"Ancient One, you really deserve to die!"
In the vast emptiness of the Dark Dimension, Dormammu finally couldn't sit still any longer.
As Ronan absorbed dark energy at an alarming rate, Dormammu finally sensed something was off.
He glared toward the spot where the dark energy was vanishing—though he couldn't see anyone there, he was certain…
Someone was there, sucking up the power that belonged to him!
So, he let out a sky-shattering roar, hurling a massive wave of dark energy toward Ronan's location!
Even if he couldn't see a single soul there!
The Ancient One, hands clasped behind her back, watched it all calmly.
Boom!
With a deafening crash, the dark energy slammed into the air, and at that moment, a red "air wall" flickered into Dormammu's view.
Soon, after withstanding the energy blast, the air wall faded back into invisibility.
Everything seemed to go smoothly, but at Ronan and the Ancient One's position, they still felt the aftershocks of the tremor.
Under the violent shaking, massive boulders rained down from above, crashing into the ground, which began to quiver slightly.
The Ancient One glanced upward, her hands weaving through the air as Rings of Raggador shot from her grasp, slicing the falling stones into fragments with pinpoint accuracy.
Thanks to the force, those fragments veered away from Ronan's spot, landing harmlessly around him.
Dark energy continued pouring into Ronan's body—at this point, his form was like a bottomless pit, no amount of dark energy seeming to fill it.
Boom!
Another thunderous roar echoed.
The invisible shield took another hit.
This time, Dormammu's attack was fiercer—beyond the usual earth-shaking chaos, faint cracks began spiderwebbing across the invisible shield.
And Dormammu caught those cracks in an instant.
He gathered another colossal mass of dark energy, condensing it into a sphere before hurling it viciously at the fractured spot.
Boom!
Crack, crack, crack…
This time, alongside the roar came the crisp sound of splintering.
The invisible shield in midair shattered like glass, fissures spreading until it teetered on the brink of collapse.
The Ancient One narrowed her eyes—she'd noticed it too.
This spell's primary function was to cloak her and Ronan's bodies in invisibility, and within the shield, Ronan's position shifted randomly.
So, Dormammu hitting Ronan directly? Pretty much impossible.
But nothing in the world is perfect—magic included.
While hiding their forms, the shield's defensive strength was drastically weakened, especially after taking two hits to the same spot.
By all logic, the Ancient One could've ditched the shield at any moment and gone toe-to-toe with Dormammu again.
But she didn't.
Because she knew full well her current mission was to protect Ronan—as long as he completed this critical step, the future would be far smoother.
So, compared to beating up Dormammu, keeping Ronan safe was the priority.
After all, she could thrash Dormammu anytime, but Ronan wouldn't always get a chance like this.
With the ultimate victory in mind, the Ancient One stepped forward, positioning herself in front of Ronan.
Her hands formed a seal at her chest—red magical rings layered around her wrists, and with a spread of her arms, a surge of red energy erupted from her body.
The unleashed red energy formed runes in the air, swiftly merging into the invisible shield overhead.
As the light flowed, those runes not only patched the earlier cracks, restoring the shield to pristine condition, but also bolstered its defensive strength.
Roar!!!!
Dormammu bellowed again, another black energy blast crashing into the shield.
Compared to before, the shield's defense had clearly jumped a notch—the shaking inside wasn't nearly as intense.
But every gain has its downside.
The runes' appearance fully exposed the once-invisible shield.
A spherical barrier now isolated Ronan and the Ancient One's position into a lone island.
Yet this island looked like a dying old man, hooked up to countless tubes.
Only these "tubes" were all pitch black.
Seeing this, Dormammu instantly pieced it together.
The Ancient One was using the shield to keep the massive dark energy at bay—not just for invisibility, but to further fragment the dangerous stuff.
It was her classic move.
Long ago, the Ancient One had started absorbing dark energy, but pure, unfiltered dark energy couldn't be taken in directly.
Regular folks touching it would likely turn into mindless slaves, and even sorcerers like them absorbing it raw would be warped by its influence.
So, the Ancient One used this shield to filter out the dark consciousness that could mess with human minds, isolating it from the pure energy.
That's one reason why, after all these years of absorbing dark energy, she'd kept her humanity intact.
Yup, just one of her tricks.
For Ronan, though he'd absorbed some dark energy before, the quantity and quality paled compared to here.
Even funnier—most of the dark energy he'd taken in had already been "digested" by someone else, stripping out the mind-altering parts, leaving him with just the raw stuff.
So, despite his prior experience, the Ancient One still wanted to eliminate every possible risk.
She was Ronan's teacher, but she had another role too.
She was his adoptive mother!
She'd never let Ronan suffer the slightest grievance.
"Ancient One! You thief!"
"You've stolen dark energy for years and still call yourself Earth's protector!"
"What's the difference between you and my slaves?"
Dormammu glared through the shield, eyes locked on it even though he couldn't see a thing.
But he was damn sure the Ancient One was staring right back.
Yet she had zero intention of responding.
After a long silence with no reply, Dormammu summoned two massive black hands around him, slamming them down on the shield.
