Chapter 349: Strange's Thirst For Knowledge

Earth-616.

After billions of years, Chthon returned to his homeland. He couldn't help but spread his arms, as if to embrace the magnificent mountains and rivers.

"Chthon, why have you returned?"

Green light shimmered, natural energy condensed, and Gaea emerged from behind Chthon.

Chthon retracted his arms and said, "Sister, have you heard about Logos interfering in the war between the Beyonders and the Dark Celestials?"

...

"Lucas, have you heard about Logos interfering in the war between the Beyonders and the Dark Celestials?"

Looking at the mysterious male Ancient One in front of him, Lucas nodded.

"You know?" The male Ancient One was slightly taken aback.

"Do you also know about Eternity being imprisoned?"

Lucas nodded again.

Seeing this, the male Ancient One seemed to be deep in thought. He gave Lucas a profound look but didn't say much.

Lucas's expression was a little helpless. He hadn't discussed Eternity with the male Ancient One before because he was wary of his relationship with Eternity.

Perhaps seeing through Lucas's thoughts, the male Ancient One sighed, "Do whatever you want to do. Just don't forget your original intention and identity."

Lucas forced a smile. "Master, don't worry. My memory is very good, I won't forget that quickly."

"Is that so?"

The male Ancient One teased, "But I heard that you're a very incompetent Sorcerer Supreme."

"During this time, there have been disturbances in the dimensions of the Multiverse, but you haven't been to Kamar-Taj to preside over the overall situation many times. You've dumped all the work on Black-Cloaked Strange."

"Slander! Someone is slandering me!" Lucas flatly denied.

He explained, "Strange was persuaded by me to stay. The reinforcements from Asgard were brought by me. And the other line of defense outside reality was also arranged by me for Mephisto to do."

"Besides, I was running this bookstore before I became the Sorcerer Supreme. As the owner of the bookstore, I've always stayed here. Isn't that a manifestation of me not forgetting my original intention and remembering my identity?"

"Heh." The male Ancient One chuckled.

"You're also an incompetent bookstore owner, throwing down a spell and then hiding in the lounge all day."

Lucas's face didn't redden, nor did his heart pound. He said, "Before I became the owner of the reading room, I was a reader."

The male Ancient One shook his head, not arguing much with Lucas. He then asked, "Has the Strange of this Universe gone to Kamar-Taj? I didn't see him at the hospital when I came over."

Lucas hummed and nodded.

"Then let's go. Let's see how he's learning now." The male Ancient One was intrigued,

"Earth-65 is currently short of people. If he has already achieved something in his studies, let him go there to gain some experience."

Lucas said, "Master, it's late night at Kamar-Taj right now. How about we wait a bit and go after dinner?"

"Lucas, you don't understand Strange." The male Ancient One smiled mysteriously.

He stood up, pointed his fingers, drew a circle in front of him, opened a portal, and walked straight in.

His persuasion was ineffective, so Lucas had no choice but to get up and follow.

One step spanned thousands of miles. From New York to Kamar-Taj, the twilight sky instantly turned into a bright moon and a sky full of stars.

Looking at the night sky, Lucas said, "Master, look, at this time, the sun has also rested."

"The sun has rested, but Strange may not have rested."

The male Ancient One surveyed the layout of the temple, noticing some differences from his last visit, as if some buildings had been added or modified.

He said, "Lead the way."

Lucas sighed softly and walked in front of the male Ancient One to lead the way. Passing through pavilions and halls, the two finally stopped in front of a wooden door.

Lucas raised his hand and knocked on the door.

Knock. Knock.

A moment later, no response from Strange was heard.

He knocked a little harder.

Knock! Knock!

Strange still didn't respond.

What's going on?

Just as Lucas was pondering, the male Ancient One had already stepped forward and passed through the door.

"Who are you?" In the mental plane, Strange's voice rang out.

Lucas frowned, and the next moment, he also passed through.

He saw the male Ancient One standing in front of Strange's astral form, stroking his beard and saying, "I am an alternate version of your teacher, the former Sorcerer Supreme Ancient One from the 616 Universe."

"My teacher is Lucas."

Male Ancient One: "..."

"Your teacher is Lucas?"

"That's right, I am Strange's teacher."

Lucas walked closer to the male Ancient One and Strange.

Hearing this, the male Ancient One scoffed, "You're not fit to take on disciples."

Lucas's face darkened, and he said unhappily, "Master, what kind of talk is that? Why can't I take on disciples?"

"Oh, I almost forgot you're no longer the little kid who needed help to travel through the Universe."

