Marvel: Starting as a Time Criminal, Stealing Powers

In the sacred sanctuary beneath the snowy mountain...

Russell sipped the premium tea that the Ancient One had treasured for who knows how many years, while his consciousness drifted inward, examining the newly acquired system entries.

This was the only good news of the day.

To be honest, he hadn't expected that just by killing a duplication with limited power, he'd be able to trigger so many entries.

This time, Mephisto had suffered a major loss.

[Power of Hell – Rare (Red)]

A rare energy from the Hell Dimension, exceptionally high in quality.

It can resonate with the dimension of Hell, and when cultivated to a certain threshold, it allows the user to devour a portion of the Hell Dimension itself.

Note: Due to its rarity, this ability cannot be used except when actively releasing the aura of Hell.

[Dimensional Transformation – Gold]

The user's body can expand, with size proportional to the output of dimensional energy.

Note: Divine power can be substituted. Current maximum: 10,000 meters. This limit can be broken after surpassing personal bottlenecks.

[Hell Illusion – Elementary (Gold)]

Generates a highly realistic hellscape.

Once the target believes it is real, they will suffer corresponding damage.

Note: The illusion's effective range is based on the user's base body weight.

[Mind Invasion – Elementary (Purple-Gold)]

Not a form of telepathy, but a parasitic soul-based mental invasion!

[Energy Control – Elementary (Purple)]

Grants basic control over all forms of energy.

Russell's face was filled with astonishment.

Was this really just a clone of Mephisto?

Even as a mere duplication—one not even reaching the level of the true Hell Lord—it still dropped so many high-grade entries!

The most outrageous among them was the [Power of Hell] in red!

Its meaning was clear: as long as Russell continued absorbing energy from the Hell Dimension, he had a real chance of becoming a Hell Lord himself!

Sure, the requirements were extremely high.

But that's what qualification means!

After all, even the Ancient One had suffered backlash when absorbing the Dark Dimension's energy.

As for the golden [Hell Illusion], it synergized perfectly with the divine fire power he wielded and the [Flame Messenger] ability from the Fire Giant.

True and false intertwined—illusions within reality.

It would be enough to fool countless enemies!

Then there was [Dimensional Transformation].

Also quite outrageous.

Once equipped, it immediately became one of his top three offensive abilities!

And both [Mind Invasion] and [Energy Control] were extremely rare and powerful on their own.

To be honest, even if he slaughtered every single Mutant at Xavier's School, their loot wouldn't come close to the quality of what this clone dropped.

Well… except for the Phoenix Force inside Jean Grey.

Russell exhaled, then calmly loaded all the new entries into the system.

Still, he couldn't help but feel a little regretful.

He thought that defeating a clone of Mephisto at this level would be enough to trigger an Anchor Point event—but it didn't.

Maybe the Ancient One's departure had something to do with the delay in triggering it?

Later that afternoon...

Russell lit a special agarwood incense left behind by the Ancient One.

His spiritual sensitivity sharpened, and his thinking speed increased dramatically.

While flipping through one of the previously sealed forbidden magic tomes—protected by secret wards—he leisurely munched on dim sum brought back by Wong through a portal.

Not bad at all.

If being Sorcerer Supreme didn't come with the constant burden of defending dimensions and handling mystical crises, the job would actually be kind of relaxing.

Just then, a faint hum echoed through the chamber.

A mysterious guest opened her eyes.

She was greeted by the sight of a wooden dome, completely different from the hellish borderlands she had last remembered. The usual choking stench of sulfur was gone.

Her eyes gradually regained clarity, and her memories came flooding back.

She had killed her demonic mentor, Belasco, at the edge of Hell… but then Mephisto had taken the opportunity to invade her mind!

After that, she had been trapped inside her own consciousness, helplessly watching everything unfold from within.

When Mephisto tried to kill Professor X, she had fallen into complete despair.

Not because of Professor X's death—but because Mephisto's true intentions for coming to Earth had to be far more terrifying than a simple assassination.

Fortunately, the Aesir had defeated the devil's conspiracy.

"Awake?"

A faint voice rang out.

Mystique turned her head—and immediately showed a look of surprise.

"You?"

"Is this... Asgard?"

Russell didn't even look up as he replied:

"No. This is Kamar-Taj."

"You should know this place."

Mystique pushed herself up and nodded.

"I know. When I first returned from the border of Hell, I had a conversation with the Sorcerer Supreme, the Ancient One. He was a very kind person."

"Well... may I ask where he is now?"

Russell pointed outside with a tilt of his chin.

"You hear the music outside? That band's for him."

Mystique tilted her head, not quite understanding what he meant.

Russell closed the magic book in his hand, turned to her, and shrugged:

"He's dead. The band is celebrating."

"...Huh?" Mystique opened her mouth, stunned. She couldn't understand how "death" and "celebration" were being used together.

