Dimensional Barrier, the Supreme One's Legacy

The unprecedented urgency in the Ancient One's voice made Lin Ye instantly realize the gravity of the situation. He did not even ask another question before lightning flared around him.

"Coordinates locked: Kamar-Taj's main courtyard." Remy's voice rang out.

"Teleport!"

Lightning tore through space. The next second, Lin Ye appeared in Kamar-Taj's familiar courtyard, where the scent of sandalwood and ancient tomes lingered in the air. Yet the courtyard was utterly unlike its usual tranquil serenity.

The sky was no longer clear blue or filled with brilliant stars. Instead, it had taken on a strange, constantly twisting dim yellow hue, like an enormous sheet of stained frosted glass. The air was thick with a suffocating oppression, while fine cracking sounds, like bones grinding together, drifted faintly from every direction, piercing his eardrums and unsettling his mind.

Dozens of Kamar-Taj sorcerers were stationed throughout the courtyard and on the higher terraces. Their hands formed seals as they chanted long, solemn incantations. Golden phantoms of the Shield of Seraphim and Vishanti's Sacred Sword emerged around them, joining together to form an enormous composite defensive formation that enveloped the entire sanctuary. The formation's radiance fluctuated constantly, as if it were enduring an invisible but relentless assault.

The Ancient One stood before the Orb of Agamotto in the center of the courtyard. No longer did the orb reflect countless scenes; instead, it shook violently, displaying a horrifying world of innumerable colossal bones that continuously collapsed and reassembled—the Endless Bone Graveyard! The image was clearer and more frenzied than before, as if something were trying to force its way out!

"You're here!" Sensing Lin Ye's energy fluctuations, the Ancient One did not turn around. Her voice was urgent. "Look at the Orb of Agamotto! Their response to the 'beacon' is far fiercer than expected! Earth's entire Dimensional Barrier is under pressure, and Kamar-Taj is one of the points under the greatest strain!"

Lin Ye walked to her side and stared at the scalp-numbing scene inside the orb, his brows tightly furrowed. "What can I do?" He might have been powerful, but when it came to defenses involving the entire dimensional level, his knowledge truly could not compare to the Ancient One's or Kamar-Taj's system.

"Your thunder power is supremely yang and unyielding. It contains a trace of the laws of destruction and creation from the birth of the universe. It naturally suppresses undead, death spirits, negative energy, and similar entities. It can even reinforce reality to a certain extent!" the Ancient One said rapidly. "I need you to channel your power into Kamar-Taj's defense network—not recklessly, but according to specific nodes and frequencies. Resonance with the sorcerers' magic and strengthen the Reality Anchors!"

With a flick of her finger, a ray of golden light entered Lin Ye's brow. Instantly, vast amounts of knowledge flooded into his mind: structural diagrams of Kamar-Taj's defensive formation, the distribution of energy nodes, and methods for synchronizing and resonating his own power with it. These were not complex magical spells, but more like an "interface" and "protocol" for using energy.

[Ding! Temporary access to the Kamar-Taj Dimensional Defense Network and energy resonance techniques acquired.]

[Reward: [Dimensional Defense Studies (Beginner)], [Energy Synergistic Resonance].]

The knowledge was instantly digested and absorbed. Lightning flashed in Lin Ye's eyes as understanding dawned on him.

"Leave it to me." Without hesitation, he stepped forward and floated into the air above the courtyard. [Thor Form] activated silently, but this time, he restrained his power's destructive nature to the utmost, pursuing extreme control and stability instead.

He raised his hands slightly. The lightning around him no longer surged wildly, instead transforming into countless gentle yet resilient streams of deep azure energy. Like precisely guided missiles, they flowed accurately into dozens of key energy nodes within the defensive formation below!

Crackle—hum—

The instant the thunder power merged with the golden formation, the entire defense network flared brightly! The previously unstable formation seemed to have been injected with a stimulant, instantly becoming solid and stable! Dancing azure lightning arcs mingled with the golden radiance, giving off an even steadier, more unshakable aura!

The teeth-grinding sounds of bones rubbing together and space being compressed, coming from the void, were immediately weakened by more than half!

The sorcerers maintaining the formation below instantly felt the pressure ease. Many raised their heads in astonishment to look at the lightning-wreathed figure overhead, their eyes filled with shock and gratitude. They could sense that this newly joined power shared the same origin as theirs—both existed to protect—yet it was purer and stronger, perfectly reinforcing the defense!

The Ancient One watched the scene, and a trace of amazement flashed through her eyes. She had not expected Lin Ye's comprehension and control to be so formidable. This was his first contact with Kamar-Taj's defensive system, yet he had achieved almost perfect Energy Synergy! Such talent was simply...

But she had no time to think further. The Orb of Agamotto began trembling even more violently!

"They're still attacking! They're trying to find the weakest point in the barrier!" the Ancient One shouted sharply. "Lin Ye, feel it with your heart! Use your lightning to 'touch' Earth's entire Dimensional Barrier! Find the points suffering the heaviest impacts and reinforce them remotely! Like... patching an enormous fishing net!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Ye immediately closed his eyes and immersed his mind completely in his connection with Kamar-Taj's defense network. At the same time, his powerful [Dimensional Energy Perception] was pushed to its limit, spreading across the globe along the network's veins like neural tendrils!

