Multiverse: Deathstroke

Chapter 312: Ch.311 Su Ming’s Universe

Chapter 312: Ch.311 Su Ming's Universe

The Ancient One, having lived for centuries, quickly turned her gaze away from the flashy lace materials. Unlike other women, she wasn't interested in such frills.

"The deal is this: if you accept this responsibility, the Cloak of Levitation will be yours permanently. When I pass, the Eye of Agamotto will also come into your possession, and all the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj will follow your commands."

The Ancient One calmly laid out her offer, watching Su Ming as he continued to down his drink, waiting for his response.

Su Ming pondered the pros and cons.

The Time Stone was secondary; he didn't use white magic, nor did he have the Infinity Gauntlet. It would just be a trinket in his hands, and trying to power it with X-metal might cause more trouble than it's worth.

But the Cloak of Levitation—that was non-negotiable for Su Ming.

Yet he had no desire to carry the burden. The responsibility of being the Sorcerer Supreme could crush anyone.

Seeing his hesitation, the Ancient One added, "You weren't originally from this world, but you're still a human from Earth. So, I imagine that sometimes you might want to return to where you came from. I can teach you how to traverse the omniverse."

Warm sunlight filled the office, and the whiskey in Su Ming's glass ceased its swirling.

"Deal."

He thought it best to keep the Ancient One happy for now. When she eventually passed away, he could serve as Sorcerer Supreme for a few days and then quickly bring in Strange as his replacement.

No deception—just a fair exchange.

The Ancient One made a gesture, and the visage of the Vishanti's trinity suddenly appeared before them. Rays of light shot from their six eyes, illuminating the two, and then quickly faded.

"The contract is sealed, Slade. The Vishanti have witnessed everything," the Ancient One said with a sigh of relief, smiling.

Damn it.

Su Ming felt like he had been tricked. He thought it was just a verbal agreement, but now that the Vishanti had witnessed it, even if he wanted to dump the role on Doctor Strange later, how could he undo this appointment?

And he didn't know magic—how was he supposed to call on the Vishanti? Make a phone call?

Annoying. Why do all sorcerers love to trap people like this?

The Ancient One, oblivious to Su Ming's internal complaints, couldn't read his thoughts. But she considered this a good thing, as it meant that other-dimensional enemies wouldn't be able to read him either.

"Now, I'll teach you the method to traverse universes."

The Ancient One gestured, and the Cloak of Levitation flew over. She took the gem that Su Ming had previously given to the cloak and pressed it against the fabric, chanting a long string of incantations.

The gem gradually melted into the cloak, glowing briefly before vaporizing entirely, as if it had never existed.

She withdrew her hands, inspecting the cloak with satisfaction. "If the user is a sorcerer, they could use incantations to gain various enhancements—like breathing in space or traveling quickly between worlds. Using your gem as a power source, I've imbued these abilities into the Cloak. Now, you just need to express your intent, and it will follow your will."

Su Ming nodded, pushing thoughts of the Sorcerer Supreme aside for now. The Ancient One could live another seventy or eighty years—he had plenty of time to find a workaround.

With the cloak now upgraded, even if Su Ming didn't fully understand the details, it seemed to be a kind of enchantment or magical inscription.

In any case, he could now use the time-space device to return to the DC Universe and collect from Batman.

The Ancient One stood up, adjusted her robes, and opened a portal with a wave of her hand. "I have matters to attend to at Kamar-Taj. I must leave."

"Wait, you're really leaving without even having a meal? Gin, pack up the makeup and clothes for the Sorcerer Supreme. Take them all back to try out."

Su Ming didn't care if she wanted them or not—he bundled up the lingerie, stockings, and makeup, stuffing them into the Ancient One's hands, and pushed her through the portal.

With a resigned expression, the Ancient One vanished on the other side of the doorway.

Su Ming immediately began preparations. He changed into his uniform, armed himself with his usual weapons, took the Godslayer 47, and donned the cloak.

"Alright, cloak, let's see you change colors. How about a nice black for once?"

The cloak reluctantly turned black, keeping its usual style but now appearing more ominous.

"Not bad. Now, activate that 'Astral Breath' thing." Su Ming patted the cloak approvingly, then used a dagger to cut his own arm. "Gin, keep an eye on the company. I'm going out to collect some debts and spend a few days with some friends. Be back soon."

With that, he pressed the glowing point on the gem and vanished from the office.

Gin rubbed his forehead and sighed. He still had things he needed to discuss...

In the blink of an eye, Su Ming found himself in the multiverse, where countless different superhero worlds floated like bubbles around him.

He turned to look behind him, at the boundary of the multiverse.

He recognized his world, now different from how it was when he first arrived. Beyond the six bright points, a black-and-yellow symbol had begun to appear on the world's outer shell.

Changing history back to its original path was impossible now, but the world was shifting in the direction Su Ming desired.

After defeating Kang, Su Ming had taken over the timeline. To allow the world to heal from its past wounds, he needed to step away for a while.

"This will be my universe from now on." Su Ming floated quietly in the dark void of space, feeling a strange sense of satisfaction. "I don't know what your multiverse designation is, but from now on, you're Earth-40K."

Su Ming extended his hand as if tracing a 'W' onto a distant bubble, then turned away, heading towards the larger universe beyond.

Though it had taken quite some time, battling Kang was never going to be a quick affair. Now, with a new timeline and a new future on the horizon, he would return soon enough to see the results.

Flying with the help of the cloak, Su Ming thought over these matters with a light heart.

On a distant planet, a group of large-headed beings—the Watchers—gathered, stunned by Su Ming's actions. Someone was traveling through the universe with their physical body, seemingly intent on entering the omniverse.

"Madness! Does he even know what's out there in the omniverse?"

"Shh, be careful he doesn't hear us. People like him are usually insane."

"Quiet down! We are observers of the multiverse, not interveners. Our mission is to record and observe, nothing more."

The journey was long. The speed of the Cloak of Levitation was impressive, countless stars passing by. Yet compared to the speed when Doctor Manhattan had thrown him into the void, it still felt much slower.

But Su Ming didn't mind. Though it wasn't the most convenient, it was still a path forward.

A highway or a winding road—it didn't matter; Su Ming was on his way to collect what he was owed, a smile on his face.

Stranglehold, too, was excited, sending joyful thoughts into Su Ming's mind. It was eager to see a completely different universe, to meet its inhabitants, or perhaps... a new world.

"If I return to the same time and place I left, there's a fifty-fifty chance of that happening. But if I do, I'll make it in time for the Justice League's party, and I won't have to face the Omega Four right away.

"I can eat and drink at Wayne Manor, collect what I'm owed, and then negotiate my fee for handling the next crisis with Batman."

Su Ming had his plan. If things worked out that way, he knew how to handle the Omega Four. Those beasts might be powerful, but they weren't particularly smart.

Deal with the Four, deal with Brainiac, and then extort both him and the Justice League.

It would be a clean sweep.

That had been Su Ming's plan all along.

However, as he crossed the Source Wall and passed through the massive gap in its surface, he realized he was too late...