Space trembled.
A mirror suddenly appeared behind He Who Remains—the surviving Kang—reflecting Russell's image.
In an instant, the figure in the mirror moved. He reached out from within the glass, broke through reality, and drove his hand straight toward Kang's back.
Ripples laced with black mist spread through the air.
The hand from the mirror felt as though it had plunged into the thickest glue in existence—it could barely move.
Behind him, Dormammu's fiery features split into a wide, confident grin.
"Boy, with me here, how could I let you kill him?"
"Hah! The end of time will be nothing but your grave."
The mirror shattered into glittering powder. Russell glanced at Dormammu, his expression full of exasperation.
"You really are the dimmest of the dimensional lords, Dormammu. After getting played by the Ancient One for so many years, you still haven't learned?"
Dormammu sneered, sparks flickering between his teeth.
"You think Kang is using me? Hah… I don't care. He's already helped me devour a world, strengthening my Dark Dimension. As long as he keeps doing that, he can do whatever he wants."
"Your vision is far too narrow. I don't need loyalty. To me, nothing matters except the dimension."
A faint voice spoke from behind.
"No, no, no… let me correct you, Dormammu. That is no longer your dimension. From now on… it's mine."
Crimson fire blazed in Dormammu's eyes.
"Nathaniel Richards! Do you have any idea what you're saying?!"
Two massive arms of dark energy erupted from his back, reaching to seize Kang.
But the scene turned bizarre—Kang's body was as solid and real as it looked, yet Dormammu's claws passed straight through him.
Russell didn't so much as blink; he had already guessed this would happen. The last chance to stop it had been wasted by Dormammu's arrogance.
The projection of Kang chuckled, eyes gleaming with scorn.
"Dormammu, have you forgotten how you became master of the Dark Dimension? You tricked your niece's father into leaving, then stole his realm for yourself… and still, you dared to leave it unguarded. I dangled a bit of bait, and you couldn't resist. Time to replace the one who wields this dimension."
"As thanks for your help, I'll even leave you this… historical projection."
Dormammu roared in rage, ripping at the air in an attempt to open a portal back to his realm. Normally, it would have been effortless.
But this time, the entire castle blazed with golden light.
Threads of gold spread through its walls, until the whole fortress seemed like it was cast in solid gold, perched on a lonely island in the void.
Dormammu's portal failed.
Everything froze—utterly still, like ten perfectly sculpted, life-sized statues.
This was no ordinary time-stop. The golden matter was absorbing time itself. Within the castle, time no longer existed.
Without time, nothing could move. This was a pause more absolute than any spell or artifact could produce.
Only a multiversal-level being could ignore such a prison. And below that level, it was completely unbreakable.
Dormammu was trapped at the peak of his single-entity form. Russell hadn't even reached his own peak yet.
Under the flawless calculations of He Who Remains, the outcome seemed inevitable. The man pulling the TVA's strings would become the new master of the Dark Dimension, consume all timelines, and forge a new dark reality.
No more other Kangs. No accidents. No new time branches.
He would become a true "Holy Asgardian."
But…
Even the most precise plans have unforeseen variables.
Russell stood frozen in the golden castle, his thoughts halted along with his body.
Yet in his palm, a faint light flickered.
A twelve-sided sigil appeared there—the mark of the Cagliostro Library from the Eternal Past.
At first it glowed softly… then it burst into a blinding, brilliant light.
In the cave.
The Ancient One was still surprised that Cagliostro had entrusted the authority of the library to a complete stranger.
Then she heard the man before her say,
"I'm going back. As for you… just continue to follow the timeline."
The Ancient One understood immediately.
This was a crisis in the future, not something her past self should interfere with. She still had her own path to walk.
She sighed helplessly and nodded slightly.
"Go. I will seal this memory afterward."
But the moment she finished speaking, the mark that Russell had just obtained suddenly erupted in a dazzling brilliance.
At once, the entire Eternal Past began to tremble violently.
The Ancient One's face changed. She looked at Russell in alarm.
"What happened?! Is the TVA attacking this point in the past—the nexus that connects all timelines?"
But then she froze.
The man in front of her—Russell—now had flickering, unfocused eyes, and his expression was completely still, as if his mind had been pulled away from his body.
A cold sense of dread rose in her heart.
What had just happened? A moment ago they were speaking—now, in the blink of an eye, something terrifyingly abnormal had taken hold.
Was this the TVA's doing?
Or… was this Cagliostro's hidden scheme?
The Ancient One clenched her jaw. She couldn't simply stand by—she had to open a portal and take Russell back to his own point in time.
But in the very next instant, her expression turned pale.
The fabric of time and space here was shaking violently—it was impossible to initiate any time transmission.
Then came the sound of shattering.
An instant later, an astonishing sight unfolded—
The world itself fractured into a golden powder, and a vast phantom image engulfed everything before rapidly collapsing inward.
At the very center of that collapse stood Russell.
It was like an enlarged version of his soul overlapping perfectly with his physical form.
The Ancient One watched as clarity returned to his eyes. The shattered world knitted itself back together—rewinding—until it became the past once more.
Everything seemed to be moving backward in time.
Russell took in the surrounding scene, a brief trance passing over his gaze. But realization struck almost immediately.
It was the authority of the library—it had pulled him back into the Eternal Past.
He suddenly recalled Cagliostro's parting words, spoken with quiet significance: When the time is right, you will need it.
Now, that prophecy had come to pass.
But how could a magician he'd only met once foresee this?
And who was the mysterious person Cagliostro had traded with?
The questions swirled, leaving the truth shrouded in confusion.
Russell stood silent for several seconds, then exhaled slowly.
This wasn't the time to dwell on it.
The Ancient One asked cautiously, "Who… exactly are you?"
Russell didn't answer. Instead, he murmured,
"The future and the past, overlapping… isn't it fascinating?"
He sighed, and the next second, a surge of powerful magical energy gathered in his palm.
Without hesitation, he slammed one hand to the ground.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You can visit my Patreon page:
Patreon.com/PhoeniXcel
There are 30+ advanced chapters available for you to read.
Your support would be greatly appreciated.
Check out my new Marvel fanfic!
[Marvel: A Video Editor]