Still, she quickly stood up and said politely:

"Forgive me, Sorcerer Supreme."

Russell waved it off, clearly not caring about formalities.

"Because I'm not sure if Mephisto left any lingering tricks in your mind, you can't leave Kamar-Taj just yet."

"I'll let you return to Xavier's School once I've completed the inspection."

"No problem."

Although he had phrased it like a question, his tone left no room for refusal.

Mystique didn't argue or say something melodramatic like "I'd rather die than be imprisoned." She calmly accepted the request.

Though, inwardly, she was curious—how exactly was he going to inspect her mind?

Russell thought for a moment, then said:

"Since you're awake, let's do this now."

"Sit however you're comfortable. Lying down is fine too."

Mystique didn't feel great about lying down again, so she chose to sit across from him.

In the next second, she saw Russell's eyes glow pure white.

Instantly, the real world collapsed around her—and Mystique found herself inside a pure white dimension.

She wasn't unfamiliar with this place.

This was where she'd been trapped when Mephisto first imprisoned her mind.

This was her spiritual world.

Suddenly, she felt something warm holding her hand. She looked down and realized that Russell had appeared—or rather, had always been there—holding her left hand.

"Don't be nervous," Russell said calmly as he gazed into the vast emptiness ahead.

"I need to inject my energy into your mind, so I can detect any remaining foreign power inside you."

"Think of it like turning on a light—whatever shadows are hiding will reveal themselves naturally."

Mystique understood and completely relaxed her mind.

White light surged from Russell's body, flowing through his clasped hand into Mystique like a stream of water.

A warm sensation spread through her instantly.

She felt like she had shed all restraints, as if she were soaking in a spiritual hot spring.

The comfort was so intense that she almost let out a moan.

Still, she was slightly embarrassed.

It felt like she had no secrets anymore—like her entire being was completely exposed.

In the next moment, Mystique began to shine—her figure becoming like a humanoid beacon of light, illuminating the vast spiritual world around her.

Then, after an unknown amount of time, a sudden scream pierced the silence.

A wisp of black smoke emerged in the otherwise pristine white space—but was instantly incinerated by the holy light!

Mystique felt a jolt of fear.

That bastard Mephisto had been so cunning, he had even left a hidden remnant deep within her spiritual world!

If not for the Sorcerer Supreme, she might've unknowingly fallen under his control again!

Back in the real world…

Only a single second had passed.

Mystique lowered her head slightly, her cheeks flushed.

The experience in the spiritual world had been intense. The continuous cleansing from the holy light made her feel vulnerable—as if all her secrets had been laid bare.

Combined with the overwhelming comfort of the process, she even felt a strange sense of losing control.

Still, she took a deep breath, composed herself, and quietly said:

"Thank you."

Russell shook his head.

"In the next seven days, you'll need to go through this process once a day."

"Wait until it's completely resolved before thanking me."

"...Seven more days..." Mystique's heart skipped a beat.

That strange sensation… would she be able to endure it?

She prayed she wouldn't embarrass herself.

Nightfall.

Russell left Kamar-Taj, stepped through a portal, and laid comfortably in his bed.

He hadn't planned on doing anything tonight, but the emotional waves from Mystique had stirred him up.

Because he had infused her with divine power, her thoughts and emotions naturally flowed back to him.

As a result… sleep was off the table tonight.

Before long, Mystique—fresh from a shower and wrapped in a bath towel—walked into the room.

She froze upon seeing him, then seemed to realize something, and turned to flee.

Russell smirked, raised his hand, and fired a magic web that instantly caught her and pulled her back into his arms.

He lifted her chin and raised an eyebrow, his tone leaving no room for argument:

"Don't fight it. You'll never escape me for the rest of your life."

"Accept your fate."

The lights dimmed.

However, Mystique wasn't so easy to tame.

She kept transforming into various other versions of herself to resist!

Unfortunately… she was still no match for him.

But Russell had to admit—this transformation trick was more fun than the time he had with X-23 and Polaris combined.

Once again, he confirmed that what Supreme Tony had said was absolutely right.

No words were exchanged that night.

The next morning.

Storm stood at her window, gazing outside absentmindedly.

Every time she closed her eyes, the scenes from the day before would replay in her mind—haunting and overwhelming.

The lightning powers she had always been so proud of felt like a child's toy compared to what he had displayed.

It was… a little crushing.

Thankfully, everyone else was just as shocked. That made her feel a bit better.

With a long sigh, Storm turned to begin her morning routine.

But when she looked out the window again, she froze—and rubbed her eyes.

She stared for a moment—then her expression changed drastically.

In the sky, a man wearing a helmet was slowly descending.

That was...

Magneto!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You can visit my Patreon page:

Patreon.com/PhoeniXcel

There are 80+ advanced chapters available for you to read.

Your support would be greatly appreciated.

Check out my new Marvel fanfic!

[Marvel: Rise of Heroes]