The system prompt sounded just as Mordo smiled.
Kei Yamanaka turned to Kaecilius, who had already risen, and gestured for him to ask any questions he had.
"Your Grace, Supreme Sorcerer, you just said magic can do anything. Does that include resurrection?"
Kaecilius clenched both hands tightly until his knuckles turned pale from the force.
He had studied magic with one purpose: to revive his wife and child.
What was the point of all his effort if this wasn't possible?
"Yes, it can—simpler than most imagine. I personally know at least five or six different spells capable of bringing back the dead. But, gentlemen, every spell comes at a cost. Even the method with the smallest price will still take over a century from your lifespan."
Kei deliberately exaggerated the side effects of resurrection magic.
Even so, the mere existence of such spells left many sorcerers in shock.
Just imagining the lightest cost—over a hundred years of their life.
Most sorcerers immediately abandoned the idea of learning such spells. In fact, they wouldn't dare tell anyone else about them.
What if someone unscrupulous used their loved ones to force them into using such magic to resurrect others?
They'd be finished before they even knew what was happening.
"May I... May I learn it then, Your Grace, Supreme Sorcerer?"
Kaecilius's eyes burned with an intensity that was almost unnerving.
In the magical community, he was already considered accomplished, easily living over a hundred years.
It would be impossible to pay the cost of reviving two people.
But if it meant bringing back his child alone, he'd gladly follow his wife into the underworld.
There, he'd spend eternity repaying every debt he owed her!
"You may. However, I don't want Kamar-Taj to lose a promising sorcerer, nor do I want to see a parentless child kneeling before me, begging to learn how to bring back his parents."
Kei rubbed the Eye of Agamotto hanging from his chest.
The Time Stone's green glow made Kaecilius instinctively believe that Supreme Sorcerer Kei had truly foreseen glimpses of the future.
He immediately realized how cruel his own thoughts must have seemed to his son.
"Your Grace, Supreme Sorcerer..."
Kaecilius hesitated, momentarily speechless, unsure what else to say.
"Let's seal it under the Oath Binding. When your strength improves enough to grant you over three hundred years of longevity, I'll teach you the magic required to resurrect your wife and child."
Kei waved his hand and summoned a replica of the Eternal Spear Gungnir, plunging it into the ground before Kaecilius.
As the supreme contract surged from the spear into his very soul,
Kaecilius let tears soak his face, crying and laughing at once as he knelt down gratefully, bowing deeply in gratitude.
After years of suffering, his wish had finally become real hope.
Bound by the Oath Binding's cosmic law, he had entered an unbreakable contract.
Caught between intense excitement, exhilaration, and the bittersweet sensation of long-suffered trials finally paying off, he no longer knew how to contain his emotions.
[Beep!] Significantly altered the fate of a well-known supporting character, minimally interfered with world line progression. Reward obtained: [Purple-Tier Trait Transfer Opportunity] x1, [Green-Tier Trait Upgrade Opportunity] x1.
[Purple-Tier Trait Transfer Opportunity]: Allows transferring of one's own or another person's Purple-Tier or lower Traits onto oneself or others.
The system notification rang out again.
Kei Yamanaka glanced at the new function and lifted an eyebrow slightly.
In short, it's a hybrid of the Trait Copy and Trait Gift functions!
For example, if you like someone else's Trait but don't need it yourself, yet want to give it to another person, you can use this opportunity.
It skips the steps of copying it first and then gifting it away.
But still...
"Purple Tier and below? That's acceptable!" Kei Yamanaka looked toward Kaecilius, who was sobbing uncontrollably and unable to regulate his emotions.
Well.
In the movie universe, although Kaecilius possesses decent strength, he's just a minor villain—hardly deserving of high-tier rewards.
If you really want massive rewards,
You should look at protagonists like Iron Man Tony Stark!
——————
Stark Beach Villa in Mabry, California, the Blue Planet.
"Sir, detected communication networks have seen a sudden spike in the keywords 'magic,' 'Sorcerer Supreme,' and related terms. Signal locations containing these terms moved over 1,000 kilometers within an extremely brief time span, all appearing near snow-covered peaks. Highly likely to be linked to an unknown organization, sir."
Jarvis's voice echoed through the luxurious villa.
Tony Stark, who had been designing leg-crossing path configurations for the Mark VII armor, paused his work and stood up straight, stretching with a lazy yawn.
"A thousand kilometers signal shift in such a short time—how short exactly?"
"Under thirty seconds. Excluding interference factors such as mobile signal reconnections, under ten seconds, sir."
"You sure it's not a cell tower glitch?"
"Sir, the issue involves seven continents, 49 nations, and 8125 signal towers. Chance of signal issues or coding errors is below 1%."
"So we didn't find Hammer yet, but we found an organization with unknown powers instead? Hack into their devices—I want to see what's going on."
