*Chapter 186: Intentionally Faking One's Own Death*

Everything can be rationalized with a “principle.”

When facing evil people, the Ancient One might slap them to death without wasting words.

However, when facing another protector of Earth, the Ancient One would act reasonably.

Why? Earth is too big, and relying on just one Sorcerer Supreme to protect it is not enough.

In her prime, the Ancient One could spread her awareness across the globe, detecting every major dimensional rift and sending the protectors of Kamar-Taj to eliminate any invading extraterrestrial entities.

Even at her peak, she couldn’t handle everything. It's like Earth’s military spy satellites—sure, they can monitor the ground, but they can’t watch all 8 billion people at once.

And now, the Ancient One is no longer at her peak.

Using dark powers to sustain her life, while simultaneously expending even more energy to fend off their corruption, she was long exhausted, her power falling to a level no outsider could comprehend.

In this state, the Ancient One still held great respect for someone as strong as Atreus.

There’s a saying that goes, “It takes many to carry a sedan chair.” Ancient One apologized, and Atreus went along with it.

He shot a sharp glance at the miserable Kaecilius, then turned to look at the Ancient One.

“Do you even know what you’re doing? Can’t you just...” Atreus couldn’t help but say.

“I know you know,” Ancient One cut him off sharply, not letting him finish.

“If you know that I know, why are you still...”

“Shh!”

One finger, a gesture to be silent, expressed countless words.

As Buddha said: "Unspeakable!"

Even though the Ancient One wasn’t a Buddhist, she still gave Atreus an overwhelming sense of Zen.

“I understand. But in the future, I’ll act according to my own judgment,” Atreus took half a step back.

“Much appreciated.”

Kaecilius, standing nearby, was utterly confused. More than that, he felt aggrieved. These two guys didn’t even regard him, a “servant of the great dark lord Dormammu,” as worthy!

“You...” Kaecilius only got one word out before Ancient One stepped forward.

Boom—

A strange buzzing sound rippled out from under her feet like a shockwave. magic, drawn from countless parallel worlds, burst forth.

overwhelming pressure forced Kaecilius to shift his attention from Atreus back to his former master, Ancient One.

Nearby, Doctor Strange and Mordo were well protected by the Ancient One. Though it seemed they were just ten meters away from main battlefield, they were, in fact, separated by an entire mirror dimension.

As the Ancient One’s magic surged, blood-red mark on her forehead, resembling a goat’s head, became visible.

This symbol of Dormammu deeply shocked the two.

Not long ago, they had a serious ideological conflict with ancient One.

Doctor Strange didn’t want to participate in the mystic war or get involved in the Ancient One and Kaecilius’ feud because he had accidentally discovered in the stolen Book of Cagliostro the forbidden content about using dark magic to prolong life.

He had long suspected the Ancient One wasn’t as righteous as she seemed.

Because of this, he even had a fierce argument with his friend Mordo, who had once been lost and then taught by Ancient One how to strengthen his spirit and resist temptation of the dark realm.

Now, seeing the mark on her forehead, both felt their worldview shatter.

Doctor Strange had a “I knew it” expression.

Mordo, who had revered the Ancient One like a deity, was devastated. The one he believed to be Earth’s protector now seemed like the ultimate villain! How could someone like Mordo, who firmly believed in Ancient One, handle this?

A terrifying crack formed in Mordo’s strong spirit, and it was expanding rapidly, though he still held onto a relatively good heart at this moment.

It was... the collapse of faith!

Atreus looked at the two, utterly exasperated, thinking: “What’s the big deal with the Ancient One’s dark secret? Lots of people appear righteous on the surface but do shady things behind the scenes. Just look at your own country’s leaders—one messing with interns, another using public funds to play with adult film stars, and one who loves kids.”

So...

“What do you know?!” A Kratos-like figure scoffed, “Have you ever tasted the despair of being at end of your life with no one to take over and protect Earth?”

Doctor Strange and Mordo were stunned. Was this mysterious superhero actually speaking to them?

Then he followed up with a sarcastic comment: “You think the title of Sorcerer Supreme is just like a hotdog on street, available whenever?”

This struck like a thunderbolt.

Both were filled with disbelief:

No! How does Kratos know about this?

Could we have misunderstood Ancient One?

Is there really more to the story?

Their minds flooded with complicated thoughts, and instinctively, they looked toward the Ancient One, who was now battling Kaecilius.

They wanted an answer—a real answer.

Actually, when Atreus was revealing the truth, Ancient One had shot him a sharp glance.

Mind your business!

That was the message in her eyes.

Atreus played dumb: “Aren’t you Kamar-Taj sorcerers supposed to guard time? If time truly can’t be changed, then whatever I do is just ‘chopping water with a knife, it still flows,’ right?”

No way! No way! I couldn’t possibly change anything… right!?

Atreus was genuinely amused. If the Ancient One didn’t choose to end her life, things would only get more interesting. Maybe one day, the Ancient One would truly fall and become the most terrifying demon god. But before that day came, Thanos wouldn’t dare make a move.

As long as Ancient One was around, Thanos wouldn’t stand a chance.

But Atreus underestimated Ancient One’s resolve to end herself.

Just as Atreus’s women were taking down most of Kaecilius’ followers, and everyone’s attention was focused on master-disciple battle, Kaecilius suddenly stabbed Ancient One in a vulnerable spot, calling her a “hypocrite.”

The whole scene screamed drama.

Though these close-quarter fights were accelerated by magic, allowing for superhuman speed, if one looked carefully, they could still follow the action.

Using one of his followers as cover, Kaecilius played a dual-wielding trick. blade in his left hand was blocked by Ancient One, while the one in his right first pierced the follower’s abdomen and then went straight into Ancient One’s chest.

It was a fatal blow.

Regardless of their previous doubts, Doctor Strange and Mordo were still her students, brought into the mystic world by her hand.

Especially after Atreus’s revelations about Ancient One’s use of dark power having hidden reasons, they instinctively chose to believe her.

Seeing her struck down now, they panicked.

“Go! I’ll handle Kaecilius, but Dormammu… you’ll have to deal with him yourselves.” Atreus’s words reassured them.

(End of Chapter)