Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 1741

The howling wind and dense snow blurred his vision, but Stephen Strange could vaguely make out two beams of light streaking across the sky in the distance. Towering icebergs gradually succumbed to the blizzard, collapsing with a terrifying roar. Ridges crumbled onto the dark permafrost, lava gushing from deep ravines, gradually melting the snow on the icebergs.

Pegasus's hooves pounded the hard frozen ground, long plumes of steam billowing from his enormous nostrils. Blood trickled down his metal gauntlets, then seeped from the sealed gel within the damaged armor. The scalding blood fell onto the snow, rising like molten metal in a puff of steam. The golden-armored warrior, seated on his horse, gazed at the other side of the frozen plain, where a bronze-cast eight-legged winged horse trod through the snow, where lightning and ice seemed frozen in time.

Pegasus raised his horse's hooves and charged toward Sleipnir.

The clash of guns and their tips released heat and flashes that were too intense for the naked eye to see.

Then the snow disappeared, lava filled the world, and unmelted rocks sank slowly into the magma like summer ice. The lava then rapidly solidified, forming plains; storms ground the rocks to create soil; trees and shrubs grew quickly; and finally, floods returned, forming the sea once more. Stephen Strange clearly remembered that there were no volcanoes near the Faroe Islands, and that environmental changes couldn't have occurred so quickly, as if reality were merely a thin sheet of paper covering humanity's fragile perceptions, easily peeled away.

He saw two enormous female figures standing on the shore. Their blue and pale skin, clothing with butterfly and moth motifs, and scarlet eyes indicated that they were beings from another dimension. A towering tree grew on the sea, its bright runes shimmering in the night sky, protecting the figures beneath it from the threats of the changing environment.

Stephen Strange rubbed his eyes, trying to see more clearly—

"Strange," a voice said from the side, "now it's time for you to do your job."

Stephen Strange opened his eyes to find an old, gray-bearded sorcerer looking at him with a serious expression. "Mage Hamil, I understand," he said quickly, bowing his head. "I'll begin now."

He dared not be negligent, for all the Kamar-Taj sorcerers were gathered at the three great temples and the Himalayan temple, along with supplicants scattered throughout the world, working together to maintain the struggling planetary defense system. As a student personally taken in by the former Sorcerer Supreme, Stephen Strange lived up to expectations, displaying exceptional talent.

Following a vote by the agent, Mage Hamil, and the Arcane Council, Stephen Strange was permitted to use the Eye of Agamotto in the operation. His task was to use the Eye of Agamotto to reset the planetary defense system when the system's pivot was on the verge of collapse. Even Baron Mordo disregarded the taboo against "playing with time," as the current situation was the result of the arcane mages' best efforts to maintain order.

They did their best to keep most of the storm within the North Atlantic, preventing the aftermath of the battle from causing a catastrophic disaster.

If unacceptable damage were to occur, they would do everything in their power to activate the Eye of Agamotto and rewind time across the entire planet to before the catastrophe—something Stephen Strange couldn't do, and the Kamar-Taj sorcerers had to pour all their magic into it, because they weren't sure if the Lord of Kamar-Taj would still have the power to use the Eye of Agamotto at that time—fortunately, the incantation to invoke the magic was answered, no longer functioning intermittently like a faulty appliance.

This means that using the Eye of Agamotto to reset time on Earth no longer requires all arcane mages to sacrifice their lives.

Prayers gathered in the halls of the Himalayan temple, chanting incantations to alleviate the pressure from the outer dimensions on the sorcerers. However, the surging waves of the sea of ​​souls were beyond the capacity of ordinary people to withstand. The occasional screams reminded Stephen Strange that this was no easy disaster to overcome—colorful flames erupted from the eyes, mouth, and nostrils of one of the prayers, forming a writhing, nauseatingly colorful trail in the air. This trail then devoured flesh and blood, burning bones to dust, leaving only a charred skull still flickering with embers.

The sorcerer nearby quickly rushed over to handle the situation, casting spells to cool the bones while ordering his apprentices to clean up the remains. Bones scorched by the fire of the soul could cause contamination and needed to be handled with care, unlike the impoverished people of the South Asian subcontinent who would burn them halfway and throw them into the river. The librarian, Little Wang, glanced up, then continued staring at his magic ring.

"The Cauldron of the Universe is amazing, isn't it?" Librarian Xiao Wang whispered to him. "Few people can use the Cauldron of the Universe for observation; you're an exception. And you can even use the Eye of Agamotto, which proves that the former Sorcerer Supreme's decision was correct. Mordo's arrogance is intolerable."

