As if he didn't see the wicked smile on Mephisto's face, Lu Yi controlled Mephisto with one hand and swung the other downward.
Whoosh!
Mephisto was suddenly engulfed in a ring of deep-blue flames, and the dimension's rejection of him intensified.
Just as the lower realms reject beings from higher realms, the Marvel world—Earth's dimension—also rejects Mephisto, the King of Hell.
And now Lu Yi was amplifying that rejection!
"I won't let you send me back!" Mephisto snarled, his face contorting hideously.
This time, the distortion wasn't deliberate. The current dimension was simply too repulsive for him, causing his features to twist involuntarily.
"You'll only get to say that after I die. And if I don't die, what can you do to me?"
Mephisto? A mighty name indeed.
But if his true body can't enter this dimension, then what use is that mighty name?
If you really have the guts, crawl out of Hell yourself and come find me!
You will die someday!
"You're wrong. I possess magic that grants me immortality. You want me dead? Impossible. You should go back to Hell and enjoy your afterlife in purgatory!"
Lu Yi snapped his hand upward. The deep-blue flames instantly turned light blue. Mephisto's form twisted into a mass of black mist and vanished into the ground.
At that moment, the sky cleared once more. The heavy clouds dissipated.
"Is… is that it?" Coulson asked, his expression strangely conflicted.
Mephisto looked impressive—famous, even—but watching him get banished just like that was hard to accept.
Director, this doesn't match the script!
"It's just a projection. What's so hard about that? Any slightly stronger mage can banish him. It's not his true body!"
"I see!"
Coulson let out a breath of relief. If defeating Mephisto was that easy, then things didn't seem so dire. They could relax a bit.
"Don't relax too much. It's not as simple as you think. Mephisto is still the Lord of Hell—you can't deal with him that easily. Even if you banish him, he'll appear again! Maybe next time he'll bring a whole legion of demons!"
What? Is there any way to stop him from coming back?
"There is! It's just… a little difficult," Lu Yi said, glancing at the anxious Coulson before answering.
"What's the solution?"
Coulson eyed him skeptically. Something didn't feel right, but he couldn't figure out what. He suppressed the feeling and looked at Lu Yi.
"The Darkhold."
"What?"
"The Darkhold."
What is the Darkhold?
"It's a special magic book that leads its reader into darkness. Its origins trace back billions of years, to a god of the underworld. He possessed unimaginable power and wrote that book. It's said Mephisto borrowed his power to achieve what he has today."
"Mephisto relied on him? Just how powerful is this being?" Coulson said in disbelief.
Natasha, standing nearby, was equally stunned. Neither of them expected such a seemingly ordinary book to have such an ancient, terrifying origin tied to a primordial deity.
"It can't be confirmed, but one thing is certain."
"Is it possible the Darkhold could help us fight Mephisto—maybe even imprison him in Hell forever?" Natasha cut in before Lu Yi could finish.
"That's correct."
"If you know that much, then you must have clues about where it is, right?"
"I do. And I was planning to use you to find it."
Lu Yi laid his intentions bare.
The moment he did, Coulson and Natasha exchanged glances. They both saw the same thing in each other's eyes—trouble.
The book was anything but simple. According to S.H.I.E.L.D. protocols, if it really existed, they had to secure it.
And once someone knew about the book, there was no way they'd allow it to fall into Lu Yi's hands.
Giving it to him? Almost impossible.
But the problem was—Lu Yi was not someone they could afford to offend. If they were to find the Darkhold, handing it over to him would be unavoidable. That put them in an extremely awkward, dangerous position.
They deeply regretted ever hearing about the book. If only they didn't know.
"Why don't you look for it yourself?" Natasha asked, already nursing a headache.
"I tried, but I couldn't find it!" Lu Yi said with open palms, looking sincere.
In truth, Lu Yi had never tried.
He'd been interested in the book ever since entering the Marvel world. But the book was too dangerous, its contents corruptive—reading it could have disastrous consequences.
Lu Yi had always been curious, but never acted on it, afraid he might stumble upon it, read it, and find himself powerless to resist its influence.
That remained true until now—until Mephisto appeared.
Lu Yi said he wasn't worried about Mephisto's threats, but deep down he was uneasy. No one knew how long this creature had lived or what cards he still held.
Lu Yi felt unsafe. He wanted something that assured his security—and that was the Darkhold.
And then there was their earlier conversation.
In fact, Lu Yi had intentionally approached Natasha and Coulson precisely for this reason. In the coming days, Mephisto would be watching him closely. Since Mephisto couldn't personally search for him, he would force these two to do it on his behalf.
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