I Created a Sanctuary in Marvel

Chapter 102 Mephisto's Arrival

On the other side, Kari, who had narrowly escaped, stumbled and crawled back to the secret room hidden in the shadows of the city, like a stray dog.

Inside the sealed chamber, the stench of decay and sulfur mingled, with only a few clusters of eerie green torches providing dim light, making the distorted projection on the altar appear even more grotesque.

Kari almost collapsed onto the cold, stone ground, his body trembling violently with extreme fear. His voice was broken and filled with despair: "My—my lord! We—we have failed—the Dark Mage, he—he was killed by Johnny Blaze!"

He lay prone on the ground, his forehead pressed tightly against the earth, not daring to look up at the terrifying presence, only able to feel its icy gaze falling upon him.

"waste--"

After a brief silence, the voice rang out again, as if making a decision: "It seems that I will have to handle this personally in the end."

"Although you are just a lowly mortal, after being imbued with my magic for a long time, this body can barely bear a tiny bit of my power."

His scarlet eyes, like burning embers, were fixed firmly on Kari.

"No—no! My lord! Spare me! I'm still useful to you! I can definitely—"

Kari looked up in terror, tears streaming down his face, pleading incoherently as he tried to grasp at the last straw.

But Mephisto completely ignored it, as if he were merely dealing with a useless tool.

The shadow behind him silently spread down, instantly touching and merging with the shadow that Kari had cast on the ground.

"Well!"

Kari's body stiffened abruptly, as if an invisible rope had tightened around his neck, and all his pleas and movements stopped instantly.

His eyes rolled back, and his head drooped limply, as if he had lost all vitality.

When he opened his eyes again, they were no longer the pupils of human fear, but rather crimson vertical pupils burning with hellfire.

His entire demeanor underwent a dramatic transformation; an aura of evil and majesty spread like a tide, filling the entire secret chamber.

"Hmph—the mortal body, after all, is like fragile pottery, only able to withstand this level of force?"

"However, it's enough to crush a few troublesome rats."

Kari cracked his neck, his joints making a teeth-grinding click, his tone carrying a hint of obvious displeasure, which quickly turned into a cold, sinister grin.

He raised his head, his scarlet gaze sharp as a knife, as if it could pierce through layers of spatial barriers and lock firmly in a certain direction.

At the same time, Nadya, who was being carried at high speed by Johnny, suddenly raised her head, her little face filled with unease.

"What's wrong, Danny?"

Nadya immediately sensed something was wrong with the child in her arms and asked anxiously.

"Mom, it seems like we're being watched by something."

"9

"It's dangerous, yet... familiar."

Danny's youthful voice sounded faint amidst the howling wind, but it reached everyone's ears clearly.

Johnny's expression changed drastically upon hearing this. He naturally knew what Danny had sensed.

"You can clearly sense his presence?"

Johnny slowed down and asked in a deep voice.

"Not very clear."

"But I could vaguely sense a gaze that was watching us, which made me very uncomfortable."

Danny shook his head, his little hands unconsciously gripping his mother's clothes.

Johnny's heart sank.

Danny had never felt so clearly before; he was almost certain that Mephisto had somehow truly descended into the real world!

"This is a big problem."

Johnny's voice was deep.

"Mephisto has likely already descended to the real world in person. But how did he bypass the protective array of the Sanctum Sanctum?"

Sure enough, anything involving hell brings a mountain of trouble!

His expression shifted rapidly as he considered countermeasures.

"You mean, the legendary lord of hell, Mephisto, has already descended?"

Moro's expression also became extremely solemn, and his voice became hoarse.

"We must find a solution immediately!"

Johnny was extremely anxious, his eyes scanning the landscape rushing past below.

"That's it! Let's go to New York!"

"We're not far from New York now; there are people there who can help us!"

Johnny seemed to have suddenly grasped at a straw.

He realized that if Professor X, Charles, could reunite with the X-Men, their combined strength might be enough to hold out until Clarisse finished her seclusion. Then, a portal would allow them to return directly to the Sanctuary, resolving the crisis.

Since Mephisto was able to bypass the Sanctuary and descend there, the risk of returning to the Sanctuary by ordinary plane was too high. If he were shot down in the vast ocean, that would be a real dead end.

Having made up his mind, Johnny no longer hesitated. The azure angel flames around him surged, propelling him like a shooting star as he sped toward New York City.

After his sixth sense was enhanced and his inner universe was awakened, his speed easily broke the sound barrier, leaving a conspicuous blue trail in the air.

Such undisguised supersonic flight was instantly detected by the United States' air defense system.

"The target is—Johnny Blaze?"

"He entered the country under the guise of a mission to the Holy Land, and now he dares to openly conduct supersonic flight on our soil? What is he trying to do?"

