My family runs an adventurer's guild.

Even for patients with complex, incurable conditions like cancer or AIDS, a single "Healing Spell" from Tony would at least leave them looking radiant and full of energy. Of course, if the patient has a parasitic infection, caution is needed; you can't just randomly cast Healing Spells, otherwise, you might end up making the parasites even more vigorous than the host…

For a moment, Tony, holding the Arc Reactor and casting spells, his whole body enveloped in magical light, appeared to everyone present as Jesus descending to earth to perform miracles—the patient was healed without medicine after being touched by the saint, which was clearly the "standard template of miracles" found in most religions.

A large group of reporters were absolutely thrilled, and after the video and news flash were uploaded online, they became incredibly popular! They were off the charts!

As for the doctors and nurses at New York Central Hospital, they outwardly applauded and smiled, but inwardly they were filled with righteous indignation and furious curses: "Iron Man, you bastard! We kindly assembled a top-notch team of experts to perform heart surgery on you, just to ride on your Iron Man news hype. And you, you jump off the bed and cause a scene, giving us such a huge news story!"

With your miraculous sweep, our hospital's revenue this week is going to plummet by at least two-thirds, okay?

At least 70 percent of surgeons and 50 percent of internists have had their jobs taken by you!

As America's most famous superhero, your normal job is to fight supervillains and terrorists every day, making the police and FBI lose face, right? Or as a top figure in the emerging clean energy industry, it's your daily business to take on established energy giants like Roxson Oil Company. Why have you suddenly and inexplicably shifted your focus to attacking us doctors who make a living with our skills?

In fact, if an ordinary person were jumping around in a hospital like that, the hospital would have already contacted the police and lawyers to arrest them on charges of "practicing medicine without a license," or at least kicked them out. But it's Iron Man Tony Stark, a "hero of two worlds," surrounded by so many excited reporters and fans... well, maybe it's better to just wash up and go to bed! At least it'll raise the hospital's profile a little, right?

Iron Man can't stay here and steal business forever, unless Stark Industries also wants to enter the medical industry...

Oh no, is Iron Man really planning this?! ⊙０⊙ That's like crying wolf!!!

New York City, a place rife with fighting and violence, produces at least ten times more wounded people each year than other cities, and most of them can afford to pay for their injuries. Therefore, surgeons in New York are in high demand; jobs are easy to find and the pay is excellent. But now, your Iron Man-like healing magic has dealt a fatal blow. Are you trying to force us doctors to lose our jobs and go home? The economy is already sluggish, and jobs are even harder to find elsewhere!

Those patients who can't afford medical bills are pitiful, but we in the medical industry, who are about to be forced into unemployment by you, are just as pitiful!

Of course, as highly educated intellectuals and a gathering place for medical experts, not all the doctors at New York Central Hospital are narrow-minded and short-sighted. After witnessing the miraculous effects of healing magic, many doctors quickly overcame their resistance and aversion and began to seriously consider the possibility of combining modern medicine with healing magic from another world.

Because they have already vaguely realized that this will be the prelude to a multi-faceted technological upgrade!

Just like every technological upgrade in the past, which eliminated a batch of jobs while creating another batch of jobs.

Those who adapt to change thrive; those who fail to adapt are left behind by the times.

As a result, after discussing it among themselves, they were astonished to learn that Stephen Strange, the hospital's most famous star doctor, had already made an appointment to go to Xavier's Castle to study otherworldly healing magic and was currently discussing leave procedures with the dean... Truly worthy of being New York City's best neurosurgeon, the No.1 in the surgical field! His mind works faster than anyone else's!

Sigh, the world is changing so fast these days. If you don't have some magical knowledge, you won't even be able to keep your job as a doctor!

Author's message

I recommend a very interesting book, *Swords, Magic, and the Eastern Empire*. This book creates a fantastical empire that invented cannons and gunpowder during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods. Interestingly, the Easterners in the book refer to cannons as "great cauldrons," and the Nine Cauldrons represent nine giant cannons. "Asking about the cauldrons" is a competition to see whose cannon has the largest caliber and the longest range. Rockets are represented by the *da gui* (jade pendants worn at the waist), and etiquette is based on this.

