Chapter 131: Divine Descent Spell!
Strange became taciturn.
After witnessing, from afar as a Magician, a major event that shook the entire World Tree (Yggdrasil) and even rattled the top echelons of the universe, Strange grew even more silent. He became remarkably numb to external stimuli, always maintaining a cold and indifferent posture no matter what he encountered.
This was not a good omen. It meant that Strange was dedicating more of his thoughts to isolating himself from the outside world; he was falling out of touch with the times.
Mordo and Wong were deeply worried about this. They didn't even have time to marvel at Du Wa's world-shaking feat of defeating Knull before they had to focus all their attention on the future of Kamar-Taj.
In truth, by now, even though the Ancient One had never officially announced it, her intention to choose Strange as her successor was no longer a secret. Everyone could guess it.
"I really don't get it. What's so outstanding about this doctor, Strange, that the Sorcerer Supreme would choose him over me? No matter how bad I am, I can't be worse than a doctor."
"That's enough, Dum Dum Dugan! What talent do you have? Relying on your ability to endlessly clone yourself? But S.H.I.E.L.D. is on its last legs now. Without enough funding and facilities, you can't be endlessly cloned like in the past." Wong bellowed. Questioning Strange's actions was, to some extent, questioning the Sorcerer Supreme, and Wong would absolutely not allow such a thing to happen.
Everyone within Kamar-Taj, even the apprentices, should maintain respect for the Sorcerer Supreme.
Although Wong also had his doubts about Strange, he would strictly follow the Sorcerer Supreme's command.
Within Kamar-Taj, the few remaining Dum Dum Dugans all turned pale and fell silent.
By this point, this group of Dum Dum Dugans, who possessed the ability of shared memory, had already realized the true reason they were allowed into Kamar-Taj.
It turned out they were meant to be a type of consumable, to be conveniently used up by the spellcaster—the Sorcerer Supreme—during battle.
This was a major discovery. Using magic actually required a sacrifice. Although the Dum Dum Dugans hadn't yet figured out the deeper principles, if they could report this to S.H.I.E.L.D., and S.H.I.E.L.D. in turn recruited a group of third-rate mages from around the world to experiment, they would sooner or later figure it out.
Unfortunately, the times had changed too quickly. How long had it been? S.H.I.E.L.D. had already gone from a world-class organization to being on the verge of collapse. How much longer it could survive depended entirely on whether Du Wa remembered its existence. It was truly pathetic; the former global organization had to rely on Du Wa's neglect just to eke out a living.
But the Dum Dum Dugans refused to accept their fate. They had been trying all sorts of ways to change things, such as transforming their status to become true Magicians instead of being consumables for the Sorcerer Supreme, waiting to be expended in some great battle that could erupt at any moment.
As for returning to S.H.I.E.L.D. and seeking revenge on Du Wa as agents... that was simply impossible. Not even the craziest Dum Dum Dugan would entertain such a thought.
The current Du Wa was now far beyond what mortals could ever hope to reach. Even if the Dum Dum Dugans didn't understand the domain of the gods, they knew how unfathomable the power was that had instantly enveloped the endless cosmos.
It was a power that even the Sorcerer Supreme spoke of with grave reluctance.
The Dum Dum Dugans ceased their arguments, turning their heads in unison to look at the Ancient One and Strange walking slowly down the corridor.
"Everyone has high expectations for you, but there are also many voices of doubt," the Ancient One said.
Strange was silent for a long while before saying in a low voice, "I don't care if they like me or hate me. It brings me no benefit or harm in any form. Wasting time on meaningless external matters is simply a waste of life."
"That's a fine theory. I just don't know to what extent you can put it into practice."
The Ancient One led Strange into a magical secret room. What was to come had to come. She took the Eye of Agamotto from her chest and handed it to Strange.
"During this time, you've been soaking in the library, studying with a focus that rivals those Xenomorphs. By my calculations, you have already mastered enough knowledge. You should know what this is. I hope you will use it well," the Ancient One said gently.
