Ben stood there blankly, looking at the palm of his hand that turned into a human again, his eyes instantly turned red.
"Oh my god... Ben..." Susan covered her mouth and shed tears with excitement.
However, before everyone could cheer, the golden light began to decline unsustainably.
The fallen stones seemed to be attracted by some kind of magnetic force, and flew back to Ben's body in an overwhelming manner, covering his skin again!
"No! No! Open it!"
Ben frantically tore at the stone on his body, but the stone was as solid as a rock and did not move at all. In the blink of an eye, he transformed back into the ugly and huge Thing, leaving not even a single scratch.
Reed turned around and glared at the Ancient One, clenching his teeth. "What the hell is going on?! Why is this happening?!"
The Ancient One sighed helplessly, "This was called 'Armor of Gaia' in ancient Greece. Ancient mages would let dimensional energy flow through the body, then into the earth, and then back into themselves, thus forming an indestructible layer of armor on the body. This layer of armor essentially became their new skin."
Susan asked eagerly, "What does this have to do with Ben?"
"Your friend is doing exactly the same thing." The Ancient One explained, "His body is continuously producing dimensional energy and forcibly attracting these substances to adhere to the body surface. I have never seen this situation before."
Reed was almost begging. "You can cure him, right? You clearly did it just now!"
The Ancient One shook his head. "No... the energy generated in his body is too huge. I just tried to forcibly dispel this energy, but it was too strong and could not be completely interrupted."
Peter had a flash of inspiration in his mind. "Wait a minute! Your Majesty, you mean that it's because you can't control the flow of energy in your body that it becomes like this, right?"
The Ancient One looked at him curiously. "Yes."
Peter suddenly turned his head and looked at the Ancient One: "Then teach him! Teach him to become a mage! You don't need to be as proficient in all kinds of magic as Strange and I are, and you don't need to make him proficient in all kinds of secret arts like me and Strange. It's enough for him to master a spell - a spell that can accurately control the flow of energy in the body!"
The Ancient One raised his eyebrows. "Do you want him to actively adjust the dimensional energy in his body by learning Magic?"
"Yes!" Peter asked expectantly, "Is this feasible?!"
The Ancient One closed his eyes and fell into deep thought for a long time. The needle drop could be heard in the laboratory, and Fantastic Four held his breath.
After a long time, the Ancient One opened his eyes with a gentle smile on his face, "Maybe... it's really feasible."
Ben couldn't believe his ears, his voice was trembling. "You... can you really cure me?"
"No, Mr. Grimm." The Ancient One said softly, "The only one who can cure you is yourself."
One hour later.
Ben went back to the room and packed his luggage. In the next twenty minutes, he tried his best to persuade Reed, making Reed understand that this was his only chance to return to normal. Although Reed was reluctant to leave, he also knew that he had no reason to stop his friend from pursuing hope.
In the living room, Fantastic Four and Peter gathered in front of Ben, while the Ancient One thoughtfully stepped aside, leaving space for them to say goodbye.
"Have you brought everything?" Reed asked in a low voice.
Ben grinned. "Relax, big scientist. I can handle it."
"Pay attention to safety. If you need anything, please contact me at any time using SA and I will rush over immediately."
"I know, I know." The smile on Ben's face couldn't be hidden, it was the joy of being reborn.
Susan stepped forward and gently hugged Ben's huge body. "I will miss you, big guy."
"I'll miss you too, Sue. Help me take care of these guys."
"Don't worry."
Johnny walked forward slowly, his eyes complicated, even with a trace of imperceptible panic. He looked up at Ben, and after holding back for a long time, he only said one sentence, "Take care of yourself... don't mess it up."
Ben rubbed his hair. "Don't worry, kid, I'm too lazy to mess up anything without you."
Johnny finally couldn't help but laugh, "That's pretty much it!"
Finally, Ben walked up to Peter and nodded heavily. "Thank you, kid. You know what this means to me. A chance to become an ordinary person again..."
Peter smiled bitterly and patted his shoulder, "Don't thank me too early, Ben. The most difficult practice is still to come."
"Come on, I'm not afraid." Ben turned to look at the Ancient One, "I'm ready, Your Majesty."
"Very good."
The Ancient One took out Sling Ring and drew a circle of golden sparks in the air. The portal instantly opened. Behind the door was Kamar-Taj's training ground.
"Goodbye guys... take care."
Under the watch of everyone, Ben stepped through the portal and disappeared into the light with the Ancient One.
As the portal suddenly closed, Peter let out a long breath. "Oh my God, today is such a long day."
"Who is she?" Reed asked absently.
"An immortal." Peter replied, "No one knows how long she lived, or even her real name. Everyone calls her the Ancient One."
"Can she really help Ben?" Susan clasped his hands.
Peter shrugged. "To be honest, it depends on my own luck."
Johnny came over with a curious look on his face. "Hey Peter, how did she get that door with the sparks Flash made just now?"
"Magic."
"Wouldn't you?"
"Brother, I just started, okay? There are a lot of things I don't know!" Peter said angrily, "But isn't this good? It would be boring if you could see all the secrets of this world."
Susan rolled his eyes at him. "It's up to you... Okay, what are you going to eat for dinner?"
Johnny immediately shouted, "Order takeout!"
"No order! Last time it was takeout!"
Seeing the siblings quarreling again, Peter turned his head and noticed that Reed was standing in the corner without saying a word.
Peter walked forward. "Hey... he will be fine, you know that, right?"
Reed lowered his head, his voice horribly dry. "I know, I just... always wanted to help him personally. But now it seems... no one needs me at all."
Hearing this, Peter's heart sank suddenly. He never wanted his best friend to have such self-doubt: "Reed--"
"Don't..." Reed interrupted him with a low voice, "Don't talk now. I want to be alone for a while. We will talk later, Peter... Good night."
After saying that, Reed turned around, walked straight back to his laboratory, and slammed the door.
Looking at the closed laboratory door, Peter's heart felt as heavy as a piece of lead.