The runes flared again, staunchly guarding Ronan and the Ancient One inside.
"Ancient One, if your little fan club found out you've been prolonging your life with dark energy—"
"Including him!"
"Do you think they'd still worship you?"
Bang!
The giant hands smashed the shield again, the runes blazing once more.
But this time, the glow was noticeably dimmer than before.
The Ancient One frowned—with her experience, she knew these runes wouldn't hold much longer.
She glanced at Ronan—he was still the same as before.
But it was obvious his absorption rate had slowed.
And it was getting slower.
At this pace, it wouldn't be long before he was done.
But whether the shield could last that long? The Ancient One spread her hands again, more runes appearing to patch the spots under attack.
Yet the repairs couldn't keep up with Dormammu's destruction.
Because right now, Dormammu was in a full-on frenzy.
He hammered the shield without restraint, even at any cost.
At this point, his mind held one thought—shatter that shield and rip the two ants hiding inside to pieces.
Especially the Ancient One—he'd had enough after all these years.
Back when she came alone, she could slip in and out, outsmarting him countless times with her tricks.
But now was different.
Dormammu had sensed it—the person with her was someone crucial to her.
So, as long as that person was still absorbing dark energy, the Ancient One wouldn't run—giving him a shot to kill her!
A chance to vent all the hatred he'd bottled up for so long!
Only Dormammu knew how suffocating it was to watch someone steal his dark energy—someone he could've killed—only to see them slip away.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Relentless bombardment left the shield teetering.
The Ancient One watched the raging Dormammu quietly, her brow furrowed.
Because she could tell the shield was about to break.
"Ancient One!!!"
Bang!!!
With Dormammu's furious roar, the shield finally shattered with a boom.
And there stood Ronan and the Ancient One, exposed in Dormammu's sight.
Seeing those familiar faces, Dormammu flashed back to those moments.
Especially Ronan.
When he got a clear look at Ronan's face, his rage surged past even what he felt for the Ancient One, the longtime energy thief.
Because back then, Ronan had come to the Dark Dimension too—not only using its dark energy but beating him with it.
That grudge still burned.
This was the Dark Dimension—Dormammu's turf.
Who knows how many eons ago he'd claimed dominion here, becoming the nightmare of countless universes and planets.
And yet, he'd been hurt by some no-name mortal.
If it were just the injury, Dormammu might not be this pissed.
What enraged him most was that Ronan had used his dark energy.
Even the Ancient One could only siphon energy from the Dark Dimension and refine it slowly.
"It's you, you damned mortal!!!"
Dormammu's eyes were bloodshot now.
The old grudge with the Ancient One plus the fresh one with Ronan drove him completely over the edge!
He even ignored the Ancient One, sending a torrent of dark energy straight at Ronan.
The Ancient One flashed to Ronan's front, her hands snapping into seals.
Winds of Watoomb!!
A howling gale roared toward Dormammu's dark energy—compared to Strange's version, it was night and day!
The massive energies clashed midair, but the Winds of Watoomb were clearly outclassed.
This was the Dark Dimension—any godly spell took a hit here.
Seeing the Winds collapse on contact, the Ancient One wasn't surprised—she'd expected it when she cast.
So, the next second, a giant shield enveloped Ronan.
Crimson Bands of Cyttorak!
Wait—no, this was Hoggoth's Ancient Form!
As one of the ancient gods, Hoggoth's moves were famed for defense.
And this wasn't just any defense.
Any attack hitting the shield's surface—even if it shattered—would neutralize the strike.
Neutralize, as in dissolve.
So, even the Dark Dimension's enhanced energy turned to scattered dust the instant it touched the massive shield!
This was the Dark Dimension, mind you.
Even juiced-up dark energy could only match Hoggoth's Ancient Form.
Imagine if this were outside?
Of course, the Dark Dimension's strength lay in its persistence.
After the first wave was repelled, a second energy tide surged in right after.
At that moment, a smirk crept onto Dormammu's face.
"Ancient One, you've finally fallen for it!"
As she summoned Hoggoth's Ancient Form again to block, the scattered debris on the ground suddenly reformed into dark energy the next second.
And it was just half a step from her.
The lingering dark energy fused in a flash, forming a long blade.
The blade aimed for the Ancient One's back, stabbing down hard.
Meanwhile, up front, the rushing dark energy swallowed the giant shield before her again.
Now, the Ancient One faced a dilemma.
Defend her back, and she could block that strike instantly, unscathed.
But the frontal dark energy could engulf them all in a heartbeat.
She could dodge it before it hit, though.
The result?
Ronan would die in the attack.
In that split second, the Ancient One made her call.
She didn't even turn—instead, she reinforced Hoggoth's Ancient Form.
Between her death and Ronan's, she chose the former.
Because she knew Ronan was ready to become Kamar-Taj's Sorcerer Supreme—and he'd protect Earth even better.
So, she opted for an early "retirement."
Whoosh!
The black blade sliced through the air, plunging toward her back.
But just as it was about to strike, a hand appeared out of nowhere, grabbing the blade.
A trickle of blood slid silently from the edge.
"Teacher, retiring this early…"
"No way."