Knocking on the Door

K’un-Lun, a mysterious place.

It existed in a space independent of reality, using some unimaginable technology. Similar to Buddha’s Kingdom in the Palm or the Twenty-Four Heavens, it only appeared atop Kunlun Mountain once every ten years or so, connecting with the outside world through a very special "Kunlun Gate."

Many myths and legends throughout history were connected to it.

K’un-Lun was not large, merely a place resembling a city or town. Its architectural style was somewhat similar to Afterlife’s, following traditional ancient Chinese designs and filled with a familiar beauty.

Each time it came into contact with the real world, it was mainly to replenish resources and bring in fresh blood.

Madame Gao was a traitor to K’un-Lun. She had left with the Dragon Bone over a thousand years ago and never returned. Her memories of K’un-Lun remained frozen in that era.

In her impression, K’un-Lun was a quiet and peaceful place, similar to World of Warcraft’s Wandering Isle. There was little conflict. Everyone lived leisurely and harmoniously, and their relationships with one another were good.

They cultivated continuously, practiced martial arts, and kept fit. Most were not much different from ordinary people outside, aside from being slightly stronger physically and living longer. It was a land of longevity.

Only a very small number of people could cultivate "qi." Such people became K’un-Lun’s backbone and could even join the Council of Elders, becoming part of K’un-Lun’s upper ranks.

Madame Gao and the other four Five Fingers had all once been elders.

K’un-Lun’s highest authority was known as the "Jade Emperor," while beneath the Jade Emperor stood the "Thunder Lord."

The Jade Emperor and Thunder Lord were inevitably masters and grandmasters with profound cultivation. Though they had not obtained Shou-Lao’s power like the Iron Fist, their abundant True Qi gave them lifespans far longer than those of the other elders. Living for several centuries was no problem.

The Iron Fist’s power came from Shou-Lao. Once that power left Shou-Lao himself, it did not retain Shou-Lao’s immortality. An Iron Fist who received the power lived longer than an ordinary person, but would still eventually die of old age.

Thus, whenever an Iron Fist died, K’un-Lun would select a new one to defeat Shou-Lao, carve out Shou-Lao’s heart, perform a ritual, and inject Shou-Lao’s power into their own body.

Shou-Lao would then be reborn as a young dragon.

The longer the previous Iron Fist lived, the older Shou-Lao became and the more power he accumulated. The stronger the next Iron Fist would become as well.

According to Madame Gao’s investigations, K’un-Lun had already declined.

Starting with the Phoenix War several centuries ago, the replacement rate of the Iron Fist had steadily increased. No Iron Fist held the position for more than a century, while the shortest terms lasted only ten or twenty years.

Sometimes there was even a gap between generations. The previous Iron Fist had already died, but the next had yet to be chosen, forcing K’un-Lun to close its gates and cut off contact with the outside world.

The Kunlun People could open and close the gate whenever they wished. Once every ten years was merely a convention.

K’un-Lun generally did not welcome outsiders. Only those who passed its trials and swore to join K’un-Lun were permitted entry, especially the Iron Fist.

The Iron Fist bore the responsibility of guarding K’un-Lun. Unless there was an extremely urgent mission, he absolutely could not leave.

There were still roughly five years until the next ten-year opening.

But that did not mean there was no way in.

The Sling Ring could not directly open a portal to another space. Of course, that might have been because Old Wang was not powerful enough, but he was confident he could make the Kunlun People open the gate themselves.

He had a door-knocker.

And five of them, at that.

"Everyone, come over for a moment."

Old Wang directly sent out a message, calling all the core members over. He gave them a rough explanation of the situation, then looked at Ghost Rider. "Robbie, starting today, you’ll guard the house. While I’m gone, don’t let anyone cause trouble, especially Hydra and the people from Afterlife."

"Alright." Robbie nodded, greatly satisfying Old Wang.