Therefore, according to etiquette, the imperial palace had to be equipped with a massive cannon weighing tens of thousands of kilograms, and the emperor had to carry an RPG to court. Among the common people, only those who owned cannons were considered noble families (enjoying a life of luxury), and only those who carried rocket launchers were considered gentlemen (replacing jade pendants). Scholars, according to etiquette, dragged cannons and carried RPGs to use explosions to civilize the barbarians…

What a massive, multi-turret fundamentalist spirit of bombing!

Chapter 279, The Sorcerer Supreme Stark?

Just as Phil was watching Tony act all high and mighty in the hospital, curing people's ailments as if he were a god descending to earth to bestow blessings, she suddenly felt the space in front of her ripple like water. The ceiling and walls twisted and deformed in an instant, and everyone around her seemed to turn into clay puppets.

The whole scene was like a computer video being paused, with everything suddenly coming to a standstill.

"...Time stop? Plus a mirror space?" Phil muttered calmly. "...Is the Ancient One here?"

"...Yes, it's me. Is this the divine power bestowed by the gods of another world? It is indeed very novel and very practical! And Stark's inventions are even more amazing!"

Accompanied by a clear, cold female voice, the figure of the Ancient One, the highest leader of the Kamar-Taj Sorcerer's Guild, wearing a bright yellow hooded cloak and the bald Celtic white woman, appeared before Phili.

The highest guardian of the magical side of Earth in the Marvel universe first looked Tony Stark outside before turning to Phil and saying, "...I am quite surprised that he can combine science and magic so exquisitely and convert nuclear energy into magic so quickly."

She sighed, "...It seems like only a few months have passed since you came into this world, hasn't it?"

"...After all, it was Tony Stark who invented this thing! No one else could have combined science and magic so well."

Phil replied, "...What? Do you think that worldly people are mastering and applying magic too quickly? Do they need to slow down?"

"...No, I think this is a good development! Earth's magical world really needs to introduce new blood, and the sooner the better! Just like you said before, Kamar-Taj can't forever cover Earth's magical flank defenses; it needs more power to resist invasions from other dimensions."

Ancient One said wistfully, "...I had a premonition during my recent seclusions that Earth would soon face more crises and challenges...I'm afraid the power of Kamar-Taj alone will not be enough to protect Earth. I would be more than happy if more people could come to share the burden."

—If a narrow-minded and short-sighted leader of the magical world saw that ordinary people were also trying to dabble in the mysterious power of magic and shake their monopoly, they would probably have already been furious and prepared to nip the competitor in the bud at all costs.

But the Ancient One is different. As the guardian of Earth's magical side, she has lived for centuries, witnessing the rise and fall of nations, the rapid advancement of human civilization, and the simultaneous increase in the ability to court death.

—The two world wars, which left mountains of corpses and seas of blood, and the Cold War, which lasted for more than forty years and caused great anxiety, have only just ended. Now, wormholes and aliens over New York herald the arrival of a new interstellar war!

In this situation, the Ancient One not only had to continue fighting Dormammu, her old adversary in the Dark Dimension, but also had to clean up the messes left by the secular governments. Not to mention, she also had Kaecilius and a group of traitorous disciples who had sided with Dormammu, the ruler of the Dark Dimension, and were causing her trouble all the time...

In addition to the side effects of secretly drawing power from the Dark Dimension to sustain her life for a long time, the Ancient One is now almost completely exhausted.

"...As you probably know, the enormous energy drawn from the dark space, while granting me strength enough to contend with gods and demons, also caused severe damage to my body and mind, and this erosion is almost irreversible..."

The Ancient One frankly told Phil, "...Originally, I felt that my body and soul were about to reach a critical point and I wouldn't be able to hold on for more than a few years, so I planned to find a way to take on a disciple who could inherit my mantle."

Then, I can finally end this pain and peacefully walk into my grave.

However, after communicating and exchanging ideas with your Lord of Sleep, I discovered that I might still be able to salvage the situation—your Lord of Sleep is able to adjust and heal my hidden injuries in my sleep…

However, based on my estimation, even under the most ideal circumstances, I'm afraid I'll have to stay in bed for several years before I can be basically cured.

In this way, while I am in the sleep pod recuperating my soul and body, Kamar-Taj, the three great temples, and Earth's magical treasure, the Eye of Agamotto, still need to be guarded, and Dormammu in the Dark Dimension also needs to be defended.

