บท 169: Chapter 170: Doctor Strange vs. Dormammu
The black woman didn't dare to say anything and immediately followed the orders, setting fire to each heart-shaped herb with the others.
However, none of them noticed that in a corner, Nakia secretly picked a heart-shaped herb and quietly left.
Soon, the whole place turned into a sea of flames, and Erik stood there, watching as the heart-shaped herbs were engulfed by fire, not knowing what he was thinking.
The video ended amidst the raging flames.
"So, T'Challa won't die, right?" Stephen Strange said, "According to Hollywood script conventions, the male protagonist won't die."
"If T'Challa is the male lead in a Hollywood movie," Steve Rogers commented.
"I actually think Erik seems more like the Hollywood male lead," Phil Coulson said. "When he was young, his father was killed, and he was forced to leave his homeland and wander, becoming a killer and mercenary. After gaining skills, he returned to his homeland, defeated his enemies from the past, and ascended the throne. Isn't that a typical Hollywood male lead template?"
"... T'Challa, do I need to remind you who your friend is?" T'Challa looked speechlessly at Phil Coulson, "Of course it's you, T'Challa, my friend. I just made a comment, but your enemy does indeed seem like the protagonist."
"So, is Erik lying?" Stephen Strange asked, "Is his father, N'Jobu, really dead as he claims?"
"I can only tell you that Klaue caused an explosion in Wakanda to steal vibranium, killing many Wakandan citizens. N'Jobu was Klaue's accomplice," T'Challa didn't elaborate further.
"Well, I take back what I said earlier," Phil Coulson said, "That's not Hollywood at all. His father didn't die for justice, and he didn't come for justice either. It doesn't fit Hollywood's requirements for a protagonist."
"T'Challa, there's something I don't understand. With Wakanda's technological prowess, shouldn't it be easy to capture someone?" Tony Stark asked, "Why couldn't you capture Klaue after so long?"
"That man is cunning," T'Challa sighed.
"Even though the video didn't show it, we can infer that Erik used Klaue to successfully infiltrate Wakanda," Bruce Banner said, "He probably killed Klaue and used his body to gain entry to Wakanda."
"Erik may be formidable, but he's just one person. He found Klaue, but a mighty nation like Wakanda, with so many warriors and advanced technology, couldn't find him for so long..." Clint Barton shrugged, "Frankly, I find it hard to understand."
"We will find him!" T'Challa gritted his teeth, "We won't give anyone else the chance to infiltrate Wakanda!"
[The third question begins, prepare yourself.]
[How did Doctor Strange, Stephen Strange, force Dormammu, the Dark Dimension ruler, to retreat?]
[A. The Avengers and Doctor Strange teamed up to defeat Dormammu.]
[B. The Ancient One and Doctor Strange teamed up to defeat Dormammu.]
[C. Doctor Strange used his eloquence to persuade Dormammu.]
[D. Doctor Strange used the Time Stone to trap Dormammu in a time loop.]
[Answering correctly grants the ability to use any spacetime portal at will. Answering incorrectly deducts one year of lifespan.]
A new question appeared, and it was still about Doctor Strange, Stephen Strange's "personal topic."
"Motherf*cker!" Nick Fury couldn't help but curse when he saw the question, "Are you kidding me? Another enemy? We haven't even dealt with the weakest Loki yet!"
"This enemy is obviously more powerful than previous ones," Phil Coulson said, "Just looking at the title, 'Dark Dimension ruler,' it's much more imposing than 'God of Thunder' or 'Cosmic Overlord.'"
"Come on!" Tony Stark said, holding his forehead in frustration, "Ever since I put on this suit of armor, these unruly guys keep popping up one after another?!"
"Tony, I think you're absolutely right," Stephen Strange nodded in agreement, "No matter if it's Loki or Thanos, all these enemies appeared after you declared yourself Iron Man. Why don't you hold another press conference and announce that you're not Iron Man anymore, and see if those enemies will retreat?"
"I can tell from the options that this Dark Dimension ruler is powerful," Steve Rogers said, "The options directly say that the Avengers and Doctor Strange team up."