Ghost Rider’s strength had been fully demonstrated in the battle against Hydra. At present, he was the strongest combat force besides Old Wang himself. Even if he were thrown into the Avengers Initiative ten years from now, he would probably count among the stronger members.

With him around, Old Wang was at ease.

Even if all the people from Afterlife were tied together, they would not be his match.

But that was still not enough.

After thinking it over, Old Wang added, "Little Red will help you."

Whoosh!

The Crimson Magic Belt, which had no idea where it had gone to flirt with respectable women, suddenly appeared before Old Wang. It gently stroked his face, then assumed a sorrowful expression as a mental ripple entered Old Wang’s mind.

I can’t bear to part with you.

"Stop fooling around."

Old Wang grabbed the Crimson Magic Belt and yanked it away. "Keep an eye on Gordon, and the missiles!"

The belt shook the air, producing whimpering sounds that were utterly aggrieved.

Old Wang could not be bothered with this improper waistband. He turned to Skye. "Skye, you’ll be in charge of everything. If Fury comes looking for me, tell him I’m in seclusion and that you can’t find me either."

Skye had originally wanted to go with Old Wang. She was very curious about the legendary K’un-Lun.

But upon hearing his words and seeing the look in his eyes, she instantly understood what he meant.

People’s hearts were hard to predict. The others might not necessarily be reliable.

Ghost Rider was too powerful. Robbie himself was not a problem, but the Spirit of Vengeance within him was hardly a good thing. It might cause trouble. Leaving behind the Crimson Magic Belt was supposedly to deal with Afterlife, but in truth, it was also to guard against the Spirit of Vengeance.

With Old Wang gone, only she had both the authority and the ability to manage everything.

With her strength and the Crimson Magic Belt, even if the Spirit of Vengeance caused trouble, she should be able to hold it back.

Thinking this, Skye had no choice but to nod. "Wang, go without worry. Don’t concern yourself with anything else. Leave it all to me."

Why did that sound like I was about to die… Old Wang turned to Fitz and Simmons. "All projects will proceed as usual. If there are any problems, seek Tony or Fury’s help in my name. Just offer them enough benefits. Continue Ms. Jia Ying’s Brain Mapping. Once it is completed, alter her memories according to Skye’s and Mr. Johnson’s requirements."

Simmons glanced at Fitz. Fitz hurriedly gestured with both hands as he asked, "Uh… Boss, you promised to help us find the very best scientists. It’s been over two months now…"

"I’ll definitely make good on it when I’m back!"

Old Wang replied, then immediately looked toward Daredevil, Stick, and Black Sky, changing the subject. "Stick, haven’t you always wanted to go to K’un-Lun? Matt, Elektra, you’re also members of the True Pure Ones Society. You’re all coming with me this time."

"K’un-Lun?"

Stick’s entire body could not help but tremble slightly.

Entering K’un-Lun had been the thousand-year dream of everyone in the True Pure Ones Society. Ever since they had lost contact with K’un-Lun and the Iron Fist, that dream had been shattered.

He had never expected it to finally come true in his generation. Stick suddenly felt incomparably fortunate, as though happiness had struck him senseless.

"There are still some preparations to make. I’ll give you one day. Arrange whatever needs arranging, and we’ll leave early tomorrow morning," Old Wang instructed.

He was decisive and efficient, but he also cared for his subordinates.

Stick was alone, with no family to worry about. There was nothing for him to arrange.

Elektra still had a company under her name, with several hundred people depending on her for their livelihoods. Though she was used to being a hands-off boss, no one knew how long this trip would take. K’un-Lun existed in another space and they would have no way to contact the outside world, so she needed to make proper arrangements with the company’s senior management.

Matt also had to explain things to his best friend.

Early the next morning, Elektra took the controls as a Quinjet flew toward K’un-Lun.

The modified Quinjet was extremely fast. Several hours later, it entered China.