"How can you be so cold-hearted?" Stephen Strange gritted his teeth indignantly, cold sweat trickling down his forehead and nose. "That was a life!"

"At least his life was valuable. Maybe he saved a village from the storm; it was a worthwhile trade. If we fail, we won't even be able to save a stray dog." Little Wang shrugged. "Resetting time isn't without its advantages. I just ate half an hour ago, but now I'm so hungry I could eat a whale. Once the Eye of Agamotto takes effect, I won't be hungry anymore. You see, at least I saved money on a meal; Speaker Victor von Doom refused to give me more food allowance..."

"You've said that many times," Stephen Strange sighed. He wasn't distracted; multitasking was his talent, otherwise he couldn't have become an excellent surgeon and paid off his student loans in such a short time. "Including your assessment of Mordo."

"Is that so?" Little Wang the mage stroked his chin. "Modu believes that too many spellcasters can easily cause trouble, and coincidentally, our master shares the same view."

"Do you know how powerful he is? Why can he alter reality as easily as peeling back a sheet of paper? This is something no human could possibly do—I've confirmed it. The scene displayed by the Cosmic Cauldron is real; what I saw wasn't the echo of time from the Sea of ​​Souls. In other words, the North Atlantic might really have become a continent!"

This was Stephen Strange's first encounter with the Cosmic Cauldron, a high-level magical artifact, and his understanding of it was limited to a few words from the young sorcerer. The latter, having lived in Kamar-Taj since childhood, knew almost as much about this advanced artifact as a high-level sorcerer.

Kamar-Taj possesses many renowned artifacts, such as the Living Tribunal's Scepter and the Staff of Vatum; however, these are all creations of arcane sorcerers. Only the Cosmic Cauldron is a true artifact created by a "god." However, Stephen Strange now has doubts about the definition of "god," unsure whether the scenes he witnessed, and the powerful beings who caused them, can be called gods.

"Are you referring to our master, or the Father of the Gods? For beings as powerful as them, there is no difference between reality and illusion. If they so desire, reality can operate entirely according to their will. You haven't witnessed the Sorcerer Supreme dealing with powerful enemies, otherwise you wouldn't be so astonished." The Little King Mage shook his head. "The purpose of the Cosmic Cauldron is to explore possibilities. What you see is only one possibility, not a reality that has already occurred. Perhaps what you see will happen in the next second. We are guarding against this possibility, to prevent a piece of land from rising from the Atlantic Ocean."

Stephen Strange gripped the Eye of Agamotto tightly around his neck. He felt as if the ancient-looking brass casing was about to burst into flames. "I don't consider him my master. I am free, and I study magic to save lives."

"You are saving lives right now, Strange, and nobody in this world is free; that's just an illusion your culture gives you."

"You've said that before." Stephen Strange reached out and flicked the deep green halo.

Master Wang suddenly shut his mouth.

The wind and petals that had blown into the temple froze, even the dust and light solidified, as if the air itself had turned to glass. Only Stephen Strange breathed throughout the entire Himalayan temple. He pressed a specific rune among hundreds, slowly rotating the deep green halo. Immediately, all the arcane mages trembled rapidly, like a video played in reverse, leaving afterimages in the air. The mages regained their radiance. Except for the supplicant who had been burned to ashes, everything returned to normal.

Stephen Strange reached out to touch the dead supplicant, but just as the writhing, multicolored flames were about to touch his fingers, a warning from his soul made him pull his hand back. He had a premonition that if he decided to reverse the supplicant's death, he would pay an unbearable price. As a spellcaster, his soul was subject to magical tides from outer dimensions, where fragments of the past and future fused together; this premonition was very likely a warning from the future.

Stephen Strange hesitated for a moment, then ended the spell.

The mage Hamil glanced at the skull on the ground. "How many times has this happened?"

"The fourth time." Strange blinked hard at his dry eyes. "I can't hold on much longer."

"You can do it," Master Hamil concluded bluntly. "Recite the prayers, keep your mind pure, and don't be tempted by the sea of ​​the soul. You are the most gifted among us; you can do it."

"I'm not that good," Stephen Strange said. "If I fail..."

"Your caution is commendable, Strange. We do indeed have a backup plan," said the mage Hamil in a somber tone. "It's a terrifying machine, created by the legendary inorganic life-giants who roamed the universe. That machine records all the information since the creation of Earth; it's a life-giving elixir that has collected all the intelligence of the Earth—the information from every wisp of wind, every grain of sand, and even every microscopic particle. That machine can restore the Earth's environment to its original form billions of years ago, from its topography to its ecosystem."

