[Just as the doors of the London Sanctum opened, Strange saw a person standing in the passage on the other side.]
[The middle-aged man had dark eyes in which a faint red light flickered, making him look terrifying.]
[It was the rogue sorcerer Kaecilius!]
[Powerful energy condensed in Kaecilius's hand, and when he threw it onto the ground, it caused a huge explosion.]
["Boom!"]
[The shockwave from the explosion sent Strange flying all the way into another passage.]
[When he came out of the passage, he realized that he had ended up in the New York Sanctum.]
[Strange had only briefly gotten his bearings in the New York Sanctum when Kaecilius and his followers had already arrived.]
[During this chaotic battle, Strange gained the recognition of the Cloak of Levitation and eventually managed to defeat and capture Kaecilius.]
[But no one expected Kaecilius to openly declare that the Ancient One used Dormammu's power to live forever.]
[Just as Strange was left shocked, one of Kaecilius's followers attacked him from behind and severely wounded him.]
Seeing this, all of Kamar-Taj immediately fell into an uproar.
"Did you hear that? What did Kaecilius just say?"
"He said that the Ancient One uses Dormammu's power to live for so long."
"Do not joke around. How could that possibly be true?"
"But then how has she managed to live for so long?"
A large number of students were stunned and began whispering among themselves, their faces full of panic and doubt.
Some completely froze in place, deeply frightened, as though that scene had completely broken them.
After all, revealing such an explosive secret was far too shocking and completely exceeded everyone's expectations.
Many students looked at the Ancient One.
Horror, disbelief, fear, and numerous other emotions alternated in their eyes.
"Ancient One, this definitely is not true, right?"
Mordo stared motionlessly at the Ancient One with wide eyes, and the expression on his face became extremely ugly.
It was the Ancient One who had brought him to Kamar-Taj and raised him into a capable sorcerer.
If one spoke of loyalty to the Ancient One, Mordo believed that almost no one in Kamar-Taj could compare with him!
But using the Dark Dimension and Dormammu's power to extend her own life?
That went too strongly against everything they believed in.
If the Ancient One had truly been secretly doing something like that, then was everything she had said for years about protecting Earth from the forces of darkness merely a lie?
Feeling the strange gazes of the students around her, the Ancient One sighed softly, and a trace of helplessness appeared in her eyes.
She had long suspected that this live broadcast system might reveal some of her secrets.
But even the Ancient One had not expected that moment to come so quickly.
Originally, she had not wanted to specially defend herself.
But in a situation like this, if she said nothing, she feared that the unity of Kamar-Taj might collapse instantly, and by tomorrow the students might already have scattered!
Then Kamar-Taj would exist in name only.
Slowly closing the fan in her hand, the Ancient One opened her mouth and, facing the uneasy gazes of the many students, said:
"Today, the time has come for you to learn certain things."
At that moment, the live chat group also became extremely lively.
[Wanda Maximoff: This really shocked me! The Ancient One actually uses Dormammu's power to live forever.]
[Peter Parker (The Amazing Spider-Man): Well... I think she must have her reasons.]
[Loki Odinson: What reasons? She simply wants to keep living. What is so strange about that?]
[Loki Odinson: The Sorcerer Supreme may possess enough power to oppose my father, but she is still not an Asgardian, and her lifespan is limited.]
[Loki Odinson: If I were in her position and the only way for me to survive was to use the power of a being from another dimension, I would do it without hesitation! Life is the most important thing in the world. If you lose your life, then what do you have left?]
[Thor: Brother, you want to live that badly? Then how could you choose to jump into the cosmic abyss in the previous recording?]
[Loki Odinson: Shut up! Fool! Do not talk about that anymore, or I will kill you as soon as I return!]
[Wanda Maximoff: "As soon as I return"? What does that mean? Are the two of you living together now?]
[Thor: Damn it! Neither Loki nor I can lift Mjolnir! This... this is too much!]
[Thor: That damned hammer! Who the hell did it choose?]
[Wanda Maximoff: Hahaha! Neither of you can lift the hammer, so now you are living near it and waiting? This is really one of the stupidest things I have ever heard.]