"The option introduces a new name, the Ancient One," Bruce Banner pointed at the name of the Ancient One, "This person looks powerful too. 'Supreme Sorcerer,' that nickname is quite imposing."
"It is indeed imposing," Nick Fury said, "Stephen is a sorcerer as well, but his nickname 'Doctor Strange' sounds weaker compared to 'Supreme Sorcerer.'"
"If someone even more powerful than Doctor Strange appears, who seems stronger than the 'Supreme Sorcerer,' wouldn't they be even more formidable?" Clint Barton said.
"From the nickname, he should be even more powerful," Natasha Romanoff said, "I feel like Strange is almost on par with Thanos himself. If this Supreme Sorcerer is even stronger than Strange, doesn't that mean he can take on Thanos?"
"But if someone so powerful exists, why haven't we seen any sign of him when we were struggling to defeat Thanos?" Tony Stark said.
"In fact, apart from Stephen, we have never seen any other sorcerers, but we know that there is at least a group of sorcerers on Earth," Bruce Banner said, "Perhaps there are certain rules among these sorcerers that prevent them from intervening in these matters?"
"Would there be such rules?" Phil Coulson questioned, "Earth is on the brink of destruction! If Earth is in peril, unless those sorcerers don't reside on Earth, otherwise, it's strange if they don't intervene."
"I'm just speculating. Maybe those sorcerers have some reasons for not getting involved," Bruce Banner said, "We know so little about sorcerers, and there's no way to find out the exact situation."
"Stephen, from now on, it's up to you to unveil the mystery of the sorcerers," Tony Stark told Stephen Strange, "After all, you are the only sorcerer among us."
"I'm also eager to learn more about sorcerers," Stephen Strange shrugged, somewhat helpless, "I don't know much more about them than you."
"Let's focus on the question," Steve Rogers said, "Although we don't know much about sorcerers or this Dark Dimension ruler, I think this question is not difficult to answer. There's one option we can immediately exclude, which is C! The idea of using eloquence to persuade is simply a joke."
"C can indeed be ruled out," Bruce Banner agreed, "Additionally, the formats of A and B options are similar, both involve Stephen Strange teaming up with someone to defeat Dormammu. Personally, I think it's more likely that he teamed up with the Supreme Sorcerer, the Ancient One. Although I don't know the reason, it seems like sorcerers and us are two different circles. If our enemies, the sorcerers, don't appear, then it's unlikely that the enemies of sorcerers, like the Avengers, will appear. Of course, Stephen is an exception since he somehow joined us in the fight against Thanos."
"If we compare A and B, doesn't that mean the Supreme Sorcerer alone can match our entire Avengers team?" Clint Barton exclaimed in surprise, "Thor, Tony, and Hulk combined should already be unmatched in the universe. Can the Supreme Sorcerer alone be on par with the Avengers?"
"If he didn't have such power, would he be called the Supreme Sorcerer?" Natasha Romanoff said, "Stephen's title doesn't even have the word 'Supreme' in it."
"I agree with Banner's view. If Stephen teamed up, it should be with the Ancient One, not the Avengers," Phil Coulson said.
"Then the question is, did Stephen actually defeat Dormammu?" Steve Rogers said, "I don't think so! The wording of the question is 'forced to retreat,' which means Stephen didn't actually defeat Dormammu but used some means to make him retreat."
"Captain, you are observant and have a point," Stephen Strange said, "That way, both A and B can be excluded, and combined with the previous exclusion of C, the answer to this question becomes clear."
"Using the Time Stone to force Dormammu to retreat does seem the most reasonable," Tony Stark said.
"I choose D!" Stephen Strange made his choice.
[Answer is correct! Reward issued!]
The scene was quiet, with nothing happening.
"Stephen, can you open the portal now?" Tony Stark asked.
"I can," Stephen Strange replied, but there was no visible action from him. Suddenly, a golden vortex appeared in front of him, just like the portal he used to meet Thor in the previous video.
In the video, Stephen Strange needed to draw circles with his hands to create the portal, but now he could summon it with just a thought.
"Truly miraculous," Tony Stark said.
Soon, the video began to play.
At the beginning of the video, a golden portal opened in a corner of the street, and two figures emerged from it one after another.
