Shadow of the Beautiful World

Today is an important day.

At least for His Excellency Stephen Strange, it is very important.

The former neurosurgeon in New York had a bizarre disaster a few months ago, and then, by a blessing in disguise, he accidentally started a second choice in his life.

He made a job change.

From a talented and proud doctor, he became a wild mage.

This sounds like a pretty dead-end career, and it sounds no different from those psychics who dance on the streets of New York.

Such an absurd choice was absolutely not included in Strange's previous life plan.

But fate is like this, it has become accustomed to being a reckless tyrant, and it will never kindly ask you for your own opinion before your life is changed.

Under the guidance of Lord Raven, Strange made a difficult choice.

call

In the basement of the mystery house, the room that has been given space folding is as wide as a tumbling sea. This is the simulated environment.

The simulation is very real, and there is even a fishy sea breeze blowing.

There are many suspended stones on the sea surface, completely without the factor of gravity, which looks extremely fantastic and unscientific.

But very magical.

The mage Strange, wearing a blue robe, sat cross-legged on one of the stones. He sat cross-legged as if he was practicing yoga, holding the seal with both hands and placing it on his knees.

He closed his eyes and breathed very rhythmically. The invisible magic power followed the rhythm of breathing, and was absorbed into the mage's body from the outside world. A trace of magic power was integrated into his body, and the rest returned to the outside world along with the breathing.

It's like forming some kind of weird loop.

Meditation, the most basic magic homework, every mage knows it, this is the most common way to accumulate magic power in the body.

The effect is poor, but it is better in the long run.

Moreover, the clarification of thinking brought about by meditation is also a thinking environment that spellcasters need very much. Many complex mana models often need to be completely analyzed in this state of no distracting thoughts.

Strange has already adapted to this rhythm, and every time he meditates, it is as if he once stood at the operating table, preparing for a delicate operation.

hum

The calm magic power vibrated at this moment, as if a small stone was thrown into the pool, and the rising waves woke up the mage from his meditation.

He raised his head in a little bewilderment, and saw Lord Raven floating in the air in front of his eyes, looking at him with a scrutinizing gaze, which was still the same disgusting feeling as before.

He seemed to have been seen through, and under the gaze of those blue eyes, he had no more secrets to speak of.

I hear you've been doing well lately.

With his hands behind his back, Merlin looked at Strange who stood up from the stone in front of him. The latter's figure didn't change much, but during the long study, he had a little more silent temperament that a spellcaster should have.

It's like a person rolling in the world of mortals suddenly turned into an ascetic monk.

Merlin says:

Xuanlan told me that you have read most of the classics in the library of the mysterious house, and you have also mastered a lot of low-level magic and secret techniques inherited from Kama Taj. You took the initiative to apply for the assessment

Are you tired of this closed penance?

Roughly the same.

Strange flexed his wrists.

This is a movement habit he has developed recently. In the previous car accident, his arm was severely injured. From the perspective of modern medicine, it is already an incurable pain.

But along with the process of learning magic, the transformation of the body by the magic power made his arms and fingers regain their previous flexibility.

Faced with Merlin's question, Master Strange did not hide anything, and just replied so generously:

Life in the Mystery House is good. Ms. Xuanlan takes good care of me. She is also a very good teacher. In theory, I shouldn't feel disgusted here.

However, theory is one thing, reality is another.

Looking at the simulated ocean in the basement, he said:

Although only two months have passed outside, I have lived here ten times longer. I have been away from modern society for too long. I have a kind of fear that if I stay longer, I will completely lose touch with the world. , out of place.

Such is the life of spellcasters.

Merlin said softly:

When we embarked on the road of magic, we were already out of tune with the world, Strange, I can understand the unreasonable panic surging in your heart. Humans are social animals after all.

But you should be very strong in the situation you are facing now. Only by enduring loneliness can you win more vitality in that battle. Maybe you don't like this kind of persecution, but as an adult

I know, I understand.

Strange interrupted Merlin's persuasion, and he grinned at Lord Raven.

During the surge of magic power, an orange-yellow light danced on his wrist, forming a rune seal around his arm. He said:

I don't mean to give up, Your Excellency Merlin, I still cherish my own life.

I just think that it doesn't make much sense to continue to learn like this. In your words, I feel that I have reached a bottleneck, and I may need to change my method.

Or, it's time to move on to the next stage.

This kind of thing can't 'you think,' Strange.

Merlin's blue eyes looked at Strange.

He could see the flow of magic power circulating in Strange's body, and he could also feel the state of the caster in front of him.

People who can be valued by the ancient one are indeed magical. Strange's spellcasting talent is extremely amazing, and he is also a rare magic-rich physique.

Under Xuanlan's patient teaching, his magic power at this time has broken through the limitations of ordinary spellcasters and entered another level.

Although it is still very weak in Merlin's view, this progress is indeed amazing.

Let's do a test.

Merlin stretched out his hand and snapped his fingers, a door leading to the border of hell opened in front of Strange, he said:

If you pass the high-level spellcaster's test, we will enter the next stage, and I will no longer restrict your actions, but if you cannot pass

I will stay here honestly and continue to learn.

Strange held up two fingers in a gesture of oath.

He took a black wand from his belt, and sliding it through the air, with a star shining at the top of the wand, he said:

Although I already know that magic is amazing and powerful, but my current mood is like a child who just got a new toy, do you know what I mean?

Whether toys are interesting or not, you have to play with your own hands to know.

Merlin also smiled, and he made a please gesture to Strange, and said:

There are 20 lower demons waiting for you at the door.

Go kill them, or be killed by them, if you pass, I have a 'new toy' for you.

As he spoke, Lord Raven waved his fingers, and tossed a beautiful magic wand, made of crystal, with an inlaid demon skull on the top, up and down in his hand.