"Sounds pretty good." Daniel, a mage from the New York Temple, winked playfully. "I'm also a high-level arcane mage, how come I don't know anything about this?"

"The machine was buried on the sacred mountain before the Kamar-Taj Sanctuary was built, and the current Lord of Kamar-Taj sealed it away with the first Sorcerer Supreme," said the sorcerer Hamil. Most high-ranking mages and temple deacons knew that the current Lord of Kamar-Taj had time-traveled. Regent Victor von Doom personally told them that the evidence was an artifact from the Immortal City that recorded a conversation between the current Lord of Kamar-Taj and Agamotto.

Time travel is not uncommon; every Sorcerer Supreme has used time travel to converse with Agamotto, including the previous one. Perhaps the prerequisite for succeeding to the position of Sorcerer Supreme is gaining the approval of Agamotto rather than Vishanti, but these are all speculations, and only the Sorcerer Supreme knows the truth.

"We still haven't mastered how to use that machine, and even the Lord of Kamar-Taj can't fully control it. Strange, if you fail, the Lord of Kamar-Taj will have no choice but to activate the machine."

"Maybe that machine will revert Earth to the age of dinosaurs," Master Daniel said excitedly. "I'd love to touch a dinosaur myself. You know, when I was a child, humans didn't know much about dinosaurs."

"By then, we might turn into a mass of atoms, or maybe even seaweed." Mage Hamil glared at Mage Daniel, who lacked the composure expected of someone his age. "I don't think the Lord of Kamar-Taj will take the time to piece us back together. Humans aren't Lego toys; he has many other things to do."

"Does he know about Lego?" Stephen Strange asked in a low voice, facing the young wizard.

Master Wang couldn't help but chuckle. "Actually, Dad isn't that old."

A violent wind and snowstorm swept across northeastern Europe in the blink of an eye, and a sudden cold front swept from the Atlantic Ocean straight into the European interior and Canada. Even Viktor von Dum and the Yugoslav Regent, who had foreseen this apocalyptic scene, couldn't help but curse and urgently summon officials to implement countermeasures. Even after the duel ended, the effects of such abnormal weather would not disappear immediately.

The eruptions of Krakatoa in Indonesia in 1883 and Pinatupo in the Philippines in 1991 triggered global cold snaps that lasted for years. Moreover, the effects of the Peruvian volcanic eruption that annihilated Quetzalcoatl a year earlier are still ongoing; the planet is currently experiencing a "year without summer." He can foresee that humanity will soon face global food shortages, mass livestock deaths, and typhoid epidemics.

Viktor von Doom had to halt military food stockpiling and begin purchasing grain so that Yugoslavia could survive for the next two years—although he and the Emperor had cast a large-scale weather-altering spell across the entire country to increase grain production, no one knew whether such a large-scale spell would function properly under intense psionic interference.

What troubled him even more was that increasing the budget for grain procurement could potentially hinder the systematization of the military. The Martian foundry, a department under the Emperor, also required industrial raw materials to produce armaments, meaning that Mars and Yugoslavia's currencies were interchangeable. This was a complex economic issue that could not be resolved by the Emperor unifying the currencies of Mars and Yugoslavia through administrative orders or by mandating that Mars unconditionally supply Yugoslavia with industrial goods; that would only lead to the collapse of either Mars or Yugoslavia.

He now only wanted to make a phone call, or borrow the Cosmic Cauldron from Kamar-Taj—even though he knew the artifact was also used for battlefield surveillance—to let him know what was happening. Was he worried the Emperor would fail? No, never. Odin was no match for him. The Emperor's status was far superior to Odin's; if he took it seriously, even Odin, who had received half a million years of worship and whose soul sea's power had expanded to the point that his body couldn't withstand it, couldn't defeat him. Victor von Doom was worried about what would happen next.

It wasn't Ragnarok. In the future they envisioned, Ragnarok was merely the first step in a war of aggression. No matter how long they prepared, their outdated human technology couldn't fill the gaps in their orbital defenses. They had to contend with a massive alien invasion while simultaneously using their limited space naval resources to protect the ground battlefield, until the invaders from outer space could no longer afford the losses, and the dark overlord Thanos was forced to confront the Emperor himself.

Only in this way can humanity achieve victory.