American Comics: Heaven's Reward

Boring study is always so boring.

Much of Kamar-Taj's magic isn't just occult knowledge; it also includes many insights on the physical level.

There are many difficult problems in mathematics.

To learn as much knowledge as possible in a short time, Aaron divided his mental power into multiple reading magic books by creating many energy entity duplications.

This was a huge burden on his mental strength.

Fortunately, Aaron's mastery of fantasy duplication was high enough.

Even Kamar-Taj's Aikon form was inferior to his duplication skills.

Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to maintain multiple mental bodies for long periods while studying.

Besides that, Aaron often used soul astral magic to study.

Though he now had the body of a god, which allowed him to maintain vitality for extended periods without dormancy, that didn't mean he had turned into a machine.

There were still moments when his "machine" slowed down or even failed to function—let alone him!

So, while his physical body remained asleep, he studied with his spiritual body.

His soul body could also brush up on skill proficiency.

From this moment on, Jean and the Ancient One understood what it meant to be the king of the circle.

At the same time, Kamar-Taj was on the brink of reform, with a paper king who had a strong ability to learn and accept, as well as an effort far beyond ordinary people.

If it weren't for the few magicians who mastered soul astral magic, perhaps all the masters would have been forced onto the path of the circle.

During this process, Aaron discovered that while his soul body could increase skill levels, duplication couldn't.

It seemed that this ability only worked on him originally, including his soul.

Duplication was just a "dummy" created by energy. No matter how realistic it was and how much magic it could perform, it still couldn't be regarded as Aaron himself.

Aaron also tried to create a physical duplication, a self with both a physical body and huge magic.

However, this was just a body, without self-awareness. Even if it had part of his spiritual power, it was just a shell.

He couldn't improve proficiency by manipulating entity duplications with mental power.

Unless the soul was attached to it, only basic learning could occur.

Things that truly required proficiency improvements still needed to be done by Aaron himself or his soul.

Even so, the improvements Aaron made were impressive.

First, he learned many magics from Kamar-Taj, including insights into dimensions and magic using energy duplications.

He also learned a lot of magic, such as the Aikon form used by the Ancient One and the crimson chain of Bossat's Thunder Isaitorak.

These three spells were some of the most difficult in Kamar-Taj.

For ordinary magicians, they could even be considered the strongest auxiliary magic, the strongest output magic, and the strongest binding magic.

Combined with Hogarth's ancient body—known as the strongest defensive magic—Aaron was definitely qualified to take over the position of Sorcerer Supreme now.

Currently, only the Ancient One had mastered all these powerful spells simultaneously.

However, Aaron didn't focus on improving these three spells. He raised them to LV5 and then stopped.

With materialized magic, he could completely simulate similar means according to their nature, and even do so in a way that wasn't inferior to the original powerful magic!

He even attempted to integrate Bossat's Thunder with Thor's Summoned Thunder to create a more powerful output method.

Needless to say, Bossat's Thunder was powerful, but it didn't work well on agile opponents.

The opponent could easily avoid the attack due to speed and agility.

But after Aaron integrated the two, there was no need to summon lightning from the sky.

Now, he could easily create faster and stronger thunder with two attack characteristics.

Coupled with the special magic flame integrating both phoenix and hellfire traits, Aaron's attacks were further improved.

Aaron also learned some smaller magic spells, like magic whips and healing magic.

For these common or uncommon spells, Aaron didn't even desire to level them up.

After learning them, he simply set them aside and spent his time on more important matters.

Then came the highlight of this promotion.

Materialization magic and molecular rearrangement magic broke through to LV7.

Moreover, molecular rearrangement magic was further improved and had evolved into atomic rearrangement!

This meant Aaron could now modify objects at the atomic level!

This was a qualitative leap that opened up possibilities that had previously been impossible.

Because molecules are made of atoms.

And every object is a result of the combination of molecules and atoms.

Before, Aaron could only manipulate objects at the molecular level.

Now, he could manipulate them at an even more subtle level!

Of course, there were also expected drawbacks.

At this stage, to fully utilize this magic's true power, Aaron would need to study science deeply.

Although it may seem outrageous to mention science in the Marvel world, for Aaron now, it truly depended on science...

Based on past experience, only further improvement would suffice!

In addition to these two magics, Aaron also improved space teleportation, which had originally been LV6, and upgraded it to LV7 dimensional teleportation!

