For the Ancient One, the future held infinite possibilities. Some futures were more probable, others less so, and these probabilities could shift when interfered with by other dimensions.
However, Qingshui's occasional synchronization with his true self frequently altered the already set trajectory of events.
Though each change was minor, it still raised his suspicions.
The reason he let go of the two magical artifacts wasn't just because the Ancient One really wanted to beat up the Blizzard planners, but also because he believed it was necessary.
...
...
Qingshui had no idea what was going through the Ancient One's mind.
He was currently carrying Zoroaster's Net in his arms and wearing the All-Seeing Eye Monocle over his left eye as he walked into his home.
Following him were Mordo and two Kamar-Taj sorcerers dressed in yellow robes and hoods.
"Oh, Watt, your manor is just like something out of a movie!"
A young blonde sorcerer curiously examined Watt Manor's golf course and swimming pool, then followed Qingshui into the living room.
"He has more than just one manor, you know. Alright, Carlyle, this is Sorcerer Watt's home, we shouldn't be too rude."
Mordo said to the young blonde sorcerer behind him.
The other sorcerer, a completely bald middle-aged Asian man, emotionlessly twirled the prayer beads in his hand, unmoved.
"Young Master Watt."
The butler, Jorge, brought a tray of tea into the living room and bowed slightly to Qingshui.
"Jorge, please prepare some lunch to entertain my friends."
"Certainly, Young Master Watt. Should I prepare some extra vegetarian dishes?"
Jorge gave the somewhat monk-like guests a few assessing glances.
Qingshui looked at Mordo.
"No need. We eat meat, but generally don't drink alcohol or eat overly strong-flavored foods, to avoid disturbing our inner peace."
Mordo shook his head.
"No, no, no, Mordo, I think you should still eat some. Tranquility is a state of being, a state of being unmoved by external things. Only by learning to find peace amidst chaos can you ensure your inner peace is maintained at all times."
Qingshui said to Mordo.
Sorcerers require high levels of concentration to cast spells, so some sorcerers believe it's necessary to reduce external material interference with their desires to maintain magical power at all times. This even led to the development of ascetic schools of thought.
However, this school of thought has evolved to believe that the more suffering one endures, until they become accustomed to it, and can maintain inner peace in extreme pain, then nothing in this world can disturb their inner peace.
Qingshui admired these people, but didn't entirely agree.
That was just one path to finding inner peace.
The Ancient One, that old man, ate with oil dripping from his mouth, didn't avoid spicy food, and it didn't hinder him from being the strongest sorcerer on Earth one bit.
"To not be pleased by external things, nor saddened by oneself; to be able to control one's mind whether facing good or bad things—that is true tranquility. Sorcerer Watt, I am enlightened."
The bald Asian man pressed his palms together and bowed slightly to Qingshui.
Jorge's body stiffened when he heard the words "Sorcerer Watt."
"Young Master Watt, you haven't become a monk, have you?"
"No, why would I become a monk? I can't live without alcohol, meat, or beautiful women my entire life. I still have hundreds of millions of dollars in assets. How could I become a monk?"
Qingshui said, exasperated.
"That's good then."
Relieved that the Watt family wouldn't die out, Jorge contentedly walked away with the tray.
"Before we eat, let's discuss the dimensional anomaly that appeared here. This is the location detected by the Orb of Agamotto. I plan to visit the New York Sanctum Sanctorum after dinner with Liu, and then investigate it."
Mordo pulled a crumpled map from his chest pocket and pointed to a location.
"Watos, display the New York map, zoom in on Lexington Avenue in the Manhattan District, and use Osborn satellites to provide real-time monitoring of the area."
Qingshui snapped his fingers, and the center of the living room table immediately sank, replaced by a row of small projection lamps. A panoramic map of Lexington Avenue was displayed in real-time as a holographic projection above the table.
"No need to rush the investigation; that would be tipping our hand. This way is just as good."
Mordo: ...
"Have there been any murders in this area recently? Summoning creatures from the Hell dimension usually requires extremely bloody rituals."
