Although everyone present didn't know exactly what the "Spirit Control" skill was, judging from Strange's reaction, they knew it was no ordinary skill.
Frankly speaking,
everyone had already gone through round after round of quizzes and received reward after reward, and they were quite used to it.
Even if it was a system-generated item, it wouldn't be enough to impress them if it wasn't truly good.
Some rewards were even rejected by the quiz takers.
For example, monster cells, KW74, and Baymax were all given away by the winners; they couldn't even give away monster cells.
The only things that could excite the winners in this situation were truly exceptional.
"Mr. Strange, what exactly is this 'Spirit Control' skill?" Peter Parker couldn't help but ask immediately.
"Spirit, soul? Could it be a skill related to the soul?" Thor made a basic assessment with considerable interest.
"Well, how should I put it?" Strange briefly reviewed his memories of the Soul Binding Technique before explaining, "Simply put, this skill is a skill that manipulates souls."
Manipulates souls!
The expressions of everyone present couldn't help but tighten slightly. This skill was indeed far too overpowered.
That was a human soul!
"Not only can it manipulate souls, but after using this skill, one can even convert a portion of a soul's abilities into one's own."
Strange added, "However, my skill is incomplete. If it were the complete Soul Binding Technique, it could also devour souls and permanently gain their abilities."
"Devour souls?" Scott Lang couldn't help but shudder. "That's a bit too terrifying, isn't it? This incomplete Soul Binding Technique is much better."
"That's what I think too." Strange shrugged, agreeing wholeheartedly.
"Wait a minute,"
Tony Stark suddenly spoke, remembering something quite interesting. "Don't the sorcerers at Kamar-Taj all know how to expel souls? In that case, this skill is a perfect match for Strange!" As
Tony Stark said this, everyone involuntarily recalled the scene of the Ancient One expelling the Hulk's soul with a single blow.
They wholeheartedly agreed with Tony Stark's words; the sorcerers' method of expelling souls was indeed a perfect match for Spirit Control!
This skill was practically developed for sorcerers.
Imagine, in the course of battle, Doctor Strange first casually expelling the enemy's soul with a single blow, then using Spirit Control to control it—it would be practically invincible. Strange,
however, didn't say anything more, instead pondering the matter in his mind.
Souls captured through Spirit Control could exist in the world for a long time, truly breaking the boundary between life and death.
If Christine were to truly die in the future, and the situation were irreversible, he would likely have no choice but to use this method to ensure her continued existence.
Of course,
this was merely a last resort
, a method Strange would only consider when all other options were exhausted.
He wouldn't have done this if there were even the slightest possibility.
But the thought that Christine's death was a precise point in time weighed heavily on Strange's mind.
Even he was powerless to change such a situation!
What Strange didn't know was that he had completely overthought things. The issue involved in this question wasn't actually related to the main universe, but rather to other parallel universes.
However, up to this point, neither Strange nor the other participants had seen any clues in the question that clearly contradicted the information from the main universe.
Therefore, they hadn't been able to discern that it concerned another universe ,
much like the zombie parallel universe incident.
[Question complete, answer analysis to be played!]
The system notification sounded, interrupting the discussion.
Everyone turned their attention back to the large screen, where a corresponding video appeared.
First, they were inside the Kamar-Taj Sanctuary, where Doctor Strange was examining the Eye of Agamotto with a melancholy expression.
"I'll go boil some water for tea, lest you do something impulsive," the Wizard King said to Doctor Strange,
before turning and leaving .
Doctor Strange stared at the Eye of Agamotto for a while longer, then made a decision.
"You're right, there's no need to dwell on the past all night." Doctor Strange casually placed the important Eye of Agamotto on the table beside him and
also got up and left.
Undoubtedly, he was going to have tea with the Wizard King.
Not long after, Doctor Strange emerged from Kamar-Taj after having tea with the Wizard King, only to find the entire world drastically changed.
Everything around him—skyscrapers, cars, pedestrians—was melting and evaporating!
The scene was incredibly eerie.
"So this is what the title means by the entire universe starting to collapse?"
Captain America's expression turned incredibly solemn. He had never witnessed such a bizarre and terrifying sight in his life.
Even he felt a chill run down his spine.
It was terrifying.
Whether it was people or things, good or evil, in this kind of cosmic collapse, there was no difference; everything would collapse along with the universe.
"So this is what the collapse of the universe looks like?" Tony Stark spoke with an air of sudden enlightenment.
He had never seen anything like a cosmic collapse before; now he had witnessed it.
On the screen,
"What exactly was put in the whiskey?"
Doctor Strange himself was bewildered. He suspected something had been added to the whiskey, and he had been knocked out.
But unfortunately, it was all true.
At that very moment, a shimmering portal suddenly appeared behind Doctor Strange, and a radiant Ancient One slowly emerged from it.
Yes, it was the radiant Ancient One.
This Ancient One was different from the one in her spirit form. While the spirit Ancient One was also semi-transparent, at least she didn't radiate light.
But this Ancient One
was surrounded by light.
Everyone watching was completely bewildered by this Ancient One.
"Hello, Stephen," the Ancient One greeted Doctor Strange.
