Chapter 79: You May Return to Your World

Mei Mumu was utterly bewildered. He had no idea whether that Merlin was actually himself, nor could he fathom how Iron Man and Spider-Man, who should have been caught in the same time reversal, managed to escape its grip. Still, since they were taking bullets for him, he graciously accepted their help.

“I’ll take care of Dormammu first!”

There was no time to explain. He had to get moving—no, he would go ahead. Mei Mumu couldn’t afford to hesitate; he activated the Cloak of Levitation and soared toward the center of the Dark Dimension.

Behind him rang the sounds of Cassilius and four others locked in fierce battle.

The Cloak of Levitation looked incredibly cool, but its actual effectiveness was limited. It could float, true, but unlike a certain classic hero who liked to wear his red underwear on the outside, the cloak’s flight speed was infuriatingly slow—barely seven or eight kilometers per hour, hardly faster than walking.

Otherwise, why bother running if you could fly?

The Dark Dimension offered few places to land. Planets bound and compressed by dark reins twisted like unruly serpents, grotesque and unsettling. The world, cast in cold tones, was bizarre and dazzling, a riot of clashing colors that hurt the eyes. Clearly, Dormammu’s taste left much to be desired.

“Where is Dormammu?” Mei Mumu muttered, just as he spotted the fallen Vision.

Poor Vision seemed to have been stuffed into a human cannon, launched along with a heap of trash from garbage bins, all blasted out in one violent burst. He crashed into a planet the size of a villa, shattering it to pieces and leaving his own body torn and battered.

Just seeing his left arm bent in more than eighteen places where no joints should be made Mei Mumu’s heart leap in terror.

That must be excruciatingly painful!

Mei Mumu wasn’t sure if a synthetic being had a complete nervous system for pain, but from Vision’s monkey-red face, there appeared to be no extra expression.

“Merlin... you’re here... Dormammu... he’s really strong!” Vision spoke, while Mei Mumu watched his body inflate as if with air, the broken sections swelling suddenly and snapping back to their original shape.

Are all synthetic beings in this parallel world so formidable?

There was no time for further sarcasm. Mei Mumu turned his gaze forward. There, a black planet was deforming, morphing into a rugged face etched with vertical lines.

The Dark Lord has arrived!

Summoning his courage, Mei Mumu called out loudly, “Dormammu, I’ve come to negotiate terms.”

In the original story, Doctor Strange had barely finished saying this before being instantly killed. Dormammu was certainly not one for patience, but Doctor Strange believed in resurrection—dying and reviving again and again, using the time loop to trap Dormammu and force him to submit.

That was Doctor Strange’s path to victory in the original.

Upon entering the Dark Dimension, Mei Mumu had already activated the Eye of Agamotto, mentally prepared to die thousands of times.

Yet, the anticipated instant death did not come. Instead, Dormammu replied in one breath, “Negotiate terms? Very well.”

Huh!

What?

Director, did you grab the wrong script again?

Just moments ago, Dormammu had viciously beaten Vision to a pulp, and now, instead of attacking Mei Mumu, he held back. Not only was Vision taken aback, even Mei Mumu, the traveler, was startled.

Before Mei Mumu could react, Dormammu’s enormous face twisted into what could only be described as a ‘friendly’ expression. “You Earthlings have a deep misunderstanding about me. Darkness does not mean the destruction of all things; within darkness, there is still life—eternal, beautiful life.”

To illustrate his words, thousands upon thousands of butterflies radiating seven-colored light appeared, fluttering gracefully through the dark world. Many landed on Dormammu’s planet-sized face, their wings quivering with vitality.

This scene completely overturned the conventional idea of Dormammu as a great villain.

It was breathtakingly beautiful—even Vision was stunned.

But Vision was the first to recover. “Mei! Don’t believe him!”

Mei Mumu raised his hand in a calming gesture for Vision, then turned to Dormammu. “You know, on Earth, butterflies’ favorite food is... dung!”

If butterflies eat dung, then Dormammu, covered in thousands of them...

“Pfft—” Vision, not known for understanding human emotions and undoubtedly the most stoic member of the Avengers, couldn’t help bursting into laughter.

It was easy to imagine Dormammu’s humiliation and rage.

Mei Mumu was sheepish, too. Truthfully, he hadn’t meant to provoke Dormammu, but Dormammu’s display was just too lowbrow—he couldn’t resist.

Mei Mumu had fully expected to face the Dark Lord’s thunderous wrath.

But Dormammu endured!

He actually endured!

Though his dark, dung-like face twitched with signs of imminent eruption, Dormammu managed to suppress his explosive anger at the last moment.

He blew a single breath, sending Vision flying out of the Dark Domain, back to New York.

Having expelled the irrelevant party, Dormammu uttered words that nearly sent Mei Mumu into shock: “Mei Mumu, I know who you are. Have you ever wondered why it is you standing here now, not Stephen Strange, the Doctor, but you, Mei Mumu?”

“Ah!” Even Mei Mumu, usually calm, couldn’t help but show a look of horror.

It was like seeing a ghost!

He’d thought that, protected by Fate’s scales, even the Ancient One—a master of the mind who could read thoughts—couldn’t see through his origins, so surely no one in this world knew he was a traveler.

How could Dormammu know both about Doctor Strange and the imposter standing before him?

As expected... Dormammu’s words made Mei Mumu realize he’d been tricked.

Just as Mei Mumu was about to retort and regain the initiative, Dormammu continued, “You don’t belong to this world. There’s no need for you to risk your life for it. I could have Cassilius assassinate Stephen Strange, or I could destroy you completely. But... I can give you an opportunity...”

Dormammu’s words made Mei Mumu tense; he hadn’t expected the greatest variable in this world to come from Dormammu. The Dark Lord must have learned from somewhere that Doctor Strange would become his greatest obstacle in conquering Earth, so he struck preemptively.

Dormammu probably never imagined that Mei Mumu would take Doctor Strange’s place and stand before him.

Was Dormammu seeking a peaceful transition?

The next moment, Dormammu spoke words beyond Mei Mumu’s wildest expectations: “If you promise not to interfere in this universe any longer, I can send you back to your own parallel world right now, with enough wealth to last you a hundred lifetimes.”