The bald Sorcerer Liu looked at the holographic projection.
"Watos, access the New York Police Department and FBI's abnormal deaths and missing persons cases for this area and its surroundings over the past three months."
The holographic projection instantly popped up dozens of windows above the New York map.
"The Eye of Agamotto detected the dimensional anomaly at 10:48 AM."
Sorcerer Liu continued, providing information.
The pop-up windows instantly cleared.
Because it's 10:53 right now.
Five minutes isn't enough time for anyone to notice.
"Or should we ask the resident sorcerer at the New York Sanctum Sanctorum?"
Carlyle, the blond sorcerer, raised his hand and asked.
"We already did. They're investigating too, but they haven't found anything yet. However, over the past few months, they've frequently detected abnormal energy signals in this area, but with no results."
Mordo picked up his phone, showing the chat history from the Messenger app.
"Re-display all non-natural deaths in this area over the past three months, excluding closed cases like car accidents. Find the last known locations and social connections of all missing and deceased individuals. Check the emails, phone calls, social media, and chat apps of the deceased and missing persons, and identify any related cross-points."
Qingshui spoke again.
The number of cases quickly dropped to a dozen or so.
Qingshui quickly scanned them and soon identified the suspicious points.
Eight of these people had joined a civilian organization called the Covenant Assembly a few months before their deaths.
And while these eight people weren't all necessarily rich and powerful, the one with the lowest net worth was a lawyer at a New York law firm. They all belonged to the elite class of society.
"Gather all information related to the Covenant Assembly online."
Qingshui instructed Watos again.
Soon, messages were retrieved by Watos and displayed before Qingshui.
"A cult that preaches hedonism, with wolves and fish as their totems. It looks like a cult."
"It's not 'looks like.' Since they've summoned demons, then they are one. Watt, can you find their location?"
Mordo immediately stood up from his chair, radiating an aura that suggested he wouldn't eat until he had fought a bloody battle with the demons.
"No rush. We haven't found their exact meeting place yet. I'll have Watos monitor all communication devices of other related individuals. In any case, let's eat first."
Qingshui turned his head and looked towards the door.
Several chefs wearing white hats pushed a dining cart inside.
The Covenant Assembly didn't make Qingshui and the others wait long.
Watos monitored all interconnected accounts on the social media and chat apps of those eight individuals, tracked the associated mobile phones, and then used signal tracing to pinpoint the real-time locations of these phones.
When multiple locations overlapped, it indicated it was time for them to make their move.
"Try to keep the commotion to a minimum. Should I inform the police first?"
In an alley outside a bar, Qingshui asked Mordo and the two other sorcerers.
"No need, we're very experienced in handling this kind of thing."
Mordo said calmly.
"Alright, but what's inside seems unusual."
Qingshui used his Transparent World to glance into the depths of the bar. A thin, invisible thread quickly extended from his left cuff and shot into the bar.
Mordo took the lead, heading towards the bar entrance with Carlyle and Sorcerer Liu.
Qingshui stood still for a few seconds, then performed hand seals and used Transformation Jutsu, changing into someone else's appearance before walking in.
As a billionaire and a Superhero of the Avengers, his face was highly recognizable, not just in New York, but across all of America.
To avoid unnecessary trouble, it was better to disguise himself.
Wearing an unremarkable Caucasian face, and with the glowing part of the Mind Stone Scepter covered by Zoroaster's Net, Qingshui walked in with steady steps, following them.
Mordo and his companions were quick; their coordination was well-practiced. Covering each other, they used portals to avoid being seen by the crowd, quickly dealt with the guards, and then charged straight into the basement.
This was an underground dance hall, and everyone wore masks or head coverings.
When Qingshui stepped over a unconscious guard and entered the dance hall, he even saw people wearing Iron Man masks and Electro masks among them…
"Wow, a masquerade ball, but one of them isn't wearing a mask."
Qingshui looked at a man in a suit with a wolf's head, who was approaching them, embracing a seductive white-haired woman.
