Wanda didn't understand why she was panicking.
Maybe it was because Pietro was unconscious and she was now alone with Malrick, leaving her feeling exposed and vulnerable.
Maybe it was the anticipation of awakening her own powers—the uncertainty, the fear of what might come next—that made her chest feel like it was being crushed.
Whatever it was, her nerves frayed as she stood there, avoiding Malrick's gaze.
Malrick, however, didn't seem fazed by her unease.
With a flick of his finger, tendrils of concentrated Space Stone energy surged around her.
And just like that, her anxiety vanished.
Because she lost consciousness.
In that final second before blacking out, her body began to levitate. It wasn't clear if it was the Space Stone's doing or something else entirely.
In the haze, she glimpsed something strange—a vision, maybe. A shadowy figure in a crimson robe and horned headdress broke through the blue energy, drifting toward her.
Before she could process what she was seeing, it merged into her body.
It all happened in a blink.
She didn't even have time to react before her body went limp and she collapsed.
Malrick caught her in midair with a subtle wave of his hand and teleported her and Pietro to a distant meadow, placing them gently on the grass.
He knelt beside Wanda for a moment, examining the energy building inside her.
A mysterious, chaotic force surged within—wild, ancient, and unmistakably powerful.
"Chaos Magic…" Malrick muttered. "One of the oldest powers in the universe."
He reached out with his spiritual senses, attempting to probe deeper.
The moment his consciousness brushed against it, the energy retaliated. That portion of his mind was instantly consumed.
"Just as I thought. Savage, unrelenting," he said to himself, stroking his chin. "Still, maybe... this is a path I can walk too."
In his previous life, in the Starry Sky World, cultivating the ten fundamental laws eventually led to comprehension of the Chaos Law and, from there, the path to the Ultimate Dao.
Here in the Marvel Universe, perhaps there was a similar method: master the six foundational cosmic forces, then ascend by embracing powers like Chaos Magic, the Phoenix Force... even Fairy Magic, if such a thing existed here.
The path remained uncertain.
But one thing was clear—Wanda might be his bridge to understanding this deeper magic.
"Building a connection with her will be... essential," he thought.
He glanced over at Pietro and Wanda. Both would remain unconscious for at least ten hours.
Malrick rose into the sky and turned toward the towering structure in the distance: the Time Fortress.
"Good. I can get a few things done before the battle begins."
---
Elsewhere, Malrick's Blood Sea Clone had spread across a vast area, spawning and dissolving smaller clones to extend its reach.
With this, he'd prepared three sources of backup power: the Space Stone, the ten thousand Suns within his Small World, and the Blood Sea itself.
Even if Dormammu turned out to be stronger than expected, Malrick would endure.
As Captain America once said, "I can do this all day."
---
Malrick arrived at the third level of the fortress.
This place was designed for force amplification training, structured like a staircase that tested and expanded one's willpower.
During the Blood Sea Clone's decade-long cultivation, Malrick had refined his force amplification from 100 times to 900 times. At that time, the 999th step had been his limit.
But now, after breaking through to the World Lord level, his will had evolved to the Immortal tier.
He reached the 1000th step with ease.
Then, without slowing, he climbed past 1300.
There were 10,000 steps in total.
Steps 1 to 999 tested pre-Immortal will.
Steps 1000 to 5999 were for Immortal-tier cultivators.
And beyond that, the final levels were reserved for Law Venerables.
As he stood atop the 1300th step, Malrick activated the cultivation art known as the "Zhou God Body."
Instantly, specks of glowing energy rose from the steps like fireflies, flowing into his body and reinforcing his muscles, bones, and spirit.
Hours passed in accelerated time.
Eight hours later, he descended. His force amplification had risen to 1300 times, matching his current limit.
He'd reached a plateau. Any further progress would require advancing his willpower again.
So, he turned toward the first floor of the fortress.
---
The ground level was nothing like the upper levels. It was alive—with trees, lakes, and towering mountains. This was where the Beast God of Light, Zhou, once resided.
Even the clouds here were infused with energy.
Everything was a treasure in its own right—natural resources that, if used correctly, could become powerful tools or weapons.
Now that Malrick had advanced far enough, he could finally use some of them.
He explored the manor at the mountaintop and found what he needed: a suit of armor, a pair of gloves, a cloak, and a small defensive tower.
It took him several hours to engrave his soul imprint into them, allowing basic control and activation.
Since they belonged to Zhou and had no official names, Malrick dubbed the set the Dormammu Suit—a tribute to the upcoming battle.
The armor could shift form and was nearly indestructible. Only an attack capable of annihilating the solar system could bypass its defenses. Most other attacks would be reduced to one-ten-thousandth of their original force.
The gloves, though once capable of tenfold attack enhancement, had lost their secret patterns when crossing over from the Starry Sky World. Now, they were merely durable weapons with slight amplification.
The cloak served as both shield and restraint tool.
Finally, the tower was a soul defense artifact—something like a hyper-advanced version of Magneto's helmet, protecting against psychic attacks and soul intrusion.
With everything equipped—the armor, gloves, and cloak wrapping around him in sleek black fabric—Malrick stood tall. An "S" symbol remained etched onto his chest, a personal habit from his former life.
The tower entered his soul core, anchoring his mind against any spiritual assault.
"Preparations complete," he said, clenching his fists. "Now all I need... is for Dormammu to walk into my trap."
---
By the time Malrick returned to the real world, Wanda and Pietro were already awake.
The two were on the plains, testing their newfound powers with excitement.
Pietro blurred across the field in a streak of silver and blue. One moment, he was tracing zigzags at five times the speed of sound, and the next, stumbling like a regular runner.
His body had changed, but his control needed work.
Wanda stood calmly, her fingers glowing with scarlet light. She focused on lifting a patch of grass with raw willpower, learning to mold the world around her.
It was still clumsy—but powerful.
"You two look pleased," Malrick said, appearing beside Wanda without warning.
Startled, she yelped and dropped the section of ground she was lifting.
"God! Could you stop showing up out of nowhere like that?" she gasped, placing a hand over her chest. Her face was flushed.
Her tone had changed. She wasn't fearful anymore—just annoyed. Confident.
Even bold enough now to complain.
And Malrick? He just smiled slightly.
---
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