This Is Ridiculous—The Ancient One's Commission!

"AAAAAAAAAH!!!!"

As for how high a woman's voice could go, Zhang Yang could now tell you the real answer.

If she was too close—if she clung too tightly—she could scream your eardrums apart.

"Stop screaming!"

Zhang Yang rubbed his ears, feeling as though his eardrums had been shattered and a ringing had started up. Somewhat impatiently, he said, "Get off me already!"

"Oh, oh, oh... Sorry~"

Hearing the familiar voice, Angela looked down. Her face reddened, and she hurriedly scrambled to her feet, reaching out to pull Zhang Yang up as well. "I didn't notice it was you. Sorry!"

"Forget it."

Zhang Yang shook his head. He looked at Jia Li, who had served as his human cushion on the ground, then at Angela, and fell into deep thought.

"Forget it. Why am I even thinking about this?"

Zhang Yang shook his head and decided to hand the two of them over to The Ancient One. "Let those old folks worry about it."

"Come on. I'll take you somewhere."

Zhang Yang beckoned to Angela, then cast a levitation spell on Jia Li. "Stay close. Don't fall behind."

"Okay!"

Angela hurried after him.

It was currently break time, and the paths were crowded. Almost everyone who saw Zhang Yang stopped to comment on him.

"Is that the great Zhang Yang? Didn't I hear he joined a special class? Why are there two girls following him?"

"Yeah, that's him. I'll never forget such a handsome face for the rest of my life."

"You face-obsessed girl. You only care about Great Zhang Yang's looks. I'm different—I don't just crave his face, I crave his body too."

"You? With that flat chest? Give it up!"

"You big-breasted cow, what did you say?!"

"Hmm?!" accompanied by the sound of surging waves and gritted teeth.

"..."

Zhang Yang had long grown used to this. Ignoring everyone's stares, he arrived before the Ancient One's Sanctum.

"Master Mordo."

Mordo was standing at the sanctum entrance. Just as Zhang Yang was wondering why, Mordo said, "Go in. The Sorcerer Supreme is already waiting for you."

"The Ancient One already knows?"

The thought flashed through Zhang Yang's mind, but on second thought, it made sense. As the wielder of the Time Stone, The Ancient One should have a complete grasp of everything that had happened today.

"Then we're going in?"

Zhang Yang glanced at the two girls behind him, but Mordo smiled and shook his head. "I came specifically for these two. They can come with me."

"Fine."

Zhang Yang suddenly felt a little nervous. Although he had already joined Kamar-Taj, facing this guardian of time and protector of Earth alone still made him a little timid.

When Zhang Yang entered the Ancient One's Sanctum, however, he sensed that the space around him was strange.

The Mirror Dimension?

Zhang Yang stopped walking. He did not know why The Ancient One had cast the Mirror Dimension here.

Was it created specifically for him?

"Come in."

Just as Zhang Yang hesitated, a voice came from the distance.

Zhang Yang gritted his teeth, no longer wasting time on pointless mental preparation. He strode toward the source of the voice.

There was a figure in the distance, growing clearer as he approached.

But when he finally saw the figure clearly, he stopped in shock.

It was indeed The Ancient One, but she was nothing like the serene, transcendent master he remembered.

She even looked disheveled.

Wound after wound crisscrossed her body, only to be enveloped by green and black light and healed.

Blood continuously seeped from her body and dripped down, only for the green light to reverse it and draw it back into her body.

"Pretty pathetic, isn't it?"

Even with her body in such a state, The Ancient One remained calm and unhurried. "I've made a fool of myself before you."

"Master, you..."

Only now did Zhang Yang understand the purpose of this Mirror Dimension. It had not been prepared for him, but for the beings watching Earth.

"Earlier, I paid a visit to other dimensions."

The Ancient One spoke lightly, but anyone who knew the circumstances would understand what that sentence meant.

"Other than Cyttorak, the other dimensions will not turn their attention toward the human world for the time being."

The Ancient One lowered her head, glanced at her injuries, and sighed. "Cyttorak... truly is the strongest among the dimensional demons..."

Cyttorak, ruler of the Crimson Cosmos, rarely showed himself, but his strength was unquestionably among the very greatest of the dimensional demons.

"I didn't win, but I didn't lose either."

Perhaps seeing Zhang Yang's curiosity, The Ancient One said, "His injuries are no lighter than mine."

Zhang Yang fell into thought after hearing that.

"I already know about John Constantine."

The Ancient One continued, "Lucifer has gone to deal with it, so he is safe."

"But as you can see, in my current condition, I cannot remove the traces of that being's power from my body anytime soon."

"Kamar-Taj needs sufficient strength to deter the multiverse, and Earth needs the Sorcerer Supreme to protect it."

"Are you willing to safeguard the multiverse in my place for the time being?"

Well, damn.

Zhang Yang froze when he heard that.

The Ancient One really did things differently, huh?

She had just come right out and asked whether he wanted to protect Earth in her place?

What made her think he looked anything like a hero?

"Only temporarily."

The Ancient One immediately added, "Kaecilius and Mordo will help you as well."

"I..."

Zhang Yang truly did not know how to respond to that.

He refused to believe The Ancient One did not know that neither of those two disciples of hers was easy to deal with.

Kaecilius had personally killed The Ancient One in the movie's plot. Although it was highly possible that The Ancient One had found a better successor and used her own life to nurture Doctor Strange, he still counted as the first to take her down.

As for Mordo, he was the boss in Doctor Strange 2, locked in a love-hate struggle with Doctor Strange. There was no need to elaborate.

Have those two help him?

He could practically imagine Kamar-Taj falling into chaos before anything even happened, then the entire magical world, and finally the whole world.

The chances were slim, but it was not impossible.

Just as Zhang Yang opened his mouth to refuse, the system's voice sounded beside his ear.

"Ding. Epic quest detected: Hell Invasion has been completed. Quest evaluation: Excellent (89% completion). Reward obtained: Dimension Heart."

The epic quest had been completed!

Zhang Yang was curious about the system's reward. The refusal on the tip of his tongue became, "Please let me think about it."

The Ancient One nodded. "No problem. I'll wait for your answer."

Having received her response, Zhang Yang closed his eyes and began examining his reward.

"This..."

"Isn't this way too ridiculous?"