Chapter 190: The First Step in Learning

{T/N: For every 150 Power Stones, I will upload an extra chapter on top of the two daily uploads, with no upper limit of course...}

...

Sean was momentarily taken aback. He hadn't expected the Ancient One to make such a request...

Then, with a resigned shrug, he accepted. Being an enforcer for once wasn't so bad, after all, not everyone had the privilege of stepping into Kamar-Taj, glimpsing the true face of the multiverse, and uncovering the profound mysteries of magic and the soul.

If he were to put it in mercenary terms, this was a no-lose deal. His feud with Mephisto was already irreparable... what was one more offense against the Hell Lord?

With the Ancient One's permission, Sean didn't rush headlong into the library to drown himself in ancient tomes and powerful spells. As he had said, he wasn't desperate for magic. Instead, his focus lay in the secrets of the soul.

Like a sightseer, he wandered leisurely through the vast expanse of Kamar-Taj. Sometimes, he would pause beneath a towering mage's spire... other times, he would engage in casual conversation with reclusive ascetics.

The gates of magic were wide open to him, yet he showed no urgency, content to linger at the threshold.

The Ancient One observed all of this with a glimmer of approval in her eyes. She stood in the central hall of Kamar-Taj, the nexus connecting the Three Sanctums, the heart of the magical world.

Her fingers turned a metal wheel, adjusting the massive celestial sphere suspended above. This was the formidable barrier built upon the Three Sanctums, supported by countless smaller sanctuaries and secret orders... hidden relics of an ancient tradition thriving in the modern world.

The colossal orb glowed like molten lava and shifted its trajectory as the wheel turned. Tiny points of light flickered, indicating dimensional rifts and fractures that required constant monitoring.

Sorcerers were dispatched to repair or guard these breaches, preventing incursions from extradimensional entities.

Over millennia, the defenses of the material world had grown ever more impregnable. Only beings of Mephisto's caliber (Hell Lords and their ilk) could bypass these barriers by possessing human vessels.

Even then, their power was severely constrained. Under the watchful eyes of the Sorcerers and the indomitable reputation of the Ancient One, even the mightiest of these entities dared not act recklessly.

Since the dawn of the Twilight Era, the human world had ceased to be their playground. Instead, it had become a hunting ground where they, the interlopers, were the prey.

"You once said he was dangerous. Why bring someone like him to Kamar-Taj?" Mordo, the Ancient One's foremost disciple, stepped into the bronze hall.

"His arrogance, his ambition, his tenacity… they all feel eerily familiar." The Ancient One gazed up at the shifting celestial sphere as she fine-tuned the vast magical network anchored by the Three Sanctums, ensuring it could detect any extradimensional incursion.

"Kaecilius." Mordo uttered the name softly.

The first in centuries to stain Kamar-Taj with blood, the betrayer who had spurned the Ancient One's guidance, stolen forbidden rituals of dark worship, and pledged himself to Dormammu.

"Sean Cyphers is gifted, perhaps even more so than Kaecilius. He's the kind who refuses to follow the rules. That makes him dangerous… but also allows him to step into the halls of magic faster than most." Finishing her adjustments, the Ancient One exhaled deeply.

She sensed unrest brewing in the Dark Dimension, minions of Heaven and Hell slipping through the cracks in reality like starving beasts. With Mephisto preparing his rebirth ritual, it was hard not to suspect some grand scheme orchestrated by malevolent spirits and dark gods.

Perhaps this was the calamity that would claim her life? A shadow crossed the Ancient One's heart. She foresaw her end approaching, yet the when and how remained obscured.

"Even if Kaecilius betrayed you, I never will." Mordo spoke earnestly, "I sought power to defeat my enemies, and it was you who granted me that strength, who taught me to conquer the darkness within and abide by my own laws."

"Darkness is never truly vanquished. We merely learn to coexist with it." The Ancient One shook her head.

Her disciple was steadfast in his faith, unwavering in his loyalty to Kamar-Taj and the Sorcerer Supreme. Yet his rigid adherence to rules made it impossible for him to transcend limitations and perceive his true self.

Kaecilius had once been a promising candidate, but the wounds in his heart ran too deep. Upon discovering the Ancient One's secret (that she drew power from the Dark Dimension to sustain her life), he had deemed all of Kamar-Taj a lie, plunging instead into the abyss as Dormammu's disciple.

"Do not trouble yourself with Sean Cyphers. He is a variable I intend to use to shape the future. I will keep watch over him myself."

Mordo seemed on the verge of protest but swallowed his words. He would never defy the Ancient One's will, even if the young man's resemblance to Kaecilius set his instincts on edge. If the master of Kamar-Taj decreed it, he would obey.

....

Exploring Kamar-Taj took Sean roughly three days...

During that time, he remotely managed affairs in New York via Skynet, even calling Dr. Connors and Harry to assure them he was taking an extended leave and not to worry.

On the fourth night, beneath the heavy shroud of darkness, he arrived at one of Kamar-Taj's most vital locations... the library...

Within its walls lay countless ancient texts, records stretching back to antiquity, and innumerable formidable spells. Here, every sorcerer could delve into the mysteries of the cosmos and the truths of existence.

Kamar-Taj had many rules, but one stood above all: Knowledge was to be shared.

So long as one possessed the requisite ability, even the Ancient One's personal collections were open to study... though few sorcerers ever reached such heights.

A stern, round-faced man greeted Sean. With the Ancient One's tacit approval, he was granted entry without objection. This humorless, solemn figure was Wong, Kamar-Taj's librarian. His predecessor had met a gruesome end at Kaecilius' hands, beheaded in a bloody sacrifice.

"You may peruse the texts here freely. But damage even a single page, and you will answer to me." Wong's tone brooked no argument.

Sean smirked, unfazed by the threat. He wandered among the endless shelves, each tome a thread in the tapestry of magical history. Forgotten secrets and buried truths awaited within these pages.

His gaze lingered on a copper-bound book secured by delicate chains with a dull gem embedded in its cover.

The 'Book of Cagliostro', also known as the 'Darkhold' or the 'Book of Time' contained the secrets of entering the Dark Dimension and the incantations to wield the Eye of Agamotto.

"No need to rush."

A faint smile curved Sean's lips as he plucked a hefty volume from a nearby shelf... The Key of Solomon, a Renaissance-era occult masterpiece detailing the rules and incantations for summoning demons, alongside dark magics that encouraged blood sacrifice.

This particular copy was a 14th-century transcription by a sorcerer, a priceless antique that would fetch a fortune at Sotheby's, coveted by occult enthusiasts and religious magnates alike.

Opening the book, Sean immersed himself, shutting out the world beyond. The gates of magic had swung wide, and he had taken his first step through...