Chapter 410: Ethan the Demigod
The last point of light streaked swiftly toward the farthest destination of all: Kamar-Taj.
When it finally arrived above Kamar-Taj, the whole sacred ground seemed wrapped in a soft glow. An indescribable peace and calm filled the air.
The Ancient One, Earth's true guardian, had been in long seclusion. Now she opened her eyes, eyes that seemed to see into all things in the universe, before she could stop herself.
She gazed at the point of light. Surprise and understanding flickered through her eyes, and a faint smile tugged at her lips.
"So Stephen was always fated to face this ordeal. And it is his good fortune, too," the Ancient One murmured. Her voice was soft, yet it carried a wisdom and compassion beyond the world.
With that, she slowly closed her eyes again and sank back into endless meditation, as though everything were already in hand.
Meanwhile, Strange was far from Kamar-Taj, in a hidden chamber built from ancient runes.
He sat cross-legged, brow tightly knit, fine beads of sweat on his forehead betraying a pain and struggle unlike anything he'd been through before.
In his quest for the true essence of magic, Strange had taken a risk. He'd sent two clones into two different dimensions at once, each to face a powerful dimensional lord.
Dormammu had been delighted to hear Strange wanted to learn dark magic, and granted it to him. With the other clone, the Vishanti saw what Strange was after and granted him white magic.
Strange's idea was a good one: fuse the two magics. But he had overestimated himself.
The two forces were as incompatible as fire and water. Strange was straining to control the energies inside him, and was on the verge of losing control.
Just then, the point of light merged into his body.
Strange's consciousness suddenly found itself in an unfamiliar place. Here he could feel a magical power unlike anything in the Marvel world.
Strange watched the entire life of Ryze, the Rune Mage. The next moment, Ryze himself appeared before him, bald and blue-skinned, an enormous scroll on his back.
"It seems you face a trial unlike any before," Ryze said, his voice low and weathered yet full of strength. "But remember: true power lies not in how much magic you've mastered, but in how you use it, and in the faith and perseverance in your heart."
"Let me help you a little. Rune magic is an ancient and mysterious art. I studied it all my life, searched all my life, and still never fully fathomed it. I hope you can make rune magic renowned throughout this world in my place."
"I hope my tragedy never repeats itself! Hahahaha!" As Ryze's words faded, his form slowly blurred, until he became a beam of brilliant light and merged completely into Strange's body.
In that moment, Strange felt a warmth and power he had never known before: a perfect fusion of magic from two different worlds.
The magics found resonance inside him. It was as if two opposing rivers had merged into a single unstoppable flood.
When Strange opened his eyes again, one had turned black and the other white, deep and mysterious, as though they could see into all things.
On his forehead appeared an intricate, ancient rune, like a third eye, glowing with wisdom and power.
Even more astonishing, his hair had turned half black and half white, a symbol of two utterly different powers coexisting in harmony.
The fused power didn't just change Strange's appearance. It made his strength leap to an entirely new level.
A tremendous aura burst out from him and swept across all of Kamar-Taj in an instant, making the very heavens and earth change color.
Yet the power was gone as fast as a night-blooming flower, folding back into nothing almost at once. Only a handful of the powerful caught that brief moment of brilliance: the Ancient One, Wong and Mordo.
Now, aside from the Ancient One, no one at Kamar-Taj could match him. He even had a feeling that once he fully grasped rune magic, neither the Ancient One nor the Dread Dormammu himself would be a match for him.
And he sensed he could split the power within him: one clone, one kind of magic.
Strange had a dim sense of the path ahead of him. Like the Eastern masters, he would slay the Three Corpses.
Or, like the Vishanti, become three in one.
Once he'd walked that path to the end, he might even become a god!
Having felt out his new power, Strange stood up and glanced at the Time Stone with disdain.
"The Time Stone? Not even a dog would want it!"
He looked in Ethan's direction.
"Looks like I owe you again. How am I ever going to repay you, Ethan..."
...
Once his family members had integrated their templates, energy flowed back to Ethan from each of them.
To Ethan's surprise, besides the templates' power there was also a dark energy, and another energy that felt strangely familiar.
"Is this... Taiji?! Strange is a genius too!" Feeling the powerful magic energy inside his body, Ethan couldn't help exclaiming.
Having integrated these templates himself, Ethan was getting used to his new power.
He had a dim sense that he'd already set one foot into the realm of demigods.
He realized the mixed power inside him was strong, but it was like a heap of loose sand, hard to forge into a unified fighting force.
Every power came from a different friend. Each had its own unique cultivation system and energy properties, colliding and checking one another inside him, so none could show its true might.
If I want to truly step into the realm of demigods, I have to find a way to fuse all these powers into one, to strip the complex down to the simple. Only then can I break out of the cocoon and become a butterfly, Ethan thought, resolve showing between his brows.
For now, though, Ethan had no idea how. Perhaps he'd need to go looking for knowledge on the subject.
Maybe he could go ask the God of Stories again. After all, the only person Ethan knew who had become a god was him.
And Ethan planned to give Loki a surprise: bring Thor, Loki and the Queen, the whole family, along with him.
"Come to think of it, how's Loki doing these days?" Ethan felt like it had been a long time since he'd checked on this universe's Loki.
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