Within his "perception," Earth resembled a faint blue-glowing bubble—the reality dimension—surrounded by a murky dim-yellow sea. At that moment, countless invisible yet malicious "tentacles," the energy of the Endless Bone Graveyard, were crazily ramming, squeezing, and corroding the bubble from within those polluted waters!

Certain sections of the bubble had already become extremely thin, even showing faint ripples on the verge of rupture!

"Found them!" Lin Ye abruptly opened his eyes, his ten fingers moving rapidly as though playing a piano!

Streams of highly condensed yet incomparably pure thunder energy did not shoot toward the sky. Instead, they plunged directly into the defensive formation beneath his feet, using Kamar-Taj's worldwide magical network for precise ultra-long-range delivery!

Above the Greenland Ice Sheet, unstable purple ripples appeared in space once again. Several phantasmal pale bone claws tried to emerge—then a bolt of lightning appeared from nowhere, striking the center of the ripples with perfect accuracy and smoothing them away completely!

Deep within the Amazon Rainforest, space around an ancient sacred tree began to distort, giving off an aura of decay—gentle lightning formed a protective barrier around the tree, stabilizing the space!

In a remote valley somewhere in the Himalayas, the ground split open and black mist seeped out—thunder power poured into the fissure and forcibly sealed it shut!

Lin Ye seemed to transform into the "weaver" and "mender" of Earth's Dimensional Barrier. His lightning was no longer a weapon of destruction, but needle and thread for protection, patching the weak points under assault across the globe with astonishing speed and efficiency!

His mental power was being consumed at an unprecedented rate, but his understanding and control of power were also improving rapidly amid this high-intensity, precise, large-scale operation. [Dimensional Energy Perception] and [Energy Synergistic Resonance] grew more proficient at a visible pace.

The Ancient One watched from the side. While maintaining the Orb of Agamotto's stability for Lin Ye's reference, waves of shock surged through her heart. Even she needed the power of the Eye of Agamotto—the Time Stone—to perfectly carry out this kind of precise, worldwide dimensional defense. Yet Lin Ye had achieved this level using only his own power and terrifying command over energy?!

This child's potential and rate of growth were truly terrifying.

No one knew how much time passed. Perhaps several hours, perhaps longer.

The omnipresent sense of impact and the sounds of bones grinding together finally weakened and subsided. The dim yellow in the sky gradually faded, returning to its normal color. The Orb of Agamotto also stopped shaking violently, and the horrifying image inside slowly vanished, returning to its original chaotic state.

The crisis had been temporarily resolved.

Lin Ye slowly descended from the air. The lightning around him receded, and a hint of exhaustion showed on his face, but his eyes had become deeper and brighter. This experience had elevated his understanding of dimensions and energy to an entirely new level.

The sorcerers in the courtyard all breathed sighs of relief and withdrew the formation. Many collapsed onto the ground, gasping for breath, yet every gaze directed at Lin Ye was filled with respect and gratitude.

The Ancient One walked up to Lin Ye and solemnly performed a sorcerer's salute. "Thank you, Lin Ye. Without your power, this dimensional assault would never have been quelled so smoothly. You saved countless lives."

Lin Ye waved his hand. "We both got what we needed. I learned quite a bit too." He meant it sincerely.

The Ancient One looked at him with a complicated expression before suddenly speaking. "Your talent and power should not be used solely for passive defense and personal strength. The mysteries of the dimensional universe are endless, and its threats go far beyond a single Endless Bone Graveyard. Kamar-Taj's library may contain things that interest you."

She was actively opening Kamar-Taj's repository of knowledge to Lin Ye! This represented an extremely high degree of recognition and trust.

Lin Ye paused slightly, then smiled. "I'll consider it. But right now, I need to go back and get some rest."

He knew this meant more responsibility and entanglements, but he truly had developed a deep interest in Kamar-Taj's ancient knowledge of dimensions.

Just as Lin Ye returned to the Thunder Temple to rest and Kamar-Taj gradually regained its calm,

In an inconspicuous, remote mountain village in the Himalayas,

A surgeon named Stephen Strange, whose hands had been crippled in a car accident and whose spirit had been crushed, lay painfully in bed. Listening to a radio report about New York's latest medical technology, his eyes were filled with despair and unwillingness.

He did not know that the gears of fate had already begun to turn slowly. A journey that would change his life was about to begin.

And deep within distant dimensions, in the deathly silent world of the Endless Bone Graveyard, two clusters of cold soul fire slowly lit up within a pair of hollow eye sockets larger than planets. Carrying an air of scrutiny, they gazed from afar in Earth's direction.

Although this assault had been repelled, certain ancient beings had clearly noticed this blue planet that had repeatedly made "noise," as well as the unique individual upon it who radiated dazzling lightning.

Beneath the brief calm, a greater storm was brewing in an unknown corner.

(End of Chapter 43)