And those traitors who defected to the enemy and colluded with Dormammu, the ruler of the Dark Dimension, also need to be dealt with.

Previously, I had been worried about who should take over the thankless and demanding role of "Supreme Master" while I was in deep sleep healing... However, now that I've witnessed this miraculous scene in this hospital, I no longer need to worry about who to choose..."

“…You mean…” Phil blinked, “…that Mr. Stark take your place?”

“...That’s right. In fact, in terms of magical talent, Mr. Stark is probably even superior to me, and he should have no problem resisting Dormammu. If nothing unexpected happens, I plan to pass on the title and authority of the Sorcerer Supreme to him directly, and he will lead Kamar-Taj from now on!”

The Ancient One replied, "...I've toiled for so many years to protect the Earth, and now that I can't do it anymore, I really should rest—I originally intended to tell your silver dragon mistress about this, but I couldn't find her anywhere, so I had to ask you to help deliver the message..."

Phil nodded in agreement, and at the same time, he suddenly realized that his silver dragon mistress, Lulutia, had recently fought a great battle with three white dragons in the western wilderness on the border of the Golden Dragon Kingdom. She was seriously injured and was now in a long sleep to heal her wounds, in a dreamless state.

Therefore, whether in the Marvel universe or in Hypnos's realm, the Ancient One could not contact her.

Princess Catherine the Golden Dragon is no longer in the Marvel universe, so the Ancient One could only contact Phil to inform her.

After ending her conversation with Phil, the Ancient One dispelled the Mirror Dimension and vanished. The various clamors and auras then returned to Phil's surroundings...

Next, Phil sensed an abnormal fluctuation in the spacetime around Tony Stark. After the fluctuation completely subsided, Tony found himself holding a brass sling ring, his expression becoming quite subtle.

He put down the magical version of the arc reactor in his hand, turned around, parted the crowd surrounding him, and pulled Phil to a secluded corner. He whispered, "...Hey, little kitty, an old nun with some magical powers just came by. She claims to be the leader of some Kamar-Taj hermitage and invited me to go to Nepal to exchange and learn magical knowledge! Are they really the guardians of Earth's magical side?"

“…Ah, she’s telling the truth, meow!” Phil nodded. “…We all had to get her approval before we came here…”

“…Oh…it seems I really do need to go on a trip to Nepal…” Tony muttered, stroking his chin.

Second far-fetched idea: "Busy undergoing tribulations every day"

Wang Qiu, a cultivator at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining, is different from other Qi Refining cultivators.

His personal magical artifact was not the longsword commonly used by cultivators, but a trident.

This is because, firstly, cultivators who haven't successfully established their foundation cannot use flying swords, and secondly...

"...Rumble—crash—"

"...Quick! It's going to rain, hurry up and bring in the laundry! That foreigner is getting struck by lightning again!"

"...Just what terrible crime did this guy commit? That he gets struck by lightning by the gods every single day?"

"...What do you mean by being struck by lightning! I'm undergoing tribulation! Don't you understand what tribulation is? Can this kind of tribulation be called being struck by lightning?"

Wang Qiu glared angrily at the shouting Western barbarians, then looked up at the sky that had suddenly become overcast before planting his lightning rod—the trident—into the ground, preparing to face the daily test of lightning and thunder.

"...Damn it, I've been undergoing the tribulation for three whole years, how come the tribulation lightning just won't stop striking?"

Is this constant thunder going to stop? Recently, even the son of a desert chieftain came to me asking for rain! And some charlatan is trying to trick me into becoming a missionary of Thor!

How many more years of tribulations must I endure before I can successfully establish my foundation?

Chapter 280, Xavier's Magical School

Early December, Westchester County, outside New York City, Xavier Castle

The sky was cloudless and clear.

The bright, clear sky was a deep blue, and the warm winter sun slanted down, bathing everything in its light and dispelling the winter chill. Even the bare trees no longer looked so desolate. The tranquil lake in the distance remained calm, shimmering with golden light in the sunlight.

With the completion of the restoration of the United Nations building in Manhattan, New York, the UN headquarters has moved out of Xavier's Castle, and a plaque reading "Xavier's School of Magic" has been hung outside the castle gates. The flagpole that previously flew the UN flag has been replaced with the Dormouse flag of the Church of Hypnos.