Strange is no longer an idiot who doesn't know anything.

He could clearly see that the magic wind brought by the crystal wand when it jumped was several times stronger than the wand he bought from Diagon Alley.

Vatum's wand, a magical object left by the former supreme mage Vatum, was kindly provided by the current supreme mage, Master Gu Yi.

I should have given it to you long ago, but you can understand that I can't throw a loaded rifle at a kid who can't control himself, and if you come back alive, it means you have to use it qualifications and abilities.

Merlin put away Vatum's wand, and he looked into Strange's eyes.

He said:

This wand was separated due to some accident in the past, and the other half fell into the hands of a dark wizard. As far as I know, the wizard is currently hiding somewhere in Europe.

That's the next stage you want, snatching back the remaining half of the wand and reaping the first real trophy in the life of a mage.

Leave my prize there.

Strange stepped into the portal leading to the border of hell, and he said confidently:

I'll be back soon.

swish

Before the dizziness of walking through the portal dissipated, the strong and pungent sulfur smell rushed into Strange's nostrils, and what appeared before his eyes was a land full of rust red.

At the end of the line of sight, there is another pale white ball of light hanging in the sky like the sun.

In the hazy sky, those thick clouds were covered with jumping lightning, and from time to time there were sky fires that fell from the sky and blasted into this barren world.

Strange recited the spell, intending to cast an Iron Armor Charm on himself.

But the impatient subordinate demons who had been waiting for a long time would not give him time to react. The moment Strange raised his wand, 20 ferocious demons rushed over from all directions.

They wield rusty weapons and make all kinds of weird noises, trying to scare the human who has broken into the border of hell.

Just now, Queen Liana of the Frontier has already promised.

As long as they can kill this human being, they can get many, many benefits.

The corrosive green liquid was sprayed towards Strange by a demon, and the latter immediately interrupted the release of the Iron Armor Curse, but instead of dissipating the magic power of the wand, it injected the magic power into another man in a very dangerous way. Inside a sketched mana model.

Shifting spell!

whoosh

Strange's figure appeared behind 20 low-ranking demons. He didn't give himself a shield anymore, and he threw several Cruciatus Curse with a wave of his wand.

Although in the eyes of orthodox wizards, this is the Unforgivable Curse, but the rules of orthodox wizards cannot control Strange, who is a wild mage.

At the moment when the fastest demons curled up due to the pain erupting from their bodies, the wild mage seized the opportunity.

He held the wand with both hands, and during the superimposed release of huge magic power, a tumbling, orange-yellow lightning gathered from the top of the wand.

The electric current hit the ground, and the mud was splashed everywhere.

Like a snake looking for food, it hit the body of the first demon in a bounce.

The lightning struck it torn apart, cut off its arm swiftly, and then paralyzed it in place.

In the halo like a bomb explosion, those liquid lights jumped away again, hitting the second demon, then the third, and the fourth.

This is still a group attack magic.

And I don't know if it's because of the wild mage's fighting style. In short, after the first wave of lightning repelled the attack of the demons, Strange grabbed a rusty bone axe from the ground.

In the flash of the transfer spell, it appeared beside the paralyzed demons.

With the knife in hand, the heads of the paralyzed four-headed demons were cut off neatly.

Strange, holding the bloody bone axe, waved the wand in the other hand. He looked at the remaining 16 low-level demons in front of him, and shrugged.

Well, it was exactly as he imagined in his mind countless times.

To magic, to legend, to strange.

Fighting, it's not difficult at all.

And it's interesting to unleash new powers.

It's like a new toy in the hands of a little boy. Not only does it look great, but it's also very fun.

In the hall of the mysterious house, Merlin looked at the floating projection in front of him.

After seeing Strange grabbing the bone axe, using the Displacement Curse to dodge to the demon's side, and chopping off a few heads with the axe, Lord Raven nodded in satisfaction.

As expected, he is not constrained by the spellcaster's fighting style. He knows how to use all available methods, and the movement of swinging the ax is quite standard. It seems that he has also practiced the beheading skills hard.

I just said, why does he still go to the gym for a few hours every day after meditating?

By Meilin's side, Xuan Lan didn't like this slightly brutal way of fighting.

She whispered:

This way of fighting will be laughed at by colleagues.

I also fight like this, and I have never seen anyone laugh at me.

Merlin didn't take it seriously. He watched the scene where Strange, who was holding a battle ax and wand, was fighting with the rest of the demons. He said:

As long as it can kill the enemy, it's a good way. There's no such thing as paying attention.

Xuanlan shrugged her shoulders as she deserved to be a wild mage in the same line, but she didn't comment on it.

She looked at the projection in front of her eyes, she said

Speaking of which, I haven't seen the magic that Strange used just now, did you teach it?

No, I didn't teach it. He should have learned it from the Kama Taj scrolls that no one can understand except him.

Merlin opened the book of Visandi, which recorded all the white magic in the world. After a few seconds, he found the magic that Strange used just now, and he read:

Bosat Lightning, originated from the ancient secret art of Karma Taj.

The characteristic is that the release speed is fast and the power is huge, and it has additional damage to hell creatures.

The disadvantage is that the conduction of this kind of magical lightning requires a material medium and cannot be conducted in the air. Moreover, the speed of lightning flying is not particularly fast, so it is easy to be avoided.

Merlin said softly:

Strange has the talent to understand secret scrolls, so he is destined to learn many special magics that have been lost in this era. This is his advantage over other candidates.

hum

While Merlin was watching Strange's spellcasting assessment, a piece of news from Kama Taj appeared on the flipped pages of the Book of Visandi.

This is a message from Master Ancient One.

Lord Raven took a look, and his brows immediately frowned.

A new contestant? Loki?

Is this the 'rule change' she said last time?