient One's power, a few small manipulations would probably have brought Strange to her long ago.

"You are looking for Kamar-Taj." Seeing the person before him, Shen Fei finally breathed a sigh of relief. He knew this man: Wong, one of Ancient One's disciples. Since Wong had appeared, it meant he could meet Ancient One.

"Yes." After Shen Fei spoke, Wong silently examined him. Only after a long while did Wong finally say, "Then come with me."

Without waiting for Shen Fei to react, he turned and left.

"I think I've been here before." Looking at the small door before him, Shen Fei sighed inwardly. He had once looked over this place, but having found nothing unusual, he had left.

There were too many similar places in Kathmandu.

As Shen Fei and Wong stepped through the small door, neither noticed the cold gaze behind them fixed upon Shen Fei's retreating figure. Wong's appearance before him today had not been a coincidence.

After leading Shen Fei into the main hall, Wong bowed slightly upon seeing Ancient One seated in the center, dressed in yellow, then left.

"What is your purpose in coming here?"

"I want to learn your magic, Master."

"I see. Very well."

Ancient One's immediate agreement surprised Shen Fei. He had thought there would at least be some kind of test.

After Ancient One agreed, Wong entered again. This time, his attitude was much friendlier as he explained the rules of the Holy Temples to Shen Fei.

"So I really don't have Doctor Strange's destiny." Following beside Wong, Shen Fei could not help sighing. When Strange first arrived, Ancient One had taken him on a journey through the Multiverse and dimensional universes.

That journey should not be underestimated. Strange's rapid progress in magic afterward was largely thanks to it. The reason Strange could surpass disciples who had studied in the Holy Temples for years was partly his extraordinary talent, but also partly that journey.

Ancient One's magic differed greatly from all other known magic in one crucial aspect: it was centered on dimensions.

"This is where you will stay." After leading Shen Fei to his quarters, Wong left. When he returned, he carried a large stack of books and handed Shen Fei a slip of paper as well—the Wi-Fi password.

"If you can't understand it, figure it out yourself." With those words, Wong left.

"Sanskrit? You've got to be kidding. I forgot about that. Good thing there's the internet." Thanks to modern networks, even Sanskrit translations could be found online.

"Leave this place." While Shen Fei studied the basics of magic, Ancient One stepped into a world that seemed to be made of countless shards of glass: the Mirror Dimension. On the other side stood someone whose head was hidden beneath a black hood.

"Hypocrite." The person removed his hood, revealing Ancient One's former disciple, Kaecilius. After speaking, Kaecilius immediately opened a golden Portal and fled.

One important reason Ancient One had accepted Shen Fei so quickly and taught him magic was that Kaecilius had set his sights on him. If Ancient One had refused him, Shen Fei might very well have ended up learning magic from Kaecilius.

Kaecilius knew all of Ancient One's magic. The difference lay only in the depth of their cultivation.

The Time Stone could indeed glimpse the future, but no one would use an Infinity Stone that way. Ancient One had only used the Time Stone to peer into the future a limited number of times in her life. Even Doctor Strange would not have used it to view the future if Thanos had not been so formidable.

If Shen Fei's transmigration had been like possessing another person's body, he would not have been able to hide it from Ancient One. Her attainments regarding souls were extremely high. But Shen Fei had been reincarnated after transmigrating, and had merely recovered the memories of his previous life recently.