—Since the United Nations headquarters moved back to its original location, Xavier's School of Magic was officially established in the suburbs of New York.

As expected, enrollment was extremely popular: the curiosity and desire for magic is a dream that people all over the world have had since childhood, and now that there is a possibility of the dream coming true, it is natural that many people will flock to it.

Especially when Tony Stark made a big splash at New York Central Hospital, carrying a magical version of the Arc Reactor, walking through wards and clinics, casting his healing spells, countless people instantly recovered wherever he went, and thousands were discharged from the hospital in just a few hours, much like the miracle of Jesus Christ feeding five thousand believers with five loaves and two fish... As a result, before he even left the hospital, doctors, patients, and nurses were already asking him about ways to learn magic.

—Jesus' miracles belonged only to him, but Tony Stark's [healing]...it seems that others can also learn it?

If that's the case, why not give it a try yourself? Following Jesus around like a shadow and shouting "666" is nothing compared to being Jesus yourself!

Just like those fans waving glow sticks below the stage, they often harbor a dream of jumping onto the stage and becoming stars!

Hmm? If you're not a genius like Tony, learning magic might be very difficult and tiring?

What's so special about that? Those who truly want to learn magic aren't afraid of hardship—this is about to become another glorious ladder of advancement!

In the United States, the traditional upward mobility paths for middle-class children include studying law, medical school, and computer science—which one isn't tough? And incredibly expensive! Yet, for the sake of their future, they grit their teeth and persevere. Some girls even resort to prostitution to find sugar daddies in order to pay their tuition!

What is the purpose of all this? Isn't it all to elevate one's own status? No matter how much the media and public opinion try to mislead people, anyone with a brain knows that all this talk about relaxed education and happy education is just fooling the lower classes. "No pain, no gain" is the undeniable universal truth.

There are indeed many good-for-nothing playboys among the rich second generation, but how many of those good-for-nothing playboys are actually capable of holding real power?

If a country or society truly descends into a state of brain-dead governance and idiotic financial management, then total collapse is not far off.

Furthermore, those well-known and excellent doctors in the industry are meant to keep up with the times, squeezing out time from their heavy workload to understand the latest developments in the medical field and strive to master various cutting-edge medical technologies; otherwise, they will fall behind and be eliminated.

The pace of advancement in medical technology, while not as rapid as that of online programs, is still quite fast.

To truly skilled doctors, the emergence of "treatment techniques" is simply a large-scale upgrade in medical technology.

(It must be said that Western medicine does a better job than traditional Chinese medicine in this regard. Traditional Chinese medicine has a certain Confucian retrogressive mentality and prefers conservative old prescriptions. Western medicine, on the other hand, looks forward to everything and desperately tries to develop all kinds of new technologies. Although it has many flaws that can harm or mislead people, at least it has a pioneering and enterprising spirit.)

In short, inspired by Iron Man Tony Stark's miraculous ability to "heal a thousand people in a day," half of the surgeons at New York Central Hospital, along with dozens of doctors from other departments, nurses, security guards, and even support staff, came to Xavier Castle in the following days to test their skills.

Unfortunately, learning magic is not a vocational training program; it requires a very high level of talent and aptitude, and it's not something you can learn just because you want to.

Nearly a hundred people from New York Central Hospital lined up at Xavier's Castle to be tested for magical aptitude, but apart from Stephen Strange, the No. 1 neurosurgeon, not a single one of them was lucky enough to possess any magical qualities… As a result, the doctors at New York Central Hospital looked at Stephen with nothing but envy, jealousy, and resentment! This kid is just too lucky!

Before magic existed, he was the leading figure in neurosurgery. Now that the age of magic has arrived, while other surgeons worry about losing their jobs, he might actually rise to even greater heights! For one thing, he's undoubtedly the "Chief Magical Healer" at New York Central Hospital!

Wow, this guy is simply a genius favored by God; he can do well in any era!

Then, besides Stephen Strange, who was specially recruited this time, the US government had previously found more than thirty people who could learn magic. In addition, Cuba, Canada, Mexico, and other South American countries in the Western Hemisphere also gathered more than a dozen qualified students, bringing the total to more than fifty. With this, Xavier's School of Magic could officially open for classes.