[Thor: My hammer...]
[Thor: If this continues, when will I become the God of Thunder again?]
[Charles Xavier: God of Thunder? Impossible... Is there really an actual god in this group?]
[Thor: Do not call me a god right now. Father banished me, and currently I am only a useless mortal. Uuu...]
[Loki Odinson: Fool, where is your Asgardian pride? Just because you cannot lift one hammer, you have completely broken down?]
[Charles Xavier: Asgardians???]
One unbelievable piece of information after another completely confused Charles, leaving only emptiness in his mind.
Asgard.
Sitting on the throne, Odin watched Thor complain in the chat group, and his expression stiffened.
Originally, he had banished Thor to Earth hoping that he would mature there.
But now it seemed that it had no effect at all.
"Can Thor truly not mature unless Loki becomes a villain and clashes with him? What kind of logic is that?"
Remembering similar comments he had seen in the earlier recording, Odin finally could not stop himself from smiling bitterly.
Besides Thor's situation, Odin also had complicated feelings about the Ancient One's dark secret that had just been exposed.
The Ancient One probably also possessed power on the level of a Skyfather, strong enough even to oppose Dormammu and repel his invasion!
But in the end, she was still only a mortal of flesh and blood.
Without relying on forbidden methods such as drawing energy from the Dark Dimension, she probably would not even have lived until the present day!
[The image continues.]
[Faced with pursuit from Kaecilius's followers, the severely wounded Strange opened a portal and returned to the hospital where he had once worked.]
[There, he found Christine Palmer, a doctor he knew well, and with the help of surgery prevented his injuries from becoming fatal.]
[During Christine's operation, Strange even defeated an enemy while in astral form.]
[While Christine was closing his wound, Strange suddenly apologized to her:]
["Christine, you were right. I was a complete asshole. I treated you terribly and broke your heart."]
["You deserve a better man than me."]
[Christine looked at him uncomfortably:]
["Alright, enough. This is giving me chills. What happened to you? Why have you changed so much?"]
["Where have you even been all this time?"]
[Lying on the operating table, Strange said:]
["When I realized that Western medicine had almost no hope left for me, I went east and eventually found someone in Kathmandu who calls herself the Ancient One."]
["Oh."]
[Christine nodded.]
["So, you joined a cult."]
["No! It is not a cult... although I cannot say it does not resemble one at all."]
[Strange thought for a moment: "They really did teach me some powers that I did not know about before."]
["Alright."]
[Christine nodded and said in a tone that left no room for argument:]
["That definitely sounds like a cult."]
[Strange was now completely speechless.]
"Hahahahaha!"
In the live broadcast room of another world, Tony Stark burst into laughter so hard that tears even appeared in his eyes.
Beside him, Wanda and the others were also laughing, just not as excessively as Tony.
But Strange stood in place and suddenly felt a chill.
In Kamar-Taj, the Ancient One had just managed to calm the students when she suddenly heard this "cult theory" from the recording, causing her brow to immediately furrow.
In fact, what angered the Ancient One most was not Christine's ignorance, but Strange's unserious response.
"They taught you some unknown powers, so Kamar-Taj therefore resembles a cult to you?"
"Mr. Strange, it seems your education is still far from complete."
A cold light flashed in her eyes as she opened the fan and began lightly waving it again.
But Mordo, who was standing beside her, suddenly felt a chill run down his back and unconsciously took a step to the side.
[The image continues.]
[After his injuries were treated, Strange opened a portal and returned to the New York Sanctum.]
[There, he discovered that Kaecilius had escaped, while the Ancient One, Mordo, and the other reinforcements had already arrived.]
[The Ancient One was also surprised when she learned that Kaecilius could bend matter in the real world, outside the Mirror Dimension.]
[At that moment, Strange directly asked the Ancient One whether she was extending her own life through the Dark Dimension.]
[The Ancient One's expression immediately changed: "I advise you to think carefully about your next words, Doctor."]
[But Strange directly replied: "Because you might not like what you hear?"]
[The Ancient One calmed down: "Because you may not know what you are talking about."]
[Mordo could no longer listen, but Strange then openly stated the accusation.]
