ROOM!
A confident shout echoed through the void, carried by the unified voices of hundreds of Image of Ikonn clones. All at once, they stopped their hands, halting the barrage of spells and mystical techniques they had been unleashing—arts learned from Kamar-Taj.
"Hmm? Room? What room, Strange!?" Dormammu furrowed his brow and roared, unleashing a wave of black-purple energy. It flowed like a living liquid, slithering like a giant serpent, devouring all of my clones in an instant.
From hundreds of bodies, the number dwindled down to mere dozens. But they had fulfilled their purpose—buying me enough time to gather power into the Sacred Sword of the Vishanti, a blade as massive as a ten-story building. This was my third experiment, following the attempt to expand a ROOM around Dormammu's colossal head, and the trial of a mini-ROOM to cut myself off from the Dark Dimension so he could not sense me.
Experiment Three was this… fusing Devil Fruit power with sorcery!
I had tried striking Dormammu with the Sword of the Vishanti many times before, but the results were poor. This time, however, I forged a golden energy blade as the core, then infused it with the surgical power of the Ope Ope no Mi. At first, the forces clashed violently, nearly annihilating each other. But after carefully balancing them, I succeeded. The result was a weapon of destiny, forged for one purpose: to sever the head of this dark giant!
Slash!
The sound of a blade cutting into something rang out.
"Hmm… a sword that cuts through dimensions, yet cloaked in the power of the Vishanti. Strange, you truly are impressive. But unfortunately, not impressive enough to defeat me! Hahaha!"
BOOOOOOM!
"Ughhh!" I gasped, eyes wide, face pale, sweat pouring down my forehead and cold dampness soaking my palms. Just now… it was only a blink. A single blink!
I thought I had reached my first checkpoint—finally dealing damage to Dormammu. But in the blink of an eye, my body shattered, and Round 13 ended. I was hurled back, reborn into Round 14. The last image burned into my mind before the waves of dark energy consumed me from all directions was this…
Dormammu's head, which should have been severed and sent flying by my strike, instead revealed something else. The dimension around his head had been cut, showing an image of his head flying off. But in that very spot, another head appeared—slightly smaller than before—laughing.
It felt like peeling an onion with bare hands. Strip away the outer layer, and there are still countless inner layers waiting beneath.
"Dormammu… so your body is wrapped in multiple layers of dimensions? No wonder magical attacks barely affect you. They're blocked by outer shells, by dimensional armor—just like how we conjure the Seraphim Shields."
I muttered to myself, eyes closed, analyzing and processing the lessons of thirteen time loops.
The first twelve rounds had been failures, yes, but not wasted. They were the foundation for the success of Round 13.
If not for those twelve failures, I would never have dared to risk using the Devil Fruit's power.
And once I did, I discovered it worked surprisingly well. Dormammu had not sensed the Ope Ope no Mi, nor the Time Stone's rewinds. And I had gained crucial information:
Not only could Dormammu perceive every action—body, mind, and magic—within his dimension…
He also had multiple overlapping dimensions layered around himself as armor. I couldn't be sure if there were ten layers, or even more.
"Cheating bastard… but fitting for a Lord of the Dark Dimension who's existed for millennia."
I clenched my teeth, then closed my eyes, inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly to steady both body and spirit for Round 14.
"Fortunately, the Devil Fruit's power and Observation Haki from another world lie outside his perception."
From the last experiment, the Vishanti Sword infused with Ope Ope power had cut into him, but not deeply enough. He resisted, enduring the blade. So this time, I would have to enhance the Sacred Sword of the Vishanti—the largest, most effective weapon against Dormammu—by…
"Coating it with Armament Haki. I'm still clumsy with it. Coating a massive weapon would drain too much focus and stamina. I'll have to start small… with a normal-sized sword, and stab Dormammu's neck."
Physiologically, the neck is a vital point. A strike there can be fatal—severing arteries, crushing the windpipe, or cutting the nerves that connect brain to body through the spine. Predators in nature often go for the throat first—it's efficient, effective, and saves energy.
But Dormammu is no ordinary being. He is a mystical entity. Who knows if stabbing his neck would spill blood or magical essence? And with his layered dimensions, it would be like peeling an onion or a radish—layer after layer before reaching the true core.
"No trying, no knowing… Let's go!"
I stepped into Dormammu's dimension for the fourteenth time. This round, I stuck to the same plan: unleashing hundreds of Image of Ikonn clones, now more refined and controlled than ever.
Some clones wielded the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak. Others summoned the Winds of Watoomb. Some called down the Bolts of Balthakk. Others conjured the Serpents of Valtorr. And three clones combined their powers—thunderstorms of lightning, serpentine bindings, and the whirling blades of the Vishanti.
"Hahaha! You truly are skilled, Stephen Strange! You control the Images of Ikonn with mastery, unleashing spells as powerful as your real body, even combining them! Incredible!"
Dormammu's praise came as always, but this time his tone carried more excitement. And of course, he ended with his usual sales pitch, like an insurance agent.
"Join me! I guarantee you'll gain privileges above all others—as the leader of my interdimensional invasion force!"
"No… I am a protector, not an invader."
"Not now, perhaps. But in the future, you will—ugh, what is this!?"
Clang!
CRASHHHHH!