The Sorcerer Supreme got slapped!

"And what's that? A laser weapon? Ooh, so scary!" Lin Yi put on a coy act, teasing Tony.

Tony's heart lurched. How did he know about the drones and satellites? Judging by the angle of his raised head, could he see them?

Extreme long-range vision, and he could see through things too? Where the fuck had this monster come from?

[Sir, threat level increased to six.]

Like I needed you to remind me.

Tony's hand tightened slightly inside his pocket.

Lin Yi tilted his head and let out a "Wow!" "The Mind Stone?"

They really were father and daughter. Morgan Stark kept a "transformation device" in her pocket, and Tony was no slouch either—he carried the Mind Stone in his.

The Mind Stone glowed from its setting in a small metal base. It looked like a Nano Suit that used the Mind Stone as its reactor.

"Who exactly are you? What are you doing here?"

"We don't welcome unidentified Aliens here, or... invaders from other universes."

Lin Yi waved a hand. "Don't be so nervous. I'm not an alien, and I don't have any particular agenda."

"I could've asked Morgan these questions, but since you wanted to talk to me, you can answer them instead."

"Not interested!" Tony's expression suddenly changed. He raised a hand to cut Lin Yi off, then stood and backed away while facing him.

"I'm not interested in answering your questions, and I don't know what problems you have. All I can give you is a word of advice."

"Stay away from Morgan. Stay away from us. Then take your two friends back wherever you came from!" With that, Tony swiftly vanished through the doorway, leaving Lin Yi utterly bewildered.

His fists clenched. They were clenching again!

Fuck, is he messing with me? Can I just beat him up right now?

Seriously, is something wrong with him? Wasn't he the one who wanted to talk?

Fuck, no. The more I think about it, the angrier I get! I can't stand this.

Super Vision, activate!

Lin Yi sat in the chair, cold as a block of ice, his gaze locked on Tony, who had already flown into the sky. Today, he was going to throw a sack over that bastard's head and beat him so he wouldn't even know who had done it!

As long as Lin Yi didn't move, neither Tony nor his early-warning system could detect his gaze.

His eyes followed Tony all the way to a... Cemetery?

What's he doing, suddenly running off to a Cemetery? Lin Yi calmed down and continued watching.

Tony reached the Cemetery but showed no intention of landing. Instead, he watched from a distance as a small figure stood before a gravestone.

Morgan?

Lin Yi's pupils trembled for an instant as he made out the scene.

Morgan stood quietly before the gravestone. There was a photograph on it.

Pepper Potts...

Lin Yi fell silent, quietly watching Morgan place a bouquet in front of the grave.

Morgan Stark seemed to say something as she stood there, her little face filled with sadness before she forced a smile.

Lin Yi sighed. Suddenly, he no longer felt like beating Tony up.

I never expected Pepper to have died in this universe. What happened?

He didn't use his super hearing to listen to what Morgan Stark said. He simply watched quietly until she left.

Lin Yi shifted his gaze. Now he knew why Tony had suddenly rushed off.

Only long after Morgan had left did Tony descend from high above and stand silently before Pepper's grave.

He stayed for another long while before leaving. His faceplate was on, so Lin Yi couldn't see his expression, and he had no desire to look through it.

2024—that was the year of Pepper's death on the gravestone. The main events of Avengers: Endgame had taken place in 2023. In other words, Pepper had died a year after Thanos.

How had she died?

Lin Yi had a few theories. If this universe's past closely resembled that of his own, then the Cosmic Virus had most likely also arrived with Thanos when he traveled through the timeline.

The Avengers here defeated Thanos, only to be destroyed by the Cosmic Virus he brought. Could Pepper have died from infection? Had Stark only invented a way to isolate the Cosmic Virus after her death?

That doesn't add up. If this universe is so similar, Tony should have time-travel technology too. With his personality, there's no way he wouldn't have tried something.

Was Pepper's death an absolute point in time? Or was there something else going on that Lin Yi hadn't thought of?

With a head full of questions, Lin Yi floated toward the window. A faint ripple spread across the thick glass, which did nothing to impede his flight.

Forget it. If I can't figure it out, I'll leave it for now and uncover the truth one step at a time!

As for Tony... I'll let him off for now.

But staying away from Morgan? Is he kidding?

We agreed to go out and "play" tomorrow. Just watch whether I go find her, you old bastard, Tony.

He arrived at the Marshall Hotel, the most luxurious hotel in New York, and used Perception-Blocking Magic to smoothly book a luxury suite on the top floor.

Seeing the liquor in the cabinet, Lin Yi instinctively took it out.

Drowning his sorrows? There was something of that to it. Morgan's dejected expression had inevitably reminded him of his own kid, still lying in bed.

The liquor looked somewhat like what he had seen at Tony's house, though Tony seemed to have mostly stopped drinking since having Morgan.

He poured himself a glass, took a sip, then put it down. It wasn't really his kind of drink.

Beer, of course, was another matter. Of all the Avengers, Thor seemed to be the biggest beer lover.

Picturing the fat Thor who should currently be guarding Blue Star, Lin Yi felt a little better.

Thor hadn't been included in this operation. The reason, naturally, was that Blue Star needed someone combat-capable stationed there in case anything unexpected happened.

Lin Yi turned his hand over, and a huge glass appeared in it. Beer bubbled into the glass out of thin air.

It was another little spell. The conveniences the Lost Library had brought Lin Yi would gradually reveal themselves, one by one.

Thor seemed to have first fallen in love with beer in the Sanctum, thanks to a little spell Strange had cast for him: an endlessly refilling glass of beer. Magic really was useful!

Hmm... wait. Have I forgotten something again?

Lin Yi set down his glass. Strange...

Holy shit, why does it feel like my memory's been getting worse ever since I gained Superman's physique?

A whole day had passed, and he still didn't know how things were going for Strange and Peter. It was almost midnight, and neither had contacted him.

Not one of them lets me stop worrying!

Lin Yi tapped beside his ear, quickly using magic to construct a stable Two-Way Circuit.

[Strange? Where are you wandering around? Found any useful information?]

Soon, Strange's voice came through.

[A little, but I haven't made much progress... Where are you? I'll come find you...]

Strange sounded tired and resigned. It didn't sound like his day had gone very well.

Lin Yi shared his location. Within ten minutes, Strange floated up outside the hotel window like a ghost, carrying Spider-Man, Peter, in one hand.

Watching him drift through the glass into the room, Lin Yi gave him an odd look, sizing him up from head to toe.

"Why didn't you use a Portal? Wait, what... pfft... what happened to you?"

Before Lin Yi could finish asking, he suddenly spotted a huge handprint on Strange's left cheek! It was bright red and impossible to miss.

What brave soul had slapped the Sorcerer Supreme?