Time passed like a white steed flashing by a crack in the wall.
In the blink of an eye, another year had gone by since Karl refined the Godmother God-Demon Light.
What puzzled both the Ancient One and Karl was this:
Throughout that entire year, Dormammu had made no move at all. Even the fluctuations within the Dark Dimension had weakened considerably.
Not only did this fail to reassure Karl, it instead filled him with an ominous sense of foreboding.
Although the Ancient One told him that an existence like Dormammu was the sort of being for whom even the extinction of four hundred suns would hardly be worth noticing, and that thousands of years were no more than an instant in the eyes of such a being—
that still did little to ease Karl's mind.
Fortunately, over that same year, his strength had also grown tremendously.
If measured by the standards of the Marvel world, his current power had already reached the peak of Pseudo–Skyfather-level.
He was only a hair's breadth away from the Skyfather level.
It had to be said:
Although the Marvel world's power divisions were somewhat broad, there was still a clear pattern to them.
Hero-level, Pseudo–Skyfather, Skyfather, Single-Universe, and Multiversal Unity.
At Karl's current level, even in the universe at large, he could already be considered a hegemon in his own right.
Thanos had roamed the cosmos for so many years, yet he was still only at the Pseudo–Skyfather level.
Even so, Karl's heart was still weighed down by a stifling sense of unease.
If he could not break through to the Skyfather level, he simply could not settle his mind.
So, after the Ancient One returned from the Dimensional Realm one day, Karl went to find her again.
"Ancient One."
"Did you gain anything?"
Karl spoke with unusual politeness.
"You brat, since when did you start being so formal?"
"If you have something to say, just say it."
The Ancient One smiled as she glanced at him.
Karl scratched his head awkwardly.
"It's actually nothing much."
"I just want to know how you broke through to the Skyfather level."
"Skyfather?"
"You have indeed reached the point where it's time for you to know about these things."
The Ancient One nodded.
"But unfortunately, there's nothing I can directly teach you."
"If you want to break through, you can only rely on your own insight."
"Only when your understanding of the Path of Laws becomes deep enough can you become a Skyfather."
"That is also why most powerhouses, in the latter half of their cultivation, study multiple laws."
"Only by fully integrating multiple laws can they step into an entirely new level."
The Ancient One spoke again.
"Fully integrate them completely?"
"To what extent do they need to be integrated before it counts?"
Karl asked in confusion.
"When you can truly comprehend the essence of a law,"
"you will naturally be able to push open that door."
The Ancient One spoke softly.
"Then how am I supposed to comprehend the essence of a law?"
Karl asked again, still deeply puzzled.
"Continue cultivating magic."
"Once you have mastered enough magical knowledge,"
"you will naturally begin to grasp the Path of Laws."
"These natural laws of the universe exist within nature itself."
"But once we understand them deeply enough, we can truly comprehend their essence."
"If you understand the essence of a law, then you understand the essence of the world."
The Ancient One patiently guided him.
"So all I need to do is keep learning magic, and I'll be able to comprehend the essence of laws?"
"That's what I'm best at."
Karl immediately grinned.
"Of course it isn't that simple."
"You still need insight."
The Ancient One replied.
"That's way too vague."
A helpless smile appeared on Karl's face.
"That's simply how it is."
"If laws were so easy to comprehend, then everyone in this world would be a powerhouse."
The Ancient One laughed as well.
"All right. Although I can't make you break through to the Skyfather level immediately,"
"I can teach you a high-level spell."
"Once you comprehend enough high-level spells, the breakthrough will naturally come."
The Ancient One said calmly.
"I suppose that's the only way."
Karl replied with some resignation.
"It can banish your enemy into another space."
"It is also a high-level spatial spell, and it involves the application of mental force."
"Back then, it was through this that I reached the level you call Skyfather."
"Although I can't guarantee that you'll break through the same way, the chances should be better."
The Ancient One said.
"In that case, please teach me."
Karl nodded.
"Astral Exile is a high-level spell."
"With your powerful mental force, you banish your enemy into another space."
"It is a spell that uses mental force to pry open space itself..."
The Ancient One began to explain it slowly.
Karl listened with complete concentration.
Ding!
Detected that the host is learning a high-tier combined spatial spell — Astral Exile. God-Tier Talent has triggered a hundredfold critical strike.
You have mastered Astral Exile.
Karl immediately felt a wondrous sensation arise within him.
The power inside his body became incredibly profound and mysterious, while all kinds of laws flowed through his mind.
Ding!
The host has mastered enough spatial magic. God-Tier Talent has triggered a hundredfold critical strike.
You have mastered the Law of Space.
A profound flash of light flickered around Karl.
His figure became faint and indistinct, as though his body no longer fully existed within this space.
The Ancient One: ???
What kind of joke was this?
He had comprehended the Law of Space just like that?
Why had she never had this kind of luck?
But it still was not over.
Ding!
Detected that the host has already mastered more than three laws. God-Tier Talent has triggered a critical strike.
The host has comprehended the essence of the Law of Space.
In an instant, heaven and earth seemed to change color.
The Ancient One could clearly sense it—
it was as if an extra space had appeared around Karl.
The phantom outline of the world flickered in and out around him.
The aura around him rose by a huge margin.
For a moment, even the Ancient One could no longer gauge the depth of his power.
The Ancient One: ???
What was going on?
This kid had actually broken through!
She knew perfectly well that he had already reached the absolute peak of Pseudo–Skyfather-level.
But—
the gap between Pseudo–Skyfather and Skyfather was far too great.
The Ancient One could say it without the slightest hesitation:
Even for a freakishly gifted monster like Karl, one that might not appear once in hundreds of thousands of years, if she truly intended to kill him, he absolutely would not be able to survive more than a few moves in her hands.
If she went all out, she could even destroy a planet!
A Pseudo–Skyfather could never possibly achieve that.
That alone showed just how enormous the gap between Pseudo–Skyfather and Skyfather really was.
And yet this kid—
he had broken through just like that?
He had become a Skyfather just like that?
Was breaking through to the Skyfather level really this easy?
The Ancient One felt a trace of bitterness in her heart.
She suddenly had the feeling that her position as Sorcerer Supreme had already been surpassed by this brat, Karl.
How old was this kid, anyway?
Her hand tightened slightly.
The brand-new fan in her hand was crushed to pieces once again.
However—
Karl's breakthrough to the Skyfather level did not affect only Kamar-Taj.
That powerful fluctuation of aura spread throughout the entire universe.
And the whole universe instantly fell into unrest.
(End of Chapter)
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