Chapter 674

Next to the energy core of the Kamar-Taj Research Center, Shiler and Strange stared at each other; Strange glanced at his watch and said, "Hasn't he been up there too long?"

Shiler also checked his own watch; before Stark's ascension, the plan had been for him to reach the level beyond the universe in no more than thirty seconds, but now nearly a minute had passed and Stark still hadn't returned.

Shiler frowned in thought, but decided this time was still within safe limits, so he said, "Let's wait a bit longer—if we haven't heard anything in a minute and a half, we'll contact Master Wong."

Strange had already pulled out his phone; if Stark didn't return soon, he planned to reach out to Wong, who would then ask Eternity to monitor Stark's condition.

But just as the minute mark passed, a golden light suddenly flared above Kamar-Taj; Strange stepped back two paces and stared at the glow on the protective barrier: "This… is a new godborn? On Earth? Tony probably…"

Strange took a deep breath, suppressing the grim expression on his face, forcing himself calm, then spoke steadily: "All Kamar-Taj sorcerers, assemble! If you detect Tony Stark in godborn form, do not act rashly—let him leave Earth's boundaries first…"

"Wait, Tony shouldn't ascend so easily…" Shiler also frowned; he had confidence in Stark's self-control—in the dream world, he had instantly built an entire city, proving his mastery over the soul was extraordinarily strong, far exceeding that of most beings in this universe.

That was why Shiler had agreed to let Stark go up again—he knew Stark's reason was sufficient to suppress those distractions; as long as he didn't wish to ascend, he wouldn't become a godborn.

But now, the situation had surpassed everyone's expectations: during the very moment Stark ascended beyond the universe, a new godborn emerged on Earth. This couldn't be coincidence—the only possible explanation was that Stark had truly become a god.

As sorcerers gathered toward the energy core, the magical light flickered again—a rainbow-like stream descended from the sky, and Stark's figure appeared within it; Strange and all the sorcerers froze.

"Tony, you didn't… then what's with that new god???" Strange asked, bewildered, then saw Stark's furious expression—he glanced around at the sorcerers, then helplessly raised his hand and said:

"Don't move yet… I can't explain this easily, but right now, I need to go up again—don't bother with me."

"Wait!" Strange called out again.

"I really don't have time to explain!" Stark seemed to be suppressing anger; he took a deep breath and added, "Don't worry about me—as long as I don't want to ascend, I won't become a godborn…"

Stark turned to leave again, but Strange stopped him once more; Stark opened his mouth to speak, but Strange cut in: "Do you know how much magical energy you consume per second of ascension? How do you calculate the electricity bill?"

"I'll pay!" Stark snapped, then immediately transformed into his godborn form and ascended beyond the universe.

Strange, still standing on the ground, sighed and waved at the group of senior sorcerers: "Disperse. Oh, wait—don't go yet. Who's in charge of Finance?"

All the senior sorcerers stepped back one pace; Wong stepped forward, helplessly saying, "Besides me, who else?"

Strange slung an arm around his shoulder and walked with him, saying, "Did you hear what Tony Stark just said?"

"Uh… he said not to worry about him, that he could control whether or not to become a godborn. Honestly, that's pretty impressive—if magical energy is sufficient, couldn't he maintain the beyond-universe state indefinitely?" Wong remarked with awe.

"Who told you that? Didn't you hear him say he'd pay?" Strange stared at Wong with an expression of "Are you really this dense?"

"Magical energy cannot be valued by any currency—it's priceless. Of course, overcharging isn't Kamar-Taj's style; we must have righteous cause, righteous cause—you understand?" Strange pulled Wong close with his arm, lowering his voice:

"Kamar-Taj's next budget depends entirely on the damage report you're about to file. You've got this, right?"

Wong kept his troubled expression: "Kamar-Taj's magical energy supports so many sorcerers—losing this much will affect our next three… I mean, thirteen projects. The losses will be incalculable…"

Strange released his grip on Wong and gave him a thumbs-up.

Before turning to leave, he pulled down the corner of his eye, making an even sadder face, then pointed at Wong's face; Wong gave him an OK sign.

When Strange returned to the energy core, he saw Shiler on the phone; Shiler hung up as Strange approached, gave him a glance, and they moved to a quiet corner. Shiler looked at his phone and said, "Open a portal to Nick Fury's office at S. . . . . . We have something to discuss."

With a *whoosh*, a portal opened; when Shiler and Strange stepped through, Loki and Nick were already seated on opposite sofas.

The four took their places on the four sofas, exchanged glances, and immediately knew the meeting's topic—nothing but Dede.

Surely some still remembered how the last Dede-quadruple gathering left certain individuals in ruin—and this gathering was no different. First, the organizer, Shiler, spoke.