"I told you, doing this will easily attract the attention of the Sorcerer Supreme."
The woman whispered to the werewolf beside her.
"But we haven't done anything too bad."
"Don't forget what happened this morning."
"Honey, that was an accident. Besides, didn't we try our best to trap that thing in the bathroom? I couldn't even maintain my human form."
The werewolf scratched his head, then obediently stood with the woman in front of Mordo.
Mordo and the others exchanged glances.
It was their first time seeing people so cooperative.
After some discussion, they finally understood what had happened.
These two, one named Earth Wolf and the other Bona, were both from the United Kingdom.
The former was an Earth Wolf, and the latter, a lake fairy. Unwilling to be confined to a single place, they abandoned their weak, nearly powerless divine positions and chose to leave Europe to venture out, gain followers, acquire blood sacrifices, and grow stronger.
The Covenant Assembly was founded by the two of them. They used supernatural powers to attract the powerful and periodically selected human scum to sacrifice in exchange for benefits and strength.
However, this morning's sacrificial ceremony went awry. The two accidentally turned the ritual into a summoning ceremony, bringing forth a demon from hell.
Fortunately, these two had some sense and knew to remedy the situation quickly. Otherwise, if the Kamar-Taj sorcerers discovered their actions, they would likely have dealt with them as well.
So, they temporarily sealed the demon in the restroom, planning to figure out how to deal with it later. Ideally, they would resolve it before the Kamar-Taj sorcerers arrived, which might lessen their culpability.
"Take us to the restroom. After we deal with the demon, you'll come with us to Kamar-Taj and beg forgiveness from the Sorcerer Supreme."
The sorcerer surnamed Liu rolled up his sleeves, revealing his muscular arms, and stared at Earth Wolf and the lake fairy.
"Yes, sir!"
Earth Wolf quickly led them to the restroom.
"We almost used up all the power I've gathered over the past six months, plus a lot of other things, just to barely confine this thing in the restroom," Earth Wolf said, pointing at the seal on the restroom door.
He had sealed the entire restroom, with the door serving as the activation point for the seal.
"How should we do this? I suggest we lure the demon out and draw it into the Mirror Dimension," Mordo said, looking to Qingshui for his opinion.
The previous battle had earned Qingshui his respect.
"Alright," Qingshui nodded slightly.
Whenever Kamar-Taj faced a relatively difficult or potentially disruptive magical event, they would try to have a sorcerer who mastered Mirror Dimension magic lead the team. This was to minimize the impact of magical events on the mundane world.
"My artifact can provide protection to multiple people simultaneously, and Carlyle's artifact can speed up our escape. We two will go in and lure the demon out. Watt, I hear your power is strong and your spells are potent, so you should hide in the Mirror Dimension beforehand and launch a fatal blow once the demon enters," Sorcerer Liu said to Qingshui.
He hadn't seen the battle between Qingshui and Mordo but had heard about it.
However, he wasn't sure about Qingshui's combat experience, which was why he assigned this relatively safe yet important task to Qingshui.
"Okay," Qingshui nodded slightly.
Mordo took a small cosmetic mirror from his pocket, propped it up with a stand, placed it in front of the restroom door, and cast a spell to open the Mirror Dimension, which looked like shattered glass.
Qingshui stepped inside.
The other two sorcerers exchanged glances before pushing open the main door.
Qingshui waited only about ten seconds in the Mirror Dimension before Liu and Carlyle burst in through the Mirror Dimension's entrance.
The prayer beads in the former's hand had a slightly dim glow, while the latter held a crystal ball that continuously emitted blue mist, coiling around them both and making them move swiftly.
"Here it comes," Qingshui said, holding the Mind Stone Scepter.
He had already enchanted the scepter, using Chakra to mimic arcane energy to cast the Sword of Vishanti on its tip, transforming the scepter into a gleaming greatsword.
A jet-black, faceless monster with a large mouth and a body like a twisted, enlarged silverfish rushed in.
This is a demon?
Why is it so much uglier than I imagined?
This appearance is truly a disgrace to demons.
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