The Cold Whetstone and the Silent Observer

Li Wei's talk of "the bigger picture" had not been an impulsive mockery aimed at Strange, but a carefully considered "strategic breach." He saw the diamond-like potential buried beneath Strange's pride and pain, still uncut and unpolished. But he also saw the deeply rooted limitations in his thinking, the limitations of a "mortal elite." Li Wei's method of "teaching" was destined to differ from Ancient One's guidance and protection. He was like the harshest whetstone, seeking to grind away the rust and force out the blade's edge in the fastest, most effective way possible.

Strange began following Mordo through the most basic magical training. His intellect was exceptional, and he grasped theory quickly, but his trembling hands prevented him from maintaining even the most basic Rings of Raggadorr, causing him to fail repeatedly and draw open and covert mockery from the other apprentices.

After Strange once again lost control of his energy because of his shaking hands and nearly injured himself, Li Wei appeared like a ghost at the edge of the training ground. He did not look at Strange, instead casually saying to an apprentice nearby who was steadily maintaining a magical shield:

"The key to energy circulation lies in intent, not form. No matter how steady your fingers are, if your mind is unstable, your shield is nothing but paper."

Though he seemed to be instructing that apprentice, every word pierced Strange's heart like a needle. He suddenly looked up at Li Wei.

Only then did Li Wei turn his gaze toward him, his expression as calm as ever. "Doctor Strange, you rely too much on those hands of yours. They were once your pride, but now they are the shackles on your mind. Magic comes from will. It is your spirit that drives energy, not your fingertips. Why must you use your hands to draw that circle?"

Before he had even finished speaking, without so much as raising a hand, Li Wei instantly formed a condensed, stable Shield of Seraphim before himself, its edges shimmering with intricate runes. It vanished just as instantly. Instant Spellcasting!

"Do you understand now?" Leaving those words behind, Li Wei turned and departed.

Strange stood frozen as if struck by lightning. He had been trying to control his trembling hands and force them through precise movements, yet he had never considered bypassing those "useless hands" and guiding energy directly with his mind! In the most straightforward way, Li Wei had shown him another possibility, while once again making him feel that despairing gap between them—he could not even maintain the most basic shield, while Li Wei could already instantly cast high-level defensive magic.

Strange no longer obsessed over immediately finding a way to heal his hands. Instead, he began frantically absorbing every piece of foundational magical theory and knowledge of energy manipulation he could find. He lost himself in the library day and night, but many profound concepts still remained obscure to him.

One time, he was scratching his head over a tome describing energy projection across multidimensional space. Li Wei happened to pass by him—or perhaps he had done so deliberately—and stopped, casually picking up the book and flipping through it.

"The key to dimensional projection lies in coordinate anchoring and the resonance of energy frequencies, not merely the strength of energy output. The example in Chapter Three of this book is wrong. It confuses the energy attenuation coefficients of secondary dimensions and mirror dimensions." Li Wei sounded as though he were talking to himself, his voice not loud, yet just clear enough for Strange to hear. Afterward, he returned the book to its place, gave Strange a meaningful look, and left.

Strange froze, then hurriedly flipped to Chapter Three. Comparing it with other texts and his own understanding, he discovered that Li Wei was very likely right! There really was something questionable about that example. He spent an entire day consulting vast amounts of material before finally confirming Li Wei's judgment.

This time, Li Wei had not directly provided the answer. Instead, he had pointed out an error, forcing Strange to seek it out and verify it for himself. The process greatly honed Strange's ability to think independently and critically absorb magical knowledge. He realized that this cold man was not simply tearing him down. The "hints" he offered were often incisive and aimed directly at the heart of the matter, but Strange had to expend tremendous effort to digest them himself.

When remnants of Kaecilius's followers—fanatics who had not been completely purged—attempted to attack Kamar-Taj and create chaos, Strange, Mordo, and the others were forced into battle. Relying on the mind-casting technique he had only recently grasped, Strange barely held them off, but the danger was constant.

Li Wei stood quietly in the shadows of a nearby corridor, watching. He did not intervene, as if everything before him had nothing to do with him. One fanatic broke through the defensive line and charged at the nearly exhausted Strange, brandishing a dark blade.

A trace of despair flashed through Strange's eyes. Just as the blade was about to strike him—

"Bzz!"

The fanatic suddenly stiffened, as though he had crashed into an invisible wall. He was hurled away and knocked unconscious on the ground.

Still shaken, Strange looked toward Li Wei. Li Wei remained where he was, only the index finger of his right hand twitching slightly. He still did not look at Strange, as though he had merely flicked away a fly.

"I will not teach you specific spells, nor will I help you up every time you fall." Li Wei's voice rang directly in Strange's mind, cold and clear. "All I can give you is direction and pressure, and... the assurance that you will not die pointlessly before my eyes. Your path is one you must crawl across yourself."

With that, Li Wei's figure blended into the shadows and vanished completely.

Strange stood where he was, sweat soaking the back of his clothes, his heart filled with conflicting emotions. He was furious at Li Wei's coldness and grateful for that final intervention, insignificant though it had been. But more than anything, he felt an unyielding fighting spirit forcibly ignited within him. He understood now that complaints and self-pity were useless before this man. Only by becoming stronger—strong enough—could he earn... perhaps not respect, but at least the right not to be ignored.

Li Wei's method of "teaching" was like an icy scalpel, cutting open every layer of Strange's pretense and weakness and laying the bloody reality before him. He offered no warmth, only cruel truths and the pressure to survive. Their interactions were filled with tension and confrontation, yet invisibly, in another way, they accelerated Strange's transformation toward becoming the future Sorcerer Supreme.

As for Li Wei, he was like a silent, strict observer, recording the growth data of this "experimental subject" under extreme conditions and evaluating his future... value and risk.