Strange stared at the Eye of Agamotto, a flicker of desire showing in the depths of his eyes, but he quickly suppressed it. He said cautiously, "I don't understand. You should have guessed what I would do after getting the Time Stone, right? And yet you're always saying that disrupting time will bring retribution. Your actions feel very contradictory."
"If it were in the past, I would have definitely hesitated for a long time. At the very least, I would have needed to cultivate you to a sufficient level, to temper your willpower to a sufficient degree before handing this to you. But now, there's no need."
The Ancient One said flatly, "The power of time is not held by the Time Stone alone. Du Wa now possesses it too. He used the power of time to defeat an ancient cosmic evil god. This means that whether I give you the Time Stone now or after training you for a while longer, there's no fundamental difference anymore."
Strange said slowly, "A deity of his level, using the descriptive language from the library... a Celestial? Since a Celestial can master the power of time, I could totally ask him..."
"Don't even think about it. He won't help you," the Ancient One interrupted. "And he can't. Christine's death is a cosmic node of this universe. The process can be changed—whether Mephisto causes Christine's death or some other factor, all of that can be altered—but Christine's death is a predetermined result, absolutely unchangeable, unless you have the power to suppress the entire universe."
Even holding the Time Stone wouldn't work. The Time Stone is something born of the universe; at most, it can interfere with the universe's timeline. At best, its tier is roughly on the same level as the universe itself; it cannot transcend the universe.
"What if I'm willing to pay the price?" Strange stared into the Ancient One's eyes. This was an extremely dangerous thought.
"Price? What price can you pay? Offer yourself up to become a Xenomorph? To be driven by Du Wa from now on? If he wanted to control you, you'd have no room to resist. Whether you were willing or not, the result would be the same. So you can think about it, why hasn't he made a move on you? Why hasn't he tried to snatch the Time Stone? Because he doesn't need to. This power isn't worth him wasting time to formulate a specific battle plan for."
"Ha, what a depressing answer. But I don't feel disappointed at all. In fact, it feels natural. I really have changed a lot." A sardonic expression, full of complexity, flickered across Strange's lips.
He too knew what the term "cosmic node" meant.
"You can also see this as a form of maturity. It means you are qualified to become the Sorcerer Supreme."
The Ancient One placed the Time Stone in Strange's hand.
"I've taken the post. What about you? Are you going to retire on the spot and travel the universe?" Strange asked with a frown. He didn't want the Ancient One to suddenly appear and stop him while he was doing certain things in the future.
He even suspected that the Ancient One had secretly placed a hidden spell on the Eye of Agamotto, specifically to activate one day in the future when he used the Time Stone for personal reasons.
"I will retire, but not necessarily to travel the universe. At least, not necessarily *this* universe."
"You're going to a parallel universe? What a bold plan. I really envy you. I can't just go to a parallel universe and kidnap a Christine I don't even know. That's not the person I want to save." Strange candidly hung the Eye of Agamotto around his neck.
Soon, all of Kamar-Taj, and indeed the entire mystical community of Earth, knew that the Sorcerer Supreme had changed. The newly appointed Sorcerer Supreme was a nobody named Stephen Strange.
This sparked a heated discussion, but that was all.
Everyone knew that, by this point, who the Sorcerer Supreme was, or even if one existed, was no longer important.
Earth had gained an unprecedentedly powerful being, and this powerhouse had established his position by trampling over opponents of the Celestial level.
Nothing is more convincing than a record of tangible victories.
As for the news of the former Ancient One's quiet death upon her retirement, it was even less noticeable.
Perhaps only someone like Du Wa would occasionally glance towards the Himalayan Mountains, watching the soul that had abandoned its body, glowing faintly as it prepared to enter the depths of the cosmos.
On the verge of leaving Earth, the Ancient One glanced in Du Wa's direction and left him a message.
Du Wa unhesitatingly rejected the Ancient One's first post-death request.
"Is she finally dead? I have a feeling that once this one enters the Multiverse, she's going to have the time of her life."
What the Ancient One had said to Du Wa was that she wanted to borrow a bit of power from him one last time before she left, and it would be even better if she could directly take away a portion of the World Tree's divine power.
