Ian checked his account on Akashic Records and learned that he had received a message from Merlin. He was slightly surprised, but guessed the reason, so he clicked on the message. The projection of Merlin appeared in front of him and said, "Hey, boy, it looks good."
"I'm okay," Ian replied.
"You're welcome."
"If I brag, you will only suppress my self-esteem, so what else can I say?" Ian shrugged.
"That's true," Merlin chuckled. "By the way, this is a recording; I'm actually not here."
Ian's face turned ugly.
"Haha, I bet you are so angry that your face is twisted right now. Oh, I really wish I was there to see it with my own eyes." Ian snorted and decided to ignore that drunk bastard.
"I just pretended that I didn't hear the rude comments you just made," the recording continued, making Ian's mouth twitch. "I left this message to congratulate you on reaching Tier 10, and also to warn you, never skip Tier 11 and go directly to Tier 12."
Ian frowned.
"Yes, it can happen. You usually see this in a world like the MCU where the power system is non-linear.
Some people can destroy the entire Multiverse and survive Void, but their variants or counterparts in Multiverse are independent entities. Sometimes, they have no variants and are the only entities in the entire Multiverse."
Ian has thought about this, because in the comics, some entities apparently at Tier 12 and above fight their Multiverse counterparts, which should never happen if all of their variants were integrated as part of themselves at Tier 11. "Tier 11 is very important and must not be skipped, otherwise, no matter how powerful you become, you will be cannon fodder in the upcoming war.
I will contact you again to tell you about higher levels and the war. Good luck to you, and remember, we don't have much time left."
The projection disappeared, leaving a heavy atmosphere for Ian. "Morgana, can you send the methods of Soul Limit and Soul Divinity to Hermione?"
"No Netheril, the best I can do is send it back to the server at home and then send it to them," she replied.
"Then let's do it."
Before leaving, he left enough Divine Power for everyone to break the limit and reach level 9, but now he has a sense of urgency, so he hopes they can become as powerful as possible as soon as possible.
Ian's first priority was not to return to Earth, but to cast Duplication Charm on Soul Stone to absorb more energy for his Soul Divinity. However, the experiment was only considered a partial success, as the replica existed for less than a second.
Although he absorbed a lot of energy in that brief moment, the magic power consumed by continuous replication was too great, so he had no choice but to give up the plan. He planned to try again after getting Time Stone.
Ian opened a portal to the earth, but found himself floating outside the atmosphere, blocked by a powerful shield.
"What's going on?"
"Please seal most of your energy," a voice came from Void, and Ian recognized it as the Ancient One. Ian frowned, and then sealed most of his magic power. Finally, he passed through the protective net and appeared at Kamar-Taj, where the Ancient One was waiting.
"What just happened?"
"The earth's dimensional protective shield treats you as a dimensional creature, so it won't let you in."
"But I'm obviously not."
"Given the amount of energy in your body and the two dimensions you possess, your magic system is very similar to theirs."
"It's not fair, all lives have Soul Dimension."
"That's true, but their Soul Dimension does not contain energy and cannot be embodied," The Ancient One retorted.
"Okay," Ian sighed. "I guess you saw my fight with Malakai."
"I saw it, it was very exciting," she replied calmly.
"Why did that bastard attack me?"
"You are unlucky; the dimensional barrier of the planet you chose is very weak. Coupled with the energy in your body, you are simply a perfect meal."
"So, the backlash of my luck is not over yet?"
"Luck backfires?"
"I abused Potions, a luck-enhancing drug, and now I'm paying the price."
"That's worrying," The Ancient One frowned, and Ian agreed. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do because Empire's research on luck or probability manipulation was less mature than most other fields.
"Who the hell is this Malakai?" Ian has never heard of him in the MCU or even in the comics.
"He is one of the seventy-two Demon Gods."
"Demon Gods?"
"You have encountered Lord Hell and Dark Dimension entities like Dormammu, but there are many other enemies on Earth that must be guarded against at all times. Malakai is one of the lower seventy-two Demon Gods."
"Lord Demon Gods?" Ian asked, he understood the implications of these words.
"Yes, they are divided into lower, middle, upper and king. Malakai is one of the top among the lower Demon Gods, but it still belongs to the lower level."
The corner of Ian's mouth twitched. He couldn't accept that the weakest among these Demon Gods was actually Tier 10.
"I'm sorry, my words may sound offensive, but if Malakai is just a subordinate Demon Gods, then there is no way you can survive in front of these guys."
The Ancient One chuckled, "It's reasonable for you to think so, but the situation is much more complicated than you think. Agamotto and several predecessors Sorcerer Supreme sealed most of the seven kings, and the rest are still recovering from their injuries.
"Many Demon Gods are in a deep sleep that lasts for millions of years, and some have no desire to invade and increase their strength. At the same time, the Hell lords were forced to sign a treaty, and their bodies cannot enter Material Plane, so they usually send incarnations secretly and use intrigues to interfere in the affairs of the earth.
"So, the only real opponents left are a few Upper Demon God like Dormammu."
Ian's brows were still furrowed, "This explains a lot of questions, but there are still many things that don't make sense. For example, I know how someone like you who is proficient in the secret arts and possesses Time Stone can deal with Demon Gods, but what about the other mages? I doubt they can even breathe in some dimensions, let alone survive."
"You underestimate the capabilities of my mages," The Ancient One explained. "However, the answer to your question is Dimension Eraser. When those creatures try to invade Earth, before they reach the protective grid, they must pass through Dimension Eraser, a special dimension that greatly weakens their power."
"Is this why they always need the cooperation of someone on Earth to enter?"
"That's right; they know that the best and only way to invade the earth is to break through from the inside," The Ancient One nodded.
Ian sighed, "This world is much more complicated than I imagined."
"You can't even imagine," The Ancient One replied. She once thought she knew most of the secrets of the universe and that nothing could shock her, but after seeing the future after her death, she realized how wrong she was.
"We've been delayed for over three years; maybe it would be a good idea to change the original plan," suggested Ian.
"You're right," she nodded. "I still think you need to show your talent and convince other mages. However, in a few days you can use Time Stone to see the future I have seen and prepared for."
"What about Soul Stone? Any suggestions?"
"When you see what I see, you can decide what to do with it or other gems," The Ancient One responded calmly.
"Okay. Let's start again tomorrow because I want to see Aisha's family." Since he promised to take care of them, he will keep his promise.
"I've already gone to see them for you. They are very good."
"Oh, thank you so much." Since she said they were fine, Ian didn't leave. He would still go to confirm, but he wouldn't go there in person. He followed the Ancient One to his room and got the Wi-Fi password. He was a little tired after the strength breakthrough and decided to take a nap; he hadn't slept for a long time and he felt he needed a rest.