To respect Earth's sovereignty, Phil, this otherworldly cat, did not serve as the principal of Xavier's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but only held the title of advisor. The principal's position, however, was given to Captain America, the most skilled in magic among Earthlings besides Tony Stark.

However, despite this, the organization and curriculum of the magic school still have to take his opinion into account—no one on Earth would!

It's easy to imagine that, barring any malicious intent, Phil wouldn't allow Xavier's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry to become like Hogwarts in the Harry Potter world—a small school divided into four houses, where teachers and students alike scheme against each other, forming cliques and fighting to the death. At first glance, it wouldn't resemble a school at all, but rather an ancient Roman gladiatorial arena.

(According to the original setting, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry never enrolled more than sixty students each year, which is only equivalent to a relatively large class in a Chinese junior high school. The total number of teachers and students in the school is no more than four hundred, which is smaller than most primary and secondary schools in China... Yet, the fighting has turned out like this, which is really a bit of a laugh tale - Japan's Warring States period was ridiculed as village fighting, but Hogwarts is probably more like a family feud, right?)

Chapter 281, The Complete Collapse of the Plot

Therefore, following Phil's advice, Xavier's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry did not engage in mystical gimmicks or divide itself into several houses like Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Instead, it was like a regular vocational training school, with only beginner, intermediate, and advanced classes.

Apart from those admitted through special admissions, only those who have learned to meditate and sense magic power—from the basic textbook for magic apprentices in a fantasy world, "How to Meditate and Feel Magic," which is publicly available for download online—can enter the beginner class and learn various level zero magic tricks.

Those who have mastered more than twenty level-zero magic tricks meet the requirements for apprentice magicians and can enter the intermediate class to learn level one to two magic. From here, they can choose their specializations—those who like to be combative can focus on learning offensive magic; those who plan to work in a hospital can learn healing magic to become healers; those who want to create magical items to show off to their friends can strive to become alchemists; those aspiring to enter the entertainment industry can learn transformation magic to perform genuine magic tricks; even those with unusual tastes can learn necromancy to manipulate corpses…

Once they master the ability to draw magic from Tony Stark's magical version of the Arc Reactor and cast spells continuously, theoretically allowing them to use magic indefinitely, they can enter the advanced class. As for what they should learn in the advanced class... that's such a distant matter that Phil hasn't decided yet.

And the scope and difficulty of the Xavier Magic School graduation exam... that's even further away, let's talk about it when the time comes!

In any case, it's impossible to directly copy the system of the magic school in the capital of the Golden Dragon Kingdom... For example, the necromancy branch there is famously known as "going in alive and coming out dead"—apprentices who enter there to learn necromancy must cultivate into liches, vampires, ghosts, corpse princesses, or stitched monsters before they can officially graduate.

The living necromancers who managed to leave that place were all dropouts who had fallen behind in their studies...

If this were done in the Marvel universe's America, Phil would probably quickly become as infamous as Hydra's Red Skull.

In fact, apart from Captain America Steve Rogers, who became the principal overnight, everyone else at Xavier's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is still just a junior student.

—These guys, who don't have the protagonist's halo or any cheat codes, even the fastest learners, need two weeks to learn a level zero trick; most people need an average of a month to learn a level zero trick.

The other big cheat remaining at Xavier's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the Doctor Strange who originally had crippled hands, now still has hands, but it seems he can no longer be Doctor Strange and can only start as a magic apprentice. Stephen Strange started learning magic too late.

—As a specially recruited student brought in by Phil, while others were already able to perform level zero magic tricks and condense orbs of light, flames, and water droplets at their fingertips, Stephen Strange had only just begun reading the basic textbook magic book "How to Meditate and Feel Magic," translated by the cat Phil.

After he mastered the skills of meditation and sensing magic at an astonishing speed, and was able to perform level zero tricks, Phil forced him to do a difficult task under the pretext of "the capable should do more"—translating the subsequent magic textbooks into English, which slowed down his learning progress.

It must be said that translating those academic books and journals with obscure language, especially textbooks, is a very mentally taxing and arduous task. You not only have to figure out some profound knowledge that you yourself probably don't fully understand, but you also have to take into full account the differences in background, taboos, and ways of thinking between two different civilizations...