["She draws energy from the Dark Dimension to achieve immortality!"]
[Seeing that Strange had directly exposed everything, the Ancient One rarely tried to offer a few justifications, then simply turned around and left.]
[Strange and Mordo remained alone in the New York Sanctum and looked at each other.]
Loki raised his eyebrows in surprise.
"I cannot believe it. The Sorcerer Supreme actually backed down."
Tony Stark also said in confusion:
"Considering this woman's character and strength, I expected her to scold Strange or simply explain everything openly."
"This behavior somehow seems very strange."
Thinking about the Ancient One's unusual behavior on the screen, Strange frowned deeply, and a vague bad premonition appeared in his heart.
Although he had never heard the Eastern saying "If something behaves unusually, there is a problem behind it," as a doctor, Strange knew one thing very well.
If something unexpected happened before an operation, there was a high probability that the operation itself would not go smoothly either.
[The image continues.]
[Mordo, who remained behind, fiercely defended the Ancient One.]
["You have no idea how great a burden she carries on her shoulders."]
[But Strange refused to become involved in the fight again, claiming that he was a doctor, not a warrior.]
[Just as the two of them were arguing, Kaecilius and his followers attacked again.]
[In order to prevent the destruction of the New York Sanctum, Strange opened the Mirror Dimension at the critical moment and enveloped the entire New York Sanctum and even most of New York City within it.]
["In the Mirror Dimension, no matter how much you destroy, the real world will not be affected."]
[Looking at the surprised Kaecilius, Strange floated in the air with the help of the Cloak of Levitation and shouted loudly:]
["Let us see who has the last laugh, bastard!"]
[Kaecilius looked at Strange, and a smile appeared on his face.]
["I will have the last laugh."]
[As soon as he said that, Kaecilius swung both hands, and the entire Mirror Dimension immediately began breaking apart and folding over itself.]
[Strange and Mordo desperately tried to escape, but no one expected Kaecilius's connection with the Dark Dimension to further strengthen his magic inside the Mirror Dimension.]
[With a single movement of his hand, Kaecilius turned the entire New York City upside down, and even the sky itself. Although Strange and Mordo held Sling Rings, they could not even open a stable portal.]
"God... what kind of battle is this?"
"Am I seeing things?"
"This looks like a nightmare!"
"This is making me dizzy..."
Watching all the buildings of New York City on the screen bend, twist, and rise toward the sky at completely impossible angles, everyone in front of the large screen was stunned.
Not to mention Magneto, Charles Xavier, Wolverine, and the others.
Even Tony and the others, who had already seen countless incredible scenes in previous recordings, now opened their eyes wide in horror, almost forgetting to breathe.
The scene before them literally shook heaven and earth.
Many felt dizzy and even experienced a kind of unreal, dreamlike sensation.
"Is this magic? This is beyond anything I could have imagined!"
Erik unconsciously swallowed and felt his hands tremble slightly.
From the time he left the concentration camp of his childhood until today, he had never been this shocked.
[The image continues.]
[Faced with such a force that overturned the entire city, Strange could not put up any serious resistance and was soon defeated by Kaecilius, who took away his Sling Ring.]
[Just as Kaecilius was preparing to attack and kill him again, the surrounding space suddenly began breaking apart, then reassembling itself.]
[The Ancient One, dressed in sorcerer robes and holding her magic fan, stood on a high platform formed by fractured space, with an extremely serious expression.]
[The decisive battle was about to begin.]
At that moment, the image on the screen suddenly froze.
Immediately afterward, the system's cold, emotionless voice echoed through the live broadcast room.
[A new question-and-answer begins!]
[Question: Why did the Ancient One die?]
[Begin answering! Each person in the live broadcast room has only one opportunity to answer.]
[The person who answers correctly will receive live broadcast points and a random reward.]
[Random rewards may come from countless dimensional worlds.]
[An incorrect answer will trigger an unknown punishment!]
"The Ancient One will really die? Who will kill her?"
"Kaecilius or Dormammu?"
Hearing this question, Strange's pupils instantly contracted, and an enormous wave of unease rose in his heart.