As the voice faded, a circular portal materialized before Arthur.
The sudden appearance of this spectacle at the wedding instantly drew the attention of countless onlookers.
The wedding's focal points, including the officiant, Tony Stark, instantly turned their gaze toward the portal before Arthur.
Clearly, this unexpected development left everyone puzzled.
Arthur cast a helpless glance at Lily. "Life's full of surprises, huh?"
"Just hurry up and take care of it," Lily snapped, annoyed. "I hope you make it back in time for the wedding night games."
Arthur shook his head. "I don't think they do that here..."
Even as he spoke, he nodded at Tony. The ever-astute Tony immediately understood and grinned. "Alright, ladies and gentlemen, the impromptu magic show is about to begin! Keep your eyes peeled..."
Without waiting for the audience to settle, Arthur dove through the portal and vanished.
"The Great Vanishing Act!"
A thunderous wave of applause erupted.
"Amazing!"
"Where did he go?"
"Report! Someone's using superpowers to perform magic here!"
Peter whispered to Tony, "That looks like... Kamar-Taj magic?"
Tony shook his head. "Whatever's happening, he'll find a way to handle it."
…
Arthur entered Peter's wedding and emerged onto a bustling street.
It was nighttime here, and the bizarre sights around him immediately caught his attention. Then, he turned his head and saw Stephen, whose crimson cloak looked strangely familiar.
When Stephen noticed Arthur, he raised a hand in greeting, and the cloak seemed to wave along... Heaven knows how a cloak could possibly perform such a gesture.
"What's happening?" Arthur asked, scanning the scene.
Chaos had clearly erupted around them, and the world had become utterly bizarre.
A powerful energy permeated every inch of the surrounding space, causing Arthur to frown instantly. Though everything seemed enveloped by a force both familiar and alien, the overall atmosphere felt profoundly unsettling.
Before Stephen could speak, Arthur realized what it was: "The Time Stone?"
Stephen reached down and removed the Time Stone from his chest, handing it to Arthur. "I believe you know what to do."
Arthur remained silent for a moment before asking, "Can I just say I don't know? I was literally attending a wedding when you suddenly dragged me here, and... um, what's that 'egg' hanging in mid-air connected by those wires? It doesn't look like anything good!"
"Dormammu," Stephen said, still holding out the Time Stone to Arthur. "I imagine you're familiar with it."
Arthur tilted his head, studying him.
Stephen remained silent.
After a long pause, Arthur realized that everything around them had frozen in time, completely unaffected by their movements. Clearly, this was also the Time Stone's power at work.
"Then, before we go any further, I need to clarify two things..." Arthur rubbed his throbbing temples. "First, where's the Ancient One?"
"Dead," Stephen replied matter-of-factly.
Arthur's expression barely shifted. "Second, why me?"
"I don't know," Stephen said, "but... it has to be you!"
Has to be!
Few things in this world truly have to be done by only certain people, because there's almost nothing that can only be accomplished by a specific individual.
Even if such cases exist, they're likely just artificial significance added by humans themselves.
But Stephen's words clearly suggested that something about this situation was inevitable.
The Ancient One must have foreseen something, which explained their previous meeting.
Arthur's only regret was that he never got to see the Ancient One one last time.
With a soft sigh, he reached out and took the Time Stone. Turning his gaze skyward, he stared at the swirling portal hanging in mid-air, an entrance to a bizarre dimension.
Within that realm coiled an unimaginably powerful being, completely detached from human form, existing in the dark side of this world.
Arthur mused: I was just attending a wedding, and now I'm inexplicably facing this kind of enemy. Do things in this world really have to become so bizarre?
What would happen if I refused?
The thought flashed through his mind, but he knew there was no need to ask.
Because he had already accepted!
As Raven God's Wings unfurled, his body effortlessly pierced the spatial rift, the bizarre landscape flooding his senses.
He sought Dormammu amidst this chaos, but found the task surprisingly easy.
Deep-set eyes and a face like churning waves revealed profound malice, destruction, and devouring.
Arthur gazed at him, and Dormammu returned the stare.
In the next instant, an endless barrage of attacks suddenly rained down from the heavens!
Yet just as they were about to strike Arthur, a mysterious force intervened, blocking every single one.
Not a single attack could so much as touch Arthur's skin, let alone harm him.
With one hand casually tucked in his pocket, he strolled unhurriedly toward Dormammu, his steps conveying a sense of resignation. "Honestly, I'm not entirely sure why you insist on causing trouble on Earth. But since you're here, and you've come face-to-face with me, we'll have to resolve this. I don't know why this task specifically falls to me, but since it does, I might as well do it properly."
"Arrogant!" Dormammu's voice carried a hint of fury, as if he had just encountered an ant daring to defy him.
Arthur looked up at him, thoughtful. Suddenly, he extended his hand, and six Blink gems began to orbit within his palm.
Multicolored lights swirled before his eyes, yet even now, he couldn't disassemble a single one of them.
"What... exactly do you want me to do?"
The six gems continued to orbit silently. Abruptly, the Soul Stone's orange glow coalesced into a sharp blade, hurtling straight toward Arthur's head.
Arthur didn't flinch. The blade pierced his skull instantly, but didn't pass through. At the same moment, countless images flooded his mind:
Collapse, destruction, lamentation!
Desolate scenes, like a doomsday wheel, played out relentlessly within his consciousness.
The world withered, all things shattered, and everything ceased to exist!