One of them was an African American that no one had seen before, the corrupted sorcerer Mordo, who was deceived by the Ancient One. The other was, of course, the familiar Doctor Strange, Stephen Strange.
They ran onto the street, and everywhere was in ruins, with buildings collapsed, water gushing out of the ground, and people fleeing in panic.
"The Sanctum Sanctorum has collapsed," Stephen Strange said blankly, looking up at the sky.
As everyone followed his gaze, they saw an unforgettable sight. In the darkness of the city's night, a mass of energy resembling a galaxy, with blue, purple, and black mixed together, slithered in the sky as if some super giant beast was devouring the city.
As the mass of energy expanded, the surrounding city gradually turned to ashes, swallowed by the energy.
"This is Dormammu's move? It's terrifying!"
"Seems scarier than Thanos and Hela."
"Truly worthy of the title 'Dimension Ruler.' How do we defeat such power?"
Dormammu hadn't even appeared yet, and the mere sight of the Dark Dimension shocked everyone in the answer space.
"It's the Dark Dimension, Dormammu is coming," Mordo said, looking at the Dark Dimension, "It's too late. No one can stop him now."
"Not necessarily," Stephen Strange didn't seem as desperate as Mordo, and he made a hand gesture, crossing his arms. A green light flashed on his chest; he was using the Time Stone.
"No!" Cacilius saw the situation and knew it was not good. He quickly rushed towards Stephen Strange, together with the other followers of Dormammu.
But they saw a green energy loop swirling around Stephen Strange's palm as he twisted it.
At this moment, Cacilius was already jumping in the air, his energy blade about to strike, but under the effect of the Time Stone, time began to rewind.
Instantly, the vanished water splashes reappeared, the fallen neon lights rose, people lying on the ground stood up on their own, the collapsed buildings restored themselves, and Cacilius quickly backed away while running...
It was truly a miraculous scene.
Stephen Strange slammed the green circle onto Mordo's face, and Mordo's entire being became ethereal for a moment. Then he was no longer affected by the time reversal and returned to normal time.
"The spell worked; we have another chance," Stephen Strange greeted as he ran to the side.
The following scenes were extremely bizarre. The vehicles moved in reverse, flames flew back into stoves, and people walked backward. Everything seemed like a video being played in reverse, except for Stephen Strange and Mordo, who remained normal. They continued their battle with Cacilius in this absurd environment, leaving everyone astonished.
During the fight, numerous followers of Dormammu were washed away by the reversed water, and the restored walls engulfed them. It was a completely novel experience for everyone.
As the spell's effects persisted, the destroyed city gradually restored itself. Even Cacilius was consumed by the walls and ended up trapped inside.
Amidst the chaos, a piece of debris flew back to its original location, revealing an Asian man whose chest had been impaled by an iron rod, seemingly beyond salvation.
But with time reversing, the man's body was miraculously freed from the impaled rod, returning to its previous state before the accident.
Stephen Strange then used the green light to touch the man's face, instantly restoring him to normal.
"The Time Stone is indeed immensely powerful!" Tony Stark remarked, "Destroyed cities can be restored, and dead people can be brought back to life."
"Yeah, with the Time Stone, Stephen is invincible," Bruce Banner added, "No matter what damage the enemy causes, he can rewind time and undo it all."
"It can't be that simple," Steve Rogers said solemnly, "I don't believe such a cheat-like item can be used anytime."
As they were talking, the video showed the Sanctum Sanctorum slowly reconstructing.
"After the Sanctum is repaired, they will return, and we must protect it," Stephen Strange took the lead and ran towards the Sanctum.
However, Cacilius, who had been trapped in the wall, emerged and slammed his palm on the ground, creating a shockwave that devoured the ground and quickly approached Stephen Strange. Stephen fell to the ground, and the green light around his arm extinguished.
The partially reconstructed Sanctum froze in place, amid the ruins and flames. All the people on the street also froze, even the stir-fried noodles that were thrown into the air remained suspended.
As the scene unfolded, Cacilius and his followers approached.
