Chapter 136: Sorry, You Said That Too Late (Bonus Chapter for the 10,000-point reward from "Hit Your Little D")

"Teleportation? I don't know how to do that."

"But that doesn't mean it can't be done!"

Instantly redeeming the "Blink" ability, Old Wang broke free from the immediate fray, though he remained trapped within the Mirror Dimension. The signature skills of Kamar-Taj were not to be underestimated. After all, the true source of the spell was not the sorcerer himself, but the Vishanti—the trinity of gods behind him. Kaecilius was merely a medium, or perhaps a conductor, for the magic.

The more powerful the spell, the harder it was to sustain. The Ancient One might hold it for a minute or longer, but Kaecilius was far too frail. In the blink of an eye, dozens of Kaecilius manifestations vanished, leaving only one behind.

Jade-colored lightning materialized out of thin air and crashed down, only to be instantly blocked by an orange circular magic shield.

"Lightning? I can do that too!"

Kaecilius gripped his hands, and orange magical lightning surged toward Old Wang. Green internal energy transformed into a golden protective aura, shielding Old Wang’s body. The monk’s skill, "Fortifying Brew," withstood the magical lightning without a scratch.

Four versions of Old Wang appeared once more, embodying earth, fire, water, and wind—elemental separation. The wind howled, the fire burned, the water roared, and a massive sandstorm filled the sky. Kaecilius’s expression remained unchanged. A massive magic shield appeared before him, intercepting every attack, which then transformed into a sky full of cherry blossoms—the scent of love.

"Shield of Seraphim!"

It was a spell that rewrote reality, transmuting the attacks of the four Old Wangs into other forms before dissolving them into pure, dissipated energy.

Old Wang attacked again. Pandaren monks were the most agile of the heavyweights; having successfully slimmed down, Old Wang was naturally more nimble than his kin in the previous life. He was confident he could use speed to overwhelm his opponent. When it came to a war of attrition, he, the monk, had never feared anyone!

Kaecilius’s expression shifted, as if some great terror were about to descend. Another magical attack forced Old Wang to dodge, and another sorcerer apprentice seized the opportunity to draw a circle, opening an orange portal. Kaecilius hurriedly leaped inside.

Seeing Old Wang about to give chase, Kaecilius’s eyes flickered, and he made a sharp gesture. The portal vanished. He had chosen to give up, even though he was not in a position of absolute disadvantage. This struck Old Wang as strange, and he couldn't help but touch his own face.

"Have I become so handsome that you've been forced to flee in shame?"

In the nineteen years since arriving in this world, neither the Winter Soldier, the Hand, nor the Ghost Rider—who wasn't powerful enough yet—had been worthy of making him fight with everything he had. After finally encountering someone decent, the opponent had run away just as he was warming up. Why?

"This is the true power of a Kamar-Taj master, the formidable ability to defend Earth. It really isn't as simple as it was portrayed in the movies."

Old Wang shook his head gently and turned around, walking toward the apprentices who had been abandoned. Having followed loyally only to be discarded, the apprentices looked grim; their eyes held not just disappointment, but despair. Some gave up entirely, while others knelt to beg for mercy. One apprentice hurriedly tried to open a portal to escape, but Old Wang was already before him. With a palm strike to the chest followed by a sudden grasp, the apprentice’s body and soul perished in quick succession.

Without Kaecilius to provide cover, these apprentices had no hope of successfully opening a portal. Even mounting a horse required a three-second cast time, let alone opening a gateway.

"Show mercy!"

Suddenly, a clear, rapid voice echoed, and an orange magic shield appeared before Old Wang, blocking his path. The potent mana fluctuation was more than ten times that of Kaecilius; not even Mjolnir could have shattered it. Old Wang had only sensed such formidable power from a handful of mages like Medivh, Aegwynn, or Queen Azshara. Such beings deserved to be called "Archmages," or at the very least, demigods.

Old Wang remained expressionless. No person or event could alter his will; those he intended to kill, no one could protect. He raised his left hand and held up his middle finger. Jade-colored lightning descended from the heavens, reducing the panicked apprentices to charred husks.

"Sigh."

With that sigh, everything around them changed at a visible speed. The collapsing, twisted buildings restored themselves as if time were flowing in reverse. It looked as if they had returned to reality, but they hadn't. This was still the Mirror Dimension. Without a Sling Ring, one could not leave the Mirror Dimension; without the help of a sorcerer, Old Wang would seemingly be trapped here forever.

But he was not anxious, nor was he afraid. He had encountered such situations more than a hundred times, and such opponents more than a hundred times. Old Wang turned and saw a portal that had just appeared a hundred meters away. A figure in yellow robes and a yellow hood emerged. The portal vanished, and the hood was pulled back, revealing a beautiful bald head.

Ten bald heads, nine are strong, and one is the strongest of them all. Since arriving in this world, Old Wang had seen many bald people: Kingpin, Agent Sitwell, Nick Fury—but none were as powerful as this one, renowned throughout the multiverse.

"Sorry, you were too late."

Old Wang offered a slight smile, neither humble nor arrogant.

...

Having seen all sorts of people in this life, and having experienced everything a mortal could experience, the Ancient One naturally would not be angry just because Old Wang refused to give her face. Everyone had their own temperament, and she had increasingly learned to treat things with equanimity. Besides, from any angle, those apprentices had invited their own deaths; the man had done nothing wrong.

As the Sorcerer Supreme, she was the most powerful entity in the entire universe. Anyone who saw her would, to some degree, show respect, fear, joy, or other emotions. Even if Odin stood before her, he would show due regard. But this man did not. There was no fear, no respect, no joy, and not even surprise. It was as if the person standing before him was not the Sorcerer Supreme capable of destroying a city with a flick of her wrist, but an ordinary nun.

Mortals might be fearless due to ignorance, but this man was certainly not that. Such a person must have something to rely on, though she did not know what it was. Having just returned to Kamar-Taj from the depths of the universe, she had sensed powerful magical fluctuations and rushed over. She hadn't yet had the chance to understand who this was or what his background was, but the Ancient One was used to the unusual. The universe was vast and full of wonders; there were always people and things she did not know, and there was still time to learn.

The Eye of Agamotto appeared quietly, and the space-time around them shifted. In an instant, she had traced the man's past and viewed seventy-two million possible futures. She did not know that everything she saw was a past and future rewritten and disguised by the heart of Azeroth, which had consumed enough blood to fill a lake. There were no discrepancies, and no one could see through it—not even the Ancient One.

From his birth to his abandonment and his subsequent growth, everything indicated that this man was a genuine, red-blooded human from Earth. However, the necklace around his neck, which he had carried since birth, was clearly not simple. Perhaps it was a ploy by some major player in the multiverse? Or perhaps it was just an accident that even she could not track?

What adventures a person had was irrelevant to her; she only needed to determine one thing. In that momentary regression and observation, she had found her answer: this man was definitely not an enemy. That was enough. This was her judgment after seeing through the ways of the world, far more accurate than any senior HR manager at a major corporation.

A single glance was all it took to see through someone from head to toe. Having long since lost interest in everything on Earth, even the Infinity Stones could not stir her, so she naturally did not care about the necklace. She was now simply full of curiosity about the person before her.