Inside the Pentagon, an officer looked grim as he watched the live feed from the satellite.

"Call the Sanctuary immediately! I need to know what that Pope is up to!"

A high-ranking military officer slammed his fist on the table in anger.

The call was quickly connected to the Holy Land, but it wasn't Pope Ye Feng who answered; it was the old Pope.

Upon hearing the military's inquiry, the old Pope's voice carried a hint of weariness and helplessness: "I'm sorry, everyone in the military, the Holy Land is currently unable to attend to other matters."

He paused, then dropped an even more shocking bombshell: "The army of Hell has already arrayed itself on the border between the Hell dimension and the real dimension, and the guardians of Earth have rushed to the front lines. Pope Ye Feng is entrusted with guarding one of the three major temple array nodes on Earth and is unable to spare any attention."

"As for Johnny Blaze, he is a Saint under my Sanctuary, currently on an urgent mission and being hunted by Mephisto, the Lord of Hell."

The old pope's voice turned unusually serious: "I suggest you do not stop him, and even—you could consider offering assistance. That's all I have to say."

This information was relayed to him by Ye Feng through Logan, the Wolverine, and he knew very little about the specific battle situation on the front lines of the border.

"New York?"

"It seems Johnny is backed into a corner—is he trying to seek help from the Mutant Academy?"

After hanging up the phone, the old pope muttered to himself.

With that thought in mind, he no longer hesitated and immediately dialed another number.

"Ring ring~"

In the principal's office at Xavier's Academy for Gifted Youngsters, the phone rang.

Professor Charles picked up the receiver and looked at the unusual number with some surprise.

"Charles, it's me—"

An aged yet familiar voice came from the other end.

"Your Holiness the Old Pope!"

Charles's tone immediately became more respectful.

This old man did not possess superhuman strength, but with his wisdom and compassion, he provided countless selfless assistance to mutants during their most difficult time, saving many of his fellow mutants.

The old pope explained the situation succinctly.

"Understood! Don't worry, we will do our best!"

Charles hung up the phone with a serious expression.

"Jean, notify all X-Men to assemble immediately!"

He turned to the red-haired woman beside him and then added.

"No, the battlefield can't be in New York City!"

He immediately realized the seriousness of the situation; if a battle between two powerful beings were to break out in densely populated New York, the consequences would be unimaginable.

"Johnny!"

Charles's powerful telepathic abilities activated instantly, bridging the distance in space and directly contacting Johnny, who was moving at high speed.

At this point, the four were less than 100 kilometers away from New York City.

"You are—Professor Charles?"

Johnny was somewhat surprised by the voice that appeared directly in his mind.

"Long story short, Johnny. The battlefield can't be in New York, it's too dangerous!"

"Turn northwest, there's a desolate Gobi desert. I've sent you the coordinates. Go there!"

Charles's voice was direct and urgent.

"clear!"

Johnny immediately understood the other party's intention. Clearly, his earlier actions had been noticed, and Professor Charles already knew the inside story.

Without hesitation, he adjusted his direction, and the azure trajectory drew a sharp curve in the air.

"Aren't we going to New York?"

Seeing Johnny suddenly change direction, Moro asked in surprise.

"Professor Charles has contacted me. The battlefield needs to be changed, and they will be here soon."

Johnny gave a brief explanation, then quickly landed on a stretch of Gobi desert covered with sand, gravel, and drought-resistant shrubs.

"How much supplies are left in the Dragon Scale Storage Bag?"

Johnny asked immediately after landing.

"There's not much left, just these."

Moro emptied all the remaining items from his storage bag, leaving only three luminous crystals emitting a soft white light and two vibrant emerald green life crystals.

Without saying a word, Johnny picked up a life crystal and swallowed it.

A warm, gentle energy quickly flowed through his body, replenishing the energy he had expended during his high-speed flight. He looked around and began to set up a simple defense using the limited resources available.

At that moment, inside Xavier Manor, the engines of the Blackbird fighter roared as Professor Charles personally led the X-Men members into the air, quickly taking off towards the coordinates.

After receiving the old Pope's warning, the Pentagon also realized that the situation was far more serious than an ordinary conflict between superhumans.

"Damn it! Those bastards from the Sanctuary!"

"Such a major event, involving dimensional invasion and the descent of hell lords, couldn't we have notified all countries in advance to prepare? Why wait until this moment to tell them!"

How many times has this happened already? Crises always arrive unexpectedly, and this time even Mephisto, the Lord of Hell, has personally descended upon us!

And then there's that supposed border standoff between hell and reality—is this a prelude to all-out war?

The information asymmetry and the sudden sense of crisis left them feeling powerless. At this moment, they could only follow the old pope's advice and assist in dealing with the immediate threat.