"You cannot defeat what is destined to happen," Cacilius stepped forward, "It's beautiful, a world beyond time, beyond life and death."
"Beyond life and death," Stephen Strange muttered as he lay on the ground. Suddenly, he flew up into the dark space.
He landed on a sphere within the Dark Dimension and saw Dormammu – what an immense creature! Just his face covered half the sky.
"Dormammu, I've come to negotiate," Stephen Strange said, conjuring a green circle on his arm using the Time Stone.
"You've come to die," Dormammu replied, "Your world now belongs to me, like the others."
Then the sky shot out countless tube-like objects towards Stephen Strange, who managed to block a couple, but Dormammu opened his mouth and unleashed an energy beam, reducing Stephen Strange to ashes.
But time immediately reversed back to the moment when Stephen Strange came to negotiate with Dormammu.
"Dormammu, I've come to negotiate," Stephen Strange said to Dormammu.
"You've come to die, and your world now belongs to me..." Dormammu paused, realizing something was wrong, "What's happening? An illusion?"
"No, this is reality," Stephen Strange replied.
"Very well," Dormammu said, and two giant tube-like objects descended from the sky, impaling Stephen Strange.
"Dormammu, I've come to negotiate," but the next moment, Stephen Strange reappeared.
"What's going on with you?" Dormammu was baffled. Why did this person keep coming back after being killed?
"Just as you brought the abilities from your world to Cacilius, I also brought some abilities from mine," Stephen Strange explained, "This is the power of time, an infinite loop of time."
"You're daring!" Dormammu was furious, and he slapped Stephen Strange into oblivion.
"Dormammu, I've come to negotiate," Stephen Strange reappeared once more.
"You cannot keep looping like this forever," Dormammu said.
"In fact, I can," Stephen Strange replied, "Isn't reality always like this? You and I, trapped in the same moment, an infinite loop."
"Then you shall die countless times!" Dormammu roared.
"That's true, but the people on Earth will live on," Stephen Strange said.
"Then you will suffer," Dormammu retorted.
"I have grown accustomed to it," Stephen Strange replied.
With that, Dormammu unleashed an energy beam, reducing Stephen Strange to ashes.
The following scenes could be summarized as "Doctor Strange's Encyclopedia of Unique Deaths," where he repeatedly appeared before Dormammu only to be killed over and over again.
"Strange, I genuinely admire you," Tony Stark, who was not easily impressed, genuinely acknowledged Stephen Strange's abilities this time.
As an interdimensional deity like Dormammu, he naturally couldn't be "annoyed" after a mere ten or twenty disturbances. Beings beyond dimensions like him had an incredibly strong will compared to ordinary people.
Stephen Strange attempted to trap Dormammu in a time loop, and with that, the number of loops could be countless—certainly more than ten or twenty times. It might even be hundreds of thousands of times or more, and it wouldn't be surprising.
And in each iteration, Stephen Strange faced death every time, and each death was rather gruesome.
Death is the greatest fear in the world. Who isn't afraid of death?
How many people in the world can transcend life and death?
Yet Stephen Strange had to face this fear again and again.
It could be said that being trapped in a time loop with Dormammu was a far more cruel and brutal experience than death itself.
"Strange, no wonder you can become such a powerful sorcerer," Steve Rogers also expressed his deep admiration, "If you can handle this, what else could possibly challenge you?"
"Can I really do it?" Stephen Strange looked at the video of himself dying over and over again, even starting to doubt himself.
"I've come to negotiate!" in the video, Stephen Strange said the lines he had uttered countless times before.
"What conditions do you want to negotiate?" This time, Dormammu finally paid attention to those words.
"Take your followers and leave Earth, stop your evil deeds in our world, and never return," Stephen Strange looked at Dormammu and said, "If you agree, I'll stop the time loop."
"It's beautiful, a world beyond time, beyond death," the camera panned to the street where Cacilius repeated the same lines.
Then, Stephen Strange descended from the sky and landed behind Cacilius.
"What have you done?" Cacilius turned around and looked at Stephen Strange.
"My conditions have been agreed upon," Stephen Strange said.
With that, Cacilius and his followers turned into ashes and were consumed by Dormammu.
The video ended here.
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