"Sir, I need to remind you that our current actions..."
"Stop! Jarvis, there's no law governing this yet. I'm just asking you to borrow someone's camera, not steal some poor soul's life savings or snoop into how attractive their spouse is, okay?"
"Understood, sir."
As Jarvis's voice faded away,
A three-dimensional holographic image flickered before Stark, showing scene after scene from the Kamar-Taj temple.
Wizards from all around the world thanked Kei Yamanaka for his teachings, then used their rings to open shimmering golden gateways of magic, quickly returning to their respective home countries.
Some fiery witch fans even approached Kei Yamanaka and asked if they could take a photo together.
The scenes kept changing.
Using Kamar-Taj's Wi-Fi network and big data algorithms, J.A.R.V.I.S. locked onto Kei Yamanaka's location.
Words appeared above his head: "Sorcerer Supreme Kei."
"God! J.A.R.V.I.S., if these are fake images, I'll rip you apart!"
Tony Stark stared at the figures vanishing one by one into the light gate, his mouth falling open in shock.
What is this?
Magic?!
Far away in Kamar-Taj, Kei Yamanaka felt a persistent sense of being watched while finishing his lecture and taking photos with numerous witches. The sensation was coming solely from smartphone cameras.
He had taken pictures with Tsunade and others before using smartphones, but never experienced this feeling.
Yet whenever those enthusiastic witches used digital cameras or similar devices,
the surveillance-like feeling disappeared entirely!
Remotely hijacking other people's smartphone cameras—
in the 2011 Marvel movie universe, only two individuals could do that.
One was Tony Stark's AI, J.A.R.V.I.S. The other was Zola, the Hydra scientist who transferred his consciousness into a supercomputer.
Zola, the mastermind behind Project Insight, had survived for decades—he wouldn't surface so early.
Even if he wanted to investigate something,
he'd probably send Hydra operatives first to investigate, or even use another organization as cover. He wouldn't charge in recklessly like this.
Only one person has that kind of arrogant approach—need I say who?
"Can't even mention someone without them showing up."
Smiling, Kei Yamanaka said goodbye to the excited witch sisters.
He had already more or less figured out why Iron Man Tony Stark suddenly located Kamar-Taj's position.
In the end,
although Kamar-Taj looked ancient with its aged rooms, it wasn't some isolated village without Wi-Fi—it had internet access!
In the internet age, keeping anything fully secret wasn't easy.
Plus, in the original storyline, the sorcerers hadn't gathered en masse before the Ancient One's death in 2016.
A global gathering of sorcerers on this scale was bound to attract attention.
After seeing off the visiting sorcerers, Kei pulled out his smartphone.
Detecting the familiar sense of surveillance again, he spoke into his phone.
"J.A.R.V.I.S., how's the weather in Marbella today? Any good for surfing?"
Halfway across the country in his California villa, Tony Stark slapped his forehead—clearly realizing now that his actions had been discovered and his identity pinpointed.
Frowning tightly, he waved at J.A.R.V.I.S., signaling him to answer directly.
Stark bit down on his thumb,
trying to read between the lines for hidden clues.
"Sir, today in Marbella the sunlight is pleasant, with temperatures ranging between 13°C and 21°C. Waves are running knee to thigh high—perfect for a beach party."
"A beach party, huh? Sounds nice. Let Stark know—we're arriving in two minutes, four people."
A faint smile curled on Kei Yamanaka's lips.
A golden opportunity just fell into his lap, saving him the trouble of finding an excuse to get involved.
"Master Sorcerer, who is this?"
Mordo asked curiously, standing beside Kei Yamanaka.
Stark—he knew about Stark Industries, its largest shareholder and current Iron Man.
But did the Sorcerer Supreme actually know him?
"That guy discovered Kamar-Taj."
Kei casually explained, then glanced at Wong standing aside.
"Wong, is celibacy required at Kamar-Taj?"
"No such rule exists."
Wong hesitated slightly before quickly responding.
"Then… never mind. Mordo, are we short on funds lately?"
Kei patted Kai's shoulder, then looked toward Mordo again.
"We're extremely short! The temple facilities are outdated—we need to renovate and rebuild."
Born into nobility and having long managed Kamar-Taj's affairs, Mordo immediately understood: their new Sorcerer Supreme had found the perfect cash cow!
Discovering Kamar-Taj really wasn't that big of a deal. Every year, many ordinary people stumble upon it—how else do you think they recruited so many sorcerers?
But truth was, their buildings genuinely needed renovation and rebuilding!
"C'mon, c'mon—let's seize this opportunity!"
Once again, mystic rings flickered at Kei's fingertips. He raised his hand, slicing open a spatial gateway.
He gestured for Wong, Mordo, and Kaecilius to follow.
Wong scratched his head thoughtfully, then obediently trailed behind Kei, muttering softly under his breath.
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