The moment they stepped into Limbo, Gwen let out an incredulous exclamation: "Wow."
The terrain of Limbo could be controlled by its ruler, but since Illyana had never bothered with it, Limbo still remained exactly as Belasco had shaped it. At first glance, the most eye-catching features were the blood-colored sky and the pervasive stench of sulfur. Dark red crags floated across the sky, and fire vented from everywhere—from the rivers of magma on the ground to the rocky spires in the air.
There was also that spiral mountain peak, easily tens of thousands of meters high, shooting straight into the clouds, which had just been caused by Chthon's descent. At this very moment, violent blazes were erupting from it, making the visual experience truly jaw-dropping.
"This is Limbo, which is the first circle of Hell in Dante's Divine Comedy, though the first circle Dante wrote about wasn't quite this ugly. Wait, Illyana, why did you bring Gwen in here?"
Faced with Peter's explanation, Gwen and Illyana gave entirely different reactions. After snapping out of it, Gwen smiled a bit awkwardly: "Haha, I haven't read the Divine Comedy."
In comparison, Illyana was much more direct.
"What is the Divine Comedy? Besides, didn't you say 'take us away'?"
Peter let out another helpless sigh. When he said "take us away," he meant taking the enemy, himself, and Illyana away; he certainly hadn't wanted Gwen running into a place like this. Meanwhile, Gwen looked left and right before letting out an emotional sigh: "So these are the kinds of problems you have to handle every day? You never told me."
"Actually, the problems are usually much bigger. The current situation is just aftermath we haven't had time to clear up yet. See that mountain? That thing wasn't even there a few hours ago."
Peter's words plunged Gwen into silent contemplation, but she quickly shook her head: "I didn't bring Mysterio's helmet, so what should I do?"
"I think sensory deception probably won't have much of an effect on magic-based enemies anyway. Wait, Illyana, where is the other you?"
Illyana raised her hand and pointed her sword toward the sky. Flying through the air was her demonized self, sporting crimson, heat-radiating skin and silver armor that covered only a few vital areas. A pair of long horns jutted from her head, while a pair of red, bat-like wings and a thick, arrow-tipped tail extended from her back. She grinned, baring her sharp teeth.
What drew Peter's attention even more was a pendant hanging around her neck. A pentagram was carved onto the pendant, with a blood-red gemstone embedded into four of its points, leaving only the topmost point vacant.
It was Belasco's Bloodstone amulet.
"A standard demon, a look that couldn't be more standard. To be honest, it's actually pretty cool—plus, none of us can fly. Who's going to notify Strange? The Bloodstone amulet he's been obsessing over has finally turned up."
Peter gave Illyana a meaningful look, but Illyana shook her head with a difficult expression. Right now, anyone could see that only one Magik could remain for this crisis to end. Swiftly, the demonic Illyana raised her greatsword and dove straight down.
"Based on your previous situation, we aren't completely without an advantage. The demonized version of you won't naturally incline toward casting spells, so we need to change our tactical approach to fight—Gwen, protect yourself, and then find an opportunity to snatch the pendant from her chest."
Peter then looked toward Illyana: "She's coming for you. Do you have a plan?"
Staring at the chest of her demonized self, Illyana nodded somewhat hesitantly: "I've thought of a method, but it requires a precise ritual and a few other things. For instance, temporarily binding the opponent's movements, which is rather troublesome."
Peter glanced at the giant demon girl in the sky, recalled her mountain-shattering battle with Belasco, and took a deep breath: "I'll do my best. Just make sure you get ready first."
The Anti-Venom suit and the nano-suit instantly achieved their highest tier of enhancement. Peter leaped forward and immediately began casting a spell. The Crimson Bands of Cyttorak manifested from his body, directly binding the demon itself. However, the latter swiftly broke free from everything and charged straight toward Peter.
"Hey, why don't we have a chat? I mean, you are Illyana and she is Illyana, what is there that can't be talked out?"
"Then why does she detest me so much?!"
The giant sword missed cutting into Peter by a hair's breadth. But a miss was a miss. Nimbly maneuvering around, Peter landed behind the demon's back, took a deep breath, and instantly unleashed a powerful electric current from both hands. He struck a fist directly against her shoulder blade, and the massive current erupted into a brilliant sphere of light in midair.
However, the scene Peter hoped for did not occur. The demon did not crash down from the sky; instead, she reached back, grabbed Peter, and yanked him right in front of her face. Peter could only offer an awkward smile: "Looks like your physical strength is pretty immense, huh?"
"You can find out—ah!"
The hand with which the demonic Illyana gripped Peter's neck was torn away as he used a method that ripped through reality itself. Subsequently, during the descent, he cast another spell. Magical webbing hooked onto the demonized Illyana's body, and Peter softly muttered the name of the spell.
"The Soul-Weaving Web of Neith."
The webbing was no longer organic matter but pure mana, tightly binding the demonized Illyana. Landing on the ground, Peter threw his weight into a powerful toss, heavily slamming her onto the terrain before she could break free from the webbing, and then swiftly utilized mana webbing to pin her to the ground.
"Are you ready?"
"Just a little bit more!"
"The last thing I need right now is a little bit more." Hearing Illyana's response, Peter took a deep breath. Hellfire was already scorching the soul-weaving web; the opponent would break free from the restraint very soon. At that moment, Gwen suddenly appeared beside him: "I've taken the pendant from her chest, what's next?"
Looking at the pendant in Gwen's hand, Peter snatched it away to turn himself into the opponent's primary target. Taking a deep breath, he waited for the demonic Illyana to shatter the soul-weaving web, then waved his hand to open a sling ring portal.
She charged right into it, only to plunge straight out of another portal. The two sling ring portals were opened practically flush against each other, leaving her unable to escape this portal trap. Peter finally let out a sigh of relief and sat down on the ground to rest.
"I should have done this the first time... but there was no way to confirm exactly how she would charge over."