Old Wang specifically had Elektra maintain a low altitude. Looking down at the magnificent rivers and mountains, the dense skyscrapers of the cities, the highways and railways stretching like dragons, and the winding Yangtze River and Yellow River, he felt somewhat melancholy and sorrowful.

The terrain and landscape were no different from his life two reincarnations ago, but many things were no longer familiar.

Those familiar people were gone, as if they had never existed.

The places remained, but the people had changed.

"This isn’t my homeland, my motherland…"

Old Wang shook his head hard, casting off those gloomy emotions as he looked into the distant sky.

They flew over the Pearl River, the Yangtze River, the Huai River, and the Yellow River; over the Qinling, Yellow Mountain, and Mount Tai. After circling the entire land and taking in its mountains, rivers, lakes, and peaks, they finally arrived at that mysterious mountain range.

The Kunlun Mountains.

China’s dragon vein, the homeland of countless gods.

Ancient memories had already grown blurred. Old Wang had Elektra maintain a low altitude, confirmed the approximate location, then got off the plane and began searching on foot.

Elektra continued piloting the aircraft, circling overhead with the others.

Old Wang walked across the endless snowy mountains as if on level ground, searching slowly according to Madame Gao’s memories.

Time could not erode the mountains that had stood since antiquity, but the shifting snow added a layer of disguise, making the place difficult to identify.

It took a full two days before he finally found it.

It was at the peak of a mountain. At the end of a narrow mountain path lay a not-too-large snow-covered platform, while beyond the other side was a bottomless cliff.

The place was not large, only a few thousand square meters. It could not possibly hold a city, or even a village.

K’un-Lun was essentially a high-tech alien spacecraft.

At some point thousands, tens of thousands, or perhaps even millions of years ago, a spacecraft of unknown origin had crashed in the Kunlun Mountains. For reasons long forgotten by all, it formed an independent space—or rather, an extra dimension.

Though this extra dimension was far inferior to the Crimson Cosmos, the Dark Dimension, or Asgard from Norse Mythology, it was not small.

The spacecraft could not be repaired. To survive, the aliens aboard had used it as their core to construct the city of "K’un-Lun."

There were too few aliens, forcing them to intermarry with Earthlings. The current Kunlun People were in fact mixed descendants of aliens and Earthlings, similar to Inhumans—

As for how they overcame reproductive barriers, that was not difficult for a high-tech race.

As long as one broke free of moral and ethical restraints, spreading one’s seed among all things was not particularly difficult.

Because their population was small, and because time had steadily eroded their memories, the Kunlun People had long lost their original level of technology. In fact, due to shutting themselves away, their technology had only declined rather than advanced, leaving them even more primitive than the outside world.

This platform was merely where the Kunlun Gate was located. The true K’un-Lun was hidden in another dimension.

And to find that dimension, a mere door-knocker was certainly not enough.

It was not that K’un-Lun had no interest in five traitors who had lived for a thousand years. The main issue was that it was not yet time for the gate to open, so they could not see them either…

The existence of any space would alter space itself, turning smooth space uneven, creating ripples. Dimensions were the same.

Ordinary people could not sense such abnormalities, but equipment with sufficiently advanced technology could. So could powerful spiritual power and spells.

World of Warcraft had many dimensions similar to K’un-Lun, such as the four elemental planes and the Emerald Dream. Even the Archmages of Dalaran possessed the ability to compress, extend, fold, and alter space. An Archmage’s residence was often much larger than it appeared.

Karazhan, for example.

Because he had seen so many changes in time and space, Old Wang was extremely sensitive to them.

Once he spread out his spiritual senses, he quickly detected the spatial changes. There was a spatial isolation layer similar to a "world barrier," far weaker than the barrier between the four elemental planes and Azeroth.

But it was still very strong.

Perhaps only the Ancient One could forcibly break through it on the entire Earth.

Unless he was willing to spend enough Dragon Bone to exchange for sufficiently powerful spells, even Old Wang had no way to enter.

Of course, he had never intended to force his way in.