"I assume you've all figured out the source of the faith energy on Peter's body. Now, Stephen will explain what this power actually does."

The floor passed to Strange; he sipped his coffee, cleared his throat, and said: "As we all know, all power in this universe originates from cosmic essence—this primordial energy can be drawn and used by different beings."

"Some beings naturally convert cosmic essence into usable energy—like you…" Strange looked at Loki; Loki nodded. He continued:

"Others cannot actively use this power—or use it differently."

"Human faith is so valuable precisely because, when humans channel cosmic essence to godborns through belief, they themselves cannot use the energy—so the transmission is completely lossless."

"Human souls can refine this energy, making it purer, but since humans cannot actively wield it, this refined energy is transmitted entirely to their object of worship. Hence, godborns all favor Earth for proselytizing—here, one believer provides them ten to a hundred times the energy they'd get from other beings."

"But not all humans are incapable of using this energy—sorcerers, for instance, can wield magical energy."

"Whether faith energy or magical energy, both are evolved forms of cosmic essence—some more shallowly evolved, others more deeply. Depending on the degree of evolution, different beings can utilize them…"

"And they can be converted into one another. For example, faith energy can be transformed into magical energy—and because faith energy is less evolved, it yields vast quantities of magical energy."

"For instance, most godborns who left Earth were once ordinary humans; they ascended solely by accumulating enough faith energy."

"Conversely, if a human gathers enough magical energy, they can convert it into faith energy and become a godborn too—different paths, same destination."

"And as for what magical energy actually does—surely I don't need to elaborate. Of course, I'm not boasting, but I must say: even many energies stronger than magical energy are less practical in human hands."

And as for what magical energy actually does, I hardly need to elaborate, do I? Of course, it's not out of arrogance, but I must say that even many forms of energy stronger than magical energy are not necessarily as usable by humans as magical energy is.

"Precisely because the human body is fragile, we've developed countless methods to deepen energy evolution—making it less destructive, more refined. And because humans can acquire so little magical energy, Kamar-Taj was forced to push energy utilization to its absolute limit…"

"Precisely due to our scarcity of energy, over tens of thousands of years, we've squeezed every drop of magical energy to its utmost—thus evolving unique magical arts."

Strange raised his voice, his tone brimming with innate confidence: "The universe holds countless races stronger than us—but since humanity emerged, our advantage over all others has been our unmatched ability to create and utilize tools."

"Precisely because we are weak, we've encoded into our genes the imperative to maximize efficiency and minimize cost—and when one day we gain sufficient resources, humanity's rise will be unstoppable."

Nick and Shiler clapped vigorously; clearly, Strange's speech carried both substance and depth. In his time as Sorcerer Supreme, he had grown immensely.

From a clueless apprentice ignorant of magic and mysticism to Sorcerer Supreme towering above the entire mystical world, Strange hadn't just opened a door to a new world—he'd expanded his vision and perspective.

After Strange finished speaking, Shiler continued: "Since this energy can be harnessed by humans, it seems another excellent opportunity to add to humanity's magical energy reserves."

After Strange finished speaking, Xiler continued: "Since this energy can be harnessed by humans, it seems this is another excellent opportunity to add to humanity's stockpile of magical energy."

Nick adjusted his eye patch, rubbed his forehead, smiled, sipped water, cleared his throat, then said:

"First, I declare that faith on Earth must remain absolutely free. I oppose Kamar-Taj's monitoring of human faith flows."

"Humans are so weak—their faith changes nothing. Even if they worship a demon god, it's only because cosmic godborns deceived them with sweet words."

"We must never blame the victim. Monitoring humans is unjust. To ensure cosmic safety and peace, we must punish the perpetrators."

"Godborns deceived humans of their faith… yes, deceived. Without informing humans of faith energy's true value, they tricked them out of their most precious faith with trivial, utterly disproportionate rewards."

"Beyond withholding fair compensation, they also deceived humanity's sacred emotions. Sorcerer Supreme, what do you think of these vile acts?"

Strange shook his head, sighed: "In truth, I feel both sorrow and rage. Humanity began utilizing energy late; during our ignorant age, those greedy vampires exploited our weakness, using their informational advantage to drain our precious faith with pitifully small returns…"

Strange covered his face, as if overcome by grief, unable to speak further. Nick snorted:

"Then I propose: cosmic godborns bear the obligation and responsibility to make amends. Humanity must reclaim its stolen and plundered faith through any means necessary—including violence. This is humanity's righteous vengeance against exploiters and invaders!"

If that is the case, I propose that the Cosmic Deities have both the obligation and the responsibility to answer for this; humanity must reclaim the faith energy once exploited and plundered through all means, including violence—this is humanity's righteous vengeance against its exploiters and aggressors!

"Then, I declare: the Avengers, assemble!"