Kamar-Taj.
library.
Casillas and his men broke into the library, killed the temporary administrator of the library, and came to the Index of Forbidden Books.
The Book of Cagliostro
The Book of Energy
Two thick books were found by Casillas and his men. He had obtained the storage location of such books in advance. Among them, "The Book of Cagliostro" recorded a large number of spells and mysterious magical knowledge. It contained many secrets and spells, including how to use the power of darkness and ritual magic to summon many dangerous dimensional demons.
The Book of Energy was a pleasant surprise. Casillas had once seen this book from the Ancient One. It was the culmination of Hebron Luke's energy technology! It was said to contain the secrets of new energy. However, it was too difficult to read and carried a certain degree of danger, so the Ancient One placed it in the restricted section, where only a very small number of mages with permission could borrow it.
Casillas first held the "Book of Energy" in his arm, then quickly opened the "Book of Cagliostro", and went straight to the ritual magic he wanted with a clear goal, then hurriedly tore it from the book and stuffed the remaining pages into his pocket.
"Casillas, you shouldn't do this."
A voice suddenly rang out from behind. Casillas closed the book and slowly turned around. He saw the Mage King and Mordo looking at him with grim expressions.
"Then what do you think I should do?" Casillas had a strange smile on his gloomy face. He made obscure gestures to the mage beside him and asked back.
"Put down those two books! Surrender, and when the Supreme Mage comes back, you will be judged accordingly." The magic light shone on the hands of the Mage King, and the golden energy whip suddenly lashed towards Casillas' arm.
However, his sudden attack didn't hit Casillas. After seeing Mordo and the Mage King step out, he was on guard against their sudden attack. He threw the Book of Cagliostro as a shield, then, holding the Book of Energy, transformed into a wisp of black smoke and rushed into the portal opened by his teammates.
The Mage King's energy whip twisted and slithered through the air like a snake, wrapping itself around the Book of Cagliostro that Casillas had thrown at him and pulling it back into his hand. When he freed his hand, he saw a rotating portal that quickly closed, sparks flashing in the air.
Looking at the book in his hand and then at the library mage who died unexpectedly, Mordo and the Mage King looked at each other, and saw the trouble and worry in each other's eyes.
"If I'm not mistaken, he took Luke's Book of Energy away." The Mage King said worriedly.
"What does he want that book for?" Master Mordo frowned. He knew of the existence of the Book of Energy, and even knew it was a symbolic book used by Luke to share a new energy source with the Sorcerer Supreme. But reading it required an extremely high level of willpower and knowledge.
"He tore off part of the book." The Mage King opened the "Book of Cagliostro" in his hand and quickly turned to the pages torn by Casillas. His expression became even heavier.
"Which part?" Mordo came closer.
"It's a ritual magic used to communicate with dimensional demons." As a learned wizard, the Mage King closed the book. He hadn't studied this kind of magic, but he knew it existed. So, after a moment's reflection, he spoke his answer.
"Which one?" Mo Du also became nervous when he heard this.
"I haven't read the books in the restricted area in depth. But there is no doubt that what is recorded in this book is mostly dark and mysterious knowledge. We must prepare for the worst." The Mage King took a deep breath.
"So, he ultimately gave up on the Book of Cagliostro and chose the Book of Energy instead?" Mordo was puzzled. In his opinion, the Book of Energy wasn't as effective in boosting a mage's power as the forbidden tome containing mystical knowledge.
"That's because the Book of Energy is not just a book. It's also a hub! A powerful artifact." The Mage King looked at Mordo seriously and said seriously.
"Artifact?" Mordo opened his eyes wide.
"Luke is the creator. As the crystallization of the twisted power of his ascension, this book means the same thing as the Eye of Agamotto to the Supreme Sorcerer and Gungnir to God-King Odin. This book is simply kept in the library of Kamar-Taj." The Mage King explained to Mordo, "I heard Luke say that this book has two modes. One is a record, a carrier of knowledge similar to other magic books. The other is a hub and power."
"Hub and power?" Mordo slowly repeated the words of the Mage King.
"Yes, as Luke's creation, it is naturally endowed with the power to dominate and divide new energy. What's more terrifying is that it has extremely high growth potential. It can extract and convert the recorded energy into opposite energy! In order to achieve the effect of restraint." The Mage King's tone was full of distress.
"I've also read the Book of Energy. While it's amazing, I don't perceive what you're talking about." Morton said carefully, "Could it be that you misheard? Or is Luke exaggerating?"
"No, I've seen another form of it in Luke's hands. It grants the user unparalleled power, amplifying all their spells and attacks. You didn't sense it because Luke and the Ancient One sealed it and established the corresponding permissions." The Mage King shook his head, speaking with certainty. Luke had also granted him some permissions at the time, allowing him to personally experience the book's power. It was truly intoxicating, a feeling of overwhelming power and omnipotence.
After experiencing it, it would take immense endurance and a strong will to resist the allure of the book. The only downside is that if someone uses the book beyond their physical capacity, the Energy Book will forcibly transform and reshape the user's body for their own safety. As for what kind of life you will become after the transformation, no one can predict.
"So he took the Book of Energy solely because of what you said?" Mordo said, frowning as he looked at the Mage King. He asked in astonishment, "Then how did he know this secret?"
The Mage King spread his hands and said, "I don't know either. Perhaps he deduced some information on his own, or perhaps he doesn't know, but for some purpose, he needs the Book of Energy to help him achieve it."