Doctor Strange was even more confused: "No, wait a minute, weren't you already..."
"Dead? Of course!" the Ancient One interrupted.
"Then this must be..."
"A psychological illusion from another branch of the universe. You can think of me as an echo."
"I was going to say this definitely means the end of the world."
"That's part of it; you've always been so prescient." The Ancient One didn't deny Doctor Strange's guess. "But I'm worried our time is running out."
"Who caused all this?" Doctor Strange asked, puzzled.
"You!"
"How is that possible!"
"It was you, Doctor Strange! You used your magical eyes to escape to the past, and I couldn't keep up." The Ancient One explained for Doctor Strange.
"I drew power from the Dark Dimension and split you in two, but I also split the timeline in two, so that both of your timelines are in the same universe."
"The two Doctors Strange were caused by the Ancient One!" Peter Parker said, quite surprised.
Everyone had been discussing what was going on with the two Doctors Strange during the quiz, and now they finally knew.
They never imagined the culprit was the Ancient One.
They just didn't know why the Ancient One would attack Doctor Strange; Doctor Strange was the Ancient One's successor!
He was highly regarded by the Ancient One.
"Did the Ancient One even split the timeline in two?" Scott Lang couldn't help but swallow hard.
He knew the Ancient One was powerful, but this level of power was a bit too exaggerated, wasn't it?
Even a cosmic overlord like Thanos seemed insignificant compared to the Ancient One.
It was such a pity that such a powerful figure died.
"Two timelines?"
On the screen,
Doctor Strange's voice continued, his expression becoming serious. "This approach is neither simple nor wise."
"To be precise, it's extremely dangerous," the Ancient One corrected and added to Doctor Strange's statement.
"So now, I have an evil doppelganger?" Doctor Strange looked utterly bewildered.
"It's more accurate to call it going astray," said the Ancient One. "What if another Doctor Strange reversed absolute time?"
"You mean saving Christine?"
"You can't save her, Stephen. It will cause a time paradox, leading to the destruction of this world!" The Ancient One solemnly warned Doctor Strange. "We don't have much time left. The only sorcerer who can rival him is yourself, Doctor Strange!"
After saying this, the Ancient One vanished.
The scene then shifts.
Doctor Strange is now back in Kamar-Taj, making preparations.
Countless golden magical symbols float in the air before him and the Wizard King .
"In other words, the framework of reality is collapsing, started by you, and will end with you." The Wizard King's voice betrayed surprise; clearly, this had caught him off guard.
Moreover,
the Wizard King's head began to melt and evaporate.
"To be honest, we've been through far more bizarre things."
"But do you want to stop him?" the Wizard King asked in a deep voice. "Don't you love Christine?"
"I… I think I have no choice. At least I have to save you."
"Alright." The Wizard King began to push Doctor Strange's hand, and the golden magical runes floating around them all flew towards Doctor Strange. They
entered Doctor Strange's body and disappeared .
Just as the two finished doing this, a magical portal appeared on the ground beneath Doctor Strange's feet.
It instantly teleported Doctor Strange to a place filled with darkness.
"Where am I?"
Doctor Strange asked after looking around.
"You should be asking when you are!"
A voice rang out from a dark corner, and then a figure slowly walked up to Doctor Strange.
It was another Doctor Strange, Doctor Strange's doppelganger, or rather, a corrupted version of Doctor Strange.
"It's him!"
Thor immediately pointed to the other Doctor Strange and shouted, "It's him, the Doctor Strange who knew the Watcher!"
Equally emaciated, with the same smoky makeup, there was no mistake.
However, everyone was still very curious about one thing: what had happened to this Doctor Strange doppelganger to become such a grotesque figure?
Even just standing there, doing nothing, didn't look like a good person.
"Don't be afraid, old friend, because you and I are one." The corrupted Doctor Strange continued to speak to Doctor Strange.
"What happened to you?"
Doctor Strange was shocked to see his doppelganger in such a grotesque state.
"I have you, that's enough. I don't need the Ancient One, I don't need the King. They won't understand us." The corrupted Doctor Strange didn't explain Doctor Strange's words, but instead stated his purpose, "They don't even know her! We understand her, and we love her deeply!"
"We cannot resurrect her, the outside world is collapsing!" Doctor Strange declared.
Unlike his own rebirth, which was clearly driven by excessive obsession, Doctor Strange was still able to prioritize.
"You dare lie to me? I am you!" the corrupted Doctor Strange roared.
With this outburst, phantom images of wild beasts appeared around him, accompanied by their roars.
It was as if countless wild beasts lurked within him.
While the origins of these beasts were unknown, it was clear that the corrupted Doctor Strange had cultivated some kind of evil dark magic,
resulting in this grotesque appearance .
"How many nights have we spent in the Sanctum Sanctorum, holding the Time Stone! Knowing we could travel back in time, yet lacking the courage!"
"But I chose courage, sacrificing everything through centuries of change, just to save Christine!"
the corrupted Doctor Strange shouted emotionally at Doctor Strange.
"Now, can you save her?"
"No, Stephen, we can!" With that, the corrupted Doctor Strange grabbed Doctor Strange's arm.
The two were instantly teleported away.
.....
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(End of Chapter)