After about fifteen minutes, in the dark and silent forest, the ringing of Strange's phone shattered the tranquility.
He picked up the phone, pressed the answer button, and placed it next to his ear. A pleasant voice from the Sanctum Sanctorum customer service staff came from the other end: "This is a communication on behalf of Lord of Hell, Mephisto. Your call will be connected in 30 seconds. In the meantime, we will play a waiting tone. Please be patient..."
After several seconds of pleasant music, the mobile phone suddenly flew out of Strange's hand with a "whoosh." The keypad transformed into a large mouth full of sharp teeth, and Mephisto' voice came from that mouth: "Hey Strange, where did you see this emblem?"
His teasing tone confused Strange a bit, and he asked, "What's wrong? What emblem are you talking about?"
"You don't know? This is the symbol of Hela, the ruler of the Underworld. She's that crazy woman who plays with skeletons and souls all day in her own realm. Did you see any suddenly resurrected skeletons and corpses around this emblem? If you did, it's definitely her..."
"Yes, there were, and not just one or two. A nearby graveyard has been haunted for several days."
"That's right. Hela's specialty is an undead army. Her power of death comes from the back of the World Tree, which is the opposite of rebirth. Besides death, there is also resurrection..."
"But why would Hela appear on Earth?"
"How should I know? But... considering the good deal you gave me earlier, I'll remind you that this woman is not easy to deal with. Once she shows up, her omnipresent power of death and resurrection will taint a large area of land and create all sorts of troublesome creatures. If you don't want your territory to turn into a skeleton dance hall, it's best to come up with a plan..."
"No..." Strange shook his head and said, "I'm worried that Hela might descend. If she does, I can't leave because only I can handle these troublesome demonic deities."
After living a comfortable life, Strange seemed to have regained some sense of purpose. He stared at the emblem on the ground and began to think about ways to counter Hela.
Schiller continued, "I'm afraid things won't be as simple as you think. Regardless, there's no reason for the ruler of the Underworld to appear on Earth, especially here..."
"If she wants to invade Earth, she wouldn't just leave a mark here. Everyone knows that a lightning attack is the fastest way to achieve victory. Her actions are more like stirring up trouble."
"Why do I feel like she's being sneaky?" Schiller looked at the emblem and said, "It's as if she's deliberately concealing her power, not wanting to be discovered. But the power of demonic deities is so strong that it has leaked out and caused paranormal events."
While the two of them speculated, Strange's mobile phone suddenly rang again, and the sudden appearance of the ringtone startled him. He took out his mobile phone, and the mobile phone flew into the air again. That familiar big mouth appeared once more, and Mephisto' voice sounded in his ear, "Stephen, let's make a deal. Your Sanctum Sanctorum's... Quarterly Membership, right? If you give me a Quarterly Membership, I'll give you more clues. How about that?"
cursed silently. Mephisto was a cunning old fox. He intentionally didn't reveal everything earlier, and he emphasized the threat of Hela, arousing people's curiosity and leading to many speculations but no answers. And now he comes playing the savior, just to take advantage even more.
"I can only give you a month at most. You know, that place is not under my control. There's also the Sorcerer Supreme and All-Father's shares. If I give too many gifts, I won't be able to explain it to others..."
"Alright, just one month then."
Mephisto Tao casually took advantage of the situation. Then, a dark aura spread from the mobile phone, forming the upper half of Mephisto Tao's body. He snapped his fingers, and a wisp of black cigarette smoke drifted towards the symbol. He explained to the two people behind him:
"Generally speaking, a demonic deity leaves its mark somewhere to convey information. For example, I left my own mark in your mobile phone, so I can call you anytime."
"Of course, the magic broadcast you created is impressive. After you're done, don't forget to let me leave a mark next to that magic array. It will improve the signal."
"So, what does this mark left by Hela represent?"
"Wait, I'm deciphering it. You know, women always like to add unnecessary decorations to their belongings, and Hela's mark is the same. She engraved so many complex patterns, but only a small part of it is actually useful..."
"...Alright, read it out, hmm?" Mephisto Tao sounded a bit puzzled as he uttered a hesitant "hmm," then said, "Hela is looking for someone."
"Looking for someone?... Who could she be looking for on Earth? There shouldn't be anyone related to her."
"She didn't leave a name, just mentioned that it's a black-haired girl... Wait, there's one more line. If found, please contact her through the Sanctum Sanctorum's phone."
