Dark red light covered the retina.
The sun swelled like an overripe tomato, its solar prominences flung millions of kilometers outward.
Mercury and Venus did not even leave behind scraps. They vaporized outright.
Earth did not fare much better. The seawater in the Mariana Trench boiled in an instant. New York's Empire State Building melted like a candle, reinforced concrete flowing downward with the magma.
But at that moment, everything stopped.
It was not a physical deceleration, but the laws themselves being forcibly cut off.
Magma erupting into the air hung suspended in the vacuum. Within the cracks of the shattered crust, flying rubble defied gravity and froze in midair.
Then, a ridiculously enormous green pattern lit up across Earth's surface.
It was the Eye of Agamotto.
Green light pierced through the entire Solar System.
Time had been forcibly stopped, and everything fell into stasis.
Then, specks of golden sparks danced through space, drawing a circle.
Ancient One stepped out of the portal.
She still wore that unchanging bright yellow monk's robe. The Eye of Agamotto on her chest was operating at full output, its green light painfully dazzling.
"All right, Arishem."
Within this frozen time, Harry nodded at Ancient One before looking at Arishem.
"Now, let's have a proper talk."
Arishem did not answer immediately.
His six red-dwarf-star-like eyes swept back and forth between Harry and Ancient One.
This ancient god, who had lived for billions of years, was calculating the gains and losses with logic beyond human comprehension.
The mutant before him, radiating Golden Light, had indeed mastered a power that shared the same origin as theirs.
Though it was still crude, he was no longer an ant that could be crushed at will.
With the sorcerer who controlled the Time Stone added to the equation, they truly