S.H.I.E.L.D. had undoubtedly investigated the peculiar circumstances.
However, their investigation revealed that 177A Bleecker Street was merely an ordinary antique shop, selling old furniture and antique clocks. The people working there had clean backgrounds, and they found not a single anomaly.
It made sense. The Ancient One, a Celestial Father-level master of spatial magic, could easily avoid detection if she didn't want to be found. (While the actress playing the Ancient One is female, Marvel's official lore doesn't specify her gender. We'll assume she's female for this story. As for her origin, we'll stick to the comic book setting and say she's Chinese, as I recall!)
The Ancient One's sudden appearance and the business card she left near Mjolnir, bearing an address, strongly suggested a connection to Thor or Asgard.
To understand the nature of this connection, Qin Xiao would have to investigate personally.
It seemed attending the Stark Expo's opening ceremony was now unavoidable.
Since Thor didn't show up, Qin Xiao had no choice but to seek him out again.
To his surprise, the big guy had somehow managed to reconcile with Jane, and they were back to their old ways—stealing glances at each other, sparks practically flying in the air between them.
*He managed to calm her down that quickly? He must have sweet-talked her endlessly. What a player.*
Qin Xiao seethed inwardly.
Still, he maintained a composed demeanor, offering Thor a few words of comfort before claiming he had urgent business elsewhere and asking him to wait there for his return.
As for the Ancient One, regardless of how Agent Coulson reported to Nick Fury, Qin Xiao would go when he needed to, say what he needed to say, and keep his mouth shut about anything else.
He flew from New Mexico to New York, hitching a ride with Stark Industries' car and driver to reach 177A Bleecker Street.
This street was in the heart of Manhattan's most bustling district.
*I wonder how the Three Sanctuaries operate. If their locations were flexible, I'd rather rent out this Sanctum and move somewhere cheaper.*
This way, Wang wouldn't be so poor in *Infinity War* that he couldn't even afford a meal.
Standing at the entrance, Qin Xiao grumbled that it was a waste for the Sanctum to occupy such a prime location on a bustling street.
After hesitating for a moment, Qin Xiao was about to knock when a golden light flashed beneath his feet, and a portal opened.
His footing vanished instantly, and he tumbled down through the swirling vortex.
In a study on the second floor of the Sanctum, Qin Xiao fell out of a shimmering ring and landed with a thud on a single-seater sofa.
Three walls were lined with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, forming a square, doorless alcove. Three single-seater sofas were arranged facing the shelves. When Qin Xiao landed, there was an empty sofa to his right, and directly ahead, the Ancient One was bent over, engrossed in a book.
It was the Ancient One's spell that had teleported Qin Xiao from the entrance to the second floor. Yet now that he was here, she remained silent, simply continuing to read.
*This is the advantage of power,* Qin Xiao thought. *She's so powerful she doesn't even need to show off or put on airs.*
If this were an ordinary person who had summoned Qin Xiao only to lower their head and read without speaking, Qin Xiao would have absolutely slapped them so hard they'd go flying backward, their book soaring into the sky.
But since it was the Supreme Sorcerer Gu Yi, Qin Xiao could only grumble inwardly, not daring to act.
Of course, Qin Xiao was never one to sit idly by.
Seeing that Gu Yi continued to stare at the book without even glancing at him, Qin Xiao pulled a cigar from his pocket and began puffing away right in front of Gu Yi.
*You won't talk? I'll blow smoke in your face and see if you choke!*
With a mischievous glint in his eye, Qin Xiao took a deep draw and casually exhaled a thick plume of smoke directly at Gu Yi.
But the Supreme Sorcerer was the Supreme Sorcerer.
Without even lifting his head, a golden hoop the size of an ashtray suddenly materialized in front of Qin Xiao, hovering less than half a meter away. The moment the tiny portal appeared, the smoke Qin Xiao had exhaled rushed into it with a whoosh.
Qin Xiao focused his gaze and realized he was facing a snow-covered mountain. Though he didn't know where he was, it was clearly a high-altitude region.
The weather was clear and windless. Due to the low air pressure, the smoke from Qin Xiao's cigarette drifted toward the small portal without any breeze, carrying even the ash from the tip with it.
The effect was like smoking with a window cracked open while driving at high speed. (In reality, if you opened a small portal in a room at high altitude, you could probably suck all the books off the shelves. But don't worry about such details—the Ancient One always has a way, doesn't she?)
*Awesome, a self-ventilating ashtray!*
"This ashtray is amazing! If I had one in my bedroom, I wouldn't need an air circulation system, and I could even get rid of the trash can!"
Qin Xiao was making small talk to ease the tension. Facing the Ancient One made him feel a bit intimidated, especially since he didn't know why she had summoned him here.
"If you opened one in your bedroom and a blizzard hit, it could fill your house with snow in an hour. Are you sure you want to do that? I can help you."
Gu Yi looked up and smiled. "I went to all the trouble of bringing you here. Don't you have anything to say, or anything you want to ask me?"
Gu Yi finally closed the book, set it aside, and turned to face Qin Xiao.
"Yes, of course I have questions. Since I'm already at your doorstep, why didn't you just pull me up with a portal instead of sending me all the way from New Mexico? Plane tickets are expensive."
Now that Gu Yi had initiated the conversation, Qin Xiao tossed his cigar into the ashtray and immediately asked a question that was decidedly not the point.
"First, I didn't pay for your ticket. Second, the energy cost of opening a portal for you or coming down to open one for you is roughly the same as teleporting you up here, given how close we are!"
Gu Yi waved his hand, closing the small portal, and answered Qin Xiao's question with utmost seriousness.
There was no refuting that logic. Qin Xiao hadn't expected Gu Yi to actually calculate the energy costs so meticulously.
So, Qin Xiao followed her lead. "What did you want to see me about?"
He had likely asked the question Gu Yi needed. She looked at him intently and said, "Odin and I are old friends. He exiled his son to Earth while he fell into a deep sleep. Naturally, I've been keeping an eye on things. But I was surprised to find someone who shouldn't have been there. You shouldn't have been in that place."
"So I'm curious: why were you there, and why haven't you been apprehended by the Time Variance Authority?"
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