"Strange, your fame has spread far and wide," Mephisto Tao turned to Strange and teased.
Strange shrugged and said, "Well, it seems like another lost pet case. Regardless of who she's looking for, the mark she left us has caused quite a bit of trouble. How do we get rid of her?"
"If you're willing to give me another month..."
"No need, we'll figure it out ourselves. Goodbye." Strange directly threw out a crimson ribbon, reeling in his mobile phone, and then pressed the hang-up button, making Mephisto Tao's figure instantly disappear...
After a while, the phone rang again, and Mephisto Tao said, "I can help you remove all the power here, but you'll have to provide me with an exclusive line. I'll be a bit busy for the next twenty thousand years..."
"An exclusive line is not possible, but I can give you an additional thread. Our advanced customer service is limited, you know..."
"Alright, then give me an extra thread."
Mephisto Tao's figure emerged from the phone again. He snapped his fingers, and instantly, countless black energies poured into his body from the symbol and its surroundings. Then, all traces disappeared. After Mephisto Tao's figure vanished, Schiller said, "It seems like you've been fooled by this devil again."
Strange's expression also turned grim because anyone with eyes could see that Mephisto Tao was absorbing power during that process. This cunning devil not only obtained a portion of the power left by Hela but also managed to get Strange to give him an extra customer service thread.
"I'll give you some advice: directly transfer Mephisto Tao's calls to Nick. Even if you don't necessarily profit, at least you won't lose out."
Strange turned his head and glanced at Schiller, saying, "What's your phone number? If every unknown call could be redirected to you, Earth would have become a universal sanctuary."
"Alright, the issue with residual power is dealt with. Now, we need to figure out who Hela is looking for," Strange said.
"Definitely not an ordinary person, since Hell and the Underworld are not places where ordinary people can stay. She might be searching for another demonic deity from a different universe," Strange said as he opened a portal. "The good news is that paranormal events have been dealt with, but the bad news is that there might be another demonic deity lurking in some corner of Earth."
Schiller followed Strange through the portal and said, "Just don't let Nick know about this, or his blood pressure will skyrocket again."
Back in the room at Arkham Sanatorium, Strange was about to make a phone call. Schiller asked him, "What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to call Sanctum Sanctorum and ask if they know of any demonic deity who appears as a black-haired girl. That way, even if this demonic deity causes trouble, we can stop them in time," Strange replied.
"I advise against it because it might offend Hela. Haven't you noticed the hidden symbol she left behind? Maybe she wants you to secretly help her find someone," Schiller warned.
Strange sat down on the sofa and touched his face. He said, "She has no reason to do that. Why would she be so secretive? Who can harm her?... Oh, wait, there is someone. Could it be that Hela is afraid of the Ancient One? But the Sorcerer Supreme shouldn't be able to reach her in the Underworld."
"Don't forget, besides the Ancient One, there's Odin among the Nine Realms. Not only Odin, but Thor has also regained his godly powers and even made some progress. But it's more likely that the person Hela is looking for has a special identity..." Schiller added.
"The problem has come full circle. Who is this person?" Strange rested his elbow on the armrest of the sofa and pressed his forehead with his hand.
Just then, Schiller's mobile phone rang. Strange turned to Schiller, and Schiller answered the call, saying, "Hello? Peter?... What happened? How are things over there? Skeleton suddenly lost all its power and turned into a pile of bones? That's good news..."
"Great Sorcerer Supreme's successor, Strange, had a deal with the Demon, so the Lord of Hell, Mephisto, helped us deal with this trouble, but it brought us an even bigger problem..." Schiller was interrupted by a loud noise from Peter's side, followed by a chaotic commotion. Schiller heard Peter's voice as he took off into the air, followed by the sound of spider webs shooting.
After a series of "snap, thud, bang," Peter's exclamation and a female voice's cry sounded simultaneously. A few seconds later, Steve's voice came from a distance, saying, "Peter, are you okay?"
"I'm fine..." Peter was lying on the ground with a girl, or rather, a young woman, dressed in a black robe on top of him.
Steve stood a few meters away, not rushing over but assuming a defensive posture. He asked the girl, "Who are you? How did you suddenly fall from the sky, and why are there so many skeletons around?"
The girl in the black robe stood up, and Peter finally managed to get up from the ground. He brushed off the debris from his body and turned to look at the person beside him. Then he saw a fair and slender hand reaching out from under the black robe, removing the hood.
Schiller heard a voice from the other end of the phone, saying, "What the...?"
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