Marvel: Starting with the Glint-Glint Fruit.

Chapter 145 The Art of Balancing Between the Ancient One and Mephisto (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

"Tsk, are they trying to play Infernal Affairs?"

Matthew pondered for a moment and then grasped the meaning behind the ancient saying.

Mephisto was smarter and calmer than he had imagined.

The feud between him and Mephisto was essentially nothing; his biggest grudge was simply that he had made Mephisto lose face.

But is the devil's face also called face?

He destroyed Mephisto's energy projection, causing Mephisto to lose a wisp of his soul and become a laughing stock among the demon lords of other hell dimensions, which may have slightly diminished his dominance in his own territory.

However, what's the point of other dimensional lords making fun of Mephisto?

There was no substantial loss to the roots.

That wisp of soul was not a loss for Mephisto himself; he recovered after a short rest.

As for the threat to its ruling position, that's utterly insignificant.

The only good son, the Demon Witch, was captured by Matthew and taken to the island base, becoming a sitting duck for the super soldiers of the two warbands.

Would anyone else challenge Mephisto just because they'd lose face?

Don't die?

Mephisto isn't dead, his strength hasn't diminished, so what's the point of challenging him? Anyone who loses their mind and rationality to challenge Mephisto will only become the chicken that Mephisto uses to kill the monkey.

Therefore, the feud between the two is purely a matter of Mephisto's perspective.

After all, Matthew was the one who benefited the most, so of course he liked Old Mexican the most.

Clearly, this time, the Ancient One's special reminder to Matthew made Matthew realize that Mephisto, the devil, truly lived up to his reputation.

They have considered many things quite maturely, focusing solely on their own interests.

If Mephisto really had designs on helping Dormammu kill Matthew, what would be the benefit for him?

There's absolutely no benefit to it.

Mephisto, after all, doesn't have God's perspective, so he doesn't know the exact relationship between the Ancient One and Matthew.

From Mephisto and Dormammu's perspective, Matthew is the Ancient One's chosen successor as the Sorcerer Supreme.

So killing Matthew might not be a good outcome for Mephisto.

Mephisto knew very well that many things were secretly planned and seemingly unknown to anyone, but the Ancient One would not tell him the evidence.

As long as there is any doubt, it's hard to say whether a crazy, "dying" Ancient One could trade one for him before she leaves, even if Mephisto is in Hell, his home turf.

The Ancient One was determined to fight him to the death; Mephisto would be crippled even if he didn't die.

A severely wounded demon lord will not receive any sympathy, but will only attract the greedy eyes of other demon lords.

And then what?

Even if they manage to survive, will Mephisto be able to take over the Earth as he wishes?

That's absolutely impossible.

There is an even more powerful Dark Lord, Dormammu, who is of a higher level and dimension. Why should he give him to Mephisto?

Even if Odin, the All-King of the Asgardians, intervened, he could not kill Dormammu.

Dormammu can only be killed by destroying the Dark Dimension.

Otherwise, he would be immortal, because the Dark Dimension is Dormammu.

After being severely damaged, Dormammu can return to the Dark Dimension to recuperate, and then no one on Earth can stop him.

Dormammu has enough patience to recover, so what if someone else takes it?

Once restored, Dormammu will still be able to sweep away life in other dimensions, and Earth will still belong to Dormammu.

Mephisto gained no advantage whatsoever.

These chain reactions are predictable with a little thought.

Mephisto wouldn't do anything that wouldn't benefit him.

The Ancient One's arrival here serves as both a warning and a hope that Matthew will come to his senses and stop pointing the finger at Mephisto.

The waters of hell are very deep.

It's best not to cause any unnecessary trouble for Matthew, who hasn't reached maturity yet, until he evolves to his ultimate form.

This is the art of balance.

The Ancient One is trying to maintain a balance, and Mephisto is trying to maintain a balance as well; neither wants the balance to be broken.

Mephisto preferred to maintain the status quo rather than let others benefit.

Compared to the Ancient One, and compared to Matthew, a native protector of Earth, Mephisto would not want Earth to be taken over by Dormammu.

If Dormammu's brutality were to take over Earth, his dark power would rapidly grow stronger and devour the entire universe.

Their power will increase dramatically, becoming a nightmare for the multiverse.

Mephisto's hell will surely not escape the fate of being swallowed up.

Earth is a defensive line against Dormammu, and Mephisto wouldn't be foolish enough to dismantle it himself.

No wonder the Ancient One tacitly allowed Mephisto to secretly come to Earth and cause trouble.

It turns out there's another layer to the deepest, core reason.

Matthew finally understood this.

So he stopped worrying.

Instead, he thought of Casillas.

"Would you be angry if I killed Kaecilius, Dormammu?" Matthew never liked being passive.

Although Matthew wasn't afraid, it was still annoying to be constantly stared at by rats hiding in the sewers.

Since that's the case, we might as well take the initiative.

While we're at it, let's also annoy Dormammu a bit. Dormammu's angry face would definitely be cute.

So Matthew left the mirror dimension, but instead of rushing back, he slowly began to adapt to his newly developed abilities.

This is the golden period for growth, and Matthew won't waste a single moment.

Villas in Manhattan's affluent neighborhood, New York.

In the modern, luxurious living room, Pierce wore a thin sweater.

Now that it's September and the temperature is starting to drop, he, as someone entering old age, must consider the issue of keeping warm.

The weather in New York that day was rather cold and damp.

It rained heavily last night and only stopped this morning.

Pierce is the Secretary General of the World Security Council, and his job can be described as both busy and not busy.

When I'm not busy, I have a lot of free time, like today.

Of course, in addition to this position, he is also the U.S. Secretary of Defense, a position with absolute real power.

However, this incredibly powerful figure was pondering a problem.

Holding a square, thick-bottomed glass, one hand in his trouser pocket, he took a sip of whiskey and stood in the corner.

He stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, admiring the post-rain scenery and pondering his questions.

One of the issues is naturally Nick Fury.

This is the man he promoted, but later found himself unable to control.

Nick Fury's rise to power was a reluctant move made out of a number of considerations; there were many things that forced him to do so back then.

He admired Nick Fury's talent, but was also wary of him, so he had no choice but to go along with it.

Otherwise, it might have caused a lot of unnecessary trouble back then.

However, Nick Fury has now brought him this trouble again.

While Pierce was thinking, someone walked in.

He was dressed in a plain leather jacket and T-shirt, with a burly and robust build, and a cold and aloof demeanor like a soldier.

"Sir."

"Rumlow," Pierce called out the man's name without turning his head.