Of course, Du Wa knew this was a one-way street. He would have to be out of his mind to give his divine power to someone like the Ancient One. He might as well give it to his subordinates who followed the divine power path.
He knew the Ancient One's peculiar habits, but the inhabitants of other universes likely did not.
Du Wa was genuinely looking forward to seeing what kind of splash this universe's Ancient One would make in the great pool of the Multiverse.
Of course, it was also possible that one day in the future, when he entered the Multiverse to collect information, he might happen to hear that this Ancient One had died in some major event in some universe. That would be perfectly normal too.
Crisis is the main theme of the Multiverse. To wander the Multiverse rashly without any strength is simply courting death. Who knows when you might be targeted by some dangerous elements in some universe and get killed off before you even know what happened.
For Du Wa, there was no need to consider too much for the time being. He needed a little time to digest the fruits of his victory. He wasn't at the point where he needed to immediately dispatch Xenomorphs into parallel universes for large-scale expansion.
"Regarding entering other parallel universes, I do have some ideas..."
Du Wa mused silently, and in an instant, all sorts of numbered universes flooded his mind.
Among them, some universes were incredibly dangerous, but the rewards were also immense.
Du Wa quickly reined in his thoughts and focused his gaze on the Skyfather before him.
The defeated from the Main Universe, the great god Cul.
"It seems you've dealt with your powerful enemy and finally have a free hand to deal with me."
Only Cul's head was still relatively intact. His mouth opened and closed as he spoke with difficulty.
Having been thrown into the Eternal Prison by the Main Universe's Odin and having endured for a million years, Cul was naturally not one to be broken by this level of torment.
"Originally, I wanted to use you to see if I could trick a few idiots from the Main Universe over here. But I didn't expect your social connections to be so extraordinarily terrible. No one wants to cross the universal barrier to rescue you." Du Wa was somewhat regretful. "Not even the eight members of the Worthy you're so proud of came for you."
"Of course they wouldn't come. Even I would have great difficulty punching open a spatial channel to a parallel universe, let alone them." Cul's face was filled with remorse. He had completely accepted his fate. There was no other choice. Facing Du Wa, who could command the divine power of the World Tree, there was nothing he could do.
Offending a cosmic god was not a good idea.
Just by Du Wa standing before him, doing nothing, Cul could feel the traces of the World Tree's authority on him. Even the particles of divine power within his own body were faintly having some minuscule reaction to Du Wa.
"What happened to Mephisto?" Cul asked. "I'm guessing you haven't killed him completely yet. But if you decide to invade Hell, I'll be the first to attack Mephisto. That bastard screwed me over, he must pay the price."
"Are you trying to bargain with me? To me, aside from your origin in the Main Universe, which can serve as a springboard for me to enter the Main Universe in the future, your existence is utterly meaningless."
Du Wa directly implanted a parasite within Cul.
He was now incredibly familiar with divine power. Even without the authority of the World Tree, completely destroying the divine power in Cul's body to create favorable growing conditions for an invading Xenomorph was more than easy.
Cul couldn't die yet. If it had been anyone else, regardless of their strength, Du Wa would have killed them long ago. But because Cul originated from the Main Universe, it was destined that he still had value.
It couldn't be helped. Originating from the Main Universe had its perks. Even in death, he couldn't expect a quick one. Du Wa would surely squeeze out every last bit of his value first.
"I don't understand. You have the coordinates to the Main Universe, what do you need me for?" Cul asked with a grim face after waking up. This was too humiliating.
"You? Of course you're useful. I need that fascinating method of yours. It can provide me with some inspiration. Let me see your brain... Found it."
Du Wa looked through Cul's method of forging the Eight Great Divine Hammers and creating the eight members of the Worthy.
It was very interesting. Cul was able to cross vast distances to send a part of his power—the eight hammers—to automatically seek out those with desire in their hearts.
"This will do. Projecting power by tracking minds... I've mastered it. By combining it with Knull's Abyssal Realm and using the countless magical lores I've accumulated in Kamar-Taj as a foundation, I can now, within a certain range, remotely implant Xenomorph embryos into all who pray to me. This spell will be called... the Divine Descent Spell!"
(end of chapter)