Chapter 1400: Call of the Stars (Twenty-Six) _2

"Supreme Magician, The Ancient One." Quill voiced her name, a tremor accompanying his tone. The fact that The Ancient One might be on the same planet with him was even more terrifying than being with thousands of monsters - he had seen too many Demon Gods beaten to a pulp.

Quill saw that The Ancient One paused in front of Jennifer, her expression seemingly puzzled. But when Jennifer's parents, transformed into monsters, rushed out of the door, The Ancient One hesitated for a moment, flew over, and picked up Jennifer before turning away, with Jennifer's parents waving their tentacles and shouting in their wake.

Through Jennifer's field of vision, Quill observed The Ancient One bringing Jennifer into a temple floating above Central Park, New York. It could be a base she magically created out of thin air. Surely, a Supreme Magician possessed such capabilities.

Jennifer kept crying and was curious about The Ancient One. Quill could feel her confusion - if I am insane, why hasn't the person before me turned into a monster?

Jennifer questioned The Ancient One, but Quill recognized the look on The Ancient One's face. They were both thinking the same thing: sometimes ignorance is a bliss. The truth can be too cruel - adults may struggle to accept it, let alone a small child.

The Ancient One held Jennifer, telling her she could take her to a new world. There, many children of her age were learning magic at a place called Kamar-Taj.

No child of this age could resist the temptation of a magical school, and sure enough, Jennifer's attention was drawn. She started asking The Ancient One about Kamar-Taj incessantly.

The Ancient One prepared food and hot water for Jennifer. Jennifer ate a little, but felt very uneasy.

Quill could sense her missing her parents. However, her intelligence was enough to distinguish that things were probably not as she had previously thought, so Jennifer did not cry and eat in small bites silently.

The Ancient One feed Jennifer until she was full and wanted her to sleep. Jennifer then gabbled a bunch of medical terms to The Ancient One.

Yet, the little girl couldn't actually remember those complex pathological and medicinal names. Quill could sense that Jennifer wanted to tell The Ancient One that she was sick, but The Ancient One apparently didn't understand.

Quill found himself thinking alongside The Ancient One again. The Ancient One must have assumed Jennifer's peculiar behavior resulted from her being terrified. Thus, she became even more convinced that Jennifer should have a good sleep.

From Jennifer's view, Quill saw that The Ancient One held her and a gentle glow flickered from One Hand. Quill recognized it as a calming spell.

In the past, he had interacted with some non-God Clan magical creatures. Lacking the exclusive abilities of the God Clan, these creatures had to borrow magical power, and shouldering these powers came at a cost. Therefore, they needed some calming spells to mask the pain to allow themselves to have a good sleep.

Quill speculated that The Ancient One could have cast a minor spell. It seemed like she had done this before. Given The Ancient One's previous depiction of Kamar-Taj, he deduced that the Supreme Magician probably used this trick often against those energetic, bedtime-resistant children.

With the enchanting glow, Jennifer finally fell into a deep sleep. Quill estimated it might be longer than 8 hours, possibly the longest sleep she had ever had.

Then, the disaster struck.

A horrifying attack descended upon Jennifer, the longer she stayed in this world, the more terrifying the assault would be. Jennifer hadn't experienced a direct attack due to her unique insomnia, but this didn't mean the power of the attack hadn't been accumulated.

The Ancient One's mistake put Jennifer in grave danger. The frailty of her body and mind couldn't withstand the sudden horrific onslaught. Facing death was inevitable, even without chances for mutation.

Quill saw Jennifer's blurred vision shaking violently. She was likely convulsing all over, foaming at the mouth. The panicked face of The Ancient One appeared in Jennifer's peripheral vision. Judging by her expression, she probably realized what was happening.

However, The Ancient One quickly composed herself with a speed Quill could hardly imagine. She hesitated only for a second before reaching out and touching Jennifer's forehead.

"No!!!" Quill cried out in his heart.

The worst-case scenario happened indeed. The power of the onslaught spread from Jennifer's thoughts to The Ancient One. The terrifying wave crashed against the fortress - the extreme madness infiltrated the indestructible fortress and tore a microscopic crack.

An unimaginably immense power that Quill had never seen poured out from the split.

New York, the Americas, the whole Earth.

All the monsters vanished.

"... Terrifying EMP." Quill murmured.

In Jennifer's last field of vision, the little girl saw deep remorse on the face of The Ancient One. Even though she bore most of the onslaught for Jennifer, the initial wave of the attack had still contaminated Jennifer. Tentacles sprouted from Jennifer's back - The Ancient One failed to save her.

Quill sighed deeply. After he told Rocket Raccoon this story, Rocket Raccoon asked, "If so, why did The Ancient One leave Jennifer here? Isn't she afraid of her being in danger?"

"Keeping her by her side would be the real danger." Quill frowned and held Jennifer's hand. "Seeing her would expand the crack in The Ancient One's heart. If she loses control, everything would be over."

Quill shivered. He had just clearly seen that the leaking power from the crack, probably one ten-millionth of it all. A smallest hint of that power could obliterate all creatures on a planet if it was compressed to an extreme degree.

"Also, I'm guessing The Ancient One didn't randomly throw her away. Probably on purpose she threw Jennifer to us."

Quill held Jennifer's hand with his non-existing hand, trying to convey information into her brain with his newly-obtained power. It seemed that those who had undergone mutations could only communicate in this way, not through open speech as before.

"Wait!" Quill suddenly exclaimed. Jennifer suddenly sent over a thought, Quill experienced it carefully, then unconsciously said, "Jennifer experienced an awfully horrific attack, but she wasn't completely crazy – she can still communicate."

"She told me that The Ancient One bore most of the madness that invaded her. She took advantage of this opportunity, and behind the onslaught of madness, saw… a part of the truth."