Li Yue wasn't the Ancient One. Though his power might surpass hers, he was still young and didn't have the centuries-old wisdom to see through everything effortlessly. The Ancient One might discern the root of Stephen Strange's problem with a glance, but Li Yue, even though he understood what caused it, couldn't pinpoint the exact reason.
Li Yue speculated that Strange's condition might be due to his unique constitution or the Time Stone. However, he had no clue how to cure it. Still, admitting that he had no solution would be embarrassing, so he decided to bluff a bit.
Stephen Strange had come to him early, so he couldn't let him leave without accomplishing something. Who knew if he would return in five years?
...
"I understand your situation, and I can tell you that curing your condition isn't difficult," Li Yue said slowly, sipping his tea with a mysterious air. "However, the key to your cure lies within you, not anyone else."
"The key lies within me?" Stephen's eyes lit up with hope as he addressed Li Yue with newfound respect. "Master Li Yue, what do you mean? Please explain!"
"We'll get to your treatment later. First, tell me, do you believe in magic?" Li Yue asked calmly.
"Magic?" Stephen was taken aback. "I'm a doctor, so I believe in science. Though the alien invasion of New York made me reconsider some things, I still think that what you call magic is just advanced technology that we don't understand yet."
Li Yue sighed inwardly. No wonder the Ancient One had to take drastic measures to make Strange believe in magic. His arrogance was a barrier.
"Do you not believe in the existence of magic?" Li Yue asked, smiling.
Stephen saw a hint of mischief in Li Yue's eyes. "What... what are you planning to do?"
"Nothing much. Just giving you a glimpse of a broader, more wondrous world," Li Yue replied, his smile widening.
Stephen felt a sudden surge of fear. He instinctively stood up and backed away from Li Yue. "Stay away from me!"
Li Yue found Stephen's reaction amusing. "Relax, I'm just going to show you something."
Before Stephen could react, Li Yue was suddenly in front of him. "How did you...?"
"Nothing is impossible," Li Yue said, touching Stephen's chest.
Stephen didn't feel any pain, but he was horrified to see his own body from an impossible angle. "Am I dead?"
The out-of-body experience was brief, but it left Stephen deeply shaken. When he found himself back in his body, he demanded, "What did you do to me? Did you drug me?"
"It seems you need a more profound experience," Li Yue said, not bothering to answer Stephen's question. With a wave of his hand, Stephen felt his body lift off the ground, rapidly ascending into space.
He found himself looking down at Earth and then experiencing visions similar to those in the movie, including battles with Thanos and Dormammu. Although these were illusions, they felt incredibly real to Stephen.
When he finally "returned" to his body, he was in a daze, struggling to comprehend what had just happened.
"So, do you still deny the existence of magic?" Li Yue asked with a calm smile.
Stephen was at a loss for words. His worldview had been shattered in an instant. "Can you teach me these things?" he asked, suppressing his astonishment.
"What do you think?" Li Yue replied with an unchanged smile.
...
A brilliant but arrogant neurosurgeon, Stephen Strange had his life turned upside down by a mysterious condition that no medical science could explain. Desperate, he had come to Kamar-Taj, seeking a cure. Little did he know, his journey into the mystical world was just beginning.