Observation, Attempt!

Kaecilius held out his hand, and Garrett clasped it without the slightest hesitation.

Black smoke suddenly appeared, enveloping Garrett within it.

"Power..."

From within the black smoke came Garrett's intoxicated voice. "I feel as though I can do anything!"

"Aaaahhh!!!"

But the bliss did not last long. Garrett, who had been reveling in the thrill of power within the black smoke, suddenly felt pain. He lowered his head and discovered that, without realizing it, his body had swollen to nearly twice its original size!

"Hold on!"

Kaecilius's voice came at just the right time. "The longer you endure, the more power you can bear."

"Hold on..."

Kamar-Taj, Zhang Yang's Sanctum.

Yes, Zhang Yang had his own sanctum now.

After succeeding as the Sorcerer Supreme, Kamar-Taj had voluntarily built a sanctum for Zhang Yang.

Though it was not large, its standards were no lower than the Ancient One's Sanctum, and in terms of functionality, it had even replaced it.

Inside the sanctum, Zhang Yang awoke from meditation.

"Was that an illusion?"

He had just sensed a familiar power descending upon the mortal world, but it had lasted only a very short time. Before he could investigate, it had already vanished.

Zhang Yang rose to his feet and walked over to a globe in the room for a closer look. He found nothing wrong with the dimensional barrier. No existence beyond the level of a Temple Mage could possibly descend into the mortal world.

"Looks like Kaecilius summoned the power of the Dark Dimension."

Zhang Yang sat back down. Countless thoughts flashed through his mind, but in the end, only one remained.

"Keep struggling."

"As long as the dimensional barrier is intact and the Three Sanctums are intact, you cannot possibly summon Dormammu into this world."

"But the moment you make a move against the sanctums... you'll expose a flaw..."

"When that time comes..."

Zhang Yang closed his eyes again and used his mind to imprint his mark within the Eye of Agamotto.

New York, Hydra Secret Base.

Garrett, looking as though he had been completely reborn, stood at the entrance and tightly gripped Kaecilius's right hand with both of his own.

Kaecilius did not mind. He merely patted Garrett on the shoulder.

After the two embraced, they separated. As Kaecilius watched Garrett leave, a red gleam flashed through his eyes.

"Follow me."

Kaecilius turned around and left only those words before walking deeper into the base. The Hydra guard who should have been watching the entrance abandoned his post and followed closely behind Kaecilius.

"Come, join us!"

Kaecilius's voice echoed throughout the base, as though it carried some kind of magic. Hydra members throughout the base abandoned their posts and gathered before Kaecilius.

Black smoke spread from Kaecilius's body, enveloping every Hydra member before him.

Screams rang out endlessly from within the black smoke, yet Kaecilius's expression did not change in the slightest.

"Zhang Yang..."

"The Ancient One..."

"Just wait..."

Kamar-Taj, inside Zhang Yang's Sanctum.

Zhang Yang awoke from meditation and lowered his head to look at the Eye of Agamotto on his chest, sighing.

It had been nearly two months since he succeeded as Sorcerer Supreme, yet his control over the Eye of Agamotto was still less than ten percent.

"It's time to start planning for the other Infinity Stones."

Zhang Yang's eyes flickered. "The Space Stone is with Hydra S.H.I.E.L.D. There's no rush for that one. Wait until Loki... wait..."

He suddenly thought of something. With this world already thrown into such chaos, would the plots he knew still unfold as they had before?

If they did not, should he begin making preparations in advance?

"Recently, I need to keep a close eye on Loki."

Zhang Yang did not know much about his classmate from the Special Class. He did not know whether Loki in this world was the same as Loki from the Marvel universe.

Over the following days, he spent an entire week observing Loki and discovered that he was no different from the tsundere third princess in his memories.

After finishing his observations of Loki, Zhang Yang sat in his sanctum, sprawled over his desk as he scribbled away.

"Observation Subject 1: Loki."

"Observation Period: One week."

"Observation Result: Loki of this universe is not significantly different from Loki of the movie universe. He similarly enjoys stabbing people in close combat and has the same tsundere personality."

"Conclusion: It is uncertain whether this Loki will follow the movie universe's storyline. Occasional observation will suffice."

He closed the notebook in his hand. Four large characters were written on its cover: Observation Diary.

"Before I know whether Loki will follow the plot, it's best not to touch the Space Stone."

Zhang Yang pondered for a moment. "A risk is a risk. I'll use an Infinity Stone as an experiment. If it succeeds, I can proceed step by step with plans for the other Infinity Stones. If it fails..."

"I'll need to make some preparations."

Muttering to himself, Zhang Yang placed the Observation Diary into a pocket dimension he casually opened.

"I won't touch the Space Stone, but I can add a tracking spell to it."

After thinking it over, Zhang Yang decided he could not spend this time doing nothing. He simply stood up, waved his hand to open a Portal to his little shop, and walked through.

Another month passed, but the little shop was not particularly dirty. Clearly, someone had come by from time to time to clean it.

There was no need to think about it. It had to be Mrs. Chen from next door.

The moment Zhang Yang pulled up the rolling shutter and stepped out into the neon-lit street, Mrs. Chen, who had come out after hearing the noise, spotted him.

"Little Zhang?"

Mrs. Chen looked at Zhang Yang in his yellow training uniform, her voice filled with surprise. "When did you come back?"

"Just now."

Zhang Yang smiled at Mrs. Chen. At that moment, he was not the Sorcerer Supreme, but an ordinary man of flesh and blood.

"Come on, sit at my place."

Mrs. Chen refused to let go of Zhang Yang's hand. Though helpless, Zhang Yang did not resist. He followed Mrs. Chen to her small supermarket, where they chatted until dawn.

"Mrs. Chen..."

Only when the man named "Eddie" arrived did their neighborly chat finally come to an end.

"Has he already been possessed by Venom?"

Zhang Yang looked at the somewhat weary man before him and, through his body, saw the two souls within.

Both were equally skinny and pitiful. No wonder Venom had chosen Eddie as his host.

As the two passed each other, Eddie suddenly turned around and looked at Zhang Yang.

Just moments ago, Venom, who had been chattering endlessly inside him, had suddenly fallen silent. Through Venom's psychic senses, Eddie repeatedly felt as though his soul had been seen through.

"What a terrifying being!"

Only after Zhang Yang had gone far away did Venom slowly speak. "Eddie, if you treat me badly, I'll possess him instead."

"Go ahead, hurry up!"

Eddie could not wait for Venom to leave his body, but Venom was only talking. It ignored Eddie completely.

Such a tsundere.