Now, he could freely shuttle between dimensions like the Dimensional Lords.

The only limitation was Kamar-Taj's magical barrier, which was closed to him.

Obviously, that was impossible.

If Kamar-Taj closed the magic barrier, the dimensional lords might swarm in, tearing the universe apart in an instant.

Therefore, Aaron's current dimensional teleportation could only function as an ordinary portal—a super intergalactic portal that allowed him to travel freely across the Milky Way...

In addition to these, Aaron also upgraded mind magic, energy shields, and astral teleportation to LV6, greatly enhancing his mind, soul, and defense attributes.

Coupled with the massive energy that rivaled Odin's—and even surpassed it—Aaron's stamina had increased to 6 magic resistance, reaching even 7!

This advancement further propelled him down the path of the pentagon warrior.

He even wondered if the lightning summoned by Thor with all his strength could pose a threat to him.

That question remained debatable.

Perhaps he would try it sometime?

Aaron lacked a suitable comparison target to gauge how strong he had become.

Odin was old and reluctant to act, especially when using his full strength, as it would only drain his limited life force.

The Ancient One preferred to take a more passive approach. The level of magic she displayed in the hell dimension far exceeded her battle with Kaecilius in the movie.

The reason she was severely injured by Kaecilius was likely due to plot requirements, but also because she had wanted to escape and maintain her graceful composure.

Aaron had a strong premonition that if he pushed the Ancient One to test his strength, she might take that opportunity to step down early, allowing him to rise as the new Sorcerer Supreme.

Upon considering the Ancient One further, Aaron was increasingly convinced that his guess was spot on.

To avoid an awkward situation, he couldn't afford to confront the Ancient One.

As for the dimensional lords, Aaron wasn't ready to face them head-on.

He wasn't foolish enough to challenge opponents in their own domain without being at least one level stronger.

With his current strength, after many magic upgrades, he had reached the level of a Heavenly Father God.

He was now on par with ordinary Dimensional Lords like Mephisto.

In other places, he would have confidence in winning the battle.

But in the opponent's domain...

So, after some thought, Thor seemed the most suitable opponent.

He barely had the qualifications to test Aaron's strength.

But these thoughts were temporary.

He didn't want to experiment with the dimensional lords energy in other dimensions, primarily because the opponent's field was their own domain, offering massive energy bonuses.

But Aaron had found a new way to improve his strength!

And this method began with the first little magic he learned:

Storage Space!

Space storage was originally just a means of using magic to open a small space.

Loki often used it to store daggers and other artifacts.

It seemed to have a similar function to a storage ring, but the effect was not significant.

However, when Aaron upgraded it to LV7, this little-known magic turned into an extremely practical and powerful spell!

Pocket Space Magic!

Aaron's strength now remained at the level of a Heavenly Father God, but it was completely limited by his physical fitness.

Among the magic he had learned so far, none could enhance his body.

The energy he possessed had reached its limit.

Even if he intended to continue extracting power from Dimensional lords, he had to be able to bear it.

Now, Pocket Space Magic offered a solution from another direction.

As the name implied, it allowed Aaron to create a personal pocket space.

And it was one he could carry with him.

Pocket space could continue to expand and store energy.

Aaron could place excess energy inside and access it when needed, saving conversion time.

This magic had incredible development potential.

If it continued to improve, the pocket space could grow larger, storing more energy. Perhaps, it would eventually become a portable universe!

At that point, Aaron would essentially become a humanoid Dimensional Lords who could carry the dimensional field with him everywhere!

This was something no other Dimensional Lord from different dimensions could do.

Dimensional Lords in almost all other dimensions were only strongest within their own domain, and their strength would significantly decrease once they left it.

Not Aaron.

He could maintain peak combat power anywhere, anytime.

Since discovering this new potential, Aaron had started a new improvement plan.

What would be the next step with a pocket universe?

Clearly, it was to store as much energy as possible.

In the future, when the most practical solution emerged, the magic power that had been absorbed and transformed could be extracted from the pocket space to strengthen himself.

So, Aaron turned his attention back to Dormammu.

He subconsciously licked his lips.

Like a hungry wolf, he longed to tear off a piece of meat from Dormammu at any moment.

So, on this day,

Aaron finally stopped his studying.