He was a guest, not an enemy.

The barrier was huge, perfectly outlining K’un-Lun’s shape. It resembled an enormous egg, and the platform’s location was at one end of that giant egg, as well as the barrier’s weakest point.

"You can land now," Old Wang sent.

The Quinjet soon landed. Matt, Stick, and Elektra dragged the five unconscious Five Fingers down.

"Have we reached K’un-Lun?"

Stick looked at Old Wang, his eyes filled with longing. "Great Immortal Iron Fist, please open the Kunlun Gate!"

"…Actually, I’m not the Iron Fist." Old Wang fell silent for two seconds before speaking.

A lie was a lie. It would have to be exposed eventually.

Rather than let someone else expose it, he might as well admit it himself.

Stick froze, then shook his head with a bitter smile. "Actually, I guessed it a long time ago."

Old Wang had opened the Five Fingers’ memories to them.

From those memories, they had learned about K’un-Lun and the Iron Fist.

Master Wang’s True Qi was powerful, but it was completely different from the Iron Fist’s power. There was no way to fake it.

Stick did not resent him.

From beginning to end, Master Wang had never personally claimed to be the Iron Fist. Stick had merely assumed it on his own.

But it did not matter.

At least he was about to see K’un-Lun. One of his dreams would finally come true.

And besides…

"Master Wang, you came to K’un-Lun to become the new Iron Fist, correct?" Stick asked.

"Of course." Old Wang nodded.

Stick smiled.

That was enough.

The only question now was how Master Wang intended to open the Kunlun Gate.

After all, the only power capable of opening the Kunlun Gate from the outside was the power of the Iron Fist…

"Move aside, all of you."

Old Wang had everyone retreat. He calmed his mind and gathered every bit of True Qi throughout his body.

Then he suddenly threw a punch.

An incomparably powerful force collided with the spatial barrier protecting K’un-Lun.

Massive energy erupted, forming a terrifying shockwave. The thick snow covering the platform was instantly swept clean, followed by a continuous scraping sound as the Quinjet was pushed back more than ten meters.

Then came an even greater roar.

An avalanche.

The entire mountain began to avalanche.

The surging energy did not destroy the spatial barrier, but it made the entire barrier vibrate.

Ordinary people could not perceive that vibration, but masters and grandmasters with sufficiently powerful spiritual strength certainly could.

Such as K’un-Lun’s elders.

Since he could not open the door, he would knock.

That was knocking on the door.

But knocking was not enough, because he might be an enemy.

However, if he brought sufficiently valuable gifts, he would naturally be a guest.

With his right hand behind his back, Old Wang stood as the five Five Fingers automatically flew before him, arranged in a perfectly straight row, their highly recognizable faces aimed at K’un-Lun.

The terrifying attack had created tiny cracks in the spatial barrier. Seizing the opportunity, Old Wang condensed his voice into a beam that echoed throughout K’un-Lun.

"Friend of the Ancient One, bearing K’un-Lun’s traitors, has come to call!"

Meanwhile, at Kamar-Taj.

Within the Hall of Agamotto, the Ancient One sensed something.

"Strong energy and spatial fluctuations have appeared in the Kunlun Mountains. Is someone forcibly shaking the Kunlun Gate?"

With a wave of her hand, a smooth mirror appeared, displaying Old Wang’s figure within.

Looking at the retreating Quinjet, the swirling snowflakes, and the avalanche farther away, a trace of confusion appeared on the Ancient One’s calm, expressionless face.

Master Wang’s strength seemed to have increased considerably since their last meeting—roughly tenfold?

Wasn’t that rate of improvement a little too fast?

Thinking of that fellow’s constant disguises, she smiled faintly and decided not to interfere.

Master Wang would not cause any harm to K’un-Lun. If he became the Immortal Iron Fist, it would bring K’un-Lun nothing but benefits.

She was just about to cancel the spell.

When Old Wang’s voice came from the mirror.