The male Ancient One said sarcastically, "You're now the famous Sorcerer Lucas of the Multiverse."

"Master, let's talk nicely."

Beside them, Strange also interjected, "Teacher is powerful and knowledgeable. It is my honor to be his disciple."

The male Ancient One glanced at Strange's ethereal body, then looked at Lucas and said, "Since Strange is your disciple, then you tell him the dangers of doing this."

Lucas nodded. "Astral projection is mainly used to help sorcerers' souls leave their bodies and enter dimensions where the physical body is not suitable, not to help sorcerers study day and night. This is very dangerous."

"After the soul leaves the body, its perception of the real world will be greatly weakened. It won't feel breathing, hunger, or drowsiness, and even its perception of time will become very dull."

Lucas shook his head slightly. "If you don't want to be woken up from your studies one day and see your lifeless body, then don't use astral projection for this purpose."

"Strange, I'm very happy to see your thirst for knowledge. This is good, but too much is falling into obsession. You already have some early symptoms."

After speaking, Lucas told Strange to stop studying and rest for a while, which displeased Strange.

He explained, "Every time I use astral projection, I return to my body after finishing the planned content."

Lucas rolled his eyes. "Don't be silly. That's because you haven't encountered any difficult knowledge. If you encounter a difficult point, time will pass without you knowing how long."

Strange said, "Even if something goes wrong and I don't return to my body in time, Wong will still come to wake me up for morning exercises every day."

"Enough. Study in moderation. At your age and at your stage, how can you not sleep?"

After a pause, Lucas continued, "You've been in Kamar-Taj for quite some time, haven't you? It's time to go back and take a look."

"Sorcerer Supreme, I don't want to go anywhere."

Strange still wanted to argue, but Lucas didn't listen.

He waved his sleeve, and an invisible force surged out, sending Strange's astral form back into his body.

The next moment, a portal rapidly formed beneath Strange. Under the force of gravity, Strange fell into it before he could even react.

"Ten days. Don't return to Kamar-Taj for the next ten days, and don't come to the bookstore to see me. If you have fun, it's fine to go out for a few more days."

The male Ancient One shook his head, losing interest, and also opened a portal to leave.

"After Strange graduates, take him to Earth-65 to see me."

After Strange and the male Ancient One left, either passively or actively, Lucas did not leave. Instead, he went to the temple to suppress the interdimensional passage connecting the Multiverse.

The male Ancient One actually said that he, the Sorcerer Supreme, was incompetent. He didn't even look at how stable Earth-404's reality was now, all thanks to him and his friends' efforts.

At the interdimensional passage, two forces were stationed there at this time.

One was the Kamar-Taj sorcerer corps, and the other was the Asgardian Valkyrie army, plus Hela and Thor.

The former was responsible for presiding over the magic array to build a defense line to prevent extra-dimensional creatures from entering, while the latter helped hunt down any stragglers who managed to pass through the magic array.

If a Dimensional Lord powerful enough to exert pressure on the magic array was encountered, Thor and Hela would take action.

However, in the past year or so, fewer and fewer Dimensional Lords dared to provoke Earth-404, which was why Strange felt confident enough to leave.

When Lucas arrived at the Asgardian outpost, he heard a series of clanging sounds from afar.

Strange, at his age and stage, shouldn't stay up too late, but for Thor, Hela, and others at their age and stage, it's different. They can't sleep.

And when Asgardians can't sleep, besides fighting, they drink.

Clang!

"Drink!"

Following the sound, Lucas easily found Thor and Hela without needing to ask for directions.

"Are you enjoying your time at Kamar-Taj? We've really relied on you two during this period."

Hela glanced sideways at Lucas. "Heh, my brother probably almost forgot Asgard. How do you Midgardians say it? 'Too happy to think of home.'"

Lucas smiled. "Isn't that good?"

Hela sneered, "Good, this is very good. This way, my stupid brother won't think about competing with me for the throne. If I killed him, Frigga would probably be heartbroken."

In a daze, Thor heard the two discussing him. He mumbled, "Sister, away from Asgard, you may not be my match."

Compared to Thor, Hela was much more sober. She seized the loophole in Thor's words and retorted, "Doesn't that just prove that I'm more suitable to inherit the throne? There has never been a King of Asgard who dared not fight on Asgardian soil."

Thor countered, "To become the King of Asgard, one needs not only martial prowess but also benevolence and wisdom."

Hela scoffed, "Without physical strength, benevolence and wisdom are just castles in the air, crumbling at a touch."

"Benevolence and morality, these high-sounding words destroyed Asgard's glory."