Honestly, he was a little tired of the process, even though his strength had improved considerably.

But everything now was the result of his tireless studying day and night.

It was a massive burden on both his body and mind.

......…

He desperately wanted to vent now.

To release the nerves and tension that had built up over the year.

He left the mirror space,

And the first person he saw was Jean.

During this time, Aaron had occasionally emerged to absorb unconscious Phoenix energy for her.

The bond between them had not only remained intact due to their long separation but had even grown.

It was growing.

For Jean, her feelings toward Aaron were complicated.

His immense strength, decisive actions, handsome appearance, and noble status made him an outstanding man in the world.

Compared to Scott and Logan, who had once pursued her, Aaron was on an entirely different level.

No, it was more than just that.

Moreover, because Aaron frequently absorbed and imitated the Phoenix Force, he unintentionally triggered another aspect of Jean's subconscious.

Additionally, her prior feelings for Aaron had led her to think about him even more now.

Whenever Aaron was away, Jean would still clean his room as usual.

Even eating took place in Aaron's room.

That day,

When she first saw Aaron appear, Jean was pleasantly surprised.

She hurried to buy food and prepare a meal for him.

Probably because she had spent so much time at Aaron's residence, she was dressed casually today.

She wore only a thin white silk shirt on her upper body and a black skirt on her lower body.

Her figure was very slender from regular exercise, and her thick hair seemed casually pulled back.

Seeing Jean's beautiful figure as she busily prepared for him, Aaron felt an unknown fire rising within him.

He seemed to be overcome by a tyrannical emotion—likely the negative effect of prolonged repression.

Without thinking, he took a few steps toward her.

At that moment, Jean turned her head, and the two locked eyes.

Seeing Aaron's fiery gaze, Jean hesitated for only two seconds before closing her eyes.

This seemed to be a signal.

Aaron strode forward.

Today was destined to be a sleepless night, as desire erupted like a volcano.

Only the table full of cold meals bore witness to this unforgettable scene.

A few hours later,

Aaron suddenly sensed something was wrong.

It wasn't because he was full, or because of fatigue—his body, stronger than a cow's, couldn't be worn out by Jean, who hadn't yet awakened.

It was just that...

He realized something was wrong with the circle!

At some point, a red light appeared in Jean's eyes.

A strand of black power nearly burst from her body.

Wait!

Had the Dark Phoenix awakened already?

No way!

Not even a few hours had passed!

What in the world?!

Aaron couldn't believe it. Had the Dark Phoenix escaped because of this incident? He hadn't even exerted his full strength yet!

Seeing Jean's pained expression, Aaron instinctively tried to absorb her Phoenix energy.

But suddenly, Jean's face changed. Her previously seductive expression became even more so, hotter and more enticing.

She raised her hand and countered Aaron.

In an instant, a terrifying force erupted.

A crimson flame ignited around them, destroying everything in its path!

Everyone in Kamar-Taj was drawn to the sudden chaos.

All the magicians gathered around, watching the raging fire with caution.

No one dared to move, for they noticed that this flame could burn even magic!

No substance survived the flames.

It seemed to have the power to decompose matter at the atomic level, far surpassing the magic of the highest levels.

"It's awake..." Ancient One, who had just arrived, sighed softly as she saw the fire raging.

Though she knew the Phoenix Force's horrors through the Time Gem, facing it in reality still shocked her.

Although it wasn't magic, it was definitely as powerful as any form of magic.

The ability to decompose matter at the atomic level absolutely surpassed magic of any tier.

"Sorcerer Supreme, this seems to be the residence of the God of Magic!"

"Now he..."

After scanning the area, Wong quickly realized where this was.

Because of the uniqueness of Aaron and Jean, the two of them were placed in a remote corner.

Everything had been explained to the other magicians through mental power.

Normally, no magician would step into this space.

But now, with this strange flame erupting, did that mean the God of Magic was in trouble?

Ancient One couldn't see what was happening within the flames. It was covered by the Phoenix Force. But she said firmly, "He will be fine."

Though she couldn't see the specifics, she could feel another powerful force entangled with the Phoenix's, clashing but also lingering.

It seemed like they were fighting, yet it also felt as though they were lingering... It was so strange.

What happened?

Why did it seem like the two weren't fighting at all?

What could cause the ferocious Dark Phoenix to act like this?