"What purpose does he need the Book of Energy to help him achieve?" Mordo said, thinking of the part of the ritual magic that was torn away, and looked at the Mage King in horror.
"Boundary barrier!"
The two of them exclaimed in unison.
The barrier's energy supply had long since been replaced with a new energy source. If Casillas's goal was to summon a dimensional demon, then his first step would undoubtedly be to find a way to destroy the barrier. The barrier's newly upgraded energy source and technology were undoubtedly recorded in the Book of Energy.
"We have to stop him!"
"We must inform the Supreme Sorcerer!"
The two spoke at the same time. Mordo's eyes held an inexplicable gloom. "I'll dispatch personnel to search for Casillas and his men. They know our methods, which will cause some trouble for our operation. But they can't remain hidden forever, and we know their ultimate destination. I'll also station more mages at the three sanctuaries to guard them until their tracks are revealed and they're eliminated."
"I have sent a notification to the Supreme Sorcerer through the mind ring, but she did not respond to me. I can go to Luke first. I know his character. He should have his own way to locate the Book of Energy. If he is willing to help, we will be able to quickly locate the hiding place of Casillas and the others." The Mage King also said.
"Where is Master Strange? Should we notify him?" the Mage King suddenly asked.
"Master Stephen?" The Mage King knew full well that Master Stephen Strange was undoubtedly being groomed by the Ancient One as the next Sorcerer Supreme, her successor. She hadn't hidden her attitude, and even though she hadn't done much, everyone had that impression. Of all the people involved, Master Mordo, who had been overtaken by the latter, was undoubtedly the most uncomfortable and embarrassed. Even though he hadn't said anything, he hadn't shown any dissatisfaction.
"I'll take him with me to find Luke. His relationship with Luke and the others might be better than mine." The Mage King hesitated for a moment and decided.
"No need to look for Luke." A portal spun in front of the library, and the Ancient One, dressed in a yellow robe, stepped out. "He has important matters to attend to, and he's not here right now."
"Supreme Mage."
Mordo and the Mage King saluted respectfully when they saw Ancient One.
"I already know what's going on. I will handle this matter myself." Gu Yi glanced at the guardian mage lying in a pool of blood and sighed softly in his heart.
…
S.H.I.E.L.D.
"Did your wizard defect? And took some important supernatural equipment? Is his intention to summon a potentially extremely dangerous dimensional demon?" Late in the night, Nick Fury stared with his single eye at the Mage King emerging from the portal. He had received an urgent communication from the Mage King and given him his address to wait for him. He hadn't expected the Mage King to deliver a barrage of bad news the moment he arrived.
"Yes, given our partnership, I think we should inform you," the Mage King said, still stating his purpose. "Because Mage Casillas and his men are well aware of our mages' search methods, we may not be able to find any trace of their activities in the short term. But I think he may not be too wary of your technological surveillance methods."
"You want us to help find them?" Nick immediately understood what the Mage King meant. If the situation was as serious as he claimed, he didn't seem to have any reason to refuse. He pondered for a moment, then asked, "Besides that? What else do you need us to do?"
"We will handle the combat matters, you just need to do your part. We will divide the work and cooperate with each other as before." The Mage King said cryptically.
Nick understood immediately.
You think we're a burden in battle, right? The mages haven't changed their minds about S.H.I.E.L.D. yet, have they? S.H.I.E.L.D. isn't short of superhuman combat power right now. We have nearly a thousand elite agents equipped with Hyperion's extraordinary equipment, like the Psychic Ring. If needed, we can also draw on the power of another Avengers team outside of S.H.I.E.L.D.
But since the Mage King refused, Nick didn't need to sacrifice his agents. But he also made his own request. He could help, and mobilize forces to search for the traces of the defected mages, but the Mage King needed to maintain close contact with S.H.I.E.L.D., share information, let him know the progress of the matter, and whether it was successfully resolved.
The Mage King thought for a moment and nodded. This wasn't a demanding request. When the two reached a consensus, the Mage King left Nick with a magical image of Casillas and the others, along with the corresponding information, and then hurried away. In the event of the Supreme Sorcerer's intervention, he would need to take charge of Kamar-Taj.
…
In a dark, remote and abandoned chapel in Britain, Casillas and other wizards, who had studied ritual magic for more than a month and mastered it with the help of a certain demon, meticulously restored the ritual magic on the pages of the book, summoning a great existence from outside a certain dimension.
Almost immediately, the dimensional demon who had been behind the scenes responded to the ritual of Casillas and others almost impatiently. Their spiritual consciousness was forcibly pulled up and connected across the universe to a dimensional universe with vast and majestic power.
That dimension is filled with pure dark power.
"Great Master Dormammu!" Seeing a giant face the size of a planet appear, Kaecilius and the others, their bodies imbued with the power of the Dark Dimension, were involuntarily distorted, along with their minds. This distortion didn't completely destroy your memory and transform you into a different person; you still had your own thoughts and thoughts. It simply amplified your paranoia and, while granting you a large amount of energy and the knowledge to use it accordingly, it also shattered your fragile will.
Not many people can resist the erosion of thoughts.
Not everyone is like Master Ancient One, who has borrowed the power of demons from various dimensions without being eroded or affected, and can still maintain his clear will and thinking.
If the Ancient One used the power of the demons from various dimensions purely as a tool, then Kaecilius and the others willingly became his slaves under the might of Dormammu.
Thanks to classmate Jingdefeng for the rewards for four consecutive days.