Chapter 45: Me?

When the bald woman stepped through the portal, even though her appearance differed from her movie counterpart, Alex immediately recognized her identity: the Sorcerer Supreme.

The moment he saw her, Alex's entire body tensed up. He channeled all his energy and cursed power to reinforce his body, focusing his mind with extreme concentration. His Six Eyes ability activated to its limit, putting him in his peak state. Facing a being as powerful as gods like Odin, even Alex couldn't afford to relax.

Tony, looking at the bald woman and carefully observing the portal behind her, felt as though the world had grown increasingly strange ever since he publicly declared himself as Iron Man.

First, there was Alex, then the appearance of Thor in New Mexico along with the legendary Asgard. And now, a bald woman dressed in yellow opened a portal and entered his home!

Feigning the need to grab a drink, Tony hid behind Alex, pouring two glasses of wine. He handed one to Alex and kept the other for himself, while asking the bald woman in front of him, "So, who are you? And how did you create that glowing circle? Is it some sort of mutant ability, advanced technology, or another form of superpower?"

The Ancient One, who had initially focused her attention on Alex, finally shifted her gaze to Tony. Smiling mysteriously, she replied in a calm and gentle tone, "This is magic."

"Alright, magic." Tony accepted her explanation without hesitation. After all, if the mythical Asgard was real, then magic wasn't much of a stretch.

"So, what brings you here, Sorcerer?" he asked.

"Actually, the correct term would be 'Master of the Mystic Arts'," the Ancient One corrected him first, before returning her gaze to Alex. "I'm here to see this gentleman."

Seeing that the Sorcerer Supreme was referring to him, Alex couldn't just stand by idly. He flashed a bright, genuine, and friendly smile, asking, "Honored Sorcerer Supreme, what brings you to me?"

Tony was shocked by Alex's demeanor. The usually malevolent smile he wore was now so bright that it was unsettling to witness.

The next moment, Tony caught onto the title Alex had used—Sorcerer Supreme. Could this bald woman really be another being capable of withstanding a nuclear blast like Alex?

Facing two such monsters, Tony felt uneasy. It seemed he needed to prioritize designing a suit capable of dealing with the Sorcerer Supreme as well as the White-Haired Mutant.

Standing across from Alex, the Sorcerer Supreme returned his smile with a radiant one of her own. "I want you to become the next Sorcerer Supreme. I'm willing to teach you everything I know, as long as you agree to protect Earth until the next Sorcerer Supreme appears."

Alex was taken aback. He hadn't expected the Ancient One to ask him to become the Sorcerer Supreme—was she planning to retire early?

The thought crossed his mind, but without any hesitation, Alex immediately declined, "I'm sorry, but I have no intention of becoming the Sorcerer Supreme."

He had no interest in protecting Earth. He'd rather spend his time absorbing energy and unlocking more character templates until he surpassed even the Sorcerer Supreme, becoming a force she could never hope to match.

The Sorcerer Supreme wasn't surprised by his response. She had anticipated it and was only testing the waters. Her true purpose wasn't this.

She retrieved a peculiar ring with two holes and controlled it to float towards Alex.

"You seem to have the ability to enhance your power. If you can master portal creation, one day, you might be able to traverse dimensions freely." she said.

Looking at the Sling Ring in his hand, Alex was surprised. He hadn't expected to receive such an artifact so easily. He asked the Sorcerer Supreme, "What's the cost for this?"

The Sorcerer Supreme shook her head, "You don't have to pay any price, but I suggest you explore parallel universes soon. After all, the world is vast, and you should see it…"

Alex's smile widened. Although her words were polite, he could easily decipher the subtext—she was essentially saying, "I'm not asking much, just leave this universe alone and go wreak havoc in other parallel universes instead."

This aligned perfectly with his own plans. There were many things he wanted to witness—like the Annihilation Wave, the Zombie Universe, the Infinity War, and so on…

The greatest allure of the Marvel Multiverse was the endless possibilities within its infinite parallel universes. He couldn't be bound by just one!

Seeing Alex accept the Sling Ring, the Sorcerer Supreme knew her mission was accomplished and prepared to leave. However, Alex stopped her, "Sorcerer Supreme, what do you think about Tony becoming the Sorcerer Supreme? With his intellect, he could easily handle the role."

Tony Stark was caught off guard when Alex suddenly brought him into the conversation, suggesting he become the Sorcerer Supreme. He was momentarily at a loss and pointed to himself, "Me?"

Alex nudged Tony towards the Sorcerer Supreme, saying, "Don't you think the collision of science and magic could create something truly spectacular?"

Tony pondered for a moment before nodding. Relying solely on technology, it would be difficult to deal with beings as terrifying as Alex. Climbing the tech tree took time, and obtaining stronger power immediately was a challenge. Perhaps merging magic with technology could be a new path forward!

Meanwhile, the Sorcerer Supreme observed Tony Stark, the man known to the world as a genius and a playboy. But her gaze seemed to pierce through him, looking at the future lying beneath the river of time.

After a moment, the Sorcerer Supreme smiled, "This gentleman will make an excellent Sorcerer Supreme."

Alex grinned, knowing the Sorcerer Supreme had agreed. With Alex's suggestion, Tony and the Sorcerer Supreme left together to Kamar-Taj to learn magic.

Alex was confident that Tony could master magic, given that in another universe, he had already taken on the role of Sorcerer Supreme. And the fact that the Sorcerer Supreme hadn't rejected the idea meant Tony likely had the talent for it!

—-—

With a backpack slung over his shoulder, Alex flew swiftly towards Washington, D.C. Inside the bag were ten Arc Reactors, enough to last him for a while.

By the time these Arc Reactors were depleted, he expected to have already obtained the Infinity Stones.

With his energy absorption at level 4, Alex's speed had reached over ten Mach. Flying from the Black's Bleach in San Diego to Washington only took him a little over ten minutes.

His destination was the White House, the political center of the United States.

He intended to return the favor to the military for their "gift." But as he neared the White House, he noticed it was already in chaos!

°°°

A/N: Stones, mongrels

I'll also post another one later, dw

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