The Supreme Mage's Request
Stepping through the shimmering portal, Xu Mo found himself standing in a mountain courtyard built in the style of ancient Chinese temples.
Around him, other structures rose from the peaks and ridges, forming a hidden city in the clouds.
Not far below, a group of robed practitioners trained together. Golden circles of magic flared into being and vanished with each movement of their hands.
Then, a voice called out from behind.
"Master Daniel, have you brought a guest?"
Xu Mo turned. A bald woman in yellow robes approached, a small wooden fan in her hand. Her expression was serene, but her eyes held an unmistakable weight of wisdom.
There was no mistaking her—this was the Ancient One, Supreme Sorcerer of Kamar-Taj.
Daniel immediately bowed.
"Master Ancient One, this man is a practitioner of dark—"
The Ancient One raised her hand, cutting him off before he could finish. Of course she already knew what Daniel had done. Otherwise, she would not have been waiting for them here.
"Master Daniel, leave us. I will speak with him alone."
Daniel froze, then bowed again. But before leaving, he shot Xu Mo a dark, hostile glare.
Xu Mo noticed, and his eyes narrowed. Though he had willingly come, he would not allow himself to be deceived without consequence. In the next instant, he blurred forward, intent on teaching the so-called Guardian a lesson.
"Wait."
The Ancient One extended her hand, a rare hint of apology in her expression.
"I offer my apologies on his behalf."
Xu Mo's smile was cold.
"If apologies were enough, what need would there be for police?"
He vanished.
The Ancient One sighed and made no move to stop him. After all, Daniel was the one in the wrong.
Daniel, who had only just walked away, heard every word. His face hardened as he spun around, golden mandalas of energy forming in his hands.
But it was pointless.
Xu Mo appeared in front of him and drove a fist into his abdomen. Daniel's body rocketed back like a cannonball, smashing into a distant cliff wall. Blood and fragments of his organs sprayed from his mouth before he lost consciousness.
The Ancient One flicked her wrist. Daniel's limp body lifted from the stone and vanished into a healing chamber elsewhere in Kamar-Taj.
"I trust your anger has subsided," she said calmly.
Xu Mo exhaled, his temper cooling. He had half expected her to shield her subordinate. Instead, she had let him vent his fury. Truly fitting for someone worthy of the title Supreme Sorcerer.
He had held back. For an ordinary man, that blow would have been fatal. But with Daniel's resilience and Kamar-Taj's healing, he would recover within a few years—just in time, perhaps, to meet his end during Kaecilius' eventual rebellion.
Perfect.
---
Tea with the Ancient One
Minutes later, Xu Mo sat opposite the Ancient One in a quiet chamber. She poured tea, setting a cup before him.
"Try it," she said. "It's from your homeland."
"Thanks."
Xu Mo took a sip. To him, it tasted no different than a cheap bottled tea drink.
The Ancient One set her teapot down.
"Over a year ago, I sensed the aura of Chthon upon Earth. That was your doing, wasn't it?"
Xu Mo nodded slowly. He realized now that when the Darkhold had surfaced, its corruption had already been noticed by her.
"You don't seem to be corrupted by his dark magic," she observed.
Xu Mo gave her a pointed look.
"Mage, neither do you."
Her hand trembled, spilling a drop of tea.
She knew he had struck home. To prolong her life and shield Earth from Dormammu, she had drawn power from the Dark Dimension. Strictly speaking, she was no different from him.
She set her cup aside, exhaled, and composed herself.
"I knew you were extraordinary, but I didn't expect you to know that."
Xu Mo tilted his head.
"Can the Sorcerer Supreme not peer into my past and future?"
The Ancient One shook her head.
"No. And that is precisely what makes you unusual."
Xu Mo understood instantly.
With the Time Stone, she could read anyone's history, anyone's fate. But him? Nothing. The system had already erased his past from the timeline under Eternity's authority. That made him an anomaly even she could not penetrate.
---
The Truth of the Invitation
"So tell me," Xu Mo said. "Why invite me here?"
The Ancient One's smile was faint, evasive.
"Didn't Daniel deceive you into coming?"
Xu Mo chuckled darkly.
"Master, I run a film company. Your acting is worse than my background extras."
Her eyes glittered with amusement. Xu Mo was right. If she had wished to stop Daniel, it would have been trivial. Instead, she had let him bring Xu Mo here—even at the risk of Daniel's life.
"You're sharper than I expected," she admitted. "Very well. I do need your help."
She refilled their cups.
"I have foreseen, with the Time Stone, that in a few years, Earth will be invaded by the Dark Dimension."
Her voice grew grave.
"But I will not live to see it. Once I am gone, I can no longer look beyond that point. If it is handled poorly, this world may be destroyed instantly."
Her eyes locked onto Xu Mo.
"So I believe, if you are capable, you can stop it."
Xu Mo leaned back, brows raised.
"You're saying… the Time Stone can't show you what happens after you die?"
The Ancient One gave him a weary, almost exasperated look. His focus was on the wrong detail.
"That's correct. The Stone can only reveal what is connected to me. To watch someone's fate is only possible because their path intersects with mine. But after my death, everything beyond is cut off. It no longer concerns me."
Xu Mo's expression hardened with thought. So that was it—the greatest seer on Earth, blind the moment her own end arrived.
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